Cyberman

By David Uquillas

Cyberman is the nickname of a foreign scientist (David Connor) who lives thrilling adventures of love, suspense, and action when he moves with his fiancée (Kathleen Troy) to Mexico City, where he gets robbed in the public transport.
Many events take him to experiment, develop, and perfect cutting-edge technology to teleport through the Internet to recover at all costs that meaningful thing that the crooks took to extort him and Kate as one of many other victims. Likewise, he is going to get his revenge and punish them once and for all like nobody else’s did before.
Join Cyberman in his double-sided life to get back his treasures and teach the bandits a lesson they will never forget.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 17, 2019
• ISBN: 9781796040395

David Uquillas

David Israel Uquillas Alonso (Mexico City, 1981) studied Communication Sciences, and has demonstrated his passion for the means of expression; mainly by photography, cinematography, music and writing. He decided to become an author, to tell the story of his first fiction novel, titled "CYBERMAN" on October 31, 2017, which concluded his first volume at the end of 2018. The event that led him to express his creativity on paper, was the theft of his wallet on public transport in 2017. He hopes to bring his publication and translation to several countries, as well as to present his work on the Big Screen and Comic Market.

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Copyright © 2019 by David Israel Uquillas Alonso.

Benefactor and Producer: Dulce Serrano

Translation: Kathy Ritter and David Uquillas

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 02/07/2022

Xlibris

844-714-8691

www.Xlibris.com

790505

To my lovely wife Dulce,

For encouraging me to accomplish this project and to be the column of it and everything we build together. For showing me the meaning of persistence.

She claims this story is going to be legendary and someday I will be like Stephen King and more famous than Guillermo del Toro when I reach the big screen.

To my wife’s family,

Even if you don’t know, you’ve also been part of the journey.

To my mother and sister,

Thank you for your love, for all you’ve sacrificed and everything you’ve done for me, and also making me have nutty ideas. You’ve created a monster. You are very important to me.

To my father,

I hope I can make you proud in Heaven. I love you.

"To all our dogs, cats and pets that shared their love and lives with us and the ones who continue brightening us up unconditionally.

To my friends.

To God.

Too many dedications, I’ve never worked so hard, with so much determination and dreamed so high before. Besides, this is my first book."

CONTENTS

Chapter 1 John’s Party (Halloween)

Chapter 2 The Gift

Chapter 3 Eyes Wide Open / Meat to the Wolves

Chapter 4 Payday (Welcome to Mexico)

Chapter 5 Profile

Chapter 6 RJ-11

Chapter 7 Lucky Day (Experimentation)

Chapter 8 Great Responsibility / Treponema Carateum (Pinta)

Chapter 9 Levitation

Chapter 10 Whale Shark (It Was The Gringo)

Chapter 11 The Last Ride (E16)

Chapter 12 Happily, Successfully, Good Luck, ¡Cheers!

(Key Element)

Chapter 13 It Can Be Done

Chapter 14 The Red Carpet

Chapter 15 Final stage

Chapter 16 Freedom

Chapter 17 House Chores

Chapter 18 Mental Connection

Chapter 19 Soldier of the Night (Ghost of Darkness)

Chapter 20 Aztec Deity

Chapter 21 Striking Test

Chapter 22 Twenty-Four-Seven

Chapter 23 Focus

Chapter 24 Fifty-Eight Wonderful Shades

Chapter 25 La Raya

Chapter 26 Third Call

Chapter 27 Government’s Scene

Chapter 28 Butterfly Effect / Bonbon-Chocolat

Chapter 29 The Closing

CHAPTER 1

JOHN’S PARTY (HALLOWEEN)

In a research center in the city of Los Angeles, the on-duty policeman’s watch marked 18:58 hours. A scientist protected his eyes with special laboratory goggles. He observed what was happening in his experiment through the eyepiece of his microscope. Not only that, he also protected his hands with latex gloves and his face with a facemask so as not to inhale the gases generated by his experiments. His face was covered, but he also protected his shirt and black tie with a white coat that carried a metal identification badge at the height of the breast pocket, which said, David Connor, Unit Manager.

