7. Rusted Robots on Patrol - Hide!

from Memories of Rain by The Archivist

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lyrics

You step back into the rain again, the newly self-possessed Robot skipping at your side, making small clanks as he careens down the street, laughing and stopping to gawk in turn. You find yourself smiling in spite of the dire situation. How long has it been since you’ve done that?

As you walk, a new thought occurs to you: This city is a treasure beyond imagining . . . So why is no-one else here?

Echoing from the walls of the city ruins, the sound of marching reaches you. You quickly duck into the side of a collapsed building and pull the child with you as you watch from the shadows.

The sound gets louder and louder until you see them: a full squadron of robots, marching in time. These must be the fearful metal Sentinels of the cursed city! The ones that can paralyze with a glance and kill with a gesture.

As they round the corner, you see the rusted, irregular shapes on the march. The fabled Sentinels’ appearance does little to inspire fear. While they are made of metal, they are in various states of disrepair. Their exterior is pitted and rusted. Some are missing parts or even limbs, but they march on, relentless. Their eyes issue forth red light that searches tirelessly.

You slip further into the shadows, hoping to avoid notice. A red light touches the edge of your hand. A sudden wailing screech issues forth from the nearest robot. Its grating scream freezes you to your core. You stay as still as you can, forgoing even breath, holding the child close. The child, sensing your fear, goes still.

After a few endless, agonizing moments, the Sentinels remain motionless as the red lights search furiously over the surrounding area. The surreality of it all increases as the wail fades to echoes, then to silence as the red beams dance across the broken edifices of buildings.

An eternity passes, and the robots simply march on. You begin to allow yourself to move and release your death-grip on the child’s arm. As the rhythmic pounding of the Sentinels’ march fades away, you know that you and the child have narrowly avoided death.

credits

from Memories of Rain, released July 5, 2020

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Bo Coker Gainesville, Florida

Bo is a solo acoustic artist from Gainesville, FL. He's been writing and recording his own music since 2005.

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