Final Trial

[cartesio]

Final Trial

It takes a few minutes after everyone talks with the generic mannequin. The easygoing conversation, the bragging from Gant, Keith's exasperation, it all stops when a very heavy and ominous presence fills the room.

"I think it's about time this circus stopped"

It's the Sergeant. He's standing on the doorway, arms crossed. The shadows on his face wriggle, he seems to be rather furious, but is restraining himself from lashing out

"I should have guessed you bunch would take advantage of all that noise and ruckus to sneak in here. I was careless, I admit. 'Oh, this is over in like four hours, it will be okay if I step away to deal with that'. Careless."

Slowly the Sergeant enters the workshop. Behind him, the door slowly disappears, fading away, until where the door was now there's only a smooth wall. The Sergeant raises an arm, the entire room shakes.

All the mannequins fly up to the ceiling, the one that was now Damon Gant turned back into the empty husk the mannequin was before. The one with a t-pose has the same fate. Once all the mannequins are up on the ceiling, the operation tables are uprooted, bolts and screws flying around. The tables are twisted in the air, formed into knots, disassembled and assembled all over again, until several rustic podiums are formed and deposited on the ground.

Seven podiums, with him at the center. The Sergeant crosses his arms and speaks:

"Get on those spots. Tell me... ...how much do you know?"

Is it a rhetorical question? Who knows. You still have to answer, though

Comments

[quickpersuader]

[Kino continues to stand exactly where she is, hand hovering over the revolver on her right once more even as she otherwise remains outwardly calm.]

...Why should we?

[cartesio]

Because you don't have an option. I figure you know in what kind of world you are in, don't you?

[He's pretty confident because he figures he has everyone's lives in his hands. Whatever he says, goes]

[quickpersuader]

I suppose that is a problem.

[Hmm... Still not moving though.]

But I also have a medal. You were going to honor that, weren't you?

[marmoron]

[And here's another armed fool, still holding his bayard-sword. Sarge's little magic trick here doesn't seem to have impressed him much at all]

What were you taking care of?

[cartesio]

Everyone in town, of course. I can't let everybody make a mess like that.

[marmoron]

What did you do to them?

[Stated while nudging Cosmo back. No need to get the space wolf hurt here.]

[robitussin]

[If she’s caught off guard by him manipulating the items in the room, she does a good job of hiding it. She raises an eyebrow as he speaks.]

What, you don’t know? Didn’t you tell me once that you’re omnipotent here?

[cartesio]

I could find out by myself, I admit. See where you have moved, what you have touched...

...but I thought I should give you guys a chance to come clean. I like giving chances.

[robitussin]

Yeah? Or you'll do what, exactly?

[clearities]

[ there's just a little bit of guilt in her expression, just slight, but... there's a determined glint in Sakura's eyes, too, her hands clenched tightly onto the podium. ] I'm sorry— [ she means it, she really, truly does ] But I think that we really needed to know the truth. [ and now that they, do... well. ]

[cartesio]

Couldn't you have lived without knowing the truth? It's much easier that way.

[relieable]

[so. okay. this scary... Osomatsu gulps as he moves to the closest podium and clings to it so that he doesn't fall on his face. he's terrified, but also he wants to get out of here. he has a medal, but what about the others that don't?]

We... we found the lab.

[cartesio]

I see. [Sarge seems to like the compliance] You didn't touch or take anything from there, did you?

[If he had eyes they sure would be staring intensely at Osomatsu]

[pecker]

[Niwa, with bedding stuffed with books comically hanging off of her great big spading fork like she's some kind of burglar, obediently steps to the podium.]

I-I'm sorry! I still just don't really understand at all.

[She's lying. Also, she's playing with the PDA beneath the podium where he wouldn't be able to see if it was just his line of sight, but who even knows when he's a cheaty computer. So, "password, swordfish, Sergeant, radial" - let's get the laziest attempts out of the way.]

[cartesio]

Niwa, you're not fooling anyone. Stop being so birdbrained and focus on what you're doing.

[He sounds so tired of you, Niwa, stealing the bedding and stuff.

The device Niwa has receives all the passwords. One by one, they're tested. Wrong, wrong, wrong...

...accepted]

PART II

[cartesio]

Okay, you all sure think you know what you're talking. Let's be real here: is there even anything you can do?

Because, as I see it, I'm the one holding the reins here. I have the key to your freedom.

[Go ahead, everyone.

Convince the Sergeant to give you the metaphorical keys to being free]

[robitussin]

...You said earlier that what you’ve been doing here - you thought it was helping us. I mean, you were dead fucking wrong, but it at least proves that part of you want to help us.

[She takes a breath.]

Now you have a chance to actually help us, though.

[marmoron]

So what's stopping you from handing that over? Your coding or something you're choosing to do.

[pecker]

You saw my point just now. My offer still stands.

[smile!!]

FINAL PART START: 1/2

[cartesio]

[All the screens on the center show the same thing: a progress bar.

Slowly, the stabilize function works. Several words appear and disappear, indicating what sectors are fixed. Sectors related to the administrator's device fly by, there's some repairing about the simulation itself, some graphical corrections...

...and then it crashes. The progress bar stops when the simulation performance is at 12%. The AI performance is at 80%.

'FATAL ERROR. STABILIZATION CAN'T BE PERFORMED.

PERFORM SYSTEM MAINTENANCE'.

Looks like you can't do anything about that. It's out of your hands]

...without a programmer, it can't be fixed further.

[Welp. The application closes, but it seems the administrator's device's options are working now, at least. The Stabilize function is likely to not be able to do anything else, but there are other options now:

>MOVE MINDS
>EDIT SIMULATION ENVIRONMENT
>EDIT DIRECTIVES
>GIVE LEAVING RIGHTS

That's not the only change, though. Apparently some of the stabilization affected something else too. Did you notice how the AI's performance has increased?

Slowly, the Sergeant starts changing. Looks like some of that stabilized him as well]

FINAL PART START: 2/2

[sergeiant]

[His entire being changes. The military clothing vanishes, replaced by different clothing. The void in his face is slowly filled, the graphical and spatial errors being corrected.

The end result is a face you know.

Slowly, Sergeant extends an arm, examining the clothing on it. This is...it's certainly him]

...okay, that's an interesting side effect.

[He looks away]

I didn't expect you'd be seeing my face again.

[pecker]

... [huh.] Well now, you had more of an identity than you let on.

[she didn't even talk to him initially though so she's just gonna focus on these programs ok.

What does edit directives do. The rest seem straightforward.]

[sergeiant]

[Everyone's been given medals, both in the living and the dead side. A few of the living side also gave themselves powers, hah!

Once everything is done, Sarge ponts at the option in >MOVE MINDS to move everyone to their bodies]

Once you activate that, you will be into your new body, out there in the real world. All your powers and stuff should work properly, and it'll be like you have been in them forever. You'll even live with the same longevity you're expected to have. Sergei's work is amazing.

[...]

The majority of administrators need to approve. I made sure no corruption touches any mind when it gets into the real world. Go ahead.

[Looks like you have reached the end]

[robitussin]

...I'm assuming nobody has any objections?

[Might as well check before she gives her vote.]

[pecker]

Let's do this!

[Niwatori fist pumps. This transfer is now Chicken Approved]