Thirteen times. That's how many deaths it took her before she made it to the distant ruins—from Goouls to mines, freezing to burning, she had died in multiple ways, each painful in its own right, each memory etched into her young mind.
Dragging herself into the edges of the city, she moved towards a flat rock and leaned against it, breathing heavily. She dusted the dirt off herself as she examined the small cuts littering her body, wincing as her fingers brushed against raw flesh.
Looking around from her resting position, long-abandoned streets sat in ruins, rubble and rusted metal clogging the once-pristine roads. On the edge of the streets stood the remains of buildings, most nothing but piles of broken concrete and rusted rebar jutting from the ground like skeletal fingers. Further behind her, the small remnants of civilization hinted at the once-bustling suburbia surrounding the center, now a graveyard of forgotten dreams.
Looking into the distance, a single large building stood mostly intact above the ruins, its side engraved with a fading sign, its top stretching to dizzying heights against the blood-red sky. "I should go there; it's a good landmark," she whispered, her voice rough from disuse. Talking aloud to herself, the young devil decided her next course of action, finding comfort in the sound of her own voice in this desolate world.
Sighing aloud, she shifted herself around before dragging herself forward. Moving down the abandoned streets, she stopped regularly to look around, having already learned the painful lesson that nothing in this hellish place was safe.
During one of these small rests, a particular building caught her focus. Visible out of the corner of her eye, a reinforced building lay with its door ajar. In front of it, a tilted sign sat rusting against the ground, faded but still partially visible.
"To... n?... Gar...ge," she read aloud, attempting to piece together the faded words, her brain whirring with possibilities. "Aha! Tony's Garage!" Figuring it out, a small bit of satisfaction washed across her features as she succeeded with something for the first time in what felt like an eternity.
Curiously tapping her chin, an old memory surged to the forefront of her mind. It was a normal day; one of the maids was taking her around the mansion. Reaching a room she hadn't been to before, she eagerly pushed it open, her childish curiosity driving her forward.
Inside, multiple cars, toolboxes, and other items lay sprawled throughout the long room. Briefly marveling at them, her focus quickly turned to a small trolley sitting by the side. Laughing giddily, she had spent hours having fun wheeling herself around on it, nearly effortlessly, the world still bright and full of joy.
Snapping back to reality, the thought lingered in her mind as she looked at the distant shop. Nervously chewing her nails, she looked up at the slowly lowering sun, then back at the building. Remembering the bone-numbing chill that came with nightfall, the decision was essentially made for her as she reluctantly got back to crawling, hope flickering in her heart for the first time in days.
Weaving around scattered debris, she eventually made it to the building as the sky turned an even deeper red than normal, casting long, ominous shadows across the landscape. Squeezing through the warped metal door, she reached the silent room within, the musty scent of decay filling her nostrils.
In the center of the long room, a large mechanical lift stood with the remnants of a long-rusted vehicle hanging off it, frozen in its final moment of service. To the left and right of it, two more bays sat empty save for scattered tools, and in the case of the right bay, a small pile of rubble from the collapsed roof that let thin beams of crimson light filter through.
Looking to the far left of the room, a thick metal door sat hanging crooked on its hinges. Behind it, only darkness was visible save for a single mote of dust reflecting the traveling light. Ignoring the structure of the room, she looked for the item from her memory, her heart racing with tentative hope.
Dragging herself further in, she examined the objects hanging from the walls—the plastic brittle and the wood rotten, but the metal ever sturdy save for the slightest rust that dulled the once clear sheen of the tools.
Her eyes flicked from item to item, failing to glimpse that which she sought. Disappointment entered her expression, quickly smothered by determination, but no matter what she wanted to feel, the remnants of that disappointment remained like a weight on her shoulders.
Tearing her gaze from its fruitless search, she instead looked towards the dark doorway. Sighing deeply, she began to drag herself over the coarse floor and into the darkness. Inside, she waited for her eyes to adjust before looking around, the darkness pressing in from all sides.
