"Your mind should literally have a backlog of things, from how to boil an egg, to changing a tire, and even work for a space station; but only because you have all of this rattling around, it doesn't mean you know how to apply it. So, in that case, I propose going out." Alma said, David was sitting back on the table he had woken up on, legs bent over the end and his hands in his lap. He had sat and watched Alma pace around before pulling out the stool and dragging it around to sit in front of him. 

Blinking slowly he looked about before looking back at her. "Where?"

Alma scrunched her nose up in thought. "What would you like to see, David?" She smiled, why not give him the freedom of choice? He'd eventually see most of the city anyway. There was no point her dragging him around it now. He looked down at the ground and shrugged. There were so many options that he could voice. "How about we start here? Seeing as how you'll be here the most. It's best you know your way around it." Alma suggested. It wasn't like he was actually going to have freedom to just wander off without a reason to. She frowned slowly, something like him with free will might've been pushing it slightly. Who knew how an android with emotions was going to be received let alone free will. This seemed to cause him to look not so deep in thought. Honestly Alma didn't know a simple question could've caused such heavy thinking. Standing she shed her lab coat and pulled on her jacket, she grabbed her bag and gestured to the door. "Come on, David. You have a world to explore, well, a building that is." She smiled, he straightened up before slipping down and walking over to her.

He gave 6 a sidelong look before reaching her side. "Has he ever known anything else other than this room?" He asked with a small frown. He couldn't help but feel something which he presumed was sympathy for the droid. He couldn't really think of being shut away in one room, all day, every day of the week, was that what life was for 6?

Alma leaned against the door frame and nodded slowly. "Did you want him to come along too? He probably won't have the same sort of reactions as you do. But if you want him to come too, he can." Honestly if David could see himself bonding a little with the other David, then that'd be super. Integrating with others was as important as integrating with humans. Not only that, Alma wouldn't always be here. Forming relationships was important, if he could find himself branching out then that would've been even better. 

"It seems like a wasted effort, when said like that." David said rather flatly. If 6 wasn't going to find the moment pleasant, then what was the point of him coming along? Though physically appearing the same, David did have to remind himself that mentally, or at least at the source of their mainframe, they weren't. One little piece of hardware made a rift between them. To the point that David actually found he didn't really want to spend time with 6, Alma was much easier to socialise with and understand, to a point, that sarcasm thing though was strange to him. 

"Suit yourself!" Alma said while exiting the room and waiting for him to follow. He did eventually, looking rather guardedly down each side of the corridor. It was a long stretching structure with many other rooms leading off from it. Even from where he stood, David could spy people busying around. 

"How many floors does this building have?" He walked after her, his simple canvas shoes making the slightest sounds against the tiled floor. 

"Too many to count. There's medical, robotics, which you find yourself in now, gardening...stuff, actually!" At this she turned and walked backwards looking up at him with a smile. "They've got a biogarden here, it's really interesting actually." Alma turned back around and hit the button for the elevator. "They use the space to discover if there's any ways to prolong the life of certain plants, or rather vegetables and things which people eat. Sure, there's experiments with plants and some hybrid plants being made, or whatever, but...I've lost the point." To be honest, it was a department she didn't know much about. Much like those down there probably only had a limited knowledge of what she did up here in robotics.  

"But you think I might find it interesting?" David couldn't help but smile down at the shorter woman by his side. She pouted slowly and nodded before stepping into the elevator when it arrived. 

She waited for him to follow and pushed the button. The elevator got a good look around by David before sighing, clearly it didn't interest him much. But then who could be interested by them? The background music was annoying and the bright lights hurt. Eventually though the floor came up and she walked out and he followed closely behind. She didn't know anyone in this department. Not that she knew many upstairs...she tended to keep to herself, that's how she liked it. No interfering people nosing in. She looked to the side when she noticed that he'd gone and had walked over to the hydrogardens, she crossed her arms and just watched him explore this section. So flowers seemed to catch his eye? He soon disappeared and Alma looked about before walking over to the side and sitting down against the wall. 

