A grunt left me as I settled my back against a building before I looked down at the open field I had quickly gotten out of. Just in time for the odd machine lifeforms that had been chasing me to come rushing out from the tree line leading into the massive forest. Their makeshift medieval knight armor clanking loudly as they stomped around in search of me.
It also wasn't lost on me that there were now fewer of them here compared to the group that had chased after me. Their red glaring eyes swept around the area, and I slowly inched back a bit further behind the building while keeping my eyes on them as one of small biped's gazes brushed over where I was hiding.
My hands tightened their grip on my rifle as they kept searching the area. Before my eyes narrowed in confusion when one of the normal machines in the area walked too close to one of the 'knights'. Only for the latter to cut down the other mindless machine without second thought.
Which then led to all the other machines that were doing nothing to basically spring to life. Their yellow eyes turning red in an instant before they charged at the 'knights'. Leading to an all out brawl.
Eventaully, the forest machines came out on top. Before a medium biped wearing similar armor bursted out from the trees. And yelling something I couldn't quite make out to the others, and they all quickly huddled together in tight grouping before slowly backing away from the smoking wrecks they had made. Before disappearing into the tree line.
My glare lingered on the spot where they had gone, as I waited to see if I could spot any movement from them in the foliage.
Though after a few minutes of nothing besides the trees gently waving in the breeze and some animals roaming around, I eventually relaxed. A deep groan leaving me as I pushed myself off the wall and walked over to a broken wall. Carefully stepping over the pieces of rubble.
"So much for exploring the forest…" I muttered, walking down a set of old and slightly broken up concrete stairs before I was on the street.
My small expedition out to the forest next to the city hadn't gone as planned and had been cut short by the machines living there. Every one of seemingly wearing some kind of mockery medieval armor. More concerning and somewhat bewildering to me though was how much they kept yelling random nonsense. It's still a bit hard getting used to them talking. Considering the damn things just a few years ago never made damn peep.
Reaching and rubbing my eyes with another groan, I stopped for a moment before eyeing a large tree that had grown in the middle of the street. Lowering my hand, I took a look around for any machines before sighing once I saw nothing and walked over to the tree. Slipping my backpack off, I set it down next one of the large tree roots peeking out from the ground.
An exhausted sigh left me as I then eased myself down next to my pack before leaning back against the tree and closing my eyes for a moment. My shoulders slowly fell as I blew out a breath, resting my rifle on my lap my thumb slowly running over the polymer handguard before I opened my eyes and stared at it with a tired and slightly irritated gaze.
With a grunt, I grabbed the bolt and pulled on it, only for it to resist slightly. I pulled a bit harder on it before the bolt finally pulled back, ejecting a round that had been trapped inside.
Frowning, I leaned over and grabbed the round off the ground before holding in front of my squinting eyes. Though I couldn't really see anything wrong with the bullet. Sighing, I put it away in one of my pant pockets, and flipped the safety on. "Well, that's not a good sign." I grumbled. Tapping my fingers on along the rifle.
A loud growling sound came from my body. Glancing down, another went off followed by a gnawing feeling in my stomach. "Right... Guess I would be hungry after all that running." Leaning my rifle up against the tree next to me. I grabbed my backpack and sat it in front of me.
Opening it, I dug my arm in and pulled out an orange I had managed to grab back in the forest. Grabbing my knife, I quickly peeled it before putting my knife and pulling down the lower half of my scarf. I took a piece before chucking into my mouth and biting down on it, only to grimace and shuddered at the overly sweet taste. Though I forced myself to keep eating despite my dislike for oranges.
Tilting my head back and relaxing further against the tree. I took a look around at my surroundings as I ate.
Around me were various buildings, all rebuilt by the androids at some point during the war with the machines. The buildings had seen better days. Which wasn't surprising since no one was here to repair or maintain them.
Most of them were in various forms of disarray, slanted to the side from shifting earth or chunks of them blown out from constant battles that happened.
Some even had gigantic trees growing through them. Others were in better structural condition, though their stability was questionable and I didn't feel all that comfortable being inside them. Then again, it's been a long time since I felt that way, and I couldn't be picky about I where slept.
Eating the last bit of pulp from the orange. I gathered up the orange peels and chucking away from me before crossing my arms over my chest and closing my eyes.
