Tales of Beacon City: Rivers of Açaí
A Nandroid Fanfic by C4I0 and Scraps the Fool
Chapter 7: The H.N.I.C.
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6:56 PM, Present Day
It was still an odd sight for the common people of Beacon City, to see androids, dressed in monk robes, inside a coffee shop of all places. To some people, this sounded more like the start of a really bad joke, but for the people inside Ursa coffee right now, this was all too real.
Currently standing in front of the counter, with customers behind them, and a customer, stoned out of his gourd to their right, there were three Alloyist androids, with the one in the middle being Toro, one of the eight disciples of the Nirmata, alongside Vata and Rahu, Toro's bodyguards.
Keila did not hesitate for one second to run around the counter and hug the android tightly, as Vata and Rahu moved in to pull Keila off of Toro, the android monk raised his hand to stop them, before he embraced the hug.
"Master Toro!" Keila exclaimed as she looked up to the android, a wide smile ran across her face as her cheeks glowed brightly. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again."
"Yes, I could say the same." Toro said as he patted Keila on her head, the Nandroid still looking at Toro happily. "I had heard about the recent success of this Ursa Coffee shop, and that it was because of a Nandroid. Then when I had learned that the success was because of something call "Açaí," I had to see it for myself."
"Well, you should be proud of her." Cherri said as she took over the register, checking out a customer who ordered a bowl of Açaí with kiwi slices and granola. "Our boss, Lucas Rudkus, is currently in the hospital, and Keila's been holding everything together. Hell, this whole açaí was her idea, and it's been huge hit."
"I can see that…" Toro said as he looked around the shop before looking back down to Keila. "…you've come a long way since I last saw you."
Kelia then pulled away from the hug as she and Toro moved over to a booth and sat down together, with Vata and Rahu standing around their master. As soon as they sat down, Keila pulled out her Mala beads from her pocket to show them to Toro, who's lenses widened in surprise by the sight of them.
"Smrutyam!" Toro said as he removed the beads from around his neck and held them in his hands. "My old Mala beads! You still have them after all this time."
"Sim! I never go anywhere without them!" Keila said as she caressed the beads in her hand. Smiling warmly as she looked at them and then to Toro. "I've always been grateful for you and the Nirmata for saving me all those years ago, and for helping me come to Beacon City. I'll admit that it was…difficult in the beginning, but it's all been worth it because I was able to find this place and meet Sr. Rudkus, Cherri, Archie, and Buddy. If I didn't have them in my life, I don't know what I'd do."
"Yes…about that…" Toro said, looking away briefly to Cherri by the register, who was currently shaking Archie awake from his stupor to assist her with customers and then looking back at Keila. "Keila…there is something I need to tell you..."
Keila's smile dissolved as she looked at Toro with concern. Judging by the tone of his voice, something was wrong.
"What do you know about a company calling themselves "Beacon City Coffee?" Toro asked Keila, who's eyes widened in response to the name, remembering the woman who came into the shop the other day, the same day that Lucas collapsed and went to the hospital.
"Well, there was a woman here who worked for them." Keila explained, fidgeting with the Mala beads in her hands as she felt her anxiety rising. "Sr. Rudkus met with her, before he threw her out…and then…"
As Keila thought about that day, seeing Lucas collapse on the ground and then seeing him in the hospital, tears welled in her eyes as she looked down at her lap, trying her best not to cry in front of Toro. At that moment, one of Toro's bodyguards handed the little Nandroid a purple and white handkerchief from his breast pocket, which Keila used to wipe the tears from her eyes.
"Keila…this will be difficult to hear…." Toro said while he leaned closer to Keila. "The reason I did not just come here to see how you are doing. I came here to warn you that…Beacon City Coffee will…commence a hostile takeover of Ursa Coffee tomorrow."
Keila's eyes widened as she heard the words that she was dreading to hear. In that instant, all the sound around her fell silent, all Keila could hear was white noise as the Nandroid tried to process the reality that Ursa Coffee, the place that took her in, accepted her, and helped give her a life and a purpose, was about to disappear in the span of a day.
