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Chapter: Is This The Right World?
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Under my vigilant gaze, the Robot moved towards the table and pressed the button on the side of it. The table lights up with a hologram display on its top.
"I have a better one here," I scoffed, waving my watch, unimpressed.
I saw the hologram display, something that slowly panned down, showing an island with a half-buried skull on its surface. Below the surface, the island below is slightly cylindrical and ends in a cone shape. Overall, the island is in the shape of a spinning Top.
"It's this Island?" I looked attentive as it continues to zoom on the island, showing the structure on and below it, an underground cavern with the whole skull in the center of the Island.
The island is divided into three parts: top, middle, and bottom. The inside of the skull is empty. It further played an animation of a stick figure arriving at the altar located on the surface, before being dropped down to the underground cavern. It then proceeded to enter the cave of traps, followed by many trials and reached an altar located inside the empty space of the skull.
"That's it?" I looked at the robot in disbelief, and what I can't accept is that the 'cave of traps' is only the first one and there are many trials behind it but I was struck in the first one for nearly half a month and this is what I can't digest.
"So this is a trial, and the price is in the center of the skull," I questioned the robot. "Yes~," It replied monotonously.
"I don't care about some stupid trial," I snapped at it.
"Tell me the way to get out of here," I demanded, glaring at it. It gazed at me for a while, then pointed at the altar at the end of the trial. "Here," it replied.
I looked confused before realizing, "So only completing it will allow one to leave?" I inquired, to which its eyes moved as if nodding.
"That's easy. Just show me the back door," I suggested. "Danger!" the robot rejected manipulating the table to display the top and middle of the Island.
It then pointed at both portions. "A. I," it replied and looked at me as if asking me if I understood.
I thought for a while, then nodded. "So each portion is in control of an A. I?" I confirmed.
The robot nodded, then waved its claw at the line separating the top and middle and moved it like separating them "detached," it droned.
I understood easily "There is no communication between them?" I replied, to which it nodded.
"The A. I that is in charge of the trial. Is this one right?" I asked it venomously.
It nodded in confirmation. "So it is the danger you are speaking of," I questioned doubtfully at it.
It pointed at the stick figure "Negative," then pointed at the A. I in control of the middle "Bored!" it replied as I nodded then pointed to the altar at the end of the trial then at A. I "Rogue!" it explained staring at me.
"Since there is no human arriving underground, it got bored and went rogue," I concluded after slightly understanding it.
"Fuck! you are an A. I. Why are you getting bored?" I complained, speechlessly.
"So, what is this island for? What is the price?" I shot questions at it. To my disappointment, "Unknown!" It replied with one word.
Before I could ask any questions *growl~* my stomach growled "Ha~ I'm hungry from all the running," I complained as the robot stared at me. If it has proper emotion it would have roared 'Are you for real? When did you run?'.
"Is there any food for humans here?" I asked as it taps on the table to show a photo of the nutrition bar, nutrition liquid, and food pill.
"Hey, I have these," I exclaimed, taking the things found in the canteen. The robot examined and confirmed they were the one.
"Can I eat it? Is it expired?" I asked, looking at the things warily. "Won't expire," it replied curtly.
I examined them before picking the tube that contains nutrition liquid. Then squinted the liquid in it. I took a deep breath. "Here goes," I muttered and squeezed its content into my mouth; it tastes awfully bland and relieved my thirst slightly.
"So where is the way to the prize?" I asked, sucking the tube, and returning to the topic. It quickly operated to show a passage to the prize room from one room.
The robot pointed to the room having the passage indicating "Server," I nodded in understanding. It seems that is the place where the A. I's server is located, so it must be heavily guarded.
As I was emptying the tube I suddenly realized, "Wait a minute? Did that A. I sabotage my trial?" I growled angrily.
"Affirmative!" Gar-bage replied. I crushed the empty tube angrily.
"It will pay for it," I swore, taking a food pill since I'm not full; I tore its wrappings and threw it in my mouth.
"STOP!" Gar-bage's mechanical voice sounded a second too late.
As soon as I swallowed it, I felt it expanding, filling my stomach. "Woah!" I shouted in surprise as my stomach bulged, tearing some bandages there. 'Gar-bage' pointed at the pill then said "Adult!" then pointed at me "Half~" it stated.
'Most of the time I forget that I'm a Kid, I thought, holding my stomach in pain as the 'Gar-bage' went to fix its camera eyes. I threw away the crushed tube; before I could relax, I heard a skittering sound.
I became alert suddenly after hearing it. The sound came from where I tossed the tube. I pinpointed its location near the toolbox due to my extraordinary hearing. I slowly sneaked there carrying my bulging stomach and caught that thing that looked like a spider- a spider bot.
It is the size of my hand and is struggling to get out of my arm. "Hey, why didn't you tell me you have a pet?" I asked Gar-bage, waving the spider Bot in my hand.
It quickly rushed towards the table after seeing the bot, "Scout," it droned and operated on the table. I'm taken aback by this news 'so the 'A. I's watching.' I grinned evilly at the spider bot.
