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Cyborgs, chapter 2
Previous part here
http://www.livejournal.com/users/askerian/24634.html
Chapter Two
The morning after, Wufei opened the door to the doll's room to see him still practicing his fighting routines, one through three, as ordered. "Good morning, Heero," he greeted him. Since it hadn't been neither an order nor a question, Heero ignored him and kept on flowing through the moves.
"Stop the practice drills and come here."
As soon as he was able to stop without losing his balance, the doll stopped moving and turned toward him. "Walking or crawling, sir?" he asked him, expressionless.
The trainer smiled; it looked like Heero had learned something. "You may walk."
Wufei sat in the chair, turning the computer on. "I want you to kneel here," he said, tapping the floor next to him. He didn't want Heero to forget his place.
Heero knelt, lowering his free will level again to accommodate the sudden impulse to ignore his owner. The device on Wufei's wrist beeped, and he frowned at it, pressing a button. The doll jumped in surprise as a jolt of pain ran through him.
"I don't remember telling you to adjust your operating levels. Did you perform the scans as requested?" he continued, dismissing the punition, trusting that Heero had understood the lesson.
"Yes, sir," Heero answered, cautiously not sounding as sullen as he felt.
The trainer found the requested scans reports downloaded in the computer and began to read, concentrating on making sense of the detailed data.
Heero's hands slid off his lap, resting on the floor. His aggressiveness was building; after a while, he just let his claws slide out and rake on the floor silently.
"Stay still," came the offhand command. Obediently, he locked into position. His emotions were building to dangerous levels.
"Most thorough," Wufei commented, continuing to read. "You've done well. I am pleased. Have you also prepared the battle stats?"
"Yes, sir," he answered through clenched teeth. There were thoughts belonging to battle mode that were beginning to seep into his mind. He caught himself analyzing his owner's body type and movements for weaknesses and vulnerable places, as he would with an enemy doll.
"... I don't know that I like your tone. I would watch that if I were you," Wufei commented in a cold voice, pausing in his reading. "Now come over to the monitor."
Heero obeyed in silence.
"You are familiar with the virtual arena, of course?"
"Yes, sir," Heero answered. He was standing at attention, hands behind his back, holding his own wrist. His claws were still sliding in and out of the sheaths, though. He had discovered that for some reason, it was helping him to stall his defensive reactions.
"Let's see... What opponent... Ah."
Wufei picked up a headset and fixed it over Heero's eyes, plugging the datajack in his neck.
"You will fight as if it was a real battle and you will obey me as if it was a real battle. Is that understood?"
"Understood, sir."
"You will remain in free will mode for the battle."
Heero blinked. "... Yes sir."
"Good," Wufei answered, aware of the significant pause in the doll's answer. "I will set up the program and you will begin on my command." He finished the setup, putting on a mouthset, and turned to face the screen where the virtual arena was loading. "Begin. Fighting routine one, low kick."
He watched the virtual doll kick on the screen. "Block. Upper right block, left hand punch. Move backwards." He guided Heero through the fight, checking that he was taking the orders. So far, he was, but Wufei hadn't asked anything difficult.
He gave an order that would obviously let the opponent take the advantage. "Follow through."
Heero twisted around so that he softened the blow and kept on attacking. The trainer frowned. "Draw back."
Virtual Heero jumped back, sizing up his opponent.
"Wait."
The opponent hesitated, then took the opportunity to attack, running forward.
"Wait," Wufei repeated. Heero tensed up. Wufei didn't add anything, waiting to see if he would obey or protect himself.
Heero waited indeed, getting punched hard in the stomach – then grabbed his opponent's arm and plunged his claws in its elbow joints.
Wufei stood up from his chair and pressed the button, sending a jolt of pain so strong that the doll collapsed, crumpling on the floor like a puppet whose strings got cut. Wufei switched the virtual arena off then removed the headpiece from his still form, his jaws clenched tight.
"You did not obey orders," he grated out as the doll's eyes fluttered open.
"I did, sir. Your orders were unclear."
"I told you to wait. I did not tell you to block."
"I didn't block, sir."
"You grabbed your opponent's arm. You should have remained still."
"I didn't block, sir. I counterattacked. If you don't want me to make use of my free will, may I suggest you do not make me run it?"
He pressed the band again, watching the doll arch off the floor in sudden pain. "I never asked for your opinion."
"Then... don't make me run my free will mode. Sir."
Wufei was appalled. He had had no clues that the doll's lack of respect ran so deep. "You will learn to be totally obedient in free will mode."
