Starwell froze in place as they entered through another door. Something stood there that looked like an large, sprite-sized robot. "What is that?" she asked, pointing. Was this what Bob was talking about, when he said something about a "giant robot" before?

"Ah," Matrix took a step forward. "Let me introduce you." He looked straight at the tall, gold-colored robot figure with the domed, glass head that contained a green, worm-like thing. "Starwell, this is Welman Matrix, my father." He then looked back at the girl. "Dad," he went on with the intro, "this is Alpha Starwell."

"Oh my!" A warbled voice emanated from the head. The bot took a couple of steps forward, peering down at the girl. "So this is the one my daughter told me about! This is… the User!"

Starwell looked up at the strange sight with a mixture of horror and awe. So this is what Matrix had told her about. Before dying in one of the Checkpoints, Matrix had mentioned something about his Dad being a null, and possibly finding a cure for nulls. In that case, this was an example of that.

"Wow," Starwell breathed. "Um, it's nice to meet you!" She continued to stare at him somewhat oddly.

"You alright, Pup?"

"I just wasn't expecting him to look so much like a robot with a green brain," Starwell answered. She had intended to whisper, but it came out more loudly than she'd intended.

"Starwell…" Bob lowered his eyebrows in the same warning expression he would give Little Enzo. The younger Enzo promptly put his hand over his mouth to stifle a burst of laughter.

The girl suddenly looked sheepish. "Sorry."

"No, it's okay, Bob," Welman said. "I imagine I do look strange. Yes…" A robot digit tapped the glass dome that sheltered the green null. "In a way I guess you could say this is my brain. Actually, I am a null."

"Yeah… you were nullified in the explosion that destroyed another part of Mainframe, right?" Starwell asked.

"How did you know that?" Matrix wanted to know.

"You told me," Starwell replied. "Um, it was before we got sent back to one of those Checkpoints."

"Oh." Matrix muttered something incoherent.

"Yes, it was a long time ago," Welman answered.

"Welman and a great number of sprites were nullified in an explosion caused by the arrival of… a virus," Bob explained.

"Yeah, it destroyed the Twin city," Matrix said. "It also caused the Virus to split into two, which created Megabyte and Hexadecimal."

"But… you can talk?" Starwell peered up at the null. "I thought once somebody was nullified, they couldn't do anything anymore."

"Well, I'm not sure how it happened either," Welman said.

"Phong thinks that Hexadecimal may have shared a unique symbiosis with nulls… especially the nullified sprites and binomes who were caught in that explosion," Bob said.

"How did he formulate that theory?" Welman asked, intrigued.

"Because she has always been able to control nulls," Bob replied. "And she was created in that same explosion."

"Hmmm, interesting," Welman mused. "But," he said with a dismissive motion of his robotic hand, "we can discuss this more later." He turned his attention back to the girl. "So you are the User?"

"A User," Matrix corrected.

"She's not Mainframe's User," Bob clarified. "She comes from a System halfway across the Net." He'd spoken to Dot and memorized the IP address; it was also stored in Glitch's memory.

"Oh, then there is more than one User." Welman said. The theories of Users tended to vary; some sprites and binomes believed there was one Almighty User, others believed there was one User per System… others believed there were only a few here and there. Still others preferred to believe there was no User at all.

"How many Users are there?" Welman asked, curious. He had never dreamed he would have the fortune of meeting one in the code. He had always theorized that there were other peoples and other Systems out there, but for a User to actually set foot in the Net…?

"Uh… a few billion throughout the world," Starwell answered a bit hesitantly. The restored null may not have had eyes, but she was a little creeped out at the way he was looking at her. He almost seemed like he would love to take her apart and analyze her digit by digit if he could. Or at least he seemed a bit too intrigued… or was it awed? Fascinated?

