/ Ana
Endlessly checking the data on the screen. The situation with the place is as follows: there's the people, there's flora and fauna - all in cryo state. To preserve the biological data, to possibly defreeze it all and then use that all once more for re-populating the species. Fine. That far it all seems fine.
Then a few awakened, including me. Pretty damn annoying, to be honest, but we are what we are and whatever triggered the event - triggered the event of awakening the sleepers.
Currently - it could be full well called a mess, though the issues that made it so for some to get up were sort of interconnected. First - the side of the mountain sort of fell in a mud event. So that covered one of the main vents, limiting the oxygen for the whole premises. Then due to some wondrous event one of the pods cracked and broke - getting one certain idiot out.
Now what? There's a damn devil incarnate AI on my system that's annoying the living hell out of me, a damn robot with my likes and a bunch of people with a bunch of issues alongside AIO. Fuck me sideways.
I sit watching the screens, as the radio equipment that Evie brought rests nearby. She set it up to work. So that's a bit of a good thing. Well, if my understanding serves correct - there should be something on the radio waves out there. To ping and check out.
"Ana, come on. You can't ignore me forever. Don't you want to see me? Ana, my dear, please…" - the damn voice of AI keeps meddling with my thinking. - "Ana-a…" - The synthesised voice is gently pleading.
But no matter the pleading - I'm too aware of the horrid, nasty and gruesome human that's behind it.
"Ana, don't you want to hug me? Don't you want to spend time with me again? Why are you so upset?" - AI keeps on going.
"Michael, shut up." - I breathe out, trying to think from what frequencies we should begin to weed out the options.
"Ah, my dear, I'm so happy you called my name. It's ahhh!" - The devilishly happy voice of AI resounds. That eerie sense of him as if present next to me. Disgusting.
"Evie, disconnect him." - I let out.
Evie comes over slowly, I see that she's really programmed to obey him, though currently, physically - I'm the boss in this room. So after a bit of stalling - she managed to temporarily disconnect this damn AI.
"He'll come online in a few hours. It's not a permanent disconnection." - She replies to me.
I massage my forehead, then get up and walk over to the radio.
"Come on, we have to listen and check every possible variety here." - I let out, Evie abides.
After a grueling few hours we manage to find something. The buzz and voices, though sounding like a broken phone. Evie perked up at what she heard, then looked at me.
"I'll connect it to the system. It might be a bit more complex." - Evie lets out, as she replicates the channel on the computer. And here came the better audio that we could indeed sort out.
After listening to a few minutes, Evie let out her summary:
"Sounds like Chinese. Though there's a lot of new words I can't really understand. Something new. Seems like two people are talking."
"Put me through." - I told her. She connects me into it.
"Hello?" - I let out, observing the dynamic of chatter. It halts. They stop talking altogether. - "Hello?" - I go again. - "Anyone there?"
Yes, I am aware I'm conversing in English, though by now I would not be surprised if language went extinct. I could as well replicate the language directly into my brain via the chip, but I never had one, using the translation earpiece is not really an option, as the other person should wear a similar gear to understand me. So here we are.
"Who is this?" - A perfect English reply. A man, by the feel of it.
"Ah, my name is Ana. I'm the overseer of this location. I was checking if there are any possible survivors out there. Who are you?" - I speak to him.
Silence. There are now a few minutes of silence. Pretty heavy kind of silence.
"I think I can establish the video connection as well." - Evie cuts the thick, heavy atmosphere. - "I found the lead for it. Want to try?"
I nod in agreement. Evie pokes around the system, then connects the video along with audio. So they can see me. And now I see them.
A man in his 20's, another next to him, not so far apart in age. Asian looking indeed, very much the playboy CEO type of style that the damn Michael pursued in his life.
"Ah. Interesting." - The man lets out.
"I assume you're able to see me." - I let out, as I sit in front of the camera, Evie stands aside, so that she is not really visible.
"Indeed." - He lets out.
"So who are you?" - I ask him.
"You said your name is Ana." - He lets out, weary of the whole situation.
"Yes, Ana. As I said - overseer of the location and checking for the survivors." - I let out.
"Where are you then? What location?" - He tilts his head, looking at me.
I roll my eyes. Oh how he had the audacity of a privileged arsehole. I run the fingers through my hair, as I try to not blow off on this man. The arrogance is still arrogance no matter day and age I see. I let out a deep sigh.
"So you ain't got a name, is that it?" - I ask him, as I sense that being nice is not the name of the game. I see him letting out a smirk, tilting his head. Observing me.
"Feng. You can call me that." - He lets out, pretty cheekily. - "Are you with the InSystem or rebels?" - He asks.
I grimace with confusion.
"Excuse me, who and who?" - I look at him, my face really showing utter "what are you talking about" on it. That makes him furrow his own brows.
"You mean you're not?" - Feng asks.
