Chapter 11
Chapter eleven
Anna
Anna’s footsteps were heavy with mud clinging to her soles.
Atlas was bringing them to the facility, with the sun now low in the sky.
They walked to where the ship had initially landed, next to a large structure that Anna had only glanced at before.
Now, in front, she shrank back in the shade of the tall building.
No building this big existed on Earth, except maybe the power plant.
Her eyes traveled up over the sprawling structure.
The complex was easily as big as the spacecraft and showed no signs of wear.
And, after the walk in nature, it seemed completely out of place in the forested background.
Everything on Earth was covered in dust and run-down, not pristine or polished like this.
In front of the structure, a line of androids stood so still they could have been part of the building itself. Several models appeared to repeat in order. The only ones Anna recognized were the model-Ms, all looking like Zero—one of the friendlier androids on board.
She did a quick count. Close to half of the androids lined up looked like he did.
“Why am I not seeing . . .” Nora elbowed Simon. “Any others that look like you?”
Simon chuckled low. “I was a custom order.”
“Oh,” Nora answered with a small laugh of her own. “Were you now?”
Anna kicked at the dirt in front of the facility, noting that the dirt darkened in color as they came closer. The dirt was red. Martian red.
“Incredible.” Simon put his hand on the facility’s wall. “This is beyond what was produced on Earth in my time. My sensors say it’s a synthetic carbon fiber?”
“Not quite,” Atlas stiffly answered. “The majority of this structure was initially made on Earth and brought here before the war broke out. We then continued modifying and expanding as the atmospheric conditions improved.”
Anna pressed her fingers on the warmed outside. “This feels like the spaceship walls.”
The androids lining the building still watched. A few tilted their heads almost in unison. Tilly followed behind them, waving at each android in turn. The Zero lookalikes were the only ones that waved back. Now, closer in, more variation showed in skin tone and hair color between them.
“Over there.” Atlas waved over toward the facility. “There’s a manufacturing sector beyond this facility where all the items we send to Earth are produced for the charity drops we provide.”
Anna looked up at the building that stretched out for miles.
There’s another side? Mars suddenly felt much larger than it had when she was watching on the feed from the spaceship.
A moment later, the door opened, revealing a large entryway with windows on the sides that let light in.
The only reference she had for the size were large religious ruins just out of town.
The interior had windows up high along the sides as those long-lost churches, without any of the holy references.
Here though, unlike any church she knew, there were only more curved metal walls and no stained glass.
Instead, the entryway was large, but splintered off into hallways that appeared to endlessly travel deeper within the structure.
“This is gigantic,” she whispered, walking in.
“Welcome, Welcome!” Stella’s voice echoed in the hall. “I see you finally made it here!”
“Yes, we explored some. It’s beautiful—“ Anna started to say.
But Stella had already turned into the hall, ignoring her. “We have been waiting for hours. I’ll bring you to your quarters, and. . .”
“I’ll do that, Stella.” Atlas stepped in front of her. “There are some sights I want to show them on the way.”
“Oh.” The smile on Stella’s face faltered. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.” Atlas said, crossing his arms. “I think dinner still needed some preparations?”
"No. Everything is fine."
"That's not what I heard," Atlas said. "I think they need your help more there."
Stella's smile faltered a second time.
Anna glanced between the two, a sixth sense making the hair on her arms raise. Stella quickly recovered her smile, not seeming to want to challenge Atlas.
She opened her mouth to say more but more androids walked into the room, past her. Zero was at the front, fully identifiable by the way his shock of blond hair stood up on top. He glared at Stella, who stepped even further back.
"I will check on dinner then!“ Stella said, eyes lingering on Zero. “I will see everyone there, after all!”
She walked away a second later, heels clicking harder on the tile. Her blonde hair swishing in agitation from behind.
Anna watched her exit. Something wasn’t quite right. But that was forgotten as Zero ran to greet them, wearing a familiar grin.
He peered, too close, at her face. “Did you get a sunburn?”
“Yes,” Simon answered for them. “We could stay out there all day, but the humans couldn’t take it.”
“Uh, excuse me?” Nora scrunched her face. “Speak for yourself.”
“Sorry.” Simon smirked. “I meant I needed a break. This outdated hardware is wearing on me.”
She leaned on him. “Better.”
“These are all my brothers. All model-Ms.” Zero pointed behind himself. “Well, not all of them. But find one of us if you need anything. We handle most of the maintenance things here, as you know.”
The similar androids all smiled back, most wearing a mesh jersey like Zero in front of them. Some had numbers sewn in. A few weren’t wearing a shirt at all. Their bodies ranged in color from alabaster to a dark brown with facial features that subtly changed.
Anna took a step back, watching their eyes follow her. Are all the androids like this? The row of almost identical Zeros made her dizzy. “I’m going to get confused.”
A laugh rolled through the line of model-Ms.
“Don’t worry.” Zero smiled. “We’re easy. All the model-Ms have number names. Except for Carl, who wanted to be different. And Infinity, who had to be special. Having the same name on top of looking alike would be too much.”
“Oh. Yes.” Anna stifled a laugh. “That would be way too much.”
The model-Ms all fixated on her laugh, nudging each other.
“Ohh!” Tilly went right up to each, far too close, before Nora took her arm and pulled her back.
“Your clothing is wet.” Thirteen hid a smile behind his hand.
“Oh yeah.” Tilly pointed to her wet sleeves. “Did you know there is a lake? Do you swim? I went in!”
“Yes, we know.” Thirteen rubbed his chin. “It looks like you all did.”
Right. Anna became acutely aware of her clothing. Dirty and wet. Very imperfect compared to any of the androids.
Zero held his hand out to Simon as they passed. “Come find me after you’re settled, Simon. I’ll help with the outdated hardware.”
Simon nodded. “Will do.”
“What’s outdated?” Nora asked. “Will it change anything?”
“No.” Zero pressed a finger to his mouth. “Unless you want him to be changed?”
“What?” Nora’s mouth hung open.
Another laugh from the model-Ms.
“No, it won’t change anything. Zero is messing with you.” Simon put an arm around her. “Sorry, you’re stuck with me. The upgrades will let me access their communal mind better—that is all.”
“Okay.” Nora worried her lip. “As long as that’s it.”
Anna, though, kept her eyes on her footsteps. Her muddy, wet footsteps. Everything was grand and impressive. And all she wanted was a broom to sweep behind her, making sure they didn’t leave any dirt as they walked.