Leave him to it, he'd never seen something like this before. He was bound to be like a kid in a candy store. She had no intentions of hurrying him up, he could take however long he wanted. She shut her eyes and leaned her head back against the wall. Actually it was very peaceful down here. It wasn't until finally stopping that she realised how truly tired she was. She'd spent nearly every hour of the day working away on this project. She'd had numerous meetings with Peter Weyland, and accepted his prompts and opinions. He didn't want David's appearance to change, he seemed almost fond of the blonde hair and blue eyes, maybe because there was a very strange similarity to his daughter, Meredith, not that she found any consolation whatsoever in a synthetic looking like he could pass off as her brother. That went down like a lead balloon.

The blonde woman was rather scary, to a point. Alma didn't get intimidated by people but Meredith was a special case. Cold blue eyes, blonde hair always neatly tied and over her back. She presented herself as a pretty stone cold businesswoman, and she certainly was that. She was quite ruthless, to an extent. And Alma had witnessed more than one squabble between father and daughter. She dreaded the time where David would meet her. She'd been horrible and spiteful to all the other Davids. Only now it'd be worse because he had a concept of emotions. He might not be able to feel them. But he could understand and display them. 

She shuddered, "Are you cold, Miss?" She jumped and opened her eyes. David slowly crouched and sat by her side. He was so silent in his approach, rather like a cat that had snuck up on a mouse she couldn't help but jump when she heard his voice. She took it that he'd finished exploring or had got bored. She hoped he didn't have a short attention span and got bored very quickly.

"David...please tell me you didn't pick that? You can't do that," Alma said instead when she noticed a small yellow orchid like flower in his hands. 

"It was already picked."

"Uh-huh, what did I say about lying?" David frowned and looked at her despondently then. Alma smiled and waved a hand at him, "Just keep it hidden when we leave. They don't tend to let things leave the floor. It's just a flower, I can't see any problem with that." What harm could come from him keeping it? It wasn't dangerous. It was just a flower. "So, you like it here?"

"Yes, it's quiet, and interesting."

"Are you happy?" Alma shut her eyes again and leaned back. The expression he had on his face was one of content happiness. He had a pleased smile on his face as he turned the fragile plant in his hands. 

"Yes," he replied and looked to the side at her. "Are you tired?"

"Knackered."

"We can leave the tour, or exploration."

"Nah," Alma's eyes slowly opened and she turned her face to look at him. "It's quite fun watching you, in a really non-creepy way. Everything just seems so fascinating to you."
"Because everything is new to me."

"Ah," Alma slowly stood and brushed herself down. "Is that to say that once you know everything in this building you'll be bored?"

David tilted his head in thought. He looked around before standing up and looking back at her. "I can access the blueprints to this building."

Alma frowned, "That's making exploration irrelevant then!"

"No, I don't believe so." David said while smiling down at her. "Because exploring without an idea of where to go is fun." He could find directions easily enough, but he avoided doing so because she seemed quite up for him finding his way on his own. 

Alma smiled, "Fun, huh?" An android who found fun in exploring, whatever could be next? She had to admit it was funny really. So far honestly, David was being quite the surprise. He was easily outdoing any formed opinions she had before his awakening. 

David nodded and extended his hand. Alma looked at the flower in his hand before taking it slowly and looking it over. It was white, mainly, not yellow, the yellow seemed to bleed into it from the tips. He smiled rather happily with himself while watching her reaction. She seemed lost in thought yet there was definitely a thankful smile on her face. David blinked quickly a few times, he did something good? Making someone else happy was an interesting feeling. He quite liked seeing Alma happy, actually. She had woken him up, she had tried already to make him feel both at ease and accepted; if a little flower that he did admittedly pick do that, then he saw no harm in it, and he also wouldn't mind repaying the kindness more.

——

"It is amazing really, the jump between technological advances. Do you know who I am, David?"

