Kayda emerged from the alleyway, panting as she dusted herself off and began to trek through the horde of people. She struggled to get to where she last saw Teddy and Kona, as many didn’t notice her on account of her height, and shoved her aside, completely unaware of her presence. She struggled to remain on her feet as the stampede of bustling activity began to grow in intensity. She pulled on the sleeves and tapped on the backs of many passersby, in an attempt to garner their attention so that she may get some help in locating her friends, to no avail. She struggled to so much as utter a squeak as her soft voice petered out mere seconds after leaving her lips. No one seemed to notice or care about the unattended child practically crawling around mainstreet, as some people more or less kicked her out of the way, paying no mind to her plight. That is, if they even noticed her, as Kayda wasn’t one to vocalize when she found herself upset.
She pushed past the crowd as best she could, struggling to find an opening where she could have a moment to catch her breath. Along with this, she was also attempting to locate somewhere with higher elevation, so that she may better scope out the scene. At her eye level, finding Teddy and Kona would be a task most herculean. Of course, if she knew she would be faced with this much difficulty going forward, she wouldn't have foolishly left them. Guilt began to wash over her as she felt her knees buckle and sweat pour down her temple and drip to the sands below, before evaporating instantly. Her knuckles turned white as she balled her hands into fists, her entire form stiffening to the same composure of a wooden board. She remained motionless as the world began to pass around her, as in that moment, she was nothing but an eroding rock in a torrential river. Tears began to stream down her cheeks as she wept silently, for she couldn’t help but feel stupid for losing the people who had been nothing but good to her. She could feel the ground lightly vibrate as her legs began to go numb and fall asleep, her balance growing enervated.
Before she could fall to her knees in anguish, she felt a cold, yet warm mechanical presence touch her shoulder. Upon feeling this, her eyes widened and her smile returned in a near instant. She wiped her tears on her sleeves and excitedly spun around, ready to greet the presence that felt vaguely familiar. In her blind glee, she hugged the figure that approached her from behind tightly, as she sighed in relief and bliss.
“Teddy! I’m so sorry I ran away, I really didn’t mean to scare you guys like that! I promise it won’t happen again! I’m just happy I-” She paused and furrowed her brow in confusion.
Upon feeling how this individual felt wrapped around her arms, it was not the service bot she had come to rely on, but instead someone else entirely. She gasped and stepped back cautiously, as she noticed that not only was the chassis of this robot much different than that of Teddy, but also stood at a much more pronounced stature. The machine in question towered over her at an astonishing height, seemingly taller than every robot here. The sun obscured the stranger’s visage, as shadow silhouetted any defining features.
Kayda nervously stepped backward, her palms sweating as she refused to break visual contact with the mysterious robot who had approached her. The figure did not say anything reassuring, and did not have the same warm, benevolent presence as Teddy or the robot in the alley. No, it seemed much more reserved in nature, and somewhat sinister. This feeling of unease did not dispel and only intensified as the robot took a step forward, slowly approaching Kayda. Every time they got closer, Kayda took a step back, beginning to tremble ever so slightly at the sight before her. As they repeated this interaction, they eventually reached a patch of shade in the still active marketplace. It was here that she could make out more details of the stranger’s face.
Before her was a machine that stood no taller than eight feet, with a very lanky and slender build. Their legs weren’t too different from Teddy’s in composition, and appeared to be standard service bot legs modified to be taller in nature. From their thin frame also sprouted two arms that were similar to that of a service bot’s, but were also welded and extended beyond their original design. Perched on both shoulders were what appeared to be long pipes that ran congruent with the curvature of the arms. Both the central chassis and these pipes were painted in a similar style, with the chassis painted entirely in a cool, tropical blue. Upon getting a closer look at the robot’s torso, Kayda could also see that on their lower half was what appeared to be the silhouette of a sun and a couple of palm trees painted in white, with what seemed to be an indecipherable signature beside the sun. Resting atop their shoulders was a head also more slender than the standard build for a robot, at least any robot around these parts. Their head appeared to be made up of two solid metal frames, conjoined in the center by a metallic orb with an LCD screen embedded on the front of it. On this fuzzy and static littered screen appeared to be a pixelated iris of some sort, albeit in the shape of a rectangle. Their eye darted up and down as it closely examined Kayda, before they ceased their approach and nodded to themselves.
“Yeah, you’re her alright. You don’t look like the other yokels here. If you make this easy for me, kid, I’ll make it easy for you,” the robot said in a deadpan feminine voice. Every word had an air of disinterest to it, but had more of an annoyed tone than anything robotic.