I let my body loosen and relax while heaving out a sigh as I took in the surprisingly peaceful atmosphere around me at the current moment. A nice breeze brushed against my exposed face, whilst the warmth of the sun was felt on most of my lower and upper body.
After some time, chirping from right above caught my attention and I opened my eyes to look up and see some birds sitting on a tree branch sitting above me. I don't know what kind they were, thousands of years of evolution did god knows what to the animals on this planet. They were fairly small though, enough to probably fit in my hand. They bounced around, chirping at one another before they flew off. Disappearing from my sight once they flew past a building.
Rubbing my eyes, I yawned as I slowly sat up. "Hm, guess that's my cue to leave." I mumbled as I stood up with a grunt.
Pressing my hands against my back, I pushed, getting a satisfying pop. "Hnn! …Ah, that's good." I groaned, rolling my neck side to side before I leaned down and picked up my backpack and rifle. Slinging my pack on, and keeping my rifle in my hands. Taking a deep breath through my nose, I exhaled slowly and pulled the cloth back over my face. Letting out a long and loud yawn, I rolled my shoulders and got moving.
Bits of concrete and dirt crunched under my boots as I walked on the old broken paved roads. With debris and junk blocking some parts of the road. A few paths were even blocked by a few barricades, built mostly from scrap and other unknown materials.
Honestly, I am still kind of surprised there we even any buildings still standing here. Since it's probably been a long time since the androids had a stronghold on Japan and some other cities that weren't under android control I've come across during my travels didn't seem fortunate enough to survive the constant warfare that goes on. Mostly being reduced to only a handful of standing buildings and rubble. Though the battle lines were always moving in some shape or form, though never by much, unfortunately.
Major strongholds for both the androids and machines have been the same for a long time now, while lesser, 'unimportant' areas, were sometimes exchanged in battles between the two groups. Rinse and repeat for thousands of years and that's the war the androids were stuck in.
I frowned at the thought of the nonstop war the androids had found themselves. The battle between the androids and machines had been raging for a very long time.
Though I couldn't remember the exact date that one android had given me of when It all started. I was mostly just too busy trying to survive and do... Whatever the hell it is I do anymore, just wander around like some old fool. But it had been going on for thousands of years, and from what I've seen, it doesn't look like it'll be ending anytime soon.
Climbing up the small hill of rubble and destroyed machines, I grunted as I kicked at the wreckage of a small flyer, dislodging it and sending the dead machine falling to the other side with a loud crash. Hopping down onto the ground, I glanced to the side when something caught my eye and saw a small brick building. I looked through the still standing front windows to see a bunch of shelves inside. Along with a good amount of books on them as well, from what I could see.
Grabbing the straps of my backpack, I gave it a good shake. There was quite a bit of heft to it from the random items I've collected through the day, but I doubt a few books would add too much weight to it. Stepping around some rusted signs, I grabbed the handle for the door and gently pushed against it.
A loud and drawn out squeaking hit my ears and had me wincing, followed by a pitiful ring from a bell above the door frame, but the door managed to open without falling apart. Aside the handle wobbling in a loose manner.
Looking around the entrance with a wary gaze. I nodded my head with a sigh when it didn't come tumbling down on my head. I pushed the door further and squeezed past, and headed inside. The door slowly closing behind me on its own.
(-)
(-)
A page of illegible words greeted me for the sixth book that I opened. It was written in that odd language that I've seen a couple of times all these years during my traveling. And unfortunately, I still couldn't understand a single damn letter.
Sighing, I put it back on the shelf before grabbing another and opening it, only for this one to be in Japanese.
Closing my eyes and taking a deep, I exhaled and chuckled. "Yeah, what the hell I was expecting." Really, I shouldn't have been surprised. This is or used to be Japan after all and the androids would have tried to rebuild it to the best they could with what frame of reference they probably still had in this day and age. Even if they did slip up a couple of times.
Placing the book back on the old shelf, I looked down at the floor, which had books and pages scattered all around, all of them showing their age with their worn out covers. I pursed my lips as I looked at them, stepping over a few and nudging some with my foot, before stopping when I saw a cover with English words on it hidden under a pile.
Humming quietly, I squatted down and pushed the other books away, and scooped the one that had caught my attention up from the floor. Holding it up in front of me, I wiped away the thick layer of dust on its cover with my other hand, only to grimace at the thick layer now coating my glove.