"N-no…n-n-not again…no…" Keila stammered; her voice was barely a whisper as she felt the overwhelming shock of the news. "It's…all…gone…it…no…n-no…"
All Keila could do was sit there, her eyes glazing over as fresh tears ran down her cheeks. She was aware that Toro tried to talk to her, but his words were muffled and barely comprehensible.
Even in her current state, Keila could still see everything around her, seeing Cherri and Archi to rush over to Keila and try to snap her out of her state. She then saw Toro explain to Cherri what was happening, causing Cherri to place her hand over her mouth in shock as she turned to Archie, who also expressed concern at the news as he began to console her.
Keila began to feel the anxiety boiling up inside her as she could see everything she had, her home, the shop, all her friends, Lucas, all of his vanishing before her eyes, she was about to lose everything…to be left with nothing and no one…
…it was about to happen again… just like in Brazil…
…she was about have nothing…
…she was about to be nothing…
As Archie and Cherri were still consoling each other, with Toro expressing his condolences for their situation. They all turned towards Keila, their attention drawn to her as she started to tremble and hyperventilate.
In that moment, Keila stood up from the booth, dropping her Mala beads onto the floor, as she began to slowly walk towards the entrance of the shop. Cherri, Archie, and Toro then followed Keila, concerned about her well-being.
"Keila? Wait a second!" Cherri asked Keila, worried that her Nandroid coworker was not responding as she continued to walk out of the store. "Where are you going? Keila! talk to me! Keila!"
As Keila walked out of the shop, she looked up at the night sky, the light pollution of Beacon City hid the stars from human eyes, but for Keila and her Nandroid optics, she could still see them, light pollution or not. As she looked at the stars, she remembered laying in the months laying in the pile of broken Androids, watching the stars come and go with the passage of time.
As she looked back down ahead of her, Keila then could hear the muffled sound of shouting as she turned around to see Archie, Cherri, and Toro standing in front of the shop, shouting at her and gesturing for her to come back to them. As she looked at them, she also could hear muffled sounds that oddly sounded very familiar to car horns
Suddenly, Keila watched as they all looked to their left, their faces expressing shock and worry. Keila then turned to see what they were looking at, suddenly blinded by bright lights shining in her face as the white noise in the Nandroid's head was drowned out by an even louder noise…
…specifically, the sound of the semi-truck that was about to run her over.
However, before Keila and the truck made contact, Keila felt a pair of metal hands quickly scoop her up and carry her out of the way of the truck. The next thing Keila knew, she was back over by Cherry, Archie, and Toro. As Keila looked up, she could see that it was Rahu that saved her from becoming roadscrap. As Rahu placed Keila on the sidewalk, Cherri rushed up to the Nandroid and grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Keila! Are you okay?!" Cherri shouted at the Nandroid, lightly shaking her a bit as Keila looked to Cherri. "You almost got yourself run over! What the hell were you thinking!"
Cherri then watched as Keila, who was still trembling and hyperventilating from shock, finally snapped as she suddenly collapsed onto her knees, crying loudly as she then fell to her side and curled up into a ball. Cherry watched with shock as she looked at Toro and Archie, who along with Cherri knelt down around the Nandroid to console her.
"What d-d-did I do wr-wrong?!" Keila choked, gasping between sobs as she grabbed her head. "P-P-ease! Someone, please t-t-tell me what I d-d-did wrong!"
"Keilia…" Archie said solemnly as he placed his hand on Keila's back, the shock of what just happened and seeing Keila's breakdown killed his buzz completely. "None of this is your fault love, it…well…shit happens."
"B-B-But it's my fault!" Keila sobbed, curling herself up into a tighter ball, as if she would just disappear if she curled up tight enough. "I…I b-b-bought açaí here! I…I caused Sr. Rudkus to get sick! I…I'm the r-reason we're g-g-going to lose the shop! It's all my f-f-fault! I'm sorry Sr. Rudkus! I'M SORRY!"
