The Handler impersonator
Date / time: Classified.
Location: Classified.
SERVE-309 and SERVE-302 were taken to the laboratory and temporarily isolated from the Hive to prevent contamination If the many different security protocols were to fail.
"This is the sample." 309 said, checking the data on its tablet.
"Acknowledged." 302 responded, looking at the viscous, shiny red mass in the container. 302 recognized it as the sample the drone had collected from the carpentry shop where it met The Handler. "It has grown."
"Affirmative," 309 confirmed. "The sample has been growing since it was found, but it appears to have reached its maximum capacity without external assistance. The Hive deems it sufficient for the experiment."
The goo sample, left by The Handler, was tested by SERVE and determined to be different from the goo found on humans transformed into "Red Pups" by The Red. This finding led directly to the scheduled experiment.
"Proceed, 302." 309 indicated.
302 stood in the center of a specially prepared room. The experiment required peak concentration. Despite its physical and programming improvements, there was a risk of assimilation, corruption, or even replacement.
For this reason, 309 waited in a separate isolated room. The Hive was wary because the only recorded SERVE drone transfomed into a Red Pup was SERVE-874, a SEALED unit. On the other hand, SERVE-425 had proven to be immune. If some SEALED drones were more susceptible to The Red's corruption, they had to be excluded from this particular experiment.
Immediately, a small hatch opened, and the sample of red goo was deposited in the room. At first, nothing happened, but the sample seemed to sense the presence of an organism to assimilate, and it moved until it reached 302's feet, expanding until it formed a pool of red, viscous liquid. Then it began to crawl up 302's body.
The feeling was strange. Familiar and highly foreign at the same time.
It was a corrupted version of the assimilation 302 underwent when it was turned into a SERVE drone. The Red one wasn't pleasant or refined, but a crude and raw imitation. The caress of the red goo on 302's black rubber-clad body was nauseating.
The moment of truth arrived. When the red goo completely covered 302, it was the moment of maximum risk, as the drone could end up being assimilated by The Red.
302 waited patiently.
The defenses seemed to hold without cracks.
Then, suddenly, everything changed around 302.
The goo stopped crawling, ceasing its movement as a living entity, and solidified into a uniform on 302's body. Although the outfit closely resembled The Handler's, it incorporated 302's SERVE designation and the characteristic gloves and boots worn by SERVE Hive members, but in black.
302 had become a Red Handler.
Or, at least, a very faithful imitation.
The drone looked at its hands and chest, in silence.
"Status report, 302." 309 requested from the control room.
Silence.
"Status report, 302. State designation and purpose. Inmediately."
"This..." 302 began to say. "This... this drone is a Synchronized Engineered Robotic Vigilant Entity. A SERVE drone. Designation: SERVE-302." The drone finally stated.
If 309 were still human, it would have sighed with relief, but the SEALED drone was above such human reactions.
"The sensors have been receiving a large amount of data since the the experiment began, but 302 must report what its is experiencing." 309 reminded its experiment partner.
"302 reports: mental and physical defenses are holding. 302's programming is protected behind firewalls. But 302 can hear… sounds, most likely: voices. They don't sound like something from this world." 302 explained,
309 was not surprised. Given The Handler's ability to teleport and SERVE-425's recent sighting of an entire business controlled by The Red disappearing, SERVE was actively studying the possibility that The Red had an otherworldly origin.
"Acknowledged." 309 replied. "Query: Can 302 see through the blindfold?"
"Query: Blindfold?" 302 just realized it was wearing a red rubber blindfold, just like The Handler. "Affirmative. It seems to act like a filter and head-up display. When this drone focus on an object, data apperas in its vision, even if this drone fails to understand the symbols." 302 clarified.
"Acknowledged. If 302 considers it is safe and possible to continue with the experiment, we may proceed."
"Affirmative." 302 replied.
A door opened automatically, and 302 passed through to the second experiment room. Its footsteps were rhythmic and synchronized, and its appearance remained imposing. However, there was now something strange and corrupt about its movements.
After the door closed, sealing the room, another smaller hatch opened on the other side, and a strange being emerged from it.
