Five hours later, Anna hadn’t moved from her desk.

She munched on strawberry after strawberry, ignoring the dull ache that spread throughout her stomach.

In her head, her thoughts blared as if passed through a sound amplifier.

Hurt people.

Use my spores to hurt people.

Not Leon. Not the soldiers. Ordinary citizens.

"How long will you sit there?" AI Orchid asked, annoyance lacing every word.

Anna ignored her. Just as she’d done for the past five hours.

This is all my fault. I shouldn’t have asked for a guidebook! I shouldn’t have asked for anything at all!

"Can’t you change the task?!" Anna rounded on AI Orchid, her juice slicked hands clasped together in a plea. "I can’t hurt people! You know I can’t do it!"

The look on AI Orchid’s face was acidic enough to curdle milk. "Would you rather carry out the task here, in the palace?"

Anna shook her head wildly. "No! That’s...I don’t want to do it! Can’t you change it?!"

"Fine. If you don’t want to do it, you’ll get an automatic rejection when you apply for a goal change."

Anna gasped, her voice rattling in her chest like a loose doorknob. "You...you’re..." 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"What will it be?" AI Orchid waved her hand and pulled up two glowing screens. One had the Spore task, and the other had the glaring red penalty.

Anna’s heart thumped furiously. So much that she feared she’d burst a blood vessel and die, hopefully opting out of this wicked task.

"There has to be another way..."

"You don’t get it, do you?" AI Orchid waved the screens away and stepped closer to Anna. "You are the villainess. You don’t have a sad backstory, your parents weren’t evil to you, your lover didn’t break your heart, no. You had everything you wanted. You had the perfect life and still you became a villainess. Why hasn’t it clicked yet?"

"I’m not the villainess. I’m just a fucking office slave who got tangled up in your bullshit!"

"You know, most people in your position would be happy to play villainess, even for a tiny while. They’d give anything to have power, even if it was fake."

"I’m not..." Anna started to say and trailed off.

AI Orchid moved, taking calm steps around her in circles. "Really? You want to say that you never thought of getting back at everyone who wronged you?"

Anna clenched her fists hard. Her claws sliced into her palm and blood dripped onto the marble floors.

"Tell me, Anna Carson," AI Orchid went on. She leaned down to Anna’s ear, so close and so real that Anna swore she felt warm breath on her skin. "If you returned to your work right now, with these gifts, would you spare them?"

A strangled sound came out of Anna’s throat.

"Or will you let your spores run purple and choke them all to death?"

"No!" Anna screamed, shoving her away. Her hands only met air. She spun around, her chest heaving as her eyes cut icy daggers at AI Orchid. "I am nothing like you! I’m not evil and...and rotten to the fucking core! Don’t ever rope me in with the likes of you!"

AI Orchid chuckled. It was a lifeless sound, more machine than human. "You still don’t get it, do you?"

Anna ran her fingers through her hair and tugged hard. "That’s it. I’m done. I’m not playing your stupid game anymore! You can rot! You hear me? Rot!" She ran over to her desk and pulled out a small shard of glass she’d been saving. She held it to her throat, her hands trembling so badly the glass nearly slipped.

AI Orchid watched with the cold detachment of a webcam. "Go on." She urged. "Do it."

"You think I won’t?!"

The AI shrugged. "That will make it what? Your two hundred and twenty seventh attempt?"

At her statement, Anna’s face turned white.

"What..." she whispered, her voice cracking.

"Go on. Maybe now you’ll have the guts to do it."

A hundred emotions rushed through Anna at once.

How did she know? I’ve never told anyone...I never...how did she...

She couldn’t think straight. Couldn’t make a move. She couldn’t even blink.

Her eyes watered, but it wasn’t from pain or hurt. She wasn’t even crying. Moisture just filled her eyes, hot and sharp like chili.

In that moment, Anna felt, for the first time in both her past and new life, the burning desire to rip a person to shreds.

The glass in her hand turned warm. A bitter laugh punched out of her lungs, the sound so foreign that she didn’t know it was her. She felt calm, dangerously so, all her anger washed away and converted into something she didn’t have a name for.

"I’m going to kill you." She said with a bright smile. "I don’t know how. Matter of fact the world never found the kill switch for AI but, I’m going to kill you. And I will make it painful."

