The coldness from the falling snow wrapped around my body like a wet rag. It had been at least two years since I had been to New York, New York. After my father was killed my mother decided to move away from all the pain and torment that was left behind in our small house. She chose a nice ranch on the eastern shore of Maine. Of course the weather and scenery was great, but the feelings weren't the same. I had a yearning to return home, but my mother protested. Her eyes never wanted to take another look on the city of New York for as long as she lived. Too many horrible things had happened there that she didn't want to think about. Our old house was bought by a lovely family. They had a perfect life from what they told us. I envied them every time I laid my eyes on them.
I can still vividly remember the day I moved. All my friends from school came to wish me luck as I started a new life elsewhere. Well almost all my friends except for Nathan. It was rumored that two days after the marches were over he was found lying in an abandoned apartment muttering to himself in an angry tone. No one really knew what had happened to him, but we had the idea that it wasn't good. He was taken to a mental ward in fear that his moods and actions might become vicious. After the attacks of the Million Machine March my mom had grown a fear and hatred against all robots. In our new home town she is part of a Parental Organization that makes sure all threats of robot encounters are impossible. Ever since the verdict of the B166ER case was read this world has been nothing but a living hell. All the robots that once lived their lives day to day had been put in concentration camps or viciously killed by soldiers that cruised the streets.
The life in my new home town had been great. Everyone welcomed me with warm smiles. They all knew my past and they were willing to help me forget, but it was impossible. The memories of that fearful day still burned in my mind. Their like scars that can't be avoided. No matter what I did they were always there. Sometimes at night I saw a figment of my dad. His body was torn and broken just like they way I saw it when my life was being threatened by the robotic rebel. Now I was back in New York the last place on earth I wanted to see. The senior class at my high school goes on a major trip near the end of the year, and this year they chose to travel here. Of course I had the choice whether or not to go, and of course I pleaded to my mom to let me stay. She didn't listen though; she said it would be good for me to return home. She said that maybe then I could lay my fears and troubles to rest.
My body ached with pain as I made my way down the sidewalk ridden with slushy grey snow. Crowds and crowds of people pushed and shoved me out of the way as I tried to follow my group chaperone. All around me I could hear the soft smoothing melody of White Christmas. The smell of chestnuts loomed around my nose, and the obnoxious blinking of small lights flashed in the windows of the many small stores that lined the streets. As I was walking I felt a small hand grab and tug on the side of my coat. My mind began to quickly race with memories from the march. "Don't even try to run"
I let out a small gasp, and quickly turned around. In front of me there stood a small dainty lady. She was doused in brown torn robes, and her skin was completely pale.
Small Lady: "Please dear lad.... Spare some change for a kind woman."
Her eyes were red and watery as she spoke. From behind me I heard footsteps running across slush. Out of nowhere my chaperone Mr. Hereas pushed the small lady away from me.
Mr. Hereas: "Misses I am going to ask you not to touch any of my kids."
Small Lady: "I just wanted some extra change sir."
Mr. Hereas: "Just get away from us."
She looked at Hereas with mean eyes and slowly walked away.
Mr. Hereas: "Are you okay Jase?"
Jase: "Yes Mr. Hereas thanks for your help."
Mr. Hereas: "It's okay, every time I go to a big city I get harassed by the homeless. It makes me so mad. They should just get themselves some jobs. Their pitiful just like the damn robots."
He laughed aloud and patted my shoulder.
Mr. Hereas: "Keep up with class Jase I don't want you getting harassed again. I know you've been through a lot, and coming here doesn't help. You don't want to get lost though. That would just make every thing ten times as bad."
His eyes gave me a warm feeling, and he smiled. I had always liked Hereas. He was my best friend Daniels dad. Whenever I went over to Daniels house his dad would tell us stories of his childhood. They always interested me. He would talk about the first time America began selling robots. I had read it in books, but it was more interesting hearing it from a first person point of view. I could hardly believe that the first robots cost more than ten million, and back in the last few years they were only around fifty thousand which was the price of a nice car. When the B166ER case came into Americas mainstream Hereas reaction was horrible. When Hereas was a kid no robot would ever think to rise up against its master, but in his older days one finally had. Hereas was a racist against all robots. They were inferior to him, and he didn't like the idea of them trying to make a place for themselves in human society. That didn't change my view of Hereas though because to me he was one of the nicest guys alive.
