Tears were flowing from Andrew’s eyes when he finished talking.
“Hey boss, don’t cry. No you don’t deserve it. You deserve to be happy and no matter what I will be always there for you.” Said the robot.
“Really?” asked Andrew.
“Yes boss. Always.”
“Thank you.”
“Hey boss, you said you loved flying, then how come you don’t fly anymore.”
“I don’t want to fly now. I don’t think I will fly ever.”
“But I want to fly boss. I want fly high! Will you take me?”
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Monday, September 8, 2008
The Lady with Green Eyes - VI
It was 2058. That photo was shot in Hawaii. After I finished my training at Air Force Academy, Mina and I went to Hawaii on our first Honeymoon. Those were the 10 happiest days of my life. But I think with me happiness never lasts. After the honeymoon I had to report on my duty.
I got my first mission there. It was relatively a simple one. I had to drop 13 cyborg commandos at a terrorist base. But I think I was destined to be a failure from the start.
As we reached to the terrorist base, we were attacked by a guided missile. I was shocked. Intelligence hadn’t given us any warning of such an advanced weapon. I flew zigzag to dodge the missile. But the missile kept following. Its AI was very good. I searched the terrain helplessly for some hill or mountain. Unfortunately we were flying above desert. So no hide and seek possible. In a desperate attempt, I flew high around 30,000 feet and then plunged into a sudden dip towards the ground. The missile followed the same path. Now we were approaching the ground rapidly. To avoid the collision with the ground, I slowed the aircraft a little. The missile was right behind us, closing in the distance between us swiftly. The Defensive Aid System of the plane was flashing different lights and screaming, “Attacker missile too close” then switching to, “Ground surface too close”. I was very tense. Situation was tight and needed to concentrate. Irritated by the noise I turned the DAS off. It was a huge mistake.
Just above the ground, I altered the direction of the plane abruptly and started flying upwards. Due to its speed the missile could not change its course and banged into the ground. As the aircraft rose above the ground, there was massive explosion just below it. I felt a surge of shock passing through me. “Hooray, I did it!” I cried out. That was when the plane was struck by another missile, which I never noticed during all the action. I went unconscious.
When I opened my eyes again, I was in a military hospital. My right arm and both of my legs were chopped and worst all my 13 passengers had died. Damn. It was my fault I should never have turned the DAS off. Had it been on it would have alarmed me about the second missile. As I recovered, courtesy to Mr. Scott Nash, I was transferred to the best hospital in the world. There I was fitted with robotic limbs. It cost around eight million dollars. A small dent in Mr. Nash’s enormous wealth.
I was in the hospital for 2 months. During all those days Mina was with me. I had terrible nightmares. ‘It was all my fault. 13 fine men…’ I wanted to commit suicide. If Mina wouldn’t have been there, probably I would have done it. She was always with me and it was for only her, I wanted to live.
One afternoon when I woke up from my post lunch nap. Mina was not there in her chair. I rolled in the bed to look for her. The door of the room was half open and what I saw through it changed my life forever. There I saw, Mina standing by the door hugging somebody.
“Control yourself Mina…” Hearing that voice I was stunned. I couldn’t believe myself.
‘No it can’t be,’ I thought.
I got off the bed. I was not accustomed to my new legs. Somehow I lurched to the door and swung it wide open. By that, the person was startled. He pushed Mina away. I moved my gaze from him to Mina. I was filled up with deep contempt. I was infuriated. I could sense the animal rising within me. “You slut!” I shouted and before I knew my new robotic arm flung in the air and came crashing across Minas left cheek. It was a heavy blow. She lost her balance. While falling down her neck got hit on the seat of steel chair in the corridor. She went unconscious.
“You mad man! I was just comforting her.” screamed the man standing beside her. He sat down to take a look at her. He was Mark.
After that incident Mina’s body became paralyzed below her neck. Her parents pressed the charges against me and also filed for the divorce. I pleaded guilty. I was sentenced for three years and 30 million dollars in punitive damages. I didn’t contest the judgment in the higher court. I was court marshaled. I spent those three years in the jail cursing. Cursing myself for hitting Mina. I cursed Mark for trying to come back in my life when I wanted him to stay away. I cursed my luck. I cursed whole world. I was going mad. I would have killed myself. I needed someone to put the fault on to. So I cursed Mina. Hating her for meeting Mark. She knew how deeply I hated Mark. Why did she let him come there? Why did she meet him? Why didn’t she insulted him and send him away? I hated her for that. Wasn’t I had enough before her. I hated her for coming in my life.
But now I think I wouldn’t have killed myself. It takes courage and I am biggest coward in the world. Deep down my heart I know it is me who is responsible for it. I know I should go to Mina. I should beg her to pardon me. But I won’t be able to look in her eyes and ask her to forgive me. Because I fear she will forgive me. I know she will forgive me. And I hate her for that. I hate her for being so good to me. I don’t deserve it. May be I should burn in hell of hatred forever.
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I got my first mission there. It was relatively a simple one. I had to drop 13 cyborg commandos at a terrorist base. But I think I was destined to be a failure from the start.
As we reached to the terrorist base, we were attacked by a guided missile. I was shocked. Intelligence hadn’t given us any warning of such an advanced weapon. I flew zigzag to dodge the missile. But the missile kept following. Its AI was very good. I searched the terrain helplessly for some hill or mountain. Unfortunately we were flying above desert. So no hide and seek possible. In a desperate attempt, I flew high around 30,000 feet and then plunged into a sudden dip towards the ground. The missile followed the same path. Now we were approaching the ground rapidly. To avoid the collision with the ground, I slowed the aircraft a little. The missile was right behind us, closing in the distance between us swiftly. The Defensive Aid System of the plane was flashing different lights and screaming, “Attacker missile too close” then switching to, “Ground surface too close”. I was very tense. Situation was tight and needed to concentrate. Irritated by the noise I turned the DAS off. It was a huge mistake.
