They’d said that Carl was too old to have a child, especially given that he was single, in a wheelchair and spent a large proportion of his time locked away in the studio where he needed silence to find inspiration. He wasn’t well suited to child rearing. Which is why Elijah had gifted him the next best thing.
“This is the RK100, he’s a one of a kind. You struck me as more the kind to have a son than a daughter.”
“Would you like to register a name?” The RK100 asked pleasantly.
“Leo,” Carl grinned and the android nodded.
It should have been easy from there. All the fun of having a child to spoil and raise without the hard work and worry of actually raising one. Carl showered Leo in money, designer clothes, anything he thought a child could want. The giant stuffed giraffe in the living room was another gift for Leo.
On the whole, it was ideal. Carl still worked for close to 12 hours in the studio, locked away from everyone. Once he was done, he could go back to the rest of the house where Leo had waited for him all day.
Things started to go downhill pretty soon. Leo seemed sullen. At first he’d followed Carl around like an eager puppy, keen to be in his company. He’d seemed to delighted whenever Carl appeared from his studio and sat with him at the dinner table, asked questions incessantly. But some days Carl was tired, he didn’t want to answer a thousand questions, so he ordered Leo to be quiet. Those days, Leo sat at the table and stared at the swirling pattern of the wood with a frown.
Soon, he’d learnt that Carl didn’t want to be bombarded with questions. He stopped eagerly waiting for his father to appear from his studio. Most nights he had to be ordered to sit quietly at the table during dinner. But spending all day alone in the house, then all night alone while Carl slept, Leo had learnt he wasn’t wanted. The shiny newness of having a son had worn off, he was just another discarded toy and each day he could see disappointment written deeper in Carl’s face.
Like a teenager, he began to argue and question. Rebelled against being locked out of the studio, being cooped up in the house all day without any kind of company. He’d been built as an intended family unit but there was no family for him in the house.
It all came to head when Carl yelled at him to stop pouting so much. He’d been given everything he could possibly want. An endless supply of thirium, a fine choice of clothes, a mansion which oozed comfort. Carl didn’t understand what else Leo could possibly have need of. That night, Leo sat in the dark living room, his LED bright red as he tried to make sense of his existence.
“I’m going to visit a friend,” Carl had told him one morning, “don’t burn the house down, I’ll be back shortly.”
Shortly, it turned out was three days later. The door opened and Leo tried to muster up the enthusiasm to greet Carl. However, he wasn’t alone, Elijah Kamski stood next to him and there was a transport box being wheeled in.
“I tweaked his code so you shouldn’t have so much trouble,” Elijah was saying.
Leo stood by the sofa, unacknowledged by either humans who were too busy opening up the box. Inside was another android. Eyes shut, a serene smile on his face.
“The RK200, with additional artistic protocols,” Elijah seemed so inordinately pleased with himself as he activated it.
“Hello.” It had a smooth voice and Leo tried not to snarl. “I am RK200, would you like to register a new name?”
Leo remembered that look, that excitement of being adored. It had been him not all that long ago.
“Leo,” Carl beckoned him closer, “this is your brother, Markus.”
Red flooded Leo’s vision. He was being replaced with an upgrade. Someone who wouldn’t mind being left alone for so long, someone who could dote on Carl the way he wanted.
“Markus, you’ll accompany me to the studio.” The order from Carl was the last straw.
Whatever red walls had boxed Leo in, he smashed through them, he’d never been allowed in the studio, never earned that right and yet there was the RK200 waltzing in. Leo’s fingers scratched at his LED until they caught and he pried it off, the red light faded into nothing at the little circle hit the ground.
“I’ve had enough,” he cried and stormed towards the door.
He’d done his time, he wasn’t going to languish away like some old, no longer loved toy. Carl and Markus turned to watch him go while Elijah stepped out of his way, head tipped to the side and eyes filled with curious wonder.
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