What do boys do alone in a hay loft?

[Zach]

Play with their toys of course.



The afternoon was another hot one on the farm and thankfully one of the less busy days. With the harvest shipped off, the fields seeded for the next crops and the animals taken care of, Zach was afforded some time to rest, or rather simply perform some less strenuous busy work. Such tasks were orften handed out by the masters simply to keep the slaves busy and out of their hair and for Zach that meant shifting some hay bales in one of the lofts to make room for more. This was interstingly enough to be done in the very barn in which had hidden the Tractor-man's ball so Zach happily headed off from his work group and into the barn. He spent a good twenty minutes doing exactly what he had been sent in to do, bringing bale from the ground level of the barn up to the loft to make room for more hay that would be brought in in the coming weeks. The work was easy by his standards and although the boy was drenched in sweat it was more akin to an aerobics workour then heavy weight lifting.

Once he was sure the guards weren't watching him anymore, which they very likely weren't to begin with, Zach took another bale up to the loft, stacked it with the others and then proceeded to the one of the exterior walls. There, braced between the wall and a supporting beam was hidden ARG's metalic ball. The teenager, still wanting to know more about the mysterious Tractor-man and the Saiyan threat he spoke of, reteived the ball and placed it on the floor near the middle of the loft where it was still relatively clear. Taking another momen to look outside to ensure he wasn't being watched, Zach then trned back to the metalic ball and pressed the plunger on the top as the Tractor-man had instructed him to do.

[ARG-8]

A sudden burst of light and steam was accompanied by a surprisingly gentle *pomf*.  The android appeared where the capsule had been placed, slumped and jittering slightly.  Its body was still broken and bent, but it attempted to pull itself up to its full height just the same.  Failing that, it slowly lowered its bulk to the wooden planks of the hay loft.  Its joints audibly creaked with the effort, making a sound almost like a sigh.  The android turned its gaze towards the figure in its midst.  Its mind, so recently de-fragmented, recalled easily the memory of the figure.

When ARG-8 spoke, it with non of the distortion it had before.  It spoke each word haltingly, but in a mellow, almost serene, voice. 

"You are Human.  Male.  Designation Zach.  Your appearance has altered by 3%, suggesting a minimum amount of time has passed since my encapsulation.  I have reformatted my mental programming, and can perceive and reason with greater clarity now, though I have lost a great deal of knowledge in the process.  Stating Mission Summary:  Aid Mankind.  Defeat the... Threat to Earth.  I have ascertained that you belong to Mankind, and therefore I put myself at your service in the defense of mankind and the stewardship of the earth."

[Zach]

Standing away from the ball, Zach shielded his eyes as the sudden flash of light that masked the Tractor-man’s re-materialization grew bright enough to irritate them. Thankfully though the flash did not last long and even more so, seemed to go unnoticed by anyone outside. When finally he did lower his hand, Zach saw that the mechanical man had indeed returned though it still looked to be in as bad a shape as it was when it had put its self into the ball. The machine did however appear to be working better a far as it’s mental capacities went, identifying the blonde and correctly guessing that only a few days had passed, it even spoke much more naturally, all be it with a distinct lack of emotional tone and cadence one would expect from a person.

Almost as soon as he materialized the Tractor-man started to speak, rattling off it’s current state of being and then restating it’s objectives, although conspicuously missing was the word ‘Saiyan.’ Zach clearly recalled that word as it was what caused the majority of the awkwardness he was even now still tied up in with Koli. ‘Perhaps he will remember it on his own.’ Zach thought and decided not to bring the issue up for the time being, at the moment the more important issue was the fact that the machine’s voice was loud enough to be heard outside the barn.

“Shhh, don’t speak so loudly.” Zach issued in a hushed whisper. “Miss Koli and I are keeping you a secret for now so you can’t let anyone know you’re up here.” Zach continued and paused as he realized the Tractor-man might not actually know where he is and then continued. “Err… We’re in the hay loft in the barn. Nobody really comes up here but me and some of the other far hands.”