Somewhere in the cold depths of AI Orchid’s eyes, a tiny light went on.

A furious set of knocks on the door made Anna turn away from her.

"Your highness! My apologies for interrupting! There’s been an attack!" Bella’s high pitched voice whispered.

"Come in."

Bella rushed into the room and went down on her knees in front of Anna, head bowed and hands clasped together in her lap. "I overheard General Leon and some commanders talking about it. They said there was an attack on the western settlements outside the palace and..."

"And what?"

"I... I’m not sure I should say it..."

"Say it, Bella. That’s what I hired you for."

Bella shifted on her knees, her shoulders brought up to her ears as if she expected to be scolded, or worse.

"The General said it was your fault...that...that you didn’t fix the detectors and they found out about the attack late. And also..." Bella trailed off, lifting her head just an inch to peer at Anna’s face. The expression she saw made her squeak and bow her head back down. "He said that...that because you called off the General Games...the army is um...like a headless...a headless soldier."

Anna rubbed her temples. "Fuck."

"Excellent." AI Orchid whispered in her ear. "Now that earns you points."

Anna ignored her.

"What is happening now?"

"General Leon is planning an Expedition. He said they’ll leave in an hour."

"Good. We have an hour to get ready."

At that, Bella’s head shot up. "Get ready?"

"Yes. It’s my fault this happened, don’t you think I should fix it?"

"Absolutely not!" AI Orchid snapped. "If anything you should sabotage their expedition!"

"Will that earn me points?"

"It was a suggestion, you still have a pending task."

Anna turned to her and smiled a fake, sugary smile. "If it doesn’t earn me points, I’m not interested in your advice."

Bella blinked, a perplexed look on her brow. Did the Princess just talk to the air? "Your highness?"

Anna turned to her. "Well get up! We have things to do!"

An hour later, Anna was dressed and ready to go. Deep down, she really hoped she could help out this time, even with the massive task looming over her head.

But as much as she hated to admit it, the daily outfit chosen by AI Orchid was perfect. Anna felt like a true princess, listening to the swoosh of her gown, and the tinkling of jewels hanging from her hair and cat ears. Her orchid marks glowed with life, and her skin was dewy. She looked in the mirror and couldn’t believe what she saw.

As much as she secretly liked it, she would never admit it out loud to AI Orchid.

Now that the System had taken a somewhat physical form, Anna could no longer communicate with it mentally. She had to risk looking like a mad woman just to ask a question or speak to AI Orchid. It was fine for her if she was alone, but being outside was another story.

"You should be working on your task." AI Orchid hissed as Anna marched down to the barracks to meet with the expedition.

"Don’t talk to me," Anna hissed under her breath.

"You don’t give me commands. It’s the other way around. And I’m telling you now, turn around."

Anna didn’t reply, her entire focus on the task ahead of her.

How do I even fix this? I don’t know anything about detectors and what nots. Should I ask her?

She glanced to her side.

Hell fucking no! That pretentious bitch can suck it.

Suddenly, Anna screeched to a halt. "Wait a damn minute." She turned around again and looked at AI Orchid, really looked at her. From top to bottom. "The fuck are you wearing?"

AI Orchid did the most graceful ballerina spin ever. "Like it? I bet you’re jealous as fuck now."

Anna didn’t just like it. She wanted it!

AI Orchid was dressed in a simple pair of jeans and crop top, her hair styled to perfection and hanging down her shoulders in perfect silver waves, a pair of white sneakers in her feet, tiny and elegant jewelry on her neck and wrists. She looked like the description of a rich it-girl, the one that went to an Ivy League, ran five businesses, and still had time to go to the gym and hang out with friends every weekend.

"How is that even possible?" Anna gasped, her eyes green with envy. She couldn’t imagine how comfortable she’d be if she just had some jeans and a simple top.

AI Orchid rolled her eyes. "I’m an AI, duh."

That snapped Anna out of her jealous phase. "An AI bitch."

A loud shout up ahead jerked Anna, and reminded her of her goal. She rushed up ahead and caught the expedition right about to leave.

"Stop right— woah..."

She hadn’t stopped to think about means of transportation in this world. Seeing cars was something she was not prepared for.

With an excited squeal, she ran over to the closest one and touched it. "Is this a real car?!"