Just above the ground, I altered the direction of the plane abruptly and started flying upwards. Due to its speed the missile could not change its course and banged into the ground. As the aircraft rose above the ground, there was massive explosion just below it. I felt a surge of shock passing through me. “Hooray, I did it!” I cried out. That was when the plane was struck by another missile, which I never noticed during all the action. I went unconscious.
When I opened my eyes again, I was in a military hospital. My right arm and both of my legs were chopped and worst all my 13 passengers had died. Damn. It was my fault I should never have turned the DAS off. Had it been on it would have alarmed me about the second missile. As I recovered, courtesy to Mr. Scott Nash, I was transferred to the best hospital in the world. There I was fitted with robotic limbs. It cost around eight million dollars. A small dent in Mr. Nash’s enormous wealth.
I was in the hospital for 2 months. During all those days Mina was with me. I had terrible nightmares. ‘It was all my fault. 13 fine men…’ I wanted to commit suicide. If Mina wouldn’t have been there, probably I would have done it. She was always with me and it was for only her, I wanted to live.
One afternoon when I woke up from my post lunch nap. Mina was not there in her chair. I rolled in the bed to look for her. The door of the room was half open and what I saw through it changed my life forever. There I saw, Mina standing by the door hugging somebody.
“Control yourself Mina…” Hearing that voice I was stunned. I couldn’t believe myself.
‘No it can’t be,’ I thought.
I got off the bed. I was not accustomed to my new legs. Somehow I lurched to the door and swung it wide open. By that, the person was startled. He pushed Mina away. I moved my gaze from him to Mina. I was filled up with deep contempt. I was infuriated. I could sense the animal rising within me. “You slut!” I shouted and before I knew my new robotic arm flung in the air and came crashing across Minas left cheek. It was a heavy blow. She lost her balance. While falling down her neck got hit on the seat of steel chair in the corridor. She went unconscious.
“You mad man! I was just comforting her.” screamed the man standing beside her. He sat down to take a look at her. He was Mark.
After that incident Mina’s body became paralyzed below her neck. Her parents pressed the charges against me and also filed for the divorce. I pleaded guilty. I was sentenced for three years and 30 million dollars in punitive damages. I didn’t contest the judgment in the higher court. I was court marshaled. I spent those three years in the jail cursing. Cursing myself for hitting Mina. I cursed Mark for trying to come back in my life when I wanted him to stay away. I cursed my luck. I cursed whole world. I was going mad. I would have killed myself. I needed someone to put the fault on to. So I cursed Mina. Hating her for meeting Mark. She knew how deeply I hated Mark. Why did she let him come there? Why did she meet him? Why didn’t she insulted him and send him away? I hated her for that. Wasn’t I had enough before her. I hated her for coming in my life.
But now I think I wouldn’t have killed myself. It takes courage and I am biggest coward in the world. Deep down my heart I know it is me who is responsible for it. I know I should go to Mina. I should beg her to pardon me. But I won’t be able to look in her eyes and ask her to forgive me. Because I fear she will forgive me. I know she will forgive me. And I hate her for that. I hate her for being so good to me. I don’t deserve it. May be I should burn in hell of hatred forever.
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The Lady with Green Eyes - V
It was Sunday afternoon, Andrew was sitting idly in front of the TV, swapping the channels randomly, switching between the retelecast of Friday night’s free style wrestling and a sitcom. The robot was cleaning the storeroom. It came to Andrew with an old photo frame in its hands.
“Can I ask you something boss?” The robot asked.
Andrew smiled and said, “You can ask me anything sweety pie.”
“Who is this green eyed girl boss?” Showing him the picture the robot asked. It was Andrew’s honeymoon photo. Their first evening at Hawaii. Mina and him, walking on the beach. Holding each other tightly, his arm round her waist and her head leaning against his chest.
Suddenly his face grew harder. “Nobody,” He said curtly.
“Oh, come-on boss, don’t be so tight-assed. I was just trying to open up a conversation. I know she is your ex-wife. I looked up all about you two on the Internet,” said the robot.
Now Andrew was infuriated. “What?” He bellowed. “You were spying on me.” He picked up the remote control and just as he was about to throw it towards the robot, he realized what he was doing. He checked himself. He was flushed.
Ignoring it the robot said, “Not spaaaying boss, just gathering information. We C360s do it all the time. How do you think I know all those little things about you, your favorite dishes, books, holiday destinations, et cetera? We record each and every little thing that comes across and act accordingly. That’s why our owners feel so comfortable around us.”
“But if anyone…”
“Don’t worry boss. No body can get that information from me. Not even Robosys service engineers. Robot Owners Privacy Act, 2052, mandates it. According to that law, nobody, not even Government itself, can obtain owner’s personal information from a robot forcefully or otherwise. A self protecting mechanism automatically deactivates that particular part of our memory in case of unauthorized access.”
Hearing this Andrew calmed a bit. “You sure about that?”
“100% percent sure boss. Did you forget our tagline? Your companion forever. I will rather terminally deactivate myself than betray you.” The robot reassured.
Andrew was moved by it. “Hey sweety pie, don’t talk about deactivating and all that gloomy stuff. And don’t you dare leave me ok. I will go mad.” He said. Corners of his eyes were filling with tears.
The robot sat beside him on the sofa, placed its hand on Andrew’s and pressed it a bit and said, “Don’t you worry boss. I will never leave you.” They looked at each other for two-three seconds, then the robot let go Andrew’s hand. Andrew gathered himself a bit and started watching television. In reality he was just staring at it stupidly, not understanding a bit why everybody on the sitcom was laughing his head out.
“Hey Boss…” said the robot tentatively.
“Yes?”
“Why don’t you tell me about it?”
“About what?”
