The apartment was currently a crime scene of creative chaos. A half-disassembled jet-boot sat on the coffee table next to a stack of empty taco boxes, and Carrie’s holographic stage-ribbons were draped over the ceiling fan like glowing spaghetti.
"Twenty-four hours, girls! Twenty-four hours until the Morning Star TV crew is in your living room!" The Manager’s voice screeched over the speakerphone. "If they see that pile of 'mystery tech' in the corner, they won’t call you idols—they’ll call the bomb squad! CLEAN. IT. UP."
Click. Rebecca stared at the phone, then at a rogue mechanical spider-bot that was currently trying to "mate" with the toaster.
"Tactical Assessment: We are at Code Red," Rebecca said, her voice dropping into a terrifyingly calm register. She reached into her utility belt and pulled out a roll of Neon-Yellow Hazard Tape.
"Becca, isn't the tape a bit much?" Carrie asked, wearing her 'Cleaning Day' outfit: a pair of glittery pink overalls and a headband with fuzzy bear ears. "I thought we’d just put on some upbeat J-Pop and do a little 'scrub-scrub' dance!"
"This is not a 'scrub-scrub' situation, Carrie. This is a Level 5 Bio-Hazard Incursion," Rebecca replied, beginning to mask off a grid on the floor. "The apartment is divided into four Quadrants. I will handle Quadrant Alpha (The Workshop) and Quadrant Delta (The Kitchen). You are assigned to Quadrant Beta: The Laundry."
The Assignment
Rebecca handed Carrie a "Tactical Cleaning Kit" which was really just a bucket containing industrial-strength soap, a micro-fiber cloth, and a sensor that beeped if it detected dust.
"All you have to do is wash the clothes, dry them, and fold them," Rebecca commanded. "No 'customizing' the detergent. No 'experimenting' with the spin cycle. Just... laundry."
"Easy-peasy!" Carrie chirped, grabbing a mountain of clothes that included her liquid-light gowns, Rebecca’s carbon-fiber socks, and a few "Mini Mic" mascot plushies. "I’ll have these smelling like 'Summer Breeze' in no time!"
The Auto-Scrub 3000
As Carrie skipped off to the laundry room, Rebecca activated her secret weapon. She tapped her gauntlet, and the floor vents hissed open.
Three spherical drones, painted matte black with blue LED "eyes," floated out. These were the Auto-Scrub 3000s.
"Search and Destroy," Rebecca whispered. "Target: Dirt. Priority: High. Avoid the Master-Disk on the shelf. Everything else... sanitize."
The drones let out a high-pitched whir and began spraying a fine mist of "Tactical Pine" scented disinfectant. They moved with military precision, scrubbing the baseboards at 200 RPM.
Rebecca nodded, satisfied. She walked into her room and looked at her desk. It was buried under three months of "Inspiration."
"Time for a Deep-Clean," she muttered, pulling out a high-powered vacuum that looked more like a ghost-hunting device. "Let’s see what’s at the bottom of this pile."
The First Ominous Sound
Rebecca was busy vacuuming a stray pile of copper wiring when she heard a strange sound from down the hall.
Glug... glug... SHLOP.
It wasn't the sound of a washing machine. It sounded more like a swamp monster having an allergic reaction.
"Carrie?" Rebecca called out, pausing her vacuum. "Why does it sound like the laundry room is... breathing?"
"It’s fine!" Carrie’s voice muffled through the door. "I just thought the 'Ultra-Sparkle' soap looked a little boring, so I added some of that 'Glowing Blue Fluid' from your lab to give the clothes a 'High-Energy Shine'!"
Rebecca’s eyes went wide. "Carrie! That wasn't soap! That was Bio-Synthetic Cooling Gel!"
THUD.
A massive, glowing blue bubble the size of a beach ball squeezed through the gap under the laundry room door. It sat there for a second, quivering, before letting out a soft "Pop!" that released a cloud of glitter and the smell of artificial blueberries.
"Tactical error," Rebecca whispered. "The clean-up has officially begun."34Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlmkGfcB8n
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