***

"Oh take me away,
'cause I just don't wanna stay,
And the lies you make me say,
Are getting deeper everyday..."

_All Around the World_, By Oasis
 

Pain 6
 

   *   *   *

 2:06.
 Megabyte looked around. It was late and no one except the night guards and himself were up. Well that wasn't precisely accurate-he could also still feel Dot awake but neither of them tried to contact the other in any way or form-it would have been too much.
 He normally just slept in a wait state on his throne but tonight there was no way he'd be able to. The virus's glowing eyes stared into the darkness, not really making any of it out.
 How could he meet Dot's eyes in the morning? How could he talk to her? He could order her not to ask any questions but how could they converse when he KNEW that she would be thinking them? Perhaps part of it was because if she ever *did* demand an answer he wouldn't be able to give her one. The virus recoiled, for the first time in his life, from the thought of facing someone.
Megabyte snarled at himself. How basic was that? *He* owned Dot-her opinions and thoughts shouldn't matter to him!
 But somehow they did.
 He tapped the panel of his throne, the clicking sound echoing in the room as his mind slipped back to that one moment. That look of shock on her face as, not of his own violation, his hand swung up and just barely touched her visage-
 He clasped the sides of his head.
 "No!" he said out loud to himself in the silence. "Why does it matter? Why did I-?"
 The virus rarely allowed himself moments of self-pity but for one moment gave in. Megabyte dropped his head into his hands. His mind churned. What had he DONE? Whenever he tried to analyze it his head slipped away into other thoughts. What was preventing him from getting a clear view? Alone in the silence, alone in the semi dark and alone in a different way from all the multitudes that he controlled he tried to face something else-himself. He forced himself to think about it. *WHY* had he done it?
 He couldn't answer.
He had never been one for self-introspection.
 The virus stayed positioned, head bowed for a moment. Megabyte then took a breath and straightened up, collecting himself. He couldn't let himself do this too often. After all he had a system to run and more important things to do than worry about a triviality like this. He glanced at a digital time display.
 2:10

    *   *   *

 Dot closed the opened her eyes again. Yes, the ceiling had stayed in the same place that it had for the last cycle. She squinted at the glowing green clock face.
2:10.
Shifting restlessly into a new position Dot laid her blue-green
head back onto a pillow. As she looked up into the darkness, the events of the second played over and over in her head. Trying to push them away during the day when she was occupied had worked. But here in her bed with nothing to do but wait till she fell asleep the scene relentlessly repeated...
 Her cheek still tingled where he had gently touched it.
*Brush*
 "I don't know...I've always liked you..."
Dot angrily ran a hand over face. She couldn't get rid of the feeling-it just wouldn't go away.
 What was the DEAL with that virus?
 She had thought she had him figured out. She had thought she was nothing more than a toy in his plans for her, a tool. But then...this happened. The look of shock on his face had been more than enough to convince her that he didn't know what he was doing even without the mind link. Megabyte never let himself show shock. It was amazing-as if for a moment his composure had slipped away again and what he *really* felt shone through. And he didn't like what was there anymore than she did.
 Hex wasn't the only one who worse a mask. But who did Megabyte think he was fooling? Everyone had always known that the virus was a threat. Maybe it just made him feel better.
Dot scooped up a small pillow from where it had fallen to the floor. She morosely picked at its threads. A feeling of admitting something she wouldn't like rose. No matter how hard she tried to ignore it she had to face that, well...Megabyte was just a bit more complex than she'd like him to be? No that didn't seem right. Megabyte was incredibly focused on power only. It had to be all he thought about and she was sure, from what she felt, was the main thing in his mind.
But there had been trickles of other things, all shoved into his subconscious. Snatches of opinions, interests...lost and eroded away under the all-consuming urge for power.
Funny, she though. I never actually thought of him with a three-dimensional *personality*.
Dot stared down at the pillow. I don't think he's thought of himself with one either, her mind continued. Heck I don't think he thinks of his personality like that at all. I wonder what he'd be like if he weren't a virus.
Dot's fingers clenched, squashing the pillow. Part of what she hated was the way her hate was deflected from the actual target, like what she was thinking there. But It wasn't *fair*. She had...*liked* it when Megabyte was more back and white.  It was easier then. You didn't have to wonder about a person you hated. You didn't have to think about them, really, because everything was already defined. You didn't have to wonder if you were going insane.
She looked at the clock.
 2:14.

