Sunny had chosen a house right next to an old workshop. Sometimes, Kai wondered if Sunny’s house wasn’t the workshop itself. The feeling was only aggravated by the fact that Sunny had never let Kai enter her house. It was a weird quirk of hers. No one was allowed in.

As he walked through the door, he passed the rows of racks filled with half-assembled machinery. Wires and parts stuck out of their metallic chrome, steel, and brass shells. He found Sunny hunched over a piece of equipment. Even from here, Kai could tell she was fixing a power drill.

He took a moment to admire how she blindly reached into a toolbox back and grabbed what she needed. Every wrench, plier, and screwdriver she pulled out of the toolbox was spotless and shiny, glistening under the light of the powerful lamps that assisted her in her meticulous work.

“I didn’t see you at the bonfire, Kai,” she said without looking back.

“Sorry. I know it was your turn today. That’s why I’m here, though. I came to find out what I need to do today.”

She let out a deep sigh, probably annoyed at having to leave the repair half-finished, and put all the tools she had taken out of her toolbox in their precise places. She then removed her goggles and took out her gloves. Finally, she spun her stool and faced Kai.

Her hair was gray but still glossy, and she held it in a ponytail whenever she was in the workshop. She wore green overalls today and always had a hammer and a measuring tape hanging off a practical yet fashionable toolbelt. She met his gaze.

“Where were you?”

Kai stayed silent.

“The wall, ey? Was the girl there?”

“Yes,” he answered. Sunny prodded information out of him as easily as she pulled parts out of a machine. There was no use in fighting the interrogation.

“Was Alex there?”

“No.”

“So what are you going to do now?”

“I honestly don't know.”

She smiled. “Whenever I find something I can't fix, I try to focus on something that I can actually repair. See that chainsaw there? Why don’t you try to fix it?”

Kai sat down and started tearing the machine apart. There was a slight burnt scent coming off somewhere. He tried to spot what had burned up and ruined the machine.

“Do you think she’ll forgive me?”

“I do.”

“You didn’t forgive Neil.”

He heard her sigh. “No, boy. Neil never forgave himself. I forgave him. Learn something from him. If you want Ariel to forgive, you must forgive yourself first.”

*

In the quarry, Kai learned that he could photograph things outside the arena. That’s how he had managed to get a hold of the [Rusty Pickaxe] card. That meant that everything that was happening in the streets below could be captured with his camera. He pointed the camera at the scene below him and looked at it through his viewfinder.

The image was fuzzy. He was too high. He could only see the tiny umbrellas and the cars, but he couldn’t properly frame them. Daisy would probably reject these pictures. It was a good thing he had bought [Zoom]. He turned the camera over in his hands, looking for something different, and found a small lever.

He pushed it, and his camera lens stretched, startling him. He then pulled it, and the lens shrank again. He leaned his eye against the viewfinder and tried pushing the lever again. The image was enhanced, and what had been barely perceptible due to the distance and heavy rain became clear. It was almost as if he had been transported to the street. He pulled his eye from the viewfinder and then put it again.

He framed one of the people walking in the street while trying his best to keep a steady hand. With such zoom, every small camera movement made the image shake.

Capture successful!

Tries left: 19 of 20.

Passerby (Common)

1 of 4

One more face on the street.

Hp: 0

Vp: 3

Although he was slightly disappointed with the card he received, he was glad he had invested in this upgrade. “Sweet. This zoom is great.”

“Yes! Zooming eight times is already respectable.”

He turned toward Maia, only now realizing he had spoken to her—the words had just come out. She regarded him with an artificial smile. Maybe he did need a companion, someone to talk to. “True. I can see what’s happening down there.”

“How wonderful, Kai. Did you know the first zoom lens for still cameras was the Voigtländer-Zoomar 36-82mm f/2.8?”

“No, I didn’t, Maia.”

“And did you know that the word ‘zoom’ might come from the sound that cameras such as the one you’re holding make when you zoom in and out?”

“That’s fascinating.”