When the clock marked 19:00 hours, the security guard started his rounds. He walked through the hallways and verified that everything was in order and that nobody else was left inside the building.

Concentrated in his research workplace, the investigator was taking samples to pour them inside the test tubes. He was interrupted by the security guard, who opened the door brusquely and said,

It’s closing time. It’s Friday . . .

On Fridays, there was hockey game at night. The pending study was secured inside a refrigerator and David was the last scientist or any other kind of employee to remain in the research center. He hurried to catch up with his friends. When he got to the ice rink, he pulled his gear out of the trunk. He could see from the outside that his companions had already started the game. Crossing the thick and heavy glass doors of the entrance, he heard Ralph shouting,

Hurry up, Dave! Come on!

At the end of the game, in the dressing room, John asked his teammates if they were going to the party that he and his girlfriend had been planning for a couple of weeks. They all assured him they’d be there. John told them,

Remember that you all have to wear a costume or you don’t get in, even if it is at my house (it was October 31st). Someone remind Charlie and all those slackers who didn’t come to play...

When he got to his apartment, Dave disguised himself to wait for his fiancée, Kate, and give her a little scare. He waited behind the dressing room door of the master bedroom, disguised as Count Dracula. She was so frightened and terrified when David came into sight that she fled the room, but he continued to chase after her until they started to laugh. They both laughed out loud. After the fright, David said to her,

Come on, babe! We have to get going. The kids are already in the streets, trick or treating, and the party has already started.

I’m coming! You’ll love my disguise, she warned him. I have very important news to tell you on the way that you’ll surely love.

On their way to the party, a few blocks from his apartment, David told her that he had thought and analyzed about about an oportunity with the company, of moving and that that they would continue to pay him in Dollars and their life would be much cheaper there, especially after all those devaluations. He had already applied in the company which he worked as a researcher so that he could be transferred to Mexico City as there was also a laboratory there with the equipment necessary to continue his research. When it was possible, they could learn more about the country, which was very rich in traditions and customs. Plus, it had one of the seven Wonders of the World and the most beautiful beaches and scenery. This new change would also help in Kate’s career a lot. In Mexico, they supported tons of foreigners (he had already heard that they favored them, especially in arts and media), in most cases more than the Mexicans themselves.

She was very glad. At last, she could be present during the process of the final stage of the play she was helping to produce from Los Angeles. The work that she had written during her career entitled The Biggest Dream, with which she had won several competitions and managed to hear her name mentioned among the new talents, and had five months of production work before its release in Mexico. Surely, she would become an important producer or director in a very short time.

David told her that a little over a month ago, he had applied for the program. He hadn’t finished talking to her before (rather, he hadn’t told her anything at all) because when he tried to do it on the day of the application, she interrupted the conversation to tell him her great dream of being the main producer of a play and he’d forgotten about the topic and he hadn’t known anything about his application until that day, and they gave him five days to make the decision and make the change of residence in two more weeks.

Kate was encouraged by the idea, and she was picturing herself standing out in her job. However, the situation was that she would practically start her career from zero, if it weren’t for her first script work, in which she had put all of her hopes, to break through in a country where nobody knew of her existence, and her extensive résumé of distinguished studies that she was carrying behind like a long train of a beautiful bride that reached to her feet. As David had said before, it would be easier for them, with a different accent, in a country like this, to easily stand out, especially with all the knowledge they both had. They could both begin to practice their Spanish more. It had been several years since they studied it in middle school, and a couple of years had passed since they became a couple and they had heard it for the first time at school.

CHAPTER 2

THE GIFT

A couple of weeks later, they arrived at Mexico’s airport, where a driver from an agency with software that offers transportation, had been sent by the company to receive them in a spacious and luxurious car.

Soon, they settled in a house that was large enough to form a family (if it were their wish) in the south of Mexico City. Dave and KAte were a couple who lived pretty well in Los Angeles and had saved a lot of green bills that would easily be enough to buy a property like that and live in Mexico quite well for several years, even without working, and the exchange rate benefited them even more.

