I anxiously waited as the Conductor walked out in a clean suit, crinkle-less neck tie and cleanly pressed suit pants, carrying his baton in his hand. His eyes were still bruised, and a visible slit left a red stripe close to the right side of his lower lip. His hair was slickly combed back, looking surprisingly nice had he just woken up.
He smiled at me and greeted us. I was highly against him going out to fight again when he had just began to heal. I didn't want him losing anymore blood than he already had. It could put his blood sugar at an even more dangerously low level than it was before. I was going with him to make sure he stayed safe.
I was constructed from diamond-plated steel that the Conductor had preserved from a foreign planet a while ago. He had been trained in the ways of certain mechanics. I knew every known medical procedure, and my vocabulary grew every day. I could diagnose things from an infected cut to brain cancer. I also could teach the entire American school curriculum.
"Conductor, please don't go. You're injured." I pleaded.
"Jenny, I have to." the Conductor reasoned. "It's my job to protect everyone from the Drum Major. She's gonna take over if I don't leave soon."
"I know but..."
I sighed.
"Jenny, I'll be just fine. I'm much better now than I was when I got back. And I have nobody but you to thank for that."
I sighed once again and smiled half-heartedly, giving in to the Conductor's reasoning.
"Okay," I sighed, "But don't run off in the crowd."
"I won't." he replied.
This was a common problem. The Conductor would get into defeating the Drum Major so much he would run off, leaving his current companion behind and leaving me to find him. I was supposed to watch over him, but sometimes that could be exceedingly difficult with him running around all over the place. He was young, wild and free.
The Conductor was talking to Cicile and Brittany while I watched. I remember how long ago it had been when he first built me. He was traveling with his dad at the time, he was only twelve, but extremely intelligent. He was rewarded the materials to build me by a space emperor. Pretty strange.
I still remembered the conversation the Conductor had shared with his dad when I was voice activated for the first time. You could practically hear the puberty in the Conductor's voice as he said, "Jenny, activate."
My eyes slowly opened to find a small boy with freckles and dark hair, examining me. Another man was standing behind him with his hands on the young boy's shoulders, beaming with pride and excitement.
"Master?" I asked, confused.
"Hi, Jenny." the boy said with a friendly smile. "I built you."
"What may I call you?"
"Call me the Conductor."
"That's your name?!?"
"No no no, it's a nickname!" the Conductor laughed.
We seemed to be in a parking garage of some sort. The smell of motor oil and dust filled my nose as I stared at them from my perch on a plywood work table.
"Well, test her!" the boy's father egged excitedly. "Do it with the burn on your finger."
"Who burned their finger?" I gasped.
"Me." the Conductor said, brushing his left index finger. "I was welding your metal together when I accidentally put my left hand too close to the flame."
I placed the Conductor's finger in the palm of my hand, examining it. I spotted a bumpy red burn along the back of it. I turned it around a few times to spot any further damage.
"It seems to be only first-degree," I concluded, "Nothing a bit of ointment can't fix. Is there a first-aid kit near?"
The Conductor's father handed me the white box with an excited smile. I opened the chest and looked around for a moment until I found a small checkered tube with the words "burn ointment" on it. I twisted off the ribbed cap and squeezed a pea-sized amount on my finger. I spread it on the Conductor's burn and put it back in its designated area, shutting the case.
"Is that better?" I asked with a smile.
"Much better, thank you Jenny." he replied.
"Look at my son, an engineer, a time traveller, and a musician!" his father beamed with pride.
"I'm not a genius yet, Dad," the Conductor blushed, "I still have one more test." The Conductor placed his hand on his stomach. "Jenny, I've been feeling kinda funny lately, do I have a sickness I should know about?"
I glanced down at the monitor in my wrist to examine the Conductor's medical status. He seemed to be completely normal.
"No, Conductor, you must be faking!" I laughed. The Conductor laughed along with me.
"You're right!" he smiled. "I was faking, thanks Jenny."
"You're welcome, Conductor."
"Now, would you like to take a look at yourself?" he asked, handing me a pink hand mirror.
I stared at my reflection in awe. I had red hair that was in a pony tail with a pink scrunchie. Orange freckles dotted my face, surrounding my small, triangular nose and sparkling green eyes, complimented by my pale complexion. I wore a dog tag necklace engraved with my name, and a light blue shirt that was loose and blowy on me.
"I look very--"
"Human."
"Yes." I replied. "Nobody will know the truth unless I tell them."
"That was what the goal was." the Conductor explained. "I needed you to medically assist me, and that's why I built you."
I smiled. "That's alright with me."
YOU ARE READING
The Conductor
AdventureRobert Jones is an average Junior High Band Teacher. His students adore him, he has a beautiful wife and a single son to call his own. But what you haven't been told is this- He was really a Time Traveller who saved the universe from the wicked Drum...