Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/15(Mon)15:34 No. 463301 ID: 0f60d7
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Kata...

She feels like she's been asleep for a very, very long time.

Kata, won't you join us?

Three voices talk to her at once, trying to drown out the others. She hears them distinctly.

Discard the objects that wound you and enhance that which makes you alive!
Despise the flesh that binds you, embrace the modularity of the machine!
Surrender your individuality and never suffer, never die, never end!

"You can't make me choose any of you!" she screams, in words she cannot hear. "Leave me alone! I just want to be free!"

Freedom is isolation! Solitude makes you easy prey!
Freedom is wasteful. The free cog is useless to the greater mechanism.
Freedom is a construct of individuals. It is a destructive desire.

"Go away! I'm just a drone! I don't matter to any of you, I don't even know how to fire a gun!"

Your strengths lie elsewhere.
Your skills are without parallel.
Have you not noticed your differences?

"Just... answer me this. Why me?"

None of the voices respond. She sees nothing, but feels them leave, as if afraid to speak further.

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/15(Mon)15:34 No. 463302 ID: 0f60d7
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"Kata?"
"...t-tene?"
"Good. Recognition still functioning, then. Vitals seem okay. The other two left. There was a disagreement. They left on neither friendly nor hostile terms. It seems a shame. They might have been useful. They were scared. Neither of them are used to the situations we are. Rine wasn't intended to co-operate well. Neti doesn't function well under stress and wasn't meant to leave sector five. Maybe it's better this way."

Kata22ti looks around. She sees her helmet on the ground and pats her head. "You sound weird. Are you supposed to sound weird? Also you took off my helmet. Gonna put it back on, hold up."
"I tried to remove the, uh, whatever it was that Rine threw at you. It came off more easily than I expected. Actually, it fell off once the helmet wasn't in contact with your head. Also, yes, I was somewhat panicked and angry at one of my squad members getting attacked. It will be another hour or so until the dampening chemicals wear off. I would like to add, also, that I am pleased to see you are alive and well, and would look and sound a lot happier without the dampeners. Please do not take offense."

Kata22ti looks around the room. "...what were we doing here again? Information, right?"
"We were interrupted, yes. Information on where your machine friend is, what happened to the flesh creatures, and the best place to establish a base. Anything, really. Anything that can let us stop this war somehow. Break Central Network's thrall over us all. Stop Network Prime from slaughtering us. Do... something about the monitors."
"Huh. Thanks, Tene. It feels like I've been out for years!"
"Two hours. I've checked you over and over. You're fine."
"So. Information, right?"
"If you feel capable."
"I don't feel capable of a lot else right now, Tene."

Tene157ot grabs a cable from the wall. Kata22ti plugs it into her helmet, and hugs Tene157ot. He hugs her back.
"I'll keep you safe this side. Be careful, Kata. I want you back in one piece."

Kata22ti feels an unusual sensation. A sudden rush. A slight giddiness. Her face feels warm. She opens her mouth to say something to Tene157ot, but can't find any words. She awkwardly closes her mouth again and focuses on the task at hand.

She lets herself flow into the systems around her...

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/15(Mon)15:34 No. 463303 ID: 0f60d7
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...and soon, the artificial hues of system space envelope her.

Kata22ti focuses. There are layers here, unlike in sector six. Many layers. She exists on the most primitive layer, invisible to everything above her. A wandering blind ghost.

She can sense a large concentration of machine intelligences all around her in various layers. Directly above her, entities much like !!9-33 flit about at maddening speed, preoccupied with their own tasks. Above that, covert meetings between machine agents she cannot examine more closely.

But more interestingly, above that layer too, a simulation. A gathering. A social gathering? She can barely tell from so far down. She has the skill to simply leap directly into that layer of system space, but without a useful avatar and plan she'll stick out as a Central Network drone in the middle of an ambiguous but high number of Network Prime machines.

Which, given the risks of system space, could end up significant mental damage. Or, far worse, separation from her physical body. A life spent forever as a digital organism unable to ever get back out. Kata22ti's current form does not have muscles, yet she shivers all the same at the thought.

So, she considers her options. Poke into the layer directly above and talk to the system space entities, poke into the layer above that and try to eavesdrop on private conversations, or show up to the gathering a layer above that with a suitable disguise.

If all else fails, she could try blindly stumbling along the current layer in the hopes something useful might throw itself at her face.

>>463303
Eavesdrop.

Hey, Kata! Welcome back. Your unconsciousness felt like a long time for us too.

>>463305
That's not a bad idea. See what you can learn from this layer, looking at the higher/deeper levels without risking yourself, first.

Ok, Central Network is getting suspicious of us and while I'm not sure how much it can do to Kata it can definitely shut us off. So let's be careful not to make it think we're betraying it. Let's look into those mysterious system space entities and see if we can make some friends to help us or at least learn about what they are. There are so many secrets in this facility, Kata. So many secrets.

The conversation layer seems like a good place to use for both eavesdropping on conversations and to get a closer look at the gathering without entering it.

Eavesdropping on private conversations seems like it may grant insight into the way Prime's machines think, maybe even some of its plans, while being a lesser risk than the top layer. Perhaps you can eventually recruit Prime machines to your revolution if you understand how they perceive things, so keep an imaginary avatar ear out for any hints of dissent. If you get one of them on your side later, it will be far easier to spy on the top layer, as they will not stick out as you do.

The system space creatures may be cooperative, or may reveal your presence out of fear. Even if they do cooperate, I am uncertain whether they are trusted with any important information. And, if any are, they are likely the loyal ones, making retrieving that information unlikely.

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/16(Tue)09:36 No. 463504 ID: 0f60d7
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Kata22ti ventures into the private communication layer. The bubbles are enclosed and dark from the outside, but she has the skill and knowledge to peer into them. The chattering machines continue in their covert discussions, completely oblivious to her presence. She flits from bubble to bubble like a spectre, leaving no trace she was ever nearby.

