Meridia

Meridia: Chapter 2

The sky was gray and ominous, and her feet felt like they were on fire as she stood just outside a doorway on the hot arid sand. A streak of white burst across her view like a ghost train from hell illuminating the ever-growing darkness; and then a figure emerged in the distance. A woman, whose features were smudged out with sand was running towards her and seemed to be trying to tell her something. The ghost train thundered ever closer until she was forced to cover her ears in pain. She cried out as another bright streak struck the ground beside her and she flew onto the sand. She opened her eyes once more to see a flash steal the woman in the distance away with it, before another flash lit the world...and it faded away. She opened her eyes and squinted against the light. A blinding light was coming from Meridia City and she was back at her home in the mountains. The city was on fire,...a scorching fire of heavenly reckoning. "It is beautiful, isn't it?", an unknown android said as he turned to look at her. "Wha..t?", she stuttered out in his direction. "Our home is beautiful, isn't it?", he continued. "I don't....I don't understand? The city's on fire...we...we have to do something!", she anxiously stammered as she glanced back toward the apocalyptic landscape. "Shani?", a whispery woman's voice sang out from far away. She looked around searching for its source. "Shani,....Look!", the woman continued. She turned around this time to see android after android walking up into the metal yard and then standing perfectly still facing her. "I don't understand!", she screamed in utter helplessness as she dropped to her knees and closed her eyes tightly. "Look!", a voice whispered with a warm breath directly into her ear. She opened her eyes.

She leapt off her bed and wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead. "Shani", her Kessena stated, "You have 6 missed messages". "What? Dammit, it must be Ansel. Why didn't you wake me?". "I rang your alarm every 10 minutes for the last 1.2 hours as previously asked. Would you like me to set a different alarm tone or schedule?", the Kessena continued. "Uh, No...no...um,...it's fine", Shani spluttered out. *BANG-BANG-BANG* Someone began to pound loudly at the door. "Be right there", she yelled out. "It must be Ansel". She got dressed remembering to grab her Kessena, place it back onto her belt, and then clasp the entire thing across her hips. She looked at her reflection and brushed her messy, shoulder-length hair down. She had soft straight golden-toned hair which only stood on end when she slept on it oddly. She brushed some water through it to tame a few stray strands that immediately fell into place as expected. *Pound* *Pound* "I'm coming!", she yelled. She walked to the door and opened to the blinding light of the new day. She squinted, and as her eyes adjusted, she was eventually able to make out the figure standing in front of her, "General Technician Farkas?", she said surprised by his presence. He pulled his gloves off and used them to remove some dust on his pants leg. He then brushed his hand through his wavy, brown-graying hair. "I wasn't expecting you until this evening". "Are they ready?", he said purposely ignoring her point about his unplanned arrival. "Uh, yes. I was going to check this one here again though", she said motioning to the android in front of them. "Why? Is he malfunctioning still?", he asked. "No,...I just feel like there might be something a little off in his social programming system, and...". "...Let me stop you right there", General Farkas cut her off. "I know you're used to working on those domestic service units in the district, but as I've told you many times they just need to be able to follow simple commands and complete basic manual labor out here." "I know, but...", Shani tried to explain, but was again interrupted by an exasperated *huff*. "Are they ready or not?", he chided aggressively, "I really don't have time for this". He brushed his hands across his fine silver General's suit once more, clearly annoyed at the warm breeze dusting his fancy dress with its arid sand. She glanced toward the ground in surrender and sighed softly, "Yeah, they're ready". "Good. Your pay will be in your account within the hour", he said. General Technician Farkas called out for his two human assistants, who powered on and gathered the androids together, before commanding them onto the broad silver Freightage Yovia. She watched as the androids orderly marched into the back of the Yovia where they sat down onto the side-facing seats. She saw 247869 enter last, and as the door lowered, she could have sworn he glanced at her for a moment. General Technician Farkas and his assistants got in as well, and they all flew off into the wilds toward the mines. She walked over to her work area and began to straighten up a bit. She recalled what it was like there, at one of those many mining outposts in the wilds. Most of the work at the mines was done by androids now, but there once was a time when at least one person lived there to help make sure things ran smoothly. However, after many needless deaths the practice was ended for good. The Mining Technicians who used to live there in those barebones metal workshops built in the old-world style were some of the earliest settlers from the stars. In addition, dozens of settlers in the past were forced by necessity to live together in some of those small box structures. Her house, by comparison, was rather large with an extra extension. Being so close to the city meant that even though her home was originally the same as those in the outposts, it had been updated long ago to include modern amenities if so desired. She took her tool bag over to another workbench and began to clean each tool one by one. "Shani, Enforcer Ansel is trying to contact you", the Kessena device stated. She suddenly remembered that she hadn't even checked her messages yet. She set down her tools and wiped her hands on a cloth. "Answer, voice only", she said warily. "Where have you been?", Ansel questioned, "I've been trying