As the days passed, they began to adapt to the Third World country and to the city, something that was a little complicated, but they did it gladly because they had planned that for the change. There were countless differences between the two countries, starting with the culture of traffic and the use of public transport; the most notable at first glance. It was necessary to take a tour in another country to see if they could quickly get used to the changes and to the rules and laws, especially to the positive changes. In a few days, they’d already had several of this type of experiences. They hadn’t bought, much less rented, a car yet. They had too little time to think about if it was the right time to get one.

They were happy to have to travel around in the trolleybus and on almost only extraordinary occasions the traditional subway or bus. They were practical and comfortable, much more so when they won the battle of being shoved around by the masses to get a place to sit. Although they were going to different destinations, they were really close to each other, about six stations on the trolleybus, and he could accompany her to her station because his work was a little farther from where she got off, but on the same line.

On his first weekend, David learned that, several main avenues of the city were closed on Sundays and those were special days for people to ride bicycles, although he would hardly be limited to riding a bike just on those days. The public transportion allowed you to carry your bicycle on, because there were no large crowds as there were during the week. That’s why he got some of his teammates to lend him a pair of bikes so he could enjoy these benefits. They also explained that there was a type of bike rental offered by the government that were located at different points in some neighborhoods. Apparently, none of his teammates used them and therefore couldn’t really inform him about it. But if he was interested, someone would investigate how to use them.

On Friday afternoon of his second week in Mexico, David already had the bicycles he’d borrowed at home to surprise Kate, along with part of the plan he was preparing for the next day. Kate arrived home rather tired from the visits to the theater where she was producing her work and other interviews she had gone to during the day. When she opened the door, she realized that David was waiting for her, sitting in the room with the lights off —like when a teenager arrives home drunk after a party several hours later than he had agreed with his parents who were waiting for him in the living room. The silhouette of the interrogation— to surprise her.

Hello, hon. Why are you so late? David asked with a smile on his face. Kate responded by falling into his arms. How are the interviews for Broadway going?

Kate was tired and just kept answering with kisses to preserve the silence.

I have a surprise for you. Are you ready? David asked.

A girl like me is always ready.

He stood up and turned on only the directional light that lit the bikes and said,

Tomorrow, we’ll go for a ride and visit some museums downtown. I don’t really have a plan, but we’ll have some fun around the city, and we’ll be getting some exercise at the same time. We can eat in a nice place or wherever we like.

I love the idea, she said.

In the morning, they got dressed in a good mood and with comfortable clothes in order to visit different tourist places of the Capital on two wheels powered by their legs. Motivated by all the changes that were going on in their lives, Kate decided it was time to give her fiancé something that he really needed —the mobile phone she had used for almost a year-. It was a great tool for his work, and it would be a tool of great help when they went out on a trip or rides where David couldn’t take his DSLR camera which he used for professional photography (one of his favorite passions, as well as sports, music, and arts). She was sure he would value it a lot since she had thousands of pictures of moments and experiences stored that remained indelible in her large-capacity cellphone and it had an impressive integrated camera, and excellent additional features. Much better technology than he had in the old mobile phone he’d had for several years.

To encourage the surprise and ensure to give Dave a gift he would cherish, Kate took a couple of days learning one of the most representative expressions for Mexicans. In each State of the Republic, they have their own traditions and culture, from the way they talk and dress, to parties, and of course, to the kitchen. Giving him her support in this adventure, Kate showed her interest in taking a risk and delving into gastronomy and culture. For the week, she had planned a romantic dinner on the terrace, with traditional music on the player, ending with a little jazz in the Jacuzzi and candles lit all around. When Kate finished the exquisite dish that she was practicing, she chose an unforgettable melody that would remain one of their first memorable experiences as a couple in Mexico.