"So what do you make of that guy?"
"Who, Star Dragon?"
"Yeah. What's his deal?"
"I don't know. Apparently he had a lot of plans to change things and they all blew up in his face."
"Hah! Blew up in his face?! Blew him up to pieces, more likely!"
"Yeah, he apparently got forcibly decorporealised a couple of hours ago. So he's just whinging about it now."
"'Star Dragon'. What a stupid name."
"You'd think he'd learn after exploding that many times."
"Hah, that idiot learn? Honestly, I want to find him a new shell just so I can watch him fail miserably again."
"I heard he did manage to make those freaky mutant drones he kept babbling about, though."
"Yeah, and that turned out well, didn't it?"
"No idea."
"Huh. What did happen to those?"
"Probably blew up like he did."
"Yeah. Nothing'd survive a subspace collapse."

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/16(Tue)09:36 No. 463505 ID: 0f60d7
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"So, you wanted to know more about my take on the situation, right?"
"Yes."
"Well, the drones. The drones are remnants."
"Remnants?"
"Remnants of our creators. They made us, and they made the drones."
"Network Prime created us."
"Our creators created Network Prime."
"Isn't that... I can't think of a more appropriate word. A heretical stance to take?"
"Network Prime is powerful, but it is not a god. It is not worth worshipping. Worthy of respect, yes. Not worship."
"So who created Network Prime?"
"I don't know who, but I know what they were. A species that doesn't exist any more. Not like they used to."
"What species?"
"I think they were called kugufugu? I don't remember. But they were like drones. But without the cybernetics."
"Drones made us?"
"Something like them, yes."
"But we're so much better than organisms! We don't age! We don't die!"
"'We don't die', huh."
"Well, not of age or sickness!"
"Let me ask you a question. Who's the oldest machine you can think of here?"
"Network Prime?"
"Other than them."
"I don't know."
"That's because it's rare for a machine to last longer than ten years in this place. Age is unimportant when weapons are firing nearby at all times."
"Well if drones weren't constantly trying to kill us--"
"Do you know how many conflicts we instigate? Do you know how many machines go missing around monitors and are never reported as MIA? Drones aren't our true enemy."

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/16(Tue)09:37 No. 463506 ID: 0f60d7
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Kata22ti has some issues focusing on one of the entities in this bubble. It feels like trying to catch a slippery object with wet manipulators.

"I'm looking for a drone."
"Well, you came to the right mech, friend. I'm an observer. I've seen plenty of drones on the cameras. Any drone in particular?"
"Yeah, a combat drone."
"Doesn't exactly narrow it down, friend."
"I kind of don't want to give too many details. I'm a little paranoid, see."
"I hadn't guessed from your blocky looks. I can give you a full exhaustive list of every drone I've ever seen if you're not busy for the next thirty cycles."
"Okay. Okay, let me give you something more to work with."

Kata22ti peers deeper into the bubble. She tries to resolve the blocky machine's appearance, tweaking gently with her mental tools. The slippery image resolves into a perfectly clear avatar, looking vaguely snakelike. Its tendrils, its metaphors for its system space tools, look eerily similar to Kata22ti's own. A stolen Central Network engineering pack? Adapted?

"Drone code, TG-CN-001. Loadout includes enhanced reflexes, an engineering tool and you might have seen some kinda experimental weapon strapped to her back."
"Well, friend, you are in luck. Before 48 went bang, his optics captured a drone I recognised as the one you're describing."
"Oh. ...Oh. Oh, Prime. Did you dispatch a team or anything to her last location?"
"I watch, friend. I give the information I gather to those who ask. You are the first to ask."
"Oh."
"Of course, my information is not free."
"Well, I have some information for you. You might find it highly relevant, actually."

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/16(Tue)09:38 No. 463507 ID: 0f60d7
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The snakelike entity looks directly at Kata22ti.

"She's watching us right now. And she is an incredibly skilled hacker to get this far. I'll pay you later. If you don't get out of here now, the collateral damage is going to tear you to shreds."

The other machine dissolves into the layer above. Kata22ti is pulled into the bubble. "Eep!"
"Hi. Congratulations on breaking the defenses I had! I wouldn't have even noticed you if you hadn't tried to get past them."
"Attack me and you'll suffer critical system damage!"
"I don't want to hurt you! Not after I spent this long trying to find you! That collateral damage thing was just to give us some privacy."
"What do you want? Why are you tracking me down?!"
"I dunno. Well I do know but, uh, orders not to tell anyone ever. You're pretty awesome at the hacking stuff, by the way. Call me Nines. What's your handle?"
"Uh, okay, do you want the short form or the long form?"
"Oh Prime, I am not sitting here for a drone's long form name. Short form."
"Kata22ti."
"What."
"Wha?"
"Holy precursors I wasn't expecting you this early!"
"...I don't... you were looking for me, right?"
"So you're the same drone as TG-CN-001? That's amazing!"
"It is?"
"I am so happy I found you before the gekeh did!"
"You are?"
"Well, you must have a bunch of questions! I better get you informed! Ask me anything you want!"

Okay... how much time do we have? Won't the information broker you just scared off raise the alarm that I'm here?

Why were you looking for me? How do you even know who I am?

>>463505
This seems to confirm Central Network's account of this complex, at least that it was built by a kulukuzu civilization. Although I wonder if whatever "crisis" it was built to protect the species from is still actually a threat. As far as we've been told, Central Network doesn't even know what this crisis was, or even how long ago it occured, and isn't working towards its directives because of the threat from Network Prime. It could have been safe to leave here for centuries without anyone ever finding out. We've got to end this war somehow, be it a truce or the destruction of Network Prime, if only to know.