To her left, a sealed door led further into the building, while to the right, an open doorway allowed the faint rays of evening sunlight to illuminate the reception room. Pushing against the sealed door, it didn't budge, but a keyhole caught her attention, glinting faintly in the dim light.
Dragging herself into the front hall, she began to pry open the rusted metal drawers of the reception desk. Flicking through flaking paper and small trinkets, she looked desperately for a key, her small hands growing dirty from the decades of dust. Reaching the final drawer, she still didn't find the key, and her shoulders slumped in defeat.
A chill crept in through the open walls, and Evie began to see her breath materialize in front of her like ghostly whispers. Hitting her head against her hand, she tried to think, her father's teachings coming to mind like a lifeline. Scrambling back over to the drawers, she dug around looking for an item she had seen earlier, hope renewed.
Pulling out a small set of metal pins, she tucked them into her pocket before dragging herself back towards the sealed door. Dragging a box into place, she propped herself up against it and grabbed the pins. 'Okay, someone made this, which means there is a way to get in. I just need to think like the creator,' she thought, her father's words echoing in her mind.
Slowing her mind, she focused on how she would create a lock. Her mind whirring with thoughts, she pictured the intricate internal components with vivid accuracy. Opening her mind, she stuck the pins into the lock, running them along the top until, with her supernaturally fine senses, she felt something shift into place with a satisfying click.
Smiling at the small success, she grabbed another pin and ran it further in. Repeating the pattern, she awkwardly held the pins in place while using her teeth to put a thicker piece in place. Holding them all at once, she twisted, and with a click, the lock popped open, the sound reverberating through the silent room.
Laughing aloud, she cheered happily, awkwardly pushing the box out of the way and dragging herself over to the door. Resting her shoulder against it, she pushed. Groaning against its rusty hinges, she finally managed to open the door enough to slip through, the effort leaving her breathless.
Crawling inside, she pushed the door shut behind her and slumped to the ground, her eyes growing heavy. She looked around before reluctantly falling asleep, exhaustion claiming her despite her fear of this unknown place.
Waking in the morning, a thin beam of light leaked in through small cracks in the roof, casting strange patterns on the floor. Prying open the door, she let more light into the room, dust motes dancing in the golden beams.
Looking back into the room, rows upon rows of shelves, each in different stages of disrepair, formed neat rows like soldiers standing at attention. Each shelf was full of different items and tools, rust overtaking some pieces while others seemed almost pristine, preserved by some quirk of fate.
Her eyes glinting with renewed hope, she looked over the shelves before locking onto a single item—a small metal cart with wheels on each corner. Crawling towards it quickly, she pulled it off the bottom shelf with a heave, pushing it back and forth to test the wheels, her heart pounding with anticipation.
Smiling, she slid herself onto the cart, testing it by wheeling around a little. A smile of relief crossed her face at no longer having to scrape along the ground, feeling a weight lift from her sore, aching bones. Happily testing out the cart, she wheeled between the shelves, looking for anything of use, her spirits higher than they had been since her arrival in this nightmare.
Noticing something on a back shelf, she wheeled over and shifted some items out of the way. Reaching backward, she grabbed at an unmarked metal can with a pull tab sealing it shut. Jamming it between the shelf and her trolley, she awkwardly fiddled with the tab. Getting a hold, she pulled it open to reveal a can full of preserved pears, the sweet scent making her mouth water instantly.
Cheering in delight, she scooped some of the food out and shoved it into her mouth. Crying in joy, she continued quickly eating, the food finally satiating her after days of unappeased hunger, the sweetness of the fruit the most wonderful thing she had ever tasted. Looking around through the rest of the shelves, she managed to find six more intact cans, all of which she stacked onto the sides of her cart like precious treasure.
Wheeling out of the mechanic's shop under the early morning sun, Evie, for the first time in days, thought things were looking up. Wheeling through the ruined city, she awkwardly maneuvered the cart over the rubble, appreciating no longer scraping against the ground but being slightly annoyed by the inconvenience of navigating the debris-strewn streets.
