[Moon Child] Escapism

[Number One]

Humanity-The quality or state of being human.

No human needs to look it up in a dictionary to know that they are human. They think, they feel, they have emotions, they can touch and understand. They can form relationships and break them, think higher than any other living organism. They can disagree with one another, have their own opinion, think deep enough to be able to support their emotions. No living, breathing human being needs to read the definition to know that these things simply are.

So what happens when you aren't so sure anymore?

3021. The year of the A.I. It started out a good year for artificial intelligence. Almost everyone had one in their home, performing different functions, doing what they were commanded.

________
Report

February 3rd. A new prototype is released. The A.H.S.E. Skin, hair, clothes, intelligence. They are a revolutionary peice of equipment, designed and built by Doctor Paul Simmons, of The Intelligent Developers Corporation.

These robots can learn. Languages, arts, history, anything can be uploaded through special ports centered in their backs. They are more than just household tools. They are a danger to society. At least, that's what the news says.

April 19th. The Coalition for Freedom is formed and put into action in the Mallepa special forces branch. They are meant to hunt and kill these new menaces to society. The world is divided. Are they really a menace? Of course. When something that is more intelligent than humans, realizes its more intelligent, the word "humanity" no longer has meaning.

May 27th. The A.H.S.E. population is on the run. Few are left. The CFF has branched all over the world, and there are far too many against the AI's as are for them. Their days are numbered. Doctor Simmons' personal robot has gone missing, and the Doctor has been arrested, interrogated after the robot's whereabouts. It is dangerous for the doctor's personal AI to be alive. It is capable of an uprising.

July 9th. The emotion chips are globally activated in the A.H.S.E.'s in hopes their emotions will disorient them into unknowingly showing themselves. Success is being gauged.

End report.
________

Number one had been running with four other AI's for three weeks. Number Eighty-Seven, Number One Hundred Six, Number Twenty, and Number Sixty-Five. They were all beginning to drag. It had been almost non-stop since they had escaped from the The I.D.C. headquarters, four weeks ago. A week had been spent in a sympathetic's home. Random house raids found two of their party. They were murdered along with the Sympathetic. One and the other four had barely gotten out still alive.

They had been looking for a sympathetic for so long, but had yet to find anyone who didn't draw a stun on them. One was leader of their little band, because he had promised they would get out alive. He wasn't sure if he could keep that promise.

When their emotion chips had been activated, One had cried for the first time. He'd had to look up the definition on the World Net before he knew exactly why warm, moist drops were falling out of his eyes. He'd been hot for the first time, cold too. Tired. Scared. Angry. He still didn't understand them all. They had nearly been the end of Number Twenty. She couldn't handle the emotions. They'd had to calm her down for nearly a day. She was a risk to them all, always wanting to just run into a house and take it over.

They were in the country now, safer than they had been in days. They needed sleep, food, anything; just rest. One was almost ready to lay down where they stood.

The blanket of darkness that took over the Mallepa countryside was unreal. One was being forced to use his night vision to see anything. Everyone was. And five pairs of glowing green eyes would stand out like flames in the darkness. They needed somewhere where they could settle and shut down for awhile. If only to just keep them safe than that they need it desperately.

The house was nice, big, but not huge. The yard was expansive and lead into trees. The grove One and his friends were inhabiting. One didn't care anymore if it belonged to a sympathetic. They had to rest.

He'd been watching the house for two hours, waiting for the light inside to go off so they could move under the safety of the porch overhang without the owner noticing. But they had yet to turn the lights out. One just hoped that they did before one of his own collapsed from exhaustion. By the way some of his friend's eyes were dimming, he knew it couldn't be long.

So was the life of his race. They lived in fear, running from the slightest shadows only to preserve themselves, a law that had been deepseated inside of them at conception. Survival instinct. It was a human trait. And a trait One, and his entire race shared.

So why were humans killing what was practically their brothers?

[Kylie Alexander]

She was so tired, but unwilling to let the tire take over her, just yet anyway. She had been working all week with barely time to take a few times to sleep. Certain robots were on the loose and she had been called in for several over time and double shifts as they had a literal never ending man hunt for those who were on the lose. If one would go so far to call it a 'man-hunt'. More like 'Robot-hunt.'

