Chapter 6. Everything Comes With A Price

November 11th, 2038 - 4:15 PM

Simone and Willow had slowly made their way from town to town, traveling eastward toward Detroit. They had just checked into a small inn on the south side of Ann Arbor, and Willow stared at herself in the mirror.

"Does it feel different without the LED?" Simone had helped her friend remove it the night before.

"No." Willow shook her head and remarked softly. "It's strange to not see it though."

Simone pulled some clothes and a small violet zippered bag out from her duffle. "Well, get cleaned up. My clothes are a bit long on you, but it should still work until we can get yours washed. Pair that with a little 'power of makeup', and no one will know you were ever an AX400.

Willow nodded and got a wet rag to wipe off the dust and dirt from traveling in the woods during the day. Simone took a quick shower and exited the bathroom in a fresh pair of day clothes. Pajamas were out of the question until Simone was sure Willow could be safe.

Willow had turned on a small tv, watching in rapt silence while hugging her knees to her chest at the foot of the bed.

"Anything new?" Simone sat behind her and began to carefully comb out the android's hair.

"They found Markus last night. On an abandoned freighter."

"What?" Simone paused with the comb. She had hoped that she could take Willow to the deviants to keep her safe, but now those hopes were dashed. Nowhere was safe.

"Most of the androids got away." Willow took Simone's hand. "And Markus got away."

"Thank God." She squeezed Willow's hand lightly.

"But they're rounding up androids everywhere. They've set up temporary camps all over the country."

"I don't understand." Simone stared at the screen. "This is genocide."

Willow scooted further back and frowned. "Not to the humans. To them androids are just… pieces of plastic."

"Not all humans," Simone murmured, grabbing her makeup bag. "Now come on. Turning someone as beautiful as you into a plain old human takes time."

Willow smiled for the first time since the others had been killed, and Simone carefully applied theater grade foundation to the android's face.

–

5:37 PM

"There." Simone spritzed Willow's face with setting spray and tilted her head to the side appraising her work.

The android approached the mirror hesitantly and then gave an approving nod.

"It took a bit longer than it was supposed to, but you look great."

"Hopefully it's enough to fool everyone." Willow peered at the floor with uncertainty.

"My own mother wouldn't recognize you," Simone snorted. "Are you ready to go?"

Willow paused. "You haven't eaten in eighteen hours."

Simone frowned for a moment and then shrugged. "I'm not hungry."

"Okay…" Willow hesitated, "But if you need food, we'll find some."

"Deal."

They packed up the duffle bag, turned down the lights, and slipped out of the motel.

"Okay," Simone took a deep breath. "We have about twenty minutes before curfew, so we should be able to–"

"Hold it right there, ladies."

Simone panicked, hearing the deep voice behind them. It was too soon. She couldn't lose Willow. She couldn't lose anyone else.

Willow swung around dramatically and groaned in a way she had never heard from the android. "Come on, officer! It's not even curfew yet," she drawled, and Simone's mouth fell open, utterly speechless.

The police officer relaxed, seeing two human girls in front of him. "Now girls, it's a little close to curfew to be sneaking out."

Willow pouted. "We're only going to be a few minutes, okay? We're just grabbing some doomsday snacks from the gas station."

The officer chuckled nervously. "Doomsday… let's hope not."

The android batted her fake eyelashes. "Please? We'll be quick."

This stunned the officer for a moment, and he stumbled over his words. "Okay, but hurry. I don't want to see either of you out a moment past five fifty-nine."

"Thank you!" Willow hummed and dragged Simone's hand.

When they were several feet away Simone balked, "H-how did you do that?"

Willow smiled, "I did a composite imitation of your personality as I'd witnessed it in various scenarios. It's very human."

Simone laughed out loud. "Are you kidding me? Have you done it before?"

"No," Willow denied instantly. "I think… looking like someone else made me feel more confident."

"Make-up will do that to you." Simone shrugged, and they continued on their way.

