A headache slammed into Joan at full speed as she opened her eyes. Bright fluorescent lights of the central intelligence unit blinded her, and she squinted in response.
As her pupils dilated, she was able to make out two familiar figures standing in front of her: Li Bo and Genevieve.
She went to claw off his face, but her body wouldn't move. She tried moving her legs, but bindings held her down.
"What did you do?" Joan spat as she glanced at her surroundings.
She was encased in the cold metal of the time travel module and strapped in place with Titanium chains. The door of the module remained open as Li Bo and Genevieve stared at her.
She had been changed into the style of clothing from 50 years ago: urban techwear. Black cargo pants and a black GORE-TEX jacket shielded her sun-tanned skin.
Urban techwear was an avant-garde fashion choice in the 2010s but had a spike of popularity in the 2070s. Utilitarian clothing and minimalist colors characterized the style.
"Sorry, Lieutenant General. These are orders from above. You're going to complete the mission, whether you like it or not," Li Bo unempathetically said. His apology was empty, and Joan was able to sense his insincerity.
"Send me back in time. I dare you. I'll find your past self and chop your damn head off. Just watch me," Joan growled.
Li Bo laughed. The crow's feet sitting at the corner of his eye became more pronounced as his deep laugh echoed within the small confinements of the time travel module. "We've installed an AI chip into your brain. It'll guide you along with the mission, but if you step outside your boundaries…" Li Bo raised his hand in the shape of a gun to his temple. "Boom! You're gone."
He cackled, taking great pleasure in the way Joan's face distorted in anger. She spat in his face and thrashed against her bindings. "Let me go!"
Loud bangs from metal clashing against metal reverberated off the walls of the intelligence unit.
Li Bo disgustedly wiped his face clean with the back of his hand.
"I'm afraid that's not possible," Genevieve said as she pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. Changing the subject, she said, "The chip in your brain will become activated when you make it back in time. It's the most recent development in AI. We've programmed everything you need to know inside the chip. You may not be immortal anymore, but you still have a long life ahead of you. You'll be going to 2073, four years before Navier Barr, your creator, makes the first superhuman."
"Sorry, Lieutenant General," Li Bo repeated. The two took a step back and slammed the door of the time travel module closed on her.
She screamed and thrashed her body in a last-ditch attempt to free herself. But it was to no avail.
"Initiation complete," a robotic voice chimed in the module. "Beginning time travel in 10…"
Joan shrieked in anger and shook her head violently. "Li Bo! General! Stop this!"
"8… 7… 6…"
"Good luck, Lieutenant General," Li Bo's voice rang in her head.
"4… 3… 2…"
"I pray for your success."
"1… Launching."
A loud whir enveloped Joan as her vision went black. A dizzying headache shattered her skull, and fire seared through her body from the inside out. Her nerves twisted in pain, but when she tried to scream, nothing came from her mouth.
Lights began to flash and spin in front of her eyes. Out of nowhere, red spread across her vision, and alarms began to go off in Joan's head.
"Error… Error… Error…"
Fear bloomed in Joan as a robotic voice echoed the same word over and over again. Was she about to die?
Fear bloomed in Joan's heart, spreading its roots to conquer her whole body. Everything hurt, and she couldn't think straight.
Suddenly, a blue light blinded her and soft voices enveloped her. Gradually, the soft voices turned into a loud chatter, and Joan regained her sense of self again.
When she opened her eyes, she found herself sitting on a bench. In front of her was a busy road with cars zooming across. However, the style of cars was 50 years old. Square-shaped electric vehicles whirred in front of her. In 50 years, the 2020s car style would become popularized again.
Joan scanned her surroundings. She was sitting at a bus stop along with multiple other people. The sidewalk was full of pedestrians, most of which were dressed in urban techwear.
Joan cursed to herself. She didn't want to believe she had been sent 50 years into the past. It was a terrifying reality.
A ding startled Joan. She looked around to find the possible source, but couldn't find one. None of the other pedestrians seemed to have heard the ding, either.
"You're looking in the wrong place," an unfamiliar high-pitched voice chimed in her head, and Joan flinched in surprise.
Was this the chip Li Bo and Genevieve had mentioned?
"Hello, Joan Oaks. My name is Project: Kill."
A floating, blue, hairless mouse-like creature appeared in thin-air before her. The mouse was no larger than the palm of her hand and was slightly transparent. Along with it came a screen displaying her information.
[Host: Joan Oaks]
[Age: 22]
[Mission: Kill Navier Barr and continue the development of superhumans in his stead]
"If you do something deemed inappropriate, I have been given full authority to shut you down."
"Shut me down? Are you telling me you'll kill me if I do something you don't like?" Joan scoffed.
"That's correct."
Joan clenched her fists, feeling the familiar sting of her nails digging into her palms. Project: Kill would kill her right away if she refused to listen. But if she did, she'd at least be able to live a full life. She presumed completing the mission would be the better option for now.
"What are you?" Joan whispered, trying not to alert the people who were seated next to her on the bench.
"I'm Project: Kill. Your personal AI guide. I'm installed in the visual cortex at the back of your brain. Only you can see and hear me."
Joan raised her eyebrows. The technological advancements of her time were truly impressive.
"What was the error from before?"
The mouse put its paw on its chin before saying, "It seems you've accidentally been taken six years earlier than your expected arrival time. Right now, it's 2067."
Six years earlier?! If the bastards were going to send her back in time, at least do it right!
"Are you joking? This is a waste of time. What am I supposed to do in these six years?"
"I don't joke."
His answer made Joan's eyebrows furrow together, and her hand extended out to grab him. But her hand passed right through him.
"You don't exist. You're just in my head."
"It appears so."
Joan retracted her hand. She swore to herself that she'd rip off Li Bo's head before she died. He seemed to love installing things in her without her consent.
Joan groaned. So she had to wait ten years until she could kill Navier Barr because she had arrived six years earlier?
"Host, I've opened a new bank account and have given you a new identity. You are now registered as Rem Oaks. Age 16. No parents."
"You can do that?"
"Of course I can," Project: Kill said proudly. "The current cybersecurity system the government is using is deemed quite weak by the standards from 56 years from now. It's rather easy to break into it."
"Out of all the numbers you could've chosen, why 16?"
"Simple. Currently, Navier Barr is 16."
"What? But in ten years he's supposed to be a senior at Tsinghua University..."
Project: Kill placed his paw over his chin before saying, "According to the information I've been given, he enlists in the military for four years after high school to help pay for college."
With a screech, an old, blue bus slammed its brakes to a halt in front of her. The doors creaked open, and the people sitting next to Joan quickly stood to board.
"What do I do now?" Joan asked Project: Kill, who had now made its way onto her shoulder.
The screen which had once displayed her personal information abruptly reloaded.
[Guided Mission 1: Meet Navier Barr.]
"You should board the bus," Project: Kill suggested.