To Jack, I asked, “Between the two of us, you think we can drag one?”
He looked uncertain. “We can try.”
It was good enough for me. Mattie let the stone fly, nailing the closest one in the skull. Jack and I darted forward, each grabbing a limb of a fallen robot. We planned our feet and strained, tugging it back to where Cove and Mattie waited.
The weight almost yanked my arm out of its socket, but the skeletal body scraped against the ground, inching forward. Our arms shook with the stress as Mattie took out the ones who got too close. One scraped by the edge of my face, impacting one that had gotten close enough that I could feel the gust of wind as it smashed into the ground.
Cove met us as we drew closer, hefting the robot we were struggling to drag, much less carry, onto his other shoulder like it was nothing. I swore to myself that once he taught me how to use basic mental magic, physical magic would be next.
With Cove carrying both robots, we twisted through the streets to the edge of the city once again, winding when we could. One by one, the excess robots fell off behind us. We returned to the car in record time, looking over our shoulders anxiously as Cove crammed the robots in, the trunk sinking beneath their weight.
Mattie looked skeptically at the now inches difference between the trunk and the ground. “Is that going to be okay?”
Jack ushered her towards her seat. “It has to be,” he replied grimly.
The vehicle took noticeably longer to start and stop, obvious even to us passengers. Particularly nasty potholes crunched into the rear, causing Jack to cringe and lift his foot off the pedal with the sounds. The sun steadily ticked downwards over the horizon as Cove passed out in the seat next to me.
We were back in Jack’s city by dinner, stopping at a nearby diner for food.
After dinner, Jack took us along the smooth sunlight streets and into a wealthier area of town. He slowed as the buildings got steadily nicer, bringing us to an apartment building complete with exuberant amounts of glass extruding from the building. It was slightly obnoxious, but obviously for the very rich. He parked his vehicle in the visitor parking lot at the center of the apartment complex and popped his trunk as we escaped, stepping to the side so Cove would have access.
Cove slammed his door shut and took a few seconds to stretch before bending down and hefting a robot over his shoulder. The car lurched back upwards, and Jack took a few moments to inspect the underside of the rear bumper as Cove loomed impatiently over him. Jack winced.
Even from where I was standing, it didn’t look good.
As Cove reached for the second one, Jack said, “Don’t worry. We’ll get it later. Normal people can’t carry one of those, much less two.”
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Cove took a step back, giving Jack space to bang the trunk shut.
Jack led us through a mini garden with well-trimmed trees and plants, walking up to an intercom system outside the glass door marking the entryway. He pressed the buzzer and pulled back to wait. He must have notified the recipient we were coming, as the doors swooshed open seconds later. We entered the apartment lobby, our heels landing harshly on the polished marble tile. Three sparkling glass chandeliers hung from the ceiling, like stars hanging from the heavens. The walls were white, and the trim and furniture were painted a shining gold. The whole place screamed, ‘My family has more money than I can count.’
The faces of well-dressed residents and visitors looked down on our dirty clothes and disheveled appearances in horror and disgust as we passed. We passed the elevators, checking the weight limit and worrying about the weight of the robots. Deciding not to risk it, Jack led us up the stairs and knocked on the first door on our right.
The door opened to a slightly overweight, bald, round-faced man in a black t-shirt and gym shorts, looking about Jack’s age. His looks wholly contrasted with the appearance of the apartment building but wouldn’t have been noteworthy otherwise. In essence, he as so normal he was out of place.
At the sight of Jack, his face opened up, unfurling into the picture of joy. His back straightened, and he nearly flung the door to the side in haste to greet his friend. When Cove sidestepped in, careful not to bang either of the robots on the doorway, the man’s face brightened even more, looking like Santa had not only come early but had delivered his every desire.
He closed the door cheerfully behind us, practically skipping as he showed Cove past the metal stairwell and double island kitchen and through the massive living room with creme leather couches facing a screen that had to be at least 80 inches. We entered a hallway on his left, and he clicked open the door, pushing us into a large room that could best be described as ‘nerdy.’
Anime, cartoon, and movie posters covered almost every inch of the wall space, from the vaulted and molded ceiling down to the plush carpet floor. A white desk sat opposite the door, the backs of three extra wide monitors visible from where we stood. A stand-up desk was nestled between clearly labeled drawers in the left-hand corner. In the right was a coffee table with an Alienware laptop placed between a pair of creme-colored leather couches shoved up against the wall.
“Go ahead and lay them on the floor.” He said, pointing to the open center of the room. Cove placed them where instructed and stretched his shoulders as the man lovingly inspected our prizes.
Jack coughed.
“Right, sorry.” The man said, his voice deep and clear. “I have a passion for all things mechanical. I’m a white hat hacker and computer engineer by day,” he said, tapping his head.
I whistled, impressed despite myself. With the world the way it was, working both would explain his lavish and clean surroundings.
“If anyone can figure these things out, it’s him,” Jack said, smiling quickly toward his friend.
The man held his hand out to Cove, who stood closest to him. “Name’s Nick.”
“Cove.”
Nick looked expectantly around the room.
Mattie walked unhesitatingly forward and firmly grabbed his hand. “Mattie.”
I applied the standard pressure as his surprisingly soft hand clasped around mine. “Hayden,” I said, “I used to be a programmer. Do you mind if I watch?” I asked, careful not to invite myself where my help might not be wanted. Some programmers could be possessive like that, while others would pass over their work at any given chance. Like most people, I suppose.
His brown eyes nearly sparkled, and his smile was so large I thought it might reach his ears. “Watch? You can help if you want!”
I gave a soft smile in return. “Where’s your PH0 screwdriver?” At his brief look of confusion, I added, “I already opened one up to take a look at the insides a few days ago.”
“Over here,” he said, walking to the left side of the room. He grabbed the edge of the empty desk in the corner and wheeled it out to the center of the room before pressing a button. I watched, jealous, as the desk scrunched down until it was only a foot or so off the floor. He pulled open the center drawer, revealing a cleanly organized and clearly labeled screwdriver set, and handed the proper screwdriver over.
I took it gratefully and knelt to get to work.
As I tackled the first screw, Nick told the others, “You’re welcome to do whatever while we work.”
Jack laughed a little. “We’ll leave you to it. C’mon, he has the next season of Heirs on Blu-ray.”
“Blue ray?” Mattie asked, her voice getting quieter as they walked further away. “What’s that?”
Jack’s response was cut off as they shut the door behind them, leaving Nick and me to our work.