David Ring III - Stanley Duncan's Robot

“I thought you had this under control.”

“I do,” said Evan coolly. “But this won’t be the last time. They’re evolving, as you say, and getting stronger. If we wait any longer, it will be too late. We need support.”

“We can’t eliminate a species because of the choices of a terrorist or two.”

“And what will you say when mankind is on the brink of extinction because you failed to act?”

Mr. Handsome stared at the flower murals and grinned. “As of now, we’ll back your order for non-authorized machine life to be confined indoors — unofficially. Show me evidence that machine life is being used as a weapon, and we’ll make it official. But most importantly, know that the world is always watching you, and behave accordingly. Your actions will either unite the planet or destroy it.”

Shannon felt a chill. She couldn’t gauge Evan’s reaction. It seemed like he was processing the information. After the man left, she turned to Evan. “He certainly liked—”

A hard slap across her face knocked her to the ground, snapping one of her heels in two. She stumbled up to the chair, the pain searing her cheek. “You bastard.”

“Don’t ever disrespect me again.”

When Stanley ripped open the door, his heart sank. A savage battle was underway in the hallway. Blood was dripping down Boots’s fur as he dodged an attack from a small black cat. The hissing from the cats and screaming from Glenda was loud even for Stanley’s partially deaf ears.

“Help him,” called Glenda through the slit in the bolted door.

Stanley could see Mittens cradled in her hands. “Stay right there while I grab a broom.” Rushing inside, he nearly ran into Dan.

“What’s going on?”

“It’s a cat fight,” said Stanley, grabbing a broom. “Nothing to worry about.”

“I can help.”

“No — I’ve got this.”

Glenda shrieked.

Stanley locked eyes with Dan for a split second before rushing out. Boots’s body was limp. The black cat was clawing at Glenda’s door, stripping splinters off of it with its steel claws. Stanley stared, stupefied, unable to comprehend what was happening. This was impossible…

“Help,” shouted Glenda, holding on to the door with all her might as the demon-cat tried to rip it open.

Stanley raised the broom up and gave the cat a solid whack — it barely budged. Instead, the demon-cat stopped slashing chunks off the door and leered at him. With his heart rate tripling, he swung the broom again, but the cat caught it in its mouth and snapped it in two.

“What the hell!” Images of being torn apart and eaten raced through his mind.

The cat crouched down, pulsating. Metallic fangs flashed from its mouth as it hissed.

Glenda watched through a two-inch opening in her splintered door.

“Shut your door.” Stanley crept back until he hit a wall. There was nowhere else to go. He held the broken piece of wood in his hand, ready to duel, but he was no match for this mechanical demon-cat. It would snap his frail bones — just as it had done to the broom — and tear apart his flesh like it had done to poor Boots.

The cat lunged.

Stanley thrust the stick forward. If he couldn’t stop it, the least he could do was buy them time. He had to call the police. Why hadn’t he told Dan to call the—

A flying kick slammed into the cat and sent it crashing against the wall.

Stanley froze.

Dan walked between him and the cat. “Leticia, we need nanites, immediately.”

The cat shimmied, ready to pounce.

Dan snatched the broom out of Stanley’s hands, smashing it into the demon-cat at the last second, breaking it off at the head. The cat slammed against the wall, landing on its feet, unfazed.

“Okay. You want nanites delivered?” said Leticia.

Dan gripped the broken broom, which had become a pointed spear. “Yes — it’s an emergency.”

The cat eyed Glenda, pouncing toward her.

She shrieked, shutting her door as fast as she could. There was no way she could match the feline’s speed.

Dan rammed the spear into the demon-cat, pinning it to the wall. “The door, Glenda. Shut it now.”

Razor-sharp scratches tore the broomstick apart. A final bite broke it in two.

“Stanley, go downstairs,” shouted Dan.

“I’m not leaving you out here alone with that thing.”

“Don’t argue! We need those nanites now!”

Scrambling downstairs, every bone in Stanley’s body was worrying about Dan. After crashing through the complex door, a roaring drone soared up to him and placed a package on the ground. Three syringes filled with a transparent red fluid lay inside a plastic case. Grabbing it, Dan realized where he was — outside.

Stanley gasped for air as if he were drowning and grabbed the railing to prevent himself from toppling over. Expecting shock and disgust, he scoured the street up and down and found not a single face, let alone an upset one. The street was completely empty, not even a car passing by.

The beats of his heart felt like punches. Slowly, the feeling in his hands returned: the overly tight clutching of the rail and the smooth plastic in his other hand.

Snap out of it!

When he arrived upstairs, the battle was over. The demon-cat lay in two pieces, its decapitated head inches from the newly dented condo door. Glenda was moving ever so slowly toward Boots. He scanned Dan and saw no sign of injury. “Thank God you’re safe.”

“Do you know how to use the nanites?”

Stanley looked down at Boots. “It’s no use, Dan. They can’t bring back the dead. I was too slow.”

“It’s for Glenda.”

Stanley was shocked to see blood pouring down her leg, leaving a trail along the carpet. Her face was ghostly pale. “Glenda?”

At the mention of her name, her eyes rolled back into her head, and she collapsed.

Dan darted out and caught her.

Stanley couldn’t believe he hadn’t noticed her serious injuries. Kneeling on the ground, he ripped her torn pants apart. Several deep cuts to her loose flesh were apparent. A vein at her ankle had been slashed open. He knew nanites could be ingested or injected. While he didn’t like the idea of stabbing Glenda, there was no way he was going to shove it down her throat. “How much do I put in?”

“One syringe is enough, but spread it around the different cuts.”

Stanley held the needle a centimeter away from the river of blood, drizzling it on.

“You need to inject it into her flesh, otherwise, the blood will wash too much of it away.”

The needle shook in his hand as Stanley plunged it into her flesh. It slid through without resistance or screams, and the bleeding stopped within seconds.

Dan checked both legs. “You got all of the cuts.”

“She’s lost a lot of blood. We need to get her to a doctor.”

“Leticia!” yelled Dan. “We need an ambulance.”

“Okay. Did you say you wanted an ambulance?”

“Yes,” they both said.

Stanley looked at Glenda, wondering if it might be faster if they went with her to the hospital. But he knew he couldn’t do that.

“Dispatching now. The ambulance will arrive in three minutes, twelve seconds.”

Dan scooped Glenda off the ground. “Are we both going?”

“Going?” Stanley couldn’t believe Dan was pushing things even now. “There’s an ambulance coming to pick her up.”

“We can’t let her go by herself. She’s an old woman, Stanley. Imagine how she’s going to feel waking up all by herself like that.”

“It’s too dangerous.”

Dan rolled his eyes. “Not this again.” He nodded to the demon-cat. “You saw what I’m capable of. I can protect all of us.”