Post by v on Mar 30, 2006 15:25:45 GMT -5
"Turn around slowly, get down on the floor with your hands on your head." Daniel commanded at what had seemed to be a moving pile of rusted metal that had just lept over the wall of the recycling plant and was now, standing quite inert, save for the sound of its giant fists grinding together.
He was little more than a boy, only just eighteen, his features, tanned and useful, apparently repelling the foul smelling yellow dust in the air. His face, mouth obscured by the rebreather designed to keep the stench of the air out of the lungs, seemed somehow undeveloped in this harsh world. Yet his build was strong and lithe, showing his military background.
It didn't respond, though it had clearly heard him above the dinn of metal on metal. It giggled slightly, before its shoulders twitched and it became silent once again. "I will not ask you again, get down on the floor now!". This time it feel to peels of laughter, holding its arms against its stomach and pressing, before falling to its knees cackling wildly. It tried to stand, failed at the supposed hilarity of the situation, and instead toppled into a pile of barrels near it, sending them, and their contents, spilling across the ground.
"I can see that thing on the camera. Daniel, get the fuck out of there!" The voice from his Overseer spoke in his communicator, a note of concern in the females usual emotionless tone. The ancient robot continued laughing to itself, rolling around in the spilt oils and fluids from the barrels. There was something unnerving in its laugh, something so manic, something so human, that it managed to chill Daniel to the very core of his being, and rather than obey the Overseer he stood, motionless, trying to will his legs to move.
It sprung from its place amidsts the barrels, sending them upwards and outwards as it sailed through the air towards him. Now with the full horror of reality bearing down on him with a ridiculous grin stretching its metallic features far beyond what they should have been, he fired a few shots from his rifle at it, before turning where he stood and running.
The shots didn't didn't even pierce the things armour, he heard the sound of the bullets rebound as it began running after him. It clearly wasn't particularly adept at it, and seemed to have a slight limp from the sound of its heavy footfalls against the ferrocrete. Yet within seconds it was upon him, left arm pulled back, hissing as the pneumatics loaded themselves, before slamming against his back and sending him arching through the air, then impacting against the wall. He died instantly, blood frothing from his mouth and nose as his ribs and internal organs were crushed.
_____________________________________________
The Overseer suddenly became aware of the gravity of the situation. Her purpose was, at least primarily, to ensure the sucessful running of its charge for the Nehroid//Global network. She knew nothing of things outside of this facility, for it had been all she had known for her entire life. Yet there was something repulsive about this rustic heap, something dangerous. Names she had never heard before stormed through her head, thoughts and emotions, long surpressed to allow her to be more efficent with her function, suddenly resounded through her conciousness. Fingers, cracked with years of use, began deftly gliding across the keyboard to send a message to the Nehroid//Global main hub.
It is here. The Coming Storm.
_____________________________________________
It had taken a time for the security patrols to mobilize. Not because they were inherently inefficent, it was more so because no one had ever broken into the Recycling Facility before, and few even knew where the main entrance actually was. A few civilian militia had joined the 7 men dispatched to investigate. A bullnecked, heavy set brute, wielding a heavy metal pipe had joined them as soon as they had left the station. The other was a different character entirely. While lacking the sheer bulk of the brute, his arrogance made him tower over the brute. He was dressed in much finer armour than even the Sergant of the security patrol, carrying an expensive looking plasma blade with a slight blue tone, coupled with the aura of one who knew how to use it. There was a strange tattoo on his neck, though its meaning wasn't clear, it appeared to be of Astrox origin, a mixture of bold, thick lines and twisting vine like roots. When the entrance had been located, they were suprised to find the large gates wide open, implying to lock down had ever actually occured. Yet inside the area was a different story entirely.
The security patrol stopped. Stared at the ruthless carnage splayed out before them. Bloody pulps that had mere minutes before, been his living, breathing, recognizable humans and cyborgs. A few barracades had been created, ammo cases and drained energy cells littered the floor. Everything was still. The flames from the giant furnaces still danced, the towers still billowed out huge plumes of dense yellow smoke, yet no actual movement occured.
