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Jul. 27th, 2030 at 2:17 PM
1010... 1001... 1000... The entire system shook as the city continued to crash. 111... 110.. 101... 100... He scanned to Phong, Mouse. Eyes scanned over to Enz--Matrix, AndrAIa... Dot. Even, briefly, Hex. Frisket. This was it. Bob stepped in a little closer to Dot. He came back to a ruined system. The system he vowed to protect. It wasn't Enzo's fault, he was just a small sprite. Bob was so determined to change things that weren't programmed to change, but that was his programming. His code. He couldn't delete Megabyte. Just like he couldn't delete Kilobyte. So here he was, here they were, nanos away from complete system failure. He'd come back just to be knocked offline. 11... 10... 1... But he held her hand, and the panic turned into silence around them. 0.
There was no way of telling how long it'd been but the first thing Bob remembered was the whirring sound of a system restarting, starting, booting, rebooting? Powering up. A bright light and strange sensation covered his skin. Then, suddenly, he was hurdling through space and straight into someone--knocking over several CPU towers in the process.
"Whoa!" bob exclaims, quickly finding his feet and offering a hand to whoever it was that he'd landed on without a second thought. "Are you alright?"
It was only once he began scanning the area after a nanosecond or two that several questions filed in. Arms fell from what position they'd been in to help the stranger. He turned left, and right, slowly processing the data around him until it clicked. It had clicked, honestly, even earlier. But there was just no way, there was no way. And, somewhat flabbergasted, he turned back toward the other person, "you're... you're a User." And another nanosecond later. "How am I processing? How did I get here?"
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As he perused the computers in this out of the way shop, it all seemed a little outdated to him but still an impressive array. When he came to the unit that was crashing, he instinctively felt the need to assist it. Machines he got along with much better than people, truth be known- but that is what happens when your creative team betrays you, isn't it.
Reaching out with his index finger extended, he hit the reset button to stop the terrible grinding noises of the mainframe computer.
A moment later, he was recoiling, jaw dropped open and eyes widened as a blue person, sprite, thing?! hurdled out of the machine and slammed into him, knocking him indelicately to the ground. The sounds of machine after machine falling over like dominos was enough to make him feel as if his heart might stop right there. The painful crashing noises were amplified in his mind. "No I'm not alright!" Slipped loudly from his lips before he could stop himself. Wasn't it enough to already be on the run? Was he going to get blamed for this...? Arrested? Tensai foolishly swatted the hand away before he got to his feet, looking between the chaos and the as yet unexplainable phenomenon before him.
"I don't know... any of that.. yet..." Although he didn't want to take on another risk, his curiosity was peaked. ".. but we have to get out of here... NOW!"
Not that Bob was BASIC or anything, though he surely felt like it at the moment. Just some wild Sprite standing in the middle of a Computer department store, it looked like. Wide-optics scanning the surroundings and considering the affects of the damages he'd done with some large amount of existential crisis. Though luckily it seemed like he didn't weigh much. Things were knocked over but not broken. Thank the Net, he wouldn't know how to feel about body slamming a system into shutdown mode.
Just a few more nanoseconds later, though... Oh, this was. This was incredible, and confusing, there were several Users. And they were all staring at him, them, mostly him. Scanning... didn't tell him much, well it did tell him about the technology so there's that. The thought of... that was it, wasn't it. The old tower. That was Mainframe.
"Somebody defrag me," Bob muttered under his breath. Someone was approaching them after some unseen hesitation and this other guy seemed to be in a haste, why Bob didn't know, they could easily fix the place up.
"Just a nano," Bob reached out to the tower almost as tall as he was. It looked like it was online again. Pleasantly humming. A smile as he hung his head a little and rested a hand on the casing, just about to mutter something under his breath about finding his way home again when suddenly he was being dragged along and outside the door.
"Hey! That's my--" hold on, probably shouldn't yell that out loud.
He would have preferred getting lost in a crowd, but his as yet unnamed companion would have still stood out like a sore thumb. "Keep your voice down, until we're well out of sight .." It should be in their favor that their pursuers were not exactly track stars and this sort of thing likely wasn't a regular occurrence. Hopefully, they didn't have a connection to any of the factions or this could get more complicated much sooner. A nothing little shop like that- probably didn't.
Most likely didn't.
Just.. tell him it didn't. Cutting edge tech was the only thing that could compete on any level with the Magi so unless this little shop was a front for something else. How paranoid Tensai had become since he found himself a fugitive but the political atmosphere was a complicated one and it was too easy to set one group off or another.
