One Pleasant Cycle

by Seankirk

Just one cycle in the life of Mainframe (Written Prior to airing of the Fourth Season).

One Pleasant Cycle

Author's Note (1/25/01): The purpose of this story is two pronged: first, it pacified my ever-vocal muse and second, it served as a marvelous stress reducer. Unfortunately, I was unable to give it the proper daily time it needed. In other words, due to time constraints, this story took me about six months to write. Obviously many things have happened within that time, viz. the announcement that two new Reboot movies will be on the way describing the events after the restart. In addition, the events after the restart have been marvelously told in previous Fan-fic (most notably those done by Mr. Dan Green. Bravos, Sir.)  Nevertheless, here is my attempt at the epic tale. If you have any comments, death threats, tirades, fits of verbal anger, words of pity, helpful advise or maybe even praise, feel free to e-mail me at Sean@voice.bloomu.edu. Thank you. ~ Seankirk  

Revision(4/7/02): I originally wrote this before the fourth season, and only reposted it here in order to motivate myself to begin writing again. This piece has undergone some minor editing as well as the addition of a small ending, but otherwise remains unchanged. In order to produce a certain effect, I will occasionally invent words and/or break grammatical rules, especially within a dialogue. These are not mistakes, merely my writing style.  Any and all  comments are appreciated. Thank you for your patience.  ~ Seankirk

Enzo Matrix zipped merrily towards the diner. It was an especially beautiful cycle and the young sprite had wasted the majority of it playing jetball. Hungry, he now returned to his sister's business to access a quick bite to eat. Frisket greeted him at the door with a sloppy lick to the face and accompanied the young sprite inside. Cecil huffed as they entered but didn't verbally object to the animal's presence. Dot and Bob smiled and waved from their places at the counter as Enzo walked past, but didn't break from their conversation. Enzo took a seat at the far end of the counter and waited for assistance. Phong rolled up wearing a white apron and hat, took the order and returned with a large energy-shake. As the young sprite sipped on his order, he glanced around the busy diner full of featureless binomes. AndrAIa sat in a booth across the way accompanied by a much older version of herself. They both waved but also continued their conversation. Enzo was about to join them when a familiar claxon rang and a voice announced the arrival of a game. He rushed over to a window and watched excitingly as the towering purple giant fell upon the city. However, it seemed darker somehow and before the young sprite could call to Bob, the game began to warp and twist in onto itself, slowly bending towards the diner. Enzo backed away from the window, but the game burst through and focused upon him. With tremendous pain, Enzo began filling with the game's energy, gradually becoming stronger, taller, and older, the pressure building inside of him until his right eye ruptured and exploded in a bright burst of light. Now too tall to stand comfortably in the diner, the sprite ran outside, only to be met by a devastated landscape. Holding his bloody eye socket, Enzo roared against the horrific vista …

…. And awoke to find himself sitting up in bed. A drop of sweat made the journey down his forehead only to become entangled in an eyebrow. The energy field of the bed was still rippling from Matrix's abrupt movement, and he watched it undulate while catching his breath. AndrAIa stirred beside him, but thankfully didn't wake. Matrix rubbed his eyes with the base of his palms and glanced over to the clock ~ 04:50.

"Alphanumeric" he grumbled under his breath so as to not wake his partner, "too early even for a breakfast at Al's." Matrix nevertheless quietly rose and changed into his sole pair of clothes. Out of habit, Matrix retrieved his gun from its resting place on the counter next to the bed only to realize the unconscious movement and put it back. This too felt unnatural however, and after a moment of hesitation, Matrix re-holstered the firearm. Even in a peaceful system such as Mainframe, anything could happen. Experience had made that perfectly clear.

Experience had also taught Matrix to trust his dreams and he pondered this recent one as he made his way outside. It was still dusk and Matrix gazed at the grayish sky. It was a perfect balance of light and darkness, enough luminance to navigate safely and yet dark enough to allow the citizens of Mainframe to enjoy their downtime. Later that cycle, it would be a perfect bright and cheery sky with the perfect amount of clouds to emphasize the pleasantness; Phong and the principle office would see to that. Despite himself, Matrix missed the bright swirls of red and orange the sky became during the viral war and the multitude of different skies which could be found in the games, especially what the games called a "storm". Darkness would swallow the sky and data would fall in broad sheets of droplets. A sprite could lose himself in the darkness and rain, escaping processing for a time. However, the game would inevitably end, as must all things, and Matrix would once again find himself in perfect weather.

With a sigh, the young guardian began his accustomed post-nightmare walk around the system in order to either reflect or forget his dream, depending upon his mood. Recently, he had been more inclined to attempt the latter.

***

Bob awoke to the smell of java. After a few nanos of ruminating how good that java would taste, the guardian remembered that he didn't own a java-maker. Upon opening his eyes, Bob was greeted with some unfamiliar surroundings to accompany the olfactory stimulation. After rolling out of bed, Bob quickly tapped the icon on his boxers and changed into his silver guardian uniform, lest he attempt to evade his captors half naked. To his surprise, outside of the room he found Dot in what appeared to be a kitchen nook attached to a small kitchenette. She had opted to wear her older tan outfit rather than the more utilitarian and much less comfortable command.com uniform. She was accessing something on a petite vid-screen at the table but glanced up as Bob approached.

"Good morning," she said between sips of java. "It's about time you began this cycle."

"What time is it?" Bob inquired, still not exactly sure where he was.

"Almost twenty-hundred. I didn't think a grown sprite needed so much downtime," she smirked. Bob poured himself a cup and joined her at the table.

"The older I get, the more downtime I seem to need. Is Enzo processing yet?"

"No, not yet," she said softly and glanced towards his room. "He was up awfully late last cycle, but the way he's been processing, I'm surprised he needs any shutdown at all. I'd forgotten how energetic he was… I mean is," she corrected.

"He's only zero-one. He'll slow down some after his first birthday, Matrix did," Bob observed before swallowing the bitter tasting brew before him. When he looked back up at her, Dot's gaze was still locked on Enzo's door. A tear escaped the quick jaws of her lashes and ran down the open freedom of her cheek. Bob's heart quickened, "What's wrong?"

"I wish you wouldn't call him that," Dot replied without breaking her gaze. "His name is Enzo." She caught the tear before it crossed the length of her cheek and wiped into oblivion with the tip of her finger. After Enzo's nullification, Dot had vowed never again to cry. The user's bane had taken the last of her family and had killed a good part of her in the process. That vow was broken when Enzo and Bob returned and since then she seemed to be making up for lost time.

"But with two Enzo's running around, it is kind of confusing," Bob said softly, not wanting to push the issue too hard. Dot gaze shot back to Bob briefly before returning to its vigil.

"He's changed so much since the war that I barely even know him. My own brother and I barely even recognize him. He doesn't need a new name as well."

Bob took another sip and changed the subject, "So… what news do you have about the restart?"

Dot looked at him intensely for a nano and than returned to her vid-window. "Everything seems to be processing normally," she began after wiping her eyes. "Unfortunately we've lost all improvements made after the backup was saved. This includes records, so for the next few cycles we need everyone to try to recall as much about the last couple of minutes as possible. Except for the survivors, everything and everyone are exactly as they were over two minutes ago. Other than that, everything is perfect." Dot removed her glasses and rubbed her already tired eyes. "Almost makes you wish you were deleted, no aging… no horrible memories."

"Don't say that," Bob exclaimed. "Don't ever say that. We had no idea that the user was going to back us up or even that it would be necessary. We might have been deleted forever. We may only have a version 1.0 Mainframe to work with, but with the knowledge we've accumulated over those minutes, we'll upgrade this place in no time, better than it ever was."

Dot nodded wearily and looked up. As she looked across the table, she realized how much she loved the guardian, and for now, that was enough. She smiled and remarked, "One good by-product of the restart is that it finally got you down here. I think this is the first time you've ever been downstairs in the apartment."

So that's where I am, Bob thought as he looked around the small apartment hidden beneath the diner. Thank the user I didn't ask. He took another sip and jokingly replied, "If memory serves, you never asked me down before."

Dot made her way over to Bob and perched herself on his lap. "Maybe if you would have said earlier, all those sweet things you told me last night, you would have been asked down sooner," she remarked as she absentmindedly played with his silvery hair. The two lovers kissed until a yawn emanated from the hallway.  Reluctantly, she stood and entered the kitchenette right before Enzo emerged from his room. Dot placed a glass of ping on the table.

"Well Good Morning Enzo," she called from the table. "Drink your juice and we can go upstairs for some breakfast."

Enzo seemed disinterested as he slowly meandered towards the table, yawning and rubbing his eyes along the way. Then he noticed Bob at the table.

"Wow, Bob!! What are you doing here? This is totally his-res! You never come down; you always stay in the diner to eat. This is sooo cool. You wanna see my room. I can't believe you're here! This is totally alphanumeric…" Enzo babbled as he jumped into a chair beside the guardian.

"Whoo," Bob interrupted. "Who pushed your turbo button? Just a nano ago it looked like you weren't going to make it to the table."

"Enzo only has boundless energy when he wants to," Dot stated. "You should see him crash when I ask him to do his schoolwork."

