VOCOM

Prologue

VOCOM

(Revised)

“You are not authorized to enter this section of Kortan Laboratories. To access the authorization, press in the key code on—“

“Yeah, yeah, I know!” I growled in frustration, punching in the code of Test Room 217’s overseer on the tiny little keypad on the daunting metal door before me. Only a computer would hold me up in trying to escape this place. I was in the middle of a hack-and-run, and this damn computer wanted all these codes!

PP2-Rx34.zip. There.

“You have entered the correct code. Please enter now, and remember to follow all Kortan safety protocol—“

I ignored the computerized voice as I propelled myself underneath the auotmatic sliding door before it fully had time to lift and entered the small office-like room, passing through the cool sheet of pulsating light (which looked like blue goo) that served as a second wall of security. I headed directly to the white plaster desk, knowing exactly what I was looking for.

“Where’s the disk, where’s the disk?!” I repeated to myself, shuffling though various stacks of files and papers that belonged to my past co-worker. This was an emergency, and I didn’t have long before the others found me.

The system core I was carrying was getting too heavy to hold in one arm, so carefully, I sat it down.

A sweat was beginning to break out along my lower back and forehead. The heat from the notion of getting caught was starting to catch up with me- even though I had never really fathomed myself getting trapped by the simplistic fools that still worked here.

“Where is it?!” I wanted to yell. I seriously had to hurry. Harvey Benlark probably already knew what I was doing. This place was already half-abandoned, and I couldn’t afford to lose any more time.

“Ah!” I cried with delight as I found the proper disk, papers and functions zip drive and gathered it in my hands. This was going to help me rebuild the system core. This was the very tool that contained tremendous power that somehow went unnoticed right under Kortan's nose. Well, until it was too late, that is.

I smiled and stuffed it into my pocket, bending over to pick up old KASNA; Kortan Assistant System Neuratonic Advancer. No longer would that name be used on that old core. This core was the AI- artificial intelligence- of Kortan Neuratonic Laboratories. It was a long story about how she ended up destroyed and in my hands- and it was a story I didn’t care to reminisce on. I had a very long, insufferable and horrid past here, and it haunted me every minute.

Of course, if I had such a bad experience with this place, why would I come back? One simple answer: revenge. I was stealing KASNA and I was going to rebuild her in order to help me take revenge upon Kortan for taking away everything I ever had.

That was my purpose.

I kicked down the glass door on the other side of this pitiful jail of an office, and made my way through, the heel of my foot throbbing through my heavy, steel-toed boots. I hated such a sensation, but when you didn't have time to mess with computers and wait for them to open doors for you, you just had to make do with more barbaric means. 

Never would I have to step foot in this place again. Kortan Neuratonic Labs . . . the dreaded place I wish I had never known about. Even the name sent shudders down my spine. A neuratonic was a chemical invented by Benlark- the creator and owner of Kortan that was a basic mind-controlling compound. He liked to play with puppets- and the people that worked here were exactly that.

“C’mon, KASNA,” I huffed as I heaved the computer system core up onto a ledge. It was a bit spherical- and dented thanks to me destroying it- so I had to steady it in a way that it wouldn’t roll away. It was like a giant metal ball, and also scratched, scorched, misshapen and in need of desperate repairs.