(Jack Pov)
I must go back there.
This was my first think,why? .Well, after I ran away and then when I poured into the tank of my motorcycle which was running on new fuel and kept going, I noticed a sign on the highway which informed about road to another city. Well, actually a town where a maximum of 30,000 or 50,000 inhabitants could live, which could be seen when you loked at city.
However, unlike a village in the Czech Republic, not even half of the buildings have survived here. I mean, there were buildings, but they resembled ancient structures that lacked some walls or were just collapsed. Unfortunately I couldn't get any closer to at least the city center. Hell, I didn't even leave its suburbs when I saw what was at the gas station. But now machines were full operational and working. Although I tried not to panic at the beginning and wanted to establish a friendly contact with them, I regretted it very quickly.
As soon as they saw me, their eyes turned from yellow to red, which was not a good sign as I thought.I was right and very right when they started shouting "KILL KILL KILL" in English and started rushing straight at me. But it wasn't all that bothered me. Actually, I didn't even care that much because all the robots I saw were much smaller than me and were very rusty. But when they approached me and left the buildings all the time, I realized that they were outnumbered. Enormously outnumbered. It was practically the entire army that started rushing straight to me. But there weren't just those little metal creatures there. I noticed other robots that scared me too. I saw machines with swords, axes, other clubs of homemade rooty, but they were still very sharp. It all rushed straight at me, ready to tear me to shreds, shouting "KILL, KILL, KILL" all the time. .I was standing at the end of a sun-bleached viaduct, looking at everything that was going on in front of me, remembering that I had a gun and a pocket knife, I did the bravest thing in my life.I turned back and ran away.
Just like that, without even looking back, I rushed as fast as I could, as much as the factory that produced this bike allowed, and I was driving until I got to the exact same place and turnout from which I turned an hour earlier to check if in the city were any people.The place itself was like the rest of the highway. There was heat in the air and a faint smell of heated asphalt that I could even smell through my dark adidas with red stripes on the sides and a white sole. I was wearing only pants and a green short-sleeved T-shirt but it was still hot as I stood still. In addition, I feel something that if it is still so hot, the fluid in the motorcycle radiator will run out and either the engine will overheat or I will have to find a new one, which I sincerely doubt.
This means that if I have to go to a place where people who have not been banished by these robots live, I need to know the direction without wasting time checking every town until my engine overheats or fuel runs out, because next time I may not have that much. good luck to find them, and I'm sure that was the one-in-a-million chance I found and it won't happen twice.And if I have to choose between robots I met in town and this particular black flying robot I met at a gas station and shot him I'd rather pick him.
It seems strange even to me, but unlike the machines in the city, he didn't attack me right away, he just stood there and stared at me until I got my gun out.In fact, when I think about it now, I feel stupid and I'm ashamed that I panicked and ran away unnecessarily. I bet if I hadn't pointed the gun at him, he wouldn't have tried to attack me either ,he wasn't just defending himself,? if he were like those city machines he would shoot me before I could move any muscle in my skinny body.Besides, this thing could be a chance to get out of this crap. Means for sure I would find someone in the end, it is only a matter of time, but I prefer to save it and not look for people all days, guided only by my gut. After all, because of my stupidity, I can only move away from them more and more and only by extending my way to civilization, in the end I have no idea about the place where people live, because it is clearly visible that they are no longer here. Hell, I don't even know what year it is! the only thing I saw from the future is a gas mask that doesn't even know if it works or is useless due to the lack of a filter or its destruction.
Because if that is the case, I might as well wrap a wet cloth around my mouth and pretend it protects me from contamination, if there is one here.And so I pondered the junction for a good few minutes in the heat, considering my decision to return. I was standing there like an idiot who looked like he had argued with a girl and imagined a quarrel with her if he had won when nobody was watching. In the end, I decided my decision was final, and if I don't want to starve and dehydrate, I need some information.Why from hunger? Well, after I saw a road sign informing about a larger town, I decided to stop and eat the rest of the food, saying that I would no longer need it and all I had was some matches and less valuable things that were there.I'm a moron.Slowly I lifted my head from the motorcycle steering wheel, looking to the right side of the exit from the place where I was riding here earlier, then with a tired sigh that came out of my body and all in my own sweat with a small amount of water, I started the engine in the hope that it would not overheat and drove away.
