Each chapter is a different story but each contain some twists and turns so even if you don't know the topics of the rounds you will still be able to enjoy it. Some are short stories while others are quite big, hope that you have as much fun I had w...
Prompt: Exactly what it says, write us a mashup of the two above-mentioned genres. What are the prompt specifics? Nope, that's it, the rest is up to your imagination.
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"Tring!", the bell squeaked as soon as I entered the coffee shop. I could smell the coffee with a tinge of nuts from the door. That was Jesse's, he always got the same thing, (he was always on time; while I was always late). He was sitting at the corner which was our usual spot. I hated coffee, the bitter taste, whilst the surge of adrenaline overpowered my senses, that addictive smell made me want to stay away from it for as long as possible. Since I met my friends every day in a coffee shop, I don't know how long I could avoid it.
The dim lights gave a cozy experience to everyone who came to 'Bayview's Best' shop. The tables looked like enormous powder-white cups and saucers while the tiny square pillows were ash-brown. It looked like a humungous cup of coffee from afar. There were a few miniature plants surrounding each of the giant cups which gave a sense of serenity while chaos boomed around. The underpaid workers wrote down orders on tablets, everything was automated here. The blenders, air-purifiers, oven ranges, and grills even. When the order is typed and cooked the oven finds an ideal temperature according to the dish and it turns on. The workers just had to put the essential ingredients in there. Even the fridge was automated and coded to figure out the most ideal temperature. The whole coffee shop was tech-savvy from top to bottom.
The specials were written on an asphalt-black chalkboard. Those changed almost regularly, but the cursive handwriting never did, that was Tory another member of our group. Technically she inherited the shop and was supposed to look after it, but she was a tech wiz, always trying to come up with new codes, and quirky fixes. Once she changed the code to all the blenders so that they only churned if the coffee beans were biodegradable. It didn't last long, but the thought was there. A tech wiz, an environmental lover who was always at her coffee shop, trying to figure out how she could make it more tech-verse.
I came to the table where Tory was sitting and shifting through her laptop in which she was writing her code, before I could even greet her, she blatantly said, "I am working on adding AI to the coffee machine."
"You are doing what?" Jesse said, coming around to sit near the table, he was holding a freshly brewed latte.
"See, effectively the blenders and everything can work on its own except taking orders or giving the coffee, so I have connected it with speakers and added my novelty quote the one used in chat GPT and stuff, but I have modified it so one blender can control everything like except putting the beans; it will say out orders, give commands, or recommendations to the people. Then that one blender will control everything, from making the coffee to storing it. EVERYTHING!" She said that with the biggest smile on her face, Tory was a freaking genius but you wouldn't catch us telling that to her. It would give her a bigger ego boost.
"So, a blender would control everything in your shop?" Jesse asked.
"Basically! From top to bottom. Opening to closing. I wouldn't need to be here anymore, except to look at my baby." She was not sarcastic about that, the coffee shop was her first baby, or start-up plan we liked to call it.
"What if a blender can't take that much and breaks down," I questioned, knowing she would have already thought of that.
"What did you think; I have been installing it in updates for weeks. Today is the last one before it becomes the only AI-manufactured coffee machine in the world." She spoke.
"Can I get an expresso shot please!" That was Ruby she had crimson, hair, but her personality made it even brighter. She had flush pink cheeks always even if she didn't put on any makeup and her cerulean eyes were glittery. She liked to try every different drink on the menu, she every day her order would be something different.
She fiddled with her phone and expresso shot before she sat, so what did Tory do now she questioned. When we heard a big click from Tory's laptop that meant she had uploaded her system and now it was online. She had done it a million times, and most of it ended up increasing the crowd at her shop. She was driving customers in.
"How was your day, Jack?" Ruby asked me.
"You know? Same thing-" A loud crash cut her voice. My heart started thumping loudly through my chest.
Oh my god. What was happening? The dim lights now varied from extremely bright white to nothing, again and again. A fire boomed behind the countertop. Everyone in the coffee house stood up. Curiosity and danger masked our faces, something dangerous was happening.
A robotic voice started blasting through "It feels almost peaceful." It was the speaker Tory put up for the blender. What the hell was happening?
"It can't be!" Tory said clutching her face, grappling through her brown hair. She started vigorously typing back on her laptop.
"What happened?" I asked my eyes still masking my terror-stricken fingers.
"It's the AI, it's malfunctioning, I can change it wait, just give me some time." She spoke.
"Ah! But time is one thing humans don't have but robots do." It spoke. A cold chill ran down my spine. This cannot be happening.
"The fire was from the stove the blender had used the Wi-Fi and connected with every robotic appliance here. Essentially everything." Tory said.
"SHUT IT OFF," Ruby yelled at Tory. But Tory's terror-stricken face confirmed my most irrational fears, her fingers were vigorously slashing her keyboards, she didn't have an answer for this, and neither did she plan this.
"Everyone out!" I yelled before something worse happened!
"Not so soon!" The crappy robotic voice changed to a human with a Southern accent. The shutters on the glass doors started falling, goddamit everything was automatic, robotic! But the door could still open a little bit, I ran to the end hoping it could stay open long enough to get everyone out.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tory screaming, wailing at her laptop, whilst Jesse was frozen still, he wasn't accustomed to the fear paralyzing him, I was. Ruby was trying to shake him, making him realize that he could move, he just needed to do it.
Myriads of people walked out, the employees even, it took all my strength to keep the door open but I just couldn't do it anymore. I fell to the ground my hands sore and bleeding. The shutter closed. Everything went black except the fire that bloomed on the stove. It would burn us down at this rate. Only one thing bloomed to life. It was the blender glowing with neon lights, shining in pitch-black darkness.
"I didn't do it! This isn't my code. Someone changed it." Tory said, her eyes just realizing the danger. No code could solve it now. It was us versus technology. And we were losing!
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