“About you and your wife. How did you both separate? I have read all the gossip on the Internet. Your former friends Nancy and Mark, you marring Mina, your violent temper, you hitting her, the trial, the sentence and all. There are hundreds of pages full about your eccentricities and your love for violence. But then it’s all gossip. I don’t trust it. I have been with you and I know its not real you. You see, I know you and I trust you. That’s why I want to hear it from you. Your version of the story. I know you loved her very much. That at least I can tell, from the way you always look at my eyes. Trust me you will feel better. You heard the saying – ‘Share the joy it multiples. Share the pain it reduces’.”
Andrew gazed at her for a moment, looking a bit perplexed as though trying to decide whether or not to let his emotional curtains down. At last he sighed and said, “You are right. I think I must tell it to somebody and if not to you, then to whom?”
Andrew switched off the TV. For a moment he just stared at the blank TV screen as if recollecting his memory. He sighed and began talking.
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“Can I ask you something boss?” The robot asked.
Andrew smiled and said, “You can ask me anything sweety pie.”
“Who is this green eyed girl boss?” Showing him the picture the robot asked. It was Andrew’s honeymoon photo. Their first evening at Hawaii. Mina and him, walking on the beach. Holding each other tightly, his arm round her waist and her head leaning against his chest.
Suddenly his face grew harder. “Nobody,” He said curtly.
“Oh, come-on boss, don’t be so tight-assed. I was just trying to open up a conversation. I know she is your ex-wife. I looked up all about you two on the Internet,” said the robot.
Now Andrew was infuriated. “What?” He bellowed. “You were spying on me.” He picked up the remote control and just as he was about to throw it towards the robot, he realized what he was doing. He checked himself. He was flushed.
Ignoring it the robot said, “Not spaaaying boss, just gathering information. We C360s do it all the time. How do you think I know all those little things about you, your favorite dishes, books, holiday destinations, et cetera? We record each and every little thing that comes across and act accordingly. That’s why our owners feel so comfortable around us.”
“But if anyone…”
“Don’t worry boss. No body can get that information from me. Not even Robosys service engineers. Robot Owners Privacy Act, 2052, mandates it. According to that law, nobody, not even Government itself, can obtain owner’s personal information from a robot forcefully or otherwise. A self protecting mechanism automatically deactivates that particular part of our memory in case of unauthorized access.”
Hearing this Andrew calmed a bit. “You sure about that?”
“100% percent sure boss. Did you forget our tagline? Your companion forever. I will rather terminally deactivate myself than betray you.” The robot reassured.
Andrew was moved by it. “Hey sweety pie, don’t talk about deactivating and all that gloomy stuff. And don’t you dare leave me ok. I will go mad.” He said. Corners of his eyes were filling with tears.
The robot sat beside him on the sofa, placed its hand on Andrew’s and pressed it a bit and said, “Don’t you worry boss. I will never leave you.” They looked at each other for two-three seconds, then the robot let go Andrew’s hand. Andrew gathered himself a bit and started watching television. In reality he was just staring at it stupidly, not understanding a bit why everybody on the sitcom was laughing his head out.
“Hey Boss…” said the robot tentatively.
“Yes?”
“Why don’t you tell me about it?”
“About what?”
“About you and your wife. How did you both separate? I have read all the gossip on the Internet. Your former friends Nancy and Mark, you marring Mina, your violent temper, you hitting her, the trial, the sentence and all. There are hundreds of pages full about your eccentricities and your love for violence. But then it’s all gossip. I don’t trust it. I have been with you and I know its not real you. You see, I know you and I trust you. That’s why I want to hear it from you. Your version of the story. I know you loved her very much. That at least I can tell, from the way you always look at my eyes. Trust me you will feel better. You heard the saying – ‘Share the joy it multiples. Share the pain it reduces’.”
Andrew gazed at her for a moment, looking a bit perplexed as though trying to decide whether or not to let his emotional curtains down. At last he sighed and said, “You are right. I think I must tell it to somebody and if not to you, then to whom?”
Andrew switched off the TV. For a moment he just stared at the blank TV screen as if recollecting his memory. He sighed and began talking.
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The Lady with Green Eyes - IV
As days passed by, Andrew thawed. The robot’s pleasant girlish enthusiasm was contagious. No matter how badly Andrew treated the robot, it won him back. When abused, the robot acted hurt for a while and then gave in, at last, by making little demands like, “I will do it boss, but only if you will say please.” Or “Promise you will take me on a walk in the evening and your wish will be fulfilled.” In one incident, the robot asked Andrew for an expensive robot accessory.
“It is this new wireless data transfer unit, boss. 2Gb per second. A cool C360 must have it. Will you buy one for me boss?”
“Not now. Latter,” Andrew replied.
The robot acted as if disappointed. For two days it just won’t reply straight. When asked to perform something, the robot just performed it. No smile. Nothing. Just plain expressionless - “Yes Boss.” At last Andrew gave in and bought the accessory. When he showed it to the robot, it practically frisked all over the apartment. Andrew Laughed. It was impossible to stay angry for a long time at ‘his sweety pie’ (as he fondly called the robot).
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“It is this new wireless data transfer unit, boss. 2Gb per second. A cool C360 must have it. Will you buy one for me boss?”
“Not now. Latter,” Andrew replied.
The robot acted as if disappointed. For two days it just won’t reply straight. When asked to perform something, the robot just performed it. No smile. Nothing. Just plain expressionless - “Yes Boss.” At last Andrew gave in and bought the accessory. When he showed it to the robot, it practically frisked all over the apartment. Andrew Laughed. It was impossible to stay angry for a long time at ‘his sweety pie’ (as he fondly called the robot).
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The Lady with Green Eyes - III
Andrew and his new C360 walked in his penthouse apartment. Andrew stumbled into the sofa. The robot was amazed at the living room. It could very well have been a room in a palace of a King. The furniture seemed to come straight out of the 18th century. The walls were decorated with different types of guns, sabers and daggers. The hilts and handles were artistically designed and were adorned with precious stones and metals. The robot walked to the center of the room. It took a round about itself observing the room.
