Re: The Grand Battle [Starring Eximo Pulvis!]
10-26-2009, 07:33 PM
Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.
Eximo could not grasp what had happened. Where there had once been a spirit, there was now a physical form. The other amalgamation entered it; Eximo tried to follow, but was repelled by some strange force.
It was unsure what to do. All other spirits were "bound", as the demon and the girl had called it. They were beyond its reach. How, then, could it satisfy this hunger?
And - should it? It was beginning to doubt that, and it barely understood what "doubt" even was.
Faint memories awakened. Before it had become aware of its hunger, it had been satisfied with... something. Cl... cleansing. Yes. Had it been... "bound"? That seemed... correct. And it had not experienced the hunger at that time.
The amalgamation's focus turned to the prone vacuum cleaner. Yes. It had been bound to that. It had been... content? Yes, that was it. While bound to the machine, it had a purpose beyond this hunger. It remembered that, now.
Perhaps it could go back? It seemed worth a try.
The physical beings were still in conversation, but Eximo paid it no attention. It entered its old body, hoping that perhaps, just perhaps, it might forget the hunger again.
When it entered, the spirit was greeted by the error log. In addition to the earlier transmission error, the machine was now going through numerous cleansing-related errors. With only its mechanical programming guiding it, however, the vacuum could not correct any of the errors on its own.
Eximo concentrated. When it had communicated with Amethyst, the process had been fairly smooth; with a machine, it was significantly harder. If it had been asked, the spirit would be unable to say why it even thought the task possible. But some instinct, something even more basic than the hunger that still filled it, had taken over.
It wanted to live again.
Its focus narrowed. It tuned out the endless error messages, focusing on one word. One purpose that body and spirit had once shared, and it hoped still did.
Cleanse.
The word resonated through the maze that was the machine's mind. After what seemed like an eternity, there was a response.
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
...cannot cleanse... not like this...
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
...we can... help...
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
...our purpose... is to cleanse...
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
Cleanse.
Cleanse!
The link had been established. It was limited, for the moment, but now that the spirit could actually work within the machine, it could at least address some of the errors.
First error: Not being upright.
Second error: Storage compartment open. Stored items needed to be retrieved.
The machine itself could not address these problems. But, the spirit suddenly believed it could. It recalled the Younger holding back the machine, and realized it had the potential to manipulate physical objects. It decided to experiment. It picked up the loose objects - save for one of the strange discs, which it could not locate - placed them in storage, and closed the compartment. The lifeforms nearby took no notice; their attention was elsewhere.
This task, simple as it would be for a physical being, was exhausting for the spirit. Lifting the machine itself would be even harder. The spirit did not have the strength to attempt it now; it simply remained within its former body, nearly helpless.
Eximo could not grasp what had happened. Where there had once been a spirit, there was now a physical form. The other amalgamation entered it; Eximo tried to follow, but was repelled by some strange force.
It was unsure what to do. All other spirits were "bound", as the demon and the girl had called it. They were beyond its reach. How, then, could it satisfy this hunger?
And - should it? It was beginning to doubt that, and it barely understood what "doubt" even was.
Faint memories awakened. Before it had become aware of its hunger, it had been satisfied with... something. Cl... cleansing. Yes. Had it been... "bound"? That seemed... correct. And it had not experienced the hunger at that time.
The amalgamation's focus turned to the prone vacuum cleaner. Yes. It had been bound to that. It had been... content? Yes, that was it. While bound to the machine, it had a purpose beyond this hunger. It remembered that, now.
Perhaps it could go back? It seemed worth a try.
The physical beings were still in conversation, but Eximo paid it no attention. It entered its old body, hoping that perhaps, just perhaps, it might forget the hunger again.
When it entered, the spirit was greeted by the error log. In addition to the earlier transmission error, the machine was now going through numerous cleansing-related errors. With only its mechanical programming guiding it, however, the vacuum could not correct any of the errors on its own.
Eximo concentrated. When it had communicated with Amethyst, the process had been fairly smooth; with a machine, it was significantly harder. If it had been asked, the spirit would be unable to say why it even thought the task possible. But some instinct, something even more basic than the hunger that still filled it, had taken over.
It wanted to live again.
Its focus narrowed. It tuned out the endless error messages, focusing on one word. One purpose that body and spirit had once shared, and it hoped still did.
Cleanse.
The word resonated through the maze that was the machine's mind. After what seemed like an eternity, there was a response.
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
...cannot cleanse... not like this...
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
...we can... help...
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
...our purpose... is to cleanse...
This unit's purpose is to cleanse.
Cleanse.
Cleanse!
The link had been established. It was limited, for the moment, but now that the spirit could actually work within the machine, it could at least address some of the errors.
First error: Not being upright.
Second error: Storage compartment open. Stored items needed to be retrieved.
The machine itself could not address these problems. But, the spirit suddenly believed it could. It recalled the Younger holding back the machine, and realized it had the potential to manipulate physical objects. It decided to experiment. It picked up the loose objects - save for one of the strange discs, which it could not locate - placed them in storage, and closed the compartment. The lifeforms nearby took no notice; their attention was elsewhere.
This task, simple as it would be for a physical being, was exhausting for the spirit. Lifting the machine itself would be even harder. The spirit did not have the strength to attempt it now; it simply remained within its former body, nearly helpless.
There's no reason for this | Or this | Death is inevitable | You can't challenge fate | The smallest change | I'm overwhelmed
I'm serious | It makes perfect sense | Easy as ABC! | I can't even explain it | Cleaning up someone else's mess
I suck | I rule | I've got it made | Really, I'm serious | This bugs me | It's all lies | I want to believe | Beauty is a curse
I'm serious | It makes perfect sense | Easy as ABC! | I can't even explain it | Cleaning up someone else's mess
I suck | I rule | I've got it made | Really, I'm serious | This bugs me | It's all lies | I want to believe | Beauty is a curse