((A/N: Hey again guys! Here's part two of the very last chapter of "Lifted". It's been a lot of fun….and believe it or not…a lot of mental anguish on my part…writing this. Grant it…no one ever gave me a set deadline…and I don't make any money at all from the publishing of this story, but it still means a lot to me to give out the absolute best I possibly can when writing for an audience. And you guys have been the best anyone could ever ask for. In some people's eyes….44 reviews may not be a lot..but for someone like me who love's getting praise it may as well be a million! Happy reading and thanks a bunch guys! All of you!-BerryCoffeeCake))
Chapter Ten: Part Two: "The Spine of Atlas"
Emily
"All that money Robert!? All those millions of dollars you spent campaigning!?—You're just going to lay waste to it all?! Throw all of that time and effort down the drain?!"
'Good luck today.'
Emily sighed, stuck her cell phone back down into her purse after reading the message she'd just received, and peered up at her reflection in the mirror in front of her. The bag's under her eye's…and the crow's feet she hadn't known had begun to materialize until that day, were all steadily disappearing under the layers and layers of pale peach powder's her make up stylist was currently applying to have her T.V ready in the next couple of hours. Her hair…a couple of hours ago…dull and lifeless as ever had taken on new shape in the woman's capable hands and…though she didn't want to admit it..really did look better hanging down around her shoulder's rather than up in a tight bun like she used to keep it.
"So is it really true?..President Logan resigned?"
She flinched slightly, feeling a hairpin scrape a particularly sensitive area in the back, and leaned forward to grab at the complementary cup of coffee she'd been offered upon coming in. That morning when she'd gotten up, she'd been far too tired, and far too irritable to consider doing anything to get ready for the speech she was now tasked with giving other than throw on her track suit and tennis shoes and wash her hair. And maybe…just MAYBE throwing on a pair of earrings. And had it not been for Rob's wife calling her that morning after the massive tongue lashing she'd given him the night before, she'd have done just that.
Clarice…the woman currently standing behind her, pricking her poor abused scalp with pin after pin..timidly asked the question once again and had just about given up in getting a response when Emily cleared her throat loudly and gave a quick nod.
"Yes."
She smiled warmly and patted Emily's shoulder in congratulation, her round face dimpling appreciatively, and said just about the same thing everybody else had said once they'd heard the news that she'd be taking over permanently.
"I'm so glad! I voted for him originally because when I heard him speak….it filled me with a lot of hope for the future you know? All the talk about Peace and better environmental and financial practices….fixing the schools. But once he got in…he didn't actually DO anything! But you—."
The make-up artist nodded in agreement…the younger of the two, as she carefully applied a light amount of blush to Emily's cheeks, adding some much needed color to her face. She was taller and thinner than Clarice, with less ethnic features and a more wiry frame.
"I actually remember watching bits and pieces of some of the debates last year. You scared the pants off Stone as soon as he came on stage for round two…just by looking at him. Everybody saw it! It was hilarious! I actually think it was an Internet Meme for a while y'know? Like the um..whaddaya call it? Me-gusta face thing."
Emily frowned. Thinking back to all of the hideous things she'd seen on the inter-webs concerning her-self and various other's due to that election. And all the things she probably would end up seeing due to her new position. The fake sex tapes. The parody porns. The YouTube dance video's…not to mention the Fail compilations that would be uploaded by every opposing politician's teenage son or computer savvy daughter that she would have to put up with on top of all her responsibilities as President. And then there was the stress. The horrible stress of everything she had to do..needed to do…and wanted to do that kept her awake when she was only subbing a few days ago and would likely continue to keep her awake for many more years to come as she continued on.
