Paradigm City - Fan Fiction

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Sentience

Part 7

The day of the tournament dawned clear. Norman and Dorothy were in the Rosewater box well before the match was due to begin, and Roger was fretting over his Megadeus. Cooper just grinned and ignored him completely. His boss was always like this before final matches.

There were only four matches left, one between Roger and a Mach 4-type megadeus and one between Beck Gold and another Duo type. Roger won his match unexpectedly quickly due to his new skill at maneuvering. Soon the other match was over as well. When the officials announced that there would be a two hour break to allow Gold to repair some damage to the Victory , Roger sought out his grandfather.

Norman and Dorothy were chattering away like old friends. It was nice to see him happy for a change, Roger decided. Dorothy jumped up and hugged him the moment she saw him. He gently disengaged, not wanting to make a fuss, and sat down. "It's me against Gold, just like you predicted," he said.

"I have a sixth sense about these things," Norman said seriously. "Too bad about his wiring damage, it isn't good for you to have too much time to worry between matches."

Roger shrugged. "We can always hope the problems have distracted him."

"You want to win by skill, not luck," Norman insisted.

"I'll take any advantage I can get," he shot back, laughing. "Dorothy, you've really made a difference for me in this tournament. Thank you."

"I am glad you are pleased, Roger," she beamed at him. The wait passed surprisingly quickly. He was actually startled when the first klaxon sounded.

"That's my cue," he rose from his seat.

"Roger, wait," Dorothy put her arms around him again and kissed him on the lips. "For luck," she said.

He hesitated for a split-second and then smiled and tugged the scarf from her hair. "For luck." He put it around his own neck and left them.

While he waited he brooded a little over Dorothy's sudden need to put her hands on him, but decided it was probably just her "make him happy" program working a little overtime because she knew the match was so important to him. He could always tell her to stop if it became too much of a problem, he concluded. For now, he needed to concentrate on the matter at hand. He ran one last systems check and moved into position.

Gold cheerfully gave him the one-finger salute through the Plexiglas windows of his control room. Roger laughed, the tension draining from him. Big O was running better than ever, and Gold was a familiar if difficult opponent. He never seemed to use the same move twice, something Roger believed was calculated to keep everyone off balance. This time, he had a few new moves of his own.

The flares went off and the two Megadeuses clashed almost immediately, testing each other with a series of punches. The Victory didn't have any rockets or extras to waste fuel with, so Roger knew he couldn't count on forcing the win that way.

Roger braced the Big O's feet firmly and shoved as hard as he could, hoping to throw Gold off balance. The Victory staggered a little and stepped back, then came back at him rapidly. With his new skills, Roger smoothly sidestepped the other Megadeus, laughing a little at the sight of Gold's stumble as the expected impact failed to arrive.

They slowly circled one another again, each trying to find the other's weak spots. The Victory suddenly rushed at him again, but when he sidestepped, he realized it had been a feint as the other's fist landed hard on the Big O's chest, dangerously close to the control center. The jolt nearly threw him from his seat, but he managed to hang on and keep his balance. He quickly stepped behind the Victory and pummeled it as rapidly as he could. He was starting to push the other Megadeus across the arena when suddenly the Big O's legs stopped responding the way they should.

A glance at the video display showed that the megadeus' legs were tangled in something that looked an awful lot like a length of chain, apparently one of Gold's latest little surprises. He kicked out one foot and the links snapped, but the Victory got a good hit on him while he was off balance. He stumbled and fell, managing at the last moment to drag the gold Megadeus down with him. The count didn't start until one opponent was standing, so he got back on his feet as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, Gold got up just as quickly and they were back to circling and testing.

His fuel was more than halfway gone. If he was going to use the overdrive, he had to do it soon. "Big O, action!" He flipped the switch and punched hard. This time he was rewarded with a shower of sparks from the Victory's shoulder as the blow damaged the electrical connections at the joint. He braced and pushed again and the other Megadeus staggered backwards, arm hanging uselessly.

Roger pressed his advantage, hammering the Victory as hard as he could. It managed to back away a little, then suddenly rushed forward. He brought the Big O's arms up, shielding himself from the worst of the impact, and the other megadeus again staggered backwards, this time starting to fall. Roger felt a sudden impact as the falling Victory kicked out at him.

He frantically sought to balance the black Megadeus, feeling its right knee sway underneath him. It had probably been damaged by the kick. "Big O, show me!" he shouted in desperation. If he could just keep his balance for a ten count, the match would be his because it was clear that Gold couldn't get the Victory off the ground with one arm not working.

The screen in front of him brought up a diagram with a clearly marked sequence. Roger stomped down on the left foot pedal and pulled the controller back a scant couple of inches, just as the diagram indicated. Ordinarily, he never would have tried it with the right leg so weak, but he had nothing to lose. Obedient to his commands, the Big O's left foot lifted off the ground for the briefest of instants and came back down somewhat behind its previous position. Amazingly, the megadeus stabilized. "10!" the count came through loud and clear. Roger had won the match!

He had just enough fuel left for a couple of careful circuits around the arena. He made his way slowly, careful not to stress the damaged knee joint. He stopped at his family's seats, smiling to see Norman shouting like a madman and Dorothy jumping up and down. He got as close as he could and popped the hatch, sending out the ramp down so that he could run to greet them. "Come on, you deserve this as much as I do," he told them after hugs and backslaps were exchanged. They followed him back to the control room and he pulled back the ramp and made another slow victory circuit to the delight of the crowd. Norman and Dorothy ran to the windows, waving at everyone they saw and enjoying the cheering.

