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Post by scrap on Sept 13, 2008 23:35:30 GMT -6
A tall, metallic gray figure slowly walked towards Visignis' mansion, it's attention visibly focused upon the building. Reaching the front of the mansion, the machine began to walk all the way around the house, stopping again in front of it.
"TARGET DESIGNATION {VISIGNIS} APPEARS TO BE ABSENT FROM EXTERIOR PREMISES. PROCEEDING TO INTERIOR RECONNAISANCE."
The machine's loud monotone voice echoed off of the building, sending smaller echoes into the mountains surrounding it. Approaching the front door of the mansion, the metal being stopped for a moment, looking over the door, before continuing to walk forward, walking straight into the wooden door. There was a loud, splintering noise as the wood resisted, then failed to stop the machine.
Moving into the foyer of the mansion, the robot's eyes surveyed the surroundings, recording the sights into its memory for later reference. Not finding it's target, the machine continued on, choosing the first ground-floor hallway to its left, and walked down it. It would continue, clockwise, on the ground floor, before proceeding counter-clockwise on the second, as it was programmed to do.
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Post by Visignis on Sept 14, 2008 1:34:29 GMT -6
[glow=orange,1,600]Visignis landed outside the mansion, the front door laying in the front doorway.
He walked toward the doorway, his sword in his right hand, a revolver in his left. Looking inside the doorway, he didn't see anything at first.
Crouching and walking slowly, Visignis walked toward the hallway. He looked right, then left, and there he saw a tall, silvery humanoid.
"Who are you and what the hell are you doing here?" he asked, his gun trained on the man's head.[/glow]
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Post by scrap on Sept 14, 2008 1:47:58 GMT -6
Stopping it's scanning of the room at the end of the hall, the metallic being turned its head, its eyes glowing brightly as they scanned the new figure at the front door.
"SCANNING...IDENTITY CONFIRMED. TARGET DESIGNATION {VISIGNIS} LOCATED. ANSWERING QUERY: THIS UNIT HAVE BEEN DESIGNATED THE SELF-CONTAINED REPLICATION AUTONOMOUS PROTOTYPE. THIS UNIT HAS BEEN PROGRAMMED WITH A SINGLE PRIME DIRECTIVE: THE LOCATION AND DESTRUCTION OF TARGET DESIGNATION {VISIGNIS}. COMPLY, AND TARGET'S DESTRUCTION WILL BE....PAINLESS."
The machine turned, and began to walk towards Visignis.
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Post by Visignis on Sept 14, 2008 1:51:00 GMT -6
[glow=orange,1,600]"Destruction?" Visignis said, seemingly more offended that concerned. "Not today, self contained whatever-it-is guy." Visignis then loaded an osmium round into his revolver and fired at the 'man's' head.[/glow]
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Post by scrap on Sept 14, 2008 1:58:15 GMT -6
The being staggered for a moment, the round easily penetrating the light armor shielding around it's head. However, after a moment of inactivity, the being looked up at Visignis again, a large ragged hole in the middle of it's 'face'.
TARGET RESISTS DESTRUCTION. INCREASING ASSESSED THREAT LEVEL. COMBAT PROCESSES HAVE BEEN ADJUSTED ACCORDINGLY.
Raising its right hand, the metallic being's body began to give off a high-pitched whine, which focused until it was coming from its hand, directed at Visignis.
THIS FREQUENCY, WHEN EMITTED AT A HIGH VOLUME, HAS BEEN KNOWN TO TEMPORARILY DAMAGE THE INNER EAR STRUCTURES OF THE HUMAN EAR. YOU MAY FEEL A SENSE OF DIZZINESS AND/OR NAUSEA.
Its warning delivered, the sound coming from the machine's hand grew louder.
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Post by Visignis on Sept 14, 2008 2:08:48 GMT -6
[glow=orange,1,600]Visignis dropped to his knees, covering his left ear with his left hand. His right hand did little to block the screeching sound waves.
Visignis picked up his sword with his right hand, and through squinting eyes, stretched out with the sword in order to strike a blow at the robot's hand from where he knelt.[/glow]
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Post by scrap on Sept 14, 2008 2:15:40 GMT -6
Watching Visignis fall, the machine was too busy recording Visignis' favorable reaction to it's tactics to notice the incoming sword. With little effort, the blade severed its hand at the wrist, cutting the sound off instantly.
"WARNING. EXTREMITY LOSS DETECTED. RE-ASSESSING THREAT LEVEL. REPAIRING DAMAGE."
The machine stood perfectly still for a moment, seeming to grow a new hand from it's wrist, as well as sealing the hole in it's head. However, as it did, it lost nearly 6 inches in height. Looking back to Visignis, the machine spoke once more.
"INQUIRY: WHY DOES TARGET {VISIGNIS} RESIST DESTRUCTION? IT IS INEVITABLE FOR ORGANIC BEINGS. WHY DOES TARGET ENGAGE IN CONFLICT IN ORDER TO PRESERVE THAT WHICH MUST END?"