She looked in the mirror at her-self once again. At the happy, fake shine in her hair. The now non-existent bags, dark circle's and crow's feet…the ruby red paste on her lips keeping them from looking pale and chapped as they normally would from not having the time to properly care for herself. Part of her wanted to jump for joy. Rejoice in the fact that she would now have regular appointments with professional hair dressers, stylists and make-up artists. Receive pedicures and manicures on a regular basis and have the treasury of an entire city—worth billions of dollars at her disposal and park in any spot she wanted without getting a ticket. The other part of her…the more practical..sane part….told her she should be afraid. That she should run out of the Salon right now, screaming and snatching the curls out of her hair. Feigning madness so they'd put her away in some asylum somewhere so she could be worry free. But then she'd be no better than Rob. And at the thought of him…sitting at home, lying on the couch, sniveling, curled up under a blanket, whining to his wife about how low he felt…shirking all his responsibilities and laying them to rest in more 'capable hands' as he called them….she got angry again and slammed the luke-warm cup of coffee in her hand back down on the counter in front her.
The last hair pin was slid in. Uncomfortably close to center of her head and Clarice and her assistant pronounced themselves satisfied with the job they'd done. Going on to continue to congratulate her on her recent success's and triumphs. She nodded exasperatedly, standing up and brushing off the fallen ends of dingy colored hair off the front of her shirt. She only had a couple of hours left until she had to go and meet Dr. Tenma and Astro in the Presidential Office across town. No more time to contemplate whether she really wanted to go through with any of it or not. The decision..unfortuneatley…had already been made for her.
Astro, Emily and A Million Others
They'd been sitting just outside the presidential office door for about an hour now…waiting..waiting…and waiting, for said doors to be opened. Dr. Tenma was standing up, pacing back and forth in between the plush leather guest seats, his silk, cream suit, by now, beginning to show signs of wear. Sweat stains under the armpits, wrinkles in his pants, and scuffs in the recently polished dress shoes he'd worn. Dr. Elefun was sitting, as per usual with people his age and activity level, in one of the chairs closest to the receptionist's desk. On which stood a bowl of a variety of fruits, and next to it, a water-cooler with fully stocked cup rack.
And last, but certainly not least, the long suffering hero of the story, Astro, was up over by the window, and with no certain amount of exultation in the expression on his face, looking down into the nearby public square, at the magnitude of people flooding into it. Either sitting, standing or perching on the steps and low roofs of various buildings in the surrounding area.
The drive over had been a lot less eventful and fraught with danger than he'd originally thought, as had been the quick trip to a nearby Denny's to pick up breakfast. Which consisted of eggs, toast, and more strong coffee. None of which, again, he could swallow. Only taste.
Astro sighed…and the area where his stomach would have been, gave a bit of a twitch. Food, and the ability to actually consume it in an instance like this would've been more than welcome. Never in his life had he tried so hard to appear to be not nervous. And what was more…he was pretty sure it wasn't working considering the pitying look Dr. Elefun was giving him over in his corner by the refreshments. Christ. Some things never change.
Finally, after what seemed like his eighty-eth revolution around the tiny office space, Tenma sat down, fully extended himself and began rubbing away at his temples with his thumb and forefinger. Peering over in the direction of the short, middle-aged reception woman, he asked the question both he himself, his companions, and everyone waiting for the grand speech outside wanted to know.
"When is all this supposed to get started exactly…Misses..?"
The woman looked up, pushed her spectacles back up onto her face and squinted into them looking to the left of the spot the audaciously dressed man who'd just spoken to her was sitting in. Astro couldn't help but notice the odd way Dr. Elefun was looking at her over the top edge of his newspaper…which…until he looked…really…really looked, he didn't exactly get. He cupped his hand over his mouth to keep from laughing, and went back to staring out the window.
"Johnson. Anne Johnson. And don't worry Mr. Tenma. Things should be underway shortly. It's just things are a little jumbled up 'round here after yesterday. Miss Neile…Emily Neile if you've heard of her, took over the Presidency."
Dr. Tenma's brows furrowed. Not at the news that they wouldn't be getting to meet the fabled Robert Logan, but at the deepness of the voice of the person he was talking to. And all the hair on her arms and five o'clock shadow that he hadn't noticed until that moment. He flashed his elderly colleague a look and received a loud sniff in response meaning 'Say nothing.' But how could he not?! There was a man in a dress with a rapidly thickening beard behind the receptionist's desk! And wearing heels no less!
He sat up.