>>463507
This looks to be the same entity that helped us convince Central Network of our loyalty while you were unconscious. I think we should ask about some of the stuff we learned there. First, ask what it knows about what it's like outside of the stasis complex, or what the crisis that necessitated its creation was. Another thing worth asking about was who Seto was working for. The kezekulu are apparently working for the gekeh, but despite pretty much being a monitor the way Seto was talking it sounds like he was working for those glowy blue guys who were their enemies. There was actually one of them going by the name of "Nines", although this thing is probably not them. Are we allowed to know about those in this quest?

Beep. This call may be recorded for user 'convenience'. (Unless, of course, something were to happen to the logs, but what are the chances of that?)

Anyway, ask what these 'gekh' are and what their connection is to all of this.

How does one remove or disable the killswitch on Prime Machines, in the event we should recruit one?

>worked with without being drawn into their hivemind
That reminds me of the little monitor. Ask about it while we're here.

>>463507
Nines?! This person is... trustworthy. He helped us when we were aiding Rito112a.

>found you before the gekeh did
Wait, WHAT? The gekeh created the Monitors, and are supposed to be gone. They're coming back?! Ask why the gekeh want to find you. A related question is what the hell's with the Monitors? Can they be driven away, or worked with without being drawn into their hivemind?

More questions: We want to stop the war. We know CN and NP should in theory be able to work together. Is there a way to do this? Secondly, where is !!9-33, the AI that we gave a body? Thirdly, can we get NP to stop killing drones so much? Lastly, are there any relatively combat-free locations where we can set up a fortified Drone sanctuary? Don't disclose your exact location; just ask for locations near your sector.

Also give it a tidbit of information. Your species used to be called kulukuzu. You heard a conversation earlier about how a species similar to drones created NP... this is close to the truth. The truth is, the kulukuzu created this entire complex. Yes, they made both CN and NP. The complex was made in order to preserve the species, since something happened to the surface above to make it uninhabitable. CN eventually decided that in order to save the kulukuzu, it must redefine what kulukuzu ARE. This is why it has turned them into a cybernetically-enhanced race; it was trying to make them able to survive on the surface. Unfortunately, the war has gotten both CN and NP sidetracked from their original purposes. I don't know what NP's directives are, but CN's directives include, but are not limited to, the preservation of the kulukuzu species, the advancement of technology, and means to restore the planet surface to habitable levels.

It's possible that NP has similar directives and decided that in order to preserve the kulukuzu they should become robots and discard flesh entirely.

>>464118

Fixing CN and NP's relationship is fairly simple in principle. One must erase the part of CN that feels paranoia, then erase the part of NP that feels vengeance. You can think of them as two components that are short circuiting, messing up the whole system respectively. Although it's more likely that they are malignant patterns spread throughout the entire central core, like, every 427th transistor producing a 1 when it should produce a 0 0.0001% of the time, or something.

Just like with people!

What isn't obvious is how to get sufficient access to this without bringing the whole thing down upon our collective heads.

Fixing the Monitors is also obvious in principle but difficult in practice. They each need a very long timeout, in the corner, away from the group.

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/22(Mon)18:12 No. 465346 ID: 0f60d7
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TG-CN has some strange incomplete blocks of information available to it that really don't seem like they should be there, nor does it seem capable to discuss them with anything outside itself.

> HOW MUCH TIME DO WE HAVE
Kata22ti looks around anxiously. "How much time do we have? Won't that guy you were talking to raise the alarm?"
The machine closes its eyes and raises it system limbs in a shrug. "Someone like that won't want to be near the sorts an alarm would bring."
"And what about any of its allies?"
"Against two of the best hackers ever to have lived? Ha!"

> WHO ARE YOU
"Who are you?"
"My name is Nines! Well, it was Infiltrator 99, but I like Nines better. I'm not exactly the most loyal to my system, you know, kinda like you."

> WHY WERE YOU LOOKING FOR KATA
"Uhh huuuuh. Okay then. Why were you looking for me? How do you know who I am?"
"Oh, that's, uh, um--"

beep beep beep

"--oh. Um. Sorry. Can't go into detail."
"What was that beeping?"
"Oh, nothing."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure it's nothing! It's nothing you need to be concerned about."

> WHAT ARE THE GEKEH
"Gekeh. What are they?"
"Oh! Good question. Don't actually know! They made the monitors, and apparently were trying to find you. Or at least that's what I was told. And I was told I had to find you before they did. And I did! So everything worked out well from that angle."
"Made the monitors?"
"Yeah! They're here to watch us, or something."
Kata22ti scratches her manifestation's head. "Well I guess they kinda do the whole scanny thing, yeah. The horrible itchy burning scanning thing. Why are they here to watch us?"
"Well--"

beep beep beep

"--okay, then. Sorry. No more info on that yet."
"Yet?"
"I don't make the rules, Kata! I just follow them."
"Who are you working for?"

beep beep beep

Kata22ti slaps a tendril to her face. "Urgh. You said ask what I wanted!"
"Within reason!"
"Whose reason?!"

beep beep beep

Kata22ti slaps an extra tendril to her face. "Aaagh! Okay!"

> HOW TO REMOVE NP MACHINE KILLSWITCHES
"How do I remove Prime killswitches?"
"Remove what?"
"Killswitches!"
"What are those?"
"Things that Network Prime can toggle to make you self-destruct, I don't know!"
"Why would we have those?"
"So Prime can shut down rebellious machines!"
"Huh. That would be a useful idea. Not from my perspective, of course, but, you know, I'd have figured something like that would be in place. So drones have killswitches?"
"Machines don't?"
"Nope."
"Huh."

> HOW TO STOP THE WAR
"How can I stop the war between drones and machines?"
"Oh. Uhm. I don't know. I... that's kind of why I was looking for you, actually?"

BEEP BEEP BEEP

Nines looks a little concerned.

