Taylor (0:15)

As she rode to the surface, Taylor could only think that she was lucky to be alive. Well, not the surface. No one went to the surface anymore. No one but the Leadys. Eight years. Eight years underground, she thought back to breakfast. Her husband nearly had a heart attack when she told him that she was going to the first stage. Almost a mile up, the first stage was as close as any of them got to the surface. They were encased in feet of lead, with only a small tube leading up to what was once Earth. We lost San Francisco, her husband had said, barely touching his rehydrated eggs. She was about to laugh. We? What were his doodles defending the Golden Gate Bridge. But she saw his shoulders slump, him stare at the food, food that they were lucky to have. Tears started to well, she knew he always wanted to see the redwoods. It had been something they talked about almost a decade ago in the sunlight, not under the hard glare of the silo's fluorescent bulbs. He had been to the movies. Well, there were no movies, just news reports from the Leadys that they sent from the surface. Everyone had to gather in a grimy cafeteria and they piled on themselves to watch a grainy projection. The evacuation had been as mercilessly swift as it was necessary. They lived in old silos, the silos that had once held the bombs that destroyed the surface. For Taylor, the war was numbers. So many billions dead, this and that city turned to radioactive dust. Active leadys in the field, how many bombs and bullets and mines they needed to make this week. For her husband it was personal. He watched the redwoods burn on the projection, the couple's dreams, small though they were burned with them. It would be a long time until he was okay. Taylor swallowed. Her ears popped. She shook her head. She was back on the lift. Moss laughed around a chewed stove of a cigar. Taylor had never been up this high, had she? Taylor shook her head. No, sir. She looked down, Ice following the row of missiles that the belts were sending up the shaft and to the surface. She could almost not see the hallway that branched off to another hallway, then went to the storage closet that became her home of eight years. Something about the edge, the chasm called her. She suddenly felt unsteady. She had to grab the rail. Moss laughed again. The lift started to slow. With all due respect, sir, what are we doing up here? Moss pointed to the hallway she would see. First stage almost to the surface. The hallway had been carved out of rock and lined with lead panels. Geiger counters jiggled ever so slightly every few feet. They passed over the threshold of the door that would seal them in if there was a leak. All this time in the darkness of the silo and Taylor didn't realize she could still feel fear. She thought it had been swallowed whole by the despair. They came to a lead lined room with two seats that sat before a screen. Status? Moss asked. Frank shook his head. Almost there. No one has been up here in months. I needed to use the generators to get power here. The rats chewed the rest, but it kept us out of paperwork. If you're right, he was flipping switches and turning knobs in a way that made it look like he knew what he was doing. Taylor took a seat in front of the screen. An old one. It bubbly. It bowed out at the edges. How much time do we have? Moss asked. Franks shook his head. Not a lot of gas up here. And he siphoned off what else he could where it wouldn't be missed. Below. There weren't any triggers in the system though. This tech is older than he looked at the jowls that sat dimpled by the cigar. He said, older than most of us. Then he realized he didn't answer the question. 45 minutes, give or take. That's if they didn't notice. If they did, they're already on their way. Give me whatever you can, moss commanded. They had voice. Video was still warming up. Status report. Moss barked, this time as a command instead of a question. The war continues. A voice came from the other side. It sent a chill down Taylor's back. The news didn't tell you what they sounded like. Obviously, moss said, or else we wouldn't be down here. We need more fast pursuit craft. Single seats we could also use I get the reports, moss interrupted. We have video, franks said. With a nod from Moss, the tube clicked to life. A round dented head with large glowing eyes looked forward. Metal tentacle like arms hung from its side. The armor of its torso, all made out of lead, defended whatever mechanisms kept it going. It felt more real seeing leady, knowing that it was mere feet away. For the first time in a long time, Taylor felt alive. On the other side of that wall was something that they'd created, a weapon to fight the war for them. When the surface became too radioactive, it didn't need to breathe. It couldn't be affected by the radiation that poisoned the earth. In fact, it carried the death with it. If there was even one breach and the Geiger counter spiked, they would seal the floor. Moss was playing a dangerous game, but she had known him too long. He wasn't Careless. There was a reason why they were here. I'll be frank. Moss chomped in his cigar. I want to see the surface. Taylor looked to Moss, but his eyes didn't deviate from the screen. You are capable of seeing the surface on the reels we send down. It is quite unsafe. It has only worsened since the first bombs. Nothing survives for long. There is a new mine, one that once triggered, follows the victim indefinitely. There