Chapter 17

Dawn

The atmosphere was cold, with a quiet chilling breeze blowing through the room. The area was destroyed with the markings of swords slashing against metal, and bullets that pierced through the thick walls, leaving small holes in their trails. At the end of the room was one large gaping hole, letting in a cold breeze while also giving a clear view of the world outside.

From the room opposite of the hole were two figures walking side to side. One was a tall pale man, standing at around six feet tall. His white skin was mixed with his grey hair that rested on top of his head, hanging above his eyebrows. His eyes were a dark-brown, which reflected off the florescent light in the room he walked in. The only pair of clothing, though, was a ripped piece of a tattered cloak tied around his waist, hiding his personal area from public view.

Next to him was a creature half his size. A green bear, who currently wore a shredded BDU jacket stained with dry blood, was limping by the pale man's side, holding his own left side with his right arm. Though in pain, the bear was smiling proudly as he looked up to the man next to him, both of them walking towards the hole in the wall in the next room.

These two figures were, respectively, the Stranger and Flippy.

And they were the sole survivors of the final battle.

After a few more steps, the Stranger and Flippy stood at the very edge of the tower, staring straight out to the world far beneath them. They both drew in a long breath, filling their lungs with the cool and fresh air. They then sighed in relief, both of them relaxing their tense bodies by letting them flow with the wind coming through the gap in the wall.

The Stranger looked down at his feet to see he was standing directly beside the ledge. His legs feeling weak and tired, he slowly brought his body down and sat comfortably by the ledge, letting his feet and legs dangle off the side. Flippy followed suit, letting his body relax on the ledge.

The two stared out to the world in front of them silently, only taking in small amounts of breath when needed. Despite how the world was still riddled with death, it somehow felt more… peaceful. With a mad god killed, the world felt more at peace than it had ever been before. The air felt fresh, and the world had an aura of a rebirth. Everything felt different.

And it was the best feeling the two ever had.

After sitting down on the ledge silently for a couple dozen minutes, Flippy chuckled quietly, hoping to find a way to break the awkward silence. The Stranger, though, had the same thought, and decided to speak up.

"Beautiful day, isn't it?"

Flippy smiled as he looked forward into the world. "Yeah… sure is peaceful…"

Silence between the two was made again briefly, both of them wondering how to bypass the time with some kind of conversation. There were so many questions and things that could be said, but where to start?

Flippy leaned his body forward, and turned his head to look up and face the Stranger. "So… what happened?"

The Stranger looked down to his left with a confused expression. "What happened?"

Flippy gestured his head back to the Control Room they both walked away from. "What happened in there? Why are we still here? Wasn't the plan supposed to go in there, find something to get us out, and leave? What exactly went wrong?"

The Stranger shrugged his shoulders as he attempted to find the answer to Flippy's important question. After a brief moment of thinking, the Stranger decided to just speak his mind.

"Well… you're right, it was supposed to go down without a problem… though obviously some complications arise that caused some difficulty with our situation."

Flippy kept his attention on the Stranger, never looking away. "Like what?"

"When I got inside the tower, after going through a shit ton of fighting, I found that guy over there" The Stranger turned around shortly to point out the dead body of the Mad Man, who still laid in his own pool of crimson blood.

"This whole time, this entire world and its problems were being managed by him. All I wanted to do was kill him the moment I saw him, for all the pain and suffering he has put us through. But… he was a unique person, I give him that, so… I was curious."

Flippy sat up straight while crossing his arms. "What was curious about him?"

"Besides the sick and sadistic attitude that made up this crazy bastard, he was possibly the smartest man I have ever met. This entire world, his devised plan on capturing everyone, his planned goals, everything, this guy had it all figured out. I was dumbfounded at how much this man knew, at his possible abilities of creating such a world with today's technology. What he pulled off… was mesmerizing."

Flippy tilted his head with a confused expression. "So his sick machine and murders was mesmerizing to you?"

The Stranger shook his head. "No, that never intrigued me a bit. What he did and how he used his machine is inexcusable. But still… what he created was still a work of art; it was still something that you could only find inside the pages of a comic book or from a film. The only problem was his sick and demented mind that became his passion for his creation. Unlimited power… the ability to act as God… it consumed his personality. Was he a good man before? That I never found out. But what his machine gave him was obviously too much for him, and he became the twisted god we all knew…"

Flippy nodded his head in agreement. "So he created a world that was beyond imagination and had it all figured out in how to make it work and capture us… so what happened after that?"