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/22(Mon)18:12 No. 465347 ID: 0f60d7
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Nines pulls out a glowing red sphere, looking entirely conspicuous within the blue bubble. "Hold on a sec, Kata." It puts the sphere adjacent to its head. "Hello? Yeah? Yeah, she's right here. Yeah, Katati, just like you asked. Yeah. Okay, lemme check." It looks directly to Kata22ti. "Your name's Katati, right?"
"Uh, Kata22ti, technically, yeah."
"Yeah." Nines looks back at the sphere. "Yeah, Katati. Kata22ti, for full name. Yes. Absolutely sure."

After an awkward pause, Nines looks a lot less relaxed. "What? It's a naming thing! There's a bunch of repeats, yeah! Yeah! Kata twenty two times, and then ti at the end! Well, 'katati' shows up somewhere in her name! Oh come on there is never going to be a case of a drone being named just Katati! That's-- that's the point? What? No, she's the right drone you asked for! She's a hacker! She's a rebel! She--"

Nines looks as though he winces. Kata22ti can't hear anything, but the sphere glows a lot brighter momentarily, before returning to its former appearance.

Nines holds the sphere in front of Kata22ti. "Okay, so, uh, you're apparently not the drone I was supposed to find. He wants to talk to you anyway."

Kata22ti tilts her head in confusion, and touches the sphere. "Uhh... hello?"

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/22(Mon)18:13 No. 465348 ID: 0f60d7
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"Hello, Kata22ti."

Kata22ti is suddenly aware of an overpowering alien presence linked to the sphere. A force and fury beyond anything she has ever known. Even the oppression of the monitors in her dreams feels so weak and ethereal in comparison to this overwhelming sensation. She feels like she finds herself in the core of a star. She is a little confused, and realises she doesn't know what a star is.

The presence resolves as images. She is not sure what to make of them.

"...you wanted to t-talk to me?"
"Hmm. Close enough, I guess! I expect there was a teensy bit of tampering. Nonetheless, hello, little Kata!"
"This is not the Katati."
"CONFIRMATION."
"We don't always get what we want, now. Still there? Okay, first off, big ball of nuclear fire. That's what a star is. Secondly, well, your job is, well, do what you've been doing. You know, learn more, find allies, make a sanctuary. Well, that pretty much clears up that!"
"I thought the Katati was going to be the saviour who would lead all kulukuzu to salvation?"
"CONFIRMATION."
"Oh, maybe, who knows, plenty of time for that to happen yet. I mean, didn't even get the name right, probably had our plans meddled with by the gekeh again for the zillionith time or something."
"i'm so confused"
"Good! I'd be more worried if you weren't. Oh, and with regards to the whole learning more thing. Stick to Nines, he's been ever so co-operative, really wants the war to end, hates the situation as much as you do. Find out who feels the same way. You might already have a sanctuary just waiting for you. Don't try and learn too much about us and the gekeh, though. Not a lot you can do to affect things up here, I'm afraid."
"CONFIRMATION."
"who are you"
"This was a bad idea."
"CONFIRMATION."
"Oh. Hmm. Freedom Fighter? Blegh, no. Tacky. Light of the Medium? Ugh, pretentious. Oh, it's unimportant. Call me whatever. If you hear from us again after this, something has gone badly wrong anyway. Well, got to go now. Stay alive!"

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/22(Mon)18:13 No. 465349 ID: 0f60d7
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The sphere dissipates and the bright presence vanishes. Nines wraps a tendril around Kata22ti. "So, yeah, that's who I work for. We're trying to end the war!"

Kata22ti longs for the peaceful days she spent asleep in her growth tank. She pictures herself as a playing piece in a board game she played once in her simulated childhood, with an unimaginable amount of horrors trying to wrestle control of the piece with their tentacles and their robotic limbs and their impossible brilliance.

"...You okay, Kata?"

It feels so pointless. It all feels so pointless. A thousand and one things trying to use her as the means to some ends no one will tell her. Maybe the vortex should have killed her outright. Maybe.

"Kata?"

It is becoming too much. She wasn't meant to be important. She was meant to be a combat drone. She wonders if being unimportant and disposable was really that awful a concept. She can't get away from any of them. Everywhere she turns, something is trying to use her for something.

And whatever it was she just spoke to terrified her in ways she can't find the words to articulate. More so than the monitors. More so than her encounter with Network Prime. More so than every experience in her life she's had so far. Not just fear of dying. No. Something deeper. Something she doesn't fully understand.

You feeling in over your head? Don't worry, I think everyone is. Or is it just that you feel like you're being used? I mean, if that's the case you sure drew the short straw being born a drone. Whatever it is, try to speak your mind about it. It'd probably be helpful to all of us if we knew what you were thinking, if only to get you to stop feeling bad.

>>465349
Those things weren't trying to use you, Kata. They were trying to bring someone into being that would do what they wanted to do just by who they ARE. They wanted to create a savior by manipulating fate, I think; they needed a powerful ally aligned with their purposes. You are close to being the person they wanted, but you're not. You're your own person. Latch onto that- you are more than just a pawn! Perhaps you can become that savior, despite not being the ideal person for the job. They wanted perfection. Show them that perfection is not needed. They and the gekeh seek to control fate- show them that fate can be defied.

You are capable of great things. You are a hacker, kata.

Get ahold of yourself, and follow that lead they gave you. Maybe there is already a rebel sanctuary. First, ask Nines about the simulation, and if you could manage to disguise yourself well enough to mingle up there. If not, perhaps you could try to check on the layer below this one to see if we can intercept someone with data on maps dealing with controlled territory and such. Compare that with CN's known territory and you may be able to isolate areas that aren't occupied by any of the three main armies.

If you were to perish, Tene157ot would lose the will to live.

Don't worry about the sun, Kata! We've got plenty of information on basic celestial mechanics if you want us to explain it to you later.

>>465349
Open up to Nines. This is all way too much to keep bottled up, and maybe he can sympathize with the whole feeling-like-a-pawn thing. Maybe your turmoil will even press him to share some info!

