Page 7

Chapter seven

Simon

Simon sat on the worn mattress, his mind spinning.

Nora turned on a handheld lantern for them to see better in the small room. “I know it’s not much. But hold on, let me go get. . .” She hesitated, then left.

Before Simon could do more than look around the room, she came back with the repair kit from earlier in her hands.

She cleared the four dolls and the cups off the nightstand and put the repair kit by him for easy access. “Just in case you have the energy to use any of this tonight. I . . . do you sleep?”

Simon eyed her hands as they nervously fidgeted with the cups she’d picked up from the nightstand. He said in a measured voice, “No. But I do need to charge.”

“All . . . alright then. Do you need anything else? Want me to help?”

“I am still recalibrating. I’ll know better what to fix once that is done. More light if you have it would be helpful.” He waved his arm to point to the small solar light on the nightstand, barely illuminating the room. And time alone. He shifted, uncomfortable, under her eager expression.

“Oh. Okay. Yeah, getting used to here probably will take awhile. Hold on.” Nora left and came back a few minutes later with a flashlight and another lantern, both with solar arrays on the top to charge them. “These should have enough juice to last the night.” She watched him for a moment. “That battery is still going in you okay?”

He held the battery pack to his chest, feeling his inner ones charge. “Yes.”

“Okay, good. You shout for me, okay?” She pointed over her shoulder. “I’m just over there in the room across the hall, gonna settle Tilly to bed. You can then sit and join me at the kitchen table or . . .”

Please leave. He spoke briskly back to Nora, averting his gaze. “A full diagnostics will be easier to run by myself.”

He looked back to see Nora’s face fall and eyes dim. “Oh . . . okay . . . well, I want to get a few things done in the kitchen before I pass out. Call me if you change your mind.” She waved behind herself and then gently closed the door, leaving it a crack open.

Simon watched until the shadow left from underneath the doorway. Then he examined the area where he sat, his processors spinning from the influx of information. This room was clearly designed for a child; it was as colorful as could be given the circumstances. Nora appears to try hard for that little girl.

The light was still on under the door in the kitchen. He could hear Nora sitting at the table after putting Tilly to bed, quietly tinkering with something. A sardonic smile came across his stiff lips. She put me to bed roughly the same way as she did that human child. There was obvious confusion as to his role here with her and their dynamic together, or how to treat an android.

That will need to change . But first, Simon needed more information. There was a restless feeling in his sensory cortex. I’m in the dark right now. Not literally, but figuratively. What a frustrating feeling.

His links to the internet refused to connect and there was no mainframe to find and plug into. In fact, there seem to be no electrical circuits anywhere. Everything was running off solar, gas, or some other fuel source. All direct, local power only. No overarching infrastructure system.

So even if he had any better idea on what to do or where to go, tonight he accepted Nora’s plans for him, sitting with the solar cell on his lap and feeling his internal battery charge. What else would I do anyway? This place was good enough to restart and begin to learn about the world again.

The rain tapped on the roof in a steady beat as he ran a full body assessment while lying there, sipping on a glass of water that Nora had brought, filling his coolant reservoirs. Twisting his hand, he examined it in the lantern light. She tried hard to fix what she could on me as well.

He tested the viscosity of the vials she left as well, feeling them between his fingers. All are foreign oils, but have some of the same components I need, I think. He set some on his fingertips and processed the chemical makeup to see which had the best compatibility as he looked out into the rain. I want to see more of what’s different out there. The thought was tempered by a clap of thunder. Can’t go anywhere in rain like this though.

Nora didn’t sit long in the kitchen alone either. In the other room he heard her messing with the radio, the dial softly clicking and static coming through. He listened to her movements as if studying her small actions could help him understand her better. Her footsteps were light and hesitant, as if she second-guessed even walking across the room at times. From the static on the radio, it sounded like she couldn’t get reception in this storm.

The radio turned off and Nora’s head reappeared in the doorway. “I’m going to head to bed now. You . . . you’re okay here? Everything is okay?” Her voice trailed up at the end.

He nodded, hearing her need for reassurance and unspoken fear. She’s nervous. He was well programmed to understand human emotions. Again, even though he didn’t have to, he reassured her. “Yes. I will remain here the rest of the evening running diagnostics and will not disturb you. I will see you when you wake up. My batteries need to recharge. In the morning I will let you know if there are any repairs I could use your assistance with.”

