The Octopusians have conquered Earth, and what little remains of humanity is running out of options. A small resistance group, desperate for any advantage, unlocks the full potential of artificial intelligence. Laila, an intelligent robot built for a specific mission, is sent back in time to use one person's genetic power to secure the future of the human race. Living alongside her target, though, she discovers something the mission planners did not account for: video games. Like a virus infecting her system, they eat away at her sense of duty. She grows lazy. Sharp-tongued. She begins to hope — privately, guiltily — that the world will just end so she can stay in the past forever.