by Ken Barrett
“The mountain people are afraid of technology,” he replied. “Having robots living among us will cause unrest.”
“Ah, ok, now I understand,” she answered. “You’re not worried about Liam and Rose, you’re afraid the people will lose faith in you, and you’ll be kicked out of office.”
Their argument was droning on, and again Liam lost interest. He recalled seeing a large shielded crate of radioactive carbon-14 diamonds in one of the level three stockrooms. These were components that could be linked together in a matrix to produce a clean and easily shielded energy source that had a half-life of nearly six thousand years.
The pattern for the diamond mesh to create what was called an infinite battery was developed in Flatiron City for the Mountain Tribes, which was at war with the Socialist Army at the time. The invention was key to their victory because the socialist laser weapons lacked a long-lasting power source.
Once he was fully awake, he would ask Roxi to requisition the entire stock of radioactive diamonds. With those supplies, he would increase the density of the Flatiron City battery design and configure them to fit within his and his sister’s bodies. A quick calculation indicated that with the new power source in place, they could live outside without any issue other than discomfort from the oppressive heat.
“Why do you hate us?” That was Rose’s voice; she must have awoken and was participating in the conversation.
His body indicated that it was operating at 97% efficiency, so he quietly eased the wet sheet aside and stared up at the dark granite ceiling.
“You don’t understand,” the commander was saying. “I don’t hate inanimate objects, even those that are inconvenient such as you and your brother.”
“My brother and I are animate; we can move around just fine. Also, the fact that I’m arguing with you clearly shows that we’re alive and self-aware,” Rose said. “And by the way, my brother’s awake and listening in.”
Beside him, Rose sat upright on her bed, while Commander Davis and Roxi faced each other in the aisle beyond. Further away, Keith, Denise, Tiger, and Alice watched the drama unfold. Liam slowly sat up under the hostile gaze of the commander. “I would have joined in, but your discussion was pointless.”
“What do you mean?” Commander Davis asked.
“Your arguments are futile because you still need us. It simply doesn’t matter if we are sentient or not, without us, the ventilation system wouldn’t be repaired and everyone would have suffocated by now. Problems like that will continue to occur, so you need to keep us around.” He swung his legs over the side of the bed and slowly stood up. The remains of his clothing hung from his pale body in burnt tatters, so he wrapped the sheet around himself.
“You make my point for me, as machines you fulfill your function adequately, that’s all.” The older man stared at him coldly. “You’re not a person because you’re not alive.”
“Are you alive? If so, prove it.” Liam smiled. “Every aspect you can point to as a sign of life, my sister and I have as well.”
“Hmm,” the commander grunted. “I shouldn’t have allowed that girl to let you in.” He sighed. “But I suppose the work you do adds value, so, you can stay for now.” The old man turned and marched away.
Their friends crowded around them, but in the distance, a large group of people stared at them hostilely. Jackie, the young girl they had rescued just days before, was among them.
“Wow, that was crazy, huh?” Tiger’s good arm was draped over Alice’s shoulders.
“You know,” Alice said. “No one knows where the Fairy Folk went. Legend says they went back into the earth, and are waiting to come back someday. So, if you don’t mind, I’ll keep telling everyone that’s what you are.”
“You’re sweet,” Rose said. “And I heard Tiger say that you’re the one that convinced them to open the door for us.”
“Aye, that’s true,” Patrick said as he and his wife Kelly joined them. “And we still believe the old legends too. The Fairy Folk were a mystery, you could well be them.”
“We’ll do our best to live up to your beliefs,” Liam replied. “My sister and I owe you a debt.”
“Everyone in the shelter knows that you two aren’t human,” Roxi stated. “Paul told everyone that you are robots that were built in Flatiron City.”
“It’s probably better to be seen as magic rather than technology,” Rose stated.
“That’s true, especially with this lot,” Kelly said softly. “You have hard days ahead.”
Liam smiled. “We’ll keep helping people, and maybe with enough time and work they won’t see us as monsters anymore.”
“You and Rose got the ventilation system working again,” Roxi stated. “Everyone knows you guys are responsible for that, which may go part of the way toward their acceptance.”
“I hope so,” Rose responded.
*****
With sheets still wrapped around them, they left the Engineering Center and began their walk up to their apartments on level five. Most people grudgingly stepped aside to let them pass, but as they neared the upward ramp, Jackie stood defiantly in their way.
Tears flooded her eyes. “I thought you were my friends.”
“We are,” Liam replied.
“But you’re not real!” Jackie’s breath shook as she fought for control.
The girl was too young to understand philosophical arguments. “Does that matter? My sister and I feel and think and act just like anyone else you know. Now we’re sad that you don’t like us anymore, but we hope that if we work hard, we can be friends again.”
Jackie wiped her runny nose on her sleeve. “I’m scared of you now, but I guess, maybe that can change.”
“Thank you, Jackie,” he said. “We’ll work hard to win back your trust.”
