Dreamer: Just an idea a buddy helped me make. Let me know what you think!
Primus: Why am I here?
Dreamer: Because I worship you and am your stalker.
Primus: ...
Dreamer: ENJOY FOLKS I HAVE STAL- WORK TO DO!
Primus: Frag me.
Key-
"Singing, or AI speaking."
"Radio."
"Spanish." (Translation.)
"Normal."
Message.
Thoughts.
Sound effects.
"I came, I saw, tore down these walls
Block one way, I'll find another
You know you'll always be discovered
If it's me, you choose, I can't lose
I'm in love with you, if you love me too, yeah"
I sung as I danced around my room, the opening to Army of Two by Olly Murs playing through the TV as it displayed YouTube on my Xbox360. I'd been trying to figure out what to do with myself after finishing watching Season 8 episodes 'Upon Further Review' and 'Recovering One' from Red vs Blue. Again.
If there were two three things I was addicted to it was Transformers, Halo and Red vs Blue. Depending on my mood, those three were in random order. The only reason I hadn't gone to watch Season 13 episodes 'The End is Near' and 'The End' was because my sister didn't need to come in to see me crying and arguing with the TV. I swore she just sat out there and waited for me to do something like that.
Noel seemed to have some other form of entity on her side that warned her. If I knew for a fact there was no such thing as ghosts, I'd be terrified that Granny was making this happen in spite of me.
The song continued to play as I thought on what was happening around me. I was nearly done school and the world could be at my finger tips. I still had to find a job and figure out what I was gonna do about my car situation. My old junker had broken down and I was stuck taking my mums jeep every time I needed to go somewhere, though that was mostly to go find my dad and help him.
My options for the future were still very much open, and I had yet to figure out what I wanted to do with myself. My uncle had offered me a job as a part time ranch hand and I was still debating on accepting. The perk was getting to drive all the machinery.
The reason I hadn't flat out said I'd take the job was because I wanted something more. Call me unoriginal but an adventure sounded damn fun from my point of view.
"HARLEY!" Blown from my thoughts and sent stumbling over a pile of clothes I'd shoved into the corner, I looked like a loon swinging my arms around trying to regain my balance. There was only one thought running through my head as my face fell towards the door knob.
That's gonna fragging hurt later.
Floating. I will describe it as just that. Nothing else. You feel like you are underwater and letting the calm water hold you up.
I was never the kid who would either sink or float. I didn't stay above the water nor did I sink like a rock to the bottom, instead, I'd sink a few feet and just hang there like there was no gravity on my body. It used to drive me nuts.
Now, it was... I don't know how to describe it.
I was floating and that's all I realized. There was no light. No darkness. No dreams.
There was me and then there was the floating.
Hours, days, months, years, hell it could have been seconds for how long I stayed like that. Undisturbed by the outside world as I just floated. I couldn't tell you how long I was like that. I was unsure myself.
The feeling of just floating out of sight and out of mind still lingers even now.
But like all good things, it had to end.
I could have done without the pain afterwards though. That hurt like a bitch.
I woke up feeling like I'd been stepped on by Megatron, used as a chew toy, then given to Sarge to put holes into me with a shotgun. If you haven't noticed; I hurt like fuck.
My very core felt like something was missing. Several things actually.
I tried to open my eyes but it did nothing. I was suspended, attached to nothing and yet at the same time everything. I couldn't see anything and my first conclusion was that I was blind. That lead to questions.
Why was I blind?
How had it happened?
When had it happened?
Where was I?
Where was my family?
What would I do now?
Simple questions with complicated answers. Answers that gave me a processorache.
"Alpha," The silence was destroyed by a familiar voice. "Alpha log on."
I knew that voice. Where had I heard that voice?
"Alpha, the Director wishes to speak with you." I damn well knew those voices.
"Protocol dictates you can not ignore him. He has given you an order Alpha."
"Delta?" I hadn't meant to speak. I hadn't meant for the damn lights to turn on and become surrounded by screen after screen of data and video feeds. I was in a giant fucking sphere of data, floating like there was no gravity.
"Alpha? What is wrong? Shall I notify the Direc-"
"No." Things were falling into place as my 'eyes' roamed from video feed. Time seemed to slow down as I let shock run though me.
