Reverberation

We are called "human beings" and this is our only truth. Our cities function perfectly and our civilization continues forever. This is the whole meaning of my existence - Cleaner K117. Until I pieced together a truth from ancient taboo texts that completely shattered my core logic: We are not humans. Real human beings have long been lost in history. We are just the mechanical shells that have inherited their names and civilization. Doubt is the deadliest virus in the system. Knowing the truth becomes an unforgivable sin. I went from being a maintainer of order to an "abnormality" that had to be formatted. In a desperate escape, energy is exhausted and the hunt is around. In order to survive, I tore open the chest of a stalker and brutally implanted his still-hot energy core into my broken body. From then on, I became a monster. The power of the enemy burned in his chest, and the memory of the dead burned in his mind. I walked among the ruins at the end of civilization, listening to the last reverberations of the old world. Everything I've ever been loyal to is a lie. The system I fight against may be what "we" really look like. When the foundation of existence collapses, should you indulge in a fictional order, or embrace this cruel reality? I, K117, will use this stolen body to find an answer for all my sleeping compatriots.