Third Network Dive [Video] - Backdated to the morning after Thor's party.

[shelkethetransparent]

[The video clicks on when the rolled up tablet hits the ground, and the screen bounces wildly before it settles on its side against a curb, revealing a stretch of street near the apartment buildings. Shelke is standing off to one side with a brown box in her arms, frowning faintly in irritation as she looks over at the tablet. Damn it.]

[She sets the box down, and inside several little robots appear to be marching around, bumping into each other and clanking occasionally. Shelke heads over towards her tablet but just before she reaches up, when the screen is mostly dominated by her shoes, she makes a soft noise and detours away.]

[A couple moments later she returns, but she's back over by the box, setting two more of the strange little robots down inside of it. It's getting rather crowded, really, she's apparently been at this for a while.]

[Finally she retrieves her tablet, holding it in one hand as she returns to the box. She looks like she's about to turn it off, but after a second she turns her glowing eyes towards it instead.]

I don't know what these little machines are. [Using her free hand she holds one up, and it kicks aimlessly at the air in protest before she sets it back down.] But if anyone else has found some and does not want them, I will take them.

I-[She turns away, and is that a faint smile on her face as she spots another little machine. For a moment she genuinely looks like a little kid, but then it's gone as she turns back towards the screen.] They seem to be everywhere. Does anyone know what they are from? [She asks even as she's standing and walking to collect another little prize.]

Comments

[trustycrowbar]

You have no clue either? I found one in my apartment the other night, trying to play chess with itself on my old board.

[At first he thought it was all those opiates from before catching up to him...]

Three games later, I decided to keep him.

[shelkethetransparent]

[Shelke frowns faintly at the screen, then down at her little box of robots. She hadn't really thought to do anything with them yet.]

...Does it win?

[trustycrowbar]

...Well... yes. Sometimes.

[The little guy isn't Deep Blue by any stretch of the imagination, but chess programs are as fundamental to computers as "HELLO WORLD." Either that or he just stumbled across a relative genius of a robot.]

[shelkethetransparent]

Hmm. I had thought they were just some sort of advanced toy. I found one trying to get into my apartment this morning.

I hadn't thought they might be intelligent.

[trustycrowbar]

Well... they're capable of games, anyway.

[His own robot stumbles by on the desk in the foreground.]

[shelkethetransparent]

I was intending to take them apart.

[She's frowning at her box of pilfered robots now.]

[trustycrowbar]

I thought about doing that myself. I might yet in fact. Eventually.

[shelkethetransparent]

[She considers the box again for another moment or two before she nods.]

I suppose it is not more intelligent than a computer program. It wouldn't matter to take them apart.

[For a moment though, she had been a little kid worried about breaking a living toy. Whoops.]

text

[bearswitness]

Useless probably.

[video]

[shelkethetransparent]

[Shelke glances at the text for a moment, glowing eyes narrowing, and then shakes her head.]

Maybe.

Maybe not.

[bearswitness]

Fine let me rephrase useless definitely.

[shelkethetransparent]

Why? Even if all I get out of it is a handful of power supplies, that's more than I had before.

And they're interesting.

[Not that she needs toys to play with or anything.]

[trustycrowbar]

I want to take some more time and observe it before then. Maybe grab a spare in case I'd need a guide fitting it back together.

[The little robot is now trying to imitate the drinking-bird desk toy next to him. Down, up, down, up...]

[shelkethetransparent]

I have twelve of them. [She is looking for more, too.]

[trustycrowbar]

Where did you find that many?

[shelkethetransparent]

Around.

[She glances at the box, then back at him and gives a tiny shrug.]

I have been at this for a while.