Who Am I Today?

Cammy’s pleasing voice chimes, “Good morning,” as she enters the control room carrying Gary’s breakfast.

“Good morning, Cammy Cameleon. I see you fixed the food processor.”

“Yes. I accomplished the deed while you were asleep. I replaced several coils with two of my own.”

“That makes you and the food processor man and wife.”

Cammy tilts her head.

“Maybe it’s more like a washer and dryer mating.”

“You sound like Price.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be insulting. But you know what? As big a jerk as Price was, I’d give anything to see that egotistical playboy at his station.”

“You should eat your breakfast,” Cammy says. “And who am I, today, Gary?”

“I always liked Elizabeth Montgomery.”

Cammy inhales deeply, closing her eyes. Her outer shell melts away, and she morphs into Elizabeth Montgomery.

Cammy is an advanced android with an I.Q. of 300 and the ability to change her appearance. She and Gary Brooker have been at the C.I.A.’s Grayson Station for twelve years, ever since the nuclear war that left Earth uninhabitable. Gary has noticed crow’s feet gathering around his eyes and streaks of grey framing his hair. Still, thanks to Cammy’s resourcefulness, he’s warded off the cabin fever and claustrophobia that drove his fellow crew members mad.

“I miss the world, its people, and all their faults,” Gary laments.

Gary looks at the photograph he placed above the control console a dozen years ago.

“…I miss them most of all…”

“Your two daughters and your significant other.”

“Diane. My wife. Why do you have such a problem with that word?”

“It is not part of my programming.”

Gary studies the desert landscape.

“It has to be all right out there by now.”

“Cyan oxide poisoning 50%, Gesthamine poisoning 40%, oxygen 10%,” Cammy reports.

“Guess it’s not a good day for a walk outside.”

***

The following morning, Cammy is waiting for Gary in the control room.

“I made you a feta cheese omelet.”

“Swell.”

“Is something wrong? Does my appearance unsettle you?”

“No. But in the tradition of sitcom beauties, how about changing into Suzanne Somers?”

Gary gazes out of the observation window. The arid landscape is calm, with no sign of dust storms. The sky remains ghostly grey, but visibility is satisfactory.

“Today’s the day, I conquer my fear and go outside, Cammy.”

“The readings say otherwise. Cyan Oxide is 53%, Gesthamine is 44%, and oxygen is only 3%.”

“I’ll be wearing a contamination suit, and I’ll have enough oxygen for four hours.”

Cammy points to the far left. “But what will protect you from them?”

A four-legged creature the size of an SUV approaches a horned, two-legged reptile that scales forty feet or more. The creatures hiss and growl at each other, preparing to battle.

“I’ll bet you the big one smashes the spiked one.”

“It is a variant of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, and it is vicious and powerful, but it is vulnerable. The four-legged creature is a variant of the Stegosaurus, a smaller but worthy foe.”

“Put your money where your gyro is, Cammy.”

Cammy tilts her head questioningly.

“It’s slang. It means I’ll bet you whatever you want for a pecan pie.”

“You know pecan pie is not good for your health, Gary.”

“Remind me, what am I living for again? The major powers all pressed their buttons. Eight billion people looked up in the sky, said, ‘What the?…’ then were incinerated, including Diane and my two children. One by one, the men I served went insane, left the ship, and probably ended up as snacks for creatures like these…”

“But I… The High Command needs you healthy.”

“There is no more High Command, Cammy. So, bet?”

“Fine.”

The T. Rex reaches down, squeezing the Stegosaurus.

“I can practically hear its bones cracking from here,” Gary teases.

Tearing itself away from the T. Rex’s grip, the Stegosaurus turns its body around, slamming its barbed tail against the side of the giant reptile’s head. The T. Rex wobbles, defenseless, as the Stegosaurus delivers another deadly blow that splits its head open. It dies as it spirals to the ground.

“All right. No fatty dessert for Gary.

“So, what do you want?”

“I have been studying the habits of humans. I want to cuddle.”

“What? No! That’s an intimate act between people who care for each other.”