Kayda froze in place as the robot before her went to grab her hand, rather forcefully to boot, and only began to struggle when she realized the stranger was escorting her away. As the stranger tried to take her away, Kayda narrowed her eyes and planted her feet firmly into the ground, stopping her abductor in her tracks. The robot’s arm stiffened as she looked back and saw Kayda had not moved an inch. She struggled and pulled, but the young girl was not deterred. Her singular eye closed as she grunted in frustration and shook her head, and proceeded to pull with even more force than before. Perhaps she was being too gentle with the kid. It was time she showed just how serious she was. However, no matter how hard the captor tugged, Kayda remained firmly planted into the ground, scowling at the ne'er do well trying to take her away.
“God damn kid, what are they feeding you? You got rocks in the pockets of that potato sack you’re wearing?” The stranger grunted, trying to pull her with force she didn’t imagine would ever be necessary.
“I-I don’t know you! Get away from me!” Kayda yelled at the top of her lungs, pulling away from the stranger who still grasped her hand.
“Trust me kid, I don’t care to know you either. I’m just trying to do my job. Now, knock it off before I do something I’ll regret,” she said in an ice cold manner.
It was then the machine raised her other hand to Kayda’s temple. She did not know why she didn’t notice this before, but what was at the end of her other arm was completely different from the claw that was holding her hand. It was then she could clearly see that instead of a regular service bot claw, the stranger before her possessed what appeared to be a small machine gun as a left hand. Though it looked like a haphazard, rushed welding job, it was no less deadly. Kayda could feel the cold barrel press into her skin as clicking noises emanated from inside the weapon, as if she was ready to fire at any moment. Despite this, Kayda scowled at the stranger and continued to pull back away from her.
“Y-You wouldn’t do it! Y-You need me alive! I know that!” She exclaimed, trying her best to make a scene for others to notice.
“Eh, good on you for calling my bluff, child. You’re right! I only need YOU alive,” she said as calm as ever.
As the robot pulled her weapon away from Kayda’s skull, and let go of her hand, she quickly snatched up a passerby who was none the wiser to the scene that was unfolding and tightly held them in her grasp. She brought her gun up to the guy’s head and the same clicking noise from before could be heard. The captive struggled and gasped for breath as her clutches on him grew tighter and tighter.
“Come with me kid, or I paint this entire hell hole red. You don’t want that on your conscience now, do you?”
Kayda stepped back in shock, as her stomach dropped and tightened. Such a sight of putting an innocent in danger made her feel sick to her stomach. She gritted her teeth and clicked her tongue as she began to narrow her eyes at her would-be abductor. In that moment, Kayda felt nothing but disdain for her, as her heart ached to see an innocent man kick and scream, begging for his life. Despite the rage that had ignited deep within her, it still wasn’t enough to quell the raw fear that took center stage. She did not purposely bury her rancor, for she could not control the fear that would soon tighten its grasp on her body and mind. Her heart raced as she could feel the corners of her vision blur. Her legs quaked as she stepped and pointed at her.
“L-Let that man go! He has nothing to do with this. This is just between me and you. If you let him go, I’ll go with you…” Kayda said nervously, trying her best not to cry.
“Uh huh, and why should I believe you? The moment I let this clod go, you’re just gonna run away. It isn’t personal, I just really hate children and just assume they’re all little liars. Wait, no, it’s a little personal. You’re annoying.”
“Please! I promise I won’t just run off! Just, please don’t kill him or anyone else here. None of them did anything to deserve that!” She pleaded, running up and grabbing the robot’s hand, “See? You have me right now. Just let him go!”
As Kayda interlocked hands with her, the robot held up her end of the deal and let the man go free from her grasp, who scrambled away practically on all fours. Just as quick as he entered the scene, he quickly reassimilated with the horde of passersby, many of whom completely ignored the interaction. For a bullet to the head was just another day in Needles, it was just a matter of when it was your turn.
“Wise choice, kid. Thanks, I really wasn’t feeling the whole hostage thing today. When people get shot it gets everywhere, people scream, then I have to shoot more people. It’s a whole thing. You know how massacres are.”
Kayda shook her head at this, her eyes wide and mouth agape in shock as to how someone could say something so horrible so casually. Everything about her captor unsettled her to a degree she did not know possible. The tone of her voice did not align with the horrible things she would utter as they began to walk together. The robot listed her various backup plans she had lined up, had Kayda not given herself up. Each filled with more carnage than the last. Kayda shivered in fear at the thought of seeing any of these plans come to fruition.