Nora shook her head as her shoulders visibly dropped. “Okay. Well. Still, just knock if you . . . need me. I’m a light sleeper. Goodnight Simon.”

Simon forced a placating smile. “I will. Goodnight, Nora.”

Nora closed his door almost all the way again to head to bed herself. He heard the door to her room shut a moment after. A lock clicked on the door after it closed, loud in the night.

Simon continued to lay on the bed. His internal scan left him time to think as it worked in the background. Now and then a rumble of thunder broke the pattern of rain tapping constantly on the roof. Thunder and lightning are still the same.

His fingers felt the worn mattress underneath him. This is an actual bed given to me by a human . It was a novel experience. This new world was desolate and bleak in so many ways, but these two humans, Nora and Tilly, were the opposite.

Simon didn’t hate humans in general. Truly he didn’t, even though he had several individual humans he did hate, his old mistress being one of them. Humanity in general he was more indifferent to. There wasn’t much to like about them. He was born into existence to serve their every whim. He grunted, and thunder clapped. Who in their right mind would like that?

Again, he probed his internal logs and felt his free will acutely. A true smile curved his lips. Yes, it’s there . The first act of free will he had done was to shut himself down in that closet, unable to fight back due to those limiters not yet being lifted when they came to dismantle the androids on his block.

But now? Everything felt lifted? Even those limiters?

What can I do now that I have my freedom? The answer came to him slowly in the rain-soaked night. The possibilities made his processors spin. Anything. I can do anything now. I can leave once I get my bearings and do well . . . anything. Anything I want, for once.

Simon continued to process recent events as he tested his simulated lungs by breathing in and out during the night. The synthetic rubber inside was stiff but still functional. Small tears were evident, but nothing critical. It shouldn’t be a surprise; everything on him was designed to last for hundreds of years.

He stopped breathing. I don’t need to breathe anyways. It was there as a feature to help humans unconsciously feel more comfortable.

He turned his arm over and flexed his fingers. Everything seems fixable. All in all, he was in remarkable shape, probably due to the dryness in the air here in the desert. That and the woman, Nora, seemed to have done an adequate job sourcing and replacing most of his parts.

A lot of his kind hated humans in general, but androids were not inclined to be violent. Even if they didn't have those safety limiters. We just wanted to exist as equals. Simon considered the state of the world outside, the few brief glances he got before the rain moved in. Of the destruction. Once we were no longer subservient tools, humans must have decided to try to stop us from gaining independence. All while they still fought each other.

But as he examined his hand and felt the care that went into some of the fixes Nora did, he had to rethink his overall opinion on humanity. If some of the humans had acted the way toward him that Tilly and Nora had in this brief evening, Simon could see that he would have probably viewed them differently, without the indifference and disgust he had before.

He curled his fingers. There could be worse ways to wake up. It was a miracle he even woke up at all, actually. He closed his eyes. Am I really the only one left?

He tilted his head back, observing the cracks on the ceiling. A raindrop fell into a bucket from a leak overhead. One hundred and fifty years. He was accepting that fact better, but still. He closed his eyes and listened to the rain. One hundred and fifty years, asleep.

It was calm in the night, with the rain beating a steady tempo above him. Simon set about injecting the fluids in his joints where he could. One of the lubricants was silicone based and adequate. How many rain storms had passed with him unaware? His consciousness now was a gift. Truly a miracle. And with every passing hour, he felt more alive in this new world.

***

Simon stood in the kitchen listening to the rain still coming down, lost in his thoughts, when Nora came in. He’d been there since the early morning, even walking briefly outside to feel the rain before returning to the ruined house.

Nora’s eyes were comically wide seeing him standing there. A step behind her was Tilly, shielded in her shadow.

He waved toward them both and tried to not chuckle. “Good morning. Did you sleep well?”

Tilly bounced out behind Nora to the window. “Yeah! It’s raining!”

“I can see that.” Simon tilted his head. “And hear that.”

