Annihilation

Underground

Genesis glanced behind her, at a silent A concealed under a hooded, dark cloak. She didn't have much to hide him from the other people underground, but it seemed to work since no one was looking their way.

The both of them took their time, making sure each little stand they passed was examined thoroughly for whatever A felt he needed. Yes, there were parts, but not any he could actually use. He needed better, more high class ones- ones that were much more durable. Everything he scanned seemed to not match his design.

Genesis in the mean time checked out another stand, her eyes drifting over at the gloomy atmosphere of the underground black market. Everything was dark, and cold. The people there didn't seem very nice, and one could barely make out who was who from the faint glowing orbs that floated around.

"Genesis."

She whirled her head around, making her way back to A with slight disappointment.

"Nothing here is compatible with me."

"I-I know...I'm sorry."

A examined the distraught woman for a while before affectionally patting her cheek, which momentarily caught her off guard.

"Let us go. I am sure..."

He stopped, raising his head as a distant, faint frequency began to leak into the air. It stopped after a short pause, and he felt he had lost it until it happened again, a distant cry for help one made of metal could only pick up.

Clenching his fist, A started to march down the row of shops, examining everything in his way as he pushed past unsuspecting folk. Genesis knew something serious was happening and attempted to apologize to everyone as she trailed after him, trying not to bring up any more attention. If the people there knew he was a robot, she feared they would try and attack him for his parts.

A stopped walking once they made their way outside of a makeshift building, red lights decorating the front door as it slowly slid open for them. He paused for a moment, looking down by his side as Genesis finally caught up with him. She panted a little, wiping the sweat from her head as she looked up at the her companion with worry.

"What's going on? What is this place?"

"I do not know, but I must go inside."

He was about to walk in until Gensis grabbed his arm instinctively, squeezing tightly, "Is it safe?"

A didn't know what to say, but as the frequency he felt before became more powerful, he grabbed her hand and led her inside with him.

The place was dark, except for a row of lights that led them towards yet another door. From behind it, there seemed to be some type of activity. A didn't hesitate to shove his way in, looking around quickly as he picked up everything in sight- including a surprised, young man.

He had glowing tattoos and a scar on his cheek. It seemed the human was completely caught off guard as he stopped what he was working on and immediately stood up.

"Hey! How the fuck did you get in here?! This is private property!"

A and Genesis glanced at one another, then at the table before them as a damaged robot lay there. It's body twitched, and it's blue eyes flickered as it took in the sight of the two newcomers. The cry for help had come from the being before them, and A slid off his hood, turning his head slowly towards the direction of the man.

It seemed he could sense the danger he was in, and so the human immediately lifted up his hands and shook his head.

"Hey, I didn't know you weren't human. And this isn't what it looks like...damn kids nearly killed my friend here. I've been trying to realign his wires, but..."

Genesis could sense the anger rising from the man, and noticed a hint of sadness from his voice as well. She stepped towards him, her eyes focused on the table.

"So- what happened? What even is this place?"

The man sighed, taking his seat back once more as he attempted to refocus on his work. He hovered over the robots chest, shaking his head at the mangled mess.

"This is my personal shop. I work on machines that have been hurt. In secret, of course." He was silent for a short while, then added, "My name's Vail, by the way. This guy right here is Peanut. He ran into some bad people on the way back here."

A and Peanut stared at each other, and it wasn't until the damaged machine short circuited and whined did A finally focus on the issue at hand.

He looked over Peanut's core as the two humans discussed things, analyzing every possible way he could fix the being and get a high success rate. It didn't take long for him to find a solution, and he placed a hand on Vail's shoulder, causing the room to grow quiet.

"Your friend is in need of an upgrade. He will require new, advanced parts. The ones you have will not do."

Vail raised an eyebrow, examining A's face as he silently took everything in.

"No offense, but who are you? You kind of look familiar." Vail protectively laid his hand on Peanut's shoulder, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

"I am his rescue. He called to me and I came." A didn't appreciate the standoffish attitude directed towards him, but he had more important things to focus on.

Genesis nodded towards Vail, attempting to get on his good side. Maybe he could even help them find parts for A himself.

"Sorry we kind of barged in here, but it's for a good cause in the end. I'm Genesis, and this is A. We're sort of on a mission. Maybe once we help Peanut, you can help us?"

Vail still seemed unsure of the two, and he was worried a robot had hacked so easily into his systems and opened his doors. It wasn't like anything he was used to, but if they could help his friend then it didn't matter at the moment. Despite his better judgement he nodded and looked deep into A's red light.

"Okay. Help him and I'll see what I can do for you guys."