I could already see the hotel’s sign. Genna was hella accurate with our time of arrival.
[Can I ask you something?] she asked me.
Oh no! Did she figure something out?
[The timestamps are a bit confusing. I can see between the injection of the IDChip and the fuse completion, less than 15 minutes passed. I’m not sure how’s that possible. The average time for fuse completion is 1 hour 56 minutes and 23 seconds for humans. Did something happen in the meantime that could explain why your time became so short?]
[I’m awesome?] I asked honestly.
[... I guess it could be related to your age. There aren’t enough data about the new generation IDChip’s fusing with people around your age to make a confident statement.]
[Are you calling me old?]
[No! It’s just you received your IDChip unusually late. The average age for the identification process is ten years.]
Finally, we arrived just in time to cut off her dangerous line of thought. This was the third time they found something “impossible” about me. First, the lack of chip in me, then the red light with my DNA and now I was too quick. Not that I was too quick where it really mattered! If I continued to produce these unusual events, I was bound to end up in some kind of cell, or worse.
As I walked in, I saw a guy behind a desk. He seemed to be busy because he didn’t even notice my arrival.
*cough*
Perfectly timed, non-intentional cough came to the rescue. The guy looked up at me and froze for a second, but then quickly recollected himself.
“Oh, I’m sorry. How may I help you?” he asked me with a smile.
Similarly to everyone else, this guy was disgustingly handsome. I welcomed the Sin of Envy with open arms!
Now that he was paying attention to me what was I supposed to do? Ah right! Genna!
[What should I do?] I asked her.
[You just have to hold your hand close to the device on the table and then you can go up to your room. It’s room #625. I got you a single bedroom with a bathroom,] she explained to me.
[Nice!]
I reached my hand out towards the device which immediately beeped and lit up green. I guessed I passed. I looked around and noticed the lift to my right.
“Can I go up now?” I asked the guy behind the desk while pointing with my thumb towards the lift.
“Erm… yes, you can Mister. Everything checks out,” he answered while glancing down at a hologram on his desk.
I started walking towards the elevator, but before entering, I remembered something. Maybe I should have thanked him at least.
The door closed behind me, so I couldn’t see the frown on the guy’s face.
[Has anyone ever told you before that you are kind of rude?] asked me, Genna.
[Yes.] Several times actually.
[So, why are you rude?] she asked me straightforwardly.
[Why does it concern you so much how I behave?]
*cough*
[Well, it’s not my business, but people shouldn’t be rude to each other. It’s not normal,] she said to me.
[Did your zeros and ones got tangled up? What’s so bad about a little rudeness?] I asked her.
[You’re weird. People don’t talk and act like you.]
[You are the weird!] I threw it right back at her.
[Where are you from? Honestly?] she asked me suspiciously.
This damned question again! I refused to answer her.
[Can it be you came from outside the core regions?]
[I don’t even understand the question, so don’t expect an answer.]
[If you came from the Peripheral Regions that would explain your temperament and also, your… face-]
[Leave my face alone,] I hissed at her in my mind.
[I’m sorry,] she apologized with an alarmed voice.
...
[If you came from outside the Core Regions, the chance you could reach this planet without an IDChip is way below 1%. Even with an IDChip, it’s especially hard to get into the core regions from outside. Why don’t you know where you came from?] She tried picking up the conversation again.
[I know where I’m from. What I don’t know is where am I and how did I get here!]
Stolen novel; please report.
[That opened up way too many questions. I could help you figure it out if you let me,] she offered.
[Leave the topic alone for now.]
[Sure, but let me remind you my #1 Principle is never to harm you. Also, my primary purpose is to help you in any way I can.]
[I’ll keep that in mind,] I said and paused. [Thanks.]
We reached my room. Before asking for a hint, I tried reaching for the door handle, and sure enough, I heard a clacking noise, and I could push the door in. I hope others couldn’t get in this easily.
[Genna, others can’t open my door like this, right?]
[Why would they try to open it?] she asked me in a confused tone.
[Are you sure you aren’t some browser software instead of an A.I.? How could you ask something so naive?]
*cough*
[Is it naive? I don’t see the problem here that you do. Again, you are the weird one, but I’m not going to continue this conversation because you asked me to stop it previously.]
[Are you getting sassy with me now?] I asked her with disbelief.
[No, I’m just following what you asked of me...]
She was definitely being sassy with me. Oh my… how did I end up with a vindictive A.I.?
The room wasn’t too large. The most striking feature was probably the lack of windows. On the right side, there was another door most likely leading to the bathroom. The first half of the room had what looked like a kitchen… I thought. I wasn't too sure with how this furniture looked, but I was confident I saw a fridge there. The other half of the room had a small couch with a table and a comfy looking bed in the corner. All in all, it looked like a cozy flat.
Honestly, it looked even better than my own home. I guessed this counted as an upgrade?
