Machine to man, p.10
Machine to Man, page 10
“Risky to save the kid but thank God you’re alive. You’re our only chance of winning this war, I’d say.”
“Got to agree with that. We can’t give in to these machines, not after all they’ve done to us!” James said as I sat next at a table they had set up and said:
“Thank you, and I agree with you, James. I’m going to do all I can to make sure we win. My children won’t live their lives in fear.” The three of us made a plan to deploy soldiers across the trenches. Most Tyrians had basic firearms, and along with the bunker’s armory, we had more than enough weapons to arm enough soldiers to adequately defend Tyre’s trenches. We decided to start the defense the next day. The lighting in the bunker mimicked the sun’s ability to nourish the human body, and it would turn off at night so we could maintain our circadian rhythm. Despite this, living in the units would turn out to be a bleak and dull experience. Every wall looked the same and each family had only one room whose furnishings would change to allow some sort of daily life to occur. My pure focus on survival ensured that our time in the bunker would be bleak. I realized this when I made my way to the living unit that I had set aside for my family. Carolyn and Jackson were sleeping, and Carolena was huddled in the corner crying, which reminded me of the time we first met. When Carolena saw me, she ran up to me and hugged me. I held her tightly to comfort her and said,
“I promise to do all I can to make this stay here as short as possible.”
“I’ll be fine, Allen. We’re safe, and I know the Lord will guide us through this. It’s just that so much has happened. We’ve lost so many, but somehow we’re still here. I-I just can’t understand why the Lord chose me to live and let so many else die.”
“There’s a lot I don’t understand, but I have you, our family. I understand that and it's a blessing upon this world that we’re not the only ones with families.” We hugged for a long time before eating and then going to sleep. I was only able to sleep for an hour or so before getting up to check my computer, which was connected to the sensors that I installed around the perimeter of Tyre, and I looked for any signs of movement. There were none, which did little to ease my anxiety. I decided to arm myself and patrol the outermost trench with a pair of binoculars to see if I could detect something the sensors could not. I began to search the surroundings for a few minutes before I realized James was next to me. I noticed him and said,
“Couldn’t sleep either.”
“Well, Anna is with her family and I understand why, but honestly, I’m too scared to sleep alone.”
“Androids don’t need to sleep, so the less sleep we get ourselves might actually work out for us.”
“Or drive us insane. Can we really do this, Al? Our city’s gone. I know we’ve got enough food, but can we drive off their attacks? They started attacking over five years ago and no human has survived.”
“Wrong. I survived my encounter with 0001AN2, and I was able to raid the AEF with Lily. Even though she brought this upon us.”
“Lily, that rich girl that slept around. I heard she died, but what did she have to do with the Androids?”
“Well, she used Maury to get me to make a radio, and she used it to alert the Androids of Tyre’s location.”
“So all of this destruction? This war? All because of some whore?”
“I’m to blame as well. I made the radio when I had no reason to.”
“Don’t blame yourself for being used, Al! Blame the people who used you! If that fucking pig had kept it in his pants, we wouldn’t be in this shit!” James slammed his fist against the barricade, stormed off to the bunker and I followed him. It was a few minutes past sunrise. The day had just begun when I saw James rush into the command center. Maury had just gotten there and was yawning. James walked up to him and said,
“Get much sleep, old man?”
“Not really. I-I can’t sleep much these days.”
“I don’t know what the hell a radio is, but Al told me how that whore used you to make one, and now we’re in this shit because of you!” James backed Maury against the wall as he sweat nervously and clutched at the collar of his shirt, saying,
“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about, James! This accusation, it’d ruin my credibility as a leader. We can’t have that during these times!”
“Oh, you lying sack of shit!” James was about to grab Maury’s throat, but I stopped him and separated them both. We all sat at the table in the room, and I placed both radios on the table before sitting down myself and said,
“These radios exist, Maury, and it’s because of you. Don’t deny that in front of us.”
“Well, you got me there, Al!” James slapped his hands on the desk and said,
“So you admit to getting us into this shit. Resign, old man. You don’t deserve to lead then. Let us put you in prison! You criminal!”
“James, calm down please!” I placed my hand on his shoulder and continued,
“I don’t like what Maury did either, but we can’t afford to expose him. It wouldn’t be good for morale, and this war will likely last for years. We need to deal with the Androids before we start fighting each other.” James sighed and agreed. We sat in silence for a few minutes before we heard an alarm go off in the command center. I opened my computer and saw that the Androids had begun their first attack on the trenches. I got up and headed to the armory with James. We were met with every Tyrian man that was able to fight in the bunker entrance. I opened the entrance as I said,
“We have to have faith that we can win this war!”
Chapter 31
We were able to use the tunnel system to get to the outermost trench and meet the Androids head on. The barricade allowed us to defend ourselves to a great degree, but many men were shot and killed trying to take out Androids as the fighting went on from the morning and all the way to the night. It was about an hour after the sun set when the Androids withdrew. The trench system had a makeshift cemetery, and the living dragged the dead there to bury them. We went inside and I bathed then ate with my family. I held on tightly to Carolena for the few hours I could sleep.
