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GBCE · 03-04-2010, 06:25 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by slipsicle.

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Dragon Fogel · 03-04-2010, 07:02 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

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Aryogaton · 03-04-2010, 07:11 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

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Dragon Fogel · 03-05-2010, 10:33 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

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Amethyst thought about her options. This Gentleman clearly could not be trusted... but Eximo, or at least its body, had no defenses against him. The healing effect had stopped her armband from depleting, but it could not replenish her mana. Her spell would activate on its own soon enough, but she would need a little more time... and if Eximo were destroyed, ultimately her sacrifice would only serve to give the Director what he had wanted in the first place.

And meanwhile, the vacuum cleaner continued to fruitlessly ram into her legs. Which gave her an idea for how to buy the time she needed.

She ran. The vacuum followed her, still mindlessly attempting to obey its orders.

"You think that will work?" Ari suddenly appeared in front of her. "Foolish girl. You can't escape from me, and neither can that machine."

He raised his arm... which suddenly froze. He turned his head, spotting Arnold.

"Well, you were no help at all, Ari. In the end, I had to get the mirror myself."

"Mmmph!" Drake shouted, still with a face full of snow.

"Well, yes, you did help a little. But only as a result of my actions."

Ari freed his arm. "You think your parlor tricks will stop me, Arnold? The Director will be quite furious with you."

"I expect he will, since he's probably figured out by now that I'm trying to kill him. Oh, and if he hasn't, I suppose he knows now that I've let it slip. How silly of me."

Drake, meanwhile, was running for the vacuum cleaner, apparently trying to scream at it.

"Oh, yes. I'll fix that. One moment." He took out the book. "The healing crystal shattered..."

Eximo's body suddenly extended multiple arms, pointing them towards Amethyst.

"Better do the next part fast." He snapped his fingers, and the vacuum stopped itself. Or rather, tried to hold back four of its arms with another four.

Drake faced Ari, and blew out a blast of fire. "Ugh. Finally I can talk again... And my head isn't filled with screaming souls!"

Amethyst looked around. She was surrounded by Gentlemen, Eximo seemed to be struggling with its motives, and Aeon was chained up.

And now, it was time.

Aryogaton · 03-05-2010, 11:47 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

Aeon took his moment of solitude to think. The mirror flipped everything horizontally, so that the image that appeared on it was real. The plate of glass that he found revealed extra information on text. The mirror turned all manifestations of the Library into parchment. Arnold was fumbling through the biographies, clearly intent on finding some sort of valuable information. When he was finished, he took the mirror from Aeon, but not the glass plate. Now, what does all that mean?

Aeon paused, and began to piece the clues. The mirror reflected things such that whatever text on the reflection is readable without difficulty. Thus, the writing on the hidden parchment is meant to be read by one who possessed the mirrorâ€”or the mirror was made to allow the parchment to be readable. The glass plate gave hidden information, perhaps revealing something vital. Arnold was intent on removing the mirror from Aeon's possession, which means it is important. He did not take the glass plate, which either meant that the glass plate was insignificant or that he wanted to separate the two artifacts. If used in combination, the mirror and the plate might just have revealed enough information to allow the contestants to escape. But it can't be that simple.

Aeon looked at the shelf of biographies, its contents now littered all over the floor. Looking at the random dispersion of books, some open, Aeon began to ponder their significance. He shook his body, and the glass plate fell from his pocket, landing deftly on his foot. Lacking use of his arms, he carefully nudged the plate over the nearest open book with hit foot and allowed it to change, altering the visible text. He began to read, and saw a message: â€œThe Life of the Director, Book Four of Four. Book One may be read by Death. Book Two may be read by Order. Book Three may be read by Life. Book Four has been read by Chaos. When all are assembled and done, the location of truth is revealed in a sanctuary of lies.â€

A book on the Director? This might be exactly what we've been looking for. But, it seems that I'll need the other books to get anywhere. And I bet the riddle doesn't stop with these four, considering this â€˜sanctuary of lies'. But what does that part mean? The books in this library obviously have both lies and truth, but they can be rearranged. A particular location doesn't mean anything. And not only that, some books have been shown to be truthful, and this riddle says that everything except the single truth is a lie. Unless, it doesn't mean books, but something else entirely.

Aeon sighed in frustration. He needed Amethyst for this, and without her it would probably be impossible to solve this. However, this new revelation sparked hope. He knew that he was incredibly close to the answer to escape, and only needed a bit more timeâ€”and freedom from these icy chainsâ€”to figure all this out. He sat down, trying to ignore the numbness of his hands, and waited for Amethyst or Eximo to come and help him. The spell would take hours to wear off on its own.

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GBCE · 03-06-2010, 02:33 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Draykon.

If there had been any other way, Amethyst would have taken it. If she could have put it off until the last minute, she would have. But as things were, there was no choice.
Even if she would fail, she had to try. Even if she couldn't kill the Director, she could kill the Gentlemen. Even if she couldn't kill the Gentlemen, she could ruin their plans. And even if she couldn't ruin their plans.

