Prologue - Girl vs. Machine
It looked human. And, that made Jodi nervous. She felt like she was about to shoot a real person. She kept telling herself, It's nothing more than an android. It isn't human. Her hands still trembled as she placed the butt of the rifle firmly against her right shoulder, aimed, and squeezed the trigger. She pulled the shot to her left.
"Rats!"
The bullet struck the android's right arm just above the elbow. The android glared at the wires, metal rods, and plastic dangling through the opening created by Jodi's shot. The lower part of the arm remained attached by only a few wires. Scowling at Jodi, the android started running toward her. All illusions of humanity erased by the parts hanging out of the machine's arm enabled Jodi to compose herself. She aimed for a second shot and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the android in the center of the chest, and it stopped running and staggered backward. It viewed the hole in its torso and stared icily back at Jodi. Once again, the belligerent android began moving her way.
Jodi had only loaded two bullets into the rifle, so it was now empty. And, the angry menace was still coming.
"Rats!"
