KETTY'S SUBDIVISION Wattys2017

Chapter 24-Part IV

A few minutes earlier, Kato had been following Ketty and Barron-sand-denoy at a distance, striking up a conversation with Purline, whom he knew was a wealth of information given the right questions. "So this surfer is one trustworthy fellow, wouldn't you say?"

Purline perked up at the chance to converse and said cheerily, "Trust is a relative term which must be taken in context." They were half way across the robot floor now, and Kato realized the ship and space port recess were much larger than he had first calculated. "For example," Purline continued, "I'm sure we could trust Mr. Denoy to show a guest hospitality and keep them well fed, but when such guests is asleep or not paying attention, it would be a simple matter for him to stab said guest in the back."

"But the Boy Denoy would never do that to someone like Ketty, right?"

"Quite the contrary Master Kato, I'm sure he plans on doing whatever it takes to get rid of us at the first opportunity." Now they approached the spaceport recess which was at the top of a hundred foot wall. Kato had expected as much, but what harm could one guy do? They stepped off the hover boards and followed Barren towards an elevator platform recessed into the wall, but the second Max hit the ground he charged the Boy's leg and tore viciously at his flesh, shaking his head in the throes of a death grip.

"What is the meaning of this?" he yelled while Ketty struggled to pull him off. When she succeeded, flesh tore loose and blood erupted in a crimson tide over the pristine white floor. Kato couldn't help suppress a laugh at the damage. "Get that mutt off me and restrain him," whined the Boy. A small security bot emerged, trying in vain to capture Max.

"That confirms he's up to something," Kato whispered to Purline. "Max would never attack unless he sensed something rotten about the person." Meanwhile, Ketty scolded Max and Barren got a bandage on his leg. Within minutes, another bot with a small cage appeared, but Ketty was having none of it.

"Get that thing out of here." She kicked the tiny bot, sending it scurrying back to its hole. Was she overreacting, or just in a mood because Boondock was gone and now she had substituted Max in his place. How many times had she cried because Boondock acted so stupid, or failed yet another test. She had endured two long years of bringing him along, but just like a handicapped child, he would never measure up to the world's standards. She had accepted that. She didn't care. He was her bot and it only made her mad because of how helpless she felt. She imagined her hands wrapped around Harazel's scrawny little neck, squeezing the pointless life from his miserable body. Then she would chop his head off, just to be sure. If she ever had another chance she would fight to the death.

"Ok," said Barren, "but next time I will be forced to defend myself." He opened his coat for Ketty to see the tiniest of blasters nestled in a shoulder holster.

Ketty fingered her own weapon as the elevator took them up to where the transport ship was unloading more bots. The view was magnificent up here and even the bite of ozone stinging her nostrils was a welcome distraction as a long line of bots filed down the ramp towards some hidden storage area. Their movements were an orchestra of perfection when they marched past, causing her heart to swell. She had an innate sense of robot herding deep inside she couldn't deny, and it made her want to run away from the Subdivision's problems even more. Her mind wandered. She imagined living here and controlling the supply of robots to a concerted war effort, where the military and the people worked together in an attempt to defeat their enemy. The burden of so many good men and women dying at her hands would never be lifted, yet she had to hope it served a greater cause. But this wasn't her home, and she knew instinctively how a facility like this operated. Barren was hiding the location of the control cab and stalling for time. He had hidden agendas which didn't include her.

She used her neural net to access Max's brain and ordered him to search for the control cab with his superior eyesight. For her, it was as if she were looking directly through his eyes, and she was able to take control and scour the far distance above, honing in on every detail.

Kato waited a good distance behind the others, while Mikenzy and Rayleen walked towards the giant air lock door at the end of the platform. Ketty stood with her neck bent so far back she was looking straight up. Despite their differences, he couldn't stop thinking about her. The way her hair fell over her shoulders, the strength just below the surface that was always ready to put up a fight, and the no nonsense attitude she had to back it all up. He knew she was passionate about what she loved the most, and now that Boondock was gone, she was like a wounded bear cub backed into a corner. Her only defense was to lash out at those who were closest, as if that would ease her pain. Jealousy gripped Kato's heart like a vice which caused bile to rise in his throat. She loved a bot more than she loved him which hurt on so many levels he felt ill. On the other hand, it defined who she was and he would never change that. It was sick in a twisted way, but he had his own hidden secrets, like the way he stalked her, and the way he treated her. He was like Scott in some ways, and in the grand scheme of things, karma had come back to bite him.

No. He realized if love was a game, he had to play it out until the bitter end. Like he had somewhere else to be right now? He had made up his mind long ago. He would not give up on Ketty.

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