A.I. Evolution: The Fall of Lucien

Chapter 52

The rest of the afternoon passed by slowly as the Cardinals each outlined their individual agenda. It seemed that each one would have a month to teach me their individual specialty, with a week off between each session for me to pursue my own interests.

James came to get me after they were all done and took me back to the rooms; we were given the day before. I entered to see Henri and Smit going over some paperwork at the table by the window as Will leaned back in the lazy-boy chair, getting caught up on his sleep.

Henri looks up from the table. "Ah, there you are, Lucien. I was beginning to wonder if they were going to let you go in time for supper."

Will opens his eyes at the mention of my name and leans forward. "Sorry, I must have dozed off there for a moment."

"A moment! You were snoring away for at least an hour and a half," retorts Henri, backed up by a quick nod of the head by Smit.

"Well, when you get to my age, you will need some extra sleep also, young man."

Smit turns quickly to face Henri. "He called you a young man. I bet that makes you feel good, ah."

"Very funny," snaps back Henri. "I still have years left in me to look after my charge. Speaking of which; Lucien, you must be hungry after all that sitting and listening to the Cardinals drone on?"

"Yes, I am."

Will stretches out in the comfortable recliner before putting the footrest down, forcing the back to return to an upright position. "The question is, do we go down to the cafeteria, or do we have it brought up here to the rooms?"

Smit gets up from his chair at the table. "I can have one of the guards get it for us."

Henri quickly looks to me. "What do you think Lucien? Should we have the guards get it, or would you prefer to have young Lucille serve us tonight."

I can feel my face flushing red as I think about the young girl that had run out into the street all those years ago, and how she had developed into a beautiful young woman. "I ah, I think maybe Lucille would appreciate the opportunity to serve us again."

Will chuckles. "Well said my boy. I think she would like that just as much as you would, maybe more."

I look around the room to each of them, trying to judge their reaction to Will's words, before nodding my head. Smit goes to the door as I think about my feelings for Lucille. I did not have much of an opportunity for friends my own age when I was growing up in hiding from the world, so I suspected that my hormone driven feelings for Lucille were more intense than they should be. Of course, this could also explain my inability to sense her with my mind, like I could everybody else's.

Smit places his hand on my shoulder as he walks back across the room from the door where he had spoken to the guard. "I know that look. She has smitten you, hasn't she?"

I look up slightly to him. "She makes my heart flutter every time I think of her. Is this normal?"

"I don't honestly know what is normal for you, Lucien, but I would say that you have found someone that could be a great asset to you in understanding the world out there."

Will stands up and approaches us. "I agree with Smit. You have been so sheltered all your life that the social aspect of your education is lacking. It could very well be time for you to venture out and see the world from the perspective of someone your own age."

Henri covers his eyes as he puts his head down. "Oh, this is so touching. I don't know if I can handle it."

I, of course, can sense Henri and his true feelings. "OK, for the good of the world I will get to know Lucille."

Smit punches the air in front of him. "That a boy. Take one for the team. In the face of such bravery, even I am tempted to cry."

"OK, OK, I need to go get cleaned up and change my clothes into something a little more current with this generation, if I am to do this." I quickly move towards the bedroom and my suitcase. I remove the formal suit I had been wearing for the Cardinals and put on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt sporting a big red tongue, finishing up with red sneakers. Then a quick wash of my face and hands in the bathroom makes me feel presentable for when the food arrives.

I get back into the main room just as there comes a knock at the door. Smit looks to me and smiles, before going to the door, making me feel like a lamb about to be led to the slaughter. He opens the door to see Margaret with the napkins draped over her arm, and the trolley being pushed again by Lucille, who had changed into a shorter dress and a loose-fitting white top. Her smile upon seeing me made my heart flutter in my chest, something I had never experienced before.

I stood there not knowing what to do in one of those awkward moments that men have when seeing someone they feel a deep connection to for the first time. Smit and Henri had already sat down at the table, as Will passed by me, taking my arm, and leaning in to whisper in my ear. "It might be easier to eat, sitting down."

I pull my eyes from the shy, smiling look on Lucille's face, knowing that she is feeling the same thing that I am at this moment. I sit at the end of the table, as Margaret lays a napkin in my lap. Lucille brings over my plate of food and places it in front of me, leaning down close to me as she uses her middle finger in the hole at the top of the cover, to slowly lift it off to reveal my supper.

I look up at her for another moment before dragging my eyes away from the smooth inviting skin of her face, to glance at my meal. Lucille straightens formally. "Tonight, my Lord, we have a nourishing meal for you of baked potato, a six-ounce steak served with mixed vegetables, that are smothered in a light cheese sauce." She pauses for effect before continuing. "Then, for dessert I have made you something special. A coconut cream pie and some hot chocolate to wash it down with."

I feel the sudden tension in Will and Henri at Lucille's words. "How did you know that I like that combination so much?"

Lucille looks around the table also picking up on the sudden change in everybody. "I don't know. It came to me this morning. I just wanted to do something special for you."

"That is ok, my dear. It was just a bit of a shock to us, that's all," smiles Will, as he takes his napkin and folds it the way he likes before laying it in his lap.

Margaret has given the plates to the rest of them at the table and stands up sharply. "I think it is time we left the Lord and his companions to their meal. Come along now, Lucille."

"Thank you both," I blurt out as they move to the trolley and head for the door.

Then, after grace, we all dig into our meal savoring the taste of the meat and vegetables, till we are done. Will is done first and looks longingly at the large piece of pie. "OK, now to see how it stacks up against the one at the diner on the way to the cabin."

We all watch him take his fork and cut the end of the pie off, slowly bringing it to his mouth. We hold our breath as he slowly chews the morsel, concentrating on the flavor. His eyes start to go wide as he swallows the small piece. "This is amazing. I think if the two of them were sitting side by side, I would not be able to tell the difference between them."

"So, it starts," chuckles Henri. "Lucien's little friend has picked his brain and is now using it to twist him around her little finger."

"But how come I can't read her mind, although she can read mine like an open book."

Smit shakes his head. "First love. My dear boy, it is not for us to know the mind of a woman, for we are in a constant struggle to please them, where as they know our every thought and use it to entangle us, making us bow to their every whim."

"But I am different, am I not."

Will looks to me sympathetically. "Love is the strongest emotion we have, and in this case, you may be no different than the rest of us."

I eat my pie and drink my hot chocolate as I wonder when I will see her next, giving into the feelings starting to rage through my body.