I woke up to the sound of an alarm shortly after sunrise. The Androids were attacking again, and we rushed again to meet them. The fighting lasted as long and was as brutal as the day before. Fortunately, there were fewer dead than the day before, so I was able to spend more time with my family. Carolyn and Jackson had grown considerably and had begun to walk. Carolena lamented that our children were taking their first steps in such a bleak and hopeless environment. I could not do much to comfort Carolena or take her mind off of that or mine either. The pain and death of the past few days were beginning to take its toll on my mind. Hope was able to make its way into my mind when Anna came into our living space and said,
“Hey, Carolena! Is Al still awake?”
“I’m right here, Anna. Do you need anything?”
“Well…Jamie and I have been having a lot of…fun recently, so I think I’m pregnant. Caro told me you tested her pee but you can use blood too. I’m not scared of needles, so you can prick me.” I grabbed the PTM and made a syringe and drew blood from Anna’s arm. I loaded the blood into the PTM and used my computer to confirm that Anna was pregnant, which made me say,
“Well, I can confirm that you’re pregnant, Anna.”
“Oh! Something good happened these past few days for once.” Anna said as Carolena embraced her and said,
“Our pregnancies are so close; the little ones we have will be great friends for sure. Let’s pray that we can give them peaceful lives.”
“Peace feels impossible, Caro. With everything going on and how Dad died, it gets hard to have faith.”
“Faith is all we have, Anna. It’s why I can keep going in spite of everything.” I said as I placed my hands on both of their shoulders and said:
“I promise I’m going to do everything I can to bring peace for my children and yours, so have faith Anna, please.”
“I will, Allen, thank you. I’m going to tell James the news.” She walked off back to her room, and we got a few hours of restless sleep before the Androids attacked again.
Despite the horrors we faced, Carolena and Anna’s pregnancies progressed well. The fighting killed many and the despair of the war drove many to suicide or to states where they could not function as people. Most of us, however, were able to pull through with the help of our faith and families. It was also a great comfort that our food supply was well maintained. The crops and livestock of Tyre had long ago been genetically modified to be resistant to disease, drought, and famine, and with our careful planning and use of the artificial farms, we were able to have full stomachs as we suffered through our war with the Androids.
Months passed and we maintained our position in this battle of attrition. Every person was uneasy. Each corpse we had to bury and each broken person we had to lock away cost us dearly in our morale and energy. The Androids did not have to deal with the pain of misery and death and were using it to their advantage. If we were to win this war, we would have to mount an offensive operation. When I came to that realization, I met with James and Maury in the command center to discuss plans for an offense against the Androids.
We were sat at the table as we had done before, and I opened by saying,
“We will lose if we do nothing. We get weaker with each death and illness. We have to attack them and gain ground. They will run out of bombs eventually, and we need to be in a position to take over the AEF before then.”
“Well that does make sense. I’d say the sooner the better. We’re all going to go insane if we stay here for too much longer.”
“I’d agree with you, Maury, but our wives are about to give birth. We should wait until we know that they and the babies are healthy before we take our one shot at this.” James said.
“I do agree with James, Maury. This attack will be risky, and I’d like to be there for my third child, at least once.” Maury sighed as the alarm went off and I went with James to meet with the Androids for the day. We managed to hold our own much better than most days, but the fighting continued on for longer than most days. The Androids used solar power and, as such, opted to retreat shortly after sunset, but today they did not retreat until a few hours into the night. Fortunately, none had died, which meant we had no bodies to bury that day, which was a relief to our exhausted bodies and weary souls.
Before James and I could make our way deeper into the bunker, Hariti stopped us and said,
“James, Allen, both of your wives went into labor on the same day, and oddly enough, they both gave birth around two hours ago.”
“Really? Is everyone ok?” James asked.
“Yes! Right as rain. Go down and see for yourself. When you see their faces, you’ll be as hopeful as I am right now.” I rushed downstairs and saw Carolena on the bed breastfeeding an infant. I sat down next to Carolena and noticed Caitlin, who was in the room watching Jackson and Carolyn. Carolena looked up and saw me and said,
“Oh, Allen! I didn’t notice you. I’m sorry. It’s just that since I’ve seen her face I can’t focus on anything else.”
“Oh, so it’s a girl. What’s her name?”
“Daisy, after my sister, so I won’t feel grief the next time you get me a bouquet of my favorite flowers.” I smiled and held her hand. She let me hold Daisy, and I was as entranced with her as Carolena was. I felt hopeful. Hopeful that we would win. Hopeful that I could mount an attack in the face of these impossible odds.
Chapter 32
The alarm went off the next day, and I came to meet James, who said to me as he armed himself:
“Anna had a boy and named him Samson. What about Caro?”
