Arkangel: Reddie

Chicken Pox

Sonia Kaspbrak's son, Eddie Kaspbrak, was around two years of age when he woke up covered in tiny red dots.

She had been protecting Eddie since the moment he was born. Loosing her husband was already too much for her to handle, it was her job to keep her little boy safe. She had failed him once by not being able to push him out herself, that really broke her.

Mrs. Kaspbrak woke up at five am everyday. She had read in a book once that early mornings are always best for children. Walking into the cowboy themed nursery, the mother expected her son to be fast asleep. But he was wide awake, staring blankly up at the ceiling. Covered from head to toe in small, red, textured dots. Mrs. Kaspbrak screamed in agony as she looked at her son. Only causing him to yell and cry with her.

This was his first trip to the emergency room. He vaguely remembers the bright lights and the cries of his mother filling his ears. All his trips to the doctor had become one big blur as he got older.

Even though the doctor assured the concerned mother that the chicken pox were nothing to be worried about, she was still panicked. The doctor had given her the proper prescription and dosage. She would later overdose him. Creating another trip to the emergency room when his breathing nearly stopped. She wouldn't take credit for the overdose. However, she assumed he had asthma and self diagnosed her son with an inhaler at the age of three.

When Eddie was five years old, he was an active kid who often ran around outdoors with friends from their neighborhood. One day, as the kids played tag, Eddie Kaspbrak fell to the ground and scrapped a good chunk of his knee. All it needed was a bandaid and few days to heal up but, Mrs. K insisted he needed stitches. When consoled by her helpful neighbors, she dismissed them all. She called them all types of names and implying they were complete idiots.

Eddie was forbidden to play outside for the rest of the year.

Sonia's fears of her son being ill only flourished as he grew up. Almost as if God had answered her prayers, a new system was in trial for the public.

Arkangel.

An implant in a child's temple that made it possible for parents to see through their eyes, get alerted when ill, and given the option to censor potentially scary things. Mrs. Kaspbrak needed this for her little Edward. Knowing where he was at all times, knowing if he was hurt was exactly what she had begged for. She signed them up as soon as possible.

Another mother in the neighborhood, Maggie Tozier, had already began protests of this project. She was a very expressive person and known for her rambunctious medaling with other big companies. It seemed she was always out and about complaining about something every day. That's probably why her only son was always getting into so much trouble. Richie 'trashmouth' Tozier never got given as much attention as his neighborhood friend Eddie Kaspbrak.

-

"Welcome to, Arkangel." A female robotic voice responded to the door opening. Causing the young Eddie jump a little.

"Mrs. Kaspbrak?" A woman with chestnut hair that fell straight just below her collarbones smiled warmly and stuck out a hand. Mrs. Kaspbrak smiled back and shook her hand politely. "And you, Sir, must be Eddie." She bent down and pulled a sticker from her pocket, handing it to the boy who held tightly onto his mother's hand. "Follow me."

As the three of them walked down an all white hallway, Eddie noticed all the children happily playing with others in glass rooms. He wasn't nervous even though he had a gut feeling he should have been. Six year old Eddie felt even smaller as they entered a large room, resembling a doctors room. He supposed he had a feeling of comfort because of how alike the emergency rooms he'd visit looked like this.

"I just need you to sign off that you understand that this is a trial point in Arkangel's design." The woman smiled and handed a clip board over to the mother.

"It's safe though right?" Mrs. Kaspbrak reluctantly took the clipboard from the grinning woman.

"Absolutely." The woman reassured Mrs. K, but she still read over it thoroughly before signing off her permission.

"Okay! Wonderful!" The employee walked over to the small Eddie who was perched on a white chair. "All I'm going to do is poke you right here," She presses a finger up to his temple. "You won't feel a thing."

Eddie nodded, giving his own permission.

"Done." Eddie looked over and watched the woman walk away cleaning whatever she used to poke him. He really didn't feel anything. "Want to watch some shows?" She put her hands on her knees and squatted to his height, smiling as always. He nodded.

"So, let's go over the controls." The brunette turned on a small tv in front of Eddie then walked over to sit next to his mother. She slide a tablet in the direction of Mrs. Kaspbrak. "Everything you need is on this handy device! You can see exactly what he sees right here," The woman placed a finger on a picture of what looked like an eye, opening a screen that in fact did show exactly what her son was seeing.

"Oh wow." Sonia looked at the tablet, then her son who was in a trance from the cartoon show in front of him.

"Here's all his vitals," This time she placed a finger on a picture of a heart. "He looks healthy!" She smiled warmly at the boy. "Here's what most mother's are excited about. Censorship. This button right here makes it possible to blur anything that might be threatening to the child." The woman picked up a remote next to her and changed what appeared on the screen. Now Eddie was sat in front of a bleeding man who'd recently gotten his hand cut off. "Let's see what he sees." She presses the picture of the eye. Eddie's vision was blurred, separating his eyes from the graphic image on the tv.

"That's amazing." Mrs. Kaspbrak couldn't take her eyes off of the tablet that was keeping her boy innocent.

"You're all set! Want a lollipop Eddie?" The kind woman pulled out a red lollipop from her pocket and handed it to Eddie, who had behaved extraordinarily during all this.

"Now you can be safe with mommy all the time!" Mrs. Kaspbrak grinned from ear to ear at her boy who smiled back at her and grabbed her hand to leave.