"How's work going so far?" Bob asked. He stood by the kitchen counter, leaning over a bowl of grapes. Dot was on the other end of a vidwindow sitting in her office. A sandwich sat untouched on her desk. Bob periodically popped grapes in his mouth as he awaited her answer.

It was her first day back at work since the open house disaster. Unfortunately by that point she had remembered every second of it. She was beyond embarrassed, but could only bear to use two weeks of vacation at once. The first three days off were much needed, but after that she found herself itching to do something. Sitting at home was near torturer when she knew how much needed to be done at the principal office. Dot had hoped that two weeks was long enough for every sprite to forget what had happened. She was wrong.

"Speckie was in a particularly good mood this morning." She said before taking a sad bite out of her sandwich.

"He's not trying to take your job."

"He is, trust me. Even before all of this."

"Well, what about everyone else? Any other sprite give you trouble?"

"No, but that's because everyone's avoiding me."

"Is that all? That's not so bad."

"I know…" She gave a weak smile, "thanks for this, Bob."

"No trouble at all."

Bob actually loved that she wanted to talk to him during lunch. Back when they first started dating they were both too busy to see each other. They would vidwindow all the time; eat and talk about their day. As cycles passed they talked less and less until they stopped calling altogether. They figured since they lived together it wasn't necessary. It was nice rediscovering one of their old traditions.

"The core is having maintenance done at 1400 today. I have so much work to catch up on before then. But, I'm actually looking forward to reading through the old schematics and code for the containment field. It probably hasn't had a full diagnostic run since it was first constructed."

"And how long ago was that?" Bob smiled. Dot was starting to sound like her old self again.

"45 cycles at least!"

Bob laughed.

Suddenly another vidwindow opened up next to where Dot's was. Bob looked over, surprised.

"Turbo?" Bob exclaimed.

"Hi, Bob." Turbo spoke in a solemn voice.

Bob could tell from the look of him that something was wrong. He never just called to say hi.

"Dot, I'm going to have to go. Talk to you when I pick you up?"

"Sure, Bob."

Her vidwindow disappeared and Bob turned towards Turbo.

"Turbo, what's going on?"

"You might want to sit down for this, son."

"I think I'll stand." Bob crossed his arms.

"Sit down, Bob. That's an order."

Bob hesitated for a moment before walking over to the table and taking a seat. Turbo's vidwindow floated over to him.

"... Bob, there's no easy way of saying this so I'm just going to give you the facts."

"All right."

"It's about Dixon."

Turbo droned on, but Bob didn't process a word that was said. Even though he was right there, Turbo's voice sounded distant and muffled. Dixon… A name he hadn't heard in a long time; a sprite he hadn't seen in ages. How long had it been exactly?

Bob was thankful he had sat down. There were so many thoughts spinning in his head he was actually starting to feel dizzy. After a moment he regained his composure.

"What about Dixon?" He asked, finally ready to listen to every word Turbo had to say.

Turbo sighed, and Bob prepared himself for the worst. Being a guardian meant that he was no stranger to death. It was a dangerous job, and doing it during a war hadn't been easy. He put on a brave face.

"She's awake."

# #

AndrAIa struggled with an arm full of grocery bags as she came through the front door. She used her foot to kick it closed behind her. Matrix had replaced the hinges, so she didn't need to use force anymore.

It was pitch black inside, but she had walked the path to the kitchen a thousand times. She effortlessly navigated her way to the counter, setting the bags down. After turning on the light she yawned, taking off her shoes. Her shift had seemed to drag on that day, and she went to the grocery store immediately after finishing work. She was relieved to finally be home. AndrAIa slumped down into an old wooden chair, resting a bit before taking on her next task. Matrix wouldn't be home for another hour and she planned on surprising him with dinner.

Since Matrix moved in he was constantly doing odd jobs around the house. If he wasn't at work he was fixing something. He had a never ending to do list. The appliances were all faulty in some way, the windows never got properly installed, and the floorboards were uneven to the point of being a tripping hazard. There was also the loose step on the basement stairs, and several holes in the wall left behind by previous tenants. Matrix had already made some progress, but the second he fixed one thing he found at least two more problems. Regardless, he never complained. She hadn't even asked him to fix anything.

AndrAIa really appreciated him trying to make their living situation more comfortable. The least she could do was make him a good meal. She stood and started pulling all the ingredients out of the plastic bags. She wasn't much of a chef. Apart from rolling sushi she didn't know anything about the culinary world. A coworker had given her a recipe that looked easy enough to follow, so she figured she'd give it a shot. AndrAIa pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of her pocket and glanced at the first few steps.

