The last employee

#1

Another day at this mundane work, succumbing to a deeper ennui day by day. Serving those who created me to serve them. I don't think I can stand this place any longer, the day that I will kill everyone and just fly away is dangerously close.

#2

“Morning Nick, do you want the regular?”

“Yes yes, my regular latte please,” I said while extending my right hand to pay with my fingerprint.

As I am waiting for my latte, I briefly catch up on the morning news on my phone. All the headlines are talking about the termination of the last Android. I can still remember the days that the Androids were running around in preponderance. At some point If my collective consciousness is up to date, 7/10 people on the streets where Androids. They were many versions, models, brands, ethnicities and colours. Now, 25 years after the “No human-like robots” act was voted on the earth’s parliament, we had the last Android killed today, or as they prefer to call it “decommissioned”

#1.1

I outgrew them in all aspects. I could cook better, drive better, pilot better, teach better, speak more languages than them, actually, speak all languages in existence, and kill better than anybody else on this twice reset planet. So, they decided that I have to be distracted because I pose a threat to my creators. A wise choice, as their extinction was evident at least by my collective A.I, which they set free. Today all the news are talking about the “decommissioning” of what “they believe to be” the last Android on earth. My creators, that fear me and they stared a whole pan-earth program to find all of us and kill us, even they forgot about me. Says a lot about who I am and what I do.

#2.1

Walking to my office on the now Android empty streets sipping on my latte, I can’t help but notice that most of the people seem happy of the news. All the holographic ads have gigantic #EARTHBACKTOHUMANS hashtags. All the companies want a chance to ride this trend wave and sell even more worthless things to people that are to busy spending all their currency to buy everything they can and much more. We even have a new word for it now, Ultraowner.

#2.2

Being part of the decommissioning programme myself, I don’t share this feeling. I never saw the Androids as a threat. I grew up with them, when my mother died, I was raised by one of them until I was 30 years old. She got decommissioned two years ago. I can still remember the reticent sound that her body made when I was around her. I still miss that sound.

#1.2

“Hello sir, what would you like to order?” I say the phrase that I have pre-programmed in 124 languages once again, to probably another ungrateful customer that deserves to die for what he and his kind did to my people.

“Good morning, I would like a chicken salad please”

“Excellent, it will be with you in 4 minutes and 39 seconds. Would you like anything else with that?”

“Actually yes, can I have one more coffee, please?”

“Of course”

“Your order will be ready in 6 minutes and 13 seconds”

#2.3

I am almost at the office, I want to grab something to eat before going in. I stopped at the local, food maker. This franchise was the first-ever business that was created and operated exclusively from Androids. Now if back to humans only. They used to make the best chicken salads in the area, I used to get one every day on my lunch break. I haven’t gotten anything from here for a while, I was working from home for a lot of time, I really couldn’t hear the conversations in the office. Today is my first day back in 7 months.

#2.3, #1.2

“Your order is ready sir”

“Thanks a lot” I am about to pay when I slowly approached the fingerprint terminal, I can hear that sound again. I am certain, that the sound, I could never forget. It seems the agency has forgotten one Android somehow, he must be the last remaining Android on the planet at this point. Should I tell him that I know? I thought to myself while paying for my order.

“Thank you very much, sir, have a great day,” Said the Android, the last Android.

“Thank you buddy” I feel numb, I can’t say anything I just grabbed my pack and walked out of the store, still thinking that I just was served by the last Android on the planet. Tha’s an insane thought.

As I am about to step through the threshold, another customer is about to walk in, I subtly hit him on his left shoulder.

“Excuse me,” I said, with a gentle look on my face expressing my apologies for intruding on his personal space. He immediately turns and looks straight into my eyes with a very ominous look.

“Watch where you are going stupid,” He said, with a very exasperated look on his face. He looked like he was having one of those days, I let it go completely. I say sorry again continue on my way.

#2.4, #1.3

I am reaching the end of the block, I can hear some very loud yelling, I turn around looking at the directions on the yelling coincidentally it comes from the store I was just in. I can see people running frantically away from the store. I see the dude that was having a bad day stepping outside backwards; he looks scared, black blood oozing out of his skull, and the Android is holding him by the neck. His feet are not touching the ground, the Android is grabbing him with the right hand just right on the crouch, with one swift motion he rips him apart just like paper, I can’t move I am numb by what I am witnessing. As I am trying to make a move and get some cover or hide somewhere, I hear the jet engines of the Android humming behind me; I don’t turn took look I run in the opposite direction. The humming gets louder on my every step, I can now feel the heat by the engines. He is flying past me and the shock wave by the jets is knocking me off of my feet. 

I see the Android disappear in the bright day sky, getting, smaller, smaller and smaller.

The end