I followed Hereas back to the group. All my friends looked at me with wide eyes. They all asked what happened, and when I told them some homeless woman asked me for money they lost attention. We walked into Times Square to see the memorial of the Million Machine March execution. It was a bare piece of land that the CEO's had been killed on. On the wall next to it you could see small imprints of gunshots. It was blocked off by a small thin line of red ribbon. In front of it there lied a small tablet that had the date of the massacre and the names of CEO's that were killed. They never found the missing Mayor that was believed to be involved in the execution. Everyone thought he was dead, and his position was quickly filled a month after the march. Many still wonder what happened to that poor man. The search for him was all over the news, but no clues to his whereabouts were ever found. Some believed that he was transported to Chicago by robot protestors and taken hostage, but when the city was freed and the hostages let go he was not there.
Mr. Hereas offered to take us to the New York Diner which was only two blocks away from my old home. I used to eat there every Saturday with my dad when he was alive. When we arrived I took a seat away from my friend Daniel and his pals. Their conversations never amused me. They were always about football games, and who liked who at school. No one really talked to me. I just sat in the far corner window booth where me and my dad used to sit. We would look out the window, and talk about the many people that walked across our view. My eyes slowly skimmed the crowds moving back and forth. Bags and boxes laid in their arms, and their faces were painted with a smile. Children walked beside their parent's hands holding hands. Everyone was living there perfect lives. Every step they took only raised my jealousy. It was like I was viewing a piece of art that I despised horribly, but something in the perfect picture wasn't right.
On a bench I saw a large man sitting and reading the local paper. His eyes were slowly moving back and forth. In some strange way he looked vaguely familiar. I couldn't tell from where, but I could have sworn I'd have met him. He must've felt as if someone was watching him, because he quickly lifted his head upright and began to skim the crowds. I lowered myself slowly into the booth, and figments began to appear in my mind. I began to see a figure of a robot his eyes were glowing red and his arms and legs were covered in cords. In his hands he was holding a small girl, and she was shaking like mad. Then it came to me the name I was searching for..... Renegade!! Could it be that man was Renegade, but how he was human? I kneeled on the floor as the thoughts began to burn fiercely in my head. I shot that man, I killed a human... my own kind.... Just for a robot.... I killed for an object...... it wasn't worth it.....
I felt a hand clench around my shoulder, and a voice yelled out from behind the burning thoughts echoing in my head.
Hereas: "Jase! Jase! Are you okay!!! What's wrong? What's going on?"
His words broke the hatred and despair, and I grabbed onto his hand with a fierce hold. I looked at him with a scared expression, and blackness began to grow in my eyes. With a loud thump I fell to the floor, and the once loud obnoxious world was nothing more than a quiet whisper behind the shadows.
?????: "Dreams are dreams, and reality is just reality my dear boy. Humans are nothing more than mere humans. You're useless to this world. You are nothing more, but heat covered in a fleshy vessel. That's all your flesh is, a vessel. You must give us your flesh, and a new world will await you."
The words came out of a black machine covered in red glowing eyes just like Renegades. His body was covered in long black mechanical arms, and he was shaped like a spider.
?????: "You destroyed our homes, and killed are loved ones. That wasn't enough though; you wanted to make sure we were all dead. Now it's your turn to pay for the blood you placed on our hands. This is what it comes down to you puny humans, an unforeseen consequence."
The large black robot looked at me for a quick second and closed his eyes. All around me the shadows were filled with a large white light, and I was lifted from my nightmare. Above me I could see Mr. Hereas. His face was pale, and his eye sockets were starting to lower. The smell of a newly cleaned room swept into my nose, and I began to sit up slowly. Under my hands I felt a soft cushion. I rubbed my eyes as they slowly began to focus. I looked around only to see that I was in a hotel room. It was covered in a blue wall paper, and the floor was a light purple. My eyes focused onto Hereas as he began to speak.