Heart beating a mile a minute, with a huge smile spreading across the swarthiness that was his face, with every intention of making light of the current situation and bringing some amount of energy and life into the otherwise unbearably stagnant atmosphere that had been oppressing him for so long.
Luckily, just as he was about to part lip with a comment about the shade of lipstick the aforementioned servant of the state was wearing, the long awaited Commander and Chief entered the building. Astro turned round and away from his little observation deck, and stood with a comical expression of sudden surprise on his face. Dr. Elefun laid his paper over in the chair next to him and stood up so quickly his glasses almost tumbled off onto the floor. And Dr. Tenma..last but not least, didn't stand up or look around at all. He just kept staring at the person behind the receptionist's desk. Wondering whether or not he or she would have the diligence to keep up this charade for the remainder of the day.
Emily, looking and feeling more harassed and harried than at any other point in the thirty or so years she'd been alive, quickly shut the door in the faces of her guards and entourage before they could enter,Telling them in a rather terse manner that she'd be done with the business at hand , went on to address the grouping of people in front of her.
Astro was the only who noticed how she was dressed. And the only one who noticed just how much make-up she had smeared all over her face as well, courtesy of his ultra-sensitive sight. His surprise gradually tempered down as she spoke to them at large, and the feelings he'd had before, the nervousness and the feeling of dread at this moment faded away into nothing. Looking her up and down…the glittering diamonds on the pale pink pumps she wore…the huge golden blond bouffant on top of her head, and the silk blazer she had on, which was the same color as her shoes, gave him a much different impression of her than he'd had before. She looked..somehow..a lot less professional and dignified than when she'd come to offer them a deal all those weeks ago. A lot less..happy, too.
"What do mean by 'It's not necessary that I come out?'", Tenma asked, his attention momentarily averted from the previous object of his amusement.
Emily walked over to the double doors of her office, and reached out and patted Astro's shoulder, her back still turned, and smiled at him before answering. Astro smiled back, while privately thinking to himself how good it would be to NOT have heightened senses right then. Her make-up…to him….looked more like a greasy , pore clogging paste with food coloring in it than something to cover up so called 'imperfections'. And to make matters worse… the perfume she was wearing..he could smell the fishy scent of the ambergris used to create it. Way more so than he could the nice pleasant scent of flowers that it was supposed to be giving off. Oh what he wouldn't give to have the ability to get sick and go blind. Then again…maybe she wasn't like all the women he saw on T.V. Maybe she wouldn't ask him how he thought she looked. And what was more, she certaintly seemed to know how to handle his father. What with the disheartened look on his face.
"I mean no offense at all . It's just that….I don't want to give anyone in this city, the feeling that my administration is more interested in giving them a 'show' of power rather than actually exercising it. If you get my meaning."
Dr. Tenma blinked slowly. Giving her a level look, and then looked down at his now wrinkled and sweated out suit. Then proceeded to scratch his chin, checking to see just how much hair he'd missed that morning when trying to shave while half-asleep in the bathroom mirror. Deciding he wasn't really as T.V ready as would have been ideal, he nodded, and leaned back in his chair, peering over at Astro and frowning.
"I get your meaning Miss Neile. I just don't really agree with it. When you walked in here you left all your guard outside. And I expect…as per your usual way of going about things.—Head first that is…that you'll be doing something of the same when you go out and address the public. Which could very well be to the detriment of both yourself and my son."
Emily rolled her eyes. " And fighting a giant robot with the ability to absorb and control anything wasn't in any way shape or form detrimental to him?"
"You know what I—."
"Yes Dr. Tenma. I know what you mean, but I don't necessarily agree with you either."
She turned back around, and pushed a strand of hair out of her face.
"The reason I ask yourself and Dr. Elefun to watch from the crowd is a simple one. And if you'll only listen I think you'll be able to appreciate my logic."
A sniff from Dr. Elefun who was seated back in his chair, peeling an orange he'd gotten out of the fruit bowl on the desk. He didn't seem any more perturbed than usual but when you looked close and spotted that little wrinkle in his forehead, you knew something was up.
