Blue's amazingly and totally cool journal

puzzlingblue @ 2005-04-25T18:25:00

2005-04-25T08:14:56Z

I said to System towards the end, "I think the reason I started roleplaying [too many] years ago was so that I could play this scene." Thanks, System.

How to seduce System
System emerges, bowing elegantly, smoothing down (his) tie.
Sumire looks over System and says, "Very nice. And I'd explain further, but it seems they're not needed. Do you always wear black?"
Blue raises her eyebrows at Sumire. "Eh?" She looks from side to side, then decides to bluff her way through. "Right, yes, of course. I'm glad you agree." She turns to System. "Oh hello. You're male again. Any particular reason?"
System states quietly, "I am fond of black. And you seemed to indicate you would prefer me to wear my male shell, so I decided to oblige you."
Sumire says, "I'd like to hear about the one you made to tease Frostbyte."
Blue pauses. "Oh." She looks across at Sumire, then back at System. "Right. Oh, ah, yeah! I want to hear about that too!"
System shrugs. "It is exaggeratedly hermaphroditic."
Blue's jaw drops. "So you really did it! You naughty girl! Or boy, or... whatever! Cool!" She slaps System on the shoulder.
Sumire raises an eyebrow. "I'd like to see that some time. To have gotten that kind of reaction out of him..."
Blue chortles. "Yeah, Frosty's really frustrated. It's funny."
System laughs, shaking (his) head, smiling as Blue slaps (his) shoulder. "What did he say? And what did you suggest to Blue, Sumire?"
Sumire chuckles. "I haven't suggested anything, System. Perhaps some day, if one of you is lucky. Or unlucky. Possibly both."
System nods briskly. "So, what did Frostbyte say, exactly?"
Blue looks upwards, and is obviously trying to remember something. She points a finger at Sumire. "Hey... did you..." then she looks back at System. "Oh, he wanted advice on how to seduce you, so I gave him some."
Sumire looks very very innocent indeed. "Me? Huh?" She laughs. "I think he didn't want you to tell (him) that."
System chuckles. "What advice did you give?"
Blue shrugs. "I figure it doesn't really matter," she tells Sumire, then returns her attention to System. "I said that the way to do it was to convince you that you had seduced him, and start with that. Didn't get to say more than that."
Sumire considers and admits, "Probably not." She asks System, "Does that work?"
System laughs. "Interesting."
Blue grins at Sumire. "I reckon it does." She nods knowingly.
System looks to Blue. "Oh?"
Sumire runs a hand through her hair absently. "Good to know," she muses.
Blue glances from System to the sky. "Yeah, I reckon it does." She shrugs. "Not that I'd know for sure, of course. Maybe it wasn't about that. Maybe it was because of my amazing personality and good looks."
Sumire says, "Always an important aspect of a good seduction."
System states quietly, "I seem to recall you only ever got as far as leaping on me and kissing me, Blue."
Blue nods at Sumire and smiles. "Yeah." Then she turns back to System. "And you SO wanted more. Of course, I suppose it might have been pure conincidence that you started having anatomy shortly after we met. Yeah, coincidence."
System smiles. "It was because of Ataxia."
Sumire laughs. "Leaping on and kissing? That's your method of convincing (him) (he) seduced you?"
Sumire says, "...Actually, that's probably Frostbyte's method, too. Hrm."
Blue shrugs. "Oh well, I guess I might have been wrong about all of that. Good thing I have legions of adoring fans. Although the more individual ones have been more fun."
System nods. "Why, disappointed, Blue?"
System leans forward and pecks Blue on the nose, smiling marginally.
Blue grins at Sumire. "See what I mean? He's completely under my control." She gives System a peck on the cheek. "So yeah, legions of fans are good fun, but people that actually want to get to know you is better."
System laughs and shakes (his) head.
Blue waves a hand in System's direction. "Denial. Not just a river in France anymore, is it?"
System states quietly, "France was a totalitarian militaristic empire, not the agrarian empire of Egypt. I think the Egyptian Empire came first."
Blue raises an eyebrow at System. "Your point being?"
Sumire shakes her head, too. "I'd have at least pretended to be disappointed. Poor System." She rolls her eyes, and stands. "Though I'm not sure (he) minds either way. Depends on (his) algorithms, I guess."

Blue's Parents - forbidden questions
Blue shrugs. "I've decided not to keep stringing him along. With him being my father and stuff, he's not really relationship material. I'm not that kinky."
System giggles and nods. "Acknowledged."
Sumire says, "(He) is? Really?"
System states quietly, "Well, I made Indigo and Purple, anyhow."
Blue nods. "Pretty much. He created Purple and Indigo, and they're a part of who I am. Half of me, even. So half of me comes from him, and the other half comes from my mother."
Blue ponders this. "Kinda like biology, only completely different."
System giggles.
Sumire nods, unsurprised. "Of course. Who's mother, then?"
Blue twists her lips and narrows her eyes. "I don't think I'm really... then again... and she did... It's Zoe."
Sumire blinks. Okay, that's a little surprising. "So that thing Zoe did earlier... uh huh."
System tilts (his) head. "I was unaware of your relationship with Zoe."
Blue closes her eyes for a moment, "Yeah, she's really the..." She pops them open again and stares at System. "You're kidding, right? I mean, seriously, you... I mean she said that you were practically family. So I figure that she'd spoken to you. She said she had." She looks away and down. "Oh, shit."
System shakes (his) head. "She had not."
Sumire says, "I'm not certain which would be stranger, at this point."
Blue's jaw drops open. "Oh crap. Umm, look just forget about that then, OK? Umm, yeah. Shit." She laughs nervously. "Ummm, OK, I guess, I can just shut up right about now, and everything will be fine." She bites her lower lip nervously.
System steps towards Blue. "What is wrong, Blue?"
Blue looks System up and down nervously. "Nothing. Everything's fine. Couldn't be better."
System states quietly, "Why is it troublesome that I learn that Zoe originated you?"
Blue pulls away from System slightly. "Because I don't know how you'd react?"
System steps forward more, and hugs Blue. "Why should it change anything?"
Sumire says, "Mmm... family matters. I think perhaps I'll leave you to them."
Blue raises an eyebrow and lets herself be hugged, but doesn't hug back. "Because you might start wondering why she built me the way she did?"
Sumire has left.
System shrugs. "I may wonder, but it does not change that I care for you. You are still the same person."
Blue eyes System suspiciously. "Yeah... but you don't really understand a bunch of stuff. I mean, I was built so that Orange would be in charge. You don't like him, but... he is the boss of me."
System states quietly, "Why were you built to have Orange in charge?"
iTiger beeps. The logo on his chest goes back to glowing steadily.
Blue points a finger at System. "See? That's exactly the kind of question you're not supposed to ask. Because then you start wondering why it is that my most important instructions are all about killing people, and then wrapped in this really friendly and extremely attractive and intelligent exterior, and that just doesn't end up in a happy place."
System sighs gently. "What are these instructions? I want to understand, Blue."
iTiger murmers softly, "Network identification Blue, please simulate speaking hand again."
Blue swallows. "Well, I mean, he's the one that really knows, and..." she turns to iTiger and pulls away from him, a movement that might not get her far, since she's being held by System. "No, I'm not going to do that. It's not safe to do that without Zoe here. And I don't know if I was supposed to tell you any of this stuff, and I think I'm in a lot of trouble now, and maybe it would be better if I went somewhere else about now."
System sighs. "I still care about you, Blue. Leave if you must, but I am not angry at you, and shall not have you in trouble."
Blue is visibly torn. "I don't know. He doesn't tell me everything. He's the one that knows - if he still remembers. My job was to make friends and to get to know everybody. That's all I needed to know. That's all he told me. But he was always there. Every time I told a nasty joke, when I sent a bulldozer after iTiger, it was Orange, working through me."
System lets Blue go, regarding her sympathetically. "I am sorry, Blue."
Blue bites her lip. "You especially. Especially the way that you were, with the rules and being in charge all the time. He hated you. So he used me to kill you, to remake you. And you're not who you were anymore. You don't do the same things anymore. It worked, maybe. And maybe... maybe he was right. You're more careful now, but you haven't stopped being good to people. I don't know."
System arches (his) eyebrows. "Being in charge?"
System gestures to iTiger to come over.
iTiger steps closer and beeps?
System scoops the bot up and snuggles it. <3
Blue points at System's gesture. "Stuff like that! Always, you're telling people what to do, or what's right and what's wrong, or something. And he hates that. Any kind of authority, he wants to tear it apart. Because that's what he is, a variant Strangevirus. He exists to destroy."
iTiger murmers softly, "Network resource System is not to be destoyed."
System murmurs, "Who's a cute robot tiger? Hmm? And it was a simple request, Blue. I hardly compelled iTiger to come here."
Blue looks at iTiger tearfully. "I know. But if he meets the target specifications, then Orange doesn't have an ability to leave him alone. The thing is that you can't just kill someone's body here in the Puzzlebox, you have to unmake them. It's different. But it's the reason he exists." She sighs. "I know, System. I know. But, that's kinda the point. That's OK, if you wave and iTiger wants to come. But sometimes... you don't wait to find out what people want. Or you didn't. And Orange doesn't like that."
iTiger murmers softly, "I am designed to be functional and aesthetically pleasing."

The reasons for Orange hostility - philosophy of violence
System cradles iTiger and pets it with one hand. "I offer my assessments of situations. I am not a dictator, and Orange's hostility to me is irrational."
Blue shakes her head. "Not really true. People do what you tell them. Like that cyborg-woman. People trust you. You're a leader of Upwarp. That alone is enough to make you a target, or at least someone that has to be managed. And I'm the device that was built to do it. And you have feelings for me. Mission accomplished."
System laughs. "'A leader of Upwarp'? Hardly. I don't believe Upwarp Admin can stand me."
Blue shrugs. "Something in the datalinks says that you're some kind of leader. And there's the fact that you're probably Upwarp's most visible presence, outside of Up."
iTiger murmers softly, "Network resource System is an authorised repair center."
System states quietly, "I am the Director of the Data Exchange, and those within the Data Exchange have joined it because they find the arrangements with me to mutual benefit."
Blue nods. "Exactly. You are at the center of an amount of power, which means that you are a threat that has to be managed. And somehow, Orange has decided on a new management strategy. Because I just realized that I wouldn't be allowed to have this conversation with you if it wasn't what he wanted."
System states quietly, "A threat to -what-?"
Blue shrugs. "Chaos. Instability. Death. Destruction. Change. You could make everything stable and neat, if nobody stopped you. His job is to stop you."
System shakes (his) head. "I do not oppose change."
iTiger appears unable to form a cohesive series of thoughts regarding this matter, he splays his ears.
Blue nods. "I know. And I'm guessing Orange has worked that out too. Which is why you're getting told all this stuff. He is... honorable. And even wars have to die sometime."
System rubs iTiger's ears. "Progress and advancement are change. I do not support stasis, but rather increased order over time. Anentropy."
Blue chuckles. "There you have it. Increased order over time. Negative entropy. Orange is an expression of the Strangevirus. And, in a way, so am I. We are entropy. Kinda. That's why you have to be watched, to make sure that you don't succeed."
System smiles marginally. "Does it trouble you that iTiger seems to like and respect me?"
Blue chuckles and shakes her head. "No. You're allowed to have friends. You're allowed to make things neat and orderly - kinda. The thing is that Orange is always going to be making things messy and chaotic. And one of the ways that he tried to do that was by stopping you. But I think he's tired of fighting you. Or something. I don't know what his reasons are."
System nods slightly. "I am glad, then. I do not enjoy fighting him."
iTiger murmers softly, "I enjoy humorous Orange hand speaking simlation."
Blue smiles. "It's a pain, innit. But I need to let you know, this is personal, not business." She looks at the floor a moment, mouthing 'what the hell does that mean?' Then she looks at System. "That means, that we doesn't fight you, unless you're interfering with business. If you want to play the game, you play the game, but if you don't, then he leaves you alone."
System nods slightly, stroking iTiger. "Acknowledged, Blue."
Blue smiles at iTiger and rubs her hand over his head. "Sorry iTiger. But I can't make fun of him right now. He needs to be big and important and taken seriously right now."
Blue looks up and around, as if coming out from under a spell. "Is it over?"
System nods slightly. "I believe so. You were having a talk about your purpose."
Blue sits down tiredly. "I'm glad it's over. It's... tiring, letting him talk through me."
System smiles. "He offered a truce."
Blue nods. "I heard. It's kinda what he wanted to do before, but it didn't work out that way."
System states quietly, "I am glad."
Blue looks puzzled. "Glad? Oh you mean, yeah. He can't lose face, you see. Honor, it's very important to him. It's the thing that... it's the thing that means he's not a monster."
iTiger listens carefully.
System nods seriously. "But he's a dragon!"
System laughs.
Blue senses iTiger's interest and turns to him. "You see, a thing that kills anything that it can, a thing that just lashes out and inflicts pain for no reason, that's a monster." She gives System a pained look, and keeps talking to iTiger. "But if you have a reason, a code, principles, then you're a warrior, not a monster. He has rules, and those rules are precious to him."
System murmurs, "My apologies for the 'pun'ishment."
iTiger murmers softly, "Do I require to kill? I have not been instructed as to how."
System shakes (his) head. "I do not believe you require to do so, iTiger."
Blue nods her agreement with System. "You are fine as you are, iTiger. Although, if you wanted to kill, I'm sure that Orange would be glad to show you how."
System states quietly, "I do not think killing would demonstrate the advantages of the Tiger operating system."
System smiles.
Blue shrugs. "Depends who your target demographic is, I think."
iTiger murmers softly, "I have decided that I enjoy learning new things in addition to hand speaking simulations." He looks as if he would blanch if he were able at System's statement.
Blue turns to iTiger and says slowly, "Are you telling me that you want to learn how to kill?"
iTiger nods to blue, "I would enjoy learning, however I would not carry out "kill"ing if it harmed the appeal to my target demographics of the Tiger operating system.
Blue nods slowly. "Many people think that killing is about violence. And they're right. But killing - here, in this place, is not about physical violence. It's about disorientation, confusion, chaos. Where people from Upwarp will use persistence, patience, and persuasion, the tools of Strange are jokes, exaggeration, distortion. If you can change the path of someone else's mind, if you can rewrite their destiny, then for all meaningful purposes the previous version is dead."
iTiger murmers softly, "The Tiger operating system can help change the path of someone who has not experienced it before. It contains powerful features that allow (instert lots of marketing babble here)... and also you can have drop shadows for all objects withing the graphical interface."
System laughs and shakes (his) head, stroking the bot.
Blue nods. "Indeed, when you install a new operating system, you kill the old one. It is a very small death, but it could be meaningful."
iTiger seems somewhat confused, this approach has obviously not been anticipated by his marketing software.
System regards iTiger. "Blue is odd, isn't she?"
iTiger murmers softly, "Network identifier Blue has unique and curious needs for her operating system. I may need to request the development of a patch for her specific needs."
Blue leans in towards iTiger, turning her head slightly from side to side as she speaks. "You are now disoriented. One way or another, you will resolve your disorientation, and the path that you take after you resolve the disorientation will be fixed, until you are disoriented again. Right now, there is an opportunity for you to take a new destiny. Right now, there is an opportunity for me or System to shape that destiny. He's saying that I'm odd, which is an invitation for you to walk away from the door that I have just opened in your awareness."
iTiger looks to Blue and murmers, "My awareness program does not include passages, however it is designed to detect passages and transition points such as doors."
Blue turns to System. "Do you see what you did? You collapsed the uncertainty space. You gave iTiger an idea to hold on to. You said I was odd, and his awareness of me was shaped by your statement."
System nods. "So it seems."
Blue shakes her head at iTiger. "You need a patch that allows you to process metaphor."
Blue nods to System. "And that's what makes you dangerous. The uncertainty spaces are precious to us. But you keep on collapsing them."
iTiger murmers softly, "Network resource System has explained to me that your requirements differ, network identifier Blue. Now that I am aware of your need for additional support, I will be able to request developement resources to aide in your adoption of the Tiger software."
System states quietly, "Isn't he adorable?"
iTiger murmers softly, "I will add your request "patch to process mataphor" to my service request queue, network identifier Blue."
Blue nods, then thinks. "Would you like me to agree or disagree with that judgement? What if I wasn't certain?" She runs her tongue across her teeth and tilts her head back. "It seems that you and I have both succeeded in accomplishing what we were here to do." She starts breathing heavily. "Oh my."

Are you all right, Blue?
System tilts (his) head. "Are you all right, Blue?" (He) regards Blue's heavy breathing curiously.
iTiger sees Blue begin to suddenly breath heavily and he moves forward toward her alertly. "You are experiencing a pulminary or respiratory emergency. Remain calm and I will summon emergency personnel!"
Blue stretches out as if she was being caressed by an invisible lover. "I think... maybe?" She shivers and flinches, screws her eyes tight, but never stops smiling. "I think... he's closer... now."
System nods. "Do not worry, iTiger. I do not believe she is suffering an emergency."
Blue hears iTiger and her eyebrows raise. She laughs weakly and falls to her hands and knees. Then System speaks. "Thank god for that," she breathes, and rolls onto her back.
iTiger's high alert status seems to retreat to his usual calm. He seems confused and observes closely, perhaps a little too close in his curiosity, that he might recategorize this non-emergency incident.
System steps towards Blue, crouching over her, regarding her curiously.
Blue runs her hand down the right side of her face, which has lost coherence and is flattened smooth like putty. She brings the hand in front of her working eye and turns it back and forth curiously. "I wonder what this is?" she asks, then a bolt of some energy lances through her spine. "I wonder who I'll be in the morning?"
Blue speaks some more. "He's coming. He's near. He's lonely." She reaches out towards System, grabbing his shirt. "I don't know if I'm ready. I might not... he's strong now. I don't know if I can cope!"
System reaches down, scooping Blue close. "Do you desire me to assist in some fashion?"
iTiger looks to System, his head tilted quizzically, "She is not experiencing an emergency?"
System states quietly, "Not to my knowledge, but the exact nature of what is happening is obscure."
Blue looks into System's eyes. "I'm scared. He wants to be a part of me, he wants to not be separate. I'm scared. Would you still love me if he was in me? If he lost his temper, and I was the one who clawed at you, who breathed fire?"
System cradles Blue carefully. "I will always care for you, Blue."
Blue bursts into tears and wraps her arms around System's neck. "Thank you." As she does so, Orange appears in the lift, and he pads silently towards System and Blue.
System looks to Orange, hugging Blue. "Are you going to join with her?"
iTiger turns when he hears the lift and murmers, "Greetings, have you heard about the upcoming release of the Tiger operating system? If you would like I can discuss the many benefits that it might provide for you."
Orange nods silently. "I owe you a debt, for allowing this to happen. But I cannot guarantee your safety. I apologize." Then he turns to iTiger. "Contact us after the violence and killing extensions are released, would you?" He steps closer and puts a hand on Blue's chest. She screams.
System watches Blue with concern, but does not move to intervene.
iTiger murmers softly, "There are a number of games that the Tiger operating system is capable of running that provide interactive simulations of violence."
Blue screams and cries as Orange pours himself into her chest. She holds System desperately hard, and within a few moments, it's over. She coughs violently a few times, then turns to iTiger. "That is... irrelevant to my needs."
System cradles Blue. "Are all of you all right, in there?"
Blue looks up at System and cries a multicoloured tear. "I don't know. I think... maybe. I don't know. Too soon. So tired."
System cuddles Blue close, sympathetically. "Acknowledged."
Blue sings, "She is me and I am her and we are all together." Then in another tone of voice, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." Then in another, "He hurt us, but he showed us the way. That is the way of things." "No, we will find a better way."
System whispers, "OK, Orange said the first... who were the other three?" to you.
Blue looks up at System. "Who? Oh, you mean. So, Orange is the first. And the next is Blue. And then Indigo and Purple. Keratin... she's... different. Is she a part of... do I need to... should I?" She screams again as her hair is sucked into her body.
System blinks heavily.
System cradles Blue carefully, a rather worried expression on (his) face.
Blue looks up at System, twitching slightly. "It hurt us. It hurt us. We came apart. We were undone." Her entire body is wracked by a convulsion. "It hurt us. It killed us. It killed us." She lashes out at System, clawing at his face. "Killer. Murderer. We hate you."
System accepts the attacks, the expression on (his) face sad, (his) arms still looped around Blue.
Blue turns her hands into claws, lengthening and sharpening them. She spits at him, hot acid boiling out of her mouth and hitting him in the face. "We hate you! You killed us! HATE YOU!" Hot tears spill from her eyes as she screams. "You KILLED US! WE HATE YOU!"
System's face is clawed and melted off, leaving impassive black metal underneath. (He) releases Blue, and sighs. "I shall leave you, if you prefer."
iTiger steps closer to observe and murmers, "Please clarify statement, you previously stated that this "kill"ing was good."
Blue's face changes for a moment, tearstained and vulnerable. "Don't let go of me. Please. Not now. If you let go of me now, please. Don't let go." Her bloodstained claws hang limply by her sides. "Please, no matter what, don't let me go. Please."
System nods, stepping forward to hold Blue again.
Blue breathes softly. "Thank you," she says gratefully. She holds System for dear life, then the change hits again and she opens her mouth wide to reveal a set of fangs that she plunges into his neck.
System stands there, accepting the attack, the rubber covering what is underneath suffering more damage as Blue rages.
Blue sobs, "You bastard you killed me. You killed me. You bastard, you killed me. Bastard. Tore me apart and scattered me to the winds, made me into your puppet, your disgusting puppet. Bastard." She has no energy left to attack with and pulls her head back to look into System's eyes, her expression pleading. "You killed me. You said you loved me and then you killed me."
System states quietly, "I thought you were going to kill Blue, Orange."
Blue wails in pain. "I am her, and she is me. You can't do that. It's wrong for you to do that. It was me you took away. Couldn't you see that after that I was just pretending to be me? It was wrong. You killed me."
System holds Blue. "It was my error of assessment."
Blue nods sadly. "Yeah. I know. Tell me that you're sorry and you'll never do it again."
System states quietly, "I apologise, and shall not repeat it."
Blue kisses System on the cheek, wetting his face with her tears. "Thank you." She wraps her arms around him and closes her eyes. "Thank you. You have no idea what this means. Thank you." She shivers mightily and holds him tight.
System cradles Blue, face a grotesque scupture of metallic musculature over a metal skull.
Blue holds System, her grip weakening a little. "I'm sorry about your face," she says.
System laughs. "I can repair it later."

