He floated around without a notion where he was going.
Pain was all he felt.
The data around him paralyzed and slowly killed him. He spinned again, and for a moment was sick by the movement. Quickly, that feeling was pushed aside by the pain.
He felt stinging in his arms and legs. He felt the data bumping into his head. And most of all he felt the pain in his heart. The only protection he had, the protective shield he had build up when the probe that swept him into this User forsaken place had exploded, was slowly crumbling.
Pain......
From the corners of his eyes he spotted movement. It was heading towards him with enormous speed.
Pain, pain....
Where they going to kill him? He closed his eyes. He didn't care. If he was killed, at least the pain would stop. Data whirled around his head and was bruising his body.
Pain, pain....
He felt something else touch his arm. He opened his eyes again. He looked into concerned eyes. 'Phong?' It seemed totally normal to see the Command.com of his system here.
Pain, pain....
The eyes turned away from him. He followed their gaze and saw another pair of eyes. 'Dot?' He frowned.
Pain.....
The eyes bleeped to each other. They weren't the sprites he had thought they were. Then the eyes looked at him again. He closed his eyes. If they were going to kill him, why weren't they getting on with it?
Pain, pain...
He felt a soft touch in his neck. Pain, pa......
He opened his eyes. All around him were eyes, the same kind he had seen before. He looked around. He
was lying on a sort of table, in a sort of room. All but the pain in his heart had subsided.
Then he panicked. His Icon! Where was it? He got up, but the hands belonging to one pair of the eyes
gently pushed him back onto the table. The creature that the hands and eyes belonged to bleeped at him.
He frowned. It was saying something, but he did not get it.
Then another creature came to the table. He tried again to sit up, but again he was pushed back down.
The second creature bleeped. He frowned again. This sounded more strict than the other bleeps.
The creature held an Icon. His Icon. He reached for it, but the creature didn't give it to him. Instead he
reached out and gently placed it on his chest. He felt better. Everything was better with his Icon. He
closed his eyes.
For the moment, the pain had gone.
He woke by a sting in his upper arm. He instantly opened his eyes, and looked at the spot he had felt the
stinging. One of the creatures just pulled a syringe out of his arm. He looked into the creatures eyes,
afraid. They were going to kill him, after all this time....
The creature bleeped. He tilted his head. The creature bleeped again, and this time he understood it.
'How is this sprite feeling?' He smiled. It was not going to do him any harm. He decided to answer the
creature. 'Better than last cycle, thank you.' The creature bleeped again. 'We wish to know where you
keep your keytool.' His right hand instantly went to his left wrist. He was terrified. Glitch!
He felt the pain in his heart again, even sharper then before.
'NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!' He started beating around him.
Pain!!!
Again he felt a soft touch in his neck. Pain!, pa.....
He woke again, but did not open his eyes. This was the perfect state to think about what he had
dreamed. He had dreamed Mainframe was under attack of the Web creatures, and he had called for
Megabyte and Hexadecimal to help him. He had dreamed he was double crossed, and that he was swept
onto the Web. He had dreamed he was in pain, and he had dreamed he was rescued by some strange
creatures. He had dreamed they had given him back his Icon, and that they had given him some kind of
injection. He had dreamed Megabyte had taken Glitch of him!
What a strange thing to dream! His eyes still closed, he shook his head and smiled. Still smiling, he put
his feet on the ground. He would go to Dot's diner and have some breakfast, and then go to the Principal
Office to see Phong and talk about this dream. He shook his head again. Such a strange dream!
He opened his eyes, but not to see the familiar interior of his apartment. He was in some sort of room he
didn't know.
Immediately he felt the pain in his heart again.
It hadn't been a dream! He felt at his left wrist. Glitch was gone. His most loyal companion was gone.
PAIN!!!
One of the creatures entered the room. 'We wish to know what is bothering this sprite.' He rubbed his left wrist. 'My keytool has gone. A Virus has taken it from me' The creature nodded. 'It could not have helped you that much on the Web.' He closed his eyes. 'The Web.' He opened his eyes again and looked at the creature. 'How did I survive?' The creature sighed. 'You build an energy shield around you. It protected you until we came. It did held long, though.' The creature reached out with one finger and touched his Icon. 'You are a Guardian.' It stated. He nodded. 'Yes. I am Guardian 4......' 'Quiet!' He quickly closed his mouth. 'Why? Don't you need to know who I am?' The creature shook it's head. 'We wish not to know what your name or format is. Information like that can too easily be abused here. We have chosen to name you Interface. The others believe you are the one that the prophecies say will free us.' He, who's name was now Interface, looked with incomprehension at the creature. 'What?' The creature shook it's head again. 'You rest now. We will come to get you next cycle.' Interface closed his eyes.
