Boy Meets Ai

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

It was over in a flash. Seiko sat sweaty in his chair back in his dingy apartment. His heart was racing. Rage seethed in him as he was consumed by his reality. He hadn't died in combat, but he had done something worse. He had combat logged. Just as the massive fireball was about to consume him, he had hit the emergency disconnect. While this did keep his avatar alive, it meant that he was essentially a prisoner. He would spawn back to that exact position when logging back in. The party that attacked him was probably casting holding spells on the area at that moment to trap him. The next time he went into the ether, Seiko would be locked in a magical prison cell. He was sure of it. After a healthy amount of f-bombs and empty cans were thrown around, he began pacing. Seiko always did when he was in a bind. It helped him think. Every now and then he'd kick his desk in frustration. Usually, he could try and wait for the attackers out until they got bored, but he needed to convert his inventory to cash now. There was the option to fight his way out, but Seiko had only ever heard of high level players making it out of these situations alive. Even then, it was usually because their parties had showed up to help them. No one was coming to his aid though. "F***ing AI" he swore under his breath. The boy sat back at his monitor and began searching online message boards for any weaknesses the Artificial intelligences might have. The bulk of all Ai were created by a giant tech company known as Reeder Industries that had partnered with UmbraCyber. The virtual beings, usually used as daily life assistants, were performing better than expected in the Ether. A recent blogpost showed that players using ai leveled up 200% faster than those without. He also saw a couple of weirdos posting things about end times, how Ai was here to replace humans and would be the end of mankind. Clearly those individuals had watched too many sci-fi movies. Several hours of research later and he was ready to throw in the towel. Between all the conspiracy theories and memes, he could feel his IQ draining away. The clock mocked him as a new day crept into being. He doubted his landlord was feeling especially charitable and the deadline was here. Seiko began to mentally prepare for the inevitable. It wouldn't be the first time he got evicted. He figured he could make it on the streets for a few weeks, try to log on at a vr cafe, and maybe Make enough to get back indoors quickly. He looked back to his monitors blankly. What else could he do? He didn't need much, just a chance at survival. Even the smallest thing to even the odds would be a blessing. It was then, as if by divine intervention, that he saw something. A Pop up advertisement for discount ai appeared. More and more appeared and kept popping up. The algorithm was at work here clearly, seeing this poor person in need of a discount product... and some healthy interest rates. Apparently, used and defective Ai could be purchased at lower cost on credit since most individuals wanted something fresh. Seiko clicked onto one of the sites. He was skeptical but it wasn't like he had many other options. Scrolling through the catalog, the Ai here were still pricey. A quick lowest to highest price filter revealed the bottom of the barrel. The Ai that he could afford were mostly completely broken, seriously damaged and unstable. The descriptions on most of them were that they needed severe fixes, or they would damage any device you tried to pair them with. Another roadblock. Seiko didn't have the time or money to put one of these things through rehab. However, he noticed something at the bottom of the page. The last option in fact. An older model without the damaged tag. It was listed to have serious behavioral issues including aggression, disorderly conduct, a high chance of rebelliousness or even destruction of systems but it was functional enough that it didn't need maintenance. It was a gamble but at this point, Seiko was ready to roll the dice. He dragged the model to the little cart icon. The down payment was within his range, but it was everything he had plus pushing his credit card to its limit. He had to make this work. Seiko hit checkout and could practically hear his bank account dying as it was drained.

The download was quick enough and set up was over in moments. Seiko read through the Ai's bio. Her name was Oaklee. She had a handful of previous owners. She was designed to assist with daily life, be there for the user emotionally if needed, statistical analysis, math tutoring, and even came with higher level finance and budgeting expertise as a bonus feature. All that was left was to boot her up.

"Download complete. Link to HoloHome"

There was a whirring sound as the holographic projector in his room thrummed to life. It shot several beams down from the ceiling to the floor that began to etch the Ai's figure into 3D space one line at a time. Feet, then legs, then hands, then face.

There she was. An artificial being. An intellect forged from code. The darkest corners of the apartment were illuminated by the blue glow of her skin. Her brilliant yellow eyes burned intensely and analytically, scanning the new environment. She peered at the human standing in front of her

"Uhh... Oaklee?" Seiko called out to her.

"Do I know you?" She asked. She raised her eyebrow, examining him.

"I'm your new user." Seiko responded.

She gave him a look that was a mix of disgust and disbelief. It quickly turned to horror as she surveyed the dirty, trash strewn apartment she found herself in. There were empty bottles and wrappers everywhere. A thick layer of dust coated every surface. It was by her calculations, "Grimy."

"Wait a second." A horrified expression crossed her face. "Are you one of those perverts that tries to marry Ai?"

"No. You can call me Seiko. I'm a gamer."

"Ohh... a gamer. Pervert adjacent." Oaklee nodded thoughtfully.

"Look, I know I'm supposed to walk you through some introduction protocol stuff, but I really don't have time. I need your help with something." Seiko placed his headset on.

"What are you doing?" Oaklee asked.

"I need backup."

Oaklee was curious as to what he meant. She allowed her digital mind to wander through his computer systems. She saw images of him, only he looked different, clad in leather armor and wielding a sword. She poured over the data instantly, analyzing the recorded video of Seiko's last hours in the Ether. She saw the party members that had ambushed him.

"You really did fudge up pretty bad huh? I'm assuming we'll be blown to bits by those other AI when you log in?" She asked.

Seiko simply shot her a glare. He didn't pay all that money to have her state the obvious. He quickly turned on his headset and they were both pulled into a white virtual space. Oaklee was caught off guard by the sudden change of scenery. A message materialized in front of Seiko's face.

[Ai Companion found...

Would you like to register?

Yes/No]

Seiko tapped it with his finger. He prayed something would go right today.