"You are Peter Weyland, sir." David turned his head to look towards the man who was addressing him. Nearing old age meant that the once strong and independent leader of this company was reduced more times to a wheelchair than he liked; but even still David could see the once proud and determined man still lingering on the surface. There was something in his dark eyes as he glanced David's way, though time was having an affect on him, he was by no way giving up and retiring; much to his daughter's displeasure it seemed. 

The expression on her face as David had first caught sight of her was one of displeasure he guessed. He didn't know, it was such a hard look to figure out. She looked at him like he was something she'd scraped off of her shoe, and he looked at her truly confused. So far life had been confusing, and it didn't seem to want to lessen anymore. 

"Very good, very good!" He seemed more than pleased with David knowing who he was. How could he not? Before coming to this meeting Alma had basically crammed so much information into him, not literally but she had given him a brush up on the man who was her boss and basically his creator. Alma might've been the one to wake him, and the one to aid in creating the thing which made him so close to human, but he was of this man's imagination first; therefore as such Peter Weyland was as close to a father figure as David was ever going to get. That didn't make Alma a motherly figure. Because that would be weird. He would like to class her as a friend, and so far the only real one he had. Not that David had met anyone else really. "Do you know why you are here?"

"To see what progress has been made. To see if I am likely to be more of a success than the 6 line; to see if I am safe to be replicated." David said rather robotically. There wasn't much point avoiding the plane and simple truth. Weyland Corp had promised the world a new android synthetic line, he was the beginning of that. But before anymore could even come into existence, they did need to make sure he was up to code and meeting health and safety regulations. 

"What are your main objectives?"

David frowned slowly. "To help where needed," he replied at length. He hadn't got any main objectives at the moment so he guessed this question was just a general broad thing. "I can do jobs which people may struggle with. I can also go to places which may be dangerous for humans." He didn't exactly have the problem of lacking in oxygen and suffocating, or even breaking any bones. He tilted his head slowly, he would surely register the feeling of pain though, right? Pain didn't seem like an enjoyable thing. David wanted to avoid pain at all costs.  

"You can go, David." Weyland simply dismissed him. He nodded and bid a farewell to both him and his daughter before leaving the room. Since first having that tour which didn't seem to really go very far with Alma, he had been exploring the building when she wasn't around. She only wasn't around when she went home. He now had full knowledge of this building and where everything was; accessing blueprints certainly proved useful. He didn't exactly want to go exploring and get lost. 

So, with ease he managed to get back down to the small space he'd actually grown to really see as home, he didn't know anything else. Alma looked up and away from the table. "What are you doing?" David shut the door and walked over. 6 was sitting with his arm on the table between them, and she was seemingly holding some sort of tool. 

"Someone got a little too close to a saw." Alma said. She gave 6 one simple task of cutting metal and look what happened! She could've sworn he was either malfunctioning or he did secretly possess emotions like 8 and was purposely doing stuff like this to avoid work, this wasn't the first time she was having to reattach a finger. And let's be honest, who had ever heard of a clumsy android?

David frowned and sat down to watch. It was curious to see all the small leads and wires which came out of the stump and the finger. He blinked slowly and watched Alma work, he had never really watched her work before, but she was fast and careful and seemed to look to 6 as if he was going to react to feeling vast amounts of pain. Despite not being human, David hadn't seen anyone else who treated androids as if they were. But yet again, David hadn't met many people. 

Thinking of such, "I don't think Miss Vickers likes me."

"She doesn't like anyone." Was Alma's simple reply as she patted 6's hand. "If you cut your finger off again, please just...I don't know, actually no I do: don't do it again, go on," she smiled and nodded, David watched as the other droid simply stood and moved away. 

"She doesn't like you either?" David asked trying to make sense of how one person could surely be so hateful. 

Alma laughed and removed the protective goggles from her face. She placed them on the table and turned to look at him. "She doesn't like me either."

David shook his head slowly. "But how is that possible?"

Alma raised an eyebrow. "She's a bit of a synthetic hater. Rumour has it when Weyland was first creating them he spent more time and attention with them than her, his own daughter. I happen to work with and around them, so go figure as to why she doesn't like me."  

