Inspired by: Jonathan Thulin & Rachael Lampa’s “Bombs Away”
“Thank you for purchasing your life insurance policy. All we ask is that you keep your lifeline untampered with and always connected. In the rare event that your connection is compromised… the consequence is death.”
A woman and a man held hands together in a union. They smiled at each other then, looked up at the light above them, casting a small surrounding light in the room. They sat in the silence and serenity of being connected to the Source.
Until they felt and heard a knock on the door. And in the moment, they saw a friendly Cyborg smiling at them, slyly. He came to their side and silently handed them a plan, with a concerned look.
“The Source is using you.” he whispered in their ear, “The Source fears what you can become… let me help you… You shan’t perish…”
The couple looked to one another with confusion and the looks on their face made one united decision. They looked up at the Cyborg and nodded in unified moment… The last they’d ever see. The Cyborg smiled at this silent thought, as he strut behind them, and first he grabbed the lifeline of the woman and yanked it from her heart-port. She gasped and felt her chest and confusedly stared about. Then to the man, he yanked from his heart-port. He stared about then the woman and the man’s eyes met in disgrace. The Cyborg stripped the lifeline and threw it before the couple.
The room shook like a furious quake of passion and wrath. “What is it that you have done?”
The man pointed directly at the woman, as she held her mouth and tearfully cried, “The Cyborg deceived me…”
The Cyborg looked up at the Source in fear as he spoke directly to him “You are futile. I send you down to the depths. There will be one engineer to terminate you. You will be shut off and he will be bruised on the heel.”
The Cyborg fearfully and in outrage tried to make an accusation, but before he could he was cast into an automatic pit. Silence reverberated in the room. As the man and the woman stared at each other in shame. The Source’s light had to be shut off and they were cast into darkness…
3000 days later…
The man and the woman attacked their insides, looking for anything to refill them… malware and more filled their minds and hearts. And their days slowly faded into memory. Until… one day as, one they cried out
"System Error: Spirit Overload. Initiating termination."
They stared at the ground with closed eyes, covering their ears. Falling, once more, on their faces, getting back up, screaming, cutting out, glitching, re-screaming, again and again. In a unstable implosion of emotions. They hit, one another, one hit after another.
"System Error: Emergency Shutdown."
Once the shutdown was made, they bowed their heads. They were now, two robotic and metallic skeletons. "System Error: Searching Connection. Searching Connection. Searching Connection…"
3000 days more…
“...Searching Connection. Searching Connection. Searching Connection…”
An Engineer walked over to them and touched their faces. They deathly gazed with blinds over their eyes… as their lifeform flickered back on to look at him. He fixed them up and helped them to stand.
“System Invasion!” they shouted at once, but the Engineer did not make a move to stop them, they attacked all at once. He allowed them to tear him apart, as the Cyborg came around the corner with his controls. The Engineer fell to his face and moved no more.
The Cyborg came up behind the robots and smacked them hard to the floor, “Look what you have done. Think about it… His hands were there to help…”
He vanished in one leaps and they cried… The woman reached out to the Engineer and held his hand as the man kicked her. She screamed in anguish, “Come back! Please, come back!” She cried her plea.
“System Error…” she spoke , “Initiate automatic shutdown…”
The man and woman froze as robotic skeletons, once more.
3 hours later…
The Source revived the Engineer. Who rolled over and saw the robotic skeletons once more, standing, lifeless before him. He got off of his feet and fixed them up once more and grabbing a new wireless lifeline and hooked it to their heart-ports. They stood up straight and spoke in unison, once more;
“System Error: Connection Complete.”
They looked to the Engineer who commanded; “Do not be tempted by the Cyborg anymore. You are free, with a spirit of courage. Of love. And of a sound mind…Your bounty has been paid.”
He left the room and left the door open, as he continued to walk. They followed…
2000 days later…
“And we are one and still free. Looking for the time we will in eternal peace with the Source.”