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malamiteltd · 1 year ago

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Day 13 – And Six Makes Seven

Copper awoke to the sound of the front door knocking. He stumbled out of bed and made his way to the door to answer it. It was Broom, looking up to him with a friendly smile, with the gaming handheld in one hand.

“Hey, Copper!” he said cheerfully. “So I know this might seem a bit out of nowhere, but…well, I guess I was just thinking about you in this empty house of yours…”

Copper shrugged. “It's not so bad.”

“Sure, I suppose it's okay," Broom replied, “but I figured there wasn't a lot to keep you…I dunno, preoccupied? So I figured, maybe I should give this to you!”

Broom took the handheld and extended it to Copper, who looked rather shocked.

“W-wait, are you sure? I mean, this kind of stuff is usually your thing…”

Broom nodded. “Yeah, it's fine! I have the console at home, and that does me fine. Something about just being in that from with that big TV and the shelves of games…it gives me a warm feeling for whatever reason. But you don't really have a TV, and I'm sure the radio is only doing so much…”

Copper was speechless. He slowly reached out and took Broom's handheld. He examined it from all angles, trying to get used to its layout. The last thing he noticed was the cartridge slot, which was empty.

“Now I don't really have a way to get games of your own,” Broom then started, “but I figured I could let you borrow any of the games at my place whenever you wanted.”

“You're…y-you're being very generous with this,” Copper replied. “I don't really want to bother you for the same of borrowing–”

Broom waved his hand dismissively. “It's no trouble at all! Besides, maybe we could get a chance to play more of these games together once you start getting more used to them.” He started to blush. “Admittedly you've been the only other one interested in this stuff, and it's not as fun for you to just watch.”

Copper blushed and smiled. “Thank you.”

Broom nodded. “Now let's see if we can pick out some games you can play. I had thought of some ideas, but I figured it would be better if you picked them out yourself. I might be able to explain some of 'em to you if I recognize them.”

Copper laughed a little. “That's assuming the explanation makes sense. Remember there was that one that was just about crossing the street a bunch of times…”

Broom laughed as well. “True, some of the games have some wild scenarios. But I like to think that's part of their charm.”

Suddenly a portal opened close to the street, not far from where they were standing.

Broom looked at the red portal in fear as he stood behind Copper. “I-is THAT what a portal looks like here?!” He said, trembling a little. “That's terrifying!”

Suddenly a person appeared, leaping out from within the portal and landing in the middle of the road, just as the portal disappeared. The person appeared to be a female fox, wearing glasses and a white lab coat. As she stood up, she started to look around, trying to comprehend her surroundings.

“Something's wrong,” she said to herself. “This is not where I'm supposed to be.”

Broom and Copper looked at her, unsure what to make of this stranger. Hesitantly, Broom waved his arm to get her attention. “H-hello?”

Startled by Broom's call, the stranger raised her arm in front of her, and it suddenly began to change its form. Her arm shaped itself into a laser cannon, and she pointed it toward the two with a serious expression.

“Whoa!” Broom hid behind Copper again. “Don't shoot!”

“What's going on here?” said the stranger. “Are you two responsible for this?”

“No!” Broom shouted, “We got thrown into this world just like you!”

The stranger looked to Copper, who wasn't sure how to react to the situation. She eventually lowered her arm and converted it back to its normal form.

“I apologize,” she finally said. “I'm not quite sure what's going on. My senses seem to be a little disoriented at the moment, and half my battery seems to have drained without explanation.”

Copper thought about what to say. “Have you ever heard of divergent portals?”

The stranger looked confused at first. “Divergent portals?…” Then they suddenly seemed to realize something. “Wait! Is that what happened? The divergent portal theory is real?”

Broom explained the rest of The Situation™ to the stranger…

. . . .

“I see,” the stranger said, “so that explains everything then. I suppose I have to get used to this environment now. Are you the only two here?”

“There are at least two others,” Copper replied. “They're friends.”

“I suppose that's a good thing. I guess on that note, we should make proper introductions.”

Broom nodded. “I'm Broom. This is my friend Copper.”

Copper waved.

The stranger nodded in response. “Call me Holly." She looked over to Broom. “Am I right in assuming you're a Syr'l?”

Broom looked surprised. “Y-yeah, I am! You know about my race?”

“Where I'm from, we recently discovered your kind through our space telescope. Though, the images showed you all wearing…more primitive outfits.”

Broom thought for a moment. “Were they hemp tunics?”

Holly looked surprised. “That's right!”

Broom laughed. “Wow, I don't think I've seen anyone in those in a VERY long time. At least not in my neighborhood.”

