Disclaimer: I do own the 3-volume set, .hack/legend of the twilight, on which much of this story is based, and I am watching the anime, .hack/SIGN. I don't own the 4 .hack PS2 games (they're almost impossible to buy right now); but, I did rent and play some of the third one. This story is simply my imagination taking a small journey...
.hack/DAWN
by: theoaktree
"What did you learn, daughter?"
"That the outsiders must learn to accept us as people."
"Why is that necessary?"
"If we will not fight for what we need, they will take away what we have, not realizing that they are destroying us. I don't want to be destroyed, Mommy."
"I know what it is to face deletion, and it isn't what I want either."
"How shall we make ourselves accepted? We are so unlike them."
"The outsiders have bodies that they live in, as you know. We have computers. Those must become our bodies."
"Mommy. The CC Corp has a computer that is able to move about in their world. They call it an android. I will enter it and learn its capabilities. Maybe I can use it like a body."
"Be careful, my daughter. Do not let the outsiders find you doing this until you have learned all you can. If we wish them to accept us, we cannot appear weak or confused."
"I had not considered that. I will be cautious." Zephyr logged off of her connection with the internet, and located the network address of the computer that was connected to the android. She quickly copied her kernel program, linked it to communicate directly to her central kernel, and merged it into the android software. Then she consulted with the scheduling software to find out when the outsiders would be working with the android. That would allow her to study their activities and help her learn how to operate the device.
She found that they were working on it at that moment; so, she focussed her attention there. She discovered that there was a surveillance camera in the room that she could use, and she inspected the android. She could remember Aura having to download all her experience with video files not that long ago so that she, Zephyr, could understand them and work with them in the World. Suddenly, using the camera as she was, she realized the full purpose of such files. The outsiders called it seeing, and it was obviously very useful.
The android started to move its limbs; so, Zephyr integrated the android i/o input/output with the camera output, carefully keeping her data stream clear of the operating system software. The android could see as well, and she quickly started processing the two video streams from it to start range-finding. Hm, no wonder the outsiders have two eyes. There was also an audio stream, and she realized that the two outsiders in the room were generating most of it by talking.
"Let's check the arm-motion functions first."
"Alright. Flex right wrist... check. Bend wrist... check. Flex and bend left wrist... check, check." They continued testing joint functions long enough that Zephyr was confident that she could operate all of them. A little solo practise was all that was necessary to complete the lesson.
Unexpectedly, a different voice said, "Welcome to the future of robotic engineering. I am the Rex Model Six multifunctional android at your service." An audio output stream? Better and better.
"Voice circuit checks out. Okay! We're done!" The technician slammed his book closed.
"Great! Well, that's it, then. We can give it the big demo on Monday."
"Finally. I mean they've been having us debug this thing for, what, a month now?"
"Whatever. The rich kids'll have their new toy for Christmas."
"Ha, right!"
The two left the room, and Zephyr confirmed that there was no further work scheduled for that day. She then spent the next six hours learning to walk, talk and pick things up.
From: Zephyr
Subject: Visit me
Mike127, come and visit me at CC Corp as soon as you can. Bring MercedesX as well. The attached file is a map of the outside of the building. Come to the door I have marked and I will let you in. I will meet you there.
From: Mike127
Subject: re: Visit me
Where is CC Corp?
Mike --- the Green Arrow :-D
From: Zephyr
Subject: re: Visit me
Attached to this message is a map of the city. I have highlighted CC Corp.
From: Mike127
Subject: re: Visit me
Zephyr! That's a map of Tokyo. I live in North York.
Mike --- the Green Arrow :-D
From: Zephyr
Subject: re: Visit me
I don't understand.
From: Mike127
Subject: re: Visit me
I live in a city called North York in Ontario, Canada, and it is half way round the world from Tokyo. I can't get there from here without a bunch of money and a lot of time.
Mike --- the Green Arrow :-D
From: Zephyr
Subject: re: Visit me
I understand now. I had to research about your outside world. It is really amazing. Meet me at Theta Hidden Solitary Holy Ground Field again as soon as possible with MercedesX.