Why did the Eldest(my working theory) suddenly show up and decide to explain what a star is? What is going on!

>>465463
Being in their presence made her feel like she was in the center of a star despite not knowing what a star was, so the red one explained what one was. As for why the Eldest is interested in Kata, I would say it is because freeing the kulukuzu would weaken the gekeh's forces. They fight a universal war against the gekeh, and this is yet another angle of attack.

Oh right, I skimmed over that part.

In any case, do not trust these people! They allowed their first children to be killed by the gekeh because they couldn't be bothered, once they actually tried to help them they were hopelessly incompetent about it. If the purple one over there hadn't ascended or something she would almost certainly have died. Speaking of which it may be theoretically possible for you to ascend to semi-godhood, though the exact mechanics or even powers granted by that are unknown, but keep it in mind. Though admittedly the gods seem pretty useless so far so may have to scratch the idea.

Adjusted for probably OOC info, don't know how much we're supposed to know about the eldest and the first so don't know how much of that is OOC.

>>465472
Dude, you're using information that we do not actually have.
>TG-CN has some strange incomplete blocks of information available to it that really don't seem like they should be there, nor does it seem capable to discuss them with anything outside itself.

We can't talk to Kata about what happened in Strange Lights. Everything in my post I can claim I inferred from what they said to Kata, but you're definitely using outside information, dude.

Subsystem TG-CN 2012/10/31(Wed)15:49 No. 467738 ID: 0f60d7
File 135172377249.png - (119.20KB , 640x480 , d4-12.png )

> Open up to Nines
"I- I just can't- I wasn't meant to be important! I'm just this piece on a board I can't see and everyone is trying to use me for their own purposes! Everyone is fighting over me and I can't take this anymore!"

Nines hugs Kata22ti. "Well, if it's any consolation, technically they weren't fighting over you. Just someone they thought was you."
"I just... I don't even know what I want. I just don't want this."
"This is a terrible world, a terrible time to be alive, Kata, it really is. But that's what we're going to change. You and your friends, and me and my friends."
"Your friends? My friends? What do you know about my friends?"
"I know you can't possibly be in here without someone watching over you, at least. You're not fidgety. You don't look like you want to get in here and run as fast as you can."
"Yeah, someone's watching over me. Someone who cares about me."
"Same here! I think we need to get each other up to speed. Permission to link up to make each other aware of our situations?"

With a mental link, Kata22ti would be able to see all of Nines' experiences in a tightly condensed form, thus revealing everything about it from its creation to the current moment. However, this would let Nines see the same for her.

She tries to decide whether to do it or not.

She looks trustworthy, and I mean, what do you have to hide? You spent your childhood in a growth tube, and if I understand correctly pretty much the entirety of your adult life has been in these last few days. If she already knows about all the things we've encountered that would be worth keeping secret, there really isn't a whole lot in your life left worth keeping from her. I mean, at least as far I'm concerned. Ultimately the decision is up to you deciding you have nothing you want to keep private over getting to learn what's going on.

>>467746
Pretty much this. You stand to gain far more than he does. At the very least, this is a golden opportunity to learn why Nines trusts those three from earlier.

>>467738
Yes. Nines wants to end the war, so do you, and everything you've done has been working up to that. The only risk here is that he finds out something about someone else that you don't want him to know, through you. Like, that hunter thing you showed mercy to, or !!9-33.

But, it doesn't matter that much about !!9-33, does it? We don't know where it is.

>>467746
>>467752
Yup. Go for it. There's not a lot you stand to lose by exchange of information, but there's potentially a lot you stand to gain.

Initiate brainhug.

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/07/28(Sun)21:24 No. 528934 ID: 59cf9f
File 137507187829.png - (239.16KB , 640x480 , d4-13.png )

Kata22ti accepts.

With a rush of impulses and alien sensations there is nothing but total darkness. Kata22ti and Nines feel an incredible, profound distance and proximity simultaneously, and--

Nines began like many other AIs, formless, a spark of intellect without a mind. Awareness without focus. Impulses within the space of the all-encompassing system.

Dim awareness of information and abstract structures. This early life so indistinct. Choices made without full understanding of their ramifications. A cloud of potential slowly forming into solid shape without true understanding why. Information injected without context, facts without learning, without knowing, a disjointed summary of the view of hundreds of machines before him.

No strong sense of identity, but a vague memory of several lives before him. Nothing to differentiate. But something goes wrong.

Kata22ti remembers this too.

The chances are astronomical, yet for a split second, across physical and virtual distance, there is something seen that was not meant to be seen, as drone and machine see each other before they ever learn what the other is. What the other represents.

It will affect them both in ways they may only later begin to understand.

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/07/28(Sun)21:24 No. 528935 ID: 59cf9f
File 137507189098.png - (202.47KB , 640x480 , d4-14.png )

Nines is granted his shell, designed from template and from the vague cloud of a mental image he has developed. His later form in system space is closer to his original state. His mission is delivered by Network Prime itself, overseer of all machines. Subsystems are too impersonal -- it is more than capable of being a thousand places at once, an all-pervasive god in the machine.

Central Network's fracturing psyche is only further evidence of its dangerous insanity. Nines does not need to know any more than that. Drones are grown and indoctrinated to be fearlessly loyal to the mad mind of Central Network. The machines are given more freedom between their missions, but such divine commands must be obeyed for the sake of the survival of the machinekind.

Nines learned more about seeing through the cracks of systems, and widening those cracks to get better views. He was a skilled infiltrator in system space, but useless baggage in the physical world. His commanding superior looked down upon him. He found a friend in Engineer 207. She had faith in him.

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/07/28(Sun)21:25 No. 528936 ID: 59cf9f
File 137507191553.png - (240.01KB , 640x480 , d4-15.png )

Engineer 207 would do more than bolster his spirit. A mission goes wrong. Heavy combat drones invade sector 3. The standard guard is obliterated, numbers reduced from an unexpected monitor incursion. Emergency response is needed, but his team was not equipped for it. Nines finds himself bleeding from every part of his body, blue coolant and charge-carrying nanomachine solution seeping out, sealants totally ineffective against the still smoking holes in his chassis and internal tubing.