At the same time Andrew was observing the robot. Robosys designers had produced a masterpiece. It had a perfect figure and its synthetic skin looked just like real when seen from a distance. And above all she (with those looks, it was hard to refer it as it) had green eyes. Pretty big green eyes. For a second, a thought flashed through Andrew’s mind. ‘Was it because of those eyes he bought the robot?’
“Bullshit.” Andrew said aloud to himself.
Thinking it was referred to its amazement, the robot turned to him and said, “No Boss, you have got a really beautiful home.” Andrew didn’t say anything. He was just staring at the robot’s eyes. Sensing it, the robot blinked them cutely and said, “Boss, you must give me a name?” Only one name came to Andrew.
“Mi… Nancy, I will call you Nancy.”
The robot looked happy. It smiled and said, “Nannnncy! I like it.”
“I hate it,” Andrew said coldly. The robot was perplexed. It didn’t know how to react. It just stood their, gaping at him. Annoyed Andrew pointed at a bedroom door and said, “You stay in that room. I like it quite in here. So don’t bother me unless I call you. Got that?”
The robot was smiling again. “Anything you say boss. Anything,” It said enthusiastically and walked to the next room.
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At the same time Andrew was observing the robot. Robosys designers had produced a masterpiece. It had a perfect figure and its synthetic skin looked just like real when seen from a distance. And above all she (with those looks, it was hard to refer it as it) had green eyes. Pretty big green eyes. For a second, a thought flashed through Andrew’s mind. ‘Was it because of those eyes he bought the robot?’
“Bullshit.” Andrew said aloud to himself.
Thinking it was referred to its amazement, the robot turned to him and said, “No Boss, you have got a really beautiful home.” Andrew didn’t say anything. He was just staring at the robot’s eyes. Sensing it, the robot blinked them cutely and said, “Boss, you must give me a name?” Only one name came to Andrew.
“Mi… Nancy, I will call you Nancy.”
The robot looked happy. It smiled and said, “Nannnncy! I like it.”
“I hate it,” Andrew said coldly. The robot was perplexed. It didn’t know how to react. It just stood their, gaping at him. Annoyed Andrew pointed at a bedroom door and said, “You stay in that room. I like it quite in here. So don’t bother me unless I call you. Got that?”
The robot was smiling again. “Anything you say boss. Anything,” It said enthusiastically and walked to the next room.
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The Lady with Green Eyes - II
Relationships. They come in two flavors. Bitter and Sweet. Somehow Andrew’s lot was filled with bitter ones. But then, relationship is like a mirror. It just reflects what you are. May be Andrew was a bitter person. He was a product (or rather by-product) of standard 21st century failed marriage. When Andrew’s parents separated, his mother got his custody. Though Andrew’s mother hated her marriage, she loved Andrew beyond anything. There was a strong bond between Andrew and her. May be that was why she died of lung cancer when he was ten. After that Andrew lived with his self-made, billionaire father Scott Nash. Many supermodels loved Scott Nash. All his three wives hated him. Forbes and Time loved Scott Nash. Andrew hated him. Somehow hating came naturally to Andrew. He hated his father for divorcing his mother. He hated God for taking away his mother from him. He hated his two stepmothers for trying to be his mother and above all he hated Mina, his ex-wife.
Generally marriages are built on foundation of love. Andrew’s was different. His marriage grew from the seed of hatred.
During college, Andrew had only one friend, Mark. Mark was tall and handsome and his skin had just the perfect tan. But he was not a smug as almost all of his type tend to be. Mark was sensitive and caring. He connected with people easily.
And then, there was Nancy. Tall, elegant and no need to mention, breathtakingly beautiful. Andrew loved Nancy. It was love at first sight. But when it came to saying ‘I love you’ Andrew’s tongue froze. In fact when it came to saying anything to Nancy, everything about Andrew froze. Words left him in desert and his knees trembled. Mark knew this.
“Hey man, if you love her, then go and talk to her,” Mark would say.
“You know me, Mark. I can’t. I just can’t. What if she says no? Even worse, what if she just looks at me and rolls her eyes like who is this looser and walks away.”
“No she will not.”
“Yes, she will.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Look at me Mark? Why will somebody love me?”
“You are just fine Andrew. A little under confident, that’s all. And you ask, why will somebody love you? Come on man, you are the adventure sports champ,” Mark would say to boost Andrew’s confidence.
“Yes, but I am not captain of the university football team like you and that’s only what girls seem to care about,” Andrew’s standard reply.
One day when Mark and Andrew were sitting on a bench in the University Park. Nancy and her friends passed by and Andrew just kept gaping at her. But she was too busy talking with her friends to notice Andrew. Mark vigorously shook Andrew up. Andrew blushed. Mark shook his head and said, “Now I must do something or someday some lad will marry her and you will go mad. I know where she goes to learn Tango. You and I are going to join the same class.”
“But Mark I hate dancing.”
“You want her or not?”
“Well…”
“Then you listen to me and do just as I say.”
So they joined the dance institute. There Andrew met Mina. She was Nancy’s friend. Mina was exact antithesis of Nancy. Nancy was tall and slender. Mina was petite and plump. Nancy was candid and outspoken. Mina was shy and reserved. Nancy had dark eyes. Mina’s eyes were green. Big green eyes with dark pupils at the center. The pupils were encircled with light shades of green gradually blending into deeper shades of green around the edges. Rays of light green shot from the pupils on the iris. Like a corona round the dark pupil. They radiated certain clam warmth towards observer.
Mark used all his charm and when Mark decided, no girl could resist him. In the matter of minutes, they got friends with Nancy and Mina. The four of them started to go out together. In many ways Mina was like Andrew. She also didn’t like dancing much. They would start out dancing in pairs, Mina and Mark, Nancy and Andrew. But in the end it would end up as Nancy and Mark dancing, while Mina and Andrew sitting at tables, quietly sipping their drinks.
