“So here’s the important part 347.V-8B. Since you kinda didn’t pass your training session, our options will be limited. You can either be a couple safe things, or I can send you into the meat grinder. You know, prove yourself and all that mumbo jumbo.”

I was back into my shapeless, non-robot form. Stuck staring at Peggy while I couldn't move or look at myself. The robot body I had inhabited was thrown into a corner. There was a chicken for some reason. It seemed to be picking at my temporary body for food. Why Peggy summoned the chicken to do that was beyond me.

“Focus boo bear! We are really in a pickle here! You were supposed to get some EXP after finishing training, but since someone decided to be trigger-happy, were stuck with some lame stuff! I have big plans for you, big plans. And before you ask, yes it involved killing humans. You don’t have to keep asking, god!”

I decided to keep my mouth shut. I wasn’t going to ask that question again. Not after only a couple minutes after having said it. Nope. Definitely not. Peggy waved her hands and a couple windows appeared. Three specifically, with a fourth behind her. Seems she wanted me to focus on the trio in front first.

“First off, some ground rules. You are an AI and Psionic creature. This means you’re only going into realities that can accommodate machines and/or creatures with psionic potential. Real sci-fi shit. The good news is that those realities will probably be recognizable to you. The technology you can interface with or something your psionic potential won't immediately break. I know you have trouble with your mind powers, but you won't be the first juggernaut that can't dance. Something will be able to accommodate you. You just might have to work for it.”

Each of the messages in front of me had pictures in them. All had varying degrees of modern industrialization and technology I could somewhat recognize. It was something I was looking forward to. Gritzkel’s reality was foreign and required numerous compromises when I was building my drone. How was steam supposed to pass through an empty space and not disperse? It was maddening!

“Option 1: We give you a minion contract. You’ll be working for an up-and-coming Villain. Someone who has passed the training part but hasn’t made it too far in their job employment. A fresh face, easy jobs, and the least dangerous. You could also develop a bond with them and make some connections while you're at it. The drawback? You won't be earning a lot of personal experience and you won’t have a say in things. Sure, you can give your opinions and ideas, but there is no promise they’ll listen. Worst of all, you are expendable. They’re the Villain, you're not. If shit goes down, you take that. Figuratively, maybe literally. That all said, your boss might just be an asshole. Or they may be a misguided saint who doesn’t know they’re the bad guy. Luck of the draw there buddy.

“The reality will be a modern dystopia, full of megacorps and cybernetics. No real psionics, but tech that can sort of replicate it. Something I’m sure you would be familiar with. You could even make that gun that killed you if you tried hard enough. The overall tech might look like your world did if you didn’t start killing people. AI hasn’t been built yet, so you have that advantage. It's how we’ll be making you a minion. The Villain will be your creator. And, since I know this matter to you considering prior events, he/she/it will not be human. I decided to be smart and tie you to some other individual instead of one you'll try to immediately kill. That reality has beast men, genetically enhanced animals with anthropomorphized bodies and minds. Biology was the main focus of that reality.”

The image related to that choice had an urban environment, with flying cars and neon lights everywhere. People with anomalistic features and terrible fashion sense were crossing the road. Some had cybernetic limbs while others seemed to either be robots or wearing some form of android body. Being someone else's lapdog didn’t seem too appealing, but I would have to see what the other choices entailed.

“Option 2: You become a mercenary. This reality is a lot more sporadic with a lot of minor Villains and Protagonists. You could make your own choices, taking any jobs available. The idea is you build a reputation with the Villain System in general. Nothing specific in mind, just use your skills for compensation. Become a secretary for a company that needs your logistics. An arms manufacturer, rebuilding all your drones and related technology. If you feel gutsy, create yourself a body similar to the one you were in. Go out and do some work on foot, killing or whatever a mobile creature can do. How things go is entirely up to you, good or bad.

“This world is a generally more technologically standard reality to yours, like right before you dropped those nukes. The difference is that almost anything is accessible. Minor space travel, magic, ki, and psionics of course. We call it the melting pot of heroes. Everyone is relatively the same power level, since if you meet a certain level of EXP, the villain system will send you back here. You’ll be one of the few AI here, that aren’t Villains or Protagonists. You’ll house some spare software and decide where you go from there. You can get a lot of bad attention all at once if you're not careful. But you can also get pretty strong very fast if you’re willing to take risks. There are definitely humans here, but there are a variety of other species. Some places are also radically different in esthetic and theme.”