"That many?" Welman didn't gasp, but his null form did expand slightly in shock. "I never imagined there could be that many Users…"

"Look, uh…" Starwell seemed uncomfortable. "It's nice to meet you, but can we talk about something else?" The last thing she wanted to do was talk about life outside the Net… since apparently she couldn't go home right away. Besides, she had already been through this with Bob; maybe Welman could ask the Guardian about it later if he wanted.

"My apologies," Welman said with a slight tip of his head. "You have been missing and you have just been returned to us; you must be low on energy. Come and let us all get some nourishment from the energy dispenser!"

"Well... Gizmo needs some energy too," Starwell said, eyeing the Keytool uncertainly.

"Here, Starwell, I can recharge him," said Bob, "If you want."

"Sure," Starwell nodded, handing the Keytool over. "Be good for Bob," she warned Gizmo. The Keytool beeped. "Oh I could count the times on both hands," Starwell answered with a tired smirk.

"Alright," Bob nodded, and held Gizmo in his hands gently.

"I'm coming too Bob!" said Little Enzo, as he ran to catch up with the Guardian.

Starwell watched them go, shaking her head slightly. As much as she loved Gizmo, and felt some kind of connection to the Keytool that she still didn't quite understand, she felt she needed the break from it. Hopefully Gizmo would behave for Bob.

"Well now," Dr. Welman Matrix spoke up, "how about the three of us head over to the energy dispenser?"

"Yeah... sure," Starwell agreed tiredly. In truth she would have preferred it if she could go lie down for a while, but she knew it wouldn't hurt to get some nourishment first.

"Come with me, then," the null said, already moving. "Oh this is so exciting. A User in the Net! If I could write a research file on this I'd be the envy of every professor and scientist out there."

Starwell looked a little uncomfortable. Welman, oblivious to her discomfort, glanced at Matrix. "What do you think of her, Son? Dot tells me you have been around her more than she or your younger brother."

Matrix crossed his arms, "She's okay... Dad." The last word had an awkward feeling in his mouth.

"Has she done anything extraordinary?" Welman asked, as if forgetting that the girl was present. Or perhaps he simply found it a little... overwhelming to speak to a real User directly for the moment. "Can she summon Game cubes out of the sky?"

Starwell blinked. "I haven't even thought about that," she muttered.

"Don't," Matrix said sharply, "No. Dad. She's... Normal..."

Despite lacking facial features, Welman seemed taken aback by his son's tone. "I... see," he said slowly. His robotic fingertips traced the smooth glass dome the housed the null; his equivalent of scratching his head, perhaps.

"I don't want to talk about Games," Starwell growled.

"But why?" Welman asked as they entered the mess hall of the Principal Office. "Users often play Games outside the Net, do they not?" He gazed at her, as if wanting the answer to an ages-old theory or debate.

"Dad. Drop it."

Starwell brushed past them into the mess hall. There were a few binomes here and there, obviously having dinner and energy drinks. Most of them were seated at the smaller tables, except for a few who were helping themselves to more snacks and drinks.

A few glanced in her direction as she approached the energy dispenser. When she looked at them, they immediately averted their gaze. Wonder how many more people have heard about the 'User Lady', as Little Enzo called me, she thought as she grabbed a cup and placed it under the dispenser nozzle.

She saw the others approaching out of the corner of her eye. She didn't look at them, but she could hear what they were saying.

"I didn't mean anything by it," Welman was saying to Matrix. "But why would such things be a touchy subject for a User?"

"Remember when I said Normal? Yeah. She's Normal. So Drop it."

Starwell pursed her lips and shut off the valve. She then headed for the nearest empty table and sat down with her energy drink.

"Huh." Welman seemed to puzzle this over as he filled a cup with energy, and then he handed it to Matrix. "Normal, huh?"

The scientist continued to process this as he grabbed another cup with his robotic hand and filled it to the brim. "Well, what do you mean by normal?" he asked, eyeing the girl across the room as she sipped her own energy drink.

"She's a normal teen. Moody, awkward, and socially inept."

