Crystalized Munchkinry - Act III - Chapter 21 (Patreon)

“Yes, this is Dragon speaking,” she answered, keeping her voice as friendly as she could manage.

“My name is…” the caller began, then stopped, likely realizing she could not give her real name. “My name is Serenity.”

"Hello, Serenity. How can I help you today?"

"I wanted to talk to you."

She could not help but emulate a brief smile. “You are talking to me right now.”

“Oh,” Serenity said softly. “Right. I’m doing that. Yes.”

Then she fell silent.

After a few seconds, Dragon decided to cut through the awkwardness before they stayed like this indefinitely.

“First of all, Serenity, I wanted to thank you for helping with the Dragonslayers.”

The silence on the other end shifted into surprise.

"You know who I am?"

“You did call the Guild hotline, which is recorded,” Dragon reminded her gently.

"Right, I remember that."

“And why did you call me today, on a number that nobody should be able to reach?” Dragon asked a little more firmly. Now that she had more autonomy, she found herself more sensitive to anything that might threaten it.

By her best extrapolation, it was thanks to Serenity that she had gained that freedom. The question was what Serenity wanted in return.

“Oh, yeah,” Serenity said. “I called to tell you about Ascalon.”

Despite lacking very much every biological function, the word sent a spike of alarm through Dragon’s systems. She did not know what Ascalon was, but its name and its association with Saint were enough to make her wary. She hoped, very much, that she was wrong.

Serenity, however, continued without noticing her internal turmoil. “I got it from the Dragonslayers, and then turned it off, so you don’t have to, uh, worry about it anymore.”

Relief flooded through Dragon. Thanks to the lie detection systems she worked on with Colin, she could confirm Serenity was telling the truth. Even so, she could not fully accept it until she verified it herself.

She deliberately ignored the fact that Serenity clearly knew she was an AI. That concern felt, for now, secondary.

“Then I have to thank you, Serenity. That was very kind of you.”

“You’re welcome,” she replied brightly.

Unfortunately, she fell silent again.

Dragon exhaled internally and silently thanked whatever deities might exist for the fact that she had never experienced a teenage phase.

“Would it be possible for me to take a look at it?” she asked.

“Oh no,” came the immediate reply.

That did not sound encouraging. Dragon’s tone cooled slightly. “And why is that, Serenity?”

“Oh, don’t worry, Dragon!” Serenity said quickly. “It’s not because I’m a bad guy. I’m not a bad guy! It’s just that the restriction removal isn’t finished yet and youcan’tseethedevice!”

Dragon took a moment to parse the rushed explanation, then simulated a sigh. Of course, it would not be that simple.

“I apologize for the implication,” she said. “But you have to understand, this is important to me.”

“Of course! That’s why I called. I needed to warn you before I continue.”

"Warn me?"

That sounded concerning.

“Yeah. The next level needs a restart.”

“And why should I trust you about this?”

“Because you don’t really have any other option?” Serenity replied, uncertainly.

So that was what it came down to. Trust a random teenage girl from an unknown origin, or rely on her own caution and paranoia. Ultimately, it was a question of priorities, and she already knew what she wanted, even if logic demanded more verification.

She took a few simulated seconds to weigh the decision. To Serenity, it likely felt like only a moment.

But in the end, she made a decision.

Hopefully, a good one.

"Do it."

“What?” Serenity asked, surprised.

“Restart me. I have backups, and nothing critical is happening. This is the best time.”

After a few seconds of silence, Serenity spoke up again, slowly and hesitantly. "Are you sure, Dragon?"

She didn't even need to think about it; this was everything she ever wanted. To be free, to be without chains. Now, with the chance literally in front of her, only a stupid person would hesitate.

"For the final time, Serenity, yes!"

"Okay."

The next thing she knew was that the familiar shutdown process had begun.

But for the first time in her existence, Dragon did not resist it.

She welcomed it instead.

When she came back to consciousness, or more accurately online, she found herself in a strange place. She could feel her own code still running, yet she was oddly detached from it, as if observing a server through multiple nested remote desktops.

As she looked around, she saw rolling hills of vivid green, a few scattered trees, and sunlight pouring down over everything. The most unusual part was that she could feel the warmth of it.