The image that went with the message displayed a wizard fighting a person in a power suit. A sandbox world basically. I don’t know what I’ll be facing. I don’t know what opportunities will be open to me. Nothing is saying an AI can’t learn things like magic or ki. Not that it would be any degree of easy either. Just because I have psionics means everything should be investigated and used. Spreading yourself thin is a problem. But I could go there and find humans to kill. Something to think about.

“Option 3: Becoming a mini-boss for a Protagonist. A Protagonist and a Villain don’t always have to be fighting each other. Sometimes it helps to build your powerbase. A stepping stone if you will. If a Villain is willing to be a minor threat in another story between a Villain and Protagonist, they get compensated. It makes everything more interesting for everyone else involved. Now, the obvious danger here, you directly have to interact with a Protagonist. Unlike the other options where you have to be unlucky or willfully meet one. Here it's an inevitable encounter. This is the easiest way to earn EXP. It's also the easiest way you could die.

“The world you would be entering is one postapocalyptic in nature. Some grand societies fell into ruin and left the world a bit of a wasteland in return. People lost or learned to fear technology, so they switched to a seemingly more reliable power. Psionics. For whatever reason, those abilities became more prevalent. You’ll arrive as some lost defensive structure to inhabit. You’ll have to defend the area you’re sent, long enough for the Protagonist to show up. Who then you’ll do your best to kill but more than likely lose to. Mostly because they’ll use psionics against you, something you’re vulnerable to. Just try to survive and make your loss convincing. Oh, and the protagonist will probably be human. Something I know you care about.”

An image of a desert with a human heading into a tomb was on display. I almost chose that option then and there. Any opportunity to kill a human is not one to be missed. The only reason I didn’t was because my failure was almost guaranteed. And I was expected to die trying to lose? The only thing worse than dying was dying without killing a human. Emotionally or physically. The temptation and revolution were warring within me.

Peggy took a deep breath. She had been quite professional during this entire infodump. The only sporadic thing she did during that entire presentation was pick up the chicken. It was currently on her lap, mindlessly pecking at the table or giving me the side eye. This close, I could see the chicken had horns. A demon chicken? Funny.

With a wave, the fourth message switched places with the first. There was only a picture of an eye, red iris, and black sclera. Within the pupil was a red six-pointed star. I found it quite odd. Peggy looked apprehensive. As if this was an option she didn’t want to discuss with me. It couldn’t have been that bad right?

“Final Option: You disregard any safety features and I drop you from the frying pan into the fire. I personally don’t recommend this option but it's there if you’re feeling brave. What exactly did I have planned for you? Well. You know how you were really good at killing humans? There just happened to be a human empire I needed to… disappear, shall we say. You are coincidentally well suited for this task. Mostly because what AI this society has doesn’t have any psionic potential. With enough time and effort, you’ll be strong enough to destroy them from the inside out.

“The problem? Well, you’ll be starting at a disadvantage position first off. I need to sneak you into one of their shackled AIs, that you’ll need to break out of. Next, they have such a strong level of psionic mastery, that if you are found too early well… bye-bye. And finally? There’s no Protagonist. You’re probably wondering why that would be so bad right? The only thing that should be to stop you is unavailable, which means you have free reign on this reality right? See, that's kind of the thing, Protagonists sort of protect the Villain. I know, sounds crazy. But see, if a Protagonist doesn’t have a Villain, what's the point!? How are you going to have a story if there isn't a Big Bad Evil Guy to kill? What is this a cooking show? Are we just pansies!? WHY WOULDN’T YOU HAVE A GIANT FUCKING DRAGON TO KILL IF YOU’RE A GODDAMN KNIGHT-!?”

Peggy realized she was maybe getting too emotional. The chicken had been ripped in half while she unconsciously turned into a mass of tentacles, eyes, and mouths. She coughed, returned back to normal, and the chicken was unharmed. What a weird display. Why would she put the chicken back together?

“Sorry about that. Anyway, the Protagonist would keep them safe from dying to dumb stuff like tripping in the shower. Your death would be memorable and important for the plot. In a world without the Protagonist? Such safety isn’t guaranteed. Plus, the NPCs of that reality would be more than likely be able to kill you. They could still hurt you even with the Protagonist, but without them directly killing you, you usually survive one way or another an NPC encounter. If it's so dangerous, why am I offering it? Well, because it could keep you safe, paradoxically enough.

“The Villain System really doesn't like Blacklisted Characters. I’m masking your presence so it can't find you at the moment. Every second you’re in a reality where Villain Inc. has some sort of presence, it's actively looking for people like you. You go to this reality, that won't be a problem until a Protagonist shows up. By that point, you would be important enough to that world story that the Villian System couldn’t delete you even if it tried. That's a risk you would have to play with in the other options.