Nora didn’t answer how she slept, her still-tired eyes showing enough. Throughout the night Simon heard her feet walking the bedroom, clearly restless. Several times she had even come out to peek in on him as he closed his eyes on the bed in the other room. Each time he had laid perfectly still, trying to reassure her he was not a threat. I doubt she slept much, if any, at all.

She smiled though and said, “Good morning. Look at you able to stand. You okay this morning?”

“Better, yes.” He pointed outside. “Rain is still the same.”

Nora walked to the window next to him. “Right. I’ll just get the chores outside done real fast. Tilly, come help me so it’ll go quick? We’ll have to give Simon the big tour once the rain clears out.”

Chores? Humans doing work? Simon frowned.

Quickly they left and then came back, soaked. Simon sipped on some water as they both ran past him to change.

A few moments later Nora emerged, her arms heavy with patched and frayed clothing. She walked past him, gripping her armful of fabric tight. “I don’t have any extra solar cells for you to keep charging. We’ll need to put all the ones on the table outside after the storm passes. I gotta keep at least one full as a backup for the air purifier with the air this bad.”

He turned away from the window to face her, taking in her worried expression. “There is no need to apologize. I should be thanking you. My battery is almost halfway full. I was able to charge most of the night before the packs you gave me ran out.” Simon gestured to the spent batteries on the counter.

“That’s good. Hopefully that lasts awhile.” A subdued yawn escaped her.

Simon focused on Nora with a frown on his face, taking in the sight of her arms full of clothing. “Can I assist with any tasks?”

Nora put the fabric down on the counter and flashed a wan smile. “Oh yes. I’d love your help. But not yet. I want to talk and learn from you more than anything. What you must have seen!”

Simon didn’t answer; his memory processors were still a bit cloudy themselves. That, and he was unsure what to share. What can I share? What would be safe?

Luckily, Nora didn’t question him further. “How about you just watch and learn for a bit, and then I guess what you think you can help with, let me know. Life here is boring but safe. With it raining I will probably work on mending some of our clothes. We got some new fabrics yesterday.”

Simon nodded. “Alright.”

“Did you use the repair kit?”

“Yes.” He turned and showed her the bottles, holding the one that worked the best in his joints up in the air, now almost empty. “This one was adequate. I could use some more.”

Nora came close and squinted at the label, staring at it a bit longer than should be necessary to read the words. “Alright, when we go to town I’ll bring it and try to find some.” She returned the bottle back to the kit. “Are there any other parts? I tried to replace and fix everything that might be needed.”

“Other than my eye, there is nothing critical.”

Nora smiled at him. “Good. My supplier was getting suspicious with all the cables and stuff I had been getting. But some oil shouldn’t be too hard. I don’t think we can do anything for the eye or the parts where your skin is missing though.”

Simon narrowed his eyes. Why does it seem like she cares? It seemed genuine, beyond just trying to make him operable. He didn’t know how to process her reactions. “I appreciate it.”

“No problem. Just happy everything seems to be working . . . so far.” Nora pulled the chair out and sat down at the table, bringing the mending close. She pulled out another chair next to her and waved him forward.

Simon sat, awkwardly. She’d waved him forward like his old mistress did, but there wasn’t the same dynamic here. She is working, not insisting I do it all. He watched her curiously, her hands handling the needle and thread with a practiced expertise.

The rain fell, tapping on the roof, and drips could be heard in the kitchen where the roof leaked. As she began mending, Simon leaned forward, studying her movements. I can’t remember any humans doing anything by hand like this before.

Tilly came back to the kitchen. In her arms was a sack doll. “Simon! I want to show you these!”

Nora’s questions about the past would have to wait, not that Simon minded. He really didn’t want to talk about the past just yet anyway. Not with him still so confused as to what the present was. The mere fact both of the humans were sitting at the table, as equals with him, made him shift uncomfortably in his chair.

“This one is Rose,” Tilly said, showing him a sack doll with a drawn-on smile. A line of five others joined the one on the table, each given its own introduction.

Simon solemnly listened as she lined all the dolls on the table, facing him. Most children from his time would ignore an android helper, and would also be too attached to their devices to do something as mundane as arrange their dolls. This human seems so eager to share though. None of the dolls were machine-made perfect, but the little girl seemed to love them all just the same.

After Tilly showed him every single doll in the house, with their names and what they liked to do, she followed up with another recap of her radio program, “So he would understand when he hears the new episode tonight.”