.==================================================================
(Some time later)
When Jack finally got to the gas station, his phone showed 2 a.m. and that he only had 45% of his battery left. In this hot temperature outside, the battery was consuming quickly and he himself had no electricity to charge it, but he did not come here to look for energy sources to recharge his gadget. He was very tired and he did not sleep for many hours to which he was not used to, which only intensified this unbearable and unwanted feeling that dulled his mind, which begged for sleep, but the closer he got to the building, the more the place for sleep gave way to slowly but steadily growing adrealine and fears.He left the motorcycle in front of the main entrance and began to head inwards through the cracked concrete pavement with many holes and with his boots on his feet.As soon as he entered his skin attacked by the pleasant coolness of the building, for which he was extremely grateful to be fed up with the hot temperature outside, but he did not come here to cool down.
(Jack Pov)
"Okay, once I'm alive, what doesn't kill you will make you stronger." I saw this flying robot when I entered the building, it was lying in the same place all the time and I began to slowly approach it, but this time I had no visible weapon with me. If this is to be a safe conversation, I should not provoke my interlocutor, of course, if it can talk.
"What if he can't"?
Fuck, if it turns out to be true, it means that I have wasted my precious fuel, time and my own health. I had no more fuel or water reserves and I have no idea if there is any body of water nearby where fish live. Even if they are alive, I still can't catch them.-
"All right take it easy, you have to think positive and be optimistic Jack" After all, that's the only thing I can do now, I thought aloud as I let out a deep sigh through my mouth that was slowly getting dry which meant that my body needed a drink.I stood up the robot staring at him with my hands in my pockets. He looked exactly the same as before, all black with his arms and also the three holes I had recently punched him with my gun, but something was wrong. When I looked at the holes in its structure, everything looked .. fine. Indeed, the damage was still visible, but not its interior did not seem to be massacred by metal.At a normal pace I bent down to try to pick up the thing, which was really very, very heavy, and it forced me to put the robot back on the dust-covered floor where there was a trace of a small shock wave that it probably left when it hit the ground. I tried again, but this time I decided to take my yellow and black jacket from my backpack to wrap it around my sweaty hands which made the unconscious robot slide in my hands. It was heavy, but despite this, its surface was smooth and I did not want to grab his arms for fear that I would tear them off and eventually ruin him completely
"-Okay hufff .. one two threeyy." I said aloud as I picked up the robot again and carefully got up from my knees so as not to fall forward. Everything seems simple, I thought when I got to my feet and I raised the robot to the height of the chest on which I rested it. I was originally planning to put it on the counter and try to turn it on again when suddenly I heard something coming from inside it.
I knew this sound from movies and computer games. It was some sound of a reactivation that took place. I tried to convince myself that these were just hallucinations caused by heat or whatever, but it soon turned out to be untrue. I felt it especially when the weight in my arms in which I held the robot began to drop until it fell completely and the machine itself began to hover in the air until it finally stood face to face with me at the level of my eyes.We stared at each other in complete stillness in absolute silence and awkward silence. The fact is that he has not attacked me yet and he is not hostile yet, but we cannot look at us for all eternity, we decided to be the first to start the conversation by trying to communicate.
- "Hi, are you able to speak or understand me? Finally, I broke the unnatural and awkward silence in a voice that was as neutral as I could, fearing not to provoke a guest, I talked to him, all the robot was still looking at me motionless, however, now it seemed as if he had completely frozen in time. Maybe he had a test error and his operating system crashed, or whatever he had ?, so I decided to say something.
- "Hey okay? Listen to my all apologies for damaging you but I just panicked for which I'm sorry."
But the robot continued to stare at me and didn't respond to my voice. I looked at the dirty floor and started kicking my foot on the ground contemplating what I should do now, before I could make the available choices for the robot he said.
[Attention languages of the ancient world were taken from the reserve memory]
- {My designation for Pod217 was originally assigned to 32S units, my second was to collect materials from the resistance shop together with the 32S unit, however my partner was supposed to join me due to the mention of the camp activity of machine life and the threat of an attack on the movement camp resistance was forced to withdraw before he even got here, moreover ...}
-
"Hey hey that's enough, not everything at once, I asked you if you can understand me, I didn't ask for your entire CV with your partner who is a robot like you". I wanted answers but I wanted them to be simple and to the point, not in the form of a long parable like the Bible
-
"{Pardon , however, in the case of finding me by an android that does not come from Yorha, a full presentation of mine is required, the mission was carried out under the condition that it was not secret, and also informing about the marking of my partner, I carried out the mission so that it would not create additional information complications} "
- "Alright that explains a lot, wait a minute, YORHA, Android? What are you talking about, what is Yorha, some private waste and contamination company, some military junta?"