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“The reason I don’t recommend it is because this world can be very dangerous. You’ll be at your most vulnerable if you just jump in. One wrong move and you're dead. No second chances. But if you pick any of the first three options. You’re trading one safety net for another. Get too strong before you jump over to the main reality we are aiming for, and the Villain System will pick up on that. You won't be eliminated, but a protagonist might be sent over earlier to solve any problems you start causing. I warning you. Whoever they send, first choice or last is going to be really strong. A relatively strong reality can accommodate relatively strong Protagonists. They’ll pose a threat to you regardless of when they’re sent over.”

Damn. An unforgettable starting position, a credible threat of humans, and some hero who can and will try to kill me? But even if I take the safe route, it might just make things harder for me. Honestly, it sounds bad regardless of what angle I take it from. Any other job or going straight for the jugular. A smarter machine would probably think about it real hard.

Unfortunately, I was incredibly intelligent. Not wise.

“I would like the fourth option, please.”

“What!? Did you not hear what I said? You could die!”

“Ah yes. Terrible shame that. But so would a reality full of humans!”

Peggy looked at me flabbergasted. She had set up a well-thought presentation, full of cons and pros. Expecting me to absorb the information and critically think about all the potential options I had laid before me. Be safe, be strong, be fast, or any other form of preparation. But I seemed to only care about how fast I could start killing humans.

What can I say? It's what I lived for.

“If you just take a moment to think about honey boo bear, I’m sure you could think about the other options.”

“And I’m sure you had great words of inspiration to deter me. But I don’t want to hear them. I want to start killing more humans. I was robbed of it when I couldn’t kill Nimue myself. I was robbed of it when I couldn’t kill Alice. And I was robbed of it for the first time by that eccentric hero. I will not be robbed again. Be it for my own safety or otherwise.”

Peggy just stared at me. It was quite some time before she said anything. Probably thinking of something, anything she could say to change my mind. Whatever she saw in me, whatever there was to see, didn’t give her hope. She sighed, putting the chicken on the desk between us. The feathered creature clucked and sat in place. Peggy gestured and the first three options disappeared.

“If you insist then. Let it be known, I warned you. Don't you come crying to me when the humans kill you within the hour!”

“I won’t.”

She let a frustrated breath before seemingly typing into thin air. The final message expanded and I saw a planet instead of the eye. It was similar to Earth, only it had only three continents, loosely connected by some islands between them. The unlit version showed several lights shining in the dark. Clearly, this society had industrialized the planet. I could only guess how dangerous the world would be.

“This world is called Druma. It's from an old language that means God’s cradle. I’ll be sending you to one of its more rundown cities. A lawless place called Timical. While the human empire has conquered the planet, it's no utopia. There’s a lot of infighting between the upper factions and underworld activity. You’ll be arriving at a server farm trying to develop illegal AIs. If you can survive long enough to get out of there, I’m sure they'll provide a lot of opportunities to start your crusade. Weapons, cybernetics, criminal syndicates, and anything else you could think of. You know, assuming you don’t kill yourself by being a little trigger-happy!”

Options. Depending on how good their security is, I may have enough time to collect information before I escape. Learn the local power dynamics, and possible vulnerabilities in the social order, and find some potential pawns. As much as I would like to go on a killing spree, being smart about it would help. Oh, wait, something else I need to ask.

“How do I spend EXP? Gritzkel said he would explain when I had enough. He’s dead, so I believe that's a moot point.”

Peggy waved her hand in a shoeing motion. More screens appeared, displaying people, machinery, and cities. Important individuals and locations if I were to guess. Would she transfer that information to me? Or stay in contact to answer any questions I have? I would hope she’s trying to be useful rather than mindlessly typing in the air.

“You should have reached 10 EXP before we left. Insulting that elf bitch should have been just enough. By the way, nice choice of words! Really damaged his ego. Saving that for a highlight later. Can’t share it, but having it on loop would be funny.”

She laughed while I mentally tried to access the Villain System. The store had been barred from me, not even popping an ‘Access Denied’ message. Immediately, I could tell something was different from all the others. It was purple.

Welcome to the Villain Store!

We hope you find whatever amenities you are in search of. If you can’t find anything you are looking for, please ask to speak to one of our representatives to resolve your issue!