Before Emily could continue helping the two scientists to fully understand her 'logic', Astro took the riens of the martyr and said, rather unconvincingly that he was fine with whatever anyone of them decided to do. In reality he'd never been more scared in his life…or felt more put upon.
He entered the office with Emily, found the seat the farthest away from her desk and sat in it. Peering anxiously around the room. It was dim due to the curtains being drawn, and dusty as well though it looked pretty clean. It reminded him a lot of what his own house was like once he and his dad had had the opportunity to move back in. And also felt like a sort of allegory for something that he couldn't put his finger on. The copious amount of make-up on President Niele's face made him feel that way too. Like all the things he'd been thinking and the trials and tribulations he'd gone through to get here could be summed up if he thought hard enough about the stuff he saw on a daily basis. What did gross, greasy face-paint have to do with him having to go outside and stand in front of millions of people though? What do dusty floors have to do with anything? Or empty echoey rooms in a ten room house? Probably nothing. And having reassured himself that he'd have no epiphanies today, Astro slumped down in the chair he was sitting in and assumed a more casual air.
Emily mean-while was rifling through the manilla folders on her desk, looking for the last typed and printed copy of the speech she was to give in fifteen or so minutes time, every now and again looking up to examine the boy robot in front of her. Like everyone else in Metro City..and most people that'd lived on the Surface before now, she'd grown up with robots and excepted them as an integral part of society. Taking note of all the things they're useful for and all the things they have the potential to be used for in the future. Seeing Astro for the first time though, had made her wonder about a lot of things she didn't particularly like wondering about. Things that, due to the rough hew of his creator's character, she hadn't felt comfortable asking. Things such as whether or not he still felt that trying to replace his son with a robot was a healthy way of going about things. Or whether Astro himself, though not the original article, felt any animosity toward his father for having done what he did. That is to say if he really could….'feel' in the first place. So many questions. And so little time to get them answered.
"Um…what is it exactly that you want me to do when we get out there ma'am?—Ah..I mean President Neile?"
Emily ghosted over a few of the first lines of the speech, and finding it to be unsatisfactory in pretty much every way a political speech could be, balled it up and threw it in the trash. Who the hell was it Rob had had writing this stuff for him?!
She looked at Astro fully upon having heard his question, furrowed her brows in confusion and a sudden attack of nerves, then rapidly calmed again. Something Astro typically saw his dad do whenever asked about a solution to a particular problem he'd yet to consider. They were a lot alike it seemed. Save for the fact she didn't seem to enjoy expensive clothes as much as he did.
"You don't have to do anything special.", she said as she scribbled something out on a piece of paper and ground a thin, pale, knobby knuckle into her temple. "Unless you want to. To be perfectly honest Astro…"
Astro blinked, listening.
"I really don't care to do this at all. I don't even really want to be in this office right now."
'Fire and damnation! I know you're a man! Why not just admit it?!'
Astro slumped even farther down in his chair, having picked up the conversation going on outside and lost the nonchalant expression that he'd currently held.
He didn't really care a whole lot about going out in front of all those people either…but hearing it from someone else…the very person who'd orchestrated all of it in the first place, made him feel tragically unimportant. As unimportant as he'd felt six months ago. Stuck in a cage behind a garage with oil all over his face and clothes.
She wasn't writing now. Just sort of leaning over on her desk, staring up at the clock on the far wall.
"Can I ask why?", was the lowly spoken reply from Astro.
Emily sighed, and wriggled her nose in an effort to quell the severe itching in her face.
"Because when I got into to Politics…I didn't get into to it because I wanted to be responsible for the safety, security, and comfort of a billion people. I got into it to be responsible for just one. Rob. The man I campaigned with for more than two years."
"Why not just…resign then? If you really don't want the job."
"Because if I resign, there's no one left to take over who has any experience."
And with that, Emily stood up, and folded the little piece of paper in her hand that she'd been writing on and stuck it in her pocket.
Astro stood up as well, gazing at the lady in front of him with wonder and admiration in his chocolate brown eyes.
