Three

22, 3, 2030

Ovic Inc. (Headquarters)

Abuja.

"What do you mean you can't find them?" The bald man in expensive yellow and green ankara suit bellowed. This man in particular happened to be his boss popularly known as Dr. Yomi. 

The young man, in black and green striped at the shoulders armor, stared. It obviously was not the first time his boss yelled at him letting spits fly. The small cleaning bot wiped the table separating the men before exiting the room. 

His boss slammed the table frustrated. "How did they escape?"

"Apparently Cosmo isn't the most amazing AI ever invented." The soldier sneered. 

Cosmo, his boss AI, fixed his best glare at the soldier. The asexual hologram made himself beside his boss lacing his fingers. 

"Curse Johnson's intelligence," His boss yelled again, "Scorpion, I want you to search the entire state again."

Scorpion gave a small nod of agreement and waited for more instruction. 

"But your exalted Grace," Cosmo said, "they would have left Osun by now. They know the government is after them. They wouldn't stay in that place anymore. I've been searching transaction records in Osun but none turned up. They would go to a place with less government security."

"Where would they go?" The boss asked. 

An hologram of the map of Nigeria appeared on the clear table. "They couldn't possibly go here or there," Cosmo pointed at the southern and eastern part of the country, "Lagos, Ondo, Delta are the only states they could have gone to."

"They can't travel far without having to make transaction so it's either Ondo or Lagos," The boss added, "Scorpion, go to Ondo. I will send another to Lagos."

Scorpion frowned. That was unusual. His boss trusted him with a lot of missions, even ones worse than this. 

"There is no time to waste, Scorpion. I need that project Johnson has. I want it. I will become a god. The discovery and invention of the soul transference room is beyond the imagination of anyone in this century. No more death for anyone."

"When we remove the soul from this feeble and fragile flesh of ours and transfer it into a body that lasts forever, I will be a Messiah. We will live forever." His boss raised his arms in the air and crackled like a maniac. 

Scorpion didn't betray any emotion as he regarded his boss. It wasn't even needed or asked for. All he had to do was kill and get paid. He didn't care what happened next as long as he got paid. 

His boss can have the world for he cares. The zeros just have to keep increasing in his bank account. 

"Who would go to Lagos, my King?" Cosmo addressed the man who had lost himself in self-praise.

"Third will go." 

Scorpion was taken aback. The project One Nine Two point Three popularly known as Third was the only technology his boss had successfully created but it wasn't as magnificent as Project Five One Three which was with Dr. Johnson. 

His boss must be joking. He can't possibly let that project out in the streets after what happened the last time. Scorpion clenched his jaw and watched him pace. 

"Third was the greatest soldier in her past life and she still is, she will be able to hunt down Five One Three," his boss said. "Kill Johnson and the others but bring Five One Three to me."

"Your Esteemed Grace, you have a call from Mr. President," Cosmo said. Scorpion silently stepped back out of view. 

The man let loose many curses before nodding for Cosmo to put him through, "Mr President. Good day to you, your Excellency."

"Dr. Yomi, what exactly is this experiment?" The President asked as his face came into view, "I don't want to waste arms and funds on empty space. The NSS told me Mr Johnson escaped with his family."

"A girl. The experiment Five One Three is a teenage girl. Doctor Johnson's daughter," His boss replied. 

Lagos State. 

11:49am. 

The automobile was scanned by sensors before it passed inspection. Alpha had informed them he subtly misdirected the sensors setting up another family name in the e-records. 

The Johnsons drove on. Sharon let out a sigh of relief when the sensors detected nothing. The automobile rode through the streets of Eko Atlantic at the East of Lagos. To the West was the Underwater City of Lagos. They went through another scan again before the automobile transformed into a auto-marine. 

"I bought an apartment ten kilometres away on the South in the Ebele local government, Jonathan street, number two." Alpha announced. 

"You did? Under whose name?" Sharon asked. 

"Yours." 

"What?" The entire family yelled. 

"Alpha, we are trying to hide not get caught." Ire exclaimed swiping away the holographic screen that played the history of Underwater City of Lagos. 

"I know that." Alpha replied calmly. 

"Alpha?" Her husband groaned in frustration. 

"I read Sharon's fingerprints and don't worry. I cleared your name and switched for another immediately."

Sharon scoffed at the AI's tenacity. 

Temi watched in awe as they descended into the water. There were designated roads with lights underwater. Auto-marines sped past them in different colours and sizes. 

The auto stopped in front of a rock. She watched her father type codes into the hologram on the dash panel, and a portion of the rock shifted. Lights turned on as the auto entered. The water drained as the auto settled on the smooth pearl ground. 

Temi stepped out of the vehicle in awe and Alpha came into view as an hologram of Dayo. 

"Finally, I can feel my legs." Ire kicked his legs. 

Though Temi couldn't understand how he felt, she was relieved not to see leather or sit in the car doing nothing. 

"I've accessed all software in the house." Alpha said with a smile. 

"You mean infiltrated, hacked." Ire said rolling his eyes and opened the door that led away from the garage to the main room. 

Every house in Nigeria came with an AI. They had to be switched on and programmed before they could function. 

Food was cooking when they came to the kitchen. 

"Alpha?" Her father called out, his brows furrowed his confusion. 

"So, I bought food too after purchasing the house. I also redrew 500, 000 naira in cash." Alpha put on an innocent smile. "I promise I cleared your names after."

Sometimes, Alpha seemed to be more human than she was. 

"There are no NSS for miles. I made sure to shake them off. I'm not the best AI in the world for no reason." The gas cooker automatically switched off. Temi observed her mother who served the family their meal. 

"Your ego is much bigger now." Her mother remarked before taking a bite of her fried rice.

Alpha dramatically gasped bringing his hand to his chest, "You still love me."

"No, we don't," Ire exclaimed. A small smile lingered on the sides of his mouth. He looked so cute, Temi had to resist the urge to pinch his cheeks. 

Alpha gave him a sour look making Temi giggle. Temi put another spoonful of rice in her mouth under the watchful gaze of her father. 

Dayo had created a synthetic digestive system for her. She felt her father's gaze on her as ate.

"I'm fine." Temi said in a low tone. 

"What did you say?" Her father asked.

"Daddy, I'm fine. I'm not falling ill any time soon because you are the best doctor in the world." She beamed at her father.

Ire watched the exchange and couldn't help the jealousy that crawled up his chest. He hardly spent time with his dad except for that one time his father read Binti to Temi and Ire. He downed the rest of his water and got to his feet. He followed the green lights Alpha shone to his room. 

Closing the door, he peeled his clothes off his body. The room was bare, well lit and smelled like apples. The scent must have been Alpha's doing knowing how much he hated the tangy chemical smell. A small well made bed sat in the middle of the room made. 

He entered the bath and showered away the sweat from his body. He towelled himself as he stepped out. His Celo chirped. The small round soap stone-like advanced phone danced on the bed beside new folded clothes. Ire placed a finger on his Celo. Reading his fingerprint, the Celo hummed and an hologram jumped out. A voice message from his clingy and cheating girlfriend asked why he moved away from home.

 He rolled his eyes and replied, "None of your business. Jessica, let's break up. I can't keep dating someone who sees other guys."

Osun, Nigeria.

Third smirked as a message from Ire Johnson appeared on the Celo. She scanned the message receptor and pinpointed its location. The location where the Johnsons were hiding. 

Saving it to memory, she let it drop and crushed the Celo with her black heeled boots. She walked over the bleeding female body that laid in the middle of the lit pink bedroom.