   *   *   *

 The day dawned cloudy and dreary in level 31.
 "Stupid nulls..." Dot muttered. "Stupid, time consuming, productivity wasting nulls." She then thought of what else she'd be doing without them-being inside the Principal Office.
 "Moderately stupid nulls."
 Cleaning up levels was not fun. It was tedious work with small flurries of panic whenever they tried to capture and contain the nulls.  Their vehicles were little more than modified ABC's with a large scoop and cage combination attached to them. Crude but moderately effective.
 "Look out!"
 "They're heading towards us!"
 "Aiiiiiie! Back-space!"
 "Watch where you're going you moron!"
 "Can I keep this one? It's following me around like a puppy!"
 "It wants your energy you idiot!"
 Dot felt a headache coming on as the virals panicked. Rubbing her temples she said loudly "Look, just grab the few over there and get into the removal vehicles! We're taking out the main nest today. Did everyone hear that?"
 A few "Yes" and "of course" 's floated towards her as the virals scurried off to work. The unnerving way they obeyed her unquestioningly was still hard to adjust to. Still, she was trying.
 "Trying?" Dot thought morosely as she got into a Null Removal Vehicle. "I'm actually trying to fit in. You'd think it'd be easier as Megabyte's damn..." she unsuccessfully tried to stop the though. "...second in command."
 Dot hated that phrase. It made her sound like an eager little follower. Well, never mind that now. Time for work. She did that well at least, much as she'd like to bungle it purposely to spite Megabyte. She couldn't even break free long enough to do that. It was, Dot admitted, a matter of personal pride more than viral obedience (although that occurred all too naturally). She just couldn't give something less than her best. The up and downside to perfectionism.
 "Let's go." She mumbled and stared off.
 The whole thing had been watched. A figure nudged someone next to her.
 "How long do you think it will take?"
 "Hmm-with *her*? Thirty, forty nanoseconds at the most."
 "Do we know where she'll be headed afterwards?"
 "To the master?"
 "No...she hasn't reported to him in a while."
 The other pondered this. "True. Just wait till she's alone in a deserted place. One farther away from *him*. She *likes* those." the latter sentence was edged with horror. The other figure shuddered. "No wonder she deserves it. Let's go."

   *   *   *

 "This is what I hate." Dot though. "Looking for things to do for Megabyte just to kill time."
 She wished there was a stone for her to kick around. Traveling along the Principal Office's dark corridors hadn't seemed to take so long before. The deserted feel was only near the lower levels. At least it was farther away from Megabyte.
 "He spent his whole life going after it, and what did he get?" Dot though sourly. "A decaying, half-burnt city with no Net access. Wonderful job. *I* could have done this with less casualties and damage."
 It really WAS deserted here. The lights needed to be replaced too. They flickered dimly and some were out for blocks at a time. Dot made a mental note to get it fixed when she got-
  A figure coughed and stepped out in front of her.

   *   *   *

 The virus frowned from deep within his throne room. Several of the infected sprites had gone missing. Well, not exactly *missing* since they weren't on active duty. But usually he knew where they were.
 Megabyte dismissed it as irrelevant. They'd be there when he needed them.
 
