Upgraded

They came for her. She was there for you when no one else would support you. You owe her everything.

You follow the GPS in her phone to a facility that you never noticed before.

The lift only goes up, and every floor is the same: a corridor with alcoves on either side. You hear the whirring of machines from every alcove, along with the cries and screams of countless innocents.

As you check each floor, the machinery doesn't whir as often, the screams are fewer and softer.

The lift opens to a silent corridor. You check every alcove.

You almost find her, but she is gone. Her body stands ramrod straight, entirely unmoving. Her face is blank, and she stares at you with unblinking blue sensors where her human eyes used to be.

Her lips move as she is otherwise entirely still. "I have been upgraded," she says in a synthesized monotone.

"Come with me. Be with me. Do not resist the upgrade."

You replace her in the alcove.

She stares blankly at you, unmoving.

Your upgrade begins.