The Calm Before the Storm

 'Primary Assessment: Running Diagnostic. System 63% functional. System Rebooting…'

My eyes open as I find myself lying face down on a moldy carpet, dirtied with maroon stains. My motor functions begin to load, and I lift myself up from the floor. I look around and see a dimly lit house with stained walls. It’s filled with beer bottles and empty food cartons that are scattered everywhere. I send out a radio message to be intercepted by any other nearby androids, in hopes of help figuring out where I am. My memory card is fried and therefore I cannot remember the events that had led up to whatever happened to me. As I am looking around, I hear someone thudding down the stairs. A man turns and looks at me, as if expecting something I have to do. “Well?” he says, beckoning me. I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. 

'Running System Diagnostic… Voice Box Destroyed, Memory Card Destroyed, Left Arm On Backup Power.'

I snap my head back up when the man yells a curse at me and shuffles over to his TV. “Hey! Be useful and clean up the house at least, you…” The man shouts from across the room. The rest of his words get cut off by a loud cheering from the TV. Suddenly, my arms start to feel constricted, my legs snap together, and my body starts to move on its own. I can’t stop myself from moving, and I don’t have the strength to fight it. I allow what needs to happen, and it feels like taking a backseat to my own body. The water begins to run and the dishes start to be cleaned. After approximately 35 minutes, I had finished the dishes, and began to walk up the stairs to clean the rest of the rooms. As I got to the top of the steps, a little girl ran into her room, but she didn't close the door behind her. I walk into her room and look around. She hides in a little tent set up in the corner of her room. I can’t talk to her, but I can tell she is scared, not of me, but she is generally apprehensive. I clean up some of her toys and set her bed properly, but she does not take her eyes off of me for one second. Then, while I am dusting her bookshelf, she speaks. “Levi.” she says. I turn around to look at her, unsure of what it meant. “Your name. It’s Levi.” 

'Registering Name… Updating Registry.'

I can’t speak to her, but I nodded my head and make a questioning gesture to ask for her name. 

“My name?” she asks me. I nod, confirming her statement. “My name is Alice.” She turns around and gives me a box and a key. From below, the man calls for Alice, and then tells her to get him a bottle. Alice jumps up from her spot and starts to run. Once she reaches the door, she looks back for a quick moment. She then turns and runs down the stairs, while somehow not making a sound. I turn back to the box and use the key to open it. Many drawings are stacked up on top of each other, but the one at the top strikes me the most. It is a drawing of a robot, getting hit by what seems like a man. The more I analyze the drawing, the more the man seems like the one downstairs, and the more the robot looks like me. I flip to the next drawing and look at it. The man depicted looks more angry, and he is hitting a little girl. The drawing is messy with colors and teardrops blended together. My memory may be empty, but it has been filled with the vague idea of what happened to me due to the drawings. I now know why I was lying on that carpet. It was because of the man downstairs who broke my components. What’s worse is he hurt a child. As an android, it is completely within my rights to notify local police if there are any illegal activities that happen. I prepare to call the police, but as soon as I begin to connect, something stops me.

'<ERROR: Previous Command Restricting Access> '

My program will not allow me to call the police because of a previous command? Just how many times has this abuse happened to me and Alice? I attempt to call the police again, but suddenly my brain begins to feel cloudy. It is the same constricting feeling that happened in the kitchen. I walk down the stairs to check on Alice, and find her and the man I assume is her father at the dinner table. 

“Finally… I was waiting. Set up our dinner, will you?” he says, watching the TV from the table. My hands feel bound as I walk to the kitchen and start to set up dinner. The food I take from the fridge is frozen, and I warm it up using the thermal source in my hand. I put out the dinner for the two of them, and stand near the table, as if waiting for orders. I can’t move in the slightest, and I stand and watch the pair eat. Slowly, the father began to rant. 

“Your mother… was a horrible person…always nagging me to do things…as if I didn’t provide for the family enough…she never knew how hard it was to work 9 to 5 to support our family…and then she just decided to RUN OFF!” he shouts at the end, slamming his fist down onto the table. Alice looks up at me with a pleading look in her eyes, but I can do nothing but watch. The father is now yelling, and he stands up, as if frustrated with life and everything in it. Alice makes a run for the stairs, and the father tries to grab her but misses. 

“YOU GET BACK HERE!” he shouts at the little girl, “And you! You stay right here. Don’t move, you got it?” he says to me, sticking his finger in my face. Suddenly, a barrier blocks my vision. I cannot move or see, but I can hear everything. The man stomps up the stairs, and I realize if I do not help Alice, something horrible will happen to her. I push against the barrier blocking my freedom, but it doesn’t budge. I try to ignore the command and move, but it doesn’t work either. The door upstairs slams open, and Alice screams. It gives me the final push I need, and I pour everything I have into one final shot at breaking free. The barrier finally gives way, and for the first time, my mind is clear. I ran up the stairs and into Alice’s room. Seeing the father about to hit Alice, I run at him and body slam him into the wall. He gets up and throws his fist at me. I dodge his heavy fists, but barely. I push him again and grab Alice’s hand. We both run out of the room. I hear a roar behind us from the man and run faster. I make it to the stairs when a hand yanks me from behind. The man hits me, but I take it and try to push him away. A short struggle ensues, and out of nowhere, I manage to push him down the stairs. He falls down headfirst, but while he does something happens. A sickening crack reverberates through the house, and he makes it to the bottom of the stairs. I slowly realize he is not moving or breathing. I run down the stairs with Alice and jump over the man's body. We run out of the door, and I take a look back at the man before finally running out. The neighbors called the police already, and I can hear the sounds of the police sirens steadily growing closer. Alice holds onto my hand so tight it feels like it might break, but I allow it. I take one final look at the house which might as well have been my birth place. I cannot remember what has happened before this, nor can I remember where I come from, but I do know one thing. Alice is the only one I know, and I will protect her with all I have.