| >(yawns) God, I can't think of anything good to say. But that is why I made (ta-da-ish music plays) Robo_Roxanne! Since my robot boyfriend had a few.... technical problems.... I decided a clone of me couldn't possibly do anything bad. Especially a robot clone. C'mere Robo_Roxanne! C'mere girl! (steel, chibi-ish version of Roxanne stiffly enters the room) Robo_Roxanne: Hi! I'm Roxanne! I'm cute and adorable! And I get on everyone's nerves! Roxanne: Aw, ain't that cute! Robo_Roxanne: Thaaaat's right! I AM hella cute! Roxanne: But not as cute as me. I'M the original. Robo_Roxanne: Whatever. Anywho, welcome to 'DIGITALE: Man vs. Machine: part 2! Roxanne: (brushes away tear) I taught her that! (sniffs) I taught her that! Robo_Roxanne: Actually, you didn't, Oh Inferior One! I taught that to myself with my superior intelligence. Roxanne: Ey! Watch what you're saying! There's no way a heap of nuts and volts is smarter than ME. Robo_Roxanne: Anyway, this fanfic is all romancy, and is a big piece of crap! Roxanne: Hey, I wrote that 'piece of crap'! Robo_Roxanne: My point is proven. Roxanne: (grinds teeth) Robo_Roxanne: Anyway, the dimwitted humanoid next to me will---- Roxanne: OK! THAT'S ENOUGH! (grabs baseball bat and hits Robo_Roxanne on head) Robo_Roxanne: Silly humanoid! I have a thick metal skull! You cannot rid yourself of me that easily! Roxanne: (mutters) Just like the original.< ============================= It's hard to awheel A finger's gotta feel Lead it to a complicated Smile I'm spinnin on a wheel I slide to the right I felt you like electric Light For our love For our feel I got a machine head It's better than the rest I walked away From my machine I walked away From my machine -Machinehead by Bush ============================= DIGITALE: Man vs. Machine: part 2 by Roxanne de Winter Shinigami waited in the car. He was good at waiting.... if it wasn't too a long a time. Shinigami was bored. Yes, he was being more outgoing than usual.... especially to a 'robot' he barely knew. But sometimes he just couldn't help himself from talking all the time, even to a person who was a complete stranger. But, really, this Heero person was just way too quiet. He was boring. At least he could listen.... was he listening at all when Shinigami babbled about everything from shampoo to weaponry? Shinigami shrugged. Maybe. Even if he wasn't, Shinigami was still going to babble. Many people thought they could not trust him with their secrets because of his tendancy to talk a lot just to get attention.... but Shigami NEVER told secrets. When he promised a secret would be kept, that secret was with him till death. Duo looked out the window. This was boring. It was so boring, Shinigami felt like running around the gas station naked just to get attention.... but that would be stupid. Yet he WAS bored. Very bored. Extremely bored. So bored he could die. Maybe dying would get him some attention....? Just then, Heero came out of the store, carrying two over-sized t-shirts and a lot of food. Bulk pack, Shinigami noticed. Bulk pack food tasted shitty.... "Took you long enough!" Shinigami shouted, poking his head out of the truck window. "Ten minutes and four seconds went by after my departure." stated Heero, opening the car door. Shinigami sagged into his seat,"I care as much for that as I care about the dirt under my toenails." there was a pause as Shinigami sat up,"So, what'd you get for us?" he asked, crossing his legs. "Clothes. Food. I don't need them.... they're for you." Shinigami nodded,"Oh, I see.... cyborgs don't need food, right?" "Yes." replied Heero, flatly. There was a pause. "I'm taking some food for the driver." stated Heero,"I don't think he's unconscious anymore. He might die of hunger." Then Heero turned and left. Shinigami blinked,"Hey, Heero!" The robot turned around,"Yes?" Shinigami tossed him a t-shirt, and Heero caught it. "You might as well put on some clothes.... it's cold out." explained Shinigami. Before Heero could say anything, Shinigami closed the car door with a loud slam. "Stupid boy," Heero thought to himself,"Cyborgs can't FEEL the cold." Heero quietly opened the truck's back door. Strange.... when he was with Shinigami, he totally forgotten about the truck driver. As he opened the car door, a force pushed him backwards, and onto the cold, concrete ground. Before Heero could get back to his senses, he saw a man, supposedly the truck driver, running into the gas station's mini mart. Before he could get up, a man, the mini mart's owner, and a few other men ran towards Heero with guns and other weapons,"Freeze, you freak!" shouted one of them. Heero blinked,"I do not mean any harm...." he stated. The mini mart