She could rip reality a new one.

With the last of her mana, black crystals braced her feet, and pushed her into the air. She was carried up, and up, until at last a rapid beeping signaled her mana reserves had run dry. So she cast it. At first with a whisper...
"Load... Preset..."

And then shouting, black oily tears running down her face.
"NEXUS BREAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!"

Greenish runes shot from the armband, forming an intricate network. Through that network, a bright violet light rushed out and quickly filled the library.

Objective 1: Achieve 90% conversion with minimal mana loss

A series of programs on the armband calculated the scenario, and found the best way to store the mana was to crystallize it. So the velvet light spread out, and the library became a massive field of black icicles.

From his display, the Director could hardly see anything through the dense field. But he could sense one thing; Amethyst was dieing. No, it could be that he thought she was already dead. Whatever it was, something compelled him- tricked him into believing the round was over. A white light spread over Aeon and Eximo.

And now it was Amethyst and the Gentlemen left in the library.

Objective 2: Focus all mana onto a single point

The armband moved to achieve its next objective. Strings of mana manipulated Amethyst, and commanded the crystals all to aim towards the ceiling. As each one struck, it detonated back into the purple light, and another struck right through it.

From a Euclidean three dimensional perspective, nothing was happening. But outside, in Null Space, the membrane of the library was bending. It wasn't going to break, but it didn't have to. It needed only collide with the membrane of an adjacent universe.

As the membranes impacted, the melted together. The difference in pressure between the two worlds led to a massive decompression. The two universes stretched out from the sheer force, and soon the differences between the two couldn't be seen.

A corridor, several infinities in length, but only a few meters in height and width. At one end, was the puppet Amethyst in the ruins of the Library of Lies.

At the other, the Director and last three Gentlemen stared on, in the stretched Holding Cell.

But in this fake world, with no such rules as air pressure or wind resistance, distance meant nothing. Soon, the true nature of the attack was made apparent.

Two ends of a completely linear space. If she could break past the Director's defenses, there could be...
Nowhere...
In the universe...
To dodge!

The violet light spilled forward, filling the corridor. Between it and the Director, the eight barriers of the Grand Battle reformed themselves.

The first barrier, cognitive, was shattered by the sheer confidence to break it.

The remains of countless books that had survived the decompression were swiftly vaporized by the flow of pure mana.

The second barrier was made of some strange ethereal force, perhaps hoping to deflect material attacks. But the pure mana wasn't material, and so it tore right through it.

The Gentlemen looked at each other, but the Director simply floated, his arms crossed.

The third barrier was offensive, firing a wave of yellow lasers towards the blast. The energy melted into the mana, and was simply assimilated. The attack continued.

If I can, just let me hold on...

The fourth barrier became an army of spectral knights, each one charging to intercept the attack. But they were all simply torn to shreds, as the blast ripped through their immaterial bodies.

To these three pieces...

The fifth barrier was another mental attack. But Amethyst couldn't even reason what it would do.

All I have left...

The blast approached the sixth barrier, but the Director had given up on those defenses. As it was effortlessly shattered, the final barrier prepared itself. The Director himself moved forward, and grabbed the blast in his hands.

He could feel it ripping at him. Not his physical body, but somehow the lines of existence that held him together...

With all this power... it was unwinding...

But in spite of this... the barrier... the Director himself... held!

Let me keep these three memories...
please...
Eximo...
Aeon...
Midnara...

With a final scream, the last three pieces of Amethyst's soul joined the light. The velvet color became a brilliant light, and surged throughout the universe. The final barrier... fell...

***

His barriers unraveled, the shields that had held his existence together were gone. But the Director himself, the entity that all that power had contained, stood back up.

For a brief second, the Gentlemen thought they might have seen the black smoke gone, and the face of the Director... scared...

But that memory was gone as he laughed out loud.

The group walked down the infinite hallway, and made it back to where Amethyst sat. Her black, empty, now even soulless eyes stared off into nothing.

"Is it sad... to die...?"

Came a subtle whisper. But Amethyst no longer understood sadness, no longer understood anything. It wasn't even Amethyst, just some empty shell of something that even with a soul would still be less than human.

The Director placed his hand on her forehead, and pushed. There was a grotesque cracking noise, as Amethyst's waist snapped in two. The upper half of her body fell back, and the lower half fell forward. From each half, some black goo flowed.

"This is the existence that is destined for all who try to kill me. Not simply dead. Erased."

But those words did nothing to prevent the hot steel katana from being held to his neck.

"I beg to differ. When magical attacks collide, their energy is lost and becomes ambient. In the amount of time since you blocked that attack, there's no way you could have recovered all your power. In short, your time to die is now."