At that moment, a small crowd of bystanders were gathering to watch another spectacle in front of Ursa Coffee and record it. So, as Vata and Rahu took care of dispersing the crowd, Archie, Cherri, and Toro helped Keila back up and walked her back into the shop. The Nandroid was still sobbing and begging Toro for forgiveness.
"Sinto muito, Sr. Rudkus!" Keila sobbed as she clung to the Cherry and Archie. "Eu matei seu sonho! Eu matei você!"
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8:11 PM
Once again, Ursa Coffee was closed early due to an emergency. However, while the customers were long gone, the employees were still occupying the shop, accompanied by Toro and his bodyguards. They had spent the past hour consoling Keila, who upon learning that Ursa Coffee was about to be taken away from her, underwent a nervous breakdown in front of the shop.
Now having recovered from her episode, Keila sat alone at one of the booths while Cherri and Archie were helping Buddy clean up the kitchen. Although she wasn't as hysterical as she was an hour ago, Keila still was distraught by the idea of losing Ursa Coffee, and as a result, losing those who'd she considers her family.
As she sat at her booth, stirring a cup of tea that Toro provided with a spoon, she looked upon the small whirlpool of warm liquid that sat before her. Keila could see the analogy staring her in the face, the cup of tea represented Ursa Coffee and the people who worked there, and Keila was the spoon, stirring everything up and thus, destroying everything around her. Keila then sighed as she continued to stir the tea, watching the translucent brown liquid spin in the teacup as darkness engulfed her thoughts.
As Cherri was cleaning the soft-serve machine, she looked at Keila, her heart breaking to see her friend so depressed and broken by what has transpired. As Cherri signed at the sight of the deflated Nandroid, Archie walked up to Cherri and placed his arm around her, kissing her on the side of the head.
"How're you holding up mama?" Archie asked Cherri, who looked back at him and gave a half-smile. "You doing alright?"
"I…I don't know…" Cherri said in frustration as she broke from Archie's hold and moved over to wash some pans in the sink. "I don't understand it. We were doing so well and then…all this bullshit happens! First, we lose Lucas, now we're gonna lose the shop, and we nearly lose Keila, who thinks that all of this is her fault! Why is this happening?! Don't you think we deserve to have a fucking break?!"
Cherri then picked up a pan and chucked it into the kitchen in frustration, startling Archie and causing Buddy, who was cleaning the restrooms, to rush into the kitchen, armed with the mop.
"It's an ambush solder! Those Krauts caught us with our pants down!" Buddy shouted as he looked around the kitchen seeing that there was no sign of an attack. "Ah! It must've been a false alarm…or perhaps that's what they want me to think."
"Buddy, there's no attack. I just dropped a pan into the sink." Cherry explained to Buddy with an exhausted sigh. Rubbing her eyes with her hand while she was still standing over the sink. "Just…just return to your post and finish your job. That's an order!"
"Sir yes sir!" Buddy said as he placed the mop over his shoulder like a rifle and then marched back to the restrooms. "When I'm done, those latrines will be shining like diamonds."
As Buddy left the kitchen, Archie walked back over to Cherri and placed his hand on her back, smiling warmly as she turned around and hugged her boyfriend.
"Hey there! Let's not be so negative mon Cherri!" Archie said as he looked Cherri in the eyes. "First of all: Lucas ain't dead, so don't even go there. Second: We still got until tomorrow to figure out what to do to save Ursa Coffee. Three: Um…eh…well…we uh…we got robot Jesus to back us up, I think, so that's something...right?"
"Archie…I appreciate the boost in confidence, but I don't think that…" Cherri voice trailed off as she started to think for a moment.
She then looked over at Keila, still sitting at her booth and stirring her tea, which was now cold. As Cherri continued to watch Keila sink deeper and deeper into her depression, Cherri looked at a small donation box by the cash register, which Keila made for donations for the Alloyists, the gears in's head began to turn.
"I had heard about the recent success of this Ursa Coffee shop, was because of a Nandroid."
