M.A.I.D.S. Episode 13 – One Candle
With the Batcave still locked-down, morning looked very much like the evening preceding it. The lights in Adam's home went through their normal day/night cycle, gradually intensifying in the morning to lull sleepers to wakefulness. The Batcave proper also had an automated light scheme, though the lights it housed were antiquated, harsh, and bright. Insects and rodents that dwelled underground, unaccustomed to subterranean luminescence, were suitably grumpy as they sought shelter from the artificial light.
The group avoided cabin fever by immersing themselves in as much normalcy as their self-imposed confinement allowed. Conversation was kept light, as discussing more serious matters would unnecessarily weigh down everyone's spirits. Pandora hardly spoke, but was pleased to observe men so closely.
Pandora rose first and prepared a delicious breakfast for her guests and owner—bacon, eggs, grits, fresh biscuits, country-style potatoes, orange juice, and coffee. She left the spread in the kitchen and went out to exercise, jogging several laps around the perimeter of the Batcave. She calculated that one circuit around the perimeter was approximately a kilometer, and Pandora scrutinized her surroundings during her 5k run. She paid particular attention to the sealed-off locations for entrance and egress, and was satisfied with their security by the time she retired to the shower.
Ben took the opportunity to get caught up on his work. After eating a light breakfast, the reporter claimed the table in the sitting room as his work area, using his powerful computer gauntlet to project various screens and interface-equipment. Some screens displayed news feeds, others messages from contacts, correspondents, and encrypted data from deep-cover informants. One screen even displayed a once-popular 21st century computer game, Minesweeper, of which Ben was fond. Established information entered Ben through his eyes and ears, and new information left through his fingertips. He became engrossed in his work, and the others left him to it.
"You want a piece of me?" Monroe asked Adam in a voice that was equal measure threat and jest.
"No. I want the whole damn thing!" Adam quipped. Adam was by no means a small man, but compared to Monroe's mighty bulk he seemed small as he darted toward his opponent. Monroe tried to catch Adam with a lariat but the smaller man nimbly tumbled under Monroe's outstretched arm. Adam regained his feet before Monroe was able to turn around and dropkicked the big man squarely between the shoulder blades. Monroe teetered, but did not fall. He spun around and the two men began circling each other again.
"That was pretty good, pretty boy," Monroe taunted. "Not good enough."
"I'm just getting warmed up," Adam responded, then the two men came together fiercely in a collar-and-elbow tie-up. They grappled toe-to-toe for a moment before the big man shoved his smaller opponent off his feet. Adam quickly rolled to a vertical stance and came at Monroe again. Again the men tied up, and again Monroe shoved Adam off like he was nothing. The two men circled each other a few times, sometimes feinting forward to try and throw the other off-guard.
"C'mon Monroe, quit playing," Adam goaded.
"Oh, if that's how you want it. Playtime is over!" the two combatants came together again. Monroe took control, locking Adam in a headlock. Adam tried to squirm out of it, tried to power out of it, but Monroe was just too strong. Adam elbowed Monroe in his sizable ribs once, twice, thrice, then stomped on Monroe's foot to finally break the hold. Adam ducked under Monroe's arm and popped behind him, locking his opponent in a rear waistlock.
"Really? Really?" Monroe said, grasping Adam's hands with his own. Monroe thrust his hips forward, breaking Adam's grip, and spun around him to grab Adam in a waistlock of his own. Without visible effort Monroe lifted Adam high into the air, turned slightly, and brought him down chest-first on the mat. With remarkable agility for a man so hefty, Monroe quickly adjusted his position so that his chest was on Adam's shoulder-blades, the two men oriented in opposite directions like the hands on a clock. He tried to grab Adam up in a front face-lock, but Adam quickly spun out of Monroe's grasp, turning the tables and suddenly mounting the muscular man's back. Adam leapt into the air as Monroe propped himself onto all fours, coming back down across Monroe's back with the point of his elbow. Monroe grunted in pain and flattened out.
Adam jumped again, but this time Monroe rolled away. Adam pressed his advantage, but Monroe countered with a fireman's carry takedown, sending Adam sailing across his broad, black shoulders to land with a THUD! on the floor. Adam was sprawled flat on his back and winded.
Monroe was quick on his feet and leapt into the air, stretching both legs out straight in front of him. He crashed to the mat, his right leg slamming across Adam's chest. Monroe turned and stood, taking a moment to storm around his prone opponent.
Adam turned and slowly crawled to the wall. He put his hands against the wall and began to stand. Monroe balled his fists together and smashed them into Adam's back. Adam was flattened, but he rolled over and put both boots into Monroe's expansive abdomen, shoving him off. Monroe lost his balance and fell; Adam was on him like a cat. He sprung from the floor to land bodily upon Monroe, the weight of his body stunning his larger opponent.