"Ah, Dot," Enzo pleaded. "Not in front of Bob."

Dot smiled at his embarrassment and repeated her earlier request, "Drink your juice Enzo."

Enzo looked disgustingly at the glass of ping in front of him and compared it to Bob's cup of java. At that moment, java became Enzo's new favorite beverage.

"Ah, Dot… Can't I have a cup of java like Bob?" Enzo pleaded.

"No we've been over this before. Java is not for compiling sprites. It will downgrade your systems. Drink your ping, it's good for you."

"I'd listen to your sister if I were you sport," Bob offered as he took another sip. "If anyone knows about the evils of the culinary world, it's Dot."

"Thanks," Dot replied sarcastically, but she couldn't complain. It got Enzo to drink his juice. Bob helped her clean up and the trio headed upstairs. The diner was full this morning, but Cecil seemed to be handling the rush eloquently, or at least as eloquent as Cecil could be. Most of the clientele were biome families with a few numerals mixed in the crowd for good measure. Bob and the Matrix siblings were the only sprites presently and Bob soon realized that he was considerably overdressed in his silver and gold uber-guardian uniform for such a relaxing cycle. With his original uniform downgraded by the web, Bob opted for the next best thing and with a tap of his icon, changed into a spare pair of guardian pants and an oversized festively colored Hawaiian shirt.  

"How do I look?" he presented as the group took a seat in an empty booth.

Dot suppressed a laugh and offered, "It's definitely you. And it looks at lot more comfortable than that other suit."

Cecil who had made his way over to the booth rolled the eyes on his screen and remarked in the haughtiest voice he could muster, "Zir pleaze. Dis eztablishment doez have a dress code."

"Ah come on Secil," Enzo retorted. "It's Bob. He can wear anything he likes. I think you look cool, Bob."

"Thanks, Enzo."

"Quite… and that's CECIL," the server returned before rolling off to take an order.

***

Matrix returned from his failed attempt to find a bar in Mainframe and headed towards the diner. Nothing was more conducive to forgetting ones woes that a mind-numbing I/O shot; or better yet three or four. Two binomes crossed his path as they swept up the remnants of the three-cycle long Restart bash. Mainframe was not renowned as a party system but the extravaganza which Dot and Phong organized put to shame all earlier celebrations, even his first birthday. As the bearded sprite approached the diner, Matrix's right eye automatically focused and enlarged the movement inside. To his astonishment, he was presented with an all too familiar scene. There was Dot and Bob who, except for the deplorable yet fun multicolored shirt, looked exactly as they did during his childhood. Frisket was guarding the door while Cecil busied himself with acting snooty to the customers. It was like looking into a jpg of the past. And for a split nano, Matrix felt as though he had truly come home. That the last ten minutes were just a horrible dream and that he was once again in the happiest time of his life. More than anything, he wanted to zip over and tackle Bob, have him spin his cap around, look up at Dot and see her eyes smile down upon him. The scene was warm and joyous, yet strangely uninviting. It took a little while, but Matrix finally recognized what was wrong with this perfect jpg; he was already in it. Or more precisely, his backup copy was in it. It sat there goofily between Bob and Dot, enjoying his attention, his love… his family. Matrix took out his aggressions on a neighboring office-building wall and was rewarded only with the reflection of his own grim continence in the window.

"What have I become?" the youth asked the reflection. When it didn't answer, Matrix turned and headed back towards his apartment.

***

AndrAIa was just finishing breakfast when Matrix entered.

"Morning lover. If I'd known you were going to be back, I would've waited. I think there's still some slow food left which you can re-heat." 

Matrix replied with a grumble and walked past her into the bedroom. "Ok," the game sprite said, mostly to herself. "Let's try that again." AndrAIa stood and followed the sulking giant into the room. Matrix had removed his gun and was now ridding his pockets of their contents. AndrAIa tried again.

"So, I see you took your gun along with you on your walk this morning. Afraid of a binome mugging?"

No answer.

"Anything interesting happen along the way?"

No answer.

"Well yes AndrAIa," the game sprite mocked in a false bass. "I was acting all grumpy and distant when nulls attacked me. I thought I was a goner, but luckily my gloom scared them away."

AndrAIa was rewarded with a chuckle and a smile. Matrix stopped and glanced over by the door where she was standing. "Do I really sound like that?"

"No, generally you sound a lot more annoyed," she replied as she made her way over to the young guardian. "What's wrong? You were so happy the last couple of cycles. Did something happen?" 

Matrix debated briefly about whether to tell her, but stuck instead with the comfort of denial. "No, nothing happened. I'm just tired I guess. Didn't get much downtime last night, that's all." 

AndrAIa wrapped her arms around the youth's neck and stared into his eyes for a moment, contemplating whether to push the issue. With a sigh, she relented and accepted his answer.

"Ok, but downtime can wait. We promised to meet Phong in a few milliseconds."

"Fine," Matrix sighed, removing the game sprite's arms from around his neck. "But first I'd better get a shower or the nulls will be attacking me on the streets."

AndrAIa waited until he had reached the bathroom door before asking, "Need any company?"

***

"So let me see if I understand correctly Suga', you are the surfboard?"

Ray Tracer had been asked this same question by everyone he had ever spent any serious time with, lovely lady and broody hulk alike. It was the former of the two, which generally caused him the most trouble. Nothing killed a romantic mood quicker than having to explain the surfboard, an all too common occurrence. Ray just hoped that Mouse was a lot more understanding then the vast majority of sprites he courted.

"Love, think of the board as an extra arm," Ray began, "part of me, yet separate; except the analogy would be a lot more accurate the other way around. The board holds my energy and code, which I access and use through this body. So we're both Ray Tracer, merely in different forms."

"But if anything happened ta ya'w body, the board could generate a new one," the hacker rebutted, still not convinced. "It sounds ta the Mouse like the board's the real Ray Tracer."

The surfer closed the distance between the two until he was extremely close to the hacker. "But which of the two would ya rather deal with?" he asked softly with eyebrow raised. Mouse answered him with a kiss before walking back to her ship.

"This has been fun and all, Suga', but Ship won't retrofit herself," she called back. "Are ya sure this artificial web shield's goin'ya protect us in the web?"

"Now, I'm no technical genius, but I do know my web. It's my personal domain ya might say and this stuff should do just fine, love," Ray remarked as he lifted a tile and held it up to the docking bay lights. The non-translucent substance completely blocked out the light. "Goina' be mighty tricky to see though when ya cover your windshield."

Without looking back, Mouse answered, "I'm in the process of fixing that. I'll get the little buggers transparent, ya' just watch. Now if ya'l an't busy, I could use your help with the wing." 

"Anything for ya' love." However, before the two could begin, the door opened and Phong entered.

"Good, I was hoping the two of you were still in here," the old sprite stated as he wheeled towards the pair. "I wanted to remind you that our meeting will start soon."

"Phong, surga'. Ya'll didn't need to come down here and tell us. You could'a called."

"Yes well," the system administrator began as he templed his fingers guiltily. "The Principal Office rarely houses guests, especially a pair with your unique talents. Seeing as these are special times, I thought it not at all unfitting that I might journey down to visit you. Since the restart, Mainframe has behaved unusually well and with the influx of help from the increased populous, I find I have much more leisure time. Perhaps you need assistance with your ship?"  

The hacker smiled warmly. "Sure," she lied. "I need the caliper sitting over there." Phong retrieved the devise and both he and Ray watched as Mouse removed a small sensor array from the left wing.  

***

Bob, Dot, Enzo and Frisket began their walk towards the Principal Office, Bob and Dot having changed into more professional dress. The group could have zip-boarded their way there, but the cycle seemed to cry out for walking. It was almost mid-cycle and the streets were busy with Mainframers seeking a place for lunch. The unusual traffic did not seem to bother the four sprites as they wondered towards the P.O., Dot and Bob walking serenely hand in hand behind the young sprite and his dog.

"I had forgotten how beautiful Mainframe could be," Dot remarked, breaking the silence which had snuck unnoticed into the group.

"Yes, everything looks so clean and fresh," Bob agreed while slowing his stride so as to put a little distance between the two pairs. "It's nice to be able to do this again," he stated, punctuating the remark with a kiss on her hand as he pulled her in closer and wrapped an arm around the command.com. They continued like this, a good distance away from Enzo and Frisket, alone in their own private system, despite the busy surroundings, concealed in plain view by the mid-cycle frenzy. This perfect moment slipped from the lovers' grasp as Enzo, noticing that the pair had lagged behind, waited impatiently for them to catch up.

"Hey, come on you two! Talk about slow clock speed. I know you two are old, but even Phong can mover faster than that."

"Hey, who are you calling old, Sprout?" Bob asked as the pair get closer. "I can still beat your bitmap at jetball."

"Sure Bob, whatever you say," Enzo replied as the two pairs merged back into one group. "So what is this meeting about anyway? Is it about this Daemon everyone has been talking about?"

"Don't worry about it," the Guardian assured as he patted the young sprite on the head. "Let us old sprites worry about Daemon. You just keep your eyes and ears on-line and you might learn something."

