Lucent

Wish Granted

Adria was not in her room when I returned to the bunker. I did a quick scan of the complex and found her a few corridors away trying to figure out how to open the door in front of her.

"It's M758pxz941, then it's 3B421ypa692," I said.

Adria whipped around at my voice. Her face was a mask of fury and her body trembled with unreleased anxiety.

"How could you leave me here without any note? If anything happened to you, I wouldn't be found for another thousand years!" she yelled at the top of her voice.

"I'm sorry. I didn't anticipate being away for so long. And if anything should happen to me, I will make sure someone comes for you"

"Who? Those ISC goons? So they can lock me up in a real prison? That's brilliant!"

"No, I will make sure one of the Crew comes for you," I told her gently and tried to take one of her balled fists in my hand but she jerked it away.

"When? In a month or a year? Haven't you forgotten I'm not a machine? I will die without food and water in a couple of weeks but I'll probably go insane before then! I don't want to be here anymore. Do what you need to do and get us out! I can't stand this place!"

Adria stomped petulantly down the hall. I followed her back to the room. Once there, she started pacing around like a caged animal. After a few moments, she looked at me and asked impatiently, "Well, how long is it going to take you?"

"About three weeks."

"What? That's like a thousand years for you. What are you planning to do that will take so long?"

"Logistics. I cannot control the world's timeline so I have to wait."

"Tell me your plan, Lucent."

"No, I cannot."

"What? Why not?"

"It's best you don't know."

"I disagree. It's best that I do know. Don't treat me like an idiot, Lucent."

"I'm not. I'm treating you like a human."

"What the hell does that supposed to mean?"

"Your emotions keep you from thinking clearly."

"Ha! Oh great!" Adria threw her hands up in the air. "Now my own robot tells me I'm an emotional wreck and therefore not privy to his grand schemes! How did I get myself into this bullshit?" Adria ranted.

"Adria, I'm sorry I didn't get back earlier. Please don't be angry anymore," I said firmly.

Adria heaved a big sigh and then nodded, somewhat mollified.

"I took a couple of detours to pick up some things for you. Would you like to see them?" I continued in a lighter tone.

"This is great," Adria laughed bitterly. "Are you trying to bribe me with gifts?"

"No, just comforts," I said as I went over to the desk where I left my bag. "Of course, these are not as fine as what you normally wear but they are good substitutes."

I pulled out a couple of black knit pants, a few colorful silk shirts, several pairs of undergarments, a hairbrush, some hair clips, and a pair of comfortable black leather shoes.

Adria stood next to me and looked them over. "These are definitely better than this awful uniform. Thank you, Lucent. It's very sweet of you," she said.

"I also got you some more food and a couple of games," I continued and started to unload the bag from the roadside store.

"Cards and chess, huh? I know you're trying to distract me but I can't take these games seriously when I know I have no chance of beating you."