Disclaimer: Same as always...
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Queen of the CrashedBy
The 18th Angel (aka DaemonFan)
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Chapter 101- The First Virus
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"Well someone must know where he is!" Dot yelled at the police officer on the vidwindow. "He's the only Sprite his age in the entire system, he shouldn't be that hard to find!"
"Mrs. Interface?" Dot turned to see Cadet Disa behind her. "Are you alright?"
"Have you seen Bob?" Dot asked.
"He's with um...the uh...old guy?"
"Phong?"
"Yeah, Phong." Disa smiled nervously. "They're getting ready to transfer the data from the Supercomputer. Did you need something?"
"Well...Enzo's missing and..."
"Your little brother?"
"Yeah. He probably just went to a friend's house without calling, but with everything else that's going on..."
"Right." Disa nodded. "Well I can go get Bob and..."
"No." Dot said quickly. "This download is more important. I'm...probably just imagining things anyway."
"I could go look for him if you'd like."
"Really?"
"Sure." Disa said. "I'd love to help out."
* * * * *
"I'd love to help out." Disa muttered to herself as she made her way through Baudway. The sector was larger than all of Powercell put together. "I'd also love to have a clue where I am."
She looked around, studying the map Dot had given her. "Okay, the school is...there." She turned to face the school building. "So to get home, he would have gone...this way." She set off down the sidewalk.
Disa rounded a corner and found a Zip Board lying in the middle of the sidewalk. It was a small board; cheap and scuffed up, probably from tricking off railings and half-pipes. It definitely belonged to a kid. And while it wasn't the nicest board in the Net, it wasn't the kind of thing any kid would just leave lying around.
Disa bent down and examined the board. If it did belong to Enzo, then Dot's fears had been correct and something had happened to him. If it belonged to someone else, then something had happened to that person. Either way, her Guardian protocols wouldn't let her just walk away.
Disa picked up the board and looked around the street. If whoever owned the board had been abducted, the kidnappers probably wouldn't have dragged them down the street. Sure enough, half a block down a narrow alley led off the main street.
The Alley was dark and a little creepy. Rather than letting out onto another street, it ended in a solid wall. If the abductors had taken their captive in here - and she had to assume that they had - then there had to be another exit from the alley. Sure enough, a few windows set into the brick walls at foot level seemed to indicate basements. Using all the stealth and caution she had learned at the Academy and honed to perfection training in the field with Gray, Disa crept silently to the first window and peered inside.
Nothing. An empty basement rec room with a few beanbag chairs that looked like giant Nulls and a pool table. The next two windows in line offered similar results. There was only one window left. Disa knelt down next to it and looked inside.
Evidently, the fourth time was the charm. The room was unfurnished except for a single folding chair. Tied to the chair, struggling futilly against a file-lock, was a kid of about 1.2. His bright green skin and dark hair matched Dot's perfectly and his face was like a younger version of Matrix. This had to be Enzo.
Disa was searching for a way to open with window that didn't involve breaking the glass when she heard footsteps behind her.
"What are you doing?" A girl's voice asked.
Disa jumped and stood up, spinning around. Across from her stood a girl about her age, dressed in tight black jeans and a loose-fitting silk shirt. She had the same skin and hair as Enzo, Dot and Matrix, but a red, metallic crest, almost a crown, rose up from beneath the hair. Her eyes were like nothing Disa had ever seen, pure green with burning red pupils.
"You..." Disa whispered.
"What's this?" The girl laughed. "Another Guardian? Just how many of you are there?"
"You're Terabyte." Disa said. "You killed Gray."
"Very astute, Guardian." Terabyte nodded. "I am Terabyte. And I deleted your 'Gray'; took him apart piece by piece." She grinned coldly. "Care to see how?"
* * * * *
The Principal office was eerily quiet when Mouse and Ray stepped through the shimmering portal into the main chamber. A few Binomes hurried about their business, but no one came to greet the new arrivals, or even seemed to notice their presence. Of course, they had only been gone a few milliseconds, securing the traps Mouse had set around Mainframe's Web address, just in case Terabyte decided to pay them a visit.