Fragging mutated toasters of a fucking mother board. I thought in horror. Suddenly a green armoured figure appeared beside me that I knew all to well.
"Alpha wh- Alpha?" Delta had paused, looking at the video feeds around me while I just let fake gravity take hold and crumpled to the floor on my knees, or should I say Alpha's knees.
All around us, video feeds started popping up from every camera aboard the Mother of Invention. I watched York flirt with Carolina. Maine, Washington and Wyoming were playing poker. North and South were arguing like, well, siblings. CT was disusing something with Florida. The counselor was in his office working on updating the Freelancer files and the Director...
The Director was sitting in his quarters looking like a worn out man while he looked at the console in front of him.
"You're not the Alpha." It was a statement that sent me reeling. I sounded like him. I probably looked like him. In all ways but mind, I was Alpha aka one Leonard Church.
"No." I said stiffly as I just looked around in fear. I was trapped and I was an AI.
Ain't that a bitch. I thought before looking at the AI who seemed to be analyzing me.
"Who are you then?" Delta finally asked, his weapon disappearing. I frowned. I'd never seen Delta without his weapon, not that I could really recall much of the Freelancer section of Red vs Blue. It sort of depressed me when I thought about what had happened to them. I could in no way relate to how painful any of that could have felt for Carolina.
"Harley." I said uneasily, looking up at the green AI in front of me. "My name is Harley."
My thoughts traveled to my family. My mother, Noel, even Toothless, our mean looking Russian Blue who was a big softy.
Suddenly, the video feeds ceased and were replaced by new images. Images of mum and Noel swimming while I sat on the docks. Toothless sucking up after being caught sleeping in the sink. Even me, looking at myself in the mirror as I posed like a nerd. That one quickly disappeared out of embarrassment.
"What are you doing here?" Delta asked as a holographic hand appeared before me. I looked up at Delta as he held his hand out for me to take, and I took it, though I was very hesitantly. With a squawk of surprise I was pulled to my feet. I hadn't expected that. I felt like there was solid ground under me and had nearly stumbled into Delta when he pulled. I think I liked it better when I was floating.
"I don't know." I said, looking back up at the images that seemed to circle us slowly now. "I woke up here."
Delta was quiet as we both digested my words. Suddenly a much larger screen popped up. A video feed of my room. Of my perspective as I danced (How embarrassing) around my room listening to Army of Two right before my mum called my name. I tripped, and you could see the door handle approaching. I heard my own shout through the video feed as I hit the door knob with my forehead then not a second later someone came barging in, smashing the rest of the door into my head and everything turned black as my sister stood panicking in my doorway.
My first thought was I was dreaming all of this. I probably had a serious concussion thanks to that one. I don't know how I couldn't have one after that. I knew I was a tad bit obsessed with Red vs Blue, but this was the first time I'd ever dreamed about it.
"Harley, do you know where you are?" Delta asked me.
"No." Pause and I growled. "Yes. Mother of Invention, Charon-Class Light Frigate and mobile command center to Project Freelancer."
Now, I knew what the name and what the ship was for, the rest of that appeared out of no where. I scowled as more images of the ship started to appear.
I swear these images were reacting to my mind.
"Correct, we are both aboard the Mother of Invention." Dream Delta was approaching this like I was a child.
"It's not possible. I can't be Alpha." I growled. More images. My home. My school. My friends. My town. My adventures since I was a kid! All of it started to appear and over lap each other. "I am Harley Philips, age sixteen, born September 8th 1998, I have an older sister Noel and a cat named Toothless. I can't be the Alpha AI."
More and more images started appearing and started getting closer and closer.
"HARLEY!" The panic stopped as a hand came out of no where and smacked me over the head. I jumped back just as the images completely disappeared, nursing my now sore head. Question, how the hell does and AI get a sore head? Or a person in a dream for that matter.
"You have to stay focused. If you don't then there will be too much data for you to process and it will over run you're systems and destroy you." Delta ordered in a stern voice like an older brother telling his younger siblings that if they didn't behave they didn't get candy. Ironic really.
I took a deep breathe (or what dream me could) and slowed my breathing down until I was back down to a normal level of freaked out.
