บท 315: Recursion
"Uh, huh..." Afton mutters, "Before anything else, can you turn your Giant Robo-Scorpion off? It's probably finished destroying all the Protectrons by now."
"Oh, of course! I forgot!... I was wondering what as causing all those power outages..." Mobius says, floating over to a big red button and pressing it with a manipulator.
Afton thumbs the handle of the [Fallen Ranger Sequoia], wondering where to go from here... Mobius was undoubtedly a genius, a robotics expert Dr. Zero could never hope to be. Yet, his mental stability would make it terribly hard to give him a project... Though, it also made him pretty easily manipulated if he played his cards right.
First things first though... "Why did you steal my brain?"
"Oh, a variety of raisins... Reasons? Reasons." the scientist slowly corrects himself after flubbing his words, "You're something of an anomaly, quite special indeed, and not in the cranially-challenged way... You see, you are the most successful brain extraction experiment ever performed here in Big Mt, aside from our own of course. You are a victim of your own success, as the saying goes... I think?
If you were to go back with what your brain knows about the procedure, well... Your brain could be popped back in and you could walk right out of here. Can't have brains moving of their own volition after all." the scientist says with a chuckle.
"What do you mean? Aren't you able to move around with only your brain? That's what the robot-body is for right?" Afton curiously asks.
"Ah, well, you see, our robotic bodies were specifically designed to not bypass the fence. Though, I can't remember why this is the case, but I think there was a very good raisin for it. Everything I do needs a good raisin, otherwise, what's the point! Hehehehe!"
...
"So, there was a good reason for spamming Klein's inbox with threats, apologies, and whatever else he didn't care to mention?"
"Oh, don't mind that. I'm sure you know what it's like to accidentally dose yourself with psycho and only find out who you murdered hours afterwards." he says nonchalantly.
Afton raises a brow, "Wait, so all the threats you sent to the Think Tank were literally just a Psycho-fueled rampage?" he asks, this would certainly change things, considering the Think Tank were under the impression that Mobius wanted to invade, steal all their brains, and take over the world or something equally stereotypical.
"Hmm. Partly... Aha! The other raisin was for something like, ethics?... Conscience? Perhaps something to do with morality, or, Mhm, Theology? Bah!" The scientist makes a sound as if it were spitting on the floor, "Of course not theology!... Anyway, I can't exactly let them leave, can I?"
"Why not?" Afton asks, immediately feeling stupid for asking such a question. Of course the scientists couldn't be allowed to leave Big Mt! Who knows what kind of destruction they'd cause while experimenting on literally everything that moved, and did not.
"My colleagues were always more science forward, as opposed to anything related to 'common decency' or what is 'morally right'. I was always the one objecting to their experiments which tried to push the boundaries, as it were... Personally, I still think extracting a babies bones to see how it would grow is a little too much... Anyway, that is the raisin I reprogrammed everyone, changing their names and forcing a recursion loop in their perception programming... Or, atleast, I think I did? Perhaps the answer would be written on one of the walls around here..."
Wow, he hadn't been expecting that... Mobius had essentially 'mind-raped' the other scientists, stopping their ability to learn, process information, etc. Afton could see why this would be needed, as the scientists would eventually find a way to disable the Tesla fence keeping them all in the crater.
Additionally, it was probably a good thing the Auto-Doc fried itself after extracting his brain, otherwise they could've used the data it'd acquired to properly complete the procedure to put their brains back into organic bodies... Why, they could most certainly steal a Lobotomite's body and use it as their own if they acquired such knowledge.
Afton connects the dots and looks at Mobius in a slightly new light, "So, you reprogrammed them to stop them breaking out into the wasteland, I'm guessing your 'Evil Dr. Mobius' bit was to keep them occupied then?
"I think you've cracked the case!" Mobius says, "Er, I mean, I think I did all of that. Along with reprogramming their chronometers, geometers, and cartography programmes. Their histories are forgotten, all that exists to them now is Big Mt. For the good of man, animal, robot, and other-creature-kind, this is the best outcome." Mobius says, a bit forlornly.
Afton shakes his head, "I doubt this is the best outcome... The scientists are still active after all, lobotomizing any unfortunate traveller who gets caught in their path. How many thousands have been crippled or killed by them? If you truly wanted the best for man-kind then you would have eliminated them outright." he states.
"I see the logic in your argument but... Despite their flaws, crimes, and moral-evils they have committed. They are, were, still my friends. Everything I have done, every action I have taken in these long, long years has been for their sakes..." Mobius says in a moment of clarity... "Or maybe I just couldn't be bothered? Who knows!" Before returning to his mad, senile, self.
Afton shakes his head, If Mobius had just killed the scientists off in the first place then Christine wouldn't have had to go through their experiments... Though, he likely would have perished due to the Fungus ravishing his body as well... "Still, I think it would have been to everyone's benefit to have just eliminated them there and then..."
Mobius seems to shake his chassis, "All would have gone according to plan D, or was it E? Anyway, if it weren't for your arrival I'm sure everything would have been fine... That fungus attempting to strangle your brain allowed the Auto-Doc to recalibrate its medical procedure enough to fix its initial errors... All I could do was steal your brain and destroy it, but as soon as you started speaking to the Think Tank, giving them the idea of what might be outside Big Mt, things started going sideways..."
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Niggross
Niggross Hope you bois liked the chap, if I missed anything please let me know. Thanks!
บท 316: Roasting yourself...