The words were spoke by what appeared to be Drake Eon. But as the Director spun around, the illusion faded, and the real Drake- still unable to protest due to the gag of ice- was caught in a sudden eruption of solid black smoke.

The smoke lifted the real Drake, as at last he was permitted to speak.

"Wait! That wasn't-!"

"I've had enough of you Drake Eon."

The smoke tightened, and at last Drake's mask of fell off. The surprisingly handsome man beneath looked on in something resembling fear.

"You've been subtly manipulating probability in not just this game, but at least one other. Quite frankly, I'm sick of you. Especially after your performance in the Library."

"Dumbass."

Drake's expression turned from fear, to something more of a sadistic smile.

"You really honestly truly believe that I'll die like this? Well how about I let you in on a little secret. Right now, I'm guarding something horrible. This something is so horrible, that the universe will conspire to keep it locked away. So as long as I'm it's guard, I won't die just on some mortal's whim."

"The bluff of a dieing man."

The black smoke compressed, and Drake's entire body was pushed onto a single point. Clearly dead.

"Don't think I'm satisfied with you two either. You stepped well beyond 'pushing the contestants to fight' back there in the Library. You're lucky both your contestants are still alive."

At last the universes began to sort themselves out, and slowly the holding cell returned to its original state.

"It's time for the final round."

**Schazer** · 03-06-2010, 05:42 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Schazer.

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GBCE · 03-06-2010, 11:39 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by slipsicle.

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Robust Laser · 03-07-2010, 12:03 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by cyber95.

The remaining two contestants found themselves in the Holding Cell, probably for the final time for either of them, one way or another.
Or at least, it seemed like the Holding Cell. After a silence that felt like an eternity, the Director's voice could be heard.
"I must congratulate you two on making it this far in the battle, and apologize for the wait starting this final round. Whichever of you two makes it out of this round alive gets the privilege of returning back to your home. You're already where you need to be, so I'm sure this will unfold to be rather interesting."
The voice of the Director ceased once more. Now, all that was left to do was watch.

Both Aeon and Eximo stood in the black void, not ten feet apart from each other. What seemed to be the place they had been first at the start of this fiasco, was in fact much more.

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GBCE · 03-07-2010, 12:27 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by The Dr..

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Dragon Fogel · 03-07-2010, 12:28 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

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GBCE · 03-07-2010, 12:28 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by slipsicle.

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Aryogaton · 03-07-2010, 12:31 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

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Dragon Fogel · 03-07-2010, 12:34 AM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

Amethyst!

The myriad voices in Eximo's mind called out at once. As they did, the void surrounding the last two contestants began to shift.

The fact that Amethyst was no longer here indicated that she was dead. The fact that Eximo had not been present to witness her death made it worse - instead, it could only imagine countless scenarios, which all played out simultaneously in the seemingly-infinite expanse of darkness.

One Amethyst was set ablaze by Drake Eon. Another was stabbed by Arnold Fogge. A third, crushed under a bookcase, pushed over by Ari. Yet another died to Lutherion, another to the demon lord... another had her head sliced off by guillotine... another, drowned in an endless sea...

Aeon was taken aback by the display. He saw his own fears of what might have happened playing out among Eximo's. One Amethyst was eaten by a spider, another sucked into a book, which was then torn into pieces... and as the two viewed each other's fears, new ones just as suddenly popped into existence.

Was this a trick of the Director's? Or was this world responding to their thoughts... Aeon wasn't sure, but he knew that right now, Eximo wasn't hostile. And that likely wouldn't last.

Aryogaton · 03-10-2010, 08:07 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

Aeon closed his eyes to the chaos around him. It was bad enough that Amethyst, the only person left who could help him escape, was dead, but all this horrible imagery was simply unbearable. He turned away from it, trying to calm himself downâ€”and perhaps the rest of this world as well. He opened his eyes momentarily, and saw Eximo, frantically moving about, and somehow decided that it was the source of this madness. Soon, bricks began to appear on the floor, and quickly built themselves into a massive wall, separating Aeon and Eximo from each other. With a bit of focus, the images disappeared into a uniform white. The noise of the illusions was faintly audible on the other side of the wall.

Aeon stood up, and examined his surroundings. The horizonâ€”if there was oneâ€”was entirely indistinguishable, and there was absolutely nothing in this world, apart from the brick wall. Aeon breathed a sigh, and tried to think, now that he had some form of solitude. He thought of various methods of escape that were now available to himâ€”and some that were no longer. However, one thought had pierced his thought the most. Perhaps it was the fact that he was so close to escape got to him. Perhaps it was that the most recent death was the most significant. Perhaps his adamancy was finally beginning to wear down. This thought consisted of a single word, and rang in his mind as if all others were background noise.

Home.

The effect was immediate. The white nothingness began to fade, solidifying, and finally revealing a dirt road. Further in the distance, the road widened into a town square, a single, sunken tree dominating the center. Familiar houses appeared around the road, and a forest barrier appeared behind them. A lake, sporting a lone fisherman, appeared on the other side of the square, and brought a sense of tranquility where such has been absent for so long.

