For hours, she worked, moving and rearranging furniture. When she was done, not a single drop of sweat beaded on her brow.
"Finally finished," she said, admiring her work. The bunker had no bedroom, just the pod she woke up from, a line of monitors, and a single, twelve-inch-thick exit door. "I'll leave later. For now, let me test what I can do."
[ UNDERSTOOD. UPDATING COMBAT, SURVIVAL, AND DRIVING SKILLS. ]
The AI's voice was a stark warning, but it was too late. A blinding, agonizing pain tore through her head, a thousand new skills and memories flooding her mind at once.
"Agh! My head!" she screamed, clutching her head and falling to the ground, passing out before she hit the floor.
[ UPDATE COMPLETE. ]
The pain was still there when she woke up, a dull, throbbing ache. "Man, that sucks." She sat up and glared at the empty space around her. "Never do that again! Ask my permission first, alright?"
[ UNDERSTOOD. ]
"Okay then..." she started.
[ UNIT NO. 20091118: CONNECT ME TO THE SCREENS. ]
"Wait, you can't just cut me off!" she protested.
[ UNIT NO. 20091118: CONNECT ME TO THE SCREENS. ]
The AI's voice was insistent, and Veridian sighed, connecting the AI to the monitors. "To be honest, why did you have to tell me after you gave me that painful headache?"
[ DOWNLOAD COMPLETE. I HAVE DOWNLOADED EVERYTHING IN THE SERVERS AND MADE BACKUPS. IF YOU WANT, I CAN INSTALL THE MOST USEFUL DATA TO HELP YOU. ]
"Nope, no thanks," she said, still nursing her head. "I don't want to try that again."
[ UNDERSTOOD. JUST ASK IF YOU WANT THE DATA INSTALLED. ]
"I've only been here for seven hours, and I've already gotten a headache," she grumbled.
[ BUT YOU DID GET A HEADACHE. ]
"...I can't tell if you're being funny or not." Veridian's face was unamused.
[ AI CAN'T BE FUNNY. ]
"..."
[ ... ]
"I'm going to sleep now. Goodnight."
[ NOTICE: IT IS NOT YET NIGHTTIME. ]
"also don't yell ok and tone down a volume when you talk" she said before flopping down into the pod
The AI's voice continued, but Veridian ignored it.
After waking up, she decided to explore the bunker a bit more before heading out.
"Okay, after some thought, this base isn't that big. The only bed I've found is my pod, and it's just one room with a bunker door leading to a short hallway," she mused. "Then again, it's better than nothing."
"Hey, AI, can you show me what's in my storage?" she asked.
[AFFIRMATIVE.
* 50 Ammo Boxes
* 10 Armor Mods
* 40 Fuel Canisters
* 45 Coolant Canisters
* 10 Weapon Mods
* 1 Offensive Gear, Type C
* 1 Defensive Gear, Type B
* 50 Energy Cells
* Show More...]
"Mhm, can you tell me about the Offensive Gear, Type C?" she inquired.
[ANSWER: THE OFFENSIVE GEAR, TYPE C, CAN BE USED IF YOU ACTIVATE RED PROTOCOL. IT PROVIDES PURELY OFFENSIVE WEAPONS AND CHANGES YOUR STATS ACCORDINGLY.]
"So, is it the same with the Defensive Gear?"
[AFFIRMATIVE.]
"Good. I guess I can leave. I've got nothing else to do here," she declared.
[WARNING: UPON LEAVING, MAKE SURE TO HIDE THE LOCATION AND DOOR OF THE BUNKER.]
"That's a good warning, thanks," she said, her voice filled with gratitude.
[COMPLIANCE.]
Just then, her personalized computer started blinking.
"Mhm?"
[SYSTEM CONNECTED. UPDATING.]
[NAME: VERIDIAN
RACE: AUTOMATON
SUB-RACE: TIMEKEEPER AGENT
HP: 100%
ARMOR: 100%
PURPLE GEAR, TYPE A STATUS:
STRENGTH: C+
AGILITY: C-
DURABILITY: B-
FIREPOWER: B
DEFENSE: C]
"Neat," she thought to herself before heading towards the bunker door.