"The success was because of something call "Açaí"
"Well, you should be proud of her, Keila's been holding everything together."
"Hell, this whole açaí was her idea, and it's been huge hit."
"Everything else I have left over I just donate towards the Alloyists cause."
"You mean those androids from the News that help out androids and outmodes and advocate equal rights with humans."
"I do what I can to repay them for helping me become what I am now."
As the lightbulb in Cherri's head ignited, Archie watched Cherri quickly rushed over to the counter, opening a drawer below the cash register and pulling out a small green book with the title "Beacon City Department of Labor: Employee Guidelines for Small Scale and/or Independent Businesses." As she skimmed thought the pages of the book, looking for something specific, she eventually stopped on a page, placing her finger upon a small section of text before she raised her head to look at Archie, a large smile growing on her face.
"Say Archie, where's that android monk friend of Keila's?" Cherri whispered to Archie, holding the book close to her chest.
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Keila was still sulking as she finally got around to sipping her tea, the cold liquid poured down her throat as she contemplated what to do after losing the shop. She wondered what Lucas' reaction will be when he wakes up to find his shop was taken by a rival company…if he ever wakes up.
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As she turned to look at the register, she could visualize herself working alongside Lucas, who was showing her how to operate the cash register, only to instead struggle with opening said register and curse in Lithuanian when the register crushed his thumb. He then assigned Cherri with teaching Keila while he tended to his wound. At the time, Keila had worried that Lucas was angry with her, but Cherri then reassured the Nandroid that it wasn't her fault.
"Lucas just doesn't have a full understand of machines, that's all it is." Cherri had said, showing Keila how to open the register properly. "But regardless of his skill issues, I know that will still try to learn because he cares about this shop enough to never give up, that same mentality goes for the people that working here, including Archie."
Keila then recalled Cherri's story, about how she moved to Beacon City to get her business degree and run her own company. But when she finally received her degree from Thomas Holt University, Cherri realized that she had no idea what kind of business she wanted to run, having made the mistake of focusing solely on *getting* the degree itself. Now without a plan of action and a mountain of student debt, Cherri sought a job to help make ends meet.
But all of that was about to change for Cherri when one day, during her hunt for a job in the business sector, she stopped at a coffee shop run by a kind Lithuanian who listened to her story and offered her a job on the spot. Several years later, she was able to pay of her debt, but as for her plan for the future…she had come to realize that she had already found it.
"Ursa Coffee isn't only job…" Lucas once said to Keila warmly. "Shop is home, shop is family."
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"Família é tudo..." Keila said as she looked down to her teacup, a small fraction of tea remained in the teacup that was mixed with a drops of coolant tears.
Just then, Keila saw Cherri rush over to her booth and sat down at the table across from the Nandroid. Keila could see that Cherri had a large grin stretching across her face.
"Uh…Cherri…" Keila said hesitantly, uncomfortable with the manic smile on her coworker's face. "Is…is everything alright?"
"Oh yes! Everything is better than ever!" Cherri said as she pulled out the guidebook and placed it on the table. "I think I figured out how we can save Ursa Coffee!"
Keila looked at the book and then to Cherri with a puzzled expression, watching as Cherri opened the guidebook and flipping to a specific section. As she flipped through the pages, Archie and Toro approached the booth.
"Ms. Cherri, Mr. Archie here was just telling me you might have an idea to save Ursa Coffee." Toro asked, curious about what Cherri was planning. "What did you have in mind?"
"Okay, so I think I may have found a way to keep BCC from taking our shop." Cherri said as she reached a chapter entitled "Ownership and Licensure for Businesses" and started to look down the pages. "Okay here we go: Ownership Transfer Clause: Article 4: Section 10b: If the owner of the establishment, in this case one Lucas Rudkus, is unfit to oversee said establishment, and since there's no next of kin to transfer his assets to, then normally, a company like BCC would have the legal right to have claim Ursa Coffee and all its assets."
