Eva dashed into a horde of rushing museum guests, and then sidled behind a tall case that contained a collection of rusted signage. She aimed the Omnipod back at the fallen hovercraft.

A pillar guard rushed toward Eva across the museum, stepping on several royal guards in the process.

“Take down the pillar guards! Take down the pillar guards!” one of the royal guards yelled above the din. The royal guardsmen now opened fire on the giant automatons with their sonic guns.

The pillar guard that was bearing down on Eva received the first blast. One of its legs blew to pieces, and it toppled backward. Debris blew everywhere as the giant crumpled from the fall, filling the entire museum hall with a thick cloud of dust.

“Hovercar S-five-thirty-one is online, though it is at only forty-nine percent functioning ability,” the Omnipod stated. “Would you like to access the user’s manual?”

“Yes!” Eva dashed through the dust, grabbing Muthr along the way. She yanked the robot toward the hovercraft, thrusting the Omnipod into Muthr’s hand. “I need you to access the user’s manual now!” Eva shouted.

Eva scrabbled on top of a crushed display and made her way toward the small hovercraft. She climbed onto the craft’s dusty body and slipped into the cockpit. True to the hovercraft’s nickname, it was indeed shaped like a flying convertible goldfish. Two cracked, dusty leather seats sat high atop the pitted golden chrome body, while an array of fins and stabilizers projected out of the tail.

“Scoot over. I am driving,” Muthr said as she climbed into the Goldfish, holding the Omnipod tight in one hand. Eva could see lights blinking in rapid succession on the robot and the Omnipod, even through the dust suspended in the air. With another hand Muthr grabbed the steering yoke of the vehicle. A third hand pried open an access hatch on the dashboard and pulled wires out of the craft. “I have got to give it a little electrical charge first,” she said in a calm voice as she plugged a wire into her body.

A squad of royal guardsmen rushed past, ignoring Eva and firing their weapons up at a pillar guard who was plowing through all of the displays straight toward them. “You need to hurry,” Eva said as a giant leg crashed through a mounted skeleton.

“A few more seconds. I’ve only got three functional arms,” Muthr said, pressing a button on the dashboard, which caused music to erupt from the blown speakers. She silenced the audio player, and pressed more buttons in rapid succession. “I do not know about this, Eva. This machine hasn’t been activated in eons,” she said.

The palace guardsmen blasted the pillar guard that was coming at them, disintegrating its head. The headless giant spun around out of control, striking another pillar guard and sending it toppling forward toward the hovercraft.