"I would be totally obedient in other modes, sir. If my free will mode doesn't please you, may I suggest you remove it?"
Wufei stalked to the cupboard angrily. "It is not the other modes I am interested in," he growled, taking a wrist lock out of the various supplies stored there. "A fighting doll able to think for itself is a rarity. I believe that in battle that to be uncommonly useful."
"May I suggest a definition of the free will mode, sir?"
Now this wasn't lack of respect, it was downright insolence. "You will not interrupt me when I speak," Wufei ordered, regaining his calm.
Heero raised an eyebrow, as if doubtful.
"Odin's mistake was letting you run free will unchecked. As a result, you possess no discipline and ignore orders."
As ordered he didn't answer, even though he was feeling a weird surge of need to protect his creator against his current owner.
"I will allow you to make your own decisions, once I am satisfied that you can obey mine."
Wufei surveyed Heero, his expression stern, but the doll's face was blank, and he didn't say anything. The trainer knelt behind his doll, locking his wrists behind his back. He would have preferred not to need the stick, but the doll's bad habits seemed to be too deeply engrained.
"Now, who is your owner?"
"Chang Wufei, sir," the doll answered complacently.
"Whose orders do you obey?"
"Yours, sir."
When he obeyed, at any rate, thought the man. "Will you obey me in training?"
"I will attempt to, sir."
Wufei scowled. "Not good enough. Will you obey me in training?" he asked again, fingering the band.
"I will attempt to, sir. I cannot account for my opponent's moves."
His owner pressed the button, but since Heero had been expecting it, he managed not to react outwardly.
"I will account for your opponent's moves," Wufei informed him coldly. "Will you obey me in training?"
"I will attempt to, sir," Heero repeated.
Wufei pressed the button again. "There is no attempt to. You will obey me."
Heero didn't know how he still remembered not to react outwardly; the pain sensors were very insistent in being heard. In fact they were beginning to drown out the rest. It was most unpleasant.
"Will you obey me in training?"
"I..."
The doll clenched his teeth. His answer had not changed, but he knew already that his owner didn't like it. What use was it?
The pain wasn't a surprise, though the amount of time his owner held the button down was. Heero's muscles tensed up almost against his will.
Obviously, he was doing something wrong, the pain was a clear enough proof of that. His answer didn't please his owner. But he couldn't change it. Maybe if he explained why?
"...I cannot tell you that I will, when I am not able to offer you a hundred percent certainty, sir. That would be lying. I can't lie to you."
"I will have one hundred percent certainty that you will obey," Wufei announced, finally releasing the button.
Even after the pain had disappeared, he could still feel aftershocks, in the amount of time he needed to regain total control of his body. He was shivering in delayed shock. That was weakness. He didn't like to show weakness. He wrestled control back and consciously relaxed his muscles.
"I will give you orders that you may not agree with. Some times I will order you to take hits. I do not care for orders you cannot complete because of the actions of your opponents. What I need to know is that you will obey any order I give, regardless of your opinion of it."
Heero stared ahead, unblinking. Since it wasn't a question, he didn't see the need for an answer.
Wufei studied Heero's careful non-expression. "Will you obey me in training?"
"I will obey you in training. As well as I possibly can."
The trainer decided that it was good enough. Visibly Heero couldn't be more affirmative with too many variables. Well at least it was a more realistic approach.
"Will you obey me in battle?"
"I will attempt to, sir."
... Oh, not THAT again. Wufei pressed on the button, holding it down. This time, he had the satisfaction of seeing Heero start visibly.
"Will you obey me in battle?"
"I will attempt to, sir," the doll repeated through clenched teeth, visibly bracing himself.
"Not good enough," Wufei gritted out, upping the level before he pushed the button down. Heero tensed up violently enough to make the restrains creak.
Still no change in the doll's attitude. Wufei was feeling more and more aggravated. He better leave some time for the doll to think about it; he needed some time away too. Heero's attitude was so infuriating, it would be easy to go overboard with the punishment.
"We will continue this discussion tomorrow. I want you to remain where you are until I return--exactly."
"Yes, sir," answered the doll in an expressionless voice, locking his joints into position.
"Good," he said before stalking out.
The next day, Wufei entered the training room to find that Heero hadn't moved an inch. He didn't seem to have even blinked.
"Very good," the trainer accorded, undoing the wrist restrains. At least he was capable of obeying clear orders. "I suppose you've earned a reward."
Heero didn't react, either to the words or to the freeing of his arms, staying absolutely unmoving and unblinking.