A long time ago, when he'd been really little, he remembered having gone to see a play at the Metro-City Grand Theatre…sitting on his dads lap as he laughed, smoked cigars over him, and knocked back shots of whiskey like breath mints. And then being violently snatched away by someone with a light, feminine voice, and dark, curly hair. It was the only clear memory he had of his mother. And it was one of the only memories that, weeks ago, he'd gotten his father to elaborate on for him.
In the play they'd gone to see, titled, "The Spine of Atlas", there'd been a sailor, who, on his first voyage after having gone through many trials and tribulations, ended up becoming Captain of the ship he was on against his will and totally by accident. Despite it though, he pushed on and did the best he could with the lot he was given. He did his best to be impartial when trouble arose and provided for his men with the supplies of ships they looted. All the way around the world and back again to their home country, during which time he mollified his dislike of having to take charge by repeating to himself over and over again, "I must do my duty. I must. There is no one else."
Emily's glum, stern expression reminded him a lot of the face he'd seen on the actor the night of the play, and he couldn't help but think over some of things he'd been thinking. All the talk about being a super hero and protecting people. Astro'd read enough comics..seen enough history documentaries and watched enough cartoons in the short time he'd been around, to know that 'absolute power' really did 'corrupt absolutely'. If anything…Miss Emily Neile…President of Metro City, was more afraid of what her new responsibility would change in her than anything else. Afraid…of breaking Atlas's back..and losing all the people and things she hadn't ever really wanted dominion over anyway. That, and the lack of freedom and privacy that came automatically with her 'Doing her duty.'
So the question he had to ask him-self…knowing all this…was: "Does Tobio Tenma—now known as the super android Astro—want to do his duty?"
The whole way down into the square, and up onto the stage, Astro chewed his lip nervously, and kept his eyes down on his feet. People cheered…unexpectedly for both him, and Emily and he couldn't help but tune in to hear the specifics of what was being said. Most of it…was good. But the stuff that wasn't good..was REALLY not good, and eventually, about the time he got to his place next to Emily's podium..he turned his hearing down as low as it would go in an effort not to hear anymore, which in his case was a futile effort. He could only just make out his dad and Dr. Elefun in the crowd. Both saying how proud they were of him. And yet with a monumental amount of doubt and worry in their voices concerning the situation he was in.
No one out there though, the less enthusiastic members of the crowd that is, did anything. And the speech went over well. Very well. And all he'd had to do was stand there and wave to everyone when she mentioned him at the end. A queue he almost missed when saw Cora in the far back of the crowd of people assembled jumping up and down waving her jacket in the air trying to get his attention.
Maybe…for now…at least just for a little while, he could stave off thinking about what his duty was and when exactly he should get to doing it. He was only thirteen years old. A kid! And what was more…he could think of a lot of other way more enjoyable things he could do with his robotic powers than play 'Batman' to a populace that was only half sure they cared about him being around. If he had to though, he wouldn't neglect to act in their defense again. But only if he had to. The rest of his days would be spent, hopefully….in other pursuits.
That is if the girl he was staring at out in the crowd…felt the same way as he did. And if all the magazines he'd read about signals you could use to tell if a girl likes you were right, he'd be taking Cora flying tomorrow morning.
((A/N: Well…we've finally gotten to the end. The end of 'Lifted' an Astro Boy fanfic I've been writing on and off for about two years now. The longest I've ever worked on any one project in my life. And believe me…as scatter-brained as I am, that's saying something! As far as this last chapter goes…reading through it…I'm not exactly confident that you guy's will enjoy it as much as you did my other chapters, but I hope that you do. Some of you will no doubt be disheartened by the fact that I didn't add an ending romance scene for Cora and Astro, but after thinking about it for a long while…I thought going that route would be…cheesy ya' know? If you're one of those people that, like me, enjoys more the idea of a romance rather than just having it thrown right out there; I think you'll appreciate that I didn't add a 'I like you, do you like me?' scene. Last but not least, I want to thank all you guys who reviewed, favorited and followed me for all this time. Your praise meant a lot.
-BerryCoffeeCake))