Mobius continues, "That is why I had the Think Tank send you here. So they couldn't dissect you and find out the secrets of Lobotomites retaining their minds."
Honestly, Afton would be shocked at this revelation if it weren't so obvious... Mobius had been the one to initially point the Think Tank in the direction of the technologies, and it was on their schematics that Klein had found the override code to enter the Forbidden Dome. They even had Mobius' notes literally pointing towards them! Talk about obvious!
Still, that didn't solve what Mobius wanted to do with him now. Afton's initial thought of shooting Mobius in the face had long been forgotten. The scientist was the most morally 'just' person out of the entire group, and he wouldn't feel right killing someone who'd done almost everything in their power to save the Wasteland from his friends 'science', even at the expense of their trust and friendship.
Afton didn't know if he'd be able to do the same if he found himself in a similar situation... Could he hypnotise Veronica, Christine, Karl, Boone, or even Tamia to stop them doing something awful, likely saving ten of thousands of lives in the process? He honestly doubted it.
"So, now that I'm here... What's your goal?" Afton asks, ready to blow Mobius to pieces if he detected any hostility.
"Why, to put your brain back in its rightful place, and send you on your way. Once you are gone, I will attempt to reprogram the Think Tank again, after all of that is done, I will return to eating Mentats and... Whatever else I usually do around here...? Anyway, why do think I specifically got the Think Tank to gather those technologies... Without them, putting your brain back in your head would be rather difficult."
Afton raises a brow, "How'd you mean? I can't really see how the X-2 Antenna would assist with them. Nyx monitors my vital signs so she'd be invaluable for surgery, but the Sonic Emitter? My head would explode if that was used on me..." he mutters, grimacing at the thought.
"The X-2 Antenna can be used to focus your Alpha wave frequency thought patterns, and the Sonic Emitter was originally intended to be a vertebrae-pulse-de-sensitizer."
"Ah... Ok..." Afton mutters, wondering if they actually did what he says, or if the senile scientist is just babbling again. "Er, don't take this the wrong way, but... When's the last time you flushed your Bio-gel? You-know you've gotta do it every couple of years youknow, cellular degradation, etc."
"Hmm, well, I don't remember the last time... I can't exactly to it myself, can I?"
Afton shrugs, finally sheathing his weapon, "I'd be willing to do it for you... Of course, this would also come with a few caveats..."
"Caveats? Is that a type of candy?"
Afton shakes his head, "I'll just say it bluntly... I am not leaving after getting my brain back." he states, Mobius going silent for a while, seemingly dumbfounded.
"But why? Unless you like the feeling of scalpels scraping your blood-brain-barrier?" Mobius asks.
"Because I intend to take full control of Big Mt. That includes the Think Tank, and the Forbidden Dome... Along with everything within them."
"Ah, you mean me? I think I've heard of your type before... Those Robo-sexuals right? Well too bad! I'm determined to become a wishard, so no touching my brain!"
...
"No... What I am going to do is get Big Mt working again. Properly, without the meaningly Lobotomizations, and scientific catastrophes that are the Cazadors and Night Stalkers. I'm going to put you all to work, as my personal scientists." he says with a toothy grin.
"But... That won't work! For many raisins! The Think Tank won't listen to you! They won't listen to anyone!"
Afton crosses his arms, "That may be true, but you've been controlling them with fear, and subconscious mental suggestions. I'll go a similar route, Fear of what I'll do to them should they disobey me, but hope of the possibilities we'll create together. I am sure a few would appreciate having their human bodies back..."
"But... But..." Mobius trails off, not really knowing how to respond to this abrupt change.
"Now, Mobius. I'll give you a choice, we'll work together in keeping the Think Tank under control. We'll see to your mental instability, hopefully allowing you to fight back whatever senility has taken over. But, even if you agree you must remember one thing... You. Work. For. Me... Do you understand?"
...
"I... I suppose it would be worth a shot. Perhaps my methods were too, hm, compassionate? Do what you must... Ah, your brain is up there by the way..." Mobius says, pointing a manipulator at a large machine at the top of some stairs.
Afton nods, "Good to be working with you, Doctor." he states, leaving Mobius to mull over everything while he approaches the machine.
He presses the button on the front, and steam starts slowly releasing from various valves. Eventually, the top of the tank raises, revealing a glass dome, in which a brain floats into view... It didn't look like a regular brain, thin green vines seemed to be wrapping themselves around it, and every part of the brain that touched them was covered in black veins.
"Man you're ugly."/"Man you're ugly." Afton says, but is dumbfounded to hear a robotic voice saying the exact same thing... Did his brain just talk to him?... And insult him?
Afton shakes his head, smirks and points at it, "Jinx!" he says, just before the brain manages to do the same.
"Oh, come on! I want a re-do, this voice module is too slow! Piece of junk." the brain complains.
"As the age-old rules of 'Jinx' dictate, you owe me one thing. And that thing is to sit inside my head again."
"That it? I was going to do that anyway... I feel so weak without the system to help me out, that's not even mentioning the lack of limbs."
"Or dragon." Afton states, finding it somewhat interesting that his brain would know about the system, despite being its own entity at this point. Though it did raise questions, what was the system actually attached to, since his brain couldn't access it, that meant it was attached to his body, right?
"Grrr! Don't you remind me, bastard! It doesn't really matter anyway, it isn't like you were putting it to use, aside from dates with your hand!" the brain retorts, dealing a fatal blow to Afton's self-esteem.
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