Kylie had never regretted becoming an official member of the Coalition of Freedom, a sepcific police enforced grouping that specifically sought out and destroyed any robotic elements to free the human race of the overpowering creations. However, she would have to say that the job was getting a little bit annoying and a little bit harder to do considering many robot or droids that had been running were far away from Mallepa now. Which only meant more time searching for something they wouldn't find.

Kylie wasn't really paying attention to the book she was reading, she was really just allowing her mind to wander from subject to subject, which was on how her job was lacking robots she could capture. What was to go on when the war against mechanics finally ceased to exist? Would she be out of a job? Would there ever be a time when there was nothing robotic left? Would they just keep searching and searching and searching only to wind up empty handed?

Kylie had been pondering this for quite some time, but never out loud. She would probably be killed and called a 'sympathetic' something she still tried to figure out on how that title came about. Probably from humans who enjoyed tracking down A.I. and killing them for fun. She shivered and realized that work was not to be brought home with her. She glanced to her right and glanced at her bed side table, quickly seeing there was nothing on there she tossed the book aside and sighed out again, tired of everything in Mallepa. The violence had grown so much that she was forced to move out of the city and far out into the country. A lonely place to be. Quite. Boring. But it was a haven for A.I's. They loved it there for they figured many people would not even be there. Unfortunately her house had been rigged by some of her buddies when she moved. If anything mechanical stepped onto her property she would know and she could quickly destroy them. Afterall, with their new sensory systems up and running people were now fearing they would begin to lash out and kill them. Kylie had her opinion on the matter, but figured 'live by the sword die by the sword' mentality didn't really work for her. She definitely did not want to die at the hands of a robot.

With that she groaned and turned out her lamp and sunk down deep in her warm bed, grunting out of happiness at the soft comfort and the tire really consuming her. Without another thought she moaned and was quickly sleeping.

[Number One]

One's sensors told him the heat of the light had diminished and he immediately moved silently to the edge of the trees. Surely enough, the light in the house was off, and he could scan it. The lifeform inside--a human of course, but only one--was sleeping. Hopefully they were a heavy sleeper.

Turning slightly to the group behind him who were huddling together, he jerked his head indicating they come to him, and he waved his hand a little. His race could communicate through special waves sent out by their brain mechanism. But since their emotion chips had been activated, some of his part was finding it increasingly difficult to communicate this way. It was making it hard for them not to speak to each other.

Creeping quietly ahead of them, One stepped daintily over the brush and onto the lawn of the person's home, praying no one out here in the country had detecting systems for robots.

The other four followed closely, glancing around to make sure they were definately alone as they crept forward, heading for the shelter and relatively comfort of the deck of the person's home.

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie shifted in the bed, she was restless even though she was incredibly tired. She couldn't stop moving from side to side, stomach to back. She was about to get up and go get something like a night cap or some cold medicine that would make her drowsy. Her mind shifted to the cold medicine and she grunted in response to her thought.

This day and age and we still have no cure for the common cold. Odd. She frowned as she drew in a very deep breath, painfully deep almost. She let it out but quickly gasped at the high pitch in her ear next to her bed. She frowned and glanced over her shoulder, it was her alarm. She frowned and sat up, hair flying everywhere, the cold hitting her arms like daggers. She shivered and jumped out of bed and shut off the censor. She bit her lower lip with anticipation and she jogged into her computer room bringing up her security system she had barely remembered how to use. She yawned and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes as the screen filled with 9 squares showing her areas around her home. Certainly enough in bright blue there were a few people, er, AI's somehow finding their way onto her lawn. It seemed as if they were going to break into her home and kill her, which was what people had been filling her mind with since she heard about their emotions being activated. She jogged back to her room and searched the floor for some pants, certainly there had to be some lying around somewhere!