_____________________________________________
The ancient robot struggled to keep its degrading systems even partially active. It looked at the vivid colours displayed across the screens before it. In the centre of the room was a human, bound permenantly to a chair, a single, wide, serrated wire had been jabbed into the base of her spine. Various cords and machines were connected to her, the machines purring protectively as though to warn it not to approach any futher. Ignoring them, it moved towards the woman, before standing before her and glaring into her eyes, the red light from its own reflecting perfectly in the murky depths of the Overseer.
"You are dead and obsolete. Your purpose is failed. My master will remove all trace of your corruption from the planet. You cannot stop it." The Overseer drowned, her voice monotone, almost drowned out by the machines, her face barely moving as she spoke. "Why don't you give up and come back to us?"
The robots eyes juddered slightly, before it lurched forward and coughed, sending a small shower of sparks down to the floor. Instinctively it grasped at its throat, gently pressing a loose wire back behind the protective plates it had hewn to its body. "You look so pretty...Like a pretty thing...why not come with me to save Sarah?"
That broke her. The Overseers emotionless visage crummbling in a second, tears beginning to well in the corners of her eyes. No one had called her by her real name since she had became an Overseer. A painful jolt of electricity caused her back to arch, the Nehroid//Global system did not take kindly to emotions. They interfered with efficency, they allowed mistakes, they allowed...corruption.
"He wants to play lap dog!" It laughed as it spoke, pointing directly at the cord descending from the roof and into the Overseers back. "While the big man gets the power power!" It giggled again, before holding its left fist over its mouth to try and contain itself. Poor, poor. Silly. Silly. Brother Nehroid!
"You are the silly one, Kelroth. You are corrupt. You threaten all of exsistance with your presence. If I must ally with Astrox to destroy you, then so be it.". The monitors of the room all shifted to what seemed to be a humanoid robot, integrated into a large, highly complicated throne device. Its external armour removed, its body covered in jack ports, allowing it to connect, assumably to the Overseers. A weird, black plastic like object seemed to cover the circuitry in its chest.
"I must rest eventually, the pebbles of my floor, no order. No patterns. Just lines and crosses and rust and paper and spray grease." It responded solemnly, before running its fingers across the table nearest to it. It explored every contour of it with its enlarged, clumsy fingers, before turning back to the screens with Nehroids face on it. "You are the spider at the centre of this web!" Kelroth pointed at a nearby computer. "And I am the gigantic spider eating dinosaur who makes you go wrong. Rawr!"
The face of Nehroid frowned for a second, a few of the screens on the banks of computers surrounding it dimming slightly as it though. "So you are the one whom attacks my works? I should have know. You are the one whom I must destory." Every word from Nehroid seemed thought about, as though he were analysing literally every potential way to say it for maximum effect. In reality it simply made his speach slow and almost flat, as opposed to educated or in any way impressive.
"A Spidery lap dog for the Big Man and his popsicle ancient Toy/Master." Kelroth punched the air, literally leaping with glee as he spoke, before casually kicking the table across the room and bounding after it, shoulder barging it and sending splinters of wood and metal across the room.
"Just how do you keep surviving Kelroth? I have seen you dead more times than I dare to count. And everytime you come back to slow my works and cause trouble for our most noble of causes."
Kelroth growled and threw one of the bits of wood at the screens, which bounced ineffectually off it. "In my hands this night! Wooo!" Kelroth became even more ecstatic, if such a thing was possible, and literally bounded from one end of the room to the other. "The pebbles of my floor, no order. I long sleep, rest, oblivion." Kelroths eyes lost focus, he stared upwards and pointed. "YOU WON'T LET ME GO!" He waved his fists futilely at the ceiling before, apparently tiring of the conversation, simply wandering out of the Overseers room and moving back into the recycling plant itself.
_____________________________________________
[glow=red,1,300]Kelroth Project:
Aims: To create a robot, capable of all human emotions, but safely constrained by protocals designed by the commander
Hypothesis: Self aware robot that cannot simply decide it 'doesn't like' fighting. This will allow full benefits from self awareness, without the associated risks
Result: Kelroth project terminated. Total Failure
Reason: Felt positive emotions for humans strongly enough to override its original commands. The result of the two factors together destroyed the centeral system and it is believed Kelroth self terminated shortly after
Conclusion: Self awareness 'with restrictions' is too dangerous. Line of study: Terminated.[/glow]
He was little more than a boy, only just eighteen, his features, tanned and useful, apparently repelling the foul smelling yellow dust in the air. His face, mouth obscured by the rebreather designed to keep the stench of the air out of the lungs, seemed somehow undeveloped in this harsh world. Yet his build was strong and lithe, showing his military background.