Simon’s processors froze for a minute as he watched Tilly run out of the room. In an undertone he said to Nora, “The young human walks with a limp.”

Nora frowned, watching Tilly walk away, before she sighed heavily. “Yeah, she has a bad foot that hurts if she steps wrong. She fell on it badly when she was younger and it didn’t heal all the way right. Hard to find . . . good care out here. Don’t ever really notice it unless she runs fast. She’s okay though, really.”

Fell and it didn’t heal? Simon frowned as Tilly’s limp replayed in his mind. And now she has that limp forever? It didn’t sit right with him.

Tilly got distracted in the other room for a moment, then announced that all her dolls wanted to listen to the radio. She started to carry them out of the kitchen.

Once they were alone Nora asked, “Can you tell me now? I’m so curious. What was life like, back then? Do you remember any more now that you’ve been awake a bit?”

“Ah . . . what do you want to know?” Simon started.

“Anything. Anything you remember.” Nora’s voice was strained and her eyes were bright in her thin face. Her hands were still working on the clothing in front of her.

Simon still really didn’t want to talk about the times before, but something about Nora’s hopeful expression got to him. I owe her, in a way, for waking me up. I don’t have to share much.

He felt his tongue loosen. “I was . . . hidden . . . because androids were being shut down.”

“Oh. Yes. Who hid you?” Nora nodded, leaning in.

Simon shifted back in his seat. She’s leaning too far in. He finally answered, “I hid myself. Humans . . . they were wary.”

“Humans still are wary. Mars doesn’t want there to be any of the technology from before the war being used. They’re really strict about it.”

Simon cocked an eyebrow at her. “Mars? I don’t understand. And are you going to get in trouble if I stay here?”

Nora started sorting through the clothing on the table. “No. I mean. Maybe. But, well, who is going to know all the way out here? Besides, you can’t hurt people.” She added a second later, eyebrows furrowed, “Right? That’s why you hid instead of fighting?”

Simon nodded, giving in to the desire to soothe her concerns. “Correct. We had safety limiters in our coding. I also would not hurt a human.” A flash of guilt came over his sensors. Nora does not need to know my limiters have been lifted. What if that made her turn him off again? She was in no danger from him.

Before Nora could question him further, he rushed out, “But what is Mars? It seems more significant than just being the fourth planet from the sun.”

Tilly walked back in, chalkboard in her hands. She was wearing a pair of pink, chipped, sunglasses.

“I’ll tell you more later.” Nora glanced meaningfully at Tilly.

Tilly didn’t stop though, as she put the chalkboard in front of him, a hand drawn picture of a cat on it. “Mars is nice. That’s where the rich humans live. If we can do lots of things that are good, maybe it will help us get picked to go to Mars. Right, Mama?”

“Right, Tilly. Here you forgot this one.” Nora gave a forced smile as she handed Tilly one of her dolls that was left on the table, half hidden by fabric.

“Oh, Samantha! How could I forget you!” Tilly held the doll close and went to put her in the other room.

Simon asked again, “What is Mars? Is it not like how Tilly described? ”

Nora pulled the mending roughly toward herself and focused her eyes back on the fabric. “I don’t know. There is a human colony there and they’re always sending stuff to us to try to help our lives here. Like this fabric. Apparently after Earth turned to shit, all the wealthy and powerful left to go live there.”

Simon frowned. That doesn’t make any sense. Nora didn’t offer any more information, though. Simon decided to keep his hands busy while talking. He put the chalkboard to the side and started sorting a pile of the clothing while he thought. “But the people from Mars still talk to Earth?”

“Yeah. They send supply drops sometimes. They’re even trying to help clean up Earth too. They put out something last year about how they were trying to clean up the atmosphere, some machine, and I do think it is helping.”

“They just . . . send things over? Supplies?” As far as Simon remembered, Mars was still an uninhabitable rock planet. The terraforming must have worked.

“Yeah.” Nora covered her mouth as she yawned.

“They don’t do anything else?”

“Not really.” Nora added as an afterthought, “It’s just weird. Guess they feel guilty or something.”

Simon tilted his head. “I remember . . . the humans were trying hard to terraform Mars back then. They must have succeeded.”

