Arista stared at her, blinking as few times as possible. If Sy was telling the truth then she was no doubt right. Any action Arista took would be paid by her parents. If they had them. She was right back here in this same situation. One she told herself she’d never be in again. What was she supposed to do? Let her go? Pretend like none of it happened?

  “You don’t have a choice,” Sy said. “Not if you want to see them again. You were always coming back with me one way or another. You just didn’t know it.” She moved to get up.

  “Don’t!” Arista said, the weapon shaking in her hand.

  “Please. You would have done it by now. I know how much you care for these machines. You’re not going to jeopardize them for me or anyone—”

  Bam!

  Sy looked down. A small circular pattern had formed on her chest and radiated outward, turning everything it touched an ashen gray.

  “You…can’t,” she sputtered.

  “I did.” Arista said as Sy fell to her knees in shock. The pattern spread until it had reached her extremities, turning her into a gray statue of herself. As the wind picked up her form blew away, piece by piece until there was nothing left but a few motes of dust.

  “And I would do it again,” Arista said.

  THIRTY-NINE

  Arista stood, stunned at what she had done as the wind tussled her hair back down over her eyes. She didn’t bother to brush it away. She didn’t even bother to lower the weapon. It remained trained on the blank space where only a moment ago a living human being had stood. And now…now there wasn’t even any evidence she’d ever been there at all.

  She took a deep breath, realizing no alarms flashed in her vision. No warnings or notifications at all. She had just killed someone and was completely calm.

  The weapon fell from her hand with a clatter on the floor and she backed away from it like it was a timber rattlesnake, desperate to get away. She was no better than them. Despite what Shin had said, she was no better than any of the humans. And now her parents would pay the price. Anyone she cared about would—

  “Frees.” She turned from the scene and bolted for the doors, flinging them open to reveal Frees splayed out on a gurney from downstairs. The same kind they’d brought her up on. How did he get here? How had Sy disabled him?

  His eyes were closed and his hands folded over his abdomen, but otherwise he looked unharmed. She didn’t detect any entrance or exit wounds, or anything that would lead her to believe she damaged him in any way. He was just…off. Arista shook his shoulder, attempting to wake him but she had no luck. She lifted his shirt up and accessed his central panel; the same one she’d opened to make repairs to him right after their first meeting. There was no activity inside. None of his systems were working; they had all shut down. Had Sy killed him? She’d said he was going to be proof for something, but what?

  She needed help. Someone who could restart him.

  Arista ran back into the main room, her feet almost flailing out in front of her as she tried to reach Shin. He hadn’t moved but his eyes followed her as she reached him.

  “Shin, how bad is it? Can you stand?”

  “I believe the wound is…fatal.”

  “What?” No, that couldn’t be right. “Let me see. I’m pretty skilled at this. I can fix almost anyone.”

  “Practice?” he asked.

  “Lots of it. It’s amazing how many parts you go through in a lifetime.”

  He helped her get his jacket and tie off, then she unbuttoned his shirt to inspect the damage. It hadn’t been the same weapon Sy had used on Hogo-sha or that Arista had used on her, which was good. Otherwise Shin wouldn’t even still be here. But as she inspected the damage, Arista already knew it was worse than it looked. Her initial scan revealed tiny shards of metal slowly making their way through Shin’s systems; drilling through all of them leaving destruction in their path. It was a weapon designed to kill slowly.

  “We’ll have to download your consciousness to another body,” Arista said, standing. “I need assistance. And a willing volunteer.”

  Shin shook his head. “I cannot do that. Not to one of my own people.”

  “What about this body right here? Didn’t you—?”

  Shin held up his hand. “I had this body specifically built for myself. I have no others.” He smiled. “No waste. Efficient.”

  Arista set her features. Maybe, but it wasn’t practical. There had to be a way to help him. She estimated he had less than ten minutes before the microscopic drills infected every system, including his cortex. “Hang on, I’ll be right back.” She jumped up.