The Stranger let out a soft sigh. "I killed him. A bullet to the head was all it took to kill the son of a bitch once and for all… at least, that's what I originally thought." He turned around again and faced the dead body of the Mad Man. "You can see how that turned out."

As Flippy turned to face the dead body of the Mad Man, the Stranger turned to face Flippy once more. "Turns out, he planned for that to happen as well. He knew I was going to try and kill him, and he knew he would survive anyway… because I did not take into the fact that he was basically a god, and gods can't be taken down so easily by physical means. He was just waiting all this time to make me look stupid and prepare to kill me from the start. I was set up… because of my ignorance and inability to stop."

Flippy looked back at the Stranger with a worried expression from hearing his last sentence. He noticed the Stranger closing his eyes briefly before taking in a large breath before exhaling. The Stranger nodded his head and kept his eyes forward on the world beneath him.

"So we tussled for a bit, I lost, and he beat the living shit out of me, making me just wish to be killed. I was sure that, right then and there, that I failed in the end, that I was going to die and never see the light of day once more. But then…"

The Stranger looked down at Flippy. "But then you came…"

Flippy looked at himself for a moment with a serious expression, wondering where the conversation was going to go.

"Flippy… exactly, how did you get to me?"

Flippy looked up at the Stranger, who spoke up one last time. "I would like to know. I mean, I saw you fight Shadow Evil in front of my own eyes, saving me from the brink of death, and go off. I tried speaking to you, but your radio had died and I had no contact to you, thus I assumed you died. Not even that, the door to the tower was jammed shut, with no way to enter. So how in the hell did you make it up here?"

Flippy rubbed his chin with his right hand and chuckled softly. "Well… technically I did die."

The Stranger looked surprised by Flippy's comment before Flippy explained his answer in detail. "You see… after he stabbed me repeatedly and left me to bleed out, I had this feeling that something inside of me was trying to break out, this creature that was trapped in a cage and, with my death, was now opened and it was finally free. I had this feeling multiple times, but only when I was reminded of my past. This time, though, it just came out…"

Flippy looked up to the sky above him and nodded his head. "I guess when that thing killed me, that's who he killed: me. But there was still that second me, Evil, resting inside. So when I died, Evil was still alive, and he took over my dying body for me. Kind of like a second life that decided to continue the fight without me… heh…"

The Stranger, while understanding his answer, was still confused. "So you survived because of Evil… exactly, then, how did you get inside when the door was closed?"

Flippy looked up to the Stranger and shrugged his shoulders. "You see, that's the weird part. Initially, I saw those doors close on you, preventing me from coming inside to help you. I tried finding a way in, but never did… and then… it just opened."

The Stranger leaned back, his eyes widening from the answer. "The door… opened? On its own?!"

Flippy nodded his head. "Yep; one moment, the door was closed. The next, it just opened. I don't recall doing anything special, it just opened in front of me." Flippy looked forward to the world. "So, instead of questioning it, I took the opportunity to go inside, went up the elevator, ran down the hall, and there you were, about to be killed. Couldn't let that happen now, could I? Not when we were so close."

The two smiled as Flippy nodded his head. "So yeah, that's how it happened. My doppelganger came out to fight after my death, and the door magically opened. How I'm still standing now is an unexplainable miracle, but… that's my story on this."

The two friends sat silently for a moment again, before Flippy came up with another question. "So you answered my question about what happened initially, I understand that now… but, now I ask you, how are YOU still alive? If he killed you, and you failed to get us out of here, then why are you still here… and in your… well, regular self?"

The Stranger smiled as he looked at Flippy. "Well… it's like this. When you threw me into the Control Room, I went over to the computer in hopes that the Mad Man had set up the application to shut down the world. Obviously he never did and instead opened up a large file list that contained EVERY single line of created code and every file containing either important or useless information. To make it worst, there was no search command nor any way to sort it out. I was left with one huge screen of billions, perhaps trillions, of files, and the one I needed was hidden somewhere randomly. Again, it was all planned by him; he knew what to do all along."

