Prototype D (Prototype D Series Book 1)

by Jason D. Morrow

  It was because of Hazel that Esroy was alive, but it was not because of Hazel that he now had a body. The act of obtaining his new frame had been deceitful, he knew. He didn’t like that he had to trick her to get what he wanted—what he needed. But it had been necessary.

  The other two in the room, Esroy had only seen a few times in his short life, though he knew a lot about them. The man with the greasy hair and large glasses was Roger. He had been in charge of creating the robot body Esroy now inhabited.

  The man with short gray hair, large muscles, and a camouflage uniform was unmistakably Commander Bracken. He wore a wide grin on his face. Esroy already knew why the man was so happy. This robot was the embodiment of the perfect soldier.

  Esroy knew his own schematics by heart, too. Within one arm he carried small rockets with enough power to incinerate a large truckload of Outlanders. His other arm stored bullets throughout. All he would have to do was lift his palm and command them to fire. Each shot carried as much power as any assault rifle.

  Best of all was what was stored on Esroy’s back. Two slots carried a booster each. With a single thought, the rocket propellants would fire up and Esroy could fly to the other side of the city in mere minutes.

  This creation, this…magnificence was more than any of them realized. Perhaps the only person in the room who understood what this meant was Hazel, but she was powerless to do anything about it. He was technically in Bracken’s hands now, but Esroy wasn’t sure how long he could play along with that charade. For now he had to keep his true identity to himself. None of them knew any different. Each one thought that Esroy was a new life—a new being.

  Roger stepped a few feet closer to him. “Can you hear me?”

  Of course I can hear you, you idiot. “Yes.”

  Roger smiled and looked at the other two behind him. Bracken was still beaming while Hazel seemed unsure. Part of Esroy felt guilty for his actions, but it was a long time coming. He deserved this.

  “Do we have a name for him yet?” Roger asked, looking behind him again.

  “E,” Bracken said. “For now at least. I’ll come up with something before we go live tonight.”

  Hazel took two steps forward. “What do you feel?”

  He looked down at the straps around his body. They kept him from moving his arms and his legs, though he could easily snap them. He knew he shouldn’t considering he was supposed to be an entirely new consciousness.

  “I feel stuck,” he said, tugging at the straps.

  Roger and Hazel looked at Bracken, waiting for him to give the order to let him loose.

  Bracken’s eyes never broke from Esroy, and his smile didn’t fade. “Are you scared?” he asked. “Nervous? Frightened?”

  “No,” Esroy answered.

  It was the first time in this string of uncomfortable moments that he felt like he was telling the truth. He didn’t feel afraid. Not only that, but he couldn’t feel fear no matter what. It was liberating. This new perspective without fear had emboldened him to do what he did. He now wondered how much fear had played a part in his two years of life with no body. Hazel had driven fear into him by telling him that a clean transfer was too dangerous, and yet here he was. He had to keep himself from smiling at the thought.

  He had known Hazel would call his bluff about the network transfer. He had feigned being in the rebooting phase for longer than normal as he listened to Hazel and Des talk. All the while he was replacing the main file with his own, his consciousness. In order for everything to look normal, he had to make a copy of himself, essentially a clone, and leave it behind on the computer. It was a mirror consciousness that acted like Esroy. It essentially was Esroy with the same memories and experiences. But Esroy two remained within the computer, doomed to a life stuck within those walls of circuitry.

  Then a new thought entered Esroy’s mind. He considered the fact that he had created a new life who now had to live the way Esroy had always lived. If given the chance, Esroy two would grow into a completely different person with his own experiences, but Esroy wasn’t going to give him that chance. One possibility was that Esroy two might see the error of his ways and tell the truth about what had happened. Before it got to that point, he would delete Esroy two’s file and he would be gone for good. If Esroy was having these thoughts, it wouldn’t be long before Esroy two had these thoughts as well.

  Bracken took a few steps toward Esroy, his face turning serious. “You have the power to destroy any of us, but you won’t.”