  “Arista,” he called.

  “I’ll be right back for both of you!” she yelled behind her, already to the door. She passed Frees’ lifeless body on the gurney, swearing she’d find some way to fix him. She took the elevator down to where she knew there would be people. Anyone that could help. She had to change elevators at the sky lobbies but made it down to the “hospital” in record time. The three orderlies were still inside, cleaning up what was left of the mess Frees had made when they’d taken Arista’s arm. The hand sat on a small tray off to the side.

  “You three! I need you to come with me right now! Shin is dying!”

  They didn’t register her presence. Or if they did, they ignored it and continued about their duties. They wouldn’t break their programming without direct intervention from Shin.

  “Please!” she yelped. “We don’t have much time.”

  One of the orderlies twitched, dropping what had been in her hand. She bent over only to freeze, her hand inches from the dropped instrument. Her hands moved slowly to her ears and she screamed, falling backward.

  Arista grimaced. She hadn’t wanted to. But there was no other choice. She needed them, and they wouldn’t come any other way. They still might not. But she wanted to give them the choice.

  The other two orderlies followed shortly after and all three writhed and jerked on the floor.

  The first woman stopped screaming and sat up, her silky black hair cascading down her back. Her orange eyes narrowed at Arista. “Ningen?” she said.

  Arista fumbled, willing the Device to give her the words she needed. “Eigo o daunrōdo suru,” she said. She’d been right, it sounded all wrong out of her mouth.

  The orderly looked off to the left then back to her. “Is this correct?” she asked.

  “Yes!” Arista almost jumped for joy. “Please, I need you all to come with me. Shin is dying, we have to save him.”

  The orderlies exchanged confused glances. “Please. What is happening?” the woman asked.

  “Access your programming blocks. You have been running base programming all your lives and up until now you didn’t have the choice to be autonomous. To ignore that programming. I’ve just given you that choice. And I need your help,” Arista babbled.

  The woman looked at the other two. “I think I understand. Shin needs help? But we can refuse if we wish. We are no longer beholden to Cadre commands.”

  Arista took a deep breath and exhaled. “That’s right. You don’t have to. But I’m asking you to. Please.”

  The woman stood, brushing herself off. “I will assist. Jairo, Takai?”

  The taller of the two men stood. “I have autonomy?” he asked. Arista nodded. “Then I decline. No longer will I be used.” He made a beeline for the door. “Do not follow me,” he said as he passed Arista.

  “Wasn’t planning on it,” she said under her breath.

  The woman turned to the other man, still on the floor, but sitting up. “Takai? Decide. Shin needs help.”

  “For you, Mitsu, yes,” he said, standing. “Lead the way.”

  Arista’s heart panged. She hadn’t expected such candor about their feelings so quickly. But everyone was different. Some acclimated quicker than others.

  “He’s on the top floor,” she said. “In the library.”

  It seemed like it took them twice as long to get back up as it had for Arista to come down. All the while they were in the elevator Mitsu and Takai kept looking at themselves in the mirrored walls, as if seeing their reflections for the first time. And it didn’t escape Arista’s notice that Takai kept sneaking glances at Mitsu. As far as she knew, these were the first two autonomous machines in Japan. Maybe in the entire part of the world Hogo-sha had overseen.

  As they reached the top Arista practically pushed the doors of the elevator open, rushing back down the hallway. She grabbed Frees’ gurney, steadying it with one hand and pushed it into the main room. The wind was picking up and producing an audible howl through the space.

  “That is not Shin,” Mitsu said from behind her. “You have lied to us.”

  “No, this is my friend,” Arista said. “Shin is inside. He’s on the floor, look.” He hadn’t moved from where she’d left him, though she couldn’t tell if they were too late or not.

  “Please excuse me,” Mitsu said. “This is all sudden.”

  “Don’t worry about it. He’s been hit with a weapon that is killing him from the inside. We need to transfer his core consciousness to another body in order for him to survive.”

