Exposed

Which it did all too soon. Clash! Something came flying from across the room and crashed into Larry's shoulder, nearly knocking him off the couch. His mouth flashed a few times, and slowly, his eyes began to light up again after their hours of darkness. Although they were brightening, he couldn't see, but this happened often, especially lately. Gradually, his senses would return to him.

All the wear and tear his system endured over the years was catching up to him. Being struck in the head enough times was certainly responsible for that. Quickly, Larry lifted his head, and looked around to see if he could find out what hit him and where it came from. He didn't find out what it was, but he found out where it came from instantly.

"Hey Robot! It's gettin' a little dry in here!" Larry raised his head and propped himself up with one arm. Otto and Tuddrussel were sitting at the table staring in his direction. Well, Otto was looking back and forth between Larry and Tuddrussel. Tuddrussel was glaring.

"Are you gonna get up, or what?"

"Oh, of course." Rising up, Larry sullenly nodded, and shuffled into the kitchen. Tuddrussel clearly thought of himself as King, leaning back in his royal chair, feet resting on the tabletop. As Larry trudged past him, Tuddrussel's lip curled upward, in somewhat of a mocking sneer. Powerless to do anything about it, Larry made his way to the counter to make Tuddrussel's coffee.

Every fibre of his being told him to make it clear to Tuddrussel that he couldn't rest his feet on the clean table, but it was pointless to try. He had tried to do so before, and it had always turned out badly. It just wasn't worth it.

Still, Larry knew that it shouldn't matter to him, as he didn't eat at the table anyway. When the coffee was ready, Larry placed it carefully on the table in front of Tuddrussel's feet. Taking his feet off the table, Tuddrussel grabbed the mug. After a disapprovingly fierce look at Larry, Tuddrussel shrugged, and started gulping down his coffee.

Otto had said nothing the entire time, nor had he moved. He just sat, watching Larry's pilgrimage for the coffee. He felt a knot form in his stomach, but this was nothing new. This always happened often when Larry and Tuddrussel fought, but that was the strange part. They weren't fighting at least, they weren't yelling at each other at the top of their voices like they usually did.

But they seldom spoke at all. A commanding Tuddrussel would often shout at Larry to complete one menial task or another, but that was it. Larry crept silently out the door, where he again collapsed on the couch, where he had come from. As he did so, a sigh escaped him, and he stared silently ahead of him. Otto studied Larry, who was now motionless.

What seemed surprising to him was how mechanical Larry looked at that moment. Whether it was the way Larry was sitting, or Otto had simply never noticed it before, he was unsure. Larry had always seemed human enough to Otto before. He spoke; he listened. He thought; he felt. He laughed; he cried.

Now that he was doing none of the above, Otto could see that Larry was definitely not human. His eyes were embedded in eye sockets that resembled car headlights. With every syllable he spoke, his mouth would brighten and fade. And simply the way he had been acting over the past few days made him seem more machine than man. He had fallen into silent servitude, just as Tuddrussel had always wanted him to.

But not only was Larry becoming submissive, he seemed present only to be seen, not heard. It wasn't that Otto didn't want to find out what was wrong, and certainly not that he didn't care. Something just didn't seem right, and he knew it. But to Otto, it didn't feel like the right time to find out what it was.

In the living room, Larry was staring off into space, and in the kitchen, Tuddrussel was doing likewise. Confused but worn down by the monotony, Otto hopped down off his chair to the floor. He scampered off to his room, simply wanting a break from the whole problem, at least until he found an appropriate time to bring it up.

Larry stayed where he was for quite some time, not feeling any desire to move. His worries about who - - or rather what he was had carried over from the night before. And yet it didn't seem quite as critical, now. He wasn't really thinking about anything, but he wasn't really paying attention to what was going on around him. Internally, he was torn by war, and that was what he was concentrating on.

