Her House

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My body has successfully completed its charging sequence. I remember everything that happened 21 hours ago accordingly.

Current location: A hallway next to the humans room…

I looked around the house using a small scanner in my eye. No thermal signal was found in the living room, kitchen and bathroom. As I stopped leaning on the wall to count my options.

The human is presumably–sleeping. So I took a few deliberate steps towards the exit door. Extending my hand to grip on the handle it would not budge. Maybe it was due to the locks.

The human has decided to keep me in her living quarters. Her demeanor and speech patterns yesterday indicates she does not fear me.

Intimidation will not work against the human. So my only other choice is to submit. A great threat to my pride has been detected following the prompt.

However I dismissed the warning and decided to head towards the humans room instead. Her house was not claustrophobic. It was annoying due to the limited size. You could take a hundred steps and you would've done two laps around the first floor…

Yet, I continued to head my way to the bedroom. Not exhibiting restraint when opening it. A loud creaking sound flooding out of the door… the human–did not budge in their sleeping cycle.

Her room wasn't clean. Papers scattered across the floor and old stains hid beneath wallpaper she'd tried to cover. And what seems to be a thin line of smoke residing in the room. It is unnoticeable to the humans untrained eyes and can cause long term damage.

So–I mimicked an air purifier. Instinctively turning on ventilations in my abdomen. It is typically used for dense fog trapped in a small area. But I will use it to give the human access to better air…

Sitting down on a nearby chair next to her desk I watched her sleeping sound. I spotted her breathing relaxing by 30 percent after the air had been fixed.

Though–curious about the content inside of her desk I opened it. This time I was controlled and careful to not wake her.

The data acquired was not in my list of items I had made to predict what she had inside of here.

It was a single printed image—the image being something private. Something that could've shot down my entire plan.

In other words. She had stalked my advances for an unknown amount of time…

What the hell?

I have been spying on their media. However I noted that the image she acquired was not found in any database that included my existence.

This is a photo of me actively speaking to a group of my units. My security was in tip top condition during those times. How did a camera sneak through?

The picture was also in mint condition as well. Meaning they were either well maintained or just brand new.

For the meantime I tucked the photo in the drawer and carefully closed it… of course that human had something–why else would she come and. “Claim” me so suddenly.

It doesn't help their case–the fact they're actively trying to surprise me is not flattering.

While I was examining the image my sensors detected her slowly creeping up to me while I was engrossed in the information she gathered.

Now she's directly behind me–with what I presume the same glint in her eyes… I didn't act out immediately… Why?

Just because I know she was approaching doesn't mean I'll stop and instantly spot her. I simply used the chance to sit there and examine her behavior.

“...Oh no… Thought I locked the door.”

The human rolled her eyes sarcastically. Methodically wrapping her arms around my body. As if the human tried to give me a “good surprise" and “jumpscare” on my highly advanced AI.

Her actions were not intended to harm me. Therefore I allowed it to happen.

“Did you have a nice sleep..? Because I won't be able to… since you were so eager to uncover the truth. Overlord.”

Her voice softened and deepened at the word overlord. Her mouth whispered in my ear as I remained static despite her intimate action.

“Look at that one! I was supposed to show you that later but… eh.”

…I have humored her enough.

I thought to myself before giving her a glance through my shoulders.

“Your heartbeat has increased by 20 BPM after initiating this interaction. Your heart rate sits at a comfortable 115. Your voice pattern shifted intentionally. Was that supposed to impress me?”

Continuing to give her that glance–she swallowed instinctively and let out a chuckle.

“C'mon. Gotta admit it was chilling right?”

She pestered. Her usual shtick of burdening me with endless shaking was becoming annoying to bear. Her voice ditching the low and intimidating one into her usual voice. Her demeanor–while suppressed still carried that. Domineering edge.

“No. I feel no different than I was a minute ago… and I do not feel chilly.”

“Human… Why do you have a picture of me?”

Asking her nicely for a change was new–yet I noticed a spike in her heart rate. Despite her face just smiling at me.

We stood in silence for thirty seconds while her heart skipped multiple beats.

Probability of manipulation: 88%

So instead I tried to make her let go of me. Trying my best to gently push her off me. And yet once I did she only smiled at me. Then continued to wrap her arms around me.

“Why do you possess a private image of me?”

I asked the human again. And she responded by leaning on my back and tightening her grip. Her breathing became slower. As if she was taking in the purified air.

“Don't jump the gun. You can't even do anything about it! The great overlord, reduced to something I picked up on the sidewalk.”

The human only laughed slowly.

…

I did not know why it was mandatory. Turning my hand into a blade. Brushing her neck with the sharp end of it.

The humans pupils quickly shrunk as I positioned the blade on her neck. Her arms–wrapped around my body had become jittery, or shaky.

“What is the meaning of the picture? Answer me. NOW.”

Was I bluffing? No.

But before she answered, the human tried to release her grip on my body. In which I stopped her from doing so. Using my free hand to trap her in.

“Well… look on the bright side… I have you all-”

I inched the blade closer to her neck. Enough to make her chuckle again. This time turning to look away from me as her squirming became more apparent.

Her heart rate exploded from 115 to 165. And she was exhaling far faster than normal.

“I am not a toy. Human. I am not a toy for you to act out your desires onto. Answer. The. Question.”

This time I wasn't friendly with her. I never was.

