EXT. ABANDONED INDUSTRIAL ZONE – NIGHT – OUTSKIRTS OF CENTRAL CITY
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCzspdeBSQt
[It’s night, and the cold in C.A.H. Area has finally started to bite. Neon signs flicker lazily on collapsed buildings. Jason moves with purpose—but also with that kind of bored, slightly annoyed swagger like he’s hoping nothing actually interesting happens.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrAkEeOnK2I
[His steps echo. He follows the drag marks, oil smears, and whatever gut feeling a veteran Security bot like him still trusts.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWSbdVXte6x
JASON (V.O.)
“You ever get that itch in your processors? The kind that says ‘Hey, pal, maybe tonight’s the night you get stabbed in the alley by a coat rack with too many teeth’? Just me? Thought so.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1aUCQ8AxzZ
[He stops at a fractured concrete barrier. Beyond it: a dimly lit plaza where Jason’s HUD flickers—a faint signal spike. Classified as: UNAUTHORIZED MOVEMENT – POSSIBLE BREACH – SECURITY PRIORITY RED.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT7bmRdZa1D
JASON
(grumbling, stretching his rail arm out)
“Great. I was almost halfway to not caring.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSTGjaicAL
[He vaults the barrier. On the other side, SD-K and SD-A stand in the half-shadows of a crumbling dome structure—quiet, cautious, holding still just a second too long like they were listening for something.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrbIqRzXury
[Jason lands with a soft clang, raises a brow as his optics zoom slightly.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEaKX8ElbHA
JASON
(dryly)
“…You boys ain’t from around here, are you.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlFNQ6DNpvk
[A long silence. SD-A slowly lowers a hand away from his wrist blade. SD-K steps a little to the side, half-shielding the briefcase from view.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRrj1DteBQj
SD-K
(even tone)
“Just passing through.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW4GePRki3M
SD-A
(nodding, polite but unreadable)
“We don’t want trouble.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVPud9ZDSD
JASON
“Oh, fantastic. That’s exactly what people say right before I get electrocuted and wake up missing a leg.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8KxqYlrXM
[He raises his transformed railcannon-arm—not aiming, but very obviously ready. The soft hum of it charges the space with tension.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Pg33rXd0S
JASON
“Now, here’s a fun quiz: Unauthorized movement was reported. Guess what else came with it? Multiple Security-class alert flags, a spike in corrupted bot signatures, and about eight dead bodies.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrwakQC3jO
[SD-K’s optics narrow. He says nothing, but there’s a twitch in his shoulders.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbcxcUlklWN
SD-A
(measured)
“We’re not here to kill anyone. We were tracking something too. Something worse than us.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWbhxOtxcFQ
JASON
(smirking)
“You must be real popular at parties.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQvGhTruF1
[A small gust of wind kicks up some debris. Tension lingers in the silence like a coiled spring. Then Jason lowers his cannon arm just a bit.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyVlaLRjOco
JASON
“Okay. I’m not blasting your faces in. Yet.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBRTrHsknEs
[He steps closer, boots crunching gravel.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDn0vv5FNXO
JASON (V.O.)
“Not gonna lie. Something about the tall, sharp one makes me nervous. The other one? He’s got that ‘breaks arms for fun’ vibe. But they don’t look like the usual junkyard cultists.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYHZCl4INy
[He stops just outside striking range. Eyes flick from A to K. Voice lower now, colder.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM05n5RUH1S
JASON
“…But you’re not Security. You’re not Labor. You sure as static hell aren’t Operators. So what are you?”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkexOhaNYWJ
[SD-A hesitates. K doesn’t.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFnSxdTWLyi
SD-K
“Does it matter?”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCMYrlNwWZ
JASON
(grins)
“It might. Depending on how close you are to getting shot.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFA9cTTzEkx
[Another silence. The kind where everyone’s waiting to see who moves first.]
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡytOIlZapdw
Then: A distant, low thrum. Metal shifting. Somewhere nearby, something big just woke up.
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuIyRy8r8fr
JASON
(groans)
“Oh good. It brought friends.”
22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡORLqzDW4HS
[All three bots turn toward the sound instinctively. For now, the fight is forgotten. Something worse is coming.]
ns160.79.108.182da2
