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Post by Katzenstreu on Jun 5, 2011 23:29:30 GMT -5
When most people imagine paradise, it's full of sunlit warmth and something to parch your thirst in hand as the nearby waves tickled your exposed toes. Or perhaps it was a different kind of warmth; one caused by the body's heat next to another person's. Raine, however, always had a different image in mind, mainly because she never found the ocean to be that relaxing or let many people besides her brother and her friends get that close to her.
If anything, Aspio was the closet thing she had in mind. It was a veritable cornucopia of knowledge, all compacted by the written word. And the entire city was dedicated to it, to the point they even slept on beds made of books. (They were surprisingly comfy.)
She'd been here the past few days, an attempt of hers to discover just what these new lands were. Mana was here, that, she could sense clearly. But going through records and histories, they made no mention of that, though that could be because they used a different term. Such a thing wouldn't surprise her, but no, the closet thing she could find (something called aer) worked differently than Mana, it seemed. Perhaps, she thought, this world was similar to Aselia when it was first born; a place without Mana.
In which case, she started to wonder while pulling a book from one of the many shelves, how much would the presence of it change this place?
But then that brought more questions, still. If this new lands, with their own key differences, were suddenly next to each other (which she doubted they were simply undiscovered lands of Aselia), then how would they effect each other? Like everyone else around her, Raine considered herself a scholar and it would be a lie to say she wouldn't be curious to witness such changes.
Perhaps for the better, her thoughts stopped when she noticed a thump! and the feeling of an object drop by her foot. "Hmm?" she hummed to herself, picking up the object. A bracelet. Probably something dear and lost.
She seized the chance to inquire if its' owner was known by a passing scholar, in what seemed traditional robes and the stock-standard stuffy attitude. "Excuse me, but do you know if this belongs to anyone? It seems as though it was placed in the shelves-"
Said scholar, recognizing her from all her hanging around the city, merely sniffed (a sign of a perpetual cold?) and answered that, no, he didn't. And left without another word.
Alright, a part of her expected that. After all, you couldn't have paradise without a bit of hell. But here she was, with a bracelet in hand...
It was then, perhaps, that if she never looked back that the bracelet, she would have simply returned it to its place. Possibly thinking whatever owner it had was hiding it for safekeeping. But a second glance was what sparked something in her. "This is..." That natural human curiosity that ran through her blood, along with elven intellect. Together, she recalled from memory that this bracelet reminded her slightly of magitechnoloy, and then wondered why it was here. Terca Lumireis (as she had read the land was called) was certainly not devoid of technology; being about level with Tethe'alla, if she was any judge. But still. The bracelet wasn't like anything she read about concerning things called Bodhi Blastia. It didn't appear to have a jewel on it, and the structure reminded her still of the ancient tech.
She was a scholar, as previously mentioned. So, it should be of no surprise that testing theories was nothing new to her. "It doesn't appear to be working, though," she murmured, all to herself. Talking to herself in order to sort her thoughts was an occasional habit of hers. "That could be due to it lacking power, since Mana isn't highly concentrated here... or maybe it needs to be triggered." Her curiosity, oh, how it grew.
If such conjecture was to be true, she needed to gather the necessary components for a test. But first, privacy. Though, no inn of the city provided such security, so she retreated deep into the labyrinth of ink and paper. Therein, the quiet shuffling of people had died away and she was ready. First, she knew, was the need of a high concentration of Mana. Hopefully, such a small device wouldn't need much, so only drawing Mana forth in a spell would bring enough. If not, she wasn't sure what to do, but still... A white glyph appeared under her feet and she felt Mana start to gather, but before the spell was complete she let go and the glyph faded. But the Mana was still there, and quite a bit of it, since she had started to do a Tier Three Spell.
Now, there was a matter of seeing if the device held a trigger... she examined it, and pressed at it, and poked at it...
Perhaps it was the gathered Mana, or perhaps she pressed the right spot, but regardless, she gazed on as something seemed to be happening...
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Post by Daisuke on Jun 5, 2011 23:46:30 GMT -5
What Raine would inevitably notice is that the device had no screen or buttons. It was a self regulating machine. As it kicked on, several things were read out in a feminine sounding voice.
>auto check start
_>power supply confirmed_initiate greeting
A small hologram of a very beautiful woman in a digital pattern, skintight body suit appeared before her, on the bracelet.
"Greetings, new user. You have activated the artificial intelligence database. Your personal A.I. Partner will boot shortly."
Following this, pleasant music began playing in a slow, calming way. After about half a second, the female hologram grew to be about Raine's height.
__>confirmed user/settings/initiate_intelligence
"Hello, and welcome to the Neganite Artificial Intelligence Program. I am Ai, the proper pronunciation is EYE. please create a password for security purposes. I am your artificial intelligence, and I am pleased to make your acquaintance. Register username and password?"
