It was getting well past 1 am by the time Crystal was about halfway through explaining herself, answering KITT's questions as he thought of them. She sat in a cloth folding chair she set up by the wall near his passenger door, holding a can of Mountain Dew in her hand with her elbows propped up on her knees. The caffeine and bright overhead lights in the garage ceiling had her almost completely awake after this long and by now she was just waiting to get back to work. There was a lot to do yet. But then she couldn't just put off the AI's questioning. Given the circumstances, he more than deserved whatever answers she could give him.

She stared at the top of the soda can as she rotated it and her wrist in a lazy circular motion. After explaining from beginning to end what she had done in technically stealing him and some of his parts from the Foundation, the means, and the current year, he fell quiet and hasn't said a thing for a while. Crystal had no idea what he was thinking and didn't want to press, so she just tried to be patient. It wasn't like she'd expect any different reaction, after all. So far she could tell he was confused, disoriented, and suspicious. God only knew what else.

Several minutes passed before he finally broke the silence. "Twenty-thirty-seven?" he asked in bewilderment. "It sounds like I was last activated forty-two years ago, rather than last week…"

With a half-hearted grin she offered a slight chuckle. "Yeah, it does, doesn't it?" The grin quickly vanished as she shifted her gaze from the soda can directly to the gray floor. "Time travel's weird. I don't even like it. Just turned out somewhat useful in this instance."

"Excuse me, but I do not consider stealing me a useful purpose," he said bluntly. "In fact, not only is it theft- it might as well be considered kidnapping."

"Look," Crystal sighed and sat back in the chair, her brows furrowed in a somber gaze. "It's not like I'm proud of breaking multiple laws in both time periods, alright? I just didn't see what choice I had. If I just left the timeline as it was, you would have been completely stripped apart twice. The second time being the last." Taking a sip of her Mountain Dew, she added, "That's no life." Of course, that was said without mentioning why he was being dismantled in the first place. At least, not just yet.

KITT paused at her statement, not quite sure how to take that information. According to his enhanced Voice Stress Analyzer- or as Crystal called it, the Audio Polygraph-, she hadn't lied thus far. But he wasn't sure whether that was more of a good, or bad thing. "I beg your pardon? What in the world are you talking about?"

Running a free hand over her face, she thought for a moment as how to put this. Frankly, the full-on history lesson could wait until another time. As for the main issue…. She glanced at her backpack sitting against the wall next to her and thought of the files she kept on a digital USB drive in the back pocket as well as a thin folder of copied blueprints. Frankly, she preferred to avoid them. "The bottom line…is there was a terrorist attack that killed over two thousand people in a day and left the whole country's peace of mind in shambles. After that no one was so much as comfortable in their own shadows, and they pretty much posed an internal war against anyone and anything different than what they knew. Which…included Knight Industries and F.L.A.G. Everyone involved at the time or beforehand had a target painted on their backs."

"I find that very hard to believe. Knight Industries and the Foundation were meant to help people and work with the government, not commit acts of terrorism," he argued.

"Well….the thing is…." There's really no delicate way to put this, is there? she thought. "To keep powerful technology from falling into the wrong hands, they were ordered to destroy it and shut down operations indefinitely. Either that or be arrested themselves."

He was quiet for a moment. "By 'powerful technology' I assume you mean me," he said. Crystal only nodded with a short hum. "I must say that logic sounds backwards. I am far more useful in one piece, and I most certainly would not allow myself to be used by criminals." Granted there had been a few instances when he had been caught in a sticky situation, but the idea of being seen as an outright fool or inanimate piece of hardware that would let himself be misused was utterly insulting.

"Unfortunately, no one saw it that way. And neither did Maddock when he was having you torn down and your parts sold or trashed."

"He what?" KITT's scanner lit up all the way across then flicked side to side, the inner light bar doing the same and picking up pace the more his distress amplified. This was no better than the panic earlier. "Why would he do that? Why would Devon, or Bonnie, even Michael- why would they let him do that?" He frantically searched through the memory bank, looking for any indication he might have missed something in passing conversation before being deactivated. Did they know and not tell him, or know at all?

