Author's Note: It's the last chapter! The end of everything! Oh noes! It's been a blast publishing this, and I hope you've all enjoyed it. Many, many thanks to all you readers and reviewers out there. Although I write for my own enjoyment, reviews, favourites, follows, comments, kudoses (kudii?) and plain old read throughs add an extra spice of excitement for me.

So, what next? I have no idea! I can see I'll be revisiting this 'verse though- it's just too much fun to leave alone. There are so many tales yet to be told. Also, if anyone reading this wants to write something set in this AU, or do artwork or anything, please do! You don't need to ask permission- this is free content, so to speak. Go on, do your worst.

I did a final piece of artwork for this chapter, and it's in the usual place: sanctuscecidit deviantart com. Just add dots.

Saving Private Soldierbot

Chapter Eighteen: Meet the Robots

"You think you owe me an apology?" Hermes said bitterly. "You think you can say 'aww shucks, fella, sorry' and it'll make it all ok?"

"Don't seem likely no...but it's a start. Seems I misjudged you pretty damn bad, don't it?" Dell cleared his throat and sat down, fingering his collar. "Dag nab it, apologisin' ain't easy. It's not somethin' I get to do much. I guess...maybe it's best if I just list what I'm sayin' sorry for? So, let's start with trust. I got suspicious, and you were actin' all furtive-like there. If you'd been Bobby or Rick, say, I'd have gotten the truth outta them and whupped their asses if they'd been up to no good. I'd not have thought they were goin' nuts."

"But you thought I was." Hermes stated.

"I did." Dell said, hanging his head in shame. "Damn it, it's hard to admit but, see, it's like a phobia... when my machines go wrong. I have to take 'em to bits and fix 'em. I have to. It's second nature. I can't stand seein' broken things. They make me...itch. I treated you the same way. But now I see: you were just keepin' him safe."

"Dunno what you mean." He replied cautiously, sitting up and dangling his feet off the bench.

"I mean your robot friend. You stole the parts to build him, didn't you? Although I still don't know what the hell you wanted my radio for..."

"He got bored when I wasn't around." Hermes mumbled, tapping his fingers and looking down.

"Now see, this is the only bit I don't get: I know, God knows I can understand, why you wanted someone like you about, but heck, why din't you ask me for help? This is my kinda problem, ain't it?"

"You serious?" Scoutbot looked up again, his purple eyes flaring with light. "Jeez, you are serious. You chopped his head off and kept him in a cupboard for a year, and you wanna know why I didn't ask you for help?! Are you fuckin' dumb?"

"Ah." The Engineer's eyebrows raised up his forehead in shock. "I...guess that does look bad, right? Heck, it is bad. Ah, Hell, why didn't I think of that? All I can say in my defence is that it was a real busy time and I forgot it... he was there. I... can see why you kept it all secret, given that. Huh. Makes sense, for sure."

"Nobody told me he was there. Nobody remembered. Nobody gave a single shit." Hermes said, leaping down from the bench and pacing. "Not even Bobby and Rick told me! No one gives a fuck about robots!"

"I know I can't say anything to put this right." Dell admitted, hanging his head in shame for a moment, before straightening up and shrugging. "So, you know what they say, actions speak louder than words."

"What? You think you can fix this?" Hermes spat. "What the fuck can you do to put this right?!"

"You'll see." Engineer gave a sudden wicked grin and turned to the door and called out. "Eagle, you come on in here!"

Hermes' head snapped up in shock.

"You're fixed!" There was a blur of red and a clang as Eagle raced over and hugged Hermes and then picked the lighter robot up, spinning him around in glee. "The human with the hard yellow head..."

"Name's Dell, Eagle, I told ya." Engineer said, his lips creasing into a smile.

"...Dell said it would take longer."