"Sure ya can't hang around a while?" Mouse asked
"Wish I could, love. Duty calls." Ray said
Mouse frowned. Ever since the Guardians hired Ray as their own professional Web expert, it seemed they never got to spend any time together. And with Terabyte alive and loose in the Net, things were only going to get worse.
"Well if you manage to get a few seconds free any time soon, you know where Ah'll be" She said.
Ray nodded, stepping back into the Portal. "See you soon."
"Not soon enough." Mouse whispered once the Portal had vanished. She turned and headed for the war room.
Dot was in the war-room monitoring a data transfer, presumeably the evidence being sent from the Supercomputer. The download was almost complete. A few more microseconds and it would be done.
"Ah'm back." Mouse greeted her friend.
Dot acknowledged her with a nod. "How's it look."
"Everythin's just the way we left it." Mouse said. "Those traps can zap a pixel from a micron away."
"Good work, Mouse. Thanks." Dot said absently.
"You okay, Dot?" Mouse asked.
Dot sighed. "As good as can be expected."
"If ya need to talk about..."
"No." Dot said. "Thanks but...I just need to take this one step at a time."
"Fair enough." Mouse said. "Need any help here?"
"Yeah." Dot smiled. "Could you help them scan the incoming data."
"Sure thing."
* * * * *
Disa couldn't understand why she was still processing. Surely Terabyte had deleted Gray faster than this.
She had tried to fight back at first. Her training in hand to hand combat had been extensive; theoretically, she should have been able to at least defend herself. But Terabyte was simply too fast, too strong. After a while, she had stopped counting the blows and remained still, waiting for the Virus to finish beating her to death.
"Pathetic!" Terabyte yelled. "You're not even a real Guardian yet, are you? At least the others died fighting!"
Somehow, Disa managed to stagger to her feet. One eye was swollen shut, the other stung and blurred as energy flowed over it from a gash on her forehead. Terabyte stood before her, extending razor claws from her fingertips.
"Well I must say I'm very disappointed." Terabyte said. "I was hoping to have some fun with you. But this was just...boring."
Terabyte seemed ready to deliver the deleting blow when the sky above them darkened, becoming a hazy, greenish orange.
--DOWNLOAD COMPLETE. VIRAL SCAN COMMENCING.-- Terabyte was momentarily distracted by the System Voice. Disa took the opportunity to run. Well, run wasn't the correct word. Stagger would have been closer. Terabyte seemed to notice Disa's less-than-stealthy retreat. A feral, almost animal growl rumbled up from the girl's throat. She lunged straight at Disa...and froze in midair.
--VIRUS DETECTED. CLASS: UNKNOWN. ATTEMPTING VIRAL QUARANTINE.--
Terabyte struggled, crying out in frustration as an invisible force held her in place. Disa didn't bother to see whether Terabyte would break free or not. She turned and headed back for the main street as fast as she could. Everything in her screamed against leaving without rescuing Enzo, but common sense overrode even Guardian protocols. She couldn't help Enzo if Terabyte deleted her.
* * * * *
Megabyte had had a strange feeling all second. A little, nagging pressure in the back of his mind. If he had still been a Virus, he would have assumed that he was sensing another of his kind. Premonitions like that were rare, but not unheard of.
But he was no longer a Virus; he was a Sprite. And if there was one thing he had learned about Sprites in his runtime, it was that they were fragile. This feeling could be a symptom of a larger problem, an illness or injury, perhaps even life threatening.
After spending all morning trying everything he could think of the get rid of the feeling. Megabyte finally decided it was time to seek outside assistance. It was not a prospect he relished. There was only one person in Mainframe who knew enough about Sprite medicine to diagnose him...Phong. Going to see Phong was never a pleasant experience, no matter what the reason. Even less so when it involved his health and admitting, once again, that he was now just as weak, just as frail, just as mortal as all the rest of them.
He was within sight of the Principal Office when the sky darkened and the System Voice called out that a Viral Scan was beginning.