“Did your world find anything relating to MY planet?” asked Copper.

Holly shook her head. “I'm afraid not. The discovery of Keshly'm and the native race was pretty recent, and it was a pretty big deal...it was the first time we encountered a functioning society on another planet.”

Suddenly the group heard someone approaching from the distance. They turned to see another fox lady in a white lab coat, accompanied by a short green rabbit. They all stared at each other in silence for a moment.

Holly took off her glasses. “Bits?” Her eyes grew wider. “…Dr. Raz?!”

Bits's ears perked up. “Holly?”

Dr. Raz turned to Bits. “Who's Holly?”

Bits grimaced when he heard this. He turned to see Dr. Raz's reaction, which was one of confusion and concern.

Holly shook her head as she put her glasses in her coat pocket. “I must say, you're very convincing doppelgangers, whoever you are.”

“I'd say the same for you,” Dr. Raz replied. “What brings you and your alien sidekicks here?”

“Sidekicks?” Holly looked over to Copper and Broom. “No, they've got nothing to do with me.”

Broom stepped forward. “But I'm guessing she's got a connection to you, Miss, uh…?”

“Dr. Raz. And I have strong doubts about that.”

“You sure? You do kinda strike me as the type that could make a robot like this.”

Dr. Raz raised an eyebrow. "Robot?”

“Is that really you, Holly?” asked Bits, staring in confusion.

Holly looked at the small rabbit. “Don't play games with me. I don't appreciate it when people try to mimic my family.”

Bits was even more confused. “Huh? I'm not mimicking anyone!”

Holly crossed her arms. “I also don't appreciate when I'm lied to.”

Dr. Raz looked annoyed. “Permit me to ask...what would convince you of my identity?”

Holly thought for a second, then began to approach Dr. Raz. “Let me take a good look at your eyes.”

Dr. Raz took off her glasses and stared at Holly as she got closer, not moving an inch. Holly's eyes suddenly blinked red, and a subtle beeping sound was heard. Then her jaw dropped.

“It...it can't be...”

“Well, that sounds like you're convinced, anyway.” Dr. Raz put her glasses back on and turned her attention to Copper and Broom. “Anything else I need to know about this robot?”

Copper scratched his head. “Well, she converted her arm into a cannon and threatened to shoot us...”

Dr. Raz was stunned to hear this. Her look of surprise quickly turned to one of skepticism. “Well, you're right that I'm able to make a robot like this. But I never installed any weaponry in any of the robots I made.”

“But Doc,” Bits said, “what about the Frazzgadget?”

Dr. Raz shook her head. “That's not an installation, that's equipment.” She then turned back to Holly. “I don't know who made you, but I don't appreciate the mockery you make of my inventions.”

Holly was confused, and a bit worried. “Doctor, wait...I didn't mean to–”

“Stop.” Dr. Raz raised her finger, looking at Holly sternly. “I'm getting to the bottom of this, one way or another. Enable Basic Mode.”

Holly looked very nervous when she heard this. “B-basic Mode requires a security phrase to access.”

“Understood.” Dr. Raz responded without hesitation.

“Please say the security phrase.”

“Kestry’el Zeta Ghemako.”

Suddenly Holly assumed a standing position. Her eyes began to glow red, and she presented a lifeless neutral expression.

“Access granted. Currently in Basic Mode.”

Holly’s voice changed to a simple synthesized voice.

Dr. Raz nodded. “So this truly is one of my robots…”

Broom was irked at this sudden change. “Wh-what’s this about?”

“Basic Mode forces my robot to accept manual commands and inquiries from me. It’s pretty much how my older robot models worked exclusively.”

“How did you know this mode existed in this one?” asked Copper.

“I had one robot that operated on a new variation of artificial intelligence. It was meant to work primarily through its own thoughts and feelings, and when it’s given that amount of potential freedom, there’s always a chance that something could go wrong. The Basic Mode was installed in her root data so that it will override the AI and allow me access to her information uncontested.”

“And she can’t just deny you access to the option?”

“Correct. The access cannot be circumvented when I ask for the option.”

Broom scratched his head. “I guess that’s why she looked nervous when you brought it up. She can’t control herself when in this mode, so anything could happen to her and she’d have no way to stop it. Not even her own voice…”

Dr. Raz adjusted her glasses. “That’s technically true. But all I’m looking for right now is information, and in this mode she will provide that in a straightforward manner.” She turned to Holly. “Please state your identity.”

“Raz Renard Robot Model 6, firmware version 92.11.6.”