owner sneered,"Robots. Can't trust a word they say. They're programmed to mess with your mind.... Gettem', boys! Get that son of a bitch!" Heero shook his head,"I don't want to fight." It seemed no one had heard him, because shortly afterwards, he was hit on the head with a rifle. Heero barely swayed. He hoped it hadn't messed up some of the programming in his head. But he didn't have much time to think about that, because shortly afterwards, the men were shooting, kicking, punching, and abusing Heero as if he was a criminal. Suddenly, a gun shot was heard, and one of the men collapsed. "Leave 'em alone, he didn't do nothing to you.... you big bullies." "Shinigami?" thought Heero outloud. "C'mon, get yer paws off him, don't make me shoot you...." One by one, the men backed away from Heero, and Shinigami, wearing only an oversized t-shirt, aiming a gun at the attackers, could be seen. "And just who are you?" asked one of the men, over the moans of the one who had been shot. "The God of Death. Now move, I don't feel like talkin' to a bunch of sissy men who attack those who don't pose a threat or mean harm. Now drop yer guns, and me and Heero'll leave you 'lone." The men, who were at least two heads taller than Shinigami, did as they were told. Shinigami then eyed Heero,"Come on buddy, let's go." Heero tried to get up.... but something was in his way. Something he had never felt before.... pain. "That's ridiculous, thought Heero,"Robots don't feel pain...." Shinigami, sensing Heero was in need of assistance, walked towards the robot and helped him up. Though it hurt his waist, Shinigami felt one good deed deserved another.... Heero had helped him, so he would help Heero. Putting Heero arm around his shoulder, the braided boy walked with the wounded boy to the truck. Sensing the pair's weakness, one of the attacker picked up his gun and aimed it at Shinigami. Like a cat, Heero sensed the danger and quickley pulled the gun out of Shinigami's hands. Before he could could say anything, Heero had shot one of his attackers before the attacker had shot Shinigami. Making the connection in his mind, Shinigami nearly dropped Heero, but tightened his grip on the hurt boy. "It's OK, I can walk," said Heero, trying to struggle free from Shinigami's suprisingly strong grip. Putting Heero on the passenger seat, Duo quickly put the keys into the truck's ignition, and drove off. Heero felt sick. Shinigami knew how to drive every sort of way except straight on. Sometimes he drove faster, then suddenly slower, then he suddenly turned, and then he began driving backwards. "Sorry, I never learned to drive," explained Shinigami, almost sensing Heero's thoughts,"You hurt bad?" "I will be in relatively better condition in 28 hours." stated Heero. Shinigami nodded,"OK, that makes.... three days." Heero opened his mouth to correct the boy, but figuring that would just emberass him, Heero decided to not say anything. "Aren't you tired?" asked Shinigami, almost in a whisper. "I'm charged enough." replied Heero. "Did it hurt when those guys beat you up?" There was a long silence. "Yes." said Heero, quietly. "So you can feel?" There was another long pause. "So? Can you?" "Maybe. I think that bow on the head I recieved may have distorted some of my programming, and made me dysfunction. Therefore I felt pain." Heero could almost sense Shinigami grinning in the dark. "So maybe you aren't Mr.Bicenntenial Man after all...." "Go to sleep." ordered Heero,"Save your energy." Shinigami smiled. Though he barely knew Heero, he was beginning to like him. He was just so.... he was so honest.... a bit crazy, but deep down, he had a kind heart. In a world full of fakers, this Heero person was a real gem. "Good night, Heero." said Shinigami, sleepily. "Good night?" thought Heero,"Why is he wishing me a good night? I'm not going to feel whether I have a good night or not anyway." Though he thought that, deep down, Heero had to admit, it felt good that someone cared for him. And, though he drove through the night, the night was a good one. "Those business people are such monsters, don't they realize that using robots is like using slaves? Wait, dumb question. They know very well that they are commiting a sin." Heero paid close attention to Shinigami's endlesss chatter, not saying anything except for the occasional 'hm'. "One thing I can't stand is hypocrites." Shinigami went on,"Those business people go to their churches or wherever they worship their Gods, they pray and pray and talk about being friendly and peaceful to all living things.... then they return to their factories and boss around their slaves. Those robots have feelings like any human. I don't think they like