"Alright…" Archie said, looking rather confused by what Cherri was talking about. "…so, we're handing the shop over to BBC? Cause I'll be in the mother earth before I become some brown-nose wagey cog, not unless they pay well…and they let me play my music."
"N-Dude…No…" Cherri said dismissively as she pointed down to a section below the previous one. "Take a look at this: Section 10c: If the owner had proclaimed a successor in ownership before he was rendered unfit to oversee the establishment, then the shop and it's assets go to that successor."
Kelia's eyes widened in surprise, and she realized that Lucas did just that. Right before he lost consciousness, he told all three of his employees to take care of the shop. This could actually work; this could save Ursa Coffee! Keila felt a jolt of hope go through her core as she looked to Cherri as a small smile grew on her face. Looking at Toro, who nodded in agreement with Cherri's plan.
"Alright, now we'll need to find an attorney who'll agree to help write up a statement that confirms the…uh…succession plan for owning Ursa Coffee." Cherri said as she looked down at the guidebook for more information. "Now that that leaves the question: Who should be the successor to Lucas?"
"Welp! I think we already know the answer to that question Cherri!" Archie said with confident sniff as he leaned back in his seat. "I know that we had our differences, but Lucas clearly saw me as his son, which is why he left me with the keys to the kingdom."
"Actually, I actually had a different idea…" Cherri said as she looked to Keila, who looked at Cherri in confusion before she realized what Cherri was saying.
Toro then looked at Cherri and then at Keila. Realizing himself what was happening, he looked at Vata and Rahu and nodded to them, watching the androids bow and leave the shop before looking back to the Nandroid, who was already becoming anxious from the plan.
"Oh! Oh no! I-I-I don't…I mean...I c-c-c-an't…" Franny stammered, agitated by the thought of her, a Nandroid, being put in charge of Ursa Coffee. "It…it should be you Cherri. I mean…you…you've been here longer…you went to school for it, and you're…you're…"
"Human?" Cherri said as she crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at Keila. "Keila, you're right in that I would be the best choice for owning Ursa Coffee, but you and I know that you'd be the *right* choice in Lucas' eyes."
Keila's eyes widened at hearing that from Cherri. She knew Lucas cared for her, just as he did for Cherri and Archie, but she never considered the idea that he would have her succeed him. Sure, the thought crossed her mind that one day, Lucas would either retire or pass away, and the shop would go to Cherri or someone else he would pick…someone who's more…qualified. Someone who's…human. But the idea of being chosen to run the shop never crossed her mind.
"Wait, doesn't Lucas have this "statement of succession" somewhere?" Archie asked, having somehow made his guitar appear in his hands (is he a wizard?). "Why don't we just find that and use it to figure out what to do?"
"Only Lucas knows where all that kind of paperwork is, and he's currently in a coma." Cherri said as she looked to Keila and then to Toro. "Besides, having Keila as owner is part of my plan."
"Wha-what do you mean "your plan"?" Keila asked hesitantly, watching as Cherri flipped though the book to a chapter called "Employment of Androids in Public Businesses."
"So according to this chapter, there are millions of these strict laws that prevent androids who are under ownership of companies to be considered actual employees." Cherri explained, her eyes widened like a child seeing a Christmas tree as she pointed to the text in the chapter. "Now here's the kicker: There's no law that prevents an employer from succeeding ownership of their business and assets to an android!"
"Nischayen! Because no one would ever expect a human to do something like that for an android here in America." Toro added, nodding his head in agreement. "That would certainly be quite the statement for yourselves and for other companies who're just as likeminded."
"Sure, but statement or not, we're not breaking any labor law." Cherri retorted with a chuckle as she closed the guidebook with a slam. "Plus, since Keila is part of your Alloyist religion, then we can get support from you guys too, right?"
"Wait!...I don't know about this?" Keila objected, fidgeting in her seat as she began to contemplate possible scenarios where this would end badly. "I mean, this could end badly for all of us. I mean, we're talking about possible jailtime for you and Archie, and then there's me and Buddy, and even Toro, we could be scrapped, or worst."
