A/N: Darn it, Fanfiction . n e t got rid of the ability to copy/paste directly from fanfics, so binary translations are at the bottom, in order.


"Let's begin then, Braineater. Shall we?"

Yes, indeed, Neuro silently agreed.

He was eager to demonstrate to his new superiors just how much he had already improved. In the few days that had passed, the new holder of the Tools of the Demon World had been practicing. Now the mystery-eater could successfully summon a Tool routinely without any complications. The mechanisms and ways to call a Tool had become familiar, and the time that it took for the desired one to appear was diminishing also. Very soon he would be able to summon a Tool virtually instantaneously. Neuro had to admit—he was looking forward to mastering the strange 777 Tools of Hell.

Now the blue-feathered demon was back in the HDAC:OB to begin the first of a series of short training sessions. Lucard Throatbane had ignored Neuro's arrival for the most part, although he had growled at the door when Neuro stepped through. Predictable. Although neither demon had received notable wounds during their fight, a tough front and a few light threats afterwards were to be expected. But the lupinoid did not taunt Neuro further. Either he was loyally obeying instructions from his boss, or he was smarter than the avianoid first gave him credit for. Neuro smirked at the amusing observations.

His instruction would take place in a new room. This one was large and open, though it would still have been dwarfed by the Sealed Sanctum. It appeared to be divided into several sections, each one prepared for a separate purpose. One part featured an extremely high ceiling. In each part the walls and floor were made of varying materials, differing in texture and color. They must be water-proof, fire-retardant, chemical-repellent, and so on, Neuro concluded.

In addition, objects were stationed in every section of the spacious, rectangular room. Weapons rested on the ground of one space, while pieces of technical equipment blinked silently on another, their displays glowing dimly.

Asanteoh Leonfang was the one who had called to Neuro, situated in a light tan section that surrounded the doorway. He had been perusing a report from behind a desk as black as the plague.

Two big, veined eyes with pupils as red as spilled blood gazed around the room from the morbid piece of furniture. It rested on four large paws. Unlike its human-world counterparts, its paws trembled with exhaustion from holding up the desk's weight, digging its exposed claws into the ground. Two tiny ebony wings as delicate as a bat's were attached to the sides. Once in a while they would twitch uselessly, as if they had long ago given up trying to lift the body that they belonged to. It was a tortured sight.

A top-notch desk in Hell. One that was entirely suitable for the Executive Officer of Hell's Disciplinary Action Committee: Order Branch. Neuro briefly wondered whether it had been a gift from a grateful client, or a personal acquisition of the leonoid demon.

"Today marks the start of your official job training sessions," Asanteoh rumbled as he stood from behind the desk. The desk's bloodshot eyes rolled, tracing its owner's movements. "Our last meeting was somewhat of an initiation exam," he said as he casually moved a few steps to the side, "so let me assure you, there will be no sudden supplementary skirmishes." He smiled at Neuro, lips lifting just past the tip of sturdy canines. "Well, as long as Lucard can hold himself back."

The lupinoid commander sidled up almost on cue. He grinned at Neuro with teeth as sharp as broken glass. Asanteoh continued talking, "Soon you will be permitted to start making your way through our ranks at what we predict will be quite an impressive rate. But before that, there are certain investigative skills that you must learn."

His golden eyes gazed down at the avianoid, "Yes. It is only now that you may begin to learn the basics."

"And what will the challenge of the day be?" Neuro drawled, gesturing aimlessly around the room.

"Challenge indeed." The King looked almost amused. "I think we'll let you decide that, my puzzling detective. Show us a Tool that you have managed to summon already."

"Hmph." Neuro returned the Executive Officer's smugness. He briefly dusted off his hands, as if wearing a pair of classy gloves. Then he complied with the leonoid's orders. An ethereal green light circled his right hand for about five seconds and then receded.

Asanteoh blinked at how comfortably Neuro had summoned the Tool this time. It had been smooth and assured—no loud noise, no gargantuan effort, and no time spent in a battle of willpower with his new powers. Neruo didn't even look significantly tired. Lucard moved his head slightly in order to get a better view of the Tool. The Braineater had chosen a rather small one.

But small did not mean weak. Asanteoh observed the new Tool. It seemed grafted to its summoner's hand. No…it had transformed his hand.

