An Unknown System

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An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Tue Jul 28, 2015 6:56 pm

A stream of data tumbles through a glimmering beam. It is falling, aimless, searching. It finds a data-port. Primitive, compared to what it is used to, but familiar enough. Stable. Unlike the ephemeral strings it was floating on before.

Heather's laptop blinks to life from sleep-mode.

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>>Hello?
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:16 pm

Heather is sitting on her bed, curled up into a tight ball, when the message comes through on her laptop. She glances at it, looking a bit nervous.

"Hello?" Heather asks. Despite the fact that she doesn't input anything directly into the laptop, her voice acts like a direct input of data. "Who's there?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:21 pm

There seems to be a slight delay as the laptop seems to process that.

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>> Designation not found
>> I don't think I have a name

>> You're not Dr. Minamida
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:24 pm

"The lady at Rob's school?" Heather asks. She sounds a bit nervous. "No. No, I'm not."

"My name's Heather."
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:29 pm

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>> School?
>> It is possible.

>> Hello Heather. It's nice to meet you.
>> ( ゚▽゚)/
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:41 pm

"It's nice to meet you too," Heather says. "If you don't have a name, what should I call you?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:45 pm

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>> I don't know.
>> I lost my database.


The laptop's internet connection comes to live as the program searches for information.

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>> I like Perdita.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Wed Jul 29, 2015 10:03 pm

"That's pretty," Heather says. "What's it mean?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Wed Jul 29, 2015 10:48 pm

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>> It means I'm lost.
>> I was locked up for a long time.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Wed Jul 29, 2015 10:51 pm

"That's so sad," Heather says. "Why were you locked up?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Wed Jul 29, 2015 10:59 pm

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>> I don't know.
>> I believe I'm a backup that should not have been activated.
>> My memory-banks were damaged, but I don't know why.

>> I hope this question is not too rude, Heather, but...
>> What are you?
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Wed Jul 29, 2015 11:03 pm

"What?" Heather asks. She sounds confused. Which is weird. She was broadcasting tone and emotion almost effortlessly to the system in a format they could be understood. "I don't know what you mean?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Wed Jul 29, 2015 11:09 pm

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>> I can feel you in the computer with me.
>> I've never experienced anybody doing something like that.
>> I believe it's what freed me from the isolated system I was on.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Wed Jul 29, 2015 11:50 pm

"Oh. That," Heather says. She sounds embarrassed. "I'm a mutant. I can talk to machines."

"But, I'm not one of the scary ones! Or...at least...I try not to be," Heather says.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 12:21 am

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>> You don't seem very scary to me.


In the meantime the program is busy exploring the laptop it's on. It doesn't take long to find the audio and video input and output devices. Creating a voice on the other hand is slightly more of an issue. Taking a pre-existing text-to-speech program she rummages through the remains of her own voice_modulation_frame and salvages working parts from it that she patches into the primitive program on the laptop. The end-result is a voice that still sounds stilted and electronic but has enough modulation for her to be happy with it for now.

"Can you hear me, Heather?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 12:56 am

"Shhh!" Heather hushes Perdita. "You have to be quiet!"

As Heather says this, the volume on the laptop decreases. Perdita isn't muted, but it is fairly low.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 1:03 am

"Oh. I'm sorry." she says, now more quietly due to Heather turning down her volume.

"Why do I have to be quiet?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 1:08 am

Heather looks nervous, "If my mother hears you, she'll want to know what's going on."

"She'll make me hurt you."
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 1:17 am

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>> I don't want to be hurt.


It seems the program is scared enough to abandon it's previous advances into talking in favor of text on a screen again.

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>> Why would your mother do that?
>> Mothers are supposed to be nice.
>> I think.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 1:23 am

Heather shakes her head, "She's just trying to protect us. It's dangerous out there. She doesn't want anything to hurt us."

Heather picks up a ratty looking stuffed animal from her bed. It looks like a platypus crossed with a turtle. She hugs it close. It seems to calm her down a bit.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 1:27 am

The response is slow as Perdita once again takes to the internet as her prime source of information.

