“Hello Ed, welcome ba-” Buddies words were cut off by a gut-wrenching scream as Ed woke up. “Hel-, Hello E- Let me just fix this.” The scream stopped half-way as Ed froze in his seat. “Now that that’s been sorted out, hello Ed, welcome back to work. Have you learned your lesson now?”

Being frozen and unable to scream only helped to intensify Ed’s pain. The searing pain of having his limbs torn off submerge his mind in a seemingly endless suffering.

“I need you to calm down Ed, you have a job to do.”

Instantly the pain eased, not quite disappearing, but staying at a far more manageable level. Slowly, his thoughts started coming back to him, and only then was he given control of his body.

“Good. Now the file has just come in, you know what to do now.” The file opened, revealing information about the new target. Staring at it, it took Ed’s fractured mind a few minutes to understand what was in front of him.

Name: John Gibbs

Age: 53

Occupation: Obstetrician

Biography: born to parents Paul and Lorraine, John grew up in an upper-middle-class household. He studied at a private school before entering medical school and eventually residing at a wealthy private hospital as an obstetrician... As a highly outstanding member of his field, he received a high salary of $587,400, with which he was able to provide for his parents in their old age... Compared to his career, he was unable to succeed in his romantic life due to his arrogant demeanour... Growing spiteful watching people less successful than himself being able to start a family, he maliciously misdiagnosed the state of an unborn child, telling the parents that the child was healthy and that they’re wouldn’t be any problems. This caused complications during labour, resulting in the death of both the child and the mother. Distraught by the loss of his wife, the husband later drunkenly committed suicide. Dr Gibbs crime was never discovered, and he continues to enjoy a high salary and outstanding reputation.

-End of document-

While reading through the file, the pain in Ed’s mind fluctuated like waves, slowly intensifying as he continued to read. He struggled to continue reading, the pain dominating his mind. His lungs burning, his limbs shattering and tearing constantly. His entire body pushing him towards the brink of insanity. Please. No more. “Please just make it stop!”

“You know what you must do Ed.”

“I’ll do anything just make it stop.”

“Okay Ed.” The pain disappeared, as if it never existed in the first place. His body felt refreshed, and his mind slowly gathered itself back together. On the screen, the file closed, and the construction app opened. Blinking in front of Ed were two options:

* Create a room

* Design a trap

Feeling the relief slowly wash over him, Ed asked “Which should I start off with?”

“Either option is reasonable, and you can always go back and change things later on. Now that your mind is in a better state, I recommend reading the file again and seeing if it provides you with any inspiration.”

That sounds like a good place to start. Reading back over the file, Ed started to fall into thought. John Gibbs... caused the death of three people. I don’t know if I could have survived another punishment, so I’m glad that Buddie gave me an actual criminal this time. ‘glad’, no I can’t think like this, what I am doing is awful, I should not be feeling happy about this at all. But if anything, I am a victim in this as well, and John is not innocent, so it is better that he suffers than me. And who knows, maybe he will survive, turn himself in and be punished by a proper justice system...

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Do you have an idea, Ed?” Buddie interrupted his thoughts.

“Yes, I think I do. Let's start by designing the trap first.” Glowing, the menu disappeared as it opened to show an empty space. “What do I do from here?” Ed asked, confused as to how to continue.

“For now, I have simplified the functions of the app, simply tell me what you want to do, and I will make it appear on the screen. If it doesn’t fit what you want, you can make adjustments from there. Feel free to ask any questions that may help your design process.”

Okay, that sounds simple enough. “Buddie, can you make an accurate model of John Gibbs?”

“Of course.” On the screen appeared a lifelike model of a middle-aged man. Overweight, his gut stuck out slightly from the rest of his body. Clean-shaven, with a well-groomed head of hair and an angular face, aside from his weight, he looked like an attractive and elegant gentleman.

Zooming in on the model, Ed was stunned by the quality Wow, this is incredibly realistic. “Can I have his height and weight, please?”

“He is 181cm tall and weighs 92kgs.”

Good to know... I should keep this trap simple so that he can escape, he may be a scumbag, but I’m not a murderer. Suddenly, his brain froze.

“He is a sinner, Ed; he doesn’t deserve sympathy.” Buddie’s voice echoed throughout the room, causing Ed’s back to break out into a cold sweat. His limbs began to feel a forceful tug on them “Continue.”

Regaining control of his body, Ed breathed in slowly. I need to focus on my own survival, I can’t be weak. As the pain started to fade away, it left something in its place. An idea. I can still feel what it's like to lose so much of my body. He would probably be fine with losing a bit of weight. “How much does the average newborn weigh?”

“3.2kgs.”

“Okay. Sit the model down and put it in restraints but leave just enough slack so that his arms can comfortably reach his stomach.” Watching as the model’s position was changed and it was put in restraints, Ed’s thoughts continued to race. “Are items that are not directly on his person considered as part of the trap, or are they part of the room?”

“Any and all items not directly attached to the person’s body are considered as part of the room and are thus categorised under the create a room feature.”

Looking at the model, Ed nodded his head. “I think I’m done with the trap for now, save the model in its current state and change to the create a room feature.” The app Switched over to a blank screen, displaying another empty area. “Create a rectangular room out of concrete that is large enough to contain him sitting down, some empty space on the side and a door on the opposite end.” the model of the room quickly took shape on the screen. “Put in the previously saved model and connect the restraints into the floor. Give him enough light to see.” The human model appeared in the room, sitting down and restrained to the wall. “To his right place a scalpel suitable for cutting through fat, and on his left, just within reach place a scale.” The items appeared in the room. “When he has placed 3kgs on the scale, have it open a box nearby with a key to his restraints. Is this suitable enough to be considered complete?” Hopefully this is good enough.

“From the information you have provided me, there is limited to no external threats, thus your plan requires a time limit. Tell me the details of your plan and I will make any adjustments to prevent potential loopholes.”

Phew, I can do that. Preparing his thoughts, he remained silent for a short while. “Okay the plan is...”

~

“Thank you for the clarification, Ed. Your plan is currently being prepared and I will let you know when it will be put into action. While we wait, you shall be provided with your choice of food as a reward for submitting your first project.”

Wait, food? Hearing the mention of food, his stomach rumbled. Well, that answers one of my questions. Now I know that my basic needs will be provided for as long as I comply, or at least I hope so. Thinking about what food he should get images of a juicy steak flashed through his mind. “A steak please, nice and juicy, served on top of rice.” A steaming plate of food appeared on the table. The mouthwatering smell of the steak suffused throughout the entire room. Ed was stunned, as drool slipped out of his mouth.

“It is best to enjoy the food while it's still warm.”

Knocked out of his stupor by Buddies comment, he tore into the steak, his hunger making him ignore the utensils on the side. He ravenously devoured the meal, making sure to empty every spec of it into his mouth. Almost choking, he looked to the table and saw a glass of water. Gulping it down, he sighed in satisfaction as he slumped in the chair, growing tired.

“Remind me when everything is ready.”