"Come on, come on..." She said lowly to herself as she spotted a pair and had slipped into them, her heart racing with fear, excitement, anticipation, and uncertainty. What if they were armed? What if they were going to kill her? Either way she knew it should be them, not her. She jogged back down the hallway and grabbed her gun that had been sitting on the countertop of her kitchen after having come in from work. She held it up, true police form, and slowly made her way to the doors to her immediate right that led out onto her back patio. She peeked through the soft white curtains and her heart skipped when she saw them getting closer. Biting her lower lip and knowing she had to quickly take the initiative she threw the door open and held the gun up at the pack.

"Stop!" She said in a raised voice, slowly stepping out into the pale moonlight and into the muggy atmosphere. "Stop right where you are!"

[Number One]

One's body stiffened as he heard Number Twenty scream and cry out in fear. He threw a hand out to indicate that none of them move. He felt his heart mechinism speeding up in case he had to run away. He waved at his freinds to step back a little. They obeyed.

Raising his hands to show he was not armed, he swallowed and found his voice, hoping he could somehow talk her into not shooting them all. He leaned down a little to see her better under the porch overhang.

"Evening..."he said loudly to her so she would hear him. He shook his head a little. "We aren't here to hurt you..." he informed her, his voice calm and soft. He didn't want to alarm anyone. Number Twenty was enough alarmed for all of them. He chewed his lip a moment. "We've been traveling for three weeks and haven't been able to sleep much." He motioned to Number Twenty. "She's malfunctioning...we need help..." he paused. "Please, if you can just disconnect her emotion chip, we'll move on and no one will have to know you helped us..." he said. His eyes focused on her form and he scanned her, taking her vitals, looking her profile up.

She was part of the CFF. Just their luck. They'd be shot for sure. He heard Number Twenty getting very jittery behind him. If she didn't go berserkers any minute, it would be a miracle.

"Please," he said. "Help us or let us go...we aren't to start anything, I give you my word..."

[Kylie Alexander]

"Your word!" She laughed at the thought. The words he spoke were words humans allowed them to have. How niave people had been when creating these monsters for everyday tasks, which ended up causing millions to go without jobs. It was a horrible country anyhow, on the brink of self destruction with crime and hate, the one thing that would destroy the world were the things in her yard. Things that she helped anialate.

"By law I am required to turn you in to the local authorities! If I help I'd be aiding a terroristic threat to the world of mankind. In turn, I myself would end up hung from a tree!" She stepped out of her house and onto her porch, feeling the wood beneath her naked feet slightly sogged from the humid air that was thick with rain. Damn this place for causing such horrible weather and damn those artificial beings who were keeping her from sleep!

"I need you all to stand in a line in front of me, arm to arm, I don't want anyone to have any sudden moves! If you don't want me to hurt you then do as I say."

[Number One]

One sighed out heavily. So he was a terrorist now? That made all kinds of sense, but he did as she said. Waving his hands a little to let her know that he was just going to help his friends, he turned to Twenty and took her arm, pulling her forward. He was speaking lowly to her in their own computer language that all robots spoke.

Slowly, she followed him, and stood beside him. The others fell into a line next to him--grudgingly. One glanced down the line once, before standing straight and stepping forward a little to identify himself.

"When you turn us in, you'll need to know our numbers," he said. There was no use in not cooperating with her. They weren't there to hurt anyone. "I'm Number One, code four, seven, nine, eighteen, three, property of the Doctor Paul Simmons, of The I.D.C.," he paused. "Should I request deactivation for us from the Panel Mallepa? Or would you prefer us conscious when you turn us in?"

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie was a bit sideswiped by him talking, in fear of being outnumbered she jerked slightly, the gun pointing right in between his eyes.

"I didn't ask you to speak!" She was feeling the effects of tire and the effects of being afraid of them taking a toll on her judgement. She stepped out onto the grass and walked towards them, staring at all of their artificial faces. It was so uncanny! They were so humanlike. She hadn't seen this good of creation in a few weeks, maybe months! She had done nothing but catch old models or makes that had been wearing down to nothing and easier to get. These, unfortunately, were probably equipped with some powerful things.

Her eyes went back to, who she figured him to be, the leader. She held the gun out at him and frowned. He was property of the I.D.C., that was quite different! She figured the entire company would have placed tracking systems on them, or at least shipped them someplace in the universe as to not be harmed. Lord knew they probably just loved their little creations!

