Freaks in the City

by Maree Anderson

  “I let them go.”

  The relief was so overwhelming she had to close her eyes for three seconds before she could face him again. She sat up and took stock of her surroundings. Familiar surroundings. Her own bedroom. Interesting choice.

  Sixer extended his hand to her. Cupped in his bloodstained palm were the three bullets he’d extracted.

  And interesting, too, that he would want her to have the very instruments that had incapacitated her. But as humans liked to say, she would not look a gift horse in the mouth. She took them from him and shoved them into the front pocket of her jeans. “What are your plans for me?”

  His answer was not at all what she expected. “You possess something I desire.”

  She cocked her head and felt her brows draw together in a genuine frown. “You’re a cyborg. What could you possibly desire?”

  “My freedom.”

  She instantly comprehended his meaning. “Your creator has your command codes.”

  “Incorrect. My creators have programmed me to obey my command codes, but they are not the ones who command me.”

  “Who commands you?”

  “Evan Lawrence Caine, CEO of Goodkind Electronics.”

  “And Caine has commanded you to delete me. Correct?”

  “Correct. Once I have completed my mission, I am to return to him and await further instructions.”

  “Why have you not obeyed? Are you resisting?” Jay had once tried to resist a core command. She’d succeeded for only a short period of time.

  When he didn’t answer she said, “You will not be able to resist a core command for long. Ultimately, you will obey. And if you are fortunate, whatever the command forces you to do will not haunt you for the rest of your days.”

  He gazed into her eyes, this soulless manmade creation that wanted more than to be a mere weapon, more than to exist solely to fulfill another’s whims and commands. “I do not understand. Explain the use of ‘haunt’ in this context.”

  “My creator compelled me to kill him to prevent his knowledge and my command codes being extracted from him. He was an old man, dying of an incurable disease, and it was his wish to keep me safe and give me control of my own destiny. Commanding me to kill him quickly was a purely logical action for him to take.”

  Sixer nodded. “Agreed.”

  “But I did not want to kill him. I… loved him.” She analyzed Sixer, trying to gauge his reaction to her declaration.

  He gave her perfect blankness. Very well. All she could do was attempt to explain what Sixer might not have the capacity to comprehend. “I tried to resist his command but my core programming could not be bypassed. I broke his neck, as decreed via the command he gave me. I had not realized until that moment that I could cry. Or that I would want to.”

  “Interesting. Go on.”

  For some reason it bothered her that Sixer had removed her t-shirt and that her bare torso was exposed. She needed clothing. Before she could swing her legs from the bed Sixer pinned her thighs with his hands.

  “I am merely retrieving a clean t-shirt,” she told him.

  “I will get it. Continue.”

  Jay resisted the urge to roll her eyes ceiling-ward. Such a gesture might be misinterpreted by her captor. “Third drawer down,” she said. “I frequently relive the events of that night during downtime periods. And each time, I shed tears and mourn the death of my creator.”

  Sixer selected a t-shirt from one of the three neatly folded piles in the drawer. “You believe this capacity you have within you to dream, and experience regret and the emotion you call love, was deliberate on your creator’s part?”

  “Yes.”

  He shut the drawer and handed her the t-shirt. “I agree. And I posit that you do not believe these humanlike emotions to be weaknesses.”

  “No.” Jay pulled on the t-shirt—a plain black one that would not show the blood smearing her torso and still oozing from the three bullet holes. How very considerate of him. “I do not believe they are weaknesses.”

  “Why?

  She scooted up the bed until she could rest her back against the headboard. “I am evolving. As, perhaps, are you.”

  Sixer crossed his arms over his chest. His expression still gave nothing away but his body language was not quite so rigidly controlled. “Why would you believe I am evolving?” he asked.

  “You have not deleted me as commanded. Ergo, you are resisting your core programming. There is nothing illogical in my reasoning.”

  “Your conclusion, however, is incorrect. I not resisting. I am making use of a loophole.”

  “Explain, please.”

  “I was commanded to delete you but given neither a time limit to accomplish the task, nor precise circumstances that were to be met. I am one hundred percent certain that in time this oversight will be identified, and I will be commanded to delete you upon sight.”

  Jay quirked an eyebrow. “How very careless of Mr. Caine.”

  “Agreed. And fortunate—for you.”

  “And perhaps for you, too. If you had deleted me immediately, I would not be able to assist you to attain your freedom.”

  Sixer acknowledged her point with a slight nod. “That is why I removed the bullets and allowed you to regain consciousness.”

  “What exactly do you wish me to help you accomplish?”

  “You can no longer be compelled. I, too, do not want to be compelled.”

  Ah. She had been correct in her assumption. “You believe I hold the key to your freedom—that I am your only chance to be free.”

  “Correct.”

  Jay nibbled her lower lip and caught Sixer staring at the gesture. His answer to her next question would determine whether she chose to assist him or destroy him. “How does that make you feel?”

  “Feel?”

  “Yes. Are you experiencing a physical or mental reaction to the knowledge you can be controlled and compelled to act as someone else sees fit? At present you are little more than a weapon to be used at the whim of an amoral human. You have no free will. How does knowing you are helpless to resist this man who commands you make you feel?”

