FFF - Ask her what this place is

“What is this place?” you ask. You don’t like this. Something’s not right. The noises that this place makes are not like what you’re used to in the Vault. It’s quiet, but not quiet enough.

The woman’s face on the robot’s screen smiles.

“This is my laboratory,” she says.

“Who are you?”

“You can call me Annette. Welcome.”

You look over your shoulder. You’re convinced that you’re alone, but you don’t feel safe. Dr. Curio and Shell float sedately in their tanks.

“This lab is old. Are there any people left?” you ask.

“Just me,” Annette replies.

“You’re not a person. You’re a… Servomech. Modified. An old one,” you say.

“It’s a prototype. If you’re asking about flesh and blood humans, there’s no one down here but you. And those two,” Annette says.

“What are you doing down here?”

“Trying to fulfill my dream,” she replies.

You look over the vats and the machinery. “And what’s that supposed to be?”

“I wanted to show the world that things could be better. If women were all like you.”

“What do you mean like me?” you ask, lowering your rifle.

The screen changes from Annette’s face to an image of a beautiful woman. You recognize her from some of the faded, old things that you saw in that building where you camped out with Chastity and QT. This woman has dusky skin, is holding a black and white ball, and there’s a large, visible bulge in her shorts. So that’s what Annette means.

Her face returns.

“I don’t understand,” you say. “You want women to have penises?”

“They should!” Annette says, startling you. That was almost a shout. That’s… strange behavior for a robot. You keep your finger on your trigger. “And I had a plan to make it happen! I was going to convince them first. Show them how great it is with sports and entertainment. Sex appeal. Show them that it’s better. Then I was going to give it to them. All of them. Complete global saturation.”

“You had a way to make normal women like me?” you ask.

“Yes. But then the world changed. Everything changed. Now I’m stuck here, sending out drones, but they can never infect enough women to spread it to enough survivors to achieve sustainable propagation!”

That’s a lot of words. You’re trying to keep up. Drones? Does she mean those things in the forest?

“Wait a minute,” you say slowly, looking down at yourself. You remember how the fluids from those things affected you. That’s spreading something? You already have a penis. What happens when they do that to someone who doesn’t? Would they grow one? That could be dangerous for someone like Chastity, who is stuck with that belt on. It’s a good thing that you kept those creatures away from her.

You just hope that none of them have found her since you’ve been gone.

“You’re insane,” you say.

“You’re not the first person to say that,” she replies cheerfully.

“How did they get into these tanks? Did you put them here?” you demand, pointing your rifle at the Servo’s screen.

“Of course I did. Human DNA is essential to my mission. Before things changed, I launched other projects to carry on, but I can’t count on them. I may be the only one left,” Annette says.

“You aren’t left. You’re an AI. And if you don’t do what I tell you, you’ll be scrap,” you promise her.

“I’m not sure that’s accurate,” she replies, untroubled. “Unfortunately, my newest friend was a little unruly. She damaged my body and this facility while I was… convincing her to help me with my research.”

You glance at Shell, whose eyes are closed. Bubbles float around her. That sounds right. She cannot be an easy person to capture.

“What’s your name?” Annette asks.

“Jane,” you reply.

“I need your help, Jane. I need you to help me repair this facility and continue my work.”

“I have a better idea. Let them out of the tanks and I’ll leave you without putting a bullet through your mainframe,” you tell her frankly.

“If you do that, they’ll drown in those tanks. Sooner than you think. The brunette damaged the power system; the facility is no longer sustainable. To limit power use, a lockdown is necessary to buy time to make repairs.”

“If you trigger a lockdown, I’ll make sure every trace of your work is destroyed,” you snarl.

“I’ve already done it, Jane.”

An alarm begins to wail and lights flash.

“Thirty seconds to lockdown,” a voice announces over the speakers. It’s… Annette’s voice, but not quite the same as what’s coming from the robot.

Thirty seconds? Your mouth goes dry.

“Jane,” Annette is saying. “Stay and help me and I’ll let them out.”

You look over your shoulder in panic. Once this place locks down, nobody will get in and out until it’s lifted. It’s not a Vault, but it’s comparable to one. Vaults cannot be broken into or out of. There might be time to get out if you run for it right now.

Escape?

Or agree to help?