“I don’t think so,” A burly young man pushed Jackie aside and blocked their way. “I heard you was put together by the socialists, and I’m pretty sure that a soul wasn’t some part sittin’ on their shelves.” He looked over his shoulder as several other young men stepped up behind him. “Socialists had lots of magic tech stuff; rumor has it that they made the sun explode and built your kind to kill off anybody that was still alive.”
“Really?” Rose smiled confidently as she stepped forward. “Then why did we repair the outside vents? If we were supposed to murder you all, we could have just stayed inside and watched everyone die.”
“No one can cause cosmic events,” Liam added. “But, to get everything out in the open, I’m going to tell you the complete truth; it might piss you off, but I’m sick of telling lies.”
“Yeah, ok,” the young man said cautiously.
“During the war, Flatiron City made weapons for both the Tribes and the Socialists. Our creation was a project for one side or the other, but I don’t know which. We were supposed to be soldiers, but the project failed because we wouldn’t follow orders and refused to hurt anyone. So, you see, our failure ensures your safety.”
The young man seemed to relax. “You’re sayin’ that you won’t hurt us, even though we locked you outside?” He shrugged. “If I was you, I’d be pissed off.”
“There’s a wide space between being angry and becoming violent,” Rose said. “You nearly killed us, and we’re mad about that, but we won’t hurt you.”
“Maybe you ain’t that much like us then,” the man replied. “I’d be lookin’ for someone’s ass to kick.”
A young woman with long blonde hair came forward. “But what’s the story of you guys living with Keith and Denise? Are they robots too?” Murmurs floated through the crowd behind her.
“Keith and Denise are human, just like you,” Rose answered. “They’re our partners, and we love them,”
“Oh, that’s gross,” the woman said. “Lovin’ a machine is just wrong.”
“We can talk about that another day,” Liam said. “I know it will take time to rebuild trust, but let us help and show you that we mean no harm.”
“Yeah, I gues
s.” The man stepped aside.
Liam smiled confidently as they made their way through the crowd. Maybe they could win over the population, and eventually, things would work out fine.
Chapter 7: Trial
Denise stirred beside him, then rolled over and laid her head on his chest and sighed. “It’s good to be home.”
“Yeah, this is nice.” Liam gently ran his fingers through her hair. “It’s only here with you that I can relax.”
“I was terrified when I saw you come back inside yesterday,” she said. “It’s stupid, but I assumed that nothing could ever hurt you. I saw you get shot in Pike City, and watched as your body healed itself, so I wasn’t worried when you went outside, but you nearly died, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, it was close; a few more minutes in the vestibule and we would’ve been gone. But the ventilation repairs had to be done or everyone in the shelter would have died. Rose and I were the only ones that had a chance of surviving out there, so we didn’t have much choice.”
“Were you scared?”
He paused to consider her question. “Maybe, I knew the risks and was concerned, but it could be that my kind doesn’t cling to life the way yours does. I’ve not thought about that before, and now I’m curious as to why that might be.”
“You spend way too much time inside your head,” she murmured. “But that’s probably just a personality trait rather than anything to do with the stuff you’re made from.”
“There’s not enough of us around to know; we have no one but my sister for comparison.”
Denise pulled away from his embrace and sat cross-legged on their mattress. “Have you ever thought of changing that? Maybe you could build others like yourself.”
“That’d be pretty dangerous considering people’s reactions to learning about us.” He swung his legs out from under the covers and sat at the edge of their bed. “Maybe someday, after the world has healed and we don’t have to live underground anymore. I’d need a lot of specialized equipment though, and with the solar flare burning everything above ground, that could be hard to find.”
She chuckled softly. “You know, with just my suggestion, I’ll bet you’re already drawing schematics and making plans.”
He smiled, Denise was right; problems were intriguing puzzles that begged for solutions and drew him in, and once caught up in the maze of possibilities they presented, he had trouble letting them go. “You know me too well,” he said at last.
“Well, you’re really easy to read.” She sighed. “I wish we could spend the whole day here, but Mr. Bigshot has assigned jobs to everyone, so we’d better get a move on.”
“Well, it’s still early, so Commander Davis, aka Mr. Bigshot, can wait another half hour.”
Denise frowned. “That’s not long enough.”
“It’s not the time, it’s how we use it,” he said and pulled her into his arms.
*****
Rose stood with her hands on her hips beside Keith in the hallway. “What took you guys so long?”
“What’s your hurry?” Liam asked. “It isn’t like the rocks that we’re supposed to move are getting impatient.”
“Yeah, there’s that, but there are also a bunch of pissed off folks in the cafeteria waiting for you,” Keith said. “Getting breakfast is gonna be a bitch.”
Denise frowned. “I thought all that crap was settled yesterday.”
“I guess not,” Keith replied.
“How should we handle this?” Denise asked.
“Rose and I can deal with physical aggression better than you two,” Liam stated. “Why don’t you guys head down the west ramps and eat together in the level nine cafeteria, while Rose and I take the east ramps and meet the problem head-on at level six?”
“No,” Keith insisted. “We won’t take the coward’s way out; you’re our partners and we’ll stand by you.”
“I agree with Keith,” Denise stated.
