Chapter 13
Chapter thirteen
Anna
Anna held her breath as the doorway opened. A few steps inside was a sitting area with couches similar to the ones Nora had in her tiny house, only these were in much better repair. Hell, that bar wasn’t very high though. Anything without scratches or stains, or even uneven padding, would qualify.
Multiple video feeds were set up throughout the room, with each one having their own seating arrangement.
The room was quiet except for the video feed playing in the foreground.
All the other screens that lined the room were black.
Clustered on the longest blue couch were two elderly humans, facing a screen.
Anna swallowed. They are humans, right? They had to be. Why would anyone make an android so aged? Or give them imperfect skin? Their mannerisms were off though, and they stared back at her in an inhuman way.
Lights flashed from the screen, along with fake laughter. The old woman on the left grabbed a small rectangle and clicked it rapidly until the noises got quieter. Colors still danced over the cushions in the living room in a dizzying pattern. Television. Movies?
Anna’s fingers returned to worrying in front of her. Everything in this facility was clean and perfect, and she was sweaty and had dirt on her shoes. She attempted again to smooth down her windswept hair.
There was even a mud stain on her bottom and dirt under her fingernails. I am the dirtiest thing in here. She amended the thought a second later, after seeing Tilly with her pants still half wet from the lake. Well, we all are.
Tilly scrambled toward the flashing lights, past the two humans, and walked up very close to the screen. The colors danced across her slack face. “What’s that?”
Simon followed her, pulling her back to sit on the couch. “Old programs, television shows from my time.”
“That’s so cool!”
“Yes, look, there are even commercials.”
Anna tore her gaze away from the moving pictures and focused on the two humans instead. She fidgeted as they seemed frozen, watching. I’ve never seen any humans like this before.
But . . . best foot forward! She smiled. “Hello.”
“Oh. It’s them.” The elderly woman on the right had faded blond hair tightly curled around her pale face, with pale blue eyes over a frown. She whispered, “The new humans.”
“They must be.” The other had thin strands of brown hair that flopped as she moved. “Oh, look Pearl. That one is very pregnant. They never told us that.”
“No they didn’t.” A heavy scowl etched Pearl’s face, drawing focus to a brown mole on her upper lip. “They never tell us anything. They must have left it out on purpose.”
Anna quickly exchanged a glance with Nora, then looked back at the elderly humans.
They wore matching suits like Anna had been given.
Only theirs were clean and starched and without the extra stitching she had done to expand hers to fit her pregnant stomach.
She studied them as they openly studied her.
How could humans look so different? She had never seen anyone anywhere near as old.
An android came from the other room, almost identical to Atlas. The dark brown hair and hazel eyes mostly matched, but this one had a deeper complexion and a smattering of freckles. Anna glanced between the two of them in a double take. “Atlas?”
“No.” Atlas said. “That’s Sterling. Another of the E series. He oversees the medical care here.”
“Welcome!” Sterling greeted them first. “We have been expecting you. Ria? Pearl?” He gestured them forward. “The new humans from Earth are here to see you.”
Both of the humans stared as they came closer, matching shocked expressions on their faces.
“Come now!” Sterling shook everyone’s hand in turn. “I am Sterling, in charge of all medical issues here in the human area.”
Simon left Tilly’s side to come to Nora, putting his arm around her. “I’m Simon. I am bonded with Nora, and our daughter, Tilly. And next to us is Anna.”
“Hello.” Anna took a tentative step forward, rubbing a hand behind her neck. “I’m Anna. Yeah. No hiding that I’m pregnant. What was that saying you said, Simon? Bun in the oven?”
“You got it.” Simon said. “Anna is eight months pregnant with a baby girl.”
Sterling examined them in the same clinical way Anna remembered Atlas doing when she initially met him. “Yes. It is nice to meet you. I have been looking over all the notes from day one. I feel like I know you all already.”
Anna looked back at Atlas, then at Sterling again. “Are there many others of you?”
Atlas smiled, and she noted it was not nearly as stiff as Sterling’s fixed, clinical one. “No. There were more before, but only he and I have survived time.”
“So . . .” Nora slowly asked. “How many of Simon’s custom models are here?”
Simon smirked. “Thinking of upgrading?”
“Never.”
“I’m still not able to access the mainframe.” Simon’s eyes moved rapidly. “Are there any others with my specifications?”
Sterling tilted his head. “No, unfortunately.”
Nora poked at Simon’s side. “What were you custom designed for?”
“Oh, Nora.” Simon looked at her flatly. “You know.”