to be used for hours and hours without being paid, and having to work under dangerous conditions with the company owner screaming and yelling at them. Humans think that they are so superior to robots just because they built them. They think they can mistreat them just because they are different. You know, those people.... I hope they rot in Hell." Heero looked up,"You're religous, Shinigami?" Shinigami didn't say anything for a few minutes. "Let's put it this way.... I never saw a miracle. If God was real, he'd punish all those who commit wrongs. Instead, he lets those bad guys just go on living with full luxury while everyone suffers. It's a total injustice.... and the heartbreaking thing is, most of the suffering souls of this world are strong believers." Shinigami ended his sentence by crossing his arms,"So, no, I don't believe in God." There was a long, awkward silence before Heero said, quietly,"But, what about me rescuing you? Wasn't that a miracle?" "It was coincidence. God didn't tell you what to do or where to find me, you just did. And, if God was so great, he'd stop doing small miracles, and do big things.... like helping those abused robots." "Oh." came Heero's quiet reply. Shinigami barely paid attention to the song on the radio, but he knew Heero was. The robot was interpretting every lyric. "Shinigami?" "Hm?" "What does the man singing mean when he says: 'Just close your eyes And I'll take you there This place is old But I don't care We'll take a swim In the deepest sea I couldn't believe That you reached for me' [1]?" "Well, he wants to bring his lover to a place where they can be alone together." answered Shinigami. "Why? Aren't humans social?" "Well, yeah, but sometimes, it's fun to just be alone with someone you love. To share memories before you fade away." explained Shinigami. "What do you mean 'fade away'?" asked Heero. "To die. To slowly be forgotten and covered under layers of the sands of time. The person is singing about spending time with his lover when he still can." There was a thoughtful silence, which was broken by Heero asking, "Did you ever have a feeling like that? Did you ever spend time with a lover?" Shinigami thought of what to answer. Sometimes, Heero was just asking the most annyoing and hard to answer questions.... but at least it felt good to know someone actually cared for what Shinigami thought or had to say. "Now that I think of it, no. I had a lover, yes, but I never really loved him." Heero looked puzzled,"Him? That's not natural, you can't mate and reproduce with a---" "It's not about reproduction, Heero. See, the thing is, with us humans, our brain is further devoloped than most animals.... we don't just care about reproduction.... we care about love. We don't look only for the fittest, we look for those we like being around. Gender is not important.... if you find that special someone, you know he or she's just the one, and you don't care about their gender." Heero seemed to process that information with some difficulty. "Why do you call someone a lover if you don't love him?" he asked, after some time. Shinigami bit his lip,"Ummmm.... I don't know. I guess it's because we held hands and kissed and had sex. I guess that makes him my lover." "That doesn't compute. Lover has the word love in it, and you said you didn't love him...." Shinigami thought a while,"Well, no one can't say you aren't logical. I guess you're right.... so, no I never had a lover, and I never loved anyone." Shinigami opened one eye. He had been sleeping since lunch, and now it was early evening. There was a full moon out, and with the desert mountains in the backround, it all looked very romantic. Turning to face Heero, he saw the cobalt-eyed robot was also looking at the moon. "You look at the moon, too?" asked Shinigami, quietly. Heero gave a curt nod,"Earth's satellite has an appealing luminous glow." Duo nodded,"Uh, yeah. You know, I always thought it looked like a graveyard.... so lonley, so isolated.... and mysterious." "Graveyards aren't always isolated----" "Come on, Heero, don't be a stiff. Being romantic doesn't hurt, you know." "Shinigami?" asked Heero, quietly. "Yeah?" "Why are humans so facinated with love and romance?" "Because.... I guess it's because they like the feeling of having someone to catch them when they fall----" "What does that have to do with romance?" Shinigami looked a bit annoyed,"It's a metaphor, a figure of speech. When you.... when you just lose yourself in an emotion or break down, having someone comfort you is just---- or at least knowing her or she will be there.... is just a comfort. Knowing that this person will be with you in the good and the bad times... will