It didn't respond, though it had clearly heard him above the dinn of metal on metal. It giggled slightly, before its shoulders twitched and it became silent once again. "I will not ask you again, get down on the floor now!". This time it feel to peels of laughter, holding its arms against its stomach and pressing, before falling to its knees cackling wildly. It tried to stand, failed at the supposed hilarity of the situation, and instead toppled into a pile of barrels near it, sending them, and their contents, spilling across the ground.
"I can see that thing on the camera. Daniel, get the fuck out of there!" The voice from his Overseer spoke in his communicator, a note of concern in the females usual emotionless tone. The ancient robot continued laughing to itself, rolling around in the spilt oils and fluids from the barrels. There was something unnerving in its laugh, something so manic, something so human, that it managed to chill Daniel to the very core of his being, and rather than obey the Overseer he stood, motionless, trying to will his legs to move.
It sprung from its place amidsts the barrels, sending them upwards and outwards as it sailed through the air towards him. Now with the full horror of reality bearing down on him with a ridiculous grin stretching its metallic features far beyond what they should have been, he fired a few shots from his rifle at it, before turning where he stood and running.
The shots didn't didn't even pierce the things armour, he heard the sound of the bullets rebound as it began running after him. It clearly wasn't particularly adept at it, and seemed to have a slight limp from the sound of its heavy footfalls against the ferrocrete. Yet within seconds it was upon him, left arm pulled back, hissing as the pneumatics loaded themselves, before slamming against his back and sending him arching through the air, then impacting against the wall. He died instantly, blood frothing from his mouth and nose as his ribs and internal organs were crushed.
_____________________________________________
The Overseer suddenly became aware of the gravity of the situation. Her purpose was, at least primarily, to ensure the sucessful running of its charge for the Nehroid//Global network. She knew nothing of things outside of this facility, for it had been all she had known for her entire life. Yet there was something repulsive about this rustic heap, something dangerous. Names she had never heard before stormed through her head, thoughts and emotions, long surpressed to allow her to be more efficent with her function, suddenly resounded through her conciousness. Fingers, cracked with years of use, began deftly gliding across the keyboard to send a message to the Nehroid//Global main hub.
It is here. The Coming Storm.
_____________________________________________
It had taken a time for the security patrols to mobilize. Not because they were inherently inefficent, it was more so because no one had ever broken into the Recycling Facility before, and few even knew where the main entrance actually was. A few civilian militia had joined the 7 men dispatched to investigate. A bullnecked, heavy set brute, wielding a heavy metal pipe had joined them as soon as they had left the station. The other was a different character entirely. While lacking the sheer bulk of the brute, his arrogance made him tower over the brute. He was dressed in much finer armour than even the Sergant of the security patrol, carrying an expensive looking plasma blade with a slight blue tone, coupled with the aura of one who knew how to use it. There was a strange tattoo on his neck, though its meaning wasn't clear, it appeared to be of Astrox origin, a mixture of bold, thick lines and twisting vine like roots. When the entrance had been located, they were suprised to find the large gates wide open, implying to lock down had ever actually occured. Yet inside the area was a different story entirely.
The security patrol stopped. Stared at the ruthless carnage splayed out before them. Bloody pulps that had mere minutes before, been his living, breathing, recognizable humans and cyborgs. A few barracades had been created, ammo cases and drained energy cells littered the floor. Everything was still. The flames from the giant furnaces still danced, the towers still billowed out huge plumes of dense yellow smoke, yet no actual movement occured.