For the next five hours they traveled through thick banks of snow with very few breaks. Simone felt achy and weak, but she didn't let it show. She had to be strong for Willow. Patches of forest were becoming fewer and farther between. Thankfully the curfew kept people indoors, and it was easy to hide in the suburban areas between houses.

It was almost eleven when she collapsed.

"Simone!" Willow ran to her side. "What's wrong?"

"I just need to rest," she breathed tiredly.

"You're dehydrated," Willow's brows creased with concern.

"I'm fine," she insisted. "But maybe you could carry the duffle bag for a while?"

Willow nodded and gingerly grabbed the bag. "Let's rest until you feel better."

"No." Simone shook her head fiercely. "It's too cold to stop. We have to keep going."

Grudgingly the android agreed, and the pair continued, albeit at a slower pace than before. Police were appearing more frequently. And they held large scanners in their hands.

"I guess the makeup was pointless after all." Willow faltered as they crouched behind a recycling bin.

"No." Simone shook her head. "I'll die before they take you."

"Don't say things like that," Willow chided, and her eyes met Simone's. "No matter what happens to us, you have to keep helping androids. Promise me."

"I–" Simone discerned the despair in her friend's tone and felt her resolve break. "–I promise."

Willow pulled her into a tight hug. "No matter what happens."

"No matter what happens," Simone echoed in a whisper.

They travelled in silence for several more minutes, passing between alleys, bins, and lines of cars when gunshots could be heard in the distance.

Simone was about to speak when she felt something hard press into her back.

"No sudden movements."

"No…" Simone's voice trembled, lifting her hands in terror.

The officer scanned Willow, and shouted for her to get on the ground.

Willow closed her eyes as she obeyed, tears slipping down her cheeks. "Do you think there's heaven for me, Simone? Do you think the others made it there?"

"I know there's heaven for you, Willow." Simone broke down with a sob. "I know there is."

As soon as Simone was scanned, she leapt onto Willow.

"GET OFF OF THE ANDROID!"

"No!" Simone screamed, clinging to Willow for dear life. "Please don't take her. Please!"

Another officer jogged up and wrenched Simone away.

"No!" she bawled. "No, please, she's all I have left!"

The officer held her more tightly. "Don't be stupid. She's not even real."

"Yes she is!" Simone howled.

Willow looked up at Simone with an eerie calmness in her features. "No matter what happens, Simone."

The first officer shot Willow in the face, and Simone shrieked and thrashed out of the second officer's grasp. "Willow!" she wept, scooping her into her arms as tears poured into her fallen friend's shoulders.

She was Simone's first android. She was her best friend. And now she was gone.

"Why…" she chanted over and over until one of the men pulled her away. "Why?"

"You're under arrest for evasion of android protocols regarding relinquishment and disposal–"

"Why…" she crooned.

"–You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.–"

"Why…"

"You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you."

"Why…"

The next several minutes were a blur as she was taken to the Belleville police station. She'd failed. They hadn't even made it to Detroit yet, and she'd failed. Tam, Mara… Harper… Willow. All gone in the course of a few days.

It was close to midnight as she was brought in, and her eyes fell to the screen of the front tv. It was the President, and she was holding a press conference.

"...In the coming hours, I will address the Senate to determine our response to this unprecedented situation. I know that public opinion has been moved by the deviants' cause. Perhaps the time has come for us to consider the possibility that androids are a new form of intelligent life…"

The officer restraining her loosened his grip when he heard the words of the President. No one was paying attention to the human girl in handcuffs. Inching her way to the back door, Simone slipped out the entrance and ran toward an automated taxi.

With great effort she contorted her hand to be scanned, and she climbed inside. The tears were gone. Everything was gone.

"Please select your destination."

With great difficulty she typed in '115 Michigan Drive', the only nearby address she knew. Then she sank into the seat as she made her way into the city where humans no longer wanted to be.

–

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