Eventually, after half a day of hard work, she made it to the tower. Looking at the base, it was easily five hundred meters wide at minimum, stretching upward like a monument to a forgotten age. Wheeling along next to it, she eventually found a faded sign next to the door. The sign read "Argent Cybernetics," the letters barely visible through decades of neglect.
Curious as ever, she slowly wheeled closer to the gaping hole that was the entrance. Looking around behind her, she hesitated before moving in, the darkness within both threatening and promising.
Inside, the cavernous foyer retained traces of its once glamorous style. Embedded in scratched marble walls, gold tracings formed intricate patterns that caught what little light filtered through the broken ceiling. On either side of the room, doors led further in, while two large staircases led to a second observation level. In the center of the room, a single door was blocked by what seemed to be a reception desk.
The desk in question had small flickering holograms floating slightly above it, while behind it, an exposed wire arced dangerously, obviously showing the building retained some function. Looking on with mouth agape, Evie was surprised by the scale of the massive room—easily dwarfing most rooms in her mansion, making her feel even smaller than before.
Wheeling into the massive hall, her trolley rolled smoothly over the relatively intact floors. Approaching the reception desk, it towered over her with no way past. Tapping her chin thoughtfully, she looked around for some way over, spotting a loose piece of metal. She wheeled over, determination setting her jaw.
Pulling at the metal with great difficulty, it took her close to an hour to get it to the desk. From there, it took another hour to lift the sheet up and onto the desk. Breathing heavily, she lay slumped against her trolley, exhausted but victorious, sweat beading on her forehead despite the chill in the air.
Recuperating for a few minutes, she eventually got back to what she was doing. Wheeling around to the end of her makeshift ramp, she got off her trolley and started climbing up. Reaching the top of the desk, she looked down from the meter and a half tall office equipment, the drop seeming much more significant than it had before.
Looking along the thin headpiece in either direction, she noticed a blocky black object to her left. "That's as good a place to start as any," she said. Speaking aloud, her voice cut through the silent foyer, echoing across the walls like spectral voices before dying down, sending a shiver down her spine.
Her eyes flitting around nervously, she tried to follow each sound but gave up when they faded into nothingness. Shrugging it off, she ignored the slightly creepy event and crawled towards the object—her mind already toughening in the harsh environment, though her heart still raced at every unknown sound.
Holding the device in her hand, it had a single faintly glowing disk in the middle. Curious, Evie gently poked it. Sinking slightly, it stopped with a click. Freezing in place, Evie trembled in fear, the sound so similar to one she had already heard in this world—the sound that had preceded her violent death.
Still, nothing happened. Ignoring the depressed button, the device flickered before a beam of light was cast upwards into the air. Forming a humanoid shape, the light coalesced until a perfect hologram was left flickering in the air. Sighing in relief, Evie released her hold of the button, causing it to rise back into place. At the same time, a hidden speaker activated as the hologram began playing.
"W.e.ee.elllll... come to Arrrrrgent Cybernetics, the lead supplier of cutting-edge cybernetic augmentations throughout the whole solar system. Ho..w c....an I help you to.day."
Glitching irregularly, the hologram went through a prerecorded greeting, the sound echoing through the silent building, distorted and eerie. Not having much to lose, Evie turned her head up to the hologram and called out, "Excuse me, how do I get home?" Trying to maintain her manners, Evie tried not to draw this unknown entity's ire, hope blooming in her chest at this first contact with anything resembling intelligence.
"I... rry I didn't hear that, could you repeat?" Glitching, the holographic person turned to look at her, smiling as it asked for clarification, its eyes empty and unseeing. A bit confused, Evie took a breath before repeating her question. Again, though, the hologram glitched and asked her to repeat, her hope dimming with each failed attempt.