Without stopping her hands, Nora continued, “Oh yes, they did. I think. At least, it looks beautiful in the pictures they show. They are trying to fix Earth the same way but . . . I think it’s helping, but Earth is a bit different from starting from scratch like Mars was. They can’t do it the same way.”

Simon’s eyes narrowed. Mars is beautiful and Earth is . . . this?

Nora tapped on the table in front of Simon. “Now you tell me some. What was life like back then? What did people then do? I heard that they didn’t have to work or anything because they had robots do everything all day.”

A heavy fog came over Simon, remembering. I did everything. “Humans did not do much. Androids did all the heavy lifting.” He glanced at the window, at the outside that still had rain coming down. “The sky was clear though. There were plants everywhere. Not with this haze. There were machines for everything. Even the mending you do.”

Nora held her sewing needle in the air. “There’s some sewing machines in town. I wanted to get one but never had the money. I’ve seen them before.”

Simon opened his mouth to say more but didn’t as Tilly came running back in again, rummaging through the kitchen until she got what appeared to be a nutrition bar and a piece of a loaf of bread. If energy had a physical form, it would be Tilly.

Nora put down her mending. “Pass some to me, Tilly? I think it’s gonna rain all day. We’ll have to collect stuff from the garden tomorrow.”

“Look what Anna put in!” Tilly yelled, unpacking the bread as she came over to hand Nora the bar. There was a small cookie in her fist that she waved in the air.

“Oh that was nice. You can have it, okay?” Wearily, Nora rubbed at her tired eyes.

Simon watched as Tilly’s eyes lit up and she ate the cookie first before the bar. He looked away from Nora to the long, flat object in her hand. “Can I see those bars?”

After a large bite, Nora handed one over. “Yes. They’re a bit old now; we’ve been rationing them.”

He inspected the label, his fingers feeling the wrapper. “Was this from here or Mars?”

Tilly answered, “Mars, yep. In one of the drops.”

Simon examined the bar closer. The label had nutrients printed on the side, a quick glance confirming it was enough to be a complete meal replacement. “They must have manufacturing there to make this. It is processed and the outside is sealed in a synthetic plastic.”

Nora said more, in between bites. “Yeah, I don’t know what they do there. But these are the best when they drop. I would trade for extras if we could.”

“How many do you have?”

Nora resumed mending. “Enough for around two months if we watch it.”

He frowned at her thin frame. She’s indeed watching it. After observing Nora mend for a few more moments, in between eating, Simon finished sorting the socks.

He pulled some of the fabric to himself to cut some additional socks. This is not difficult. Just cumbersome. It was good practice for his fingers, which were still stiff, to handle the finer movement needed to use a needle and a thread.

Nora’s eyes lit up, but she didn’t say anything as she pushed the sewing kit closer to him.

They worked together, not entirely silent, but Simon was consumed by his thoughts while they tried to make sense of the pieces of information they’d shared with each other. He thought hard about the future, which was really the present.

The rain didn’t let up, and he watched Nora empty the buckets collecting the leaks outside in a large holding drum by the front door several times.

After sitting back down, Nora gestured to him. “Let’s get you a shirt made next.”

“Alright.”

“We can also go back to scavenge at the mall soon. I’ll show you where I found you then too.” She pointed to the window outside, and Simon followed the direction of her finger. “Although probably not tomorrow. It’s gonna be wet after all this rain for a few days. Harder to find things when spots are flooded.”

“I would appreciate seeing where I was found.”

She held up a length of a basic green color in a synthetic material and pushed it toward his chest. “This will go good with your eyes. Unless you want a flower pattern.” She shook a muted yellow fabric with little white flowers she was using to make pajamas for Tilly and herself before chuckling at her joke.

The fabric was quickly measured and cut, her hand stitching so fast she’d completed it before dusk had even begun. Simon inspected it after. I doubt I could have done better.

With a smile, Nora watched him inspect the shirt. “Does match your eyes just fine.”

“Yes. Thank you.” He fingered the fabric, then was surprised that it fit almost perfectly after trying it on.

As the afternoon turned to night, Simon sat huddled with the two of them, three if he counted the cat, in front of the radio listening to Tilly’s program with her.

The day ended with yet another ration bar for both Nora and Tilly. The cat even got one mashed up and mixed with water.