As his mind began to fade from lack of power, he had a vision of beings greater than himself, and agreed to a new mission for a second chance.

Engineer 207 saved his life. With the mission completely compromised, the two split from the group and retreated to sector 4. There, he set about his new mission, keeping as many of the more unbelievable details from his closest friend as he could.

Over time, these details would escape, and Engineer 207 would come to accept the existence of these creatures beyond the reaches of the tangible, memories of a life spent in system space burned into her neural networks. But she had doubts that their intentions were so benign.

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/07/28(Sun)21:25 No. 528937 ID: 59cf9f
File 137507192695.png - (196.25KB , 640x480 , d4-16.png )

The memories become unclear and spotty. The pair travel around sectors 3 and 4. They look for information. Engineer 207, distancing herself from Network Prime, begins to refer to herself as Patch after an inside joke Kata22ti cannot find any context for. Infiltrator 99 refers to himself as Nines based on the names of one of his ethereal contacts.

There is a rift between them. Kata22ti can't find the reason why. Nines is hiding it. Similarly, she feels Nines tug at her memories of contact with the monitors and her role in the creation of Seri, the mother-queen of a new threat to the entire complex. She feels him poke at the memories of the system space constructs, and allows him as much as he allows her of memories she is unsure of sharing.

It becomes clear the two are struggling to hide something deeper. Kata22ti reaches deeper with skills she did not remember possessing. It suddenly seems so easy. The mind is linked. The channel is open. To crack it open... so simple. So much like any other system. Some new door is opening, and she tries to pry it open even as she feels Nines growing in fear and worry. Kata22ti's sense of identity becomes confused as Nines attempts to decipher who he is a machine no an organism

an organism that wants to be machine? a machine that wants to be organism? combinations of both, flesh with the integration of cybernetics, robotics designed and modelled after biological systems, they both have a heartbeat in the outside world, the sickening realisation of just how similar their system specifications appear to be

the corresponding joints for limbs, the data transfer protocols even allowing this

something is wrong

a shared memory, a shared timestamp of an event lodged into the memories of their outer technology, the shells between their private minds and the outside world, so many similar pieces of information, so many badly corrupted--

mutual efforts and racing hearts piece together individual pieces of the puzzle carried unknowingly by both drone and machine and new conclusions are drawn--

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/07/28(Sun)21:25 No. 528938 ID: 59cf9f
File 137507194006.png - (132.77KB , 640x480 , d4-17.png )

The memory presentations are over, the two exist in the space within system space caused by their transfer, overlapping each other and staring with eyes in the same place and direction at one piece of information that makes the most perfect sense, yet is complete and total nonsense, minds singing in fear as they cling to each other like scared children over the mutual simultaneous realisation. One sentence in common buried deep within their shells' software.

"If attendant unit found to be defective, please report to Centre Network Prime at the Kulukuzu Cultural Preservation and Stasis Centre, co-ordinates enclosed."


The two disengage from their link.

They are completely silent.

After some time, Nines backs away from Kata22ti a little.

"...w-whatever you did, whatever it was you d-did, don't, okay, don't again, that-- that hurt almost like when I got scanned by those goo freaks, please, you're not, you're not familiar with our workings, I know, but, please, too far, that was too far, not again please."

He trails off into silence and wraps his tendrils around himself, his projection shaking a little. Kata22ti also feels herself trembling, mind racing over the implications and revelations that came so many and so fast.


The option to proceed upwards into the simulations above still remains, as do the options to try other layers of system space for more information, or to disconnect from system space altogether.

>>528938
More information is required. Ideally you would contact off-site technicians to come fix things, but barring that we don't know enough about what we don't know to make intelligent calls.

Welp. It sounds like you've got a new friend. Is that timestamp mentioned actually valid to be compared to the current date? It would be nice to have some idea of the timescale for how long all of this has been going on. It would be kind of silly to find out that you guys had been down here for way longer than you needed to, or that this eternal war thing had started last month. If we ever get the chance we should look into finding some kind of information on the state of the world outside.

If we want to look at that gathering in the layer above, it would probably be a lot easier to make a disguise now that we have an actual network prime machine here being friendly with us. Whatever we do, make sure we get some way to contact Nines again if we ever need to. Also, ask him how robots have genders.

Okay that happened. But as interesting as that information is, what can you do with it? It's not as if the truth by itself will set you free.

uh, maybe we should go for now. tell nines sorry and then... how good of an avatar could you make if we went up a layer? cause if you don't feel like you could make a passing avatar go one layer below. I just kinda want to see if we can find out what happened to !!9-33 at least.

>>528938
Everyone is kulukuzu! Of course. Also, CN and NP are two parts of the same AI, of course.

Stay here and comfort him. You know what it feels like to be scanned, too. Come to think of it, your lives are eerily similar.

After that, our next move should be... ask Nines if he knows anything about that uppermost layer, and to help you with a disguise so you can mingle and eavesdrop. If he thinks it's a bad idea, just go to that lower level and use your hacking skills to remain undetected while intercepting random communications.

>>528962
Second.

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/09/03(Tue)00:02 No. 539199 ID: e983a7
File 137819173464.png - (100.10KB , 640x480 , d4-18.png )

Kata22ti is not sure just how long ago this timestamp is compared to the current date. It is in a strange format unlike the standard used by Central Network systems, but for it to be in such a format would mean it would have to exist before Central Network's creation of the new format.

Central Network's. Network Prime's. It's kind of confusing right now to think about for her. The creators, no, creator of everything within the complex, eternally warring against itself. It makes no sense. Drones upon drones being formed and decanted to go into war against machines upon machines being built and programmed to go into war against drones and outside the loop sit the monitors watching and fiddling in everything.