In the new country of residence, to ensure that he would appreciate with his whole heart the cellphone that she planned to give him, she wrapped it inside a small basket with fantasy paper and typical essential elements such as confetti and Mexican candies like coconut sweet, marzipan, wafers with honey and nuggets, amaranth, tamarindo cand, peanut crowbar and fruit shaped milk candies and jamoncillo sweets. David received the presents she had prepared, especially the one that used rechargeable batteries, which he debuted by taking a few pictures of them together, and they enjoyed the dessert and all the vestiges of her culinary lessons: tortilla soup, rice with vegetables, and chicken with mole.

The following Saturday morning, the couple were happy enough to continue their expedition on two wheels through the concrete jungle and continue making use of the integrated cellphone camera that now belonged to David (of course, his fiancée already had a new cellphone, much better, but the value was in all the pictures of their love story and the sentimental significance). That time, without borrowed bicycles and having investigated how bike rental operated; as admirers of museums, handicrafts, the Flyers of Papantla, beautiful gardens, Chapultepec Lake (bigger than Central Park), and their first approach with the informal trade, they witnessed first-hand, the attempted assault on a passerby.

They saw the end of a persecution in which some policemen were yanking a boy who seemed to have intended to snatch a purse from a lady. Something that apparently did not happen. The elderly woman had succeeded in making a scene (similar situations occur daily as distractions in order to rob another person who’s a spectator) in order to rob a victim, she and her accomplices had chosen.

David captured beautiful memories in pictures of their tour of one of the most important museums and of different cultural expressions of the great bike ride and of the scenery and places they could visit. And of course, he also captured a couple of images of the altercation with the lady’s purse. Returning home after using the rented bikes and completing the journey in the trolleybus, David said,

Babe, remember that we always have to walk with our eyes wide open. It’s true that we’re enjoying being here a lot, but we shouldn’t lose sight of what we’ve seen in our country’s news reports about Mexico.

The truth is that with the short time we’ve been here, we can assure that it is not as dangerous as they say. The people are very friendly, very warm, and respectful. Thieves are in every part of the world. In Europe and the United States, we have seen people warn tourists to close their bags well to avoid theft. Yes, we must be vigilant, but it’s not that bad. And I can tell you that, like you, I am very observant, but I have spent much more time on the street and in contact with people than you, who are inside a lab all day with a few people.

You’re right about that. People’s friendliness is very noticeable but there must be a reason for what they say in the news.

Yeah, media manipulation and disinformation. Also, you’re a hockey player, and you’d break anyone’s jaw if they tried to hurt me. You’d even lose another one of your teeth for me, not just fighting for the puck.

Yes, but I don’t always go with you...

Don’t worry. I keep everything locked up, I close my bag very well, and I take care of everything I carry.

CHAPTER 3

EYES WIDE OPEN / MEAT TO THE WOLVES

In the laboratory, it was common for both the co-workers and Pedro, the boss, to ask how the weekend had been. The boss, with whom David began to have a closer relationship, was to the only one who showed him, a picture of the lady of Chapultepec. His boss told him that he had to be very careful with pickpockets and thieves, especially in these times.

We are really at the end of the year. It is November, and since October, it is very common that they are stealing things from people on the street and in public transportation. There are black markets where they sell all the items that they take from people. Obviously at much more affordable prices for those who can’t buy them in a store and so they buy them used." In fact, they just want to win a few pesos. So, they sell them for ridiculous amounts. Although there are also places where they actually sell used things, but when they sell it to you like that, you just know that it was probably snatched from someone who surely worked hard to buy it. Here it is called informal business because they are in the street, not like in other countries where there are formal shops that sell used things. There is also another type of informal business, like street markets that doesn’t sell stolen goods. Robberies happen very often, more or less from October to after Christmas and New Year’s and until after Three Kings’s Day which is when people continue to buy.

On the way back home, David kept his eyes wide open, analyzing perfectly everyone who entered the car of the transport he used daily to go to work. Normally it was very quiet. His work was very special in terms of time, and he didn’t use public transportation much during peak hours. When he got home, he kept thinking about what his boss had told him. As they were in the exact season. From time to time he saw videos sent by new friends and co-workers as well as links on his social media which he never really paid attention to. It was very rare that he opened those applications, and really just had them as decoration. He