Chapter 5
"Ouch!" yelled Sauli. "That hurts!"
"Forgive me," said the young droid, "It'll just be a few more minutes and you'll be good as new."
"Thank you," said Sauli, "By the way, what is your name?" The female droid smiled.
"I'm Ann, Android Nurse Network. I already knew you, Sauli. You're the new arrival." She turned and looked at me. "Who I don't know is your friend over there. What's your name?"
"Adam," I said, my voice very high-pitched. I covered my mouth in embarrassment.
"Wow," said Ann, "No wonder you were being so silent." Sauli giggled.
"It's not funny Sauli." I said.
"It has a little humor to it," he replied, "You sound like you were working in the helium laboratories." I grunted and angrily left Ann's quarters. I crossed my arms and leaned up against the wall. I didn't enjoy being laughed at. It wasn't my fault I sounded that way. And who was Ann anyway to make a joke? I had saved her life. That just showed how grateful she was. And Sauli…He had laughed at me too. The thought of that made me fall down and put my head into my knees. I felt so unintelligent. I closed my eyes and just sat there for a few moments. Suddenly, I heard the door of Ann's quarters open. It was Sauli.
"Your leg," I said, "It looks better."
"It is better," he responded, "and Ann says she can fix your voice chip too."
"How?" I asked angrily. "By mocking me some more?" Sauli sat down next to me and began to pet my hair.
"I'm sorry for laughing at you Adam," he said, "Can you forgive me?" I looked at him. He was watching me with those beautiful blue eyes, so sincere and caring.
"Ok," I replied, "I forgive you. Now, let's get my voice chip repaired. I'm beginning to consider myself an annoyance." Sauli laughed and brought me to the table.
"Lie down please," said Ann, "This might hurt a little." She zapped my neck with a device I couldn't recognize. I yelped in pain. "There!" She said. "Done. Ok, try talking."
"Like this?" I said, my voice normal. I smiled. "You did it!"
"It's the least I could do for the droid who saved my life. What a lovely voice you have." I chuckled.
"Thanks." Suddenly, a thought came into my mind. "Ann," I said, "If you don't mind me asking, why didn't you want to ingest your capsules?" Ann froze in place and then took a deep breath.
"Because," she said, "I know what they really do to the androids. And it's definitely not providing nutrients."
"What do they really do?" Asked Sauli.
"They change the droids," she replied, "make them thoughtless and obedient. The capsules are only the beginning. The stations erase every doubt you have against The Superior. They erase every thought you have besides working and obeying. They take away your individuality. Why do you think everyone's eyes are black?" Sauli and I were in complete shock.
"But Ann," I said, "Sauli's eyes are blue, and so are mine." She closed her eyes and smirked.
"You're special. And that means you're dangerous. You and Sauli are more humanoid than most of us. You must listen to me, don't trust anyone but each other."
"But why?" I asked. "Can't we trust you?" Ann sighed.
"My time is growing short. I won't be around for much longer. Which is why I'm going to tell you all I know. First, I have to show you something." Ann pulled out a small, dust-covered book and a tiny video screen with only a single button on it. "Here," she said, handing me the old book. "Look through this." Inside the book were pictures of strange creatures. Some covered in hair and others covered in, what the book called, "feathers" or "scales".
"What are these things?" I asked Ann.
"Animals," she answered, "They used to be everywhere before The Superior took over. Flip the page." I did as I was instructed. On the next page was a picture of two androids together. One was female and the other was male. They were smiling and holding hands. In her other arm, the female droid was holding something unusual. It was tiny and round. It looked like a droid, but it was much too small to be one.
"What is that thing?" I asked, pointing to the small creature in the female's arms.
"That," said Ann, "was called an infant."
"An infant…" I repeated, fascinated by the word. "What is an infant?"
"An infant," said Ann, "was the 1st stage of human development. They called it a, 'baby'. The baby would grow into its primary stage of adulthood over long periods of time. The female and the male in that photo are human caretakers called, 'parents'. They would work together to raise the infant properly and prepare it for its primary function in life.
"Why do they link hands?" Asked Sauli. He was looking over my shoulder to observe the book.
"The humans would link hands," Ann replied, "to show the bond they hand to their partner. A strong feeling called, 'Love', created this bond. They would do many other things to express this feeling like squeeze each other softly, which was called 'hugging' or press their lips together, which was called…"
"Kissing?" Interrupted Sauli and I in unison.
"Yeah. How'd you guys know?" Sauli and I looked at each other for a moment, but then just looked back at Ann.
"Never mind," we said in unison.
"Ms. Ann?" Asked Sauli. "What exactly is the feeling of Love?"
"Well," said Ann, "it's a feeling you get when you meet someone that you automatically find special. The attraction you have to that person is like a magnet's. You're drawn to them. You want to be around that person all the time and never want to leave their side. You would do anything for them and you believe that everything about them radiates beauty. You only want to keep them safe and happy, every other desire is lost." Sauli and I were staring at her in awe. She put her hand behind her head and smiled. Her cheeks became a bright pink color. "At least, that's what the book says." Sauli and I smiled back her.
"It sounds wonderful," I said.
"Unfortunately," said Ann, "The Superior eradicated Love because she knew anarchy would come with it. She assumed that thoughts would be corrupted by this feeling and that would cause them to resist her control. That's one of the main reasons why she abolished all human life."
"That's horrible," said Sauli, as he grasped my hand. Suddenly, a loud banging was coming from Ann's door.
"You have to leave," she said, "Now! I don't care what happens to me anymore." She revealed a hidden tunnel under her bed. "This tunnel will take you to an area outside the bridges. I was supposed to meet my ally there in 5 minutes, but you must go instead."
"Ally?" I said as I got up from sitting on the table.
"There's no time to explain. Just go! Stop The Superior! Free the androids!"
"What about you?" I asked as I crawled into the tunnel after Sauli. Ann closed her eyes.
"I'll be ok," she whispered. The banging became louder and a dent appeared in the door. She handed me the old book and the video screen. "Here. When you get to a safe area, press the button on the screen. It will show you something amazing. Now go!" Sauli and I quickly fled down the tunnel. The last memory I had of Ann, was three large droids entering her room and watching Ann pick up a sharp piece of shattered glass and pierce it into her chest.