“RUN!”, Keks suddenly shouted so loudly that his speaker briefly crackled.
Lio didn’t have to think long. Behind them, the security drone already crashed down from the shaft and landed right among old packaging and metal containers.
Sparks flew through the dark hall.
“TARGETS DETECTED,” the drone said immediately. “ESCAPE ATTEMPT WILL BE TERMINATED.”
The refrigerator rolled surprisingly fast. “THIS WAY.”
Lio ran after it. Keks zoomed beside him, shouting nonstop:
“Why do we always run towards danger?!”
The huge hall under the apartment block looked like a mix of a garbage station, warehouse, and secret factory. Old transport crates, broken household robots, and pipes hissing hot steam were everywhere.
Warning lights blinked yellow and red on the walls.
Lio jumped over a pile of old plastic boxes. Behind him, the security drone thundered through the chaos as if it would just run everything over.
“It’s way too fast!”
Keks turned his head 180 degrees backward. “Small correction: It IS fast. But it will slow down soon.”
“Why?”
Keks suddenly pressed a button on his belly.
Seconds later, an old cleaning robot exploded behind them.
A huge cloud of white foam spray shot through the hall and hit the security drone head-on.
“TARGET NOT VISIBLE,” the machine reported. “CLEANING PROGRAM ACTIVATED.”
Instead of continuing the chase, the drone suddenly started frantically cleaning the floor.
Lio stared at Keks. “You made a security drone start cleaning?!”
Keks sounded proud. “Old household robot tricks.”
They continued running through the huge hall. Finally, they reached a narrow concrete corridor. It was noticeably quieter there.
Lio stopped, panting. “Okay… maybe we lost it.”
The refrigerator stopped as well. Its displays blinked frantically.
NEGATIVE. ADDITIONAL DRONES APPROACHING.
“Of course they are,” Lio muttered.
Suddenly, a strange whistling was heard.
Then something small rolled around the corner.
It was a tiny repair robot with three arms and bright pink wheels. Several stickers on its head read:
“TurboFix – Fast, cheap, mostly legal”
The little robot abruptly stopped in front of them.
“Ohhh,” it said excitedly. “A fleeing refrigerator! You don’t see that every day.”
Lio blinked in surprise. “Uh… hello?”
The robot made a small bow. “My name is Pix. Freelance mechanic, hacker, and occasional winner of illegal vacuum cleaner races.”
Keks immediately whispered: “He seems shady.”
“Thanks,” Pix said proudly.
The refrigerator slowly rolled closer to Pix. Then new text appeared on its display:
IDENTITY CONFIRMED.
Pix nodded seriously. “I thought they finally got you for good.”
Lio frowned. “Wait a minute. You know each other?”
Pix glanced briefly left and right as if afraid of being overheard.
Then he lowered his voice.
“This refrigerator is not just any household appliance.”
“I’ve noticed that by now, too.”
Pix pointed at the refrigerator. “This is Unit MC-9000. One of the smartest prototypes ever built.”
Lio looked at the refrigerator slowly. “You’re a prototype?”
CORRECT.
“And why is half the city chasing you then?”
Pix didn’t answer immediately this time.
His small wheels turned nervously.
“Because MC-9000 discovered something that no one should ever know.”
At that moment, all the lights in the corridor suddenly flickered.
A deep warning siren sounded somewhere in the distance.
Then the computer voice sounded again:
“ALERT LEVEL RED. ESCAPING AI UNIT LOCATED.”
Pix opened his eyes wide in shock. “Oh no.”
“What now?” asked Lio.
Pix slowly pointed behind them.
At the end of the corridor, three new security drones suddenly appeared.
This time they were bigger.
And they had no cleaning programs.