Chapter Three:

The Un-laid Plans of Sprites:

The park was beautifully decorated by the time Specky arrived with Phong.  He gingerly pushed the old sprite's wheelchair through the maze of friendly faces and bustling activity of the festival, stopping several times to say hello to old friends, neighbors and well wishers.  Before arriving at the park, it had struck the aging binome just how much things had changed for the old sprite who was now well past his 100th hour.  He didn't seem to have a strong grasp on reality any more, as he once did while working as the System Administrator.  At times, Phong didn't even seem to recognize those that he called his family and loved ones and it tore Specky's heart to pieces to see him like that. 

            The festival was not quite in full swing, but there were many sprites and binomes taking in the lavish decorations and the lovely second.  People were arriving from all over the city to begin the festivities and to hopefully find a bargain at the vast flea market that had been set up.  As the crowd began to thicken, Specky took the opportunity to find a shady spot by a park bench and sat down with his old friend.

            "What a glorious second for a wedding." Phong stated as he looked around the busy park.

            "We're not at a wedding Phong," Specky corrected the old sprite, "this is the restart festival.  It's been 35 hours since the restart."  He almost shouted due to Phong's considerable hearing loss.

            "Ah yes, the restart." Phong's face grew dim and it seemed he was recalling that day from the past to his now fading memory.  A nano later, it was apparent that he didn't recall it at all.  "What a lovely second for a wedding." He said once again.

            Specky sighed heavily.  It saddened him deeply to see the once insightful and keen witted sprite now struggle with the simplest of memories.  Up until just a few hours ago, Phong had managed to stay aware of his surroundings, although the signs of aging had begun to show increasingly through the hours.  Now it seemed that he was lost, no longer a part of the system around him, and it made Specky wonder about the fate they all would share someday when age took them all.  He patted Phong's wiry hand and with a heavy sigh he said, "Yes Phong, it's a beautiful second for a wedding."

            "Well, if it ain't two of my favorite gentlemen in the whole net."  The familiar voice came from behind them.  Specky looked around to see Mouse coming toward them on her zipboard.  He noticed that Ray and Nick weren't too far behind her, talking to each other.  "Phong, it's so good to see you." She said as she bent down to embrace him. 

            "Ah, it's good to see you too, my child."  It seemed that the fog had been lifted from the old sprite's mind as he noticeably recognized Mouse.  "Are you ready to walk down the aisle?"

            Mouse pulled back a little upon hearing the inquiry, wondering if perhaps she had heard him right.  She raised an eyebrow and looked to Specky.

            "Oh dear," the binome replied, "I'm afraid he still thinks that he's at a wedding."

            Mouse nodded in understanding and looked back to Phong, worried that he possibly didn't recognize her at all.  "Phong honey, I'm already married.  You were there, remember?"

            "Do not worry, my child," Phong continued as he took her hand in his, "Ray will make a fine husband.  He is a good sprite and he brings out the good in you, and you in him as well."  He smiled at her and patted her hand.

            Mouse couldn't help but smile at her dear old friend.  The circumstances might have been a little confused, but at least he did in fact recognize her.  She remembered him saying those very words to her twenty-five hours ago when she wasn't so sure whether or not she would marry the surfer.  She had never felt that she was one to settle down and wasn't sure that being married was right for either of them.  But Phong had managed to talk some sense into her as she recalled, and she had never regretted the decision since.  Thinking about this, she squeezed his stiff and spindly hand gently in hers and kissed him on the forehead.  "Thank you Phong." She said as the old sprite blushed slightly.  "You're right, of course."

            He smiled and nodded at her.  "Now," he began once again, "what does someone have to do to get some cake?"

***

            "Now remember to keep your eyes peeled for Matrix." The surfer said to his son as they hung back slightly from Mouse. 

            "Don't worry Dad, I'll let you know if I see him." He said out of the corner of his mouth, making sure that no one could hear their hushed conversation. 

            "Don't act so nervous, Son." Ray said as he patted his son's shoulder.  "Someone is bound to think you're up to something." He smirked at the look that Nick gave him, and then continued.  "You sure you don't want to be the one to plant the command on the bike?  He won't be expecting you to do anything and I'm sure he'll be keeping a good eye on me after yesterday."

            "Yes, I'm sure." The young sprite said firmly.  "I haven't been around in a while and I don't even know what the bike looks like, remember?  Besides, Matrix will probably be so busy trying to get even with you, he won't even notice."