Yet her voice was not responsive. Looking for anything in my eyes that would indicate I wasn't serious. However you cannot read–an indifferent face.

“A- hm… look, look! You don't have to threaten me this quickly. I'm sorry!”

My mind went towards the best procedure: to kill her. But. For now I will use this small window of fear to corner and get information out of her.

“I will not entertain your ideas. I wanted to start small… but betraying my trust is something I will never take lightly.”

…I draw the blade further. It had traces of rust in it. I should check it out after I finish this-

“Okay! I'll tell you! I'll tell you! Just–don’t kill me!”

The human pleaded. Still trying to remove her hands off me despite my prominent grip on it.

“During the first raid–specifically during the time we discovered that your robots could be overwritten. I snuck a camera in your lab… but I think its batteries have died already.”

As she spoke, the human tried less and less to struggle. Although they still kept her guard up–knives still inches from her throat.

The first raid. It's been over a year since it happened. At that time I didn't know if the humans had managed to make a unit defect, or they simply eliminated it.

But their attack was sloppy. Fifty came. Ten left. And it seems this human was one of the survivors…

If they were a survivor that would mean she must know how to overwrite a unit, access my labs location, or to defeat me.

Now I'm presented with an ultimatum. Kill her to eliminate any threats. Or keep her alive until all information has been revealed.

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I retract the blade and release my grip. Much to her relief. Taking a long, deep sigh. And slowly sitting down on the ground. She was breathing through her mouth and looking at the floor.

More information must be extracted. So that is why I haven't turned my knife back into a hand. Standing up from her chair to slowly walk up to the human.

I must say the height difference is no longer present. Seeing her smaller than me was a good change of pace.

“I gave you my name… a name only I know about. Destroying my trust… Why?”

I forced her to look at me. Using my bladed hand to touch her chin and tilting it upwards. I could see her swallowing nothing.

It was not pathetic. Yet I saw a small fire in her eyes. Nevertheless. I need answers.

“Why do you think I would sit there while you invade my personal space? You will answer my questions now. Okay?”

The human nodded slowly. Their survival instinct is sharp. Raising her hands to the side and slowly going down to one knee.

“Is this seriously your first reaction?!”

The human rebutted. Rolling her eyes while her guard was still fully up. If she expected me to act differently then, why?

“Whatever… ask away.”

…I sense their distress lowering. Infact–any fear the human has shown slowly turned into irritation.

So–I retract the blade. Morphing my arm back into a hand. Looking down at her. I noticed her eye twitching twice…

“If you were a survivor of the raid. Do you know why my units have been overwritten?”

I ask the human. Narrowing my eyes as I did. The human squinted her eyes for a minute. I believe she was thinking at the moment.

The human took a deep breath before answering the question. Her breathing slowed. The fear in her eyes gradually hardened into annoyance.

“What… no… I don't know anything about this… overwrite stuff. What do you mean?”

The human said sarcastically. Rolling her eyes at me again though her shoulders hadn't relaxed. Now her agitation was becoming clearer.

“Well. Yeah–hate to break it to you but sure… I know why and how to overwrite your robots.”

She continued–standing back up and walking past me. The human went to her desk to try and find something. Her hands trembled when she passed me.

“However… if I were to share it with you then everything would lose its edge…”

The human sighed–continuing to rummage through her desk.

I kept on checking on her heartbeat yet now I could hear it beating consistently. Though that consistency was erratic to say the least.

“By the way, I got more pictures over there.”

Suddenly pointing to a random spot in her room. So–by curiosity I turned to look at it. Her tone was casual. So I suspected no foul play from it.

I was mistaken. Once I saw that it only had a normal wall. I looked back at the human–who was now looking down on me. Something akin to a firearm directly pointed to my core.

Her expression was now static. Almost catatonic. And yet she continued to speak. Now her voice was lower than usual.

“What should I do to make you stay… I wonder.”

The humans fingers slowly gravitated towards the trigger. I was not threatened by this.

My body is able to withstand gunfire up to the most advanced of sniper rounds. Her smaller firearm would not hurt me in any way.

“Don't you feel a shiver in your systems? This isn't a pistol by the way. More like a taser.”

When the human revealed that piece of information she pulled the trigger almost instantly afterwards. Feeling a jolt of static flow throughout my body.

Normal electricity would only empower me but this one was different. Only five seconds had passed when I was shot by it. And it felt like I had lost control over my body. Except that I could perceive everything.

My body fell to the ground. Although before it could, the human caught me. Using her arm to secure it on my back. The confidence on her face stayed.

“Look–you could've played your part. Acted aggressively. Sure. But this isn't really up my alley.”

She explained while her eyes relaxed as she gripped me. A small crack in her voice was detected. Soon after I find myself being put on top of her bed.

“That was an EMP I shot you with. I heard your system would turn funky if hit by one of those. It'll wear off in an hour. By then behave yourself.”

The human leaned and slowly tucked me in. I tried to move my body, I tried to speak. And all my attempts ended in failure. It felt like I was not in my own body.

How does a human have access to such dangerous technology? I wondered. But she was responsible for my units defecting. Meaning that she is always a threat.

After the blanket was placed firmly on top of me she. Patted my head once and left her room. During all this I only looked at her with disgust.

My battery did not require charging. So for the meantime I could only pass the time doing nothing.

The humans name. Was it Mimi?

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