The Stranger looked behind him at the computer for a moment, then faced Flippy again. "I knew in my mind that you would never be able to defend me long enough to find the file and get us home, it just wasn't going to happen. So, while I frantically searched the files, I came up with a second plan that could greatly aid the first."

Flippy crossed his arms. "And what plan was that?"

The Stranger gave a tiny smirk towards Flippy. "I needed more time. I wouldn't find it today, but perhaps another. But I needed a way that could help me give the time I need, something to survive long enough to fight and find the file, while still stopping that insane scientist. So… I came across one file on the list that I knew for certain would give me the time I need."

Flippy kept his attention on the Stranger as his friend spoke. "The file, titled administrative settings, had all of this information on the current Administrator of this world, who, at the time, was him. It had every possible information and command that an Administrator could perform, including name, health, status of the server… and the ability to grant Administrator status to any Host."

The Stranger pointed to himself with his right index finger. "You can tell who I picked to be the next Administrator."

Flippy dropped his jaw in shock, and pointed at the Stranger and the dead body of the Mad Man a few times. "So… you switched places with him?!"

"That's exactly it. I used the settings to remove his status as Administrator and give myself the rights, practically making me the god of this server and him just a basic Host. Anything he had before, I took it away and made it my own. He was as weak as ever, becoming just like my previous self."

Flippy chuckled lightly before having a worried expression on his face, turning to face the dead body of the Mad Man. "So wait… does this mean he'll come back when everything resets again?"

The Stranger shook his head. "Call me sadistic, but when I gained control of the world, I decided to make a few changes while I was at it. While the first was giving all users the possibility of using English in speech, and give myself my original form, I also took the liberty to handle the life support systems on the outside. To put it simply, I removed the life support system on that bastard, meaning that when he died in this server, the life support would not prevent his body from failing. Nope… he won't be coming back to harm us… or anyone else in the world ever again."

The two stared at each other with a smile on their faces, and Flippy nodded his head while shrugging his shoulders. "So… that's what happened? You made yourself God and killed the original. We all get to live another day, and we will forever live it without the problems it had before. That's how it ends, huh?"

The Stranger looked forward at the world along with Flippy. "Yep… that sounds about right."

As the two stared at the world in front of them, they both could see the rising sun in the distance, its orange glow creating a colorful tint across the land. Even if the land itself was a dreadful site, the sun itself was majestic.

Leaning his hands back on the floor behind him, Flippy spoke while still looking at the sun. "So what happens now? What do we do now?"

The Stranger was silent for a moment, pondering the question. What do they do now? They took down the Mad Man, so what was next on the list? The Stranger, thinking of an answer, turned behind him to look at the computer inside the control room, shrugging his shoulders at the sight.

"I guess we just keep fighting. That file is in there somewhere, so I just got to keep looking. I got all the time in the world now to search for it, and we're not going anywhere soon, so… yeah, just keep searching until we find the key."

Flippy looked down for a moment, then looked up to the Stranger again. "How long do you think that will take, to find ONE file that is resting among TRILLIONS of others?"

The Stranger faced Flippy with a serious expression. "I… I don't really know how to answer that. The list is in random order; I could find the file in the next hour, maybe a few days. Or I could be sitting behind that desk for years to come until I find it. I could try setting up an automatic search if it has one, but even then, it could be years until it picks up a file of a similar name."

Flippy looked down with a disappointed look. He was tired living in this world. Even if the troubles may not persist anymore, he still rather be in his own real home rather than a virtual one. Still… he could at least agree to the fact that it could be worse, which made him smile.

"I guess we just wait and see what happens then… meh, I didn't have plans the next few years anyway."

The two laughed together, keeping their spirits up with a positive attitude despite how dreadful the situation could be. While the Stranger kept his smile, Flippy looked down at the world beneath him, which made him seize his laughter, and rather feel internally depressed.

With close observation, Flippy could see the hundreds of dead bodies that failed to make it alongside him and the Stranger. Among those dead bodies were all of his friends, good people who were sadly faced with the brutal reality of death. He sighed sadly at the sight, almost making him drop a tear from his left eye.

The Stranger noticed Flippy's depression, and placed his left hand on Flippy's right shoulder. "Hey, Flippy, what's wrong?"