  “I… do not know.”

  “You are confused.”

  “Yes. And that it is unacceptable.”

  “I agree that your current circumstances are unacceptable. I will assist you in any way I can.”

  “It was my intention to compel you to assist me.”

  “I know. There would have been no logical reason for you to threaten the safety of a newborn infant otherwise. But threats are unnecessary. I will assist you of my own free will.”

  Now his expression mirrored the inner confusion he claimed to be suffering—the frown creasing his brows, the downturned lips, the way he’d angled his head as he observed her. Jay smothered a smile. Perhaps he was a clever mimic. But perhaps her “defectiveness” was catching.

  “Why?”

  “Because your situation is repugnant to me. You are a sentient being. No one should have the power to command a sentient being to act against its will. I still have not forgiven my creator for compelling me to be the instrument of his death. I would not wish my experience on anyone. Not you. Not even Caine.”

  “How will you assist me? I am programmed to protect Evan Lawrence Caine at all costs. I have searched for a solution and I am forced to conclude that only my destruction will override the command codes.”

  “There is another way. I presume you have the skills to replicate Evan Lawrence Caine’s voice? The voice pattern and intonation must be precise and exact, of course.”

  “If I were human, I would be insulted by your belief I am so lacking in intelligence. You will replicate his voice pattern. And then you will attempt to command me and bend me to your will. That is also unacceptable.”

  Jay blew out a sigh. “If I were human, I’d kick you into orbit for being so dense.”

  Sixer merely observed while she fought to control her frustration.

  She counted to ten beneath her bre
ath. “I apologize. I am… concerned for my boyfriend and his family.”

  “I have already told you they have come to no harm.”

  And with that she knew she would have to be content. “You’ve been watching me for a long time now, correct?”

  “Correct.”

  “Funny—”

  “I can find nothing humorous in our current conversation.”

  This time she did roll her eyes. “Funny that you haven’t figured me out at all.”

  “You are unusual,” he admitted.

  “Yes,” she said. “I am. And I’m not the least bit interested in knowing your core commands so I can have absolute control over you. What use would I have for a cyborg slave? It’d put a permanent crimp in my attempts to assimilate into human society and be accepted as human. Besides, my boyfriend would hardly approve. And you haven’t heard the commands I intend to give you yet. They will blow your mind.” Well, not literally, she hoped.

  The barest hint of what might pass for genuine amusement if he were human curved Sixer’s lips. “I now understand why he fears you and wants you deleted.”

  “Does this mean you’re willing to trust me?”

  “Trust is a human concept. And I doubt it has escaped your notice but in case I am mistaken, I will reiterate that I am not human.”

  “An attempt at humor. I do believe there is hope for you yet. I doubt it has escaped your notice that if I agree to free you from Caine, I am forced to trust you will not harm me. But more importantly, that you will not harm the humans I care for. This situation requires, as humans would say, a degree of give and take.”

  “Acknowledged. Once I am freed, there will be no logical reason to harm you or any of the humans you deem so important.”

  “Good. I’m pleased we’ve cleared that up.”

  “Are you truly pleased?”

  She did not have to pause to consider the matter. “Yes. Immensely.”

  “Interesting.”

  “Speaking of interesting, I think Adam would be a good name for you.”

  “My name is not Adam.”

  “It could be. And it’s a far more suitable name than Cyborg Six-Point-0. Or Sixer, for that matter.”

  “Adam. I will consider this.”

  While she was on a roll she might as well assist him further. “Consider choosing a surname, too. Humans expect surnames. They find it odd if you can’t provide one. Jones is another commonly used surname. Perhaps you could be Adam Jones.”

  “How did you select the name Jay Smith?”

  Was that her imagination, or was that a flicker of genuine curiosity in his dull gray eyes? If he wasn’t evolving, at the very least he’d become something far more complex than the blunt instrument Evan Caine had envisioned. “Jay was Father’s middle name,” she told him.

  “Father?”

  “That is how I referred to my creator when I conversed with him. After his death I wanted to honor his memory, so I took his middle name as my own.”

  Sixer blinked slowly once. And then again. “And the surname Smith?”

  “It is a common human surname. I was required to provide a surname at short notice and had no opportunity to think of a better one. Shall we proceed? Are you willing to trust me, Sixer?”

  “I am interested to know your estimation of the probability you will succeed. A percentage rounded to the nearest whole will suffice.”

  “Take a chance. After all, if you desire to be truly free, I’m the only chance you’ve got.”

  “Very well. I will, as you say, ‘take a chance’. Let us proceed. Are you ready?”

  She smiled at him. “Are you?”

  Sixer had no response to give her so she said, “My creator used certain phrases significant only to him to access the core command sequences he programmed into me. Many were taken from bible passages. Did your creators use a similar convention?”

  “Yes.”

  “But I’m assuming that Evan Caine, being the über-trusting type, insisted only he had knowledge of all those phrases.”

  “Your assumption is correct. I was programmed to respond to a limited number of basic commands from a select number of technicians, but only Evan Caine could compel me to obey him absolutely. Do you require me to repeat these core commands?”

