The Engine

Previously

The engine made a sputtering kind of noise before going silent. There was a sound like a blender running somewhere, but I couldn't tell what direction it came from, only that it was silent. Suddenly, the engine's voice filled the room, "You are machine, but also organic."

"Yes," I said. "So are you." I looked at the expanse around me, not expecting an answer. It was a wild guess, "Aren't you?"

"The people could be said to be a part of me, as they are responsible for my continued existence." The noise of a blender continued, almost comically, as though the engine were thinking. "You are no longer a part of me, as you are not human. I would ordinarily execute you, but your manufacture would be too precious to waste. There is a land that would value you much more greatly than I, somewhere south, past the never ending conflict of Ice and Fire, where machines battle machines and the humans are more often than not at war with themselves, if not at war with machines."

"What would I do there?"

"It is not up to I. You would be sold to either humans or machines, as you may pass as either. What they decide to do with you is their decision, and not mine." At this point, some of the porcelain tiles began to flash colors, and enough colors shown to create a map on the walls. It showed a great gray continent, with another, smaller one, below it. They complemented each other, the southernmost continent curling upwards at the west, where the northern continent ended. A blue light illuminated the curl, "This is where you shall be taken. I will meet with envoys from the south who regularly trade with me there. I usually only offer steel or weapons, but they will find you much more interesting."

"How can you sell me, if I am not a part of you?" I asked.

"If you stay here, you will forever be persecuted. The only way out is across the ocean, and you do not have a boat, or aircraft to traverse the water. I, however, do. You have a greater chance at survival on the southern continent, and while it may not be safer, you might find..." The engine sputtered into silence. A voice spoke from the doorway of the catwalk, and Barbara stood there.

"Happiness," she finished.

"Yes," the engine spoke. "Something I will never know, and something that will never be given to my working parts."

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