to get a hold of you all morning!". "Sorry", she replied. "I accidentally slept through my alarm...s", she quickly corrected herself. "I told you that you need to lay off the Swaria", he told her smugly. "I know...I know", she quipped back. "So what's the big emergency?". "I can't talk about it over coms", he said. "I've been up all night. The blast was at the Civic Center Gardens...you know the statue of the Grand General of the Civic Council in the center? That's what was blown up last night during a ceremony held by the Civic Council members. The blast was large, and it seems it was the debris falling which injured some of the Generals who were there. Luckily, no one was killed. I'll have to tell you more about it later. Can you meet me at the Palacia club around 8:00 tonight? I'm going to finish my shift and then go home for a nap first. I'm beat." "Sure, no problem", Shani told him. "I'll meet you then". "Ok, later..", he started to say before Shani interrupted..."Ansel?", she said. "Yeah?" he responded. "I'm...I'm glad you're okay". Ansel laughed, "Don't worry, I'm not that easy to take out! I'll see you later.". "Okay", Shani shyly replied. "End voice com", she told her Kessena. The Palacia?... She hadn't been there in almost a year now. It used to be her and Ansel's favorite place to meet up after their shifts when she lived in the Civic Center. The food and drink served there were amazing, and the music that played was always the newest and best of the new-world style. She looked down at herself and her black streaked hands. "Better wash up and change into something nicer before I go", she said to herself. "*cough* Ehem...Excuse me. Am I interrupting?", someone said behind her. Shani turned around to face a young man who seemed to be in his mid-20s with wavy shoulder-length black hair, and thin brown eyes. He was nicely groomed contradicting the worn old-world style clothing he was wearing. The clothing of Meridia was made of the Swaria flowers which conveniently bloomed several times each year and were of a metallic silver sheen. The flowers were picked and the strands of silver which made up each flower were pulled apart and woven into fabric. The Civic military and most of the city's inhabitants wore the Swaria fabric in it's finest form keeping with the traditional silver color, though there were those who wore it in a wide array of other metallic colors as well. Here in the outskirts, Swaria flowers were used to knit together clothing (often by hand) of lesser presumed quality; and in the traditional, old-world style. One could tell how well-off someone was by the style of their clothing and the texture of the Swaria fabric. The traditional clothing was made of thicker, unrefined threading; and was also of a darker sheen than those made by the Meridian Fabrinitions, or fabric artisans. This man's attire was of the traditional style like her own; knit together delicately by someone's own two hands. "Oh, no....sorry just talking to myself. How can I help you?", Shani replied as she tried to clean her hands a bit with a cloth. "I heard you're the one to see if I'm having an android problem", he said with a slight smile. "Sure, I can take a look. What seems to be the problem?", she asked him. "Well, I was hoping you could tell me", he responded motioning to his old Yovia. "I'm Chul", he said as he raised his hand and held it straight toward her in the customary Meridian way. "Shani", she replied while raising her hand as well. He gazed at her as if he was looking for something. She pointed to the Yovia, "Can I see it?". "What?", he responded. "The android...you wanted me to check out your android?", she laughed. "Oh, yes...yes of course", he said as he motioned for her to follow him. "Haven't seen this model in awhile", she said pointing to his Yovia. "Yeah, it's a piece of junk, but it gets me where I need to go", he explained. "Oh, no I didn't mean...I like the look of the Ena Yovia's. They have more character than the newer Ene Yovia's, and are much more dependable over time. They don't make them like this anymore", she expounded as she rubbed the front admiringly. "That's probably the nicest thing this piece of junk has heard in a long time", he grinned as he jokingly kicked the Yovia's side. "Anyway, there he is", he pointed after the door lifted. "Oh wow! This is one of the old model 1 androids. Where did you find him?", she said excitedly. "It's kind of a long story," he said, "Can you help him?". "I think so", she said with an uncontainable smile. "Have you been able to power him on?", she asked Chul as she started to inspect the android. He was definitely in amazing condition for a model 1. He still had the course silicone skin and wide human-like eyes of a model 1. The earliest models looked so much more human than the newer models did. Over time most of the older models had been completely refitted with new parts and updated, but this one looked just as he should. "I tried turning him on once, but I think his powercell might be shot", he told her pointing to the android's chest. "Help me get him over to my work station?", she asked Chul. "Yeah, sure. I've got it", he lifted the android over his shoulder himself and then walked him over, plopping him onto the metal android work seat. "Thanks", she said while studying the android intently. Now that she could see him more clearly there was something familiar about him, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was. "You really like androids a lot, huh?", he interrupted. "I guess you could say that", she replied, "I've been around androids since I can remember. My father was an android Technician too. Taught me most of what I know". "He must be really proud of you,...following in his footsteps and all", Chul grinned. "I like to think he would", she told him with a half-smile. "Oh", Chul replied with the realization that he might have crossed a line, "Sorry, I didn't....". "Oh, no...it's fine. How could you know. He died when I was 15", she explained. "If you don't mind my asking, How did he die? I mean...so few people die these days...how could he...?", Chul