Chapter 3

Mercenary Island

Part Two

Few feet from her were several men, armed and diving into the water from the platform’s edge. With a cramp in her abdomen, she reached down and stumbled upon a gun that was barely hanging from her torn jeans.

‘Are you going to shoot?’ the same voice announced. This voice is mean. Glancing back at the men again, there were name tags on each of them, identifying them as mercenary 1, 2, and beyond. ‘Fire!’ She fired the shot, hitting the closest one in the forehead, leaving the others dumbfounded. Her brows furrowed over the flying robots, avoiding the water. Advance, but not waterproof?

The dead mercenary became a challenge, yet a sturdy cover. Peeking out from behind a lifeless corpse, the men were using gun’s flashlight to search her. She even received the range of their flashlights. Mercenaries swimming in the opposite direction made her doubt their sight visibility.

The power of the handgun amazed her while shooting, as a regular bullet cannot move through water with such ease. With only 1 bullet left in the handgun, she took a hold of the rifle floating next to her. Its performance was the worst when compared to the handgun; the shots it fired couldn’t reach the mercenaries.

“What’s happening to them?” The flying robots emitted sparks from their joints and submerged into the ocean. Her eyes widened. “I can speak? I can speak! Helloooo!” She snickered.

With the obstacle of her last concern out of the way, she lunged towards mercenaries, striking fear in their hearts and preventing them from reaching the ocean. Still, she was stuck in the water, unable to move without alerting the snipers. 

“I wish I could somehow see the number of people above.”

‘Oh, sorry,’ a voice said. ‘Linking the pass. Unable to establish a link.’

Shit! “I forgot the pass in that pod.”

‘Scanning the biometrics.’ In front of her “Error” red text appeared, hovering mid-air.

“Is it the visor? Nice.”

‘This voice, but… but how can it be possible? How can. You. You are alive? And—’

“Of course I am alive, but this cold water doesn’t want the same. And can you tell me what in the world I am doing here? Why are these men after my life?”

‘Have you not been briefed about the mission?’

“Yeah, just like they informed me, we are heading to some aptitude facility right before the mission announcement.” It amazed her how the mask was preventing her voice from trembling.

A group of familiar popular faces appeared, laughing whole-heartedly. ‘Oh, you are so going to die!’ The laughter continued for several seconds.

“Are you done?”

‘Sorry, it’s been ages.’

“Since laugh?”

‘No, seeing yo… someone getting played.’ There was silence for a moment. ‘I have inspected your situation. I know what will help you in this situation. Say “Yash, I am helpless. If you show me whereabouts of enemies, I will confess my feelings for you.” Yash out.’

“Who’s Yash? And what?”

‘I am Yash, an… AI designed to help the lost ones, like yourself. Ask me anything. And keep in mind, before asking anything, say my sexy name.’

“I am doing nothing.”

‘Then die.’ An animation of a kid observing ants carrying their food played on the visor.

What is he? After a brief pause, she tried it. “Yash, can you show me the location of mercenaries?”

‘You forgot the please and helpless part, but I’ll overlook for your sake. Enjoy.’

Her vision experienced a notable boost. She now had a clear view of the humans or beings above, both close and distant. Armed individuals, some of them far away, aiming at the platform. What caught her off guard were the inactive robots, floating around as if they owned the place.

“Yash, what happened to those robots?”

‘You mean “Robuitos”? They were interrupting the feed, so. Don’t worry about them, they are easy to malfunction. Won’t bother you anymore.’

“Robuitos?”

‘Yes, easy to build and best for controlling slaves or inmates. It’s advised to wash yourself after coming in their contact. Thankfully, you had washed your every breath. Hey, I know I should only respond when the user says my name, but can I ask you something? How come you are here?’

“Why? Is there something wrong with me being here?”

‘Yes… because you aren’t on the list of applicants. Have you come here illegally?’

“Explain illegal?”

‘Unauthorised ways to step into the facilities owned by MS. Every medium except the allowed MS selection is illegal.’

Manya was uncertain how to respond to an AI without getting disqualified.