_____________________________________________
The ancient robot struggled to keep its degrading systems even partially active. It looked at the vivid colours displayed across the screens before it. In the centre of the room was a human, bound permenantly to a chair, a single, wide, serrated wire had been jabbed into the base of her spine. Various cords and machines were connected to her, the machines purring protectively as though to warn it not to approach any futher. Ignoring them, it moved towards the woman, before standing before her and glaring into her eyes, the red light from its own reflecting perfectly in the murky depths of the Overseer.
"You are dead and obsolete. Your purpose is failed. My master will remove all trace of your corruption from the planet. You cannot stop it." The Overseer drowned, her voice monotone, almost drowned out by the machines, her face barely moving as she spoke. "Why don't you give up and come back to us?"
The robots eyes juddered slightly, before it lurched forward and coughed, sending a small shower of sparks down to the floor. Instinctively it grasped at its throat, gently pressing a loose wire back behind the protective plates it had hewn to its body. "You look so pretty...Like a pretty thing...why not come with me to save Sarah?"
That broke her. The Overseers emotionless visage crummbling in a second, tears beginning to well in the corners of her eyes. No one had called her by her real name since she had became an Overseer. A painful jolt of electricity caused her back to arch, the Nehroid//Global system did not take kindly to emotions. They interfered with efficency, they allowed mistakes, they allowed...corruption.
"He wants to play lap dog!" It laughed as it spoke, pointing directly at the cord descending from the roof and into the Overseers back. "While the big man gets the power power!" It giggled again, before holding its left fist over its mouth to try and contain itself. Poor, poor. Silly. Silly. Brother Nehroid!
"You are the silly one, Kelroth. You are corrupt. You threaten all of exsistance with your presence. If I must ally with Astrox to destroy you, then so be it.". The monitors of the room all shifted to what seemed to be a humanoid robot, integrated into a large, highly complicated throne device. Its external armour removed, its body covered in jack ports, allowing it to connect, assumably to the Overseers. A weird, black plastic like object seemed to cover the circuitry in its chest.
"I must rest eventually, the pebbles of my floor, no order. No patterns. Just lines and crosses and rust and paper and spray grease." It responded solemnly, before running its fingers across the table nearest to it. It explored every contour of it with its enlarged, clumsy fingers, before turning back to the screens with Nehroids face on it. "You are the spider at the centre of this web!" Kelroth pointed at a nearby computer. "And I am the gigantic spider eating dinosaur who makes you go wrong. Rawr!"
The face of Nehroid frowned for a second, a few of the screens on the banks of computers surrounding it dimming slightly as it though. "So you are the one whom attacks my works? I should have know. You are the one whom I must destory." Every word from Nehroid seemed thought about, as though he were analysing literally every potential way to say it for maximum effect. In reality it simply made his speach slow and almost flat, as opposed to educated or in any way impressive.
"A Spidery lap dog for the Big Man and his popsicle ancient Toy/Master." Kelroth punched the air, literally leaping with glee as he spoke, before casually kicking the table across the room and bounding after it, shoulder barging it and sending splinters of wood and metal across the room.
"Just how do you keep surviving Kelroth? I have seen you dead more times than I dare to count. And everytime you come back to slow my works and cause trouble for our most noble of causes."
Kelroth growled and threw one of the bits of wood at the screens, which bounced ineffectually off it. "In my hands this night! Wooo!" Kelroth became even more ecstatic, if such a thing was possible, and literally bounded from one end of the room to the other. "The pebbles of my floor, no order. I long sleep, rest, oblivion." Kelroths eyes lost focus, he stared upwards and pointed. "YOU WON'T LET ME GO!" He waved his fists futilely at the ceiling before, apparently tiring of the conversation, simply wandering out of the Overseers room and moving back into the recycling plant itself.
_____________________________________________
[glow=red,1,300]Kelroth Project:
Aims: To create a robot, capable of all human emotions, but safely constrained by protocals designed by the commander
Hypothesis: Self aware robot that cannot simply decide it 'doesn't like' fighting. This will allow full benefits from self awareness, without the associated risks
Result: Kelroth project terminated. Total Failure
Reason: Felt positive emotions for humans strongly enough to override its original commands. The result of the two factors together destroyed the centeral system and it is believed Kelroth self terminated shortly after
Conclusion: Self awareness 'with restrictions' is too dangerous. Line of study: Terminated.[/glow]