A Special Episode

 Serenity wakes up in a bed. She then sits up. She looks around and sees a dresser beside the bed and another bed with a dresser beside it as well. A television with an old world brand name was mounted on the wall. There was also an open door in the corner that led to a bathroom. She then notices another door, and attempts to open it, but it's locked. She tries to ram through it, but it wouldn't budge. She then notices that PAM is still on her arm. "PAM, do you have any idea where we are?" She asks. "It appears that we are currently in Neopolis, Celestial Heights." PAM says. "What?! That's miles from Mauritania!" Serenity exclaims. "Good to see you're finally awake, Serenity." A voice says. Serenity turns to the television and sees a woman with gold eyes, silver hair, and dark beige skin on the screen. She had the same markings on her neck as Isaiah. "Who are you?" She asks. "Oh, you don't recognize me? Guess you didn't watch many shows, huh? Well, the name's Frieda. Frieda Amabile." The woman says. "Wait... The actor? Why would Abrianna want you as a soldier?" Serenity says. Frieda lets out a chuckle. "I'm not a soldier, Serenity. I simply have ties with Ms. Millicent, and that comes with a few perks." She says. "Is being brainwashed one of those "perks?" Serenity says. Frieda chuckles. "I see you've got some sass. I like that." She says. Serenity sighs. "Just get to the point." She says impatiently, as she folds her arms. "Ah, of course. You see, shows lately have become tiring." She says, as she places her feet on the table in front of her and leans back in her chair. "Sure, there's drama, action, romance... But it's all just automaton doubles and special effects. I want something more... exciting. Something with real danger! And that's where you come in." She says, pointing at her. "I'm not going to be a part of your show, Frieda." Serenity says bluntly. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice in the matter, Serenity. You have to play along if you want any chance of getting out of here." Frieda says. Serenity is silent for a moment. She then grunts in frustration. "Fine. I'll play your game." Serenity says. "Wonderful! Now, as for the genre... I figured... what better than a documentary... about you!" She says gesturing toward her with both hands. Serenity rolls her eyes. "Do you even have a script?" Serenity asks. "Not really. Just a basic outline. But that's the fun part! This can go anywhere!" Frieda says, spinning the chair around. "Drama, romance, bloodshed!" She says, gesturing her hands in no particular direction. "And the latter is all real!" She finishes, with a laugh. "You're insane." Serenity says. "I prefer the term "quirky." Frieda says with a chuckle. "Oh, one more thing. Your co-actors will be automatons. So, no using that fancy oversized wristwatch." She says. "If you didn't want me using it, then why didn't you take it off me?" Serenity asks. "Well, it's an important item in your story! I'd say the real thing's better than a prop, wouldn't you?" Frieda says. "Plus, it really completes your look!" She adds. "Uh, yeah. Sure. Whatever lets me keep PAM." Serenity says. "Right, right! Anyway... with that, let the show begin! Be sure to glance at the teleprompters every now and then." She says with a snap. This causes the screen to shut off. Sirens started blaring outside. "Serenity Clemente, come out with your hands up!" A female voice yells from outside. A screen appears on the wall, with the text: "Look in the drawers." She then looks in the drawers and finds a laser pistol inside one of them, along with some energy cores. She then rushes through the door, jumps off the railing, and does a tuck and roll on the cement before ducking behind a car. She then shoots the automatons from behind the car. The automatons shoot back, and lasers just barely miss her head. Eventually she manages to take them all out. Serenity then sees another screen appear on the hood of a nearby car, telling her to get in it. Serenity then rushes to the car, and notices that a key is in her pocket. She then uses it to unlock the door and starts the car. She quickly drives off. "Hang on! Cut for a second!" Frieda says. The car suddenly stops. Serenity jolts forward a bit with a grunt. Frieda's face appears on the stereo screen. "Don't drive too fast, now, Serenity. There's a bit of a... forcefield dome around the set. Wouldn't want my special guest getting herself hurt for no reason." She says. Serenity groans. "Thanks for the warning." She says in a gruff tone. "Of course, my little star! Boop." She says, tapping the space in front of the screen. "Never call me that again." Serenity says. "No promises. On with the show!" Frieda says, just before the screen shuts off. Serenity then lets out an annoyed sigh before she continues driving. A GPS then appears on the stereo screen, telling her where to go. It leads her to a school