The Adventures of Will Irving: Automaton Trouble

Chapter 35

"That's it!" Claire exclaimed. "He's ready!"

"I can't believe we're actually finished," Will said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Claire asked as she unplugged the cable that had been charging Max's power core. "Start him up!"

Will remained still, gazing at Max's shiny new body lying on the table. After countless hours of work, they had finally succeeded in completing all of their desired modifications. Thanks to Claire's own special improvements, Max's body was now even a bit sleeker and more streamlined than Atticus'. However, Will had insisted that they still include a revised vest-like chest piece, interchangeable bowtie interface, and handlebar mustache. A radio transceiver had been integrated into Max's head and was paired to Will's new wrist transceiver, which was sitting on the table next to Max.

"What's wrong, Will?" Claire finally asked as she walked over to stand next to Will.

"What...what if he isn't the same?" Will hesitantly questioned.

"Don't worry," Claire reassured. "He'll be fine. I told you...his memory core wasn't damaged. Trust me."

Claire gave Will a little nudge with her shoulder.

"Go on," Claire encouragingly whispered.

Will stepped over to the table and then slowly reached out and pressed the recessed power button located on the upper left side of Max's torso. After holding the button down for ten seconds, he heard the familiar whirring sound of Max's electronic and mechanical components powering up. As Will released the button and took a step back, Claire moved close to him and took his hand. Together they watched as Max opened his eyes, slowly sat upright, and then swung his legs over the edge of the table.

"William...Claire...you're safe..." Max finally greeted as he hopped down from the table and stood tall. "Emily...is she..."

"She's..." Will began to say.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of the back door slam shut, followed by the sound of feet running toward them.

"Maximillian!" Emily shouted as she sprinted toward the open garage door.

Will and Claire separated as they turned and then stepped aside just in time for Emily to leap into Max's waiting embrace.

"Emily!" Max greeted as he spun her around. "You're safe!"

"I've missed you!" Emily shared.

"I've missed you too," Max replied.

"Will, why didn't you wait until we got back?" Emily scolded.

"Sorry, sis," Will apologized. "We just wanted to surprise you."

"Where were you?" Max asked as he put Emily down.

"Henry and Jennifer took me to get ice cream," Emily replied as Hank and Jennifer both emerged from the house.

"Let me guess...chocolate," Max said.

"Nope...pistachio!" Emily replied.

Max eyed Emily closely for a moment and then smiled.

"You really did, didn't you?" Max said.

"Uh huh...I wanted to try something new this time," Emily shared.

"Good for you!" Max praised.

"Max!" Hank greeted as he and Jennifer finally joined the others.

"Henry...Jennifer," Max greeted.

"Hi, Max!" Jennifer replied.

"It's good to have you back," Hank said warmly.

"It's good to be back," Max replied. "I guess I have Will and Claire to thank for that."

"I helped too!" Emily chimed in.

"It was a team effort," Claire noted. "Will, Emily, Sam..."

"And Claire's father too," Will added. "Without his plans we wouldn't have been able to spruce you up like we did."

"Yes, I can tell that you made enhancements," Max stated as he looked himself over. "Thank you...all of you."

As the group of friends continued to enjoy their moment of reunion, a police siren began to sound in the distance and then grow louder with each passing moment. Eventually, Will could tell that a patrol car had stopped in front of the house. There was a pause in the conversation as everyone became curious as to what was happening.

"Stay here," Will said to his friends. "I'll go check it out."

Will quickly made his way to the back door and entered the house. As he approached the front door, he heard the sound of loud, rapid knocking.

"Who's there?" Will called out loudly as he stopped a few paces from the door.

"It's Anne, Will," answered an urgent-sounding voice on the other side of the door.

Recognizing Officer Anne's voice, Will quickly opened the door. As Anne came into view, Will could immediately tell that something was troubling her. Over in the patrol car parked along the sidewalk, Alastair was sitting in the driver's seat, communicating over the vehicle's radio handset.

"Anne, what's wrong? Are you ok?" Will asked as he quickly stepped out onto the porch.

"I'm fine," Anne replied. "But there's trouble in town..."

"Moe Salley?" Will asked.

"Worse," Anne stated, shaking her head. "A giant automaton is heading toward the city."