"Just don't start getting any ideas about fighting super-viruses just yet," Miss Matrix added.

Before the young sprite could protest, he was interrupted by a voice from behind.

"A meeting? And I wasn't invited? How rude."

The sprites recognized the chilling high voice even before turning around, but Enzo voiced the common thought anyway, "Whoo, it's Hexadecimal."

Hex walked gleefully towards them, an unnerving sense of power pulsating about her. "And here I am, all dressed up and with no place to go."

"An oversight on Phong's part, I'm sure. He is getting on in the minutes," Bob stated dryly, making a conscious effort to stand between Hex and the rest of his new family. Frisket stood to his left, a low growl emanating behind several rows of visibly sharp teeth.

"Oh naturally," Hexadecimal smirked, an eyebrow slightly raised (an action she had found extremely enjoyable). "I'm sure it was exactly as you say. I have been getting such a warm reception by everyone recently that I can't imagine any other reason." She stopped directly in front of Bob, her smile slowly sinking into a more serious expression. "I'm not hostile or dangerous you know. You don't have to regard me as a virus anymore. I'm properly registered and everything," she pointed to her icon perched perilously on a thin strap. She stepped up closer to the guardian and quietly asked, "Why must we be so hostile when we could be such… friends?" She emphasized this be running the back of her hand across the guardian's chest. Bob, unwavering was pulled back by Dot who took his position at point. This coy game had gone on long enough.

"Look Hexadecimal," she stated. "You tried to delete Mainframe more times than I care to access. The only reason I don't have you zipped, encrypted and uploaded into the web is because Bob vouches for your sanity… despite evidence to the contrary. Mainframe has a long memory and if you don't like feeling like an outsider, you had better leave."

"What Dot means to say is that Mainframers have a hard time seeing you as a sprite and not a virus. You need to change your image," Bob interjected. Hex, who had been listening emotionless, perked up at the Guardian's suggestion.

"A new image you say. What a delightful idea. See you all at the meeting" she said before vanishing into fragments of bright light.

"Wait," Dot called uselessly into the air. "You're not invited. Don't come, do you hear me? Don't come." Bob placed a reassuring hand onto her shoulder an stated, "We'd better get there before she does."

Enzo, who had been unusually quiet during the encounter, smiled. "Alphanumeric. This meeting may be fun after all."

***

The brightly lit conference room sat all prepared for the young sprites. Phong had checked and double-checked the equipment, seating arrangement, and agenda, more out of boredom than a desire for perfection. The young sprites would randomly enter, have light conversation, coco would be served and the meeting would commence. The vidscreens had been properly sorted and lay ready. He even requested that the all-marble room be polished multiple times for a maximum shine. Phong tapped his fingers lightly on the table as he waited. He knew the Principle Office was running at top efficiency. Mainframe, despite his numerous system checks, ran at optimal capacity, and there was only so much pong an old sprite could play. With a sigh, the old sprite was ready to check the system clock yet again when Mouse and Ray arrived. As Mouse entered the room, she immediately slipped backwards on the slick polished floor. Luckily, Tracer caught her before she landed and helped the hacker up.

"Whoa Honey," she smiled as she cautiously made her way to the table. "Are ya try'an to delete us at the door?"

"My apologies Mouse," Phong said as he rolled over to greet them. "I'll have to tell the maintenance drones not to wax so heavily. Care for some coco?"

"No thanks love," Mouse stated before she sat down.

"None for me either, I'm afraid," the surfer replied as he joined Mouse at the table. "Never cared for the drink myself; too sweet." Having chosen seats at random, the two didn't notice the small name tags reading Bob and Young Enzo respectfully. Phong was about to point out the error, but Matrix and AndrAIa interrupted him.

"Hey Phong," the young guardian said as he made his way cautiously across the slick floor. "Who greased the floor?" AndrAIa made it over with far less trouble.

"My apologizes Enzo, those crazy maintenance drones; what can you do? Er, would you like some coco?" the old sprite asked as he held up a cup towards them. Both of the sprites declined the offer as they sat down into Tracer's and Dot's seats on the other side of the table. Sighing, Phong replaced the cup and made his way over to the head of the table.

"So, how are you liking Mainframe, Ray?" AndrAIa asked from across the table.

"Quite lovely my dear," he answered. "Much of an improvement from what it looked like when I arrived."

"Yes," Phong added as he rolled, somewhat dejected, to the head of the table. "We are back to the glory days of Mainframe, if you will. And with no more viruses to worry about, we can focus all of our energy…"

"You forget," Matrix interrupted. "We still do have a virus, Hexadecimal."

"Ah yes. Thank you for reminding me. This is one of the important matters we all must speak on at this meeting. Her presence, if nothing else, is… troubling."

"I say we delete her now, before she can harm us in any way," the young guardian voiced, emphasizing his point by pounding his fist on the table. "You can't trust a virus, especially one that has attacked us in the past."

"I'm afraid I agree with ya' honey," Mouse added. "I've worked with viruses before and I've gotten bit in the bitmat for my trouble every time."

"But what about Bob?" AndrAIa asked. "He says she's benign, now that she's no longer insane."

"Quite true child. This is why we all must sit down and discuss our plan for the future," Phong concluded. "We must decide how we are to handle both Hexadecimal and Daemon, as well as the progress we all have made, and must continue to make, since the glorious restart."

This thought was accentuated by the sound of the door opening as Bob, Dot and Enzo made their way inside. Enzo immediately sprawled onto his back as he entered the room, giving Bob and Dot a non-verbal warning to be careful. Bob helped the young sprite up and the three made it to the remaining seats without further incident, brushing off the placeholders as they sat down.

"Slippery floor you have there, Phong," Bob observed. "Maintenance drones acting up again?"  

"Yes, my son," the old sprite lied. "Terrible the way they are always malfunctioning, would you like some coco?" The three sprites declined the offer much to Phong's chagrin. With a sigh, he topped off his own cup and returned to the table. Pleasantries where exchanged among the group, but the platitudes were cut short due to the serious nature of the business at hand.

"We need to discuss what we should do about Hexadecimal," Dot began. "Bob, Enzo and I met her on the way over here and she is becoming agitated at the natural level of mistrust Mainframers have concerning her. She did mention attending this meeting, so I had the Principle Office shields raised as soon as we got here… and it looks like we made it in time," she added as she glanced around the room.

Almost in response to this claim, the conference door opened and Hexadecimal casually walked in, seemingly unaffected by the lubricity of the floor. To the utter astonishment of those present, Hex had completely transformed. The leather black and scarlet outfit was gone, replaced by a morose blue turtleneck pullover and a pair of plain black slacks. Her simple black slip-on shoes matched her short socks and the gloves were gone to reveal slender scarlet wrists and hands. Even her fingernails had been reduced down to a conservative level. In this new guise, Hexadecimal made the rest of the group at the table look like roving web-gypsies. Planner in hand, the transformed virus pulled an extra chair from the side of the room and found an empty spot at the end of the table to sit. Once seated, she pulled out a pair of glasses with half lenses and ran her hand over her slick scarlet baldhead while she looked at her notes. Upon finishing, she glanced at the group over the tops of the half-lenses and stated, "Okay sprites. If we want to be ready for Daemon, this is what we have to do."

***

After several milliseconds of discussion, the group took a short break. It was obvious from the complexity of the plan Hex laid out that they would be here until early next cycle denting out the details. She had surprised them all with the rational insight she brought to the table concerning viruses. Despite the fact that she was still a virus herself, the comprehensiveness and the detail she presented was impressive, even to Dot. There were some obvious things that needed altered and refined, but the overall restructuring of Mainframe's defense grid was remarkably brilliant. That is, if she could be trusted. Hexadecimal stood alone by the refreshments, with a cup of coco, as the rest of the sprites talked on the other side of the room.

"Well, what do you think?" Dot began.

The group stood silently, each one hesitant to speak first. Bob took the initiative and remarked, "Well, everyone here knows my position. I performed the defragging process and I think her performance here has proven her rationality and good intentions. It's evident that she's trying hard to reject her viral past. We would be basic to forsake her valuable insight due to past troubles."   

Matrix was first to object, "How can you say that Bob? How many times has she tried to delete us or help Megabyte do the same? And now you want to implement her ideas in the fight against the most powerful virus we have ever encountered? Now that's basic."

"I'm afraid he's right hon," Mouse added. "How do we know that this performance, as ya say, isn't just that, a performance? My experience with Hex suggests that her insanity always was her stumblin' block. Now that she's sane, how do we know that she ain't planning on Trojan horsing us when we least expect it?"

"If Hex wanted to attack us, why doesn't she just use her powers right now?" Bob countered. "She's in the Principle Office; why doesn't she just destroy us and take over the system?"

Despite its intent, the question sent a visibly uneasy feeling throughout the group. The possibility was an unsettling one to say the least, and the fact that she hadn't deleted the system yet, didn't help to quash any fears. Enzo broke the silence.

"I think it would be mighty cool to have Hex on our side. She could nullify Daemon with her fireballs; pow, pow, bam!!" the boy exclaimed, playing out the imaginary battle with his gestures.

