EXT. LOW ROOFTOP NEAR RESIDENTIAL COMPLEX – NIGHT
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmBRqZGU8vo
[Three tired silhouettes drop onto a lower rooftop. Not quite home yet, but close. The concrete cube jungle where Jason’s cozy “apartment” waits is visible in the near distance, bathed in sleepy neon and soft glows from scattered windows.]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfyXrP7kvCK
JASON (grinning tiredly)
“There she is. Home sweet–wait, why is it glowing purple tonight? That’s not–”
(squints)
“Ah. Probably someone overclocked their heating core again.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRD6Dj1S7vx
SD-A (suddenly pointing)
“Hey! What’s that thing?”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQClgQxwGbk
[They all turn. At the edge of the rooftop, hidden half behind a collapsed ventilation pipe, stands a vending machine. Rusted, humming gently, and flickering with a soft red glow. It’s clearly older than any of them, but still functioning… somehow.]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg8ywp9ZOAE
[On its glass panel, in faded but still legible text, are the words:]
“Alcohol & Stuff – For bots who’ve had enough.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAtGB19unAa
JASON (slow turn to A)
“Why do you notice the cursed objects first?”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXz3KOUYv5f
SD-K (flatly)
“We’re changing the plan again. Of course we are. Who needs structure or logic?”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgRJI03HV1a
JASON (ignores him, already walking over)
“I’ve literally never tasted anything that wasn’t machine oil. Or battery acid. This might be a character development moment.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh5dEHfduaX
[The machine flickers again. A series of suspiciously bright-colored bottles sit inside, labels like “Buzz.exe,” “RUM-ware,” “GinUnit 7,” and something simply titled “Screaming Protocol.”]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYNeel0aU1C
SD-A (leaning close)
“This one says it simulates your processor being in love. That sounds nice.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0X77Hl8mVs
SD-K
“That sounds like malware with branding.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuJsBWA4vr4
[Jason jams a few credits into the slot. The machine whirs violently, then spits out three dusty, glowing glass bottles. One immediately steams.]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRK9mFvcWnT
JASON (holding it like it might explode)
“…This is the worst decision I’ve made all day. And I got carried through the air by a murder drone.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0NerexrQCC
[They each grab a bottle, inspecting the weirdly alive liquids.]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCPwHOA3e6Z
SD-A (cheerfully)
“Cheers?”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQbbuib7FNH
SD-K
“Prayers.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSBCL1ht99o
[They clink glass gently and take sips. Jason makes a weird face as his HUD briefly crashes and restarts. K swallows and goes silent. A blinks rapidly, his eyes turning temporarily pink.]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhYHia1xJoH
JASON (smacking his lips)
“…Okay. That tasted like rusted freedom and mild corruption. I don’t hate it.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYjtjI1Ercw
[The three of them continue walking, Jason using his grappling hook to descend while muttering angrily about “never flying again.” They land silently in the alley behind their complex.]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoV304JH759
[From a distance, just three normal citizens walking home after some late-night... retail exploration. Grocery bags swinging. Bottles clinking. No murder. No chases. No drama.]
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcfKWqZJqEE
SD-A (contently)
“I like walking. It feels less… hostile.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCdCw0u6Fp3
SD-K (still holding his bottle)
“I’m gonna reverse-engineer this drink and file it under war crimes.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9GQYXJlNl
JASON
“You’ll do that after we finish the other two we bought.”
16Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNCOSassKqL
[They vanish into the glowing maze of the concrete cube apartments, nothing more than shadows and laughs in the quiet night.]
ns3.139.72.238da2