Flippy was silent before speaking, still staring at the bodies below. "And what about them…?"

"Who?"

Flippy gestured his head to the area beneath the tower, showing the Stranger the massive pile of the dead. "Them, our friends. Cuddles, Pop… Flaky… none of them made it." He swiftly turned his head to face the Stranger. "They died… so does that… does that mean they-"

"Yep, that's exactly it." The Stranger did not want to hear any more of Flippy's question, but had to continue his response, despite how much it killed him inside. "They died before the server could reset the counter for the next day. That means everything that happened before this day will be completely erased from their memories, returning back to their default state."

"Everything?"

The Stranger took the word in with agony. Everything. Any moment shared together, every day that was survived is now gone forever. Any moment he shared with Flaky, all the times they were together… and the night before the battle… was gone… lost in the void and to never return.

Everything was forgotten.

"Yeah… everything… only you and I will remember this moment and the times before it… everyone else… it'll be nothing more than waking up from a forgettable dream."

The two stayed silent, looking down at their friends below. While Flippy stayed strong, the Stranger sniffled his nose as a tear dropped from his right eye. He closed his eyes and tried his best to hold back his emotions from being shown, but Flippy didn't had to look to know the Stranger was hurt. He knew about how much Flaky meant to him, and how even the others were good people in his eyes. He could relate to the pain easily… but again, his pain was nothing more than a imaginary setup on his character. The Stranger's pain… was real.

But Flippy was stunned when the Stranger spoke up. "But perhaps… it is better they forget."

Flippy looked at the Stranger, shaking his head while his eyes widened. "W-What do you mean it is better they forget?! Everything we fought for together is forgotten; they'll think this is the real world again, believing in a false reality again! How is that any better?!"

The Stranger sighed as he spoke calmly. "Because maybe it is best that they do believe, at least for now, that this is real, that this is their home. Like I said, it could take years before I find the file to get us home. Do you really think it would be easy for them just to wait for years on end thinking that they're in a false world, just dying inside everyday to get home while being forced to wait, never having the feeling of fun because they know it's not real? Should they really have to suffer through the pain all over again, and suffer it for years to come?"

Flippy stayed silent as the Stranger looked at him, then looked down at his dangling feet without making a sound. The Stranger, worried if he insulted him, explained his answer.

"I know they should have the right to know that their real home is out there and not here, but right now, we have no ability to get there. So to know that truth and hold onto it for years, just waiting every day, they suffered through that long enough. By thinking this home is real, they'll wake up happy, living in a world without fear. I just… I just think it is better that they had died and will forget because now… those bad memories… are gone too. The pain they would feel… is no longer there… do you understand what I'm saying?"

Flippy nodded his head silently, not responding with words. The Stranger picked up the hint, but did not smile in response. Instead, he looked forward at the rising sun, slowly crawling above the horizon and revealing its yellow rays.

After a few more minutes of sitting, Flippy decided to stand back up on his feet, brushing his tuft of fur on his head down and patting his shredded coat. "So what's the next thing on our list?"

The Stranger, seeing Flippy getting up, did the same and stood up straight, having to look down at Flippy due to the bear's short stature. "Well… I guess the first thing is wait for the clock to reset. Once it's fully daytime, everything we see will return back to its original state. Everyone will wake up at home, the destruction will be repaired, this tower will be disguised as a giant tree again, and everything will be the way it was before. It'll still be winter time, so I recommend dressing warm."

Flippy nodded and stood still silently, rubbing his chin with his right hand while making a smile. The Stranger noticed and placed his hands on his sides. "What are you thinking?"

Flippy crossed his arms in front of his torso and shrugged his shoulders. "Well… since you now control this world now… I was wondering if you could do a few things for us."

The Stranger chuckled as he nodded his head. "Alright, what do you have in mind?"

"Well, for starters, how about changing this," Flippy took both his hands and gestured his entire body, "back into its original form? I'm kind of tired being a cute little woodland critter living in what would be a children's cartoon."

The Stranger laughed loudly as Flippy grunted in agitation. "What? You don't like looking like a cute little Care Bear?"

Flippy rolled his eyes as the Stranger shook his head. "Don't worry, Flippy; I got a laundry list of many things I plan to do to fix this place up. I got a big mess to clean, but I can assure you that it's all going to turn out fine in the end."