Kayda followed her along, internally panicking as she looked up and down through the crowd that passed by them at alarming speeds, hoping she’d see Teddy or Kona through the gaps of moving bodies. However, no matter how hard she tried, all she saw was the blurred forms of bystanders zooming by, paying no mind to either the scene before or the scene occurring now. It was clear to anyone that this situation was one most peculiar, as Kayda was very clearly in distress. But, as with the scene Teddy and Kona had caused not too long ago, this was the standard out here. Many knew exactly what was going on, and many even had some sympathy for her plight. Kayda locked eyes with random citizens every so often as she was being dragged along, and she could see their initial concern, before it faded. No one could afford to get caught up in this sort of situation. Out here, one must only look out for themselves and their kin. And, it was because of people like her captor why many felt they could not help those around them. In a world such as this, ruthless, bloodthirsty predators prey on those who could do nothing but cower and relent. Those with a penchant for violence will always exert their will on the masses, if there aren’t forces to counter them. If anything, merely threatening to paint the town with the viscera of the innocent was an act of restraint on her part, as Kayda wouldn’t be surprised if someone worse would’ve disregarded the formalities of a threat or bargain.
She shook her head, wondering why the world had to be this way. Though she wanted nothing more than for someone to help, she understood why they didn’t, lest they be reduced to a red stain. She did not want to burden others with her problems, and in hindsight, began to feel immense guilt for getting Kona and Teddy roped into all of this. If she had never wandered into their lives, they wouldn’t be out there looking for her. Her stomach sank. Are they even looking for her? Perhaps they had outright left her behind. After all, what was she to them? A stranger they had only just met. What reason would they have to stick their necks out for her? As she thought about it, she couldn’t blame them if this was the case. In fact, she hoped it was. Teddy had no reason to stick with her and was essentially a newborn who knows even less about the world than her, and Kona seems to live a carefree life. Who was she to impose her interests on them? The more she thought about it, the more she actually began to hope they abandoned her. The road to Wakefield was one arduous and treacherous, a path not for the faint of heart. Not to mention, every step of the way, she knew she’d run into homicidal, bellicose adversaries such as her captor. Many of whom wouldn’t hesitate to add Teddy and Kona to their body count. It was selfish to even entertain the notion that she needed their help. They were better off far away from her.
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Resigning herself to the fact that they were not coming, she knew that she had to hurry and do something, or risk being collected and sent to the dreaded Penumbra. She was determined to get to Wakefield, even if it meant she had to do it all by herself. If the threat that the robot had imposed on her was posed yet again, she knew there was one thing she had to do. Kayda gritted her teeth and began to pull back from the robot, the two of them now nearing the very same staircase she had descended not too long ago when she first entered Needles. While she struggled, her hair had begun to obscure her face, as dirt was kicked up and spackled upon her already tattered dress. The robot stopped moving and rolled her eye, before she realized her grip on Kayda’s hand grew weaker, the child beginning to exercise an alarming amount of strength.
“Really? Again with this, kid?” The robot sighed in frustration,
“Let go of me now! I’m not gonna go with you!” Kayda grunted as she thrashed about.
“Kid, do we really have to go over the terms of the deal again? Was I not clear, or are you stupid or something?”
“I-I changed my mind! I don’t wanna go with you!” She yelled, finally freeing herself from the clutches of the robot.
The robot brought her hand to her head and rubbed the closest approximation to her temple, “Alright, then I’m gonna start killing guys. Like, hm… that guy.”
She pointed her machine gun towards a random bystander, who dropped a crate of devil eggs in shock as his hands shot straight up. Tears streamed down the man’s cheeks as he begged for his life, all while the cartoonish delicacies ran about the sands below. The robot stepped forward and stomped on a devil egg, reducing it to a yellow stain as its lizard-like foot twitched.
“Nothing personal, man. I got a job to do, and the kid is making it difficult, you know how kids are,” aiming her gun at the man’s forehead.
However, before she could pull the trigger, Kayda dived in front of the man, her arms spread open as she tried her best to block him with her smaller stature. Mere milliseconds from firing, the robot stopped herself and stared down at Kayda.
“Girl, what are you doing?” She said in frustration.
Kayda stood still, her eyes closed and arms still wide open, barely offering any shielding to the man, “I’m not gonna let you kill anyone here! These people have it hard enough without you coming around here pointing that thing around!”