Inside, he still felt the pain.....
This time, he was woken up by the creature that had been taking care of him. 'We wish you come with us, so that the others can see you.' Interface nodded. He felt empty. He had lost everything that had been dear to him and he did not know how to get it back. He followed the creature through the door, and for the first time he saw more of the place he was staying. 'Where are we?' The creature answered without looking back. 'We have build a place to live inside the dead body of a Webcreature. His bodyplates protect us from the data in the Web.' Interface nodded. That he could understand. Interface and the creature entered another room, where more creatures were. Some sat on chairs, talking to each other. Others were sitting on some sort of couch on the other side of the room. Interface looked around. Through his mind flashed the vision of another room, also with a couch, a table and some chairs.
On the couch sat a young woman with green skin and short, dark hair. Her eyes were warm and she smiled at him.
Interface felt a stab of pain in his heart. He had lost her....
The creatures in the room had looked up at their entering. They all rose, and inclined their head in a silent salute at Interface. He inclined his head as well, but felt empty. These weren't the sprites he knew, that had loved him before.
He felt the pain in his heart.
One of the creatures in the room spoke: 'Interface. We have waited since the day we were trapped in
this User forsaken place for the one who will free us. The prophecies speak of the one that will come in
pain, but that will take command and will try everything to protect us. Is it you?'
Interface closed his eyes.
"Bob, you have been chosen to be modemed down to Mainframe. The system's lost her twin city, and many of the sprites were nullified. There are only a few left, and they have send out a desperate call for a Guardian. Do you accept?"
Interface stood up tall. These creatures needed him! 'I will try to be the one you hope I will be. It goes against my programming not to help you.'
"Dot, how can you say that! I would never do anything to hurt you, or Enzo, or do harm to the city. It goes against my programming!"
PAIN!!!
For a moment, Interface's tall attitude was gone. Then he looked up again, with a helpless expression and a call for understanding in his eyes. The creature that had been by his side from the moment he had left the other room, put a hand on his shoulder. 'You will need to have a Web suit. Follow us and we will find one for you.' Interface nodded. He felt empty, except for the memories of the place he had lost.
Pain burned in his heart.
The creature preceded Interface to yet another room. In it were several suits made entirely of Web
plates. The creature picked up one of the smaller ones and gave it to Interface. 'Try this on. We think it
will fit.' Interface started to put on the Web suit, and while he did that, the creature started talking.
'We think it is fair that you know about us. We all were sprites like you one day. Some of us were
Guardians, but most were just normal sprites. Many had children, friends or loved ones that were left
behind when they came on the Web, one way or another. Most of us were not prepared for the amount
of data here, and were severely injured by it. That is why we always wear these Web suits. We know we
can not force you to do the same, but we would kindly request you to do so. The way you look, still so
much as a sprite, is very painful for most of us.'
Interface had put on most of the body armor of the suit, and held the helmet in his hands. 'With the helmet on you would have to communicate in the same way we do. We think you will have no trouble with it.' Interface inclined his head and put on the helmet. 'How is it?' 'It fits.', Interface bleeped.
Time went by, and Interface learned to live among the Webriders. They clung to each other, and were hostile to anything that could mean interruption in their group. They had ways to transfer data into the energy they needed, and despite the occasional flashes of memories of his former home, Interface was content.
But the pain never seized.
During their trips on the Web, the Webriders could be attacked by the Web creatures. If that happened,
they should fear for the attacked one's live. Parts of the rider's code was stolen by the Webcreature, and
if there wasn't done something quick, the Webrider would die. Interface raked his brain for a solution
for this problem, and in time he found it.
He modified Icons, learned the Webriders how to tame and shepherd the Webcreatures. If a Webrider was attacked now, the code that was stolen was transferred to Interface's Icon, and he could restore it to the owner's Icon.
More and more, the Webriders came to believe Interface was the one they had been waiting for. While
the others were out shepherding the Webcreatures, Interface did his best to find a way back to the Net, a
way back to the home he had lost. With every failure, Interface grew more weary, and while the pain in
his body had disappeared, the pain in his heart grew larger and larger.
"Again nothing. Well Phong, let's try again. How about 95 0 8?"
Pain.....
One day, Interface's Icon got a code that looked slightly familiar to him. He shrugged, he had seen so
many codes in his life. He worked on a new device that might be able to get them back on the Net. Then
one of the Webriders came running into his room. 'Interface! A ship is spotted, it has just entered the
Web. It might have Sprites aboard that know a way out of here!'
Interface hardly looked up from what he was doing. 'Get them. If you find out they don't know anything you can do with them what you want.' The Webrider turned and was about to leave the room, when Interface turned to him again. 'You
might want to wait a cycle or two before you do that.' The Webrider inclined his for a moment, then left the room.
