NationStates Jolt Archive


The Fifth (proof i'm wasting my life)

The Emperor Fenix
16-10-2004, 21:23
Info on the other species of Okyto

http://forums2.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=363282

These events take place after the great white space fleets arrival

The Fifth

Internal Crassuss Report

[Robot Warden SouthWest-01 Okyto] I have lost contact with a type 033 task robot, [details sent], unknown event has taken place, nanites no longer register communication.

[Guardian to the high mind of Crassuss] Priority – all available systems scanning for information, place robots in all sections on lower alert.

[Alert sent]

[Robot Warden SouthWest-01 Okyto] I have regained contact with type 033, but lost contact with construction type 163 [details sent], all civilians must be moved from area, unknown event, civilians are now in danger.

[High controller of minds] Alert has been sent to appropriate controllers

[Guardian to the high mind of Crassuss] Incoming signal from the high mind, security checking…

[Crassuss] WE HAVE LOST NANITE CONTROL, FULL ALERT TO ALL MINDS WHERE POSSIBLE, FULL ALERT TO ALL UNITS, COMMENCE LEVEL 2 ALERT

[ALERT (2)]

Info Spot

Raenerial halfling are black furred and quick, of lithe built and medium height. Their eyesight is good in the dark, and they have one long tail, also black.

123.46.78 Syrrian House Nor Northeast Okyto

Jhol was a Raenerial halfling, he was relaxing after a hard days not working watching the TV when he felt a change, although the news was informing him of the latest movie being released when he tried to remember what the star was called he found he couldn’t. He panicked immediately, in his entire life he had always known whatever he needed to know, unless it wasn’t right for him to know, and he was sure that he’d been able to remember before, but know he couldn’t think of anything to do with the movie. He tried to remember something else. What was the current score at the Crystal match on at the Orange stadium? He didn’t know, why not, in fact he couldn’t think of anything Crassuss should be providing for him. He tried to change the channel on the TV but it didn’t respond to his thoughts, and as he leapt at the door it didn’t open for him. Slightly dazed as he picked himself up from the floor he saw a change in the light all around him. And rippling through the air all around him came the voice, accompanied by the face on every screen, of Crassuss. Relief washed through Jhol, whatever it was that was going on, nothing was beyond Crassuss, though he was shaken by his loss of control doubtless everything was OK.

“Attention peoples of Okyto… This is Crassuss”
“Nanite control throughout the city and planet of Okyto has been lost, an unknown event is currently taking place. If you can return to your homes or seek shelter do so, what help we can offer will be given to you. We hope that this inconvenience will only be momentary.”

More than anything else it was the word “Unknown” that cut through Jhol, this was like some horrible horror movie come to life. Crassuss was infallible omnipresent, how would an unknown event be occurring, how could there be anything contrary to Crassuss?
Dazed he turned round and walked through into the hall… “Hey how come the door didn’t open before” he absent-mindedly muttered. And he almost jumped out of his fur as unexpectedly the Crassuss spoke from a picture frame to his right, “We can see you, so long as you give us notice we can still open doors and lifts and so on. Anything still connected directly to the system is still under our control.” “Oh of course,” Said Jhol “the system runs through this building and into the…” he paused with a look of astonishment on his face, “I can’t remember where the system runs to! Oh no, that’s you to, this is so confusing, I can’t believe this is happening.” “Don’t worry Jhol, we still have task robots operating with links to our mind, the problem will be isolated soon.”

“Oh shit Crassuss, where’s Maath, is he OK?” “He’s on a 463(7) Bus near the corner of 42nd and 367th. He’s fine and making good time back, we can tell him you’re thinking of him.” “No that’s OK Crassuss, I’ll go down and meet him, where does the bus stop nearest here?” “The fish garden on 123 and 44, 7 houses up, naturally. If you start out now you can get there before he arrives.”

And so Jhol set out, with no clearer purpose than to meet Maath at a fish garden and tell him how weird it was, he knew Maath would know, but there seemed suddenly nothing to do, the city was quite as he watched the central hall of the building pass by in the lift to 7th level he could see no-one on the balconies or platforms, he’d grown up in the same building and never seen it so deserted. For the first time he began to feel a sort of uncomfortable yawning silence, and the need to break it became too much.