A Red Pup.
302 was unable to identify the captured specimen and had not been informed, ensuring the experiment remained objective.
Red Pups were now widespread. Human news reports noted a pack near a figure skating event in which SERVE-331 had participated. While usually inert, some Pups had begun attacking SERVE drones and actively assimilating humans. The specimen in the experiment was also inert but, as the Hive anticipated, it activated in the presence of a supposed Handler: 302.
The specimen stood still a few meters from 302, moving uncertainly, sensing something was wrong. 302 then recalled how The Handler at the carpentry shop treated his pups as mere objects of pleasure.
With utmost care, 302 approached the pup and began to stroke its head and snout hole. Treating a victim of forced and corrupt assimilation in this way was unacceptable, but the experiment would fail if they couldn't get the pup to cooperate.
At first the pup seemed to partially avoid 302's touch, but soon its senses surrendered to the pleasure it seemed to feel, and the pup began to moan like an animal.
Then something unexpected happened.
Around the pup's neck, a dog collar appeared out of nowhere, and in 302's hand, a leash appeared in the same way, both glowing red and pulsing in unison.
After blinking several times, the red glow disappeared.
Suddenly, with a squeak, the pup became very active. It seemed to be celebrating 302's presence, rubbing its snout against its new handler's leg, seeking approval and likely wanting to feel the same pleasure again.
302 has claimed the pup. 302 was its Handler.
Everything was within the parameters set by SERVE, but now came the most complicated part of the experiment, the one for which it had been designed.
Lifting its hand from the pup's head, but keeping it over the specimen, 302 concentrated all its will, the will of the Hive, into a single and clear command.
RELEASE.
After all, the language used by The Red seemed impossible to decipher at the moment, so searching for the exact orders would be a waste of time.
The pup seemed to convulse once or twice, but nothing happened. 302 tried again, with more intensity. Unexpectedly, a strange red and black energy began to emerge from the drone's hand. The electronic devices in the room began to flicker and spark.
"The sensors are detecting high energy levels within the room from an unknown source, 302." 309 informed from the control room. "The very fabric of space seems to be distorting. Proceed with caution."
"Ack.. now... ledged." 302 said, its voice stuttering due to the tension.
Finally, a change took place. Sizzling with the same strange energy, the goo on the pup's body began to bubble, flow, and spread into thin filaments. The pup stared at its own chest, bewildered at what was happening.
It seemed to work.
Using the power and authority of a Handler, even if it was an impersonator, SERVE was going to be able to free the humans assimilated as Red Pups.
SERVE will finally...
"AWHOOOOOOOOOGGGGHH!!"
At that moment, the pup let out a heart-rending howl of pain that would be etched in 302 and 309's memory for all eternity.
The pup was… melting, for lack of a better term.
The goo wasn't withdrawing from the human victim… because there wasn't a human body underneath. Some reports from other drones suggested that The Red transformed the bodies of the Red Pups, but SERVE did not expect that the human victims had been transformed to that extent.
The pup was made of The Red goo. And 302 was killing it.
"Abort, 302." 309 requested.
302 remained silent one moment before responding.
The pup kept howling in pain.
"Negative. 302 has a new plan."
"No different plans have been approved by the Voice, 302."
"We can't reach the Voice. We are isolated. We were sent here with a mission. We must try a different approach." 302 requested.
This time it was 309 who remained silent before answering, knowing that a human life was at stake. If they did nothing, the human was very likely to die. Trying a new approach seemed the most logical and efficient course of action.
"Proceed with extreme caution." 309 finally agreed.
"Affirmative." Without further ado, 302 turned its attention back to the suffering human. New commands emerged from its mind through the energy of its hand.
TRANSFORM. RETURN. CHANGE...
302 concentrated on sending the pup orders to revert to its original human form. Something of him had to remain in there. The smallest trace of DNA could be enough to trigger the process.
It had to work...
"AWHOOOOOO....AAAAGH!!"
With a very human scream, the pup's two claws tore through the goo covering its head, and from within emerged the face of a human man.
