Automatons

Chapter 5: The Condition

 The mansion–my home–appears almost mystical in the light of the setting sun. Despite its size, the surrounding forest gives it an air of mystery, as though it were the home of a strange wizard. The house itself is built in a craftsman style, with large windows and an even larger garage (now my workshop). The exterior appears to be made of some sort of wood, although I couldn't tell you if it's real or not. The mansion has two main wings and three stories, with the top floor housing my father's own workshop. The top level is smaller than the others, and has a large circular window. Even from across the front garden, you can see the soft multicolor glow of my father's current crystal projects.

What had once been an open clearing had slowly been converted into a beautiful garden. Mary-Ann had taken it upon herself to plant and cultivate it after my mother's death. It has every flower or shrub I could possibly think of, as well as trees and other exotic plants, like bamboo. My favorite section is off to one corner–a koi pond overlooked by a weeping willow. I've spent many a day sitting under its branches reading or fiddling with scrap metal.

As beautiful as the sight is, I believe Mary-Ann had something else in mind when she began work on it. The garden is maze-like in its construction, with shrubs and bodies of water obstructing what otherwise would have been a straight shot to the house. My father also made his own addition. If I were to look into specific shrubs, I'd be able to make out the reflective lenses of cameras.

Detric waves to us from the front porch, his metal plating gleaming red in the dying light. Unlike Mary-Ann, you could never mistake Detric for human. His figure is quite imposing, with many components of his iron skeleton and joints on display outside his chassis. While his head maintains the vaguely humanoid shape, his eyes are hollow holes that glow robin blue with the light of my father's dynami. A metal grill replaces his mouth, and the voice that echoes from it is gentlemanly, yet slightly warbled by the echo of his head cavity. As one of my father's oldest creations, he doesn't stray far from the mansion these days.

"Welcome back, masters," he says, holding open the door for us as we climb the porch steps. I stick close to the edge of the stairs as I ascend–a habit that I had picked up many, many years ago. A shiver runs up my spine as the image of an outstretched hand springs to mind. "And I'm glad to see you're well, Mistress Dia. You gave us all quite a fright."

"I'm sorry I scared you all," I say, glancing at my father. "But as you can see, I'm right as rain now."

I twist my bracelets as I say it, just to make sure that my lifelines are still securely attached. As we enter into the foyer, I spot a large manila envelope sitting on the entry table. The usual odds and ends that can be found there have been brushed to the side, as though someone had made sure I would see it immediately. I freeze, my heart thudding in my chest.

"Well?" my dad says softly, nudging me forward. "Open it."

Butterflies hatch in my stomach, crawling along its walls.

What if I'm rejected? Do I just go to work at my dad's factory? I guess I could go into business for myself, but without accreditation I'll be limited in how many customers I can pull in–

A heavy hand rests on my shoulder. I turn to see Mary-Ann smiling gently at me, her eyes glowing pale blue.

"There's no need to be anxious," she murmurs. She shivers slightly as a particularly large wave of nausea rushes over me. I don't know why she felt the need to use her empath crystal–I'm sure my nerves are clearly written all over my face. "You have a bright future ahead of you no matter what happens."

I take a deep breath and scoop up the envelope, ripping the top off before I can decide against it. My family crowds around me as I take the slip of paper out, hands shaking.