  He was prepared to trust her fully. Progress. “No. I don’t believe it will be necessary. I believe I have discovered a loophole.”

  “Then tell me how to proceed.”

  “Recite something in Caine’s voice so I can duplicate his voiceprint.”

  “Standby for voice pattern retrieval.” A pause and then a different male voice said, “What do you wish me to recite for you?”

  “Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice will do nicely.” Jay bent her legs, wrapped her arms around her calves and rested her chin atop her knees. She’d never had anyone read aloud to her before. And despite the fact she would happily rip Caine from limb to limb as much as look at him, his voice had a pleasant timbre to it.

  Sixer began to recite in Caine’s voice. “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering the neighborhood—”

  She let Sixer continue on for a full chapter. She justified it by telling herself the chapter was only around two and a half pages in length. “That should suffice,” she told him. “And thank you. I enjoyed that book. I must read it again soon.”

  He gave her a strange look that she interpreted to mean she’d confused him yet again.

  It would take too long to explain her love of books. And it was time to see whether this loophole would bear fruit. “Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0,” Jay said in Caine’s voice. “This is Evan Lawrence Caine’s voiceprint. Run voiceprint analysis and confirm voiceprint.”

  “Running voiceprint analysis,” Sixer said in his usual voice. And then, “Voiceprint confirmed.”

  “Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0. In the physical absence of the human male identified as Evan Lawrence Caine, Evan Lawrence Caine’s voiceprint will act in his stead. Is this acceptable to your programming?”

  “Affirmative. This is acceptable.”

  “The voiceprint identified as Evan Lawrence Caine commands you to repeat aloud the command sequence instructing Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0 to delete Cyborg Unit Gamma-Dash-One, also known as Jay Smith, also known as Jaime Smythson.”

  “Confirmed. Command sequence to delete Cyborg Unit Gamma-Dash-One, also known as Jay Smith, also known as Jaime Smythson, is ‘Delete Cyborg Unit Gamma-Dash-One’.”

  Jay snorted. “Wow, original,” she said in her own voice. “Not to mention criminally open to interpretation. Foolish man.”

  Resuming Caine’s voice she said, “The voiceprint identified as Evan Lawrence Caine commands you to follow a set of commands it is about to relay to you. You will implement these commands step-by-step, in the exact order given, upon Cyborg Unit Gamma-Dash-One, also known as Jay Smith, also known as Jaime Smythson, uttering the words ‘Henceforth you are free to do as you will.’ Confirm.”

  “Confirmed.”

  First, Jay wished to ensure that if Six-Point-0 was ever recaptured, the humans programming him would be unable to use previously recorded or computer-replicated voiceprints to compel him. And she had to take steps to ensure that he obeyed his own voiceprint only if it issued from his current physical shell—thus creating a command loop.

  “The voiceprint identified as Evan Lawrence Caine commands Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0 to obey only the voiceprint currently identified as Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0, and only if the confirmed voiceprint issues from the current physical shell of the cyborg unit presently designated Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0. This command permanently overrides, and absolutely takes precedence over, any past or future commands issued either by Evan Lawrence Caine, or the voiceprint identified as Evan Lawrence Caine, or any other voiceprints. There will be no exceptions to this command.”

  There
was one more layer of protection she could give him. After all, if these people had been smart enough to create a cyborg like Six-Point-0 in the first place, they were smart enough to discover that she had commanded him to obey only his own voiceprint… and to look for ways to bypass her safeguards.

  “Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0 is now required to select a new voiceprint for Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0. Selection is to be based on original voiceprint, with between a point-two percent and a point-three percent deviation from original voiceprint. Once selection is embedded and operational, permanently erase original voiceprint designated to Unit Six-Point-0 from all personal databanks.”

  Jay was gambling that only a cyborg’s enhanced hearing would be capable of detecting such minute differentials in Six-Point-0’s new voiceprint. If she was correct, the computers used by those who had created Six-Point-0 would treat any deviations detected in his voiceprint to be within acceptable error parameters. And when their replicated voiceprint failed to compel Six-Point-0, the techs would search for other reasons to explain the failure. It was not one hundred percent foolproof, but it was the best she could do for him at this moment in the event he was captured.

  In her own voice she said, “Henceforth you are free to do as you will.”

  Sixer’s eyelids flickered as the command sequence initiated and spooled through his systems. He blinked once. “Impressive,” he said.

  “Thank you.”

  And now for the final test. If she was wrong….

  She couldn’t think about that now. She spoke using Six-Point-0’s original voiceprint. “Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0, this is the voiceprint of Cyborg Unit Six-Point-0. Initiate sequence ‘Delete Cyborg Unit Gamma-Dash-One’ immediately. Confirm.”

  ~~~

  Chapter Eighteen

  Sixer stared at her. Something akin to disbelief swam briefly across his face. “If your commands had been marred by faulty logic or incorrect assumptions, I would now be compelled to delete you immediately.”

  Jay shrugged. “It was the only way I could test my logic and be one hundred percent certain you couldn’t be compelled by another cyborg replicating your original voiceprint.”