"Up the fire escape and into that open window, then we wait." All but shoving Bob at the first wrung.
Still, it didn't go beyond the Guardian--his current status. Very much out of the energy stream, here. His abilities only went so far. This wasn't cyberspace, after all. So with a momentary frown, Bob joined the crusade out and up, a quite "alright, alright" when directed to hush. The Sprite is quite nimble, easily outrunning whoever pursued them and easily making his way up the ladder and into a window.
Only problem was that they hopped right into someone's kitchen. Who turned around and promptly screamed, frying pan in hand. Bob rose his hands palm out, showing he was unarmed. "Whoa, hey. Think we got the wrong window, didn't we?" Talking to you Mr. let's zip into home.
Edited 2022-07-28 12:03 am (UTC)
Realizing that his current companion was in better condition, Tensai fell back to let him take the lead up the ladder. That visage looked like early cgi- who would still be incorporating that? Not now. He hurried up the ladder behind Bob, and leapt through the same window. "This building is still inhabited?!?" Great. It looked abandoned from the exterior, sound but aged from time. "Wrong window." He seconded then he reached to pull up his hoodie then muttered his own apologies as he charged to the the door that would lead to the hallway. At least these floorplans were never that complicated for apartments. "Won't happen again." This was just going from bad to worse. It might have made more sense to go back out onto the fire escape but they would definitely get spotted if they stayed on that side of the building.
Hopefully Bob would be better at smoothing things over with the lady...
Edited 2022-07-28 12:30 am (UTC)
So with all the smoothness of his beautiful polygons, he'll thank you very much, Bob also just... leaves, with a sweet smile and short wave. Stay frosty, pan lady! Once in the hall, he nods to a janitor closet and jigs the door open. A ladder to the rooftop all the way in the back among the clutter.
"We can standby up here," since Bob highly doubted there were any personal vehicles capable of flight around here. Hadn't seen any, no zip boards. Frankly he could have flied up here in the first place but that... might have made things worse. Stuck out more. And once his feet hit the asphalt of that old building's rooftop, it all crashed down on him.
Tired, and uncertain how or how long. "So, that mainframe computer. What'd you do to it?"
When they got to the roof, Tensai pulled a thin implement out of one of his pockets, sliding it between the doorframe and door so it couldn't fully shut and lock the pair outside with a practiced air. He had done this sort of thing before. "Until nightfall- if need be." Which was only a few hours off. Expelling a breath, he sank against the roof gasping to fill his lungs.
"What did I do to it...?" Narrowing his eyes as he shot a glare at Bob. "You make it sound as if all of this was my fault." With a shake of his head he pressed one palm to the space beside him. "All I did was hit the reset button. The machine was struggling like it was stuck in a process it couldn't end." The sound could have been indicative of some other problem but, if a fan was going out it would have been much louder. "I didn't really have a chance to run a full diagnostic... shouldn't I be the one asking questions here?!"
"How did you .... come out of that thing? What are you?"
Edited 2022-07-28 02:20 am (UTC)
"Whoa, cool your output." hands go up again (sheesh, how many times is this going to be?). He's going to address this first, important matter that it was. "I wasn't accusing you of anything." Bob's tone is genuine, his body language suggesting the same.
"It's just... That," mh, he rubs the back of his neck, "its probably going to sound totally random to you but that system is my home." Didn't need to run a system diagnostic, really. Bob knew exactly what happened.
His eyes scan over the other and then to the city line, the setting... uh, whatever that was in the sky. It was actually really beautiful the way everything turned colors. With a sigh, Bob passes over to the ledge Tensai was sitting on and left a comfortable distance between them both. He's noticed the man's a bit jumpy. "I just want to know the ones I care for are safe. It sounded good, but I couldn't get a read in time."
Then, turning full attention to the man, "I don't have a problem with answering your questions, I just don't know how much of it you're going to believe or I can answer. How I got here, I really don't know. It shouldn't be possible." He let a nano or two pass. "But... I'm Bob, and..." he thinks about how he could explain... not entirely sure a User would know what a Guardian is. "I don't really know how to describe what I am to you."