"Oh," Welman said, suddenly comprehending. "For a nano I thought you were trying to tell me that there's nothing abnormal about a User being in the Net." He eyed the girl again. She glanced in their direction every so often-except when she realized they were looking at her. Then she became focused on her drink.

"She must be... just about Dot's age, the last time I saw her before the explosion," Welman commented, losing himself in the past for a moment. "That must mean Users have children, who grow up the same way we do." His robotic hand carefully pulled back the dome from the null. He then raised the cup to the edge of his null-self, which drained the energy like a leech. Then the dome popped back into place, protectively over the null.

"…I guess."

"She seems homesick," Welman said thoughtfully, giving the null equivalent of a sigh. "I wonder how she is going to take the bad news." The robot turned toward the dispenser again, refilling his cup with energy. Despite their small size, nulls could be real energy hogs.

"…What bad news?"

"Oh." Welman paused, holding the drink somewhat awkwardly in his robotic hand. "You haven't heard yet."

"Heard what?"

The null gave a warbling sigh. "Dot told me last second that our resident User came from another system, and wishes to return home. Your sister has a copy of the IP address for that system in the control room, so... we looked into it."

Welman gave the girl a meaningful glance; she was no longer looking in their direction. She appeared to be watching a couple of nearby binomes.

The scientist leaned closer to Matrix and lowered his voice. "It isn't possible to send anyone into that System, portal or otherwise. It has some of the tightest security in the Net; most attempts to send a sprite into that System would probably result in the person being repelled, or worse."

Something broke. Glass hit the ground, and Matrix's fist was clenched and dripping liquid. Welman eyed Matrix with concern. "Are you alright, Son?" he asked.

"I'm fine." The utter lack of a growl, or any inflection, perhaps that was most worrying.

The robot-form took a step back. He didn't seem concerned for his own safety; he knew that Matrix would never inflict harm on his form. But he did know his older son well enough to know that body language.

However, before he could say anything, a binome came up to him. "Excuse me, Dr. Matrix?" he said.

The scientist sighed. "Yes, Quinn?" he addressed his assistant.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but we need you in your lab. We think we're close to a breakthrough on restoring nulls to their original form!"

Welman inhaled deeply. For a nano he seemed conflicted, then he looked at Matrix. "Son... you're her friend," he said gently. "Perhaps you can find a way to break the news to her better than I." The robotic arm gave Matrix a light pat on the shoulder. "I will see you later, alright?"

Matrix nodded as his father left. He didn't want to do this. He didn't want to be the one to say it. He already knew how it would feel and he didn't want to cause it. He stood there, and took his time trying to remove the glass shards from his hand.

Starwell finally finished her energy drink and decided to go for another. She slowly stood and walked toward the energy dispenser... and Matrix. Brief relief flashed across her features when she realized Dr. Matrix had left.

It wasn't that she disliked him, it was just... he had made her feel awkward. Starwell glanced at Matrix as she moved toward the dispenser-then her eyebrows shot up. "What happened?" she asked, eyeing the mess on the floor.

"Glass broke." A strange syrup like liquid flowed from one of the deeper wounds as Matrix pulled a larger piece of glass from his hand.

Starwell winced. "Ouch," she uttered emphatically. "Are you okay?" she asked as she gently set her glass down in the dispenser.

"Yeah." He didn't look up.

Starwell looked at him a moment longer, then she turned her attention to refilling her glass. Once it was full she shut off the nozzle. She then took a big sip and then licked her lips. Maybe she was actually starting to get used to this stuff.

"So uh... did you and your Dad talk about anything?" she asked. She thought briefly of her own parents, and then her brother... and of course, Uncle Frank and Aunt Marge. She briefly wondered when she would see her family again. They weren't perfect, but still... they were her family.

"Yeah. We did." He threw the pieces into the nearest garbage disposal, but he allowed his hand to bleed as he flexed it.