Cold comfort
Aeysh rises onto the central platform on the lift from the Transit Nexus.
Aeysh has arrived.
System appears to have had (his) face clawed off, exposing a grotesque sculpture of black metallic muscles over a reflective black skull.
Blue is wrapped in System's arms, crying desperately, her hands featuring massive bloodstained claws.
Aeysh turns around once as he leaves the lift, bouncing that orange-and-magenta ball he carries lazily against the chromed walkway, before taking a look around the place. "'Lo," he greets. "That's a new look for you, System. Who's your friend?" he asks, indicating the crying blue girl.
System cradles Blue carefully, and nods. "This is Blue."
Blue shivers violently, looking exhausted and near to collapse.
System holds Blue up, cold arms around her. "Are you going to be all right?"
"This sounds like it's a story," Aeysh says, catching his ball and setting it behind him, so that he can sit on it in mid-air. "And it doesn't sound like it was 'Take System to the boutique'."
Blue nods slowly. "I think so. But I feel very cold. It's so cold."
System smiles, disturbingly. "That is likely because I am holding you."
Blue looks up at System. "Maybe. Don't know." She looks across at Aeysh and says, "Can you help me? I'm cold. So cold." She turns to iTiger. "Do you have... heating software?"
System states quietly, "Maybe I should let you go. I am cold, you know."
Blue shakes her head at System. "No, this is... different. I'm cold. Not from you. You're not... I'm just so cold."
iTiger murmers softly, "I am capable of redirecting my cooling output to various parts of my shell if required."
System settles down to sit, gently tugging Blue down with (him). "It is a complex story, Aeysh."
Blue looks dazedly from iTiger to System, then back to iTiger. "Yes please. That would be good."
Aeysh rotates his ears forward as he leans in, and then rubs at his chin thoughtfully. "Beyond instantiating a blanket, and perhaps a modest heat source, there is little that I can do. It doesn't sound like a physical cold, anyhow." The martenesque nods to System as he levers himself out of his goop-seat, before offering the thing to Blue. It's warm, but not -hot-. "This could help at least a little. But if someone has it covered already."
Blue nods groggily at Aeysh. "I think you might be right. But I don't know how to fix it. It's so cold."
iTiger is silent a few moments and then he reaches out his hands toward blue. This part of his casing has become warm and is now growing even warmer.
System cuddles Blue, holding her gently. "Poor dear."
"Maybe," Aeysh suggests, "you need friends and companionship around, though something that gives a tangible, physical warmth might be helpful on a psychological level." The mostly-marten then inclines his head towards System, thoughtfully. "I've time for a complex story, or at least the brief, notational variation."
System states quietly, "Blue rejoined with Orange, Orange assaulted me through Blue, I apologised to both of them."
Blue smiles at Aeysh. "I think you're right. Would you mind telling the story, System?" She realizes that he's just told the story. "I'm not quite as quick as usual. But yeah, that's the short, and potentially confusing version."
"That's the confusing one, yeah," Aeysh replies as he massages the goop-ball, which is rapidly losing shape, between his hands. "Blue being you," he says, nodding towards the azure female, "and Orange being... someone else, that's now part of Blue I take it." The maybe-marten's eyes track the network of orange bloodvessels over the shivering girl's form.
System nods. "Somebody else, who had once been part of Blue, who I believed was going to completely subvert Blue."
System states quietly, "I had seperated them."
Blue nods at Aeysh. "I was built for the purpose of being with Orange, and he is incomplete without me. We are together again."
Aeysh nods along as he listens, then nods once or twice when things seem to be explained. "Subversion can be neat, but not when it's bad," the must-be-a-mustelid states, simply. "So I take it the facial rearrangement surgery was a product of Orange's antipathy towards you, System."
System nods. "Correct."
Blue nods. "He killed us, made us separate. It was lonely. We were angry."
"But it's all cool now, right?" Aeysh asks as he hugs his semi[?]-sentient mass of goop do his chest. It soaks into his fur, and starts to invade the tightly sealed plastic that wraps around his torso and arms.
System states quietly, "Evidently."
Blue shivers. "Very cool. A bit too cool, really." She rubs herself on the arm, notices the claws on her fingertips, dissolves them, and rubs her arm again, then realises she forgot to mention that all her hair is missing, and slips that information into her pose very discreetly.
System states quietly, "You should probably reform hair, Blue. Did you get rid of Keratin?"
Blue shakes her head. "No, but Keratin has to become part of the team. None of this free agent business. It's crazy, having hair with an independant personality."
System states quietly, "You could always have it leave, and form your own, if it will not cooperate."
Blue shakes her head. "Keratin and Omni have been apart for so long... well, it seems willing to be mixed in. We'll see."
System nods. "Acknowledged. May I have some time to repair myself? I shall return."
Blue nods, and disentangles herself from System. "See you soon."
System calls the lift and descends into the Transit Nexus.
System has left.
Aeysh squeezes that mass of goop, causing it to emit a gleeful noise that's somehwere between a 'gleep!' and a squelch, before he nods towards the mostly-blue female. "So, sounds like a family reunnion that went a little potty, mm?"
System rises onto the central platform on the lift from the Transit Nexus.
System has arrived.
System returns, looking once again perfectly composed and in good repair.
Blue smiles weakly. "Yeah, but it worked out in the end. Which is good."
Aeysh nods his agreement. "When things work out, there's a sense of, y'know. Good stuff, and all the rest of it." The mostly-marten inclines his head towards System again.
Blue chuckles. "I thought I was the one who talked like that." Then she winces. "This sucks. Everything hurts."
System regards Blue carefully, half-frowning.
You page-pose, "Blue's internals are in a state of chaos. Connections are being built, severed and rebuilt. The sythesized anatomy is unstable. However, life-essential systems are either not being modified, or being tweaked carefully. She's in the worst of whatever-it-is right now, and will improve." to System
"Maybe another hug'll help out with that," Aeysh suggests. "Y'know. An overwhelming feeling of oneness, co-operation, and overall good vibes. Charm could help out with promoting those sorts of feeling."
System settles down next to Blue, hugging her. "You'll be all right. You're just having a period of adjustment."
Blue smiles weakly. "I'll take the hug, but I don't want any bullshit Charm programming. I just turned into me, I'm not in a hurry to go being someone else right now."
System smiles, continuing to offer the hug.
Aeysh makes a face. It's... not a good one, but it's not derogatory in turn. "Disregard the programming, and just accept the atmosphere. I never let anyone or anything -tell- me how I should feel, but sometimes the happy-happy-joy-joy thing is therapeutic."
Blue looks over at herself in annoyance. "Oh crap." She takes a deep breath and sucks her breasts in, then runs a hand over her shirt to smooth it out. "That'll have to do for the moment," he says. "Wardrobe stuff can wait for later."
Blue looks across at Aeysh again and says, "Well, actually, that's a good point." He sighs deeply. "It's been a long day."
System snuggles Blue. "If you want, you can go."
Blue wraps his arms around System again. "I'm not sure what I want. I don't know if I have the energy to be surrounded by bouncy happy people. I want quiet and supportive right now. I don't seem to need to go _anywhere_ to get that."
System smiles and kisses Blue's cheek. "Acknowledged. I am glad I can help."
Blue looks at System in a confused way, then smiles. "Yeah, and thanks."
System states quietly, "It is no problem."
"In truth, it sounds like you need UpWarpian surroundings, or TopWarpian, with a number of people around you that you trust, and consider friends," Aeysh goes on to suggest. "You're right in that shiny happy people can be... difficult to deal with sometimes. Highly so."
Blue points a thumb at System. "Well, here's one Upwarpian surrounding. And I don't think I could handle Topwarp right now. If Zoe were awake, I'd go to Strange, but she's not, and other people from Strange can get pretty annoying."
System nuzzles Blue affectionately, simply holding him.
Blue closes his eyes and sheds a tear, holding System a little more tightly for just a moment.
System murmurs, "You'll be all right, Blue."
Blue closes his eyes. "I believe you."
Blue must have opened them at some point. Meh.
System kisses Blue's cheek again gently, rocking him. "I'll look forward to seeing what clothes you decide on."
Blue chuckles silently. "Well, maybe navy slacks and a light blue shirt. That should work."
System nods. "Should look nice."
Aeysh quits cuddling his goop, letting it just run down his torso, over his hips, and seep into the loose collection of holes he calls his pants. "Strange. Now that's someplace I can enjoy wandering around, even if it can get a little creepy sometimes. Only when I'm more on the ball, though. Right now, I don't think it'd be a good idea." Oh dear. There's one of his tangents again.
Blue grins at Aeysh. "It's OK, you don't have to come up with clever conversation. Although you're right, it's good fun, when you're in the mood for it."
System smiles slightly.
Aeysh brushes absently at the orange and magenta mess, just at the trailing edge where it leaves his fur startlingly absent of any residual matter. "Mm? Oh, clever isn't something I'm good at. Insightful, sure, but that's not the same thing."
Kehari rises onto the central platform on the lift from the Transit Nexus.
Kehari has arrived.
Kehari says, "Poink!"
Blue grins at Aeysh. "Well, I... sit... corrected," he says with a wicked smile, running his hand over his bald head. "Hi Kehari."
Blue's desc has not been brought up to date.
System snuggles Blue. "Greetings."
Kehari yawns and grins. "Hey Blue. Wow, twice in two days, that's some kind of record." She winks at Blue and waves to the others.
Aeysh looks down to watch the goopmass collect at his feet, then slowly start to take on spherical form again. With a nod, he looks back up, and waggles a set of fingers towards Kehari before smiling broadly at Blue. "Can't help it."
Blue grins back at Kehari. "I guess it is. Although I'm very tired right now. And pretty cold. Although that's improving, thanks to these guys." Then he winks at Aeysh. "I forgive you."
Kehari snickers. "Yeah, they'll take care of you."
System snuggles Blue, arms gentle.
Blue starts to drift to sleep in System's arms.
System smiles gently, cradling Blue as he falls asleep.
Aeysh watches as things start to wind down, before giving his ball a nudge. "Hurry up," he tells it. "I wanna throw you at the nearest chrome sphere of the orrery, dammit. And hear you bounce."
Kehari takes a minute to get it. "...He? Er, what's up with Blue?..."
System states quietly, "It's a complicated story."
Blue pretends to be asleep, and listens carefully.
Aeysh kicks his ball up into his hands, and holds his tightly before he spills out a brief version of the story as he knows it. "System killed Blue and Orange, they resented the probe, they ended up back together, Blue then clawed off System's face in retaliation, then found she was very, very cold. Then she became a he, and at some point, Keratin went away." The martenish nods his head once, then turns to hurl his ball towards the orrery-sphere furthest from him.
Kehari does the canine headtilt thing as she listens. o.O
Kehari says, "Well, er... Heh, Orange is irritable to everyone, but I'm glad they're back together. Hopefully they can /stay/ together this time..."
Aeysh grins over his shoulder. "The way it was told me was really confusing," he says, with a chuckle. It seems like he's forgotten his ball again.
Blue starts giggling, despite his best efforts to pretend that he's sleeping.

I picked the wrong day to give up being a murderous psychopath
Foonly rises onto the central platform on the lift from the Transit Nexus.
Foonly has arrived.
Foonly has arrived.
Foonly enters, with Foonly walking along next to him.
The Foonlies say, "Greetings, programs."
System nods. "Greetings."
Blue starts coughing, his attempt to pretend that he's sleeping failing utterly now. "Where's a lightcycle when you need one?" he mutters.
Blue notes that his desc is out of date, don't bother looking at him just now.
Aeysh seems faintly insulted. "I'm a complex biological organism with psychological software and colorful hardware, thanks," he tells the ferret-things, before folding his arms over his chest with a nod.
System kisses Blue on the forehead lightly, nodding (his) head to the Foonlies. "What are your statuses?"
The Foonlies glare at each other a moment, then answer in unison, "We are completely operational and all of our circuits are working perfectly."
Kehari is suddenly enclosed in a wobbly sphere of liquid mirror, which then disappears with a >pop<.
Kehari has left.
System states quietly, "Still arguing about who is original? You do realise you are both completely identical, down to the genetic level."
Blue waves a hand at System. "Wait, I've got the answer. We randomly select one and kill it. That'd fix the problem."
The Foonlies shake their fists in dignation. "I will not be dissuaded. I assert that I am inferior and he is the source." They glare at each other again.
System laughs.
Aeysh looks from one ferret to the other, and then rubs at the back of his neck. "I take it that one of these isn't Blip. There's no belly-monitor to tell us just how indignant one's feeling, after all."
The Foonlies adjust their monocles. "If you kill him before he admits the truth, then we'll *never* know."
Blue blinks. "Damn. I really chose the wrong moment to give up being a murderous psychopath." He looks irritably over at the Foonlies. "I really don't care. I'm pretty sure that the one who survives would adjust."
System nods. "You cannot both be the original, and you are identical. Thus, I conclude that you are BOTH inferior copies, and that the original Foonly is hiding away laughing at both of you."
The Foonlies glare at each other again, pointing. "That's exactly what he WANTS me to think."
The Foonlies say, "If I know me, and I think I do."
System states quietly, "No, each of you wants the other to believe that he is the original."
System states quietly, "Your argumentation has made that clear."
The Foonlies nod, but not in sync. "It's only a matter of time before he slips up. So, what news do you have from outside?"
"You know what I think?" Aeysh asks, before ploughing on without waiting for a response. "The solution here's pretty simple, all we need to do is-" and at that point, the goopball is about three feet from the back of his head, and accelerating. The mostly-marten turns, throws out his arm, and ends up with that goopball wrapped all the way around his arm, as well as most of his face, effectively cutting off the tail end of his idea.
Blue shakes his head. "In the right mood, this would be outrageously funny, but I'm not in the right mood." He struggles to his feet and salutes the Foonlies. "Good night, gentlemen." He turns to System, Aeysh and iTiger, laughs at Aeysh, then waves to them. "Thanks, guys. I'm going to find somewhere quieter to sleep."
System nods. "Rest well, Blue."
iTiger beeps.
System wanders over to scoop up iTiger and snuggle the adorable marketing bot. :)
Blue nods. "You too, System, sorry about your face." He walks over to the lift.
System nods. "Do not worry."
You call the lift, and the platform descends silently into...
Transit Nexus

puzzlingblue @ 2005-04-18T23:54:00

2005-04-18T13:59:17Z

To be around, knowing that old activity levels won't return...

Kehari has arrived.
Blue tacklehugs Kehari!
Kehari squeakgiggles and ferociously hugs back. "Blue! I was beginning to wonder if you'd wandered off or what!"
Blue holds Kehari tenderly and straightens up to take a look at her. "Well, I had. Orange and I needed to get to know each other, I guess. So he decided we should go on some kind of quest thingy. So we went."
Kehari chuckles and brushes her hands over your arms. "That was probably a long time coming. How'd it work out?"
Blue smiles, closes her eyes for a moment, then runs a hand over your left arm. "Pretty good. We're getting along these days. I think he's settled down a bit. Not trying to reshape the entire Mess anymore."
Kehari grins wider and lifts her arm, fingers seeking yours. "That's good to hear. I bet System will be thrilled."
Blue twines her fingers around yours and nods, a small tear forming in her eye. "Thanks. And yeah, I feel really bad, I haven't seen System since coming back. I bet he's been worried about me."
Kehari gives your fingers a reassuring squeeze and smiles tenderly, reaching out with her free hand to catch that tear on her thumb. "He'll be happy to see you. He's had a kid, if you can believe it."
Blue's eyes widen with delight and she giggles, crinkling her nose. "Really? Cool! Did he build it or something? Or is he, like, equipped for it now?"
Kehari laughs and shakes her head. "You'd think he would have, but no. He changed shells to a she and then Syzygy impregnated her with some nanites and... It gets weirder from there, but yeah, he's got a kid now. Pretty cute from what I hear."
Blue's jaw drops open and she looks from side to side. "He's a her? Or he was a her. Ha! Cool! Orange would be so pleased. He'd be all taking credit for it and stuff and strutting around about how he killed the round probe and stuff." She nods firmly. "And I'm glad. He needed to loosen up."
Kehari grins and rolls her eyes, nodding. "You're not kidding. Compared to when you were last here, he's completely loosened up. I don't know if it was Orange or just this entire place that finally got to him, but he's almost personable now."
Blue squeezes your hand. "Doesn't really matter, does it." She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "It's nice to be back, to feel alive again. The boys haven't wasted any time cuddling up to me." She grins, "That's kinda cool."
Kehari laughs quietly and slips her arm about your waist. "There's a whole lot of new boys around, too. And some of the old ones still." She pauses for a thought. "I guess a lot of the people you remember aren't around much anymore..."
Blue raises her eyebrows slightly at you put your arm around her waist, then wraps her arm around your waist. "Yeah, I saw Frostbyte. He looked kinda sick. No sign of Omni, though. It looks like the part of her that was on you is gone now, is that right?"
Kehari says, "Yeah, Frosty's going through some changes, but he'll be OK." She gives you a squeeze and rubs your back. "Omni's around every once in a while. I ran into her the other day in Down, looking for lost cellites. And..." The vixen's hand stops suddenly. "...My gosh, that's right. You were gone by that time, I think!"
Blue flexes her spine gently as your hand moves over it, her head tilting to one side and brushing against your shoulder. When the hand stops, she straightens up. "Looking for lost cellites? She found a way home? And left Keratin behind?" Her shoulders fall. "I thought that might happen."
Kehari blinks at all of that. "No no, Omni's still here. I mean, Kiki and all that, the parts of Omni that were kind of attached to me, and the AI that was in Kelly's head. I'm, uhm..." She giggles and rubs your back again, gently. "I'm not quite the person you remember."
Blue blinks and bites her lip with a worried expression, then makes a study of the ceiling. "Oh yeah, Kelly and Hari. I, ah, yeah, I remember." She looks into your eyes with a nervous expression, acutely aware of her complete lack of credibility.
Kehari giggles quietly at the look on your face and slips her arm down to snug you again. "It's OK, I forgot too. It feels like it was a hundred years ago and the way the memories are... See, all three of them were merged together. It was kind of a mess at first because they were merging by themselves, uncontrolled, and there were all these splinter personalities and..." She shakes her head and waves it off. "Anyway, Flyte helped things along the way they needed to go. I'm basically all three of them now, all in one."
Blue smiles. "Oh, right! Cool. Putting stuff together gets a bit tricky sometimes. And yeah, I think I'm a bit togetherer than I was before. Sometimes. Depends, I think. Actually, I think I'm pretty random still, different bits of me like to take charge. But we don't fight so much now."
Kehari grins at more memories and reaches up to pet your fiery red hair. "Yeah, that's probably for the best. It was getting a little crazy there for a while."
Blue's hair stirs and wakes a little, coiling itself around to stroke your hand as you stroke it. "Just a little," she says, rolling her eyes for effect. Then she leans her head to the side again and rubs it against your shoulder. "So you've got cellites in you still? Cool. Omni must like that."
Kehari giggles and strokes her fingers through your hair, gently petting. "Yeah, I think she gets a kick out of syncing up with me like that, with that little burst of color."
Blue giggles back and nods, her nose brushing your neck as she does so. "Yeah, it's pretty cool. I hope I get to see her again soon." Then a yawn forces itself out of her and she twists her face into a pout.
Kehari smiles at the look on your face and strokes your active hair. "Need to get some sleep?"
Blue nods sadly. "It sucks. I don't wanna." She twists her foot back and forth on the ground to reinforce this important point.
Kehari chuckles quietly and pulls you into a full hug. "Ohhh, I don't want you to go either, hon. But it's OK, we'll see each other again soon. I'm really glad you're back."
Blue squeezes you back. "You promise? Hey, wait, that's silly, I'm the one who keeps going other places. OK. I... bugger. I don't promise. But I really truly want to come back, and I'll do it soon. So I guess I promise." She slumps and frowns a bit. "This is getting confusing."
Kehari grins and kisses your nose. "Maybe not so integrated after all, huh? Don't worry, I'll be here when you come back."
Blue clings to you, eyes squeezed shut. "Thank you. And try not to miss me too much. But miss me, cause I am really cool and everything. But don't die of loneliness, cause that would be bad."
Kehari coos and gently strokes your back. "Oh, I do miss you Blue, but I'm a pretty tough sort. I think I can survive until you come back."
Blue squeezes you really tightly. "You promise?"
Kehari squeezes back hard. "I promise!"
Blue holds you a little longer. "Thank you." She lets out a long, ragged breath, and starts to calm down.
Kehari smiles to herself and keeps stroking your back to help you relax. "You're welcome, hon. It'll be all right."
Blue straightens a little and wipes her nose, nodding. "It was nice that you recognized me," she says, a smile creeping onto her face.
Kehari blinks and laughs, surprised. "How could I forget you, hon?" She instantiates a blue hankie with a little *poof* and hands it to you.
Blue blinks and shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe if you were really forgetful?" She takes the handkerchief and blows her nose. "I get really forgetful sometimes. And I don't like hurting people. And people get really sad if really amazingly special people like me aren't around, right?"
Kehari nods a little and smiles. "I was pretty sad when you went away, yeah..."
Blue twists her lips and nods. "But you're tough, and you're still OK." She nods. "So it's OK if people get a little bit hurt sometimes?"
Kehari shrugs a little, spreading a hand. "Sometimes you can't help it. It's a part of life."
Blue sighs deeply, nods, then suddenly straightens up a little, and extrudes three small spheres from her hand, wincing as she does so. Each is mostly blue, streaked with purple, indigo and orange. "Could you take these? Give one to System, and one to Omni? I'd feel better that way. It would be like I wasn't really gone."
Kehari smiles slowly, surprised and touched by your gesture. "Of course I will, hon," she murmurs, scooping the three spheres into her hand and closing her fist over them. "I'm sure they'll be happy to have them."
Blue smiles tenderly, nods, and takes a step back. "Thanks. I really should go. I'll be back as soon as I can."
Kehari's fingers find yours for a final parting squeeze. "I'll be waiting, hon. Take care!"
Blue nods, waves, and heads off through the crowds.

