Chapter 7:

Burning Through Alloy

Phantom Frequency


When I first woke up in this world, a wave of frigid air and an overwhelming headache welcomed me. I groaned and squinted into a blinding white light, barely making out a silhouette standing beside me.

“Now then,” they said with a filtered voice, “you will answer my questions as usual. Do you understand?”

I twitched my lips, barely registering their words. “Y-Yes,” I croaked.

“Are you restrained?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know where you are?”

“No.”

“Do you know any friends or family members?”

“...No.”

“Do you know who I am?”

“No.”

“Do you know who you are?”

“Yes.”

“Are you an android?”

“...Yes.”

“State your identity.”

“I… I’m—ai—i-n-number… 26010914… Radio Jam.”

A brief silence ensued, followed by the silhouette turning off the light. “Excellent. Alright, Radio Jam. Here’s your first assignment…”

⫿⫼⟁⫼⫿

I woke up with a start and gasped. I grimaced as a deafening ring reverberated in my ears before shaking it off.

God, my shoulders hurt… What happened to me? Oh, right. I got hit by a truck. I’m still alive, huh? I rubbed my eyes, massaged my shoulders, and scanned my surroundings: a riverbank before me, a patch of grass underneath me, a wall behind me, and the orange-gold glow of the sky above me… Wait, the sky was…

“It’s already morning?!” I shouted, gawking at the sun peeking at the horizon. “Ah…” With a shaky hand, I activated my watch to find two missed calls from The Director. “Oh, god…”

What should I do? Should I call him back or see him in person? Should I continue the job before I contact him?

My breaths staggered, my chest throbbed, and my mind continued to run a dozen different possible scenarios. He would understand, right? He’d praise me like always, right? He would give me more time, right? He wouldn’t throw me away already, right? He’d let me continue living, right?

He’d give me another chance, right?

Right?

I swallowed and tapped on my watch with a quivering finger. I tried to regain my composure while it was on the dial, but I didn’t expect The Director to pick it up within a second, his soulless, gray gaze already boring into my system.

“Ah, there you are, Radio,” he said stoically. “I tried calling you a few hours ago. I’d assumed you were still in the middle of work, so is the job complete yet?”

“O-Oh, h-hey, Director…” I broke eye contact and played with the grass under my fingertips. “Uhm, about that…”

The Director tilted his head.

“It’s still in progress,” I said, feigning confidence. “But don’t worry, I’ve discovered his identity. I’ll take him out in less than an hour for sure.”

He probably sensed my uneasiness—or that he was growing impatient—prompting him to narrow his eyes and scowl.

“You useless pile of waste,” he muttered.

I hitched my breath and ripped off a few grass blades under my grip. “Eh?”

“I specifically told you this case is serious, but you still haven’t finished it? Clearly, I’ve been too lenient with you.” He shook his head and waved a hand like he was shooing me off. “Forget it. I don’t need you.”

“Huh? What? Wait, what do you mean?”

It didn’t help that he immediately hung up without elaborating, leaving me with a dozen, mind-numbing assumptions.

I ended up losing my balance as I leaned forward, and I found myself staring at my bizarre reflection in the riverbank: dark green hair, transitioning to brown around my ears and brushing against my shoulders, a yellow triangle as my left eye, and a scarlet, concentric circle as my right eye. With trembling fingers, I rubbed the dark circles forming under such a gaze.

What did he mean he didn’t need me? Who else would finish the job? Was he going to find someone else? Was he going to hire another mercenary? Was he going to replace me? Was he going to discard me? Was he going to throw me back in the junkyard? Was this it? Was I… abandoned again?

A distorted, dark memory flashed through my eyes again, displaying my supposed creator walking away as I tried to reach for them.

I hunched over and tightly clutched my throbbing head, my breathing ragged again. “No… no, please…”

Not again. I don’t want to go back there again. I’m so scared. I don’t want to die. Please don’t throw me away. God, please…

“Give me one last chance, please!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, rising to my feet and activating my boots. I swiftly blasted away, soaring toward the sky.