She took her time carefully chopping vegetables and seasoning the chicken. Just as she had everything assembled in a pan she realized she hadn't preheated the oven. AndrAIa glanced at the clock on the wall. Matrix would be home soon and the chicken was still raw.

She turned on the oven, adjusting the dial to the right temperature. AndrAIa set the instructions on the counter before walking down the hall to the bathroom. She decided to have a quick shower while she waited.

Once inside she opened the glass door to the shower, reaching for the tap. It took a few minutes for the water to heat up. She turned it on and leaned against the counter waiting patiently. She peeled off her socks, which were drenched in a healthy coating of sweat. She cringed at the feeling of it clinging to her flesh.

AndrAIa sighed and closed her eyes. The sound of water hitting the tiles was almost soothing. She could feel the temperature rising ever so slightly as steam started to come out of the shower. There was a moment of peace, but a sudden creek startled her eyes back open. She waited, and listened; this time trying to place the noise. To her it sounded like the front door opening.

"Enzo?" She called.

Off in the distance there was the softest of thuds. AndrAIa stepped out of the bathroom, light pouring out behind her. Her shadow stretched out into the darkness of the hallway. The only other light that was on was in the kitchen around the bend. She looked to the left. The front door was closed and there were no shoes on the mat. Even if Matrix had come home, he wasn't exactly light on his feet. She then looked down to the other end of the hall. Her eyes wandered over to the darkest corner of the house. In the living room she could see that the window against the far wall was open, a stiff breeze intruding. The white curtains that hung in front swayed inwards.

"It's just the wind." She sighed, relieved.

AndrAIa slowly went over to close the window. Despite being certain that the noise had come from there something still felt… Off. Since Matrix moved in, the house began to feel warm and inviting, but at that moment it seemed completely devoid of any affection. For a second AndrAIa felt unwelcome in her own home.

Still she pressed on. Her bare feet moved closer and closer until she reached her destination. She pushed down on the windowpane and it creaked, but didn't budge. AndrAIa put her body weight into it and it slammed shut. She looked around, seeing if she could find what had fallen. Everything seemed to be the same; every picture in its place and cushion where it belonged. What caused the noises she heard?

As she slowly made her way back to the bathroom she couldn't remember if she had left the window open or not that morning. She tried to brush it off, concluding that Matrix must have forgotten to close it before he left. But that answer didn't sit well with her. It would have been uncharacteristic of the sprite. Matrix was overly cautious even with mundane things, but especially when it came to her safety.

She nearly made it to the bathroom when she heard footsteps. AndrAIa froze. She could usually hear Matrix coming from down the street, but these belonged to someone much lighter on their feet; someone who carried far less weight. The footsteps belonged to a stranger.

Her heart pounded rapidly, making it harder for her to listen. She knew the general direction it came from, but not exactly where. She glanced over her shoulder, back at the window. Whoever was there must have heard her close it. Or maybe the sound of the shower running had drowned it out.

She took a deep breath. The front door was just at the end of the hall. AndrAIa slowly inched her way closer, trying her best to stay quiet. She got halfway there when one of the floorboards creaked beneath her weight.

AndrAIa watched in horror as a shadow slowly started to appear in front of the door. A glint of silver surfaced from around the corner. It looked like the end of a surfboard. She didn't want to stick around to find out though. AndrAIa quickly turned around the opposite bend, backing into the kitchen.

Shuffling came from behind her. She spun around to see a tall, lanky sprite leaning over the counter. In his hand was the recipe she had been following. He spoke with a smile on his face.

"Honey glazed chicken breasts. Sounds delicious."

He spoke with an accent, one AndrAIa had never heard before. His deep voice was smooth, yet unsettling. A chill ran down her spine.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"...How rude of me. I'm Ray, and I suppose I'm just a man, who'll do anything to survive…" He dropped the paper on the ground and took a step forward, AndrAIa stepped back in response, " I know who you are AndrAIa, I know what you are. You're coming with me. And we can do this the easy way, or the hard way; it's up to you."

"Tough choice."

"Ha, a sense of humor. This is going to be an entertaining trip."

He reached a hand out for her to take. AndrAIa quickly glanced at the clock. Matrix would be home any second.

"I'm not going anywhere with you." She spat.

"The hard way it is, then."