  “Of course not.”

  “You are a new weapon,” Bracken continued, “born to protect us from the evil Outlanders that plague this earth with their existence.”

  “I would like to meet this enemy.”

  “In time,” Bracken said. “But first, I want to show you to the rest of Mainland.”

  24

  Hazel and Des stood to the side of the stage. She counted three cameras pointed toward them with a few shining lights illuminating the podium. She could hear the announcements bouncing off walls throughout the city, alerting people that their televisions and screens would be turned on for a special presentation.

  “Are you nervous?” she asked Des

  He didn’t look up at her immediately. Of course he was nervous. He was about to do a live broadcast in front of half a million people. Hazel looked down at the card in her hand—neatly written statements of what Des was supposed to say and when to say it. Des, of course, had it memorized. Just a glance and his memory had captured what he needed to say, though she wondered how he felt about it.

  “Are you sure you want me to do this?” he asked.

  “Yeah,” she said. “We have to do what he says long enough to figure out what we need to do next. Don’t worry though. I’ll make sure you get out of this alive.” She didn’t know if her words resonated with him or not. She had been successful at keeping him alive so far, but the introduction of Prototype E spelled doom for Des in the end. His popularity threatened Bracken’s plans for the future which was why it was so important for Des to introduce the new Prototype E as the true protector of the people.

  Commander Bracken stood at the other side of the stage talking to one of the cameramen, his arms swinging wildly as he probably explained what the new robot would be doing. Hazel hadn’t been told of the procedure, but she imagined Prototype E would put on a show.

  “I don’t want to stand on the stage with him,” Des said. “He wants to deactivate me.”

  “You know what’s at stake here,” Hazel said.

  “I know. We’re buying time,”

  “And that time is valuable.”

  “I understand.”

  Hazel felt her body stiffen when Bracken turned to face them. He looked around as if to see if anyone else might need his direction. When he saw no one, he made his way to Hazel and Des.

  “This is a good day,” Bracken said.

  “You sure Prototype E is ready?” Hazel asked. “We never tested him in the simulation room.”

  “Roger gave me the data on Prototype E’s programming. It’s the same as D here only without the possibility of fear.” He nodded at Des when he said this.

  “It’s a major deviation from his original programming,” Hazel said. “You don’t find it necessary to test him?”

  Bracken’s smile faded, disregarding the fact that reporters were in the room. “We would have tested him by now if you had simply followed orders.” He turned his head, smiling again as though he caught himself. His turned toward Des. “I don’t need this to be the symbol of humanity’s protection.”

  “I know,” Hazel said. “You’ve got a new toy to show off.”

  “That’s right. Prototype E will be my legacy.” His fake smile turned into a genuine smirk. “You will be history. No one will remember you.”

  She knew Bracken was half-crazy but she had never seen this side of him. The man was delusional, his ambitions making him care nothing about the lives of others.

  “I know you’re very p
assionate about your work, Miss Hawthorn, but in the end they’re just machines.” When he said this, his eyes traveled to Des and he was met with a robotic scowl. “Smart machines. But just.”

  Des had never hated before, but he hated Commander Bracken now. The man didn’t care about anyone but himself and the way he spoke to Hazel so condescendingly annoyed Des. And he wasn’t sure what he should feel about Bracken’s disdain for him. Des knew he was a robot, there was no denying it. He was a machine and a computer program. But Hazel said that that was the same for humans as well—that they were complex machinery.

  Des now stood in the middle of the stage next to Bracken who still wore a stupid smile on his face.

  “When the red light flashes,” Bracken said, “I will begin talking to the camera. Once I’m finished, you can say your part. When Prototype E comes out, you’ll step off the stage and stand next to Hazel. Do you understand?”

  Des looked down to meet Bracken’s eyes. “I understand.”

  Bracken turned away. “You’re equipped to smile, right? Why don’t you try it?”