Detective Axel Holton, I’m dropping your head on The Director’s desk no matter what.

⫿⫼⟁⫼⫿

Axel sneezed and shivered, rubbing his arms. “Phew, it’s so chilly in the morning,” he murmured, his voice echoing in a spacious, empty building with rusted, corrugated metal walls. “Sorry we had to stay out here overnight. That assassin would’ve blown up my apartment otherwise. You sure you’re fine, Noah?”

The child nodded, fidgeting around as he played with a tiny camera. “I prefer the natural cold to the scorching heat.”

“Right…” He sighed, hands on his hips. “I still think you shouldn’t be here with me, kid. You almost got your head vaporized last night!”

Noah shook his head and pouted. “No, I already knew the dangers, but I had to see what happened to my mom!” He gripped his pants, biting his lip. “But, I’m sorry I lost the USB. Now we’ll never find out…”

Axel softly ruffled his head as he kneeled before him. “Everyone makes mistakes. I do too. That’s what makes us all human.”

Tears welled up in the boy’s eyes, forcing him to cover his face with his arms.

“Noah, listen. I swear on my title as a detective of the Elite Investigation Division that I will save your mother and avenge your father, but that’ll be all for nothing if you get yourself killed.”

Noah sniffled and wiped his face. “Yeah, I know,” he mumbled. “But I still think I’m better off with you. I don’t trust anyone else.”

Axel let out another sigh and nodded. “I get ya, buddy. Make sure you stay clear from danger, okay?”

The boy glimpsed down at the tiny, blinking device in his palm. “But aren’t we luring that assassin to us? He attached this camera to your jacket, so he’s definitely tracking us down right now.”

“I mean when he gets here. You remember the drill, right?”

The boy nodded and patted his pockets, making a metallic jingle. “I got it, mister.”

“Good.” He ruffled his hair again and straightened his back, surveying the area. “It’s only a matter of time before that assassin gets here…”

“Are you talking about me?” a new figure interrupted.

Axel gaped his eyes, whipped out his gun, and spun around, aiming at some sort of tall, humanoid robot with a black cube for a head and a matching, geometric body. It resembled a pixelated human in physical form, but nothing about it screamed organic at all.

The boy jumped and immediately scurried off into the shadows.

Axel raised a brow, taking a step back. “No?! Who—what in the seven hells are you?!” he distraughtly asked.

The android raised its gun and answered, “Biowidth Station sends you their regards."

Axel clicked his tongue. “You’ve gotta be kidding me. How many assassins are they going to send after me?!”

The android tilted its head, probably trying to interpret that question until Noah curiously peeked out of the corner. It straightened its head as it scanned the child’s face, switching its attention in the blink of an eye.

“Missing test subject detected. Task priority switched from elimination to retrieval.”

Axel widened his eyes in horror and turned to the boy. “Noah! Run!” he hollered.

The boy broke into a sprint, frantically running toward the sunny opening in the wall, but his little legs could only move so fast. Axel fired his gun, but his bullets ricocheted off its tough head and body. He clicked his tongue, pulled out his baton, and aggressively slammed it onto the assassin, only to briefly shock it before it kneed him so hard he flew away and slammed into a wall.

The android sprinted toward the boy, a spindly claw ready to ensnare his neck, but as its geometric fingers inched closer, something swooped into view.

The assassin only had a split-second moment to flinch before my leg—boosted from my high-speed dive—bashed into its head, released an electrical shock wave, and sent it soaring into the opposite side of the room, crashing and stirring up a cloud of dust.

Noah stumbled and fell on his rear, gawking at my back as I hovered inside and glared at my rival.

“Out of my goddamn way, box face,” I snarled, electrical wires ready to ignite under my fingertips. “That detective is my target.”

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