Hereas: "I don't know what happened back at the Diner, but you scared me Jase. I called your mom and she's on the way to pick you up. What the hell happened back there?"
Jase: "I don't know Mr. Hereas I just passed out... Everything got black, and I felt myself start to collapse to the ground. I'm sorry if I ruined the day. Where's everyone else?"
He played with a pen in his hands as I spoke. I could tell he was nervous. He never wanted anything bad happen to me. In a way I thought of him as a dad, and he thought of me as a second son. When my dad died I never talked to anyone even my own mother, but Hereas was different. There was something that made him different than everyone else. I always thought it was his kindness toward the people he knew.
Hereas: "The other kids are in there rooms, and your pals went to the pool downstairs. They waited for you to wake up, but they got preoccupied ha. Your mother couldn't take it if you got hurt Jase. She's gone through thick and thin, and she's on the verge of breaking. Just rest awhile its already umm about ten o clock. I'll check on you tomorrow morning; by then your mom should be here.
He got up and walked out of the room. Before he closed the door he turned around and looked at me with warm feeling eyes. When the lights went out I began to fall in a deep slumber. Dreams of my childhood filled my head, and the once horrible nightmare from before was drowned out by the happiness and light of my young years. My dad and I were on a playground, and he was throwing me a small dirty baseball. A smirk lied on his face as I stumbled after the small ball. On the grass I could see my mom sitting. Her eyes were on my dad, and I could see a lust in her expression, but my visions were quickly interrupted by a loud creak near my bed.
??????: "SHHHH!!! You idiot! You're gonna wake him!"
Jase: "Who's there!!!"
The lights flickered on and before me stood Daniel and two of his friends.
Daniel: "Whoa Jase, Chill.. It's just me, Jason, and Sean."
Jase: "What are you all doing?"
Jake: "We were going for a swim..."
Jase: "That is such a lie! You three already took a swim, and by now the pools closed!"
Daniel: "Wait how do you know that!"
Blake: "Jeez Daniel just give it all away!"
Jase: "Your dad told me.... Look, just tell me where you're going. It's not like I'll tell you guys. I'm your friend!
Daniel: "Look, if you must know where we are all going I'll tell you."
The three boys exchanged mean and curious expressions.
Daniel: "We're.. Going to one of the nearby clubs that we saw on our way here. Look, since you know now and everything.. Do you want to go?
I knew that the cold December air would be good from all of the heat that had gathered in my room, and I needed the excitement.
Jase: "Sure, I haven't got anything better to do."
Daniel: "Well get ready. We need to get out of here as soon as possible."
My body ached with pain as I stood up. I swayed back and forth as I opened my small leather bag in search of some pants. The boys waited for me in the hallway, and when I was ready we began to pace down the halls. Doors upon doors ran past my eyes, and the smell of clean linen loomed around my nose. When we reached the end of the hallway I quickly pressed the small plastic button to the hotel elevator.
Daniel: "Dude, were not going on the elevator. For one thing there is always a guard watching it, and the fire escape stairs lead straight to the streets.
He looked at me with a stupid look and motioned for me to follow him down the stairs. We tiptoed slowly in fear that the metal steps would give us away. When we reached the bottom Daniel slowly opened the large metal door with the letters fire use only painted on the front. The cold air brushed against my fragile skin, and the once warm feeling from the inside was gone. We hugged ourselves as we ran down the alley ways that lied against the busy streets. In the distance we could hear a soft murmuring noise.
?????: "are you sure......safe........hear...."
?????: "of course.............no............quiet!"
The four of us looked at one another. We had no idea who was in front of us, but we weren't willing to get caught and taken back to the hotel. From behind me I heard the small pats of footsteps on the gravel of the alleyway. All of a sudden I felt a huge metal bar slam into the back of my head. Blood splatted all over the ground, and from behind me I could hear laughs. My body fell to the ground, and my eyes began to grow dark. Next to me I could see Daniel struggling with the shaded figure. It was a useless attempt from behind him another one of the figures approached and slammed him on the head. He let out a loud yell and collapsed. The once cold world that lied around me was gone as my eyes slowly closed.
