Computer Fighters 2000 But The AI Is Self-Aware

He's Converting Ryan To His Wicked Scenester Ways

A/N: If you're familiar with HLVRAI then you'll have an idea where this is going. If not.... ;3

The next day began as normal. Daxter Flaxter shook Kevin awake with a cheerful announcement: "If we get a move on, we should reach the next level in three hours!"
"Then we'll be almost at the end of the game," Neil explained as he cracked open a fresh can of vending machine lemonade.
In the corner, Ryan and Spencer were huddled together in conversation. The two AI had been hanging out together more often lately, and while Kevin wasn't thrilled about it, they had bigger things to worry about. He was sure Ryan would come around eventually.
Most of that morning was taken up with the typical trial-and-error (mostly error). They had to take another underground train car ride, swim through some flooded tunnels, evade squid-infested waters, and visit a small lab room to stock up on supplies. Another scientist with Daxter's model was there in the lab with some bad news for them.
"I've been using your suit to keep track of you," the Daxter clone informed him. The clone was less boisterous than its originator; Kevin had to strain to hear it over his teammates chattering loudly about ropes and who owed who money in the background. "Unfortunately, it looks like the US military had the same idea."
"Oh, you don't have to worry about the military," Ryan put in. "We already wiped them out, right?"
"That's right," Daxter confirmed. "The United States military has been completely eradicated!"
"You keep saying that, but they keep showing back up..." He shook his head and turned back to the clone. "So you're saying there's tracking chips in this suit?"
"Yep! And they're everywhere--far too many to safely remove," the clone replied. "You're a regular minefield of tracking devices."
"Bro, you've been snitching on us to the government this whole time?" Spencer took a puff of his sweet voice and blew it into the air with a disdainful expression. "That's, like, hyper-lame."
"Hey, come on, it's not his fault," said Neil; Kevin blinked gratefully at the AI for coming to his defense. But then Neil's shoulders slumped and he went on with a sigh: "But it's still gonna be a problem. We'll never be safe as long as Kevin is around in that suit."
Kevin scratched at the back of his head and tried to remember the mechanics of his HEV suit. "I'm pretty sure I've gotta get to a pod or something to take it off. I hate to backtrack us when we're getting so close, but..."
"Nope! You can never take it off," Daxter interjected. "It's permanently glued to your body!"
He punctuated that worrying assertion by shooting a lightning bolt and killing his clone. The AI blew smoke off the tip of his finger as his double ragdolled to the floor.
As they were leaving the room, Spencer pulled Ryan aside to whisper to him. Kevin exchanged a concerned frown with Neil, who shrugged. If this kept up they might have to do something about it. For now, they had a final level to get to.
While en route to their destination, they had to go through a room filled with a row of giant hydraulic presses which were the only platforms spanning yet another giant pit (and there weren't any "ropes" to help them across this time). Neil counted under his breath, apparently tracking when the presses raised and lowered. That was the kind of thing Kevin could never keep track of, so he hung back and waited for Neil to give them a signal or something.
Ryan, on the other hand, didn't bother waiting. He took a running leap and bounded from one press to the next in a series of pro-gymnastics-level flips. His ponytail swished as he came down gracefully on the other side of the room; he turned to flash the others a grin and bowed theatrically. Spencer, who was sitting cross-legged in the corner, whistled his approval.
"How did he learn to move like that?" Kevin wondered aloud.
Though it was a rhetorical question, and one he didn't expect the AI to hear from way across the room, Ryan replied nonetheless. "It's a family trait--I come from a line of vigilantes!"
"Ohh, that explains it." Then Kevin remembered something and turned to Neil, arching an eyebrow. "Wait, I thought he was born in a lab."
"Yeah, he actually gets it from some secret chemicals I injected him with when he was in his tube," Neil explained in a whisper. "Don't tell him, though."
It took longer than ideal for the rest of them to all make it through the puzzle. By the time they left the hydraulic press room, Daxter remarked "At this pace, it'll take four hours to reach the next level."
"That's longer than what you said before--I guess we were too slow in there, huh?" Kevin exchanged a sheepish smile with Neil; both of them had struggled considerably with the puzzle, while Daxter had gotten through even more easily than Ryan, and Spencer had elected to hop down and skateboard along the ground instead. "But you did really great, Ry..."