"Lie down," Wufei ordered. Without a blink, the doll laid down on his back, staring at the ceiling. The man knelt by his side, running a hand down the front of his suit. "Roll onto your front, please."
He undid the zip, slipping Heero's arms out of the holes. The doll was pliant, unresisting. "Onto your back again.
Heero rolled on his back again, unexpressive, and kept on staring at the ceiling blankly as Wufei pulled his suit down. He tugged it back to mid-thigh and took a moment to study his doll.
"That welding was uncommonly well done... You can hardly see it..." Wufei whispered, trailing a hand over the fine line that showed where the repairs had been done.
Somehow, Heero felt like he wanted to shiver, but he managed to stop it. He didn't know what it would reveal to his owner, but he knew that he didn't want him to see.
Wufei rubbed his hands over Heero's chest, seeking out the most sensitive spots. Since he knew where all of Heero's sensors were installed, he could do that unerringly.
Heero drove his claws into the floor, fighting to keep the rest of his body unresponsive. His reflexes were trying to override his conscious control and he couldn't stand it. When Wufei's hand began to tease the inside of his thighs, he inserted his fingertips in the holes he'd made in the floor to keep from moving.
Wufei took Heero into his hand, gently. He'd verified; the parts were still operational. "System status?" he asked.
"Instability of the systems over 32% and climbing, sir.
Wufei smiled a little, stroking Heero. "At what level do you shut down?"
As Wufei's fingers brushed against a sensor, Heero shivered hard, unable to help it. "70%, s-sir."
"Inform me once you reach 65%," he ordered idly, continuing to stroke Heero, fingering his head.
Heero managed to stammer a "yes sir" even as his back arched off the floor and all his blades slid out of their sheaths. Wufei had to move back out of range. "Retract your blades," he ordered sternly. The doll obeyed slowly. Wufei waited until they were all hidden again before he started to stroke Heero again.
This time, the blades barely pointed out, but the planks of the floor splintered and broke off in his hands.
"System status?"
"S-sixty percent, sir," the doll answered dutifully. He sounded a little shaky.
"Perhaps we shall leave it there for today..." Wufei thought out loud. He paused, his hand still on the doll as he thought.
Heero calmed down a little since Wufei was not moving to add to his overload. His back was arched off the ground and he couldn't relax. When Wufei straightened up and left him, he fell back on the floor slowly, forcing himself to let the tension seep out of his muscles. His limbs were quivering.
"You may rest," Wufei authorized. "When you have recovered I want you to do your suit back up and come over here and sit by the computer."
"Yes, sir," Heero answered by reflex. There were still minute shivers running up and down his arms, and he was struggling to regain his composure.
Wufei went to the computer to start looking up records, and Heero sat up slowly. He sheathed his blades cautiously before he pulled the suit up over his hips. The touch of the cloth on his over-sensitized body made him shiver, and he had to wait for his sensory levels to readjust before pulling it up his chest. He twisted his arms behind him to zip the suit all the way up, then got up to walk to the computer and sat down in silence, just out of reach of his owner.
Wufei was frowning at the information on the screen. "Are you familiar with your core programming?"
"Yes, sir."
"Tell me what your operational priorities are, in order of importance," he asked, feeling a horrible suspicion bloom in his stomach.
"Protect my owner. Protect myself. Obey to my owner. Protect other humans, provided they aren't a danger to my owner."
Wufei nodded thoughtfully. "I see. Percentage of self will allowed?"
"That depends on the mode, sir."
"In battle mode?"
"Fifty-two percent."
"Fifty-two?" the trainer repeated, surprised. That was just enough to give Heero the power of making his own decisions in all cases.
"Does your core programming take precedence whichever mode you're in?"
Heero looked vaguely puzzled. "Yes, sir, of course."
Wufei considered. "I would like you to try the virtual arcade again. This time I would like you to consider this fact : Although obeying me comes below protecting yourself, if you do not obey me you will be hurt. That does not comply with protecting yourself. "
Heero frowned faintly. He didn't agree, but he was not stupid enough to say it out loud.
"Let us try the battle again then." Wufei attached the headset on Heero's head, plugging him in, and began the battle.
Heero obeyed Wufei to the letter, even if he wasn't sure he could agree to each one of his decisions. It wasn't real damage after all. It was better than being punished again.
"Block, kick."
He did so. Couldn't help but think that Wufei was a bit slow, though, and in a real match he'd never give him the orders fast enough.