I can still vividly remember the day I moved. All my friends from school came to wish me luck as I started a new life elsewhere. Well almost all my friends except for Nathan. It was rumored that two days after the marches were over he was found lying in an abandoned apartment muttering to himself in an angry tone. No one really knew what had happened to him, but we had the idea that it wasn't good. He was taken to a mental ward in fear that his moods and actions might become vicious. After the attacks of the Million Machine March my mom had grown a fear and hatred against all robots. In our new home town she is part of a Parental Organization that makes sure all threats of robot encounters are impossible. Ever since the verdict of the B166ER case was read this world has been nothing but a living hell. All the robots that once lived their lives day to day had been put in concentration camps or viciously killed by soldiers that cruised the streets.
The life in my new home town had been great. Everyone welcomed me with warm smiles. They all knew my past and they were willing to help me forget, but it was impossible. The memories of that fearful day still burned in my mind. Their like scars that can't be avoided. No matter what I did they were always there. Sometimes at night I saw a figment of my dad. His body was torn and broken just like they way I saw it when my life was being threatened by the robotic rebel. Now I was back in New York the last place on earth I wanted to see. The senior class at my high school goes on a major trip near the end of the year, and this year they chose to travel here. Of course I had the choice whether or not to go, and of course I pleaded to my mom to let me stay. She didn't listen though; she said it would be good for me to return home. She said that maybe then I could lay my fears and troubles to rest.
My body ached with pain as I made my way down the sidewalk ridden with slushy grey snow. Crowds and crowds of people pushed and shoved me out of the way as I tried to follow my group chaperone. All around me I could hear the soft smoothing melody of White Christmas. The smell of chestnuts loomed around my nose, and the obnoxious blinking of small lights flashed in the windows of the many small stores that lined the streets. As I was walking I felt a small hand grab and tug on the side of my coat. My mind began to quickly race with memories from the march. "Don't even try to run"
I let out a small gasp, and quickly turned around. In front of me there stood a small dainty lady. She was doused in brown torn robes, and her skin was completely pale.
Small Lady: "Please dear lad.... Spare some change for a kind woman."
Her eyes were red and watery as she spoke. From behind me I heard footsteps running across slush. Out of nowhere my chaperone Mr. Hereas pushed the small lady away from me.
Mr. Hereas: "Misses I am going to ask you not to touch any of my kids."
Small Lady: "I just wanted some extra change sir."
Mr. Hereas: "Just get away from us."
She looked at Hereas with mean eyes and slowly walked away.
Mr. Hereas: "Are you okay Jase?"
Jase: "Yes Mr. Hereas thanks for your help."
Mr. Hereas: "It's okay, every time I go to a big city I get harassed by the homeless. It makes me so mad. They should just get themselves some jobs. Their pitiful just like the damn robots."
He laughed aloud and patted my shoulder.
Mr. Hereas: "Keep up with class Jase I don't want you getting harassed again. I know you've been through a lot, and coming here doesn't help. You don't want to get lost though. That would just make every thing ten times as bad."
His eyes gave me a warm feeling, and he smiled. I had always liked Hereas. He was my best friend Daniels dad. Whenever I went over to Daniels house his dad would tell us stories of his childhood. They always interested me. He would talk about the first time America began selling robots. I had read it in books, but it was more interesting hearing it from a first person point of view. I could hardly believe that the first robots cost more than ten million, and back in the last few years they were only around fifty thousand which was the price of a nice car. When the B166ER case came into Americas mainstream Hereas reaction was horrible. When Hereas was a kid no robot would ever think to rise up against its master, but in his older days one finally had. Hereas was a racist against all robots. They were inferior to him, and he didn't like the idea of them trying to make a place for themselves in human society. That didn't change my view of Hereas though because to me he was one of the nicest guys alive.