The jagged talons were gone, replaced with five segmented digits. The whole appendage was sleek and mechanical, colored greenish-white. Neuro slowly flexed his hand and the segments bent smoothly at the usual joints and knuckles. Each of the fingers extended out into broad tips like the toe pads of a gecko. It was as if the hand of a robot had been grafted onto the bird demon's wrist, fully organic and alive. Neuro gladly held it out to show his companions.

"I believe this one is called Evil Script," he said smoothly. "I find it easier to summon then the others."

"So it is," Asanteoh said, stoic as always. "Of course," he nodded thoughtfully, "your hands already have transformative qualities. It must function almost as an extension of your natural abilities. Due to that, it likely costs you less energy to summon. You should be able to master that one especially."

He turned to a square, light green section of the room. "Evil Script is used in computer matters and is a helpful tool regarding a very important part of detective work. So, let us begin your first training exercise: Hacking."

Raising a non-existent eyebrow at his superior's choice of words, Neuro held his transformed hand close to his chest and followed. Lucard walked closely behind. Soon all three stood by a surprisingly normal computer on top of a desk. Neuro noticed multiple monitors and other equipment sitting behind it, likely set up to examine his progress.

Asanteoh patted the top of the machine. "This computer will introduce you to the environment of the virtual world and serve as today's opponent."

Outwit a computer? Neuro frowned.

"Your practice mission is to retrieve an important piece of information from the system," said Asanteoh. "Enter, extract, exit. But of course, it's rarely that simple."

"Enter?" Neuro asked. He ignored Lucard smirking behind him, including a muttered "Go fetch."

"Activate the tool," Asanteoh said.

Neuro shrugged. He did as requested.

"Now enter the system." Neuro did as instructed. He touched the screen with the bionic hand, feeling his fingers slide easily through as if they had met water and not-

ZAP

01001110 01000101 01010101 01010010 01001111 01001110 01001111 01010101 01000111 01000001 01001101 01001001 01001101 01011001 01010011 01010100 01000101 01010010 01011001 01010000 01010101 01011010 01011010 01001100 01000101 01000101 01010110 01001001 01001100 01010011 01000011 01010010 01001001 01010000 01010100 01000010 01010010 01000001 01001001 01001110 01000101 01000001 01010100 01000101 01010010 01001000 01000001 01001000 01000001 01010100 01001000 01000001 01001110 01001011 01010101 00110100 01000110 01001001 01001110 01000100 01001001 01001110 01000111 01010100 01001000 01001001 01010011 00111011 00101001

H0

010010e was0 01001100 01001111 01010011 01010100

"…collect yourself, you're still here with us, can you feel your physical body outside of the system, you are now in the program, change your presence into a recognizable form…"

01010110 01001111 01001001 01000011 01000101

navigating the datadatadatasomuch was what hememyselfI was doing toomuchtoeatsohungryhungryalwaysbutheknew hekneweverythingeverythingalways he kne w whohe was...

Recovering from the initial shock of being launched into the virtual world, Neuro began to, quite literally, collect himself. The Tool must have successfully connected him with the system. It was as if he, or at least his consciousness, had been shot directly into the inner workings of the computer. All around he could feel bits of himself here and there, swept along in the electronic current of constant DATADATADATAimpulses. Now that he had a hold, Neuro was able to gather back together the pieces of code that represented his consciousness in the virtual space.

Remembering what the voice had said, he connected the particles that were him together. Create a recognizable form.

Neuro finished gathering and merging the binary into a program, noticing that his new shape appeared just like his physical body. Interested, he inspected one clawed hand. Well, I suppose this is what my body is expecting to look like. These strings of coded data were himself in a way, after all. He set the last bits of binary into place, impressed with how quickly his mind was adapting. Neuro felt a sense of satisfaction, understanding what he was in the virtual world: a simple code.

01001101 01000101

"…You're a virus? Haha, I suppose that's fitting." Neuro looked around as he heard the voice. There was no one in the blue-green space. Crowded and claustrophobic, yet at the same time vast and void, he could see for what seemed like miles. And still, he knew it was only a few millimeters, and that he wasn't really "seeing" at all. He turned to the "sky" and smiled—a twitch of purple pixels. He knew that voice.

01000001 01010011 01000001 01001110 01010100 01000101 01001111 01001000

There was no sound in the virtual world, so Neuro assembled a display message to show that he was alright and knew what he was doing. Asanteoh informed Neuro that they were able to monitor him clearly. He had done well in his first experience with the inner system.