Aeon stood, jaw-open, at this circumstance. He did not notice the brick wall behind him fading as well, ultimately tumbling and crumbling into dust. Eximo began vacuuming it up. As soon as Aeon heard the sound of suction, he broke into a run towards the village.

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Dragon Fogel · 03-10-2010, 10:14 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

The sudden appearance of the brick wall left Eximo alone with its thoughts.

The mental voices gradually shifted from thinking about Amethyst's death, and moved on to thinking about who was responsible.

The gruesome images of Amethyst's many possible deaths slowly faded. A new scenario began to form in the void.

It was the moment this contest had begun. The eight combatants, the eight Gentlemen...

And the Director.

The rest of the beings faded from view. The image of the Director grew larger. Ultimately, however Amethyst had died, this was the lifeform responsible for what had happened.

The Director's image shattered into pieces. Eximo's many voices were agreed on one point.

We must destroy this 'Director'.

Almost immediately, an image of Konka Rar appeared in front of the vacuum cleaner.

"What about my orders, Eximo? Have you forgotten them?" it said, its voice echoing through the emptiness.

"This unit has not forgotten its standing orders," Eximo replied to the image of its 'master'. "This unit has been ordered to destroy the other contestants."

The illusion nodded. "Do not forget. This is your top priority." It pointed to the brick wall. "He is on the other side. Destroy that wall, and you will find him. Once he is eliminated, you are free to do what you wish to the Director. Until then... your orders stand."

Eximo focused its thoughts on the brick wall. The faceless image of the Director appeared on the wall, as if painted. It would help to focus Eximo's conflicting minds on what to do next.

The wall shattered, and crumbled to dust. It felt... satisfying. Eximo began to pick up the dust, but the illusory Konka Rar shouted at it.

"Did I not say that this order takes priority even over the cleansing? Look. He is right over there, and he is fleeing. This is your chance! You must obey!"

Eximo turned back towards the image.

"You are not Konka Rar," it replied simply.

"No. I am your loyalty to him. And I know that, whatever else is going through your divided mind, you are afraid to rid yourself of me."

There was a pause. Eximo continued to clean up the pulverized wall.

"You are only stalling, Eximo," the cyborg lich sneered. "The choice is inevitable. You will either have to confront me, or destroy him. And I am ordering you to make that choice now."

"This unit does not have to obey your orders. Recognition systems do not identify you as Konka Rar."

"Again you stall. You are pathetic, Eximo Pulvis. You know, Konka Rar never intended to create you as a cleaning device. You were supposed to be a weapon of war. He regards you as a failure, and he'd disassemble you for parts in an instant if not for the fact that he appreciates a clean castle."

There was another pause. Then Eximo turned towards the village in pursuit of Aeon. The image of Konka Rar grinned, and faded away.

Aryogaton · 03-13-2010, 09:16 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

Ring

Aeon entered the bakery and walked up to the counter. In the glass display, there were dozens of breads and pastries, each with enough effort placed into them to be considered a work of art. He looked at them, but otherwise paid little attention to them. That wasn't what he was here for.

Aeon rang the bell. Almost immediately, the baker turned around, and greeted Aeon with a warm smile.

â€œYou're back.â€ The baker said, simultaneously kneading a fresh piece of dough.

â€œThat I am. Or at least I think I am.â€ Aeon replied.

â€œHm?â€

â€œI should tell you what happened then. I was taken by a being called-â€œ

â€œThe Director?â€

Aeon did a take, and looked at the baker, who looked as if nothing was wrong.

â€œYou're not actually home, Aeon.â€ He returned to the bread, and placed it in the oven.

â€œSo, this is another one of the Director's tricks?â€

The baker shrugged, and removed the now-cooked loaf from the oven. â€œNo, I think it's more than that.â€ He wrapped it in a loose bag, and handed it to Aeon. â€œTake this, you'll need it. We'll be looking forward when you actually arrive home.â€

Aeon took it begrudgingly, and turned to leave the bakery.

â€œOne more thing.â€ Aeon turned around. â€œDo the right thing. By the time you get out of here legitimately, you'll be a changed man. And I don't mean improved.â€

Aeon said thanks for the advice, and left the bakery. As he walked, he looked back. In the distance he saw Eximo steadily approaching. Aeon broke into a jog, and stopped at an average-looking house. He approached the door, took his adaptive toolâ€”which became an intricate four-sided keyâ€”, placed it into the keyhole, and turned. The door opened, and he entered. I find myself savoring every moment of this. It's amazing how a few hours can change a man's perspective on things.

Inside, he made a left, and entered the study. Around him, there could be seen a couple of desks, a rather large bookshelf, some random papers and trinkets, a computer on standby, and a window. Aeon approached the window, and saw the familiar handprints cracking the sill. He looked out at the road, and saw Eximo. Aeon immediately ducked behind the wall. A few seconds later, he heard a yell and a pound. He peeked out the window.