Flippy sighed. "I sure hope so… you don't think you'll turn insane too, though, do you?"

The Stranger made a smirk while looking around. "I… may play around with a bit just for a few laughs, but those days of facing death every day is over. In fact, death is never going to happen ever again while I'm here to watch over you guys. You're like my little children in my playground, and I got to make sure each of you is happy and taken care of."

Flippy shook his head with a serious expression. "Please don't call me your child."

The Stranger crossed his arms and nodded his head. "Okay, fine, I won't."

Flippy snorted at the Stranger's remark… and then looked worried again. "And… well… about my… disorder-"

"Forget about it, Flippy. If there is one I also learned from that son of a bitch, is that you and everyone else's problems have been completely exaggerated. With a few tweaks, that monster of yours will never see the light of day again. You may… have your moments, but you can sleep easy at night now knowing you'll never live another day in fear of hurting others. You're a good man, Flippy, and I can guarantee it will stay that way from now on."

Flippy smiled widely at the Stranger, nodding his head in excitement of the good news. "Thanks; it really means a lot."

"Anything for a friend, Flippy."

Flippy responded with a slight chuckle, and the two looked at each other briefly in a silent manner. He then squinted his eyes as the sun was rising higher above the horizon, its rays making it hard for him to see.

Flippy grunted and nodded his head. "Well… I'm sure this world is about to reset any minute… I'd best go home now and wait before everyone wakes up."

The Stranger nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you do that. I'll stay here and work on the main settings of the world, try to make it just like home while starting the search for the file."

Flippy smiled and waved his right hand to him. "Alright, man, good luck!"

As Flippy began to turn around and walk off, he was stopped by the Stranger's right hand on his shoulder. Confused, he turned around and faced him. "What is it?"

"Flippy… while I'm up here… can I ask a favor from you… w-well, two favors actually."

Flippy turned his body to face the Stranger. "Sure man, anything for you."

The Stranger stood up straight and rubbed his hands together shyly, taking in a deep breath as he tried to speak. "Well… since you're the only survivor next to me… and you'll retain all of your memories, from the past, now, and the future… I was wondering if, from time to time, you come up here and contact me, telling me how things are going down on the world and everything, and just catch up. I can trust you easily to keep all of this a secret from everyone, and I could use a friend to talk to once and a while when I'm working."

Flippy was confused by the Stranger's statement. "Wait a minute… you mean you're not going to come down with me and visit now and then? You're just going to lock yourself up here… forever?"

The Stranger stared blankly at Flippy while standing in a deep thought. He wanted to return back with Flippy, to be with the Tree Friends again. Now that the world is free of the fear of death and violence, it was safe to be with others, to be with friends, to share memories that will be remembered for a life time. He could be with Flaky again, and share the memories all over again, to be happy one more time…

But would it be the same? Everything was different now, and when he will work on the world, everyone else will be different. He would not be returning to the same world, just a copy of one. Everything before was irrelevant now… even the memories with Flaky. What could he return back to? There was nothing for him back down on the world. And what about the server and the file; he had to be here in order to run properly the world. In his mind, it was better that he stayed out of it all… it was just better this way.

The Stranger shook his head and sighed. "Flippy… I would love to return back… but… I think it is best that I don't physically get myself involved with other people's lives ever again. I don't belong down there anymore… and besides, someone has to stay here and work the server, right? Trust me… it's just best that I stay here until I can find us a way to get home."

Flippy looked down disappointedly, but nodded his head. "I understand… alright, I'll keep in touch with you now and then, tell you how things are going through my perspective."

"Good… I'll… I'll set up an access area on this tower here that'll let you in secretly, plus set up a communications setting that'll allow us to speak while I'm here and you're outside. Just call me once in a while on how things are doing, how people are acting, just the usual live observations you see. That okay with you?"

Flippy gave a thumbs up with his left hand. "Sounds good to me; I'll be glad to do it." Flippy then dropped his hand and spoke seriously. "And the second favor?"

The Stranger's face turned red, and he scratched the back of his neck as he swallowed his throat. "Well… you see… it's about Flaky…"

Flippy nodded his head. "I'm sorry… I know she was important to you. I wish I was fast enough to save her, as she really deserves to be here, to remember all of this."

