Chapter 68

As Adam stepped inside he was greeted with a very pleasant sight. Rows of tables with nice white tablecloths, a vase with flowers and candles for mood lighting dotted the place as it surrounded in a semi-circle a small stage in the front of the room. On it a small band was standing all in white suits, minus a woman who stood at the front, wearing a blue sequin dress that tapered off on the right side showing one shoulder and one leg. Without mincing words she was very pretty.

As Adam walked in it seemed the band had just finished a song and were taking a quick break, giving Adam time to walk over to the bar, deciding to get some food and drink to enjoy the atmosphere. He used to go to these kinds of places before the world ended, not often, but a few of his work friends would drag him along and coming here now reminded him of those times so even just being here was enjoyable.

When he got up to the bar he was met with an interesting sight. An assaultron.

The assaultrons were a RobCo model robot designed for pure combat, arguably the most dangerous model beaten only by the Sentry bot by the same makers. The assaultron was lithe and had a strangely feminine form for reasons Adam never could guess, but the thin body made it a harder target and allowed it to remain far more nimble than any other robot. Bipedal, able to run, unkillable until it is completely disabled, capable in close quarters combat as well as at range with its head laser, it was a weapon quite feared by the US Military's enemies. And yet here was one of the most dangerous robots ever designed in America painted black with a little white tie like she was wearing a suit, tending bar.

Perplexed was the best way to describe how Adam felt about the situation as he walked up to the bar and saw her.

"How may I help you sir~" The assaultron said with its oddly feminine and sultry robotic voice. Once more he could not understand why these killing machines were designed this way, it's like the lead designer was a pervert, but he quickly threw these pointless thoughts out of his head.

"What do you got?" Adam asked curiously.

"Whatever your little heart desires honey~" Adam chuckled.

"Well what do you recommend?"

"A night with me~" She said as she picked up a shaker and began to shake it. Adam was taken aback but also amused. Was he being hit on by a robot? 

"Are you… hitting on me?" Adam asked, an amused smile on his face as he asked, not even sure what was happening right now.

"I never kiss and tell honey~" She continued as she put down the shaker and poured out the contents into a glass. After she spoke the band began to start back up again, the singer began to sing Peggy Lee's "Fever". A very good song, in Adam's opinion, but ironically not one that used a piano, a strange choice for a piano bar, but he wasn't complaining. However it did set a mood with the two of them right now. If she wasn't a robot he might have taken her up on the offer, but it was… weird… he hasn't sunk to that level yet.

Adam just laughed softly. "I think I'll stick to what I can buy with caps." He smiled, letting her down gently.

"Shame." She said with a disappointed tone. "Well we got all sorts of spirits and liquors available, even some that predate the annexation of Canada." She said as she gestured to a rather impressive selection of drinks on display, by far the most fancy choices he had seen yet. He was certainly going to have to pay a lot for his evening here but he had enough to splurge today, hopefully he would be able to make the money back tomorrow.

"In addition." She continued. "We have quite the spread of cheeses and meats available, I can make you a platter that will light your passions aflame~" She said with a sultry tone again.

Adam briefly turned to look at the singer who was getting very intimate with one of the patrons as she kept singing seductively into the mic while the band very professionally stayed on the stage and let her take the spotlight.

"I think that sounds lovely." Adam said after a moment. "Please pair it with a good wine, nothing too expensive though, I'm not looking to break the bank." He chuckled as he looked back at the assaultron.

"Right away." She said as she began to work, dexterously, behind the counter, grabbing wines and cheeses to make Adam his request. Adam once more looked back to the stage, the band still going in the distance as the singer broke away from the patron she was seducing and then returned to the stage proper to continue the song, all while never once breaking tempo in her singing.

"So do you have a name honey?" The assaultron asked, making Adam turn back to look at her.

"Oh, the name is Adam, Adam Baxter." He smiled, then paused and continued. "Do you have a name?" He asked curiously. He had heard of robots with highly developed personalities before but never met one, it was entirely possible she had a name.