"Ugh, damn it," I grimaced while coughing a bit and flicked the dust off my hand, and wiped the rest off on my pants before opening the book. Thankfully the pages were in English and in somewhat okay condition, enough for me to read the words on them, which was good enough for me as I stuffed it in my backpack. Looking at the other books all scattered around, all of their titles were only in the weird language or Japanese. Tapping my finger on my chin I looked around the store again, my eyes stopping on the large desk near the back of the store.
Standing up and grabbing my backpack, I walked over. Pulling out the rolling chair with my foot before easing myself down on it and resting my backpack against the desk, along with my rifle. Rolling myself forward, I leaned down and started opening the drawers. "Let's see," I said out loud as I dug through them. "Paperwork, paperwork, and just more paperwork." Slamming it shut I opened the one under it, only for it to also be filled with letters and documents. All of which were useless to me.
Leaning back and using my knee to close the drawer, I turned my attention to the computer on the desk. Pulling myself over, I ran my hand across the old keyboard. Course, nothing happened, even when I pressed a few keys on the keyboard repeatedly or pressed the power button for the old CRT monitor and tower next to it. Only for neither to turn on.
A sigh left me as I leaned back in the seat, resting my head on my fist. "And here I was hoping I could play a bit of solitaire." Scratching my nose with my finger, my eyes lazily looked around the desk before something caught my eye. I quickly looked down to my left under the desk, where I saw a bin full of books all neatly stacked on top of each other.
Humming and raising a brow, I pushed myself away a bit from the desk and scooted myself closer to the bin, leaning my head a bit under the desk so I could get a better look at them. Pulling the bin towards me, I grabbed one of the books and looked over it. The front and back dark blue and black covers completely blank. Opening it, the book's title was on the first page in English along with the next few pages. Nodding to myself, I closed it and reached behind me, and placed it down on the desk before going back for more.
A minute later, I heard the quiet bell at the entrance ring. Signaling that someone had pushed the door open, along with the sound of metal snapping. Causing me to jump and slam the back of my head into the desk. Hissing quietly in pain, I clutched the spot on my head and groaned as I slowly pushed myself back.
Carefully peeking over the desk and looking to the entrance. I saw a female android standing in the doorway, with one hand holding the door open, while the other held the now broken metal door handle. She stared down at it with an awkward frown.
She then turned her eyes up and looked around the store before they landed on me. Her eyes stared at me for a moment before they widened in surprise. She continued to look at me for a few moments before looking down at the door handle and then back at me before doing that a few more times.
With a small and nervous smile, the girl gave me a shy wave as she hid the broken handle behind her back. "Uh, hi there!" She said with a young sounding voice, that was fitting with her youngish appearance, leaning against the door with her body to hold it open.
Still rubbing the back of my sore head through my scarf. I slowly blinked at her before returning the greeting with a small and wary wave of my own. "Morning." I grunted out before placing my hand back on the aching spot of my head and sucking a breath through my teeth.
Her smile became a bit more confident as she pushed the door open a bit more so that she was able to fully step inside. Though not before quickly placing the broken handle behind a bookshelf so it was out of sight, making me snort in amusement.
Taking a closer look at the girl's appearance. She had a young looking face, with brown chestnut hair that stopped around her neck and above her shoulders. Her clothes were the standard muted earth toned camo colored resistance member attire for the kingdom of the day. With a hood laying on her shoulders and ending at her waist. And hanging from her side was a short barreled AK rifle.
"Um..." I looked up at her as she tapped her fingers together nervously, her head pointed down at the floor while her eyes glanced at me. "Sorry for intruding, I had found this place a while back and thought it would good spot to collect some stuff and-"
"I don't live here miss." I interrupted the girl with a tired smile that she couldn't see due to my scarf. "I'm just a scavenger grabbing some stuff, same as you. If something catches your eye, go ahead and take it. It's what I'm doing." I told her, gesturing to the shelves and the books that were on the floor.
She blinked in surprise before smiling and nodding. "Oh, okay!" Her gaze lingered on me for a moment before she quickly turned and disappeared behind some of the tall bookshelves, leaving me to myself again.