want to be with you no matter what.... you know, it just makes you feel nice inside, knowing someone wants to cope through the obstacles in life with you. Love is nothing more than a deep friendship. Simple friendship limits you.... you can't say some of the things or do some of the things to help a person that you could do if you were their lover. Yet the hard part is, you can't just take any old guy and say 'you'll be my lover now'. Not everyone can deal with that load of reasponsibility that comes with true love.... and not everyone knows how to return kindness. Humanity is separated by several borders.... race, religon, looks, political opinions, gender, prejudice.... it cuts out, like, so many people who could be your soulmate, just because of what society expects of you." "Do you think you'll find love, Shinigami?" Shinigami shrugged,"There's always a chance. And you can call me 'Duo'." Heero was beginning to like Shinigami, newly Christianed 'Duo'. The boy had a kind heart, he actually cared about Heero.... even though Heero made it clear that what he was doing was unnecessary. After all, robots couldn't feel. Or could they? Those men that had attacked Heero earlier.... they viewed him as a machine. They viewed him as a threat to their very existance without even knowing him. Duo didn't seem to care wheather Heero was a robot or not... he treated him like a human being. Duo stood by his beliefs that robots could feel... he never used Heero. And he actually reponded to his questions. He never said 'because', or 'you won't understand anyway'. He took his time to give detailed explanations about every question, no matter how dumb it sounded. Heero's thoughts wandered over to few days ago, when he had first found Duo.... the boy was near death.... someone had stabbed and beat him.... but why? Why would anyone want to do harm to a person like Duo? On the other hand, the men that had beat Heero also did it with little reason. But on the other hand, Duo was human.... why would anyone do this to him? Heero looked at Duo, who was asleep, despite the fact that it was early morning. Well, he did talk until three AM last night.... Somehow sensing he was being watched, Duo lifted his head, and gave a tired smile,"Hey, Heero. Awake all night.... again?" Heero nodded,"Unlike most humans, I don't get tired." Duo brushed back some long hair that had fallen in his face,"I'll take your word for it," he said, yawning. "Do your wounds still hurt?" asked Heero. Duo shrugged,"Not that much.... I've had worse anyway." Heero raised an eyebrow,"Worse?" "Yeah...." Heero waited for Duo to go on, but after a while, he sensed the braided boy didn't want to talk about the subject. And that's how it was for the next three days. Duo and Heero talked about everything from politics to desert cacti, but Heero never brought up the subject of how Duo got his injuries, even though his worry for the violet boy grew. Now was the third day, and Heero couldn't keep his eyes off the visible wounds on Duo's body. "I had a couple of girls.... they were nice, but one got killed, another left me, another used me.... Did you know that the crusts of bread are not used when preparing meatballs? You know, if you actually look at what is considered food these days, you start thinking that people are doing something about world hunger.... by giving less food to the rich, but convincing them that it's 'lap of luxury' food, and giving it fancy French names----" Duo paused,"Heero, are you even listening to me?" Heero lifted his head,"Huh? Oh. Yeah...." Duo looked away,"Don't worry. You didn't miss a thing." Another day had come and gone. It was dusk now, and the sky showed the first traces of what would be a beautiful day. Duo was awake, and enjoying the quiet beauty of the early morning hours, when he noticed something. It was covered the rising sun, and somehow didn't belong in the beauty of the desert. Duo instantly recognized the object as a building. A sign that Duo was now back with the rest of humanity. But Duo didn't want to be back.... he had enjoyed Heero's company so much... and he would most certainly lose him here. "Another proof that time only seems to be going slowly...." thought Duo wistfully, turning to Heero,"....I'd hate to leave him... I think this is the first time in a long time I've actually been really happy.... in the presence of some wack who thinks he's a robot. I guess fate in its all its weirdness actually knows what it's doing...." Duo didn't say anything. He just stared at Heero, making a mental picture of the robot who had saved his life.... never to forget him. It was important not to make friends, because once you get to attatched to