Suddenly, a shift in perspective, and he was back in reality. Larry looked quickly in the direction of the doorway, seeing Tuddrussel there staring at him. "Hey, what are you just sittin' around for? I need you to - - -" Tuddrussel continued talking, but by that point, Larry had stopped listening to him. Larry was listening to another voice; one coming from inside himself.

I am a robot. I don't have feelings. I don't have a life.

A part of him told him that over and over. Although it couldn't extinguish the part that still wanted to be heard, understood, and recognized as perfectly human, the humiliating voice became stronger every day. Where it originated, Larry did not know. But it was becoming like a cancer; slowly but surely taking over what concern for himself he had left.

He sighed to himself. I want to be human. I am as human as anyone else. I'm simply trapped in the wrong body. I am a machine. No one cares what a machine has to say. The inner argument continued. Of course, Larry would want his human side to win out, but it didn't look as if the end was in sight. He was lost in the battle. And he really wasn't even part of it.

Tuddrussel stopped speaking. He noticed Larry staring blankly ahead. Although a little frustrated that Larry wasn't hanging off his every word, Tuddrussel wasn't terribly bothered. The *new* Larry was a definite improvement!

Kneeling down by the couch, Tuddrussel spoke in a whisper, his mouth inches from Larry. "Did you hear me?" Larry nodded, not knowing what else to do. "Then get to it." Tuddrussel growled at him, in no mood for Larry's stalling.

But that did it. Larry was by no means willing to go down without a fight. In moments, he was on his feet, his eyes staring straight into Tuddrussel's. There was no need for him to attack Tuddrussel. He could get his message across much more easily than that. "No!" He answered, without showing any sort of regret for what he had just done. But inside, he was petrified of the response that might come.

At first, Tuddrussel seemed taken aback by Larry's boldness. Then his shock turned to anger. "What did you say?"

"I said no.' Which part of no' do you not understand?" Larry felt a rush of excitement flow through him. This was his chance to get even.

Or so he thought. Tuddrussel was not planning to give him the chance. His large hands grasped Larry by his skeletal neck and waist and held him about two feet above the floor. "That's it! You've always acted like you own this satellite, but I'm here to tell you that you don't. Your only purpose here is to do what I tell you, Robot!" And with that, Tuddrussel threw Larry down with all his force. The sharp impact left a dull echo reverberating through the room and floor.

Larry lay motionless for a few moments, crumpled on the floor like a rag doll. Finally, he rose to his hands and knees, and used the arm of the couch to climb to his feet. "And stop calling me Robot.'" Larry added, unwilling to give up.

Tuddrussel's face reddened, and he was seething with anger. Clearly, he was running out of material. "I call you that," he began. He paused for a moment, took a deep, shuddery breath, and continued. "Because that's all you are. A robot. A machine. You don't hear me call the microwave Mike,' so I sure as hell won't do the same for you. And you gon' do everything I told you." Without another word, Tuddrussel turned and left. Larry wanted to make a comeback to save face, but the words just weren't there.

Although Larry hated to admit it to himself, but Tuddrussel's words cut deep. Being compared to a microwave Sadly, shrugging his thin shoulders, Larry trudged off to do Tuddrussel's bidding.

At the same time, Tuddrussel was sitting in the kitchen laughing. To him, nothing was more satisfying than seeing Larry meet his downfall. "Yeah," he sighed, leaning back with his feet on the table again. "It's amazing what a few downgrades can do. But I think a few more would be even better."

* * * * * * *

That evening, Larry had finally managed to get everything done. He shuffled into the computer room, and crashed into the chair. Every day seemed the same to him, especially this part. His fingers bounced emotionlessly over the keyboard in front of him. Not one thought was spent on what he was doing. It was simply a matter of getting the job done. Nothing could break his stolid focus. Not even

"Larry?Larry!" Otto was standing in the doorway, watching Larry work. Finally realizing he wasn't getting Larry's attention, crept in the open door and stood next to the chair. Again, he called Larry's name. Still no response. True, Otto knew Larry to be a focused worker, but this was unheard of. It was as if Larry had a one track mind. Work-work-work-work.