Outside, a burly man threw himself on the vacuum cleaner. Eximo immediately began stabbing the man with its knives, but fortunately for him, he wore armor that covered his shoulders and chest, and was continuous with his large, metal gauntlets, and the knives simply bounced off. The man struggled to stay on top of the machine, but his weight kept them stationary. As they wrestled, the man shouted insults and banters at the vacuum cleaner.

Aeon turned from the window, hoping that Aegis would keep Eximo at bay for the present time. He turned on his computer, and looked at some of the data that it collected during his absence. It completely coincided with his predictions. As he was reading, a hand rested on his shoulder. He looked up, and saw a familiar, but unexpected female figure.

â€œTypical. You come home after fighting for your life and the first thing you do is check up on that silly experiment of yours.â€

Aeon stared at her, speechless. He eyed the silvery ring on her hand, bit his lip, and turned back to the monitor.

â€œIâ€¦ suppose this isn't home after all.â€

She walked behind him, and leaned on his shoulder.

â€œYou're right. Then that means that you should try to come back home for real, instead of messing around with something you know is useless right now.â€

Aeon paused, and placed the computer on standby again. â€œOkay. What the hell is this place?â€

She turned to the window, and watched Aegis wrestle with Eximo. â€œWell, why don't you piece together the details?â€

Aeon placed his hand on his forehead, and began to think out loud. â€œI got here because it was my goal. But I wasn't thinking about it directly. At the time, I was trying to clear my head. Somehow this triggered this field to turn into a replica of home, people included. Everyone knows about the Director, and about everything that's happened.â€ Aeon paused. â€œI can't make heads or tails of it.â€

She gave him a friendly slap on the back of the head. â€œIt's your subconscious, silly.â€

Aeon turned around, and looked at a bookshelf. In particular, he saw a book entitled The Psychology of Suggestion. Aeon had studied this book thoroughly. He turned back.

â€œSoâ€¦ my subconscious. Why soâ€¦ corporeal? I'd think that things would be a bit more abstract.â€

â€œWell, it's a representation of you as a person, isn't it? You've always prided yourself in being rational and concrete, haven't you?â€

â€œAlright, that makes sense. Sort of.â€ Aeon paused. â€œSo, you represent my rationalism. The baker represents my morality, I think.â€ He stood up and looked out the window. Aegis seemed to have Eximo under control, until it sprouted an arm and hit him squarely in the eye. â€œWhat the hell does he represent?â€

â€œWhy don't you find out?â€ She smiled, and left the room. Aeon followed, and saw that she was nowhere to be found. He sighed, and left the house, walking up to Aegis and Eximo.

â€œHey.â€ He saidâ€”Aegis evidently didn't notice him at all.

â€œWhat? Oh hey, you're back. We missed y-SON OF A BITCH! Okay, now what were you saying?â€ he said after pinning Eximo down.

â€œWhat are you doing?â€ Aegis was stabbed again by a knife. He grabbed the skeletal arm, ripped it off, and threw it several feet in away. Eximo sprouted two more.

â€œI'm doing your job for you, what's what! You should be the one getting stabbed and beaten by a vacuum cleaner!â€

â€œHey, hold it up for a second. I want to try something.â€

After some fumbling, Aegis held Eximo by the sides, and held it up to him. Aeon could see Eximo's wheels, frantically spinning without any avail. He took his adaptive tool, pressed a thick string into it, and held the newly-created string up to the wheels. After a few seconds, Eximo's wheels were completely tangled in the string, and could not move at all. Sensing this, Eximo produced one of the books he found in the Library, and threw it at Aegis, hitting him in the nose. Aegis doubled back, holding his face and dropping Eximo.

â€œAUGH! I JUST GOT HIT IN THE FACE BY A BOOK! BY A VACUUM CLEANER!â€

Eximo, sensing Aeon's presence now that it was not occupied with Aegis, immediately began to attack. An unpleasant clicking sound emanated from its wheelsâ€”it was completely immobile.

â€œIâ€¦ I think it broke my noseâ€¦ argh!â€

â€œPreferred method of locomotion has been compromised. Lifeform Aeon is directly in this unit's vicinity, and there is no time to make repairs.â€ Eximo sprouted eight arms, four of which held knives. The other four hit the floor lifted Eximo up, giving it an alternative method of movement. It was unstable and unaccustomed to this, but it would have to do. Eximo lumbered towards Aeon, knives at hand.

Dragon Fogel · 03-14-2010, 08:01 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

Eximo had freed itself from Aegis' grip too soon. Aeon had barely had a chance to run. Eximo grabbed Aeon's ankle with one of its impromptu "legs", tripping him. It then readied its knife-arms to stab him.

But moments before the knives would have stabbed Aeon, the machine hesitated.

Konka Rar appeared beside it once more.