“It’s Number Six…” Dr. Raz said in response, slightly surprised.

Holly continued:

“Name designation: ‘Holly!’”

When Holly recited the name, it was a recording of someone else’s voice. Dr. Raz raised her eyebrows, recognizing the voice. Bits recognized the voice too…it was his voice. He swallowed hard as he turned to Dr. Raz, who glared at him.

She turned her attention to Holly again. “Number Six, please tell me when that name was designated.”

“The name: ‘Holly!’ was designated on date 2178-7-12.”

Dr. Raz turned to Bits again, looking very angry. “That was a week ago.”

Bits trembled. “W-w-well…uhhh, I–”

Dr. Raz’s face started to turn red. “You were tampering with Number Six in the basement, even after I explicitly told you not to the week before that!”

“B-b-but Doc, I–OW!!”

Bits was suddenly hit over the head with a wooden spoon, which Dr. Raz retrieved from her coat pocket.

“Why did you disobey me?” she shouted angrily.

Bits rubbed his head where the spoon hit him. “Because…because I was…”

“Because you were what? Curious? Bored?”

Bits sighed. “Because I was lonely.”

Dr. Raz was taken aback. “Lonely…? But...I allowed you to stay in my lab! I made it your home!”

“But...you don't talk very much,” Bits replied. “And when you're busy with your science stuff I…I don't really have much else to do. I found Holly in the basement, charging like the other robots upstairs, and I…well, I figured she might be lonely too. She was all by herself down there. And...she was definitely confused as to why you cut your first chat with her very short…”

Dr. Raz sighed. “She began to ask some…personal questions. Ones that I was uncomfortable to answer. I panicked and cut off the power…” She took a deep breath. “I wasn't sure why she wanted to know so much about me.”

Broom shrugged. “Maybe she was curious too.”

Dr. Raz cleared her throat. “In any case, she was still in a testing phase. The chat we had was via text messages; she wasn't fully activated yet. And I wasn't sure what she could end up doing if I did."

“There must've been a lot of adjustments to make," Broom replied, "considering you had to make so many firmware updates.”

This statement suddenly made Dr. Raz's eyes grow wider. She completely missed that detail. “Wait…what did she say her firmware version was?”

Copper shrugged. “It was 90-something, I think.”

“The last update I remember giving her was version 5…" Dr. Raz turned to Holly again. “Number S–”

“Holly,” Bits interrupted.

Dr. Raz sighed. “...Holly. Please tell me the last date you have registered in your memory.”

“The most recent registered date is 2355-9-7.”

Dr. Raz's jaw dropped. “2355?!”

Broom was surprised. “Wait, is that Earth years? That's almost 200 years in the past!”

Dr. Raz turned to Broom. “It's almost 200 years in MY FUTURE!”

Bits was amazed at this revelation. “Whoa…Holly’s a time traveler?”

Dr. Raz quickly regained her composure. “No, Bits. It seems this world can pull people from different times as well as different universes. The, um…alien rabbit just said he may be from about 400 years in the future.” She looked to Broom. “I suppose I never got the names of you and your friend. My apologies, as this development with Holly was…overwhelming.”

Broom nodded. “It’s fine. My name is Broom, and my friend's name is Copper.”

Copper waved. “Hi.”

“I presume you two are from different planets,” Dr. Raz replied, studying the two visually.

“Yeah,” Broom said, “but our races seem to have some parallels in regards to what we can do.”

Copper looked away. “At least in most cases…”

Broom turned to Copper. “Ah, right. Copper’s considered pretty special among fervals.”

Dr. Raz raised an eyebrow. “Fervals?”

“Yeah… As best as I can describe it, fervals are a class of animal whose bodies produce more energy than their bodies can usually contain. The excess usually floats around us and we use our minds to control it for different stuff. That energy usually acts like a sorta mix of fire and electricity.”Broom looked up to his tall friend. “But Copper…his energy’s almost entirely electricity-like, so he can’t do certain ferval stuff…but he’s apparently capable of other abilities the rest of his kind have never seen before.”

Dr. Raz was taking notes. “Fascinating…”

Copper shrugged. “I still don’t know much about it. The fact that no one else knows anything about it just makes me feel like that much more of an oddball.”

“I’d like to find out more about you and your friend later,” Dr. Raz said as she put her notepad away. “The notion that you can manipulate the excess energy your body emits suggests–”

“Doc,” Bits interjected, pulling on her coat. “What about Holly?”

“Oh, right!” Dr. Raz turned back to Holly. “Alright, Holly. Resume Standard Mode.”