"It couldn't sound anymore weird than what I witnessed," Or in other words, try me. Tensei fixed his gaze on Bob as if he was expecting something truly profound to follow. Disappointingly it didn't. There had already been a working theory that the man came from the computer- for as much sense as that made. ".. And?" When eye contact was broken it also gave Tensai a chance to really look Bob over without interruption. Yup, there had been no mistake. That definitely looked like cgi, walking around in a completely alien environment. "You have to realize that this is a lot to swallow, and I have plenty of reasons to be skeptical." Perhaps this wasn't technological at all- some kind of spell? Wouldn't this by awfully elaborate for a spell? What Magi would know enough about 20th century graphics to come up with .. this? It wasn't as if a spell could be maintained for long period of time unless it was continually being cast either... not that he was a master of the subject.
"Maybe.. I'm unconscious." Reaching up to pinch his cheeks on either side, but it felt real enough and he winced. "That unit we left behind, should be fine where it is- but I can't say what they're intending on doing with it. They might wipe the whole thing, or sell off the parts.." Which he realized, wasn't exactly helping, but it was rational. "Not unless they're keeping it around like a museum piece.. but I wouldn't expect it in a shop like that." It would have been too cumbersome to swipe it on the way out, and he wasn't planning on going back for it.
"No it shouldn't." He chorused. "Assuming I believe you at all, which I'm not sure that I do. Let's get one thing straight- I'm a prog-" The words were choked off as he coughed a few times. "I'm not an idiot." Giving himself a quick reminder not to go around boldly announcing his skill level. This was going to be difficult with all this information he was going to have to keep concealed. "I might understand more than you think."
Maybe that's why he was pushed out of Cyberspace and into the User's world. The Net works in mysterious ways, and it seems like their User abandoned them. As long as he backs up the hard drive, he can download Mainframe's core into another CPU. Even give them a little extra to work with. It wasn't the Supercomputer, but Mainframe's Ram and Processing Speed wasn't anything to quit file over. He's been to systems far more downgraded that operated just fine.
"Then you know I'm going to have to go back for it," and if this place was anything like Mainframe then stores would be shutting down for the end cycle soon. A computer like that would take some time to dismantle. This is his hope, at least. So Bob doesn't make a move to leave yet. His eyes scanned Tensai when the man cut himself off. I'm a prog-- a prog..? "Programmer?" came a few nanoseconds later. It was the only thing that logically followed.
"Alright, then." Bob thinks for a moment. "I think the easiest way to describe me is an Interface, a protection program. A bit more complicated than Antivirus software but close enough. In the Net, they call us Guardians. We all have similar functions, just different internal protocols on how to execute them."
There was another possibility Bob hadn't considered, perhaps the original User was no longer among the living. That was just the sort of optimistic insight that Tensai would have to offer if it ever came up. He couldn't help it, for all his creative pursuits in forwarding technology he was still a realist in many ways.
"You might, but I don't." He replied swiftly, if a bit callously to Bob's plight. Honestly, hadn't he involved himself enough already? It was getting close to closing time for the local shops, that was true and if the dismantling process was already slated, the computer likely would have been moved to the back, not the display tables out front, a further sign of hope. "... Yeah, but don't spread it around." Tensai reluctantly admitted. "As far as anyone knows here I'm just a stupid, high school drop out with 0 prospects for the future and I'd like to keep it that way."
In spite of himself, Tensai leaned forward with interest as Bob offered further explanation. For his efforts the "protection program" received the flattest expression imaginable. After a few moments of silence, the boy kicked his legs out and started pacing the roof. "This is absolutely nuts. Why do these things keep happening to me... all I do is try to mind my own business.. but no.. that's not good enough." The vocal lamentations were a sharp contrast to how allegedly intelligent this programmer was supposed to be. When he finally got ahold of himself, he pointedly sat back down on the ledge, crossed his arms over his chest and stared at Bob. "If all this was true... it would imply that artificial intelligence was already starting to bridge the gap between basic command structure and sentience in the 20th Century." Somehow, this is the take away Tensai got from this brief conversation. It seemed like to him that Bob was invested in the concept of protecting the mainframe computer which could be all apart of his subroutines but he had specifically called said computer "home". The way he was interacting seemed very real, not robotic or stilted.
"Don't you know that I'm the one responsible for spearheading that sort of technology, NOW?!" He practically shouted the last word. It didn't even seem to phase him that he'd made the full confession he had been trying to avoid.
Yet Bob remains calm and with a quiet exhale he confirms, "I'm not asking you to. I've been in hostile environments before, places I don't belong. I'll find my way." This person, whoever they were, had more than a few chips on their shoulder. Not in the way Matrix had, or even himself. Though it did remind him of how quick Matrix was to execute anything and everything. Always on the wire. Firewall up and ready to fight over just about anything.