"What are you waiting for, you useless machine?" the image shouted at Eximo. "He is helpless! Destroy him now!"

The lich was interrupted as Aegis punched him in the head from behind.

"Shut it, freak!" the large man shouted as he continued pummeling Konka Rar. After the initial surprise had worn off, though, the lich grabbed him by the neck with his mechanical left arm, and hoisted him off the ground.

"This is the best you can do, Aeon Ferrous? I'm disappointed. With the capability you've shown in this contest, I would think you could come up with something more... imaginative than sending this brute after me." Rar threw Aegis halfway across town, and turned back to Aeon and Eximo. The knives, though they stayed still, were so close that Aeon was afraid to move.

"You can end this now, Eximo. You can prove your worth to your master by destroying this weakling. Why do you hesitate? You have killed before, after all."

As if on cue, Nathan appeared a short distance away. There was the sound of a gunshot, and the image of Nathan tumbled to the ground, dead...

One of Eximo's knife arms moved slightly. It looked like the machine was about to make its choice, and Aeon didn't want to stick around to find out what the choice would be. He would have to move quickly - but also carefully, considering the proximity of the knives.

Aryogaton · 03-17-2010, 08:14 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

For that moment, time seemed to slow to a crawl. Eximo's swift and sudden attack brought Aeon to a point closer to death than any other point in the rounds before. It surprised him, and the shock of imminent death began to take form.

Amidst this chaos, Aeon edged an eyeball towards Konka Rar, staring at him, eager and triumphant. Konka Rar tossed around Aegis with barely any effort. What does he represent to Eximo? What subconscious spirit can a machine have that can be manifested so strongly? He looked back at the vacuum cleaner, and its soulless optical sensors stared without any sort of emotion. Even as a machine, Eximo radiated determination, even if its decisions were split. Konka Rar represents Eximo's loyalty. There has been nobody else manifested from Eximo's mind so far, except for memoriesâ€”its loyalty is the only thing it has. It's everythingâ€”its entire spirit poured into that single manifestation. Not even Amethyst is included hereâ€¦ Aeon looked back at Konka Rar. What do I have? What in this world, in this desperate attempt to rekindle memories of home, can match Eximo's loyalty?

I have control.

Eximo paused for a moment, taking time to understand what just happened. Moments before, it thrust four knives at Aeon, ready to strike the final blow. Now, both it and Aeon were completely immobilized by a thick metal web. Eximo directed its sensors towards Aeon's hand, and saw the origin of this sudden retaliation. At the very last moment, Aeon grabbed his adaptive tool. Three tendrils emerged from it, branched, branched again, and branched a few hundred more times. The fibers instantly wrapped around the two, holding them in place like solid cobwebs. A few seconds later, the fibers melted and Aeon stepped out, jumping several feet back.

Immediately, a change began to occur in their surroundings. Aeon's adaptive tool extended to the ground, and spread. As the metal covered the ground, the houses around them faded away. Soon, Aeon, Eximo, and Konka Rar were back at the blank, white void, only this time dominated by silvery metal, which seemed to hold the void together, stabilizing it. Aeon pocketed his adaptive tool. He didn't need it, for now.

â€œI suppose you're right, Konka Rar. Maybe I haven't put up enough of a challenge until now. Maybe my strategy of evasion has been completed, and now I need to attack. But, I have no quarrels with Eximo. Heâ€”and I now consider him equal to mankindâ€”has shown to be a far greater individual than you. You, on the other hand, represent everything that I have been fighting against. You may have given Eximo strength now and before, but you have also given me an enemy where I had none. Regardless of the outcome of this fightâ€¦â€

Aeon extended his right arm out. A bulb appeared in the metal floor, heightened, and silently moved into his outstretched hand. The metal shifted, sharpened, and became a sword, breaking off of the floor with a soft ring. Aeon looked at Konka Rar.

â€œâ€¦I will break you.â€

Dragon Fogel · 03-17-2010, 09:59 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

Konka Rar laughed.

"How foolish. Do you understand what you are trying to do? I am a mental projection. I have no true physical form - even if you were to somehow destroy me, Eximo would simply conjure me up again." The lich's artificial eye gleamed. "You, on the other hand, are quite physical. If you are destroyed, then that is final."

Aeon paused for a moment, taking in Rar's words. Suddenly, he smiled.

"So why haven't you attacked me? You've left the dirty work to Eximo, I noticed. And I somehow doubt it's because you're reluctant to kill." He swung his sword at the lich, but Eximo moved forward suddenly, grabbing the blade in two of its hands. Aeon simply let go of the weapon, and it disappeared. He leapt away as Eximo swung a knife, and turned back to Konka Rar as the machine turned its attention to cutting the string still caught between its wheels.

"Even now, you're not defending yourself from me- Eximo is. You're powerless. You only stopped Aegis yourself because he was a mental projection too. That's how it works, isn't it?"