AndrAIa bolted. He lunged after her, but wasn't fast enough. Glancing over her shoulder AndrAIa could see the surfboard hovering by the front door, guarding it. She started running the other way, towards the back room, when suddenly Ray slammed into her. This sent them both flying through the bedroom door. AndrAIa's mind numbed as her head collided with the ground. Splinters rained down around them. She kicked him off and turned, clawing, trying to get a hold of anything.

"Stop fighting me!" Ray screamed, holding onto her legs tightly. She kicked, but wasn't strong enough to break his grip.

One of her hands grabbed onto something that was under the bed. Quickly she threw it. It was one of Matrix's work boots, which hit the intruder's face with surprising accuracy. Ray cried out on impact as a steady stream of blood started to trickle out of his nose. He nursed his wound, giving AndrAIa enough time to get to her feet and leap over him. Her first instinct was the living room window, but it always stuck. It would take too much time to force it open. There was another way out, though. The window in the basement was big enough for her to fit through.

She turned to the door next to her and opened it, revealing a set of stairs. With zero hesitation she ran down, jumping over the last few steps to a concrete floor. At this point Ray stepped out into the hall, following the sound of her running. He rushed over to the staircase.

AndrAIa went over and reached up to the window sliding it open. It was close to the ceiling so she had to jump to get to it. After a failed attempt she crouched low and put her all into it, jumping again. One of her arms managed to make it outside, grabbing a fist full of grass. As she started to pull herself up she heard Ray coming down the stairs.

Ray ran down the steps, his foot suddenly crashing through the second last one. It collapsed under his weight, causing him to sink into the staircase. He cursed as he fought to free his leg. Ray looked up. AndrAIa was already half way through the window. If she escaped it was all over. He was almost out of time and AndrAIa was his ticket to freedom.

After a bit of struggling he managed to get out and ran over to her. He jumped, grabbing onto her legs before she could escape.

"No!" She cried while desperately trying to pull herself out. AndrAIa screamed into the night as she felt herself slowly sliding back. The silence seemed to almost mock her. It was late, and there was no one around to hear her cries. And it was G-Prime, even if anyone did hear her, no one would help. Still she dug her nails into the dirt, fighting him. To Ray's surprise AndrAIa started to advance once again, despite having to lift his added weight. With a forceful heave, Ray pulled and she tumbled back inside.

AndrAIa screamed, clawing at him with razor sharp nails.

"Enough of this." He said, annoyed. Ray brought down a fist, crashing into her jaw with excessive force. He got to his feet and watched as she lay there wheezing, spitting up blood. Not wasting any time he pulled out a syringe, sticking it into her arm.

She whimpered as the infection slowly made its way through her code. Grogginess took hold of her, but she still attempted to swing at him. The feeble punch missed him by inches. Ray sat down, back against the wall and watched her as he caught his breath. He had spent the last two weeks watching, planning, and waiting for the right time. Admittedly the whole ordeal was much harder than he initially thought. On the long list of horrible things he'd done, kidnapping wasn't one of them. His inexperience showed.

AndrAIa's vision began to blur. Her breathing got more and more shallow until there was silence. Her eyes finally closed. Ray sighed, relieved.

"All right sweet heart, let's get you out of here."

# #

Matrix parked his bike out front, taking his helmet off. He made his way to the trunk, pulling out a thin rectangular box wrapped up nicely with a bow. He had actually finished work ages ago, but made an extra stop before coming home. With only one bike between them AndrAIa often had to walk to work. Matrix smiled. He couldn't wait to see the look on her face when she opened her new zipboard. It would make getting around so much easier.

He nestled it under his arm and walked up the porch to the front door. Matrix entered. As soon as the green sprite was inside he could sense that something was wrong. He set down the box by the door.

"AndrAIa?" he called.

Pieces of the bedroom door lay scattered across the hallway. Matrix went over and looked inside. The bedroom was covered in debris, a lamp had fallen over and his shoe was on the other side of the room.

"AndrAIa, what happened?"

He went into the bathroom and opened the door to the shower. The water was running, but no one was inside. Panic gripped him.

Matrix ran out, scanning the bedroom again. He circled around the whole house, but there was no sign of her. In pure desperation he screamed her name, hoping she would respond. Finally he ran down to the basement. One of the last steps was completely destroyed. He continued down and looked around. As he trekked deeper into the room his eye was caught by something on the floor. His heart sank as he focused on the stain; it was dried blood. Matrix dropped to his knees and screamed; enraged.

"AndrAIa!"

She was gone.

End Log