   *   *   *

 "Hello." it said.
 Dot blinked. An infected sprite, and lower level than she was of course. His blue skin gleamed in the light. He blinked and stepped closer. "Hello Ms. Matrix."
 Dot raised an eyebrow quizzically. "Hello. Was there something you needed?"
 "Oh, no. No nothing." he replied in a light, surprised tone. "Just saying hi." his mouth clamped shut, as if unable or unsure of what to say next.
 Dot tried to keep from whipping around as she felt others move in behind her. Slowly she turned to see five other sprites standing behind her. They had nervous, guilty expressions on and a few twitched with impatience.
 She supposed it was too late to run.
 "So..." Dot began slowly, unsure of how to continue. The lead sprite stopped her. He took a breath.
 "You know," he began. "You're a high-ranking person in the chain of command."
 "I...am, yes. What's your point?"
 The viral appeared to twitch for a moment and blinked. Dot flinched inside. Infection took some people like that. Hard to adjust to. She thought she remembered him. He'd been in Al's Diner once or twice. What was his name again?
"You don't ACT like it." he said almost sing-songishly. "You prance around here doing what you do only because you need to instead of wishing to do it..."
 "What?!" For a moment Dot felt pure rage. "I've worked my BUTT off to put this place back together, skipping sleep, missing all sorts of things! And what have YOU done? Hung around here practically useless as guards because there's no one around who'd attack by now?" her lip curled in disgust.
 "We've been serving. Properly." he replied simply.
 Dot had a sudden inkling of what the conversation was going to be about.
 "Not the way you do. Do you-hate him?" he got out the word as if incredibly hard to force past his lips.
 "Why should I tell *you*? I'm higher up after all."
 The mental temperature dropped considerably.
 "Pulling RANK. You don't really want to do this yet-YOU get all the privilege. All the respect. All the...praise."
 "Oh God is this what this is all about? You hate me because I get so much work? You're JEALOUS?"
 "This is just what we mean." a girl from the side said softly. The others muttered agreement. "You don't really want to serve him. You're just doing it because you're forced to."
 Control. Always about control.
 "You still have your MIND." The sprite's face was openly defiant now, psychotic anger bubbling to the surface. Dot stepped back involuntarily. The change in it was incredible-before it'd been so-so BLAND. As if he'd just switched his emotions on and off.
 "So? As long as I do what he tells me what's wrong with having my own mind?"
 "That means you can't have HIS-"
 Dot had time to think the words "Uh-oh..." as he reached out. Jerking back she turned to run and didn't notice the others closing in like a pack of wild dogs until they tackled her.

   *   *   *
 
 The virus jerked forward in his chair, suddenly unsettled. What in-
 -hurt. Fear. Inside of Dot. But...
  HE wasn't causing it.
 Amidst the mixed emotions he'd been having anger and outrage surfaced. How DARE anyone but him cause her any pain...

   *   *   *

 Three sprites held her down while three others stood away. She'd cracked her head sharply and waited for the lights in her eyes to stop. Amidst the buzzing she heard faint, nervous words.
 "Are you sure-"
 "He never said-"
 "-we presume too much."
 "Needs to be taught...no more-"
 "What if he doesn't approve-"
 "She needs to be taught."
 "But-"
 "She needs to be taught."
 The last line was said in a cold, flat tone the lead sprite had adopted. "She needs to be taught."
 "*How*?" practically whimpered another.
 They're worried, Dot thought. They sensed I was something different and 'free' and it disturbed them. The guards must have decided to gang up without thinking it through. So they've gone with their instincts only now they're frightened that for once instinct wasn't right and are hoping this is something Megabyte would want. That's why the damned virals haven't pummeled me yet. They're scared to the death that they're getting it wrong.
 "He wouldn't want this." Dot offered up muzzily.
 "Shut up!" someone practically screamed.
 "Why don't you ask him then?"
 "He doesn't need to be concerned with things like this beneath him." said the leader haughtily, quelling a squeak of outrage and fear.
 "What are you going to do? Try and erase me?" Dot said with more force. "You all know you can't and you also know you can't do anything with me. Why don't you just-"
 The leader suddenly knelt down near her head and clenched his fist on the ground.
 "Maybe," he hissed with his voice full of barely-contained rage, "If we beat it out of you and made invoking our Lord's name in deference the only way to make it stop, THAT would work-"
 "*What's going on*?"
The words coming from the vid-window behind them made the virals take in a collective gasp. Dot watched in some satisfaction as the leader's face slowly went pale. He turned around very slowly to face the vid-window. Megabyte was drumming his fingers with a clacking sound on his chair, an expression of mild annoyance on his face.
 "My...uh...my lord Megabyte..." the sprite choked.
 Dot felt laughter forming inside her. She might feel like she was going mad but the irony of being horribly glad to see the one person she'd kept loathing after all this time was incredible. A quite giggle escaped her lips. Glad to see Megabyte...oh, what a world.
 "I don't recall assigning you any jobs in this area." The virus leaned forwards while lacing his fingers together. "Would you care to tell me what's so-" he paused slightly. "-enthralling?"
 The last word had knives in it. Around her a few viral sprites closed their eyes silently. He knew.
 "My Lord." the lead sprite whispered. "I...we..." he shifted away a bit letting Megabyte see the scene and, more importantly, Dot lying on the floor. The virus' eyes flickered wide and he hissed "If she's been-*damaged* in *any* way-what in the NET did you think you were doing?!"
 The sprites tried not to meet his eyes. Their leader tried to get a word out unsuccessfully. The virus said levelly "Later on we're going to have a talk about this, correct?" They mutely nodded their heads. "And you will escort Ms. Matrix back to her quarters. Politely. With the utmost respect. And you will never even touch her or any others in your workforce again without my permission. Is that clear?"
 "Yes sir." the chorus rang out with more force than the mumbled explanations before.
 "Dismissed." the cold iron in Megabyte's voice rang in their ears as the window closed. Dot who'd been watching in faint bemusement from her seat on the floor staggered up. Watching her wobble slightly on her legs a viral said dully "Let's go".
 They started off.