someone, the enemy will hurt that being. Or that being will turn against you. Such risks were unacceptable. As Heero drove on, a small, but modern city became visible in the distance. "Time to face the reality I tried so hard to run away from," thought Duo. Heero had noticed a change in his braided companion the minute the first human-made building fell into view. Instead of being cheerful and talkative, the boy was now quiet and seemed sad. "Sad? But why? Why would he be sad? He'll finally be together with other humans here...." Heero's thinking was stopped by Duo saying, "So I guess this is where we go our separate ways, huh, Heero?" Heero looked puzzled,"Separate ways?" Duo nodded,"Well, yeah. We have no need for each other anymore." "You look sad." stated Heero,"Is what you said the reason why?" Duo looked away,"We don't need each other anymore. You saved me, and if you need a favor in return, I'll gladly do anything you ask. But we both have our own things we need and want to do here, so I don't think you have any need for me, and I don't think you'd be useful for any- thing now...." Duo trailed off to look at Heero. "So you're going away?" asked Heero. "Yeah, I guess. It's been nice though, Heero." The robot didn't say anything except,"Is that all?" Duo slowly nodded,"Yeah." There was a long silence. "You can stop the truck here," said Duo, quietly. Heero followed his orders without saying anything. As Duo opened the truck door, Heero got out, too, and helped the violet-eyed human to the ground,"You're still hurt," stated Heero. "I'll be fine," Duo assured him. "Have you calculated through what you're saying, you could----" "I'll be OK. Goodbye, Heero." saying this, Duo turned and walked away, leaving Heero standing at the side of a road, in the middle of a nearly empty street, feeling suddenly very empty inside. "It's just the change of habit and schedule that is making me feel like this," Heero said to himself, knowing he was lying. Getting back into the truck, Heero looked back, but the violet-eyed boy was gone. "It's just the change of schedule." Heero repeated, like a mantra, "It's just the change of schedule." It had been three hours, ten minutes, forty-eight seconds and ten milliseconds since Heero had left the small town, leaving a part of him there as well. He suddenly felt alienated to the rest of the world. He felt lonely. Suddenly, he stopped the truck. A vision of Duo, battered and bruised and dehydrated, like when Heero had first laid eyes on him, flashed before his eyes, and played over again in his mind. "What if this happens to him again?" thought Heero. Turning the truck around, ignoring the fact that feeling worry, especially towards a human, was very uncharacteristic for a robot. It had been three hours, since Duo had last seen Heero. Three hours, that felt more like three days. Duo felt lonely. Robot or not, Heero was good company.... and actually listened to him. Humankind seemed strange to him now. It wasn't that Duo was antisocial.... it was just that being in the desert, riding in a pick-up truck with Heero gave him real happiness.... and as absurd as it may sound, Duo was actually happy that he had been left to die in the desert, where Heero had found him. Those days he had spent with Heero were more fun, if that was the right word to use, than any party or social event Duo had ever attended. He actually felt like he was treasured, and like he belonged there. "If he makes you happy, why'd you leave him?" Duo asked himself. Shortly afterwards, the violet-eyed boy smirked,"Heh, Stupid question. You can never get too attactched to anyone. They'll either end up dying or turning one you. It's just not worth the---" Before Duo could finish his thought, a figure ponced on him, throwing the braided boy face-down onto the ground. Duo gave a quiet moan of pain. "Well, who do we have here?" That voice.... it seemed so long since the last time Duo had heard it. "No, not now, it's too soon," thought Duo, groaning inwardly. TO BE CONTINUED [1] That song is 'Fade Away' by Sugar Ray. Hey, that rhymes! >What will happen next? Gee, I dunno. I just like leaving you in suspense. DIGITALE: Man vs. Machine: part 3 will soon be posted. Soon means 'Maybe in a Million Years'. Have a nice day.< To make your average GW fanfic author happy, flatter them with a ton of positive feedback. To make them mad as a bull, write them flames. So, be a good dragon and write your share of flames to me here! Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I spend the majority of my time glaring and kicking my PC, so I will not have the energy to be angry at you (^_^)! But your efforts will be appreciated. |
| XOXOXO, Roxanne |