"What do you know? You're just a little sprite," Matrix grumbled. "We should delete her now! And if none of you are willing to do it, I will." The large sprite enhanced this threat by moving forward towards the virus. AndrAIa gently grabbed his shoulder in protest of his behavior as Bob placed himself in Matrix's path, arm raised.

"Stay frosty, Enzo," AndrAIa pleaded, as the Matrix shook her hand off.

"Easy, Enzo," Bob requested. "Let's process this before we do anything rash…"

"Out of my way Bob," the large guardian ordered, while unholstering his gun and bringing it on-line. Tracer took an unnoticed step back and pulled Mouse with him.

"Enzo! Put the gun down," Bob ordered, his eyes filled with disapproval. The young Enzo babbled something that no one heard, as Dot joined Bob.

"Come on Enzo," AndrAia pleaded. "Please, settle down."

"Put the gun down now!" Bob ordered.

"Enzo, stop this foolishness," Dot ordered.

"I'm not a little sprite, you basic dipswitch…" the young Enzo protested.

Matrix stepped back away from this plethora of verbal assaults, but he soon found himself surrounded by pleads. Matrix stood dumbfounded by this friendly resistance. His mind suggested compliance, but his experience suggested a great deal of pushing and deleting. This internal debate ended however when Phong grabbed the youth's right arm and pushed the gun's aim towards the floor.

"There will be no gun play in my Principle Office," Phong stated as the sprites began breathing again. "Now, perhaps a compromise can be found, yes?"

"Okay," Dot offered. "How about this; we allow Mouse and Phong the time to run a full system check on Hexadecimal's plan before we decide. If it's found that Hex's plan is legitimate, we'll partition our efforts and use Hexadecimal purely in a consultatory role. That way we can keep our security without missing any opportunities. Is everyone okay with that?"

This compromise was accepted only in that no one argued or countered the offer. All of the talk about viral devastation had left everyone emotionally exhausted, and no one wished to push the volatile situation any harder than necessary. There would always be time for an undo later, or at least they hoped. 

Hex, standing alone on the other side of the conference room was not blind to what had just transpired. Resistance to her new persona was expected. It was only logical that they would have some apprehensions, especially the grown Matrix boy. However, Hex couldn't help but feel hurt and dejected by the Manframers' general attitude towards her. And at the same time, she was empathic towards their feelings and happy to be free from the insanity that plagued her since coding. In fact, she could recognize traces of a myriad of different emotions, each blending together in differing amounts to form her current mood. This was all a novel sensation for the virus. Before, her emotions were polarized. She could only feel one emotion at a time, focused and all consuming in strength. There was no blending, merely one overpowering emotion after the next as she stumbled through life. It was maddening, to say the least, but worse, it was impossible to predict which emotion would get the upper hand next and dominate her psyche. With the defragging of her mask, all of that confusion was gone, but of course at a price.

Hex's ruminations were interrupted as the group of sprites made their way towards the refreshment table where she was standing, Phong leading the way.

"Hexadecimal," he began, somewhat hesitant. "We… that is to say, the group and I… we have decided to consider your plan, however…."

The speech was cut short by a vid-window which popped up besides the aged sprite, a binome on the other end.

"Sir," he said. "Long range sensors have detected a game."

Without a word, Matrix rushed out the door. Bob yelled after him to wait a nano, but the youth didn't respond.

"Where will it land," Dot asked over Phong's shoulder.

"C-prime, Ma'am."

"That's a commercial area," Mouse gasped.

"Evacuate the area," Phong barked into the vid-window.

"Already in progress, Sir," the binome replied. "We'll have the section clear by the time it lands."  

"Good, I'd better catch up to Matrix," Bob announced to the group, although mostly for Dot's benefit. After a slight pause, she placed a hand on the guardian's check and whispered, "You be careful, you hear? And take care of Enzo…"

The guardian nodded and returned the gesture before turning to leave. The young Enzo started to follow him.

"Alphanumeric, a game. This cycle will be fun after all," he proclaimed to no one in particular. 

"Oh no you don't. It'll be a pleasant day in the web before I let you go into another game," Dot insisted as she pulled the small sprite towards her.

"Ah but Dot…" Enzo argued. "Why can't I go?"

"You can go some other time," she lied. "I just don't want you taking any unnecessary risks."

"This coming from a sprite with a tattoo on her right shoulder," Hexadecimal commented with a smirk. Dot shot her a quick glance, but returned to the disconcerted face of her younger brother.

"No," she stated, and the issue closed there. Bob, who had stuck around long enough for this inevitable ultimatum, ran out after Matrix.

AndrAia joined Dot and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"It's only a game. One Matrix and Bob probably have played a thousand times before. They'll be ok."

Dot nodded in silent agreement while holding Enzo extra close to herself, but then added, "Once upon a time that was a certainty. Now, I can't be certain of anything."

***

Matrix zipped towards the game in silence despite Bob's close proximity. The bearded youth was in no mood for some basic game or Bob at the moment. The pair landed in plenty of time and waited in awkward silence as the purple cube descended. Matrix thought Bob was about to say something, but the game landed and interrupted the would-be remark. The sprite remembered when he enjoyed the cool feeling of the game as it washed over his body. But after a million games, the sensation had become hollow and depressing; as did so many other things.

The guardian pair found themselves standing in the middle of a racetrack. Cars began to appear as the game loaded, the user first among the group.

"Wonderful," Matrix spat in frustration. "This is exactly what I wanted to do today, race some basic user." His sarcasm was not lost on the older guardian, but Bob ignored the comment as he ran towards the track.  

"Better reboot," he called back to a stationary Matrix, "before the game finishes loading. Don't want to be caught on the sideline." Matrix remained motionless, but watched as the game continued loading. Bob rebooted into a silver car with gold trimmings, and looked for Matrix's car behind him. To his dismay, the youth remained on the grassy center.

"Matrix," Bob shouted. "What in the net are you waiting for? Reboot before a game sprite gets your space!" Bob reinforced this order with, "That's an order cadet!" when Matrix showed no response. The game finally loaded game sprites for the remaining cars and a faceless announcer barked, "Start your engines."

"What in the net does he think he's doing?" the uber-guardian mused as engines roared around him. "This is no time to be difficult."

A stranger to games might have marked how truly beautiful the game was, especially the endless sky. Not unlike Mainframe, it was a pleasant, sunny sky with just enough clouds as to provide a sense of cheeriness to the artificial environment. Enzo may have noticed this similarity back when he first entered the game as a young sprite. At that time, everything about games had been new and wondrous. The beauty was lost on the more experienced version of the sprite. To him, games had become an exercise in futility. No matter how thoroughly he deleted the user, it always came back for more. Expediency was now the game plan, along with anything that minimizes the user's "fun." As the starting lights began their descent into green, Matrix removed his firearm from its holster and proceeded slowly towards the track.

"If this basic son of a viral witch wants to play games, than let's play a game… my way. Gun, command line, full delete." The firearm hummed as it charged, while Matrix's eye rotated and locked onto the user's vehicle.

Bob waited in anticipation while the starting lights began their descent, his car surging beneath him. The instant the lights turned green, Bob slammed on the ignition while he watched the user's car ahead of him begin to peal away…. only to become fodder for an energy blast an instant later. The impact coupled with the explosion hurled the fiery wreckage of the user's car up and against the bleachers, causing the rest of the racers to either swerve or break. Bob did a little of both before he could stop safely to discover the energy burst's origin. To his speechless horror, he saw Matrix walking slowly towards the track, his gun straight out before him. The sky shuttered slightly as the game tried to make sense of what just happened.

"That's life number one," Matrix counted as he continued his stroll. 

The user's car rematerialized after a nano, but was met again with another blast. This time, the car actually spun in the air momentarily before crashing to the ground and bursting into flames. The sky shuttered again.

"Life number two."

The third time, the user's car made a good hundred yards before meeting again with deletion. This seemed to shake the entire game as the background blinked furiously for a few nanos before the game departed.

Game over was announced and Bob was left stunned and sitting on the ground only a few yards away from his protégé.

"Of all the inconceivably basic things…" he sputtered. "What in the net do you… How could you possibly have… You could of deleted the entire system!"

Matrix didn't immediately answer, so Bob continued as he walked towards him. "You don't go shooting up a game. Your reckless stunt could have crashed the entire game and nullified a third of Mainframe. What were you thinking? Don't you remember anything I taught you?" Bob yelled as he invaded the youth's personal space, coming within a step of a face-to-face confrontation. But before the guardian could finish his approach, Matrix grabbed Bob's uniform and slammed the ranking sprite up against a nearby building. Squeezed between the wall and Matrix's massive fists, Bob didn't flinch as the youth leaned in uncomfortably close.

"Don't you EVER question my gaming ability," Matrix spat. "I spent the last ten minutes of my life eating and breathing games. I may only be a version 01 cadet, but I know more about the bloody things than any guardian processing or deleted. I know exactly what a game can or can't take and if your guardian risk analysis can't stomach the way I play, you had better stay clear. I refuse to screw around and play some basic game while an user tries his best to nullify us." Matrix dropped the older guardian and stepped back, sighing as he declared, "I'm tired of following insane rules. I'm tired of playing games. I'm just … tired."