-
{Yorha is an organization of elite androids fighting machines to reclaim earth and allow them to return to their planet from the moon's surface, which is the rationale for which it was created, and Android on the other hand ..}
- "You don't have to explain it to me, I don't think I know it, but wait from what I associate Androids are robots resembling people, yes? I don't know that at the beginning of the 21st century work or even a project or plans to create such machines, damn it to finally fiction, and people on the moon, really? Do you think I will believe something like that? sooner communism will start to be useful. "Either this thing is badly damaged, or someone is making fun of me, or it's all just a hyper-realistic dream.
- {I confirm, Android is, in short, a human-like robot, but android is a few generations away from the robot, machines with little contact are the Lifeforms of machines that have been destroyed on the EMP farm.
- "Continue" I said calmly, but I still thought it was just a joke that was making me some TV show that nobody watches but has a budget.
- {Friend, however, I have some questions regarding the choice of you the first to ask about your designation and defend also phrases which I am not able to interpret}. Pod217 answered in a completely emotionless voice.
- "Okay, my name is Jack and my gun is, but wait a minute are you not pissed off that I treated you like this? By the way, at the beginning of the conversation you said something about an ancient language that you had in mind, did Chinese replace English for that? to the extent that it was completely forgotten? "
-
{Negative of course "Jack" unit did damage with its action, however, I managed to heal myself, and the fact of unexpected panic in "Jack" unit is understandable considering that you have lost your memory and there may be abnormalities in your system,Ancient languages include all languages spoken by humans."
"Okay then now it's your turn to ask, huh?"
{Question, what is a Military Junta, what does this word which Jack used? I don't have any data on something like that "}
- "You really don't know what this is? Since you're a robot you should have better memory" . Really what's the point of building a robot that knows nothing?
-" Ehhh,fine Well, the military junta is simply a military dictatorship in which a system of exercising power, in which professional military personnel combine command functions with the main functions in the state apparatus, rule based on the army and using military methods of operation. which country is ruled by the military and has an influence on all its aspects. "
{Statement: Judging from the entity's statement, Jack Yorha is not a military junta because it is ruled by the council of humanity, but the question is in how way Jack have information about ancient systems and human culture? }
-'You're kidding me like that? Have you been dug from the ground or something ?"
{-I deny, I was not dug from the ground, only produced in the factory}-"Pfff". I think this thing can take offense on me.{-It's true that there could have been some famous sporting event at that time, but not today's year is not 2019.}
- "Huh, what do you mean, then what's the date today, don't just say the year and month"
{-Affirmative, today's date is 11945 and the month is the end of March. The question, since the one-man "Jack" comes from the human age, does he have more information about people and human culture?}
My heart literally stopped. How's that 11945? After all, then all buildings should practically turn to dust due to corrosion. That little bastard was mocking me and proving my patience. Enough of that. I'm tired, pissed, scared and exhausted, and soon I will be hungry! I will kill him with my own bare hands and I will tear out every cable he has and throw them into the fire and what he will throw into a barrel which he will pour acid and then throw into the swamp! But what if he's right after all? I looked outside through the shattered windows and doors once more. On the highway around which grew huge trees and very tall grass as well as grass that broke through the asphalt and grew out of it. I looked at the remains of damaged cars, at their rusty old wrecks, and then my eyes moved back to the damaged interior of the gas station.- "Then where are the people on earth!?, WHERE IS MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS" !!? "I shouted towards Pod217 with desperation in my voice and barely concealed tears in my eyes and at the same time with fury, threatening to tear him to shreds if he did not answer me and i throw every his single cable into the fire and everything what remains i will throw to the river or swamp.