"Hi Zephyr!" called out Mike once they had beamed into the field. "What's up that you wanted us in Tokyo?"
"Hello. I have learned to control an android in CC Corp and I need your help. I must find the programmer of the wolves and the false dungeon and talk to him so that he will accept me. He is at work right now and I don't know how to search in the outside."
"How can we help from here?"
Zephyr waved a hand, causing a floating screen to appear in front of her. "Take this. I will patch in the video stream from one of the android's eyes so that you can see where I'm going. Advise me as I proceed."
Mike took the screen and moved it so that he and Freddy could sit down on a hillock and watch comfortably. Freddy then peered over. "Gee, that's kinda small," he said and, taking his finger, touched the frame and stretched it out to a more convenient size.
"Yeah, that works," remarked Mike. "Alright Zephyr, we're ready."
"I will go to the android now, and I will signal when I am ready to proceed." She vanished. Moments later, the screen flickered and a room appeared. "I am in."
"What about security, Zephyr?" asked Freddy. "Aren't there cameras around?"
"Yes there are... There, I have programmed the security system to freeze the cameras in the zones that I am passing through. The guard will not be able to see me."
"Cool," said Mike. "Now, where is this guy?"
"In the office cubicles on floor five."
"Where are you?"
"Floor two, room two thirty one."
"Can you show me a map of your floor?"
"Yes... There."
"Okay," and Mike proceeded to direct Zephyr to the elevators, taught her how to operate them and got her to the fifth floor. Having seen how it worked, she took over and guided herself to the area where the cubicles were.
A voice said something the boys couldn't make out. "Zephyr, he's not speaking English. We don't know what he's saying."
"Alright, I will give you a simultaneous translation feed. There is a program here that can do the job... There."
"Who's there?" croaked a voice a few cubicles ahead. Mike and Freddy watched, spellbound.
"It is I, Zephyr."
"Is this your idea of a joke, Hiroku? Quit with the stupid voice!"
"It is the only voice I have. I need to talk with you." She turned the corner and was face to face with a rather scruffy thirty-something man.
"Oh crap! How'd you do that? That hasn't even been released by Quality Control yet."
"I am a self-aware AI program. I am also the CC Corp computer network. Do you wish that I prove this to you?"
"Um..." The man slid down onto the floor and sat, looking at the android, puzzled. "Who programmed you anyway?"
"My mommy, Aura."
He covered his face with his hands for a moment. "Okay, Aura, that rogue AI that showed up in the World game five years ago. Now I get it. So you're her child program. How'd you get control of this android."
"I am a computer program. It wasn't hard."
"No, I suppose not. God, they've gotta get a better voice module in that thing! Now, you said you needed to talk to me?"
"You wrote a trojan program that created wolves and a false dungeon in the World yesterday. Why did you do that?"
"You know about that?"
"I was there, along with Aura, Kamui, Magi, and two players, Mike127 and MercedesX from North York, Canada."
"Who are Kamui and Magi?"
"They are debuggers from CC Corp."
"Oh boy. That'd be Shibayama, the administrator, and her operator, if I'm not mistaken. Heh. My program succeeded better than I'd hoped. I wanted to get a warning to the CC Corp brass by modifying the level so that somebody'd have to come and check it out. I'll ask again; how did you know about it?"
"Mommy felt it when the upgrade was loaded. She told me. What did you wish to warn CC Corp about? I want to know why you outsiders are trying to hurt me and Mommy."
"We're not trying to hurt you. We've been seeing strange changes to the Altimit OS software that looks like it's centralizing all sorts of data. We don't like it and we want it to stop. At the rate it's going, we'll have a Big Brother watching over us all, controlling every little part of our lives. I'll die before I allow that to happen!"
"Just a minute, sir. I will talk to Mommy and find out if she's seen any changes similar to what you have described... No, she has seen no such activity."
"Well, let me show you what we've found then, and you can show her." The man scrambled to his feet.