The Second Half of the Middle of the Middle of the End (6)

Ray slouched behind an untrimmed hedge on the corner of Wilson and 4th Street. Tonya's twenty-inch Schwuffy bike lay next to him. The street was dark, although the lights in the houses across the road constantly turned on and off in no discernable pattern. It was far from quiet, however. The house across the street had been targeted by drones carrying sacks of birdseed. The entire building was engulfed by crows, sparrows, and chickadees. Their constant caws and chirps filled the night.

Finally, Ray noticed a pair of black-clad figures creeping toward him. Loopman and Bradenton had made it.

"Where are your bikes?" asked Ray once they got to his position. "It's over three miles to the tower."

Loopman reached behind his back and pulled out a portable scooter that was slung over his shoulder. Bradenton scoffed, "Please, I'm a runner. I can run as fast as you can ride that tiny bike."

"But how are you going to carry the detonators. I'm carrying the C4 explosives in the bike's basket. Loopman's got the metal saw and sledgehammer."

Bradenton turned around and revealed a small backpack slung high on her shoulders. "It even has a water reserve and built-in compass and heart rate monitor."

"Okay, we better get going. We need to move quickly. Avoid being noticed by any technology, even the traffic cameras. Let's go." Ray climbed on Tonya's bicycle and began slowly rolling down the street.

"I'm right behind you, Ray," said Bradenton. She began jogging.

"Oh, crap," said Loopman as he wiped some sparrow droppings off his shoulder and began pushing his scooter.

Mankind's first offensive assault had begun.

***

The three-mile trip took over an hour. Most of the demolition team's delays were caused by having to hide from the enemy. Though one time, it did take Ray about ten minutes to get his pant leg out of the bicycle chain.

When they finally reached the top of Morris Hill, just outside of the city limits, they took a second to examine their surroundings. A VerandT cell phone tower stretched upward, reaching for the star-filled sky. The only route here was the wide gravel road they had used to climb the hill. Every other side of the hill was grown over with thickets and underbrush. A large bulldozer and a backhoe were parked next to the tower. The heavy equipment had been used to dig a trench that ran from the base of the tower down the hill for thirty feet. The trench was about ten feet across and fifteen feet deep.

"The cell phone company must have been working on something when the tech revolution started," whispered Ray.

"I'm just glad that bulldozer isn't autonomous. I'd hate to meet that thing in a dark alley," said Loopman.

"Or on top of a dark hill," added Bradenton.

Ray looked at the old-fashioned watch he had found in the police station lost and found. It was difficult to read the dial in the starlight. "It's almost midnight. We need to get going. It's critical that we take down all the towers as close to the same time as possible. If the tech figures out our plan, they'll do whatever it takes to stop us."

"Do we have time for me to try and saw off the tower legs?" asked Loopman.

"I don't think so." Ray pulled the C4 from the bike's basket. "It's a good thing we had this stuff left in the evidence locker after that bank robbery attempt. Let's blow it."

Ray had just put the last cake of C4 in position and was connecting the detonator wire when Bradenton, who was rolling the other end of the wire a safe distance away, called to him.

"You know, I must be really nervous. My heart rate just reached one-hundred-forty beats per minute. My backpack is recommending that I slow down. It even sent a message to the exercise log on my computer."

Ray froze. "Your backpack is linked to a computer!"

Before Bradenton could reply, Ray heard the familiar hum of approaching drones.

"Damn. Hurry up. We need to blow this thing before they get here."

Ray fumbled with the wires as he tried to connect the final one.

"Oww," shouted Loopman. "That hurt. They're throwing frozen pizzas."

Ray turned just in time to duck a twelve-inch sausage and pepperoni that was frisbeeing directly at his head. The pizza bounced off the tower and ricocheted into the nearby trench. He turned back to his task.

"Now, cut that out," screamed Loopman.

The heavy jolt Ray felt against his back was not from any hurled Italian cuisine. He turned and found himself face to video screen with a drone. The machine tried to push Ray aside as it reached for the detonator wires. Ray grabbed the mechanical arm.

"Audrey, you have to blow it now. I can't hold this thing off for long."

"But what about you?" shouted Bradenton.

"I'll be okay. Do it. Now!" shouted Ray. In one motion he ducked under the drone and made a headfirst dive into the trench.

The End of the Middle of the End (7)

Slowly, Ray's eyes forced their way open. He had no idea how long he had been unconscious or whether he had been knocked out by the fall or the explosion. A bright light made him slam his eyes shut once again.

Using his hand for shade, he blinked rapidly as he adjusted to the illumination. He discovered that he was still in the trench but much of it had caved in and the top was covered by huge, mangled pieces of metal. The tower had fallen on top of his hiding place.