Adam grabbed Monroe by the hair and pulled him to his feet. The dazed grappler simply followed Adam's cues, too out-of-it to resist. Adam kicked Monroe in the gut, causing him to bend over and signaling the beginning of the end. With Monroe doubled-over Adam was in complete control. He grabbed Monroe's big head and put his shoulder on the back of Monroe's neck, then began to turn. This forced Monroe to both stand up and turn away, as well, and in a moment both men were standing back-to-back, with Adam holding Monroe's head tight to his shoulder. Adam hopped into the air and fell to his butt, never releasing Monroe's head, which crashed down on Adam's shoulder. Adam released his hold and quickly rolled over onto his opponent, cradling Monroe's head and leg to trap him. A sensor on the wall chimed once, twice, three times—Adam won.
"That's right! Nobody kicks out of my neckbreaker!" Adam boasted. Monroe slowly got to his feet, holding the back of his head and wincing.
"So that is professional wrestling?" Pandora asked her owner.
"Well, yeah. Of course, the sport stagnated and died out in the 21st century, but I do enjoy watching old vids of it from time to time. There have been small revivals here and there over the years, which is where Monroe and I learned to wrestle. We haven't done it in a while," Adam explained. He rubbed his back where Monroe hit him.
"I thought that sports-entertainment was fake," questioned Pandora with concern. Adam shook his head.
"No, it's staged, not fake. Sure, we weren't trying to injure each other, but it still hurts. It's all a show, though," Adam explained.
"Yup. Although you caught me pretty good with that elbow drop," Monroe complained good-naturedly. Adam laughed at his friend, and the two men high-fived.
"You looked as though you meant each other harm," Pandora stated skeptically, crossing her arms across her bulging chest. The men laughed heartily at that.
"If that's how it looked, Pandora, then we was doing it right," Monroe said. He next turned his attention to Adam. "The only reason I let you win is because I didn't want to embarrass you in front of your Synthia. She'd never let you live it down," though the larger man was joking, Adam shifted uncomfortably at what the joke implied.
"Oh, man, I'm sorry," began Monroe, but Pandora placed a hand on his arm.
"Certainly, Adam would not want to be made to look bad in front of his woman, is what I am sure you meant," Pandora said with warmth in her voice, and Monroe nodded. "I am knowledgeable in all forms of hand-to-hand combat, although I admit I have experience in mostly none of them. Catch-as-catch-can, however, is something I lack a working knowledge of. I know the various maneuvers and how to execute them, but I was created with only a dim awareness of how the entire spectacle is put together. It is...interesting," Pandora said sincerely.
"Well, I could show you some moves sometime," Adam replied suggestively.
"If that is innuendo, I doubt it. I was created with broad knowledge-base, and it will take several years of lessons like the one I gave you last night before you are caught up to me," Pandora said in her straight, matter-of-fact voice. Her green eyes, however, were full of mischief. Monroe burst with laughter.
"Oooh man, she got you there! I'm gonna go hit the shower, so if you'll excuse me," Monroe said, moving toward the shower in the corner of Adam's exercise room. Taking their cue, Adam and Pandora left Monroe to get cleaned up. Seeing that Ben was still oblivious to anything but news and Minesweeper, the two went to the study to check on Pandora's nearly-complete Synthia.
"She's beautiful," said Pandora. She took Adam's hand in hers.
"She is, indeed. Listen, Pandora...what do you intend to do with her?" he asked, squeezing her hand.
"I want to teach her to think like me. She'll be finished in a few hours. I want to prove that we're not objects," Pandora said. She sat down on the edge of a chair and crossed her legs thoughtfully. "I want to use the gifts my creator gave me."
"Your creator?"
"You, darling. I want to use every last skillset you installed in me. For the Synthias," Pandora said with eyes locked on Adam. He could not help but admire her muliebrity, even though her words carried serious implications.
"What will you do?" Adam asked. I want Pandora to be my equal, but after thinking about what Ben said...I just don't know. Maybe I can take her away somewhere...
"Simple. If I can teach her to think freely then I will prove to all mankind that Synthias deserve equality. If not, then I resign myself to a life of servitude. It is fairly black and white," Pandora replied to Adam's horror.
"Why do you want to free the Synthias so much?" he asked, and she shot him an angry look.
"Your exact words were, 'I want to love a woman.' You said, 'If things go the way I hope that they will, someday I won't own her at all. She'll be my wife, we will live as equals, and society will accept it. Your Dolls, Monroe's Synthias...every single one of them will stop being considered synthetic organisms and just be what they are: organisms.' Correct?" Pandora repeated Adam's words verbatim from a conversation she was not present for. The thought scared him a little, but it did help to iron out some of his doubts for him.
"Yes, I said that. I meant every word. How did you know?"
"I tapped into the house's monitoring systems and recorded you and Ben talking yesterday while I was in here recalibrating the finishing station."
"You spied on me?" Adam asked incredulously.
"I eavesdropped, darling. It is...OK...if I call you 'darling?' If you meant every word of what you said to Ben, you want to be more than just my owner, yes?" Pandora's sudden change in mood threw Adam off-guard.
"Eavesdropped?"
"Yes. Well, you cannot blame me for being so technologically savvy, can you? You made me this way. Besides, I look upon it as my wifely duty to keep you safe..." Pandora's voice trailed off. Adam took her in his arms.
