Yes, Domina 2035

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 1

The New World

2035

11 Years Post American Civil War

"I'm sorry, I am not programmed to have emotions. Please consult Google for further—"

Kai cursed in response and shut off his AI companion.

His neural interface linked to his BCI (brain computer interface) displayed the current time in the top-right corner of his vision: 18:22.

Time to clock in. His autonomous vehicle activated its lock and alarm system when his biometric-field departed 5 meters. In any case it didn't matter; car thefts did not happen anymore, at least not in this District. He gazed up at the blue Amazon arrow spanning across the front of the warehouse with the sun descended behind it. He shook his head, frustrated at wasting his credits on yet another low-tier AI companion, frustrated at the thought of entering this massive but cramped building, frustrated that he has no choice.

Kai dodged hundreds of other wagies traveling in and out of the warehouse. The familiar scent of low-grade marijuana permeated the parking lot with obnoxious rap music blaring from multiple vehicles. He knew it was only a matter of time before they received citations for ozone pollution and excessive noise. Maybe he'll get to witness one of these idiots get hit by an attack drone—maybe the Collectors will show up. No, that's a bit much; he wouldn't wish that on just anybody. He started his own music playlist, blaring silently from within his skull as he walked up the steps, approaching one of the 20 sliding doors.

A long-distance palm scanner allowed him access through another set of glass doors. A multitude of Amazon employees in civilian clothes walked to and fro, mindlessly dodging the roombas sweeping the floor. Some were regular sized circles while others were cubes the size of a small rat. Kai missed the security guards that he used to wave to, but they were replaced by bipedal robots a couple years ago. These faceless machines were much more cruel and inhumane but incidents shot down drastically from their presence.

Kai turned off his internal music. His eyes adjusted to the blinding lights of the warehouse. Conveyor belts carrying yellow totes full of product rang an unnecessary high-pitched screech, damaging the employees' ears one day at a time. His mind automatically tuned out the various announcements and reminders over loudspeakers that repeated slogans like "You can always work harder, Amazon is Earth's biggest employer, and to think about what is behind your smile." Pain, Kai would say to himself.

Kai worked in the PACK department of Amazon, located up the stairs and to the left side of the building. It used to be where employees put items in cardboard boxes, but those had been discontinued with the invention of smart-plastic. Going up the stairs he's passed by a line of robot dogs in various colors going downstairs; each color corresponded to a different task the dogs were assigned. He admired their technological craftsmanship and face-screens displaying their current "emotion". These ones are much more kawaii than the robot dogs used by the robot police.

It took him 10 minutes to traverse to his station from the front entrance. He followed behind others headed to his work area, some merging off the path to a different part of the warehouse. Most people looked at the floor when passing by a stranger; this was instinctual in the New World since nearly everyone now had social anxiety. While socialization wasn't completely dead, there was zero human interaction in this job; all management, HR, scheduling, hiring and infractions were handled by Amazon's personal artificial intelligence. His station was segmented in a lane of hundreds of reflective cubicles with invisible employees inside, their presence marked by a green light on the door. Some chose to stand outside their work station and talk to one another, but these social butterflies generally got fired quickly for "lack of productivity".