Hello, I've returned. I didn't think I'd ever find myself a prompt for another Cyberchase story, but here I am. I've become good friends with writer AsLostAsAliceAsMadAsTheHatter (who also has some great Motherboard-centered fanfiction that you should all go check out if you haven't already) and we've been bouncing a lot of ideas off each other. On top of that, I remembered a certain headcanon I had put out back in the early days of my BTC series and suddenly I have ended up with a bunch of ways to make this oneshot into a twoshot. I also want to put out a disclaimer that you may want to watch the original pilot episode with the pilot voice actors over on youtube to understand some of what happens here.
And... ACTION!
Antoine frowned as he stared at the thermometer. Motherboard's fever was going up.
"I guess it has to get worse before it gets better," he thought.
But it still wasn't going to be a fun time. Cyber-flu was infamous for its vivid fever dreams and his wife had enough problems with vivid dreams as it was. He wouldn't be surprised if this illness had been brought on by the practically sleepless nights Motherboard had the past seventy-two hours.
Antoine's thoughts were interrupted when he heard Motherboard's skwak beeping. Pressing the answer button, he saw the three Earthlings' faces on the screen.
"Hey guys!" he said.
"Hey, Antoine," Matt said, "Where's Motherboard? She was supposed to portal us over to Delete's pet shop."
"She's come down with a bad case of the cyber-flu," Antoine said, "Lemme see if I can find her portal remote."
Antoine glanced at his wife before opening her purse. He fished around a bit before finding the remote.
"One portal coming up," he said as he pushed the button.
"Um... Antoine," Jackie said after about a minute, "There's no portal."
"Huh, really?" Antoine asked, before pushing the button again, "Now?"
"Nope," Inez said.
"What's wrong with this darn thing?" he muttered as he pushed the button a few more times, not noticing how much brighter the room was slowly becoming.
"Uh... Antoine," Matt said, "I don't think that's the portal remote you're using."
"What?"
"Yeah," Inez said, "Your room has been getting brighter since you started pressing it."
Antoine looked around and saw the room was, indeed, brighter. "Oops!"
The kids laughed before Jackie spoke up. "I think I remember it being a purple remote."
"You're right," Antoine said as he kept rummaging through his wife's purse before finding the right remote, "Here we go."
"Nnngh... Antoine?"
"Uh-oh" he thought as he turned to see Motherboard was slowly waking up.
"Why are you going through my purse?" she asked as she rubbed her eyes.
"Oh, um..."
"Hey, Mother B," Jackie said on the other end of the skwak.
Motherboard blinked a few times before remembering the day's plans.
"Oh Cybermates!" she said gesturing for Antoine to bring the skwak over to her, "I'm so sorry. I completely forgot."
"Its ok, Motherboard," Matt said as Antoine brought over the skwak, "Antoine was just telling us you got sick."
"If it's not one virus its another, it seems," Motherboard said before breaking into a coughing fit.
"Oh man," Inez said, "You sound awful! When did this start?"
"A few hours ago," Antoine said, "Now, Motherboard I was having a little trouble before. Is this the portal remote?"
"Yes," she said, "Why? Did you mix them up again?"
"No!"
Motherboard raised one eyebrow.
"Yes," he said quietly.
Motherboard sighed. "Bring it over, dear."
Antoine gave her the remote.
"Have fun, Cybermates," Motherboard said as she pressed the portal button with one hand and ended the call with the other.
The couple stared at each other in silence for a moment.
"Antoine," Motherboard said, sniffling a bit, "For someone with two bachelor's degrees and an honors graduate, you can be very clueless at times."
"But you love me anyway," he said.
"Yes, I... I," Motherboard cut herself off with a series of sneezes.
"Let's get you back to bed, sweetheart," Antoine said as he gently helped her lay against the soft pillows.
"Are you going to go back to the cybermall?"
"I think my wife needs some looking after for the moment."
