Sleepwalker

Ace

August 29, 2715
Dreamworld: Level 1

    Several centuries have passed since Dreamworld became operational, and the Embassy has wiped any mention of the outside world from recorded history. The once benevolent government twisted into a violent political machine, and anyone that spoke up against them was instantly sent into the Zones—a hostile virtual landscape between the rings that separated the main population from the Embassy's private sector. When no one ever came back, people started keeping their opinions to themselves.

    Tom was one of the few that remembered the real world. After hacking the aging process, he bypassed that particular hiccup in his plans and was able to continue with his main project. If his calculations were correct, this would be his highest chance of finding Drake and ending the Embassy's reign.

      The idea came to him soon after the first rebels vanished into the Zones. Human bodies, including digital ones, had their limits. And even if he could survive the virtual wasteland, Tom's digital bio-factor wouldn't allow him access into the next ring. He needed something that could both survive the Zones and bypass the virtual lock to the next Level. To do that, he needed something made from Dreamworld's own code.

    It had taken years to construct his project under the nose of the all-seeing Embassy. Progress had been excruciatingly slow, and the pressure often crippled the scientist. At times, he'd doubted whether his son was still alive, but the glowing gold dot in the center of what was publicly called the "Pinnacle" gave him the necessary hope to continue. Now, the fruit of his labors was splayed out on his lab table.

   An android designed with almost the exact same slim proportions as Drake. He knew his son's measurements best after all. The only differences were those that couldn't be helped when it came to life from technology.

     Instead of raven hair, the android's was a sharp white. A healthy tan was replaced by a cold paleness, and beneath ashen eyelids metallic gray irises shone in the place of his son's icy blue. But while appearances were lacking in color, Tom hoped that the machine's intelligence would match his son's. Above everything else, he needed Drake's mind to conquer the Zones.

    The scientist sucked in a sharp breath and steadily lifted the android's head, feeling the back of his neck for the small bio-scanner that would turn on the machine and tell him if he had finally succeeded in creating the perfect catalyst. A small blue light flickered in the shadow of his hand, and Tom pulled away. The moment of truth had come.

     A pale finger twitched; then the hand curled into a fist before relaxing again. His eyes scrunched for a moment and slowly opened. The android sat up carefully, and Tom was at his side in an instant. Gray eyes met brown for the first time, and the man was shocked by the amount of curiosity he could see in those metallic eyes, even as they zoomed in and out of focus.

   Tom smiled and then laughed in hysteric joy as he scanned over the android's various systems. He was perfect! The android was more than capable of accomplishing everything he ever dreamed of without being detected. Created from Dreamworld's very code, the mainframe wouldn't even realize he was there!

    "Hello," Tom greeted as he turned back to the machine still sitting idly on the lab table. At the sound of his voice, the android looked up to meet his gaze.

    "He—," the pale teen tried, his face scrunching slightly, "Hello."

    His voice was a calm tenor—not too deep to sound unnatural for a teenage boy and not annoyingly high-pitched like a machine. He sounded so human, Tom caught himself.

    "Perfect," the scientist breathed, "You are absolutely perfect. I—"

   Tom paused. He had created the boy from scratch over several decades. At first, the android had been a simple means to an end, but over time, and after seeing the boy so very alive, he knew he was attached on a much deeper level.

    "I am your father Tom Tolmafin. You," he added while placing his finger on the teen's chest, "are Ace Raven, the most advanced AI known to man. Do you know your objective?"

   The teen's response was automatic. "To find and retrieve Drake Tolmafin and shut down Project Dreamwold, restoring humanity to the real world."

    Tom's smile grew to almost twice its original size, and he pulled Ace into a hug. "Yes, that's right! So very right! I can't believe it. Now, let's see what you can do, hm?"

   The ecstatic scientist took a step back and spread his arms out on either side of his body. "Ace, I want you to do a full body health scan."

    Gray eyes flickered blue for a brief second, and the teen's eyes narrowed slightly. What he was seeing didn't match up with the information in his database.

     "You are healthy overall, if a little erratic, but there must be something wrong."

   Tom's arms fell slightly. "Oh?"

   "My data states that you were born before Dreamworld became operational, but that's impossible. If that were the case, you should be dead."

    A slow smile spread out across the man's face, and he laid a reassuring hand on Ace's shoulder.

   "Your information is correct, Ace. I was born before Dreamworld's creation, but this is a realm made of pure technology. Anything is possible in the digital world. You just have to know the right cheat codes," he replied with a wink, "I wasn't about to let something as trivial as age stop me from creating you."

   The humor slowly evaporated from Tom's eyes as he continued, "You're special, Ace. You're going to save the world."

   And it was that moment when Ace had his very first sarcastic thought.

   No pressure.