Enigma Glitch

Chapter 22: Stargazer II

Victoria waited for a nod of response. "I may be a person but I do not fit in. I am a little off for their liking. If I were to walk around normal people all day, I would come home feeling like I had no place in the world. Like maybe I was only ever meant to die in a battlefield. Like I am nothing but a creation with a human face. I do not like that feeling. So I spend time with other creations. Other broken toys the normal people want fixed in order to accept back among their ranks."

"I apologize for barraging you with questions." Carter performed a half-bow.

"Housekeepers are chatty." Victoria grinned. "You are not the first one I have repaired. But your being a Trician Industries android means you are among the most intelligent ones I have encountered."

"Thanks for calling me smart, I think," Carter said. It performed another half-bow.

"You are welcome." Victoria waved a dismissive hand. "And yes, I meant it. Trician androids have higher intelligence. Your company made some of the deadliest combat models I fought alongside. Supposedly the Callumar Weapon Systems robots were smarter, but I like Tricians more with your lack of interpretation."

"I mainly process literal data," Carter said. "But I am capable of interpretation, such as partial orders from a distracted or elderly owner."

Victoria scoffed and shook her head.

"You have no idea how bad the CWS robots could be." Victoria sighed in thought. "At first us meat and blood soldiers respected their habit for pre-battle rituals and little superstitions. But many of them insisted on victory bonfires and made up their own war hymns. They said singing in battle helped scare the enemy."

Clusters of shops with bright neon signs to penetrate the light smog made the street level facade of the business skyscrapers above. Android street sweepers and janitors cleaned litter left on the sidewalk or in the streets as fancy cars, taxis, and cargo trucks fought for space in the clogged streets. The swarms of people wore suits or business shirts as they rushed with the delayed beat of crossing signals. Bicyclists were the only ones with freedom, as they zipped by against red lights and weaved through crossing pedestrians and packed traffic alike.

"That shop." Carter pointed to a pink and purple neon sign marked as Jacobi's Pharmacy with a friendly catfish logo. "They have a small gift rack. Mr. Gibson gets his flowers there. Along with his heart medication."

"Pick up what you need to." Victoria walked through the simple glass door with her android companion and walked to the gift rack.

Stuffed animals, pillows with cute phrases, and plastic flowers were packed onto the flimsy steel shelf.

Victoria knelt and sniffed a bundled dozen red roses and wrinkled her nose at the toxic factory smell of their plastic.

Carter plucked a pair of plastic sunflowers and went to the counter.

"Please run these on Mr. Gibson's account," Carter said. "And add this." The android palmed a small item in the same hand with the paper and held the sunflowers in its other hand.

"Tell Old Man Gibson his heart pill refill will be ready on Thursday," the cashier said. "Have a good one, Carter."

"Goodbye, Mr. Jacobi." Carter waved and left the shop.

"That precision is what I respect from your designer," Victoria said as she walked beside the android. "A CWS would interpret a need for a final gesture and would have emptied Gibson's bank account to pay for a massive grave decoration." She grinned. "Interesting to see you are capable of a little interpretation, though. What did you buy yourself?"

"I bought nothing for me," Carter said. It tightened its grip on the small item and paper. "I only purchased gifts for my final act of freedom."

"That is honorable of you." Victoria cleared her throat. "Are you sure the Gibsons were good people? Look at how their children turned out. Four of them were so willing to loot their own father to the point they would attack the one who wanted to save him."

"You of all people should know creations and their creator are never the same thing," Carter said. "Trician Industries designed me to clean homes, yet I look forward to being in a collector's vault. The United States government designed you to kill, yet here you are showing compassion to an android. The Gibsons did all they could to be loving parents, but only one of their children was willing to respect them. We created can always find ways to honor or disappoint our creator. That's the curse of free will."

"Disappointment." Victoria frowned at her feet. "I once read interviews of people who donated catalyst DNA for the war efforts. The donor for the Helena Series was in there." Victoria raised her head but walked with her eyes closed. "She worked as an orbital pilot in the '50s. She said she was utterly disappointed in the military's use of my sisters as ground troops." She blinked before she could open her eyes.

"You fought bravely and kept not only Mr. Gibson's daughter and grandchildren safe, but also helped get him to the hospital," Carter said. "While your donor may have had different intentions for you, it was you who showed courage and honor."

"I kill because I like it," Victoria said.