EXT. ABANDONED INDUSTRIAL ZONE – NIGHT – OUTSKIRTS OF CENTRAL CITY
26Please respect copyright.PENANAQzyd5zyZFK
[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.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAEeGHEeos4y
[His steps echo. He follows the drag marks, oil smears, and whatever gut feeling a veteran Security bot like him still trusts.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAyXDSQFfhfq
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.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAKDwyrzFif9
[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.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAqWXiIi6Hm0
JASON
(grumbling, stretching his rail arm out)
“Great. I was almost halfway to not caring.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAcmJmlqCDPc
[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.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAeFaxhZF8Nc
[Jason lands with a soft clang, raises a brow as his optics zoom slightly.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAKScsk16NrO
JASON
(dryly)
“…You boys ain’t from around here, are you.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAxNy9io1D6p
[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.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAHA514zAtui
SD-K
(even tone)
“Just passing through.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANA0jblWngn4P
SD-A
(nodding, polite but unreadable)
“We don’t want trouble.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANA8tVkv0ZYNk
JASON
“Oh, fantastic. That’s exactly what people say right before I get electrocuted and wake up missing a leg.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAWf0VfJAU2c
[He raises his transformed railcannon-arm—not aiming, but very obviously ready. The soft hum of it charges the space with tension.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAtwVbBOd5es
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.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAYd8haiigC1
[SD-K’s optics narrow. He says nothing, but there’s a twitch in his shoulders.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAMPDobmMHdP
SD-A
(measured)
“We’re not here to kill anyone. We were tracking something too. Something worse than us.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANApRisqxlEGB
JASON
(smirking)
“You must be real popular at parties.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAnPtvQXxTYv
[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.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAPY22P2UOy6
JASON
“Okay. I’m not blasting your faces in. Yet.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAZu5N4WmxpP
[He steps closer, boots crunching gravel.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAjP21kLtqTI
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.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANALIdltiZGIk
[He stops just outside striking range. Eyes flick from A to K. Voice lower now, colder.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAgrm7IRobZZ
JASON
“…But you’re not Security. You’re not Labor. You sure as static hell aren’t Operators. So what are you?”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAtugxbFo8xt
[SD-A hesitates. K doesn’t.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAcLDvh1ZByb
SD-K
“Does it matter?”
26Please respect copyright.PENANALbqA9VIEHM
JASON
(grins)
“It might. Depending on how close you are to getting shot.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAM0TyWVDqyP
[Another silence. The kind where everyone’s waiting to see who moves first.]
26Please respect copyright.PENANAI9HTiP765u
Then: A distant, low thrum. Metal shifting. Somewhere nearby, something big just woke up.
26Please respect copyright.PENANAGi3PTajriT
JASON
(groans)
“Oh good. It brought friends.”
26Please respect copyright.PENANAY2ZRS1qN6V
[All three bots turn toward the sound instinctively. For now, the fight is forgotten. Something worse is coming.]
ns18.119.121.190da2