The references he found and cross-examined, didn't work in their favor…

Crystal bit her lower lip, her expression dropping further with her mood. She already felt ridden with guilt; this only made it worse. "All I know is they were going to replace you with a supposedly more advanced AI and model," she said with a slow exhale. "Your driver didn't know about it; I can tell you that much. He would've tried to stop it if he did, despite his retirement." She leaned forward on her knees again, staring off into space. "I can't even begin to imagine what was going through Devon's head. Bonnie….well, I don't know about her either." Again her mind drifted to the files in her backpack. She remembered reading a lot of things, but when it came to Bonnie within the last month or so prior to Russell Maddock's promotion to head of F.L.A.G. and then on, there was barely anything as if she had just slowly fallen off the radar. Crystal didn't even see her at the foundation for the week she had been there.

She could tell he was becoming more and more uneasy based on the light bar she could see through the passenger window, and the longer she watched the rapid motion her exhaustion level grew. "If it's…any consolation….they did try their best to hold on to you in the original timeline, even after receiving orders."

He took several minutes to let that run through his processor, but…he wasn't so sure. Even if Michael didn't know, he couldn't understand why Devon would have let this happen. Michael and Bonnie always said he was a friend and family, but now he couldn't be sure if Devon had ever felt or said the same regardless of what his memory bank said. Perhaps he thought more like Russell Maddock after all, since he apparently thought replacing him was an option. Saying the very implication was 'disheartening' barely scratched the surface.

As much as he doubted he wanted to hear the answer, he asked, "So I take it…they eventually followed through with their orders?" It wasn't that he valued his well-being over theirs. But anxiety nagged at him to find out what happened.

At that Crystal adjusted her posture. Finally she could give him somewhat good news. "Actually, no. At least not completely. From what I read, you, your processing unit, memory chip, and alpha circuit were all separated out while the rest was taken apart to have authorities believe you were destroyed. I would bet they were planning to go underground and have you rebuilt."

Well…despite the rest, that was good to know. Sort of. "But why didn't they?"

"See, that's the tricky part," she said, scratching the back of her head. "Some guy took off with your tech, and instead of rebuilding you, he designed and created a copy that also went by 'KITT', but was commonly referred to as K-I-3-T. But, being the pale copy he was, didn't last very long. For all his…" She added air quotes. "…'improvements,' he and his driver would have been far better off with your experience as opposed to starting out as an entirely new AI that day in age. He could barely even hold his own against KARR's crazy doppelganger, the Knight Auto-Cybernetic Roving Robotic Exoskeleton. K-A-C-R-R-E, or…. Heck, just 'KARR 2.0.' Nevermind all that other mouthful."

"Wait, you mean he was copied too?" There was no mistaking the shock in his tone.

"Not by the wise men or the good guys, that's for sure. Frankly, I don't know how the NSA recovered what was left of his tech when I almost didn't find it myself," she mused.

Fully aware of the AI signal next to him, KITT couldn't stop from protesting. "Crystal, the KARR I know is nothing short of dangerous and ruthless. You know that, don't you?" At least, he figured she might after everything else she seemed to know already.

Sitting back in the folding chair and crossing her legs, Crystal gazed at the Mercury in question without a single hint of worry in her eyes or voice. "Believe me, I'm well aware. Read his files a long time ago."

"Then why take the risk of bringing him here? And, how, for that matter. He was destroyed when Michael and I last encountered him."

"For one thing, he wasn't entirely demolished. His AI unit and memory box were both in fairly decent shape. Of course the rest of the basics I have to rebuild from scratch based on your tech. And second," she raised a brow and gestured toward the vehicle. "In case you can't tell, he's not exactly in working condition. Right now he's dormant, and practically as harmless as a caged lion. No pun intended."

"If I recall, there is a biblical story of a pit of lions which a man was thrown into to be eaten alive." Without saying so, he implied this situation felt very similar.

A somewhat amused, brief snicker accompanied raised brows and an ever-so-slight smirk. "And he wasn't. Only his enemies were," she clarified.

"I hardly find that reassuring… Chances are likely that the moment he reactivates he will attempt to kill us both." After all, KARR considered him an enemy from the very beginning for being a threat to his existence. Unlike KITT, whose dominant program was preservation of human life, KARR's was self-preservation. Now, what was still technically 11 years later, he doubted that would have changed in the slightest.

"Not if I have anything to say about it, which I will since I don't plan on just leaving him like that." Taking another drink from the soda can, she added, "Well, neither of you actually, if I can get a hold of vehicles that better match your previous forms."

The scanner swept to the right at the reminder, and there was a brief moment of silence as he ran another diagnostic just to be certain. "Speaking of, what is this vehicle supposed to be?" he asked, referring to his current self. "It doesn't match anything in my data bank."

Crystal shifted in the chair. "Well…." He sensed she was nervous as her voice rose an octave. "That's because the model is nineteen years after your time, but…. A silver 2014 Chevy Impala SS. Which is….kind of….my personal car?"

