Loading Times - Part 1 of 3

Author's Note: This is a short story based on characters of another story I'm writing, "Perkins Brothers Repair Company". If you'd like a better introduction to the characters, or would just like to read more, you can find Part 1 here: http://www.abctales.com/story/combat-mishap/perkins-brothers-repair-company-part-1

Slowly descending from the air, my brother Lloyd neatly parked on the immaculate ironglass platform. Ironglass is the latest and strongest synthetic material on the market; an expensive commodity fitting for such a high class place as the Doberman SkyMall. My brother and I both got out of the van, a cheaply made hover-vehicle designed after a cheaply made automobile from the 21^st century. Looking down as I stepped out, I could see through the clear crystal-like layers of the ironglass at the bustling city of Trinity Atlantic far below us, hover cars flying efficiently and ignorant of the situation happening above them at one of the world’s tallest skyscrapers.

Wasting no time, I hurried to the back of the van and grabbed my equipment, while Lloyd did the same. From what we were able to discern from the frantic phone call by one of the SkyMall’s employees, one of the loaderbots had gone haywire and began attacking everyone in sight. The thing about loaderbots is unlike most androids, it doesn’t have a robot’s equivalent of a brain; it must be remotely controlled, which means the operator is more likely to have been the one to go haywire.

Because loaderbots are used to carry heavy amounts of merchandise for long distances they are incredibly strong, so a lot of our usual gear would be useless against it. Today we’d have to get out the big guns. I opened up the metal trunk and grabbed a certain rifle, the amusingly named Concreator. It shot pellets that erupt on impact, covering the target with molecularly enhanced, liquid concrete that hardened in seconds. It was incredibly dangerous (and expensive) to use, so it was only brought out on special occasions. Because we only have one Concreator, Lloyd grabbed the trusty Mini Friction Field Generator (or FFG for short), which fires a sphere of particles that slows down moving objects. This is incredibly useful for when something large (a stone pillar for example) is thrown at my head, and my stubby legs can’t quite move fast enough to dodge.

We also each grabbed a precision stun gun. While not very useful against robots, it would come in handy if we happened upon our true adversary: the operator. After finally suiting up and double-checking our equipment, we closed the trunk and walked briskly down the stairs that connected the parking platform to the SkyMall.

My brother spoke up worriedly. “Hey, Donny do you think this is the right floor?”

Before I could answer we were interrupted by a man’s distant scream and a bench flying through a large window, covering the floor with glass shards.

“Yeah, I’d say this is it,” I yelled as we increased our walking speed substantially.  Lloyd kicked open the door leading inside, and we ran in. Lloyd took cover behind a vending machine, and I crouched behind a trashcan. Peeking cautiously over, I surveyed my surroundings. There were a few bodies lying across the room. Thankfully most of them were moving, if only slightly. Benches and vending machines had been tossed haphazardly around the lobby, and many of the stores’ windows had been smashed. Along one wall, blood was smeared across the normally pristine white architecture.

Suddenly, the loaderbot came into view, stepping out of a jewelry store, looking carefully around with its unblinking eyes. It was eight feet tall with silver skin and arms that were unnaturally long. Its presence was intimidating, but I calmly exhaled and brought the Concreator’s scope to my eye. Carefully lining up the crosshairs with the android’s leg, I pulled the trigger, and a second later the capsule hit, covering the loaderbot’s appendage with liquid stone. Its head jerked downward, and it immediately tried wrenching its foot from the concrete, but it was too late.

I motioned to Lloyd to move forward and reloaded the Concreator as we sprinted forward to new cover. I stopped behind a massive water fountain and aimed again, this time at the other leg. Another direct hit, so we advanced once again. But as we approached, the loaderbot bent forward reaching the floor with its long arms. It began picking up the glass shards that littered the ground and hurled them at breakneck speeds directly at us. Before I could get to cover, I had already been hit thrice, once in my left arm and twice in my lower back.

“Ow ow wow ow!” I sputtered helplessly as I ducked behind a nearby pillar. Eyes watering and clenching my teeth, I touched the glass in my arm gingerly. It was a huge fragment, about the size of my palm, but I didn’t have the courage to try pulling it out.

Lloyd had found meager shelter behind a mechanical horse ride for kids. Over the consistent shrill of shattering glass, he yelled over to me, “Shoot him in the arm. Shoot him!”

“I can’t!” I yelled back. Glass was flying in all directions, and I feared the next shard would hit me in the face if I dared peek out. “Hit him with the FFG!” Most of the glass was directed my way, so he should be safe to fire a shot.

Lloyd nodded solemnly with only the smallest hint of sheer terror in his eyes. He mounted the FFG on his shoulder and stepped out from behind his plastic horse shield. He quickly fired and a sphere of blue energy bolted forward, slowly expanding. In Lloyd’s haste however, he overshot the target and the android was able to dodge the particle field by slightly moving its head. However, this did stop the rain of glass long enough for me to aim the Concreator once again. I propped it on a nearby trashcan, my other arm meanwhile hung uselessly at my side, and pulled the trigger. I was hoping to get one of the shoulders to freeze its joints, but then the unexpected happened.

The android reached out its hand and caught the capsule. The concrete quickly covering its hand and hardening, turning its hand into a two ton club. I watched mouth agape as the loaderbot proceeded to smash the club into its own knee, breaking the leg in two and falling to the ground. The loaderbot then pulled the other leg with all its strength until it too tore in half. Exposed wires sparked incessantly from the newly formed stumps, as the android used its elongated arms to crawl along the ground.

Snapping myself out of my stupor, I quickly began reloading the Concreator, as the android sprinted towards Lloyd at an incredible speed. I fired twice, both shots missing.

“Donny, help!” Lloyd screamed. His eyes were as big as dinner plates as the android collided with him like a football player, sending my helpless older brother flying across the room. The loaderbot then looked toward me, but by then I had already readied my next shot. The android leapt towards me and collided with the capsule mid-air. A direct hit to the chest, the loaderbot was sent flying backwards into a wall, the concrete spreading over its neck and shoulders sticking them steadfast to the wall.

Sensing victory I let out a relieved sigh. Looking to the distance at my brother I called, “Hey Lloyd, you still alive?”

“I- I think my ribs are broken,” he replied in a pained voice.

“Oh good.”