I followed Hereas back to the group. All my friends looked at me with wide eyes. They all asked what happened, and when I told them some homeless woman asked me for money they lost attention. We walked into Times Square to see the memorial of the Million Machine March execution. It was a bare piece of land that the CEO's had been killed on. On the wall next to it you could see small imprints of gunshots. It was blocked off by a small thin line of red ribbon. In front of it there lied a small tablet that had the date of the massacre and the names of CEO's that were killed. They never found the missing Mayor that was believed to be involved in the execution. Everyone thought he was dead, and his position was quickly filled a month after the march. Many still wonder what happened to that poor man. The search for him was all over the news, but no clues to his whereabouts were ever found. Some believed that he was transported to Chicago by robot protestors and taken hostage, but when the city was freed and the hostages let go he was not there.
Mr. Hereas offered to take us to the New York Diner which was only two blocks away from my old home. I used to eat there every Saturday with my dad when he was alive. When we arrived I took a seat away from my friend Daniel and his pals. Their conversations never amused me. They were always about football games, and who liked who at school. No one really talked to me. I just sat in the far corner window booth where me and my dad used to sit. We would look out the window, and talk about the many people that walked across our view. My eyes slowly skimmed the crowds moving back and forth. Bags and boxes laid in their arms, and their faces were painted with a smile. Children walked beside their parent's hands holding hands. Everyone was living there perfect lives. Every step they took only raised my jealousy. It was like I was viewing a piece of art that I despised horribly, but something in the perfect picture wasn't right.
On a bench I saw a large man sitting and reading the local paper. His eyes were slowly moving back and forth. In some strange way he looked vaguely familiar. I couldn't tell from where, but I could have sworn I'd have met him. He must've felt as if someone was watching him, because he quickly lifted his head upright and began to skim the crowds. I lowered myself slowly into the booth, and figments began to appear in my mind. I began to see a figure of a robot his eyes were glowing red and his arms and legs were covered in cords. In his hands he was holding a small girl, and she was shaking like mad. Then it came to me the name I was searching for..... Renegade!! Could it be that man was Renegade, but how he was human? I kneeled on the floor as the thoughts began to burn fiercely in my head. I shot that man, I killed a human... my own kind.... Just for a robot.... I killed for an object...... it wasn't worth it.....
I felt a hand clench around my shoulder, and a voice yelled out from behind the burning thoughts echoing in my head.
Hereas: "Jase! Jase! Are you okay!!! What's wrong? What's going on?"
His words broke the hatred and despair, and I grabbed onto his hand with a fierce hold. I looked at him with a scared expression, and blackness began to grow in my eyes. With a loud thump I fell to the floor, and the once loud obnoxious world was nothing more than a quiet whisper behind the shadows.
?????: "Dreams are dreams, and reality is just reality my dear boy. Humans are nothing more than mere humans. You're useless to this world. You are nothing more, but heat covered in a fleshy vessel. That's all your flesh is, a vessel. You must give us your flesh, and a new world will await you."
The words came out of a black machine covered in red glowing eyes just like Renegades. His body was covered in long black mechanical arms, and he was shaped like a spider.
?????: "You destroyed our homes, and killed are loved ones. That wasn't enough though; you wanted to make sure we were all dead. Now it's your turn to pay for the blood you placed on our hands. This is what it comes down to you puny humans, an unforeseen consequence."
The large black robot looked at me for a quick second and closed his eyes. All around me the shadows were filled with a large white light, and I was lifted from my nightmare. Above me I could see Mr. Hereas. His face was pale, and his eye sockets were starting to lower. The smell of a newly cleaned room swept into my nose, and I began to sit up slowly. Under my hands I felt a soft cushion. I rubbed my eyes as they slowly began to focus. I looked around only to see that I was in a hotel room. It was covered in a blue wall paper, and the floor was a light purple. My eyes focused onto Hereas as he began to speak.
Hereas: "I don't know what happened back at the Diner, but you scared me Jase. I called your mom and she's on the way to pick you up. What the hell happened back there?"