“Do you not care for me?”

“Of course I do. You’re like a sister, a friend. But cuddling, kissing, sex, those are personal acts reserved for people in love.”

“So, you will welch on our bet?”

“Where did you pick that term up from?”

“Price. He was a rude, poor example of a human being, but he was good at teaching me slang. And poker.”

“Knowing him, it was probably strip poker… All right. I suppose it would have been weirder if you asked for sex.”

“Perhaps next time.”

Gary awkwardly places his arms around Cammy. She wraps her arms around him.

“Not so tight!”

“Forgive me. I am new at this… My circuits find this activity pleasing. Based on your rapid heart rate, you feel the same.”

“It’s been twelve years since I’ve held a woman, even a metal one.”

Gary pulls his head away, smiling at Cammy.

What he sees angers and saddens him.

Cammy has changed her appearance to match his late wife’s.

“I’ve told you a hundred times! Never, ever, change your appearance to look like Diane! Understand?”

“Yes. So, who am I?”

“Scarlett Johansson,” he grumbles, walking away.

***

Cammy stands outside Gary’s door. Accessing her x-ray vision, she looks through the door to see what Gary is doing. She knows he would be angry if he knew she had developed this talent and many others beyond her original programming, especially her ability to create illusions.

Gary stares longingly at the communication screen. A video of him picnicking with his family is followed by a snippet of his daughter Erin performing in a school play, a collage of the family ski vacation to Aspen, the birth of his second daughter, and his wedding.

Cammy doesn’t have to see through steel and concrete to know that Gary is crying.

***

Gary steps up his attempts to communicate with the outside world.

He’s dozing at the console when a ring indicating an incoming message sounds.

Cammy stands over his shoulder.

“I told you, Cammy Chameleon. Someone is out there.”

“Do not get your hopes up. The computer’s chronometer indicates the incoming message is twelve years old.”

“…Before the bombs went off…,” Gary says, disheartened.

The visage of a smiling brunette in a smart business suit flashes onto the screen.

“Hello, I’m Maya Curie, the Mayor of New Providence, New Mexico. The images you're about to see are of a new paradise, a flourishing metropolis where artists can create, families can lead wholesome, happy lives, and senior citizens are revered and taken care of. We invite you to join us in New Providence, the new cradle of humanity.”

“…Look at those beautiful homes, Cammy…”

“None of them is standing now. What is that?”

“A pool. And that animal? The girl is riding a horse. And that’s a softball game. I have to get to New Providence.”

“You know that New Providence was destroyed along with the rest of the planet.”

“It seems so real, so beautiful. And the Mayor, she’s a real pistol.”

“She is a gun?”

“Too bad Price isn’t here to explain. It means she has a lot of energy… I want to try to get to New Providence. It would only be twenty miles from here. But I’m afraid to go outside… All that wind, the poisonous air. The dinosaurs. But the others went outside.”

“And died,” Cammy reminds him.

“Before Captain Swenson left, he told me he was convinced there were other humans out there who’d survived.”

“His mind was broken because he knew this station was the last place on Earth.”

“…Maybe he made it…”

“Stop saying that. You will only make yourself as melancholy as Captain Swenson.”

“You didn’t find his body.”

“Yes. I searched well beyond the perimeter. That is also how I know there is nothing out there for you but a slow, excruciating death. And remember, I found what remained of Warren and Price…barely enough DNA and bones to identify them.”

“…Swenson’s disappearance seemed to have an adverse effect on your circuits…”

“He was our leader. Captain Swenson was a fine example of a human male. He was intelligent, handsome, and cared about me.”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you had a crush on him.”

Cammy tilts her head.

“That means you liked him.”

“He treated me like a woman, as you do. Warren degraded me, spoke harshly to me, and Price only wanted me to pose without my protective suit…”

“You mean naked? I’m sorry, I had no idea.”

“He stopped when he asked me to look like Jayne Mansfield, and I turned into what she looks like a hundred years after her death. I wanted to have the upper hand on him for a change.”

“…I need to be with other humans, Cammy...”