"I miss my family," Starwell murmured as she took a couple of steps away from the dispenser. "I mean... well, all of us a bunch of morons at home I guess, but... I miss them."

She sighed wistfully. "Greg-my brother, he's such a little brat. But I miss even that in some ways. And Uncle Frank... he's not so bad either, I guess." She sighed again. "Just wish I could see them again. But I don't know how long I'll be... stuck in the Net."

She figured she should ask someone about that when she got the chance. Maybe the Command Dot Com or somebody would know when she might be able to try safe Net travel. Weird, I think I'm actually gonna miss Mainframe... She gave Matrix a meaningful glance. They're kinda like a family, too...

"Starwell... You can't go home." Idiot! Couldn't he say it better? Word it to be at least comforting? Bob was always better at this stuff, Dot could have done this, Phong could have done this... Where was AndrAIa when he needed her?

For a moment Starwell simply stared at him blankly, as if looking past him. She blinked a few times, as if processing those words. "W-what?" she finally said, blandly. "What did you say?"

"The system you came out of... We tracked it, but we can't get through its security..." by the Net, here it comes... "I'm sorry, but we can't send you home..."

For a moment Starwell simply stood there as if she hadn't heard.

Then the sound of glass shattering and the gentle slosh of energy spilling filled the area.

Her cup had slipped right through her fingers as her arm went limp.

She felt numb inside as she processed this. Her mouth opened and closed a couple of times, but no words came out.

Matrix clenched his injured hand, and it sent up a pang of pain. Why was he the one to do this?

Starwell stared down at the mess on the floor for a long moment. She breathed deeply in and out. Yes, it would make sense that Uncle Frank would have very good security on his System. There was some pretty high-tech stuff there, after all... particularly the prototype that brought her into the Net.

"No," she finally whispered. "There's got to be some way I can go home..."

"I'll find a way," Matrix growled.

Starwell turned away, facing the energy dispenser again. A few of the nearby binomes glanced in her direction, but she ignored them. She shakily reached for another cup, but stopped herself. She didn't trust herself not to drop another one. Instead she gripped the edge of the dispenser tightly as if for support.

Her shoulders trembled and she bit down on her lower lip. She didn't want to start crying, she wanted to be stronger than that. But an involuntary sniffle escaped her nose.

"W-what if it never works?" She looked at Matrix. Her eyes shone with tears. "What if I really can't go home?"

He could have suggested game hopping, but that would have probably ended badly and he wasn't sure how it would have worked for a User. "We're still working on it, don't lose your head... Pup."

She stared at the dispenser for a long moment. Then she looked at him. For a moment it seemed like she might just run away again, like she usually did whenever she got upset or angry. She didn't.

Instead, she walked over to him and clutched at him. She sobbed softly against his chest.

Matrix put a his healthy hand on her, and couldn't help but be reminded of Dot, when he had first seen her after his time in the Games and away from home.

After a few nanos, she finally pulled back a bit. She sniffled and wiped her face on her sleeve. "I'm sorry," she said. She still felt stung by the news, though a bit sheepish for crying at the same time. "Just... I don't know if I can handle living in the Net for the rest of my life, you know? I mean, I really like you guys, and you've done so much for me, but..." She trailed off. She had to wipe her eyes again.

"...Just isn't home. I understand." Matrix closed his eyes briefly.

Starwell nodded. She looked up at his face, but she didn't quite meet his eyes. "Yeah," she said. "And I feel like I need to watch it every time a Game comes down. What if I accidentally nullify a sector again?"

"What if I hacked Mainframe's Core again? Honestly Sugar, you shouldn't beat yourself up."

Starwell turned sharply to see a familiar, orange-haired sprite. "Mouse?" she exclaimed.

"Howdy girl," said Mouse, she nodded at Matrix, "Matrix."

"Mouse," said Matrix.

"Well, in this waterworks, I got some good news. Your icon is finished."