He trailed off upon seeing that Ryan was engaged in conversation with Spencer again. The two AI stood shoulder-to-shoulder, heads together and speaking in hushed whispers. Kevin thought he heard Spencer say something about slapping someone somewhere...
"What do you think they're talking about?" Neil asked. The scientist eyed his fellow AIs with suspicion, hovering just behind Kevin's shoulder as though to hide behind his suit and spy on them. "I hate to think of Spencer filling Ryan's head with all his dreadful hipster ideas."
One mad dash through a monster-infested basement later (with a brief detour for the AI to shoot at some ordinary moths) they came upon a relatively quiet hallway. Daxter stopped in front of a large open door and swiveled his head around like an owl to address the team. "Heads up, new kids--there's a shortcut ahead!"
"Oh yeah?" Kevin pulled out his recovered map of the facility, but Spencer blew a stream of purple-blue sweet voice into his face before he could check it over. While he coughed and waved away the smoke bubbles, Ryan darted in and took the map away. "Hey, c'mon, man. I was using that."
"You don't need that dusty old map to tell you where to go," said Ryan. His grin seemed just a little too wide as he spoke, and there was an unnerving gleam in his eyes, but that was nothing new for Ryan. He folded his hands behind his back, where he audibly crumpled up the map. "Don't you trust us, Kevin?"
"Well, yeah, mostly..."
"Then step on through!" Daxter gestured through the door to a large room that looked mostly empty aside from some TV screens. "With this shortcut, we could reach our destination in just three minutes."
Neil leaned in to peer into the room. "Woah, it looks like they've got blu-ray players in there!"
Spencer nodded his agreement, smirking. "Yeah, man, blu-ray is totally the new DVD."
As he said this, he and Ryan moved to stand on either side of the door like a couple of palace guards. Beneath their matching expectant stares, Kevin fought back a sudden chill of apprehension. He took a step toward the door. Ryan's manic grin widened, as did Spencer's knowing smirk. A couple feet away, Daxter stood still, expression blank and visor flickering. Kevin glanced over his shoulder.
"You coming, Neil?"
"You bet I am," the AI replied with what sounded like a forced cheerfulness. His posture looked tense, and his glasses flashed to obscure his eyes.
"...Alright..."
Though he was still unsure, Kevin told himself there was no reason to mistrust his companions. Sure, their judgement may have been a little off and they had a hard time keeping themselves out of trouble, but they were his friends--they wouldn't willingly lead him into danger, at least. And it didn't look like there was anything in the passageway that could hurt him, so... what the hell, he had nothing to lose.
No sooner had he stepped through the doorway than someone threw the lights and a heel connected sharply with his back. Kevin fell forward with a startled shout. Inches away from his face, someone laughed--Spencer? Before he could even try to figure out what was happening, he was met with a punch to the jaw. Stars momentarily danced across his vision, an artificial light in the sudden darkness. Then several hits in quick succession: a karate chop between the shoulderblades, an elbow jab between the ribs, and a low kick that swept his legs out from under him and sent him crashing to the floor with a pained groan. Something wooden smacked him in the face on the way down. (Spencer's skateboard? Damn it, I told the guys we shouldn't trust him!)
Outside, he heard Neil cry out in alarm. "Hey, what are you guys doing? You didn't tell me--"
"Just relax, Neil," Daxter cut him off. There was a coldness in the AI's voice that sent a shiver through Kevin's aching body. "This will all be over soon."
A pair of boots came down hard on Kevin's back, pinning him. He coughed and tasted blood in his mouth. As his eyes began to adjust to the darkness, he saw another shoe flying at his face; he barely managed to dodge it. Wait. Two people? Yes, it wasn't just Spencer attacking him. And sure enough, moments later, the slice of metal through the air was followed by Ryan's startled voice.
"Wait, we're not supposed to hurt him that badly, are we?"
"Chillax, bro," Spencer replied. "And hold him still. I'm gonna give him a gnarly new look."
A pair of arms--Ryan's arms, the traitor!--hooked around Kevin's shoulders and held him fast in place. Squinting through the dark, he saw a switchblade flying at his head; Spencer's sneering face was reflected in the flat side of the blade. In a desperate burst of strength, Kevin twisted out of Ryan's grasp and rolled to dodge the blade. But he didn't get far. Spencer whacked him over the head with his skateboard, and while he was stunned, one or both of them managed to pin him on his back like an insect on a corkboard.
Kevin's heart squeezed in terror as a flash of silver filled his vision. Then a lancing pain drove through his right eye. He screamed in shock and agony, and everything faded to black.