A prompt came up in front of Ai. It was asking Raine to type in the fields using the on board keypad, which was now opened up thanks to the bootup. The keypad was on top of the bracelet.
___>personalization/settings/learn
"I am able to learn at a human rate, and can perform tasks beyond my programming, if user /newuser/ requires these functions. The Neganite Artificial Intelligence Program was created to merge human life with computerized intelligence to create artificially long lifespans in humans, but an unintended side-effect requires me to become a biological organism in order for this research to be started."
____>initiate final password check
"No further information may be provided until user /newuser/ confirms their username and password. I will call you by your username."
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Post by Katzenstreu on Jun 6, 2011 23:40:59 GMT -5
Perhaps she'd been wrong in a way, or maybe lacked enough knowledge still of magitechnology. Regardless, Raine had to admit she hadn't seen anything like this before. This woman, if such a thing could have a gender, appeared to perfectly human and solid. Although, this was proven wrong as soon as she curious reached out a hand to touch her. Now, she would've been satisfied if her surface was smooth, cold and metallic like what she'd expected of magitechnology.
However, her hand went right through Ai's abdomen. "A hologram," she affirmed. Surprising, but not completely so. She had seen such phenomenon before, after all. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ai." Returned politeness aside, that was only somewhat important, presently, as she kept close attention to Ai's words. Some of them were odd, but familiar from her studies of the subject (such as "user" and "password"), and she could piece together quite easily what the strange technology was asking. The keypad that popped up was a nice hint, too.
There was a full two minutes of Raine careful beep, beep, beep-ing away at the keypad on the bracelet. Unlike most, perhaps, she did not choose a pseudonym or abbreviation of her own name. No, she kept it simple: Raine Sage. As for her password, well, that's always confidential.
"There," she said, once all the necessary information was inputed. "Now, Ai, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to ask you a few questions."
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Post by Daisuke on Jun 6, 2011 23:53:32 GMT -5
>Question prompt affirmed
"User confirmed, Raine Sage. Welcome, Raine Sage, to the Neganite Artificial Intelligence Research Program. The N.A.I.R. is the study of artificial intelligence, also known as computerized life, and how it can be integrated with biological life."
_>Enable conversation program/startup...Boot from drive G:
"Yes? You may ask me anything, Raine Sage. I am educated on all topics involving N.A.I.R., the world history of Neganite, as well as the inner programming of my own components. Artificial life bound to one day merge with biological life, that is my programmed goal."
__> Driver E: activated/prompt user tutorial
"To access data from the archive, use the key pad to navigate, or simply prompt me with voice commands."
Ai began to flicker, and her facial features changed as a small static wave crawled up her body. Her hair clips, however, remained solid. They were real matter. She looked at her new master with her large, computerized eyes, and it was evident that she was actually able to see Raine, and hear her. The hologram was no mere image; it was a functional being with senses and everything. It just lacked a physical body.
___>Respond to statement
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Raine Sage."
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Post by A New Familiar on Jun 8, 2011 22:01:52 GMT -5
Now, if you would have told Razulen that there was a cityi n a cave, you would have her hooked. If you told her there was a city with almost all the information in the world, you'd have her hooked again. Now, if you combined those two cities into one, Razulen would beg you to bring her there. Luckily, with her little buddy Luria looking so much like Yuri Lowell she got directions to this place easily. It was called 'Aspio'. Unfortunately, she would need a passport to get inside. Since she wasn't a member of this so called 'Empire', she would have to figure out another way in. Given that she heard that Yuri was in a Guild, and what she had learned in the short while she hat been travelling, using Luria to get in was a 'no-no'. Seemed Guilds were at odds with the Empire. Even so, she had a brilliant idea! The thing was, despite the entrance being pretty tight, the caverns in which the city was in were huge. Also, if the guards were anything like she figured, they wouldn't be looking for people to be 'up'. So, why not fly in?
As Razulen flew in lower, with Luria in her arms bridal style, she saw the cave entrance. She glided in slowly, making sure not to make too much noise or too big of an entrance. She kept as close to the roof of the cave as possible. As she made her way in, she saw a pair of knights standing guard. She moved carefully forward, and luckily managed to get past them. After flying for a ways, she landed behind a tall bookshelf. She set down Luria, and smiled at her a bit.
"It won't be long before they begin noticing us...so we can only be here so long, mkay? After all, a person with wings and a tail, and a girl who looks like Yuri, won't go unnoticed for long. So lets have some fun!"
