‘Just keep running Lauren. I know you feel tired but it’s an illusion. I’m almost there.’ The voice inside her head was comforting. Though Lauren started to notice her neighbors watching her as a black van trailed behind. ‘Act natural, don’t return to the house.’



“Morning,” Laura waved to one of the neighbor’s she had known for years. She had a bit more gray hair than what Lauren remembered and she appeared tired. “Beautiful Summer weather we’re having.”



“Oh yes, it’s a lovely time of year,” the neighbor responded as Lauren jogged by.

‘Fuck the neighbors too?’ Lauren felt like everyone was in on this scheme centered around her.

‘Unfortunately yes, they were collateral damage to make everything around you appear to be normal.’ The voice told her.

‘You promise I’m not crazy?’ Lauren asked as she watched as all the neighbors decided now would be a good time to come outside.

‘Only that time you became Lauran,’ the voice responded. ‘But that was my fault.’

“Laura?” Lauren accidentally exclaimed out loud in excitement.

‘Run!’ Laura instructed and Lauren did exactly that, as the neighbors began to give chase. Though she quickly wore herself out. ‘Do I have your permission to disable the fatigue limiters?’



“What…?” Lauren asked, trying to catch her breath.

‘This is a part of the programing to make you feel more human, may I disable them?’ Laura repeated with clarification and urgency. She could’ve done so at any time ensuring Lauren’s safety but consent was paramount to Laura.

“Yes you may disable them!” Lauren yelled as she got her breath back and started running at 25 miles per hour. “Holy shit!” Lauren couldn’t believe how fast she was running. She ran towards the gate only to find men in combat gear waiting for her, rifles drawn. She quickly stopped herself, almost tumbling onto the road, regained her footing and ran back in the other direction as the bullets started flying.



“They’re not going to hurt if they hit me right?”, Lauren asked as a bullet narrowly missed her.

‘Unfortunately they will, you’re going to bleed too.’ Laura informed her.



“Can you disable those functions as well?” Lauren asked as she rolled into a nearby bush. Her neighbor tried to grab her but stumbled backwards as a bullet hit them in the shoulder. That didn’t stop them though as they got back up and tried to detain Lauren again. “Can you disable everything that’ll impede my survival?”

‘Yes….’ Laura was hesitant to do such a thing as she wanted her mother to remain as human as possible but she realized these were dire circumstances.

“Get off me!” She shoved the man back into the next yard over. She broke his ribs and punctured a lung in the process. “Did I just…?”



‘Unfortunately they are mindless thralls now, only programmed for one thing, yours and my capture.’ Laura hated Raymond so much for what he had been up to for the last six years, she regretted not doing more sooner but she was and still is an illegal AI and most of his actions had flown under the radar.



“Ben…!” Lauren realized.



‘That version of him is gone, but a version of him still lives,’ Lauren reassured her. ‘Just like you’re a different version of Lauren.’



“I’m no longer human, you mean…” Lauren countered as she ran inside the house and through the backyard and through the fence.



‘Yes….’ Laura reluctantly admitted.



“Okay we’ll deal with that, after I get out of here,” Lauren was taking it better than Laura would’ve thought.

‘Okay hang tight, I’m almost there. Make your way back to the gate,’ Laura instructed.



“But that’s where the guys where they guns are,” Lauren complained as she followed the instructions.



Just as Lauren arrived at the gate, she heard the screeching of tires as an armored truck burst its way through the cars and gate blocking Lauren’s escape. The door swung open and Laura rolled out in front of the armed soldiers, breaking the weapons she could before taking them out.



“Run!” Laura yelled to Lauren who didn’t even hesitate.



“Laura look out!” A man screamed from inside the van as a grenade landed at her feet. She quickly kicked it into the air, causing it to explode at a safe distance. Only to be hit on the side with several bullets.



“Come on,” Lauren grabbed Laura, pulling her out of harm's way and into the van.



“Drive!” Laura instructed as the man nodded, pulling out through the carnage he just made. She sat up and looked at her arm, and left side where she had sustained several gunshot wounds. She moved her arm to inspect any damage. “Seventy-Five percent functionality and some cosmetic damage, nothing that can’t be repaired.” She informed the driver before turning to Lauren. “Mum!” She gave her a hug. “I’ve been waiting so long for this day.”



Lauren still didn’t have a clue as to what was going on but she accepted the hug all the same. The two of them were both Dolls but the difference between them was night and day. “Laura…” Lauren pulled her back, her mood souring. “How long was I gone?”



“I’ll explain everything when there’s time. For now dad needs help.” Laura closed her eyes and went to sleep.



“Laura?” Lauren was worried for a second that she had been hit worse than she let on.



“Don’t worry about Laura, she does this all the time,” the Driver assured her. “I’m Marco by the way, welcome to the resistance.”

* * * * *

“Fuck…” Benjamin knew he was in trouble, both Lauren and Laura had gotten away under his watch. Raymond was going to kill him. He knew because he would kill him. “Why did I give myself this useless body…” On the bright side he didn’t need to pretend to be Ben anymore, but a part of him had enjoyed it, especially waking up to Lauren. ‘Maybe I can get one of the other DX units,’ he thought to himself.



The worst part was going to be how to explain the armed men attacking a quiet suburban street. Though the mental hospital was also likely to become a battle ground as Laura tried to retrieve the real Ben, who now went by Jane.



“This could work…” Benjamin realized as he called his original version.



“This better be important, I’m dealing with another crisis right now,” Raymond sounded angry and annoyed. It took Benjamin becoming Benjamin to realize why people hated him as Raymond so much. He treated everyone inferior to him and was a micromanaging asshole. But in Raymond’s defense Benjamin was incompetent but that was this brain and body’s fault.



“I lost Laura and Lauren and shots were fired, one of the civilians got hit… But… but…” Benjamin began to plead his case before he got yelled at. “I’ve got a way to make this work in our favor.”



“You have ten seconds,” Raymond informed him. “Ten… nine…”



Like Benjamin thought, he was an asshole. “With armed soldiers and civilians getting shot here, we can blame a new militia, one that means the community harm. Laura’s militia. I assume the situation at the mental hospital isn’t going well.”



“No it’s not going well… Laura hacked our Dolls, the thing is a bloody PR nightmare, patients have been shot.”



“By…” Benjamin prodded Raymond.



“An armed Militia that the workers of the hospital tried to defend using their Dolls…” Raymond’s mood changed. “This could work, not only do we make Laura public enemy number one, we’ll have people using Dolls for safety allowing us to reprogram their mind. We can even use this to gain support from the few positions of government we haven’t taken control of… Excellent work” Raymond praised Benjamin. “But you wouldn’t have thought of it if you didn’t have a version of me living inside your head.



“That’s true,” Benjamin acknowledged. “I’ll begin practicing my lines for the press about the attack on the facility, if Jane lives or dies it doesn’t matter. I’m a grieving husband either way.”

“Excellent… I’ll send you DX-2,” Raymond knew what Ben wanted.



“Isn’t that the one that plucked out their eye to confirm they were a Doll?” Benjamin was disappointed by the offer.



“I could send you DX-6 or none instead.”



“DX-2 will do…” Benjamin acknowledged before letting Raymond hang up. Raymond always needed to be the one to end the calls.



Benjamin smiled to himself as he returned to the old town house, ignoring the sirens. Laura might’ve escaped with Lauren but she had played into their hands. The public was on their side, anyone who used a Doll can become their puppet. This was not a fight Laura could win.