Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Digital Bath ❯ Chapter 6
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Vinyl-Koneko 
Anime/Manga: Gundam Wing Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Supernatural / Sci-fi / Fantasy / Cyberpunk / Adventure / Action | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 11.02.2002 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.7K | Visits: 310 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Gundam Wing Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Supernatural / Sci-fi / Fantasy / Cyberpunk / Adventure / Action | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 11.02.2002 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.7K | Visits: 310 | Status: Completed
+Title: Digital Bath - Part 7
+Author: Vinyl Koneko (Emily), roguegirl@att.net
+Rating: R
+Pairings: 1x2, 3x4, 5xM, 13x11, 6x9, R+1, H+2
+Warnings: AU, yaoi, cyberpunk, possibly more lime in later parts
+Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing because if I did I'd get rich auctioning it off on eBay... LOL, just kidding. I'd keep them for myself to make videos and become the real Sabintha. ^_~
+Notes: //Thought//, *emphasis*. Some ideas may seem similar to "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson, "The Matrix", and "Digimon", but I swear that isn't what I'm going for. "Digital Bath" is a song by The Deftones. Program based on HTML and JavaScript because that's all I know. ^_^
*~**~*
It didn't take me long to learn that Hilde was jealous. She confronted me herself a few days later. I was alone in the library reading a book by Heinlein when she barged in.
"Duo's not supposed to get into any relationships," her finger pointed at me accusingly. I just blinked and returned to the book. It wasn't the first time I had heard this lecture, and I doubted it would be the last. "You don't understand; it isn't healthy!"
My head snapped up, casting a deadly glare in Hilde's direction. "If you are implying that it is 'unhealthy' because we are both male you might as well leave. I won't tolerate your narrow-mindedness."
"I'm not narrow-minded; it's a rule! You're jeopardizing everyone by disobeying the doctors orders"
"And by denying Duo happiness? I don't think so. You wouldn't be upset if there weren't another reason."
Her eyes were filling with tears, causing a shine over the fierce anger in their depths. "If I can't have Duo, then why the hell should you be able to? You haven't even been here a week and already you're causing problems!"
I didn't need to listen to her. I had better things to be doing. "Goodbye, Hilde." I marked my page and left, still hearing her yelling after me down the hallway.
"I'll be the one telling you 'I told you so' when the time comes, Heero Yuy! You can count on it!"
I started to run, trying to put as much space between me and her as possible. Hilde's cries still rang through my ears.
*~**~*
The latest thing keeping me occupied was the program for the mass retrievals. It was Duo's idea that the doctors have me program it; my talent was being wasted and I had a craving for manipulating the system, which is difficult when you're no longer a part of it. They gave me a fragment of the program Duo used in retrieval, and that was all I had to work with. I needed to find a way to execute the program so that it would finish outside the system instead of inside, and that was what was a little difficult. Good think the doctors gave me a LSOS simulator or I could be testing it on the real people, creating some major problems.
<NPUT USR="N" SRC="XYZ" FUNC="EXTRACT" NAME="MassRetrieval">
command.ln("<avatar func=sleep>")
command.ln("<avatar func=execute>")
command.ln("<avatar func=withdraw>")
</NPUT>
<A AFCT="1<10000<1000000" HREF="#MassRetrieval">
I rubbed the side of my head wearily. Something in that fragment wasn't working. It was killing the users every time I ran it through the simulation.
I had been focused so intently on the monitor that I didn't notice I had company until I felt a pair of arms draping across my neck.
"It's not working," I admitted, feeling a little ashamed. I was the best hacker and this damned program was leaving me clueless.
"Try specifying an area. The system might be confused if you're trying to command one million users in a mile square area."
<NPUT USR="N" SRC="XYZ" FUNC="EXTRACT" NAME="MassRetrieval">
command.ln("<avatar func=sleep>")
command.ln("<avatar func=execute>")
command.ln("<avatar func=withdraw>")
</NPUT>
<A AFCT="1<10000<1000000" AREA="1,1,X,Y" HREF="#MassRetrieval">
I winced at the results. It ran through the system all right, but once you get the people out they were immediately awake and trying to move around. We wanted people out until they adjusted and healed.
"What if I command them to be unconscious instead of asleep?"
Duo shrugged. "It's worth a shot."
