Kit

We left too early. I kept telling Eleanora that, just before we left. She wouldn't listen. So now we sat in the car as the rain poured torrentially. It obscured the world through the windshield, warping and distorting shapes. Outside, a security droid rushed out of the rain to the safety of an awning, irritation written on his face at the sudden pour. He didn't pay attention to our car parked on against the curb, a few blocks from the market. Eleanora and I sat perfectly still, not speaking as we stared at our surroundings. Eventually, the security droid grew bored or frightened of the rain and crept inside.

"Should we go now?" Eleanora asked, breaking the long stretch of silence. I looked at my watch casually, as if the time was actually relevant. It was a human habit, one I was trying to slip into if we were to go through the market unscathed. It would be hard to pick the both of us out as androids at first. As long as we stayed cloaked in our gray garb and made our movements clumsy, we could pass as human easily. No one would look for black digits on our throats. But this crowd, this market in particular, was more hostile toward android visitors. They saw our presence as dangerous. We would never be welcomed.

Best to stay hidden then.

"I suppose," I sighed and pulled the key from the ignition. I gritted my teeth against going out in the rain, but opened the door without hesitation. I kept the collar of my canvas jacket pressed tightly against my neck and my cap pulled down. Even covered, I could feel the water trickling on to my skin, slithering down my face and my chest. It went against everything to be out in the rain like this, to be so exposed. But we had no choice. We had to blend.

Eleanora looked just as irritated as I did as we crossed the street, rain splashing her face and exposed fingers. She yelped when a passing car splashed us, droplets spraying across our gray pants and soaking our shoes.

"May I remind you that this was your idea?" I joked, amused by her expression.

She practically growled in response and charged ahead of me. She clutched the supplies tightly against herself, hidden under her coat. It contained some array of needles and basic medicine. Some painkillers, maybe some penicillin. Nothing of too much consequence, but important enough for Eleanora to want to deliver.

I only brought things to trade. Some batteries. An old clock. Matches I found buried in the kitchen pantry. Nothing of consequence, not enough to make me or my face memorable, but enough to start a conversation. That's all I planned to do, talk to the people at the market and get a read on the community. Mine for secrets.

The market was in an old warehouse with metal walls and cement floors. It never housed manufacturing of any type, that was obvious by the cleanliness. Victor had mentioned a memory of it as a furniture store, or "maybe something for home improvement." He wasn't really that sure. Regardless, it wasn't the building that was alive like my house, but the buzz of a crowd and people that squeaked by each other, speaking in voices that fought for dominance practically hummed with life. It brought me great joy, to see people still gathering, to see them working together still, in spite of everything.

I focused on the whispers as I glided through the people, though I stuck to the outskirts, hiding my face in the shadows from the few fluorescents.

"-I'm not going to take 4 of those for 5 of my teeth-"

"-Old man's probably going kick the bucket some time soon, lord knows what our owners will do without-"

"-did you hear about the raid?"

That stopped my movement through the shadows. I moved closer into the crowd, standing in front of a table full of rusted gears and questionable electronics. I pawed through, pretending to look as I focused on the conversation happening a few feet from me.

"Yes, it was awful. Someone I work with was there and he was shipped right off to Dead World, without even a second glance. Must've been a second offense or something," the voice said. It belonged to a woman, that much I could tell from the tone. Another woman was asking the questions.

"I don't know, I think the city is just cracking down harder on contraband and illegal gatherings like this. I heard they even arrested a few androids that were there." The other woman responded, fear in her words.

"Right and they probably got off with a warning," the other woman scoffed.

"I wouldn't be so sure. I've heard that some androids, if they can't get along with the rules get wiped. They come out as practically brand new machines with only the rules of the city left in their brains, no memory of their lives before."

"That's awful, I wonder-"

I was forced to stop listening when a voice interrupted me.

"You gonna buy anything or just touch shit all day? Because there's a fee for touching shit." A creaky voice said. I almost laughed, instead I looked up and smiled, matching the creaky voice to a creaky man, a few decades younger than Victor, but aged almost as much. His body was thin and his skin clung to his bones with a noticeable sag. His eyes looked a little yellow.

"I'm looking to trade, actually," I said and dug a hand into the pocket of my jacket. I fished out some batteries and an old cellphone. I held them out in my palm and the man looked at them, squinting. His bent fingers grasped the cell phone and he brought it closer to his eyes, curious but also in awe. He probably hadn't seen a device like that since he was a child. I had the luxury of all sorts of old devices that Victor kept in boxes in the basement. This one was one of a dozen random electronics, no one would notice it was ever missing.

"It doesn't work, unfortunately," I explained.

He looked away from the phone and narrowed his eyes at me. "We don't have any use for things like this anymore, boy." He held it back to return it but I kept my fingers tightly in my pockets.

"You can keep it then. Maybe something in it can be salvaged for some other..." I glanced around his stuff before settling on the word, "project."

"Whatever. Now is there anything I can trade you for those batteries?" The man asked, changing the subject. His eyes were fixed on them, hungry. I glanced at them in my palm. I decided it would be a good idea to trade with this man, cement the deal and ensure the phone got travelling to someone who could fix it.

"Sure," I agreed. "How about some copper wiring?"

It seemed like a good purchase. I could easily see the spindle on the table, hidden under a few other lumps of wires. Plus, copper wiring was useful for things around the house. Electrical projects. Booby traps.

"Alright," the man agreed, too exuberant. He was getting a good deal. I let him enjoy it.