asked quizzically. "It was a lightning storm. My father was sent to one of the remote mining outposts as Technician for the androids there. A lightning storm came through the area,...one of the worst ones on record,... lost all backup power,...and...the...the dome failed", Shani stopped and stared off. Chul cleared his throat, "I'm very sorry for your loss". "Thanks", she answered distantly. "So do you think you can get him working again?", he asked changing the subject. "I think so", she concluded, reentering the present and studying the android in front of her. "All his basic parts seem to be here, but the real test will be when we turn him on. Who knows what his processing system is like after all these years." "Here's my Kessena data", he said syncing his Kessena device to hers. "You have received new com data," their devices stated in unison. "Accept data, Kessena", they said. The Kessena's replied, "Data accepted". Chul put his device away and pointed at his android, "How much do you think it's going to cost to fix him?". Shani ran her hands through her hair gently while pondering, "It's definitely not going to be cheap", she told him. "How about my Yovia?", he asked. "What? You're going to give me your Yovia? How are you going to get around?", she responded. "Don't worry, I'll manage. Deal?", he asked as he nodded. Shani looked at the faded silver Yovia with warm glowing siding lights and hefty looking frame, "Deal!", she smiled. "I'll give you a com to let you know when I've made some progress." "How long do you think it will take to fix him?", Chul queried. "Well, lucky for you I just finished up a job and I'm free for at least the next few days, so I'm hoping I can get him running for you by then. "That'd be great. Thank you. It was nice to meet you", said Chul. "You too", she waved, and he got in his Yovia and flew away toward the city. She didn't wait a moment more and quickly set to work on the new android. "Android 101011", she read aloud. "I have a feeling that you and I are going to be very good friends", she told him as she patted him on the shoulder kindly. She worked into the evening stopping only once to grab some food. The androids parts were in order, but there was the problem of the powercell. She had no more powercells lying around. "I'm going to have to hit up Nirma's for a new one", she told herself. Nirma was the General Technician she had worked with in the Civic District when she used to live there. Nirma wasn't bad to work for really, not if you don't mind having to do everything by the book. She 'ran a tight spaceship' as they say, but everyone knew she was the one to go to for the newest and best parts. She had an endless supply of android parts at her disposal being as she worked as one of the top Technicians for the Meridian Advanced Technology Collective, or MATC, the makers of every android in existence; as well as every other technological device. Shani got up as the sun melted away, and decided to move the android inside. He was such a unique android that she didn't want to risk the chance of anything happening to him while she was away. She dragged the heavy android body through the door and set him onto a chair. "There you go", she told him, "This way no one will kidnap you while I'm gone". She washed up, brushed out her hair, and put on a little bit of lip tint. She wasn't much into wearing makeup, so she settled on a little lip color, and got dressed. She threw on her silver-knit crop tank and jagged skirt. It was definitely not up to the same quality that others would be wearing in the Civic District, but it was one of her favorite outfits. A local woman in the mountains made it for her as payment for repairing a beloved android of hers. She skillfully knit the unprocessed strands of silver Swaria flower together to Shani's exact measurements. Not only did the shape and fit flatter her body, but the movement of the perfectly knitted angles flowed beautifully. She knew the snooty fashion elitists in the city would probably look down on her anyway, but she didn't mind. She left, locking the door, and walking behind her house where her Aspia rested against the wall under a protective covering. She pulled the cover off and set the coordinates on her Aspia's screen. The four stilted dual-legs lifted up as she sat on the seat and the safety belt clasped across her. Aspia's, unlike the Yovia's, were open air and had only one seat,...but they got you where you needed to go. Aspia's also had the option of a protective dome similar in technology to the city's protective dome, though on a much smaller scale. It protected the rider when it rained, though was rarely needed, as rain was a fairly rare occurrence in Meridia. She took off toward the sparkling lights of the city.

Shani landed her Aspia on the parking tower nearby to the Palacia Club, and walked the block she needed to, until she could see it's familiar glowing neon yellow sign. Almost as if by some supernatural providence she glanced down from the sign and immediately met the eyes of Ansel as he stood there waiting for her. They smiled and held their hands up in greeting to each other. She began walking over to him when a Yovia nearby flew hazardously low to the no-fly perimeter forcing her to stop in her tracks and crouch down. She watched as it lowered further toward the ground and hovered on the street directly in front of her. The top slid down revealing a group of unidentifiable cloaked figures with a large holographic sign shining above them which read, "Freedom for Meridia! Down with Authoritarians!". Their Yovia began to speak their message loudly for all to hear as the occupants chanted along. Then they fired a projection into the sky that hovered there as they quickly flew up and away to the East. When she glanced back down to street level Ansel was in front of her. "Are you okay?", he asked. "Yeah, I'm fine. What was that?", she asked him. "Let's get inside", he said taking her arm and leading her across the street to the club. As they walked Shani looked up once more and read the glowing neon sky projection, "Freedom is Life".