<NPUT USR="N" SRC="XYZ" FUNC="EXTRACT" NAME="MassRetrieval">
command.ln("<avatar func=unconscious>")
command.ln("<avatar func=execute>")
command.ln("<avatar func=withdraw>")
</NPUT>
<A HREF="#MassRetrieval" AREA="1,1,X,Y" USR="1<10000<1000000">
A broad grin spread across Duo's face at the results. "I *knew* giving this to you was a good idea!"
"We don't have the facilities to recuperate one million people." There were six billion in the system. Before the system, the Earth had a population in the billions. The LSOS couldn't support everybody. Some couldn't afford to get to North America while others just didn't want to. What's left is still a severe fraction of the original population, but we can only recuperate twelve at a time.
"Yeah, well, that's the doctors' problem, not ours." Duo ruffled my hair playfully and I scowled at his reflection in the monitor. "We're just lucky we have the space. The people will be fine; they'll just be recuperating for a little longer. We hurried up the process with the Specialists to get things started faster." Duo grabbed my arm, tugging me in the direction of the door. "C'mon, you don't want to sit on your ass all day! There's things to do, and we won't have the planet practically to ourselves for much longer!"
I don't like to think that Duo has me wrapped around his little finger. Maybe it's more of a sense that he's a very convincing person and we like each other a lot, so as a result I want to spent a lot of time with the boy. Or maybe I really am just whipped. We ended up at the park near the outdoor tennis courts. We got to a basketball court and Duo pulled off his T-shirt, revealing the loose tank top he wore underneath. He stepped out of his shoes, taking off his jeans in a similar fashion that revealed the red mesh gym shorts he also wore.
"There's clothes for you to change into over there unless you want to play in jeans," Duo pointed to a small building that was most likely a locker room. "Or you can play in the nude." He grinned demonically. "Whatever works for you."
I didn't want to play basketball against Duo. He wouldn't have a chance. I told him I used to play in the system for my high school and that I didn't want to hurt his pride.
He scowled at me in response. "There's no one here who is a good match; I want a little competition. Is that a problem?" I just shrugged, going over to get changed. It was his loss.
I changed as quickly as possible, running back out to see Duo tossing a few warm up shots. I caught a glimpse of something on his flesh, a black, square shape that was partly concealed by his shirt. I walked closer, trying to get a better look. It looked like a tattoo, and unless I was mistaken, it was a barcode. I placed my hand on his shoulder, tracing my thumb over the image. "What is this?"
Duo froze, suddenly becoming very tense. "What's what?"
"The tattoo...on your shoulder."
"Oh, yeah, that," he turned out of my grip, looking at me solemnly. "It's nothing."
"It looks like a barcode."
"Well no shit, Sherlock, thanks for pointing that out to me!" His blue-violet gaze had gone wide, trying to look offended but he looked more scared. I had no idea why.
"Why is there a barcode tattooed in your skin?"
Duo snorted, eyes narrowing slightly as he poked at my chest with a finger. "Really, Heero, it didn't seem to bother you the other night."
My expression matched his. "I was too preoccupied to notice apparently." I continued to pry, trying to get at least something out of him. "Is it from the doctors? Is that how you can get back into the system? Duo, why won't you tell me anything?"
His gaze never left mine, his eyes begging for me to just drop the subject. "Do you want to play or not?" His voice must have sounded harsher than he meant it to because he winced. He went back to dribbling the ball, throwing it at the net from different distances away. He never missed.
Duo, what is going on with you?
*~**~*
That night I dreamt that the doctors were running a factory, and each machine was putting together a Duo. There were hundreds, each one with a different code etched into their skin. They all looked the same; all felt the same emotion at the same time. I couldn't tell which one was the original anymore, which one was my Duo.
When one hurt, they all screamed in pain, causing the machines to shut down and the doctors to run around furiously, trying to figure out what had gone wrong. I watched above from the shadows, my mind detached from my dream-body, as it all went on down below.
Duo was different from the rest of us, and he wasn't about to say why. He had the ability to return to the system and exit it safely, without any danger to himself or the LSOS. The doctors kept a protective watch on him, making sure that Duo stayed happy, needs and wants completely fulfilled. Was that my job here? Was I just to humor Duo because he had gotten bored, and he saw me in the system, deciding that he liked me and wanted me?
