SAD ROBOT: an autobiography of my unfortunate existence

69. GOODBYES

69. GOODBYES 

"Why are you ignoring my friends?" the vagrant hisses.

This derelict and the other two look like common street urchins, bottom-of-the-barrel filth. There is a gleam in the eye of the man whose hand grips Miloʼs jacket collar.

"Weʼre just walking," he sputters out, "just minding our own business." 

"Minding your own business?" he says almost incredulously.

"Are ya lost?" says the one whoʼs now approaching them on the right, the other one from the other side of Angelica, with a sickening sneer on his face.

"So where ya lovebirds headed?" says the one behind, whose breath Milo can smell on the nape of his neck. It smells like dead birds.

Angelica is saying nothing through the ordeal, thankfully.

Maybe they havenʼt noticed sheʼs an android yet. If they did, it would probably send them into hysterical acts that one would not care try to predict.

"Just walking," Milo says. 

They all laugh.

"'Just walking,' he says!" the manʼs grip still tight around Miloʼs collar, so tight he canʼt turn his head. "Well, you picked the wrong place to be just walking, thatʼs fer damn sure!"

"Give us everythinʼ ya got," says the one behind Angelica, "including yer little honey here." With a grin that makes Milo sick to his stomach, the vagrant grabs her around the waist, pulling her tight to him. Angelicaʼs natural wide-eyed stare almost gives her a frightened look, although remaining consistently stoic.

"Donʼt touch her," he growls at the dirty vagrant.

None of the three had yet to whip out a switchblade or any type of weapon, meaning that they must not possess one, and if Milo broke free of the one manʼs grip, all heʼd have to do is take on the other three in hand-to-hand combat. Which at least would give him slightly more confidence than staring down at the glint of a sharp knife. No problem, he would just have to take out the three of them, immobilize them long enough for Angelica to escape. If only Angelica came programmed with the use of martial arts self-defense then perhaps Milo would be significantly more bold.

Milo goes for it anyway. He has no choice left but to act. He whips around, surprising the man holding him who releases his grip slightly enough for him to wrench away but before Milo can spin free, he is hit by the man who had approached from the right. The other bastard squeezes Angelica and slaps a hand over her mouth as if expecting her to scream bloody murder. Unfortunately for her and Milo, screaming during a violent attack is not a pre-programmed response for any android, though Milo does notice her attempt to move towards him when he had been hit from behind.

Milo swings out in wild attempts to strike one of the men in the face and move aggressively to the man holding Angelica but he is hit hard in the face by one of the others whose fist had appeared from outside his circle of vision. Milo hits the ground on his knees and the two leap at him, pinning him. Milo fights, struggles with everything he has, grappling to do anything in his power to knock the men off, but he is powerless. They are much too strong.

Held down in an uncomfortable position with his right hand twisted behind his back, Milo grunts in pain and no exertion can move the one man off the top of his back. The manʼs knee digs into his back, making him shout with shooting pain.