MACHINE

4. Kadupul, the Night Queen

I couldn't scream anymore. I couldn't move. Whatever settings they were able to use and tamper with could control everything I did. They decided when I spoke, and they decided when I moved. My life was no longer mine, if the state I was in could even be described as 'living'.

For weeks we had been carted back and forth in the lab, room to room, being poked and prodded, tested constantly. For some reason they decided to give us artificial nerves so that we could still have our sense of touch, and pain. It was an unusual and unnecessary cruelty.

When they were not torturing us in the name of science and money, they would lock us up in miniscule cages in complete darkness for weeks on end. It was enough to make anyone lose a bit of their sanity.

I had been blindfolded and guided somewhere. When they took off the blindfold I was in a small rectangular room. I sat, immobile, in what I guessed was a train car, with Lucas sitting across from me, equally silent and still. The train didn't shake like the ones I was used to, though, it moved quickly and smoothly. It was a train for the rich, those who could travel through Tera freely, those who were not subject to Culls. Those who surely did not have to deal with being kidnapped and trapped in a mechanical body. They ruled our world. They were deemed valuable and worthy, with their high-end jobs and their important responsibilities. In Tera, as a poorer citizen you were always at risk of being replaced. Bots, although generally inhuman and unintelligent (other than the case of the AI Bots in development), were efficient for the 'easy' jobs that most regular people had. If a Bot replaced you and you were left unemployed, you were likely to be killed in the next Cull. They said Culls were random, to keep down overpopulation. Then how come no one the government deemed useful ever died?

I knew now what was happening. No one explained it, but I knew. The cages, the Bots, the consciousness transference. They were going to sell us as Advanced Sentient Bots to the rich, who wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Other companies were well on their way, and Botulinum inc., one of many government sponsored tech companies in Tera, needed to catch up. It was cheap, it was a scam, and it was highly immoral. All for money. My thoughts drifted back to Oleander and hatred welled up inside me. I knew he was responsible for all this.

The train came to a stop suddenly, and I saw a man's face greet us as he slid open the car door. "Up." He said, and we were forced to comply by our own bodies. "Follow me."

The man had black hair which was slicked back with gel, and wore an immaculate navy blue suit, with a gorgeous patterned tie. Behind him stood Oleander, wearing a navy blue suit as well, but it was much too large for him. His shirt was stained, and his black tie was tied incorrectly.

We followed them out of the train car, two Deathmongers trailing behind us. Surrounding us was short cut grass, green and lush. Standing before us a house larger than mine and my neighbours' combined. It was so huge and extravagant that I couldn't help but be amazed. Around the house was a gorgeous garden, it was so perfectly kept, so symmetrical. Bushes perfectly trimmed, flowers in coordinating colours. Most of the flowers I couldn't recognise, I had never seen nor heard of any of them before.

We walked down a thin gravel path weaving through the garden and leading up to marble steps. Up the steps were double doors made of rich-coloured wood, and accented with a gorgeous metal I couldn't name. The man took hold of the intricate knocker and knocked against the doors twice, after which a smooth ivory Bot came to the door. "Welcome to the Estate of Juliet Rose." Said the Bot, its speech automated and prerecorded, its limbs accented with gold. "State your business here." It said lifelessly.

Oleander shuffled around in his pocket, then revealed a small card with a barcode on it. It was the same card he always wore pinned to his lab coat in the lab. He lifted it to the eye-level of the Bot. Red lasers appeared from the Bots eyes, scanning the card. The Bot then stepped to the side, leaving the door wide open for us to enter. "She's been expecting you." Said the Bot.