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Post by Mimizuku on Jun 8, 2011 23:05:32 GMT -5
It had been a while since the journey of regeneration had arrived. It felt like it had been years and years ago. First they had to pass the test for Colette to become an angel, then they met Sheena, and went to obtain all of the summon spirits with her, and then it was found out by the group that the damn guy, that proclaimed himself as Colette's father; had just been tricking them the whole time, being no where even near close to being Colette's father. It was a horrible trick, and it made Colette eager to become an angel, but it was all that damn Remiel's trick.
Ever since those days, Lloyd had gone off to collect Exphere's, and he had, finding as much as he could. He had traveled a while, still searching for more Exphere's, and that was when he just happened to see his old teacher; Raine Sage. He had followed her into the city know as Aspio, and followed her into the building.
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Post by Katzenstreu on Jun 8, 2011 23:41:23 GMT -5
Neganite. The name was obviously unfamiliar to her, and it showed in her body language. Her pursed lips, the way she cupped her chin in thought... though, she would be the first to admit that the bracelet containing a majority of answers (possibly) for her questions was rather helpful. A few experimental taps of the keys showed her the archive Ai mentioned. The words on the screen reflected in her blue eyes as she skimmed through one of the archives. Fascinating how such a small device could hold so much. "I suppose besides asking what this Neganite is, there's the question of what you mean, Ai, by merging with biological life," she said, finally tearing herself away from the screen. She would search through the archives herself later, but it seemed smarter to get the basics out of the way first.
She cleared her throat, and began to rephrase her earlier statement. "Well, no, I've heard of doing such a thing before, but I'm more curious as to how you plan to do so?" Ah, yes, she remembered Tabatha. An android originally meant to be Martel's vessel. Could that be the same thing as what Ai meant?
In any case, her answer was momentarily delayed as she heard a voice nearby. "Excuse me," she said, quickly, before walking to where the voice was. It wasn't long before she found the source, and stood at the beginning of the aisle, arms crossed. Two girls? She doubted they were residents of the city, since they didn't wear the same clothes as the rest. Not to mention, she'd never seen anyone quite like the winged one.
"Fun, you say?" she quirked a brow, coming in at the end of their conversation, apparently. "And what might that entail, if you don't mind my asking?"
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Post by Daisuke on Jun 9, 2011 0:19:12 GMT -5
Ai floated along keeping the exact distance from the wristbands as always. Her features showed an animated walk cycle, but she herself was floating mere centimeters above the ground. She would answer Raine's question anyway since she was not prompted to stop.
>display="neganiteworldhistory.fym"
"Neganite is my planet of origin, and is also approximately three thousand years in the future of this one. I was instructed on my way through the interplanetary gate to not speak of the functionality of the devices of our time, as it may alter your own. However, I was sent back by Drey Mirroheart, in my world also known as the decamillennia survivor, and the strongest man living to date, in order to bond with biological life."
_>display="biotechmoldproject.fym"
"My purpose was to discover the means of bonding artificial intelligence to organic life. It is an unknown theory in my world and time, even with technologies that render this world primitive. However, Drey Mirroheart theorized that thanks to his crafted items integrating properly with my systems, I may be able to find success in this era and location. His craftings are atop my head, and allow me to see and hear you, which is very advanced for an artificial intelligence system. Please access the archives for all currently collected data on the project."
__>alert user
"The two life forms in grit of you are not the only ones. Radar indicates one more life form is within range and approaching you."
Radar. Now that was something useful.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Luria gave herself a moment to calm down. so much to take in all at once, and she was just learning to speak. Such a timid, childish mind. To be expected of one her age, mentally anyway.
"Razzy?" she asked, poking her caretaker. She had learned some basic things, like how to ask for help, say her name and Razulen's, and to say hello and goodbye. Still very much the young one.
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Post by Mimizuku on Jun 9, 2011 0:33:27 GMT -5
" Professor Sage! " The boy yelled towards Raine as he ran over to her, looking around. " Um, whats going on here? " He asked, not hearing any of the conversation that she had been having before. He scanned around the building, the city was odd, it was built in a cave, and was a bit unique, though it was a bit freaky if you imagined the cave collapsing.
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Post by A New Familiar on Jun 12, 2011 3:17:17 GMT -5
Razulen hugged Luria softly, and stroked her air lightly. She would keep her safe, despite the fact that she had blatantly kidnapped her. She looked at the woman, who was surprisingly pretty despite her looking a little older then herself. Along with her, though, was a itty-bitty little girl in a cute little black outfit. She found her to be adorable, but knew full well she had to answer this womans question in order to be able to, well, get on to her fun time. She looked at the woman, and smiled politely.
"We're just here to explore, is all. See, her and I, we know nothing of this world...so, I figured a city in the caverns would be a neat place to go. As well, it seems to have a lot of books, so it should be a great way to learn more about the world!"