“A girl. She named her Daisy. We better get going.” James nodded and we fought and the fighting lasted well into the night again. This pattern continued for a week before we realized that the Androids were escalating their efforts in this war of attrition, and once we came to that realization, we began planning our attack. I surveyed the area to find where the Androids were staging their attacks on us. I then made bombs that I could detonate remotely to sabotage the Androids’ position. The planning took a day and it was late into the night when I presented the plan to James and Maury who both agreed to it. Maury turned to me and said,
“Well, it’s your plan, Allen, and it’s the best one we got, so pick your men and start in the morning. The sooner we take action, the better.”
“I agree, and I’ll go with you, Al. Fighting in the trenches with you all these months makes us brothers.”
“Thank you, James, and we can take Harry and Michael with us. They’ll be able to help me plant the bombs since they have experience with electronics.”
“Well then, get some sleep, boys, and leave in the morning. What’s left of Tyre is counting on your success,” Maury said, and we nodded in agreement and left to get a few hours of sleep. The morning came, and I was able to gather James, Michael, and Harry in the command center. I got Harry and Michael familiarized with our plan and showed them how to plant the bombs, which they grasped in a matter of minutes. We armed ourselves and were able to sneak into the treeline as the Androids began their daily assault. Michael was standing at the edge of the treeline as Harry grabbed his shoulder and tried to get him to move. Michael pushed him off and said,
“I-I don’t want to leave the fight. It makes me feel like a coward.”
“What the hell are you saying, Mikey?! We’ve got one shot at this, and you’re letting feelings get in the way!?” Michael shook his head and they caught up with James and I, who had gone deeper into the treeline. It took about an hour until we came to a clearing in the forest where the Androids had built a simple forward operating base. Fortune favored us as there were no Androids guarding this base. Harry, Michael, and I got to work planting the bombs while James kept watch for any Androids. We finished in a matter of minutes and scurried back into the treeline to wait for the fighting to end and for the Androids to return to their base for the night.
“So will the bombs go off when the Androids walk over them?” James asked.
“No, they're remote detonated. Al will set them off at the right time,” Harry replied, and James nodded. We sat in a tense silence until several hours after sunset, when the Androids made their way to the base. It was just when they had settled into their positions that I activated the bombs. The bombs popped out from the ground and released electric waves that disabled all the Androids present in a matter of seconds. The disabled bodies fell limply to the ground. James, Michael, and Harry were in shock at what had just happened. On our way back to the base, James said,
“You said those were bombs, Al, but that wasn’t an explosion. What was it?”
“An electromagnetic pulse. It’s similar to lightning, and the intense amount of electricity disables electronics without causing damage to the surrounding area,” I explained, and James scratched his head and said,
“I don’t really get it, but I’m damn glad it worked! We’re a step closer to not living in fear of those fucking machines!”
“Just a step, James. We haven’t won yet and we have to stay calm so we can see this through to the end and win.”
“You’re right, Allen, but they killed Samson and your wife’s whole family. The anger is justified.”
“But it gets us nowhere. Lily’s anger at me started this war, and if we act out of anger, we’ll end up like her.” Harry put his hand on my shoulder and said,
“Hey, guys! Let’s focus on what’s next. Cleaning up, telling the others about this absolute victory, and getting some damn sleep…”
“No!” James interrupted. “Before all of that, we got to talk about Maury. He can’t be our leader, not after what he did.”
“You’re probably right, James, but first we have to secure this position, and then we’ll figure out what’s next.” I was able to get James to reluctantly agree, and we gathered the Androids in their barracks and I disabled them. We gathered all their weaponry and placed it in a cart I had built from the PTM in the center of the base. James, Harry, Michael, and I stood in a circle as the sun began to rise. We were all exhausted, but our next conversation still had vigor, with James starting it by saying,
“I think we’re in the clear. The Androids didn’t send reinforcements. We can deal with Maury now. He has got to go, Allen. Samson and Tyre would still be here if it wasn’t for him.”
“What’d he do exactly and how did it get Dad killed?” Harry asked.
“Yeah we got to know, Allen. What did Maury do that got Dad killed?” Michael added, and both of them looked at me intensely, doing all they could to hold back their tears. I steeled myself and said,
“Lily manipulated Maury into making me design a radio, a device that Lily used to alert the Androids of Tyre’s exact location. An Android that I made was sent to find me and it killed Samson in doing so. Samson saved me, and I was able to eliminate the Android, but it doesn’t absolve me of the role I played in Samson’s death.” Harry put his hand on my shoulder and stared at me intensely and said,
“Dad would have died if you didn’t save him when you two first met. You didn’t do wrong by him or us.”
“Yeah, Al! This is because of Maury and Lily, and since Lily’s dead, Maury’s the one who’s responsible for Dad’s death.” Michael added, which made James smile as he said,
“Well, Al, the three of us are on board with removing Maury as our leader. All we need is you.”
“Trusting Maury as a leader brought us here, so it’s for the best if we make him step down.” We all shook hands and steeled our resolve. We had only gained a slim advantage over the Androids, and we had resolved to use it first to tear down a fellow human. I was suspicious that making an enemy of Maury was not the best course of action, but I could not even convince myself of that. Maury had to pay for his weakness as a leader, and this was our opportunity to ensure that he did.