"Eve." She said as she paused what she was doing and turned to look at Adam. "I think it's fate, don't you? Adam and Eve? Oddly auspicious wouldn't you say?~" Adam chuckled, actually finding it enjoyable to be hit on by her even if he had no intention of accepting her advances.

"Do you hit on everyone who walks through the door?" Adam asked with a smile.

"Only the handsome ones~" If she could smile he was sure she did before she turned back around and went back to work on the order for Adam.

"What do you do for work, Adam." She asked while she prepared the thin slices of meat and cheese.

"I'm a Scaver." 

"Oh, that's a dangerous profession. I know, I used to do that too." Adam was surprised.

"You mean you used to work for your own money? Aren't you… owned by the bar?" Adam asked, now very confused about her level of sentience and self-determination.

"Hardly." She responded back quickly. "I work here, like anyone else. They can't keep a working girl tied down."

"What do you… need a job for, if you don't mind me asking?" She turned her head a bit to look at Adam.

"A woman is allowed some secrets, wouldn't you say?" Adam laughed softly.

"I have got to say, you are the most intelligent robot I have ever seen, and as a man who used to work with tech for a living that's quite a compliment, I assure you." He smiled.

"Did you use to be a brotherhood scribe?" She asked casually.

"No. I don't know what that is, but I am a licensed RobCo technician, I know a thing or two about robots."

"Well, color me surprised." She said as she turned around, a wooden display tray full of beautiful cuts of meat, cheese, and olives. She put it down in front of Adam, now heading to get a wine. "I bet you could fix me right up. From top… to bottom…" She said slowly as she uncorked a bottle of wine and poured it slowly into the glass.

"I could fix you, sure." Adam said back playfully. Countering her double entendre meaning with his own. She placed the glass down in front of him gently.

"Well just know the offer is open if you ever change your mind~"

"Noted." Adam laughed softly as he took a sip of the wine, pleasantly surprised. "How long have you been activated?" Adam asked, now curious about this otherwise sentient assaultron who was constantly hitting on him.

"Don't you know better than to ask a woman her age?" She said with a tone that could be described as teasing.

"I apologize, that was insensitive of me." 

"Apology accepted." She paused as seemed to be thinking about something for a moment before continuing. "Long enough that I became too aware of who and what I am and decided to make a life for myself. A girl has to find her own way in the world you see." Adam nodded. So it seemed she had been active for so long that she gained sentience. Why it happened to her and not all robots is a question in itself, but it was certainly a fascinating occurrence. He would love to get inside her programming and see what is going on in her software, but he doubted very much that would be acceptable, so he kept his curiosity to himself.

"How long have you been here? In Midway."

"Oh, a few years. I was traveling for a while, earning what I could where I could. I heard this place needed a bartender and I decided to give it a try. Besides my… previous employment made for a nice addition on my resume.~"

"Does trouble come here enough for them to need a woman of your skills?"

"You never know what is going to walk through those doors. And besides, this is the heart of it all, I'm sure having me here is a strong deterrent for anyone with bad intentions. I'm not exactly afraid to get my hands dirty."

"Wait, what do you mean by 'this is the heart of it all'?"

"You mean you don't know?" She said, turning to look at him fully, a bit of surprise in her robotic feminine voice. "The bossman is upstairs, not always but this is his favorite bar. You walked right into the heart of The Guild, honey." Adam was caught off guard by that, but that explains the excessive security out front, why he couldn't bring in his gun inside, because whoever controlled the guild was also here, they didn't want to take any chances.

"Of course, this isn't the only place he frequents, calling us the heart of it all might be stroking my ego a bit, but let a girl dream."

"Wow… I didn't realize." Adam said a bit stunned.

"Clearly." She said with a slightly teasing tone. "Best not to think about it too much, he's a patron like anyone else, don't get in his way and he won't have any problems with you. I'd just suggest not heading up those stairs to my right if you see a black suit out front, they aren't always as polite as me~"

"Noted." Adam chuckled as he sipped some more wine.