Holly suddenly shook. Her eyes returned to normal and her body moved naturally once again.

“You could’ve asked me those questions in Standard Mode, Doctor,” she said in a sad tone. “I would’ve been willing to answer…”

“I had doubts when these two informed me you had weapons installed,” Dr. Raz responded. “It would not have surprised me if you were in fact some knock-off robot someone made after stealing my research. It wouldn’t be the first time someone pulled that on me…”

Holly nodded. “So I recall. My apologies, Doctor…”

“I’m just amazed that it’s YOU, Number Six. Did I not make any other robot models in your line?”

“I was the last one,” Holly responded. “Ever since I was…brought into your little family, you’ve focused on upgrading me as much as possible over the years.”

Dr. Raz was confused. “‘Brought into my family?’ What do you mean?”

Holly looked at her hands. “Well, at some point you started to look at me less like a robot assistant and…more like a daughter. It made me feel like I was something…someone special to you. Seeing you again with your skepticism and distrust…it feels like whiplash. But considering the details, I can’t be surprised.”

Dr. Raz nodded in understanding. “I’m sorry…Holly. But the sudden change in my quality of life has shaken me to my core. I felt like all I’ve worked towards—everything I’ve worked on—has been taken from me. The fact that at least one of my…‘RazBots’ has now joined me is at least a little comforting.”

Holly nodded. “I’ll do whatever I can to help, Doctor. But…please don’t put me into Basic Mode again.”

Dr. Raz was silent for a moment. “...I don’t know if I can make that promise. But…I promise I will only use it as a last resort.”

Holly closed her eyes in disappointment. “I suppose that’s the best I’ll get from you at the moment… So what now?”

Dr. Raz looked at Holly. “Well, considering you originate from a far-off future, you’ve obviously had a lot of modifications and adjustments applied to you. I’d like to take the opportunity to study these modifications myself. I’m just not sure what tools I’ll need to access them yet…”

Holly looked uncomfortable. “A-actually, Doctor, I think it would be a better idea for me to evaluate you and Bits. It might be important to find out whether traveling to this world may have altered your physical and/or mental well-being.”

Dr. Raz was confused, but intrigued. “How would you know if anything is out of the ordinary?”

“I’ve performed these health evaluations before,” she responded, “and I have all the evaluations I’ve made over the years stored in my memory. I can just match what I find today with an evaluation from the appropriate time frame and make comparisons.”

Dr. Raz thought about this for a moment. Eventually, she nodded in agreement. “Alright, we’ll go with that. Will it take long?”

“It might,” Holly answered. “I need to make new files for you and Bits; you’re not gonna be the same Dr. Raz and Bits I’m familiar with, and I don’t want to risk overriding the old files either.”

Dr. Raz shook her head. “Very well. But I’d prefer to do this in the privacy of my…home.”

Holly nodded. “Of course, Doctor. It wouldn’t be proper to perform the evaluation out here, considering what some of the steps will demand.”

Dr. Raz suddenly blushed bright red. “How comprehensive IS your examination?!”

“Doctor, it’s a procedure YOU put together. It was designed to get all the necessary data for the subject in question.”

“I see… The procedure I must’ve used for Bits and those aliens I encountered a few years ago…”

“Anyone we’d know?” asked Broom.

“I highly doubt it,” Dr. Raz answered, “considering there’s a 400-year difference between your existence and theirs.”

Broom rubbed the back of his head. “Ah, right…”

“Alright, Holly, I suppose we should get this over with.” Dr. Raz directed Holly towards her home, and they walked together, with Bits following close behind. “I am curious to know what has happened as the years went on.”

“Of course, Doctor. I’ll tell you whatever you wish to know, to the best of my ability…”

As the others walked to Raz’s home, Broom and Copper looked at each other, unsure what to make of what they just experienced.

“So they’re our new neighbors, huh…” said Broom, placing his hands on his hips.

“Are they friends?” asked Copper. “I can’t really tell with the doctor.”

Broom shrugged. “I suppose we’ll have to wait and see. At least I don’t sense anything bad from them…”

They were both lost in thought for a few minutes.

“OH!” Broom suddenly realized something. “We were gonna find some games for you!”

Copper’s antennae perked up. “Ah, right! That whole situation kinda threw us both off, I guess.”

“Let’s go take a look,” said Broom. “I know the other day I stumbled across a game you might find interesting. Ironically, it features a robot with an arm cannon…”

#malamite #the blocks #copper #broom #teijru #syr'l #dr. raz #bits #holly #i think there was a movie about a robot from the future traveling to the past

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