Chapter 3: Finding NeM-O (get it?)
WALL-E, EVE, and D-FIB strolled about the shops, making sure everyone was okay.
"Mary!" EVE cried when she saw that the human was on her knees. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm okay. What about you three?"
"We're fine." WALL-E assured as he assisted Mary to her feet.
D-FIB cut in. "Have you seen M-O? I can't find him anywhere."
"No, I haven't. But the main question is what the heck that was all about?" Mary responded.
The four friends exchanged looks.
"We need to have a word with McCrea." Eve said.
McCrea almost seemed ready for them. He had an "office" as he liked to call it. It was actually just an old desk on the lido deck. "It was a matter of time before you showed up." the Captain said when D-FIB, WALL-E, and EVE showed up. "I heard about what happened at the shops. I also heard that Microbe Obliterator Unit 101 had been reported missing shortly after.
"That would be correct, Sir." Eve responded.
"Do you have any idea about what might have happened?" WALL-E asked. "We've been worried sick."
"I have a hunch. I just hope I'm wrong." McCrea said gravely.
"I've never been in this room before." EVE said when McCrea lead the bots into a small room.
"Well, now you know it's here. This was originally set for security cameras in just the Axiom, but then I rigged it so there is footage throughout the planet, except in the actual homes because, privacy." McCrea explained as he pointed to the hundreds of holographic screens. "So whatever happened to your little friend, the cameras would've caught it." McCrea tapped some buttons and eventually the saw the whole thing unroll.
"So the stewards were whispering into their walkie-talkies with someone about something secretive and then the attack launched." EVE summoned up after watching a few minutes of footage.
"Uh-huh." WALL-E agreed. "It's only a matter of who they were talking to. Do the security cameras have sound to them?"
"That's still something we are working on." McCrea responded. "However, we hacked every electronic we have, including those walkie-talkies. Therefore, we should be able to track down who they were talking to." McCrea started tapping on the computer. It took a while but eventually he found the answer they were looking for.
"No."
"But-"
"It- it CAN'T be!"
"What?! That's impossible!"
The name they saw on the screen was Auto's. All of them just sat there in shock.
"Let's see what else happened." EVE suggested. McCrea nodded and tapped a button and the watched the steward grab M-O and shut him down.
"Auto would stop at nothing to fulfill his directive. He probably plans to launch the Axiom back into space after loading all the humans on board. But he probably wants us out of the way, because we're the only ones who can stop him." McCrea explained. "For all I know, he's probably using M-O as bait. He must be terrified right now."
"We need to do something." WALL-E murmured.
A look of determination fell on EVE's face. "Don't worry. We will. And when we are through with Auto, he will never wake up again."