"Your real body is still here by the way," a new voice spoke. "It's propped up nicely with the left arm braced against the desk. The Tool-hand is thrust into the screen and hasn't moved a muscle. And your eyes are still open! I don't know if they've even blinked. You're just sort of balancing there; it's rather disconcerting actually… Oh, sorry, King."

Neuro grinned, recognizing the scolded voice.

01010011 01010100 01010101 01010000 01001001 01000100 01000100 01001111 01000111

His amusement stopped when he "heard" a sound. The holder of the Tools turned to look, shifting to an aggressive stance. A strange device was coming his way.

It was round and smaller then him, with two searchlights for eyes. Its arms were short, curved like a crab's claws and barbed on the inner edges. A red-and-blue police light was flashing on top of its head. Its mouth was a megaphone. Neuro could see a few more coming from a ways behind, with different arms.

"First test: fend off some routine security sweeps," Asanteoh said, answering Neuro's unasked questions. "Every computer has some form of a protection program."

Neuro scowled as he tried to maneuver around. He would have to learn the rules of this strange place, and fast. As the enemy sweeps got closer, his sharp eyes noticed something: not a single one of them had wheels or legs. They simply floated. Neuro looked "down". Indeed, there was not even a floor to begin with here! Why should he conform to the limits of reality when there were none?

Letting out a short laugh, the demon jumped up high to avoid the arms of the sweeper. He stayed up high, freely dodging the arms of the three or so sweeps even when they extended like bungee cords. Neuro's mind flooded with euphoria as he watched his digital feathers sway in the wind. Such a wonderful feeling! He could…he felt…he was flying.

Oh, control yourself, he thought. Overruling his emotions, Neuro began to focus on subduing the sweepers. Floating in close, he transformed his arms and punched strongly to both sides. Two of the sweeps went down, dissolving into streams of data until they were nothing. Neuro turned to the last one. His normal powers were not limited by the laws of reality here either. That was an interesting thought, he reflected as he wrenched the arms off of the last sweep.

Pretending to have super-strength was fun, he decided as he raised his two new weapons. It was all in how you changed your code as a program.

"…but be silent." Asanteoh instructed. "Do not alert the system of your presence."

Oh, really now? Neuro gazed coldly at the helpless sweep. He wondered if maybe he could just…

The demon placed one hand over the sweep's beeping "mouth". Grinning with a beak full of sharp teeth, he "shh"d the program with one middle finger before raising one of the edged arms up, bringing it down, and piercing it through.

Neuro turned away from the beaten program. His next test had already arrived. A short distance in front of him floated a huge warning message. On one side of it, the yellow "CAUTION" symbol brought attention to words on the right.

"YOU DO NOT HAVE PERMISSION TO PROGRESS FURTHER" it read, with the only selectable answer being "OK". Neuro marveled. It looked exactly like a pop-up on a computer screen, only much larger. There was even a red X in the top corner.

"A barrier obstructs your path," said Asanteoh calmly. "What will you do?"

"Elementary, my dear 'King'," Neuro said. He raised his right arm, the one with Evil Script, and reached out towards the wall. His hand grew bigger, and bigger, until it was large enough to grasp the error message if its commander pleased. In real life this would not be possible, Neuro knew, but size was relative here. By changing his coding, he could issue his body any instructions that he liked.

The avianoid sneered. "Walls must be torn down." He formed a giant fist with his right hand and punched through the barrier. Neuro programmed his hand back to normal as flashing shards tumbled slowly down around him and faded away.

His reward for getting past the error message wall was a large amount of encrypted data. All Neuro had to do was unencrypt it. He was almost bored while completing the task; this part was the easiest for him. The most difficult bit was determining what coding mechanism had been used, and finding a way to store the resulting data. Neuro objectified his results as a letter and stuffed it in a virtual pocket. For others it may have been their next challenge, but to Neuro it was almost a rewarding break.

One that turned out to have been needed.

Neuro beheld a truly awe-inspiring and daunting sight. In front of him raged a massive barrier of fire. It stretched to either side, as far as Neuro's emerald eyes could see. In addition, the mountain of flame reached downwards and up until it vanished into the beyond. There would be no creatively avoiding this obstacle.

"Congratulations. You have reached your final challenge," Asanteoh spoke.

"I see," Neuro muttered. "It's-"

"-the firewall," they both finished.