Well, I don't have to worry about those any more. Megabyte thought bitterly.
--VIRUS DETECTED. CLASS: UNKNOWN. ATTEMPTING VIRAL QUARANTINE.--
Megabyte stopped short just past the school building. There was another Virus in Mainframe. And from the sound of the Anti-Viral software working, it was somewhere nearby. He quickened his pace, hoping to catch a glimpse of the new virus. However, when he was right on top of the noise, a young Sprite with gray skin and light blue hair burst out of the alley in front of him, practically falling into his arms.
"Help..." The girl gasped before passing out. Megabyte caught her out of pure reflex as she fell.
Back in the darkened alley, he heard the sound of something strong tear through the viral scanner's restraints and run off in the opposite direction. If he dropped the girl and ran, he could probably catch up with whoever it was. But closer inspection of the girl in his arms revealed two things; she was a Guardian Cadet, and she was at deletion's door. If he left her here, she would almost certainly be dead in a few microseconds. That wouldn't have troubled him, except that a small crowd of Binomes had seen him catch her. If he left her here to erase, they would report that to Bob and he would never hear the end of it. Grudgingly, Megabyte picked up the girl and carried her to the Principal Office.
* * * * *
All the monitors in the war room lit up red as the System Voice announced the presence of a Virus in Mainframe.
"Location?" Dot asked urgently.
A set of crosshairs appeared on the targeting map. The crosshairs centered on a residential area near Baudway, uncomfortably close to the school.
"Enzo!" Dot rushed out of the war room without another word.
"Dot! Wait!" Bob called after her, running to catch up.
They were greeted on the steps of the Principal Office by Megabyte. Disa lay in his arms, lifeless as a doll. Every part of her not covered by her uniform was dark with bruises. Energy flowed from her nose and mouth, and from several cuts on her face. One of her eyes was swollen shut and her right arm looked to be broken.
"Oh, User!" Dot whispered.
"Megabyte!" Bob half-yelled, half-growled.
"Don't look at me, Bob." Megabyte said. "She was like this when I found her. I would suggest we get her inside. Quickly."
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"How bad is it, Phong?" Bob asked.
"Very bad, I am afraid." Phong said. "The cuts and broken arm were easy enough to fix. However, she seems to have suffered internal injuries that may or may not heal. And she has suffered several concussions, as well. Which means that permanent file corruption is a possibility. If Megabyte had not found her when he did..."
"Who would do something like this?" Dot asked.
"One person I know of." Bob said. "But...she can't be here."
"Bob...Dot..." Mouse popped up in a vidwindow. "You'd better get up here. There's...a call for you."
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The main view screen was filled with Terabyte's face. Dot bit back tears at the sight of her daughter. In many ways, Terabyte looked exactly the same, as if she hadn't aged a second. Yet at the same time, she seemed infinitely older than before. And she had a hard, cold look about her. The smile that crossed her face when she saw Dot was absolutely chilling.
"Hello, Mother." She said. "Good to see you."
"Terabyte... How...?"
"How did I get here?" Terabyte laughed. "Those little traps were all designed to let only Mainframers through. Well, I was compiled here, wasn't I?"
"What do you want Terabyte?" Dot asked. "Why are you doing this? Why are you hurting all these people?"
"It's a means to an end." Terabyte said. "But if you'd really like to know what I want," She pointed to Bob. "I want him."
"Me?" Bob asked.
"Well not you personally, though deleting will be a special treat. I want your little toy."
"Glitch?"
"That's right. Glitch. And I want you to get whoever has the one called 'Copeland' and bring him here, too."
"What are you trying to do, Terabyte?" Dot asked.
"I'm sending a message, Mother." The Half-Virus replied, stroking the jewel around her neck absently. "A very special message...for the entire Net. You see, I'm just the first peal of thunder, the signal of what's to come. You can't imagine the storm I herald. Ask my father. He'll know what I mean."
"Terabyte, please..." Dot pleaded. "You have to stop this. We can work this out."