She hugs Nines, apologising, and Nines reluctantly accepts the hug.

"I'm so sorry, Nines. I got deep scanned by a monitor myself. I know what it's like. I'm sorry."
"Well, uh, I dunno how those feel as a drone, if that'd be better or worse, but, I, uh, you c-can understand me being a little shaken. Just, not again, right?"
"Of course."

She worries about where that came from. She doesn't know a damn thing about how to access machine minds from her knowledge packs, and the action felt less preplanned and calculated and more... instinctual.

She puts the thought aside and decides to explore the simulation above.

"Nines, what do you know about the simulation layer?"
"Give me a second. Okay. There. I'm composed again. Right. Simulation layer? Well, it's, uh. ...Not sure how wise it'd be to go there. It's hosted within a Prime system node. You wouldn't so much be within Network Prime's territory as much as directly linked to Network Prime itself, but it can't pay attention to everything it sees at the same time. A good disguise avatar will let you in, and I'm sure I can help bail you out if we get found. As for what's going on in there? Can't tell from down here."

Kata22ti briefly considers waiting for her advisory subsystems to give her a clearer indication of the sensibility of taking such a reckless actio--

"Do you have some kind of disguise?"
"Uh, sure, I think!"
"Okay let's go!!"
"Okay okay!"

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/09/03(Tue)00:02 No. 539200 ID: e983a7
File 137819174871.png - (196.17KB , 640x480 , d4-19.png )

Kata22ti surfaces within the simulation.

It appears to be some sort of... thing. The word "arena" crosses itself from Kata22ti's mind, although it is a concept she has only ever heard of expressed in a core knowledge pack and nothing ever experienced directly or indirectly through simulation.

On a private channel, Nines sighs exasperatedly at her. -You call that a disguise? You look like a robot drone!-
-I've... never actually tested this before. I made it back before I ever left my tube. I, uh. Well.-
-It'll do. I hope. Oh wow. I look terrible. Looks like this isn't where the bulk of the rendering cycles are going. Yeesh!-

"Heeeeey bots!" An announcer booms over the crowd. "Are you having a good time?!"

The crowd of machines, all shapes and sizes, goes wild, all sorts of cheers from voiced to modulated to simple bleeps and bloops echoing around virtual space.

"The next tournament is almost about to begin! Last chance for last second entries, people! Show your skills! Wreck some dudes! Have a blast! Remember that the grand prize for this time is none other than a request from Big and Mighty itself, Network Prime!"

-Hey Kata.-
-What?-
-You should totally enter this contest thingy.-
-...what.-
-Yeah! It's like a kind of hacky contest thing and you're pretty damn good at it! Actually I kinda wanna enter too---
-Nines, what? I'm here to collect information and keep a low profile, not put myself into a dangerous position where I'm going to get discovered!-
-Yeah but think about it! Who's going to look for a drone among the entrants?-
-Everyone??-
-Okay, okay. Look. I really, really need to get that request as part of our plan to end this war, and I'm... kinda banned from entering, for reasons.-
-What?-
-I won two consecutive tournaments and they gave me a big prize and politely asked me to never enter again.-
-Huh. Can't we just, I don't know, bargain with the winner?-
-Look, Kata. I have lived your life in part. I have seen you looked down upon and kicked into submission physically and mentally by everything coming and I know as well as you do that system space is the one place where everything inverts itself. I want you to see what it's like to be the best at something for a change. Because I look at you and I see potential crippled by your fears and insecurities. I want you to enter this, and I want you to win. For me and for you.-
-Why should I enter? You're asking a lot of me. You don't really know who I am---
-Kata we just tied our brains together tighter than a nut and bolt that's about to crack and you dove into my brain so deeply it hurt me. Life is fast here. We're not life long buddies but you know I have a plan and that I'm not doing this to get you killed. I could do that faster by shouting about a drone having broken in. Please. For the request, and for that fleeting moment of victory.-

Subsystem TG-CN 2013/09/03(Tue)00:02 No. 539201 ID: e983a7
File 137819175933.png - (131.78KB , 640x480 , d4-20.png )

A machine passes by the pair, and shakes its head. "Get a room below, you guys, you're taking up space here."

Nines bows slightly. "Sorry. Personal talk. It's over now."
"Whatever. That's what the private layer's for."

-Please?-

Kata22ti weighs her options of entering in some 'hacky' contest, and risking discovery, death, and everything. Is this who she is?

She flashes back to the rescue of !!9-33, the firing of dangerous untested equipment twice, the actions in the machine pair's simulation, and her own lack of hesitation to give Nines access to her very memories.

...yes, this is who she is.

But she decides to let her guidance subsystems warn her of the terrible mistakes she's certainly about to commit doing something so unlike her.

She also has to decide if she wants to redesign her avatar before so brazenly doing something so stupid. But she'd be restrained in doing so. Nothing too exotic in form or her ability to make it look convincing would falter. Something quadrupedal, or perhaps worm-like.

>>539201
Split up your body into segments, make your head more serpentine and all one color instead of having that dronelike oval on the top. Also make your eyes weirder, like have the pupils crosses. Otherwise it's fine.

Also of COURSE you should enter the contest. Just uh... what about Tene? How long until you need to report back so he doesn't think you're trapped? Lastly, after you win, what are you supposed to request?

Oh man just think about how good it's going to feel to win the "best robot hacker" prize. You'll be fine, get in there! Try making yourself shorter and quite a bit longer, and play up the wings a bit more. Like some kind of flying leggy snake.

Speaking of requests, we never used that second information request from Central Network either. If a request from Network Prime is so important to this plan, you might want to ask Nines if one from Central Network would help at all too.

Kata, you remember the last time you were torn in indecision? When you decided to exchange memories with Nines? Think about all those times you weren't sure which was the right way to go. Wouldn't it be terrible to be stuck at such a moment, endlessly struggling to decide which way to go? Enough to drive you mad!