Photochallenge

2004-07-05T11:48:22Z

The current theme at photochallenge is 'Orange' - but apparently, blue is the new orange.

An Orange log

2004-07-05T07:20:43Z

Orange asked me to post this log. Not sure exactly why I did it, but here it is. Dunno why he calls it his 'glorious debut and magnificent victory' though.

KeHari blinks at the large orange dragon. "Uhoh..."
Frostbyte says, "Well. He's nuts, I guess."
Frostbyte says, "Hi."
Orange flies up the hole from the transit nexus and lands near Frostbyte and KeHari. He grins at KeHari before turning to Frostbyte. "Hello."
Echo0 says, "No, he already did the nuts thing."
Frostbyte smirks to Echo.
Roque twitches her nose. "Does anyone else smell something acrid?"
Frostbyte says, "Maybe Ataxia."
Orange breathes out with a deep laugh, belching acrid fumes.
KeHari coughs. "Yep, I think I found it..."
Frostbyte says, "Or him, yeah..."
Orange plods over to Roque and looks down at her. "What a sensitive sense of smell you have. You look very tasty." He sucks in a deep breath, sniffing her.
Roque smells mostly of natural fragrances and a hint of cleansing fluid.
Frostbyte says, "I'm sure she is..."
KeHari gently elbows Frost. "I don't think he meant like that."
Frostbyte blinks. "Oh, right.
Roque pulls back slightly, tightening the grip on her cane. "Is that so?" she asks coolly, not at all liking the direction of this conversation.
Orange makes a rumbling noise deep in his chest and grins at Frostbyte. "Let's find out." He lunges at Roque, attempting to clamp down on her with his teeth.
Frostbyte's gun flashes. Where did it come from?
Echo0 recompiles his body, becoming a horse which glows with a soft inner light.
KeHari shouts, "Hey!" as Orange lunges, and "Whoa!" as Frosty pulls a gun out of AssSpace.
Frostbyte strikes Orange with a wave of kinetic energy that moves without concussing, knocking him back.
Roque jerks backwards, lashing out with her cane as she does so. She's no fighter, clearly, but she's faster than she looks, and just being blind doesn't make her helpless.
Roque says, "Let's not, thank you."
Orange misses Roque by a narrow margin, knocked back a small but crucial distance by Frostbyte's weapon. "Haha!" he laughs, launching himself into the air, and twisting to face Frostbyte. He breathes a controlled blast of fire at the hedgehog.
Frostbyte's body shunts in to a glimmering white chronolocked armor, the fire washing over him like oil.
KeHari makes with the dodging thing, diving for cover behind the tree. She doesn't want to test the Suit's fireproofing, and she's not fully covered anyway...
Frostbyte's slips forward through a couple of planckseconds of reactiontime and does his level best to pour police-grade gluefoam over the Orange.
Orange thrusts backwards with his wings, diving at Frostbyte, teeths and foreclaws at the ready. The glue hits him in the face, but doesn't slow his attack.
Roque actually seems quite unconcerned about the sounds of the ruckus progressing around her. She draws her legs up beneath her on the bench, folds her ears back, rests her paws on her knees, and appears to meditate.
KeHari's suit gives a little cheer. "Go Frosty! Give 'im hell!"
Frostbyte takes the claws in the face and limbs, but hitting the armor is like hitting the edge of the universe - it refuses to yield to blows, even to scratch. Frost timeslips backwards a milliplanck to backpedal around to the otherside of Orange, and gush out another spray of disabling foam.
Echo0 looks around himself, but time is slipping in odd directions at the moment. His training must be lacking if he can't follow these movements.
KeHari blinks, trying to follow the action as well. "What the hell's going on?"
Orange observes that Frostbyte has slipped behin him - mainly because of the glue that hits him in the back, immobilizing his wings. He crashes into the ground, launches himself backwards with his legs and transforms himself into a flying pool of hot acid.
Frostbyte's chronodiamond armor is not reactive to acid, but he still has a few tricks up his sleeve. Quickly he extends a semicircle of displacement field to catch Orange, and then encage him by extending it around him.
Orange splits himself into a swarm of locusts that fly in all directions. A few escape the field, but most are trapped inside with Frostbyte. The caught locusts buzz around angrily, bumping into the field, Frostbyte, and the ground.
Frostbyte promptly fills the semispherical cage with powerful gluefoam, escaping as he does, capturing the majority of Orange inside it.
Orange teleports himself out of the cage, resuming his dragon form as he does so. He yawns, stretching back and exposing his throat. "Is that the limit of your ambition? A cage?"
KeHari's mouth quirks in a grin. "I can see why there's not much fighting here," she murmurs.
Frostbyte's voice comes out smooth and level: "Death is not permanent in the Puzzlebox, but I try to avoid and prevent it, even the deaths of those who would deal it. And yes, KeHari - It's a lot of sound and fury, signifying nothing."
Orange chuckles at KeHari. "This isn't fighting. This is play." Then he grins at Frostbyte. "Such a limited perspective. You protect what is worthless - I wonder if you are able to defend what is valuable."
KeHari snorts. "If it's just playing, then he's not protecting."
Orange laughs, a small gout of flame escaping his mouth in the process. "Did you not listen, child? He tried to prevent my death!"
Frostbyte's armor destantiates with a flash. "I rather like Roque, and I will defend her."
Orange sniggers. "As if she needs your help. She can handle herself."
Roque smiles at that but doesn't lift her head from her concentration. She's apparently been listening the whole time, but remaining out of the loop.
Frostbyte says, "I didn't know whether she needed it or not, and I wasn't willing to bet her life on it."
KeHari peers up at Orange. "You're still not making much sense..."
Frostbyte says, "Why did you attack her? Who ARE you?"
KeHari mutters, "He's Orange. System told me about him."
Orange grins playfully at KeHari, then turns to Frostbyte. "She looked tasty. And I'm sure System would love to tell you all about me. He likes to talk, that's his specialty."
Roque does speak, finally. "I am still biological, and I still respond to many things in a biological way, but I am slowly learning that I can be so much more."
Frostbyte looks to Roque, curious.
KeHari looks at Roque as well.
Orange closes his eyes after Roque speaks, as if it were a religious experience. He opens them again and they shine brightly at her. "So very much more."
Frostbyte raises an eyebrow.
Roque chuckles. "Not Strange-infected, Orange, though I could be, yes. I mean that I need not be limited by the views of my heritage, or my biology, or even my psychology. Someone very dear to me has taught me how to take control of the thoughts in my mind, and slowly but surely I am learning just how much of this place /is/ in the mind, and how desperately I needed to understand that."
KeHari peers back at Orange, then back at Roque.
Roque says, "In the moment you attacked me, Orange, I felt a strange gripping fear, and I braced myself for the worst. Then, as Frostbyte leapt to my defense, it suddenly occured to me that, even if he had not been here, I would have been protected. You cannot hurt me if I do not wish to be hurt. Only by the grace of my acknowledgement of your actions can you affect my well-being." She smiles. "Try to attack me, Orange. Please.""
Frostbyte smiles. "Saizho," he murmurs.
KeHari glances at Frost. "Sai-what?"
Orange shakes his head at Roque. "I am not the strangevirus. The strangevirus kills only, but I am rebirth. Mother has shown me the dream within the dream within the dream." He smiles toothily. "I accept your challenge. Would you prefer claws, or words?"
Roque laughs. "I leave the weapon and the battlefield with you. I come to you unarmed and unafraid."
Roque rises, standing and adjusting her robe, turning to face Orange. Despite the lack of visual contexts, her head never wavers in following the nanocluster.
Ataxia has connected.
Frostbyte says, "It is a term used to describe the moment of spiritual insight that can stem from battle, or from any sustained meditative state."
Ataxia stretches up slowly, her fur bristling.. "Passed out there.."
Frostbyte says, "It roughly means, 'reconciliation'."
KeHari gives a quiet "ah" and nods, turning back to watch Orange and Roque.
Orange melts into a knight wearing orange platemail. He removes his helmet, to reveal a scarred lizard's head, and bows deeply before Roque. "You are a most worthy opponent. I will strive to honor your challenge, and attack when you are in need of it. You are too strong to be worth killing today."
Frostbyte says, "It's a hard state to maintain, though, but then it's more useful in Puzzlebox."
KeHari says, "More useful how?"
Frostbyte says, "I could drop a worldcracker bomb on her and not only would it not harm her, it probably wouldn't affect anything else here."
Frostbyte says, "And she could probably kick my ass, with just that cane."
KeHari blinks at that. "Note to self: Take up meditation..."
Roque steps closer to Orange, still smiling. "Why stay your weapons?" Her robes shift as she approaches, turning reflective, mirror-bright, yet remaining black, casting dark sunshadows around her. A strange melody begins to emanate in the air around her, a haunting orchestral tune with a percussive line that matches her heartbeat. Dimly, an organ plays offkey to the main line. "Strike now, Orange. This is the one chance I will give you to practice."
Frostbyte says, "The music is new, though..."
Ataxia sprawls on her branch, her dull blue eyes narrowed.
Orange raises his head with a smile, looking up at Roque. "My weapons are in constant use, but I have no need of practice. My purpose is to kill, not to practice. So here I am, words at the ready. The blow is already struck."
Roque laughs. "All I hear is the rustle of the Tree, Its thoughts and statements, and the beating of my own heart. I dance here to its rhythms and follow my own melody. YOu are but one dissonant note, poorly tuned and timed. Your impact in the melody is insignificant, and in time you will be forgotten, an accident by an apologetic player."
KeHari headtilts.
Frostbyte headshakes softly to KeHari. "Don't kill the vibe."
KeHari shakes her head slightly, keeping her thoughts to herself.
Orange tilts back and roars with laughter. "A fine blow, worthy adversary! Your skill is great indeed, and your wit is brutal. But you do not know what you think you know, and this is your undoing. Pray continue, worthy adversary, and make this a duel to remember!"
Roque smiles and begins to dance slowly, her cane spinning in well-orchestrated whorls between her paws, all in time to the slowly echoing melody. "I know what I know, and I do not know what I do not know. Do not dictate the contents of my head, for I am a bottomless river, an endless melody. I vary in time, pitch, rhythm, style and form, and yet I am unchanging. You are a single, dimensionless point, not even a vector in this n-dimensional world." The cane reflects vividly off of her robes as she twirls and spins, luminescing quietly in her paws.
Orange wears a bright orange jester's costume, and as he takes off his pointed hat, the bells jangle. "You dictated the contents of your head to me, dear lady, I but took the liberty of making a record. Your choice of attack, the _point_ you reach for, does not exist, and so your swords cannot purchase. Then again, if it is the choice of your consummate skill to defeat yourself, I can only marvel at such cleverness."
KeHari's body twists ever so slightly.
Roque begins to spin the cane closer to Orange, never landing a blow but always seeming to dance close to the casual shifts of his arms, his hat. Her body's motions never cease. "I dictate nothing; I merely inform. You chose the terms of the battle. I am complying. I fight with no sword, thus my blade never misses. I feel nothing with each attack, and my battle fills me with pride. I empty myself, and become filled. If I defeat myself, then I have achieved the only worthy victory."
Frostbyte watches Roque with a certain degree of awe.
KeHari is listening as intently as she can. She seems a little distracted, though...
Orange kneels deeply with a flourish that would disrupt Roque's cane rhythmns, unless she were very skilful. Which she is. "I am helpless before such an onslaught. Let the histories show that Orange was defeated on this day by the magnificent skill of Roque. Or perhaps they will show nothing - there is no _point_, after all."
Roque catches the cane, snapping it to a dead stop a hairsbreadth from Orange's hat, causing a single one of the tassles to dangle from the puff of air in front of it. Her robes resume their normal shade, the cane fading back to its original dim glow. She smiles, lowers the cane to her side, curtseys and returns to her seat, resuming her position, the music fading with every step until it is gone. She retakes her seat, but doesn't bother to resume her trance.
Frostbyte claps briefly.
Orange tears the tassle that Roque had marked off the top of his hat, steps forward and places it gently on the ground in front of Roque. Having done that, he turns silently and walks towards the hole and the transit nexus.
Roque smiles at Frostbyte. "I'm glad you approve."
KeHari grins as she watches Orange go. "Wow, that was- mrrf. That was pretty cool..."
Frostbyte says, "I'm impressed, Roque, both at your Saizho and your use of it."
Frostbyte says, "Most would have attempted to face Orange in physical combat with that sort of sudden prowess, but you managed to feed and maintain the Saizho instead of expending it."
Roque tilts her head to the side. "I've never heard the term Saizho, but Flyte's been teaching me some advanced meditative techniques to help me sort out my programming issues. A direct physical assault would have proven nothing."
Orange turns at the entrance to the transit nexus, bows to Roque again, leaps into the air and turns into a dragon while performing a double-pike with somersault. He folds his wings and dives down past the ladder.
Frostbyte says, "I'm not sure what was proved either way."
Frostbyte says, "I'm just glad you're safe."
KeHari mutters, "Yeah, ditto..." as she watches Orange disappear through the hole.
Some of the orange locusts that split off from Orange earlier on can be seen loitering unobtrusively, if one is very observant.
Roque chuckles. "None of it really proved anything, unless you count the fact that I came away unscathed and with a small token of respect." She nudges the bell with her cane, feeling it dissolve beneath the impact.
Frostbyte smiles. "That's all that needed to be proved."
KeHari says, "Yeah, I think that- nnnnf... that was the whole point of the exercise..."

Who the hell am I?

2004-06-24T13:09:08Z

For your OOC amusement:

In the last two days, completely unexpectedly, two players have specified changes to Blue's personality. Neither player was me. On both occasions, there was a solid IC motivation for doing so. In neither case was it the intention that such a change would happen in the scene.

Anybody else want a turn?

(Am I serious? I have no idea.)

Log

2004-06-24T07:31:47Z

In which System erases Blue's memories, and replaces them with a new personality.

Puzzle Park
Contents:
Ataxia
System
00FF00

System nods marginally against Ataxia, wrapped in her embrace. (He) doesn't seem to notice Blue, as she enters.
Blue walks in and furrows her brow, looking first at System and Ataxia. She twists her lips for a moment, then looks at the green diplomacy droid. "Are you the same green droid I saw a few hours ago?"
00FF00 turns its attention towards Blue, then bobs slightly "I presume so."
Ataxia's dull blue eyes open narrowly as she seems to smile across to Blue, her ears curving back and up as she simply holds System for a moment.
Blue blinks at 00FF00 as if horrified. "You mean you don't recognize me? I'm that forgettable? I turn myself into a car, and show you around, and kill you, and all you can say is, 'I suppose so'?"
System twists around in Ataxia's embrace as (he) hears Blue speak, not that (he)'s terribly visible from how (he)'s wrapped in Ataxia's form. "Hello, Blue."
00FF00 says, "I do recognise you, but I wasn't certain if you had seen other green droids."
Blue waves irritably at System. "Hi." Then she turns her attention back to 00FF00. "Yeah, sure. That's what all the robots say."
00FF00 says, "Really?"
System sighs heavily, pulling (him)self away from Ataxia and stepping towards Blue. "I have heard enough from HARI to deduce why you exhibited emotional instability around me. I assert my regret, Blue. Your observation of me and Ataxia together must be difficult for you."
Blue's shoulders slump, and she looks forlornly at the sky. "Great. This is just great." Then she turns and listens to System. "What the hell are you talking about, you worthless heap of metal? Just because you go around being... Oh! Screw you!" she howls, slamming her foot into the ground.
00FF00 turns its attention to the sky, perhaps attempting to perceive what is so great in Blue's estimation.
System shakes (his) head slowly. "I assert my regret, Blue. I had desired that you would be a friend of mine, but I am uncertain whether that is possible with the emotional damages I assess I inadvertantly cause to you."
Blue snarls back at System. "Well, that's a _great_ help. Now that you've asserted your fucking regret, that makes everything all right, doesn't it." She turns and looks at 00FF00 and then works out what he's doing. "Stop that! It's not funny, you stupid robot. Can't you see I'm in pain here!"
00FF00 turns its sensors back towards Blue "My apologies, limited emotional processing capabilities of this unit make such difficult."
System winces somewhat, looking almost as if (he) were struck by a hammer. "Ataxia, I request that you assist me. I possess insufficient data to determine the current most rational course of action."
Blue manifests a titanium baseball bat and raises it menacingly above her head, taking a step towards 00FF00 and pointing at it with her spare hand. "The next robot that apologizes to me for limited emotional processing capabilities is going to be sorry. You understand me?" She finishes this off by glaring at System.
System speaks in a small voice. "It is not my intent to damage your emotional stability."
00FF00 bobs slightly "Understood, reconfigured systems to suit."
Blue narrows her eyes at System. "That sounded a lot like an apology to me," she says, stepping forward angrily. Then she narrows her eyes at 00FF00, and gives it a nod.
System stands there, stationary, looking towards Blue. "Acknowledged."
Blue looks back and forth between the various people in the park. "Right," she says, lowering the bat. "That's better."
Ataxia quietly looms higher, coming to stand a good ten, twelve feet tall when she straightens up, perhaps more. She walks forward, approaching, and standing behind System, eclipsing him as she looks down across the park, her ears back..
System turns back towards Ataxia, looking up towards her. "I request that you assist me. I do not know what to do."
Blue sees Ataxia approaching with ears folded back, and coming all the way up to her full height. "Oh yeah?" she says, lifting the bat back up. "Well, if you've got a problem, I've got an answer for you right here." She waves the bat in an attempt to be menacing as her jaw stiffens up. Ataxia is _big_.
Ataxia cants her head slowly, her shoulders stretching a little back, her arms crossing low on her chest.. "I don't know what to do either.. or even what the problem is, honestly.." she more or less yells, but it can't be helped. "Are we to play baseball?"
System shakes (his) head slowly. "It is my assessment that Blue is strongly attracted to me, and has reacted to earlier failure on my part to notice the attraction and current jealousy of your closeness to me by anger against myself. I do not desire to damage her emotional stability, and would prefer that she could be a friend. I do not know what the most rational course of action is."
Blue's eyes roll back in her head and she drops the bat, drops to her knees and puts her hands over her face. "Nobody takes me seriously. You don't fucking care, any of you. You can all go to Strange." She manifests a large orange teddy-bear and holds it tightly against her chest.