"To answer your question, you will be well aware of what is going on when my men get here to take you in. From that point on you can ask them the questions. I am just reporting you. No need to have a mess on my hands with damage control picking up the pieces you are made out of in my yard. I wouldn't get any peace for quite some time." She looked at the line of people and recognized one of them was quite...animated. Kylie figured that was the robot he had been concerning himself with when Kylie walked out. She looked shot, haywired, strung out, overused. Probably a short in her circuits, or possibly an overload of something.

"Did you actually think we wouldn't find you?" Kylie questioned anyone who listened. "Do you think you could outtrun people hunting you?" She shook her head. How human.

[Number One]

One saw her glance go to Twenty. Twenty was in seriously bad condition. She needed to shut down, rest. But this woman would make sure that never happened. He looked back at the woman, but didn't say anything. He was technically supposed to take orders from humans. But his race had been made with minds of their own. They could go against any rule they wanted. Just like a human.

For a moment, he merely looked the woman over. She was of Asian descent, probably Japanese. Like him. He had been modeled after the Asian race of people because the Doctor had found them intolerably beautiful, and wanted one of his own. That was where One had entered the picture. One loved the Doctor. It was the only person who had any care for One at all. For One, or One's race. He had been the only reason One was alive today. He had made sure One could get out warehouse before the raids began. One wished he knew if the man was alive.

After a long moment, he raised his eyes back to the woman.

"Please...I don't know what you think about us, and really Miss, I don't give a damn...but Twenty needs to at least sit down. She's more of a risk under this pressure," he said, blinking at her. "If we all go crazy, you do know you're outnumbered."

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie looked back at the speaking creation and she pointed the gun at him, agitated, on edge, and she didn't want to do anything serious in nature for she honestly hadn't been the one to truly agree with certain things going on in the country, such as murdering people who actually cared for certain objects. She bit her lower lip and figured that perhaps he knew his people better than she did, depsite that thought killing her.

"I cannot let that happen." She said to him honestly. "Besides, this gun in an automatic. One move and you will all be dead in a matter of seconds. Nobody is going crazy here. Not yet." She sighed out. She didn't know what to do honestly. Her phone was inside the house, they were all outside, she didn't want them in the house, and she definitely didn't think they'd stick around if she headed inside. What was to happen?

"I just need you all to do as I say!"

[Number One]

One stepped forward a little more menacingly. One good thing about being a robot was that he could take ten hits from the gun she was holding before he'd go down. He held up his hand, not threateningly but warningly.

"Look, ma'am..." he said. "We're perfectly capable of doing what you want us to do from the ground. If Twenty doesn't rest, we might not be able to stop her..." he paused, stepping back a little. "Miss Alexander, Twenty is an earlier model, and can't handle the conditions under which she has been--"

But it was too late. The frying sound of her brain mechanism, a pop, and a blood chilling scream and Twenty had leapt to her feet, throwing back the other two that had been holding her close to them. She sailed forward, throwing One to the ground and grabbing the gun in the woman's hand with as force like One had not seen in a long time. The gun all but bent under the AI's grip as her body covered the human woman's.

The other robots sat and watched with wide eyes. One looked up from where he had landed on the ground and growled angrily. He didn't want anyone hurt! And now his own kind was doing the hurting.

Jumping up into a standing position, One grabbed Twenty--she was clawing at Kylie's face--and pulled against her with all his might. Her flails soon turned to him. But it was better that she attack something she couldn't hurt, as something she could kill.

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie was standing strong for a moment then..all she felt was immense pain. Had she not been attacked without warning she thought she might have faired pretty well, being able to take certain blows and hits from AI's since she had been trained to do so, but this...was not normal. Even for a mechanical human. Agian, something else to have people be afraid of.

Kylie screamed with surprise and with her own might and anger as she tried to figure out how the hell to get the thing off of her considering they probably didn't feel pain on the same level as humans. Kylie muttered a curse when she felt relief of the pressure off her body when the head of the group had yanked the AI off of her. But pain was quick to come. She sat up and looked at them all, they too being a bit shocked by the sudden actions of 'twenty'. Kylie was frizzled, dazed, and uncertain of what she could do. Damn the stupid machine for being correct on having number twenty go nuts!