"Icon?" Starwell squinted at the Hacker's hand. Sure enough, it held a flat, circular disk. It was the kind that most binomes and sprites had around Mainframe, with a few exceptions. "You're giving me an icon? What for?"

"So you can enter games without nullifying someone or something accidentally." Mouse pulled from her belt an icon similar to the ones everyone had, though the color scheme was slightly tweaked. Instead of the usual black and white, this icon was off-white and dark blue.

Starwell stared at it. She made no move to take it, but her body language made it clear she wasn't openly rejecting it either. She seemed cautious, curious. "Really?" she breathed after a moment. "That little thing will keep me from hurting anyone in games? How will that work?"

"In theory. I programmed it myself."

"Programmed it to do what?" Starwell blinked, still hesitating. "How will the games see me if I take this?"

"As a User-based AI. Instead of a User or a game sprite, you'll be accepted as Player Two."

"Huh... okay." Starwell tentatively reached out and took the Icon, holding it gently with her fingertips around the edges of the circular disk. She held it out in front of her at arm's length, staring at it as if it might bite her. "This is going to do anything weird to me when I put it on, will it?"

"Nah, just formally registers you in Mainframe. Nothin' will happen."

Starwell eyed the icon again. Then she looked at Matrix, as if silently asking for some kind of reassurance or confirmation of Mouse's words. She simply wasn't too keen on putting something new on her person, especially something that would likely become... permanent. It wasn't like attaching a pin or a piece of jewelry, after all. She was smart enough to know that much.

Matrix gave a tired but amused face, and nodded. He tapped his own icon, switching it briefly to Game Sprite Mode, before switching it back to normal.

"Okay..." Starwell glanced down at her bitmap. She then put it on her chest, above her bosom and below her throat. The same place Dot wore hers. It nestled into place. "Am I supposed to tap it or anything?" she asked, still staring at it.

"Nope. You're already registered."

"I don't feel any different," Starwell commented, somewhere between relieved and disappointed.

"You're not supposed to. The icon is just as much apart of you as you are of it."

Starwell eyed Matrix's icon, remembering the time from the first game when she held onto it for him. "I think I understand," she finally said. She then turned to Mouse. "Hey, thanks," she told the Hacker. "Maybe... I'll be able to test it out sometime." She gulped, fearing that it might not work.

"I wouldn't worry about it Sugar."

Starwell gave a little smile, but then it quickly faded. She sighed softly. Her plans to go and get some sleep had gone out the window; after hearing Matrix's news, she didn't feel like sleeping. Besides, the energy she had drank energized her a bit more.

"I'm not sure what to do now," she muttered out loud.

"I know what'd cheer you up, a Night on the town."

"Out on the town?" Starwell repeated. "Uh... what's there to do out there?" She thought briefly of her own world. Sometimes she would go out the Cinema with her friends, other times they might go to the mall... or play games. Ugh. Games.

"Probably a drink at Al's. Catch a Vid, something like that."

"That... sounds kinda nice, actually," Starwell said thoughtfully. Obviously Games were not a fun pass-time in this System. She would never be able to look at a Game the same way again, even if she did return home. But... maybe Mouse could show her a good time. "Anybody else coming?" Starwell asked. "What about you, Matrix?"

"No," Matrix deadpanned, "You need to get out more."

"I can probably drag Dot along, and AndrAIa may want to come."

"Uh, okay," Starwell said. She inhaled deeply. Okay, she told herself, just... forget about home for now. Just let yourself think you'll be back there soon, and just... have fun. Go mindless.

"Can we go now?" she asked Mouse hopefully.

"Of course Sugar, lets go get Dot." Mouse began to walk out of the room.

"Bye, Matrix," Starwell said simply, and followed Mouse out.

"Have fun, Pup," was all that Matrix said.

"Do you think Dot will want to come with us?" the User asked as she followed Mouse. "I mean, she seems pretty busy most of the time."

"She'll follow, if you make her."