Having vented his frustration, the hulking youth turned and began to walk away. Bob would have none of that. Utilizing Glitch's code, the uber-guardian picked the retreating youth off the ground with a light yellowish beam of energy and, after turning Matrix around, held him suspended in the air for a few nanos before forcibly tossing the youth across the street and through a vid-window advertising cheap intra-system transport. Dazed, Matrix shook remnants of the ad off as he got up, only to be slammed into a local Java and Read-Me-File Café close by. Several of the patrons inside scattered as the elder guardian formed a localized file-lock, pinning the much stronger youth's midsection securely to the wall. Bob leaned in close.

"Now it's your turn to listen," the uber-guardian retorted. "You've done some really basic things in your time Enzo, but I never lost my temper or publicly reprimanded you. You were a small sprite then and bound to make mistakes. Because of this, I let a LOT slide. But you're no longer a little sprite, by any means, so listen up, because I'm only going to say this once. Games are basically enormous cubes of unstable energy. That's why they can contain limitless worlds, hold countless game sprites, and nullify entire sub-sections. The only thing holding that energy in place are the rules of the game. Every time you bend or break a rule, like you did just now, you put stress on the game. The larger the infraction and the more fundamental the rule, the larger the stress created. Place too much stress upon the logic of a game, and you get a game crash, which is known in guardian circles as a very very bad thing. If fully released, the amount of energy in a game could open a tear so large that the very firmware Mainframe is built upon could be irrevocably damaged. Not even the user could save us then. Don't let your personal problems endanger the rest of us; your guardian code should tell you that. I expected a lot more from you, Enzo."

Having given his speech, Bob released the lock and backed off, giving Matrix plenty of room to walk away. Matrix didn't.

"How dare you lecture me about games. How dare you talk about obeying one's code. Do you have any idea what I went through after you left?" the young guardian shot.

"Your suffering is no excuse to jeopardize all of Mainframe. You don't own the domain name on suffering," the uber-guardian shot back. 

"What did you suffer, a minute, maybe a little more? I was lost in the games for ten minutes. I was hurt, young and scared. I had let down the sprites I had sworn to protect and for a long time, I felt guilty for escaping deletion. Megabyte was too strong. The games were too strong. And you… you abandoned me to them…." Matrix hollered, his anger keeping the tears at bay.

At this revelation, Bob stepped back, relaxing his aggressive stance. "Enzo, I had no idea…" Bob stated, but Matrix, also unprepared for this verbal realization, turned on his heel and ran as fast as his massive legs could carry him. Bob debated whether to pursue the fleeing youth, but after noticing the number of binomes which had collected to watch the guardians fight, decided to head to the diner.

***

"Terror on the streets of Mainframe as local guardians engage in fantastic fisticuffs," Mike the TV announced through a vid-window. "Citizens stand in stupor as harsh words are exchanged by the system's protectors. Just ask this eye witness…"

"Uh,"

"See! Mayhem, havoc, pandemonium in the streets. Oh the horror! Oh the humanity! But what this reporter wants to know, is with our system's only protectors having a tiff, who will protect us from the super virus Daemon and her guardian hoards? Is there no hope? Are we all doomed to eternal deletion?!? Tune in at 7500 for the answers to these and other pressing questions as we continue our incessant coverage of When Guardians attack! But now, a word from our sponsor…."

Dot closed the vid-window and leaned against the edge of a booth, her arms crossed. After the meeting had broken up, she had returned to the diner out of a feeling of habit. Once upon a time, Bob, Enzo and she would always come to the diner to access a bite to eat and ruminate after defeating the user in the games. It was a time of certainties, despite the particular chaos of the cycle. Good always triumphed, evil always lost, a sprite was always your ally, a virus always your enemy, and above all, the inseparable trio always returned to Dot's Diner after a game. It was a small world to say the least, an innocent world where every sprite, numeral, binome or virus knew his or her place. After the deletion of her parents, she had worked hard to make it thus for her brother and herself. Then came the war with the web. She should have know the paradigm was slipping when she first noticed the absence of that all confident glint in Bob's eyes, but more pressing matters had monopolized her time. Drive off the web creatures, she thought, and then we can resume life as usual. Then it became drive back the virals and find Bob, and then we can resume life as usual. Then it became drive back the virals, find Bob, and unnullify Enzo, AndAia, and Frisket. Then it became recapture the Principle Office….. and yet she convinced herself that Eden had not slipped forever from her slender fingers, that it was still possible to recapture, through hard work and planning. After all, did not Enzo and Bob return, and was not Mainframe rebuilt and Megabyte defeated? Had she not been given exactly what she had hoped and wished for during all those horrific cycles? But it wasn't the same, despite the familiar surroundings. Not even the restart could wipe away the internal devastation. Hopefully young Enzo hadn't seen the report yet, although keeping him from the news would be next to impossible, and there was no telling how he would react. An inaudible sigh escaped the command.com as Bob entered the Diner. As he approached, Dot could see that his expression mirrored her own.

"You heard?" the guardian asked.

"Couldn't help it. It's on a system wide news alert."

"Great, that's all we need. I was hoping that it wouldn't leak out."

"You threw Enzo through a vid-ad. Didn't you think that would get noticed?" Dot rebutted, an eyebrow raised.

"Hey, Matrix's out of control. He almost crashed a game, and then afterwards he attacked me. He's become dangerous."

"So your solution was to fight him in the middle of C prime? Do you know how this looks? We need all the moral support we can bolster if we're going to beat Daemon, and the only two guardians of the system publicly beating each other doesn't help."

"Hey, if you want to yell at someone, yell at your brother. He's the psychopathic sprite trying to delete the system," Bob yelled in spite of himself. Caught off guard by his own outburst, he calmed down and apologized. "I'm sorry Dot, I didn't mean that. I'm just… frustrated. I knew Matrix walked through the web barefoot to rescue me, but I guess I didn't realize just how affected he was. He's changed much more than I originally recognized."

Dot gave the guardian a reassuring hug and they stood in each other's arms for a moment, not wishing to break contact. Dot eventually stepped back.

"I know, he's changed so much, I barely even recognize him, both externally and even more so internally. I used to be able to guesstimate what was processing in that head of his, now I couldn't even begin to imagine, and that frightens me. He seems like he's so full of hate and despair and I can't help him… I used to always be able to help him and now I can't even…." Dot said before breaking down into sobs, returning to the guardian's embrace. "Oh Bob, I've failed my own brother."

Bob held her tightly as she sobbed into his shoulder, reassuringly nuzzling her hair with his cheek. 

"No, no" he said softly, mostly to himself. "I'm the one who's let him down."

It's unclear how long the two sprites would have stood like that, had AndrAIa and young Enzo not entered. Dot turned away from the door, attempting to wipe away the physical evidence of the conversation, before masking her eyes with her glasses. Bob, keeping his back towards the door, used his body to shield the recovering Miss. Matrix. AndrAIa took a step inside, but upon seeing the morose figures, placed an arm across the door to prevent the entrance of Enzo.

"Hey," the young sprite cried in protest.

Turning, AndrAIa remarked, "Instead of the diner, how about we play that racing game you're always talking about? Wouldn't that be fun?"

Dot appreciating the gesture, nevertheless called out, "No, don't go. I can fix us all a late lunch."

With some apprehension, AndrAIa removed her arm allowing Enzo to rush in, searching for whatever was obviously being kept from him. Finding nothing, the disappointed young sprite asked, "Where is everyone? Where's Cecil?"

"I closed the diner and sent Cecil home," Dot answered. "He's had a rough couple of cycles with all the business and celebration. I figured he needed some downtime."

"Is he enjoying the zip board Mouse retrofitted for him?" the game sprite asked.

"Yes, I've never seen anyone so visibly fond of their mobility."

"Yes, yes. Good, good," Enzo stated as he jumped up on a seat by the counter. "What was that about uploading some lunch?"

Dot laughed and gave the young sprite's cap a twirl (an action which felt unusually good) as she walked around to the other side of the counter. After affixing an apron onto herself, she threw a second to Bob.

"I'll get the burgers," she told him. "You man the grill."

Surprised by his assumed role in this operation, he nevertheless put the apron on as he asked, "Don't you have machines to do this? You know, Dot's Diner – Fastest Food in all of Mainframe."

"Yes," she replied. "But slogan aside, it's not nearly as good or as healthy as food processed the slow old fashioned way."

"Why Dot, what would Al say if he heard that?" AndrAIa asked jokingly.

"He'd probably want a higher percentage of our partnership," returned Dot as she pulled a series of ingredients from various places and placed them onto the counter. "Now where did Cecil put the SQL sauce?

Bob booted the grill, allowing the raw energy to surge across the surface. Cooking with raw energy always seemed to awaken the primal part of one's code, despite the modernization of the source. This feeling was not lost on Bob who, armed with a specula, stood ready to cook the wild beast, or in this case, burger patties. After dumping an assortment of liquids onto the patties, Dot handed them over to Bob.