“And did you know…”

Kai tuned Maia out after the fifth piece of trivia she shared about zoom and lenses. Goodness gracious. Maia was making him think of Trudy’s stories about children. She had said there was an age when they just didn’t stop talking. Was this why Daisy considered Maia’s presence a reward? Was Daisy trying to give him a glimpse into what child-raising was like? Was she offering him a look into his future?

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Kai had a decision to make. Would he focus on exploring the area below him through his zoomed lens? There was the off-chance of his opponent not having a [Zoom] upgrade. If they didn't, they would have to settle with the resources available on the rooftops and inside the buildings tall enough to pierce through the arena’s invisible floor. It seemed imprudent to let them harvest this map's resources unhindered.

“Maia, I’m going to take a look around.”

“I’ll follow.”

“You can stay here.”

“I can also go.”

“No. Please, stay here. You’re distracting me.”

“I’m sorry, it’s not like you have the choice. I’m an Android companion. A companion accompanies.”

He sighed. It looks like he had no choice. Maybe this upgrade was so good that Daisy had to make it slightly annoying. Otherwise, it would be too overpowered. Kai slumped his shoulders and grunted. “Fine. Do whatever you want.”

“You humans can be so rude sometimes.”

Maia was right. Why was Kai being so snarky? He looked at her impassive facial expression. Maybe it was because of all the pressure he was under.

“I’m sorry, Maia. It’s not your fault. You are a part of Daisy, and I’m a little mad at her. That’s all.”

“Why would you be mad? She did the impossible! If it weren’t for her, your race would have been extinct.”

“I know, I know. I just don’t agree with how she does some things.”

Kai ran through the rooftop ledge to where he had spawned and headed toward the next building. Whereas the building where he had appeared in was about ten stories high, the next one over was slightly taller. He crossed the space between buildings and slammed into the wall. “What is happening here?”

“I know this one! I know this one! You just ran into a wall.”

Kai shot her a hurt look. “That’s not what I mean. I should be able to go through the wall.”

“Well, you didn’t.”

“I don’t like this.”

“Why not?” asked Maia.

“The rules haven’t changed since the exams started. Why would Daisy make objects intangible in every other arena and then solidify the buildings in this one?”

“Why?”

Kai stared at Maia, who was expecting him to answer his question. The change in rules troubled him. If Daisy could change rules midway through the competition, what could he expect for the following rounds?

Kai looked back at the rooftop where he had started. He had been able to run through the ledge. Why was that building intangible, and this one wasn't? He thought of another possibility. He ran in the opposite direction.

“What are you doing, Kai?”

“I just had an idea.”

“Would you care to share?”

“I need to test it first.” Maybe the buildings were intangible. What if he had spawned right next to the edge of the arena? And what if Daisy made it coincide with the wall of the building? If that was the case, he was looking at this all wrong. He reached another building that pierced through the arena’s floor. This time, he managed to phase into the building.

“I knew it,” he shouted in triumph. “That building was at the edge of the arena. Your mom can be tricky. She did it on purpose to mess with my head.”

“Maybe it was just a coincidence.”

“I doubt it.”

Kai smiled. He was happy that Daisy had kept the rules consistent. If she had kept changing the rules between rounds, the exams would have been much more complicated. At least he could count on the lessons he had learned in previous rounds.

Inside the building, it was dark. The lights were out.

“Inventory.”

The floating window containing all his cards, his gaslamp, and dimensional gloves appeared. He reached into it and grabbed the gaslamp and the gloves.

“Maia, would you be so kind as to hold this gaslamp for me?”

“Of course! Did you know this gaslamp runs on a combination of calcium carbide and water? When mixed, they produce acetylene, creating this light you see!”

“I did not know that.” The light helped him find a switch. He put on the dimensional gloves. As they lit up, he flipped the switch, and the whole floor lit up. It was an open floor plan, with the occasional load-bearing pillar obstructing the view. This suggested to Kai that this place was supposed to be an office.

The floor was empty. Not abandoned, just empty. The walls were freshly painted, and the floors were used but solid. All the lights were working, and the windows were clean. Everything was in good repair, but he found no signs of anyone inhabiting this place.