I woke suddenly, sitting upwards quickly as I gasped for air. My body was covered in a cold sweat and I trembled even though I was buried in blankets.
They were keeping a secret from me, and I wouldn't rest until I learned what that secret was.
*~**~*
End Part 7
+Author: Vinyl Koneko (Emily), roguegirl@att.net
+Rating: R
+Pairings: 1x2, 3x4, 5xM, 13x11, 6x9, R+1, H+2
+Warnings: AU, yaoi, cyberpunk, possibly more lime in later parts
+Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing because if I did I'd get rich auctioning it off on eBay... LOL, just kidding. I'd keep them for myself to make videos and become the real Sabintha. ^_~
+Notes: //Thought//, *emphasis*. Some ideas may seem similar to "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson, "The Matrix", and "Digimon", but I swear that isn't what I'm going for. "Digital Bath" is a song by The Deftones. Program based on HTML and JavaScript because that's all I know. ^_^
*~**~*
It didn't take me long to learn that Hilde was jealous. She confronted me herself a few days later. I was alone in the library reading a book by Heinlein when she barged in.
"Duo's not supposed to get into any relationships," her finger pointed at me accusingly. I just blinked and returned to the book. It wasn't the first time I had heard this lecture, and I doubted it would be the last. "You don't understand; it isn't healthy!"
My head snapped up, casting a deadly glare in Hilde's direction. "If you are implying that it is 'unhealthy' because we are both male you might as well leave. I won't tolerate your narrow-mindedness."
"I'm not narrow-minded; it's a rule! You're jeopardizing everyone by disobeying the doctors orders"
"And by denying Duo happiness? I don't think so. You wouldn't be upset if there weren't another reason."
Her eyes were filling with tears, causing a shine over the fierce anger in their depths. "If I can't have Duo, then why the hell should you be able to? You haven't even been here a week and already you're causing problems!"
I didn't need to listen to her. I had better things to be doing. "Goodbye, Hilde." I marked my page and left, still hearing her yelling after me down the hallway.
"I'll be the one telling you 'I told you so' when the time comes, Heero Yuy! You can count on it!"
I started to run, trying to put as much space between me and her as possible. Hilde's cries still rang through my ears.
*~**~*
The latest thing keeping me occupied was the program for the mass retrievals. It was Duo's idea that the doctors have me program it; my talent was being wasted and I had a craving for manipulating the system, which is difficult when you're no longer a part of it. They gave me a fragment of the program Duo used in retrieval, and that was all I had to work with. I needed to find a way to execute the program so that it would finish outside the system instead of inside, and that was what was a little difficult. Good think the doctors gave me a LSOS simulator or I could be testing it on the real people, creating some major problems.
<NPUT USR="N" SRC="XYZ" FUNC="EXTRACT" NAME="MassRetrieval">
command.ln("<avatar func=sleep>")
command.ln("<avatar func=execute>")
command.ln("<avatar func=withdraw>")
</NPUT>
<A AFCT="1<10000<1000000" HREF="#MassRetrieval">
I rubbed the side of my head wearily. Something in that fragment wasn't working. It was killing the users every time I ran it through the simulation.
I had been focused so intently on the monitor that I didn't notice I had company until I felt a pair of arms draping across my neck.
"It's not working," I admitted, feeling a little ashamed. I was the best hacker and this damned program was leaving me clueless.
"Try specifying an area. The system might be confused if you're trying to command one million users in a mile square area."
<NPUT USR="N" SRC="XYZ" FUNC="EXTRACT" NAME="MassRetrieval">
command.ln("<avatar func=sleep>")
command.ln("<avatar func=execute>")
command.ln("<avatar func=withdraw>")
</NPUT>
<A AFCT="1<10000<1000000" AREA="1,1,X,Y" HREF="#MassRetrieval">
I winced at the results. It ran through the system all right, but once you get the people out they were immediately awake and trying to move around. We wanted people out until they adjusted and healed.
"What if I command them to be unconscious instead of asleep?"
Duo shrugged. "It's worth a shot."
<NPUT USR="N" SRC="XYZ" FUNC="EXTRACT" NAME="MassRetrieval">
command.ln("<avatar func=unconscious>")
command.ln("<avatar func=execute>")
command.ln("<avatar func=withdraw>")
</NPUT>
<A HREF="#MassRetrieval" AREA="1,1,X,Y" USR="1<10000<1000000">
A broad grin spread across Duo's face at the results. "I *knew* giving this to you was a good idea!"