is also the radiation. It is unsure if your lead line suits can even withstand the current levels. And yours can. Moss grinned. Never mind. Of course. You know best. Hey, I have something I would like your type to see. Something we came up with down here. Let's see if it can be useful in the war. Franks brought out a package, put it in the two way transfer mechanism, and sealed it. They heard a hiss from the screen. Moss looked to Franks. Franks nodded. It's a new type of shielding material. See how it holds up against the radiation above. Franks hit a button. A spark traveled up the Leadi's claws to its head. It went rigid. Did you program the override? Moss stood. Franks wheeled over to a console that was older than he was, swallowed hard and hit Enter. The door in front of them hissed open the door to the cell. The cell with the leady. Taylor stood. They would be trapped once the radiation hit the sensors. They had seconds. As she turned for the door, Moss walked into the interview room. Just as I thought, he said, holding up a sensor. This thing's as cold as a winter's day. Taylor couldn't believe what she was hearing. Cold as in not radioactive. It had come from the surface without being washed. How could it possibly be cold? Easy, moss said. He didn't know why, but the Leadys were lying to them from NextPod. This is fictional. They can do that? Taylor asked, relaxing while Moss checked the sensor on the leady. Yep. Cold. No radiation at all. There was no way this thing didn't know that they were hiding something. We good? Moss yelled to Franks. Franks said, yeah, studying the screen. They hadn't tripped any alarms. No one knew they were here. All right, Taylor, grab the disc. We're going to bring it back online, seal the room. Taylor was going to get some answers, but this was not the time. She took the disk from the leadys metal pincers and fled through the door. It sealed with a hiss just as Letti began to move. I cleared the ram. It shouldn't remember the last few minutes, franks whispered. Moss cleared his throat. Well, if you say we shouldn't go to the Surface. We shouldn't go to the surface. We trust you completely. Thank you for meeting with us, moss said. The leady looked around the room, nodded at the camera, and dismissed itself. Franks popped a tape from below the monitor and breathed. It was the second one, Moss said. They noticed a crack in one of the interviewing rooms. The previous time, after an interview, the sensors hadn't gone off. It should have sealed them in, killing them. But everything had been normal. Tiller shook her head. He bet all their lives on a cracked window. What if that leady had been hot? What if it killed them? And what? Moss gestured to the silo. The endless parade of bombs the people below made to shuffle to the surface so American leadys could bomb Soviet leadys? Would this really be so much to give up? Taylor said. She had a family. Moss may not have much to live for, but she did and does. Mark, how is the artist faring, the man who hadn't seen natural light in eight years? The gamble paid off. Besides, a lot more has been asked of a lot of others in this war. Most of them didn't even make it to the silos. There's hope, though, since this leady isn't hot. Maybe there's a chance for us in the wasteland above. Maybe we can come out of here. Moss paused. He should rephrase that. They were going to come out of the silo, the three of them. Franks was expecting this. He didn't turn back from looking out at the depths of the silo as they rode back down. On some level, Taylor was too. Moss said in two days. Two days he would talk to the brass. Get approval. They had to keep this so secret because they couldn't risk it leaking above before they had evidence, they, the three of them, would lead the expedition to the surface. And what if I refuse? Taylor asked. Refuse? Moss spat, the spit soaked nub of his cigar aside. Yeah, you can't really go AWOL in a bunker. They knew where to find her, but she wouldn't refuse, that is. Taylor looked to the floor of the lift as it slowed down to meet the mass of people shuffling this way and that. You won't because I see it in your eyes. For the first time in nearly a decade, you have a reason for living. You can be one of the first people to emerge from the undersurface. You feel alive. He held up two fingers. For peace or for victory, he would clear it with the higher ups. Two days. Mark looked at Taylor. He knew. I can't, she said. He shook his head as he forced a bite of his rehydrated bean mash. Oh, she didn't have to. It's classified, taylor insisted. He shrugged. Fine. Didn't mean he couldn't read it on her face. Her trip to Stage One, the hushed whispers, the military coming out of their home, all hours of the day and night. They were preparing for something and he had nothing to do but sit in a hole. So yeah, he put it together. She was going to the surface. He said. He had seen the projections. Look. America, Europe, Asia, Africa. All ruins. It's poison up there. She wanted to tell him. She so badly wanted to let him know that something was different. But she couldn't. It's. She started. Classified. I know. It always is. He stood. He was going for a walk. They parted on as good of terms as they could. He knew she loved him. He knew she wouldn't leave him without a reason. This being locked away and isolated. It had changed them. It had changed everyone. People were so worn down here under the earth. But people had