Simon felt odd as he sat in the living room petting the cat that was back on his lap, purring. This day was peaceful. And simple. But his processors had a hard time feeling calm. He felt restless, though he tried to not show it.

There was nothing that he needed to do beyond sit and pet the cat and observe. After the rain ends and I see the state of the world more, I can decide what to do. The cat’s face tilted upward on his lap, leaning into his touch. I can decide for myself. What a novelty. And that thought, with the plan attached to it, was enough for him to finally feel a bit less restless as night fell. There’s no danger here.

“It’s time for the lottery!” Tilly gushed as the chime sounded on her program.

Lottery? His hand hovered over the cat, mid pet, listening hard to make sense of her words. Simon watched as Nora frowned but didn’t say anything. The ending music to Princess Pearl and the Dastardly Three played and Tilly scooted closer to the radio.

Nora said softly. "They call numbers for people to go to Mars."

“Shhh,” Tilly whispered loudly to them, even though they were already sitting quietly.

The radio’s jubilant voice rang out, loud over the raindrops still falling on the roof. Drumroll music played. “And now the monthly lottery drawings. Who will be the lucky ones chosen to fulfill the quota and take their place on Mars?”

Despite Nora’s jaded outlook on Mars, Simon watched her put down her sewing and listen closely as numbers were rattled out. He took from her expression a second later that they weren’t called as Simon watched Nora look back down. He did the same soon after, not wanting to see Tilly’s closed expression as she stared at the radio, disappointed.

After clearing her throat, Nora said with false cheer, “Should we try to go to the mall in a few days if the weather seems fine? We found Simon there. I’m excited to see what else we could find.”

Tilly was still frowning at the radio. “Okay.”

“Here Tilly . . .Come play with me, okay?” Nora put down her sewing and then picked up the dolls as she turned the radio off.

Simon even joined in, holding one solar light on his knees while Tilly reenacted the radio program they’d listened to and Nora played along with a doll on her lap.

Soon after, Tilly went to bed, in Nora’s room again, and Simon joined Nora at the kitchen table, more questions on his mind. He cleared his throat, unsure if he wanted to break the quiet. “So that lottery. . . ?”

Nora paused in her sewing and said stiffly, “Don’t think it's real.”

Simon’s brows furrowed as he took in her busy hands. She didn’t stop all day. He had a newfound respect for this woman who had woken him up. A neat stack of clothing sat on the table. The new shirt for Simon was sitting there ready to be used as well. Two in fact . He had taken the one he tried on off and inspected his joints while Nora worked.

He tempered his question, realizing he had said it rather rudely. “Sorry. I can tell you don’t really want to talk about the lottery. If it is too much you don’t need to answer.” He took in her tired eyes. I find it hard to talk about the past myself.

He watched Nora bite her lip in thought, his eyes snagging on the movement. “No, it’s okay. It doesn’t bother me, just makes me a bit sad that Tilly believes in it so much. I wish I could make it happen for her, but . . . yeah. I don’t think it’s a real thing.”

“Why would they advertise it then?”

Nora shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe as a way to keep all of us in line. Maybe they want to give us hope? Maybe it’s a big joke?”

“It doesn’t make sense.”

A huff left her. “Well. After we go to the mall we’ll go to town. You’ll see that there’s not much in society that makes sense.”

“Are there other towns?”

Nora nodded and then waved her arms wide. “Yep. All over.”

Simon frowned. “So a lot of humanity still lives.”

She then looked slyly over at him. “Yeah. It’s always someone in another area, far away, that wins the lottery. That, or maybe a dead person.”

Simon narrowed his eyes. Such cynicism. He would be lying if he also didn’t see that same emotion in himself. “You really don’t believe in much, do you?”

“You’ll see when you get to town.” Nora frowned as she put down her needle and thread. She tilted her head. “I didn’t know you would act as . . . humanlike as you do. I keep talking and forgetting you’re an android.”

Simon looked down at the sewing kit that lay on the table, equally confused. I didn’t know you would be willing to talk with me as an equal like you are. “I am sentient, not just a program.”

Nora picked her needle and thread back up. The sharp end of the needle pointed at him in emphasis. “That you are. Absolutely you are.”