The Relic, pt. 2

"Toivo! Are you there? Toivo! Where are you, old man?"

"As if I could be anywhere else…", the tinker folded the newspaper. He shot a wistful look at his ruined trousers and rose from the chair.

The floor shook as a real locomotive of a human was rushing towards the counter at full speed. It was broad-shouldered, black-haired man in an overall. On his chest, there was a black blacksmith's hammer, inscribed in an orange diamond, which was the symbol of one of the metalworks located in the rebellious SI-8 sector.

The man squinted in the dark and turned his head round on his strong neck as if he could not see gaunt Toivo from his considerable height.

"There you are!", the "locomotive" had finally roared. Having fumbled his pockets, he slammed a piece of crumbled paper on the counter. "Can you get any of these?"

The old man put on his glasses and began his struggle with the unfamiliar small handwriting. He never showed it, but he was surprised at that sudden visit.

The giant's name was Keiyo Korhonen, and there was a time when he came round Toivo's workshop almost every day to wander along old tech and equipment. The boy bombarded the owner with so many questions that at some point the latter even considered passing on the place to him. But the years passed. Young Keiyo finished his training. He was assigned to working in an industrial sector; he got married and eventually fully met his quota for children... — and, generally speaking, he seemed to be quite happy with his life. There was little interest for old tech to talk about anymore as Keiyo visited Toivo only on special occasions.

Clutching the list, the old man retreat into the back room. Soon he returned with a bulky box in his hands.

"Everything what's been in your list but for the power cells for D-25 droids. But those… well, those you can't get anywhere now… Right, they were hell of power cell, they were. Perpetual, I'd say, with quite a power output… There is a load of D-31s, though, if you're interested."

"Well, I'm not sure about that…", Keiyo scratched his head and furrowed his bushy eyebrows. "I guess, I'll wander 'round looking for D-25… My guys wouldn't put 'em on the list for no reason…"

"Yeah, take your time, shop around", Toivo agreed easily. "And when you'll finally give up, you might as well come back for the D-31 waiting for you. What do you need it for anyway?"

 "Yeah, my guys, I told ya, they asked me to get one. To power up a site hut, you know. You've heard what's going on over there, haven't you? The half of the sector in full black out."

"Oh, for the love of… Then take D-31 and be done with it, boy. There's enough juice to power up a couple of site huts or whatever. Much saver for any plugged-in equipment, too."

 They spent some more time talking. Toivo no longer hid his joy. No matter what, looking at Keiyo, he still saw the same curious boy with burning eyes scurrying between the shelves and messing around with the old tech he'd never supposed to touch. Toivo couldn't even count how many times he swore that he'd never allow the boy to set foot into his workshop again. And yet, no matter how big of the mess was created by him, Keiyo was always let back in.

"Well, I'm up for D-25", Keiyo finally said confidently. "You know, I'm more of machine tools and hydraulics kind of a guy, so if they say 'D-25' so D-25 it is."

Having said that, Keiyo effortlessly picked up the box with the spare parts rattling inside, said his goodbyes and headed for the exit.

"Have a nice day, Sir, hope to see you again soon", the hoarse voice threw in his back.

The giant stopped and turned to the android-salesman looking at the machine as if he'd never seen it before in his life.

"Wait, isn't that a twenty-fifth?"

"That's the one", Toivo smiled proudly. "Service Droid D-25, at your service so to speak. I guess, it's one of the last in the City. I used to keep it in storeroom, wanted to sell it one day if not for the pity for this old chunk. And now you see how it's turned out: I got old, and this scrap bails me out in the shop".

Keiyo grabbed the box more comfortably with one hand; the other he ran through his thick hair again as he hesitantly shifted from one foot to the other with his glance become more and more intense every second.

"This one isn't for sale", Toivo said quickly. He knew both that look and the question that normally tended to follow.

"As if anyone needs this waste furnace fodder… I don't want a piece of this junk, only its fuel cell".

"Junk, that's what it is now", Toivo thought. There was no trace of a smile on his face. For the first time, he was struck with the idea that mightn't have seen Keiyo for a little too long.

 In the meanwhile, Keiyo was still waiting for the answer.

"It's not up for discussion", Toivo said in a clear voice.

"But what do you need it for? You been following the news?"

"What if I would? What's wrong with the old droid, does it in any way bother you? It's just standing over there, doing nothing."

"Those bloody machines steal away people's job, that's what they're doing!" Keiyo blurted out with a strange kind of conviction that Toivo had never heard from him before. "Are there no human to take the place of this thing?"

"For God's sake, Keiyo! Now you're picking up this nonsense… The job offer has been hanging outside my shop for almost two years now, you were the one who helped me to stick it up, remember? So, where's the crowd of those looking for a job at my doorstep?"

"Look, Toivo, I'm just worrying about, OK?" his voice sounded muffled and tense. "You heard what's happened at the port? I just don't want anyone to break into your shop…"

"Oh, spare me!" Toivo said impatiently. "Who'd ever do this? Those bunch of crazies? I wish they worked as hard as they make troubles for the whole City, I says. Who knows, maybe there weren't that blasted shortage of... pretty much everything!"

Keiyo sniffled gloomily as he leered at Toivo with a hard stare.

 "Now, go", Toivo came out the counter and fearlessly pushed the customer to the exit. "Go, and keep you mind out of the gutter. How on Earth, if I may put it this way, you've ever come up with such a drivel…"

Such pressure seemed the last thing the giant could ever expected from an old man, so he left the workshop without saying a word back. Toivo returned to his place and fell down into the chair. But right after the silence had fallen once again, it was pierced with the ringing of the bell, the creaking of the door and the hoarse greeting of the android.

"Must've forgotten something", the old man thought as he rose from his seat.

But the voice he heard wasn't Keiyo's.