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I took off my protective goggles and used a dirty
sleeve to wipe the sweat off my freckled face. The head of an android I was
repairing lay on my work desk. I had been working on it for several hours. I
had no idea what time it was, since the tiny, poorly-ventilated workshop had no
windows, but I was sure it was dark outside. I sat up with a sigh and wondered
how I got here.
I was in my late twenties and had been working in
the android factory for five years. My job involved repairing damaged androids,
and it was hard work. The hours were long and the pay was bad. Furthermore, the
androids expected flawless work and held humans accountable for any errors made.
It was a thankless job, but at least it
put food in my stomach. That was all I needed to survive in the current society,
a difficult task for humans.
There was a gasp from across the room. I looked
up to see Sam staring at something in his right hand. Sam and I had several
things in common. We both had a medium height and build with short red hair.
Additionally, we had shared the same workshop in the factory for two years. In
his mid-forties, Sam had worked for the androids much longer than I, and he
hated it more with each passing day. He often expressed his strong dislike for
the androids. Most humans generally did not like the androids, but Sam did little
to hide his resentment. I warned him on numerous occasions to be careful about what
he said and did, but it was like talking to a brick wall. I did not like the
androids either, but I always made sure to follow the rules they set. Sam hated
how I always insisted on conforming, because I believed it was the only way to
survive. Despite our differences, Sam and I were good friends.
I asked Sam what he had seen. He held up his arm
to show a small silver orb the size of a golf ball. It was an adamantium core,
which was one of the key components of an android. The cores were priceless and
we rarely encountered any working ones during our job. However, the slight glow
it emitted indicated that it was still working. Sam slipped the core into his
pocket.
“What are you doing?” I hissed.
Sam looked at me and shrugged. If we found any
working adamantium cores we were to hand them over to our android overseer immediately. Humans found possessing
cores in the factory was a serious violation of the rules. I knew that Sam was
aware of these facts.
I told Sam to hand over the core to the androids,
but he refused. He said that he would take it out of the factory and sell it
off to make a fortune. I warned him of everything that could possibly go wrong,
but I already knew what he would do. Eventually, I went back to my work and
left Sam alone.
My mind was racing. I was worried for Sam. I had
heard stories of what happened to people found with illegal cores. It never
ended well for them and I did not want Sam to have the same fate.
Unfortunately, I did not know what else I could do to change his mind.
“Perrin, I got my ticket out of this dump,” Sam
said to me with a sly smile on his face as he walked to the door. This was a
few hours later at the end of his shift. I stared silently as Sam left. He was
right. I never saw him in the android factory or heard from him ever again.
I still
wonder what happened to him. Maybe he did get out, but I highly doubt it. The
androids would not have let it happen. Perhaps if I had been more persuasive,
then I could have stopped Sam from making a mistake. Alternatively, I could
have helped Sam and we both would be free. I always regret doing nothing at the
time (Jordan 492). If I had been stronger, I might have saved my friend.
Works Cited
Jordan, Robert. Knife of Dreams: Book 11 of
the Wheel of Time. Hachette UK, 2010.
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