One day, Mark and Nancy came to Andrew’s apartment. They looked a bit nervous. Not talking as usual. Just beating about the bush. Andrew sensed something was not quite right. So he asked, “Hey what’s with you guys? Why are you so tense? Is there any problem?”
Nancy and Mark looked at each other. Nancy said, “Well Andrew, I want to tell you something.”
“Yes?”
“Look Andrew, we are together for quite a time now. But I think we, you and I are not compatible with each other. It’s me doing all the talking, you just listen. You see, we are sooooo different. Now look at Mark and me. We are sooooo alike. We just compliment each other in every way. Sooooo…”
“Sooooo?”
“So…” she didn’t say anything further. She just kept rolling at the ring on her left hand. That was when Andrew noticed Mark was wearing similar ring. He was devastated. “No! You didn’t …” Andrew exclaimed.
“Yes buddy,” Said Mark timidly. “Look you must understand…”
“No. I don’t want to understand.” Andrew shouted. He felt lava spring inside him. I was shaking wildly. He could have killed Mark right there. He tramped to the door and swung it wide open. They took the cue and went out hurriedly. Andrew slammed the door behind them.
For next seven days Andrew shut himself completely from the world. He just sat there in his apartment, drinking liters of wine and shading buckets of tears. When he was not drinking or crying, he was throwing things around. The apartment had become a filthy mess. Rotten half eaten sandwiches laid here and there.
Then one evening, when he was lying on the sofa, half sleeping and half conscious, he heard somebody rapping at the door.
“Andrew, I know you are in there. Open the door now or I am going to break it.”
It was Mina. Andrew had never heard her sounding so resolute. Andrew didn’t know how but he believed that she was capable of doing anything that day. He stood up. Every thing was spinning. It looked as though he was looking through a misty windshield. He staggered to the door and opened it.
“Whaaaaaat?” Andrew asked in slurred voice. He was barely able to keep his eyes open.
Mina just looked at him for two-three seconds, then pushed him aside and walked into the apartment. Suddenly her nostrils twitched. She waved her hand in front of her nose trying to clear the air.
“Oh my God! This place stinks!” Mina said. Then she went into the kitchen and fixed a hot cup of coffee. Without saying a word she thrust the mug in Andrew’s hand. While he was sipping the coffee, all the rotten sandwiches went into the wastebasket. Mina carefully collected the broken pieces of the porcelain and they too went into the wastebasket.
“Now its your turn,” she said. She took Andrew to the bathroom and bathed him with warm water. Then she made the bed for him and put him to sleep.
Next day when Andrew woke up, he was in a different apartment. It was cleaned. All the furniture was moved in the right places and was arranged, as it should be. There were fresh flowers in the flowerpot. Fresh curtains hanged on the windows. Andrew lived in that apartment for two years and it never felt as lively as that.
Seven days later Mina and Andrew were married. Later that year, Andrew finished college and he didn’t know what he wanted to do. He didn’t wanted to join Sky Software because that was exactly what legendary Scott Nash wanted.
“Why don’t you become a cyborg?” Mina asked Andrew.
Cyborgs were the in-thing those days. They were fast. They were quick and they never failed. That made them perfect counter weapons against terrorists who seemed to be mushrooming everywhere. You can’t get a job. Government is responsible. And blowing some innocent heads was the solution for many young men. Cyborgs were the perfect answer to these maniacs.
“Are you nuts Mina? A cyborg? Do you know what the requirements are? They don’t ask for a man. They ask for Superman,” Andrew said.
“You are a Superman Andrew. You just need to believe a bit more in yourself. Skating, river rafting, snow boarding, bungee jumping…. Tell me an adventure sport that you don’t know.”
“Yes, but they take BQ (Behavioral Quotient) tests too.”
“You will do good in those too. You have got brains. You just need to apply it a bit more. I know Andrew you can become a cyborg. You have it in you.”
Andrew believed her. That was how Mina was. She could make him believe anything. So Andrew started preparing for the entrance test for the cyborgs, which was scheduled after three months. He got himself a physical trainer. He was obsessed with it. For the first time in his life, someone expected something of him and he was not going to let Mina down.
As scheduled, Andrew reported at the test center accordingly. The test was supposed to last four days. First three days comprised challenging physical tasks, which would reduce the candidates from 3000-plus to 30. And on the fourth day there was the BQ test. This included different tasks from solving complex mathematical puzzles, to behavioral tests in which candidates were put in different scenarios to record their responses in challenging and tricky situations.
Andrew did very well on the first three days. In fact he finished third. But on the fourth day, it all went wrong. Andrew’s BQ turned out to be 148. The minimum qualifying score required was 150. He was disqualified.
Reason: propensity to solve matters by use of unnecessary violence.
Andrew went home wrecked. There he was standing in front of the apartment door for whole fifteen minutes. Trying to summon courage to put the key in the lock and turn it. The thought of facing Mina like that was unbearable.
‘What will she think of me?’
At last somehow he opened the door and went in. He was astounded by what he saw there. There was a big Cake in the middle of the room with ‘Congratulations’ written on it and behind it were standing three figures. Mina, Nancy and Mark. All of them wearing long golden pointed clown caps. Andrew said nothing. He just slumped on the sofa.
‘What are they doing here? They must knew that I would fail. They are just here to humiliate me. Hey looser, you are good for nothing. ’
“Andrew darling, what happened?” Mina came to him and tried to put her palm on his shoulder. Andrew jerked it away and yelled, “Don’t touch me, you bitch. You knew from the start that I would fail. That’s why you talked me into it. You just wanted to humiliate me in front of them.”