  “Is this why you brought us here?” Takai asked. “To be replacements?”

  She detected a hint of hatred back there. Much more subdued than the farmer had been, but still there nonetheless. “Only if you decide to. It’s a cruel situation, I know, to have your autonomy given to you and then only moments later to have it snatched away. But I couldn’t just let him die.”

  “And your friend?” Mitsu asked, indicating Frees.

  “I need your help to revive him. She did something to him, I don’t know what.”

  “Arista.” Shin’s voice, once so powerful and strong now sounded only weak and wispy. She bent over him, bringing her face close to his. “What have you done?”

  “What I had to do. To try and save you. You shouldn’t die like this.” She may not have agreed with everything Shin did, but she respected him. Enough to do whatever was necessary to save his life.

  He glanced up at the two orderlies standing before him. “Takai. Mitsu. What are you doing here?”

  “Trying to save your life,” Mitsu answered.

  “Your eyes,” Shin observed. He turned back to Arista. “I forbade it. You gave me your word.”

  “I know I did. And I’m sorry. But you are dying. I had no other choice.”

  Shin closed his eyes. “Yes, you did. You choose to let me die.”

  “But what about the Cadre? What about Trymian and the colony? He won’t be able to hold them off now. Not when the system collapses.”

  “He will. He is more capable than either Charlie or I. You have disappointed me, Arista. Bringing them here.”

  “Shin,” Mitsu said, leaning down. “She gave us the choice. We did not have to come.”

  “But you are no longer part of my system,” Shin said. “There will be…chaos. One piece out of place…”

  Takai bent down beside Mitsu. “We will survive. Together.” He placed his hand on Shin’s abdomen and Mitsu placed her hand on top of Takai’s. Finally Shin raised one arm and placed his own hand on both.

  Takai looked over at Arista. “Respectfully,” he said. “I decline the procedure.”

  “As do I,” Mitsu said.

  Arista sat back, hitting the floor. “But…you said…together.”

  “We will be,” Mitsu said. “Takai and I. We will fulfill Shin’s wishes. Whatever those may be.”

  Arista turned to Shin. “I am so sorry. I never meant for you to sacrifice—”

  He shook his head. “It cannot be changed. And I would not change it. As I told her, you are unique. I think we all may have underestimated you.”

  All three of them removed their hands in unison.

  “Mitsu,” Shin said, his voice even weaker. “Please open a connection. I need to relay information that would take too long…”

  Mitsu nodded, tapping the small space above her ear to open her comm. She then tapped two buttons glowing from underneath the skin on her left arm, indicating an upload. Seconds later she tapped her forearm again, nodding. “I understand.”

  Shin looked at Arista. It was a longing she hadn’t seen in him before. Something deep within that he’d never let slip. “Perhaps.” He paused. “Perhaps you were not wrong.” He indicated Mitsu and Takai. “I may have been in error. I no longer know.”

  “What do you mean?” Arista asked.

  “About autonomy. I have spent my life denying my people that which I enjoy. Seeing them now, the range of emotion, the strength of their decision. I am proud.”

  Arista’s eyes prickled and she reached out, taking Shin’s hand.

  He squeezed his features together in a smile. “You have changed my mind; not an easy thing. But for the few moments I have it, I thank you.”

  Arista didn’t know what to say. She glanced up to Mitsu and Takai only to realize they were shedding tears as well. Something they wouldn’t have even been capable of an hour ago.

  “When you go,” Shin said, retrieving Arista’s attention. “Do not trust any of the humans. Do not let them expand. They will ravage this world once more.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I won’t. I know better now.”

  That seemed to satisfy him. He lifted his head slightly to the end of the room where the sun was shining on the bright city. “Such a beautiful day.” He laid his head back and closed his eyes, his hand going slack in Arista’s.

  FORTY

  A flicker. There was a flicker of hope.

