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n3m3sis43Goodbyes have been said, and now it's time for action. As Devin always says, this is gonna be fucking epic.
So far, there's been no trouble. Every door has opened on command, just as Devin promised. CallaBot and I creep through the corridors of the WeaponsDev facility in silence, headed for the building's center. It feels like hours before we finally reach our destination, but patience has never really been my strong suit. Pushing open the door to the men's bathroom, I'm about to enter when I notice CallaBot hanging back.
"You coming?" I ask.
"Well, it's a men's bathroom." Her tone is unusually hesitant.
"Oh, give me a fucking break!" I snicker. "We're about to destroy a major government facility, and that's what you're worried about? Anyway, you're a robot now. According to the law, you're neither male nor female."
"Fine, whatever," she says, and follows me inside.
The door has barely swung shut behind us when there's a humming sound from out in the hall. Cracking the door and peering around the jamb, I see robots approaching. My heart leaps into my throat; there must be at least 20 of them.
"Calla!" I hiss. "SecurityBots, heading right for us!"
"You stay here," CallaBot says. "I'll talk to them and convince them we're no threat."
As she disappears into the hall, I shuck off my InvisiSuit. It's fucking hot in this place, and I breathe a grateful sigh once I'm free of the extra layer of insulation. Just as I'm about to remove my wrinkled explosive suit as well, I hear a commotion outside. I open the door a tiny bit, just in time to hear a sizzling noise and then a loud pop.
"CallaBot, you okay out there?"
No answer.
Stepping out into the hall, I cough as I inhale the acrid odor of fried circuitry. Trying not to breathe too deeply, I survey the scene before me. It's one of utter confusion.
More than half of the security robots are disabled. Most appear to have been beaten or shot down. One or two are standing stock still on the edge of the fracas while another slams itself repeatedly into a wall. The remaining seven SecurityBots encircle Calla, who does nothing to defend herself as they pelt her with metal fists and shoot her with blue lasers. Even with the superior shields Kalen's devised for her, I'm sure she can't withstand much more of this.
"Calla, what the hell?" I shout. "Why the fuck aren't you fighting back?"
Her mechanical eyes, staring straight ahead, don't even meet mine.
"Devin," I say, "There's something wrong with CallaBot! How do I fix her?"
Nothing.
Devin's supposed to be able to hear me over his neurovision implant. Maybe whatever's messed up CallaBot has disrupted our communications as well. I guess it doesn't matter; any way you look at it, I'm on my own.
"Fucking hell!" I yell to no one in particular. "Now what am I supposed to do?"
Shoving my way past the SecurityBots, I grab Calla's arm. Searing pains shoot through my arm, the back of my neck, and my lower spine as the robots turn on me. While the explosive suit provides protection against instant death, it's not enough. There's a smell like barbecue; I'm pretty sure it's my own burning flesh.
"Calla," I say, looking into her blank electronic eyes, "if you can hear me, get the fuck out of here now!"
Though her gaze shows no recognition, she says, "Yes, human," and shoots off down the hall. Focused on me, the SecurityBots don't even bother to follow her. My entire body is in agony as their lasers strike me again and again.
"Devin," I try once more. "Can you hear me? I could really use some help in here."
Still no response.
I may not be a genius like my brother Kalen and his dorky pals, but I can think pretty well on my feet. There's no way for me to fight off all these robots on my own. I'm injured pretty badly and way outnumbered. If I can't reach Devin to help me disable them, I'm never getting out of here alive. There's only one good option - hold them off long enough for CallaBot to escape and then detonate my explosive suit.
Even half-dead, I'm no slouch in the fighting department. I manage to take down two of my metal attackers before the other five close in on me. Praying that Calla's made it out by now, I take a deep breath. This is it.
Today is a good day to die, I think.
Closing my eyes, I use the neural interface for the explosive suit to bring it online. My body tingles all over; the strange sensation almost blocks out the pain. Inside my brain, I hear Devin hollering at me through my neurovision chip. Communications must be up and running again.
"Why'd you do it, buddy?" Devin yells. "I could have helped you take down those SecurityBots!"
"BRENDAN!" Kalen screams in the background.
"It's too late now," Devin's voice is distraught. "There's no way to stop the explosion once the suit's warmed up."
