4

January 20th, 2007
'Sha... Sha...' A puff of steam filled the room. 'Chuga chuga---'CRASH! 'Chuff chuff chuff' BANG! Steam spewed out of the strange machine, filling the dim room once more. 'Chuff...chuff...chuff....'
Silence. Hope was lost.
'chuff chuff chuff chuff...' The machine then continued to chug along at a quieter, steadier pace. The only light in the room flickered. Why couldn't the janitor change the light bulb once in a while? She liked the janitor. I didn't think he was too bright, but I digress...
At that moment when the light went off, she knew it would work. The light was faint, but in that half second of darkness in the basement, my blue eyes flickered. Maybe if that basement light didn't go out, the dim blue would have gone unnoticed. With her eyes fixed on the figure laying motionless on the table, she might have given up hope when the motor stopped. But she persevered. In a way, I owe my life to the janitor.
I slept for what seemed like an eternity. Finally the day came for me to wake up. The light had been changed, so I could see more clearly than before. I noticed a battered, old broom leaning on a shelf across the room. The shelf was cluttered with cleaning supplies. I found myself lying on a metal table. Someone with brown hair and eyes looked down on me, smiling widely. She said her name.
“My name is Nadia. Can you hear me?” I slowly and tediously sat up and hung my “legs” over the side of the table. I spoke in a broken voice.
“He-llo. Na-Dee-ah. System ready to receive designation.” That was how I got my name.
“Program Designation: ASH. Start Program.”
“He-llo Na-Dee-ah. My name is ASH. Automaton Simulated Human ready for programming.”

Author's Note

Please leave constructive criticism and edits!