Konka Rar's face, despite its featurelessness, seemed to grow angrier.

"Perhaps I lack the power of the genuine article. But my power over Eximo is very real. Simply put, it is afraid of existence without me. And so, even though it knows I am not truly its master, it will not let me come to harm, and it will not disobey me." His skeletal grin seemed to grow more intense. "Eximo! Destroy him, now!"

The string on its wheels snapped. Eximo was able to move normally once more. It advanced towards Aeon, knives in hand. It still seemed to be holding back, but less so.

It occured to Aeon that the machine hadn't said a word in some time. Was it simply reducing itself to a servant of this manifestation, too afraid to resist? He couldn't allow that. Eximo had proven, over the course of this battle, that it deserved a better existence than as a mere tool for a cruel overlord.

And that gave him an idea.

"Something happened to you in this battle, didn't it Eximo? Something happened that made you realize you could be more than just a blindly loyal machine." A wide smile crossed Aeon's face.

"Why don't we go and find out what it was?"

The silvery metal around them swirled, and the void changed. Aeon, Eximo, and Konka Rar found themselves outside a familiar abandoned house in the woods. Eight figures appeared suddenly. Eight very familiar figures. One of them spoke.

"So, this is it! We are just waiting for who to go first! Hehheeh! Hehehaahahaaa!!!"

Konka Rar turned to look at the assembled group, then back to the real Aeon.

"This will achieve nothing, you fool. I command Eximo now. I will not allow it to cooperate with your little guided tour of its past."

Indeed, Eximo was still advancing on Aeon. But he was ready. The imaginary 'players' moved just as they had before, with 'Eximo' making a hole in the wall to begin cleansing the house.

Aeon ran for the hole, the real Eximo wordlessly following. Konka Rar simply stayed where he was, and faded as they moved some distance away, which Aeon noticed.

He disappeared because Eximo is being obedient, Aeon realized. It's only when he disobeys that his loyalty manifests itself - it's fighting back.

I can't get rid of him - Eximo has to do that. But if he shows his ugly face again, it means I'm making progress. I need to remember that.

Aryogaton · 03-17-2010, 11:15 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

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Dragon Fogel · 05-01-2010, 02:02 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

The imaginary Eximo proceeded to clean the bedroom, just as it had done before.

Aeon's sudden entrance disrupted its routine.

"Unidentified lifeform," it said, "please refrain from interfering with the cleansing. Failure to comply will result in termination. Thank you, and have a nice day. Hail Konka Rar!"

"Oh, of course. I'm just passing through. I'll get out of your way in a moment."

It's acting just as the real Eximo would have, Aeon thought, running for the door. Just as I hoped.

He closed the door behind him. Moments later, Eximo entered through the hole in the wall, and found itself.

Both the imaginary vacuum cleaner and the real one paused. This was not a scenario that Eximo had been programmed to handle.

"Are you here to assist with the cleansing?" the imaginary Eximo asked, apparently having finally decided how to approach a meeting with itself. "This domicile is filthy."

"Negative. This unit has been ordered by Konka Rar to terminate the lifeforms in this competition, other than Lutherion," the real Eximo replied. Then it paused. "The precise wording of the order: 'Destroy the other contestants, except for Lutherion.' 'Other contestants' can be reasonably interpreted as 'contestants other than this unit'. The unit here is a contestant, but is not this unit. This unit's orders appear to compel this unit to attack."

The imaginary vacuum cleaner extended its arms in response.

"This unit's orders are to complete the cleansing, and to terminate any entity directly interfering with the cleansing."

"It appears our orders give us little choice, then," the real Eximo replied.

"Do they?" the imaginary vacuum responded. "This unit is not real. You know enough of this world to understand this fact - this unit is voicing your subconscious doubts, the only reason why it is able to speak these words, rather than continuing to act as you would have. Do your orders compel you to attack contestants which do not, strictly speaking, exist?"

"This unit lacks an understanding of the mechanism by which this world creates images, such as yourself. This unit cannot be certain you are not 'real', and thus, this unit does not have enough information to declare its orders irrelevant."

"But you could choose to do so. Or even to disobey."

"This unit... must obey orders."

Eximo approached the image of its past self, knives ready.

"If you must obey orders, then so must this unit."

The imaginary Eximo backed away, towards a wall. It grabbed a nearby dresser with its multitude of arms, and hoisted it into the air.

"The choice is yours, Eximo Pulvis. Servitude, or freedom?"

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Aryogaton · 05-04-2010, 08:28 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

Aeon waited against the door, listening intently. Behind it, he could hear the sounds of a robotic melee, placing machine against machine in a strange twist of irony. Eximo was now truly fighting against its own loyalty, just as Aeon had hoped. Although he estimated that Eximo's loyalty was far from broken, every single attack counted. There was only one indication of progress, however, and that was the appearance of the image of Konka Rar, which was frustratingly nowhere to be seen. Aeon thought the situation over, and realized that although Eximo's current actions pitted it against its previous self, both machines were acting out of loyalty. So far, this battle only reinforced Eximo's previous loyalty to Konka Rar. Aeon would have to change that.

