image [https://rom.ac/img/108/loop.gif]
THIS EVENING,
I returned to the City to fill out the reports about my first tour out into the Dead Zone.
Hopefully, they won't suddenly shut down the D.Z.T.R. Department and there will be more tours for me to "guide".
A buzzing, hovering Hunter-Drone met me in the Airlock.
112 (1).jpg [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(1).jpg?raw=true]
Must be a new thing. Do they give every unconnectable citizen a drone or is this a thing for Tour Guides? I looked at the hovering metal sphere suspiciously. It followed me into the shower, yelling orders at me.
112 (7).jpg [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(7).jpg?raw=true]
Ah I see, as I'm forever unable to access ANNET, someone up top must have programmed this contraption to follow me around.
Thank you, whoever you are.
I never felt more ridiculous.
I went to my office desk and leafed through the Dead Zone forms.
My fingers froze on the “BEWARE THE MUG” notepad page that was sitting atop my vast pile of unsorted papers. That was a joke, right?
A practical office joke. Ha ha har. I stared at the paper trying to pull a semblance of meaning out of its message.
Was “Mug” some sort of a secret codename for our floor manager that I wasn’t aware of? There was a heart drawn on the paper too. What did this mean? I was too tired to figure out this puzzle. A coffee was definitely required. I yawned and slowly started to shamble across the office towards the nearest vending machine.
----------------------------------------
112 (1).gif [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(1).gif?raw=true]
I stared at our "brilliant leader", from behind a series of office cubicles.
He wasn't looking scared or put off by the notes of Directorate experiments that I had left on his desk. What a tough cookie.
Charles looked beat, utterly exhausted, sucked dry. There was a hunter-killer drone following him. They were getting suspicious.
Well, no matter, if someone wasn’t going to do anything about this, I would. Cube 15 had to pay for its crimes. Cube 15 had to suffer. I had to act fast.
I estimated his trajectory and walked towards the vending machine.
[Admin login: 1 2 3 4 5] I typed into the panel.
[Admin rights granted] The machine beeped in agreement. Too easy. Nobody ever bothered with proper security round these parts. Nobody bothered with anything new as there were always new things being installed and set up all over the place.
“Sup dawg?” I smiled at her. “I’m going to call you Wendy, alright? Open up your maintenance panel will you? That’s a good girl.”
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
I pulled out a temporal watch out of my pocket, cranked the displacement all the way towards the end of the Universe and past it, until its red display outputted an infinity sign. I connected the watch into the dispenser system control mechanism.
“What are you doing, Admin?” Wendy inquired.
“Shush now. It’s a little, lovely surprise for my special someone. Whatever item he orders next, make sure to fulfill it in its entirety, you understand?”
[Acknowledged] Wendy beebed.
I quickly stepped away from the machine. Charles was coming.
----------------------------------------
image [https://rom.ac/img/108/loop.gif]
112 (6).jpg [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(6).jpg?raw=true]
The drone's unexpected shout had surprised me. I nearly dropped my coffee then. Nearly.
image [https://rom.ac/img/67rr/dronevss.png]
“Argh! Would you get off my case, you stupid floating ball?!” I yelped at it. "Don't you have places to be? Go away and let me have my coffee in peace!"
“No. I'm your SECURITY detail. :TU DU DU:” The drone chimed, a pixelated smiley flashing on its screen, ignoring my irritated look.
[Enjoy your extra-special coffee, courtesy of _your secret admirer! ( ~‿<) ♡ ] A sign suddenly scrolled by on the wending machine display panel.
I stared at the sign, feeling flabbergasted.
An admirer? What?
I tried to recall things. I wasn't paying much attention, but there was someone typing things into this machine before I got here... a girl with jet-black hair and a folder in her hand... filled with papers.
I looked up and noticed a figure retreating through the sea of cubicle isles. An inescapable conclusion crashed into me. She was the one who left me the heart note too! It had to be her. HAD TO! Nobody else paid any attention to me!
112 (5).jpg [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(5).jpg?raw=true]
My heart started to pound.
112 (4).jpg [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(4).jpg?raw=true]
The drone must have detected that my heart-rate went up or something. I resisted throwing my overpriced coffee at the annoying floating ball.
“Love?! 5000 credits?! G-damn you! I didn’t even buy anything this time! You can’t charge me for a product that doesn’t exist, you stupid machine!” I yelled at the drone.
My mind pieced events of the day together....
and then I suddenly realized with dawning horror that this was the same girl that I had accidentally assaulted on the train.
The “Beware the mug ♡” note, the idiotic reports that kept appearing on my desk about time traveling superheroes, terrifying corporate experiments, gods in the machine and other miscellaneous, utterly insane nonsense!
These were all her pranks!
She was messing with me! She was trying to drive me crazy, trying to get me to fired! Of course! How stupid of me.
Why didn’t I figure this out sooner?!
“MOREOVER, YOU ARE NOT WORKING SINCE: 7 MINUTES! 2000 CREDITS HAVE BEEN DEDUCTED! YOUR BREAK WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE GOOD DIRECTORATE! :TU DU DU:” The drone announced, hovering in front of my face.
112 (3).jpg [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(3).jpg?raw=true]
I tapped at its camera behind the glass panel. “I refuse to be billed for things I didn’t receive! What love?! What break?”
The drone pushed into me. I stepped back in indignation, bumping into another coworker.
112 (2).jpg [https://github.com/alexiussssss/romac/blob/main/112%20(2).jpg?raw=true]
My coffee flew from my shaking hands heading for the floor.
I cried out in shock, reaching out for my falling cup, but was unable to catch it. It twirled in the air and exploded onto the floor with a whoosh, innards spilling.
I closed my eyes, counting down from ten.
I wasn’t going to murder everyone here. I’m a nice person. I’m a nice person. I don’t attack drones.