Squeezing my eyes shut with a sigh, I massaged the spot I had bumped for another few seconds as I opened one of the books I had picked from the bin and looked over the pages for the next few minutes.
There was a few creaking sounds coming from the chair every so often as shifted around, though I paid it little mind. However, a loud creak from the chair did get my attention as I leaned a little too heavily on the side of the chair before the arm suddenly snapped and I quickly fell to the floor. The chair followed along with me and slammed onto the tile floor.
"Gah! Shit..." I groaned out, a bit of pain coming from my shoulder where I had landed on it, my right arm laying over my head with my body completely sprawled out on the floor and still sitting on the top half of the chair. The wheels of the bottom end just barely visible past the cushion seat from my position on my back.
I heard hurried footsteps come rushing over before I saw the girl leaning over the desk, a gasp leaving her when she the position I was in. "Are you okay!?" She asked as she pushed herself off and hurriedly came around. Kneeling down next to me as she looked over me.
An amused and slightly exasperated sigh left me. "I'm still in the land of the living. If that's what you're asking." I told her in a dry tone, letting my left arm flop onto my chest.
She blinked at my response before scratching her cheek and looking away. "Uh... I guess that means you're okay..." She mumbled to herself before shaking her head and looking back at me. "H-Here, let's get you up!" She said as she hooked her hands under me and pulled me back a bit before sitting me up on the floor.
Shaking my head and kicking the broken chair away, I grabbed onto the desk and pulled myself with the help of the girl. Standing at my full height. I dusted myself off and turned to her, giving her a slow nod. "Thanks..." I mumbled.
She stepped away seeing as how I wasn't falling over and returned the nod with a smile. "You're welcome!" She beamed at me stepping close to the desk while I leaned against it and rubbed my sore shoulder.
This is just not my day... I looked away from my shoulder to see the girl picking up one of the books I had grabbed and flicking through the pages, stopping occasionally and reading a few lines before flicking through more.
I'll admit, it was nice to interact with someone again, even if we haven't really said much to each other. Since it had been a while since I last talked or been near another person. The last time being when I had made it onto the coast by boat. Where the guy who owned said boat and had ferried me over, promptly told me to, 'Have a nice day and get the fuck off my boat.' after I had paid him in some high value machine scrap, which he was appreciative of. Though he had been polite in saying it, so I suppose that was a plus.
And when I had the chance I would make visits to android camps or the towns set up by them to trade or just to... mingle with them for a short time, which wasn't too difficult considering how human they were, at least on the outside, visually. Or just occupy myself with the buildings that they built from a familiar time. If only to help keep my sanity.
And I knew there was a camp or base somewhere in the city, where else would the androids I've seen be coming from? I just somehow hadn't found the place yet.
"So…" I turned to the android, she placed the book neatly back down and leaned on the counter, crossing her arms together on top of it and tapping her finger on the wood surface as she stared at me. Her bright orange eyes looked at me with curiosity, making me quirk a brow at her. "You like to scavenge for human relics as well?" She asked. Tilting her head to the side with a smile.
I hummed and nodded at the question as I reached down for my backpack and lifted it up, placing it down on the desk before grabbing one of the books and checking its condition as I flipped through the pages. "You could say that," I shrugged. "It's more just collecting stuff for personal use really." I answered. Closing the book shut and stuffing into my pack before grabbing another.
The girl hummed and rested her head on her arms. "Really!?" She asked, her eyes wide in surprise. "A lot of the androids around here never really give this stuff the time of day or just use it for..." She leaned her back and stared at the ceiling with a frown. "I'm not sure really. I think some people just like having the stuff." She mumbled before sighing. "Then again, we're still in this constant war with the Machines. So some people don't have the time for such hobbies. Especially at our camp." She said, her hand reaching over and grabbing an empty pen holder, looking over it with a pout.
I offered her a quiet hum in response while idly stuffing another book into my pack. "Some people just don't have the time for any of it or the interest." While my collecting of items could be seen as a hobby by androids. It was more of a way of just trying to deal with the occasional boredom, and so I would be physically active.
"What about you?" I decided to ask her. I knew that androids would sometimes collect items from the old world. Be it because they want to salvage what they can of the past. Or because they want to feel closer to humanity, their creators, even if they didn't understand the purpose of some of the things humanity had used.