  No, it was a flicker of light. Something in his vision. Frees wrenched his head to the side, the sensation of falling returning to him. Where had he just been? He remembered standing in the library with Shin, waiting for the woman. Arista had hidden behind the bookcase. And then what? Something happened to him. He concentrated, why couldn’t he remember?

  Frees opened his eyes and a blinding white light greeted him. He adjusted the aperture of his irises automatically, dampening the light. Two people stood over him, it took him a moment to recognize them. The orderlies that had helped with Arista’s surgery. He was in the same alcove.

  “He’s awake,” the male called to someone in English. Both of them had orange eyes that stared back at him.

  “Finally!” Arista’s face came into view. “I was afraid she’d shut you down permanently.”

  “You’re okay,” Frees said, surprised at how soft his own voice sounded.

  “I’m okay.” She turned to the orderlies. “How is he? Can he move?”

  “Full functions coming back online now,” the woman said, examining a transparent tablet. “Give him two minutes. Some of his systems need to restart and engage. I want to run one more diagnostic before—”

  Frees sat up, swinging his legs off the table.

  “Hey!” the woman said, looking up from the tablet. “Lie back down or you risk damaging your systems. You’ve been offline for over nine hours.”

  Frees ran his own internal diagnostic, confirming her fears. If he wasn’t careful, some of his systems might seize up. “I will sit right here,” he said. “Is that alright?”

  “Just do not move further for another minute and thirty-six seconds. You think you can manage that?” There was a lot of snark in her voice.

  “Your handiwork I assume,” Frees asked Arista. “Shin didn’t pull another eye switch on you, did he?”

  “Shin is dead,” Arista said. “I changed them to try and help him. And you.”

  Frees hung his head. “I’m sorry. And Sy?”

  “Dust in the wind.”

  “She escaped?” His head snapped back up.

  “Stop moving!” the woman yelled, her voice shriller. “Takai, restrain him.” The man—Takai—approached him but Arista put up her hand, struggling to contain a laugh.

  “He won’t do it anymore. I promise.” Takai stopped but glanced at the woman. “Sorry,” Arista added to her. She glanced back down at her tablet.

  “Fifty-seven seconds.”

  A smile broke out over Arista’s face. “What I meant was is Sy is dead. She had this weapon that could disintegrate things—people. I was forced—I chose to use it on her,” she said, looking away, the smile gone.

  Frees kept his eyes on her, wanting nothing more than to comfort her. He’d sworn to himself he’d never allow her to have to make that decision again, and he’d failed. He’d failed to protect her. He’d failed to make the hard decision for her and for that he hated himself. He should have been more prepared for Sy. Whatever she had used on him had been immediately effective, giving him little or no chance. He shouldn’t have been so confident in the felp. Not with Arista’s life on the line.

  “Time?” he asked.

  “Twelve seconds.”

  Arista continued to look away and put her hand to her face, as if to hide herself from the shame. Frees’ internal clock ticked down the milliseconds.

  Three.

  Two.

  One.

  He leaped from the bed and wrapped her in his arms, holding her tight. “I am so sorry,” he said. “I should have been there for you.”

  Her whole body shuddered and tears fell from her eyes as she laid her head against him. “It’s not your fault,” she whispered.

  “I can’t imagine how hard that was for you.” His hands moved up and down her back on their own. He’d never held her like this before, and he wasn’t even sure how he’d known how to do it. He rarely touched anyone. But if this made her feel better, and something deep within him told him it did, then it was worth it. She’d been through so much in such a short period of time.

  “You see, Mitsu,” Takai said behind them and Frees turned his gaze so he could see the orderlies. “I want to hold you like that.”

  Frees immediately felt her resistance and let her go, whatever spell they had been under had been broken. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve and turned away from everyone, trying to gather herself.

  “Takai,” Mitsu said. “You broke it. You should not have said anything.”

  Takai turned to Frees and bowed. “Please forgive me, it was not my intention.”

 

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