“Crassuss?” “Yes” “What’s your life like?” “Our life? It is as it is, we have had no other. What is your life like? We lived it with you, and you fathers and mothers, we have lived all lives of every Okyton since our ascendance and Nanite control was first introduced. That’s one of the reasons we shut down the paradise systems on the Xaxoss. With everyone on Okyto experiencing their own virtual paradises for the rest of eternity, all their minds gradually drifted into inactivity. Everyone had done everything and after a few billion years a sort of peace swept over the paradise systems, and then we found that we could not continue to live, to serve the Emperor without anything to do, so utterly alone, and so as soon as a habitable planet was formed we settled here, and after only a few million years of testing we have constructed Okyto, in a glory we hope comparable to the original.” Jhol was quite stunned by this, Crassuss was rarely un-necessarily vocal, and he wondered whether this was how he talked to the Post-Humans, who were in a way closer to Crassuss, they like him lived as machines and faced eternal life. As he reached the lobby of level 7 he felt an over whelming gratitude toward Crassuss, a sort of refreshing feeling as if he had just been let into a big secret, that he were somehow more important for Crassuss to have taken him into his confidence. Turning to the window on his right in which Crassuss was depicted he said “Thank you for that, I’ve not really spoken to you since I was a child, I’ve always thought it childish to speak to you when there are so many around me, but I suppose you’re always there for everyone, and we don’t thank you for that.” “You’re welcome Jhol, and yes you do, your happiness is enough, I was constructed to protect and serve the Empire and it gives me great pleasure to see everyone happy.” Jhol walked through the lobby that he’d known all his life and was disconcerted to see things that he did not remember, but worst of all when he got the main doors, and just as he was stepping out onto the 7th level walkways, Crassuss hailed him more urgently. “Stop! It’s not safe for you…” “Why?” Said Jhol almost indignantly, after all the confidence Crassuss seemed to have been putting in him he felt hurt that he did not trust him to walk outside, “Some of the task robots that we do not control have become active, and they are destroying cameras and microphones, they are deliberately removing our presence from the streets, though they make as yet no attempts to enter the buildings we fear for your safety if you venture outside.” His tone was one that Jhol did not think he had heard before, and he realised that there was a little uncertainty in it, a definite insecurity in his own power and knowledge. Jhol faltered, the thought of this new facet of imperfection to Crassuss, again worrying him. But, spurred on by the thought of seeing Maath and to take control of himself, not to be beaten by adversity he said as nonchalantly as possible, “Don’t worry, I can take care of myself.” “No you can’t, when have you ever taken care of yourself? When have you ever faced danger or discomfort, or adversity, how can you risk yourself to danger.” “Crassuss” Said Jhol gathering together his will, “You serve the Empire, correct?” “Yes” “Then you serve me, let me go, I’ll be back with Maath within the hour.”

The glass doors slid away and Jhol stepped out onto the white marble of the walkways. It was only when he took a “short cut” to the fish garden that involved a narrow obsidian walkway arching above a rainforest a couple of hundred feet up, did he realise that he was in some danger. Okyto really hadn’t been designed with function in mind. Irrationally he began to despair, he could just return to his building, but he didn’t want to seem helpless in front of Crassuss, he had to go on, but was too afraid to crass the bridge. He sat near the edge for a better part of half of an hour before something unexpected shook him out of his self-pity. Above, far above, upon a balcony of a Post-Human tower something white had just appeared, it contrasted starkly against the deep red of this particular tower. The speck of white detached from the tower and began to descend rapidly, it was only when its was quite close did Jhol realise that it was a Version 1 Post-Human, equipped with enormous white wings, with which it was gliding toward HIM. He was gob smacked as it landed only a few feet away from him, its wings folding up into remarkably small columns on his back. “My name is Lord Darassi.” it said in the version 1’s cold distant voice, “Crassuss has asked me to check on you, I trust you are happy?” “Yes, I’m happy.” Said Jhol, completely over-awed, he may well have talked to a Version 2, or 3 Post-Human, you couldn’t tell them apart from Humans and Halflings, but he’d never even seen a Version 1 let alone have one address him personally. “Well no I’m not happy, I can’t cross the bridge, well I can, but Crassuss said it was dangerous out here without him, and I might fall off.” “Yes you might, mightn’t you.” Darassi almost chuckled, “Well I guess that’s why he sent me, he can probably see us from somewhere… wave.” And Darassi waved, just to the air, Jhol was astonished. His parents had told him that all Post-Humans were unhappy and serious, living their lives as bitter wraiths around the city, but Lord Darassi, whilst sounding aloof, did not act so. “Well you want to cross a bridge, then a bridge you shall cross, though there are more and longer bridges from here if you’re getting to the Aqua Network Hub this way. But I do have a solution.” And he walked toward Jhol, stopping only just before he walked straight into him. “Stand up” hesitantly Jhol stood up, “Thank you.” And with that Darassi grabbed Jhol with one arm, and wings outspread, apparently for balance, he began to climb up one of the pillars supporting the floor above, claws on his hands smashing into the glass and stone. “Should you be doing that?” asked Jhol querulously, by now clinging to the Post-Human for dear life, find its hard metal body very uncomfortable. In reply Darassi only said, “Crassuss is this city, he can heal himself.” And without warning pushed off from the side of the pillar, and twisting in the air began to glide out into open air, both arms now gripping Jhol as he screamed.