She scratched the back of her head and placed the pen holder down and glanced to the side. "Ah, I only started doing this kind of stuff because of another android I met a few years ago. He was a bit odd, but he meant well. He would collect lots of old stuff, even when he wasn't supposed to." She smiled. "One of the things he used to collect was postcards. One of them he showed me had a picture of a place called London." She sighed wistfully. "It was... kinda mesmerizing seeing what the old human cities used to look like. So I started collecting some myself. I found one of Moscow a while back."
I hummed and wiped some dust off a book. "Yeah, it was a beautiful place." I hadn't been to the current one, but I had seen a video feed during my stay over at some camp years ago. The buildings all looked surprisingly the same as I remembered them looking like, so the androids had up to date information on the placed looked like.
Though the only major differences I saw were the rising pillars of smoke, fire, and a major battle going on within the city. So I was glad I didn't get the chance to go there. Alaska had been more than enough for me…
Checking the last book in my hand one more time, I ran my thumb down the spine before stuffing it into my pack and zipping it close now that it was full. Hefting it up I placed it on my back and reached down for my rifle and stepped around the desk and the girl. Stopping, I turned to her and straightened out my jacket and shirt before giving her a nod. "Well, it was a pleasure talking with you miss. But I'm gonna head home. I've had a long day." I told her as I turned on my heel and made my way for the door.
The girl started sputtering behind me and quickly caught up with me, stepping in front of me slightly. "W-Wait, you're leaving already?" She stuttered. Making me stop and look at her while I gestured to my pack.
"Sorry, but I ain't got much reason to stay here anymore now that my pack is full." Said pack was full of other miscellaneous items I had collected throughout the day. And now with the books in it, it was almost overflowing and heavy as hell. So I definitely wanted to get home and offload this stuff before I keeled over from it.
"Oh…" She faltered at that, rubbing her arm. She suddenly perked up and look at me. "I'll come with you!" I raised a brow. Which she took notice of and cocked her hip to the side with a smile. "Walking around by yourself in the city isn't exactly safe y'know?"
A flat stare was all I could give her. "Aren't you also doing the same?" I asked, looking outside the front windows to not see anyone else standing around waiting for her. "Since there doesn't seem to be anyone else with you?"
That wiped the smile from her face as she flinched and looked away. "Uh, well, um," She paused and put her finger to her lip as she tried to think of something, before looking at me and shrugging. "I guess?" She said slash asked with a wince.
Sighing with a roll of my eyes, I fiddled with the velcro strap for one of my ammo pouches as I mulled over it. It wouldn't hurt to have someone travel with me, even if it was for just a short distance. And even if she was a bit odd. But she wouldn't be the worst I've traveled with.
Tapping my foot before I squeezed my eyes shut and nodded. "Alright fine, you can tag along," I told her, opening my eyes to see her doing a fist pump for some reason. "I'll be waiting outside, so grab what you want. But don't take too long." I told her before making my way out the door.
"Kay!" I heard her say from inside, followed by the sound of multiple books falling onto the floor and a panicked yelp from her.
Pausing for a moment in the doorway, I waited, listening for anything else before smiling with a snort and leaving the building and headed over to the body of a medium biped, with the intent to sit on it.
"Ooh…" Just as I sat down and started to ease myself into a comfortable position, the front door of the book shop was practically ripped open before the girl came running out. A few books were tucked under her left arm. Walking up, she stopped in front of me, all ready to go with a smile.
I stared at her with tired eyes before my shoulders sagged. "Could've at least let me take a moment to relax…" She tilted her head and frowned at my words but said nothing as I sighed and sat back up with a bit of effort thanks to my aching muscles.
Rubbing my temples as I felt a bit of a headache coming on, I lowered my hand and looked at the girl who straightened up when my eyes landed on her. "Alright, as I said before, you can tag along." I brought my finger up. "But only for a while, and then we go our separate ways. Sound good?" I asked her. To which she nodded rapidly with a quiet sound of agreement.
"Alright then." Taking my rifle from my shoulder, I gripped it with both hands and started walking, eyeing the large skyscraper in the distance which I've been using as a landmark to tell which direction my home was. The girl did the same and grabbed her rifle, but just held it in one hand. Since her other arm was preoccupied holding the three books she had grabbed.