"I have no clue who you are even talking about. What rebels? Is this some Mad Max episode?" - I pinch the nose in between my eyes. Then rub my eyes and look at the guy. - "Babe, I have no clue what was on on this damn planet for the past few millenia. So yeah. Excuse me for not being aware of what you're on about."
"Wait, millenia?" - He now seems interested, along with the whole sense of something clicking for him as well. - "You mean you're in a bunker?"
"How do you know about the bunker?" - I raise my eyebrow at him.
"Do you know a man by the name Adrian?" - He asks me.
"No clue who that is." - I let out.
"Odd." - He lets out. - "So you are there currently. In the bunker." - He adds.
"Yes. Indeed. And where are you? By the looks of it - some fancy household." - I add.
"Not quite." - He leans back in his chair, as he cracks his neck. - "Ana, how many years are we talking about?"
"Around 280 years." - I reply.
"Fuuuck…" - He breathes out. - "I should have a recording of the history so as not to go over this again and again."
"Wait a minute, did someone wake up at your facility?" - I seem puzzled now. There should not be any other facilities within a huge radius. Unless… - "Wait, are you in that dome looking thing?"
We look at each other quizzically, both trying to make sense of what has happened.
"Uhum." - Feng nods, then gestures for the other guy to do something and that guy leaves.
"So um, what is that dome thing?" - I ask. He rubs his eyes, then looks at me very seriously.
"Alright, is you are what I think you are, then there's a high chance that I need your help. So let us establish some relationship here." - He drops this on me like a bag of bricks.
"Uhuh. Cooperation then." - I let out, as I look at him, him looking at me. - "Feng, how about we trade some information, for the good will of the cooperation reasons? I'll send you what we've got here, but to a certain point, you can send me about what you have there. To a certain point. So to not expose the whole thing."
"Heh. Sorry Ana. But in this scenario - I'll need you to be fully aware of what we have here. And I'll need your help to change this. Have you got the manpower?" - Feng asks.
"Besides a few hundred basic ass robots and skinny ass awakened, hm, not sure." - I'm dead honest here. He nods as he ponders about something.
"I'll send you what I have for you to have a basic idea of the events. And I'll come back to check this out in…" - He checks something on the side, then looks at me directly. - "In 64 hours. I'll be busy until then, so if you're alright to come back right here in 64 hours, then we can continue with our cooperation."
"Do you need the info on us?" - I ask him.
"I'm mostly aware of what it could be. But some info would be nice." - He tells me, then does the few pokes at the screen and now I'm having a file that's sent over. I accept. Bloody terabytes of information. The hell?!
"I'll come back in 64 hours. Hope you'll be here." - He says then leaves, cutting off the impromptu video call, but the files are on download.
"5 minutes to completion of download." - Evie lets out.
I look in awe at what just happened. Sitting there, looking at the loading screen as it downloads. So that Feng is indeed from that dome structure. And by the looks of it, sort of a messy playboy type, with absolutely fuck knows what he's up to. Have I just got myself into trouble?
As I ponder over this, Evie perks up.
"Download complete, let us check the files." - She lets out, as the set of screens in front of me light up with endless files getting opened.
"What the fuck?" - I let out, sitting in there, slowly sensing that the blood seems to drain out of me. What the actual fuck am I withnessing here?
Videos after videos of absolute obscene situations. I mean - I've seen shit on dark web, deep web… But this… This… What the fuck is this? My eyes darted from one screen to another. From the blueprints and layouts of the dome to the videos of what is going on inside.
"It's called Iron City." - Evie lets out calmly. So much 'as a matter of factly' that it scares me even more. Sure, the damn thing is not aware of the concept of empathy. But this is…
I look at the horrors on screen.
Eyes glued to all that's there, unable to look aside. I sense how the tears form and fall down my cheeks, I sense my heart beat like a beast is about to rip me to shreds. Like there is no escape, no solution, no saving, no grace… Just darkness of endless nightmares.
"Ana, sweetie, why are you crying my dear?" - Michael's AI voice pops up, a caring tone. - "Oh I see. That's interesting." - The tone shifted to a cold, calculating and void of humanity in a second. Just like him in real damn life.
I sense myself getting short on breath, as I pull finally to get up, getting right into the kitchen and barfing any food and liquids I had in me into the sink. I wash my face. Staring at my hands, as I sense my whole body shaking in panic.
Just what the fuck is that evil place? What the hell happened over the years? Is this what humanity came to?
"Ana?" - A voice makes me jump, startled, as I turn to see who it is - David. He sees my panic and walks over fast, grabbing me tight, hugging me. - "I'm here. I am here now."
His gentle voice and the strength, the warmth… I grab onto him, still shaking out of fear, breaking down sobbing. He pecks my head with a kiss.
"I'm here. I'm here. I won't let go. I won't go." - He repeats to me over and over, until I believe in his words. Then a sudden sense of being drained washes over me, as I somehow manage to fall asleep in his tight grip around me. Like it would be alright, if it were him to be alongside me.