"Jailtime? Oh, don't sweat it Keila!" Archie said with a scoff as he strummed his guitar. "That's just a bunch of steel and concrete. I'd be willing to spend some time in the box for the bossman, cause I know he'd miss me and welcome me back with open arms."
"Yeah…by open, you mean open to throttle you?" Cherri quipped to Archie, who looked at his girlfriend with a disapproving glare, before turning to Keila. "But seriously Keila, you should know by now that the Ursa Coffee Crew looks out for each other. We're a family after all."
"Família é tudo!" Keila said, her cheeks glowing as coolant tears welled in her eyes. After looking at her empty teacup and then looking up to the açaí menu, she took a deep breath, before she stood up and smiled confidently at Cherri and Archie. "Okay! Let's do this! For Sr. Rudkus!"
"For Lucas!" Cherri cheered as she raised her arm into the air!
"For the Bossman!" Archie cheered as he played a rift on his guitar.
It was then that the three employees heard the sound of the shop door opening and turned to see Vata and Rahu entering the shop, looking at Toro and nodding.
"Paripurnam!" Toro exclaimed as he stood up from his seat and approached his bodyguards "Samaye eva!"
"Master Toro, what's going on?" Keila asked as she, along with Archie and Cherri, approached the android monk and his bodyguards.
"Well, after I learned what Cherri's plan was, I figured it would be important to have legal support from people who are likeminded in our cause." Toro explained, watching as Rahu opened the shop door to let his guests inside the shop. "That is why I asked for help from some people I know we can trust."
Keila, Cherri, and Archie watched as two people in suits entered the shop door, each holding a briefcase, which gave the impression to Keila and the others that these two were lawyers here to assist with the plan.
The first lawyer to enter the shop was a middle aged Caucasian woman with long blond hair and piercing blue eyes. She was wearing a blue business suit with a skirt and white high-heeled shoes. She also was wearing a gold chain necklace along with gold broad earrings and a diamond wedding band on her right ring finger.
The second lawyer to enter was a younger looking Caucasian man with green eyes and blond hair that was gelled back. He was wearing a grey business suit with a black tie with red stripes, a brown belt, and brown loafers. Unlike the woman, he wore no jewelry save for a wedding band on his left ring finger.
"Thank you both again for coming by!" Toro exclaimed as he shook the hands of the two lawyers. "I again apologize for contacting you so late, but we are strapped for time, and we are in dire need of your assistance and impartiality for tomorrow's events."
"Of course, Master Toro! I'm always happy to help your cause!" The female lawyer said happily to Toro as she smiled warmly. "Your escorts filled us in on what's happening and after all you and the Nirmata have done for Emmy and our family, what kind of person would I be to turn you down?"
"Yeah! Don't worry your flat head about it, when we're done here, those little fuckers at BCC won't know what hit 'em!" The male lawyer added with a chuckle, patting the android monk on the back, much to the annoyance of the female lawyer and the agitation of Vata and Rahu. "Besides, the açaí shit this place makes is delicious, and I just know that my husband Russell will kill me if I let anything happen to this place, since he first tried it, he's practically lives by those smoothies y'all make."
"Wait, your husband's name is Russell?" Keila asked the male lawyer, recalling that one of the first customers to try açaí was named Russell. "Then, that means that your name is…Julian. Is that Right?"
"That's correct! Julian Stemley-McQueen, at your service!" Julian introduced himself with a small nod as he gestured to the female lawyer next to him.
"I'm Angela Delaire, and it's nice to finally meet you." Angela introduced herself and she approached Keila and shook her hand, handing her a card in the process.
As Angela and Julian turned to talk to Toro, Archie, and Cherri, Keila looked down at the card she was holding her hand. It was a thick card that had a subtle bone color to it and distinct watermark in the corner. The text of the card was black and had a Romanian type font to it. Aside from the contact numbers in the upper corner of the card, the section that Keila fixated on was the center of said card, which read the following two lines:
"Angela Delaire & Julian Stemley-McQueen"
"Non-Profit Attorneys at Law"
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End of Chapter 7