"What are your burger preferences, folks?" Bob asked between crackling energy flares fed by the overrun of juices. "You have three choices: raw, medium, or burnt."  

"Those are some great choices, but I think we all want medium well done Bob," Dot said as she playfully jabbed the cook in the shoulder for his lame joke.

"Ah, actually, I'll take rare, if you don't mind," AndrAIa chimed in.

She received a few raised eyebrows from the group for her wild taste in burgers, but Bob replied, "Ok, one live one for AndrAIa. Do you still want to play it safe Miss Matrix and cook the life out of these burgers, or do you feel sporting?"

"Give me a raw one too," declared Enzo.

"Don't you dare. We'll both have our burgers fully processed before we eat them, thank you very much," Dot resolved as she joined her brother at the counter. Before Enzo could protest her decision, she beat him to the punch.

"No," she pre-interrupted. "When you have a kitchen of your own like AndrAIa, then you can eat anything you want. Until then, it's my duty to make sure you're downloading something halfway sanitary."

Getting into the role, Bob flipped the game sprite's burger onto a bun and delivered it with a slight fanfare, before returning to his post. After taking a bite, AndrAIa wiped off a small drop of blood which had escaped from the corner of her mouth.

"Cool," Enzo expressed as he watched her eat. Visibly disappointed by his own less carnal meal when it arrived, he nevertheless attacked it viciously. Between mouthfuls, he asked, "When can I come over for dinner at your house, AndrAIa?"

"Anytime," she offered. "Matrix and I would love to have you."

"Oh," Enzo remarked, his finger raised, remembering something just as he took a bite. After some chewing and a large swallow, the young sprite asked, "By the way Bob, I heard you and Matrix had a fight over in C prime. What was that all about?"

Perhaps it was his nonchalant manner or the fact that he continued eating while he waited for an answer, but this caught the three older sprites quite off guard. Dot looked over at Bob and gave him a non-verbal "Well?"

"Ah, well you see Enzo, Matrix and I had a slight disagreement concerning games which unfortunately erupted publicly," the guardian tried to explain.

"I heard you threw Matrix through a wall," the young sprite responded.

"A vid-ad, I only threw him through a vid-ad," Bob corrected.

"Bob!" Dot exclaimed.

"I also heard you pretty thoroughly kicked his ascii up Second Street."

"Enzo!"

"Ya, I guess I did do a pretty good job."

"Bob!! Don't talk like that. Enzo, don't use that kind of language and AndrAIa, stop encouraging them," Dot reprimanded as AndrAIa vainly tried to suppress laughter.  "Remember that Enzo.… er I mean Matrix, is going through some tough times right now, trying to readjust to home. The last thing we should be talking about is this. But since we're on the subject, what do you think we could do to help him?"

"Look, Matrix just likes controlling things," AndrAIa stated. "He's been a leader for a good part of his life, and right or wrong, he's used to doing things his own way. That and the fact that he's ultra-stubborn makes even the smallest confrontation difficult. I should know, I've had to live with him for the last ten minutes. But he's still the same sweet, lovable Enzo deep down. There's just a lot of exterior that gets in the way. Give him time and he'll come around."

Enzo sat and pondered this thought for a moment. It was disconcerting to imagine Matrix as anything other than a dark, brooding hulk. It didn't help matters that Enzo was an exact copy of Matrix's younger self. The muscles and height were one thing, but the dark and humorless attitude and that eye made for a horrific glimpse into the future. The others had been pretty tight lipped about Matrix's past, a 128-bit kind of tight, so Enzo only knew pieces. There was some type of war in which Bob got lost (somewhere and somehow) allowing Megabreath to attack the city. However, Mainframe held off the virus with major help from Matrix (who during some point became a guardian) who then got lost with AndrAIa (origin unclear) and Frisket in the games (somehow), which aged them rapidly. Then they all came back and kicked major virus ascii until a restart rebuilt the city (a boggling concept). This was all the information he could gleam from various conversations over the last few cycles. All Enzo knew for sure was that he was at the Principal Office with Dot and Bob one cycle, was told to stand still while the system performed a regular backup only to find himself suddenly alone inside the P.O.. Upon walking outside, he saw a strangely dressed Bob, whom he tackled, standing with Dot, Phong, Frisket, and four strange sprites he had never seen before. Then came the stares, confusing explanations, a musical synopsis (which made even less sense) and enough "talks" with Dot and the others to make a young sprite sick. Worse off, as far as he could figure he missed two wars, becoming a guardian, playing a tera amount of games, becoming super strong, and, worse of all, AndrAIa. Matrix got all of these things and what does he do? He walks around gloomy and miserable, fighting with Bob and arguing with Dot. It just wasn't fair.

"It just isn't fair," Enzo verbalized, a little louder than he would have liked. AndrAIa turned and asked, "What isn't fair?"

"Matrix, he's done so many cool things and been to so many different systems that he could be really alphanumeric if he wanted to. But instead he's mean."

"He's been through a great deal Enzo…" AndrAIa defended.

"But he's no longer lost," Enzo interrupted. "He found Bob and made it back home. Isn't that what he wanted, to return home? I mean, you were lost and you're not mean. You're mega-nice. I can understand him being grumpy while he was searching, but he's home now. Why isn't he happy?"

AndrAIa sat and pondered this question for a bit before beginning a story. "I remember once we, Matrix, Frisket and I, were in this one system with twin cities. At one point, the cities were beautiful works of art in their construction, but because of a sparseness of space in one of the systems, a devastating civil war had begun; no viruses, just sprite fighting sprite and binome fighting binome. They were both pretty evenly matched, so it was a bloody affair. To make matters worse, the system was totally polarized. You were either on the Sea's side or the Dee's side, there was not neutral ground. Anyway, we landed in the Dee's city and, since it was their land being fought over, joined their fight until the next game. Matrix was really spirited about the fight, seeing the conflict as a moral one. I think maybe the Dee city reminded him a little of Mainframe and having recently acquired his gun, Matrix fought like a fanatic, helping the Dees bring the war around. There were no great battles, mostly small confrontations and terrorist stuff. One side would delete a building and so the other would have to do the same in retaliation. This went on for a few cycles until one cycle we came across the Dee forces pummeling the code out of one of their own school buildings. It seems that a group of Sea Special Forces rescued a large number of generals from a Dee prison before taking sanctuary in the school when their exit was blocked. Our kind and benevolent Dees, not wishing for the generals to escape alive, sacrificed some of their own children in the name of the war. And it wasn't even a clean deletion. There were bits and pieces of partially deleted sprites and binomes covering the floors, some still processing. The walls were…" AndrAIa paused to rub away an irritation that had built in her eyes as she mentally relived the event.

"That's horrible," Dot uttered.

 "Ya, it was pretty bad. We left later that cycle in a game, allowing them to continue their mindless feud. Shortly thereafter, Matrix stopped referring to himself as a guardian, adopting a renegade status instead. We've seen some really terrible things together, but there are things that Matrix has seen, that he won't even share with me. So you see Enzo, the happiness that you talked about, it's been drained out of Matrix by his experiences. We just need to be patient and understanding and I know that he will brighten up."

The four sprites sat in silence for a while, depressed by AndrAIa's tale. After a long moment, Dot pushed away the remainder of her meal and announced as she stood, "Well, if Enzo needs time, than that's what we will give him. And when he's ready, we'll still be here for him. Maybe a small dinner would be in order within the next few cycles, to show how glad we are to have everyone safely home again. It'll be a family affair, just the eight of us. Do you think you can convince Matrix to come?"

"I can try?" replied the game sprite.

"Good, I'll make the arrangements in the morning. But for now, I think a little recreational racing might be in order…" Dot stated as she turned to find Enzo missing.

"He just left," AndrAIa answered before Dot could ask the question. "It looked like he needed to do something and I didn't want to stop him."

"He'll be fine," Bob lied. "Probably went out to play with Frisket before it got too late." Internally however, Bob wasn't so sure. His luck with the Enzos recently had been anything but good and guessing their next move had proved to be nearly impossible.

***

AndrAIa knew Matrix was home when the apartment lights didn't respond to her entrance. Wading through the darkness, she found Matrix and Frisket in the living room; Matrix's one arm square behind his back, his other lifting and lowering his massive body in a slow and smooth rhythm. Frisket looked over at AndrAIa through the dark, but didn't get up. The three stood there, pressed down by the oppressive darkness, Matrix's heavy breathing providing the only sound. When AndrAIa could no longer wait to be acknowledged, she crossed the room and maximized the window. The pleasant cycle rushed into the room, pushing Matrix off balance and onto his side. AndrAIa remained at the window, her annoyed countenance masked by the brightness of the cycle behind her; a pillar of darkness engulfed in an aurora of light.  

Cursors, Matrix thought as he sat there, squinting up at her. This isn't going to end well.

AndrAIa traversed the room and entered the kitchen, asking as she crossed, "I heard you and Bob had a small spat. What happened?"

I so don't need this right now. "Nothing," Matrix stated as he rose, displacing Frisket from his seated position.

"I heard you pushed Bob into a wall," the game sprite replied from the bedroom. "That doesn't sound like nothing to me."

"Ya, and he pushed me back. It's no big deal."