   *   *   *

 
 Megabyte paced around a bit. He'd put on his legs for his little 'talk' or more accurately 'the chewing out' of the blasted sprite guard. What in the User's name had they been THINKING? Attacking Dot like that...oh of course they wouldn't have killed her but she could have been...might have been-
 His fist twitched. He would not tolerate *insubordination*. The whole business had been disturbing. HE needed to be in control and this had been too volatile.  Dot was an efficient servant and substantial tool. She wasn't to be *hurt*.  Should he call her to see if she were injured? No, he could get one of his binomes to do it. Megabyte turned back to his chair. A report would do.
 He stopped. *Was* she injured? No he'd asked the virals what they'd done and had been hastily reassured that Dot was all right. But he hadn't seen much of her during the confrontation and besides, how would *they* know? None of them were doctors. What if Dot WERE hurt? Then that would ruin...so many things.
 He'd just window her and-the Day In The Game, as Megabyte had learned to call it, floated up in his memory dragging up reluctance. Oh *why* was he allowing such a stupid little incident run his life? He'd been under too much stress lately. Too much pressure to get out of the system. It was getting to be a problem he couldn't ignore. Despite all they had done to effect repairs it did not look good.
 As to looking in on Dot...use a certain tone of voice, set yourself in a certain frame of mind, make it sound as if you were a distant demigod visiting a follower...that would work. Perhaps though, he should just forget it. He had people that could vid-window her for him. Yes. That's what he'd do. It wasn't as if his binomes were untrustworthy. Although...
 This was *bothering* him. Megabyte shook his head. Concern was an itch in his mind. Did his plans for the Net really hinge upon Dot so much? Snapping out of indecision the virus sat back down and shrugged. Well. Just a quick check-up then. Completely official. It couldn't hurt.

   *   *   *

 And somewhere else, at once a million miles away and a shadow's breath apart due to the nature of portals, someone quietly set down a piece of hardware.
 It was a quite expensive piece. They'd labored hard for it. They'd *earned* it. But it would work and everything would be all right again if it wasn't too late.
 A few buttons were pressed as the device was plugged into a massive network of abandoned wires.