When they arrived at the Winner's Circle, he locked everything in place and lowered the ramp again. The trio proudly climbed to the top level of the dais. Beck Gold was on the second tier. He offered his hand. "You surprised me!" he told Roger. "You won't find it so easy next time!"

"It was a good match," he agreed, turning to congratulate the third place winner. Dorothy hugged him again, and he laughed and put one arm around her shoulders and the other around Norman's. The officials arrived and passed out the trophies and medals, congratulating the pilots. Roger gave the trophy to Norman and put the medal around Dorothy's neck. "I never could have done it without your help," he told them.

When the awards ceremony was over, Roger turned to Gold. "Was your megadeus damaged other than the arm?" he asked.

"No, I don't think so," the other man answered. "Give me a lift?"

"As long as they fueled me up," Roger answered. He noticed that the truck was pulling away from his Megadeus. "I'll meet you over there," he said. Gold sprinted across the field and he turned to Dorothy and Norman. "Do you want to go back to the seats or come back to the bays with me?"

"I want to ride in the Megadeus again," Dorothy said, clapping her hands like a child.

They returned to the Big O and Roger guided it to Gold's machine. He braced himself, locking the right knee for safety, and extended a hand. The Victory latched on and Roger slowly moved backwards, pulling the other megadeus back onto its feet. Seeing the fuel truck on the way, Roger waved at Gold and returned to the bays.

"Bonuses for everyone!" Roger shouted from the top of the portable stairs as soon as the hatch was open. The crew cheered, shouting their congratulations and hurrying to meet them at the bottom. A cork popped and suddenly he was being showered in champagne. "Guys, that's for drinking, not washing!" he laughed. Norman grabbed the bottle and drained the last of it to more shouts and cheers. They finally settled down enough to pass cups all around.

"To the Dominus of the Black Megadeus!" Norman lifted his cup high and everyone joined him in the toast. Dorothy looked a little bewildered, but seemed to be getting into the spirit of things nicely.

"You're really the one responsible for this," he smiled down at her. "I tried asking the Big O what to do to keep from falling, just like you did, and he showed me!"

She beamed at him. "Big O understands how he works," she said. "I'm so pleased for you, Roger." Without warning, she reached for him and pulled him down into a deep kiss. The crew broke into cheers at the sight.

For a brief instant, Roger forgot she wasn't as human as he and instinctively put his arms around her, but then the reality of it came back to him. For the benefit of the audience, he pulled his mouth away as gracefully as possible and bent down to her ear as if he were going to nibble at it. "Dorothy, I don't want you to do that. Do you understand?" he hissed.

"Conflict," she froze in place. She would have fallen if he didn't still have his arms around her. "Conflict with file humor, subset practical joke."

"What's the matter, Dorothy?" Roger could see something was very wrong. He motioned Norman over, mouthing the word "drunk" with a wink for the benefit of the crew.

"What is it, Roger?" Norman asked.

"I don't know," he said, puzzled. "She just keeps saying the word "conflict" over and over.

"It sounds like she's stuck in a conflicting command loop," Norman said thoughtfully. "She's very advanced, so she should be able to work through it after a while. Let's get her someplace quiet, cut down on the outside stimulation a little."

Roger looked around. The quietest place he could think of at that moment was the control room of the Big O. "Dorothy, can you climb the stairs?" he asked her. She managed an almost imperceptible nod before repeating the conflict sequence. With him on one side and Norman on the other, they managed to get her into the Megadeus.

They helped her to sit down in the command chair, neither noticing that the Big O was powering up by itself. "I'll call your father and see if there's anything else we should do," Norman told him and left the control room, closing the hatch behind him.

Roger blackened the windows and dimmed the interior lights a little. He put his hands on her shoulders, massaging gently in the hopes that it would help to soothe her. "Dorothy, what happened?" he kept his voice soft.

"Orders conflict with previous orders. File humor, subset practical joke," she repeated. Suddenly there was a burst of noise from the speakers. Her words cut off abruptly and she sat very still, listening intently.

"Dorothy?" Roger was completely baffled. More sounds emanated from the speakers, sounding very much like the sounds she had made when she claimed to have been speaking to the Big O, except in this case, the megadeus seemed to be the one talking to her. She suddenly nodded and answered in kind.

They went back and forth that way for almost five minutes, then both fell silent again. "It...it helps," Dorothy said a moment later, her voice barely a whisper.

"What helps?" he leaned down to catch her words.

"Your hands... It... helps," she repeated in a slightly stronger voice. He looked down at her helplessly and began rubbing her shoulders again. After another long moment, she spoke again. "I...I...broke...it."

"Broke what?" he asked gently.

"I..." the words came painfully slowly. There was another burst of what Roger was coming to think of as machine language from the speakers. "Thank...you." She sat quietly, appearing to be thinking intently about something.

Norman rapped lightly on the hatch before entering. "Your father says it should work itself out on its own over the next 24 to 48 hours," he said.

"She seems to be coming out of it," Roger told him. "Better now, Dorothy?"

"Yes," she answered, less hesitant than she had been even a few minutes ago.

They had been there long enough that most of the crew had left already, making things a lot less awkward. She was in much better control of her motor functions now, and they guided her to the car with little difficulty.

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