He shook Fahrens’s hand, and took comfort in the first human touch he had felt since he left Terminus.
“What happened?” X asked.
“Yvette gave her secret away right at the beginning. Jeanette had uploaded her mind to the Terminus database. She’d left her body behind because it was going to die anyway. That meant I could do the same for myself. I had to leave my body behind … but let’s face it, the way my enhancements were malfunctioning, I didn’t have much longer to live. I got into the Terminus database, but there was only room for one consciousness. I beat Yvette in a match of intelligence and flushed her from the system. The battle seemed like it lasted forever, but in reality it was only a minute or two. I found the missile control and destroyed Terminus. Before the bombs hit, I was able to download myself into one of the android soldiers in the waterscraper, one whose circuits hadn’t been completely destroyed from the ice. I was able to save Brielle’s black box, too. I’m human still, but not quite. I have all of Terminus’s secrets with me. So much that this android can’t contain me for very long. Unless the data gets transferred, I’m going to fade away.”
“What do you mean?” X asked.
“This android is going to shut down,” Shortcut said. “I just came to say goodbye.”
Fahrens opened a door on Shortcut’s skull and hooked him up to a nearby terminal.
“What are you doing, sir?”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Fahrens said, as all the android engineers gathered around him.
A few hours later, Shortcut’s android body deactivated as X and Fahrens stood in front of a giant screen.
“Shortcut, can you hear us?” Fahrens asked.
“Yep,” Shortcut said. Voice waves moved across the screen. “I can’t believe it worked.”
“You’re a part of the UEA database now,” Fahrens said. “That android couldn’t contain you, but we can. I’ve spoken with your father, and we’re going to connect his house to the UEA database so you can visit him.”
“I know that will make him very happy,” Shortcut said. “I can keep my promise to him after all.”
“We’ve also run your voice through a human modulator so that you don’t sound as robotic,” Fahrens said. “It’s not quite the same as your original voice, but it’s close enough, and a hell of a lot more pleasant than that singularity android’s voice.”
“And I’ve still got all of the data from Terminus. You won’t believe what they came up with, sir.”
“We’re looking forward to learning,” Fahrens said.
“What happened to Jazzlyn?” Shortcut asked.
X shrugged. “We kept our deal. We let her go. The moment we touched down on UEA soil, she fled. For what it’s worth, she did say she was sorry you died.”
“Some people never change, huh?” Shortcut asked.
“I guess not,” X said. “It doesn’t matter now.”
“Um, sir,” Shortcut said. “What about Brielle?”
“It’s about time you asked,” Fahrens said, grinning. The door opened, and Brielle walked into the room. She was a replica of her former self. Her pink scarf trailed behind her, and she looked at the screen curiously.
“Her algorithm chip is still adjusting,” Fahrens said.
“It’s okay,” Shortcut said. “Hey, Brielle, can you hear me?”
Brielle stood near the screen.
“I guess you don’t remember me, do you?” Shortcut asked. “I’m a machine, now.”
“You always wanted to be an android,” Brielle said. “You got your wish.”
“You’ll never be able to get away from me now,” Shortcut said, laughing.
Brielle reached for the screen and touched it lovingly.
Jazzlyn sat on the patio of a coffee shop, massaging her ankles.
“Good to be free,” she said. “Thank God the UEA kept their promise.”
The Council had pardoned her crimes and let her go. She should have been more excited to be free, but after she shook X’s hand and ran into the shadows of a nearby alley, she hadn’t known what to do with herself.
She couldn’t stop thinking about Shortcut and how he had just sacrificed himself. If it hadn’t been for him, she would have died.
She still hadn’t answered her own question: what was she going to do with her life? The badlands were out; if any surviving members of Lax’s gang found her, they’d kill her for sure. She remembered her parents’ friends in Alaska, but she didn’t feel she was worthy of them yet.
A news report played on a digital screen.
“Humankind is safe after an attempt from an android scientist to destroy the world …”
She watched the report blankly as an Asian reporter recounted the facts of the Terminus incident. Fortunately, the report didn’t mention her. A field reporter asked several UEA residents what they thought about the incident.