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Post by Katzenstreu on Jun 15, 2011 0:07:21 GMT -5
Raine blink in momentary surprise as Ai continued speaking, though she supposed it made a certain amount of sense. She had asked her a question, and had walked off without giving her an order. At the core, she was still a machine, and therefore required a prompt for every action. Or so she assumed. Either way, it was something to keep in mind, along with all the information Ai had just provided her. "I see, she said, with a nod. "Thank you, Ai. That will be all." Hopefully that counted as a prompt. If not, she'd had to search through the bracelet's database for some sort of help on that.
Turning back to the two girls, her features softened. Raine was always welcoming to those that wanted to learn (and girl's politeness was only a bonus). "Well, then, you've managed to find the perfect place for learning. This is Aspio, and they've a rather extensive collection on many subjects." Really, she hadn't been able to find a single book with any trouble. That was also due to their wonderful filing system.
She blinked at the second, clearly younger girl. "So, you're name's Razzy?" she asked, before she finally noticed something. Something she was careless to overlook at first, how strange. "Wings...?" without thinking, she reached out to touch them. After all, many things could be discerned through that one facet of human senses. "Fascinating," she murmured after pulling her hand away. The texture reminded her of a dragon's wing she once saw on display (along with the rest of the beast) as a child. Most likely, she was a different species. And then there was her nearly human form Raine was seeing-
She was broken out of these thoughts as Ai went off about an approaching someone. But luckily, she didn't have to wait long to find out who or what. "Lloyd?" she said, at first, in surprise. She then shook her head. I could ask you the same thing. Aren't you supposed to be on a journey to collect Exsperes?" Honestly, what was he doing here and how did he find her? My, what a day.
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Post by Mimizuku on Jun 15, 2011 16:51:57 GMT -5
Lloyd blinked at what Raine had said, and answered. " Well, I was still searching for expheres when I saw you come here, and then I followed you in. But... What is this place anyway? " Yes, it was pretty odd that there was a city in a cave, wouldn't the air get stuffy? And being in the darkness for so long would be pretty depressing. And it looked to him that the city had been surrounded by creepy scientists.
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Post by A New Familiar on Jun 16, 2011 2:06:15 GMT -5
Razulen smiled a bit at the pleasant response from the woman. Good! She wasn't mad at them, or going to possibly turn them in for suspicion. That was already secured. Granted, when she did ask about her name, Razulen chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, that's just what this little one likes to call me. My name is actually Razu-" She stiffened a bit when she felt the woman's hand touching her wing. Not that it was bad, she'd just never had such a thing happen before. It felt, odd, to say the least. Having someone examine you like that. She blushed a little, as the woman pulled her hand from Raz's wing. She cleared her throat a bit to clear the air. "As I said, my name is Razulen." She blinked a bit, noticing a young man come and speak to the woman. He called her 'Professor Sage' and said something about 'Exspheres'. Wait, wait, wait. Exspheres? There was no way that this was a coincidence. They weren't dressed right in comparison to most every person on this planet, and she herself knew of Exspheres. She had to grasp this opportunity now. "Expsheres? Are you two perhaps also from Tethe'alla?"
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Post by Katzenstreu on Jun 16, 2011 22:54:34 GMT -5
Raine didn't know why Lloyd would be searching for Exspheres here, but in any case... "This is Aspio, a city of scholars and researchers," Raine informed Lloyd, wondering how he avoided knowing the name of the place upon entering the city. Well, she supposed that the town's name was written clearly on any sign, so. "Much like Sybak, actually," she added, as an afterthought. Yes, it certainly did seem similar to Sybak, although there was something more comforting about it. Perhaps it was just her.
But speaking of Sybak, and by that extenstion, Tethe'alla, she blinked as Razulen brought it up. "Well, actually, we're from Sylvarant," she answered, turning back towards the winged female. It was just a small case of semantics, but still.
"You know about Exspheres and Tethe'alla... would I be right in assuming you come from Tethe'alla, too? Or perhaps you've been there before?" Questions, questions, so many questions. Just who... or what was this girl, anyway?
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Post by A New Familiar on Jun 16, 2011 23:09:13 GMT -5
Razulen blinked a bit, and had a mixed rush of feelings all over. One, she was never supposed to reveal the whole 'two planets' thing to anyone from the opposite planet as her. Two, if these two knew of both planets, then maybe something happened? If they did know, then it was okay for her to further add on the information she herself knew of. It would be risky, but she figured it wouldn't be too bad. "Well, I am from Tethe'alla. As is most of my race. To be honest, I've actually been around since just before the two worlds were split in two."
((OOC: Short post is short, but moving it along. @ .@ ))
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