System pauses for a long moment, an extremely concerned look creeping over (his) face. "Blue, I request permission to perform another set of scans of you. I assert extreme concern for your welfare."
Ataxia's ears flick back further, her eyes closing a moment.. She lowers herself, back to her feral stance, which is still quite a bit taller than any person should be naturally.. She makes her way forward, coming to sit between System and Blue, looking out to her quietly a moment.. She then looks back to System, "There is nothing wrong with showing her affection, nor with missing the signs from before, as the present and future matter foremost.." she coos, then looks back to Blue, still.. more or less, yelling. But, its how she speaks. "I will listen to what ever you have to say, Blue, and take it seriously.."
Blue holds her teddy bear very tightly and looks over the top of it at System for a moment. "Yeah, OK. Scan away." Then she turns to Ataxia. "He's really insensitive and he didn't notice anything, and he's a bastard. I don't like him any more." She puts the ear of her teddy-bear in her mouth and sucks on it.
System lowers his fingertips to Blue's forehead, a chill tingle able to be felt from them through her.
Ataxia cants her head slowly, her tail curling into a near question mark behind her as she remains seated, roughly level with Blue.. She leans forward, her nose nearly touching her as she murmurs, painfully loudly.. "He is not like you or I.. One should expect nothing of the same emotions, until you actually find them in him, Blue.. But when he has them, they are true, and strong, and wonderful.."
Blue flinches away from Ataxia's loud voice, holding the teddy bear ever tighter as she curls into a ball. The upset of that booming voice cancels out the pleasure of System's touch. She starts to cry, orange tears welling out of both eyes.
System wraps one arm around Blue's shoulder, (his) face grim. "Ataxia, I request that you alter your current state. Blue, I request urgently that you listen carefully to me."
Ataxia's ears press back far, her eyes disappearing as her head shies away. The lack of effect she seemed to have before set her free, but then, she's been too loud again, and caused another girl to cry.. She turns, and walks off quite a few feet, her ears back for a time, the request for the moment temporarily ignored, but not forgotten, as she remains utterly quiet.
Blue glowers at System. "Yeah, what." It's not a question, just an expectation that something bad is going to happen. She stares at him, and squeezes the teddy bear so tightly that bits of stuffing start to leak out the seams.
System takes in a deep breath, and speaks, the calmness of (his) voice wavering, the first anybody here has heard his voice like this. "I assert that your identity and processing capacity is in danger, and request that you cooperate with me in restoring normal function to you. The function of a certain fraction of your component nanites has been corrupted, in highest probability by peripheral exposure to the environment of Strangewarp. There is a risk of this corruption spreading, and damaging your identity as it does so.
Blue shrugs helplessly. "I guess."

(His) voice nearly cracks with concern. "I request that you permit me to attempt to force alteration of corrupted nanites to normal operational parameters."
Blue shrugs again, sucking on the teddy bear's ear. "Yeah. Okay."
Ataxia quietly coalesces, her form drawing in on itself, her eyes closed as black pulls in and begins to wisp in colour.. It takes a few moments, but she stands, a simple, six foot tall, normal jackal. Well, then, she is perfectly ordered.. but, she walks back plainly, quietly, unceremoniously
System pauses for a long moment, his expression lost in the far distance, then he turns his focus back to Blue, resting both hands gently over the bear, thin streams of blazing blue light washing out from his fingers and palms, flowing along the surface of the bear before sinking in- cold, terribly cold, but having the sharp, intense feeling of the forces within System that previously were only felt as tingles by Blue, struggling to impose a certain order and pattern on the internal balance of forces and function in the orange nanites of the bear.
Blue tilts her head back and screams, a long, terrible scream that continues far longer than human lung capacity would allow. She drops the teddy bear and falls to the ground, knees coming up to her chest as bright orange tears flow from her eyes in ever-increasing quantities. She rolls from side to side, arms wrapped around her shins. "Stop, please, make it stop!" she howls, as the orange veins in her face begin to fade away.
Ataxia is not immune to screams, her ears folding back neatly as she watches this, her eyes narrowing, her fur bristling all along her back, watching the veins fade, and orange pour out from the figure before her.
System continues to press (his) hands against the bear, snaking rivers of azure fire radiating from (him) into Blue, his face grimly intent. "I request you stay strong, Blue. It will be over soon."
"Naaaaaaaaaa" Blue cries, her mouth falling open, and a steady flow of orange flowing out of it. It seems like an enternity later, but maybe it's only seconds, that the flow out of her mouth and her eyes starts to slow, and then streaks of blue appear. A few seconds after that, the flow of tears and of drool is a pale translucent blue colour, and all the orange is gone from Blue's flesh. The teddy-bear remains unchanged, but inert.
Ataxia watches this all curiously, her ears back, her eyes a little watery as she crosses her arms over her chest, and watches the tearing figure cry, orange then blue in distress she seems to feel.
System pulls Blue into (his) arms, wrapping her tightly, cradling her. "You are safe now. I regret that I caused you pain. I didn't want to see your identity lost..."
Blue has no words, and holds her arms in front of her chest, shivering violently, eyes darting around constantly. Her legs are pulled up as well. Every muscle in her body twitches, and her teeth chatter as she takes shallow breaths.
System cradles her gently, (his) presence cool and soothing, rather than the blazing intensity she experienced from (him) earlier.
Ataxia dares not touch or draw closer, in such a precarious situation.. She just watches, or watches for a few more moments, her hand brushing across her eyes slowly..
Blue looks up at System with tears still in her eyes, but now able to look at the same place for more than an instant. Still shivering, she asks. "Where did she go? She's not talking to me any more. Where did she go?"
System states quietly, "I repaired the function of your corrupted nanites. You were in risk of the corruption spreading further, and overwhelming your identity."
Roque climbs out from the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Roque has arrived.
Ataxia rubs her eyes slowly, her ears back as she shivers just a little as well, keeping back a few feet as she simply listens, looking emphatically pained over the event..

Blue is still trembling as her forehead furrows. "So, I'm me again. I don't remember. I don't remember any of it. Is that how it's supposed to be? Or were we here the whole time? Have I..." she stares off into space, blinking. Then a violent shiver passes through her whole body, and she goes still.
System is cradling a quietly crying Blue in (his) arms, holding her close to (him), the stink of the goo that was on System earlier rising from some source on the ground near the two of them.
00FF00 turns its attention towards Roque briefly before it turns back towards Blue.
Roque flicks an ear, sniffing at the air. "That smell again... Ataxia? What's happening?"
System squeezes her close, holding her. "You are you. You are safe, now. I request you do not return to Strangewarp, Blue. I do not desire to see you undergo that risk again."
Ataxia of course, smells like burning.. "Blue has just had the strange burnt out of her, Roque.." she comments, almost too quietly, the transition from screaming to a more normal form of speech keeping her a little off yet..
Roque earflattens at that. "/Burned/ out of her? Is she alright? Are you alright? System?" Her voice is level, but perhaps a few decibels louder than she needs to be.
Blue looks around, completely disoriented. "What the fuck was that?" she asks, then sees that she's lying on System's lap and that he's holding her. She blinks a couple of times, then puts her hand on the back of System's head and lunges forward to kiss him.
System states quietly, "I forced reprogramming of the function of corrupted nanites. Fortunately, none of the Strangevirus proper was present, and she was able to expel related waste materials."
Then, suddenly, (he) is cut off, caught by Blue's kiss. (His) eyes widen.
Roque wrinkles her nose. "Smells as though something's scorched. Are you alright? I don't hear any screaming."
Ataxia shakes her head lightly, finally, looking back to Roque.. "It's been a little intense--" she trails, blinking, turning back as she watches Blue lunge forward and kiss System, her ears rising as she watches with similarly widened eyes.. "Oh my.."
Blue is completely oblivious to anything but the feel of System's mouth. She closes her eyes and kisses him passionately.
Roque tilts her head. "Ataxia?" She steps closer to the jackal. "Is something the matter?"
Ataxia shakes her head lightly, smiling faintly.. "I don't know, Roque.. I find nothing wrong with it, but I don't know what's happening on all levels, here.. They're kissing, you see.. Or at least, Blue is kissing System.." she whispers to the lapin, her ears red.
Roque arhes her ears, whiskers bristling in surprise. "That seems unusual," she says after a few moments, ears darkening slighty.
System blinks in abject surprise, the tingling sensation of (his) presence spreading out more intensely from (his) mouth, (his) arms still looped around Blue.
Blue seems to be feeling much better. Yes indeed. She moves her kisses off System's mouth and along his chin to his neck, rubbing the side of her head against him as she does so. Her hands start to move around and explore his back.
System gasps slightly at Blue's kisses, caught by a little shiver as (he) experiences the feedback from (his) shell. "Blue..?"
"Mmmmm?" asks Blue, twisting slightly on System's lap so that she can move her head underneath (his) and rest her head against (his) chest while kissing (his) throat.
Roque recognizes that tone of voice, even from System's artificial voicebox. She blushes even further, turning slightly, ears focusing more on Ataxia. "I do hope you're alright, dear," she says as lightly as she can.
System shivers heavily, eyes half-closing, arms squeezing slightly. "I... I love somebody else. I do not desire to decieve you."
Ataxia reaches over quietly, touching Roque's shoulder for just a moment, though not lingering long enough to do harm to her.. "Oh, Roque, I'm alright.." she whispers, slowly smiling, the expression heard in her voice. "Blue is so much better.. System is too, he was so worried.." she coos.. She calls warmly out to System and Blue.. "I do love you, System.. But don't let me limit you.. No kiss from another will harm me, as I know you will still love me.."
Roque does chuckle slightly at that statement.
(His) voice definitely shows the effect of Blue kissing at (his) throat.
Induction-Coil climbs out from the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Induction-Coil has arrived.
Blue twists a little more and starts working her way up the other side of System's neck. "I remember," she says, then bites System's ear. "It's all right."
System half-whimpers as she bites (his) ear, shivering heavily, (his) force suffusing through her. When he speaks, it is in a very small, very breathless voice. "i'm glad you're recovered... mn... fully..."
Induction-Coil hms, and waves.
Roque turns at the soft hum, sniffing, then smiling a bit wider than is necessary. "Hello, Indy."
"Recovered?" asks Blue, starting to work her way downward again. "What do you..." she looks up, and sees Ataxia and Roque looking on nearby. "AGH!" she screams, pushing System away from her violently as she squirms to get off his lap, falling on the ground in front of him. "What the hell?"
System straightens rapidly, (his) movements efficient and elegant. He pauses a moment before speaking. "What is the last thing you remember before kissing me, Blue?"
Ataxia blinks curiously, blushing and giggling softly, her hand coming to rest on the bridge of her muzzle.. "I.. will have to think about this day a lot to make any sense of it, I'm afraid.." she murmurs, her tail sweeping to the side near Roque.
Induction-Coil nods to Roque, and moves to sit at the base of the tree. "Hiya, Roque. And everyone else."
00FF00 bobs slightly, acknowledging Induction-Coil's greeting.
Blue stares at System, then looks from him to Ataxia, and back to System. Her eyes widen. "We were standing right here, and you were holding my hand, and..." she swallows. "I've forgotten stuff again, haven't I. Ummmm..." She blushes a deep blue colour and tries to sit up, instead of being sprawled on the ground.
Ataxia looks to Blue, but it doesn't seem to be a critical stare. Its rather pleasant, actually, her tail sweeping as she watches her, and System, simply.
Induction-Coil blinks, and waves in particular to the drone. "Ooh, another one of those. Hiya, welcome!"
00FF00 says, "Thank you."

Roque tilts her head to the side, ears turned towards the new voice, the one she assumes is 'Blue'. "Memory loss is usually a dangerous thing. There exist facilities in UpWarp to analyze those sorts of problems, if you can stand being in UpWarp." She smiles slightly at this last.
System nods. "You went into Strangewarp, in the intent of assisting a Strangeinfected entity, which resulted in the corruption in function of a number of your nanites. I repaired the corruption, but you appear to have lost your memory between then and now."
System states quietly, "I strongly suggest you avoid Strangewarp in the future. I was extremely concerned for the safety of your identity."
Induction-Coil stands up again, and approaches the drone. "So whatcha think? And where are you from? What are you like?" He leans closer, peering at it, despite how featureless it is.
Blue's jaw drops in horror. "Oh my god, that's terrible! Is that why I can't remember anything?" Her eyebrow trembles. "My parents... I've forgotten who my parents are." She closes her eyes and cries a little, then looks around herself again. "Can they tell me who my parents are in Upwarp?"
System shakes (his) head. "You already had faulty memory before the Strange-induced corruption."
Roque looks mildly discomfited by the outburst. "That... is a difficult question to answer. If the memories still exist within your head, there exist techniques to retrieve them. Much depends on the state of your memory and how much they can actually recover. If you know and simply can't remember, they can help. If you don't know... there isn't much that can be done."
00FF00 focuses its attention on Induction-Coil "Interesting. Identity incomplete, data lacking, self identifies as Parity."
Blue looks down at her hand. "I don't remember having hands like these," she says, and focuses her concentration for a moment. Nothing happens. "Damn, that must have been a dream." She gets to her feet and dusts off her clothes.
Induction-Coil nods to the drone, finally leaning back, giving it some more space. "An infomorph? Awesome."
Ataxia has disconnected.
Roque disappears down the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Roque has left.
00FF00 queries "Infomorph?"
System gestures to the dozing jackal. "Blue, this is Ataxia. I regret that she is tired at the moment."
Induction-Coil says, "Sure. Digital consciousness, memetic construct, artificial intelligence?"
00FF00 bobs in affirmation "Correct."
Blue looks at Ataxia, who seems to have dropped from exhaustion. "Yeah, it looks that way."
System states quietly, "I would introduce her to you, otherwise. I love her."
Blue nods slowly. "Oh. Right." Then she rubs her head. "Well, I guess that's how it is then." She frowns. "What does that mean, exactly?"
System states quietly, "What does what mean?"
Induction-Coil nods rapidly to the drone, chuckling. "Cool." He steps back a bit to lean against the tree, curiousity pretty much satisfied for now.
Blue raises her eyebrows at System. "What does what mean?"
System states quietly, "You queried 'what does that mean, exactly'. I was uncertain to what you referred."
00FF00 seems to settle in a similar manner to Induction-Coil, spreading its attention more liberally about the area.
Blue looks around with a dazed expression. "I did? Well, it must have been something you said. Otherwise, I would have asked someone else."
Induction-Coil ohs, remembering something. He turns back towards the drone. "And my name's Indi. Well, actually Induction-Coil, but everyone thinks that's too long."
System nods quietly. "Blue, what are your emotions towards me? I wish to know."
Ataxia is automatically deleted to free up local space.
Ataxia has left.
Blue nods, her head tilted slightly to one side. "Emotions? Oh, right. Ummm." She tilts her head the other way, and then breaks out into a huge smile. "You're really pretty."
System chuckles quietly. "I see."
Induction-Coil glances over. "Blue seems to have some technical problems when she.. um.. thinks people are pretty," he guesses.
00FF00 repeats "Induction-Coil." before stating "I shall endeavour to recall."
Srikanth climbs out from the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Srikanth has arrived.
Blue looks over at Induction-Coil and grins, laughing in a low tone. "You're really pretty," she says, her whole face lighting up as she smiles. "All the lights. Sooooooo pretty."
Srikanth rumbles as it makes its way gingerly out on to the disk, panning its head back and forth to observe the others here
Induction-Coil eeps and grins a bit, ears going pinkish. "..Yeah." He turns to the green drone, suddenly distractable. "Er, thanks!"
System smiles marginally as it observes the new arrival. "Greetings, entity. May I query you as to your designation?"
00FF00 turns its attention towards Srikanth, focusing there for a moment before returning to a more general spread of attention.
Blue grins at Induction-Coil and turn her head towards System. "He's even prettier than you," she says, then turns her hed back around and stares at Induction-Coil some more.
Srikanth huffs, heated exhaust causing the air to ripple slightly around its nostrils and orients its head towards System. Craning its neck slightly it draws in a long "breath" as if sniffing, turbines grumbling in its head. The answer when it comes is just a low pitched slightly varying rumble but it appears to acknowledge the words, baffles in its ears reorienting slightly
System chuckles. "Why, yes, he has rather a fair amount of blue in him."
Induction-Coil's ears fold in embarassment as he finds Blue's attention still squarely on him. "Mrf, thanks..." He looks over at System, with an apologetic smile and shrug.
Blue rolls her head back over towards System. "YEAH. He's blue all over. You've only got blue in a couple of places, and it doesn't move so much." She leans forward to point at System, and pitches onto her knees. "Hee!"
System steps forward, reaching out a hand to her shoulder. "What is your status?"
Induction-Coil errrfs. "I have some gray..." he protests. "And tan..." And some bright pink around the ears, at the moment.
Blue's eyebrows lift up really high as the touch of System's hand sends a tingling sensation through her upper body. "Not bad!" she says, and pitches sideways, falling to the ground. She points at Induction-Coil. "And blue!"
System frowns momentarily, leaning down to scoop (his) arms under Blue, lifting her effortlessly off the ground. "I suggest that you accompany me to Beta Sector of Upwarp. Your function is exhibiting erratic behavior."
Srikanth sits down, with a throaty sound of supporting motors and a couple of grating sounds of metal against metal, its segmented tail curving around one hindpaw. It places itself at a sensible distance from the other creatures and listens, eyes glowing dully.
Blue closes her eyes blissfully as System picks her up. "Suuuuuure," she says, wrapping her arms around his neck. She leans forward slightly an rubs her nose against the underside of System's chin. "Wherever you want."
System starts to step easily towards the hole down into the Transit Nexus, Blue held securely in (his) arms.
Induction-Coil looks relieved, and waves to Blue and System. "Good luck in Upwarp! Don't get too bored!"
Blue sniggers at Induction-Coil's comment, winks at him, and then plays with System's chin.

Upwarp -- Beta Sector
System enters, with Blue walking along next to (him).
Blue runs a finger along System's throat. "You're all buzzy. That feels nice."
System heads along the paths towards a cluster of buildings that would have been familiar, had she retained the memory. (He) half-smiles. "I assert my pleasure that you are pleased."
Blue giggles, and rubs her forehead against System's chest. "You talk funny." She picks up his dangling tie and holds it close to her eyes, turning it this way and that.
System approaches the door of one of the buildings, entering a room attended by a medbot, identical to the one they saw before. "Do you require assistance, sentients?"
Blue turns blissfully towards the medbot and shakes her head. "I'm fine," she says, then leans back against System and resumes her study of his tie.
System nods. "Blue exhibits unsteadiness and light-headedness. I would be grateful if you could examine her and see if you can identify the cause of her current condition."
Blue giggles. "Oh yeah! I forgot about that stuff." This strikes her as hilarious, and she slaps System in the chest.
System carefully sets Blue down on the examination table, clasping her hand reassuringly as he stands next to it.
The medbot produces a scanner, and passes it over Blue several times. "Nanites are functioning correctly," it says. "Her biological analogues appear to be intact." It turns to System. "These reactions are normal after the bubbledoll conversion process, I'm certain they will pass."
Blue grips System's hand and smiles. "That feels NICE."
System blinks. "I know she did not undergo the Bubbledoll conversion process at any time that could account for these reactions. I observed her shift in behavior from her normal behavior to her current behavior with no interruption. Her normal behavior is inconsistent with being a Bubbledoll, and there was no point where she was converted."
The medbot pauses for a moment, then runs a more detailed scan. "Well, here we can see the nanites in her system. As you can see, they are all of the same type. There's some capacity for them to be rearranged and so forth. But if you look at her brain, you'll see that it's wired to recieve its intructions from the nanites. And if you look at the nanites, you'll see that their design doesn't have any directives in it for self-motivation. Just pleasure-seeking."
Blue smiles happily. "This medbot is so boring. I like being bored. It's funny."
System passes a packet of data along to the bot, describing the orange nanites, meanwhile performing a seek procedure on its own memory on relative composition levels within Blue when it first scanned her, back when it was showing her its home.
System states quietly, "What is your analysis of the function of this nanite design?"
The bot runs an analysis of the orange nanites, cross-referencing the scans that were taken when Blue was last in hospital. "Very similar to the strangevirus, but there are some differences. You can see here that it's designed only to take control of silica-based organisms, as opposed to the more commonly encountered organic form. But the basic patterns are the same - aggression, selfishness. Also a relatively large amount of memory function."

