The oil-slick outer-plating of the bot left it with a sheen like a mirror, reflecting the hardened expression of the teen working on it.
His brow was furrowed deep, and his skin was slick with the light coating of sweat an unfit boy would get upon the smallest exertion.
He was staring deep into the core of the metal hunk that lay lifeless across his desk, his hands buried within its gut to the wrist, slowly writhing as he turned, pressed, and clicked things within.
Until, finally, a loud snap resounded in the youth's room, and a sudden spark pulled a yelp from the boy's throat. He ripped his hands out like they were to be sliced off by the open belly any second.
But his eyes remained steady and set.
He pushed the two curved sheets that covered the bot's internals together as if he were handling a newborn. He pulled away slowly, and leaned back in his creaky old chair.
For several long, stretching seconds, his eyes didn't leave those of the bot before him.
Until a quiet whirring filled the otherwise silent room. Several seconds later, the eyes grew a dim red glow, and the quadruped limbs came alive.
Incapable of suppressing it, he grinned from ear to ear, reaching forward and petting his creation softly.
The bot that was now standing on his desk was a mess. It was coated with all sorts of hazardous substances, lacked any safety features, was created entirely of any untold-years old scrap that he could get his hands on.
It looked almost like a dog. It smelled like undeath. It was scruffy.
It was a lot like him. It was also the most incredible thing he'd ever seen.
"There, there…" he cooed, grinning like a fool.
The bot tilted its head at him. The sound of one or two busted bearings scraped from within.
"Aren't you a good boy?" He smiled. The cold unrelenting steel he was petting may as well have been velvet.
"I'm Eli! I-… I'll call you, ehm, Dogbot. If that's okay with you." He nodded, looking into the eyes of the metal beast. He could swear it looked like it was breathing.
He messed with the little animal for a while longer, until he finally sighed and let go of its almost rusted body.
He had other work to do tonight. Science didn't sleep, and unfortunately for his future self neither would he, tonight.
Quickly, he reached for his hiking pack. The huge, swelling thing had been given to him before his father had quit his job. They went on trips all the time, when he was young.
Eli shook his head, knocking the memories away. He needed action today, not reminiscing.
He wandered over to the desk, and set the bag down, its maw open wide and facing Dogbot.
"Can you walk in there for me, please?" He asked, giving him a few encouraging thwacks on the back.
Dogbot was quiet for a few seconds, before its heavy steel frame thunked across his desk, and slipped into the gaping wide bag. Even the hundred pound beast managed to fit within it easily.
Nobody needed this much space to camp with, did they?
Eli quickly zipped it up, and took the bag onto his back. The shoulder straps dug in deep, and he felt almost as if his body had doubled in weight. He winced, and came scarily close to hitting the floor.
"D-Dogbot… you're so fat…" He winced, as he trudged to the door of his room.
He opened the door with an elegance he struggled to summon even for Dogbot's rear leg hydraulics. He carefully slipped out and onto the foreboding span of the main hallway.
The smile he had adorned ever for the last half-hour waned instantly, replaced with a fearful, calculating look.
Carefully, he avoided creaky boards and the trip hazard of a rug. He was silent as death itself as he slipped past the open doorway to the living room.
He stopped for but a second at the sight he caught.
Drunk and asleep. I suppose it's good for me. He wouldn't care if I went missing. Let alone snuck out once.
He tried to remain cold about the situation. He screwed his eyes shut. He made it out the door.
###
It had taken much longer than anticipated to find a suitable testing area for his mighty creation.
All of the alleys near his house were frequented by addicts, or the occasional mugging, and even this late at night, he couldn't be sure some newly Overclocked kid wouldn't be wandering the streets in a homemade suit.
He didn't even want to entertain the thought of someone registered showing up. Not that he was up to anything nefarious, mind.
Even if Dogbot did look rather threatening.
Eventually, Eli found his spot. It was nestled in the back of a construction site that had been half-finished since he had learnt to walk.
Behind several empty pallets, and a few half finished pillars and walls, Eli set his pack down with a resounding slam. It echoed softly through the empty concrete halls.
Before long, his little pal came crawling out.
The gyro-stabiliser tail at his rear was wagging as Dogbot took a look around the space. He hopped around with agility that astounded Eli.
"Wow, I really am a genius…" He murmured, kneeling down, "Here, boy!"
The hound suddenly stopped, and barrelled toward him. Its red eyes and open, jagged metal maw looked harrowing, but all Eli saw was hours of precious work.
The critter came to a stop, falling into his lap and certainly giving his legs several bruises as it did so.
Despite the minor pain, Eli laughed. He laughed like he hadn't in a long time, and until tears pricked the corner of his eyes
"Oh, who's a good-"
Behind him, a sickening voice snarled, before spitting out an undefined substance. The deep voice sniffled.
"Mm… what breed of dog is that, kid?" The gravelly voice sounded like a blender full of rocks. It made Eli's stomach drop.
It was similar to his father's.
Eli scrambled desperately, Dogbot lurched up and followed. The first glance he got at the man froze his blood. It was immediately obvious he wasn't any normal man.
"N-nothing!" Eli yelled quicker than his mind could stop. He glanced at Dogbot standing beside him. The whirring gears inside could've been a snarl.
Perhaps that was an option for a further upgrade.
"To me…" The man stepped forth, his steps sinfully heavy. "It looks like that thing is definitely something. Something made by an Overclocked little techie. So, either, you know someone. Or, kiddo, you are someone."
The air between them felt colder than it had mere seconds ago.
"I-I made it." Eli felt as if he were a mouse, staring deep into the eyes of a tiger.
The whistle that came pierced the dark night. Eli flinched, and warily eyed the large figure as he approached.
He bent at the knee ever so slightly, and gazed into Eli's eyes. They quivered at the sight.
"Then, I'm afraid… you have to come with me."