Made them afraid of us.Instead of saying that, Atlas tapped the screen. “Malnutrition. Growth restriction. They have lived hard lives. I gave them some supplements, but the damage has already been done.”
No additional minerals could make Anna grow to her full height, nor change the framework of her bones. The reality lay heavily on him.Nothing can change the past.
“The baby is perfect, though.” He clicked through the records. “Anna’s body is giving everything it can. She’s trying so hard.”
His hands tightened on the screen. “Are all humans suffering like this? Or is it only the women? The children? The ones who can not fight for the limited resources left on Earth?”
“I thought none of this concerned you?”
Atlas bristled, Anna’s fear coating his sensors. “You know I still care.”
“Good.” The blue light matched Zero’s eyes as he scanned the images. “I’m glad to hear that. They need all the support they can get.”
Atlas focused on Anna’s picture as Zero enlarged all the angles. “I’m happy to have you port in if you want to understand better.”
But Zero shook his head. “No. I can see enough even without your calibrating.” He tapped the screen. “Well. My brothers have come to a conclusion.”
“And?”
“And, shocker, we all agree.” Zero widened Anna’s image on the screen. “We are glad these humans are here. They’re funny, in a way.”
Atlas’s brow furrowed. “Funny?”
“Yeah. It’s been awhile.” Zero’s mesh shirt rode up as he crossed his arms. “They don’t act like the ones from before. It’s like they’re . . . wild.” His eyebrow quirked. “Don’t you think so? Not like your Clara, right? That was her name?”
“Wild?” Atlas’s jaw clenched. “. . . You’re right. They can hardly even read and write. They are unrefined.”
Zero chuckled. “And some of the cookies that Anna has been making . . . she’s trying out every spice there is.”
Anna’s yellow hands.The memory made him almost smile. “Yes, some were quite bad.”
“Awful, even!” Zero rubbed his face. “But she is trying so hard I can’t refuse.”
Atlas frowned, looking at her picture.Actually, she is desperate to share them. Like that is her function in life.He glanced at the data.Like using my medical knowledge is mine.There was so much joy. So much hope giving that ultrasound. He could understand that, even now.
Suddenly the door behind them opened. Stella’s heels clicked uneven on the floor, matching the grimace on her face. “Atlas. I have been calling for you. We all have. Anna cut herself in the kitchen.”
Cut herself? A frown creased his forehead. “How? Intentionally?”
“No.” Stella walked to the screen, accessing the security cameras. “She knocked over a bowl and bled everywhere. The cut is deep and will need stitches.”
“Stitches?” Zero took a few steps back. “Just from broken glass? Really?”
Stella rolled her eyes. “Yes. They’re too fragile.”
Atlas ignored them both, instead focusing as the live feed of Anna came up, her hand wrapped in a towel. She was frantically scrubbing at the red spots that still dotted the floor. The scowl on his face became more pronounced. “Why is no one helping her?”
Stella slid up to Atlas, the fresh rainwater scent from her favorite perfume overwhelming his sensors. “We tried. She insisted she would clean it herself. The other androids are too wary to get involved. They’re so unpredictable.”
A whisper, long dormant, of an emotion surfaced. It traced over Atlas’s neural mind as he assessed Anna’s frame.
Empathy.
Atlas frowned.That’s a distraction.
But why was empathy a bad thing to have?
Already his mind was spinning, cataloging supplies on board. “I’ll go get the suture kit.”