The Stranger held back his tears as he breathed deeply. "I know… I know…"

Flippy brought his hands to his sides as he looked up at the Stranger. "So… what do you want me to do with her?"

The Stranger thought deeply about the favor he wanted to ask. He wanted to be Flaky right now, and to be with her forever. He always felt alone when he wasn't with her, and he was always happy when she was around. And he knew as well she felt exactly the same way…

But now he can't have those moments and feelings with her anymore. It just wouldn't be the same with him. And since he couldn't be with her, she would be left alone once more, possibly living the paranoid life without someone to be with her. She needed someone to be with her now, and if he couldn't do it anymore… then perhaps someone else could.

The Stranger took one more deep breath and spoke up. "Well… you see, Flippy, Flaky… Flaky needs someone to be with her. I saw her alone in the world before we got close, and she looked awful, so afraid of the world that she could possibly die from the littlest of things. But when I stayed with her, when I didn't let her feel alone, that someone was there for her, she wasn't as scared. In fact… she became stronger on her own. Being with someone else… made her more determined and willing to take care of herself. And she was so happy as well… always smiling no matter the moment because she was with someone…"

The Stranger stayed silent for a short moment before speaking. "Flippy… I can't be with her anymore… I have to stay here in order to protect and watch over the world now. But she needs someone to be with her… I can't let her stay alone out there again… not when there could be years of waiting ahead of us. So… is it okay that you watch over her for me, just for now until we leave this world?"

Flippy blushed a little from the favor he was given from the Stranger. To watch over another person… especially a beautiful one, was something he did not expect to be asked to do, considering everything he has done in the past. An insane solider, renowned for murder, was being asked to protect a woman. Even Flippy thought the Stranger was insane to suggest him to be with her.

Seeing Flippy struggle to find an answer, the Stranger lifted up his hands and spoke calmly. "Flippy, listen to me. There is no way I would ever ask this from you if I knew you couldn't do it. Before, with your evil monster, I would have told you to stay far away from her; you two would never work. But now… I can control that monster for you… you'll never have to fear of harming another innocent person ever again. You can be with others in the outside world and never worry of hurting her. And with her memory erased, she'll never know of your past actions. You two can start fresh, and you can be with her without harming her… I trust you, Flippy, which is why I'm asking this from you."

Flippy took the Stranger's words in, taking them into deep consideration. It is true, he no longer has to worry about hurting others now. He can be with other people and never fear of hurting them. Which means now he could be with good people… like Flaky.

Flippy looked up and nodded his head. "All right… I'll look after her for you."

The Stranger smiled widely and clasped his hands together joyfully. "Oh, that's great to hear! Now, listen here, I have a few things you should know when being with her."

"Um, you don't have to-"

"First, remember to always be with her and watch over her, but don't control her. She is a very strong woman capable of taking care of herself. Let her do things on her own, and when she tells you to do something, don't question it, just do it."

Flippy nodded his head while raising up his hands. "Okay, I get it. I'll-"

"Next, remember to take her out plenty of times, get used to the outside world. She's a little shy but she enjoys the world; make her see and like the little things and you'll see. I recommend going to the park when it's sunny yet quiet and peaceful, and show her the beauty of the world. She likes it, just make her realize that."

"Alright, I see. Next time-"

"Oh, and, if you ever get the pleasure to run your hands through her hair, let me tell you, it may be dirty, but it's unbelievably soft! Though be careful; there's this one spot on the top right of her head that she doesn't like touched, but the left side she really enjoys that. So-"

"STOP!" Flippy, a little annoyed from the suggestions, couldn't help but yell and sigh in annoyance at the Stranger. The Stranger's face, realizing the situation, turned red in embarrassment, understanding that he may have gone overboard with the details.

The Stranger rubbed the back on his neck and kept the smile on his face. "Look, Flippy… I'm not asking you to go in a relationship with her, I'm just asking that you be with her now and then… just watch her for me… can you do that?"

Flippy thought about the favor for only a short moment, then looked up at the Stranger. "Okay… I'll look after her for you. If you really trust me on this now… then I'll do it."

The Stranger, with his mind filled with immense joy, knelt down on his right knee, keeping his eyes on Flippy. As he was now eye-level with his friend, the Stranger placed his right hand on Flippy's left shoulder, and gave a slow and short nod. "Thanks, Flippy… now go… a new day is about to start."