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Post by Visignis on Sept 14, 2008 2:45:58 GMT -6
[glow=orange,1,600]"I asked you first," Visignis replied after rising to his feet, his sword pointed at the thing's chest. "What are you, and what do you want from me?"[/glow]
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Post by scrap on Sept 14, 2008 2:55:50 GMT -6
The machine seemed to stare blankly at Visignis for a moment, before replying.
"THIS QUERY HAS ALREADY BEEN ANSWERED. THIS UNIT HAS BEEN DESIGNATED SELF-CONTAINED REPLICATING AUTONOMOUS PROTOTYPE. THE PRIME DIRECTIVE OF THIS UNIT IS THE LOCATION AND DESTRUCTION OF TARGET DESIGNATION {VISIGNIS}."
Looking at Visignis' blade, the machine cocked its head.
"SCANNING...COMPARING TO VISUAL RECORDS...MATCH FOUND. TARGET {VISIGNIS} WIELDS THE SAME WEAPON AS LAST RECORDED ENCOUNTER. WEAPON SHOWS NO SIGNS OF AGE OR DAMAGE SINCE LAST RECORDED ENCOUNTER. REASONS UNKNOWN."
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Post by Visignis on Sept 14, 2008 3:04:33 GMT -6
[glow=orange,1,600]"Last recorded encounter?" Visignis asked, puzzled. Then, suddenly, it clicked.
"You're a leftover from the Machine Army from 5,000 years ago," Visignis said, to himself as much as SCRAP. "Here I thought I got you all, but one survived. You guys are like cockroaches, somehow you never get wiped out."
His right hand retracted into the bracer, which began to glow as Visignis fired a fireball from the bracer, which now doubled as a cannon, at the machine's center mass.[/glow]
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Post by scrap on Sept 15, 2008 10:29:52 GMT -6
The machine made no effort to dodge the blast, and was pushed back several feet from the force of it. When it finally stopped, it was because the fireball had melted entirely through its torso, leaving behind a glowing, smoldering hole.
The robot looked down at the damage. "SEVERE DAMAGE DETECTED. EVALUATING PROBABILITY OF ACHEIVING PRIME DIRECTIVE...PROBABILITY DOES NOT MEET ACCEPTABLE PARAMETERS. INITIATING EMERGENCY PROTOCOLS..."
While the machine's monotone voice shared this information, it began to look less and less...solid. Ripples spread throughout its body, starting from the still-glowing hole caused by Visignis' blast. The ripples grew more and more intense, until they appeared to shake the metallic being apart, and it collapsed into a silvery jumble of parts on the mansion floor.
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Post by Visignis on Sept 17, 2008 12:20:07 GMT -6
[glow=orange,1,600]Visignis watched, astonished, as the robot melted in front of his eyes and collapsed to pieces on the floor.
"What the hell was that thing?" he shouted to no one. The Machine God had never had a unit like this. But then again, the entire Machine Army was supposed to be destroyed. Either way, that thing should not exist.
Visignis then remembered why he'd come to the mansion in the first place: It was full of angelic refugees. He ran toward the basement, where they were staying. If this one had come, more might be following it. He had to get them out of here-
He stopped cold. Diana, his human love from 5,000 years ago, was laying on the ground in front of him, being attended by an angelic nurse.
He stood in shock as he saw her exhale her last breath, and she faded from his sight.[/glow]
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Post by scrap on Sept 17, 2008 23:19:04 GMT -6
With Visignis gone from the room, the varied metallic pieces on the floor shifted, molding together into a humanoid form. It walked over to it's own severed hand, stepping on it and absorbing it into itself. As it did, it gained a few inches in height.
Stepping out the door, and running from the mansion, the machine archived the entire encounter, from Visignis' entrance to the robot's seeming demise. There was much useful data within that encounter, and it would take time to decode it, and adapt itself accordingly...
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Post by Viviana on Sept 18, 2008 11:11:00 GMT -6
[glow=purple,1,800]Viviana rose from a nearby bench, seeing Visignis standing here. She knew she'd find him here eventually, but she hadn't planned on the house being filled with injured angels.
"Visignis, I'm so sorry," she said, walking toward him. "I found this place filled with refugees, and I met Diana here. She told me about you two." Viviana smiled sadly. "She told me about the Diana's Tear rose."
Viviana embraced Visignis. "There was nothing we could do," she said. "They found your medical supplies, they tried everything. She was too weakened."[/glow]
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Post by Visignis on Sept 18, 2008 11:13:35 GMT -6
[glow=orange,1,600]As Visignis returned the embrace, he felt a catch in his throat. These past days and weeks had almost made him forget there was beauty in the world. He had gotten over Diana's death, but watching it again was still hard.
"I didn't even notice her among the refugees," he said absently. "If I'd noticed her, maybe I could have helped," he said regretfully.
He finally looked at Viviana, and smiled. "I'm sorry it was under such bleak circumstances," he said, "But it's good to see you again, Viviana."[/glow]
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