I hear my brother sobbing. There's a whoosh, a rush of heat, an enveloping pain. Then everything goes dark.
So far, there's been no trouble. Every door has opened on command, just as Devin promised. CallaBot and I creep through the corridors of the WeaponsDev facility in silence, headed for the building's center. It feels like hours before we finally reach our destination, but patience has never really been my strong suit. Pushing open the door to the men's bathroom, I'm about to enter when I notice CallaBot hanging back.
"You coming?" I ask.
"Well, it's a men's bathroom." Her tone is unusually hesitant.
"Oh, give me a fucking break!" I snicker. "We're about to destroy a major government facility, and that's what you're worried about? Anyway, you're a robot now. According to the law, you're neither male nor female."
"Fine, whatever," she says, and follows me inside.
The door has barely swung shut behind us when there's a humming sound from out in the hall. Cracking the door and peering around the jamb, I see robots approaching. My heart leaps into my throat; there must be at least 20 of them.
"Calla!" I hiss. "SecurityBots, heading right for us!"
"You stay here," CallaBot says. "I'll talk to them and convince them we're no threat."
As she disappears into the hall, I shuck off my InvisiSuit. It's fucking hot in this place, and I breathe a grateful sigh once I'm free of the extra layer of insulation. Just as I'm about to remove my wrinkled explosive suit as well, I hear a commotion outside. I open the door a tiny bit, just in time to hear a sizzling noise and then a loud pop.
"CallaBot, you okay out there?"
No answer.
Stepping out into the hall, I cough as I inhale the acrid odor of fried circuitry. Trying not to breathe too deeply, I survey the scene before me. It's one of utter confusion.
More than half of the security robots are disabled. Most appear to have been beaten or shot down. One or two are standing stock still on the edge of the fracas while another slams itself repeatedly into a wall. The remaining seven SecurityBots encircle Calla, who does nothing to defend herself as they pelt her with metal fists and shoot her with blue lasers. Even with the superior shields Kalen's devised for her, I'm sure she can't withstand much more of this.
"Calla, what the hell?" I shout. "Why the fuck aren't you fighting back?"
Her mechanical eyes, staring straight ahead, don't even meet mine.
"Devin," I say, "There's something wrong with CallaBot! How do I fix her?"
Nothing.
Devin's supposed to be able to hear me over his neurovision implant. Maybe whatever's messed up CallaBot has disrupted our communications as well. I guess it doesn't matter; any way you look at it, I'm on my own.
"Fucking hell!" I yell to no one in particular. "Now what am I supposed to do?"
Shoving my way past the SecurityBots, I grab Calla's arm. Searing pains shoot through my arm, the back of my neck, and my lower spine as the robots turn on me. While the explosive suit provides protection against instant death, it's not enough. There's a smell like barbecue; I'm pretty sure it's my own burning flesh.
"Calla," I say, looking into her blank electronic eyes, "if you can hear me, get the fuck out of here now!"
Though her gaze shows no recognition, she says, "Yes, human," and shoots off down the hall. Focused on me, the SecurityBots don't even bother to follow her. My entire body is in agony as their lasers strike me again and again.
"Devin," I try once more. "Can you hear me? I could really use some help in here."
Still no response.
I may not be a genius like my brother Kalen and his dorky pals, but I can think pretty well on my feet. There's no way for me to fight off all these robots on my own. I'm injured pretty badly and way outnumbered. If I can't reach Devin to help me disable them, I'm never getting out of here alive. There's only one good option - hold them off long enough for CallaBot to escape and then detonate my explosive suit.
Even half-dead, I'm no slouch in the fighting department. I manage to take down two of my metal attackers before the other five close in on me. Praying that Calla's made it out by now, I take a deep breath. This is it.
Today is a good day to die, I think.
Closing my eyes, I use the neural interface for the explosive suit to bring it online. My body tingles all over; the strange sensation almost blocks out the pain. Inside my brain, I hear Devin hollering at me through my neurovision chip. Communications must be up and running again.
"Why'd you do it, buddy?" Devin yells. "I could have helped you take down those SecurityBots!"
"BRENDAN!" Kalen screams in the background.
"It's too late now," Devin's voice is distraught. "There's no way to stop the explosion once the suit's warmed up."
I hear my brother sobbing. There's a whoosh, a rush of heat, an enveloping pain. Then everything goes dark.