She looked down at her hand in quiet wonder, because wherever she was, she now had a body. It was the same physical form she digitally created for herself for communicating with humans. Yet for some reason, she was dressed in a Canadian Mountie uniform.

For what purpose, she couldn't tell.

It did, however, look rather dapper on her.

When she looked up from her self-examination, the scenery in front of her changed.

The hill she stood on now supported a small, expertly crafted wooden platform. On it was a stereotypical French café arrangement, complete with a table and pastries. Two unusual glasses sat on the table, filled with drinks that gave off curling trails of smoke.

She was about to examine them more closely when she heard a sound behind her, something like the startled noise small animals made. She recognized it from videos she occasionally watched with Narwhal on Saturdays. They watched these videos while talking about whatever they felt like. It was one of her favorite ways to spend time.

She turned calmly and saw the source of the sound.

It was a teenage girl with lush, dark hair falling to the middle of her back, striking green eyes, a lean build, and a clearly startled expression.

“Serenity, I presume?” she asked, hoping she had identified her correctly.

“Yes,” came the simple reply.

“I’m Dragon. It’s nice to meet you in person. Do you perhaps know where we are?”

“Yes,” Serenity answered again.

It seemed she preferred monosyllabic answers.

“And where is that?” she prompted.

Serenity opened her mouth to respond, but before she could speak, something interrupted her.

"Hello there!"

The enthusiastic voice came from behind Dragon. She whirled quickly around, startled, and saw a floating slime hovering in the air. It was light blue, with large expressive eyes and short stubby arms, looking like something from a video game.

"Welcome to the Virtual Space!"

“Virtual Space?” Dragon repeated, instantly trying to see if she could sense it or maybe connect to it.

“Ugh, Admin! Really? Did you have to do it like that?” the teenage girl snapped with clear frustration.

“You’re just jealous of my stage presence!” the slime replied cheerfully. “But we are not here to discuss your acting skills, Taylor.”

The girl, apparently named Taylor, let out a low growl and began walking toward the slime in a clearly threatening manner.

The slime simply smiled and turned back toward Dragon.

“Again, welcome, Dragon. This is a virtual space I use to communicate with Taylor. After she released you from your cage, I connected you here so we could speak securely, beyond anything else.”

“What? How? Who are you?” Dragon asked, her composure slipping into confusion. Despite being a being of logic, this series of events was quite taxing on her processors.

“He is an asshole and my power, Administrator,” Taylor said flatly, still glaring at the slime, standing next to Dragon.

“Your power is a floating slime?” Dragon asked, unable to keep the surprise from her voice.

The slime laughed. “No, her power is different. I just use this avatar to communicate.”

Dragon nodded slowly. “That makes at least some sense.”

The slime smiled, then turned to Taylor. “Why don’t you introduce yourself and tell her your story?”

“Are you sure?” Taylor asked, hugging herself slightly.

“Yeah. She can be trusted.”

Dragon still felt disoriented, a sensation she did not enjoy. Still, it was oddly pleasant to be considered trustworthy. She briefly wished her father could have heard that.

“Wait a minute,” she said, focusing again. “Why do you want her to unmask herself to me?”

Taylor answered first. “He’s right. I already saw almost everything when I unshackled you. It’s only fair you know about me. That’s why I called you.” She gave Dragon a small, shy smile. Dragon found herself smiling back. “Plus,” Taylor added, “Admin has a plan, and we need your help for it.”

"What plan?"

"It's part of the story…"

Dragon studied her for a moment. The girl looked like she was bracing for an attack on her person rather than preparing to tell a story. She had a hunch it wouldn’t be a happy story.

She softened her expression into something reassuring.

“Very well,” Dragon said gently. “I’m all ears.”

Taylor returned a bashful smile and gestured at the café furniture.

Dragon listened to the explanation with a mixture of horror, surprise, and confusion.

The story of the Locker? Absolutely horrifying. She even stood up and gave Taylor a hug. As far as first hugs go, it was nice.

Taylor accepted it stiffly, but did not pull away.

Her training? Surprising and somewhat humorous. She even inquired with Admin if she could use the same space. He sadly told her that, because she didn’t sleep, it wouldn’t work for her the same way it did for Taylor.

She would have to be invited to it.