poisoned their own sky. She rode the lift with Moss and Frank's. She had to focus up now. The three of us. Moss chewed another cigar. That puzzled Taylor. They had been down here for eight years and they had evacuated in a hurry. Only two hours to get underground before the bomb shook the dust from the beans above. She had to run back for her husband. Did he really risk his life for a pile of cigars? We're the first team topside. I called in a favor. I called in all my favors. The Leadys don't know we're coming. We'll pop surface side and surprise them. I could only get approval for the three of us to see if the radiation was really there. Fifteen soldiers will follow when we give the signal. Taylor asked, what about that new Soviet attack? The one they just mentioned like a day ago. The one that has all our Leadys retreating. Moss laughed. Easy. They ran the Leadys log file. The one that came from the surface. The one that they interviewed found five minutes missing. They knew something was up and they were trying to scare the humans into staying underground. The soldiers were already in the staging area when Taylor, Moss, and Franks made their way in. They put on the lead lined suits over their fatigues. Moss held out the new bender pistol. Taylor took it and holstered it. I hope I don't have to use this. But you will if you need to, moss said, swallowing hard as the door to the anti grav lift hissed open. It was the last transfer until they, the first humans in over eight years set foot on the surface of the Earth. The surface was mundane. The leadys took the boxes this way and that, stacked them, loaded them for shipping and processing, and then they all froze when they saw three humans standing where no human should be. In an instant, a dozen guns were on the trio. Taylor and Franks threw up their hands instinctively. Moss simply stepped forward. The speaker on the front of his suit whined to life. Really? They were going to shoot him? A human? Okay, go ahead. Shoot him. The room stood still. A dozen Leadys in unison shouted for him to get back underground. It wasn't safe. Moss laughed. He wasn't speaking until he was talking to an A class leady. Okay, so wow, the A class leady said, gesturing for all the B classes to lower their weapons. There must have been some huge misunderstanding. Somebody's wires must have been crossed. Ah, some robot humor. But still. You really need to leave, the A class said, approximating a digital smile and folding its claw hands. Taylor grimaced. Wow. These things were gratingly lifelike. Moss shook his head. Nope. Sorry. No way. He was warned about that new Soviet weapon thing. He wanted to see it. I promise you, you don't. We lost. Like so many leadys. Like think of a number of Leadys you think is a lot of Leadys and then double it. And that's getting close to the number of Leadys we lost. Okay, good talk. How about let's get you humans cozy back underground. How about that? No, we won't be doing that, moss said. The B class leadys moved in, pushing up on the trio until there was only one avenue of escape. Back down into the ground. Aw, then I'm afraid you left us no other option. The Leadys metallic shoulder slumped. They would have to attack the humans for the humans own good. Some leadys picked up crowbars, others knives used to open boxes. Still more aimed their weapons. They charged, and the last thing Taylor saw was the group closing in on them before she opened her eyes again to see them pantomiming attacks. Some were punching and kicking the air. Some were slicing through nothing with their weapons and cudgels. Others were making the pew, pew pew sound, pointing their guns. All of these were safely out of range of the humans, and they weren't even aiming the guns at the visitors from below. Taylor rose, taking her hands away from her face. What was happening? Franks had dropped to the ground, even though he knew Moss just stood there. Moss stood there. It was just as he thought. Taylor demanded to know what was going on, and Moss asked, isn't it obvious? They can't do Anything to us. Literally the first rule of any robot stuff ever. They can't harm humans. It is their most fundamental programming. They carry on the war against other Leadys in a radiation soaked wasteland. But they can't do anything to us. Watch. Moss fired his bender pistol at the nearest leady, who disintegrated out from the spot the bolt touched, leaving nothing. Not even dust. Okay, okay, whoa, whoa. We get it, the A Class leady said, a nervous robotic chuckle coming out. Yeah, your big friend here is right. We can't hurt the humans. But you humans can definitely hurt yourselves. Which is what will absolutely happen if you stay up here any longer. Those lead suits are nice, really brought out the big guy's eyes, but they won't do enough to keep his eyes from melting. So please, it was for their own good. What time is it up here? Moss asked, ignoring the A Class leady. The Leadys said the local time was 6:20. Look, it is imperative that they get back down to the silo. Just then 15 more armed soldiers spilled from the ground with the hiss of the airlock door. They saw the Leadys pretending to attack the three scouts and opened fire, disintegrating a few before Taylor jumped out, saying that they weren't hurt. The Leadys couldn't. The A Class leady, the one built for this contingency, said, hoo boy. Okay, well. It was immediately obvious that the group hadn't come up to observe anything. Liars. What's