Chapter 3

I saw them again. The eyes. They were staring at me.

"What do you want from me?" I shouted.

"Execution!" They shouted back. "Death and execution! Pain and suffering!" I saw flashes of androids being piled up and tossed away. They were completely lifeless. Deactivated. Suddenly, I saw myself. I was strapped into a strange machine. Men with masks approached me. They had needles and weird looking weapons in their hands. One of them pushed a large red button that caused a large machine to come closer to my face. A red laser came from its tip. The laser went straight into my eyes. I screamed in pain. I could feel an intense burning in my eyes. Suddenly, I heard a voice.

"Adam," it said, "Adam, wake up."

I opened my eyes to find Sauli awake next to me. I was in my room, in my bed. It was all just a horrible vision.

"You were screaming and got very warm," said Sauli, "Are you alright?" I placed my hand on my chest.

"Yes," I responded, "I'm fine."

"What happened to you?" Sauli had a strange look on his face that I had never seen on an android. I believed it was called concern. Other droids didn't care for each other. Androids simply recognized each other's existence, not care for each other. Only The Superior was allowed to show concern. I felt so amazed that Sauli dared to show concern for me. It made me feel, unusual. So unusual, I couldn't describe it exactly. Suddenly, I realized he was staring at me. I forgot to answer his question.

"Oh," I said, "I'm sorry. It's just…I've been having…visions."

"Visions?" He asked.

"Yes," I replied, "visions. These visions show me horrible things. It's the same every time. I see eyes, watching me. They are cold and empty with no color in them at all. Just empty black holes. However, tonight was different. The eyes spoke of death and pain. I saw piles of deactivated androids and saw…" I couldn't continue. I could still feel the burning in my eyes. Sauli put his hand on mine.

"You don't have to tell me," he said, I can tell it's bothering you. I can hear it in your voice." I looked away from him.

"Sauli," I said, "I saw myself. I was strapped into a strange machine. These men with masks had odd-looking weapons and activated a laser that pierced into my eyes. It was…" I turned my head to see Sauli's eyes staring into mine. "Terrifying."

"Well," said Sauli, "Those were just visions, nothing more. You're safe now and there's nothing to fear."

"Fear…" I whispered to myself. Could it have really been possible that I was experiencing fear? "How do you know?" I asked Sauli. "How do you know that there is nothing to fear?" He looked down for a moment, and then his eyes met mine once more.

"I don't," he said, as he held my hand, "but I do know that I will protect you from anything that you may fear. I'm not sure why, but I don't ever want you to feel fear or pain. I want to keep you safe from anything that may harm you." I placed my hand over his.

"I feel the same way," I said. We stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like forever. It was fantastic. I felt the same bliss that I had felt when I was at my station. Only this time, Sauli was causing it and it was so much better.

"Your eyes," he said, "What a lovely shade of blue they are." I blinked a few times. I was taken aback.

"My eyes are blue?" I asked astonished.

"Yes," he replied, "A nice light blue, with slight tints of gray." I couldn't believe it. I had never known that my eyes had color. I had always thought they were black, like everyone else's. I realized then that I, like Sauli, was different.

"Oh no," I said ashamed, "I'm different."

"Why, 'oh no'?" asked Sauli. "You are unique."

"Unique?" I said. "What does that mean? Is it a foreign word?"

"No," he said, "It means that you are rare."
"I am rare?" I asked confused, "No, I'm not. I am common. There are models built just like me in every quadrant, I'm sure." Sauli put his hand on my cheek.

"Not to me there isn't. There can't be another model like you because you are unique. Your rarity gives you beauty." I was speechless for a moment. No droid had ever said words like that to me before.

"Beauty?" I had only heard of beauty once before. The Superior used it to describe a flower once in one of her speeches. Did that mean I was like a flower? "Are you saying I am a flower?" I asked. Sauli smiled again.

"No," he said, "I'm saying you are beautiful. In a way, I suppose you are like a flower. You are like a rose, so beautiful and full of life and color."

"But roses have thorns," I said, "Thorns that hurt."

"Very true," said Sauli as he turned away from me. I lightly grabbed his face and moved it back so he was looking at me.

"But I don't want to hurt you," I said, "Because I think you have beauty as well." He smiled at me and pressed his lips against my cheek. It was so peculiar. I felt warm as he did it. "What was that?" I asked him, once he finished.

"That," he said, "was called a kiss. Where I am from, droids use kisses to show deep thanks." I put my hand on my cheek, still in awe.

"I like kisses," I said finally. Sauli smiled as I mimicked his action and kissed his cheek.

"We should sleep," he said, "We need rest if we're going to be productive in our work day tomorrow."

"But Sauli," I said, "What about my visions?" He moved closer to me and wrapped his arms around my stomach.

"I will hold you," he said, "I'll protect you from these awful visions." I placed my head on his chest and placed my hand onto one of his.

"Goodnight Sauli," I said.

"Goodnight Adam," he replied and then kissed my forehead. That night I slipped into the most peaceful sleep mode I had ever had. It was my first sleep without the horrible visions in a very long time.