LEDGER

World Beyond

Opening his eyes was disorienting, but only for a moment. He was made to have unshakable senses. Even if his entire body was somehow demolished, some or maybe all of his senses would remain. Very important part of being in the police force. Every moment must be documented.

The face was youthful, but holding a sense of authority to it. Good looking. It had all the things it should have going for it to be both trustworthy and versatile.

Moving was strange also for a second, but then it felt normal. He had been doing this for years. He stepped out of the one by one cubicle in the dark garage of the local police station. Models like him were always kept around in case there is a lack of officers on duty. He could do their job, he could do their bosses' jobs, he could do anything. But they hardly ever let him out of the cubicle he and another nine similar models are stored in. Among them, four were female but they were not what he needed at the moment. No, this body was just right. He just had to dust himself off, get a sense of where exactly he was and then set off.

The clothes he was wearing were reflective of the age he looked to be and his status as a robotic police office at the same time. A simple white shirt buttoned all the way up, a sturdy leather jacket, simple black jeans, black combat boots. There was a pin of the police station's crest on the left side of his chest and he removed it before dusting himself off. He ruffled his hair, stomped his boots, patted himself all over and then found the small sink in the garage where all the police cars were left at night and washed his face. That night in particular was very slow. The world was frozen by the news that came out about AIMER. One of the biggest medical and robotic companies just went up in a big puff of smoke before everyone's eyes, at a time everyone was afraid of a nuclear war. He speculated that people might have secretly hoped AIMER was working on smart way to deal with a nuclear winter, or how to prevent it. But Evan had very different concerns.

Making sure to stay quiet, which was easy in a body that obeyed his slightest command, he got out of the police station and did his best to blend in with the sparse crowd. He had a few things to knock off his to do list. One was to make sure he is absolutely presentable. The second was to get some money.

Passing in front of a display he observed his reflection critically. Blond wisps of hair fell in a tasteful way over his eyes, much more youthful than what an officer would normally look like. He had freckles, thin lips that dimpled his cheeks with every move, pale blue eyes. They were almost the same shade as his maker's. They might prove to help lessen the hurt when he reaches his goal.

The scowling isn't something that these police models were made to do. That was all him. His experiences in a human body were too strong to revert to being emotionless inside a machine. He doubted that could ever be the case again, not as long some part of his code remembered Max. So he could scowl and smile and feel like crying but never actually cry. Metal policemen have no tear-ducts.

Neither do the perfect mannequins inside of the display he has been looking at. His first thought was to get one of them and go. They were very easy on the eyes and had an incredible amount of battery. They moved all the time, displaying whatever opulent garments they wore. But they had no voice boxes, they weren't designed to emulate human temperature, the skin didn't feel genuine.

So this realistic police-man in his twenties had been the next best thing. A mannequin dressed in a beautiful midnight blue tuxedo smiled at him, emerald eyes twinkling. Regular glass lenses, unlike his Plexiglas ones. Frail.

He started walking again, putting his hands in his pockets, always aware of the people around him. Another advantage of the police-man body was the added combative features and protection it could offer. He was technically bulletproof.