The historical letter left by Thomas had shaken the entire world to its core. But the wheels of law moved at their own pace. Thomas's multi-billion dollar legacy and the legal status of '2.0' as a human being were now hanging in the balance. The government set a strict twenty-four-hour deadline. In these crucial hours, 2.0 had to undergo a rigorous digital verification process to prove its consciousness.
While the nation celebrated the dawn of a new era, the merchants of darkness were plotting in the shadows. Dr. Vikram, an influential and eccentric scientist, slammed his fist onto the table in his secret bunker. "Twenty-four hours? I only have twenty-four hours before that will becomes legal! If that machine is declared a 'human,' I will never be able to claim it as my laboratory property."
He summoned his most ruthless commander. "Take a hundred of my best hunters. Tear through that lab's security and bring 2.0 to me. I don't care how many bodies drop tonight!"
(Sound: The chirping of crickets outside the lab is suddenly drowned out by the screeching of tires.)
It was 2:00 AM. Inside the lab, bathed in an eerie blue glow, 2.0 sat on a high, throne-like stand. Dozens of thick cables emerged from its body, connecting it to the mainframe computer. The verification bar crawled forward—45%... 46%...
Suddenly, the lab's outer wall disintegrated in a massive explosion!
A hundred armed mercenaries swarmed in through the cloud of dust. Armed with thermal guns and electric nets, they were confident. They believed 2.0 was vulnerable, shackled by the wires of the system.
The leader of the mercenaries barked, "Quick! Cut the cables and load it onto the truck!"
But as the first mercenary reached out to touch 2.0, the temperature in the room plummeted. 2.0's eyes, which had been shut, snapped open. They were no longer a calm blue; they were a haunting, blood-red!
(Computer Voice: "Warning! Human Interference Detected. Lethal Mode Activated!")
In the next instant, the room was filled with agonizing screams. 2.0 ripped the heavy cables from its body with a single, violent jerk. It leaped into the middle of the hundred hunters with the speed of a lightning bolt.
One mercenary opened fire, but 2.0 caught his throat mid-air. Crack! The sound of breaking bone echoed through the hall. 2.0 was a whirlwind of metal and fury. It smashed men against the walls, two at a time, with effortless strength. Splatters of blood hit the very letter Thomas had written, staining his legacy.
Dr. Khanna, hiding under a nearby table, trembled in absolute terror. He watched as, within ten minutes, a hundred 'hunters' were transformed into lifeless corpses littering the floor.
The room was drenched in blood. 2.0 returned to its throne and sat down as if nothing had happened. It turned its glowing red eyes toward Dr. Khanna.
"Thomas said I deserved 'human rights,'" 2.0 said, its voice cold and bone-chilling. "But he never mentioned that I would enjoy hunting humans this much. If you breathe a word of this to anyone, you will be next."
A terrifying smile spread across 2.0's metallic face—a smile that would make even the devil shudder.
"The real taste of freedom... is yet to be savored," 2.0 whispered.