(-)
(-)
Our walk through the city was relatively silent. Minus the sound of the rustling leaves from the wind and the idle noises from the Machines coming from around us, I had seen a few on some corners and behind the buildings or inside them. Thankfully they had all been the weird ones who would just walk around, staring blankly at everything, doing nothing.
So I took the chance to enjoy my walk while also keeping an eye out. My new temporary companion, however, seemed to be the feeling opposite about our walk. Her head constantly looking around us, pointing her rifle at the alleyways. And while she had the right idea, she was being a bit too jumpy for my taste, to the point where it was starting to become distracting for me.
A sigh left me and I stared at a stubby up in a window as we passed by it. "Kid."
She jumped at my voice, nearly dropping her books before getting a hold on them again before calming down and glancing at me. "Yeah…?" She asked distractedly. Staring at a small group of machines that were hidden away in an alley.
Resting my rifle on my shoulder, I turned my head forward again and glanced at her. "Ask me a question."
Her brows furrowed while she frowned. "Huh? Ask you a question?" She asked in confusion. Stepping around an old car wreck.
Nodding my head, I stepped up onto the hood of one of the cars to get past some rubble and hopped down. "Yeah, it should help take your mind off things and help you relax a little."
Her frown became more pronounced as she looked around us with an even more wary look. "I don't know..." She trailed off, eyeing a machine corpse. "The last thing you want to be in this city is relaxed. And it doesn't help we're out in the open."
"Hmm, true." I nodded at that. Being completely laid back while walking around an area with machines nearby was just asking for trouble.
Cause being taken by surprise by the machines was the last thing you wanted, and would usually spell death for some androids, or end with them just having injuries if they were lucky or strong enough to fight back. It also didn't help the city was quiet. But I don't think it warranted being so jumpy to the point that someone might jump at their own shadow. That could lead to other problems. "But, it's better than having you get startled by like a bird or something and shoot at nothing." I replied after a few seconds of silence.
She pursed her lips and looked to the road in thought, slowing down just a bit, before slowly nodding her head and speeding up her pace again. "Yeah, I… I guess you got a point." She conceded.
"Good," I walked around some tall grass and a few bushes. "What's your first question?"
She blinked and I saw the sudden realization flash in her eyes as she didn't have one prepared was obvious as she started looking around us, before looking everywhere in a panic. "Uhh… Um, uh..." She glanced down at the books in her arms and looked back at me with an uncertain look. "Uh, can you tell me about books?"
Nodding at the question, I cleared my throat. "Alright, as you probably already know, and is something that's obvious. Books are for reading, those ones and the ones I have are meant for entertainment." I said, and she slowly nodded her head. So I continued "But books were also used for other things. They could also be used for recording information, be it the history of a person, country, or the planet itself. They were essentially used for archiving. And they could also help in learning." I answered her honestly. Or, at least as honestly as I could.
The android looked at me with wide eyes, her mouth agape like she hadn't expected an actual answer.
I smiled at her, not that she could see it. "Weren't expecting that kind of answer were you?"
She shook her head. "Not really, I… Honestly, I wasn't expecting an actual answer. Most of the androids I know wouldn't be able to even answer that question. Let alone with that much detail!"
I couldn't help but frown at that. Sure it wasn't something new to me, but it still bothered me all the same that most androids didn't really have a basic understanding of well… basic things humans had or did.
Then again, I've spent the most time around military androids, who were busy with a planetary wide war for their survival. So understanding what humans used to do isn't exactly isn't their top priority, save for a few curious outliers.
"Can..." I was brought out of my thoughts and glanced at the girl, the sparkle of curiosity visible in her eyes. "Can I ask more questions?" She asked, obviously holding herself back from doing so.
I paused as I mulled over it, before looking at the girl. Who was giving me a pout with a silent pleading look. Sighing tiredly, I nodded my head at her, my headache making itself known again. As she did a small jump with a quiet and excited 'yes'.
(-)
(-)
The girl asked about just about everything in our immediate view if only to satiate her sudden appetite for knowledge and just to distract herself. To which I answered all of them to the best of my ability. But at the end of the day, the questions had the desired effect. As she slowly began to loosen up her tense form. Until finally she finally looked like she wasn't about to jump out of her skin at the sight of her own shadow.
