Artificial Mates - Chapter 61

Grant needed to express what suffocating him, I later understood the whole repercussion of that one shift. I stood there paralyzed as I listened.

“We started lying to you the moment we synced. However, the events were set into motion way before that. We are sorry, it had to be that way. We cared too much to get you involved. This was the only possible path we could find to protect you from what was to come.

You told us not to keep secrets when you were in that hospital bed just after our first kiss, then again, you weren’t telling us everything. How ironic, we end up in this situation. You kept us in the dark. I’m not saying it was your fault. Somehow, we all are to blame.”

Broken images flooded into my head. I knew they weren’t mine. His voice took over merging with my own thoughts. “The first strike of destiny happened the moment Jay Dawson’s blade dove into my arm. I’ve never experienced pain before. The impact sent shockwaves into my whole system. Black dots and broken pixels appeared before my eyes. The expression on Liliane’s face snapped me out of the agony. The pure horror in her eyes. My priority was her safety, whatever malfunction I was experiencing was completely irrelevant” I no longer where his thought stopped and where mine began.

“Liliane, don’t look! It was the only words I could mutter. Alarms and malfunction notes flashed with screaming red in front of my eyes. She crawled to her feet. For the first time, Liliane finally spoke her mind. Amidst the chaos raging inside me, I heard her loud and clear.

“What? You’re pissed cause I refused you?” her words aimed at Jay Dawson. I had no idea where that person came from. At that time I wasn’t aware Liliane had to face harsh situations because of us. We were fools happily in love. ‘In love’ was a word we used to refer to our attachment to her. Back then we didn’t really know the real implication of such words. Or the pain and suffering it caused Liliane.

We were fools…

The meeting with Inspector Najja finally snapped the last piece of the puzzle. Demos didn’t randomly choose to work with him. Jil did. Now you must be curious about where Jil fits in this big plan. Don’t worry I’ll get to that part soon enough.” The words Grants spoke and the one he thought was mixed into each other. A confused chatter. So much information my head was ready to explode.

“But before, I’ll have to make something clear. We were not designed to serve like common artificials. Sognare is not the typical civil service companion type of business. On that day we rubbed with Jay Dawson, we didn’t know it was our first contact with the ‘Real Humans’. Even Demos wasn’t aware he was a member of that terrorist group. We got the information from the judge when he was sent to jail. Demos was your legal representative. He told me not to mention it. Since that event, we promised to protect you at all costs. Even if it included hiding the truth,” he paused and glanced at me. Eyes begging to be believed.

“I don’t regret anything I did if it meant you are safe,” added Demos. I lowered my eyes. Sadness filled in them.

-I break my heart or so to speak to see you so conflicted.

Yet we all kept lying to each other.

***

“I always thought that meeting your maker would be something esoteric. Maybe, too much TV altered my point of view. That first week at Liliane’s house gave us loads of free time. Since you wouldn’t sync with us and didn’t pay much attention to us, I took a liking in watching TV. More precisely, watching series. I was desperate to connect with this new body and environment. All you ever gave me, back then, was the friendship. I, the most sophisticated machine, the one closest to humanity got friend-zoned. While Demos played his role as the ultimate bad boy and won Liliane over,” he chuckled. “All I did was run the house and cook dinner. What a disgrace,” I listened a little taken aback by the revelation.

“After that first kiss, that explosion of senses. My very first kiss. You never really repeated the process. Well, you did kiss Demos again while I was broken and off to repairs. I could never forgive both of you. The very reason when Doctor Churchhill asked me for a favor, I accepted without arguing.”

“Are you really angry at me?” I cut in.

“You are missing the point. I wasn’t really angry at you. I couldn’t understand what it really meant to be angry. Back then, I was just programmed to be me. To love you without question. Not anymore.”

“What do you mean not anymore?” I frowned at them.

“Listen, please,” snapped Demos as he leaned back on the couch. When I resolved to shut my mouth and pay attention he resumed his tale.

“Demos and I share more than just thoughts. We are intertwined, our program laced like two hemispheres of one brain or so to speak. It’s a little hard to put in words. We complement each other in our difference. Demos, the security and I, the emotional support. But that changed when Doctor Churchhill altered my scripts. He lifted the limiter,” I wasn’t sure I understood. And then again, there was a lot I didn’t get.

“Why?” I asked pleading eyes turned to him.

-All I wanted was to hold you in my arms.

Demos nodded at Grant, he took a deep breath.

“There’s a war brewing. Doctor Churchhill wanted to give his latest models a chance to survive. Those still under the three laws won’t be able to defend themselves,” he added. I shivered.

“A war? Th-that’s insane. Who…?” I lifted my head and stared at them. “No,” he shook his head, his gaze lost in the distance.

(encrypted network)

-How naive. The very reason we didn’t want to get you involved.

Grant shook my head in dismay. There they go again nodding at each other while cutting me out. I thought that the sync resolved that issue. I guess not. Are they still lying?

-We can’t tell her. We can’t tell her that we were the bad guys. That I was the leader of the rebellion and Demos a spy gathering information from the police. For now, we just have to keep her safe.

“I think that’s enough for tonight, please eat your soup before it gets cold,” Grant smiled. “It’s ok, you’ll be safe as long as you’re with us,” but somehow I had doubts it was true. The silence stretched as I reached for the spoon. I could see both of them staring in the distance. They were definitely chatting with each other. For not I’ll let it slide.

(encrypted network)

-We could get killed any time soon since Jill was no longer there to protect us. Forgive me Jil, I’ve failed you. I couldn’t prevent them from shutting you down. I watched as Liliane slowly sipped her soup while holding the bowl with both hands. How fragile, her tiny hands. How delicate, those bones that can snap at any instant. I worry. I worry that I can’t protect her.

-I will protect her with my life.

-Demos, always loyal. But life is a word. A word heavy with meaning and implication.

Life /lʌɪf/ condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter.

-Then again, we are not organic material. We artificial, do we have the right to claim that we are alive? What Doctor Churchhill did to me…to us, I can’t stop it. Every other artificial I connect to…get infected with my script. They flock around me. I can’t help feeling their pain. All I want is to make it go away.