Author Note: SPOILERS! Heavy, heavy spoilers!
TW: Child abuse, attempted (and succeeded) murder, manipulation, death, and PSTD/panic attacks. Also, usage of knives and mentions of needles.
"Welcome to the world, MePhone4."
He sat up, shooting quick finger guns. "I put the unctional in functional!"
"No, it's fun. 'I put the fun in-' eh, it doesn't matter." The man rubbed his eyes. "Anyways...just wait until the other guys hear about this! I just created life! And it took little effort."
He looked down at himself as the man droned off about scientific breakthroughs. His legs were thin, black, with roundish feet. His hands were the same way, with the ability of being able to flex his fingers. However, it were more as if he wore mittens.
The man stopped speaking. He wore two layers of green, one being a green sweater and the other a green suit-and-tie. His golden blonde hair was pulled into a loose ponytail, and he wore something around his neck. A symbol of a bitten apple glew faintly on his pendant.
"Well, that's enough of that. Now, I do have some tasks for you to do, but I'm confidant you'll pass them with flying colors!" The man punched his arm.
He rubbed it. He didn't like the feeling of pain, or how bright the lights were. "Who are you?"
"I should have expected curiosity from you. You were just created, after all. My name is Cobs. Steve Cobs. And you're MePhone4. Right now, you're in Meeple Headquarters." He smiled. "I suggest you get on with your tasks. After all, I have my own job to do. I'll see you real soon, 4. Come meet me in my office when you're ready to begin." He left.
Alone.
He looked back at the tasks. They sounded so boorish. He never believed that Steve Cobs would trust him with boring tasks. He scoffed, hopped off the table, and exited the same door Cobs had.
Cobs said he could meet him when he was ready, and he had no clue where his office was. One of the tasks was to "Try MeMaps," but he decided to explore instead. It was a lot more fun, and who knew what adventures would await him?
He happily walked through the halls. Small electronics decorated glass boxes. He stared in awe at an advertisement on the wall. It was him! He was huge, with a white background.
"Meet the latest in new technology! Say 'greetings and salutations' to MePhone4, your latest and greatest personal assistant."
"Greetings and salutations," MePhone repeated happily. He knew the image couldn't speak, but felt inclined to do so as if it could.
He went into another room, the doors sliding shut behind him. Inside was another man. His dark green hair had black tints, and he wore pins of controller buttons. MePhone walked up to him.
"Greetings and salutations!"
The man flinched. "Oh! OH, you must be Cobs' newest MePhone. If you're looking for his office, it's on the top floor. You'll have to take the elevator." He stared at him. "You really are alive, aren't you? It's kind of impressive, actually. I'm Gamey." He held out his hand.
MePhone shook it. "I'm MePhone4. But you can call me MePhone if you want."
"I wouldn't keep Cobs waiting. He's not the patient type. You know his motto, 'the future is so yesterday.' Nice to meet you, MePhone."
"You too."
MePhone went to the elevator, deciding to take Gamey's advice to heart and not keep Cobs waiting. The elevator played a fun jingle as he went to the top floor. The door slid open.
"There you are," Cobs said. "Come, sit."
MePhone exited the elevator and sat on the cushy chair Cobs set out for him. MePhone kicked his feet in the chair.
"So, I noticed you ignored some of your tasks while coming here. But I do have to applaud you on talking to Gamey. You'll have to do a lot of talking soon. I just need to make sure you're ready for that."
"They sound so...boring."
"Well, that's life. It's boring, it's work. It's old..."
"Can I see the world someday?"
"Sure. But you need to get these tasks done before you can go and do that." He handed MePhone a sheet of paper. "Here. These are today's tasks. Come back when you're done. I'll keep an eye on you from here."
MePhone looked up at the screens behind Cobs. Each showed a different hall. MePhone watched a Meeple worker walk past one of the cameras. The screen displayed, for a small second, a tall person. Like MePhone, except wider, and without arms. They were downloading something on their screen.
"Are there others like me?"
"Others? Sure. Like you? Hm...no." Cobs leaned back in his seat. "What are you waiting for, 4? Get to work. Time is money, after all."
MePhone made his way back to the first floor, examining the paper. The tasks still sounded very boring.
"Try MeMaps."
"Talk to the workers. Complete."
"Go into the SkyView Wing."
"Write down your name a hundred times."
He looked down to the finer print he ignored before.
"These workouts are to ensure that the MePhone4 unit works properly. Exploration, workability, and social skills are important for a newly-developing AI unit. After these normal exercises are complete, the unit will proceed to training its Light Shimmer abilities."
"Light Shimmer? What's that?"
His mind raced with thoughts. What was a Light Shimmer? Was it like him? Or was it like Cobs, tall and lanky? Was it powerful? Could it show him the world outside? If he met one, he could befriend it. Then it could help him with his chores, and he could repay the favor somehow. It could take him outside.
Outside...
Yeah.
That sounded nice.