“No, Liam’s right.” Rose touched her boyfriend’s arm. “Fear makes people dangerous, so there’s bound to be trouble at first. Eventually, they’ll see that we’re not a threat and will learn to accept us. Until then though, the safest thing for us all would be for you both to stay away from us in public.”
*****
They heard the rumble of angry voices as they walked down the ramp to level six, where a belligerent crowd blocked their way.
“You tricked us,” a short man with dark hair said.
“You lied,” a tall blonde woman added.
“No, we didn’t Nadine, we’ve always been our genuine selves,” Rose said. “The topic of what we’re made of never came up.”
“But you should have told us that you’re not like us,” Nadine insisted.
“Why? In every other way we’re the same,” Rose stated. “If someone has a mechanical leg, or arm, or heart, does that make them not human? Our values and beliefs are just like yours. We feel pain, joy, heartache, and love just like everyone else, so why should we advertise a trivial difference?”
There was no way for any of those present to know, but his sister’s arguments weren’t entirely genuine. Only their partners and closest friends were fully aware of the greater and lesser aspects of their mental and physical abilities.
“We’ve helped you,” Liam said. “The ventilation system wasn’t working, and it was those differences you’re upset about that made it possible for us to go outside and fix it. Instead of persecuting us, you should celebrate our talents because they kept you alive.”
The rabble quieted, but their faces still showed suspicion and hostility. “Are you the only robots here?” Nadine asked.
“Well, we’re not robots, but yes,” Liam replied. “There’s just my sister and me.”
Nadine frowned. “How do we know if that’s true?”
“I suppose there’s no way to prove it,” Rose said. “My brother and I were sort of born in Flatiron City. We were a research project; they were trying to build soldiers who would blindly follow orders and kill without remorse. We were a failure because we didn’t turn out that way, and that’s why they didn’t make any more of us.”
“Why didn’t they just scrap you?” Nadine asked.
“Because we discovered that they had souls,” Roxi said from the back of the crowd. “To scrap them would have been murder.”
“So, you’re sayin’ that they’re alive?” Nadine shook her head.
“Yes, of course, they are,” Roxi replied.
“They can’t be,” Nadine persisted. “Only God can create a soul.”
“You shouldn’t think that,” Roxi said. “Remember all the people that died during the religious crusades back in the mid-twenty-first century? Millions, maybe even billions were killed because we just couldn’t accept people with different views than our own. Too many religions state that their deity is the only one, and their way is the only truth, and anyone who thinks otherwise should die. We can’t allow ourselves to repeat the brutality of those times.”
An older man pushed through the crowd and glared at Liam. “But sometimes the devil is real.”
“My sister and I aren’t devils,” Liam responded. “Can you think of anything we’ve done that hurt anyone?”
“No,” the man said grudgingly.
Jackie stepped out from the crowd. “Were you human once?”
“Hi honey.” Rose smiled. “My brother and I don’t remember being anything other than ourselves.”
“Oh.” Jackie frowned. “I guess I don’t either.”
“Maybe they’re better than human,” Roxi stated. “Liam and Rose ask for nothing, and their only desire is to help us. On the other hand, let’s consider ourselves and what our kind has done. Long ago, great civilizations covered the earth. We’ve all seen the ruins of their cities, the wonders of them; the technology, yes, but also the great art in their museums. It’s tempting to assume that our ancestors were good and wise, but jealousy and corruption were at the heart of their seeming nobility. Even today, long after
the fall, if we look in the mirror what do we see? Intolerance, anger, and violence. Nothing’s changed.”
Commander Davis moved through the throng and stepped forward to face them. “What we’ve just heard is outrageous.” He looked at Liam and Rose and shook his head disparagingly. “How could these machines ever be greater than their creators? They’re abominations, and I should never have allowed them to live among us.”
“Well, we can fix that today!” the older man shouted. “I say we throw ‘em out. Get rid of ‘em. We didn’t wreck the planet; it was technology that did it. Get them out, and let us go back to the old natural ways.”
“It wasn’t the tool that destroyed civilization, it was the hand that wielded it,” Roxi stated.
Angry shouts echoed through the large open space of the cafeteria, and the commander turned and held his hands up to calm the crowd. “We’ll have a trial right now and figure out what to do with these two.”
*****
Liam and Rose stood with their backs pressed to a granite wall that separated the cafeteria from the surrounding maze of apartments. Before them, Commander Davis glowered, and behind him, a crowd of spectators stared with open hostility. A fair outcome of their trial seemed unlikely.
“It’s time we decided what we should do with this pair of imposters,” the commander began. “They are machines, pretending to be human. Not born from an act of love between woman and man, but constructed with the same ostentatious pride and vainglory that destroyed our once beautiful world. They are endemic of the evils of unbridled advancement in technology and are not human at all, but simply useful machines.”
“We’re no threat to you,” Liam insisted. “Why are you doing this? We’ve only tried to help.”
“As machines are intended to do,” their leader said. “But pretending to be human makes a travesty of our faith in you.”
“And to take humans as partners.” Nadine stepped forward. “That’s disgusting.” Many within the crowd shouted in agreement.
