Transformers: Survival of Defective Products

Chapter 38 is not a coincidence

In the following days, the methods used by the gladiator changed.

This time, the first problem was with permissions.

She used to be able to enter and exit the arena backstage smoothly; the guards would at most glance at her and then let her through. But that day, as usual, she followed Zhen Tianzun there, and just as she reached the recognition gate, a new verification layer popped up on her forearm terminal.

The identity verification was done again, the background activity range was reconfirmed, and the temporary stay permission had to be checked again. The whole process wasn't long, but it just happened to get stuck in front of her and Zhen Tianzun, making her suddenly feel like some unstable part that needed to be re-evaluated.

The vector stood there, the optical mirror staring at the interface, without saying a word.

Zhen Tianzun stood to the side, first glancing at the extra confirmation items on her terminal, then looking up at the cold light above the recognition gate.

"What?" he asked in a low voice. "Have they suddenly started playing by the rules backstage today?"

The staff member standing there had a very professional expression on his face, and his answers were very standard.

"Routine system adjustments have been made, and several new entry/exit confirmation options have been added."

It was as clean as a metal plate that had been wiped three times.

The vector almost burst out laughing on the spot.

She looked down and pressed the last confirmation button, and the interface finally opened.

"That's good." She looked up, her tone flat but with a hint of sarcasm. "Should we add a spark fluctuation verification in the future, and also test if I have any antisocial tendencies today?"

The staff member seemed oblivious to her displeasure, maintaining his impeccable demeanor.

"It's not impossible if future system updates require it."

What's going on? Even your Tai Chi is so bland and unnatural.

Zhen Tianzun snorted coldly from the side, clearly too lazy to waste any more words on this staff member who was obviously being used as a scapegoat, and walked inside.

The vector followed, and after taking a few steps, whispered, "You figured it out, didn't you?"

Zhen Tianzun didn't look at her, keeping pace with her: "Pretty obvious."

"What's this?" Vector frowned. "Let's start with the small things and see if I get so annoyed that I make a mistake?"

"almost."

"So sinister."

"If they were fair and square, they wouldn't be the gladiator management."

Over the next two days, similar incidents occurred twice more.

Once, she was filling in for the logistics department on the periphery. The supply records that were originally arranged suddenly had a page missing for no reason. When she went to check them again, there was an unfamiliar machine standing next to her. It was very helpful in reminding her that the records of the back office and the periphery had been checked more strictly recently, and that she, who was "close to the back office", should be more careful.

Another time, however, it made her a little angry.

She emerged from the iron fortress, only to find the lower-level passage she usually took temporarily blocked off, with a sign indicating equipment maintenance and advising her to take a longer route. She stood there, staring at the cold, glowing sign that read "Blocked."

After her anger subsided, she immediately began taking notes, checking for any new surveillance cameras she hadn't seen before.

She couldn't expect management to openly oppose her, which would be even more disgusting. The cold, hard verification and scheduling records were filled with details of targeting that only the parties involved would know.

-

That afternoon she went to Red Spider's place as usual.

As soon as she entered the technical area, she saw Red Spider standing in front of the main stage, with several layers of parameter diagrams hanging in mid-air that gave her a headache just looking at them.

Without turning around, he spoke first: "You arrived just in time."

"I'm not like some machines that like to use their assistants and then forget about them." Vector put the data panel aside, walked over to look at the projectors, and asked, "What are we going to watch today?"

Red Spider then glanced at her sideways: "Look at you."

Pointer vector: "..."

She stood there for a second, then her eyelids twitched.

"Can you please speak more normally?"

"I've already made myself perfectly normal," Starscream said coldly. "Do you expect me to sound more like I'm planning to sell you for parts?"

The vector's lips twitched.

This machine's mouth has always had its own style.

Red Spider zoomed one of the projections closer, gesturing for her to stand over there.

"In the last few routine scans, several sets of feedback have been consistently incorrect," he said. "It's troublesome."

"Am I the one who's annoyed, or the data?"

"Yes, we have them all."

The vector sensor was too lazy to argue with him, so he obediently walked to the detection position and put his left forearm on it.

When the Red Spider was adjusting its scan parameters, its movements were as elegant yet impatient as ever. The vector generator stood there, watching the layers of structure unfold above it, and suddenly realized that this scan was finer and deeper than usual.

She glanced at him sideways: "You swept a little too much today."

