WALL-E: The Apocalyptic Game Developer

The crunch of gravel beneath their boots echoed across the cracked road, half-swallowed by creeping vines and time. Concrete gave way to grass in uneven patches, and rusted streetlights leaned like forgotten sentinels in the distance.

"Man… this is seriously next level," muttered Rei, adjusting the strap of his shoulder bag as he looked around his fingers running along the scorched hood of a derelict cab. "I still can't wrap my head around the fact that we're really here. Like, I can feel the rust on this."

"The detail's insane. Look at the grime patterns. It's not just textures—it's like every speck was hand-placed." said Kyle, squinting into the sky and shielding his eyes from the pale sunlight. "The wind feels different too. Like... clean. Old. Y'know what I mean?"

"I still can't believe all three of us got picked," said Yuu, the tallest of the group and the quietest. His voice carried a trace of disbelief as he stared at the city skyline rising faintly ahead—shattered windows, collapsed towers, and a trail of civilization's bones.

Kyle gave a grin and elbowed him lightly. "Maybe the devs felt bad for the three losers of the Martial Arts Club."

"Losers?" Rei scoffed. "Speak for yourself. I almost made the main roster last semester."

"You almost hit someone's face during kendo drills," deadpanned. "With the wooden sword."

"That's still effort!" Rei protested. "Besides, better than just watching from the bench every meet like some people…"

"Pfft. Bench buddies for life," Kyle chuckled, nudging Yuu again. "Even if we suck, we care. That counts for something, right?"

Yuu gave a half-smile, nodding. "I guess now's our chance to prove it. Or… at least enjoy it.

Rei crouched and poked at a bit of exposed wiring on the wrecked vehicle. "You think we can salvage something out of this junk? Maybe make a taser or something?"

Kyle clicked his tongue, raising his head to snap a photo of the busted cab's side panel. "Unlikely. According to the forum post I read, it's been over two hundred years since the Axiom left Earth. And there are still survivors down here. So any scraps lying around was probably already stripped and reused ages ago."

Rei looked up, blinking. "Wait. There's a description about the game?"

Kyle snorted. "Don't tell me you skipped that part."

"I was excited, okay?" Rei grinned sheepishly, standing up and brushing off his knees. "Sue me for not reading the fine print."

Yuu gave him a look and chuckled. "No wonder you didn't know how to open your watch in the first day."

They kept walking as they bantered, weaving between the husks of old buses and faded street signs half-swallowed by nature. Time moved strangely in this place. By the time they reached the edge of what used to be a busy intersection—now just a collapsed overpass and a few half-standing towers—the sun had already started to dip low, dyeing the clouds in bruised orange and gold.

Then—

"WOAAAHH!"

Yuu and Kyle turned sharply.

There, in a small alley partially buried by rubble, Rei stood triumphantly holding a long metal pole with a dulled, iron tip.

It looked like a broken piece of rebar fused with something like a crude spearhead. Rust caked its shaft, but it had weight, and it held form. It had survived.

"Hey, Kyle! You're the spear guy, right?" Rei tossed the makeshift weapon underhand. "Catch!"

Kyle caught it mid-air and twirled it with surprising finesse, his expression sharpening as he tested the balance. "Heavier than a yari… but it's not bad. Kinda top-heavy. Tip's chipped."

Yuu tilted his head. "Still, you could probably reinforce it. The fact that you can even loot stuff like this…"

He took a few steps toward a nearby bench, brushing leaves aside to get a clearer shot of a rusted-out vending machine beside it.

"This is the kind of freedom I've always wanted in a VR game," he said, raising his camera again. "Scrap anything, scan anything, build from nothing… If the logic of this game world follows even half of what we know from reality…"

"We're gonna thrive," Kyle finished for him, now twirling his new weapon with growing comfort.

They kept moving deeper into the ruins.

Logos of Buy n Large were everywhere. Faded but unmistakable. Plastered on crumbling billboards, painted onto steel walls, and printed across dusty packaging scattered across alleyways. Yuu snapped a photo of a cracked BNL food container wedged in a drainpipe.

"So much history," he murmured.

Then, past a collapsed tunnel entrance, they saw it—

A clearing.

There, dozens of boxy robots—short and square, like rolling coolers with eyes—moved with mechanical purpose. Each one opened its chest cavity, packed in bits of metal or wire or plastic, compacted it with a soft whirr-clunk, and spit it out behind them as perfect, pressed cubes.

A mountain of junk blocks formed a towering spire in the background, casting a shadow over the nearby ruined buildings.

"Whoa…" Rei muttered, stepping forward in awe.

Yuu was already scanning. His scanner beeped, data scrolling across his display.

[Unit: Trash Compacting Robot]

Model: WALL-E Type D7

Status: Active | Task: Environmental Reclamation

Classification: Non-Hostile

Origin: Buy n Large Robotics Division

"They're WALL-E units," Yuu said, stunned. "And they're still cleaning."

Kyle approached one cautiously. The little robot glanced up at him, optics whirring softly, then resumed its task.

"They're ignoring us…"

"They're just doing their job," Rei said in wonder.

"Guys! Over here!" Yuu called.

He had found a container-like building with one large garage-style door half-open. Sunlight poured through, stretching golden light across the dusty concrete inside.

They stepped in.

It smelled of rust, oil, and time. Metal shelves lined the walls, holding all manner of scraps—nuts, bolts, cracked tools, twisted panels. Some of the WALL-E units appeared to be resting here, like a robotic barracks.

Rei wandered toward an old maintenance locker, peering inside.

As he reached in to pick up what looked like a soldering gun—

CLANG.

A sudden clatter echoed.

Then came the growl.

Low. Guttural.

Wrong.

A pale arm shot out from the shadows near the back of the container, snatching him by the collar and yanking hard. He cried out, boots scraping the floor as he was dragged.

"REI" Kyle shouted, eyes wide.

The thing that had grabbed him stepped into view—

It looked human once.

But not anymore.

Its skin was sickly white, almost translucent. No hair. No clothes. Just sinewy muscle stretched over bone. Its eyes were sunken, but gleamed with a feral hunger. A low, snarling growl rumbled in its throat as it tried to pull Rei deeper inside.

Yuu didn't hesitate. "Rei! Hold on!"

Kyle, shaking off his shock, rushed forward and grabbed the spear. Without thinking, he plunged it into the creature's forearm.

It let out a shriek and released its grip.

Rei scrambled back, chest heaving, as the pale humanoid clutched its now-embedded arm, bloodless and twitching. It roared.

"RUN!" Yuu screamed.

They bolted through the narrow corridors of the container, tossing whatever they could to slow the creature. Rei kicked over a crate; Kyle flung a pipe. The thing was fast. Too fast.

"Shit!! Shit!! Shit, this is fucking not awesome"

Just before they reached the entrance, it lunged.

Its clawed hand grabbed Kyle's ankle, dragging him back, feet clawing at the floor.

"Kyle!" Yu and Rei turned around, grabbing his arms.

They pulled, straining.

"You fucker, let go" Kyle desperately said as he kick it with his other foot.

The creature snarled and tugged harder.

Then—

Its hand caught the sunlight filtering through the door.

Sssssss.

It sizzled like meat on a hotplate. The creature screamed, releasing Kyle instantly and recoiling into the shadows, its burned hand cradled to its chest.

The trio tumbled backward onto the cracked pavement outside, panting, coughing, and wide-eyed.

Rei sat up first, hand still trembling. "That thing—"

Yu shook his head. "What the hell was that…?"

Kyle lay back against the dirt, heart pounding in his ears.

None of them answered.

They didn't need to.

Because whatever that thing was—it wasn't alone.