An android waiter stopped at her table and asked her what she wanted. She ordered a strawberry soda. She cracked open the tab and took a swig. The saccharine taste of artificial sweetener filled her taste buds, and her tongue curled back on itself.
“Ugh, how did he drink this crap?”
She held her nose and downed the rest of the can, then crushed it and tossed it toward a nearby trash can. She missed, and Smoochums flew down, grabbed the can by its tab and tossed it in the bin.
“Thanks, Smoochy,” she said. “Had to have one for Shortcut.”
The smell of fresh-baked bread drifted across the boulevard into her nostrils. She set her sights on the bakery across the street. A few days ago, she had robbed it.
Customers flowed in and out of the store, and the tattooed baker carried out a tray full of éclairs to the front display.
She licked her lips and walked across the street into the bakery. An electronic bell above the door rang as she entered. The sweet smell of bread, distant from the street, filled every cell in her nose. The floors had been freshly mopped, and the pastries were neatly color-coded under the front display.
She wandered around the front room, dragging her finger along the glass.
“What do we want, Smoochums?” she asked. Smoochums pointed at a pyramid of frosted doughnuts and cooed. “Nah, I think I want éclairs.”
The tattooed baker emerged from the kitchen carrying a tray of sourdough bread. When he saw Jazzlyn, he dropped the tray and pulled out his gun. “You!”
“Hey, wait a second!” Jazzlyn cried, holding up her hands. “I didn’t come here to rob you!”
The man cocked his gun. “We’ll see about that.”
“Look, I just want a job.”
The baker lowered the gun. “What?”
“When I was here last time, you said the UEA saved your life,” she said, lowering her eyes.
“Don’t play mind games with me.”
“I’ll sweep your kitchen, or bake bread, or whatever. Just pay me what you can.”
“Since when did you come clean?”
“Let’s just say the Terminus incident changed my perspective on life. I’ll leave if you don’t want me here.”
The baker tucked his gun into his apron. Then he pointed toward the kitchen. “There’s a tray of éclairs in the oven.”
Jazzlyn grabbed an apron off the wall and walked into the kitchen. Smoochums jumped up and down on her shoulder, streaming to her lens the amount of money in the payment register.
“No, Smoochy,” she said. “We’re here to work.”
Chapter 23
X rode a train to the badlands, watching as the ocean fell away and was replaced by grassy fields. The twin city lay in the distance. On the badlands side, a cloud of smoke hung over the rooftops.
“What are you going to do?” Shortcut asked via X’s audio link. X had had a hard time getting used to the fact that Shortcut was everywhere now. He knew everything, and nothing was off limits to him. Though he didn’t have a human body anymore, he was radiant, constantly abuzz with all the discoveries his new, intelligent mind made every day.
“Not sure yet,” X said. “But the UEA is safe and no longer needs me.”
“I’m surprised the Council granted your retirement,” Shortcut said.
“Considering everything we did,” X said as the train pulled to a stop, “it’s the least they could do for me—and Dr. Crenshaw’s legacy. Until another super villain comes along, the UEA will be fine.”
He exited the station into the dusty streets of the badlands. “Now, there’s an entire world of people who need me.”
“Badlanders, eh?” Shortcut asked. “I still think you’re crazy.”
“When I clean up this place, you’ll see that I am right,” X said, surveying the street and noting the architecture of the falling buildings. “It’s what Dr. Crenshaw would have wanted me to do.”
“Badlanders aren’t going to listen to Dr. Crenshaw’s teachings, much less an android. They never agreed with his vision for the future.”
“They don’t have to agree,” X said. “They’ll experience his vision, one person at a time. Only when this entire world is living in harmony can I rest. Only then can I find out what my real purpose is.”
“Maybe this is your purpose,” Shortcut said.
X looked at the horizon where the dust met azure; herds of cumulus clouds shuffled through the sky, carried by a zephyr. He imagined Dr. Crenshaw in the clouds smiling down on him.
“Protecting the world?” X said. “Not a chance. My search is only beginning.”
“How long do you think it will take?”
A group of android hunters climbed out of the shadows of the street and surrounded X.