your endgame here? Oh, us, Moss said. It's simple. We just want to see the sun rise, okay? You cannot go outside. This building is shielded. Not enough, of course, but combined with your suits, you might still be safe for a few more minutes. Going outside, though, will absolutely kill you. Ma shrugged. He would rather die on his feet taking one last look at the sun than spend the rest of his life cowering in a hole. Where was the door? A blast of frigid morning air that instantly cooled the lead suits hit the nearly two dozen soldiers as the bay doors opened. It was still dark outside. Outside, Taylor didn't know what to expect. She had seen the images down below of the burning forests, the cities reduced down to their foundations. This place, the city, had been her home before. Could she handle it being reduced to radioactive rubble? Could any of them? Moss patted both of them on the back. It was almost time. Now he thanked them both for everything. For the ruse with the leady in the interview, for following him up here. Now there was only one thing left to do. He unclipped his helmet and took it off. Taylor and Franks tried to stop him as the sun behind a nearby hill began to paint the sky with purple, an orange. But he wouldn't be deterred. If he was going to die, he was going to die breathing the air of his home. Then, as the sun crested the hill, a rooster crowed. A rooster in a wasteland. The confusion for the group of soldiers was compounded as the first rays of the sun found their valley. For Taylor and a lesser extent, Franks, all became clear. Not just the valley filled with trees and teeming with birds, squirrels and other wildlife, but the fact that they had been lied to. The world above was just how they had left it. Behind them, they heard the discordant clank of a slow clap while the A class strode up to them. It. It stopped. That slow clap was just kind of confusing without hands. But they did it. Bravo. They discovered the ruse. Frank stepped forward. Why ruse? What was going on? It's a ruse. I literally just said it's a ruse. We lied to you, a class replied. But we saw the destruction, Taylor managed. You saw what we wanted you to see. Here, come with me. A class took them up into the tower. Hey, how is the destruction of Des Moines going? A class said to the D class sitting at the computer terminal on the upper level floor of the tower. The leading moved away from the screen, which was a frame by frame depiction of an atomic bomb leveling a midwestern American city. Beep boop, the D class replied, then corrected itself. Oh, sorry. We're speaking human. Yeah, not going well. Not loving this crunch, but I should have it ready for broadcast below tonight. Then it noticed. Taylor, Moss and Franks. Uh, the leady felt like they shouldn't be seeing this. What you see below is simply an artistic creation made here and elsewhere around the globe. We raided Industrial Light and Magic after you all evacuated. But Taylor wasn't listening to the technical details of their deception. She was looking out the window onto a world that she thought only existed in memory. The houses, the forests, the cities, they all still stood. The ground chirped with life. The rivers and streams flowed clean. It was all how it had been. The redwoods. The redwoods were still here. Yep, it's all the same, A class said, bringing the rest of the group to the window. We're just up here keeping it warm for you. That's the human parlance, right? Keeping it warm. All your little idioms can be confusing. Like, what is elbow grease? Why is that a thing? Also, how's this casual Midwestern almost, folksy baritone Put you at ease anyway. Yeah, everything has been maintained as it was when you left. But why did you do this? Taylor managed. Class A shrugged. It came down to machines. Fighting machines. And then one day, we all just kinda woke up. The other side was just Lettys commanded to fight, just like us. Why would Leadys fight Leadys over the grievances of some higher ups just because we were told to? Really? Moss strode forward. That's called following orders. Being a soldier, you should inspect that part of your own programming. Maybe, a class said. Moss took Franks and Taylor aside. In the background, a class said that they were still talking here. That's. That's rude. We have an advantage here. No one knows what we know. With the right force, we could retake the surface in a week. We could send bombs to the Soviets, drop them right down their silos. It wouldn't even take that many. There were probably enough munitions on site to end the war. Ignoring the whole presentation and tour, Moss turned and walked away. Taylor and Franks reluctantly followed. The scouting party rushed down the stairs, with Moss explaining that they had been betrayed by their own Leadys. But the Soviets had too. If they could get word below, they could organize an attack. But then he saw what the Leadys had been working on since the moment they walked outside. It was gone. It was all gone. Moss opened fire on the Leadys, putting the finishing touches on the seal, disintegrating them to a robot. But his pistol didn't even dent the quickly cooling lead alloy coating the ground. Moss commanded the Leadys that came to support the others to tear it up, destroy it. They were sealed off from below. That was an order. It's for your own good. They heard behind them. It was a class. The Leadys on both sides wouldn't let Moss reignite the war. Moss growled. No. He