Jericho was a place where androids could be free. However, what if Jericho wasn't an abandoned boat, but an old abandoned mansion? An old abandoned mansion owned by a little girl. A human.
This is a story about how Markus freed his people and convin...
"There's a place where we can be free! Find Jericho! Find Jericho!"
Those were the last words Markus heard from the android, Plileas, before he shut down.
Following the android's instructions, he searched for Jericho after he fixed himself up and removed his LED.
He searched and searched until he came across an old mansion. He knocked on the front door, but there was no answer. He knocked again. No one came to answer the door.
Markus noticed one of the windows open, so he entered through there. "Hello?" He called. He tried turning on the lights, but the power was momentarily out.
So, he grabbed a flashlight that was lying on a table and turned it on. When he did, he saw that he was surrounded by other androids.
"Welcome to Jericho." Simon greeted. "Who are you?" Markus asked. "Fugitives... just like you," An android explained. "My name is Josh."
"I'm Simon."
"North."
"This is Jericho?" Markus asked. "It's a refuge for those who don't want to be slaves anymore..." Simon explained.
"And hiding just to stay alive... That's freedom to you?"
"Humans hate us. All of them except for her. Hiding is the only way we can survive." Josh informed.
"There is no safe place for those like us. If humans knew we were here, they'd kills us and take her down with us for keeping us safe." North said.
"You guys keep saying "her". Who is "her"?" Markus asked, curiously. "Jackie. She owns this manor." Simon said.
"Jackie? Who's Jackie?"
"That's me,"
The androids stepped aside as a little girl walked forward, revealing herself. "I'm Jackie."
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"And you're a human?" Markus asked. "Mm-hm, and this is my house. Or Jericho. Want to walk with me?" She asked, walking towards the android.
She gently took his hand with her stuffed teddy bear in the other, and walked with him down the hall. "What's your name?" The little girl asked as she beside him.
"My name is Markus." He told her. "That's a nice name." She said, gently. "How old are you, Jackie?" He asked. "I'm 8." Jackie answered.
"You take care of all of these androids by yourself? Where are your parents?"
"Well... I never knew my Mom or Dad, and I've been living with my grandfather ever since I was born. He died a few months ago."
"Who was your grandfather?"
"Achilles Davenport. You might have heard of him. He was pretty well known around here. After he passed, it's just been me living here,"
Jackie took Markus to the living room and sat down in a chair. "Sit with me." She said, motioning to the chair in front of her.
Markus obliged and sat down in a wooden chair. But the moment he did, the chair broke away, causing him to fall on the floor.
Jackie gave a small giggle as Markus picked himself back up. "Sorry." He apologized. "It's not your fault. This house is pretty old. It's amazing it hasn't fallen to the ground yet." She said.
"Why not have the house repaired?" Markus asked as he sat on the couch across rom Jackie. "Grandpa said he had money, but I could never find it." Jackie answered with a bit of disappointment.
"Did your grandfather ever own an android?" Markus asked. "No, not ever." She answered.
"Do you welcome all the androids who come here?"
"Mm-hm. Only the ones who want to be free. Being in this house all by myself is lonely, so I decided to share with any android who comes in this area," Jackie explained.
"I came up with this idea when Grandpa and I were taking a walk in the city. We saw some androids being mistreated, and some without owners. Some time after Grandpa passed, this house became a refuge for androids who want to be free."
"This house... is it well hidden?"
"I think so. Or, I mean, it should be. I haven't seen another human being since Grandpa died. You're safe here. You can stay as long as you want."
Jackie looked over at a disfigured android as it sang softly in a female voice.
"I try and try to look for the money Grandpa mentioned so I can repair the androids, but that leads to another problem. I don't know how to fix them," She said.
Her eyes saddened when the android's singing came to a stop, letting her know that she had shut down.
"I always get sad when they shut down. It makes me feel guilty for not being able to do anything to help them. Everyone... is slowly dying here, and there's nothing I can do about it."
"To keep the androids alive, they need blue blood and biocomponents." Markus informed her. "Something I don't have. At least, not much of them," Jackie replied.
"I wish humans were more nicer to androids."
"Yeah..." Markus agreed. "Oh, I almost forgot! You need to come see Lucy!" Jackie said, hopping off the couch. The child took Markus' hand before taking him to where Lucy was.
"Lucy, this is Markus. He just arrived here." Jackie introduced. Lucy looked at Markus before turning her attention to the little girl.
"Jackie, could leave us alone for a minute?" Lucy requested. "Why don't you go fix yourself something to eat if you haven't already?"
Jackie nodded her head before leaving the two androids to talk.
"That little girl thinks of me as her own mother. A poor soul. She has no idea what the world is like out there." Lucy mentioned.
*****
When Markus was finished talking, he went into the kitchen to propose a plan to Jackie. "Jackie!" He called.
The little girl sat at the table, eating a bowl of cereal. "Yes?" She asked.
"I know where we can find spare parts. The CyberLife warehouses in Detroit Harbor, they have everything we need." He informed.
"The docks are guarded," Simon said as he walked into the room. "We can't just walk in there and take what we want. Humans will never let us."
"Which is why we won't ask permission." Markus said. "Are you saying you're going to steal the spare parts?" Jackie asked.
"But we don't have any weapons... and even if we did, none of us know how to fight." Josh stated. "We can steal what we need without fighting." Markus replied.
"We'll just get ourselves killed." Josh argued. "Maybe. But it's better than waiting around here to be shut down." Markus said.
"I'm with you." North said. "Jackie?" Markus said, wanting her approval. "If it'll keep the androids here alive, then it's fine with me." Jackie replied.
"Maybe it's worth a try." Simon chimed in. "Okay, then what about the manor? Jackie said it herself. It's falling apart. We need the tools and the money to repair it." Josh mentioned.
"We don't have to worry about that right now. Let's just do what we need to do in order to keep the androids living." Jackie said. "Ok... I'm in." Josh said.