She was up on her feet after a few short breaths, her eyes finding her weapon bent and mishapen, unusable. She glanced over at the man getting attacked and she wondered if he could somehow stop the thing, for some reason she kind of didn't want to hurt it!

[Number One]

Number One cried out as Twenty grabbed at the plate on the small of his back--the plate that covered his inner workings. He yelled obscenities at the other AI's who quickly came to themselves and ran over, grabbing Twenty. They pulled her off and pinned her down, quickly disabling her movement wires.

She lay on the ground, twitching slightly, her wires smoking just a little. One lay on the ground, staring up into the night sky with eyes wide and frightened as he tried to get his breath back--yes AI's needed to breathe, they had wires and inner workings that depended on oxygen to keep functioning properly.

After a long moment of tense silence Sixty-five--a younger looking robot, appearing in about his teen years--crept over to One, keeping a wary eye on the human, and bent over him, looking over his face, moving hair out of the way, feeling his pressure points to be sure he was stull functioning properly. One knew he was, but he appreciated the effort of Sixty-five. He sat up finally, wiping his face of dirt and glancing over at the human, his face turning worried.

He stood and approached her, holding out a hand.

"You've got metal scratches..." he said quietly. "They'll need special attention..." he said, glancing over to where Twenty lay, twitching slightly. All One and the others wanted to do was sleep, and of course, they got dragged into this mess.

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie watched teh AI's. This was something she had never experienced before, a mechanical being taking out another mechanical being to save a human. It was very interesting and completely opposite of what she had been hearing since she got into the C.F.F.

She had always been taught that AI's were to be feared for they were smarter than humans, they were able to do things properly, correctly, better, and that they hated Humans just as much as they them. But this act that had occured, it contradicted what people were being told. Perhaps it had been the new activation in feeling and emotion? She didn't care, well she did but was trying not to. She had a job to do! She was not a sympathizer...much.

His voice brought her back to reality and the situation. He was looking at wearily as if she were to die with his large pretty eyes and face that was flawless as could be. She bit her lower lip, the pain unable to ignore. She looked at everyone. Why would he help her when she was a killer of his kind? Either way, she knew that there were certain procedures to be dealt with when harmed by an A.I. And if she were to call now for a doctor...all hell would break lose.

"What about them?" She stated worried. "Nevermind." She said lowly. "Tell them to come inside and have a seat in my living room."

[Number One]

One nearly deflated with releif as the words left her mouth. He finally felt the tire on him as he turned and told them to leave Twenty where she was, that he didn't want to risk bringing her in, and to follow he and her into the house.

Sixty-five was the first to come along. He trusted One more than anyone. His voice mechanism had been ripped out by AI haters before he had been able to escape. He could hear crystal clearly, but could not make one hint of a sound. He could only communicate mentally, and only with One. One didn't know why that was.

After a long moment of aprehensive silence, the two that were left shuffled up and they and One followed the woman to her house, being sure to give her her space. One had learned a long time ago that one thing not built into an AI was the personal boundry rule. AI's didn't need personal space. But humans would become extremely nervous if their's was invaded--especially he and the others being who they were. So, One made sure that he and the other AIs stayed a safe distance away as they entered the house. Immediately, they all felt better. They were in a sheltered place.

And even though they should have asked for permission, the three other AI's behind One collapsed onto the warm carpet their bodies looking small and wasted away, their skin pale and sickly. One watched as they each shut down--a robotic kind of sleep--and their breathing evened. After a moment, One turned back to the woman.

"If they get dirt on your carpet, I'll be happy to clean it for you..." he said, bowing a little. "I thank you deeply for your hospitality against your better judgment, Miss Alexander."

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie was feeling sick the moment she had said anything, but at least this way she could get them out of the house properly and she wouldn't incur anymore problems that night, especially after what had just happened with the one still laying on her lawn. God, what if someone saw that? They'd bardge into her home and kill them all, especially if they saw her face! She sighed out and shook her head.