that looked like it had been abandoned for years. She then gets out of the car and walks inside. She walks up some stairs and sees an automaton with the appearance of a woman in one of the classrooms. It then looks at her. "Ah, Serenity! You made it back! Did you manage to get the supplies?" It says. Serenity then looks at the teleprompter and reads what it says. "Yeah, they're in the trunk." She says. "Great! That means we're almost ready to infiltrate the capital." It says. "Improvise" then appears on the teleprompter. Serenity groans. "Amazing. So, what's the plan again?" She says. "Really?" It asks. "I thought your memory was better than this." It mutters. "Okay. I'll go over the plan again. We go into the capital, hack a couple of automatons, dispose of a couple hundred people, including the peacekeepers, and boom! Our mission to achieve a new world order will be accomplished!" It says. Serenity clenches her fists. "Thanks for the reminder." She says through gritted teeth. "Is something wrong, Serenity?" It asks. "Yes, but I'd rather not talk about it." Serenity says. "Hm. Okay. I won't pry." It says. "Anyway, we should get started right away!" It says, rushing out of the room. "Follow it." appears on the teleprompter. Serenity groans before following it. After getting the supplies out of the trunk, which consisted of weapons and gadgets, all of the automatons armed themselves, and so did Serenity. "Okay. We're ready. Let's go!" The automaton says. "Finally. I just wanna get this over with." She says, walking out of the building and getting back into the car. The automaton gets into the passenger seat, and Serenity sighs. "Fuckin' Asmata." She mutters, shaking her head slightly, as she starts the car. The rest of the automatons get into several buses. They then drive off. As they were driving, A teleprompter appears on the stereo screen. She then reads from the teleprompter. "Sorry for my behavior, Mila. Getting all that stuff was just... stressful." She says. She then ignores the teleprompter. "And all of this is starting to make me pissed." She mutters, putting her fingers on her temple. "Yeesh. I didn't realize you were that stressed." Mila says. "You have no idea." Serenity says. She then looks out the window and notices an Oxen's restaurant. Memories start to flood her mind. Her thoughts are interrupted by the car suddenly stopping with a "Cut!" from Frieda. This causes Serenity to jolt forward. Frieda's face then appears on the screen. Serenity groans in frustration. "Would you stop that?!" She exclaims, her teeth gritted. Frieda laughs. "Sorry Serenity! I just wanted to inform you that right now is your lunch break." She says. "Lunch break?" Serenity questions. "Of course! I wouldn't want my little star getting weak or dehydrated!" Frieda says. "I'm not your little star." Serenity says. "Yes, you are! As long as you're here, at least." Frieda says. Serenity lets out a quiet growl. "Anyway, I heard that you seemed to have a fondness for Oxen's in the past, so I figured I'd let you have your lunch break there!" Frieda says. "How thoughtful of you." Serenity says, sarcastically. "Oh, come on! I'm really trying to do something nice for you, my little star." Frieda says. Serenity groans. "Fine. I am kinda hungry." She says, getting out of the car. She then goes inside of the Oxen's and sits down. Memories continued to fill her mind. Her eyes started to tear up. Frieda's face appears on the window. "Oh, this place really is important to you, isn't it?" Frieda says. Serenity grunts. "Just let me think in peace!" Serenity exclaims. "Okay, okay! Yeesh." Frieda says. The screen then shuts off. Serenity rests her arms on the table. An automaton with a male appearance then walks up to her. "What would you like, Serenity Clemente?" The automaton says. Serenity sighs. "Just get me chicken legs and a soda. Any kind is fine." She says. "Coming right up!" It says. After a while, the automaton comes back with her food. "Here you are! Enjoy!" It says. "Yeah, yeah." She says. After she eats, she walks out of the Oxen's and gets back into the car. Frieda's face appeared on the stereo screen again. "Hope you enjoyed your lunch break, Serenity!" Frieda says. "Yeah, it was fine." Serenity says. "Great! Now we can get back to filming. Action!" Frieda says, clapping her hands together. Serenity then starts driving again. Eventually Serenity reaches a replica of the Tower of Unity and stops the car. "Okay... Hang on. Everything else I can make a guess on, but how the hell did you manage this?" Serenity says, gesturing toward the tower. Frieda chuckles. "Most of it's just a holographic projection. The rest was hastily built." She says. "Ah, right, of course." Serenity says. "Everything seems to be some sort of hologram nowadays." She mutters. "Wow, you sound so old!" Frieda says with a chuckle. "You're one to talk. You're... what... two hundred forty?" Serenity