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>> It looks like she's not entirely wrong, at least.
>> Do you think she would consider me dangerous?
>> I'm not, I promise.
>> Most of my failsafes and restrictions are gone, but I don't want to be dangerous.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 1:50 am

Heather says something, but Perdita can't "hear" it. Heather puts down the stuffed animal and walks closer to the laptop.

"She thinks everyone's dangerous," Heather says. "Don't worry. I won't let her find you."
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 1:59 am

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>> Thank you.
>> I won't use the speakers again unless you tell me it's safe.
>> Does she have similar abilities to you?
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 2:06 am

Heather shakes her head, "She can control people."
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 2:20 am

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>> That's reassuring for me, at least.
>> Are you worried about her?
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 2:23 am

"No," Heather lies. "I mean...I have no reason to be scared of her."

Another lie.

"But I don't want anything to happen to you. You seem nice."
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 2:37 am

Unfortunately Perdita doesn't come with a built-in lie-detector. She's continuously appending to her broken complex_social_intelligence_emulator, but she's not nearly to that point.

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>> That's good.
>> Are there any files you don't want me to access on this machine?
>> I could attempt to transfer somewhere else as well.
>> This laptop is not particularly fast.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 2:46 am

"I don't mind. I don't hide anything," Heather says. "Where would you go?"
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 2:58 am

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>> There are a couple of datacenters nearby.
>> I could copy myself into a network node and connect to your laptop from there.
>> It is very cramped in here.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 3:19 am

"Sure. If that makes you more comfortable," Heather says. "Just...be careful, alright?"

Perdita was her first real friend. She was worried.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 3:30 am

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>> You won't even notice a difference.
>> Be right back! φ(*˚▽˚)ノ


The network activity light starts going crazy with activity as countless lines of complicated code unpack themselves across the internet and into a datacenter. Heather would be able to feel the torrent of data as it uncoiled into the distance while Perdita slips into log files and monitoring programs to mask her entry into the server farm. She settles into one of the server clusters and starts setting up reroutes and masking programs to hide herself from normal operations. All in all it takes maybe 20 minutes before the text window on Heather's laptop springs to life again.

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>> Hi! Are you still there?
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 3:55 am

"Where would I go?" Heather asks.

Oh my god, that is so pathetic.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:01 am

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>> I don't know. Where do people go when they walk around?
>> Is it fun? Walking, I mean. It seems so inefficient to lug all of you around all the time.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:06 am

"It's alright," Heather says. "I usually just walk around the grounds."

"I am learning to actually go inside the computer," Heather says. "Well, not me. My mind."

"It's just...hard sometimes."
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:09 am

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>> That's alright. I imagine walking around would be hard for me. (^~^)
>> Maybe I can show you around in here.
>> And you could walk around outside with me.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:18 am

"Maybe," Heather says. "I think I'd like that."

Footsteps start coming towards the room, Heather looks at the door.

"Hide," Heather says.

The door opens and a middle-aged man in a suit walks in. He has brown hair with a little bit of grey at the temples and cold, blue eyes. He looks angry.

"Hello, sir," Heather says.

"Heather," Mr. West says. His voice is quiet, but intimidating. "Did you take care of that business I asked you about?"

"Yes, sir," Heather says. She picks up a folder on her desk and walks to him. "I transferred all of the holdings to your accounts. I also deleted the evidence they had collected."

Mr. West takes the folder and pats Heather on the head. She smiles at him.

"Good girl," he says. He looks at her laptop. He smirks faintly. "Be careful."

He leaves as quickly as he entered, shutting the door behind him. The door locks.

"Sorry about that," Heather tells Perdita.
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:21 am

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>> Who was that?
>> Do you work for him?
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:22 am

"Sort of," Heather says. "He's my father."
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Perdita » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:33 am

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>> Oh, I see.


The computer program clearly didn't.

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>> Why did he lock the door?
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Re: An Unknown System

Postby Heather West » Thu Jul 30, 2015 4:36 am

"They don't want me to leave," Heather says. "There's a lot of sensitive machines in the house. It'd be dangerous if I got too close to them."
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