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Robotic Essences - SCENE 66 – “Dead Air” | Penana
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Robotic Essences
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Robotic Essences
ISSUE #69
Author: Author
Robotic Essences
Author: Author
ISSUE #69
SCENE 66 – “Dead Air”
No Plagiarism!oEcQpvJ0bjJnbEO0Txxaposted on PＥNAＮＡ

INT. JASON'S CUBE – NIGHT

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSImk0j8Pj

The small cube is quiet—too quiet for how loud their thoughts are.

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The cartoon terminal is off. The fax machine is quiet. Even Spoon-King has been turned toward the wall.

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡutNyq4mO5y

A sits by the door, hugging a pillow, knees curled to his chest, coat sleeves too long and tugged over his hands. His optics flicker anxiously every few seconds toward the texter machine on the table.

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU4LUy0ITPk

K leans against the wall, arms crossed, one leg up on the crate-table, unreadable but tense. His blade flicks in and out, a nervous tic he’d never admit to.

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIZU1zTUp8A

A

“...He didn’t text anything back.”

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K

“I noticed, thanks.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX2OOT9Wjg1

A

“Maybe he just forgot? Jason forgets things. Like that time he put peanut butter in the fridge and it turned into a brick.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKUkyjFPxfN

K

“That was a tactical decision. He wanted it to last longer. Still idiotic.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrj5t8IN0ta

A

(quietly) “What if something happened?”

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K

(beat)

“...Then he’d probably come back angry and bleeding but alive. You’ve seen what he walks away from.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwYa9xhonFm

A

“But what if it’s not something you can walk away from? The news didn’t even say anything. Just said ‘minor infrastructure malfunction’ and ‘no civilian access.’ That’s—! That’s lying! That’s a lie!”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHn3FO4PjK

K walks over to the window—pulls the curtain back just a little. Nothing but fog and dark towers beyond.

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Pzo6ryVpc

K

“They blocked everything off. S.R.S. doesn’t play around unless it’s serious. And the Texter’s dead silent. That’s not good.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTiUwMfaJre

A

“You think he’ll come back tonight?”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCppsULLu2y

K

(softly)

“I don’t know.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEO1Bgf2pWj

That hangs in the air. Thick. Heavy.

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡewfkt5ZRac

A lowers his head onto his knees.

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzykDNbTvrG

A

“I don’t like this. He always texts. Even when he’s mad or annoyed or... being weird.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2yURkJBxKL

K

“I know.”

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A long silence.

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K

“He’s not the type to just disappear. If he’s not back by morning, we go looking.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKSh5A5tUeI

A

(staring at the door)

“...Okay.”

260Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTwEWUbbYqD

FADE OUT.

216.73.216.254

ns216.73.216.254da2
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Robotic Essences
Sci-Fiction
Dystopia
Last updated: May 2, 2025
Total word count: 50,475
Total reading time: 234 Minutes
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