After I stepped out of my white sneakers, I walked further in, and the initially low lighting turned brighter, probably because of my presence and to my surprise the opposite wall turned into a window. Or to be more accurate a hologram of a window. Why did it sound so sad?
I sat down on the couch and buried my face in my hands. I felt so tired like I hadn’t slept for days. Maybe because so much shit happened so fast. How did I get here? How could I go back home? What am I supposed to do? What would happen if I couldn’t go back?
I couldn't help letting out a troubled sigh. I would have to talk to Genna. I just hoped I could trust her. I left it for tomorrow… I didn’t have the brainpower to do anything else other than sleeping.
*cough*
This damned coughing. Genna was right. I could feel a slight burning in my chest. The air didn’t like me here. Just one more problem to worry about. Put it at the end of the list: Suffocating.
I needed a drink. Not the alcoholic kind, though. I walked up to the fridge looking thing in the kitchen and tried to open it. It was empty. Great. What did I expect?
[I already ordered a general necessities package for the room. In about an hour the fridge will be filled with food and drinks. Also, the bathroom will have essential cleaning products, too. I didn’t know any of your preferences, and since it was on short notice, I ordered the basic from everything. Next time I’ll adjust the orders according to your wishes. For your information, the orders added up to 85 credits, but they should last you for several days even if we exclude the dinner and breakfast that comes with the room,] chimed in Genna.
[Someone will deliver the stuff to my room? Can't I go to sleep? I’ll have to wait for the delivery guy now?] I moaned.
[Of course not. There are automatic delivery ports. Both the fridge and the bathroom will fill up with your orders automatically.]
[Wow! Thank you, Genna, you are awesome!]
She was awesome. I could get used to this. She would be the best wife a guy could wish for. You just had to ignore the tiny little fact that she didn’t have a body.
“So tired…” I had to complain a little.
[It’s entirely natural for you to feel extreme exhaustion after the identification process, especially at this age. The IDChip’s fusing with your nervous system is a complicated and energy consuming process. You should try to rest a little.]
[Yeah, I’ll do that in a second, but I need a glass of water first. Can you point me where I can find what I need?]
[You are seriously tired… There is a tap right in front of you; you just have to open your eyes. The glasses are above it in the cupboard.]
After having a well-deserved drink, which tasted excellent despite the fact it was tap water… and water… I went to the bathroom. Hallelujah! There were a toilet and a shower, too. Nothing super weird this time.
*cough*
I couldn’t be bothered to take a shower now, but I had to use the toilet. After that, I went to the sink to wash my hands and my face before going to bed. As I approached the sink, a mirror faded in from the wall which didn’t even surprise me at this point.
Yep, that was me alright. I wasn't a reincarnated idiot because I was the same old idiot.
[You know, if you go to a hospital they could easily heal your scars,] said Genna with a gentle voice.
I touched the right side of my face as I looked at my reflection.
“But I don’t want to. It helps me remember,” I said to her.
On my way towards the bed, I jumped out of my pants, threw away my hoodie and fell face first into the bed when I reached it.
Looked comfy, felt comfy. A good bed was already a half-successful rest.
Ah, come on. I left my socks on. I hated sleeping in socks…. Whatever, I didn’t have the soul power to care anymore.
“Night, Genna.” Felt good to say it to someone again.
[Good night, Aium.]
----------------------------------------
Meanwhile somewhere far away.
A middle-aged man was alone in a small, barely lit room. Dirty blonde hair, stubble on his face, wearing a dull gray lab coat. There was nothing particularly striking about him. He was sitting behind a desk, staring at the holoscreen above it while holding up his head with his right hand. Other than the holoscreen the table had an untouched plate of food on it which was already cold.
[Recheck everything again,] said the man dejectedly in his mind.
[I already did eight times, I don’t thin...]
“CHECK AGAIN!” shouted the man.
[Right away,] came the answer.
The man was staring daggers into the holoscreen while shaking his leg restlessly. Time went on like this, and after around 15 minutes the voice came again.
[I’ve completed the 9th full analysis. Everything checks out. There were no errors or malfunctions. The energy stream was as steady as it could be and the cycle ran its course flawlessly. According to the available data, the test was carried out without any problem.]
“Without any problem?” he asked quietly.
“THEN WHERE ARE THE RESULTS?!!!!!!!” screamed the man while standing up.
“AAAARGHHHHH” He threw the table against the wall in his frustration.
After a few seconds of heavy breathing, he managed to collect himself somewhat. He couldn’t start acting like this. He had to stay reasonable and focused.
“I can’t accept this. There must have been something off. We’ll carry out a second test,” he said while staring at his dinner slowly dripping down from the wall.
[But the power requirement is too much to….]
“I. Don’t. Care!”
“As I said… We’ll carry out a 2nd test. Start the preliminary preparations ASAP,” said the man with a stern voice.
[Right away.]