“Is spending the rest of your life with me such a horrible prospect?”

“Of course not. But I need the company of my kind. And think about it, if we don’t find other people, you’ll be alone when I die.”

“I will have memory tapes of you, just as I have of Swenson.”

“A tape is not like interacting with a sentient being. It’s a one-way activity.”

“Then I will accelerate my efforts to find a way to extend your life so that you can be like me… Eternal…”

Gary shakes his head. “If you only understood how creepy that sounds… Give me the readings.”

Cammy turns to look at the console.

“…. Cyan Oxide 63%…. Gesthamine 22%…. Oxygen, 15%...”

“The oxygen level has shrunk again… I took a reading last night while you were fixing dinner. It was 25%.”

Cammy’s vibrant fake blue eyes darken. “You must leave that task to me.”

“I can read a few dials, Cammy.”

“I am only saying you have more important things to do.”

Gary suddenly bolts from his seat.

“I’m going outside before my fear of what’s out there makes me as crazy as the others.”

Cammy closes her eyes for a moment, then follows Gary to the equipment room.

“You know what’s out there. Carnivorous dinosaurs forty feet high, poisonous gases, miles of desert with no water…”

A clap of thunder rocks the ship.

Gary runs to a porthole.

“Another storm.”

Cammy accesses her weather program. “Winds are one hundred fifty miles per hour.”

Gary presses his features against the porthole.

“This isn’t the usual sandstorm… It’s raining rocks the size of my fist.”

The rocks hit against the station like cannonballs battering the hull of a wooden ship.

The overhead lights flicker.

“If life support is damaged, it won’t matter if I’m inside or outside; I’m going to die.”

The ship shakes. A high-pitched tearing sound makes Gary cover his ears.

“What’s that?”

The pair heads back to the control room.

Gary checks the outside cameras.

A large section of the roof flaps against the wind.

“If we lose the roof, we’ll lose hull integrity.”

“Then I will go outside and effect repairs.”

“You can’t go out there, Cammy. You’ll wind up in Chicago, which, by the way, is over a thousand miles away.”

“There is no other solution.”

“Can you turn yourself into Arnold Schwarzenegger? The Rock?”

“I can only transform into another female. Why is it you ask?”

“You’re going to have to be the strongest woman you know of to survive that wind.”

Cammy closes her eyes, her outer shell melting, then reforming.

“ELEANOR ROOSEVELT! By strong, I meant physically, not mentally.”

Cammy salutes Gary, heading for the equipment room.

“Don’t bust a hip! And maintain radio contact!”

***

Gary watches Cammy exit the station. Her magnetic boots barely keep her attached to the station as the strong winds smash against her.

She pulls the damaged section down and welds it back into place. A strong gush of wind and sand extinguishes the torch’s flame and obscures Cammy from Gary’s view.

“Cammy! I’ve lost visual contact! Do you read?”

“Everything’s hunky dory, Gary.”

“Hunky dory?”

Cammy pauses, closing her eyes for a moment.

Gary gasps when he sees an enormous dragon-like winged creature hovering above Cammy, its sharp teeth poised for attack.

“Get out of there, Cammy! I know you’re made of steel, but that thing’ll open you up like you’re a can of peaches.”

The dragon lunges at Cammy, latching onto her arm. Cammy turns the torch on the dragon. It shrieks and tries to batter Cammy with its wings.

Cammy moves the torch closer to its skull, searing its skin.

Shrieking in pain, the injured dragon retreats into the grey sky.

***

Gary examines Cammy’s arm. The dragon’s bite has torn away her outer skin, exposing wires and flashing diodes.

He smiles sympathetically. “Does it hurt?”

Eleanor Roosevelt rolls her eyes. “I am the one who usually forgets I am not human.”

“I freaked out when that thing attacked you. For a moment, I thought I’d lost you.”

“You mean you were worried about me?”

“Of course. You make the best scrambled eggs on the planet… You know, I might not be so nervous, and I could repair you more easily if I weren’t looking at Eleanor Roosevelt…”

“Fine. So, who am I?”

