I lifted my mask, before offering a small smile. "Let's head inside, and eat. I can fix a little something-something from the stuff we got."
"That sounds like a plan, Hiro." Yokai responded, before opening the door and leading me inside and into twisting halls. It was a while before we came upon a door.
"This is the kitchen. The girls may be inside, they can help you if you need it." he said, before opening the door and revealing a clean and organized kitchen, that seemed large. There was a bit of silence, before a familiar-looking woman in a long, white kimono with a little red around her sleeves walked up to us.
"Pr-" she said, before words stopped from coming out of her mouth. Her lips moved, but nothing came out of them. No sound. But then I listened - or tried to listen more. I couldn't hear anything.
There was a soft, gentle itch on the back of my head. I went up to scratch the itch, but it didn't go away.
After a while, I heard Yokai speak. It made me flinch, and my gigabots on my back fluttered.
"Hiro, why don't you give her the food? She can make us both something quite delicious." he said, before looking at me. I looked down at the bag, before looking back up at Yokai. With a hesitation, I handed the bag to the woman in the kimono. My eyes narrowed at her, but they quickly returned to normal as Yokai nudged for me to leave.
I walked a little down the hallway, before waiting for Yokai to follow. He hesitated, before coming towards me.
''Hiro, I think the microbots may be ready.'' he spoke.
"They are? After a day?" I asked, tilting my head. "Wouldn't it take weeks to make many?"
"More machienes mean faster manufacturing, Hiro." Yokai responded, before nodding. "About a gallon-barrel per hour. That, multiplied by 5 machines, multiplied by about 19 hours... turns out to be about 95 barrels. That should be enough, right?"
"Right." I responded, before sighing. "But wouldn't I need a transmitter for it? I mean, the microbots..."
"Right, right. Follow me back to the control room. There should be everything you would need in there... ah, transmitters and everything." Yokai replied, before leading me back towards the control room.
He opened the door, before letting me step inside. After a bit of thought, I turned and looked at the other man in the room.
"Yokai?"
"Yes, Hiro?"
"Shouldn't you tell me - teach me would be a better term to use - the layout of the building?"
"That's way too much information for the chip-" he said, before stopping.
"W-what chip?" I asked, before feeling a buzz in the back of my head. After that, I couldn't remember what I was trying to say.
"The layout is quite complicated, Hiro. It's not worth teaching you at this time." Yokai said, nodding.
"Ah, got it." I responded. Waving my hand in dismissal, I turned to the desk that I have worked at not long ago. A black, gloved hand wiped over the surface, clearing it of everything that I had left from modifying the microbot.
A small grunt rose from my throat as I searched around for the parts I need for making the new transmitter. There was a small search, but I eventually found everything and put them in a neat pile.
I had been working for about half an hour when I heard a knock at my door.
"Hiro?" a feminine voice asked. It sounded like Aunt Cass, yet it did not. It sounded a lot like a voice I heard in a room... against constraints...
"Hiro?" she said again, with another knocking noise. I nodded swiftly, before setting aside the transmitter that I was working on. I stood up, before heading over toward the door and opening it.
"Ah, Hiro. Thought you fell asleep for a second. But, he wanted me to bring your food to... well, you." the woman said, before stepping back a little. "May I come in?"
I narrowed my eyes from behind my mask, before nodding.
"Come in."
I stepped back, allowing the woman in the kimono to step in. She had a tray of food, which looked an awful lot like what Aunt Cass would have made for me.
"Your lunch is a nice salad, with a bit of sauce on top. Not sure what flavor, to be honest with you. He handed me a bottle, and said to use this for the topping." she said, before placing a bowl full of salad on the workspace I had been at, before placing a fork on top.
"Thanks." I said, before she left without another word. I sat down in front of the salad, before feeling my stomach rumble softly. Without another thought, I lifted my mask and started to chow down on the crisp leaves, and savoring the sweet flavor of the ingredients used.
Yokai was right, the girls could make great food.
After a little while, my head started to get a little fuzzy. My consumption slowed down to a stop as I rubbed my tongue on the top of my mouth. It didn't seem to help, and it wasn't one of the rare cases in which it would.
I resumed eating when my stomach growled again. As I did so, I started to go over the events of the past day or so. I left a cafe, met Yokai, and became who I am.
But what was the name of the cafe? Didn't I live at that place?
I thought long and hard about it. Nothing came into my mind about the cafe. Nothing. Not even the name of the place. My hand went to my forehead as I kept thinking about it. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't think of anything.
A while later, I gave up before putting my mask back on. I kept working on the transmitter for about an hour after that, before hearing a knock at my door.
"Hiro?" Yokai asked.
"Come in." I said, before hearing the door open.
"Oh, great, you ate. Thought I would have to force-feed you." he spoke, before chuckling softly. "Though, I wouldn't."
I laughed as well. "Yeah, I was getting quite hungry too. Anyway, the transmitter's done."
"Great job, Hiro. Let's go and test it out."