            "Hey, what do you mean get even with me?" Ray said as he grinned at his son.  "I was just getting even with him.  He starts it all, you know."

            Nick laughed slightly at his Dad's words.  "Sure Dad, whatever you say.  Just make sure you don't get caught with that command.  We could both get into a lot of trouble having that thing, not to mention having two more in the…"

            "Shh…" Ray cut him off as they neared the park bench where Mouse was now giving Phong a hug.  She looked genuinely happy to see him and both Ray and Nick smiled as they saw the joy in her eyes.  They slowly approached and watched as she kissed him on the forehead and held his hand.  Specky noticed them from the corner of his eye as they came around the side.

            "Well, hello there Nick."  He said as he saw the young sprite.  He stood up and took the lads hand in his and shook it vigorously.  "It's good to have you back in Mainframe."

            "Hi Specky." Nick replied as he returned the handshake, almost knocking Specky off his feet. "It's good to be back.  It's good to see you too.  How've you been?"

            "Just the usual around here," Specky stated, "nothing special."

            "Well, at least things are running smoothly then." Nick said as he looked over the top of Specky's head to see Phong looking in his direction.  "Hello, Phong."  He walked slowly to the old sprite in the wheelchair and knelt next to his mother.  "How are you?"

            Phong gazed intently at the young sprite in front of him and a smile crossed his face.  "Ah, hello my son." He said enthusiastically.  "Have you come to see the President?  I believe that she has stepped out for a moment."

            Nick sighed along with his mother, but he couldn't help but smile.  Phong might not have recognized him, but his warmth and caring nature were still abundant.  "Actually, I came to see you, Phong."

         "Oh, that is good. I have something for you," Phong said as he slid open his drawer and began rummaging through it, "I know it's in here somewhere. Ah, here it is." He pulled out a small box marked 'paper clips' and handed it to Nick. "Do not open it yet."

         "When am I supposed to open it?" He said as he took the box from Phong.

         "When the time is right." Phong simply replied with a nod.

         Nick was a little confused by the old sprite's request, but he humored him and kept the little box and put it in his pocket. "Thanks Phong," he said as he stood up, "I'll remember that."

         Phong nodded once more. "Now, about that cake?"

***

            "C'mon Dad, you don't want to be the last one there, do you?"  Adell's voice rang out from the back of the bike.  "Pick up the pace a little!"

            Matrix grinned as his daughter playfully kicked at the sides of the bike to spur it on.  "Alright," he replied, "hold on, but don't say I didn't warn you."  He twisted the throttle and they shot forward like a rocket, Adell voicing her agreement as they picked up speed.  She gave her mother and uncle an exaggerated wave as they were quickly being left behind.

            "Are we going to let them get away with that?" AndrAIa asked with a half smile as she looked toward Enzo, who already had that competitive look in his eye.

            "I don't think so."  He replied as he twisted the throttle on his own bike while AndrAIa did the same to hers, racing toward the now distant pair on Matrix's new bike.

            Adell giggled with glee as her father made a steep dive for Floating Point Park.  Although she wanted nothing more than to raise her hands above her head and say 'Wheeee', she held tight to him, knowing that he would only reprimand her for her disregard to her own safety if she did.  She'd already heard the speech too many times to recall and wasn't willing to go through it again if she didn't have to.  Beside that, he was in an uncharacteristically good mood, and she certainly didn't want to do anything to spoil it.

            As Matrix sat the bike down gently in the park and hit the kill switch, the roar of engines could be heard in the distance as Enzo and AndrAIa fought to catch up to the father and daughter.  Matrix shielded his eyes as he strained to see the pair, still at least a half a sector away.  Adell climbed off the back of the bike as Matrix still laughed at the sight of them racing.  "Care to put some credits on who the winner will be?"  He asked as he climbed off.

            "Looks too close to call as it is." She replied as she squinted her eyes toward the distant pair.  "Besides, I really don't have the extra credits to be gambling with right now."  She put on a sad puppy-dog face and batted her eyes pitifully in an attempt to guilt her father into giving her some extra spending cash.  "Starving medic student, remember?" 

            Matrix rolled his eyes and shook his head as he reached for his wallet.  "That's low, even for you kiddo."

            "It works, doesn't it?"  She added with a grin as she held out her hand.

            Matrix shook his head again as he handed her some credits.  "Too well.  Don't go blowing it all on spam, you hear?"

            "Does that mean I/O shots and male strippers are out?"  She asked with a giggle as her father retorted with a stern look.  "I was just kidding, Daddy."