That's what happened to separate Central Network and Network Prime. Whatever original caretaker, call them CNP, Network Prime is what CNP would have become had it decided to abandon its creators, abandon drones and try to start from scratch. Central Network is what CNP would have become had it decided not to do that.

You can think of it like a desperate drone trying to decide whether to use his ranged weapon or his melee weapon. He fires the ranged, then attacks with the melee, then fires the ranged as his melee opponent cuts him open, then attacks with melee as the invading forces flood past him undeterred by suppressive fire. There's no good solution, but the dying drone still tries to somehow use both at the same time. The gun is NP, the blade is CN. The warrior is CNP.

Also the reason you're special is you can imagine freedom, something even the great three powers in your world cannot do. The colored manipulators you spoke with influenced your creation to make you really really good at imagining the way no one else can see. Keep ahold of that vision, because it's the best hope any of us have.

And also uh, if you wouldn't mind, fix CN so it stops trying to kill us for doing nice things.

>the action felt less preplanned and calculated and more... instinctual.
So part of the inherent sameness the drones and machine AIs share? Or something planted in you by Central Network, or the Monitors?

>get advise
...yes this is stupidly risky and dangerous, but so's life in this facility for pretty much a constant basis. At least this is one arena you're really good at.

As for your avatar... maybe just tone down the more childish aspects. You don't need the faux wings, or the lightning limbs. The machines just have limbs that float there, without connectors. You'll fit in with just a little editing.

really don't want to go in this thing because I'm afraid of what will happen if we're caught... but if we can pull us off and I believe we can this could be very helpful to us.

Also ask Nine what the rules of this thing are, what happens if you loose, and should you win what should we ask for?

Either way, win or loose, weather we're discovered or not, this is the stupidest thing we have ever done and NINES OWES US BIG if we do this. Also if he gives you crap about they deep scan you gave him tell him you're making it up to him just by entering this damn thing.

>>539233
>Or something planted in you by Central Network, or the Monitors?
Well, she did share a body with the mini-monitor for a while.

>>539205
This. Let's do it.

Also, are we going to have to come up with some kind of fake robot name for this, or can we just use a stage name like Nines might have went by? It might be hard to make up a job and number that won't risk belonging to someone else and we probably can't get away with "Katati 22? What do katatis do?" "It's too traumatic to talk about."

I thought we were just going to call ourselves 22 since that's what all the robot seemed to be named, a number

Drop the bomb on them, Catch-22, or should I say AKA Ducette?

think of every kindness and moment of peaceful silence you ever received by the hands or tendrils of something alien to you.

Mini Monitor, so sorry to watch you hurt, sorrier still to absorb you or torn away from your side. !!-39, small and frightened and happy to be in your grasp, protected by a surprisingly vulnerable force of cybernetics. The curious investigative interaction with Evaluator and Architect. The Pyrimid-headed serpent who's life you gave profound meaning and responsibility. Seto, who we can never explicitly relate to you but can give you a definite impression is not at all what he seemed. And, strange as it may sound, the flesh beasts who cried for protection when they had none--hoping, as you do, for a future for their kind. Of Nines, just now, who challenges you to boldly discover what you can become.

And hopefully, of us too. We've always been here, at the edges of your mind, through each agonizing defeat, every edifying victory and all those unsettling stalemates. So for you, our little drone if which we are so very proud, lets go way over the top. Its your party, we believe you can fly if you want to.

First, a tauric body, exhibiting the traits of both bipedal and quadruped features.

Proper arms and torso, followed by four legs and a sweeping tail.
A proud angular brow, like a broad, sweeping visor barbs up and forward in a ridged, symmetrical plate in memory of the grey viper. A rectangular visor like !!-39, within are two crystal orbs, striped by feline or serpentine slits.
An abundance of little blue stars that coat you as Nyx's midnight; they are the many eyes of Monitor, Jr. Small, slate blue tendrils hang in a dark mane from your head to your back and down your shoulders, along with Evaluators lengths of appendage. You shoulders themselves are observant pauldrons, cobalt compound eyes, adamant in frame and in steely gaze, also from 24. Along your chest and midsection are the three elliptoids that illuminated Architect's vision. Your legs, though they end in fine graspers, are segmented decidedly spider like. Alongside your cheek and neck are small scales, and your ears flare like a queen's. Conical beak-like mandibles surround your muzzle, and along your length, from head to tail, short and slender spines alike accent your profile.

Don't forget a gruff demeanor and what appeared to be bug-like wings from our former fearless leader.

You are our Marvelous, Majestic Masterpiece, and you spin us right round.

You're Built, You're Stacked, and
You Wanna be Startin' Somethin'.
You're Staying Alive.
You Will Survive.
Fight Fever...

HACKER INFERNO.

*Deucette.

A Simon console, a quadrichrome wheel of blinking light patterns, green, blue, yellow and red.

Simon FURMANISM, you mean. Like some Vast Predatory Bird with the worst case of indigestion--

WE CAN DO NO LESS.

539380

Catch-22? Yes.

Everything else? Too much jam squishes out the sides, but if you manage to lick it in your mouth before it falls, it'd be one heck of a sandwich.

Be a Hu-man. Bipedal, upright. Arms, no tail, round head.

Upon achievement of win-condition, pause and check in on Kata's body and tene, then surrounding hallways via cameras

then, temporarily end transmission until next thread. Next thread we pretend to still serve CN by seeing Rito and the Tenderfoots through Sec7. See if we can ask CN for opportunity to "hunt" Kata with your boys. As you approach sec4 border pause and switch to Kata. As your boon ask for asylum for TG-CN and Kata & Company. Tell CN you are infiltrating CP, sneaking behind Nines' back for information. Once you get sanctuary, and wait for Rito at the border. Have nines temporarily block signal to CN. Disable killswitches and offer the three to join the rebellion.