To Otto, this had seemed the perfect opportunity to find out what was going on. Larry was alone, and he could talk while he worked. But now it seemed not. Frustrated, Otto grabbed Larry's hands, forcing them away from the keyboard. "Larry!" he called again. Larry looked down, searching for the source of whatever had halted his progress. Seeing Otto, his eyes blazed crimson for a moment, then returned to their default blue.

"Oh, Otto! I'm sorry, I" Larry's voice trailed off, as he wasn't even entirely sure what was going on. In a way, he had known Otto was there, but just wouldn't allow himself to acknowledge it. It seemed like Otto was waiting for the end of the sentence. He had a look of expectation on his face, but also a twinge of worry.

When it became clear that the end of the sentence wasn't going to come, Otto took over. "Well, lately you just seem sodifferent. Like you're not alive anymore."

Alive? Anymore? Larry was confused by the statement. "I never was alive."

"To me you were."

Am I really hearing this? Larry asked himself. "I don't breathe or bleed. And what's more, I am made of metal. How can you possibly say I'm alive?"

This answer came all too easily from Otto's lips. "Because even though you don't breathe, you can dream. Even though you don't bleed, you can feel pain. And even though you are made of metal, you live." Otto himself seemed a little surprised at his answer. And since he knew he was on a roll, he added, "You've always been that wayuntil now."

Larry seemed to think about it for a few moments, turning Otto's words over in his head. But at last, the message Otto was trying to get through to him penetrated the wall put up by Tuddrussel's abuse. Resting his elbows on his knees, Larry broke down, burying his face in his hands. Otto reached up, hugging Larry the best he could. The two were silent and motionless except for Larry's shuddering sobs. The glow of the computer seemed to consume them with its brightness.

Outside the door, masked in shadow, was a figure beyond the realm of the computer's glow. Rhythmic breaths, heavy with fury, punctured the bleak silence. Although inaudible to Larry and Otto, the breathing fueled the loathing harbored by the intruder. "That's it — he's blown his last chance. This time, I will put that damn robot in its place," Tuddrussel hissed through clenched teeth. Tuddrussel was now inches beyond the end of his rope, and ready to take a drastic step.

Creeping through the unlit halls of the satellite, Tuddrussel had to rely on his memory to guide him. Once reaching the living room, Tuddrussel leaned against the back of the couch, lying in wait. His prey would return here eventually. And that would be his chance to strike. The lateness of the hour was no match for the alertness of this predator. He was bound and determined to accomplish what he had wanted to for so long.

* * * * * * *

The hours he waited seemed only seconds. With his determination bared, he could have waited an eternity. But finally, out of the corner of his eye, Tuddrussel noticed two spots of light on the opposite wall. Squinting at them, he noticed that they gradually got larger and brighter. Off in the distance, he could hear a clanking noise — Larry s footsteps. Peering around the corner of the couch, Tuddrussel locked his eyes on Larry turning the corner into the living room.

Tuddrussel quickly ducked back behind the couch so Larry wouldn't catch sight of him. Not that Larry seemed too interested in anything other than where he was going. Tuddrussel chuckled soundlessly to himself and grinned. After hearing Larry lie down on the couch, Tuddrussel waited a few moments for Larry to shut down, and made his move.

Stealthily, Tuddrussel prowled around to the front of the couch. Larry's eyes were dark. This was it. "Those last few downgrades really helped out, didn't they? Well, now it's time to finish the job. I can't believe I didn't do this in the first place." Tuddrussel sneered as he picked Larry up and carried him back in the direction of the computer room.

Otto had sunk into a troubled sleep. Worry consumed his thoughts, and it was impossible for him to drop off completely. When he woke shortly after, he wasn't even certain as to whether or not he had even been asleep. But one thing he was certain of: his regret of leaving Larry. Without a second more of thought, Otto sprung out of bed, and out the door. Now everything made sense. Otto stepped out into the darkness, hoping that this time, he could do something to stop Tuddrussel in his tracks