Program 12 Read Online Free PDF Page A

Thirteen.” The female White Coat, Tina, according to her badge, reached out her hand to welcome me.
    Human contact was still relatively new to me. The feel of their skin, soft and warm, against mine which was stiff and cold had a tendency to make them sick. The feel of cold metal underneath my flesh scared them, and I could not blame them. It was something they had to become used to. After all, we’d be living as one soon enough, or so McVeigh said. As I placed my palm in hers, a smile spread wide upon her face.
    “Good day,” I said, turning to look at the group of nearby White Coats who were examining my every move. While part of me felt human at times, it was not hard to remember what I truly was: a computer built beneath a human body, a Program.
    “Program Thirteen.” Charles McVeigh appeared out of nowhere, making his way through the White Coats. He wore a blue pinstripe suit with a red tie. His pale complexion shone bright underneath the bright lights of the halls. He was not a pleasant looking man, but he had meant no harm to me so far. I had no reason not to trust him. After all, he was the reason that   I was here. Douglas Todd was not far behind him, having stayed behind originally to wait for McVeigh. “On behalf of Vesta Corp, I’d like to welcome you to your new home.”
    Home . Level Three would be the last place I’d ever be able to call home. I’d live here and I’d die here, but I didn't mind. I didn't mind because I’d get time on the outside before they decided to deactivate me.
    “May I present to you your new caretakers?” McVeigh turned to his left, pointing at the on-looking White Coats. From left to right, there was Tina, the friendly White Coat, Roger, Rhys, Mark, and Sterling. “These will be the five people responsible for you at all times.”
    Had I not known better, I would have assumed the male White Coats were like me. Their faces were cold and their bodies rigid. Standing beside Tina, they looked lifeless...almost like me. But unlike me, they were actually alive. They each had a beating heart, blood flowing through their veins, and a conscience of their own. I did not. My exterior was flesh, but my insides were constructed of computers and wires. My mind was not my own. My words, my movements, my emotions...they were all fed to me, to my core. I did not have blood flowing through my veins, for I had no veins, only wires connecting to the Program built inside my mind. They might have looked like me, but they were not like me.
    Lowering my head, I walked over to the White Coats. The men parted so that I could stand beside Tina. I was grateful for their gesture, though I knew it was not meant to be friendly. Charles McVeigh and Douglas Todd made their way towards us with their arms open and face’s beaming with joy. I was their new toy, their new test in Level Three. I was everything McVeigh wanted out of this operation, or so it seemed. Both men threw their arms around me, not even wincing as their skin touched mine. Even through their suit jackets and long sleeve shirts that they wore underneath, I suspected they felt the coolness radiating off my flesh. But if they did, neither of the men made an effort to back away.
    “Program Thirteen.” McVeigh broke his hold on me, leaving Douglas Todd by my side. “Your caretakers will now be taking you into your hard drive evaluation. Since you have excelled two levels, there will need to be some changes made to your programming.”
    Without further ado, the White Coats grabbed hold of my arms and pulled me off into the evaluation room behind us, placing me in the metal chair before securing the restraints. This was the part I hated most, feared even, at least, inside. I was at the mercy of the scientists whom I’d yet to meet. These strangers controlled my core. Unlike my caretakers, they would never become a part of me. They would continue to remain strangers who stood behind the glass, clipboards and pens in tow, marking down my