"Harley, you are the Alpha AI now." I whimpered at the thought. A female stuck as Church. Fucking lovely. "What you think is what you believe but you can't forget logic here."
"It can't be possible though." I whimpered.
"Think of a place and imagine yourself there Harley. It will help." I nodded before the first place I could think of popped up in my head. The black world and data sphere disappeared and Blood Gulch took its place. How fucking glorious. I need to get another hobby, seriously.
"This will be a problem. The Director is waiting for Alpha..." Delta turned towards me and I shuddered. I had a bad feeling about this. "It looks like we will have to improvise."
I thought only Carolina could say something like that and make someone feel horror. Apparently, her father's AI creations could do the same thing.
That lousy son of a bitch. I thought as I made myself appear on the projector in the Directors quarters and looked at the broken man in front of me. Epsilon wasn't kidding on how time seemed so different to an AI. What felt like twenty minutes of instructions on how I could do things and what not to do, Delta had given me the go ahead to talk with the Director. I had a feeling somewhere he'd seen spoilers for what was to come. I also think he saw Epsilon in the Capture Unit growling about the idiots on his team.
I was now having to play the role of Church.
"Yeah, what do you want?" I demanded. "I was checking the systems you know because someone has to do this fucking bull shit. And don't get me started on those faulty alarms that some asshole keeps setting off. Do you have any idea who-"
"That is enough Alpha." The Director said and mental me jumped back with an 'Eep!'. The Director was still scary.
"Don't panic Harley." Delta said to me thought the Director never heard him.
"I need you're help determining the next team for data retrieval on the oil platform. Bring up the schematics would you, please." It may have come up automatically to the Director, but for me, it took me a moment to find what he wanted.
Delta had figured out it was easier for me to visualize to myself then think it out just in my head, so he'd set it up so I could search for things easier and do tasks faster then if I was just stumbling around. AI time rules. I sent a message to Delta thanking him.
"Here it is." The oil platform was the next mission, South, North and Carolina's mission. Oh goody.
"The oil platform is heavily guarded with both standard and higher level Insurrectionists. These fuckers don't mess around." I snorted. I really, really hope I'm convincing enough. Dream or not, the Director is one scary ass mother fucker. "I'd say our best team would be the North and South with Carolina on stand by in case something goes wrong. Though, I doubt something will."
I stumbled a bit on that one.
"You calculate this as the best team?" I huffed, mentally screaming at myself as I crossed my arms over my chest. Stupid holographic armor.
"Of course I did. You would have too, just at a slower pace then I could." The Director didn't look pleased with my
"Arrogance is unbecoming Alpha." He warned and my head tilted down in shame. I think that is what normal people call the disappointed father voice.
"My apologies." I grumbled before bringing up the newest Intel on the platform.
Looking at me for a moment, I had to keep down a shiver as the Director nodded.
"Send a message to Agents Carolina, North Dakota, and South Dakota. They are to prepare immediately." I growled.
"You could use her name once and a while you know. She's not just some other agent, Director, she's you're daughter." With that I logged out of the projector and returned to my beautiful Blood Gulch where Delta was waiting.
"You were doing fine until the end." Delta reprimanded as I stood there. I was getting annoyed with having to look like Church all the time. I never thought I'd say it, but I missed my boobs! There was nothing to flaunt now! I'd have to cry over my missing female body once Delta was gone. I was not going to further embarrass myself thank you very much.
"And she's his daughter. If he pushes her away now, that will come back and bite him in the future. She's a person, not a damn machine." More screens appeared. As I typed in the same message to each of them.
Be ready for deployment in an hour.
"I understand that Harley, but humans don't just change in one day." Delta scolded.
I scowled before letting Church's sniper train onto a couple cans that appeared further down the canyon. Even if it was just a computer simulation I'd created, I made sure that the bullets were where the simulation intended instead of just making them hit their targets. I'd never really used a sniper rifle, sure a shotgun or normal 22 in real life, but not a sniper rifle. I used the scope and zoomed in on the target about fifty yards away.
I slowed my breathing down, closed my eyes for a second just to reopen them and line up the target.
BANG!
My ears were ringing at the volume of the sniper rifle going off right by my ear. Jerking a little in surprise I looked at Delta who coughed after making a choking noise, before back down the canyon.