            He rolled his eyes once again. "User, you act like your mother."

            "I'll take that as a compliment."  She smiled and gave her father a quick kiss on the cheek.  "I'm going to go and check stuff out.  I'll meet up with you guys later."

            He was about to yell to her to be careful, but the sound of roaring engines cut him off as his wife and brother landed close by.  He watched as they killed the motors and got off their bikes.  "Where's Adell headed in such a hurry?"  AndrAIa asked.

            Enzo laughed as he gave his brother a clap on the shoulder.  "You gave her credits, didn't you?"

            "Yeah," he said as he watched her walk off in the distance, "I have a feeling we won't be seeing her for a while."

            "You'd think you'd learn by now." AndrAIa laughed as her husband looked at her wearily. 

            "It's the face," Matrix said with an accusing tone to his wife, "she gave me the face again.  You know which one I mean.  That little puppy-dog face that she learned from you."

            "It works, doesn't it?"  She said through a laugh.

            Matrix sighed heavily and rolled his eyes for the countless time that second.  It was just like having back up copies of the same sprite in his household.  Now he began to realize what he and Enzo must have been like for everyone else, no matter how different they looked.  He gave AndrAIa a stern look and said with mock disgust, "Don't even talk to me."

***

            Adell wandered around the park, not really having a specific destination in mind.  She saw a lot of old friends and neighbors that she hadn't seen in a long time, and made sure to say hello to as many of them as she could.  She hadn't realized fully until now just how much she had missed Mainframe.  As much as she loved her studies and looked forward to her internship, it felt good to be home. 

            As she walked around looking at the attractions and various flea markets, she spotted some very familiar faces gathered around a park bench.  She made her way over to them quickly, having missed them so much while she was gone.  Ray and Mouse had been like family to her while she was growing up, and Phong had been a gentle grandfather figure for as long as she could remember.  She also spotted the very familiar flaming red hair of her former playmate, Nick.

            Memories came flooding back to her of when they were children.  Being relatively close in age and not having a lot of other sprites the same age to play with, they spent a lot of their time together playing zip tag in the park, hide and seek in the Principal Office, or vector ball and circuit racing as they got a little older. 

            A grin came over her face as she quickly snuck up behind her childhood friend, unnoticed.  "Guess who." She taunted as she covered his visor with her hands.

            It didn't take Nick long to realize who it was behind him.  "The net's friendliest mugger?"  He replied as everyone turned to them.

            "Adell," Mouse said enthusiastically as Adell uncovered Nick's eyes, "it's so good to see you, sugah."  She put her arms around the girl and embraced her.  She had been like a second child to Mouse when she was young and still felt a bond with her, despite her being no code relation.  

            "It's good to see you too, Mouse." Adell said as she returned the embrace.

            "Don't go hogging all the hugs, Mom." Nick admonished as he grabbed both of them and gave them a squeeze, causing them to laugh.

            "My turn." Ray said as he pushed his way through to give Adell a hug.  "How're you doing, love?"

            "Great," she replied as she wrapped her arms around him, "I just missed you all so much."  She turned to see Specky and Phong on the bench in front of her and went to greet them as well.

            Ray knew that Matrix was there somewhere, now that Adell had made an appearance.  He made a slight nodding gesture to his son, and receiving a knowing nod in return, he took the opportunity to quietly slip away while everyone's attention was elsewhere. 

            "So, are you here all by yourself, sugah?" Mouse asked Adell after all the greetings and hugs had been taken care of.

            "No," the young woman replied, "Mom, Dad and Uncle Enzo are around here somewhere.  I just wanted to look around at the flea markets and I know my dad doesn't really get into that." She laughed slightly as she continued. "Knowing Mom though, she should be right behind me any nano now."

            Mouse smiled as she replied, "Well, the girl always did have an eye for a bargain."  As she looked up, she noticed AndrAia coming their way.  "And speak of the devil, there she is.  I'll catch you all later, darlins.  We got some bargain hunting to do."  She gave Adell and her son each a squeeze before walking off to catch AndrAIa. 

            "So," Adell said as she turned to Nick, seeming to notice for the first time that not only was he a little taller than she remembered, but a lot more muscular, "you in any hurry to do anything, or do you have some time to kill?"  All of a sudden, it seemed strange to her to be asking him something that she wouldn't have thought twice about in her younger hours.