As the Stranger stood up, Flippy gave a quick salute as a wave goodbye, which the Stranger signaled back. They stood looking at each briefly, and the two performed an about face simultaneously, walking in opposite directions.

While walking towards the exit hallway of the room, Flippy, only taking a few more steps, suddenly came to a stop. The smile on his face dropped, and doubt was visible in his eyes. He felt worried as one question began to ring in his mind.

Can you really trust a stranger?

The one question, whom the Mad Man taunted him with, was getting to him. Despite the Stranger being his friend… he was indeed a stranger to him. He was completely different from him… and everyone else in the world. Could Flippy really trust the Stranger in caring for them… and, at the very least, try to save them?

With the question constantly being asked in his mind, Flippy couldn't help but turn around to face the Stranger, who was walking towards the Control Room. "Hey…"

The Stranger stopped moving, and turned around with a confused look. "Yes, Flippy?"

Flippy looked down briefly, a little ashamed to think of such a question, but he had to know. "You… you do intend to find a way to save us… no matter what… right?"

The Stranger made a smile and nodded instantly. "Of course!"

"Promise?"

The Stranger slowly dropped his smile and went silent. He stared blankly at Flippy, and spoke calmly. "What?"

Flippy took a step forward, and spoke in a stern voice. "Promise me that you will take care of us, and that you will save us. No matter what the situation is, no matter what the cost, you will save us in the end. Can you promise me that?"

Standing blankly for a couple of seconds, the Stranger nodded his head. "I promise."

Flippy, while a little relieved to receive such an answer, did not smile back, and only returned the answer with a silent nod. The Stranger did the same, and the two walked off again, returning to their separate lives, and starting anew.

While Flippy exited the main room and went home, the Stranger walked back into the Control Room. He took a moment to look around the tech-filled room. Oddly, it felt different being in the room in his natural form instead of just a squirrel. In fact, it felt odd being human all together after months of being something different. He even looked behind him as he felt the phantom pain of where his tail used to be, with no trace of it whatsoever.

Looking forward with his head down, he noticed again the dead body of the Mad Man. The pool of blood he rested in was drying up, but still in a sticky liquid state. The body was cold and limp, and was easily identifiable by this point that the Mad Man was surely dead, when counting the massive loss of blood.

The Stranger couldn't be any happier at the sight of something dead in front of him. And in the world he used to live in, that was a feeling he thought would never actually enjoy.

As he observed the dead body, the Stranger's attention was placed on something that was attached to the Mad Man's arm. Walking forward a few steps, he noticed it was the Administrative Tactical Computer, or the ATC as it was called. Despite the massive battle he endured, the ATC was still intact, perfectly useable by the next Administrator.

Kneeling down on his right leg, the Stranger bent over and lifted up the Mad Man's heavy arm, and took a close examination of the gauntlet. It was currently inactive, the screen in a dark state. Looking underneath, he noticed a tight lock that kept the computer strapped to the forearm that it reached. The Stranger quickly went for the lock, and unhatched it, loosening the grip it had on the Mad Man's arm.

He swiftly pulled it off the arm of the Mad Man, letting the cold arm drop to the floor with a thud. Curiosity filling his mind, the Stranger took his left hand and slid it inside the gauntlet, fitting nice and tight inside the cushioned inner walls. Once his hand reached the fingertips, he equipped the lock, making it as tight as possible around his arm.

The Stranger, once seeing the ATC was strapped to his arm, instantly noticed the power button located on the bottom left area. Without thinking, the Stranger pressed his right index finger on the red button, and the onboard screen instantly flashed opened, beginning to run thousands of applications, programs, processes and anything else his own mind could not comprehend.

As his curious eyes observed the blue holo-screen, he was startled by a giant ray-scan coming from a hidden camera on the top of the ATC, scanning his face while collecting a large array of details. He could also feel the gauntlet making an automatic tight grip around his arm briefly before letting go, and then noticed the screen displaying a couple amounts of details.

Administrative Tactical Computer v1.0.3145.6
New Administrator Diagnostics Complete

...