Mina was astonished. “No Andrew. No. I just wanted to reconcile…” And she started to cry. Nancy went to her and tried to cajole her. Mark said, “Andrew we were here to celebrate your suc…”
“Shut up, you scumbag. I know you damn well. You leave my house now or I will cut your throat and drink from it.”
Mark and Nancy left the apartment without saying a word further. Mina ran to the bedroom and slammed the door shut. For three days they didn’t say a word to each other. On the third day, Andrew received an email from the Academy saying that from his performance at the cyborg entrance test, they found him eligible to become a fighter pilot. And if he was ready, they were happy to take him. The silence in the house was unbearable and may be just to escape from it Andrew packed the bags and left the house without saying a word to Mina.
The air force academy was the best thing that ever happened to Andrew. He loved flying. To be free and to be high up in the sky, away from the world in which he was so unwanted. But during first two days he was burning like hell because of the guilt. On the third day it was unbearable. He knew he was not fair with Mina. Poor girl just wanted to reconcile the differences between Mark and him. But he hated Mark so deeply; not for marring Nancy but for betraying his trust and that to in such a way that Andrew was not able to trust anybody again. He emailed Mina immediately and told her where he was and asked for her forgiveness. Just as Mina received the email, she immediately asked for a video-conference. She was sobbing. The skin below her eyes was puffy. She was rubbing of tears from her cheeks with her palms. But with those tears there was also a pleasant smile on her face.
“Honey, my sweety pie, I am sorry. I am really sorry.” Andrew said.
“Andrew, you don’t need to say sorry to me darling. I forgave you a long time ago. I was so concerned about you. But now you are fine and that means everything to me.”
After that day, the training was sheer joy and yet Andrew wanted to finish it early. On the last day of his training Andrew was flying in his fighter jet. Feeling the speed. Feeling the clouds zooming behind. Feeling the thrill and excitement. Excitement of flying was there but there was a greater excitement yet. Tomorrow he will be with Mina. Tomorrow he will be with his Sweety Pie. ‘Oh, I love this,’ Andrew thought. But happiness and Andrew never traveled together for a long time. Happiness always walked out on Andrew in the middle. And this time also it was going to end soon.
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Generally marriages are built on foundation of love. Andrew’s was different. His marriage grew from the seed of hatred.
During college, Andrew had only one friend, Mark. Mark was tall and handsome and his skin had just the perfect tan. But he was not a smug as almost all of his type tend to be. Mark was sensitive and caring. He connected with people easily.
And then, there was Nancy. Tall, elegant and no need to mention, breathtakingly beautiful. Andrew loved Nancy. It was love at first sight. But when it came to saying ‘I love you’ Andrew’s tongue froze. In fact when it came to saying anything to Nancy, everything about Andrew froze. Words left him in desert and his knees trembled. Mark knew this.
“Hey man, if you love her, then go and talk to her,” Mark would say.
“You know me, Mark. I can’t. I just can’t. What if she says no? Even worse, what if she just looks at me and rolls her eyes like who is this looser and walks away.”
“No she will not.”
“Yes, she will.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Look at me Mark? Why will somebody love me?”
“You are just fine Andrew. A little under confident, that’s all. And you ask, why will somebody love you? Come on man, you are the adventure sports champ,” Mark would say to boost Andrew’s confidence.
“Yes, but I am not captain of the university football team like you and that’s only what girls seem to care about,” Andrew’s standard reply.
One day when Mark and Andrew were sitting on a bench in the University Park. Nancy and her friends passed by and Andrew just kept gaping at her. But she was too busy talking with her friends to notice Andrew. Mark vigorously shook Andrew up. Andrew blushed. Mark shook his head and said, “Now I must do something or someday some lad will marry her and you will go mad. I know where she goes to learn Tango. You and I are going to join the same class.”
“But Mark I hate dancing.”
“You want her or not?”
“Well…”
“Then you listen to me and do just as I say.”
So they joined the dance institute. There Andrew met Mina. She was Nancy’s friend. Mina was exact antithesis of Nancy. Nancy was tall and slender. Mina was petite and plump. Nancy was candid and outspoken. Mina was shy and reserved. Nancy had dark eyes. Mina’s eyes were green. Big green eyes with dark pupils at the center. The pupils were encircled with light shades of green gradually blending into deeper shades of green around the edges. Rays of light green shot from the pupils on the iris. Like a corona round the dark pupil. They radiated certain clam warmth towards observer.
Mark used all his charm and when Mark decided, no girl could resist him. In the matter of minutes, they got friends with Nancy and Mina. The four of them started to go out together. In many ways Mina was like Andrew. She also didn’t like dancing much. They would start out dancing in pairs, Mina and Mark, Nancy and Andrew. But in the end it would end up as Nancy and Mark dancing, while Mina and Andrew sitting at tables, quietly sipping their drinks.
One day, Mark and Nancy came to Andrew’s apartment. They looked a bit nervous. Not talking as usual. Just beating about the bush. Andrew sensed something was not quite right. So he asked, “Hey what’s with you guys? Why are you so tense? Is there any problem?”
Nancy and Mark looked at each other. Nancy said, “Well Andrew, I want to tell you something.”
“Yes?”
“Look Andrew, we are together for quite a time now. But I think we, you and I are not compatible with each other. It’s me doing all the talking, you just listen. You see, we are sooooo different. Now look at Mark and me. We are sooooo alike. We just compliment each other in every way. Sooooo…”
“Sooooo?”
“So…” she didn’t say anything further. She just kept rolling at the ring on her left hand. That was when Andrew noticed Mark was wearing similar ring. He was devastated. “No! You didn’t …” Andrew exclaimed.
“Yes buddy,” Said Mark timidly. “Look you must understand…”
“No. I don’t want to understand.” Andrew shouted. He felt lava spring inside him. I was shaking wildly. He could have killed Mark right there. He tramped to the door and swung it wide open. They took the cue and went out hurriedly. Andrew slammed the door behind them.