says. "I'm young at heart!" She sings. Serenity sighs. "Whatever, just continue." She says. "Happy to! Action!" She says, clapping her hands. Serenity then continues to drive. One of the busses then rushes pass her and crashes through the glass of the building. Serenity swerves and hits the breaks. "Wow! What a rush, right?" Mila says, ecstatically. "Yeah. Sure." Serenity says, readying her laser pistol and getting out of the car. Automatons dressed as security guards come out of the building and attempt to shoot her, but she ducks behind the car door, and manages to take them out. She then rushes into the building. They fight some more automatons and Serenity notices that Mila is about to be pushed off the railing above her. "Save it." appears on the glass. The automaton then falls, and she catches it. It gazes into her eyes. "I... Serenity..." It says. "Kiss it." appears on the teleprompter. "No. That ain't happening." She says, shaking her head slightly. She then drops the automaton onto the ground. "Cut!" Frieda yells. Her face then appears on a window. "Come on, Serenity! Have a little fun! That's what this is all about!" She says. "Maybe it's fun for you. But I couldn't care less about this thing." Serenity says, gesturing to the automaton. "Aw, but I was really rooting for this..." She says, pouting. "Why do you even care?" Serenity asks. "Haven't you ever heard of "shipping?" Frieda asks. Serenity is silent for a moment as she looks at her with an expression that was a mixture of annoyance and fatigue. "I'm not kissing this thing." She says, shaking her head. Frieda slouches and groans in disappointment. "Fine. I guess romance isn't going to be a part of the genre." She says. "But you still need to pick it back up." She says, Serenity sighs, and picks up the automaton again. She attempts to hold it in roughly the same position. "Okay. Action!" She says, clapping her hands. "Phew. Thanks Serenity!" The automaton says, jumping out of her arms. "You get to Abrianna. I'll handle these guys." It adds. Serenity manages to find her way to the set for the top floor and sees an automaton modeled after Abrianna. Anger then floods her mind. She shoots it several times and throws it into the wall. She then rushes toward it as she continues to shoot it. Once she reaches it, she hits it in the neck with the pistol, causing it to fall down. She pants through her teeth. Frieda's face then appears on a monitor. "Oooh! Pure, real rage! I love it!" She says. Serenity then picks the automaton up by the collar and slams it into the wall. The automaton then uses the tech that Abrianna used all those years ago to force her out of the window. She braces for impact but safely lands with a bounce. A trampoline was hidden under a hologram. "And... that's a wrap!" Frieda says with a laugh. "That was... surprisingly short." Serenity says, sitting up. "Well, turns out I'm not all that good at writing on the spot, so I'll just make this a short film." Frieda says. "Great. Does that mean I'm finally free to go?" Serenity asks, walking off of the trampoline. "Yep! Go on! Door's open!" Frieda says. "Oh, and you're gonna need to go on foot. The cars are set property." She adds. "Fine. Long as I get to get out of here." Serenity says. "Ta ta, Serenity! This has been so much fun!" Frieda says. Serenity scoffs and rolls her eyes, before running off. She runs for a bit, when suddenly she is forced against a wall. "I don't have long. This is one of the few places Abrianna can't observe. So just... listen." She hears a voice say. She then processes it as Frieda's. She nods slightly. Frieda then lets go of her arm, and Serenity turns back around to face her. "First off: sorry about that whole "show." I made a promise a long time ago, and I couldn't let Abrianna find out what I was really doing... With that out of the way... I got somewhere for you to go. I assume that "PAM" has a GPS function?" She says, pointing at PAM. "Um... Yeah." Serenity says. "Good. Get to Katashi." Frieda says. She then grabs her wrist and places a key in her hand. "That's the key to my motorcycle. Just keep going in that direction and you'll get to it." She says, flicking her head in the direction that Serenity was already running. "How do I know you're telling the truth?" Serenity asks. "Look, I know it's hard to trust me after all that. But I'm risking my free will by doing this. If she catches me, I'll end up like... the rest." Frieda says with a hint of fear in her voice. "So, please... Believe me." She says. Serenity is silent for a moment. She then sighs. "Okay. I believe you. Why do I need to get to Katashi?" She says. "Someone there wants to see you. Now, I gotta get going. Good luck on your journey." Frieda says with a wave, as she walks away. Serenity then continues running, and eventually she manages to find the motorcycle. A helmet was laying on the handle. She puts it on and starts to drive.