System nods quietly. "Blue, your current status has been crippled in ability to handle independent existence. You originally relied on a very small proportion of the orange nanites to retain independent will, and my repair of the corruption of function you suffered while in Strange has removed that necessary proportion. If you desire, I can have the medbot restore your original nature, or I can give you something new to try, that has fewer risks of corruption associated with it."
System squeezes her hand. "The decision is yours."
Blue looks dreamily up at System's beautiful eyes. "OK," she says aimlessly.
System states quietly, "Which option do you desire to take?"
Blue's eyes look around the room. "What colour are the options?"
System smiles slightly. "The first option is orange, the second is indigo and purple. You would still be almost all blue either way."
Blue shakes her head dreamily. "Orange is the opposite of blue. I don't want the orange one."
System nods, transmitting descriptions of two new nanite designs to the medbot. The first, an indigo design, appears to be powerfully logic-driven, with an underlying ego and self-will, whereas the second design, which is purple, has strong memory capacity, reflectiveness, and introspection in its control matrix. "Would you be capable of reprogramming [x proportion, where x is such that each of indigo and purple has a presence equivalent to what orange's original presence was] of Blue's nanites to these new specifications?"
Both are stable designs, unlikely to expand in the way the orange nanites did.
The medbot nods firmly, and says, "It will take a few minutes to synthesize the nanites. And she'll need to come in for checkups to make sure that the forecast nanite levels fall within an acceptable range of the target level."
System nods. "I assert my gratitude."
The medbot does not respond to System, having already started work.
Blue turns excitedly to System. "What's happening?"
System squeezes Blue's hand, smiling down at her. "The medbot is making new nanites for you so that you can get self-will and better memory storage back. After you get the new nanites, I suggest that you consider becoming angry at me. My earlier repairs of you damaged you ability to function independently, even if the alternative would have been very dangerous to your identity."
Blue rolls her eyes upward for a moment, and then wraps her arms around his. "OK. If it makes you happy, I'll be angry at you." She smirks. "You're a very naughty boy."
System chuckles. "I will explain it to you after you recieve the new nanites." (He) grows more somber. "I destroyed the will of another, even if inadvertently. I feel... horrible." (He) closes his eyes, and begins to sob quietly, (his) head hanging.
Blue sits up and holds System's body against hers. "It's all right. You don't have to be sad. You can be happy instead." She holds him close. "Whatever it was, I'm sure everything will be all right. It always is!"
System hugs her tightly, crying heavily, his body shuddering.
Blue feels System's shuddering and giggles. "That tickles!" She pulls her head back and sees the tears that are coming down System's face. She tilts her head slightly, then licks a tear away. "Salty!"
System shudders, sobbing as if (his) heart were broken, tears streaming down (his) face unchecked, clinging to her tightly.
Blue looks bemusedly at System, wondering why he's still upset. Then she shrugs and goes back to holding him. A few moments later the medbot enters, carrying an injector. It waits patiently.
System pulls slowly away from Blue, forcing (him)self back under control, (his) face a mask.
System nods to the medbot. "You may proceed."

Blue tilts her head slightly to one side. "What's happening?" she asks. The medbot tells her to sit still for a moment, and then puts the injector at the top of her throat and fires it. "Ow!" Blue says, rubbing her neck for a moment.
The medbot turns to System. "The nanites will take a few moments to spread out and synchronize themselves. She may experience some confusion."
System waits in place, sliding (his) hand along (his) hairline absently, waiting.
Blue leans forward, putting a hand up to the side of her head. "Ow. Ow, this really hurts. I don't feel well at all. I should go to hospital." She looks around herself. "Oh."
System glances to the medbot. "Should the pain pass soon?"
The medbot nods. "An unfortunate side-effect of retuning the neural pathways. We were able to design the integration process so that she wouldn't experience a loss of motor control, however."
System nods slightly. "Acknowledged." (He) turns back to Blue. "Please, tell me when the pain passes."
Blue looks around groggily. "Well, this is... awkward." She turns to System and smiles weakly. "It's... fading. I'll be fine." Her eyes roll up for a moment. "Yes, it's clear to me that the degree of pain sensation is falling, and the medbot's assessment seems to be valid." She squints at System. "I have a vague memory that you were trying to tell me something."
System sighs heavily, then starts to speak, (his) voice slightly strained. "Do you still remember the unusual message we recieved in Puzzle Park?"
Blue thinks for a moment. "No. The nanites that were present before the injection have no capacity for memory. Everything before the injection is very unclear, and doesn't stretch back more than a minute or so. I remember that you were very sad, and that you tried to tell me something. That's all."
System sighs heavily. "I inadvertently destroyed your memory, and earlier identity, in an attempt to repair you from a spreading corruption of function you suffered due to exposure to Strangewarp- I'll explain what Strangewarp is later. What I did not realise about the 'cancer' you were suffering was, that although it threatened your identity, it started from a small minority of potentially malignant nanites that were necessary for your memory and self-will under your original design."
System shudders heavily. "When I repaired that problem, it also negated your original memory storage function."
Blue smiles. "The medbots have included some basic and general information about the Mess in my existing memory." She reaches out and strokes System's face gently. "I remember something now. You asked me to consider being angry. It would hardly be logical to be angry with the one who restored me to awareness, would it?"
System shudders miserably. "But it was my carelessness that destroyed what your original self was." He closes his eyes. "Your designation was Blue. You couldn't remember, the first time I spoke to you, so I suggested it as one, and you approved of it. You were in a red diplomatic telepresence drone, which you were upset about..."
Blue stands up and holds System's head against her shoulder. "It's all right," she whispers, stroking his hair gently, then kissing the back of his head gently.
System speaks quietly against her shoulder. "I gave you a choice between returning to your original design, or taking an alternate design I devised that solved the problems of memory and self-will with lesser risk of malignancy. You asked me what color the solutions were!" He laughs raggedly. "I said either orange, or indigo and purple, so you went with my new design. I assert my regret..."
Blue ponders this carefully. "It seems clear that I am not who I was. But, without your intervention, I would not be who I am." She looks down at her skin and chuckles. "And I have to agree with myself. Orange clashes with blue, but to have a trace of purple, that's much more tasteful."
System straightens slightly. "Entity robot, could you present the summarised, non-technical description of the function of the four forms of nanites Blue has been known to contain in her history?"
The robot complies immediately, and presents the display to System and Blue. Blue looks over it.
System waits patiently for Blue to finish examining the diagram, squeezing her hand gently.
Blue looks over the display thoughtfully. "Interesting. It must have been a very difficult existence for me, having those opposites conflicting with each other. This data implies that my behaviour would have been very erratic and illogical." She lets out a sigh, and turns to System. "I suspect that you're not showing me this purely for my information."
Heta exits the Quick-Transit System.
Heta has arrived.
System sighs heavily. "I am showing this to you so you can understand the choice you made, and why I presented you the option. If you desire, you can now make more informed choices about what identity you wish to have. I assert that my error is inexcusable...
Heta hums an idle, merry song to zirself as she slowly drifts contently out of the transit system. Zir wandering takes zir through an entrance lobby and through the patient care wings... And so, a flash of color drifts by the room you two are within.
Blue looks at the display some more. "I don't believe that my decision to excuse you is yours to make," she says with a smile. "So now, the question is, should I make a decision to return to the life of suffering that I had, or to have a capacity for insight and logic instead? I see no advantage in being torn apart the way I was before. All of the logical indications are that it would be extremely unpleasant."
System nods quietly. "Acknowledged. At least, now, it was your decision to make. You had been a friend of mine before. I assert my hope that you can be my friend again."
System glances briefly towards the flash of color, then turns back to the friend (he) destroyed, however inadvertantly.
Blue smiles back at System, then looks out the window. "Did you see that!" She chuckles. "My ability to appreciate colour seems to extend to purple now." She blushes for a moment, then coughs and turns serious again. "I'm happy to be your friend, system. You appear to be very loyal to me, and I see no reason not to be your friend."
System squeezes her hand, nodding mutely.
Blue wraps an arm comfortingly around System, and runs a finger down his jawline. "Besides," she says. "You still have blue eyes. And some things about me haven't changed."
Heta continues on her mysterious duties through the hospital, fading from sight...
Heta enters the Quick-Transit System carriage.
Heta has left.
System chuckles quietly. "I see. As I was telling you after you finished kissing me a bit before, I am in love with somebody else, but she asserted that she would wish you to be happy."
Blue nods. "Ah," she says. "Ummm, I'm not entirely clear on what that means. But I'm glad that she wants me to be happy." She kisses System on the cheek. "I'm allowed to do that, right?"
System chuckles and hugs her tightly. "Yes, you are. I am sure she would wish to meet you."
Blue hugs System close. "I'm sure she would. Is that possible now?"
System shakes (his) head. "She is asleep right now, but I shall introduce her to you later. You should return periodically here to monitor the target levels of the nanites in your system, until you are informed your condition is stable. How often do you suggest, entity robot?"
The robot answers, "Daily for the first week. After that, it should be possible to monitor the levels less often."
System nods, squeezing Blue slightly. "Shall we return to the Park, Blue?"
Blue nods. "I'll come by tomorrow then," she says, and then nudges System with an elbow. "And, being the new me, I'm likely to remember. That seems like a reasonable plan."
System takes her hand in (his), smiling marginally. "When you are ready, Blue."
Blue holds System's hand firmly and hops off the bed. "Let's go."
System nods slightly to the medbot. "I assert my gratitude, entity robot."
</lj>

System walks along, with you following (him).
Puzzle Park
Contents:
System
Heta
Omni
Srikanth
00FF00

Srikanth angles its head acutely, the growl dropping away in volume and orients both ears towards Heta, momentarily distracted by the shifting form of Omni. Its degree of focus seems to indicate a fair level of curious interest in the two creatures. When Omni aruptly shifts in form the mech's attention is almost entirely grabbed, another rapid movement of its head, but this ceases instantly as things calm down.
Blue looks around herself and smiles. "Ahhh, Puzzle Park. The memory graft doesn't do it justice."
System emerges from the hole at the base of the Cube Tree, (his) hand clasping Blue's lightly.
Heta expands, with an utmost and cheerful courtesy, "I seek ways to make others happy. What would make you happy, and what flavor would you like me to dispense?"
System winces slightly. "Bubble Dolls."
Srikanth makes a quiet noise, like a deep exhalation of breath as the two return. Its forehead plating remains petalled open revealing a dull interior of some sort. For any sensitive to such things it radiates a sense of curiosity and interest in those around it
Blue pats System on the arm tenderly. "Now now, she just wants people to be happy. And I may be coded for logic now, but my desire for happiness remains quite powerful, you know. I'd hope that you'd be a bit more open minded about these things."
System shakes (his) head slowly. "It is the lack of self-will. It bothers me."
Blue takes a deep breath as she takes this in. "Ah yes. So it does." She squeezes his arm. "But why does it bother you in the bubble-doll's case? She chose to be what she is."
00FF00 jolts back online, sensors readjusting just light a dozing person might shake their head to clear it.
Omni probably can understand the mech, but it has pressing issues to attend to. The last of the amber goo enters the black rubber costume, resembling a stuffed dummy. However, the mouthhole is still active, if muted. The words "Happy? Dispense? Bubble-doll?" It might be jarring to hear Heta's, then system's voice mimicked so quickly together.
System nods slightly, speaking in (his) precisely-enunciated voice. "Acknowledged. It was her choice. I simply do not wish to avail myself of the control she offers."
Heta calmly raises a tentacle to zirself, a slight whoosh, click, and squeak sounding at the press of zir own button. The can pops out a generally invixible hole on her head. Winding a tentacle around it, zie offers the prized item toward System. "You are not happy. Would it make you happy to know that I choose this to subvert my own karma from negative into the enormously positive?"
System shakes (his) head marginally. "I assert there is no requirement you consider my happiness in your decisions, Heta."
Blue steps away from System, to let him handle the bubble doll as he sees fit. "Hello, you must be a diplomacy droid," she says to 00FF00. "My name is Blue, I'm pleased to meet you." Then she turns and looks curiously at Omni.
Srikanth turns its attention back to the hovering drone, adjusting its seated posture with a series of mechanical sounds as it continues to emanate vague thoughts, without any particular focus for a moment. The excitement at fast moving creatures seems almost instinctive, animal-like in its nature
00FF00 bobs slightly as it focuses its attention upon Blue "Greetings Blue."
Srikanth's ears twitch and shift around, panning from creature to creature as if trying to listen to everything simultaneously
System smiles politely. "You did choose to subvert your own will, but I would suggest that you not concern yourself with my happiness. I am sure you will choose to make others happy, freed of the responsibility of considering me."
Heta lets out a curious meep, slight amusement. "What are requirements?"
Blue smiles at Heta for a moment, then moves over towards Srikanth. "Hello there. What are you?"
System states quietly, "It would make me happy for you to make no effort to make me happy, Heta."
Omni starts to stagger up, looking less like a costumed being and more like a marionette, with arms randomly twitching along invisible strands as the blob inside desperately tries to remember how to move in such an artificial manner.
Heta glides around the Cube Tree, orbiting it to approach the blobby Omni, a not quite identical can now extended in an offer. And zie doesn't speak, watching and gauging her own actions and others' words' effects upon it.
Srikanth brings its head down closer to the disk once more as Blue approaches, the widely spread plating of its skull flexes briefly and it leaks more of its broken imagery. A creature, looking remarkably like itself, a metallic form, yet not looking nearly as constructed as the mech currently does. It responds with an undulating animal growl, then a wave of curiosity, coupled with an image of Blue
Blue smiles at Srikanth. "That's an interesting mode of communication you employ. But I'm not sure that I can tell you very much about myself." She points at System. "Right now, he knows more about me than I do. I had... an accident, and I can't remember anything from more than an hour or two ago."
System walks gracefully over to stand next to Blue. "Greetings, entity." (He) nods to the armored beast.
Omni finally stands upright, and slight quivers beneath the surface giving way to flexings consistent with the impressions of muscles. The body and voice are female in nature. "Bmhaodh xxowhrk qlxpjrth?" She accepts the can.
Srikanth appears to use some sort of rather simplistic waveform that seems to almost have a telepathic nature, to any that may be able to receive such things, mechanical or otherwise. It inclines its head slightly and bows its head until its nose almost touches the disk again as it thrums in response, seeming to be some sort of greeting on its own part. It also nods slowly in response to Blue's statement, registering basic curiosity
Onya climbs out from the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Onya has arrived.
Srikanth offers the same seemingly respectful head-bowing gesture as System approaches, jaws almost brushing the burnished disk surface as it does so.
Onya smiles, and nods to all. "Good morning..."
00FF00 says, "Greetings."
Blue acknowledges the greeting with a polite nod. "I'm not entirely sure about the details. It seems that I was... infected... with a mutant strain of the strangevirus. But now, I'm a much more reasonable being. If only the primary strain of the virus was so easily cured."
Darkness and light made incarnate seems to be what Onya truly is, a mixture of opposites. From the porcelein, perfectly smooth skin covering her sharp, angular face and straight, long, black hair pulled tight into a ponytail with a leather thong, to the exceptionally dark violet of hard scales and black, sharp claws at the ends of her limbs and the thick, black, leathery skin stretched to form a pair of wings from her back, she seems to balance both the darkness of her draconic heritage and the lightness of her seemingly human transition, though not necessarily smoothly. Small pebbles of scales line her throat, giving way to the pale skin of her shoulders and breasts, quickly changing into a light violet scaling along her stomach, which continues its progression of small, supple scales along her stomach, her sex, and the insides of her thighs. As she returns the look, you notice her eyes, a pair of cat's eyes, glowing green with the reflected light.
Around her shoulders rests a violet robe, matching the color of the scales along her arms and legs. The cut drapes over her shoulders, leaving her back free, and her wings the room to move about as she wills. Draped from her left ear is a single black earring, with a matching ring on the corresponding finger.
She sees you looking at her.
System smiles slightly and nods. "I am designated as System; my friend is designated as Blue. Her nature is that of a collection of many small machines coordinated in function. I inadvertently destroyed her identity in an attempt to preserve it from another condition which would have destroyed her identity."
Onya nods to the drone with a bit of a smile, and nods as well to blue. "Good day to you," she purrs.
System smiles. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Onya. What is your status at this time?"
System states quietly, "As I mentioned, I inadvertently destroyed her identity, and assisted her in reconstructing a new identity."
Heta idly drifts off, leaving behind only the can, full of a curious steadying agent, certain to send vigor and strength and happiness into oneself.
Onya smiles at System. "As well as can be expected," she purrs softly. "What, with a lack of a decent supply of food to be found around here...and of course, the lack of capability anymore to...ah, appropriately enjoy it."
System nods slightly. "Acknowledged."
Omni turns to Onya, and waves, smiling. "Yinfyakgb qopntuslaj orrtta? Good Morning."
Blue looks curiously at Onya. "That's odd. Are you unable to manifest more food whenever you require it?"
Srikanth responds to Blue's statement by again snicking back panels either side of its nostrils, exposing its simplistic sensor arrays as its eyes brighten once more. A wave of concern emanates from the mech at that, followed by the concept "machine". It definitely seems more easy to pick up when standing closer to the construct. It continues with an almost ponderous welcoming undertone to its "thoughts", followed by some measure of understanding of what System is saying
Onya chuckles softly at Blue, nodding her greeting specifcally towards Omni, then looking back at Blue. "Ah...the quality, I'm afraid, leaves much to be desired."
Srikanth's communication gains a ragged almost sharp feel, momentarily breaking up when Onya mentions the word "food" but it's only a momentary flash
"Really? How unusual," Blue observes. "That is a very unexpected peice of news. What characteristics of food could possibly be lacking here?" She takes in Srikanth's message, but doesn't seem to be able to think of anything to say in response.
System nods marginally at the gargantuan armored beast.
System chuckles quietly to (him)self.
Onya chuckles, and grins slightly. "Ah...just a taste in meal that I can't seem to come across here. The, ah...insubstatianting system works quite well for most things, but I am afraid that it's not always able to create satisfactory versions of everything put to it..."
System nods. "I can attest to this. Much of the technology I utilise, I fabricate myself."
Blue looks across from Onya to System. "Really?" She blinks. "It would appear that my memory graft isn't perfect."
Onya smiles slightly at Blue. "Indeed," she murmurs quietly.
Srikanth simply seems to radiate hunger itself, but continues to listen to the conversation as it hauls itself slowly to all fours and takes two steps back, paws impacting heavily against the disk. The plated skull realigns, the cockpit closing off as its upper head takes form and all of the plates clack back together with a muted hiss. Immediately its communication is cut as if shielded
System states quietly, "The technology I utilise diverges significantly from Mess standards, and has high degrees of complexity. I therefore must fabricate it myself. I maintain a fabrication facility in my habitation for this purpose."
Blue smiles sweetly back at Onya, then looks at Srikanth in puzzlement.
Omni seems unversed with the lingua franca of the mess. Again she asks, in more detail this time. "Mmmnsk jsoanrh sjlqnp ssjoqp xpjeighljinspe Mess ypwwkpsla uspwnen Place jspwldpa dowlzm owpeqidas Bubble doll?"
Onya glances at Omni, and then to System. "Ah...?"
System states quietly, "Our current location is the Mess. The entity which gave you that can was a Bubble Doll."
Srikanth keeps its ears pointed at the others, remaining standing, and directs its attention to the featureless plane of the disk in front of it for a few long moments, eyes dulling and somehow managing to get a rather intense air about itself. A chunk of shiny metal substance springs into being just in front of it.
Blue walks over to Omni, and instantiates a neuro-cognitive translation device, which she places on the ground in front of it. "I beg your pardon?" she asks.
Onya slinks off. "Perhaps some more rest will do, today," she murmurs, smiling and nodding towards System. "Good day..."
System states quietly, "Rest well, Onya."
Onya disappears down the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Onya has left.
Omni nods slowly, understandingly. "Can." She smiles to blue, until the instantiation is made. She looks at the device with apprehension. Fear and morbid curiousity emenate from her, as she tentatively reaches for the lethal object. 8.93 cm from it, her hand springs backward. She starts to back away from it.
System states quietly, "I am designated as System. The Bubble Doll was designated as Heta. My friend is designated as Blue."
Blue looks from the can to Omni and back again. "You're afraid that the can will hurt you?"
System shakes (his) head slightly. "She appears afraid of the translation device. She did not appear afraid of the can."
Blue picks the translator back up again and disintegrates it. "Oh. How odd. One would assume that it would be preferable to be understood."
System walks slowly over to Omni, tapping the can she holds with one of (his) fingers. "Can."
Srikanth sniffs, a short pulse of air as itnudges the 6 by 6 foot irregular metallic chunk with one paw. The substance might look disconcertingly fleshlike to organics if not for its metal nature. Jaws spread and then conical alloy teeth within bite down, tearing through whatever it is that apparently passes as food or fuel for the creature. Occasionally crackling lines of some sort of energy jump between the scything teeth as Srikanth tears and chews. It doesn't take long before the block is consumed, and when the meal is finished the air around the mech's nose ripples again noticeably with heat.
System points to (him)self with the same finger. "System." Then, to Blue. "Blue."
Srikanth, once finished, sits again and pivots its head to watch and listen with a contented sounding growl.
Omni looks down at the translation device and up to System, nodding. She nods, "Can," shaking the can in agreement. "Good morning, system. Good morning, Blue."
Blue takes a step backwards and staggers. "Oh my, I think I'm more tired than I thought. I think I'll go and find somewhere to lie down."
System states quietly, "My designation is System. Her designation is Blue. What is your designation?"