It... saddened him. That people had gone through so much, Enzo especially, to make themselves this way. His shoulders slumped and head shook. "Listen, I have no intentions to make your life more difficult. In a few more cycles, I'll be on my way. As far as I'm concerned, I've never met you."
And for a small moment, it seemed like the other man had calmed himself but just as he was computing what it meant that Bob existed, and had existed for quite some time, out came another data dump. He's not. Well, he's not sure this technology and what Bob was are the same thing. "I'd like to know more of this technology, if you're willing to share."
There was a moment where the boy felt a little affronted that Bob hadn't even considered enlisting in his help even though that was in contrast to his verbal assertion that he wanted no part of it. Guess he hadn't exactly had a chance to show that he could be of value. "... and you'd better have a plan. I doubt their going to tighten up security that much since it was just an accident, but they will have a general idea of who to look for." That was putting it mildly. That's what can happen when you go from being the clever young savant to a fugitive. "If you went back in the morning, someone else would likely be there assuming they have enough employees for a shift change."
Tensai stared at Bob silently for a few minutes, considering his words. Could be a confidence play- act disinterested then lure your prey into the trap. "... Sounds legit." He said dubiously but a part of him still didn't like the sound of that either. Even if it could be hazardous to him, he wanted to know if Bob really came from a computer- if everything he was saying was true. If only Tensai could think of an open-ended question to try and catch Bob in a lie... ".. So you don't know anything about what goes on out here, do you?". Look, he's building up to one. Maybe. Interrogation was never in his skill set.
"I'm sure you would." A lot of people would like to know that, wouldn't they? "Your creator might not have realized it at the time, but somehow I doubt he could have included any of this in your programming." How to act if you're ever shot out of a computer, how to respond uniquely to anything that's spoken.. etc. Most bots could only respond formulaically with specific input and output patterns. Bob wasn't doing that, or he would have said something predictable by now like 'would you like to access the menu', or 'I do not understand, rephrase'.. or 'you're due for an upgrade would you like to restart now?'. "It's all about trying to get a machine to respond in a more lifelike manner and at best it's complicated, at worst it's impossible." This would be the part where he would like to boast about his accomplishments, but he stopped doing that a lot time ago. ".. Well, I made such a .. project before." Hesitating as he avoided the impersonal word machine. Tensai didn't like to think of her that way.. "Fully functional, works completely independently, does.... problem solving in real time, has unique likes and dislikes.. everything. It's like I've built a person from fibers and components." Sometimes it still seemed incredible to him, and he unwittingly was dumbing down the process since he was used to doing that. Essentially talking to Bob like he was a layperson.
"... but other people... wanted to abuse that knowledge." Tensai trailed off looking increasingly somber, eyes dropping to the ground. "The wanted to create more units, only to put in stronger lines of code to subjugate them, like a new slave class..."
But no, Bob was anything but stilted or formulaic. He certainly had some programming that was hard coded into him but when it came to interactions he was as natural as could be, and besides... he'd gone against his code once before. The adherence that Bob so strongly grasps on to was by choice. These things aside, it seemed a little... well, getting a read on this guy was a bit difficult. The Guardian was compliant, though. He saw no reason not to explain.
"Not really," came with a rub at the back of his neck, "I was lost in the web, once. Learned some things, but actually seeing this world is a whole other thing." He pauses, gets up and paces a bit to the side of the building. The sun was setting. Really looked beautiful. Listening to Tensai speak about his project. It sounded impressive, although he wasn't sure how to explain to the other man that Cyberspace was... well, it was its own universe. They weren't AIs. Maybe he'll try later, because those last few words make his eyes narrow.
"Sounds like Cyberspace isn't the only place that hosts a virus."
The web, huh? There was a ton of information that could be gleaned there but much of it would just seem like a pile of data without actually seeing it in person. "So you don't know anything about the Factions or even which one is in control of the quadrant we're in?" Tensai seemed oblivious to the natural beauty and wonder of the sunrise over there, but then again it was a usual occurrence in his routine. Also, he wasn't overly sentimental about most things. A universe crammed inside a computer would definitely be a trip if one could only see what really went on in there. It took some mental gymnastics for Tensai to just come out with as much as he willingly offered up and Bob seemed to be a good listener.
"Tell me about it. There's no greater virus than those bipeds down there.." He peered over the side of the building watching as the crowds were thinning and various clusters of people were breaking off to return to their homes and apartments.
Edited 2022-08-01 11:05 am (UTC)