For next seven days Andrew shut himself completely from the world. He just sat there in his apartment, drinking liters of wine and shading buckets of tears. When he was not drinking or crying, he was throwing things around. The apartment had become a filthy mess. Rotten half eaten sandwiches laid here and there.
Then one evening, when he was lying on the sofa, half sleeping and half conscious, he heard somebody rapping at the door.
“Andrew, I know you are in there. Open the door now or I am going to break it.”
It was Mina. Andrew had never heard her sounding so resolute. Andrew didn’t know how but he believed that she was capable of doing anything that day. He stood up. Every thing was spinning. It looked as though he was looking through a misty windshield. He staggered to the door and opened it.
“Whaaaaaat?” Andrew asked in slurred voice. He was barely able to keep his eyes open.
Mina just looked at him for two-three seconds, then pushed him aside and walked into the apartment. Suddenly her nostrils twitched. She waved her hand in front of her nose trying to clear the air.
“Oh my God! This place stinks!” Mina said. Then she went into the kitchen and fixed a hot cup of coffee. Without saying a word she thrust the mug in Andrew’s hand. While he was sipping the coffee, all the rotten sandwiches went into the wastebasket. Mina carefully collected the broken pieces of the porcelain and they too went into the wastebasket.
“Now its your turn,” she said. She took Andrew to the bathroom and bathed him with warm water. Then she made the bed for him and put him to sleep.
Next day when Andrew woke up, he was in a different apartment. It was cleaned. All the furniture was moved in the right places and was arranged, as it should be. There were fresh flowers in the flowerpot. Fresh curtains hanged on the windows. Andrew lived in that apartment for two years and it never felt as lively as that.
Seven days later Mina and Andrew were married. Later that year, Andrew finished college and he didn’t know what he wanted to do. He didn’t wanted to join Sky Software because that was exactly what legendary Scott Nash wanted.
“Why don’t you become a cyborg?” Mina asked Andrew.
Cyborgs were the in-thing those days. They were fast. They were quick and they never failed. That made them perfect counter weapons against terrorists who seemed to be mushrooming everywhere. You can’t get a job. Government is responsible. And blowing some innocent heads was the solution for many young men. Cyborgs were the perfect answer to these maniacs.
“Are you nuts Mina? A cyborg? Do you know what the requirements are? They don’t ask for a man. They ask for Superman,” Andrew said.
“You are a Superman Andrew. You just need to believe a bit more in yourself. Skating, river rafting, snow boarding, bungee jumping…. Tell me an adventure sport that you don’t know.”
“Yes, but they take BQ (Behavioral Quotient) tests too.”
“You will do good in those too. You have got brains. You just need to apply it a bit more. I know Andrew you can become a cyborg. You have it in you.”
Andrew believed her. That was how Mina was. She could make him believe anything. So Andrew started preparing for the entrance test for the cyborgs, which was scheduled after three months. He got himself a physical trainer. He was obsessed with it. For the first time in his life, someone expected something of him and he was not going to let Mina down.
As scheduled, Andrew reported at the test center accordingly. The test was supposed to last four days. First three days comprised challenging physical tasks, which would reduce the candidates from 3000-plus to 30. And on the fourth day there was the BQ test. This included different tasks from solving complex mathematical puzzles, to behavioral tests in which candidates were put in different scenarios to record their responses in challenging and tricky situations.
Andrew did very well on the first three days. In fact he finished third. But on the fourth day, it all went wrong. Andrew’s BQ turned out to be 148. The minimum qualifying score required was 150. He was disqualified.
Reason: propensity to solve matters by use of unnecessary violence.
Andrew went home wrecked. There he was standing in front of the apartment door for whole fifteen minutes. Trying to summon courage to put the key in the lock and turn it. The thought of facing Mina like that was unbearable.
‘What will she think of me?’
At last somehow he opened the door and went in. He was astounded by what he saw there. There was a big Cake in the middle of the room with ‘Congratulations’ written on it and behind it were standing three figures. Mina, Nancy and Mark. All of them wearing long golden pointed clown caps. Andrew said nothing. He just slumped on the sofa.
‘What are they doing here? They must knew that I would fail. They are just here to humiliate me. Hey looser, you are good for nothing. ’
“Andrew darling, what happened?” Mina came to him and tried to put her palm on his shoulder. Andrew jerked it away and yelled, “Don’t touch me, you bitch. You knew from the start that I would fail. That’s why you talked me into it. You just wanted to humiliate me in front of them.”
Mina was astonished. “No Andrew. No. I just wanted to reconcile…” And she started to cry. Nancy went to her and tried to cajole her. Mark said, “Andrew we were here to celebrate your suc…”
“Shut up, you scumbag. I know you damn well. You leave my house now or I will cut your throat and drink from it.”
Mark and Nancy left the apartment without saying a word further. Mina ran to the bedroom and slammed the door shut. For three days they didn’t say a word to each other. On the third day, Andrew received an email from the Academy saying that from his performance at the cyborg entrance test, they found him eligible to become a fighter pilot. And if he was ready, they were happy to take him. The silence in the house was unbearable and may be just to escape from it Andrew packed the bags and left the house without saying a word to Mina.
The air force academy was the best thing that ever happened to Andrew. He loved flying. To be free and to be high up in the sky, away from the world in which he was so unwanted. But during first two days he was burning like hell because of the guilt. On the third day it was unbearable. He knew he was not fair with Mina. Poor girl just wanted to reconcile the differences between Mark and him. But he hated Mark so deeply; not for marring Nancy but for betraying his trust and that to in such a way that Andrew was not able to trust anybody again. He emailed Mina immediately and told her where he was and asked for her forgiveness. Just as Mina received the email, she immediately asked for a video-conference. She was sobbing. The skin below her eyes was puffy. She was rubbing of tears from her cheeks with her palms. But with those tears there was also a pleasant smile on her face.
