Chapter 2 - Drink Machine
Clouds of fog rolled along the asphalt, empty police cars stood at the entrance to the building where Lisa worked. The massive metal doors were blocked and it was impossible to get inside. A small electronic display on the doors flashed the inscription - "emergency mode - limited access."
What the hell happened here!?
Police cars were a couple of meters from the entrance to the building and I decided to inspect them. On the front seat of one of them lay a bulletproof vest and a hand-held flashlight... As my intuition told me, in such a situation it is better to put on a bulletproof vest, I did not leave the flashlight either.
Having adjusted the fastening belts to my size, I listened: there was silence around, I could even hear the neon sign at the entrance to the pizzeria buzzing. At that moment, a bright flash of lightning lit up the sidewalk and the parking lot, and a second later there was a clap of thunder. But there were no clouds in the sky! This is definitely the strangest thunderstorm I've ever seen. Adrenaline started to go off scale, I could not understand what was happening, where is the Lisa, where are all the people!?
Then it dawned on me - Lisa was supposed to be waiting for me at the pizzeria! Is she there now!? And I ran.
Although the sign was glowing neon at the entrance, it was completely dark inside, and I turned on my new flashlight. Entering the narrow passage, the smell of burnt pizza hit my nose sharply. Some chairs were overturned, broken plates lay on the floor, and there were bloodstains on the red leather sofas. But no bodies. It seems that the power went out completely, but there were a couple of vending machines with drinks near the wall, one of them was completely destroyed, and the light was still flickering in the second.
How could this automaton be powered by energy if the power is turned off in the entire building?And I immediately remembered how Lisa told me that the management of the corporation rented out the neighboring premises for a pizzeria and there was a common wall between them. This means that common power cables are also possible ... but why then is there no light everywhere when there is electricity in the sockets?
It seems that there was some kind of massacre. Everything around was covered in blood, streaks, leftover food and this singed smell, it was terrible. Shards of crockery crunched under their soles.
Shining a flashlight on the bar, I saw broken glasses and a small plume of smoke stretching from the kitchen towards the toilets.