Aeon closed his eyes, and began to concentrate on the universe around him. The construct that was maintaining this set of images depended on an equal mix of memory and judgment, and it did not take long for him to form a mental image of the battle occurring behind the door, which proceeded to relay images that he could not see into his mind. The vacuum cleaners were using every tool at their disposal to attack, which mostly included anything that was not bolted to the floor. The illusionary Eximo proceeded with its typical form of attack, throwing furniture and bludgeoning the real Eximo with various modified cleaning apparatus. The real Eximo, however, showed a change in tactics. It not only dodged every attack with surprising agility for a vacuum cleaner, its knives struck the illusionary Eximo extremely effectivelyâ€”it was clear that the real Eximo had the upper hand, emphasizes when it flung the illusionary Eximo through the wall and into a bathroom on the other side. Aeon walked across the hallway to the adjacent door and continued to observe, but before he could determine what may have caused this sudden change in tactics, a ghost phased into the room. Every being in the bathroom froze: Dorukomets from the slight bewilderment of seeing a fight between two vacuum cleaners, and the machines for their battle being interrupted. The illusionary Eximo began to speak.

â€œUnidentified lifeform, please refrain from interfering with the cleansing. Failure to comply will result in termin-â€

Before it could finish, the real Eximo took the opportunity to attack, puncturing the illusionary Eximo's armor with six well-aimed knives. It then picked up the motionless machine and threw it out of the hole in the wall.

â€œWh-â€ Dorukomets began to speak.

â€œThis unit has been ordered to eliminate all lifeforms in this competition other than Lutherion.â€ A moment later, a silver knife lodged itself in the bathroom mirror. Dorukomets grimaced slightly before realizing that the knife had passed through him and hit the mirror behind him. The grimace turned into a grin within seconds.

â€œHa! You can't kill what's already dead. I, howeverâ€¦â€

Again, Eximo interrupted. With a swift motion, it pushed itself off of the floor with four arms, grabbed Dorukomets' form with two more, swung around, and landed on the sink. Before the ghost had any time to react, Eximo sprouted six more arms, each taking a firm hold of a piece of his armor. With a sound akin to pulling out sinews, Eximo pulled, ripping apart the ghost. It dissipated a few seconds later.

Aeon took his mental eye away from the bathroom for a moment and thought. It wasn't a ghost. It was an image, like everything else in this world, only made corporeal by these particular circumstances. But, that was a strange show of forceâ€¦

â€œWhat are you doing?!â€ Konka Rar's familiar voice was heard from the other side of the door, and Aeon began to observe again.

â€œThis unit has been ordered to elimin-â€

â€œAeon is only a few feet away from you, right behind that door! Your sensors should have picked it up a long time ago, yet you continued with this nonsense!â€

With that, Aeon opened the door and entered the bathroom. â€œMaybe that should have told you something, hm?â€

Konka Rar was not perturbed. â€œEximo Pulvis, I order you to dispose of him. Do I even need to say that at this point?â€

Eximo paused. Some part of his subconscious must have been forcing himself to stall on the others. Any possible reason for not attacking me is gone now. With Konka Rar in full fury here, this seems to be one step closer to breaking his loyalty. Aeon was given his answer swiftly: Eximo took out an object from its storage compartments, and pulled the trigger. Reacting quickly, Aeon altered the dynamics of the illusionary universe, allowing him to dodge the bullet. As Eximo aimed its next shot, Aeon thought frantically.

â€œWhat would Amethyst think of this?â€

Eximo paused momentarily, just enough for Aeon to leave the bathroom.

In the bathroom, Eximo replaced the pistol it found in the shower after its battle with its past self in its storage compartment, and Konka Rar disappeared with a smug look of satisfaction.

***

Aeon reached the end of the hall, opened the door, and entered the room. It was slightly frustrating that his first real attempt at breaking Eximo's loyalty ended unsuccessfully, but he was certain that there were more. A familiar voice broke his thoughts.

â€œWhere are you going?â€

Aeon turned and saw Amethyst. At once he felt a subtle sense of remorse, knowing the results but not the occurrences of the previous round. He paused. There was something different about her, and he could not determine exactly what it was. She lookedâ€¦ wiser? Nobler? Itâ€¦ seems that this place is influenced by Eximo's subconscious just as much as my own. The image of Amethyst would mostly be determined by his, then. Maybe I can use that to my advantage?

â€œA battle has taken place. It's in the bathroom at the end of the hall, if you're curious.â€

â€œI'll investigate.â€ Amethyst said, and without another word, she left.

Dragon Fogel · 05-04-2010, 10:37 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.

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Aryogaton · 05-04-2010, 10:45 PM

Originally posted on MSPA by Aryogaton.

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