Red Spider didn't even look up: "Now you know how to read things."

"So I was right?"

"When have you ever not said what you think is right?" Red Spider replied coldly, but his hands didn't stop moving. "Shut up and stand still."

The vector remained stationary, while the optical mirror continued to focus on the continuously updating structural readings of the several layers.

He was looking at something that wasn't just for inspection and repair. He was comparing and eliminating possibilities.

After a while, Red Spider finally put away the projection and casually tossed her a conclusion.

"Your body still doesn't quite look like a normal sample."

Vector crossed his arms: "What do you mean by that comment?"

"Speak the facts," Red Spider sneered. "Do you think I don't know about the strangeness of your machine?"

He looked up at her, his eyes still sharp enough to catch her flaws in the mirror, but there was clearly something else in the shadows.

"There are a few things on your body that, from the very beginning, couldn't be explained by conventional repairs." He paused, as if considering whether to put it more bluntly, "Right now, all I can confirm is that it wasn't a misreading."

The vector didn't speak at first.

She always knew that Red Spider wouldn't really treat her as an ordinary mecha in need of repair; after all, it was her own intention to let the other party vaguely discover her existence.

"So?" she asked, "you're planning to send me away to be taken apart and studied now?"

Red Spider seemed to think her statement was low-level, and its wing flaps twitched slightly.

"Your understanding of research is still at a very primitive level," he said. "And if we were really going to dismantle it, you wouldn't be standing here talking to me right now."

...Okay, that makes sense.

The vector looked at him.

"So what do you want to do now?"

Red Spider stared at her for a while, then suddenly gave a very light, slightly indifferent laugh.

The vectoring fin drooped slightly as well.

"Find a better machine to watch this kind of thing and help me check the conclusions."

The vector frowned.

"What kind of cross-comparison are you going to do with me?"

"Don't give me that look that says I'm going to pack you up and put you up for auction." Red Spider's tone was impatient. "It's just that there are some things I'm currently lacking reference for."

"So who are you planning to contact?"

Red Spider didn't answer.

He looked down and recompressed the previous abnormal feedback into a small encrypted fragment, then casually dragged it into another interface with higher privileges.

The vector stood still, watching his series of movements, and the alarm in the brain module became clearer and clearer.

Before she could ask any more questions, Red Spider had already put away the encrypted fragment, speaking casually as if nothing had happened: "Today, organize that old structure diagram for the third layer. Also, review the compatibility logic I gave you the day before yesterday. You didn't understand it well enough last time."

Vector: "...You changed the subject way too abruptly!"

"It's because your brain modules can't keep up." Red Spider gave her a cool glance. "Stop talking nonsense and get to work."

She stood there, pursed her lips, and ultimately didn't press the matter. Red Spider didn't want to talk about it now; she couldn't find the answer no matter what she did, so she decided not to bother herself.

-

When she came out of the technical area in the evening, it was already dark.

As usual, she didn't take the easiest route, but instead followed the safer path she had memorized over the past few days. Halfway there, her terminal lit up.

[I found a supplementary note for the set of old wartime mecha serial numbers you asked about yesterday. Are you coming tomorrow?]

She glanced at it and saw it was Orion. Seeing the ID made her feel much better.

She quickly replied: "Okay, I'll go tomorrow. Thanks."

After sending the message, she put the terminal away.

Look, this is what a civilized machine looks like!

Her sense of "civilization" didn't last long before the terminal gave another very slight tremor.

This time, when she looked down, she couldn't laugh anymore.

Transmitter: Zhen Tianzun.

The content is also very short.

【return.】

Something came up.

The vector paused for a moment.

She stared at the two lines of text for two seconds, then replied without thinking.

[Replying.]

【What's wrong now?】

A few seconds passed before they replied.

The arena has also come looking for me.

My eyelid twitched.

It seems these planes are busy on both sides.

She put away the terminal, and the vehicle mode appeared instantly upon her thought. The magnetic levitation component at the bottom made a soft sound, and the next second it was already skimming along the ground.

As the wind swept past the sides of the boat, she repeatedly reviewed the events in her mind.

The arena began to test her by probing the procedures.

Red Spider noticed something even more unusual here.

Now, the management is continuing their search for Zhen Tianzun.

The vectoring increased the speed further, and the hull drew a cold, bright trail close to the ground at low altitude.

well.

She wanted to see what kind of trouble these guys were planning to cause next.