"Withdraw and lunge."
They reached the moment where they got to yesterday. Wufei tensed up.
"Wait."
Heero froze in place. The opponent lunged.
"Left foot, move up. Aim for its lower shin."
Heero obeyed, still thinking that in a real fight he would have been hit a long time before he could finish his sentence. The opponent crumpled, though, surprising him-- apparently there was a design flaw there.
"Excellent. Percentage free will mode?"
"Forty-seven percent, sir."
Wufei sighed. He had lowered it enough so that even if he disagreed with Wufei he couldn't contradict him. "Not as high as I had hoped."
He went to study the battle printouts.
"I want you to fight in Free Will mode this time, without orders from me."
He started the battle, setting the computer to record.
Heero didn't answer, though for some reason he wanted to smile. As soon as possible, he jumped into the fight-- much faster than he'd been with Wufei. In a few seconds he'd kicked the flaw and his opponent was toppling over. Heero stopped moving.
Wufei frowned. "I want a chance to study your moves in battle. I'm giving you a different doll. Try not to knock it out so quickly this time."
Heero blinked, confused. "... Yes sir," he answered, wondering what was the point.
Wufei started the program, and Heero fought-- or more like, began to deflect and avoid hits, since he had no clue how to fight when not trying to win. He wasn't hitting back.
Wufei let the recorder run, watching. "You may take the aggressive stance now."
In a few seconds, Heero had broken off his enemy's legs. Wufei stopped the program. he wouldn't learn more today.
"Well. Your training is flawless," he commented as Heero stood at attention. "Percentage of free will?"
"Ninety percent, sir."
Wufei nodded thoughtfully. "Odin was right, it gives you the edge in speed and reflex. But that does not temper the glitch in your programming. Remain in high free will level, I want to address this problem."
He began to walk up and down, thinking about how he was going to work on restraining Heero's anger.
"Tell me, Heero. You are aware that sometimes a malfunction occurs and you enter a state that has been described as 'berserk'?"
"Yes," the doll answered, frowning slightly. "I cannot describe how and why this happens, though. My data is damaged."
"Do you have any thoughts on what causes these... malfunctions?"
"This may be a conflict between modes, sir. Events are granted a different priority depending on the dominant mode I'm running at the time. But some events are granted a very big priority in some modes and a low one in other modes. My guess is that sometimes I get the exact same level of priority for two different courses of action."
"You cannot chose to ignore those priorities?" Wufei asked.
"No sir," Heero answered, shaking his head. "They're in my programming for a good reason. I cannot choose which I can obey and which I cannot."
Wufei couldn't help but be impressed by Heero's understanding and insight. He seemed to be farther along the way to AI then Wufei had thought.
"Protect your master, protect yourself, obey your master... Odin made it very difficult to address that," he muttered, thinking about how to solve the problem. "It may be necessary to wipe your hard drive..."
Heero jumped on his feet and all his blades sprang out. Wufei blinked and stared at him. He hadn't expected such a reaction. The doll's eyes were wide, his pupils dilated, and he looked more unnerved than a being made of metal and plastic should have a right to be.
"If you're so attached to your hard drive, I'd like to see you make more of an effort to work with me," he berated the doll, hiding his sudden uneasiness at the too-human reaction.
"Sir..."
"Go on," Wufei ordered when he saw that the doll was hesitating.
"If you wipe my hard drive clean, I'll--" The doll fell silent again and stepped back, as if afraid of what Wufei could do. That was so illogical that the trainer nearly gaped. What could he, a human, do to a combat doll with his bare hands?
"Those flaws must be overcome somehow," he argued.
"You're going to kill me," the cyborg said in a flat tone, his claws sliding in and out, in and out.
... Kill? You had to be alive to die. How had Odin raised his doll, that he thought of himself as alive? AIs weren't living beings. Never. But still... Now it felt wrong to do what, with any other doll, would only be a routine decision. Heero had developed a lot. Wufei wasn't sure which results he could get if he raised him again from scratch. Certainly not the same patterns of behavior, for sure.
"... I agree that wiping your hard drive would be a great loss, and it's one I am reluctant to undertake. But unless the flaw in your programming is overrun... Sit, let me think about alternatives."
Heero hesitated, then sat on the floor. He looked ready to bolt, though. If he had needed to breathe, he'd be hyperventilating. Wufei noted his actions and paused. He looked very much like a scared human, and for a second the trainer felt the urge to go over and comfort him.
He decided to let Heero rest, and printed off the files he was looking at.