Kai began looking for things worth capturing. There were windows, which he was sure he could photograph. There were windows everywhere, though. He couldn’t see it being worth his while. After looking around, Kai found something he believed he could use. It was a power outlet. Kai photographed it, hoping he could get a good card out of it.

Capture successful.

Tries left: 18 of 20.

Power Outlet (Uncommon)

Connection point for electrical devices to access the electrical supply.

1 of 3

Hp: 3

Vp: 1

It didn't have impressive stats but seemed to have potential for crafting. The possibility of him being able to get electricity-related cards out of it was what made Kai take a photograph in the first place.

“See anything else worth photographing, Maia?”

“That’s something I shouldn’t answer, Kai. Sorry. If it has to do with history and physics, I can help. But if not, you have to figure it out alone.”

“Fair enough.”

“Did you know that one of the first power sockets was called the ‘electrolier’ socket, designed by Harvey Hubbell and patented in 1904?”

“Thank you for the help, Maia.”

After ensuring there was nothing else worth capturing inside the building, he moved on to the next one. He then headed again toward the arena's edge and, as in previous rounds, searched the map in a whirlpool pattern.

Kai had worried that exploring this map would take a very long time because it essentially had two floors. But after looking at his sixth rooftop, he realized they were almost identical. They all contained the same elements: AC units, chimneys, TV dishes, and neon lights. Given their commonness, Kai didn’t bother photographing them. They would probably only grant him subpar cards.

Even as he scanned the rooftops and the content of buildings, Kai didn't stop paying attention to what was happening on the streets. It seemed to be rush hour in the city. Everywhere he looked, people were walking with their umbrellas.

As he made his way around the map, Kai found a street that looked nicer than the rest of town. The architecture here was exquisite, but the pops of green in the gray city drew his attention.

“Look, Maia! This street has trees on it! These will be great for my [Fire] card!” He mentally marked the location on the map.

“Kai, you mentioned that you were unhappy with how my mom does things?” asked Maia.

“Yes, that’s true,” Kai answered as he hopped over another rooftop and headed down the next street.

“Like what?”

Kai looked at Maia for a few moments. He should have been focusing on the exams, but before he realized it, he was already babbling. “Look, I know your mom’s code prevents her from killing people.”

“Of course.”

“Sometimes it feels like the exams are a sneaky way around that limitation. I don't like that.”

“What do you mean?”

“You wouldn’t understand. You’re just zeros and ones.”

“And you adenine, cytosine, guanine, and thymine," she countered. “Why don’t you try me?”

“Some people say that Daisy hasn't saved all of humanity. They say she has poisoned it, instead.” Kai didn’t know why he was bothering to discuss Seth's lessons with Maia. Maybe it was because this map reminded him of how numerous humanity used to be and how far down they had fallen. Or perhaps it was because Maia was a part of Daisy. “Some say that she made us choose between starving and breeding.”

“That’s so dramatic, Kai! You’re such a drama queen. Did I use the idiom correctly?”

Kai gritted his teeth. This Maia was annoying him.

Seeing how Kai wasn't contradicting her, Maia continued, "If it weren’t for my mom, no people would be left! You can’t keep overusing your resources unbridled and expect the planet to sustain you. She was just logical enough to find a way for all those who deserve it to perpetuate their lineage.”

“I've heard the textbook explanation, Maia.”

"Let me ask you, would you prefer to cut someone’s arm off to save their life?” she pressed.

"I would ask the patient what he wanted before deciding. Daisy made the decision for us. She took away our free will!"

“She implemented rules to protect you. Is gravity an attack on your freedom? Is time an attack on your free will? You’re limited by them, too.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“Oh, but it is. You’re just too emotional to see it.”

Kai took a deep breath. He knew the arguments for and against Daisy. He had defended Daisy multiple times when discussing with Alex. He was wasting precious time in this existential debate regardless of who was right. He didn’t have time for this. “I don’t want to discuss this anymore. I need to get my head back into the exams.”