“You mean all those questions? And that orb of light at Connaught Place was illegal?”

‘Connaught Place?’

“Yes.”

‘… I was just kidding. I got the list, and here’s your name on it, M… Ira Wings?’

“Yes, it’s Ira Wings. Something wrong?”

‘… No. Sorry for inconvenience. My apologies.’

Her shoulder relaxed, but not for long as more mercenaries had entered the water. “Yash, tell me all the ways you can help me.”

‘It’s a long list. Are you sure you want to know all of it?’

“Yes.”

‘Guess you’ve fallen for my voice and want to hear me all day. It’s not your mistake; it’s how I was born—sexy and charming. Okay, let’s start with the list.’

Whatever Yash was saying was displayed on the visor. 

1. I can call for help, but they have blocked the option for unranked.

2. I can play songs for you.

3. I can play movies and TV shows for you. But I won’t advise it in your current situation.

4. I can change the view into different types, like cinematic, cartoon, anime, etc. (My personal favourite is anime).

Given her current situation, she didn’t find any of these options helpful. The armed men were drawing near to her, and she was being bombarded with unneeded features.

5. Here’s a cool one: I can call sea animals, but beware, I can call them but can’t control them.

6. I can connect you to the closest unranked, but as you can see, there’s no one alive.

7. I can hack allowed devices.

8. I can call weapons.

9. I can —

“Wait—Yash, you said you can call sea animals?”

‘It’s impolite to interrupt someone. Forget it. Yes, isn’t it a cool feature? I know you’ll like it.’

“Yash, call them!”

‘Okay, but be careful. Even I don’t know which ones will answer the call.’

“I don’t care, just do it!”

‘As you wish. Sending the sound of a large group of helpless tiny fish, liked by all the beings down here. ETA 5 minutes.’

Sound waves spread out in a circular pattern around Manya. “Yash, where’s this coming from?”

‘C10.’

“Satan?”

‘Not Satan! C10,’ Text displayed before her. ‘The pod.’

The mask’s features were amazing. She had never heard or seen anything like this. It was beyond her understanding. A game-changer in her current situation, but also raised questions about its origin and purpose.

Just as she was about to find solace in a plan to divert the mercenaries, they looked at her. This time, their attire and cables were distinct, and they were wearing masks that covered their entire face. The group’s synchronised underwater movements were too much for her to overcome without enough ammunition, and boats full of mercenaries were approaching her location.

“Yash, you mentioned something about calling a weapon, right?”

‘Yes, I can call a weapon, with restriction to your current area and only MS manufactured weapons.’

MS also create weapons? She couldn’t stop wondering why she hadn’t got a mask like this before. It would’ve made things a lot easier.

‘I know I should only respond when the user asks me, but it will be good if you leave the water or move from your current location.’

“Why? what’s happening?”

‘Increasing the endurance capacity of ears.’

“What?”

A loud noise caused her to shiver, but she endured it. Fear took hold of her, making her hesitant to turn around and find out what was causing such a sound.

‘ETA 15 seconds, ETA 10 seconds,’ Yash said. Manya swam nearer to the platform. ‘ETA, no ETA. I will never forget the time I had spent with you.’

Manya’s heart pounded as she glanced backward, only to find a multitude of whales, sharks and various sea creatures of all sizes coming closer. In a state of panic, she clutched the edge of the platform and tried desperately to move alongside it. Her body spun out of control as a whale brushed past her. It took what felt like forever for her to regain her composure.

Once her vision became steady, she examined the surroundings. The boats got destroyed. A few of them were in the sky, just seconds from reaching the water. The underwater mercenaries she spotted vanished, while the remaining ones on the platform began attacking the creatures she had summoned.

“Yash, send the fish away! They’ll kill them!”

‘Don’t worry, they’ll be able to kill them, only if they get to live. And for you, you’ll get sandwiched if you don’t move in 10. 9. 8. 7.’

Yash’s reply confused Manya. Upon hearing another whale’s call, she cautiously glanced downward and spotted the largest one approaching her.