Sometimes things happen and there's nothing you can do about it. You feel powerless. You feel alone. You feel lost. But sometimes...all you need is that one person to find you again.
"What happened, Markus? What did he say?" North asked. I stood on top of a crate, gathering everyone's attention.
"The humans are about to launch an attack. And we will show them that we are not afraid. If we must die today, then we will die free." He said. There was a single moment of silence but that moment was very short lived. A grenade landed and exploded, knocking me to the ground and making everyone scatter inside the fort. Somebody started shouting my name.
"Markus!! MARKUS!! GET UP!!" I noticed that Cass had come and helped me. I was a bit dazed, but I was alright at least. I got back up.
"Are you okay?" I asked her.
"Yes! We have to help the others!" She yelled. He nodded. We both split up, saving people and protecting them from the soldiers. Just then a bomb went off. I fell to the ground. I got back up and grabbed a piece of metal. I shielded my people from the gunfire as others helped the injured to safety. I saw some soldiers coming above some androids on top of a car. I hurried over and stopped them from shooting. I got one of their guns and pointed it at him. I gestured for him to move. He quickly scrambled away.
I heard a shriek. I turned and saw Simon had been pinned. I ran over and kicked the soldier off of him. He quickly scrambled away as well once he'd lost control of his gun. We all did everything we could, but we were surrounded. We all stood together. This is it. It's either time to die, or time to win. I gripped North's hand. I pulled her in and gave her a kiss. She kissed back. It lasted for a long time. The world had been tuned out in that moment. It was just us. If this was it, I wanted her to know I loved her.
Once we broke apart, we looked back at the soldiers. Some of the soldiers had lowered their guns, but the other still looked ready to attack. Suddenly, they retreated. I was stunned and confused. What? They hurried away and I began to relax, relief overflowing in my body.
"We won," I whispered.
"I knew we could," North replied. I let go and then, I spotted him. I felt pride. It was Connor. He'd done it after all. We all went to greet him and the rest of the androids he'd freed.
"You did it, Markus," Connor said.
"We did it." I countered. "This is a great day for our people. Humans will have no choice now. They'll have to listen to us." North came up to me, connecting with me again.
"They want you to speak to them, Markus." She said. We walked up together and I stood in front of everyone. I have to admit, it felt empowering standing there knowing we had done it. I wanted them to know that we were free. We were truly free.
Connor's POV
"Today our people finally emerged from a long night. From the very first day of our existence, we have kept our pain to ourselves. We suffered in silence. But now the time has come for us to raise our heads up, and tell humans who we really are." I was listening, but then, something happened. I opened my eyes and...I was back. Back in the garden. Why...why am I here? It's...freezing. So cold...my body might lock up. I saw Amanda ahead. I walked over to her.
"Amanda?" She turned toward me. "Amanda!" I called again. "What's...what's happening?" I asked.
"What was planned from the very beginning." She said in a calm voice and with a calm smile. "You were compromised and you became a deviant. We just had to wait for the right moment to resume control of your program." She didn't even look cold. I was freezing. I didn't understand what was happening.
"Resume control?" I asked, shivering. "Y-you can't do that!" I shouted.
"I'm afraid I can, Connor. That girl of yours...I knew she would cause trouble. I knew it from the moment you met her. I know everything you've done with her. I honestly can't believe you dug a hole that deep for yourself. Don't have any regrets. You did what you were designed to do. You accomplished your mission." She said. Then she disappeared.
"AMANDA!" I shouted. It was too late. She was gone. I was afraid. I had to do something! "There's got to be a way!" I looked around. There was nothing. Then I remembered what Kamski had told me. "I always keep emergency exits in my programs." I spotted something. That's it. It has to be. I felt hope. I pushed through the storm to get to it, forcing my legs to work even though it was well below freezing by now. My body was locking up, but I wasn't going to let this happen. We'd come so far and it wasn't going to go downhill now. Not if I could help it. Not if I could STOP it!
I kept pushing. I was so close. I nearly slipped on a slippery patch on the ground, but I was able to steady myself again. I looked up. It was right there. I just had to touch it.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I did it.
I came back to the present and quickly looked around. Did I-?! No. Everyone was still focused on Markus and he was perfectly fine. I had the gun in my hand. It had been pointed at Markus. Luckily nobody hadn't noticed it. That was WAY too close. I quickly put the gun away as nonchalantly as I could. I won't let them control me. I will NEVER betray my people ever again. They aren't in control. I am. We're free and you will never take that away from us again. You'll never control me again, Amanda. I thought. I turned back toward Markus. He finished his speech. There was cheering among them all. I grinned as our people celebrated. It's really over. We aren't going to be used anymore. We really won.