"We don't have the facilities to recuperate one million people." There were six billion in the system. Before the system, the Earth had a population in the billions. The LSOS couldn't support everybody. Some couldn't afford to get to North America while others just didn't want to. What's left is still a severe fraction of the original population, but we can only recuperate twelve at a time.
"Yeah, well, that's the doctors' problem, not ours." Duo ruffled my hair playfully and I scowled at his reflection in the monitor. "We're just lucky we have the space. The people will be fine; they'll just be recuperating for a little longer. We hurried up the process with the Specialists to get things started faster." Duo grabbed my arm, tugging me in the direction of the door. "C'mon, you don't want to sit on your ass all day! There's things to do, and we won't have the planet practically to ourselves for much longer!"
I don't like to think that Duo has me wrapped around his little finger. Maybe it's more of a sense that he's a very convincing person and we like each other a lot, so as a result I want to spent a lot of time with the boy. Or maybe I really am just whipped. We ended up at the park near the outdoor tennis courts. We got to a basketball court and Duo pulled off his T-shirt, revealing the loose tank top he wore underneath. He stepped out of his shoes, taking off his jeans in a similar fashion that revealed the red mesh gym shorts he also wore.
"There's clothes for you to change into over there unless you want to play in jeans," Duo pointed to a small building that was most likely a locker room. "Or you can play in the nude." He grinned demonically. "Whatever works for you."
I didn't want to play basketball against Duo. He wouldn't have a chance. I told him I used to play in the system for my high school and that I didn't want to hurt his pride.
He scowled at me in response. "There's no one here who is a good match; I want a little competition. Is that a problem?" I just shrugged, going over to get changed. It was his loss.
I changed as quickly as possible, running back out to see Duo tossing a few warm up shots. I caught a glimpse of something on his flesh, a black, square shape that was partly concealed by his shirt. I walked closer, trying to get a better look. It looked like a tattoo, and unless I was mistaken, it was a barcode. I placed my hand on his shoulder, tracing my thumb over the image. "What is this?"
Duo froze, suddenly becoming very tense. "What's what?"
"The tattoo...on your shoulder."
"Oh, yeah, that," he turned out of my grip, looking at me solemnly. "It's nothing."
"It looks like a barcode."
"Well no shit, Sherlock, thanks for pointing that out to me!" His blue-violet gaze had gone wide, trying to look offended but he looked more scared. I had no idea why.
"Why is there a barcode tattooed in your skin?"
Duo snorted, eyes narrowing slightly as he poked at my chest with a finger. "Really, Heero, it didn't seem to bother you the other night."
My expression matched his. "I was too preoccupied to notice apparently." I continued to pry, trying to get at least something out of him. "Is it from the doctors? Is that how you can get back into the system? Duo, why won't you tell me anything?"
His gaze never left mine, his eyes begging for me to just drop the subject. "Do you want to play or not?" His voice must have sounded harsher than he meant it to because he winced. He went back to dribbling the ball, throwing it at the net from different distances away. He never missed.
Duo, what is going on with you?
*~**~*
That night I dreamt that the doctors were running a factory, and each machine was putting together a Duo. There were hundreds, each one with a different code etched into their skin. They all looked the same; all felt the same emotion at the same time. I couldn't tell which one was the original anymore, which one was my Duo.
When one hurt, they all screamed in pain, causing the machines to shut down and the doctors to run around furiously, trying to figure out what had gone wrong. I watched above from the shadows, my mind detached from my dream-body, as it all went on down below.
Duo was different from the rest of us, and he wasn't about to say why. He had the ability to return to the system and exit it safely, without any danger to himself or the LSOS. The doctors kept a protective watch on him, making sure that Duo stayed happy, needs and wants completely fulfilled. Was that my job here? Was I just to humor Duo because he had gotten bored, and he saw me in the system, deciding that he liked me and wanted me?
I woke suddenly, sitting upwards quickly as I gasped for air. My body was covered in a cold sweat and I trembled even though I was buried in blankets.
They were keeping a secret from me, and I wouldn't rest until I learned what that secret was.
*~**~*
End Part 7