AndrAIa retraced her steps from the bedroom, back through the kitchen to face the sprite who was her whole life… and with a swipe of her right leg, knocked his feet from under him, causing the hulking youth to fall crashing onto the floor.

"I just knocked you down," she said over top of him. "Are you now going to knock me down? I hurt you, you hurt me, is that how it's done in Mainframe?"

Matrix picked himself up and faced her, making sure his legs were better placed.

"Maybe I should," he replied. "Of any sprite in Mainframe, I thought you'd be on my side. But I guess I should have known you'd take Bob's side."

"Don't give me that," she yelled, her arms waving wildly with expression. "I spent all cycle defending you to the others, trying to show them how kind and sweet you can be, like you used to be, while you're out brooding and being downright mean to sprites who love you. Why can't you act halfway decent to Bob and Dot? Or better yet, why won't you talk to Enzo. Instead, you act as though we're still in the games, always on the guard against an enemy that isn't there. Megabyte is gone, Daemon is far away and a concern for another cycle. Just once, I would like to be able to just relax with you. You're home Enzo. You're home."

Several options flashed before the young sprite's mind, most of them hostile. Normally he would have ran, left all of this nonsense behind. Normally he would have deleted something, or someone, and worked out his tensions that way. However, for whatever reason, Matrix chose to do none of these things. Quickly moving forward, he took AndrAIa in an embrace and hugged the game sprite for all he was worth; a pathetic, enduring hug.  Surprised by this act of blatant emotionalism, AndrAIa could do nothing but return the embrace. 

"I know, I know," Enzo Matrix stated, gently nuzzling the top of her head with his cheek before letting her go. "It's just been hard, being back and all. While we were trapped in the games, all I could think about was getting back to Mainframe; how everything would be alright if I just got home. But ever since we met up with Bob, things haven't been quite right, like the Mainframe that I left, the Mainframe that I had loved, has been reformatted into something else. At least that's what I thought. But since the restart reverted everything to exactly as they were, I realized the truth. The problem wasn't that Mainframe had changed, it was that I had. The old read-me files were right; you can't go home." Enzo turned away, embarrassed by the realization, embarrassed of his change.

"Enzo, that's not true. You're still the same sprite I first fell in love with. We've all changed, but home is home. Mainframe will accept you no matter how much you've changed physically. You're still Enzo Matrix."

"It's not the same. Spirits look at me like I'm dangerous, like at any nano I might malfunction and start deleting everyone around me. And the worse part is I'm afraid of the same thing sometimes."

"I'm so sorry Enzo," the game sprite replied with another embrace, "I didn't know you felt like such an outsider. But don't worry, that will all change with time. In fact, Dot's planning a dinner party in the next few cycles, sort of a private family celebration…"

Matrix disengaged from AndrAIa and stepped back.

"I don't think I can ever face Bob and the others again…"

"Come on Sparky. It'll be nice to just relax for once with Bob, Dot and the other. Please go, for me."

"Ok, ok I'll go," Matrix relented, "But for right now, I want to be alone. I think I'll take a walk and try to clear my head."

AndrAIa nodded understandingly.

"I'll be back," Matrix stated, his back already turned as he headed out of the apartment. Frisket rose to follow him, but Matrix sent him back. "You stay with AndrAIa," the guardian ordered. "I won't be long."

Matrix left the apartment and paused in the shadow of the doorway before venturing out into the brightness of the cycle.

"Go to some basic dinner which no one wants me at anyway?" he thought. "I don't think so."

***

There is a spot in Floating Point where a cluster of data trees have compiled unusually close together, forming a dense alcove on a level's edge, overlooking the lower levels and a great deal of the city. Matrix found that it was a perfect vista for reflection and a wonderful spot to hide from the troubles of the system, but best of all, only he was privy to its location. Unbothered by how cliché the spot was to find solace, Matrix made his way there knowing he could sit without fear of discovery.

Upon entering the small alcove, Matrix found it already occupied. Enzo was sitting there gazing out towards the still busy city.

"Cursors," Matrix thought, but the boy turned before the older spite could retreat unnoticed.

"Hi Matrix," the boy said without getting up. "I guess Dot sent you to retrieve me."

Matrix approached the spot close to the edge where his younger self was perched and stood over him, also gazing out towards the city.

"No one sent me," he stated, "and I'm not here to get you."

The boy was confused. "Well then why are you here?"

Matrix paused briefly as he sat down beside the boy. "Same reason you're here, just wanted a quiet place to think."

The two Enzos sat in silence, watching the cycle recede into twilight. Eventually, the younger Enzo turned and examined the hulking sprite beside him; studying the massive muscles on his left arm, the scars and blemishes, a haunting familiarity surrounding the subject. He had seen more battles, games, systems, sights than almost anyone in Mainframe, maybe even more than Bob. He was a specter from the future, hardened by things Enzo couldn't imagine, and Enzo had a deep respect for that. Turning back towards the vista, the boy nonchalantly remarked, "I know about the battle in the school."

Matrix turned, confused by the statement. "What school?" he asked. "There was a fight in your school?"

"No, I mean I know about the battle in the school in that twin-city system you were in while you were trying to get home," the boy corrected. "I understand why you're sad all the time."

Matrix thought about this revelation for a moment, trying to place the event. The memory eventually came, the battle revisited momentarily before returning to its place in the past. "AndrAIa must have told him," Matrix thought. "I wonder what other stories she's told."

"So AndrAIa told you about the mighty Dee's and now you know why I'm glum, is that right?" Matrix mocked. "Exactly how much did she tell you?"

"Just that you fought in a war between the two cities and that they killed a bunch of kids and you tired but couldn't stop them."

Matrix laughed, mocking the boy's empathy, a bitter hollow laugh.

"I see, so you think that battle turned me hard? If you only knew," Matrix retorted.

"I want to know," the young sprite returned, "I do. Please tell me."

Matrix's gaze returned to the dieing cycle, plunging the cityscape into a lonesome grayness.

"You're right," he began. "I did fight in that terrible battle. But what she probably didn't tell you is that it was me who killed those kids."

"No…"

"Oh, yes. Who do you think originally caught the general staff? Who do you think blocked the escape, forcing them into the schoolhouse? I may have not physically dropped the bombs, but my hands are just as red with their blood," Matrix stated, offering the boy his palms as though they were covered in invisible reminiscent blood. Turning over his hands, Matrix examined the harsh contours. "Out damned spot," he muttered softly to himself, before returning his hands back to the ground. "Afterwards I began fighting against both sides, slaughtering those traitorous Dees and bleeding the malevolent Seas incarnadine. I doubt we would have made it out of that system processing if a game hadn't fallen. That's the real story and yet it's nothing compared to other such tales." 

Matrix's gaze returned to the scene in front of them, leaving Enzo to deal with this new version of the story. The boy swallowed hard and then the two Enzos sat silently in the dusk, an unmovable heaviness suddenly ensnaring them. The young sprite ran little groves into the dirt with his heals causing small puffs of ground to leap off the edge of the level, dissipating into oblivion as it fell towards the city lights below. It was unbearably cold, if there is such a thing, an unnatural chill that perverted the air around them, a glitch in the system no doubt. Eons crept by unnoticed, shrouded in the silence. Surely hours pasted, days, weeks, systems were formatted and erased, civilizations were coded and compiled within the span, an eternity of silence and darkness with two lone watchmen serving as its only witness; as though time wished to proclaim, 'look ye upon my works and despair.' But no, such things could not be, only a few nanoseconds had rolled by, a millisecond at the most, distorted by the vista.    

***

Several milliseconds had rolled by as the two sentinels watched over the city. Dusk had fallen, turning the sky once more into a perfectly illuminated gray. Matrix turned to his younger self. It was beginning to get late and Dot would be worried. After all, little sprites needed their down time… Matrix shook his head. Had he just thought that? Was it possible that while he wasn't looked, he had turned into his sister? Matrix let out a sigh, disrupting the serenity. All those minutes away from home and he still turned out to be like his sister. He had changed, and yet, perhaps some change was positive, natural… inevitable even. The young guardian looked back down at his younger self, sitting there playing with the grass, so full of enthusiasm and vigor, so full of hope. He tried to remember that time, so long ago. How it felt to be young and innocent, before the net had ground hope into embitterment. But the memories were too distant, as though Matrix was looking back on someone else's life, stealing someone else's memories. Turning back to the absolute tranquility of the glowing city below, he marveled at the beauty. Maybe the others were right. Maybe he was home and everything would be all right. Maybe with a little time…    

"Well isn't this a cozy scene; future tense and past tense, gazing down at the present. It almost makes me wish I could copy and paste this picture so I could cherish it forever."

Before the sarcasm was completed, the two Enzo's had turned around, Matrix on his feet, to face their new companion. Hexadecimal stood before them, dressed as her old viral self, a smug look plastered on her mutable white face. Matrix reached for his gun but grabbed only air. His gun lay quietly on the apartment living room floor.

"Damn," Matrix thought. "Of all the times…" There was the concealed knife in his boot, but that would do little good against this viral witch. And then there was Enzo to worry about.