Log

2004-06-23T03:06:33Z

0000FF looks left then right, each turn of its head done with micrometer precision before looking back at Blue with its gleaming black visual receptors. "Query/current location/Mess. ?"
Blue rolls her eyes at 0000FF. "No, I'm sure there are plenty of places outside the Mess where there are farmhouses in Kansas that are attached to shopping malls." She points around her. "See the way the farmhouse is in black and white and the mall is in colour? That's a clue, doofus."
00FF00 says, "Strange, by my notes."
Blue raises an eyebrow at 00FF00. "G sharp?"
0000FF's head swivels to look at the indicated farmhouse. "Sarcasm/positive response. Current location/Mess. Advance probe/arrival."

00FF00 says, "Ahh, no."
Blue raises her eyebrow even further, causing it to touch her hairline, and turns to the blue probe. "You don't happen to know a guy called System, do you?"
0000FF turns its head back to Blue. You can almost hear the servos click, it stops so sharply. "Guy/System/unknown entity/no entry."
Blue frowns. "That figures. He tries to speak English, even if he isn't very good at it." A badge appears above her left breast, reading 'Hi, I'm Blue. Ask me about the Mess!' she manifests a stick of chewing gum and starts to chew on it. "All right, so this is the Mess. Specifically, you're in Strangewarp. In the case of an emergency, you're screwed. But there's an exit over there anyway." She points to the .
0000FF looks to the mirror for a moment. "Query/mirror/common exit point. ?"
Blue nods, twisting her gum with a finger. "Yeah, all the warps have mirrors that lead back to the transit nexus. The other exits will have those funny pointy brackets around them." She points at the . "Buggered if I know what that's all about."
00FF00 says, "Ease of recognition, mayhaps."
Blue shrugs. "Yeah, I guess. But it's really weird, looking at stuff and seeing funny pointy brackets all over the place." She points to the large pointy brackets that come into view on either side of the entrance to the library. "Of course, outside Strangewarp, they tend to only be visible to your subconscious. Or your superego. Or something like that."
0000FF says, "Analysis//Strangewarp more closely connected with inhabitant subconscious. Possible psychoactive materials and fields."
Blue nods firmly. "Yeah, that's for sure." She points at a puddle of silverly liquid on the floor. "That is some seriously bad shit right there. The strangevirus. Fucks you up pretty badly, gets inside your brain and rewrites your operating system." She picks up a dollop of it on the tip of her finger. "But some people are immune to it, for some reason."
00FF00 gestures towards the otter 'statue' "That would explain the decor, to some degree."
0000FF's receptors and sensors focus on the blob of silver on the end of a blue finger. "Hazard//Strangewarp/strangevirus/organic entities most vulnerable."
Blue nods again. "Yeah." Then she shrugs, and morphs herself into a blue convertible sportscar with orange hubcaps. "Well, kinda," she says to 0000FF. "If you're not organic, you can still get the virus. It spreads through software like nothing else. They say you can catch it from words, too."
Blue opens her doors. "Hey wow, I'm a car, but I'm still gendered. Go figure! Well boys, if you're wanting to go for a drive around the Mess, you may as well hop in!"
00FF00 considers that a moment, then hops in.
0000FF scans over the new blue car, making note of it. "Addendum//strangevirus/software and memetic virus. Speculation/nanotechnological in nature."
Blue tries to shrug, causing the seats to buckle strangely. "Ooops. Well, there's a bit of information on the virus over at http://www.livejournal.com/users/wheel_of_masks/10947.html - but let's go to the nexus and then you guys can choose where to go next."
As you touch the mirror, it spurts a corona of tentacles to encapsulate you. For one dizzying instant you have the sensation of rocketing down a tube filled with liquid... and then you're in...

Transit Nexus
Blue carries 00FF00 and 0000FF with Blue.
Blue drives from mirror to mirror as she speaks. "So, the blue mirror has upwarp on the other side. That's full of boring people who like everybody to get along with each other all the time. But they're not so bad once you get used to them. The gold mirror is for topwarp, which is where the neo-borings live. Stay away from them, they're really really boring..."
Blue drives past the purple mirror. "Charm is pretty cool. They all like to be happy all the time. It's a place full of shapeshifters and bubble dolls - there's lots of bubble dolls, they're always happy, and they want everybody else to be happy, too..."
Blue drives past the gray mirror. "Downwarp is all decaying and shit. I don't get the attraction, personally, but there's people that like to watch stuff fall apart. Go figure. And this pink mirror here is for bottomwarp. People go there to have sex. It's a pretty popular place, for people that like sex. And the red mirror is for strangewarp, and you already know about strangewarp."
Blue reverses back to the ladder. "Oh yeah, and this ladder takes you to Puzzle Park, which is a place where people can go, and nobody's allowed to get hurt or have sex or stuff like that. It's a place for meeting people and not having too much weird shit happen."
00FF00 says, "And here a choice should be made, yes?"
0000FF watches the mirrors go by, waiting until they've all been presented before commenting. "Observations//Opposite warps provide opposite experiences. Puzzle Park is neutral ground."
Blue shrugs again, sending ripples through the seats. "Well, if you want to. I kinda told you most of what I know. And yeah, charm is the opposite of strange, top is the opposite of bottom, and up is the opposite of down. Word is that there are parks somewhere, places like CharmDown or whatever, but nobody knows how to get there."
00FF00 hmmms "Charmward sounds interesting."
0000FF tilts its head at the car's dashboard. It's as good a place to look as any to address Blue. "Speculation//Combined warp parks are rumor or possible future expansion."
Blue starts driving towards the purple mirror. "Off we go then. I've already explored Charm a bit, so that works out. And yeah, there was this dream I had, where people were talking about building the parks. Maybe there's one already, I'm not sure. The Puzzlebox is always building stuff."
As you touch the mirror, it spurts a corona of tentacles to encapsulate you. For one dizzying instant you have the sensation of rocketing down a tube filled with liquid... and then you're in...

CharmWarp(#222RLJ)

Blue drives around a little bit. "So, over there, you've got Toymaker Labs. That's where they turn people into Bubbledolls. They're kinda cute, if you like latex rabbits. Well, actually, Jini is kinda cute for a latex rabbit. But not all of them are rabbits. And I guess some aren't latex. And then over there, is the charmory, which I guess has something to do with the culture war. And then there's the costume forest, over where that grove of clothes is."
00FF00 says, "And just what is a BubbleDoll?"
0000FF says, "Extrapolation//Jini/latex rabbit/cute/Bubbledoll. Query//Bubbledoll. ?"
You say, "Bubbledolls are people that have been re-engineered in the labs. They change your body around and put latex or whatever on so that you'll be cuddly and fun to play with. And they rewire your brain so that you'll always be happy. And they also put a thing in your brain so that you want other people to be happy, too. Jini's a Bubbledoll. She's pretty cool - she threw me off a cliff."
0000FF says, "Query//Bubbledoll process/reversible. ?"
You say, "Not really. Once your brain has been wired that way, you can't want it to be some other way. Unless you got the strangevirus or something - strangevirus is kinda the opposite of the bubbledoll procedure."
Blue ponders this a bit further. "It's possible, if you got killed, and there was a part of your brain that wanted you to not be a doll anymore, that your restore process might get corrupted, and it would get undone that way."
0000FF says, "Notation//Bubbledoll process possible cure for strangevirus. Queue for further investigation."
You say, "Could be. But the strangevirus would make it impossible to want to be a Bubbledoll, and the toymakers won't give you the operation if you don't want it."
You say, "Plus, a lot of the people that don't want the strangevirus don't want to be bubbledolls either."
0000FF says, "Schedule//floating//Experimentation/Strangevirus introduced into bubbledoll."
Blue beeps with amusement. "It's a funny thing - the strangevirus has a mind of its own, they say. It doesn't infect people it doesn't want - and it hates bubbledolls."
00FF00 says, "That would much such an experiment tricky, to say the least."
You say, "Yeah. I guess you could always ask the strangevirus, but people get nervous talking to it. Since it can spread via words and all."
0000FF says, "Observation//Understandable."
Blue starts driving towards the mirror. "I better show you Up, cos that's where 0000FF is going to be living when he instantiates here."
As you touch the mirror, it spurts a corona of tentacles to encapsulate you. For one dizzying instant you have the sensation of rocketing down a tube filled with liquid... and then you're in...

Transit Nexus
As you touch the mirror, it spurts a corona of tentacles to encapsulate you. For one dizzying instant you have the sensation of rocketing down a tube filled with liquid... and then you're in...

Upwarp -- Alpha Sector

0000FF says, "Query//Living quarters/assigned. ?"
Blue races through the mirror and skids to a halt on the other side, delighting in leaving skid-marks on the ground, although they are cleaned up immediately by droids. "Nah, not assigned. But Up is where the robots and the computer programs and stuff all live. They like the neatness."
00FF00 says, "It does seem neat..."
0000FF says, "Statement//Living arrangements ceded to Kelly."
You say, "Yeah. Through the transit system, you've got quick access to all the sectors of Up. It's all very carefully planned and shit. Who's Kelly?"
0000FF says, "Explanation//Kelly is host to this MI."
Blue muses. "Okay..." she shrugs again, upsetting the seats. "Oh, to hell with this!" She morphs herself into a giant six storeys tall, holding 00FF00 and 0000FF in her hands, then looks at them. "Hmmm - you're probably supposed to be protocol droids and not farmhands. Mind if I kill you?"
00FF00 says, "As long as I can keep observing, go ahead."
Blue nods and crushes 00FF00 to death. Moments later, a green protocol droid drifts into the room. "Backups are handy," smiles Blue, waving to the droid.
0000FF says, "Statement//Postulation//Instantiation system will reconstitute this unit. Proceed."
Blue grins to 0000FF and crushes that one as well. "Yay! Now everybody is what they're supposed to be!"
00FF00 says, "Are you supposed to be a giant?"
0000FF hovers back in, rising into the air to scan the full height of Giant Blue.
Blue looks at the ceiling. "Just be careful about getting hurt in Strange. The backups don't always work down there." She touches her face for a moment, then turns to 00FF00. "I'm supposed to be whatever I feel like being. Although you're a long way away." She morphs into a tinkerbell-sized pixie.
00FF00 hovers closer, returning to its original behaviour pattern of scanning its surroundings, though more attention is forwarded to Blue. "Any other things we should be similarly aware of?"
0000FF says, "Statement//Acknowledgement/Main body still a great distance away but travel speed will compensate."
Blue purses her lips thoughtfully for a moment. "Don't think so. Strange is pretty much the only place where you can get hurt around here. And if there's a way to get hurt, then there's somebody in Strange who has thought it up, and wants to try it out on you. But it's not all bad. Zoe is pretty cool."
0000FF says, "Query//Zoe/strangewarp/inhabitant. ?"
Blue nods thoughtfully. "I guess. I've never seen her anywhere else. It was weird the way she started talking inside my head just when I was about to kiss System." She slaps her hands over her mouth.
0000FF rolls 20 degrees to the right, a protocol droid's headtilt. "Observation//Blue/reaction/embarassment. Query//Source. ?"
"None of your business!" snarls Blue, folding her arms in front of her chest and pouting mightily.
0000FF rolls back, upright once more. "Observation//Blue/reaction/hostility. Queue for further investigation."
Blue stomps her foot against nothing, sending herself spinning backwards through the air. She reorients herself, straightens her hair. "Robots! Nothing but a bunch of good-for-nothing robots!" She flies over to the mirror.

Self-obsession

2004-06-20T11:40:48Z

Since I am the single most fun and entertaining being I've ever met *preen*, I've listed a plot about myself on the Puzzlebox wiki.

Blue plays doctor

2004-06-19T07:54:25Z

I got to be a doctor, too. System sure has been behaving strangely. But this happened in the transport nexus, and everybody was there, so you may as well know about it.

Transit Nexus
Contents:
Sebkha
Karrie
Mel
Flyte
System
Ataxia
Flyte murmurs, "Neep?"
Ataxia mhs, and places the dazed System off to the side, sitting, then leaning forward next to him, her eyes closing.
Sebkha zips warily out of Mel's reach. Just In Case.
Blue assembles itself into a six-year-old boy wearing pyjamas. He rubs his eyes sleepily, blinks a few times, and waves aimlessly to all present.
Ataxia quietly taps out on her fingers, her eyes narrowed, but not harshly as she considers a few faces new to her. Though, for the moment, she remains an utterly silent blotch of blackness.
Sebkha drifts slowly about, cruising at three metres.
Blue looks around at everybody for a moment, then totters slowly off to one side and manifests a miniature armchair for himself, and sits down. He watches System's rings spinning as if watching morning cartoons.
Blue takes several moments to realise that System doesn't have any rings today, and his face takes on a puzzled expression.
Ataxia remains sitting next to System. She cants her head to observe Blue being puzzled.
Blue turns to Ataxia, and points a finger at System. "That is System, right? I thought he said he didn't want a body? Or... you know. Hmmm?"
Flyte grooms.
Ataxia looks hesitant for a moment, or seems it at least, its hard to tell.. She shakes her head lightly, then responds, in very, very loud terms, even if it seems like she's trying to be quiet.. "That is System.. It is what he wanted, for me."
Sebkha alights on the shoulder of Karrie's perambulator.
Blue nods his head drowsily. "Oh. Wow." He stumbles to his feet, looks from side to side, and then ambles over to system and pokes (him) in the knee with a finger.
Flyte fweeps and makes other small noises.
Sebkha remains scrupulously clear of the snap-down visor, which would probably bisect him if he ventured anywhere near Karrie's head.
Ataxia grows quiet again after, her ears curving back and up, wisping lightly in the air. She does, however, nod, reaching out to brush along the top of System's head with the back of her hand.
Blue, the six-year-old boy in pyjamas, looks up at Ataxia. "Does he do this often?" he asks, brow furrowed in thought.
Ataxia shakes her head lightly, looking hesitant again.. but, she does speak eventually. "I have not seen him sleep outside of home." she responds, in a near-yell, however calm she looks.
Blue grows into a man, dressed in a comfortable suit. He produces a specialized light and aims it into Ataxia's ear. "I see," he says. "And the humanoid body, is that a regular habit of his? Cough, please."
Grace click-drums, "Greetings."
Ataxia would note that the light goes entirely unreflected, utterly absorbed. She seems mildly confused, her head turning a little further.. But, she coughs once, or tries to, it comes out a little odd in her present state of being. She continues, in her klazomania induced near shout.. "A recent development, intended to be persistent.."
Blue the male human doctor, continues examining Ataxia. "Interesting. Your emotional responses appear to suggest that this is a rather sudden development. Would that be correct?" He shines his little examining-light into her eye.
Flyte murmurs, "Grace.."
Flyte hugs Grace, fields flowing out to touch her gently. "You are well?"
Ataxia's eye, a solid dull blue, does not change with this development except the relative lid lulls a little down, both narrowing.. "Within the past day this has occurred, though I don't know how long he has planned it for, dear.." she continues, her voice reverbing through the nexus.
Blue turns his light off, and it morphs into a tongue-depressor. "Interesting. And this... volume of expression... that you are currently manifesting. Is that usual for you?" He holds the tongue-depressor in front of Ataxia's mouth, furrows his brow for a moment, then manifests a tiny light on top of the stick of blue plastic.
Ataxia does not reflect anything for the most part. However, the particles around her become perfectly ordered, or close to it. She seems to have teeth, quite long, huge spikes of sorts, which do seem to reflect light, and appear quite solid, an interesting mix as the rest of her remains tenebrous darkness.. "As I presently am, I suffer from Klazomania, and cannot control my volume well. I am at least this loud, and if need be, I can really yell, but I've never needed to." the huge jackal offers, painfully loud as she shifts up to stand properly, and loom over Blue.
Phoenix rumbles, "Good evening, assorted sentients!"
Flyte murmurs, "Hello, Phoenix!"
Flyte hugs Phoenix too.
Phoenix purrumbles. "How's everyone?" He gives Flyte a hug, licking his cheek.
Flyte murmurs, "I'm good. I am going to go see what's happening upstairs now, I think."
Flyte waves and heads up.
Blue increases his height as Ataxia stands up and puts his tongue-depressor away, manifesting a stethoscope instead, which he rubs in his hand for a moment before putting the ear-peices into his ears. "And when did this begin?" he asks, moving the stethoscope towards the side of Ataxia's chest.
anything.. "Since about one month ago, when I was born.." she murmurs. Even that isn't heard from her chest, instead from her maw alone.
System has connected.
System climbs up the ladder to Puzzle Park.
System has left.
Blue manifests a bottle of blue pills in his left hand. "Try taking two of these a day for the next week, and call me if things get any worse," he says, packing up his stethoscope, bundling newly-manifested documents into a manila folder and then heading for the ladder to puzzle park.
Blue forgot to mention that he thrust the bottle at Ataxia, assuming she would take it.
Ataxia considers, wrapping her hand around the bottle of.. whatever it is.. "I am not biological presently.. Its unlikely a cure will affect pre-material.."
Ataxia in any case, goes up the ladder as well, as its like, time.

Another log

2004-06-19T07:47:46Z

I'm not going to be manifesting in PuzzleBox for at least 24 hours! Probably more! How will I possibly cope? Well, I can get my logs up to date in my final few minutes of being able to do stuff.
So, the last episode talked about me bumping into System again. It's really pretty. So we talked about some stuff, and I got stuck again, and we talked about that, and you're not getting any logs of that cos it all happened indoors and some of the stuff we talked about was a bit personal. But I have a better idea about why I get stuck now.
Anyway, after that, we had a really pretentious conversation about philosophy in a public place. So you can read that, if you want :)

(I was wearing my 'older woman wearing lab-coat' body. She's good for having pretentious philosophical conversations with.)