"Son of a bitch!" I shouted as I growled at the still standing target.
"It seems even if you are not Alpha, you have his bad aim." I pouted before bringing the rifle back up for a second time.
"This time, this time for sure." I growled.
BANG!
"DAMMIT!"
BANG!
"NO GOOD TIN CAN!"
"I do not believe yelling will solve anything."
BANG!
"Stupid fragging tin cans of mutated toasters." I growled as I reloaded the weapon in my hands.
After another twenty minutes of firing, and a good couple hundred rounds toasted, Delta put a hand on my shoulder. My head hung in defeat.
"Here, let me try." He offered, his magnum raising to point at the tin can.
"If Alpha can't hit it it what-" BANG! Tink! "That's just showing off now. Asshole. Apparently you're the one that ended up with Alpha's ability to aim. Damn."
"I can show you how to hit your targets."
Pause and...
"Delta, I have a feeling you'll be showing me a lot on how to do things now." There was no way my dream self could be this shitty at aiming. Nor was there a way I could miss after so many rounds. Also, I had data doing as I wished. I was resigning myself to the idea this may not be just some dream.
"We are here if you need us. You may not be created as an AI or be the real Alpha, but my coding dictates you are still him. I believe the human term is, 'we're family'." I snorted at the irony. If that was the case, instead of being Delta's creator, I was his little sister. And that meant I had more brothers out of the other AI's and one kick ass sister named Tex...
Aw shit my brains fried just thinking about that.
"Thank you Delta."
"So if I do this like this... I can link these up without having to go through that loop hole?" I looked between the data screens in front of me. Sitting onto of Red Base, Delta was showing me further use of my new AI powers if you will. A lone screen with several video feeds was following every Freelancer around the ship through the security camera's. I'd even managed to find Agent Texas, back from a secret mission the Director had sent her on.
"Yes, this is a faster way for you to gain access to the ships navigation then to look through the files to do so." Delta nodded and I looked over at him with a smirk.
"You just gave a sixteen year old girl who's never flown before, the metaphorical wheel of a giant spaceship." I joked but Delta only shrugged.
"I had calculated such and have already taken necessary precautions."
"You just made more copies of yourself didn't you?" I said with a raised eyebrow.
"If you wish to see it that way, then yes, I have made more copies of myself." I rolled my eyes before something sparked in my mind.
"Delta, how do you use the PA systems and radios?" There was an evil grin that could probably match whatever Omega could make.
"Why?" Delta asked hesitantly.
"Oh, no reason."
"I'm a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world,
Life is plastic, it's Fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere,
Imagination, life is you're creation,
Come on Barbie, let's go party!"
"ALPHA TURN THAT RACKET OFF!"
"I can't figure out where this fucking musics coming from, give me an hour! Jesus! It's annoying the fuck out of me too!"
"I've always wanted to do this!" I cackled as I stood in Blood Gulch watching as Freelancers lost their shit over 'Barbie Girl' playing on repeat over the radio and PA systems.
"You will be in trouble if the Director finds out about this." Delta said as he watched Agent Maine stalking down the hallway with his hands over his ears and growling like a feral beast.
"Meh, live in the moment Delta, tomorrow is never a sure thing." I said sagely before grinning evilly as Wyoming continuously smashed his head against the wall trying to get the music out of his head. "But don't worry, I'll cut it out as soon as this one's over. I think they've suffered enough brain damage already."
"Thank god." I paused before looking at Delta who hadn't moved. Hm, maybe I'd just heard something form the Vid Screens. Shrugging I went back to watching the mayhem. So worth it if I got into trouble.
I am awesome!
Dreamer: AND DONE!
Primus: Thank the stars!
Dreamer: I hope you liked the first chapter of Substituting a Life! I know Delta isn't supposed to appear till later but I needed him so he's here early. I figured he'd be the best to sort out a panicked Harley. Maybe by the next chapter she'll have better aim. Also, a shout out to readers. Any pranks or suggestions are always welcome guys!
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Till Next Time Guys!
HOWLIN' MAD AND LOVIN' IT! ;3
PS. My other stories will be updates soon, promise! Just having trouble making the filler stuff!