Twin spots of color appeared on Nora’s cheeks. “Oh. Yeah.”
Anna snickered, then immediately stopped. Ria and Pearl crept forward as a unit until they stood level with Atlas. Next to him, in his silicone perfection, they appeared even more aged and weathered.
Ria pulled on Pearl’s sleeve, pointing to Tilly. “That child is getting mud all over the couch.”
Anna’s heart fell. That was something Paul would have said.
Ria and Pearl’s stern expressions did not change, however, as they turned from Simon to look at Anna, then to her pregnant stomach a second later.
She rested her arms across her front protectively. “Did you know we were coming today?”
Ria cleared her throat, but her voice was still a rasp. “We knew. But it’s different . . . seeing you now.”
What was different? The way they talked definitely was. Both Ria and Pearl had an odd, clipped dialect, unlike the drawl both Nora and Anna shared, or the androids’ placating perfection. Their speech was different enough that Anna had to mentally replay what she’d said in her head to understand.
“Sorry, we will clean up the couch.” Nora followed Tilly over to the screen. “Tilly—get down, okay? We can see what that is later. Come say hello.” She picked up the rectangle on the couch. “How the hell do you turn this screen off? Simon?”
Simon held out the rectangle and the screen went black.
“Hi!” Tilly came right up to the women, smiling. “I’m Tilly! We went swimming in the lake earlier. I’ll show you my dolls later, okay? They are still on the ship.”
The two women glanced at each other, then back at Tilly.
Tilly kept talking. “We have a cat too! Tatertot! I think he will like it here. He used to be outside a lot before.”
“You went swimming in the lake?” Pearl’s nose wrinkled. “Is that why you’re covered in mud now? Are you from the wilds back on Earth?”
Nora pulled Tilly to her chest. “We’re from Earth, yes. But this is from just outside, in nature.”
Behind them, Sterling silently observed, standing as stiffly as Stella and the rest of the androids that had stood outside to greet them.
Atlas angled himself ahead of Anna. “Sterling? Can they pick any room?”
Before Sterling could respond, Pearl’s eyes went large. “They are going to live with us? But they’re from the desert. How do we know they’re safe?”
“I’m not dangerous!” Tilly piped up, blond hair flying as she jumped. “The other kids are!”
A shudder seemed to go through them both. Ria shook her blond ringlets, taking a deep breath. “All of Earth is dangerous.”
Pearl's hazel eyes narrowed. “What is it like then? We were told Earth is awful. And full of people who would hurt our androids.”
How do I answer that? Anna forced a smile. “Well. Here it is definitely prettier. That’s for sure.”
Ria’s eyebrows raised. “You are all so young.”
Anna didn’t state the obvious, even though every fiber of her body screamed it. And you are so old.
So old the entire gulf of humanity could fit in between them. And Anna could think of no way to bridge the distance across the pristine tiled floor.
Atlas took a step forward. “Anna, Nora, and Tilly are safe. I can vouch for them myself. I’m sure you all will have lots to share once the shock wears off.”
Pearl echoed. “Safe?”
Ria scoffed. “But how do we know? We said when you asked before that we didn’t know if we wanted to meet them. And now? They’re living here? You’re forcing this on us.” A sneer crossed her wrinkled face. “Our replacements.”
“What?” Anna put her hands out. “Wait a minute. We are not here to replace anyone.”
Nora exchanged a glance with Anna. “If they don’t want us here, we don’t have to stay.”
“Yeah. That nature area looked better for us anyway.” Anna gestured out the window. “Maybe there’s somewhere else. Atlas mentioned other facilities.”
Ria crinkled her nose. “The nature area?”
“Yeah, even there.” Anna said. “We spent the whole day out there today. We want to see that farming area next.”
“Is that why your skin is red?” Pearl sneered. “You really are different. Only animals live out there.”
Anna’s smile froze. Animals.
“Well . . .” Nora’s eyes narrowed. “Maybe we are more like animals.”
Simon put a hand on Nora’s shoulder. “Atlas. Are there any alternative places we can stay while we get organized?”
Atlas’s eyebrows bunched together. “Not prepared.”
Anna pressed down on her stomach. Are we more like animals? She glanced out the window in the living quarters. The trees were tall and inviting, with the dusk settling on them giving them an otherworldly glow. “Don’t you like to go out there? Ever? To the woods?”
Pearl leaned forward. “No. This is where humans belong.”
“But . . .” Her fingers spun around each other. “You don’t want us here?”