"I'm coming to take what's mine," I declared, pointing at it, then turned it off and threw it into my bag.
Then the table lit up, displaying the camera footage where numerous robots were gathering to arrive here. My scalp is numb seeing the number and their weird designs.
After seeing the robots gathered, I looked at the Gar-bage. "What to do now?" I asked numbly. It stared at me silently. "What? Even though I provoked that A. I, I'm still injured, Ok?" I snapped, not liking that look.
The Robot scanned me then reached the cabinet and took a box with a green plus sign on it then slid it towards me before rummaging through the cabinet.
"Oh! A First aid kit?... Er- No?" I muttered, struggling to pick it up due to my bulging stomach, and opened the box. It contains only two vials containing a green liquid.
I examined it "Healing Potion!" I blurted out in surprise after reading the instructions. Since the food is safe, I know this will be safe, so I popped the cap and drank one vial, emptying it. I felt a warm sensation spread from my stomach to all over my body and then it became hot.
I felt an itch all over my body. To my surprise, I felt how light my body was after the itch stopped. There is no pain anywhere in my body. I jumped to check my body and felt no pain in my ankle.
I looked down to see that my bulging stomach has become normal. "All of that must have been converted to nutrients to heal my body," I deduced, patting my stomach.
I don't have much time to remove the bandage to check the wounds in my body as the robots are about to arrive here. So I took the belt containing Dials of flame, water, flavor, and Eisen and wore it. Then took the spear and waved it around to get used to my body, and warm up.
I looked around the room. "Well, I will take these things," I stated, and packed some of the spare parts into my bag. The bag that has been shrunken to the size of a handbag for a long time has finally got its use.
I saw that the 'Gar-bage' is doing something, and I finally asked the doubt that has been bothering me, "Hey, you are also a robot, and they are also a robot, so why are you attacking them?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
It halted whatever it was doing, and pointed at the top part of the skull, which is above the surface illustrated on the poster, that is pasted on the inside of the cabinet door. The poster has details of the structure of the island. Then said "Me" and then dragged the claw to the underground then it stated "Fell".
"So you fell from the top accidentally," I figured from its action, then I thought for a while then asked. "So why are they attacking you?" in confusion.
It dragged the pointed claw back to the top. "way" it replied, then pointed at itself. "Components," it said, turning back to the cabinet.
'So the A. I wanted to go above from here' I thought 'for that, it needs info from Gar-bage,' I deduced 'then why does it also want its components,' I thought and asked it.
It pointed at the top. "Sufficient…*tzz*...resources" it replied, then waited for a while. "No rogue," it said, clearing my doubt.
"It went rogue so the resource here became outdated," I speechlessly realized. 'Understanding the robot is easier than insects,' I sighed.
'Hmm... This robot's chip is the most advanced here other than A. I' I concluded and looked at it in a different light. Then Gar-bage looks like it finished what it was doing and hit something inside the cabinet, and there was a mechanical whirring sound, then the cabinet slid down to reveal a weapon rack.
My jaw dropped looking at the rack half-filled with weapons like bombs and guns. "Is this the right world?" I wondered 'Maybe this is not the One Piece world'.
I went and examined it eagerly. To my disappointment, they all are one-time use, so I can't take them away since there is only a limited amount of it which will be used against these robots.
I noticed that it contains pulse bombs, Emp, incendiary, ice, chemicals, and Frag grenades. Sadly, there is only one of each. There are also two unknown grenades among them and there are four guns, and there are two lasers and plasma each.
I looked speechless at these weapons 'Are these supposed to be in this world? Why is this Island having these weapons?' I once again got curious about why this island was built and its use.
I quickly packed the grenades in the bag handling two guns to Gar-bage and I kept the other two. "Since they found us, let's just go straight towards the A. I's server, destroy it, then reach the altar and get out of here," I proposed.
"Affirmative," it replied, taking the guns expertly in its claws.
"They are going to rush in through the door we entered, right?" I questioned.
"Then let's get out through the main door," I informed moving towards the main door of the room. Oh Yeah… this room is the nose of the skull, the triangle-shaped window indicates it. We stood in front of the door as the Gar-bage was ready to open the door.
"Ready?" I asked, holding a gun in front.
"Affirmative," it replied, moving to open the door. "Wait!" I suddenly shouted as it stopped opening it.
I neared it, patting its square stomach. "Open it!" I asked it. It looked silent for a while and opened it. Before it could react, I shamelessly squeezed into its stomach and placed the bag in front of me on its stomach's door.
"Don't close it, I will fight from here," I shamelessly proclaimed, pointing the gun using the bag as a bunker. The 'Gar-bage'... no... 'BAG-E' looked silently at me.
"Why are you dandling? Hurry! they are about to enter here," I shouted exasperatedly due to it looking at me making me embarrassed.
I opened the zipper of the bag in front of me, then arranged the grenades for easy access with the spear pointing forward. The robot pressed the button for the door to open.
I waited for the huge door to open slowly but to my surprise, *swipe* it slid to the side quickly in a second revealing the robots outside, *pew* *pew* *pew* that quickly got shot by Gar-bage.
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