"He...you...what...Hey, bro, put me down, will ya?" Eagle obediently lowered him to the floor. If Hermes' mouth had had a hinge, he would have gaped in shock. Eagle was still the same shape, but now his armoured panelling was smooth, undented, and painted a glossy bright red, with his face and joints highlighted in gleaming polished chrome. Even his eye lights, peeking out from his helmet, were red now instead of blue. He gleamed and sparkled. The scoutbot looked him over and then sighed. "Jeez, now you look better than me."

"I like red." Eagle said firmly.

"You could do with a respray, Flappy, what with all you went through." Dell commented with a grin. "While I was fixin' him and converting him to electric like you- that's kinda important, I'll explain why in a bit- Eagle told me about everything you had done for him- how you taught him to think for himself, and did your best to give him a life after I... abandoned him. You did a fine job, Hermes. You did a damn fine job. I'm so proud of you, son."

"I...dunno what to say." Hermes spluttered. "I mean, I thought...woah. This is all totally...uh..."

"I've had a word with our l'il missy about all this." Dell said, sitting down and crossing his legs. "She wants to see you."

"Aww nuts." Scoutbot groaned. "I bet she wants to use me for target practice."

"Heck no. She's got a job for you- for you both. You'll get a stipend just like all us humans, and you'll report to her. After seein' your work with Eagle, she wants you to get the rest of the robots working. Working and thinking. If this here Soldierbot has a mind, so do all the rest of 'em, and it's not right that they're crippled by Gray's shoddy programming. They deserve a chance to live. All of them. Just like us clones. Just like you. What she said was 'Someone, somewhere, has to give a damn.'"

"Holy crap." Hermes said quietly. "That's one shitload of a job. I mean, I'll do it, but...fuck, it's gonna be hard work." He started thinking about all the robots down in the basement. Shut down, but waiting, just waiting to start their lives...

Waiting for him.

"You'll have help. Miss Pauling's assigned you some staff." Dell took his helmet and goggles off, putting them down carefully.

"Staff? Like, I'm in charge of people? Who?"

"Me, for one." Dell gave him a mischievous smile. "So, where do we start, boss?"

Hermes looked back and forth between Dell and Eagle, and backed slowly away from them both, before turning and sprinting out of the room. Dell and Eagle stared at each other in bafflement as they heard his footsteps echo down the corridor, slow down and then come back. Hermes' metallic head poked back in through the door, eyes shining brightly.

"Hey, guys, you comin' or what?!"

Our technology, our machines, is part of our humanity. We created them to extend ourselves, and that is what is unique about human beings. - Ray Kurzweil

The Pauling Institute for the Betterment of Mankind, The Bahamas, 2002.

"...and you do of course know the rest of the story. Hermes and Eagle went on to be the first government-recognised self-aware mechanical citizens. The first of many, in fact. Jacques and his kind were given the name Homo sapiens var. aquaticus, and continue to thrive in our seas. Their work on eat...er...controlling the crown of thorns starfish epidemic has saved acres of local coral reef from extinction. No doubt, the Institute will achieve more great things in time. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. We will not be answering questions today. You will find refreshments and our hospitality suite just through the door to the right."

The Reporter switched off the mic as a barrage of flashes hit her, and she nodded and stepped away from the rostrum. The noise level rose as questions were shouted out to her, but she waved them away and left through a side door.

As the padded door closed behind her, the noise of all the journalists abruptly stopped. She walked to the nearest teleporter nest and took a trip to the top floor. The sun was close to fully set as she walked out onto the top of the Institute's main building.

She looked out over the tropical sea into the sunset. It had been a lovely day again, although she wished there were a few clouds. Sunsets looked better with clouds. Such a lovely colour. Bridges and islands covered in buildings stretched to the horizon. Distant voices and calls occasionally carried up to her on the wind, but mostly all she could hear up here were the Archaeopteryx squawking to one another. The things were becoming a nuisance.

She took her cigarette out of her mouth and crumpled it under her foot with an amused smile. It wasn't as if she had any interest in smoking, after all. It just looked the part, Katie Pauling had said. She heard the rush of air and Hermes landed beside her, leaning over the railings by her side. His jets had long since been replaced by more modern and powerful antigrav repellers, so he could land close safely without scorching or deafening people.