“As long as it needs to take,” X said, activating his guns. “I’m an android. I’ve got an eternity, though I suspect that Dr. Crenshaw will have something else in store for me when I’m done.”
“He didn’t like to rest, did he?” Shortcut asked.
“No, and neither do I.”
The android hunters closed in, and X’s eyes glowed red.
THE END
Author's Note
No matter how many novels I write, I’m still amazed at how varied and diverse an idea can become.
A little history: Android Paradox began long, long ago as a 2,000 word short story called “The Last Mission.” It’s about an assassin who murders a mark, but accidentally does it while the mark’s five year-old son is in the room. The hero, “X”, is a bald assassin in a suit and tie (the strong and silent type), and he works for a mysterious society. This is his last mission before retiring to a beach house in the Caribbean.
So much for that, now that he’s screwed up the mission and has a five year-old witness. He has to run from the “society” in order to save himself, but it turns out that the boy is an android who holds a secret to an international conspiracy, and if he doesn’t stop the society from capturing the boy, the world is pretty much over.
You’re probably thinking WOW—what the hell does that have to do with Android X?
It’s kind of crazy how much the story evolved. “The Last Mission” takes place in today’s world, and X is a human. It began as a short story, but I felt it needed more words. I thought about making it into a novella, then a Decision Select Novel. But something was missing, and I couldn’t figure it out, so I put “The Last Mission” on the shelf and forgot about it.
Then, in October 2014, I needed to start a new series. I went through my old work and found four ideas that showed promise. “The Last Mission” was one of them.
I pitched the ideas to my readers. I let them vote on which concept they liked the most. Whatever they picked, I promised I would write it.
Readers voted overwhelmingly for the Last Mission concept.
As I started working on the first few chapters, the story completely fell apart. I did some thinking, asked a lot of “what if” questions, and over the course of a few days, “The Last Mission” became Android Paradox. Both stories are very different, and honestly, the only vestige from “The Last Mission” is that X is bald. But the threads are there.
And now, many months later, the Android X series is complete. I loved these characters and it’s sad to leave them.
But…!
This series is not over. This is just the end of an arc that takes place in this world.
X will be back. So will Shortcut and Jazzlyn. And there will be new characters, new conflicts, and more crazy androids, technology, and fast-paced fun. There’s so much left to explore in the 24th century, and I can’t wait to see where the writing takes them.
I’ll wrap up this author’s note now because I’m sure you’re itching to write a rave review (wink wink), but I just want to say thank you.
I wouldn’t be where I am today without readers like you. Your support for my career means more than you’ll ever know. Seriously.
So thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the series.
You rock.
—Michael La Ronn
Des Moines, Iowa
August 19, 2015
Acknowledgments
Cover Design: Dane Low
Editor: Calee Allen
Beta Readers: Brian Darr
I want to thank my wife, who is my secret weapon in making all of these books possible. And my daughter, Isabella, who is my new muse.
And very special thanks to my mailing list of Fearless Readers who voted on this novel and made it possible. You rock.
Also by Michael La Ronn
The Last Dragon Lord Series:
Old Dark
Old Luck
Old Charisma
Eaten Series:
Season 1
Season 2
Season 3
Nutrizeen
Sword Bear Chronicles Series:
Theo and the Festival of Shadows
Theo and the Solstice of Dreams
Decision Select Novels Series:
How to Be Bad
Short Story Collections:
Reconciled People
LEARN MORE:
www.michaellaronn.com/books
About Michael La Ronn
Michael La Ronn is the author of many science fiction and fantasy novels including the Android X, Eaten, and The Last Dragon Lord series. He’s also a total Final Fantasy geek.
In 2012, a life-threatening illness made him realize that life is too short. He’s devoted his life to writing ever since, making up whatever story makes him fall out of his chair laughing the hardest.
Connect with Michael:
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Table of Contents
Android Paradox (Book 1)
Android Deception (Book 2)
Android Winter (Book 3)
Author's Note
Acknowledgments
Also by Michael La Ronn
About Michael La Ronn
Android X: The Complete Series Page 39