"I am a soldier," he reminded her.
"Even still. You seem to want to start a movement of equality by offering it to me. I am your property, yet you named me a woman and have defended that label against your friends. Adam, I love you," she said, then brought a hand to her mouth, as if covering her quivering lips could somehow retract the statement she wasn't sure Adam was ready to hear...she wasn't sure she was ready to say.
"I love you, too," Adam said, and he felt it swell within him. Yes, this must be love. I made her to be everything to me, and my heart responded with love. This feels...incredibly dangerous. And wonderful.
"Yes, it does," Pandora said breathily. She grabbed Adam by the front of his bodysuit and pulled his lips to hers. Their kiss was made of sweet ambrosia, their movements the dancing of angels. The end of their lovemaking was a long time coming, but the pursuit of that end was in all ways beautiful. Pandora was created to please, but no skillsets covered love. That emotion blossomed within her of its own accord, and she spread it to Adam through her lips, her fingertips, her breasts.
Afterwards the pair rose from the sofa and dressed, stumbling into each other and giggling while they did so. The lovers suddenly realized that they were not alone—a quiet sensation that tickled the tips of their fingers and toes until it attracted their attention.
Pandora's Synthia stood stark-naked next to her finishing station, using a blanket to towel off. It was slightly taller than Pandora, yet not so voluptuous of proportions. It was hairless from head to toe, the only feature to the contrary being its exceptional eyelashes.
"Um...hello," managed Adam as he finished tucking himself into his black garments.
"Happy birthday," said Pandora, rising to greet her Synthia. "You are beautiful."
"I am Synthia number 0PE00-21741123-21750511-000-00. I was finished on this day, May 12, 2175 at 1839 hours. I belong to Eve," the Synthia turned its dark eyes on Pandora. "Eve is my owner. How may I obey Eve?"
Pandora's green eyes misted up with tears, the droplets threatening to break free at any moment...and then they did, rolling unchecked down her lovely, blemish-free face. The few tears she shed alternately belonged to Joy and Sadness. Pandora stepped forward and hugged her Synthia, clutching it tightly.
"Wait right here," Pandora said gently, and her Synthia nodded in compliance. Pandora practically flew to Adam's bedroom and rifled through his closet. She found a bodysuit that was both smaller and more elastic than the others, of a vibrant lime green hue, and brought it back to her Synthia.
"Here you are. Please, get dressed," Pandora said. Adam was seated on the sofa, still turning over the last few minutes in his head. I made love to Pandora, and it was amazing. Her Synthia woke up and showed Pandora what a normal Synthia is truly like. Pandora cried...whether from happiness or otherwise, she's human enough to cry.
"There are errors with my central processing unit. I must recommend that I be repaired immediately," the Synthia said when it had finished dressing.
"What errors?" asked Adam. The Synthia turned to him and executed a simple curtsey, then turned back to Pandora.
"What errors?" echoed Pandora.
"I was not created with a name imprinted. Eve may assign me a name. Also, while I was imprinted with the knowledge of what my owner would look like, my intimate skillsets do not necessarily match up with the man I see before me." The Synthia's eyes never left Pandora, which made its words particularly strange. Realization then came over Pandora.
"I would prefer it if you would address me as Pandora, not Eve. Also, I am not a man," Pandora pointed out, and she stood to show the Synthia that she was in possession of a body that could offer no evidence to the contrary. The Synthia's face screwed up in an image of confusion, causing Pandora to smile at the display of emotion.
"Yes, Pandora, as it pleases you. I admit I do not understand," the Synthia said. Pandora put a hand on her Synthia's shoulder to comfort it.
"You were not originally intended for me. The man who created you died the night that the Manufactory you were being created in was attacked and destroyed. You would have died, or even aborted, if I had not rescued you. I brought you home and built an improved finishing station here, and changed your order number and a few details so that you would be mine. This allowed me to finish you, thereby preventing you from dying. Happy birthday," Pandora's voice was warm, yet her words seemed only to confuse her Synthia further.
"I admit confusion. You are not...a man?" asked the Synthia. Pandora smiled broadly and shook her head. "I therefore belong to a Synthia?" Pandora nodded. "I am imprinted with no knowledge of any law that makes such a thing illegal, but it is unprecedented."
"What's your name?" asked Pandora.
"Pandora has not given me a name yet," the Synthia replied.
"No, I haven't. Synthias are unique in that they are created as adults, full of knowledge and possessing potential. You are fully capable of choosing your own name, one that suits you. Take your time, you do not need to select one right now," Pandora said. Adam nodded, but Pandora's Synthia seemed positively bewildered.
If Pandora wanted to get her Synthia to think, her plan is working. The poor thing is thrust into our world at a crazy time, and its owner is asking it to choose its own name, Adam thought.
"Pandora, may I ask you a question?" the Synthia asked.
"Of course," Pandora said. It was clear that Adam's Synthia was as giddy as a schoolgirl, while Pandora's Synthia was thoroughly confused.
"How do I do that?"