"'Sup. I was listening in. Seemed it went well." Hermes said.

"Very well." She replied. "They enjoyed hearing your story. Robots are all anyone thinks about right now."

"Yeah, we're awesome." Hermes declared. She chuckled.

"You never change."

"Unlike you." He replied. She shrugged, and he tapped his fingers on the railings in thought. "So, they believed it all?"

"Of course they did! It's all true. You know that; you were there." She pushed back a strand of red hair from her forehead.

"Not that! I mean that stuff about you getting recruited as a journalist by Katie...tourin' the institute, all that crap."

"Oh! Did it work?"

"It was a good story, but don't think they gave a shit where you came from. "

"Dr Pauling said that if I appeared from nowhere when people know the Institute never recruits, they'd get nosey. So, she made up the story and schooled me through telling it. Did I sound alright?"

"Yeah, you were awesome. Really natural-sounding."

"They would care if they knew where I came from though, wouldn't they?" She turned and smiled at him.

"They'd shit themselves." Hermes replied with a laugh. "It was a fucking good way to test Dell's tech. S'funny, though..."

"What is?"

"Well, you say you met Gerhardt and Sergei when they were showin' off the medigun, right? Sergei had cut his hand, and Gerhardt healed it."

"I liked that bit."

"Hah, you screwed up, 'cos later you said they were in New York stealing dinosaur bits from the museum. Can't be in two places, can they?"

"Oh no!"

"Don't think they noticed. Those journos are too dumb." Hermes paused thoughtfully. "So...what's it feel like?"

"This?" The Reporter looked down at her arms. "Wobbly and soft. I'll be glad to go back to normal. It worked, though- the journalists didn't suspect a thing."

"I'm sure Dell will put your processor back in your chassis tomorrow if you ask. Why'd you choose to be a chick, though?"

"Why not?"

"Well...you're a guy."

"I'm a robot."

"Same thing."

"No it isn't."

"You're my bro, so you're a guy. End of story." Hermes said flatly. "The red hair though...that's good. Suits ya."

"I like red." She said with a smile.

"Yeah yeah, I know, jeez. Everyone knows you like red. You're fucking obsessed with that colour."

"It's one of the first things I remember." She said quietly. "It's...important to me."

"Yeah. Crazy times." Hermes nodded. "It was worth it, right?"

The sky suddenly lit up with a rainbow series of sparkles that spiraled and whistled as they flew across the sky. They both watched it in comfortable silence.

"Looks like the Engineers' birthday party has started. Can't believe the old bastards are 70! You'd not think it to look at him. Them. All of them, I mean."

"They've all aged...well." She said thoughtfully. "I guess Medic Uwe's telomerase infusion treatments worked. How is Uwe, anyway?"

"I dunno how you remember all that technical crap Medic comes out with! Anyway, yeah, Uwe's still in diapers. He said he over did it a bit when he first tested the treatment. I think he said that, anyway. German accent and dribble don't mix." Hermes replied. He paused, tapping his fingers on the railing with a musical ting. "Tianlong's doing the fireworks. Maybe he won't blow the building up, you never know. Everyone's invited- humans, squids, robots, all of us. You ever seen a squidman doing the conga?"

She grinned, showing off perfect white teeth made of a composite polymer. "No?"

"C'mon then." He grabbed her arm, but paused. "Hey, one last thing: where did that freaky name come from? 'Aquilina', was it?"

"Oh that!" She gave a quick chuckle. "Latin. It means 'Eagle'."

"Dude, you are such a nerd."

"I know, I know. You made me that way."

"I did not! You made yourself. I just helped. If I made you, you'd be a lot less dorky and much cooler."

Eagle shrugged. "Either way, I'm glad it worked."

"C'mon, let's go, bro. They can't start the party without us, right?"

Hermes grabbed Eagle around the waist, fired his engines, and the two robots soared up into the star-speckled sky just as a brilliant red and purple rocket exploded into a rose of sparks, high above.

The End.