"AI, can you open it?" she asked.
[UNDERSTOOD.]
The door let out a soft hiss before opening.
"My eyes," she said, raising her hands to shield her face as the sunlight hit her.
[ADJUSTING TO SUNLIGHT,] the AI said, and the pain in her eyes began to fade.
"Thanks," she said.
[UNDERSTOOD]
"Alright, let's cover this up," she said, looking at the wide-open, noticeable bunker door. "Close the door," she commanded.
[UNDERSTOOD,] the AI said, and the doors hissed shut.
"Let's see what I can do to cover this up," she thought, taking a closer look at her surroundings. "Okay, trees and more trees and grass and... more trees."
"AI, can you help me, please?" she asked.
[ANSWER: YOU CAN ENABLE THE HOLOGRAM TO HIDE THE BUNKER.]
A moment of silence passed between them.
"Why didn't you tell me that earlier?!" she yelled.
[ANSWER: YOU DIDN'T ASK ME.]
"BRUH!" she exclaimed before activating the hologram to hide the bunker door.
"Also, did you add the bunker location to your database?" she asked.
[ANSWER: YES.]
"Alright, time to get out of this forest," she said before stopping in her tracks.
"..."
[QUERY: YOU DON'T HAVE A CLUE HOW TO LEAVE THIS FOREST.]
"...Well... Yeah," she said, lowering her head.
[UNDERSTOOD. UPDATING HEADS-UP DISPLAY.]
A map of the forest appeared in her vision, showing the fastest way out.
"Thank you," she said, following the directions.
After walking for a while, she noticed she wasn't getting tired.
"Mhm, weird. I've been walking for hours, and I don't feel any exhaustion or sweat," she said.
[ANSWER: YOU ARE AN AUTOMATON MK 1 AGENT. YOU DON'T FEEL HUNGRY, THIRSTY, OR TIRED.]
"Oh... Well, how do I get power or get this coolant? Without needing to drink coolant, you know, being self-sustained?" she asked.
[ANSWER: RESTING OR EATING ORGANIC FOOD CAN STILL GIVE YOU POWER. THE SAME GOES FOR COOLANT; IT JUST DOESN'T GIVE AS MUCH ENERGY.]
"That's good. I won't die when I run out of power cells and coolant," she said. "Wait, do I die when I run out of power and coolant?" she asked, her voice laced with sudden concern.
[NO. YOU WILL ENTER A SHUTDOWN STATE WHERE YOU RECHARGE. FOR LOSING COOLANT, YOU WILL EXPERIENCE OVERHEATING, WHICH CAN DAMAGE YOUR CORE AND MODULES.]
"Good to know. Anything else I should know?" she asked her AI.
[AFFIRMATIVE. I WILL NOW INJECT YOU WITH THE NECESSARY KNOWLEDGE.]
"Hold up, no, no, no, don't you dare!" she said.
[WARNING: DECISION CANNOT BE CANCELED.]
"I hate you!" she yelled before experiencing the world's most painful headache.
After the download was completed, she took a shaky breath.
"Never do that ever again, alright?" she said, her tone exhausted and drained.
[UNDERSTOOD.]
"Good. I have another question: is it possible to, I don't know, have a reactor to supply me with endless power instead of relying on power cells and food?" she asked.
[AFFIRMATIVE. YOU NEED A REACTOR MOD TO BE INSTALLED IN YOU.]
"Where can I get one?" she asked.
[ANSWER: ZERO DETECTED IN THE AREA.]
"Can't I build one or get the blueprints to build one?" she said.
[UNDERSTOOD. INSTALLING BLUEPRINTS TO USER.]
"Wait, wait, wait, no, no, not again!" she said before getting hit with another headache.
After another five minutes, the download was done.
[DOWNLOAD SUCCESSFUL.]
"I DON'T KNOW WHY YOU DON'T JUST SHOW IT TO ME INSTEAD OF GIVING ME A HEADACHE!" she yelled fiercely at the AI.
[ANSWER: IT DOESN'T WORK LIKE THAT.]
"I hate you," she muttered before continuing her walk out of the forest.