Impressive, Neuro conceded as he searched for a weak point, a hole, any weakness that he could find. He floated, blue arms crossed, and focused. He stared at the vertical screen of flames, the crimson inferno reflecting in his deep, ringed, forest-colored eyes. He thought. And thought.

Program, flare, file, code, burn, sear, death, net, data, fly, virtual, through, transmit, bypass, look closer, closer, think, analyze, program transmit through SCREEN

The bits of binary that were Neuro's thoughts finally collected themselves into a conclusion. He snapped his fingers in a universal "A-ha!" gesture. Of course. In the light of a million fires, the bird demon smiled.

"What have you figured out, Braineater?"

Everything, he thought. "Pipe down will you?" the detective said cheerfully. "I am going to become a package."

"What-"

Ignoring the startled reactions of his superiors, Neuro set to work. Briefly, he wondered if the roiling flames would hurt, simulated though they were. No, he discarded the thought. There were lakes of fire and similar things in Hell. This one was just vertical.

Neuro adjusted the program that was himself. He couldn't go over this wall, nor could he go around it…so the only option was through it. Madness, sheer madness, but Neuro's head was giddy with the thrill of it all. His mind had found its answer; he knew it was correct. The evidence and his own personal knowledge had combined to single out one option, and his deductions were always flawless. Now to follow what his mind had told him, regardless of what his body felt. His body was not what he relied on.

'Braineater' Neuro was a box. A parcel from the post office of Hell, stamped, addressed, and ready for delivery. And his destination was the other side of the firewall. It was cramped, having to transform into such a tight shape. But he couldn't appear suspicious. Only certain programs were allowed past the firewall to the target information that he had been sent to acquire.

Using Evil Script, Neuro surrounded himself with the system's own data in a curtain. This was a matter of disguise, of controlling what he was in the virtual world. For this, he would be a friendly program, harmless—he laughed internally—until he was opened. He just had to make it through the filters.

Neuro moved closer to the wall of flame. While his curtain scorched at the surface of the roaring, blazing barrier of vicious conflagration, he found what he had been looking for earlier: a hole. Feeling the friendly-data surrounding him tingle, he sent himself through the relentless inferno.

Usually, an anti-virus program would be waiting on the other side to scan any arriving programs. However, in this test run, Neuro had already decimated the security sweeps. He was victorious. Having made it through the firewall, Neuro unpackaged himself. The detective allowed himself a contented smirk as he stretched and looked around casually for new anti-viruses to fight. He saw none.

Instead, what he found was an immense cache of data. It danced in the "air" and floated about, transmitting back and forth between itself. He didn't need all of it—buried somewhere within this mountain of reward was his target. Neuro's mouth watered as he imagined all of the information was a puzzle, one that he could eat. Now that would be a glorious day.

Neuro was pulled out of his fantasies by the disembodied voices of his commanders. Tossing an annoyed look at the "sky", he frowned. "I'll start! Honestly, something like this is no challenge for me."

He did. It wasn't.


"Mission successful, and one part of police training down," Asanteoh rumbled. "I suppose I must congratulate you."

"Think nothing of it," Neuro said, back in reality. He kept his eyes on Evil Script, flexing the hand thoughtfully.

"We'll have to replay and analyze your little trip," said Lucard, messing with one of the monitors. "In the virtual space, data—that's you—moves so fast it's hard to follow."

He looked over and saw that Neuro remained absorbed in studying the tool. Lucard's red eyes blinked. He leaned closer to the detective. "…Would you like to stay overtime and practice a little bit more?"

Asanteoh twitched his whiskers as Neuro gleefully agreed to "play" a few more rounds. He gave an authoritative nod to signal his agreement. The mystery-eater at once began working with Lucard to begin another exercise. This time, the lupinoid made sure that Neuro's body was sitting securely in a chair.

After the detective was "gone", Lucard walked over to his commander. "King, was that the same firewall we use?"

"No, Lucard," spoke Asanteoh, shaking his head. "If it was, then we would have just taught him how to hack into all our information."

"But," he said, "I have no doubts that this Tool will end up as one of his favorites."


Afterword:

-NEURONOUGAMIMYSTERYPUZZLEEVILSCRIPTBRAINEATERHAHATHANKU4FINDINGTHIS;)
-LOST (this one's right before
"…collect yourself")
-VOICE
-ME
-ASANTEOH
-STUPIDDOG