"Are you sure you want to give me the phone?" The man asked, suddenly uneasy. He spun it around his fingers, rubbing it nervously.

"Yes, of course. I have no use for it. Think of it as a collectible." I said, trying to convince him.

"Where did you get it from?"

"My father," I said, the lie slipping out easily. Well, it wasn't a complete lie since it had belonged to Victor at one point, but I found it in a box in the basement one day when I was counting things down there. I asked Victor if he wanted it but he told me it was broken. Gratefully, I pocketed it that day, taking it back to my room and memorizing everything about it.

"He liked to collect things," I continued.

"Well, I suppose I can understand that," the creaky man laughed, a rasping sound in his lungs. He gazed at his collection in front of him. All of the things he had were useful... at one point.

"Hey, Rocky," a voice sounded from next to me. I looked to the voice to find a plain-looking girl. Seven black digits twisted around her throat. There were tattooed years ago, evident by the fade into a much duller black. It identified her as human, tracked her movement through the work system. Instantly, I felt sick looking at the numbers. The marks were Godwin's signature, the idea pulled straight from a history book of atrocities.

"If you'll just excuse me for a moment," Rocky said and then shifted so he could speak with the girl off to the side. She held a leather pouch in front of her and started pulling electronic components out. They spoke to each other in hushed words, but I could hear them all too perfectly.

"I fixed quite a few of these fuses for you, but I was unable to do anything with that pacemaker, I'm sorry," she said, looking at him with sincerity.

"That's okay, kid, it was a long shot anyway," Rocky murmured and smiled a sad, toothless grin.

"Do you have any batteries?" She asked, hopeful. Rocky nodded but then quickly glanced at me.

"Yes, I'm trying to finish up with that boy over there, he's got some. But I can't give you too many," Rocky explained, pulling his eyes quickly away from me and back to the girl. She didn't dare lookat me, she kept her eyes locked on Rocky and the components in her hands.

"Two would be more than enough," she sighed. "And you wouldn't happen to know anyone with painkillers, would you?"

Rocky sighed and shook his head. She nodded, understanding but clearly disappointed. Rocky motioned for her to wait and he returned to me.

"So batteries for the wiring?" He offered, holding up the copper.

"You've got a deal," I said and exchanged goods with him. Then, fingers wrapped around my left bicep. I turned my gaze to see Eleanora, her eyes alight.

"Ready?" She whispered. I only nodded in response, looking back up to Rocky, and then one final glance at the plain girl. She stared at Eleanora and I with more than wonder, with furious suspicion. I backed away slowly.

"Thanks again," I murmured and we dissolved back into the crowd. I had successfully planted the phone. If it ever came back to life, I could check the tracker on it later to see where it ended up. But the girl's gaze had me concerned as Eleanora and I weaved through the crowd, carefully not to touch any of their warm bodies.

Then, there was a tap on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but I was told you might have pain pills," she said. It was the same girl. Up close, she looked even more plain, dressed in gray clothes with forgettable features. But I was unnerved by the way her eyes narrowed slightly as she took us in. Curiosity rolled off of her, mixed with something hostile. It could've been a biological reaction, unconscious knowledge that we were different. Or maybe I was being paranoid.

"No, sorry. Fresh out," I said and dragged Eleanora with me away from the girl. I didn't even look back as I hurried us out of the market. Just as we approached the car, I heard footsteps behind us. I swirled around to find the plain girl following us. She didn't even mind the rain that poured heavily on us or that she could be tackled by a guard at any point. She looked so human and vulnerable.

"I'm serious, we can't help you. Please go back inside," I begged her.

"Please, I saw her with a medical bag," she said pointing at Ele, coming closer. I stepped back into the car and unlocked it.

"Get in Ele," I ordered, turning my face to the side. The passenger door opened and closed. I was still stuck in the rain and every part of my body was screaming to get out of it, but my feet stayed rooted.

"You have a car?" She asked. What a ridiculous question to ask. I nodded.

"If I give you the pills, will you please go back inside?" I said, trying to make my voice loud enough to be heard over the rain, but not too loud so that she could hear the synthetic perfection.

"Yes," she whispered. I sighed, nervous and angry as I ripped open the driver door and leaned across.

"Give me the pain pills," I ordered Eleanora. She looked at me suspiciously before fishing them out of her red bag and placing the small baggy of white pills into my palm.

"I sure hope you know what you're doing," Eleanora said viciously. I ignored her and slammed the door shut. I tossed the baggy to the girl and she caught it, surprised.

"Thank you." She said and reached out to touch me. Her hand landed on the arm of coat and a small electric jolt when through me. It was like being shocked. I felt the sudden burst in my components, singing with the surplus of energy. The sensation was so odd, so shocking to my system that I couldn't even move as her fingers rested gently on my coat, the tiniest fragment of her skin touching the exposed skin of my arm. I was overwhelmed with the heaviest feeling that washed over my body and brain. I couldn't speak, I couldn't writhe. I could barely think past just experiencing the sensation. But then, she quickly removed her fingers and my existence snapped back into me sharply.

She must've felt something too since she moved away so quickly, looking at her hand then up to my face. Without giving her a chance to say anything, I opened the car door and got in. I started the engine and sped away, the girl still stood in the street as I watched her fade in my mirror. I wished she would go inside.

"What the hell was that about?"

"Nothing," I murmured, though I wasn't sure. I felt shaken, unlike myself. Was it possible for an android to disassociate?

"You're going to get us wiped," Eleanora said cynically.