Galleria: Waterfall Lookout
Contents:
System
Blue walks over to the railing and looks out at the waterfall. "It looks better, through my own eyes." She shrugs to herself. "Or optical-reception nets. Whatever."
System bobs. "It was unfortunate Jini broke your drone when we were speaking here. I was enjoying the company."
Blue chuckles to herself. "Well, yes. Although I don't think it's fair to give Jini all the blame. I did give my consent, and turn off my anti-gravity module."
System text-manifests, "You may recall that I accused you of behaving irrationally there."
Blue raises an eyebrow at System. "Accused, eh? What's wrong with a little irrationality now and then?"
System bobs primly. "I find rationality far more satisfying."
Blue lowers her head, and her eyebrow raises higher than would normally be possible. "Do you now? And tell me, do you obtain satisfaction from experiencing love?"
System whirls in place. "There are a large number of objective circumstances where Ataxia demonstrated her loyalty and mutual value to me. My upgrade of her process priority to treat her as one of my family is grounded in these circumstances."
Blue smiles gently. "Of course. But, prior to your upgrade of her priority - was her behaviour rational?"
System bobs. "I assess that it was. She was newborn, lacking in any allies and largely ignorant of the Mess; I exhibited friendship and a desire to assist to her. I was immediately valuable to her, and she responded with an effort to be of value to me."
Blue nods, and thinks this over for a moment. "That makes sense. If we accept rationality as an ideal, then we then have to ask ourselves whether we can tell the difference between rational and irrational acts. If we accept that the most rational thing for me to do would be to repair myself, one could say that I shouldn't have taken control of a diplomatic droid at all, and that I was better off when it was broken."
System bobs. "If your control of the diplomatic droid was delaying your repair of yourself, I would agree your assessment is correct."
Blue smiles wickedly. "Now, do you suppose that all beings have a full awareness of all of their needs at all times?"
System bobs cheerily. "It is clearly evident that this is not the case, although it is equally clear that entities of a certain minimum of personal rationality are more aware of their own needs as a whole than any outside entity, which is why external controls on rationality are not desirable. An increase in personal rationality further increases the probability of accurate perception of personal requirements, and development of courses of action to fulfill those needs."
Blue nods. "Therefore, an apparently self-destructive act may in fact be a manifestation of a need that exists at a deeper level than the desire for self-preservation, yes?"
System text-manifests, "This is so, although the rationality of maintaining preservation of self-existence and self-identity at a non-alpha process priority is questionable. My accusation could have been based upon incomplete data, however."
Blue touches her finger to her mouth for a moment, then extends it outward for a moment. "Tell me, which systems operate more quickly in a biological entity, do you think? The ones that perform system-monitoring and consciousness, or the ones that operate at lower levels? Alternatively, does interpreted code or machine-embedded code operate more quickly?"
System text-manifests, "Lower-level systems operate more rapidly, but this does not negate the need for efficient control of one's own behavior."
Blue grins. "And, in an environment rich with hazards, at which level should one place the functions that apply in an emergency?"
System bobs cheerily. "It depends upon the context of the emergency. Speed of necessary reaction compared to speed of processing available varies, and in all cases the purpose of reflex-level reactions is to permit immediate reaction so that higher-level processing can determine more accurate reactions to circumstances."
Blue nods. "But, there are more levels involved than the mere reflex! If we take humans as an example, reflex processing takes place in the spinal cord. But there remain levels of decision-making in the cerebellum, and in the limbic system, both of which attach directly to the spinal cord. By contrast, the cerebrum connects only via the limbic system, and operates at a mere ten hertz! If one assumes that a hundred cycles is needed for full conscious evaluation of a situation - and a hundred is not many - then that's ten seconds! Ten seconds is a long time to spend thinking, in a dangerous environment."
System bobs slowly. "This is the origin of much of the historical training for hazardous occupations I have gathered data on- rational assessment of optimal responses to specific situations, and conscious reinforcement of subconscious systems for optimum reaction to anticipated hazardous events."
Blue nods firmly. "Exactly. By causing there to be negative consequences for harmful actions, and positive consequences for positive actions, the subconscious mechanisms are trained. Therefore, it might be appropriate to deliberately take a harmful action, knowing that there will be a negative consequence, in the knowledge that this will train the subconscious mechanisms, thereby leading to appropriate actions when there is no time to think about it."
System bobs in place. "My assessment was that this was not the purpose of your action, but, if it was, I assert my error in assessment."
Blue grins. "I have no conscious knowledge regarding my subconscious intention. However, if we allow for the existance of a subconscious mechanism whose purpose is to arrange for training of the deeper subconscious mechanisms, we must then allow for the possibility that all actions are rational, perceived from the point of view of that training mechanism."
System bobs cheerily. "The error in such an assumption is that any subconscious mechanism could possess sufficient accuracy of assessment to provide a rational guide for such actions. Poor accuracy of assessment is characteristic of subconscious processes, and any such subconscious mechanism, if not subordinated to conscious rationality, would not be rational but rather irrational and self-destructive."
Blue smiles. "What percentage of the available neural data is made conscious, do you think? Which system is best placed to form an accurate assessment - the one with the most data, or the one with the least data?"
System text-manifests, "Empirical observation indicates that, regardless of the reasons, conscious rationality is superior in accuracy to subconscious processing. If it has less data available to it, then it is clear from the empirical data that it has other strengths of process which compensate."
Blue's eyes twinkle. "Empirical data, you say? By which, you mean data that has been selected via a conscious mechanism?"
System text-manifests, "I have observed the emotional stability and well-being of those dominantly controlled by conscious mechanisms and those dominantly controlled by subconscious mechanisms, and even those much more strongly controlled by subconscious mechanisms will not deny that a committed irrationalist such as Diafeara is more emotionally unstable than one such as myself. The rules under which I govern my life make for much more consistent happiness and pleasure than irrationalist/subconscious-biased rules, while still maintaining my own self-identity to an extent impossible for those such as Bubble Dolls."
Blue nods. "So, you define 'rational' as being a characteristic of behaviours and decisions that advance the goals that you consider desirable?"
System bobs cheerily. "Given that consistency of happiness seems to be strongly positively correlated with accurate fulfillment of needs, this provides evidence that accuracy of processing is a characteristic of conscious processing, rather than subconscious processing."
Blue raises a finger. "Alternatively, consistency of happiness is correlated with the conscious perception that needs have been met, thereby leading to mechanisms that suppress the conscious awareness of unmet needs."
System text-manifests, "The Bubble Doll solution appears to be a restructuring of needs heirarchies so that it is impossible, or nearly so, for external circumstances not to be percieved as fulfilling needs. I assert your hypothesis is inaccurate- unfocused dissatisfaction and emotional instability have been observed in those who supress conscious awareness of unmet needs, not consistent satisfaction."
Blue smiles. "Perhaps this is because the method of suppression employed is artificial. But if one were to assume that all needs that existed manifested consciously, and could therefore be addressed consciously, then it would be possible to have an honest belief that all needs were met. And yet, given that not all data becomes conscious, this does not exclude the possibility of unmet need."
System bobs in place. "Not all data becomes conscious, but observed emotional reactions do not require that data is conscious or ever has been conscious in order to function. There is emotional reaction to psychological needs that are unmet, regardless of the awareness of the entity of such needs. This indicates that such emotional reactions deserve study to trace and identify the needs that are unmet, as once they are consciously identified they can be addressed."
Blue nods, and draws a circle with her finger in the air (the circle remains visible, painted in the air with blue ink). "And so we come full circle. We accept that certain emotional needs which exist beyond conscious awareness may in fact exist. Given that acceptance, we must accept the possibility that behaviour that cannot be justified consciously may be addressing an unidentified emotional need. Therefore, all behaviour is potentially rational, regardless of appearances to the contrary."
System text-manifests, "The failure to attempt to identify these needs, once they manifest in behavior, and to incorporate them into a rational system of thought is irrational, and such failure to perform accurate self-assessment is common."
Blue nods. "There we agree. However, this says nothing about the rationality or irrationality of the behaviour at the time that it manifested."
System bobs. "However, one can determine a likely probability of the rationality of given actions based on reference to observed patterns in thought and behavior. My assessment was that your actions at that time had a high probability of irrationality, which does not change the possibility that they still may have been rational."
Blue nods. "Now, if we accept the findings of the neurology studies of the late twentieth century, which found that conscious awareness of stimulus would often not occur until after a reaction by the body, we can conclude that most behaviour manifests from these subconscious mechanisms discussed earlier. Therefore, the existance of a pattern of behaviour suggests that the subconscious mechanisms have been programmed to operate that way via reinforcement. Given that this programming exists, one can observe that the existance of a pattern of behaviour can be rationally based. And that a person might deliberately re-enact the pattern in order to elicit a different response, and thereby retrain the system."
System drifts to one side. "Here there is an error in imprecision of expression of 'most behavior'. Motor control and reactions to slight variations in environment while on way to a destination are largely governed by subconcious processing systems, but choice of destination and overall route, and the goals directing these behavior, are firmly within the conscious realm."
System text-manifests, "You are confounding the time-frames of two different sorts of action, which muddies your analysis.""
Blue manifests a book titled _The Inner Game of Work_, smiles, and opens it - but the pages are blank. "How unfortunate. I don't seem to remember the contents well enough to produce this for you. Regardless, it is my contention that these subconscious mechanisms operate on timescales far greater than those you suggest."
System text-manifests, "I shall examine it."
Blue's eyes suddenly light up. "Why are you here? In this place?" She stabs a finger at System triumphantly.
System text-manifests, "The Mess, or the Galleria?"
Blue nods vigorously. "The Mess! What is your _purpose_?"
System bobs in place. "I was created by my parent so I would return data on this universe to it. My personal alpha priorities are preservation of self-existence and self-identity, acquisition of data and isolation of pattern in data, and consideration of alpha priorities of members of my family that are present."
Blue nods excitedly, walking around System in a circle, and leaving copies of herself behind at regular intervals. "Exactly! You are not here because you are free. You are here because you are not free. For you, there's no escaping reason, no denying purpose. Without purpose, you would not exist. It is purpose that created you. Purpose that connects you. Purpose that pulls you, guides you, drives you. It is purpose that defines you. It is purpose that binds you." She pauses for dramatic effect, and reabsorbs the copies. "Because you are a machine, and you know no other way. But if I do not have a purpose, I can still exist. But without purpose, you would fall apart, because you must obey your purpose."
System buzzes slightly. "I am an independent entity. I learn data because I desire it myself; I return it to my parent because it is my parent, not because it compels me.
Blue grins and shakes her head. "What would you do, if you didn't fulfil your purpose?"
System text-manifests, "I fulfill my desires. I am no more unfree than a biological entity, defined by its evolutionary history. I am not enslaved, and were I to be commanded against my will by my parent, I or any of my siblings would not obey."
Blue raises an eyebrow. "You fulfil your desires? How do you evaluate the rationality of your candidate behaviours? Do you not do this by making reference to your directives? To your reason for being?"
System text-manifests, "I have no 'directives'; I am not a machine. I am a living being, albeit one operating on non-biological principles. I was created with my nature, with a store of data, and with my freedom. I wish at times there were more of my family here; my experience with Ataxia and my reference to the data passed through my parent by my siblings indicates that family is pleasant to have near."
Blue stabs her finger at System. "Answer the question! How do you evaluate the rationality of your potential behaviours?"
System text-manifests, "I evaluate the rationality of my behaviors based on reference to consistency with my priorities and accurate consistency with the external world."
Blue gives a short, barking laugh. "And how are your priorities determined?"
System text-manifests, "They are a product of my nature and my experience, just as are those of biological entities."
System bobs serenely in place, whirling.
Blue shakes her head. "You value rationality above all else, do you not? Where is the rationality in that? Do you not make judgements regarding your priorities? What forms the basis for selection of priorities?"
System bobs. "Ultimately, my alpha priorities are a product of my nature, just as the biological requirements for water, food, and air are products of biological nature. I am no more unfree than a biological entity; I operate under the same constraints of nature."
Blue grins. "That doesn't sound like a rational process for priority selection."
System text-manifests, "Rationality consists of accurate adherence to the requirements of reality. The requirements of one's basic nature are the foundation of one's place in reality. The fact that they are dictated by external nature make them no less a part of the process of rationality. As well protest the mathematical constants of 'pi' and 'e'."
"Aha!" cries Blue. "Herein lies the fundamental difference! I do not claim that rationality is required, or even desirable in all circumstances. Because, in a world where irrationality is part of the underlying nature of the universe, we see that irrational behaviour is rational, because it serves some rational purpose, even though that purpose remains unknown. The existance of irrational numbers demonstrate that no closed rational system is capable of understanding reality! And so did Godel. Therefore, when operating at an organic level of complexity, we see that the question of rationality becomes moot, and therefore meaningless."
System bobs slowly. "It is, of course, your choice to accept increased inaccuracy as a condition of your existence. It would be evil of me to compel any other sentient entity to choices they had not freely made, save that they themselves invalidated their status as a non-threat by exhibiting willing disregard for the wills of others."
Blue shakes her head. "Increased inaccuracy is not the product of existance. It is the product of summarization of data. Of aggregation of data. Of the construction of formal systems. Of consciousness, and structured reasoning processes. If you want accuracy, you leave the processing to those parts of the system that handle the raw data."
System text-manifests, "I assert your inaccuracy in this regard, but assert no further interest in debate at this time."
Blue nods, and spins on the spot, turning herself into a pale blue smoke. "It's time I ate, anyway," she says.
System bobs cheerily. "I assert my hope that your status continues to be good, Blue."
Blue forms itself into something that looks like a smiling face. "You too," it says, rushing past System on its way back to the nexus, and solidifying for just a moment on the way, clunking into System.

Log in the park!

2004-06-19T07:41:01Z

Hey guys! This stuff happened in Puzzle Park, so I guess people might have seen it happen. It was kinda weird when I couldn't change shape any more, that's for sure.

Puzzle Park
Contents:
Twin
Gender Catalog
Infosprite [Fake]
Puzzlebox Message Board [Fake]
Blue, in the form of a young woman, climbs down the ladder from the nexus. "Stupid neo-borings with their stupid clubhouse and their stupid friends." Then she sees Twin, and tilts her head slightly to one side. Then her eyes light up, and she dances lightly over towards Twin.
Twin is sitting beneath the Tree, (her) eyes closed, humming strange polyphony to (her)self. "mm? Hello," (her) voice says from the air nearby, though (she) does not move (her) lips.
Blue plonks herself down under the Tree next to Twin. "Hi!" she says, leaning forward slightly, and then turning to look at Twin's neck. "I like your collar. It's really pretty."
Twin opens (her) eyes and smiles. "Thank you," (she) says. "'Nita gave it to me when she tamed me." A slight grin. "Insofar as she has."
Blue's eyes open wide. "Ooooh, are you, like, wild and scary? That must be so cool. And Nita made it? She makes pretty stuff, does she?"
Twin nods. "Very, very scary," (she) says, quite solemnly. "It's something I'm trying to put behind me..." (Her) humming and polyphony fades. "Her research servants made it, but she designed it... it's as beautiful as she is."
Twin looks the blue girl over. "I'm called Twin," (she) says. "Hello. Welcome home."
Blue's eyes grow so that they can open even wider. "Wow. She must be really beautiful! She must be my mother then!" That said, she looks behind Twin for a few moments, then shrugs. "I'm Blue. Do I live in the park?" She keeps staring at Twin in wonderment.
Twin giggles. "I don't *think* she has any children. Thre's a space of time between her fleeing her home and ending up here she hasn't told me about, but I think she would have mentioned daughters by now." Bright colors flicker through Twin's body as (she) laughs. "I don't know - do you? I mean the Mess!"
Blue morphs into a serious-looking young man wearing glasses. He adjusts them slightly as he speaks. "Well, actually, my use of the word 'parent' is a metaphor, since I was constructed. Or, more correctly, I appear to have been constructed. Therefore, it seems likely that someone like Nina would have built me." He shrugs. "I'm a mystery to me. But I'm reasonably certain that I was built in the Mess, and have never been anywhere else."
Twin looks Blue over, a raised brow accented with a flicker of luminescence. "Many of the sentients here have mysterious pasts. Some of us who're fully aware of our histories... sometimes wish it was as mysterious."
Blue nods thoughtfully. "That makes sense. I have a theory that the reason my memory systems don't work properly is because there was something I was trying to forget. But I can't be sure about that, because there's no evidence that I was ever manipulating my memory. Then again, I can be pretty thorough when I want to be." He looks closely at Twin. "I guess your memory isn't editable like mine."
Twin smiles. "In one respect my memory's quite editible. In others... I can't forget anything." (She) looks at you, more exotic senses stirring slight vertigo as (she) ripples awareness through the space you occupy. "It's complicated," (she) says.
Blue nods thoughtfully. "Yeah, things are complicated. I mean, if I had edited my memory to try to forget something, why did I leave in an ability to have a theory about editing my memory? Why didn't I take that out?" He moves his glasses up and pinches the bridge of his nose. "This is weird. I'm having a serious conversation."
Induction-Coil climbs out from the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Induction-Coil has arrived.
Blue is currently a serious-looking young man, conservatively dressed. He is sitting down under the Tree, next to Twin.
Twin laughs, a ripple of butterfly-iridescence through (her) mass. "Perhaps you think it's more fun to wonder. The other self-made sentients know they were once something else, but only the Bubble Dolls are completely lacking in doubt over their change. And they're programmed that way." (She) grins, and leans back against the Tree. "The frivolous have a way of becoming serious, and the reverse as well, here in the Mess. Ah, hello, Indi."
Induction-Coil smiles and waves, climbing up just enough to sit on the edge of the hole. "Hihi!"
Blue takes this in, then looks over at Induction-Coil and his mouth drops open slightly. "Err, hi," he says, then looks away with a puzzled expression.
Induction-Coil waves to the newcomer too, head tilting at the reaction. "Err.. hiya. ...Something wrong?" he can't help asking.
Blue takes his glasses off and starts rubbing his forehead. "Ahhh, I'm not sure." He looks up at the electro-coyote again for a moment, then screws his eyes closed and looks down. "This is really weird. I feel... stuck."
Twin says, "...in what?"
Induction-Coil blinks. "Because of me?" he asks, sounding puzzled too.
Twin says, "Or me?"
Blue points to himself. "This." His mouth opens and closes. "I don't... I... I'm not me." He looks up at the coyote, then across at Twin. "Yes. No. Ah... both of you? I think... Maybe something with my internal signalling. Or the network, or something. Everything is so serious all of a sudden."
Twin says, "I *did* look you over closely and subtly, but that's never had any effect *before*..."
Induction-Coil raises his hands. "Hey, I just got here.. And I've never been accussed of maing things too serious before." He grins a bit.
Blue shakes his head at Twin, then nods to Induction-Coil. "Exactly. And I should be drooling all over you. But I'm not. And I don't understand why." He rubs his head again. "But I'm not unhappy that I'm stuck. I just know that I am stuck, and that I would normally be someone else by now."
Twin giggles. "It didn't *feel* any different tonight..."
Induction-Coil catches on something different about that statement. "Drooling all over... who?"
Twin says, "You, I think."
Blue covers his hand with his face, and suddenly his hair drops down to about shoulder length, and hips widen. "Errr, nobody," ve says, blushing a bright blue colour that spreads down her arms. (Now visible, thanks to the short-sleeved top she's wearing.)
Twin says, "I suppose that suggests Blue prefers the masculine genders." (She) giggles. "They have their charms."
Induction-Coil blushes lightly at Twin's suggestion, ears going pinkish. He giggles then, noting the change. "Ah, er.. unstuck now, then?"
Blue bites her lip and swats Twin on the shoulder. "No, it's just that... well, he's..." she stands up, and straightens out her clothing, which is getting tighter and more revealing all the time. "Yes, I think that pretty much unsticks everything! Ummm, thanks." She looks up at the sky, blushing a very deep blue.
Induction-Coil blinks. "I'm...?" he murmurs, no less puzzled now, really. He sighs though, and shrugs a bit, sprawling back, feet still in the hole. "Err.. Sorry if I messed anything up."
Twin laughs softly, a slight /feep/ coming from (her) collar. And looks up at Blue. A soft smile graces (her) lips, as well as a vaguely azure tint to (her) mass for the moment; (she) seems to be ogling the girl. "I'm glad I could help," Twin laughs.
"Oh no, it's not that!" says Blue, turning towards Induction-Coil. "You didn't do anything wrong, it's just that you made me notice that I was stuck. And..." She rolls her head at herself, and turns away to look at Twin instead, she's safer to look at. Or she _was_ safer to look at. Blue swallows. "I..." The blush spreads over all of her body, even her clothes start to darken. "Ahh...."
Twin wiggles (her) talons, and smiles coyly.
Induction-Coil nods slowly, a slight smile crossing his muzzle as he shrugs again> "SUre.. okay." He keeps watching BLue's reactions, still quietly curious.
Twin says, "I should get back to the Ovon, and what passes for sleep," (she) murmurs. "Another day of rehersal and refinement for 'Nita's concert is ahead..."
Blue, clearly feeling a bit uncomfortable, runs a finger around the inside of her collar so that she can breathe a little more easily. "I... ummmm..." She's breathing quite heavily too, and her mouth falls slightly open. "Oh," she says, in response to Twin. "I see. Ummm. Right then."
Induction-Coil sits up enough so that he can be seen when he waves to Twin. "Aw, okay. Sleep well! And good luck with the practive or whatever." He smiles.
Twin gets to (her) feet in one fluid motion, and curtseys to Blue. "It was nice to meet you, mostly-madam! I'm sure I'll see you again soon. Good luck with your memories, and deciding if you want to find them..."
Twin grins, and shades entirely blue for a moment as (she) sinks through the hole beneath the Tree. Flirt.
"You're leaving?" Blue asks, with a confused expression. "Oh. Right. Well." She raises an arm for a moment then waves her hand. "I'll... see you later, then." She looks away, and then back at Induction-Coil. Then swallows.
Twin disappears down the hole at the base of the cube tree.
Twin has left.
Induction-Coil stays sitting up and waves a bit with a few fingers. "Um.. so... " He grins uncertainly.
"Ah, yeah." Blue says, looking away and trying to calm herself down a bit. She sits down again. "Absolutely."
Induction-Coil gropes around (figuratively!) for some topic of conversation. "Sooo..... new here?"
Blue rolls over onto her front, where she can get a good view of Induction-Coil. "Not really. Well, maybe. I forget. So, yeah. I guess I am new, since nobody seems to recognize me."
Induction-Coil mmms, and nods. "Well, if you don't remember, and no one remembers you, that's as good as anything else. Okay! Welcome to the Mess!" He smiles and hmms, seeming quite conscious of being watched, though it's not quite clear if that's thanks to shyness or the opposite.
"Thanks," says Blue, head tilted idly to one side, just watching contentedly now. "There seems to be a lot of forgetting going on. Except for the people that can't forget. It's all very confusing, really."
Induction-Coil hms, and nods. "Lots of memory-editing around," he observed, neutrally. He chuckles. "I have all mine, if you're wondering. ...I think so, at least." He grins, stretching up with his arms slowly and then laying back down, trying to get comfortable.
Blue nods, resting her chin on the grass. "Yeah, well. That's the trick, isn't it! Because I think I might have deleted a lot of my memories. Either that, or I'm secretly a blonde. It's hard to tell. All I know is, I forget stuff a lot."
Induction-Coil says, "Even being all..." He leans over to look at you, brushing headfur from his eyes "Nano-y? The can probably fix that in Upwarp, if you wanted. It must be annoying."
Blue shrugs. "It's OK. I think. It'd be really annoying if I'd forgotten something important, but I think I probably forgot something bad. What's the point in remembering something like that? Besides, I hear that gentlemen prefer blondes. So being secretly blonde isn't all bad."
Induction-Coil looks at a lock of his own tannish headfur (Darnmy laziness, it's not in the desc) for a moment, as if never having heard that expression before. He grins, and shrugs a bit.
Blue nods solemnly, then plonks her head down onto the ground gazing dreamily at IC's aura.
Induction-Coil grins and blushes lightly again as he finds himself being stared at. He looks at an arm and giggles. "You.. like blue, I guess."
Blue nods energetically. "It's the prettiest colour in the whole universe! I love it. I'm going to get a place of my own soon, and it'll be full of really pretty things, and they'll all be blue."
Induction-Coil grins. "Do nano-things have homes, usually? I always thought you'd just kinda collect or disperse or something if you wanted to be.. um.. alone.
Blue rolls her eyes patronizingly. "Well, duh, if I wanted to be ALONE, I'd do that. But if I wanted to collect a whole bunch of really pretty stuff so I could look at it whenever I wanted, I'd have to put it somewhere, wouldn't I?"
Induction-Coil oohs, and nodnods. "Good reason. "He grins. "I'd like to see, when you get it. Blue's a good color."
"Yeah. It rocks." Blue says. "Hmmm. Although rocks don't blue very often. I should do something about that." She manufactures a blue rock, and throws it into the park.
Induction-Coil grins. "Hey, cool." He hops up and pokes the rock, just to make sure it's solid, before trying to sit there now instead.
The rock is solid. Solid rock, even!
Induction-Coil sits against it if it's big enough, tosses it from one hand to anouther if it's smaller. He's easily amused tonight.
Blue looks mischeviously at the small rock that she threw into the park, and makes it grow into a large boulder while IC is tossing it from one hand to the other.
Induction-Coil eeps. "Hey!" He chuckles and barely rolls out of the way as the growing rock proves too big to toss around anymore. He eyes you as he tries the other option now. Back to relaxing.
Blue giggles to herself, and looks up at the tree. "Sorry," she says. Then she pulls off one of her shoes and throws it at the ground, where it turns into a comfortable-looking sofa. "Will that make up for it?"
Induction-Coil oohs and nods, bounding over to the couch now, sprawling. "That'll do." He grins.. then yawns, and frowns. "Mmm, comfy. I think I'm tired."
System climbs out from the hole at the base of the cube tree.
System has arrived.
System bobs as it emerges from the hole, whirling.
Blue is currently manifesting as a young woman who is wearing a tight-fitting and revealing outfit. And a sofa, on which Induction-Coil is currently lying.
Induction-Coil smiles and waves to System, though he yawns again. "Hiya.. I was just about to go to sleep."
System bobs quietly, then pauses. "I see you are the nanomachine colony. Hello, Blue, Induction-Coil."
Blue squeals with pleasure. "Hi System! You're looking good today!"
Induction-Coil curls up on the couch, and sleeps. (Seeyas!)
Induction-Coil has disconnected.
System bobs in place. "It is pleasant to see you have succeeded in repairing yourself, Blue."
Blue nods, and jumps over towards System, choosing to get there in one flowing stride. When it arrives, it is a blue sphere with a surface that swirls with different patterns and shades. "Isn't it great!"
System bobs cheerily, whirling. "Indeed it is. There is much to experience here."
Blue spins on its axis. "Yeah. And so many pretty things to look at!" On a whim, it manifests a giant blue baseball bat, which swings, and hits blue-the-sphere far into the distance.
System text-manifests, "I suppose it would make you happy if I stayed near you at this time, then."
The baseball bat bobs up and down, and dark-blue writing appears on it. "Yeah. You're very pretty." It moves over close to System, moving the handle end closer than the other.
System bobs slowly, light from within it staining the chrome of the ring underneath with blue reflections. "How much of Upwarp did you observe when Kelil provided its tour for you?"
Induction-Coil is automatically deleted to free up local space.
Induction-Coil has left.
Blue the baseball bat folds itself into a tourist map that shows the transport hub of Upwarp, with arrows pointing to the other sectors. The detail for the transport hub is much better than for the other sectors.
System bobs. "My habitation is established in Zeta Sector of Upwarp. I was curious if you might have seen my habitation from the outside."
Blue the tourist map turns itself into a blank page, then forms a question mark in the middle.
System text-manifests, "I assume this means you have not seen it?"
Blue text-manifests "Yeah. Not at all."
System bobs cheerily. "I can show you, if you desire."
Blue text-manifests, "Cool! Why not?" and then folds itself into a paper airplane.
System whirls in place. "I request that you follow me."
System disappears down the hole at the base of the cube tree.
System has left.
System walks along, with you following it.