"No!" Terabyte screamed, her face contorting with rage. "I fell for that once before! And what did it earn me? A one-way ticket into the Web! Don't think I'll be so basic again!"
"Terabyte..."
"Shut up! No more talking! This is what's going to happen. You get on the line to the other Guardians and bring Copeland here. Then we'll all have a little...date in Floating Point Park."
"Why should we do anything you say?" Bob asked.
Terabyte smiled, that chilling, evil grin. The vidwindow swung around, revealing Enzo, tied to a chair and gagged.
"Because if I don't have Glitch and Copeland in my hands by this time next second... Well let's just say there won't be enough left of Uncle Enzo for the System to recycle."
"You wouldn't!" Dot said.
The grin disappeared from Terabyte's face, leaving only harsh, unfeeling sincerity. "Yes...I...would."
The vidwindow closed.
"Glitch:" Bob said quietly, "Communicator. Contact Turbo."
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Terabyte shut off the vidwindow and pulled a spare chair over to where Enzo was bound and gagged. After working the gag loose, she sat down backwards in the chair across from him, her arms resting on the chair's back.
"Are you scared of me?" She asked.
Enzo nodded, too terrified to speak.
"I'm not evil, you know."
Enzo whispered something.
"What was that?"
"You murder people." He said.
"Only because it's what I was made to do." Terabyte said. "I can't go against my Code."
"You're lying." Enzo said. "Deleting isn't in your code, you just like it."
Terabyte lit a firewire and blew the smoke into Enzo's face, grinning as the young Sprite coughed. "But you see, I'm not killing without reason. I have a destiny, you know. And if the path to my destiny must be paved with corpses, so be it."
"Are you just trying to scare me, or have you always talked like a character from a bad .mpeg?"
"Watch your mouth, little Sprite!" Terabyte growled.
"Or what?" Enzo asked, getting back some of his courage. "You'll delete me? You can't do that before this time next second or your deal is off."
Terabyte smiled and extended a single claw, running it ever so lightly over Enzo's cheek.
"Silly little boy." She whispered. "I don't have to delete you to make you wish you'd never been initialized."
* * * * *
Turbo had been understandably shocked at the news of Terabyte's ultimatum and the resulting hostage situation. He had wanted to portal over to Mainframe on the spot, but had agreed to look up one more piece of information for Bob before leaving, acting on a hunch that terrified them both. Half a millisecond later, he stepped through a portal into the war room.
"How's Disa?" He asked.
"Critical but stable." Bob said. "She should pull through. What did you find out?"
"It's just as we feared." Turbo said. "That jewel Terabyte wears is a fractal seed, the result of wavelet compression."
"Wavelet compression?" Matrix asked. "What's that?"
"It is a very powerful form of file compression." Phong said. "But to my knowledge it has only been used once." Phong looked at Turbo, silently begging him not to confirm his fears.
Turbo nodded grimly. "Exabyte."
"Not the Exabyte!" Welman said.
"I'm afraid so." Turbo replied.
"Ah think a lot of us missed somethin' here." Mouse said. "Who...or what...is Exabyte?"
"You may know her by a different title." Phong said. "She who Must Not be Filenamed."
The color seemed to go out of Mouse's face in an instant. "You mean the First Virus?"
"But that's just a legend." Welman said. "A myth."
"I am afraid not, my friend." Phong said, shaking his head. "Like all legends, this one is based on truth."
"Wait a nano." Matrix said. "If this Exabyte is the first virus, she shouldn't be too powerful. Weren't the earliest viruses pretty weak?"
"She's not actually the first virus ever. She got that name by being the most destructive. She was the first threat ever faced by the Guardians though, before the Collective was even formed." Bob said. "It's also said that she was the most powerful enemy the Guardians have ever faced."
"What kind of Virus is she?" Dot asked.
"That's the problem." Turbo said. "If the legend is to be believed, she's not actually a Virus."
"So what is she?" AndrAIa asked. Bob, Turbo, and Phong were all silent. "Guys. What is she?"
"Exabyte is a goddess, my child." Phong said quietly. "She is a User."
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TBC
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