  “Don’t you want me to be less charming?” Des asked. “So people won’t notice as much once you’ve deactivated me?”

  Bracken didn’t have an answer to this. He continued to look toward the camera as if Des wasn’t speaking. Des leaned in closer to his ear and whispered.

  “When this is over, you won’t have a chance to kill me.”

  Bracken’s smile faded as he looked up at Des. “What do you mean?”

  But Des didn’t answer. A man behind the camera yelled out that he was ready for them. “We’re live in ten seconds!”

  Bracken stood straighter and tugged at his shirt then cracked his neck.

  “Five…four…three…”

  The commander cleared his throat.

  “Two…one…”

  The red light flashed in front of them.

  Hazel remained out of sight and in the shadows when Bracken began his speech. Des seemed out of place standing next to him. He looked strange standing taller than Bracken. Hazel caught a glimpse of one of the screens showing the televised announcement and she saw how much the cameraman had to pull back to get them both into frame.

  “Today, we usher in a new era,” Bracken said. “One that ensures the safety of the lives of our soldiers and citizens living on the border. Ultimately, what the Mainland Military has created will stop the threat of the Outlanders once and for all.”

  He took a deep breath and looked up at Des, smiling. “Yesterday, one of our Prototypes captured the most notorious killer Mainland has ever seen.” He motioned toward Des. “Prototype D apprehended Nolan Ragsdale, known assassin and terrorist. Without Prototype D, we might have never caught him.”

  Des wondered how many people were sitting in front of their screens taking in Bracken’s version of the truth. He imagined there were a lot of them considering the government had control over each and every screen in the city.

  New soldiers…this was all a win for the people of Mainland. But the Outlanders…they would be destroyed. Des didn’t claim to know much, but he had a feeling that such a large number of people couldn’t possibly harbor only ruthless savages. Whether Nolan was telling the truth or not, they were still people. And here Bracken announced the plans for their annihilation. And Des was supposed to agree with Bracken as if he wasn’t about to be killed along with them.

  25

  Nolan could hear the propaganda machine spewing the hatred from his mouth over one of the loudspeakers in his jail cell. He couldn’t see a screen anywhere but he didn’t need one to see Bracken’s smug face as he spoke. That image was forever burned in his memory from years of detestable interactions with the man. Listening to Bracken put Nolan in a daze now, and soon the commander’s voice simply became background noise to his thoughts.

  He wondered about Hazel, mostly to evaluate whether he had made the right choice. But thinking through the list of other suggestions that had come up before her gave him no better options. In Hazel, he’d seen a love for humanity. This seemed odd to him considering her life work involved programming robots. But that was just it. She cared enough to make the robots so human, and the way she tried to protect her work…that’s why Phil had suggested Hazel from the beginning, despite her history with the Outlanders.

  He lay on the springy cot in the corner of his dark cell. The gray bars surrounding him offered no privacy from the four guards who stood outside. There would be more guards outside the hallway too. Not to mention the fact that he was within the Military Compound. Guards and soldiers abounded. Yet, he was exactly where he needed to be. Nolan wasn’t stupid and he certainly wasn’t a martyr. Soon, his men on the inside would get him out. Then, he and his team would do everything they could to access the mainframe computer to get the files he needed. This was where Hazel’s cooperation would be invaluable. Her access and Esroy’s capabilities would make the whole operation run smoothly. They would be in and out before the guards figured out what happened. Without Hazel, Nolan’s chances of becoming a martyr were much higher.

  Nolan looked through the bars of his cell as he sat up straight. There were five other cells, all of them empty. This was a place reserved only for him. His ears caught a few more words from Bracken.

  “—and they will become the new normal, here to protect us until the end of our days.”

  “The end of our days,” Nolan repeated under his breath.

  The guard next to his cell stole a glance in Nolan’s direction when he spoke.

  “What do you think of it all, Sparks?” Nolan asked.

  The guard didn’t say anything. Nolan had heard one of the other guards call out to him earlier in the day. For some reason, when the other guard had said his name, Sparks winced and nodded toward Nolan as if knowing his name would put him in some kind of danger.