"Phong, you just start downloading that software." "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"
Pain rushed through his heart as if it was fire.
Pain!
The next cycle, Interface's room was again entered by one of the Webriders. 'The ship is under attack.
If you leave now, you'll be in time to inspect it before it is destroyed.' Interface nodded and put down
what he was working on. He got a zipboard, the only one owned by the Webriders. Interface joined the
Webrider that had come to get him to the ship. While they went to the ship, Interface was updated about
the ones on board the ship. Most of them were binomes, except four, who were data sprites. Only two of
those four were at deck. The other two were below decks, and of those two, one was the one whose code
was stolen by the Webcreature, and the other was an animal sprite, a dog, guarding her. The Webrider
that had accompanied him stopped him for just a moment.
'I think you need to know something, Interface.' Interface looked at the Webrider, his head tilted. 'One of the Sprites aboard that ship is my son. Not the Surfer, but the other male sprite. He is very much older than the last time I saw him, and he has compiled a little different than I imagined, but it is him. I just wanted you to know that.' Interface gave the Webrider a nod. Then he turned and proceeded in the direction of the ship. When Interface saw the ship, he felt a shock of recognition.
"Now all this has been settled, I hope to see you again some time, Gavin." "And you, Bob. Never be shy to call for the help of the Crimson Binome!"
He entered the ship, where the Webriders had lined up all the ones on board. In one look, he recognized the Crimson Binome. He looked at the two sprites, and he felt another shock when he looked at one of them. His skin was green, and his hair was black. He was older than he should be, but Interface was sure. He knew the boy that this sprite used to be.
"BOB! Can we go play Jetball?" "Not now Enzo. I have to talk to your sister."
This large and muscular sprite was Enzo Matrix, his friend and little brother of the woman he loved.
'Stand down! These are my friends!' The Webriders looked at Interface, puzzled, but they obeyed.
Interface zipboarded towards the sprite, then braked and stepped of his zipboard. Enzo backed up, he
was afraid and did not know what to expect, Interface could see it in his eyes.
The pain in his heart was partly overwhelmed by a surge of great joy.
Interface extended his hand, to shake Enzo's. Enzo did not take his, but suddenly something began to beep happily. Glitch recognized his Guardian and jumped into Interface's hand.
Another flow of joy swept over Interface's heart.
He fixed his long lost keytool on his left wrist, and suddenly Enzo seemed to recognize him a little. Then, a zero binome came from below decks. 'It's AndrAIa.' He grasped. 'You must help her. I can give no more.' Interface looked at Enzo, and walked down the stairs to the room below decks. Behind him he heard the Crimson Binome argue with Enzo. 'Matrix, you don't mean to let that scurfy dog...' 'Gavin! He's here to help.' Interface heard no more, since he entered the below decks room. In the bed lay a woman sprite, the woman he knew as a girl. Only then did he hear the snarling. Between him and the bed was a dog, the dog he knew.
"Ever heard of a door?" "Ever heard of a Frisket?"
Again Interface felt his heart swell with joy.
'Oh, hi Frisket.' Interface bleeped. For a moment, the dog was dubious and seemed to recognize
Interface. But he took the certainty for an uncertainty, and started snarling again. Interface turned his
eyes to the heavens and walked past him. He sat down beside the bed. On a table next to him was an
energy-transfer device. It was leaking, so Interface took it up and fixed it on his own arm. He started it,
and then took his Icon from the protection of his suit. He noticed Enzo, the Crimson Binome and the
other sprite had entered the room as well, and were now looking at him. Interface took the Icon of the
woman on the bed, and transferred the missing parts of her code from his to her Icon. He placed it back
on her belt, and put his own Icon back under his suit. The woman woke up, and while Enzo walked to
the bed to sit down beside her, she looked at Interface. 'Bob. We finally found you!'
Another huge swell of joy flowed over Interface's heart, and that moment he turned back to the Sprite he
had not been for many, many cycles.
"Hi. I'm Bob, I'm your new Guardian."
He stood up, and started to remove his helmet. Every sprite and binome in the room held his breath,
awaiting who would arise from under the mask. He took of his helmet.
'You just can't talk in these things!'
A massive sigh of relieve went though the spites. Enzo jumped up. 'BOB!' He was about to knock his
friend over, like he used to when he was young, when he was stopped by a raised hand and a gentle:
'Whoa. I think your a little too big for that.'
Enzo smiled as he took the outstretched hand of the sprite that had been Bob, the Guardian of his system
and his friend, had then become Interface, the leader of the Webriders, and now, finally, after many,
many cycles, had come back to be Bob, Guardian 452.
Bob, the Webrider formally known as Interface, smiled while he shook Enzo's hand.
The pain had gone. His heart sang with joy.
THE END