“Honey, my sweety pie, I am sorry. I am really sorry.” Andrew said.
“Andrew, you don’t need to say sorry to me darling. I forgave you a long time ago. I was so concerned about you. But now you are fine and that means everything to me.”
After that day, the training was sheer joy and yet Andrew wanted to finish it early. On the last day of his training Andrew was flying in his fighter jet. Feeling the speed. Feeling the clouds zooming behind. Feeling the thrill and excitement. Excitement of flying was there but there was a greater excitement yet. Tomorrow he will be with Mina. Tomorrow he will be with his Sweety Pie. ‘Oh, I love this,’ Andrew thought. But happiness and Andrew never traveled together for a long time. Happiness always walked out on Andrew in the middle. And this time also it was going to end soon.
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The Lady with Green Eyes - I
“I want to buy a robot as a housemaid,” Andrew said to the salesman.
The salesman ran an eye over Andrew. What he saw was interesting. There in front him was standing a tall man, not strikingly handsome but amusing indeed. How many times you get a customer with a robotic arm? The salesman tightened the knot of his tie and flashed his special ‘I am your friend’ grin showing his bleached milk white teeth.
“Which model do you like?” Asked Mr. White Teeth.
“I heard a lot about new C360s,” replied Andrew. “Everybody says they are cool.”
“Aha, C360! The latest,” said the salesman. ”Excellent choice. It’s a unique achievement for Robosys. You know, it can recognize from different 300,000 emotional and physical states of its owner and from that it creates the best suitable reply. An amazing feat, isn’t it? And there is more. They can learn new things just by observing others performing the tasks. But what’s cool is that they can be great companions.”
A companion was what Andrew really wanted. Before that he never used a robot at his home. All those mechanical ‘Yes sir’ and ‘as you wish sir’ kind of replies drove him crazy.
“It’s final then. I will buy a C360,” Said Andrew.
“As you wish sir. Will you please identify yourself?” The salesman motioned towards the retina scanner. Andrew placed his chin on the curved rest of the machine and looked through the retina scanner. A laser passed over his retina and within seconds the salesman was looking at Government record of Mr. Andrew Nash. Along with that the computer program searched the Internet and also presented a brief summary about Andrew. Multimillionaire heir to the software tycoon Mr. Scott Nash, ex-air force pilot, lost a hand and both legs in a military expedition, history of domestic violence, a notorious divorce, served 3 years in the Central Prison. At this, suddenly the salesman’s smile vanished. He eyed Andrew suspiciously.
Knowing perfectly well what caused such a sudden attitude change, Andrew smiled at him shamelessly. The salesman smiled back but this one seemed a bit contrived. Again a nervous touch to the knot of the tie. “Hum… Hum… Sir, I will suggest a regular robot for you. You know, the C360s have shown a certain propensity towards not so pleasant reactions when treated unfairly,” said the salesman. “Of course nothing serious,” he added as an afterthought. “You know, Robosys products are perfectly safe and secure.”
“I saw your new model in the ‘Your companion forever’ commercial,” Andrew said. “I think C360 is perfect for me. I want only that one.” Andrew slipped two 100-dollar bills across the table and winked suggestively. That did the trick. Suddenly the ‘I am your friend’ grin came back.
“Of course. Of course. Whatever you want sir. At Robosys, customer is the boss.”
That was the start of a new relationship for Andrew.
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The salesman ran an eye over Andrew. What he saw was interesting. There in front him was standing a tall man, not strikingly handsome but amusing indeed. How many times you get a customer with a robotic arm? The salesman tightened the knot of his tie and flashed his special ‘I am your friend’ grin showing his bleached milk white teeth.
“Which model do you like?” Asked Mr. White Teeth.
“I heard a lot about new C360s,” replied Andrew. “Everybody says they are cool.”
“Aha, C360! The latest,” said the salesman. ”Excellent choice. It’s a unique achievement for Robosys. You know, it can recognize from different 300,000 emotional and physical states of its owner and from that it creates the best suitable reply. An amazing feat, isn’t it? And there is more. They can learn new things just by observing others performing the tasks. But what’s cool is that they can be great companions.”
A companion was what Andrew really wanted. Before that he never used a robot at his home. All those mechanical ‘Yes sir’ and ‘as you wish sir’ kind of replies drove him crazy.
“It’s final then. I will buy a C360,” Said Andrew.
“As you wish sir. Will you please identify yourself?” The salesman motioned towards the retina scanner. Andrew placed his chin on the curved rest of the machine and looked through the retina scanner. A laser passed over his retina and within seconds the salesman was looking at Government record of Mr. Andrew Nash. Along with that the computer program searched the Internet and also presented a brief summary about Andrew. Multimillionaire heir to the software tycoon Mr. Scott Nash, ex-air force pilot, lost a hand and both legs in a military expedition, history of domestic violence, a notorious divorce, served 3 years in the Central Prison. At this, suddenly the salesman’s smile vanished. He eyed Andrew suspiciously.
Knowing perfectly well what caused such a sudden attitude change, Andrew smiled at him shamelessly. The salesman smiled back but this one seemed a bit contrived. Again a nervous touch to the knot of the tie. “Hum… Hum… Sir, I will suggest a regular robot for you. You know, the C360s have shown a certain propensity towards not so pleasant reactions when treated unfairly,” said the salesman. “Of course nothing serious,” he added as an afterthought. “You know, Robosys products are perfectly safe and secure.”
“I saw your new model in the ‘Your companion forever’ commercial,” Andrew said. “I think C360 is perfect for me. I want only that one.” Andrew slipped two 100-dollar bills across the table and winked suggestively. That did the trick. Suddenly the ‘I am your friend’ grin came back.
“Of course. Of course. Whatever you want sir. At Robosys, customer is the boss.”
That was the start of a new relationship for Andrew.
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