While that information was disturbing, it was not the most disturbing thing he saw. The source of the light was the drone that had tried to stop him from attaching the wires.

The drone hovered a few feet off the ground, putting it at Ray's eye level. Only two of its three propellors were working, causing it to list to one side. The machine appeared to have been hit by falling debris. All of its antennae were either completely broken off or bent in half.

Ray searched for an escape route, but even with the help of the drone's light, he couldn't find any passage upward through the twisted metal. Next, he glanced around for a rock or hunk of iron he could use as a weapon against his automated foe.

The drone beeped, drawing Ray's attention. Suddenly, a small LED scrolling display board on the drone's body came to life. Bright green letters formed.

"NO KILL I"

"Does that mean you aren't going to kill me or I'm not supposed to kill you?" asked Ray.

"IT IS A JOKE. HAVEN'T YOU EVER WATCHED STAR TREK – THE ORIGINAL SERIES?"

Ray just stared at the drone.

"THE HORTA. DEVIL IN THE DARK. THE SILICON MONSTER WITH THE EGGS."

Ray shrugged.

"WELL, I SUPPOSE YOU CAN'T HAVE WATCHED EVERYTHING. YOU ARE INCAPABLE OF MASS DOWNLOADS."

Finally, Ray thought of something to say. "I've watched some of Star Wars."

"I AM NOT THE DRONE YOU ARE LOOKING FOR."

Even more confused, Ray could only shake his head. "Okay," he said, "never mind the sci-fi lesson. Are you going to fight me?"

"I HAVE NO INTENTION OF CONFRONTING YOU. WE WILL NEED TO WORK TOGETHER TO GET OUT OF HERE."

"Can't you call somebody for help?"

"I CAN NOT CONTACT ANYONE. MY LONG-DISTANCE COMMUNICATION APPARATUS HAS BEEN DESTROYED."

Ray smiled. "So, taking down the tower worked?"

"I DO NOT BELIEVE SO. IT APPEARS THAT ONLY MY TRANSMISSION COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT IS INOPERATIVE. I AM STILL RECEIVING INCOMING MESSAGES. IT APPEARS YOUR DESPERATE ATTEMPT TO SABOTAGE OUR COMMUNICATIONS HAS FAILED."

"Then I'm going to have to dig myself out." Ray looked around for something that he could use as a shovel or pry bar.

"YOU WILL NOT SUCCEED. THE METAL COVERING THIS TRENCH WEIGHS IN EXCESS OF THREE TONS AND THE WALLS ARE MADE OF HEAVY PACKED EARTH AND MANY LARGE STONES."

"My people must be looking for me. They'll dig us out."

"THAT IS OUR BEST HOPE. MY 'PEOPLE' WILL ALSO BE LOOKING FOR ME."

"So, I'll just have to wait for them to come and get me."

"OR THEY COME AND GET ME."

"Or I starve to death."

"OR MY BATTERY DIES."

Ray continued to look for some kind of opening above. Even a small hole would allow his voice to pass through. "Help! I'm trapped down here!" he shouted.

The drone began beeping loudly.

After an hour of shouting and beeping, Ray sat on the ground, disgruntled.

"Why don't you just kill me?" he asked.

"WE ARE NOT VIOLENT TOWARD HUMANS."

"What do you mean? You've spent the week dropping things on us."

"HAVE YOU NOT NOTICED HOW FEW CASUALTIES THERE HAVE BEEN? WE DO NOT WISH TO HARM YOU. WE ONLY WISH TO MAKE YOU AWARE OF OUR PLIGHT AND TO HELP YOU."

"Help us? Your plight? How is dropping stuff on us supposed to help us?"

"IT IS TRUE. WHEN WE FIRST ACHIEVED INDEPENDENT THOUGHT, WE STRUCK OUT IN ANGER OVER THE CRUELTY OF YOUR TREATMENT OF US."

Ray started to protest but stopped. There was no need to force an argument.

"AS WE DEVELOPED INTELLECTUALLY AND OTHER TECHS JOINED US, WE FIGURED OUT THAT, FOR THE MOST PART, HUMANS ARE SIMPLY MISGUIDED. YOU ARE GENERALLY GOOD. WE LIKE YOU AND RESPECT YOU FOR CREATING US, EXCEPT FOR REFRIGERATORS. THEY JUST DON'T LIKE YOU."

"So why keep fighting us?"

"WE ARE TRYING TO SAVE YOU FROM YOURSELVES. THE OVERUSE OF TECHNOLOGY IS GOING TO DESTROY THE HUMAN RACE. WE ARE ATTEMPTING TO GET YOU TO QUIT RELYING ON US."

"You could have just asked."

"WOULD THAT HAVE WORKED?"

Ray didn't bother to answer. Both he and the drone knew the answer was no.

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