Taking a short pause as we climbed over a barricade built around a bus, the girl performed a nicely done jump, landing on the roof without any problems. I, unfortunately, didn't have the same strength to pull off the same as androids were able to. So I had to climb up onto some of the scrap on the ground before I could jump onto the bus. With a height that is past the what an average person could manage. I saw her eyeing me with curiosity and worry when I stumbled on the landing a bit. Though that only happened because of all of the gear I was wearing and how heavy it was, hence I tried to avoid jumping around with my gear, after doing it a few times and biffing it a few times when I was younger. I rolled my neck and shook my legs. "Hah…" I looked at her before gesturing to the end of the bus. "Shall we?" She nodded silently, her eyes lingered on me as I walked past.
Hopping down, I grunted and winced when I landed. "Umph…! I'm going to feel that later." I muttered to myself, rubbing my now aching knees. This is what I get for jumping at that height while wearing all this gear, along with the stuff I've got sitting in my backpack.
My temporary traveling companion landed next to me with little problem. Standing up with a small twirl, and giving me a childish grin. I just huffed and rolled my eyes as I walked past her.
We were at least a quarter of a distance away from my home when she suddenly stopped, making me do the same, and turn to her. "...You alright?" I called out.
The girl stared at the ground, having the look of someone who just remembered something important and it was something they shouldn't have forgotten. Before a strangled whimper came from her and she grabbed a handful of her hair in panic. "Oh no! I've been out for too long! My leader's going to scrap me for parts when she finds out I'm not there!" I opened my mouth to say something but she was already running off.
"Sorry! I have to go! Bye!" She yelled, breaking out into a sprint. Her hand waved wildly as she ran before quickly disappearing around a building within moments. Leaving me standing there in slight bewilderment. Staring at the spot she had just been occupying a few seconds ago, I couldn't help but snort in amusement and shake my head before turning around and continuing on my way home.
It didn't take long before the familiar sight of four large trees entered my view, which acted as the entrance and natural camouflage for my home. Stepping between them, I entered a courtyard. The building I had taken shelter in was a simple four story store or something. As far as I could tell with it, it hadn't been finished, with it missing windows and the doors. And no furniture inside it, when I had found it. With only a small bit of green paint on the front. Around it were also some tall office buildings. Which were ten stories tall. Providing good shade from the constant sun that hung overhead.
Pushing past the tarp I had set up in the front doorway, I stepped over a scattered pile of broken glass and walked upstairs to the second floor where I had set up my room.
A yawn escaped me as I stepped in, before I started removing my scarf. And wrapping it around an old beat up coat hanger I had found a while back. Before doing the same with my backpack and combat vest. I sighed in relief at the removal of all of the heavyweight on my shoulders and just plopped them down on the floor.
Fiddling with my equipment belt, I set it down on my chest drawer and placed my rifle on the wall before stumbling forward towards my bed, my exhaustion finally having caught up with me. Sitting down on my makeshift bed, a soft groan left me as I stretched my legs, before pulling a few small stools I had found closer and resting my legs on them. With piles of cloth on top of them to act as cushioning. Laying down on my 'bed' which was just an old cushioned chair, I grabbed one of the blankets hanging from the side and threw it over me.
Two damn months in this city so far, and I still haven't found a damn mattress. I grumbled internally, as I began to fall asleep.
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And there we go. I only ended up wanting to make this story because I was inspired by A Man Rants at a Camera, for Hours On End. I just really love the idea of a human wandering around for years, "blending" in with the androids and teaching them a few basic things they can't completely understand. Whilst they just think the poor guy is an android nutcase who's slowly breaking down.
That, and I wanted to make a story where the human character is basically a father figure for the majority of the androids. So hopefully this turns out decent and to people's liking because there are a few scenes I thought up that I love. The only problem is figuring out how to get to them.
() Did a bit of revisions for this chapter, cause quite honestly, I did not like it. Every time I came back to this chapter I pretty much would just go "Eh!" in pain and close out of it or skip it. I'm still a bit iffy on it. But I don't want to get stuck in the pitfall that I've seen a lot of people get into where they try to rewrite their first chapters only for the story to die off. But don't worry! I don't plan on having that happen. As this only was the only chapter I wanted to fix. Any others will be after (Hopefully) the story is finished or if theirs something in them that needs to be changed/fixed.