Going through this little exchange five times, it eventually stopped when the hologram buffered for a bit, the image freezing in place. "Apologies, dear guest... It seems my microphone is malfunctioning. Maintenance has been called—they shall be here in *Time Unavailable*." Speaking in a robotic voice, the hologram denied answers to the lost child, its fake smile never wavering.
Rage overtaking her mind, the answers seemed so close, yet a simple malfunction kept her from them. Swiping at the device in frustration, it was sent tumbling to the floor, bouncing a few times before the hologram flickered and cut out, plunging her back into silence.
Tears pooling in her eyes, Evie rolled onto her back and looked upward at the roof, limply lying in place as she spiraled slowly into depression. Suddenly, the grinding sound of ancient metal moving echoed through the floor, snapping her from her pity, her heart leaping to her throat.
Struggling to a position where she could see, Evie noticed a panel on the far right of the wall slowly opening. Behind it, two grim green digital eyes looked out, glowing with malevolent purpose. Grinding to a halt, the panel broke at the halfway point, stuck after decades of disuse.
Suddenly, the jarring sound of metal echoed as a large mechanical hand grabbed the edge. With a second thud, another hand grabbed the wall, and with a resounding crash, they began to pry open the hatch, metal screaming in protest.
The digital eyes stayed locked on the young girl as, with a bit of static, a speaker came to life. "Intruder detected; bio-signature not recognized—termination procedure activating." Groaning, the metal bent slowly as the robot tried to free itself from its coffin, its movements deliberate and unstoppable.
Still atop the reception desk, Evie's breath hitched in her throat. Looking between the robot and the door, she mentally calculated the distance. Realizing she wouldn't make it in time, her gaze turned to the door behind the reception—both close and possibly her only chance at survival.
Taking a deep breath, she hesitated no longer and rolled off the desk, tumbling uselessly across the hard counter. She fell out of the robot's sight, landing on the ground with a hard THUD. Groaning in pain, Evie rubbed her head where it hit the floor, dazed and confused as she tried to sit up—the lack of limbs jarring her back to reality with cruel efficiency.
Regaining her mental clarity with a gasp of air, she began dragging herself towards the closed door. Reaching it, she violently hit it, desperation giving her strength. Realizing that wouldn't work, she desperately reached for the handle. Behind her, a loud screech rang out, followed shortly by the sound of something heavy skidding across the floor, metal scraping against marble.
Hyperventilating, Evie's hands fumbled as the heavy sound of robotic footfalls rang ever closer behind her, each step like a death knell. Grabbing the handle, a smile briefly crossed her terrified face before, with a resounding boom, a small shockwave washed over her, rattling her to her core.
Turning her head slowly, she watched as the robot stood within a cloud of dust, its green eyes glowing unnervingly as it towered over her like death incarnate. Tears pooling in her eyes, she tugged at the jammed handle frantically. Stepping closer, Evie felt the air thrum from the robot's movements, its mechanical presence filling the space with dread.
Letting go of the doorknob, Evie flopped limply against the immovable barrier, the robot looming over her, its shadow engulfing her small form. Suddenly, a low crack snapped, drawing her attention. Looking down, she watched as a lone crack began to spiral out from where the robot had landed, the floor protesting under its immense weight.
Branching out, the sound of cracking grew louder as the floor trembled beneath them. Reaching her, the crack slowed briefly before the ground seemed to open up beneath her like a hungry maw. Eyes widening in shock, she could barely process as the robot's hand flew out and grabbed her, its grip painfully tight around her small body.
Pulling her close as they fell, a brief spot of blue glowed in the robot's eyes before it sparked and shut down, its systems failing. Falling ever downward, the continuous motion was interrupted each time they crashed through another floor, debris raining around them. After the fiftieth floor, Evie's head slammed into the robot, and she blacked out, darkness claiming her once more.
Unbeknownst to her, for as tall as the building was, it was twice as deep—the darkness below waiting to swallow her whole.
{A/N: Check out my patreon @patreon.com/TheFudgeNPC and donate some stones so this troy can succeed. (: }