"I'll be fine, Antoine," Motherboard said, "Go have some fun."
"Sweetheart, your fever has jumped three degrees since we first got back. I'm staying here with you."
"I suppose I brought this one on myself," Motherboard said, "I don't know what I expected to happen after barely sleeping for three days."
"Not many people out there have control over their dreams," Antoine said, "Its not your fault."
"At least Cyberspace has become a bit easier to handle since Hacker stopped terrorizing it."
"Don't jinx it," Antoine said, "Wicked is still out there and that Ledge kid seemed pretty clever."
"I can't help feeling a bit sorry for Ledge," Motherboard said, "I feel like he just hasn't really had any good role models in his life."
"I mean, yeah. If he wanted to be the next Hacker."
"Something should be done about that," Motherboard said as she grabbed a tissue, "No child should be in a place where they're idolizing criminals."
"We can talk about that once you're better. For now though, get some rest."
"Alright," Motherboard said as she threw out the tissue and got under the covers again, "I would say good night but its a bit early for that."
Antoine chuckled a bit as he turned off the lights. "I'll be in the living room if you need me. Sweet dreams."
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Location: Cyber Mall:
"So, how's life not under Hacker's thumb treating you?" Matt asked Delete as the three were shown around.
"Its great," Delete said, "But it also feels strange to be my own boss. I keep trying to make sure the bo- eh, Hacker- would approve of my decisions only to remember I don't have to worry about that anymore."
"I imagine that's what it'll be like when we all go off to college," Jackie said, "Speaking of, have you guys heard anything back yet?"
"Not yet," Matt said.
"I did," Inez said, "Both Cornell and Purdue are offering me full ride scholarships!"
"Oh wow!" Delete said, "Those are really good schools too, aren't they?"
"They're the real world's equivalent of Cyber University when it comes to veterinary school," Inez explained.
"I knew you could do it, Inez," Matt said, giving her a peck on the lips.
"Ew! Gross!" they heard a small female voice say.
The group turned around to see Faith, Digit, and Buzz walking up to them, the latter of the three holding a large bag of donut holes.
"How are you doing, Faith?" Jackie asked in a sweet, baby voice.
"I'm good," she said, "Buzzy got us donut holes!"
"Fresh baked and on the house," the borg in question said, holding the bag out in offering.
"Thanks Buzz!" Jackie said taking a chocolate hole and biting into it, "Wow, that's really good!"
"Digit here may or may not have helped with the recipe," Buzz said.
"Hey, I'm always ready to share my culinary skills," Digit said.
"Where's Motherboard though?" Buzz asked, "I thought she and Antoine were coming to the opening."
"She was here," Delete said, "But she got sick and had to go home. Antoine thinks she has the cyber flu."
"Another virus?" Buzz asked, "She just can't catch a break!"
"Well it wasn't me this time."
The little group turned to see Hacker striding in, paint splattered across his clothes.
"Hey Bo- uh I mean Hacker!" Delete said.
Digit and the kids shifted awkwardly, not yet comfortable around the borg. But Faith, not knowing about his past villainy, ran up to him excitedly.
"Hackie! You came!" she said giving him a hug.
"Of course I did," Hacker said, hugging her back, "I wouldn't miss the opening of one of my best friend's first business."
"How's it going, Hack?" Matt asked, trying to sound casual.
Hacker was equally awkward with the kids and Digit. It was easy to be around his little half sister, but things would be tense with those he hurt for a while.
"Oh, its going," he said before turning to Delete as he took a wrapped package from his pocket, "I made this for you Delete. A congratulations present."
"For me?" Delete asked, taking the present, "Thank you!"
Delete ripped the paper and then opened the box to find... a small sculpture of his former boss.
"Uh... gee," he said, "You shouldn't have."
Digit fought to hold in his laughter.
"Some things never change," he thought.
"I get it!" Faith said, "If he ever gets nervous about the shop, he can look at you to feel better!"