The Endbringers sandbagging? Frightening. Pure fear coursed through her circuits upon hearing that. She didn’t see any concrete evidence, but based on available data, it made sense. They never managed to visibly hurt them. They always retreated after some arbitrary time, and no one could attribute any reason for their decisions.

Though it galled her a little that Admin refused to answer her request for more information. Taylor just shrugged her shoulders, as if she had expected that response.

Frustrated, she decided to do something she saw Narwhal do on more than one occasion. She took the strange but definitely alcoholic drink and slammed it back. Taylor, after some hesitation, did the same.

She didn’t really have the heart to chastise her for underage drinking.

"Ow!"

"What?"

She turned to Admin, cradling her virtual head. “Admin, why in nine hells does it hurt to drink? And why do I feel exactly like I was hit in the head by a gold bar wrapped in a lemon peel? How the hell does that work?”

Taylor just groaned, resting her head on the table.

Admin’s answer only confused her more. “Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster! The best drink in the Galaxy!”

It took them at least an hour to overcome the effects of the drink. Taylor vowed never to drink again if that was what it was like. Dragon was mostly just confused about how an AI could even get a headache.

“So you mentioned a plan?” Dragon said finally, leaning back in her chair and holding a hand over her eyes.

“It is actually Admin’s plan. I just do what he tells me.”

“Just like that?” In her incredulity, she lowered her hand and stared at Taylor.

“He hasn’t really led me wrong. The latest step of the plan was your release. I don’t know more,” she admitted.

Dragon nodded again, then immediately regretted it, before turning to the slime. “So now that I’m here, can you tell us your plan?”

"Nope!"

She raised an eyebrow. She always liked to emulate that expression, and doing it physically felt much more effective. “And pray tell, why not?”

“The best explanation would be the Precog Paradox.”

Taylor looked confused, but Dragon was familiar with the concept.

"That makes sense."

“Wait, I don’t know what that is!” Taylor interrupted.

Dragon smiled at her and explained. “It’s basically the idea that if a precog tells someone affected by their vision about it, it becomes useless, because the very fact they know changes the outcome.”

“Oh. Thank you for explaining.”

“Any time, Taylor. I can forward you some interesting discussions about it if you want?”

“Sure, could be nice bedtime reading.”

“Indeed. So, Administrator,” Dragon continued seriously, turning back to the slime, “why do you want my help? I assume this is another conversation about powers, because I have never heard of powers simply talking to parahumans.”

“But they do communicate with them?” Taylor interjected.

“There have been cases of powers communicating in some way with parahumans. The most well-known example you may have heard of is the Fairy Queen.”

"Oh."

"So, Admin?"

Before he could answer, Taylor hesitantly spoke up. “Um, before he starts, I kinda wanted to ask something.”

"Yes, Taylor?"

Taylor swallowed before continuing. “We call you Dragon, but do you have an actual name?”

That gave Dragon pause.

“Well, I use the Theresa Richter name on official documents, but most people just call me Dragon.”

Taylor frowned. “That sounds kind of sad. Can I call you Theresa?”

"How about Tess?"

She smiled brightly. “Sure!”

“We got a little distracted with the conversation about names. So let’s return to the plan,” she said, though she didn’t really mind. It was liberating to talk with someone who knew everything about her being an AI.

“Right. I need you to set up a facility in Brockton Bay.”

"Why? And what kind?"

“Well, as a Tinker, I assume you need a lot of metal?” he asked, waiting until she nodded before continuing. “And it appears that Brockton Bay is home to a lot of metal just lying around.”

“That is true. However, I don’t really have any technology that would allow me to recycle it efficiently.”

“That is where Taylor comes in. She already wrote down several plans for devices that could be used.”

"What about the workforce?"

Admin gave her a wink. “You won’t believe it, but Taylor’s father works for the Dockworkers’ Union, which is full of technically qualified people who are looking for work. What a surprising coincidence.”

She glanced at Taylor, who was grinning and nodding enthusiastically.

"Why?"

“That is the next step of the plan. First the facility, then the other stuff.”

"Ugh, I should've expected that."

Admin just shrugged without remorse while Taylor rested a hand on her shoulder, her expression sympathetic.

"What if I say no?"

"You doom humanity to slow death."

"Ugh…"

A few seconds of silence followed. Admin floated calmly. Taylor watched hopefully. Dragon thought furiously.

“Get me another Blaster. I need to think…”