"... sir?" came the voice behind him. He looked over his shoulder, puzzled.
Heero hadn't relaxed at all. On the contrary, it seemed that each second he had spent without being reassured about his future had worsened his condition. There were minute tremors running up his arms, and his head was lowered, his hair hiding his face from view.
"The fact that I must protect your life forces me to warn you that I am approaching a conflict between my survival instinct and you orders, sir." He wasn't pleased with having to admit it, since it could decide his owner to wipe him out, but he just couldn't take risks with his owner; it was his prime directive.
Wufei stood up calmly, picking up the printouts. "I have no intention of wiping your hard drive at present."
Heero looked up, surprised, then relaxed slowly.
"I will be forced to reconsider, if there are problems with my orders being obeyed, but at present this is my decision and I hold to it."
He stared at the kneeling figure in front of him for a long while before he broke the silence again. " I want you to run through fighting routines 4-7 tonight, 50 times each. I want a listing of your stats for each tomorrow."
He walked past Heero still kneeling, hardening his resolve not to relax Heero's education now. He couldn't teach him that he just had to show physically how much he didn't want to obey not to have to. "I'll see you tomorrow."
The door closed and locked behind Wufei.
Heero stayed on his knees, shivering.
http://www.livejournal.com/users/askerian/24634.html
Chapter Two
The morning after, Wufei opened the door to the doll's room to see him still practicing his fighting routines, one through three, as ordered. "Good morning, Heero," he greeted him. Since it hadn't been neither an order nor a question, Heero ignored him and kept on flowing through the moves.
"Stop the practice drills and come here."
As soon as he was able to stop without losing his balance, the doll stopped moving and turned toward him. "Walking or crawling, sir?" he asked him, expressionless.
The trainer smiled; it looked like Heero had learned something. "You may walk."
Wufei sat in the chair, turning the computer on. "I want you to kneel here," he said, tapping the floor next to him. He didn't want Heero to forget his place.
Heero knelt, lowering his free will level again to accommodate the sudden impulse to ignore his owner. The device on Wufei's wrist beeped, and he frowned at it, pressing a button. The doll jumped in surprise as a jolt of pain ran through him.
"I don't remember telling you to adjust your operating levels. Did you perform the scans as requested?" he continued, dismissing the punition, trusting that Heero had understood the lesson.
"Yes, sir," Heero answered, cautiously not sounding as sullen as he felt.
The trainer found the requested scans reports downloaded in the computer and began to read, concentrating on making sense of the detailed data.
Heero's hands slid off his lap, resting on the floor. His aggressiveness was building; after a while, he just let his claws slide out and rake on the floor silently.
"Stay still," came the offhand command. Obediently, he locked into position. His emotions were building to dangerous levels.
"Most thorough," Wufei commented, continuing to read. "You've done well. I am pleased. Have you also prepared the battle stats?"
"Yes, sir," he answered through clenched teeth. There were thoughts belonging to battle mode that were beginning to seep into his mind. He caught himself analyzing his owner's body type and movements for weaknesses and vulnerable places, as he would with an enemy doll.
"... I don't know that I like your tone. I would watch that if I were you," Wufei commented in a cold voice, pausing in his reading. "Now come over to the monitor."
Heero obeyed in silence.
"You are familiar with the virtual arena, of course?"
"Yes, sir," Heero answered. He was standing at attention, hands behind his back, holding his own wrist. His claws were still sliding in and out of the sheaths, though. He had discovered that for some reason, it was helping him to stall his defensive reactions.
"Let's see... What opponent... Ah."
Wufei picked up a headset and fixed it over Heero's eyes, plugging the datajack in his neck.
"You will fight as if it was a real battle and you will obey me as if it was a real battle. Is that understood?"
"Understood, sir."
"You will remain in free will mode for the battle."
Heero blinked. "... Yes sir."
"Good," Wufei answered, aware of the significant pause in the doll's answer. "I will set up the program and you will begin on my command." He finished the setup, putting on a mouthset, and turned to face the screen where the virtual arena was loading. "Begin. Fighting routine one, low kick."
He watched the virtual doll kick on the screen. "Block. Upper right block, left hand punch. Move backwards." He guided Heero through the fight, checking that he was taking the orders. So far, he was, but Wufei hadn't asked anything difficult.
He gave an order that would obviously let the opponent take the advantage. "Follow through."
Heero twisted around so that he softened the blow and kept on attacking. The trainer frowned. "Draw back."
Virtual Heero jumped back, sizing up his opponent.