"Oh my goodness, you can't be serious…"

Her brows furrowed, partly offended and also embarrassed due to his mortified tone. "H-hey, in my defense I don't have any other cars and I can't afford another one. This was the best I could think of to avoid just keeping you guys on a shelf and risk getting found or-!"

"Not that," KITT interrupted, causing her to give a highly confused expression. "I mean the age. I've run the calculations. 1982 to 1995, and bypassing the aging process with your time travel is only thirteen years; but in a virtual sense 1982 to 2014 is thirty-two years, 2014 from the current year is twenty-three years- which is generally considered very old for an automobile in itself, or 1982 to 2037 is fifty-five years! I sound positively ancient!"

She mentally paused at his mild hysterics, feeling more bemused than anything. Only the steady flow of the light on his dashboard showed he was half joking. "Oh.. Honestly I thought you would be…well, more mad about…" Using both hands, she used a large, circular motion to gesture above her head, to KITT's model, and KARR overall, implying the massive changes, bringing them to a new era in time, etc. "…all of this," she finished.

"I must say it is quite shocking," he agreed, which lowered her spirits but only for a moment. "However, I am far more concerned. For multiple reasons."

"I know what you mean." Crystal propped her head up against her fist. "Like, even though we won't be directly affected aside from the obvious, we won't know what has been until we find out for ourselves."

"How long will that take?"

Crystal shrugged. "Days, weeks, months…. Your guess is as good as mine. Now it just…all depends on the odds."

"I see."

"Yeah," she said with little more than a mumble as she focused on the adjacent concrete wall. Outside she could hear the chirping of crickets much like those at the Foundation in 1995, and it was around the same early hours of the morning. She could only imagine what could be going on outside the sealed garage door. After leaving the past, the timeline would have already warped to make up for the changes concerning the AIs. What that would amount to Crystal couldn't be entirely sure, and the thought was unsettling to say the least.

Taking a slow deep breath, she only hoped the changes would go generally unnoticed. Then she cast a glance to KITT. "So…you're sure being installed in my car, even temporarily, doesn't bother you much?"

He briefly thought over her question, having to admit to himself that it was very strange but not for the reason she imagined. Having such a bulky form just didn't feel right. Though, he supposed as long as it was temporary, and considering her best efforts to get his systems functioning on top of what she had done already, it wouldn't be too difficult to get used to. "Before Michael Knight was my partner and driver as the Knight Industries Two Thousand, I was his personal vehicle. If I were to be troubled by this that would only be, as they say, 'petty.' Which I might add, isn't my nature." Crystal visibly relaxed with the explanation, and she uncurled her fingers to run them through her bangs.

"Heh, honestly I didn't know that about your driver," she said. "That's pretty neat, actually."

"Oh, finally something you don't know?" he asked teasingly.

She chuckled in response, the sound lightly echoing off the walls. "Hey, that's not fair! I never said I knew everything. There's a whole heck of a lot I don't know about you or your history. Files can only tell so much, you know."

Along with her statement, KITT noticed her eyes were vividly lit with a curiosity she struggled to keep to herself. Though he knew she must be tired it seemed to be the furthest thing from her mind, and according to the vital scan there was enough adrenaline in her system after their conversation to keep her awake for the next several hours. So, he had a thought. "In that case…" he started. "Do I still have a video function of any kind?"

Tilting her head, she said, "Sure. It's the Virtual Reality Heads-up Display and should be able to work by now. Why?"

"Since we seem to have nothing but time on our hands and you won't be going back to sleep anytime soon, perhaps now I can show you a thing or two about the past," he said. "As long as I can access my memory bank I can project my memories onto the monitor for you to watch for yourself. And you can feel free to ask any questions."

She straightened up, her eyes a little wide and brows raised. "Really? You can…would do that?" Her voice and expression were full of fascination, hardly able to believe what she was hearing.

With a subtle click he opened the passenger door. "Certainly. It's only fair," he added. "After all, what better use for our time than making progress of our situation?" Of course, part of his reasoning was that the last thing he wanted was to sit in any more silence until morning, but he kept that part to himself.

A tired yet excited smile spread over Crystal's features and she laughed good-heartedly. "You got a point." In a fluid motion she stood up from the chair with her backpack in hand, took a short step then pivoted on her heal and flopped into the passenger seat, pulling her legs in as KITT closed the door. After a few minutes the inside of the windshield began to light up with a holographic screen.