   *   *   *

 Dot stared at her walls. Here she was, back in her room again. She seemed to spend a lot of time here during her more distressed moments. She felt her back. They hadn't seriously hurt her but she had several bruises that would smart. The sprites hadn't said a word during their trip of course-they wouldn't dare to. They couldn't. Dot rubbed her eyes wearily. At least it was over with. Thank User that-a grimace twisted her face-Megabyte had been there.
 With a snap the air in front of her sprouted a vid-window.
 "Speak of the devil..." Dot muttered unconsciously.
 "Ms. Matrix." Megabyte said. "I do hope you've recovered. My apologies but I wasn't aware that there would be this sort of-ah-*problem* among your co-workers."
 "I gathered." said Dot flatly. Almost nothing was coming through. The virus had gotten up his link in tight reins for this. "Well. I'm okay. No harm done, right?" There was only the smallest hint of sarcasm. "Anything else?"
 "Not...at the moment, no."
 "Oh. Yes. Thank you for looking in when you did." slight pause again. "Sir."
 "Of course. We can't...have anything happening to you, now can we?"
 "I...guess not." Dot said, a touch surprised at the lack of a taunt in his voice this time.
 Megabyte blinked. That had come out differently. Barely more than a dozen sentences over and it wasn't working out the way he planned. Unease settled over him and inwardly he winced. He knew Dot could feel it, and that she knew *he* knew she knew...this was getting decidedly awkward.
 "Good day then Ms. Matrix. I DO expect you to continue your work tomorrow." the virus' hand hovered over the 'close' button.
 "Yessir." Dot mumbled, unwilling to add anything deeper to their conversation. She turned away.
 Feeling faintly let down in an odd way as if expecting something else out of the whole thing, Megabyte closed the window.

   *   *   *

 A lone binome toiled in a room deep in the Principal Office. He was attempting to figure out something he'd been working on for cycles. Thankfully, since his master's patience wasn't noted for its length, he almost had the answer.
 The console he was working at chimed and a calm voice spoke "Sequence-verified. Data completed. Estimated time left till system crash..."
 Herr Doktor looked at the screen. He double checked his answers. Correct, all of them. Unfortunately. Several swear words floated through his mind, none of them quite expressing the level of nervousness, dread and foreboding he felt.
 "Oh dear." he muttered.
 He stood there for several nanoseconds. The he picked up a data pad and rang a number. Megabyte, looking distracted, noticed him.
 "Mein Uberlord," said Herr Doktor with a sickly, worried grin. "I have finally vinished a certain project I've been working on...the ah...ETA of Megaframe's...closure..."
 Megabyte's attention seemed to come back from wherever it had been and he completely focused on the binome. "Yes? And what are the results?"
 "Uhm...not good?"

   *   *   *

 The nest of wires hummed tiredly. It still worked. A breath of relief filled the air. By all that was sanctified, it still worked.
 Painstakingly, a long string of numbers and letters was entered into the console. The moaning of the ancient machinery became high pitched and more urgent. Quickly yet still cautiously, a few last digits were inputted. The fuzzy, strangled voice of the computer gurgled "Code successful. Address found."

   *   *   *

 Dot looked up at the glazed ceiling. Such a lavishly decorated room. She'd always wondered why the core control chamber was so...pretty. Maybe the designers idea of grandeur were similar to the virus'. He certainly loved it.
 "Ever notice how almost everything rotates back to him?" a part of her mind twitched. "If you can't infect them force yourself into their lives anyhow. It works out the same anyway!"
 Oh User her head hurt.
 She needed a break. She'd fallen down on the bed readily enough and slept like an analog but it hadn't been mentally refreshing at all. Dot blinked as a binome holding a tool box coughed to remind her he was there. They needed to effect some minor repairs to the control chamber, now that main ones were finished. For all the good they'd do. Motioning the crew to get to work she settled down.
 An infinitesimally tiny tremor shook the city. In fact it was so small all Dot felt was a slight vibration in the hand resting on the wall. The binomes whispered and shivered to themselves.
 "Did you feel that?" Asked one loudly enough to be heard.
 "Must be another part of the system breaking off." Dot offered. The binomes glumly nodded.
 "It wouldn't be surprising." Dot added bitterly.

   *   *   *

 The dying rasp of the computer's voice was the only noise there except for quiet, steady breathing.
 "C-connection made." It sighed.

Chapter 7