"Exactly," Hacker said before turning to the others, "So Motherboard is sick again?"
"Cyber flu," Digit said.
"She was sneezing like crazy when she was here," Delete said, "Poor thing."
Hacker sighed. "She always seems to get the short end of the stick, even before I started acting up."
Matt wanted to say something about how Hacker certainly hadn't helped things for a long time, but he held his tongue. Faith didn't need to know about her half brother's past yet. She was too young.
"Maybe we should go visit her later," Inez said, "That might cheer her up."
"I'll put together a fresh batch of donuts for you to give her," Buzz offered.
"That's really sweet of you Buzz," Jackie said, "I'm sure she'll appreciate it."
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Location: Control Central:
Motherboard groaned as she pulled the covers off of her. She was absolutely sweltering. This was the part of the cyber flu she had always hated most, how one moment she felt like she was in the middle of a blizzard, only to suddenly feel as if she were on fire. The poor woman was exhausted, but as long as she was this hot, she knew she would never fall back asleep. So instead, the cyber ruler slowly got out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom.
Motherboard turned the faucet onto cold and gently splashed some water onto her face, giving her a small amount of relief from the heat. She lifted her head up to examine her reflection and shrieked at what she saw. Instead of her reflection, there was a pair of large, soulless blue eyes floating over a frequency wave.
"Well, nice to see you too, lady," the strange face said sarcastically.
"What... Who... who are you?" Motherboard asked, becoming more disturbed the longer she stared at the face.
"You don't know?" it said, "I'm Motherboard, the leader of Cyberspace!"
"No, you're not," Motherboard said, "I'm Motherboard! I don't know who or what you are."
"Ha! You?! You're Motherboard? Okay, keep dreaming lady! You look like you can barely take care of yourself, let alone all Cyberspace."
Motherboard huffed. "I'll have you know my leadership skills were complimented by Shift Key himself."
"Ah that's right," the face who claimed to be her said, "You've died and come back twice now, haven't you?"
"What does it matter to you?"
"Oh it doesn't," the face said, "I was just gonna say its a bit of a shame you came back, considering you'll probably outlive everyone you love."
"What?"
"Oh don't tell me you forgot that humans are lucky if they reach one hundred years," the face said, "The Earthlies will be long gone before you get your first gray hair."
Motherboard stilled. She had completely forgotten about that.
"So you did forget? Wow, lady! Did you also forget how many years you were in that monitor basically immortal while the rest of the cyberworld aged? I'm willing to bet even your younger brother will die before you!"
"No," Motherboard whispered.
"Yes!" the face said, "You're sure you're Motherboard and not me? Cuz for someone who used to be a computer, you sure are forgetting a lot of basic facts."
"Go away," Motherboard said in a low but threatening voice.
"Make me!" the face said, "You're the leader of Cyberspace, right? So get rid of me yourself!"
Motherboard wanted to slap whatever this abomination was but she honestly had a fear that coming into physical contact with it would just make things worse.
"Ah that's right," the thing said, "You can't and you know it. Just like you couldn't get rid of Abaddon. All he had to do was hijack another cyborg's body and he was making Cyberspace miserable again!"
"Abaddon is gone forever," Motherboard said, gritting her teeth angrily.
"Is he?" another voice said from behind her, a voice she would remember anywhere.
Her pulse stopped as she slowly turned around and there he was.
"Remember me, Melissa?" Abaddon said, his voice warping into something much higher pitched, "When I took your son's body?! I talked JUST! LIKE! THIS!"
He hadn't talked like that, but nothing seemed to be making sense right now, including how the twice killed cyborg was looming ever closer to her and growing taller with each step.
"You escaped me twice before. But you know what they say," Abaddon said as he reached out to her, "Third time's a charm!"
"At least now you won't have to watch everyone you love die," said the voice of the strange face.