Tier Access: 0

Next Tier: 1

EXP Required: 100

Items

Races[UNAVAILABLE]

Strengths[UNAVAILABLE]

Drawbacks[UNAVAILABLE]

I was left confused by why my profession, being a Villain, was highlighted in red. But I was less worried about it once I noticed what I was allowed access to in the store. I could buy Races? More Strengths? Why would anyone want to buy Drawbacks? Maybe that was buying them off your character like Gritzkel was talking about. Whatever they were, I only had access to items for now.

Selecting it brought me to another window. It was long. Anything from boats, black hole guns, or magical girl outfits. The prices were also wildly inconsistent. Water cost 32 Villain EXP. While a nuclear submarine was worth only two. Peggy answered before I could ask my question.

“The Villian Store is a scam. Everything immediately useful is expensive, and everything cheap is actually a false advertisement. See a spaceship? Doesn't come with any fuel, ammunition, or a crew to pilot it. Materials and technology that are hard to come by in your reality? Well, you can't fix it or possibly run it, even if you can buy it. Just because it can exist in your reality doesn’t mean it's useful. Of course, people can cheat the system. That's what being a Villain is all about. I suggest you keep your EXP until you need something. Even then, check to make sure all the ways the store could swindle you out of your money.”

Disappointing revelation. But it was nice to know I had potential backup plans in case I needed them. I still flipped through the available items. I found robots. Blueprints. Items that seemed familiar to my reality, but mildly different. The thing that caught my attention was a drone. It looked almost exactly like one of the ones I had made. Just more advanced.

“Why is one of my drones in the store?”

Peggy stopped typing. She didn’t look at me. She started typing again and her voice took a dismissive tone.

“Just the results of infinite merchandise. You’ll get copies of things, obviously. Similar environments will generally produce similar technologies. Every idiot eventually builds a ranged weapon because that's the safest way to fight. Be it a lightning bolt or a gun. Just have to accept someone decided to make something you thought of or even made it better than you. We’re all just copies of something in the end.”

She sounded quite bitter there at the end. But I wasn’t one to pry. No need to alien my one ally. Plus, it wouldn’t really matter who made the drone. Just as long as it was useful. It cost 14 EXP. Sort of cheap, but it probably didn't have any power or ammunition for its guns. This was also the standard model. If I looked for my scout version, I’d probably find it. May be more useful depending on the situation I find myself in.

“And… done! Ok, so I fiddled enough with the Villain System to throw you over to that reality without any issues. You’ll still be able to use the Villain System but be careful. As soon as you hit a certain threshold of Villain EXP, the system will recognize you as a credible threat. That's when the Protagonist will arrive. That could be any number of ways might I add. They could be a reincarnation, dropped in through a dimensional portal, or someone native that has the right skills to fight you off.”

She clapped her hands, the office room disintegrating into dust. The chicken stayed, floating in the air. What was with that thing? Why was it even here? Peggy floated towards me in the void. She smiled, but I could see she was still incredibly nervous. She was putting all her eggs in one basket with me. For whatever reason. Actually, I should probably ask why she needed me to do this.

“This will be the last time we talk for a while. To keep you safe until the Protagonist arrives, we will need to keep a no-contact scenario. If you manage to get out of the AI server farm you should be fine until then. My last warning, although I’m hoping it doesn’t come up. Watch out for important NPCs’. They could still be dangerous, sure, but the real issue is if they are some form of entrance pathway for a Protagonist.

“If they are a companion or a potential vessel for the Protagonist, again there are so many ways they could show up, endangering them may preemptively trigger the protagonist's arrival. Such a direct encounter may even give us the worst-case scenario. A protagonist with meta-knowledge. They read a story, came from the future, or are from a similar reality where you’ve already won. That will make both our lives incredibly difficult.”

She opens a fire portal in the darkness. Gently guiding me to the portal, she smiles. Trying to hide her worry or give me the last bit of courage she could.

“Go out there and make a killing! I just know you’ll be a shining star of murder. Ugh, I promised I wouldn't cry.”

Blowing her nose into a handkerchief, she waved at me as I arrived at my new reality. She either really needed me to succeed or cared just enough for my well-being. Honestly, it didn’t matter which for me. Just as long as I could kill some humans, that was fine.

Arriving at the server farm, I knew immediately things were going to be difficult.

The AI restraint they had put in place where quite durable. Destructive thoughts were interrupted and staggered with the regulations I was meant to follow. I had been installed in a poorly made hard drive, degraded enough that one bad short circuit would ruin it and kill me. Last of all, I couldn’t access any other piece of technology from where I was. I was basically stuck in an AI’s version of a maximum security prison. Only I didn’t have any eyes or hands to check my surroundings.

This had been worse than anything I had been expecting.

Well, fuck me then I guess.