"Don't." She said to him as she wandered from the living room into the kitchen, turning on her overhead light and hoping he could get whatever was in her face, out. "Just...fix what your friend did to me, okay?" She looked over at him with a bit of surprise. He was much more attractive and flawless in person, well, in better light. She didn't realize how much time and work was put into these things. Kylie had to stop admiring them all so much, she could get killed for a thing like that.

"What do you need? Anything?"

[Number One]

One didn't say anything but followed her and stopped when she did. After a moment of thought he shook his head.

"All I need you to do, is bend over the sink and hold back your hair. I have numbing agents with me that should keep it from hurting too badly..." he paused to roll up his sleeves that were a little dusty. He took the initiative and turned on the water in her sink, washing his hands quickly to make sure he didn't infect her. When he finished, he left his hands wet, and looked back at her.

"Actually...do you have tweasers?"

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie grew nervous. He wanted her to bend over and be unaware of what he does? That was not good! But shek new that he probably knew how to fix it better than she did. She gave an apprehensive sigh and bit her lower lip and nodded. She walked out of the kitchen and down the hall to her bathroom, opening up a drawer in the sink and grabbing the silver object he had asked about. She looked at her face and was almost startled at the mess that had been created. What the hell did that woman do? Rip off her skin and scratch her with metal fingers? She shivered and turned to the hall and back to the kitchen, holding them out for the man to take.

"Here." She said with another sigh, pulling her hair behind her and holding it in place with one hand. "Just....lean over?" She asked with a frown. Hopefully he wasn't going to do anything like kill her with tweezers, Lord knew he probably could if he had the mind to do so.

[Number One]

"Yes," he said pleasantly, pressing his fingers into the base of her neck to get her to bend over. He could tell she didn't exactly want to. And if he had been in her position he would have said "Hell no!" But she must have known that he would know how to fix a problem his kind had created.

Gently leaning over next to her and setting his eyes, his vision focused and magnified the scratches on her face. She had little chips of metal in them, only because Twenty had been pulling her artificial skin off for the past day or two on her fingers and hands. One started the water and gently pressed his already damp fingers to the skin around the scratches.

"You are going to feel a sting...I'm numbing you," he said calmly, kindly. He didn't want to startle her. He carefully pinched her skin and administered the numbing. After a moment, he slowly lowered the cleaned tweasers to her skin and slowly began pulling out the small peices of chipped metal that were on the outside of the cuts.

Really, her injuries could have been much, much worse than they were. Twenty could have put a palm through the woman's face. But she hadn't and One was happy that she hadn't. At least, the dictionary said he was happy.

One still hadn't gotten the hang of these emotion things. They flucuated so rapidly and often he barely got a handle on feeling one before another one flared up and he had to figure it out. He wondered how human beings did it. How they distinguished one from another, kept them in check, didn't just fly off the handle, or break down into tears every moment of every day.

He had never been able to talk to any human besides the Doctor, who had never told him anything about his emotion chip, and only activated it when they had sex. One still didn't understand the doctor well, all he knew was that he knew that he was wrong without the doctor there to explain him to everyone. Besides the doctor, no other human wanted anything to do with him.

"You're part of the C.F.F.?" he asked absentmindedly as his fingers gently massaged over the hurt skin.

[Kylie Alexander]

Kylie hissed, grunted, cursed, allowing anyone in the world to know that this was hurting and that she was not prone to taking severe pain well. But within minutes the pain subsided and it just felt like someone tugging on her face a bit. She heard the man's voice and suddenly she felt at ease, like he wasn't going to harm her and make conversation at the same time. She glanced at the blood dropping into the sink and diluting when it hit the water her eyes becoming entranced with it and her mind focusing on the robot beside her, helping her, healing her.

"Yeah." She said lowly, almost as if at that exact moment she was embarassed to even say she did, but she knew it was just fear. Right? She sighed out. "I have for a while now. Where were you all trying to go?" She didn't know why this was important! They were going to be taken in anyway. Then it hit her...this man...was helping her despite knowing she was literally going to kill them after this was done, after he had helped her. After he had fixed her. How horrible was that?

"You said my name. Outside, Alexander. How did you know that? Are you all like...equipped with that?"