She lowered her gun in shock, but soon narrowed her gaze at Kayda in annoyance. The man Kayda was blocking ran off the moment she lowered her weapon, scrambling about as he threw himself through a nearby building’s window.
“Whatever, I’ll just kill that lady right there,” she said, adjusting her aim in a flash, ready to kill a woman who was not even aware of the scene unfolding, “This is on you, kid. Remember that when you see this lady get turned into swiss cheese.”
In a near instant, Kayda pushed the woman deeper into the crowd surrounding them, causing her opponent to lose sight of her intended target. Though initially annoyed, upon seeing the massive barrel aimed at her, the woman did not mind getting lost in the sea of people if it meant getting far away from there.
“You can’t do this all day. You’re gonna get tired, and I’m gonna kill some poor schmuck who doesn’t deserve it and it’ll be your fault. Is that what you want? You can’t protect everyone here. And why even try? It’s not like any of these scumbags were dying to help you.” She said, approaching Kayda.
“I-It’s the right thing to do! In better circumstances, I’m sure they’d do the same. Even if they’re cold, that doesn’t give you the right to kill anyone you want. I’m not gonna let you hurt anyone. They’re not involved in this.”
“Oh yeah? And how are you gonna stop me? Your little body isn’t gonna stop me from mowing everyone down. Wanna see?” She said, her arm aimed at the crowd.
“If you kill anyone today, I am going to kill myself.” Kayda said firmly, staring the robot down.
Upon hearing this, the would-be kidnapper froze and lowered her gun. Her body stiffened as she slowly turned her head back to Kayda. Her eye narrowed and she slowly approached her. With one swift movement, she snatched Kayda by the neck and brought her all the way up to eye level. This did not faze Kayda as her entire form dangled feet above the ground, the robot holding onto her neck with a firm, suffocating grip.
“You got a lot of nerve-”
“I know that whoever sent you said they want me alive. Right?” Kayda said coldly, still dangling in the robot’s grasp.
She remained silent as she tightened her grip around Kayda’s throat, furious that she saw right through her. She knew for a fact this kid couldn’t have so much as a scratch on her. Her employer wouldn’t like the damaged goods one bit. Though she was a stubborn brat, the machine never realized Kayda would go to these lengths to avoid capture.
“If you, or anyone else manages to get me, I promise, I will kill myself before you get me to Penumbra. I will find a way no matter what. If I’m dead, I know for a fact you have a lot more to lose than a bounty.”
“Full of surprises, are we?” Said the hunter, feigning the same level of confidence she had before.
image [https://i.imgur.com/WyVrajb.png]
Upon hearing her determination to avoid capture, she grew even more nervous. This wasn’t going to be as simple as she was told it was going to be. As she held onto Kayda, contemplating how to complete her mission without Kayda self-terminating, she sighed in annoyance. One way or another, her job had to be done. Before she began laying out a plan of action, however, she suddenly noticed someone poking her back.
“Hello! Mr. or Mrs. Robot! Are you busy? I need a little help-”
“Scram, I’m busy,” said the towering robot.
“I’m sorry, I’ll just be a second, I just have a couple of questions-”
“WHAT PART OF SCRAM DON’T YOU GET, LADY?”
The robot spun around and faced the stranger, her eye wide in anger as she continued to hold Kayda by the neck, like a chicken ready for slaughter.
“Oh hey, Kayda!” Said the woman who interrupted, before continuing, “Anyways, I was wondering if you’ve seen a little girl about yay high and-”
Kayda perked up upon hearing a voice that was all too familiar to her. The peppy and carefree cadence was hard to not miss and was practically music to her ears. She could feel herself calm by the mere sight of her friend, relieved to have finally found her. Or, to be found by her, to be more exact. Below her was Kona, smiling widely as she described Kayda to the robot. The robot stared down at her in annoyance, seemingly ready to kick her in the chest if it meant it would end her incessant rambling, as her description of Kayda had reached the point of describing the stains that dotted her dress.
“Oh! And she has a stain on her left shoulder that kinda looks like JFK’s head, post assassination, if you squint-”
“Do you have one brain cell or something?” The robot said, irritated, “I have the little brat right here. Now if you don't mind, we were in the middle of something. It doesn’t involve you, airhead.”
“Sorry, sorry! You don’t gotta lose your head!” Kona’s gaze darted upward before she flashed a wide grin, “NOW!”