{I have already answered this question, however, repeat my answer. There are no more Humans on earth, and if unit "Jack" actually comes from the 21st century, friends, family and loved ones who were real people don't live off old age}. Pod217 said it in an unemotional voice, which was normal to see it as a robot and they had no emotions unlike me. For a change, I broke down completely and warm tears started to fall from my eyes onto the dirty floor.- "You're lying"{Negative,this unit have no reason to lie }===============================================
At the same time as Jack was gathering on the ground, a large object was floating high above the planet. One of the many Yorha had in the atmosphere. This particular one was called "Bunker" and it was Yorh's main base which housed the apartments, docks, and command staff including the White Commander who lived there. The interior itself was practically all white and there were no decorations or color other than white and in some places black despite the large size of the base, but it was not an inch that would look nice, and it was not expected that someone would live in it due to the lack of oxygen inside. It was supposed to be a safe command headquarters away from the enemy, and it worked perfectly in this regard.Today was the same as any day since the war raged. In the large room there were many operators who gave orders to the androids on the ground assigned to them, and at the very bottom of this great hall was Commander Yorha, Commander White. The name suited her very much. Her outfit was overwhelmingly white, which matched her name, as well as long golden hair. She was very attractive, like all the rest of the androids, but due to the fact that she was the commander, her complexion seems to be aggressive and cold. That day she had a meeting with a scanner that, during one of the missions in Europe, literally "lost" his capsule on which there may be information.Fortunately for the scanner, there was no important information, but rather "common" information from what she found out.However, the problem was that this wasn't the first time this particular scanner had lost its Pod and Yorha couldn't help himself to keep this happening again and he couldn't forever produce the same models inadvertently like scanners like himself. From his files she also read that very often his missions were unfortunate. This was fine considering that all his missions were successfully completed, but more than once the missions were costly by his inattention and excitement, but unlike the scanners, he carried out all his missions alone. Why? . As the only one not to break into the bunker servers and in the management of this, he has never come close to learning the truth about humanity and its extinction many times before the invasion of aliens. That is why he traveled alone and was never convicted by Eroids, but that does not mean that he could have been unpunished against other offenses against him.And she waited for his arrival in the great hall where she stared at the screen screens on the wall against the background of bulleted Yorha units. For a human, it would be a problem to know where a particular unit is compared to many others, but not for an android.
-"Sorry, Commander, but you wantef to see me and discuss something." A male voice interrupted her, coming from behind her back.- That's true 32S. She said in a calm, and emotionless voice as she turned to the scanner.The scanner she spoke to was the number 32S with short black hair that resembled a 12 year old boy like all types of scanners, and blue eyes that were obscured by a black visor that looked like a piece of black cloth wrapped around the head.
- "What can I do, ma'am?" He asked
- "Stop talking to me, ma'am." She said in a more aggressive and pissed-off voice.Then she saw how nervous he was even when he tried to hide it . It was hard not to be afraid of her, the more so because she had a strict reputation
.- "Yorha Unit 32S" She said in a formal tone. "You lost your Pod right?"
- "Well, there were some complications during the mission.He said in a shy and nervous voice
- 32S , answer yes or no!
-"Yes, during a mission where I tried to transport leftover supplies from old material to the Resistance, I lost my contact with Pod after he gave me a signal about the threat of an EMP attack. "
Nervous and stressed now, the 32 S said it as quickly as possible but understandably.
"Then how you were menaged to survive?, if there was an EMP explosion It should have caused such damage in you you would die and we had to transfer of your data to the bunker."
-"I already explain, Commander, our aid to the Resistance was almost is over, and my Pod with me crashed the last load into the new Pod warehouse broke down, that is, it just shut down
-"And that's why you left it on the 32S? But you should know that the data can still be read even from a broken Pod." The commander's voice changed from irritated in a more "natural way""
"-What?No I decided to make a Pod scan to fix the failure. And the reason for the failure was Pod217 overheating, which resulted in system restart and I was not able to carry the him , I decided to come back without it, knowing that it would reactivate after 30 minutes and early to me, but when he sent me a reactivation signal , he also reported the need for an EMP impulse. "
This time the scanner said it more calmly than his earlier conversation, knowing he had won the dispute with the commander, but deep down he was still afraid and waited for the commander's reaction.The commander stared at him for a few seconds, analyzing his speech step by step as she analyzed the best way to punish the scanner as well as recover the Pod. After a few informally long seconds, she took the highly thin air in the bunker and let it out.
- "32S this time you are lucky, if it were your first time I would limit myself to a reprimand you , but as this is already the fourth time during 4 months and you lost your very expensive Yorha property . Normally you would not get a mission for a while. And you would have free time, but as punishment, instead of doing nothing in the bunker, you will return to this location and you will get back Pod. At this moment, the 32S looked completely shocked and disbelieving.
"-But, Commander ... "Started 32S
"Are you against orders from the 32S?" At the moment the commander said it was 32S saw corner of eye two armored Yorha Soldiers who looked at him
-No Commander" Said sadly
-Good,Glory to mankind 32S
-Glory to mankind saluted 32S and he left.