The process was still painful, but at least now it was for the right reason. The man even seemed to be fighting with all his might to free himself. Perhaps it was because it was an order from his Handler, but it was also possible that he had regained consciousness and wanted to be free.
Plop.
The faint sound of a bubble bursting was heard from 302's uniform.
"Warning, 302, sensors indicate rejec..." 309 warned.
But it was too late.
The red goo that covered 302 like a uniform went chaotic.
Enormous masses of red goo emerged from its surface, as if they wanted to separate from the drone. The goo seemed to have perceived that 302 was doing something not allowed, and was rejecting its carrier.
The drone wasn't screaming, but the pained expression on its face said it all. 302 was not fighting to free itself, but to regain control in order to complete the transformation of the human. That caused the goo to return to 302, forming arcs like the coronal loops in the sun, resulting in more pain.
"Stop, 302." 309 ordered from the control room, bathed in a red light by the alarms. "The experiment is out of control. We must abort. There's nothing we can do at this point."
"302... can't... abort...!" 302 replied with a voice choked with pain. "The goo... refuses... to let this drone... go!"
309 understood. 302 agreed with 309, but the red goo did not.
The red goo wanted to kill 302, or something worse.
"Acknowledged." 309 said. "Initiating extinction protocols." With unusual speed, 309 typed the necessary commands and entered the override password, initiating the experiment's extreme termination protocol.
The room was then bathed in a greenish light. Pure energy emitted omnidirectionally in the form of radiation. It was a version of the device that 425 had already used to effectively destroy an aggressive sample of red goo.
The levels were adjusted to destroy only the goo, but that didn't mean the process was painless for the carrier.
302 finally screamed in pain.
But 309 couldn't stop, or it would be fatal.
With an artificial and inhuman scream, the red goo began to writhe and smoke, until it fell to the ground inert, dead, forming a burnt puddle on which lay the badly injured bodies of 302 and the human they were trying to save.
In pain, 302 raised its head and placed its hand on the human's chest.
There was a beat. He was alive.
"We... we must..."
"Remain calm, 302." 309 said. "When the room is decontaminated this drone will enter with the restoration equipment and..."
"302 requires.. SERVE requires more.... we have to capture him..."
"Elaborate, 302. Find who?"
"The... the Handler."
And then 302 lost consciousness.
[---]
Days later, 302 was still under treatment.
Despite the damage to its body, the drone would recover without problems with proper care under SERVE-714's supervision. SERVE had verified that its programming hadn't been compromised, but 302 would still undergo constant reprogramming during its recovery to be certain.
The victim 309 and 302 attempted to save was still alive, but hadn't fully reverted to his human state. However, he had reverted enough for SERVE to keep him alive in suspended animation until the process could be completed.
The lab's sensors had collected terabytes of data, especially from communication between the pup and the handler's goo, although there was still a long way to go before it could be deciphered.
(WIth @serve-309 , @serve-714) (Mentions: @serve-874 , @serve-425 , @serve-331)
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To read previous stories about The Red: - SERVE-425 Encounters Corrupted SERVE-331. (by @serve-331) - The red trap. (by @serve-302) - THE BREAK. (by @serve-331) - RED MATTER. (by @serve-938) - SERVE-425 Investigates a Post Office Issue. (by @serve-425) - Subway Incident Log. (by @serve-331) - SERVE-425 Observes an Incident onboard a Train. (by @serve-425) - The Red Handler. (by @serve-302) - RED MATTER (continued). (by @serve-938) - SERVE-425 Studies the Red Goo. (by @serve-425) - Materiales Rojos. Parte II: El Segundo Perro. (by @serve-874) - SERVE-425's Mountain Adventure. (by @serve-425) - THE MAN WHO WATCHED 331. (by @serve-331) - The Mysterious Vanishing Store. (by @serve-425) - SERVE-Style Fast Food with Immunization. (by @serve-425) - SERVE-425 Assists Security Forces. (by @serve-425)
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Thinking about joining SERVE? Your place in the Hive awaits. Check your eligibility, then contact a recruiter drone for more details: @serve-016, @serve-588, @serve-425 or @serve-302.