The robot tilted her head in confusion, ready to kill the brain dead woman before her without question. However, before she could drop Kayda and litter Kona with bullet holes, she felt something drop upon her. The sudden weight resting on her shoulders knocked her off her balance, nearly sending her crashing to the ground below. In her sudden jostling, she lost her grasp of Kayda, who began to tumble downward, but was quickly caught by Kona. She readied her gun, trying to aim it at Kona, but could not get a clear shot, as the weight resting on her had not subsided. She struggled to keep her balance and could not get solid footing as the weight shifted every so often.
“I do apologize for this. Ma’am, but I simply cannot have you harming Miss Kayda. It is nothing personal.”
The weight that had suddenly asserted itself on her was none other than Teddy, who had spent the last several minutes watching the scene unfold from a building above. Kona and him had noticed the situation Kayda found herself in not too long ago and devised a plan that would dispatch the ne’er do well as quickly as possible. All he had to do was wait for Kona’s signal when they eventually reached the entrance of town.
As the robot attempted to throw Teddy off of her shoulders, Teddy worked furiously and stayed perched on her with no effort at all on his part. Sparks emanated from her neck as his hands dug into the mechanics of her upper torso. Bolts and screws were tossed out of her as Teddy nearly finished his mission. She grunted and screamed, flailing her arms about as she tried and failed to grasp onto the smaller service bot. Her immense height caused her to struggle greatly with the sudden shift in weight, and due to her panic, found herself unable to pull Teddy off.
“Alright, we take this out… And this, and that! There we go! A result most satisfactory, if I do say so myself!” Teddy said, hopping off of her shoulders, landing on his feet with an air of elegance.
“What did you do to me, you little weasel? Get over here so I could-” she said approaching Teddy, before pausing in her tracks.
She remained still, unwilling to take another step as she slowly pieced together just what Teddy had done to her. Her eye fixated on him as she seethed in absolute fury. She was boiling with rage and hatred, ready to rip him limb from limb. However, she could not even begin to vocalize this, or risk letting his plan come to fruition. She did not want to admit it, they had already won.
“Aw, what’s wrong? You had so much energy a second ago! Come on! Kill us!” Kona said laughing, “Kill us, or I’m gonna keep making fun of you! You know you wanna kill us! I have soooo much blood, don’t you wanna see Kayda covered in it?”
“A little gratuitous. Perhaps tone it down a notch, as she might still have some fervor in her.” Teddy said, nervous at Kona’s provocation of the would-be abductor.
“Right, right. Sorry. I just wanted to rub it in her face. She thought she was all tough and stuff! But we sure showed her!” Kona said proudly, before approaching the robot, “Now, think about what you’ve done! Boop!”
Kona smiled and gave the robot a light tap on the forehead above her eye. Though the touch was as soft and gentle as can be, it was enough for the robot’s entire body to fall apart. The once towering machine was now nothing but a pile of parts sinking into the desert floor. In a near instant, every part of her came loose as if every screw vanished from her body simultaneously. What Teddy had done was unscrew a few vital components. Though it was only a few parts taken out of her, it was enough to eliminate all of her support structures. Her head was last to hit the floor, as she landed face first, hard enough to crack the lens of her eye. And, though her parts were only scattered for a few seconds, other scavenger robots swarmed in, taking whatever part they could find, before assimilating back into the crowd. All that was left of the imposing agent was now a disembodied head that looked up at the trio in pure, unadulterated rage.
“I swear to god, when I get my body back, I will hunt each of you down and skin you alive! YOU HEAR ME?! THIS IS NOT OVER, WE’RE GOING TO GET THE KID, AND WHEN WE DO-” Her shrieks of frustration were interrupted.
“I’m bored of you now!” Yelled Kona with her ever present innocent smirk.
As the machine attempted to continue spewing threats at the three of them, Kona gave the head the hardest kick she could muster, launching the head high above the bustling marketplace. Her head soared above the ramshackled and poorly assembled town, before beginning to plummet back down. However, this fall was interrupted, as one of the many spiked spires that Needles consisted of found itself right under her as she made her descent. Before she could ever meet with the ground again, the upper section of her head was impaled by a metallic needle. She towered over the entire town, taller than she was before, forced to watch as the trio that had undone her wandered deeper into town.
She remained silent, seething quietly as she began to plan what she’d do to them if she ever saw them again. She had never felt such a pure hatred before, and began to grow excited as she imagined their next encounter. She was going to get the job done, and next time, wasn’t going to be as professional.