EXT. ABANDONED INDUSTRIAL ZONE – NIGHT – OUTSKIRTS OF CENTRAL CITY
95Please respect copyright.PENANAFfOxyvB5PN
[It’s night, and the cold in C.A.H. Area has finally started to bite. Neon signs flicker lazily on collapsed buildings. Jason moves with purpose—but also with that kind of bored, slightly annoyed swagger like he’s hoping nothing actually interesting happens.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAagFWUmaMKp
[His steps echo. He follows the drag marks, oil smears, and whatever gut feeling a veteran Security bot like him still trusts.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAhFVuliBUUJ
JASON (V.O.)
“You ever get that itch in your processors? The kind that says ‘Hey, pal, maybe tonight’s the night you get stabbed in the alley by a coat rack with too many teeth’? Just me? Thought so.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAoWe7X7MJQU
[He stops at a fractured concrete barrier. Beyond it: a dimly lit plaza where Jason’s HUD flickers—a faint signal spike. Classified as: UNAUTHORIZED MOVEMENT – POSSIBLE BREACH – SECURITY PRIORITY RED.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANA84A09HNF19
JASON
(grumbling, stretching his rail arm out)
“Great. I was almost halfway to not caring.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANALUg74A1CI0
[He vaults the barrier. On the other side, SD-K and SD-A stand in the half-shadows of a crumbling dome structure—quiet, cautious, holding still just a second too long like they were listening for something.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANALH7rvVgVKH
[Jason lands with a soft clang, raises a brow as his optics zoom slightly.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAG8hLDxXHwG
JASON
(dryly)
“…You boys ain’t from around here, are you.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAu7qr65ULXh
[A long silence. SD-A slowly lowers a hand away from his wrist blade. SD-K steps a little to the side, half-shielding the briefcase from view.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAM54qfCGysc
SD-K
(even tone)
“Just passing through.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAw9eywCPZlf
SD-A
(nodding, polite but unreadable)
“We don’t want trouble.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAeRovLDtsD3
JASON
“Oh, fantastic. That’s exactly what people say right before I get electrocuted and wake up missing a leg.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANA1YIekHKBR9
[He raises his transformed railcannon-arm—not aiming, but very obviously ready. The soft hum of it charges the space with tension.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAzlbpakBqNU
JASON
“Now, here’s a fun quiz: Unauthorized movement was reported. Guess what else came with it? Multiple Security-class alert flags, a spike in corrupted bot signatures, and about eight dead bodies.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANARdNUfsKUEJ
[SD-K’s optics narrow. He says nothing, but there’s a twitch in his shoulders.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAiGhaqwkixm
SD-A
(measured)
“We’re not here to kill anyone. We were tracking something too. Something worse than us.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAE2tmzqPy4p
JASON
(smirking)
“You must be real popular at parties.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAi9TYCOMzUV
[A small gust of wind kicks up some debris. Tension lingers in the silence like a coiled spring. Then Jason lowers his cannon arm just a bit.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANATq2zB2fL52
JASON
“Okay. I’m not blasting your faces in. Yet.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANA4DJQEH2olo
[He steps closer, boots crunching gravel.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAiLUJuJWBTW
JASON (V.O.)
“Not gonna lie. Something about the tall, sharp one makes me nervous. The other one? He’s got that ‘breaks arms for fun’ vibe. But they don’t look like the usual junkyard cultists.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAIo40sYIThQ
[He stops just outside striking range. Eyes flick from A to K. Voice lower now, colder.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAfOHY6q7HlP
JASON
“…But you’re not Security. You’re not Labor. You sure as static hell aren’t Operators. So what are you?”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAsvTIF3QGTK
[SD-A hesitates. K doesn’t.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAeGtFxV3oZm
SD-K
“Does it matter?”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAlHWZSfr2Gt
JASON
(grins)
“It might. Depending on how close you are to getting shot.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANALegQsw9TrI
[Another silence. The kind where everyone’s waiting to see who moves first.]
95Please respect copyright.PENANAdEfQ0LQrgj
Then: A distant, low thrum. Metal shifting. Somewhere nearby, something big just woke up.
95Please respect copyright.PENANA4pBSw90UTu
JASON
(groans)
“Oh good. It brought friends.”
95Please respect copyright.PENANAobLkQqbz5h
[All three bots turn toward the sound instinctively. For now, the fight is forgotten. Something worse is coming.]
ns216.73.216.224da2