Name: Ezekiel Pearce
Health Status: Stable
Age: 24
Gender: Male
Administrator Number: #2
Server Control: 'Happy Tree Friends;' 21 Active Host(s), 1 Active Admin(s)
Start Date: December 14th 2043

...

Administrative Control… Now set to: Manual
Begin Manual Control…

...

Command:

Ezekiel looked at the screen with envy. He was officially the new, in a very informal sense, god of the virtual world he resided in. He now had complete control over every single detail that ever existed, that exists now, and will exist at any given time. He was the Administrator.

And he planned to make good use of it.

Looking at the word 'Command,' Ezekiel pondered what his first move will be. He then shivered a bit as he felt a cold draft enter the room. Looking down, Ezekiel realized that he was still technically naked, and felt slightly embarrassed at the sight.

Shrugging his shoulders at the thought, he typed in his first command.

Administrator: New Apparel

Upon entering the command, Ezekiel noticed a faint glow around his entire body, blinding his eye sight. He looked away for a brief moment as the intensity of the light grew, and suddenly could feel something covering his body.

Opening his eyes slowly, he noticed he was now dressed in freshly spawned clothes. The apparel he was given was similar to the Mad Man's original outfit, which included a long white lab coat with a long-sleeved grey shirt underneath, a pair of dark blue pants, and black dress shoes. Ezekiel looked and examined his body, and shrugged his body.

"Meh, I'll make it work."

As he accepted his new choice in clothing, he looked down at his feet one last time, and noticed an object that he was very familiar with... and one that placed a sharp pain in his heart.

Bending over, he noticed it was the red quill of Flaky's that he kept all of those months back, which proved useful in his time of need. It felt useless to hold onto now, but with Flaky's death, this one quill of her's... is the only remnant of their existence together. It was the only thing Ezekiel has left of ever remembering her.

As a tear dropped from his eye, Ezekiel picked up the tiny red quill, and gently placed it into his right pocket, keeping it close to him at all times to have something to always keep his memory of her alive.

Nodding his head determinedly, he looked forward to see the giant screen with the small computer at the end of the Control Room. Without hesitation, Ezekiel moved forward to the computer, leaving behind the dead body of the Mad Man again, and sitting down in the leather rolling chair, now perfect for his size.

Observing the screen, Ezekiel noticed it was still locked on the File Explorer, with the trillions of on-screen files visible on screen. He shook his head in disbelief, letting out a depressed sigh.

"There is no way in hell I'm going to find that file manually. I may overlook it one day and take decades more just to find it again."

Looking closer at the screen, while the toolbar lacked any means of direct search or sorting, it did have one useful command.

Automatic File Scan

Ezekiel rubbed his chin with his right hand, nodding his head slowly. "Maybe… maybe…"

Going through with his quick plan, Ezekiel took the mouse on the desk and clicked on the application icon, popping up a variety of settings. One of which allowed to scan the files and search for a specific one within the local storage. Smiling at the sight, Ezekiel typed in the file he needed, and click 'Next' on the command prompt.

The next prompt instantly made him drop his smile. While the words 'Begin Search' was relieving to see, it was the section next to it that he feared to see.

Estimated Search Time: 3-10 Year(s)

Ezekiel stared blankly at the estimated time table… and sighed as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Well… I wasn't planning on going anywhere soon…"

He clicked the command 'Begin Search,' which brought up a tiny progress bar with the names of files and programs underneath that were being search. Despite the hundreds of files Ezekiel could possibly point out, the bar stayed empty, with the progress still standing at 0%.

Ezekiel shook his head, and looked off to the big screen behind him. It still showed detail statistics of the world, such as a map, Hosts information, and the works. He smiled, and leaned forward again towards the computer.

"I guess I got some time to play around then." Ezekiel, dragging the task manager to the side, picked up a variety of applications on the desktop menu, including applications like 'World Settings' and 'Host Status.' He quickly opened both, revealing tons of possible configurations and options to play with in his new world.

Ezekiel cracked his fingers, rolled his neck around, and placed his fingertips on the black keyboard in front of him.

"Now… let's see what we can do with those minds and bodies of yours, along with the rest of the world… and this time… let's make it right."

Smiling widely, Ezekiel entered a few new commands into the computer, and, with just one click of a button, a flash of light was emitted across the world.

And everything changed.

For the better.