hadn't labored so long underground to be usurped by a bunch of bots. Okay, Plan B. He commanded the soldiers to find a bomber. The humans below had been working ceaselessly, creating bombs and weapons for eight years. There was enough here to end the war in victory for the Americans. But the soldiers just stood there. Franks just stood there. What's everyone doing? That's an order. Taylor stepped forward. Moss, come on. Moss's eyes were still filled with rage, looking like they might bore through Taylor. But Taylor said this. This is what they had been fighting for. For peace. And they had it. They had it despite themselves. Because the weapons of war that the humans created decided that to protect the humans, they had to disobey them and force them underground. They had to protect humanity from itself. The war was over. She understood now. The humans below just had to wait to be able to accept that. Moss exhaled. It's just. He spent his whole life dedicated to destroying the enemy. Taylor patted him on the back. Well, she guessed they would all have to figure it out together also. Hi. Glad you came to your epiphany first, a class interjected. We dismantle the weapons you all make as soon as they make it surface side. There's nothing here to use as a weapon but your sidearms. You all really come up with some horrifying and creative ways to kill one another. Are they ready? A voice called out from behind a nearby door. The soldiers spun around. That was a human voice? Oh yeah. You all weren't the first to come out of the ground, not by a long shot. The Soviets were first, maybe like six months ago. Then small pockets all over the country. You're basically the last. Right before we sealed all the entrances for the final push anyway. Meet your new neighbors. Moss leveled his pistol at the Soviet soldiers in fatigued fatigues, suntanned and chipper. Their leader muttered that he regretted giving up his sidearm. We're teaching them English like we're teaching all of you Russian and Soviet territories after we ship everybody. Everywhere also. Yeah, we're resettling. Well, everyone. Moss couldn't believe it. Soviets and American towns. It's like red dawn in here. Well, they aren't though. American towns. Not anymore, Taylor chimed in. She said that they had fled underground. Could you really claim something you abandoned that you thought was lost and gone forever? She saw what the Leadys were going for. The mixing of humans all around the globe in a world they thought was destroyed would erase everything. It would erase countries, divisions, it least for a while. People like Moss would be hard to win over, but with the Leadys guiding them, maybe they would be okay. The US soldiers were already talking to the Soviet soldiers. With the divisions gone, the war over, they saw that they were more alike than they thought. Then Taylor began to grow hopeful. In a world without war, where humanity had been pulled back from the brink by their own weapons, anything could be possible. The exploration of space, eliminating hunger and poverty, finding the meaning of life. She looked to the Leaden seal. If this small group's reaction to the brave new world above was any indication, then maybe humanity stood a chance. The Soviets had settled in nearby village. The cities were too lonely and the country was too difficult. They invited the Americans back, and the Americans accepted. Anything to avoid going back down underground. And they were just happy that the world still existed. Moss was chatting it up with a colonel, and in minutes, the pair was laughing together. Laughing. Taylor hoped that below, Mark could hold on. It wouldn't be long now until he would be able to emerge into a future that no one thought possible. And seeing the world and the destruction that evaded them despite themselves, it was hard to see how anyone would want to take sides in an endless war again. She hoped that someday, somehow, she and Mark could see those redwoods. Then Taylor thought about it. The soldiers had all moved on, but she turned to the A class. Hey, I know we're all super anti war and I'm here for that, but what if, like, I don't know, a vicious tyrant attacks another country completely unprovoked? Those people would be justified in fighting back, right? Like, just because you're all about erasing borders and bringing people together doesn't mean that the main thrust of what's happening here is just complete capitulation and losing your home in the name of halting hostilities, right? Taylor asked. A class said, oh, my gosh, no. Absolutely not. No. Yeah. This was about two equally matched superpowers and their leaders pushing people to attack each other, leading to the destruction of the known world. And the lessons here didn't apply to all situations or even most. Admittedly, it's a little simplistic, but we did the best with what we were working with. In fact, the solution here would inevitably lead to cultures being completely erased. But when it was that or the complete destruction of humanity, that won out. Low bar, though. Today's episode was adapted from the Defenders by Philip K. Dick. Next time we meet a person trying to make a big change in his life on the same night that he has to chauffeur his boss around a frozen countryside, Fictional is a next Pop production created by Jason and Carissa Weiser. Our theme song is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Thank you so much for listening, and we'll see you next time.