"She hates me because of her father?"

"That's about it."

David looked rather angrily around. "That's just pathetic."

"Calm," Alma said with a warning look. She may agree but they couldn't go around calling Meredith this, that and the other. "You've got to see it from her point of view. If you were her, if your father spent time giving attention to AI and not you, you'd be spiteful too."  

"Would you be?" He looked at her curiously after a moment of thought. 

"Nah, I'd be right there seeing if I can help!" Alma laughed and patted his shoulder as she stood. "Special case here, my dad was teaching me robotics as soon as I was old enough to walk and talk." Alma said only to sceptically watch 6, shaking her head she just left him to it. She just prayed another finger wasn't going to get cut off. 

"That explains your answer," David said while turning and looking up at her. Alma looked at him confused. "As to seeing us as another life form. If you have been around robotics and androids for your whole life, then we must be as normal as humans." 

Alma smiled and leaned against her knees. "You are a lot smarter than I think they're giving you credit for." 

David smiled and looked up at her. "So, I am right?"

"Yes, you are, have a gold star." 

"I don't understand." David stood and followed her around the room to her littered desk. She laughed, though he failed to see the humour. He'd got basic things figured out, but there were some sayings which just threw him. 

"It's something they do, or did at school when I was a kid. If you did something good they'd give you a gold star for your work." 

"Where is this gold star?"

Alma laughed and turned to him. "How about instead we leave? That's as good of a reward as any."

"But I've not done anything to warrant a reward."

Alma sighed and pulled her coat on. She walked around the desk and linked her arm with his. "You survived a meeting with Weyland and the daughter, you definitely deserve something. Tell me, David, do you think you like movies?" Alma tilted her head slightly and looked at him with a smile. 

He smiled in return, "Am I one of few who survived such a thing?"

"Most who go in don't tend to return to this building the next day."

David raised an eyebrow, "I am lucky then."

Alma laughed and let him go to walk to the door. She opened it and nodded his way. "He wouldn't kick you out, David. You're basically like the son he never had." That and - without being blunt - he was way too valuable to just let go. But she wasn't going to tell him that. He was probably smart enough to figure it out on his own anyway. 

"Another reason to be disliked then, inferiority is horrible."

"You've felt inferior?" Alma asked genuinely at a loss as they walked down the corridor and towards the elevator. David nodded slowly, "What? When? And by who?"

He smiled and looked down at the woman by his side. She seemed so instantly on the defensive, it was endearing really. "The daughter." Alma laughed finding that being Meredith's new secret name quite funny. She walked into the elevator when it arrived and turned and pushed the ground floor button. 

"How did that make you feel?" She asked in all seriousness though. 

David looked at the floor and was silent for a while before turning and looking at her. "I didn't like it. I've not done anything to her, yet she has such dislike for something that started before me, by that I mean 8, even existed." 

"She's hated every model anyway, trust me you're not the only one to receive that treatment, David." 

"Only because I am not human, that does not give any the right to treat me as lesser than them. As you said, I am as close to human as possible. I do understand the feelings from such treatment, and I have thoughts about them too."

Alma stopped in the foyer of the vast building and looked to him. "You are more complex than I or anyone else could ever fathom." She said slowly and heavily with thought. She'd never heard something of basic equal rights come from an android before. Shaking her head she tried to lighten the moment, "Movies? Films? General television viewing? I think it's about time you were introduced to some classics, David. And popcorn! You can't totally binge without the proper snacks."

"I can eat?" David walked after her as she quickly walked out and down the street. 

She grinned, "Yeah, you can. Sure it doesn't have the same affect as it does with humans. But pfft, least you'll know the joys of popcorn and movies!" She laughed and nodded her head in the direction of the companies car park. Alma's mode of vehicle wasn't anything fancy and she was slightly manic on the roads, but David trusted she'd get them somewhere in one piece. Or at least her. She couldn't be rebuilt, after all, and there was and would always only ever be one of her.

——

(Edited: 26/Feb/2021)