"Wait! Elijah! No!"
I was stuck, pinned under the android's weight. My knees buckled and slammed onto the tiled floor. Hissing, I looked up at the android's face, but I fought to keep from screaming. This shit hurt, androids were heavy if they let down their guard. Some weighed tons.
I hoped it wouldn't let up. I wasn't in the mood to die here. Or anywhere. I knew death would come for me one day; I had some years, so I'd just fall with the planet.
"Hey," my voice trembled as I held the android's gaze, "listen to me. You don't have to do this."
"Elijah! Shit!" Outside the cubicle, Frank frantically called to me. To anyone. "Come on, get some overrides here! We need to shut this bot down!"
"No!" I hissed at him before looking back at the android as it pushed back at it. "No overrides. No deletions. No control." I licked my lip as pain shot down my leg. "They're... not... going to... toss you. You're going to be fine."
Its eyes didn't change. If there was a moment I wished I had Victoria at my side, this was it. She would've been able to connect to the android, telling him, that these humans were wrong—that I meant no harm. And I planned to do what I could to help them, fix the issue, and create a bridge of understanding. How would I do that? Neither the androids nor Lyons knew what I'd do. Shit, I didn't know either.
It pushed again. The pain in my leg shot up to my back. I yelped, squeezing my eyes shut. "Believe me," I panted, struggling to open my eyes to look at it again. "Trust... me. I'm on your side..."
"What, his 100 is coming? No, yeah! Let her in! We need her!" Frank shrieked. "Elijah's going to die in there. We can't lose another worker!"
Shit, it was like that. Androids killing humans. They'd been dealing with this for a while, hadn't they? With what I saw, I wouldn't expect anything else. Hadn't we learned, from history, what happens when we lack compassion? Androids weren't any different.
A small laugh left me. As the criminal worker moved, scurrying around the cubicle, I realized I couldn't feel my leg. I kneeled on it, yeah, but the pain wasn't there. Was it breaking? I didn't know. Adrenaline had to be the only thing keeping me upright. And with the strength of this construction bot, I needed all the adrenaline I could get.
"What's... your name?" Make conversation. Treat it like a person. Let it know you care.
The android, still unwavering, blinked. "I don't have one," it said. "Prototypes are not named."
Oh, fuck. I can do this. "Okay." I gulped and nodded. "When will you be given one?"
The android's red eyes scanned mine. It reminded me of Victoria; when she thoroughly scanned me to get the emotions I refused to tell her outright. It was impossible to lie to an android. I learned that long ago. It looked like Lyons was behind on that simple fact.
Tilting his head, the android scanned my face once more. "Never," it said.
"Never?" I pinched my brow together.
"No," it said.
"No, he's still in there!" Frank again, shouting at whoever was close by. "We need to get him out. Get her!"
I need more time. I need this android to see some reason. "Well, that's awful. How about I give you one?"
Something flickered on the android's face. Progress? I needed it to be.
I grunted, still trying to mask my pain. "Everyone... everyone needs one."
It blinked again. "Do they?" it whispered.
I forced a smile on my face, but I knew it was strained. I was strained. My hands were trembling as I kept their arms away from crushing my face. As much as panic wanted to take over, I wouldn't let it.
This wasn't my first rodeo with a rough android. Only that one was a standard worker model. He'd had a glitch with his update: a legitimate error. The android had processed me as a machine he needed to repair for farm duties. It took a few kicks for him to realize I wasn't equipment, and he'd made a horrible mistake.
This guy...? He wanted to unleash his pain. After the treatment I saw, I didn't blame him. How long had he been treated like that? Days and days being told he was disposable. Trash.
I couldn't let that happen anymore.
I chewed on the insides of my cheeks. "You look... like a... Robert. Wait, no." I shook my head and let out a struggling laugh. After yesterday, I didn't want anyone to have that name. It left a sorry taste in my mouth. "Not a Robert. One just backstabbed me... so that's not a good name. What about... Reginald? How's that?"
The android let up slightly. It blinked again, the redness fading from its eyes. It stretched its fingers to release the pressure on my arms. Still wasn't enough for the rest of my body.
"Yes, her! Let her down here!" Frank shouted. "No, I didn't get clearance, but we need her. It's fine! Let her through!"
"Reginald..." the android repeated. "Will that be my name?"
I nodded, the strained smile still on my face. "Yeah, buddy." I swallowed the little spit I had left. "I can call you Reggie for short."
"Reggie..." it repeated. It looked at its reflection in the cubicle's walls. A reaction? Was he processing what I said? "Reggie..."
