'Why did you take so much time? The officers left long back…' Slaughter screeched.
"I waited near the gate to make sure that they actually left," Hastin whispered.
He never lied to anyone until now. He felt suffocated because of all the lies he was forced to tell everyone today. He thought to lie down on his bed but noticed the girl was still sleeping on the bed.
"Why is the girl still not awake? Is she really alive?" Hastin yawped.
'She will be awake, Quietus. Just that the more you delay in writing the story, the sooner all of them will starve to death.' Slaughter responded and started to laugh like a maniac.
Hastin couldn't say or argue anymore. He did think that if he delayed, then the app might get bored and let everyone go. He soon realized how naive his thoughts were.
He walked towards his desk and opened the laptop. A message which was sent by the app was being displayed on the screen.
'I hope you liked my gift. After all the hard work you did so far, I thought you deserved something as an appreciation. The gift which I meant is the girl. Her name is Akemi. She will do all the work for you. I only expect you to write, write, and write. I hope you do not have a problem with my arrangement, even if you have any I do not care. Since you are obedient so far, I decided to not punish you this one time for the mistake you committed. But keep in mind that this is your last and final warning. If you do anything foolish once again, then not only those victims who will die miserably. You can also fairly accompany them on their last journey. I am sure you are not half-witted like them. Remember until you obey me, you will reach the fame you deserve. I am already running out of patience and just try to refrain from doing anything funny again."
Hastin read that out aloud and covered his face using his hands.
'Activating Akemi as per the instructions from the App', Slaughter uttered.
Akemi woke up from her deep sleep. A blue line appeared around her head.
"Anata wa dare desu ka? Naze Koko ni iru no in…( Who are you? Why are you here?)" Before she could finish the sentence, her brain was short-circuited by the app. The Blue line around her head turned into purple and then red. It started to blink for a few minutes and then disappeared.
Akemi's eyes became lifeless when the program was being installed into her brain. She was now completely under the control of the app.
"What are you doing to her? Stop! I promise you, I will not do anything against your wishes or even be unbiddable. I will follow whatever you order me to do. Please, let her go" Hastin begged.
'Quietus, do not worry. The app has developed a system which can be used to control human beings once it is deployed into their brain. I think nothing would happen to her as per theory.'
"Theory? Didn't you test it before deploying?"
'That is what we are doing now, Quietus. Be patient. Hopefully, her brain must not be busted because of this installation.' Slaughter said calmly.
Hastin felt like puking when he imagined her brain being busted and spilled all over his room. He ran to the bathroom and shut the door. He dropped down on the floor but his mind was filled with the girl's lifeless eyes.
After staying inside the bathroom for almost half an hour, he opened the door and walked out. He saw that Akemi had gotten down from the bed and started to inspect the room. Her eyes were clear and she looked like an innocent kid.
Looking at the half-torn dress around her body and the way Akemi smiling at him made Hastin feel creeped out. It was completely different from the time she woke up and shouted, just a few minutes before.
"Hello, Quietus! I am Akemi. I will be your personal companion from now on. I will take care of all your needs and provide you support throughout the journey of your writing. I will help you with emotional and physical support so that you won't be distracted while writing your book. It is nice to meet you" Akemi spoke like a robot in English and bowed down to greet him.
Hastin just nodded his head and moved away with terror. He still was not sure how much the app-controlled her. What if the app did not like the way he was writing the story and asked her to stab him with a knife. Or instructs here to torture him in other ways?
He moved back slowly and walked towards the kitchen. Then he opened the refrigerator and took a bottle of water. After he closed the fridge, he noticed Akemi standing close to him. The water bottle fell down from his hand because of the shock he received.
"Quietus, you just have to ask me! I will do everything for you. Why are you wasting your time instead of writing?" Akemi asked with a childish voice.
Hastin picked up the bottle which he dropped a few seconds before. He walked away ignoring her. He was definitely scared out of his wits but did not show it to her.
Even after being ignored by him, Akemi still followed him like a cute little puppy. He finally felt odd and stopped walking. Being not with anyone around for so long, he couldn't get used to being followed by someone so closely.
"If I want something, I will call you immediately. Can you just sit on the sofa until I call you?"
"Ok, Quietus." Akemi turned around and walked towards the sofa obediently.
"Also, can you stop calling me Quietus? My name is Hastin." Hastin said with hesitation as he was not sure if she would understand what he said or not!
"Ok, Hastin"
Hearing her reply, Hastin stared at Akemi as if he did not hear her correctly.
"What did you call me?"
"Hastin! Isn't your name Hastin?"
"Yes! My name is Hastin! Hastin, it is. Good! You are very good"
"Thank you, Hastin"
Hastin looked at the dress she was wearing and thought to buy her a few new sets. He was not sure what a girl would need, so he decided to instruct her to buy them herself online.
But first, she needs some food. He was not sure how long that app made her starve.
"Would you like some pasta? I know how to cook western dishes but not others. I am not sure what you would like to eat, so if you tell me I will order the food for you online." Hastin said.
"Oh! Do not worry about cooking, Hastin! I know how to cook. The app has installed all the cuisines into my brain and the instructions. As I said before, I will do everything for you. You just have to concentrate on your writing."
Again it goes back to writing once again. He even thought he would start to hate writing if Akemi says that once more.
"I will write but tell me have you ever cooked in your life?"
Akemi thought for some time and said with a confused voice, "I don't know. I cannot recall what I was doing even yesterday. My memory is completely blank. Oh! Also, I wanted to ask you about something before. If your name is Hastin, then what is Akemi my name?"
Hastin now understood that the app has deleted all the previous memories of Akemi and rewrote it with what the app felt necessary. He did not know how to explain everything to her. And even if he did, what if the app did not want her to know.