Jase: "I don't know Mr. Hereas I just passed out... Everything got black, and I felt myself start to collapse to the ground. I'm sorry if I ruined the day. Where's everyone else?"
He played with a pen in his hands as I spoke. I could tell he was nervous. He never wanted anything bad happen to me. In a way I thought of him as a dad, and he thought of me as a second son. When my dad died I never talked to anyone even my own mother, but Hereas was different. There was something that made him different than everyone else. I always thought it was his kindness toward the people he knew.
Hereas: "The other kids are in there rooms, and your pals went to the pool downstairs. They waited for you to wake up, but they got preoccupied ha. Your mother couldn't take it if you got hurt Jase. She's gone through thick and thin, and she's on the verge of breaking. Just rest awhile its already umm about ten o clock. I'll check on you tomorrow morning; by then your mom should be here.
He got up and walked out of the room. Before he closed the door he turned around and looked at me with warm feeling eyes. When the lights went out I began to fall in a deep slumber. Dreams of my childhood filled my head, and the once horrible nightmare from before was drowned out by the happiness and light of my young years. My dad and I were on a playground, and he was throwing me a small dirty baseball. A smirk lied on his face as I stumbled after the small ball. On the grass I could see my mom sitting. Her eyes were on my dad, and I could see a lust in her expression, but my visions were quickly interrupted by a loud creak near my bed.
??????: "SHHHH!!! You idiot! You're gonna wake him!"
Jase: "Who's there!!!"
The lights flickered on and before me stood Daniel and two of his friends.
Daniel: "Whoa Jase, Chill.. It's just me, Jason, and Sean."
Jase: "What are you all doing?"
Jake: "We were going for a swim..."
Jase: "That is such a lie! You three already took a swim, and by now the pools closed!"
Daniel: "Wait how do you know that!"
Blake: "Jeez Daniel just give it all away!"
Jase: "Your dad told me.... Look, just tell me where you're going. It's not like I'll tell you guys. I'm your friend!
Daniel: "Look, if you must know where we are all going I'll tell you."
The three boys exchanged mean and curious expressions.
Daniel: "We're.. Going to one of the nearby clubs that we saw on our way here. Look, since you know now and everything.. Do you want to go?
I knew that the cold December air would be good from all of the heat that had gathered in my room, and I needed the excitement.
Jase: "Sure, I haven't got anything better to do."
Daniel: "Well get ready. We need to get out of here as soon as possible."
My body ached with pain as I stood up. I swayed back and forth as I opened my small leather bag in search of some pants. The boys waited for me in the hallway, and when I was ready we began to pace down the halls. Doors upon doors ran past my eyes, and the smell of clean linen loomed around my nose. When we reached the end of the hallway I quickly pressed the small plastic button to the hotel elevator.
Daniel: "Dude, were not going on the elevator. For one thing there is always a guard watching it, and the fire escape stairs lead straight to the streets.
He looked at me with a stupid look and motioned for me to follow him down the stairs. We tiptoed slowly in fear that the metal steps would give us away. When we reached the bottom Daniel slowly opened the large metal door with the letters fire use only painted on the front. The cold air brushed against my fragile skin, and the once warm feeling from the inside was gone. We hugged ourselves as we ran down the alley ways that lied against the busy streets. In the distance we could hear a soft murmuring noise.
?????: "are you sure......safe........hear...."
?????: "of course.............no............quiet!"
The four of us looked at one another. We had no idea who was in front of us, but we weren't willing to get caught and taken back to the hotel. From behind me I heard the small pats of footsteps on the gravel of the alleyway. All of a sudden I felt a huge metal bar slam into the back of my head. Blood splatted all over the ground, and from behind me I could hear laughs. My body fell to the ground, and my eyes began to grow dark. Next to me I could see Daniel struggling with the shaded figure. It was a useless attempt from behind him another one of the figures approached and slammed him on the head. He let out a loud yell and collapsed. The once cold world that lied around me was gone as my eyes slowly closed.