The Demonstration Part I

I found myself in the kitchen that was attached to the reception hall, changing back into my previous outfit. While I did this, an angry man was scolding me.

Arthur was pacing back and forth. "What the fuck even was that?"

I sighed. "Master Lu wanted to see my abilities for himself since I programmed the android he'd be fighting."

Arthur paused for a moment before continuing his pacing. "Okay, I get that but why were you fucking naked?"

I chuckled, thinking about how ridiculous it looked to someone that wasn't familiar with traditional martial arts training. "It is quite normal for a disciple to remove their clothes when being directly advised by their master. It allows the master to more comprehensively critique their form."

Arthur shook his head angrily. "But why here? You fucking knew the investors were coming."

I sighed, pulling my jacket on. "He insisted."

Arthur looked me straight in the eye. "James, you have a certain status here. Your work is a large part of the reason we secure so much private funding. It keeps us free from the clutches of the government. You really need to start holding yourself like a VP."

I closed the clasp on my watch band, looking back at him. "I do my job. Why do I have to do all of this extra bullshit?"

Arthur raised his fist in anger. I knew he wasn't going to strike me. He was just frustrated. "Just… fucking be more careful in the future. You're gonna give me a damn aneurysm."

A few minutes later, the two of us exited the kitchen and rejoined the crowd of people that came to observe. The group was quite diverse in terms of background.

Southrop's executives and board decided to make a showing. Well most of them at least. Only 8 of them showed up out of the 13. This included Arthur.

Aside from them, there were a myriad of other individuals. There was a Saudi Nuclear Prince by the name of Mohammed Bin Salama. He was the owner of most of the nuclear fusion reactors across the middle east. He was also a business consultant for the United Arab Emirates. Since WWIII, the Emirates was the only remaining major power in the middle east, other than Israel. Thus, he held a lot of power both financially and politically.

Another individual was Tory Wellerman, the Chief of the General Staff in the UK. This woman was in charge of the UK's military. I had only met her once before when she visited Arthur. I was sure there was some kind of past between them but I wasn't inclined to pry.

Next were a few high ranking officers from the US military. There was General Anthony Coleman, Chief Master Sergeant Corey Haines, Admiral Melissa Santana, and Sergeant Major Kelly Briggs. These four individuals represented all four branches of the US military.

After them was a long list of other people I had never seen before. Some of them had the American Flag pin on their lapel so I presumed that they were either politicians or intelligence directors. The rest were just a rag tag group of the richest people on the planet. This type of defense tech held value to them as large business owners and executives.

Arthur and I then found ourselves in front of the group. He cleared his throat, causing everyone to quiet down. These types never stopped networking. After all, it's never about what you know, it's about who you know.

He gestured towards a graded seating arrangement that was set up overlooking the sparring mats. The seats got higher with each row to ensure that everyone had a proper view. There were also long tables that extended across the rows. Every single one of these people was important in their own right. "If you'd all take your seats, we can get started."

Following his instructions, everyone shuffled over to the stands, sitting next to the people they were talking with. I was sure that he was enjoying this part. Deep down, he had to have some control kink.

Fortunately, it only took about 45 seconds for everyone to take their seats. Seeing this, Arthur continued. "As I'm sure some of you have noticed, there is a tablet in front of each of you. Following the demonstration, the tablet will be updated with a comprehensive report that displays metrics, videos, and various other pieces of information. Without further adieu, I will now turn it over to our Vice President of Android Development, Dr. James Mittdermit."

I smiled and nodded, looking across everyone who was in front of me. It would seem that the time for some theatrics has come. I glanced over my shoulder and noticed the 4 fighters and 2 androids near the sparring mats.

Looking back forwards, I began my spiel. "The times we live in are peaceful. Everyone lives in harmony, going about their lives without the fears that plagued our nations, centuries ago." I then changed my expression to something more doubtful. "Fortunately, all of us here know better than that, knowing that this is all on the surface."

I started walking back and forth, making sure I still talked in the direction of my audience. "Crime rates are up, behind the scenes tension runs high, the future is just so uncertain. How can we solve this? What steps can we take to secure the future for our children? For their children?"

Turning back towards them, I continued. "As history tells us, pacifism does not work. Deterrence? That barely worked even in the 20th century. As a researcher, I believe the best way to approach a problem is to be prepared for it."

When I reached this point, it took a lot of self control to not reveal the mind control chips we had discovered. I wanted to expose this concerning development to the world but I needed to play along with Arthur. Regardless, we don't have enough conclusive evidence or any preventative measures in place.

Sighing, I resumed my presentation. "What better way is there to be prepared than having the best technology possible? Thus, I present to you, ADM-3624."

Mark realized that this was his queue so he walked over to me, stopping next to me and facing the crowd.

I took a step forward and gestured towards him. "ADM-3624, or Mark in his case, is an experimental project that I have been working on for the last half decade. Even after all of this time, there is still some uncertainty. I keep finding myself asking questions after he repeatedly exceeds my expectations… completely blowing them away actually."

With this, I resumed my pacing. "Mark is hands down the most advanced android to ever exist. He is jam packed with sensory equipment, artificial muscle and blood, a titanium alloy skeleton, and an absurd amount of processing power."

Once again, I stopped, sweeping my eyes slowly across the stands. "However, this is not the most crucial part that gives him his capabilities. His insane abilities come from an unexpected place, actually. The origin is his limited emotional capacity."

I gestured towards him again. "Traditionally, androids have just been machines, through and through. No emotions, only getting the tasks done that are assigned to them. However, emotions are an important part of the heights that we, as humans, reach. These emotions, which you might think just hinder his efficiency, actually enable Mark to think creatively. This fact revealed itself in his rate of improvement.

I smiled, puffing out my chest a bit in a show of pride. "Over the duration of this project, I have personally programmed and trained Mark in countless disciplines of martial arts. This also means that I have been learning these martial arts as I've taught them to him. While I may be no master, I'd say I am quite capable. However, the depth of ability that Mark has displayed is unmatched by any human. He not only carries out each move with perfection, but he also thinks while doing so."

I chuckled, thinking back to the other day. "Just last week, Mark and I were sparring as we do every morning. At one point, he used the fraction of a second in which I blinked to close in on me, leaving me no time to react. He truly showed no sign of movement when I closed my eyes."

I then turned a bit, gesturing towards the four martial artists behind me. "Unlike me, these four men are masters in their own right. We have Tim, a former MMA fighter. He was undefeated and merely retired out of boredom. Next to him is Sarhata Peretz, a krav maga instructor for the Israeli Military. He is on active duty at the embassy in D.C."

I moved my hand slightly. "The next man is Fukido Nakamura. He runs countless dojos across Japan and is a former world class fighter. Lastly, is Master Sun Lu. He is probably the most infamous martial arts practitioner to ever live. He trained Tim for over a decade. He was also giving me a few tips when you all walked in on me without my shirt on but that's not that important."

A few chuckles came from the audience. "Today, we will be doing a demonstration of Mark's martial arts and ballistics capabilities. The second part of the demonstration will be done in the shooting range downstairs but the first part will take place here. First up, will be Fukido san. I hope everyone enjoys it."