"Get out of here Enzo," Matrix barked as he crouched into a defensive position. If hand-to-hand was what he was given, then hand-to-hand it would be. 

"No!" Enzo shot back. "I won't go."

"No arguments, just do it!" Enzo ordered as he moved in between Hex and the focus of his frustration.

"Oh let the boy stay," Hex said as she moved closer to the guardian. "It may be interesting. I believe you wanted to say something to me at the meeting and were, how shall we say it, thwarted. And then I hear you and Bob got into something of a scuffle, which seems so unlike Bob. Tsk, tsk, tsk, we can't have our guardians fighting. What would the user say? What would Dot say?"

"Have I ever told you how much I hate your stupid banter? Shut up and let's do this," Matrix responded, his eye turning into place. "I've waited a long time for this."

Hex's smirk drained from her face as her hands began to glow with energy. "Yes," she stated emotionlessly. "It's about time we have closure, once and for all."

Matrix struck first, lunging at the virus, striking her in the midsection and a quick jab to the face. Hex was knocked back but blocked a further jab to the head by catching Matrix's fist. With her free hand, Hex delivered a fire blast right to the kidneys, throwing the hulk a few feet away. Matrix pushed himself up, coughed up some bile and looked up.

"Well, why don't you finish me?" Matrix screamed as blood trickled down his forehead before getting entangled in an eyebrow. "Come on, throw a giant fireball or tear me in half with your mind. What are you waiting for? Use your super viral powers and finish me off!"

Hex just stood there, staring at the fallen guardian, a small bit of her own blood escaping from the corner of her mouth. She looked morose. She looked pitiable. She looked… tired. Enzo, who had quietly observed the whole ordeal verbalized the realization.

"She can't finish you off," he stated in almost an inaudible murmur, as though communicating the thought to Matrix was a secondary concern. "She doesn't have the power to do it."

Matrix turned and looked at Enzo wide eyed before turning back to Hex. Hexadecimal only smiled.

"Smart boy," she acknowledged before sitting/collapsing to the ground.   

The three sprites just sat there in the twilight, a slight wind sweeping across the trio as it played with the tall grass. Mainframe sat beneath them, a sea of lights, flanking them on three fronts. Matrix sighed again.

"Now what?" he asked, to no one in particular. Sitting up from her supine position, Hex materialized a pair of bottles and glasses. The bottles were marked Boolean Whiskey.

"You've been to the web," she replied. "Now we drink."

***

One bottle later, the two older sprites were in a much more congenial mood. Enzo had originally demanded a taste of the ill-colored liquid but had back downed after Matrix demonstrated its code-deteriorating properties on a small patch of grass. As the liquid continued to eat its way through the solid rock base of the cliff, Enzo marveled at how any sprite could drink the poison and stay processing, let alone enjoy it. However, Matrix seemed much more relaxed, or at least not as stern. Hex opened the second bottle and topped off her glass.

"So it seems," she continued. "That chaos and insanity went hand in hand. A little defragging, the ability to control my emotions and poof, their goes my power source."

"Well you don't seem powerless to me," Matrix countered, while rubbing his sore ribs.

Hexadecimal laughed, spilling part of her drink, and shock her head.

"Oh, if you only knew what kind of power I had at my disposal. Chaos is the most powerful force in the universe. I could have destroyed Mainframe and marched on the supercomputer at any time," she stated, before taking a sip. "I was merely distracted with my mind-numbing soul-wrenching insanity," she added into her glass.    

Matrix finished off his glass and nodded in agreement.

"I know what you mean. In the games it was simple: see the enemy, kill the enemy. Now, I face an enemy that is so strong I can't possible fight her alone and friends I scare," he admitted. "I feel like a pariah, a relic of the games."

"You feel like a pariah?" Hex scoffed. "How would you like it if everyone looked at you like a virus? As though nothing had changed and we were still fighting that retched war. Everyone's so afraid I might delete them, that they don't give me a chance to prove myself."

Matrix rose his empty glass. "You and me both," he stated. "But its worse with us. What happens when warriors no longer have a war? Who do they fight when there's no visible enemy?"

"Each other," Enzo added, feeling left out of the conversation. "Try and be a backup copy who's missed the most important two minutes in the history of Mainframe. At least you two have a common bond with Bob, Dot and the others. I'm the lost one here."

Hex nodded in agreement and rose her glass. "Well then, here's to the pariahs of Mainframe. May we all find anonymity and boredom."

"Here, here," Matrix toasted, downing a freshly poured glass, before falling back slightly, shaking his head. "If you had told me at his age," Matrix said, pointing at Enzo, "That one cycle, I would be drinking with one of my most hated enemies, I would have decked you. It must be the whiskey."

"You know what they say about Boolean Whiskey. IF you don't pass out, THEN you'll wish you had," Hex commented with an overly loud laugh. Matrix didn't hear the joke; his mind was elsewhere, a fact which made him smash his glass upon a rock. Running a sweaty hand through his hair, Matrix attempted to shake off the influence of the brew. He looked up at his partners and sighed heavily.

"I've acted like a real dipswitch these past few cycles," he admitted. "How am I ever going to face Bob again?"

Hexadecimal held up the last bottle and suggested,  "Go to him now before your pride regains strength. Drink a little and talk a lot."

***

"Just a nano," Bob called out as he wiped the car lubricant from his hands. After leaving the diner, he had used his car as therapy, banging out his frustrations on the barely functional devise. Upon opening the door, the guardian was surprised to discover Matrix on his doorstep, carrying a half empty bottle.

"Matrix, Come in," Bob stammered after an awkward nano or two. "You look terrible. What happened? "

Matrix entered slowly, held up the bottle and exclaimed, "We need to talk."

The two guardians soon found themselves sitting awkwardly in Bob's living room with a half bottle of Boolean Whiskey and two small glasses. Matrix filled the two containers and replaced the bottle to the middle of the java table. Then, in one short movement, he downed the glass. Bob attempted to follow suit, but coughed severely halfway through as the liquid burnt its way down his throat.  

"Wow," he gasped. "Good stuff I guess; if you enjoy coughing up blood. Where did you find this stuff in Mainframe anyway?"

"A friend gave it to me," he shrugged. "During the games, you could say I was weaned on the stuff, that and I/O shots. I guess you get used to it." 

Bob replaced the half-empty glass onto the table and shook his head, hoping the taste would eventually either dissipate or eat through his tongue. He looked back up at the hulk and marveled. How did that small, hyperactive, innocent sprite become this strong, silent, powerful one? What had he forced Matrix to experience because of his mistakes, because he couldn't anticipate the double-cross, because he couldn't get back in time to save Enzo from the future. Bob filled the glass and took another try, this time succeeding. The poison didn't burn as much the second time (although he wasn't sure he could still feel his legs). The empty glass was returned to the table and the two guardians sat in silence once more. Eventually, Matrix spoke.

"Bob, I'm… I'm sorry for what happened early this cycle. I shouldn't have overreacted, both inside and outside of the game. It was a basic thing to do."

"No," Bob interjected, playing with his empty glass. "No, I can understand where you're coming from. I remember the game simulations back in the academy. In the beginning I was so fired up to win the game that I would often cut corners. It took a simulated system meltdown for me to learn my lesson. But then again, I guess you didn't have that opportunity, did you?" Silence fell over the room again, pressing hard against the two guardians.

"I should be the one to apologize," Bob stated after a while. "I left you in an impossible situation. It took me minutes of training before I even shadowed a guardian and yet in less than a cycle after giving you the guardian code, I leave you to defend a city against two viruses and a war. If I hadn't been so enwrapped with the web creatures and let my guard down with Megabyte, none of this would have ever happened. All of this is my fault."

"No, you couldn't have known," Matrix offered. "No one could have. We were fighting on two fronts against two different enemies. You picked the worse evil to focus on and it was the right decision, regardless of the outcome. I guess… I guess no one is to blame, except Megabyte."

"May he rest in pieces," Bob toasted with his empty glass and a chuckle. Matrix smiled.

"What a pleasant cycle this was," Matrix observed. "I should have never left bed."

"No, certain things needed to be said, certain subjects needed to be explored," Bob asserted. "And I have a feeling we've got a long way to go before all of this is settled."

"What time is it?" he asked suddenly, standing up (an action protested heavily by his head).

"It just turned 00:00."

"Cursors, I wonder if Enzo came home…"

"Enzo's fine," Matrix assured. "I took him back before I came over."

Bob fell back in his chair, obviously relieved. "I'd hate to be him tonight."

"You and me both, and I was him," Matrix laughed. It was good to laugh. It was good to be home. "Well, maybe Dot didn't lay into him as much as we think. A lot can happen in a cycle, a whole web of a lot."

"Yep," Bob reflected, putting his feet up on the java table. "Now the question is, where do we go from here?"

As no answer made itself present, no answer was given as the two guardians filled the empty room with quiet reflection. No answer was needed. For now, it was enough that they could sit quietly and drink. Outside, the great internal clock reset itself for another cycle, the calming twilight gray of the sky a perfectly pleasant  balance of light and darkness. Later on, the heavens would bloom into a bright and pleasant cycle, as it always had, as it always will.