Chapter 4 Ohm's Spaceship

Ohm’s spaceship was so massive that it was impossible to imagine it being made by Earth’s AIs. Its frame was fused into the moon’s surface, and no human had ever stepped inside it.

Until now.

Red, Call, and three other passengers boarded the transport ship heading toward it: two middle-aged men and a small boy. They sat far from Red, Call, and Ursula, their faces tight with worry as the vessel rose through what remained of Earth’s atmosphere.

From afar, Earth looked like a cream-coloured sphere—no seas, no forests. Only endless sand.

When they neared the moon, Ohm’s ship came fully into view. It was silver and oval, like a giant hot-air balloon with wings stretching out from both sides.

Call pressed closer to the small window.

“Did you see that? The ship is huge,” he whispered.

“If it’s that big,” Red sighed, “why did the AIs leave everyone inside those capsules?”

“Because Ohm’s was used as an arena ship.”

“What arena? Call, you still haven’t told me anything.”

“If I knew the details, I’d tell you.” He rubbed his neck in frustration. Ingo at the hospital only explained a bit. They said we’d be fighting in an arena inside Ohm’s ship.”

Red let out a weak laugh. “You’re joking, right? Fighting who? The AIs?”

Call shook his head helplessly. “No idea. But if we are… what chance do we even have? They’re built almost perfectly.”

A chill crept into Red’s chest. Was this what Jeremiah foresaw? Did he give Ingo authority to continue whatever mission they had started?

If the AIs had truly gone rogue—if the “arena” was meant to slaughter humans—then humanity had no hope. Humans couldn’t win against AIs. They would be wiped out.

Transport ships from every direction converged toward Ohm’s vessel. Red could hardly blink. The closer they came, the more breathtaking the ship became.

Through translucent decks, she could see AIs moving in the corridors. Troy and Ingo were among them, their bodies now tinted in glowing cyan—something Red had never seen before.

The transport ship passed through a gate and touched down on a landing pad marked with white lights. As soon as the door opened, Red, Call, the other passengers, and Ursula stepped outside.

More people were arriving from other ships. The number varied; some ships carried dozens, others had only a few.

A glowing path on the floor led toward a smaller gate. Red and Call followed the crowd up metal steps that clanged rhythmically under their feet.

People carried their personal robots—Feline and Equus types floated with winged attachments, while the Canine units looked especially intimidating. But even they seemed startled by Ursula. No one else had a robot like her; strange, enormous, and completely unique.

Red and Call drew attention at first, but soon the crowd’s focus shifted to something far more striking: the humanoids, half-robot, half-human people.

Red had heard of them but never seen one in person. These were individuals who had lost body parts to accidents or congenital issues, rebuilt with robotic components, just like Red.

But this was her first time seeing people who looked fully human and fully machine at once.

Including the young man who stared at her with icy eyes.

He was tall and lean, with death-pale skin and long black clothing. His hair was a dark purple-black, bangs falling to the bridge of his nose.

Red’s heart kicked hard in her chest. Someone who is strikingly handsome, looking at her like that—cold, unreadable.

“Horrible,” Call muttered, shivering.

“You mean the humanoids?” Red asked.

“Yeah, kind of. They’re scary,” he whispered.

They continued through a narrow hallway and a brightly lit corridor until they reached the threshold of a massive hall. Thousands of people were gathered inside.

Everyone looked lost, afraid, uncertain of what was coming.

“Your mask battery’s almost empty,” Call pointed out. “You can breathe fine here. The air’s cleaner.”

Red checked, Call was right. She removed the mask and powered it off, about to tuck it into the backpack on Ursula’s wrist.

“Let me hold that,” Call offered.

Before she could respond, the last groups of people entered, the door slammed shut, and the hall fell into a stunned silence.

On a raised platform, six Troy units stood guard over a holographic screen.

Viz appeared, an AI with no versions or copies. She controlled every program and technological system.

Viz had a feminine frame, a slim and elegant face, silver eyes, and pale silver lips. Unlike other AIs, she looked uncannily human.

“Hello and welcome to Ohm. This is the Savage Glory arena. Those who survive this will be awarded the most valuable reward. Live in peace on planet Minerva,” Viz announced, her voice echoing through the hall.

Red and Call looked at each other in confusion.

Planet Minerva? No one here had ever heard of it.

“The fate of all humans on Earth is in your hands. You will determine whether they will live together on Minerva or sleep there eternally.”

“Is she crazy?” Red whispered.

“Technically, an AI doesn’t go crazy unless something breaks,” Call muttered. “Maybe there’s a system error.”

“She needs a reboot,” Red grumbled, though unease twisted in her stomach. None of this made sense.

“More than ten thousand people have assembled here, and I am thankful for your participation. Yet, just a thousand warriors are required to compete for the throne of Savage Glory.”

A section of the floor suddenly sank. Red stepped back as tall metal bars rose from below, like fences from an old playground.

Red and Call exchanged wide-eyed looks.

“What are we supposed to do with this?” Call asked, gripping the cool metal.

Confused murmurs spread across the hall. Some people even laughed—it felt absurd. Why bring up fences?

But Red’s instincts pricked. Something was wrong. She scanned the materials, the layout, every detail.

Call stared at her. “Why is your left eye glowing red?”

“I’m half-robot,” Red answered shortly, still focused.

Her unease deepened, but she wasn’t sure why. The fences? Viz’s tone? The layout of the hall? Something wasn’t right.

“Without spending any more time, we have to arrange a place for the chosen one,” Viz said. “And it will begin, right now.”

Red and Call froze, staring at each other in shock.