It was an all-American standoff. Ridley and his wife vs Gary and the crew.

  “Where the fuck did that thing pull a gun from?” Crosby asked, his sights on Ridley.

  Sera points her pistol at Crosby while Ridley gives an answer. “I gave it to her you… blind motherfuckers!”

  John, his pistols on them both, notices a twitch in Sera’s eye. He heard the huge hangar door open, the rain now a true monsoon as it does, though he doesn't dare get distracted. His right hand, the iron sights are glued to his neon hat. On his other hand, the sights are glued center mass on Sera who speaks. “What my husband is holding is an XM8 Anti-Personnel retractable rocket launcher. It would pay you all to listen.”

  “Yeah… that's right babe you tell them!” He says. John notices another twitch in the robot, more substantial this time. Gary kept his gun drawn on Ridley as he spoke. “Lower the gun, son. Being alone is a Hell of a thing.”

  His words seemed to resonate with the group, but merely bounced off of Ridley. “I'm not alone you… old fuck. I have my wife always giving me company.”

  “PUT THE FUCKING THING DOWN!” Gilbert yelled aggressively.

  He gained Ridley's attention for a second, but he laughed it off.

  John notices Sera begin lowering its gun, its expression becoming blank. And so he slowly moves it into Ridley. As Ridley's bloodshot eyes landed on Gary, he pipes up again. “Oh you… you people. Always pushing me around. Always bullying. Can't just leave me the fuck alone to sell guns to strangers.” Gary really doesn't want to shoot him. He sees a young man, lead down the path made for him by the system.

  “Son.” He says, some emotion present in his voice. “She isn't real son. We can treat you well.”

  “SHE'S REAL TO ME!!!” Ridley screams at him. Just as he raises the rocket higher, a shot pierces through his skull. From behind.

  The five are taken aback. As John looks at his collapsed body, his eyes dart back to Sera, who shoots herself in the very same instant.

  The tin can smash into the concrete ground, leaving some cracks in the floor. John looks back to Ridley’s dead body, a pool of blood forming by his head. It reminds him of work. But it's far too fresh. He feels he's going to be sick, and dry reaches to his side.

  “What— what the fuck just happened?” Asked Gilbert who was in the back, looking at the aftermath. Gary goes down to inspect the body. Crosby runs back outside to check the sky, seeing the outside is as bright as an ally of the city, just much rainier. Jimbo wipes a bead of sweat off his head as John, who stands back up, gives Gilbert an answer.

  “I think… I think Sera just fucking shot him. Then shot herself.”

  “What the fuck?! Are you serious?!” Gilbert asked. Gary felt the fur of Ridley's coat as he replied. “I think so. Poor bastard. I never trusted those machines.”

  “No.” Said John, holstering his pistols and taking Sera’s.

  “No no no no no. SERaMACs bots like her can't kill their owners. That's impossible. That shouldn't have happened.”

  “Maybe it wasn't his?” Gary replies, rising back up to meet with John.

  John gives him a glance, but his eyes remain on Sera.

  “No… no no no I highly doubt that. Something big is going on an—”

  “Hey!” Yelled Crosby through the door, drenched and shivering his ass off. “Come look at this shit! You can even see it through the clouds!”

  Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

  John and Gary give each other a quick look, then go outside.

  As the rain kisses them with its coldness and moistness, they witness a monster rise in the sky. Hot magenta at the bottom, turning to a yellow at the top, and orange in the middle. Clear ripples going through it.

  A purple outline and magenta glow engulfs its edges.

  John looks down; it soaks the ground in an unnatural, faint, dim neon light. Now, not even nature can escape the neon. And it was cold. Very cold. Even despite the glow, he felt no warmth.

  Gary looks at the rising Neosun as if it was an affront to humanity.

  “I have never seen such an atrocity…” Gary can’t help but whisper.

  The Neosun rises higher; casting long, lanky shadows from the metallic pine trees. Trees which have never had a shadow up until this day. Not beyond the streaks of the lightning skies.

  John is stuck in a conflicted awe. Crosby moves inside to get dry.

  By now, the rest had come together outside; admiring or cursing upon the rising menace. Gary breaks the stare and commands the attention of his crew. “Men. We need to get out of here. Grab everything you see, shove it near the door, then stockpile it into the hangar doorway. John, get out there and bring the vehicles into the hangar.”

  “Got it.” John replies, jogging away hurriedly for the Versa first.

  Jimbo tried asking but was quickly shut down.

  “Hey… Gary, don't suppose I can dri—”

  “Not. Now. Let's get those supplies moving.” Gary makes clear.

  It's about a two minute jog to the Versa. He is soaking wet now, of course. He throws himself in, starts the beast, and feels a tiny bit of peace for the few dozen seconds he got to drive it. A pile is already forming by the door, so he parks the thing inside and runs out to the SUV.

  As he turns it on, he is given a fright by the music. He does the same thing as with the Versa, though parks it closer to the pile.

  As he gets out, Gary signals to the rest to start loading it up.

  John gets out and helps the rest. The treasure they plunder looks good. Shotguns, shells, high-powered rifles, power armor, tactical visors, batteries a lot. Not state-of-the-art, but far surpassing their 20th century equipment they have currently.

  Eventually, the SUV is loaded to the point that the back sags down.

  The Versa is also sufficiently loaded. Mostly with guns and ammo. Heavy equipment was more for the other.

  Gary signals to the rest to hop in. But John is hesitant as he looks over Ridley's corpse, his body by-this-point cold.

  He walks over to it and takes a knee. In doing so, he incurs Crosby's attention. “Hey John! Baby driver! We've got to get moving!”

  John largely ignores Crosby. Not out of disrespect, but because of it. For Ridley, who he sees as having died without necessity.

  He reflects on the man. Not a young but not an old face. Thirty is the most. A malnourished man with a past of neglect, forced down a hole dug for him by both his crushing ineptitude, and those who exploit it.

  A man who died sad, believing the lies which didn't exactly comfort him. Rather, they merely shielded him from the pain of the truth.

  Yet ignorance can only go so far.

  The truth will arrive to you all the same. There is a truth out there. There is a reason the bot killed him, then itself, John thinks.

  “John!? Hurry up, he's already dead!”

  John knows. He says he's coming in his head, yet not out loud.

  Just before he stands back up, he removes Ridley's jacket from him and equips it. It is very warm. It must have heating subscriptions. And, before he goes, he checks Ridley's pockets. He finds a digiphone, some rubbish and… a plastic flower with red petals. On it is wrapped a note which, and he opens it. “You and me forever. SxR.” It reads.

  He crumples it and throws it to Sera’s scraps. He pockets the digiphone, and closes Ridley's eyelids for him. As he turns around to man the driver's, he tells Crosby. “I'm coming man. I'm coming.”

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