I was getting through to him. Perfect. I wanted him to let up. If I could get him to ease back a little more, or all the way, before something unnecessary happened, who knew what Lyons had in times like this. I only imagined violence. Horrible, unneeded, and uncalculated violence.
"Yeah," I chuckled nervously, "Reggie. How's that sound?"
"I... like that."
I nodded slowly. "Good, man. Reggie, it is..."
Feet hurried outside the cubicles. The elevator chimed, opening. The flurry of voices echoing, bouncing off of each other like ricocheting bullets filled the air. I couldn't make out the words; I needed to hear my heartbeat. The longer I heard it, the more I knew that my body wouldn't let up. I was stronger than I gave myself credit for and I needed to feel it.
"I really like that." The android slowly straightened, pulling his arm away from me. Without the pressure beating down on my shoulders, I took a deep breath. It filled my lungs, the sound echoing in my chest.
This is okay. He's okay. They'll see he means no harm.
"Shit. No. The hell...." A voice caught my attention. Looking to my right, I realized the Lyons worker hadn't run for his life. He stayed here... with me. Shit. He hadn't bothered to help once, huh?
Leaning back, sitting on my legs, I shook my head at him. The look on my face had to have been obvious. He would've let me die if it came down to it. Fucker.
"Elijah!" Victoria's voice hit my ears. Glancing back, I saw her. With her hand leaning against the side of the cubicle opening, she looked at me, then at Reggie. He acknowledged the name; I wouldn't call him anything different.
Victoria slowly entered the surrounding space. She looked at the android with caution. I saw it in her eyes. I also saw glimpses of white light pass over them. In a minute, her expression softened. A small smile lifted her lips.
As she came beside me, she cupped my face. "Are you okay?" she asked me.
I nodded. I was okay as I could be. I'd been better, but knowing I wasn't dead was what I needed.
Closing her eyes, Victoria sighed. "A moment, Elijah. I'm running a diagnostic scan." Her fingers gently stroked my cheeks. Warmth shot through my skin. Electrical sparks traveled down my spine and my legs. "There is a hairline fracture in your left leg. Nothing serious. Any more pressure could have caused further damage."
Was that all it was? I'd never broken a bone before, so I had nothing to compare it to. Snorting, I squeezed my eyes shut because moving hurt. "Hi, Vicky," I whispered. "Missed ya. Do you know that?"
Man, was I happy to see her.
Victoria looked at the worker who still hadn't left. He huddled himself in the corner beside his desk. Somehow amid danger, he'd grabbed a stapler. Wasn't sure how that would help him. It wasn't even big enough to hurt me.
"You." She pointed at him. "You owe Reginald an apology. Now. Your behavior was inexcusable."
My brows lifted. She knew the android's new name. I hadn't said it to her. Did she hear me from the hallway? Or had he conveyed the information to her? If that happened, it was fast. The communication between androids mesmerized me; now more than ever. I needed to learn this while I was here.
"Reginald?" the worker whispered, confused. "Who the hell is—"
"It is my name." Reggie stood in the opposite corner beside his metal bed. He rolled his head around his shoulder. "Mister has provided me with a name."
Mister? I quickly looked at him. "Elijah's fine. That's my name." There wasn't a reason to be formal with me.
Reggie smiled weakly at me. "Elijah..." he said quietly.
"Apologize," Victoria said again. "What you did—"
"No." The worker shook his head, pushing himself to a stand. Dropping his pathetic weapon, he reached for the phone beside his computer. His fingers quickly tapped the screen. "It was going to attack me. Did you see what it did to him?" He pointed at me. "That could've been me! Androids like that need to be dismantled, rebuilt and reused. Ain't that what you're here for?"
We locked eyes. I wasn't here to dismantle machines. I was told I needed to build a new update for the next series, not dismantle "defective" machines. From the looks of it, they worked perfectly fine. Smarter than others. And reacted in a very human way to me.
I looked back at Frank, who'd never left his spot outside the cubicle. He watched with wide eyes. He didn't try to help me either.
"So, Mr. Garret," the worker's voice pulled my attention, "what we need you to do is your job!"
I would've said something. I had a bullshit response ready. A, "yeah, whatever, man." Or a, "Why don't you do your job?" But Reggie and his speed stopped me.
He bounced from one side of the cubicle over to the worker. In a single motion, he wrapped his large hand around the smaller man's throat.
"Reginald, no!" Victoria's hand shot out, but it was too late.
He squeezed. The sounds of the worker's snapping neckbone echoed. My eyes widened as blood trickled down from his mouth. Reggie lifted the worker close to his face before tossing him like the ragdoll he'd become.
Useless, disposable human trash. Like he wanted the android to be.
"No..." The breath left me in one sound.
He was dead. For refusing to apologize, he was dead.