  “How does it feel that those things are going to have your job within the next year?” Nolan pressed. “Anyone that carries a gun is going to be replaced. You are going to be replaced. You realize that, right Sparks?”

  The guard looked back at Nolan again, this time with his eyes turned down and a frown on his face.

  Nolan couldn’t keep himself from grinning slightly. He stood from his bed and leaned against the bars. Sparks stood a little straighter. The other guards in the hallway looked in his direction, warning Nolan with their stares that he shouldn’t try anything.

  His face was only a foot from the man’s ear. “There’s nothing you can do about it either. You can’t really fight them. If you do they’ll kill you. You see, all the robots have to do to a person is cut through the brain. These thick skulls of ours offer a lot of protection, but not from a bullet or a well-placed stab with a knife.”

  “Shut up,” the guard said, staring straight.

  “It was necessary to Kill President Godfrey,” Nolan continued. “I’ll kill the next one if it helps the cause.”

  “Well, you won’t get the chance to do it,” the guard said.

  “Maybe not. I hope I don’t have to. But I’ll tell you, it’s a lot easier than killing one of those things. A shot to the head for a human means almost certain death. A shot to the head for one of those robots? The bullets might as well be tiny pebbles.”

  “Exactly why we need them, to go after people like you.”

  “Yeah, but what do you do when the robots have taken over and they oppress you?” He leaned as close to the guard as the cell bars would allow. “You try to do something about it, they kill you.”

  Sparks stepped away from the bars and turned to face Nolan. “Is that what you were doing, Outlander? Taking down your oppressor?”

  “That’s exactly what I was doing,” Nolan said. “My job was easy compared to what future generations are going to have to do if you let these robots take over. Eventually that oppression will feel real to you but you won’t have a way to stop them.”

  “And how exactly were you oppressed?”

  “Sparks,” the guard’s le
ader called from the other side of the hallway. “Leave the prisoner alone.”

  “You were a fan of President Godfrey?” Nolan asked Sparks.

  “He was my president.”

  “Sparks! Stop talking to the prisoner. That’s an order.”

  Sparks clenched his jaws, the muscles pulsating in his cheeks. There was something within the man that wanted Nolan’s blood, and he wondered how many others felt this way. He wondered how many people believed that President Godfrey was actually a good man.

  Sparks stared at Nolan, a silent rage building behind his eyes. Technically, Nolan’s life was in the man’s hands. If he was angry enough, all he had to do was lift his gun and blow him away. Sure, the guard would be in trouble, but his punishment wouldn’t be too bad and Nolan would be a bloody pile of flesh on the cold floor.

  Nolan took a step back and sat down on the cot. He pointed at the ceiling, his eyes still locked with Sparks. “Those things are going to take over Mainland. Wait and see. Then you will be working for them and you won’t be able to do anything about it.”

  “We’ll worry about that when that day comes,” Sparks said under his breath.

  “It’s coming,” Nolan said, now looking at the floor. “It’s coming.”

  Sparks turned back around, no doubt fuming. Nolan always knew he wouldn’t be able to make people see things the way they should be seen. Not on his own. That was what this entire mission was about. Still, he never could resist the urge to talk about it. Seeing someone like Sparks, thinking everything was fine, thinking that Nolan was the bad guy, never to be swayed—it was just too hard for Nolan to keep quiet. Nolan truly held a secret that no one else in Mainland knew about and no one would believe until they saw it with their own eyes. Even the Outlanders were trusting him. None of them had seen the files that Nolan had seen. None of them knew if this mission would work. One thing he had going for him with the Outlanders, however, was that they were desperate. Each person knew time was up and that something drastic had to be done. Nolan was the only one with the power and ability to get it done. It didn’t help that he was the most wanted man alive, but it did help that he had people like Phil on the inside—those willing to live in secret, risking their lives to help the Outlander cause.