Motherboard tried to run, but found she couldn't move. She was suddenly back in the monitor and above the glass dome she saw something racing toward her, something that felt far too familiar.
"No, no not again. Please, not again!" she cried
"Motherboard! Motherboard, wake up!"
Motherboard's eyes shot open, meeting the worried green eyes of her husband. She was soaked with sweat and her h-drive was racing. She tried to speak, but the terror of her nightmare left her speechless.
"That bad huh?" Antoine asked.
"It was awful," Motherboard said, tears streaming from her eyes, "There was this... this thing claiming to be me and..."
"Hey," Antoine said, brushing a tear away, "Its okay. None it was real."
"Not all of it," Motherboard said, "That... whatever it was... it pointed out something I'd forgotten. Antoine, do you know humans live less than half as long as cyborgs?"
Antoine hadn't studied the real world in the same way his wife had, but he did remember something about the lifespan being shorter there. "Oh sweetheart..."
"And this body," Motherboard continued, "I'm physically so much younger than all of you. I'll have to watch all of you..."
She couldn't say it. Saying it would only make it more real.
Motherboard," Antoine said as he handed her a box of tissues, "I can't pretend to know how many more years I have in this life, but I highly doubt I or anyone else will be leaving you any time soon."
"But it will happen," she said.
"Well," Antoine said, kissing her forehead, "I guess we're gonna have to make the most of our time together right?"
"Yes," Motherboard said, "But I still hate to think about it."
"Then don't," Antoine said, "It won't happen until many years from now. Just live in the present."
Motherboard gave him a watery smile as she blew her nose.
A knock came at the door. "Is she okay?" A familiar male voice asked.
"She's fine," Antoine said, "Just a bad dream."
"Come in, Cybermates," Motherboard said.
The door opened and the three children plus Digit filed in.
"Feeling any better, Motherboard?" Digit asked.
"Not yet," Motherboard admitted, "But I'll feel better eventually."
"Buzz put together a box of donuts for you," Jackie said.
"And Hacker bought these flowers for you," Inez said, coming forward with a large bouquet with a 'Get Well' soon card tied to the stems.
Motherboard took the bouquet with a smile, not oblivious to the irony that Hacker, of all cyborgs, had given her a get well gift.
"So you had a nightmare?" Matt asked, "Those happen a lot with real world illnesses too."
"Yes," Antoine said, "There's surprisingly quite a few similarities between Earth biology and that of Cyberspace."
"But there's still too many differences between the two," Motherboard said, her eyes filling with tears again.
"What's wrong, Mother B?" Jackie asked.
Antoine sighed. "Do you kids remember how we said cyborgs live up to two hundred years?"
The kids nodded.
"Well, Motherboard just remembered how long people live in your world."
Digit gasped. He also had forgotten how short the lifespan of humans was compared to cyborgs. "Oh no..."
The three teenagers glanced from one to the other, each slowly realizing what this meant for their cyborg friends.
"You guys," Inez said after a bit of silence, "That's not going to be for a very long time."
"But its still gonna happen eventually," Digit said, tears now coming to his eyes too.
"I can't imagine my life without you kids," Motherboard said before letting out another sneeze.
"Then don't," Matt said, "It won't be for several more decades. All that matters is now."
"You're right, Mattie," Digit said, wiping a tear away, "We've just gotta make the most of our time together while we have it."
Antoine opened his arms wide. "Group hug anyone?"
The small group of both humans and cyborgs crowded on the bed and hugged. Motherboard smiled. These moments wouldn't last forever, but while she had them, she would cherish each second.
I hope you all enjoyed that. If anyone out there is a fan of Disney princesses, make sure to check out my Cinderella/Beauty and the Beast crossover entitled the Royal Line of France. Its been a while since the last update, but I'm finally getting back into the writer's mindset and hope to have a new chapter out by Christmas. Happy Thanksgiving! I'm thankful for all of you and, as Digit would say:
See ya in Cyberspace!