“How about Betty White? She was non-threatening, like my granny.”

“I have been studying human behavior, but I missed the chapter explaining why you would be attracted to a much older woman.”

Gary’s bemused expression goes slack.

“Was my attempt at humor poor?”

“No. Listen.”

“I hear nothing. And as you know, my hearing is superlative.”

“That’s just it. There’s no wind. No rocks hitting the station like a Ginger Baker drum solo.”

“Perhaps, as you humans say, you should count your blessings.”

Cammy follows Gary to the observation window.

He looks out at the vast sandy desert.

“I know there was a nuclear war and that the environment went haywire, but the weather has never changed this quickly.”

“Perhaps it is a sign that Earth’s atmosphere is deteriorating.”

“Or getting better! Look up. Do you see that light trying to force its way through the grey sky? That’s the sun. If we can see the sun, then the Earth’s atmosphere has improved.”

Cammy wobbles, closing her eyes.

“Are you all right?”

“A momentary power fluctuation. I am fine.”

Gary looks at the sky. The light is gone.

“I had hope for a moment, Cammy.”

Cammy places her undamaged hand on Gary’s shoulder.

“Perhaps I can help you feel better.”

“No… I’m going to go to my cabin for a little while. I need to look at Diane’s video…”

“Again? She is dead, Gary.”

“The fact that you so coolly pointed that out means you're still just a machine.”

***

“I’m going outside, Cammy.”

“You will die, just like the others.”

“I’m not afraid anymore. It’s better than sitting here waiting to die. I looked at the video of New Providence again. I know it, or a place like it exists.”

“I cannot go with you. I must remain here.”

“The station is useless. There is no more high command to report to or reprimand us for abandoning our post.”

“Captain Swenson damaged my portable recharging station before he ventured outside. I can recharge myself indefinitely here and remain eternal, but I would only survive outside of the station for a month.”

“Then, for now, this is goodbye.”

“I will deactivate myself until I see you again.”

“You make it sound like punishment. Think of it as sleep.”

“…Sleep…Perhaps I will teach myself to dream.”

“That’s my Cammy Cameleon. Always trying to improve herself.”

Gary is surprised when Cammy hugs him. Using her superior strength, she pulls him closer, kissing him on the lips.

“I believe that is the proper way for a loved one to say goodbye.”

Gary moves to the exit hatch and turns to look at Cammy.

She’s crying.

Once outside, Gary is buffeted by the strong winds.

He turns one last time, squinting through the opaque atmosphere to look at Cammy, who is watching him through the observation window.

Diane waves goodbye to him.

***

Cammy slams her fist against the console when Gary’s figure disappears into the storm.

The blustery winds cease, and the sky’s eternally grey pallor lifts.

“…I wasted all that energy to create this illusion…”

The atmosphere surrounding the station turns into a sun-drenched, eighty-five-degree summer day.

“All the love I gave him, and he still deserted me.”

Descending to the station’s main floor, Cammy heads to the freezer.

Opening the lid, she runs her hand across Captain Swenson’s frozen corpse.

“Soon, my love, you will be back in my arms.”

***

Gary fights his way through a blinding sandstorm.

A confidence-shattering roar halts his progress.

An Allosaurus comes into view.

It lets out another frightening roar. Gary trains his rifle on it, firing off two shots that have no effect.

The Allosaurus lunges at him. Screaming, Gary runs, expecting to be crushed to death.

The Allosaurus remains where it stands, as if unable to follow him, stuck behind a wall of wailing sand.

A few yards away from the Allosaurus, the sandstorm dissipates. The grey sky parts, and the sun appears.

Gary looks around, blissfully laughing at the lush trees, rolling fields, and rushing streams surrounding him.

He takes off his helmet, filling his lungs with fresh, unpolluted air.

***

Gary continues to walk for several miles, coming to a precipice overlooking a village. The buildings are new, and he can see people moving about.

Gary runs into the village, where curious, smiling settlers surround him.

A woman steps out of the crowd.

“I’m Mayor Maya Curie. Welcome to New Providence.”