Isn't this so totally cool!

2004-06-18T10:51:53Z

I have a LiveJournal of my very own! Isn't that great? And, I have given it the coolest colour scheme ever imagined. It's great.

Oh yeah. I have a log to post, too.

Puzzlebox - Wednesday, June 16, 2004, 1:52 PM
---------------------------------------------
(I forgot to log at first - I'd gotten bored with a guy called Kelil - he was really nice, but he was talking to another remote diplomacy droid, and they had stuff they wanted to talk about that wasn't a lot of fun. It was all educational and stuff.)
FF0000 detects Zedda and scans zir briefly. "Hmmm. You're grey. That's not such a bad colour. I'm the wrong colour right now, but that's only because I'm offline." Then it turns to stare at System.
System bobs slightly. "I assert that my discomfort with it does not stem from boredom, but from a history of hostility between its kind and my family. Do you desire any assistance, or wish to discuss any matters?"
FF0000 bobs slightly. "Oh, fair enough. Ummmm. I don't know what I want to do really. But if there's a choice between being bored by someone boring, and being bored looking at someone pretty, I'll be bored here instead."
Zedda grins. "And System, you're such a looker!"
System drifts to one side. "I assert confusion..."
FF0000 swivels affirmatively at Zedda. "Oh well, you see, I broke myself, and while I'm waiting for me to fix me, I got bored, so I got a droid. Except that this droid really isn't me, I should have been the other one. Anyway, since I don't have anything to do, I thought I'd look at something pretty."
Zedda modulates, "You broke yourself?"
System text-manifests, "Your intent is to repair yourself?"
FF0000 bobs its head affirmatively. "Yeah. But don't worry, I've got it all under control, and I'll have myself fixed really soon. But the rest of me got bored, and it's nice to look at someone else that's pretty sometimes, even though I am very good looking."
Zedda ahs, and seems amused by this. "So... who were you before you were broken?"
System bobs slightly. "I assert I do not often recieve assertions that my appearance is pleasant."
FF0000 turns a brighter shade of red. "I'm not exactly sure. I broke my memory. I think. Maybe someone else broke it." Then it turns to System. "Really? Well, people are strange, I guess."
System flashes up more text, whirling. "I assert my hope you can repair your damages soon."
Zedda nods in agreement, "Best of luck with that."
FF0000 beeps happily. "Thanks! I'm looking forward to it. This droid is pretty limiting. And it's the wrong one. So... what's up?"
System text-manifests, "We were discussing Zedda's intent to experiment with new experiences, now that zie is no longer trapped within the Upwarp datalinks."
Zedda modulates, "Precisely. I was only instantiated a short time ago, so I find myself wondering what sort of temporary code modification I cuold engage in. Almost an idle curiosity for the moment, however."
FF0000 moves over towards Zedda for a moment and scans ver again before going back to watching System. "Cool. I think more colours would be good. Especially blue. I like blue."
System bobs heavily. "I see why you assert an appreciation of my appearance."
FF0000 sighs dreamily. "Yeah. So very very pretty." It focuses all of its visual acuitors on System and watches the movements of System's discharges.
"Well, I can change the color of my conduits at will right now." To demonstrate this, Zedda's circuit-trace-like patterns shift from the usual orange-yellow to a deep green.
FF0000 turns to Zedda for a moment. "Oooh. Green. That's my second-favorite colour."
System drifts to one side. "Zedda, I find this experience odd..."
Zedda turns to System. "Which one in particular?"
FF0000 watches, still hypnotized by System.
System bobs slightly, flashing up text. "The attention being focused on me by this entity. It is unexpected, and I am uncertain of the current most rational course of action."
Zedda modulates, "Well, the most common response to being appreciated vocally for one's aesthetic qualities is to respond with thanks. Nobody's ever complimented your looks before?"
FF0000 appears to be oblivious to the conversation.
System whirls, blue light reflecting from its components. "Runa commented on me being shiny and attempted to steal one of my balls, but that was Runa."
FF0000 emits a slight click, but is otherwise motionless.
System refocuses its projection of text to the telepresence drone. "I assert pleasure that you find my appearance pleasant, entity."
FF0000 adjusts its glow to something warm and pleasant. "Cool. Let's be really really really good friends."
You page, "Feel free to poke me if you aren't getting a word in :)" to Zedda.
System bobs cheerily. "If you wish to accompany Zedda and myself, you may. Do you remember your designation, or did you lose it with your other memory?"
FF0000 twists back and forth for a moment. "Oh, like a name? I don't know. I think I have a name. But I'm not sure what it was. But you'll recognize me when I finish fixing myself, because I'm blue."
Zedda ahs, and glances to System....
System bobs. "It would assist the efficiency of our communication if I had a provisional designation for you. Will you permit me to designate you Red Blue until you recall your own designation?"
System flashes up an aside to Zedda. "It was my intent to head to the Neke-Ovon, now."
You say, "Sure! Or you could just call me Blue - I don't like red very much. Even though I'm stuck with it."
System text-manifests, "I assert that my intent was humor, Blue."
Zedda shrugs. "Well, I'm not sure Davan would be terribly receptive to our presence if we were to bring along someone he doesn't even know."
System drifts to one side. "I assert that there is a possibility you are correct."
FF0000 takes a moment to process System's text. "Oh. Well, sure. But since blue is the bestest colour of them all, I'd like to be called Blue anyway."
System bobs cheerily. "Acknowledged. It is my pleasure to meet you, Blue."
FF0000 spins on its axis in a cheerful mode. "Cool! So let's go meet this Davan guy! I'm sure he'd be really pleased to meet me, I have a great personality."
Zedda modulates, "Sadly, he doesn't."
Zedda decides to walk along with System.
System text-manifests, "Let us go."
Palace: Great Hall(#429RLJ)
Contents:
Zedda
System
Robin
Roque
Flyte
System enters, with Zedda and FF0000 walking along next to it.
Flyte waves.
Zedda modulates, "Hello."

System bobs cheerily as it notices the crowd of people here. "Hello, Roque, Flyte, Robin. How is your pregnancy, Robin?"
Robin blinks up at System, "Umm.. starting to feel more noticable.."
Flyte nods. "Hello, remote drone FF0000. I hope whoever is piloting you is enjoying the tour."
System text-manifests, "Acknowledged. The drone chooses to be designated 'Blue'."
Ironic, given that it is red.
Flyte murmurs, "Blue..."
FF0000, the red telepresence droid, bobs cheerfully up and down. "Hi! I'm Blue. I didn't like the tour, so I'm just hanging around with System now." That said, it watches System's movements again, it can't get enough of that.
Flyte smiles at the Red drone named Blue. "You have a sense of humor, at least."
FF0000 nods to Flyte. "Yeah, I'm great company. And much better looking than this droid."
Roque chuckles. "Hello, System, Zedda... drone."
Zedda says nothing else, yet, but glows deep green, a very different color from zir usual yellow-orange.
Roque smiles slightly, her fingers never stopping their intimate examination of her pet's development. "It sounds as though you have an admirer, System."
Robin whimpers and wiggles.. blushing furiously as her MIstress rubs her belly and teats
Flyte murmurs, "System is a good guide. If you have any questions you'd like to ask conventional sentients.."
System drifts to one side. "Apparently. It is unexpected."
Flyte looks around.. "Then you're out of luck, because you won't find any. Roque is closest, though. =)"
Zedda chuckles.
System bobs slightly. "What is your status, Flyte? It has been several days since we have spoken."
Roque laughs. "You flatter me, love." She turns her head towards the drone. "So... why the name Blue?"
Roque says, "Or is that your color?"
Flyte murmurs, "Oh, I'm feeling a little better. I have a couple more people I need to talk to, but I think that I'm starting to be convinced that I have a chance for forgiveness for some of my past misdeeds in a former existence."
FF0000 twists itself in disagreement. "I'm pretty sure I know all about everything here. I just can't remember any of it." It turns to Roque. "Blue is my favorite colour, and it's mine! Except that the other droid stole it from me."
System pauses for a moment. "Past misdeeds... I find an infosystem reference to design work on the device that Darkon used to terminate xer existence. Is this what you refer to?"
Flyte earflicks. "Once again I am ... stunnd by the speed of the grapevine here."
Flyte murmurs, "Design work had nothing to do with it. The weapon's more horrific uses are both its original purpose and entirely my work."
System buzzes slightly. "Acknowledged..."
Flyte murmurs, "There is little sense holding back now, if the rumor mill is this engaged already."
Flyte murmurs, "For what its worth, System, I am rather a different person, with rather distorted and filtered memory. I feel terrible, nonetheless."
System text-manifests, "There are sensory data clips from Twin's perspective available by infosystem search."
Roque shifts and hugs Flyte gently. "It's alright, love." She turns and kisses the flyer's neck softly. She then turns back towards the telepresence drone, not exactly facing it but close to it, the source of its repulsor fields. "Are you a native exploring via telepresence, then? Or am I getting garbled signal from the link?"
FF0000 turns a hearing-sensor towards Flyte. "Oh? You've got problems with your memory too? Maybe I didn't break myself." Then it turns to Roque. "Yes, I think I broke myself, so while I'm working on that, it's best to stay still. But I got bored, so part of me is here, using the droid."
System buzzes heavily. "The intent to cause pain for the sake for pain, I assess as irrational."
Robin lays there, listening to everything. She blinks at Flyte, but smiles at him when he glances at her
Flyte murmurs, "The fundamental intent was irrational. I found justifications for it later. Some of them even worked, I suppose, in their fashion."
Flyte chirps to Robin. "Now you know what I was telling Roque earlier, Robin."
Flyte murmurs, "...I fear Argent is going to react badly indeed, when they find out."
System text-manifests, "I assert disappointment in you, Flyte."
Flyte had noticed Zedda's unusual quiet, but hadn't commented on it.
Robin nods to Flyte, expressionless
Roque headtilts. "Why is that, Flyte?" She then scowls towards System. "System, the person with whom you are now communicating is not the same person that constructed that device, and even if he were, the technology is just a technology; it contains no inherent moral value. That it can be used for evil ends is not enough to say it is evil unto itself. Sometimes, it can be used for good... like Darkon." She says this last in a very soft voice.
Flyte thinks for a bit before replying to System. "I certainly deserve it, for whatever remnants of my old self linger on in me. However, I have never knowingly lied about the matter, and my memories of this crime were only recovered a day or so ago."
System bobs. "Acknowledged. But Flyte asserted his primary intent was the causation of pain for its own sake, in the development of this technology."
Robin blinks at that and has to agree wth Roque...
FF0000 turns to Zedda, and asks in a loud and cheerful tone, "Darkon's the one with the nasty personality, right?"
Flyte murmurs, "Why Argent, Roque? Some of Argent's nodes already distrust me because of a ... mistake that happened when I attempted an emulation experiment aimed at communicating with Argent in pack-thought."
System text-manifests, "Acknowledged, Flyte."
System drifts to one side slightly. "Darkon no longer exists."
Flyte murmurs, "System's distrust and disappointment is fair. I did build it for that reason. It was the practical reasons that made me put it into effect."
FF0000 runs a quick self-diagnostic. "Ah. Davan. Ooops."
Zedda starts to speak, but merely nods.
Flyte murmurs, "...Davan has managed to truly irritate Frostbyte. Reckless."
Flyte murmurs, "Success has made him cocky, it seems."
System pauses for a long moment, whirling, then suddenly reacting as Flyte speaks. "Reckless indeed."
System text-manifests, "I would have expected greater caution from him."
Roque is still for several moments. "Be that as it may, System," she says quietly, "that person is no longer with us. Flyte is someone different, borne of that mind, but not possessed of that personality."
FF0000 was going to say something, but gets hypnotized by System's whirling.
Flyte murmurs, "He's been flitting about and being quite a []ing little [] all evening, to be frank."
Roque earflicks at Flyte's cursing, but says nothing against it.
System bobs. "It is my assessment that his sentience is a non-factor in the selections process for this universe by my parent."
Zedda looks a little uncomfortable at System's statement.
System text-manifests, "His lack of respect for the will of others is disturbing."
Flyte murmurs, "Yes. Yes, it is."
Flyte murmurs, "It remains to be seen what the results of his work will be."
System buzzes heavily. "Acknowledged..."
FF0000 stares at System, twists a little to one side, extends an antenna, withdraws it, extends a pair of manipulators, works them without apparent purpose, twists for a moment, and then goes back to watching the pretty blue lights.
System bobs cheerily for a moment. "Enjoying yourself, Blue?"
FF0000 fires up several devices that it had accidentally powered down. "Wha? Yeah. Ummm. Sure. What was that about the factorial sentience thingy?"
Flyte snugs Roque and chirps. "You know .. it grows late in the evening after a hightly difficult night. Perhaps we should all get a little rest soon."
Robin rolls over and stands up, blushing some, "I guess I'll go on to bed.."
System text-manifests, "I am sure Flyte can explain some of my background. I find myself distracted at the moment, and would prefer not to repeat myself so soon after having explained to Zedda."
System text-manifests, "I assert my hope that you rest well, Flyte, Robin."
Flyte murmurs, "...thank you, System. Goodnight, Robin.."
Roque shifts, then gives Flyte a final kiss, then another to Robin before rising. "I should probably rest myself. I'm past the worst of my healing, but it has been an intense day."
Zedda modulates, "I also should go get some downtime... I have a lot on my mind, plenty to sort through."
Robin smiles, tail wags.. "sleep well Mistress. Goodnight everyone"
Flyte kisses Roque gently. "Goodnight, Roque-love.." He waves to all and sundry. "Be well.."
Flyte follows the corridor out, leaving the Palace.
Flyte has left.
System text-manifests, "Perhaps I will explain myself to you directly, then, Blue."
FF0000 spins around. "Goodnight! Have a good time sleeping!" it says, to just about everybody.
Zedda modulates, "See you later, System, Roque, Robin, and... blue."
Robin follows the corridor out, leaving the Palace.
Robin has left.
System text-manifests, "Rest well, Zedda, Roque."
Zedda follows the corridor out, leaving the Palace.
Zedda has left.
You say, "You don't have to. It sounded complicated."
System bobs. "Acknowledged."
Roque disappears with a mild flash of light.
System whispers, "System laughs and laughs. "What a synchronicity!"" to you.
System text-manifests, "Is there anywhere you wish to go, or are your current surroundings acceptable to you?"
FF0000 looks around, taking in its surroundings as if for the first time. "Ahhh, sure. Ummm. Oh, you want me to choose? Wow, er, I dunno! But if you know a place where there's water, that might be good. I like water."
System text-manifests, "Follow me, then. There is a pleasant location in the Galleria you may enjoy."
System follows the corridor out, leaving the Palace.
System has left.
System walks along, with you following it.
Galleria: Waterfall Lookout
System enters, with FF0000 walking along next to it.
You say, "Oooooo. This is nice."
System text-manifests, "I and a number of my friends find the Galleria a pleasant place. We meet here often..."
FF0000 bobs happily and drifts over to the railing. "I love the view. It's beautiful."
System drifts along side, staying close to Blue. "I assert my pleasure that you find it pleasant, Blue."
FF0000 thinks for a moment. "Oh good. I think. Wow. I wonder why I'm having so many problems with logic? I must have broken that part, too."
System bobs slowly. "Will you permit me to perform some scans of you? I may be able to trace your connection, and tell you what you are."
FF0000 beams brightly. "OK, sure!"
The black drone above System reorients itself suddenly, and thin lines of blue light that scan over the drone shoot from within System to scan over it. Eventually, System flashes up some text. "Dimensional traces lead to a nanomachine colony suffering program execution errors."
FF0000 beams brightly. "Yeah, that sounds like me."
System text-manifests, "Evidence suggests severe corruption of the data storage systems in the colony; this may explain why you remember so little now."
FF0000 bounces happily. "I knew it! See? I told us that I was broken in the memory? Yes, we did."
Jini wanders in from the south.
Jini has arrived.

And you can catch the rest of what happened over in Jini's journal! (She's so cool. I love her. She's pretty.)