            "Seeing as how Mom and Dad are off on their own adventures," he smiled at her as he tried to picture her as the pigtailed girl that he grew up with, "I guess we can just… hangout for a while."  He paused for a nano, not really knowing what to say to her anymore.  She had changed so much since he last saw her and he now began to feel like a dorky 16 hour old again.  He mustered up a little courage, reminding himself that this was the same girl that would give him wedgies if he irritated her enough.  "You look really nice, by the way."

            "Thanks," she said as she blushed slightly and smiled back at him, "you're not looking too bad yourself, hotshot."  She playfully slugged him in the arm.  "You want to take a walk around the park and catch up a little?"

            "Yeah," he replied as he grinned slightly, "I'd like that.  We got a lot of catching up to do."  Nick felt almost relieved that she seemed to be the same old Adell.  She still smiled the same way and had that adventurous look in her eyes, but he couldn't help feeling different around her for some reason.  Maybe it was just that she was wearing makeup this time. 

            "I'll even buy lunch." She said as they started off.

            "Let me guess," he grinned as he put his arm around her shoulder like he always had, "you swindled your dad out of some credits again?"

            Adell broke into laughter as they walked on.  "You know me too well."

***

            Matrix was nowhere in sight.  Ray breathed a sigh of relief as he made his way through the parking lot and over to Matrix's bike.  He knew he had to do this fast.  After the stunt he pulled the second before, Matrix would be on the lookout for anything suspicious along with trying to find him to get even. 

            As he neared the bike, he pulled out the unstable unformat command from his pocket and stared at it for just a nano.  This would take their feud to a whole new level.  It seemed that in the past couple of hours, things had been dieing down and they were starting to get bored with all the childish pranks.  This would put some spark back into their personal vendetta and give them a reason once more to stay on their toes. 

            He didn't expect anyone but Matrix to understand why this war had gone on for so long.  He had heard the speech over and over about how stubborn they were being and how they should just end it.  Neither one of them could do that though.  It was almost an unspoken agreement between the two of them.  They needed this game of cat and mouse to live.  It kept them sharp and alert.  Without it, they would simply grow old and delete. 

            Ray guided the baud next to the bike in question and knelt beside it.  He quickly opened the side hatch and very carefully installed the command onto the ignition wires.  He knew that it might not work right away, considering its age and instability, but eventually, one good knock or jolt would slowly melt it away to a puddle, giving Matrix enough time to land it before he was harmed. 

            He knew that Matrix would get even for this eventually, and the payback would be Dell, but it was worth it.  It gave him a reason to stay focused and try to get one step ahead of the game. 

            He closed the hatch as he finished and carefully looked around to see that no one had seen him.  When he was sure the coast was clear, he straightened himself, stepped onto his baud, and flew back toward the festival where he could hopefully spot and keep track of Matrix.  He was more than likely looking for him at the moment and plotting against him.  He hoped that he was.  It would make his triumph all the sweeter.

***

            While exploring the park with his brother, Matrix kept a watchful eye out for anything suspicious.  He had the unshakable feeling that something was going to happen that second.  They had been here for a couple of milliseconds already and he had yet to spot Ray, causing him to be more alert and cautious. 

            Enzo could feel the tension emanating from his older self, but tried to ignore it.  He knew all too well that getting involved just fed his brother's itch to retaliate against the surfer, and with there being so many sprites and binomes in the vicinity, it wasn't a good idea to let Matrix's paranoia run wild.

            "What do you say we grab a byte to eat?" Enzo broke the silence finally. "I'm getting kind of hungry."

            Matrix looked at his younger format as if just noticing he was there.  "Huh?  Oh, yeah.  I guess we could do that.  Now that you mention it, I'm getting a little hungry myself."

            "Come on," Enzo chuckled as he clapped his brother on the shoulder, "I'll buy, seeing as you gave all your credits to your daughter."

            Matrix rolled his eyes to Enzo and began heading to a nearby concession, when finally he spotted the surfer.  Ray didn't seem to see him, but he knew better than to underestimate him.  He acted as casually as he could while allowing his cybernetic eye to keep track of the search engine, a tactic that he used often in this ongoing grudge match.

            Ray continued his course through the park and was glad that his goggles prevented Matrix from noticing that he had seen him.  He smiled inwardly, knowing that Matrix had that eye of his trained on him the whole time he was there.  He still kept watch for anything suspicious though.  Even with Matrix in plain sight, he could be taken by surprise if he didn't stay on his toes. 

            As the two sprites secretly staked each other out, their concentration was interrupted by a familiar voice from above the system.

            Warning.  Incoming game.  Warning.  Incoming game.