"Wait."
The opponent hesitated, then took the opportunity to attack, running forward.
"Wait," Wufei repeated. Heero tensed up. Wufei didn't add anything, waiting to see if he would obey or protect himself.
Heero waited indeed, getting punched hard in the stomach – then grabbed his opponent's arm and plunged his claws in its elbow joints.
Wufei stood up from his chair and pressed the button, sending a jolt of pain so strong that the doll collapsed, crumpling on the floor like a puppet whose strings got cut. Wufei switched the virtual arena off then removed the headpiece from his still form, his jaws clenched tight.
"You did not obey orders," he grated out as the doll's eyes fluttered open.
"I did, sir. Your orders were unclear."
"I told you to wait. I did not tell you to block."
"I didn't block, sir."
"You grabbed your opponent's arm. You should have remained still."
"I didn't block, sir. I counterattacked. If you don't want me to make use of my free will, may I suggest you do not make me run it?"
He pressed the band again, watching the doll arch off the floor in sudden pain. "I never asked for your opinion."
"Then... don't make me run my free will mode. Sir."
Wufei was appalled. He had had no clues that the doll's lack of respect ran so deep. "You will learn to be totally obedient in free will mode."
"I would be totally obedient in other modes, sir. If my free will mode doesn't please you, may I suggest you remove it?"
Wufei stalked to the cupboard angrily. "It is not the other modes I am interested in," he growled, taking a wrist lock out of the various supplies stored there. "A fighting doll able to think for itself is a rarity. I believe that in battle that to be uncommonly useful."
"May I suggest a definition of the free will mode, sir?"
Now this wasn't lack of respect, it was downright insolence. "You will not interrupt me when I speak," Wufei ordered, regaining his calm.
Heero raised an eyebrow, as if doubtful.
"Odin's mistake was letting you run free will unchecked. As a result, you possess no discipline and ignore orders."
As ordered he didn't answer, even though he was feeling a weird surge of need to protect his creator against his current owner.
"I will allow you to make your own decisions, once I am satisfied that you can obey mine."
Wufei surveyed Heero, his expression stern, but the doll's face was blank, and he didn't say anything. The trainer knelt behind his doll, locking his wrists behind his back. He would have preferred not to need the stick, but the doll's bad habits seemed to be too deeply engrained.
"Now, who is your owner?"
"Chang Wufei, sir," the doll answered complacently.
"Whose orders do you obey?"
"Yours, sir."
When he obeyed, at any rate, thought the man. "Will you obey me in training?"
"I will attempt to, sir."
Wufei scowled. "Not good enough. Will you obey me in training?" he asked again, fingering the band.
"I will attempt to, sir. I cannot account for my opponent's moves."
His owner pressed the button, but since Heero had been expecting it, he managed not to react outwardly.
"I will account for your opponent's moves," Wufei informed him coldly. "Will you obey me in training?"
"I will attempt to, sir," Heero repeated.
Wufei pressed the button again. "There is no attempt to. You will obey me."
Heero didn't know how he still remembered not to react outwardly; the pain sensors were very insistent in being heard. In fact they were beginning to drown out the rest. It was most unpleasant.
"Will you obey me in training?"
"I..."
The doll clenched his teeth. His answer had not changed, but he knew already that his owner didn't like it. What use was it?
The pain wasn't a surprise, though the amount of time his owner held the button down was. Heero's muscles tensed up almost against his will.
Obviously, he was doing something wrong, the pain was a clear enough proof of that. His answer didn't please his owner. But he couldn't change it. Maybe if he explained why?
"...I cannot tell you that I will, when I am not able to offer you a hundred percent certainty, sir. That would be lying. I can't lie to you."
"I will have one hundred percent certainty that you will obey," Wufei announced, finally releasing the button.
Even after the pain had disappeared, he could still feel aftershocks, in the amount of time he needed to regain total control of his body. He was shivering in delayed shock. That was weakness. He didn't like to show weakness. He wrestled control back and consciously relaxed his muscles.
"I will give you orders that you may not agree with. Some times I will order you to take hits. I do not care for orders you cannot complete because of the actions of your opponents. What I need to know is that you will obey any order I give, regardless of your opinion of it."
Heero stared ahead, unblinking. Since it wasn't a question, he didn't see the need for an answer.
Wufei studied Heero's careful non-expression. "Will you obey me in training?"
"I will obey you in training. As well as I possibly can."
The trainer decided that it was good enough. Visibly Heero couldn't be more affirmative with too many variables. Well at least it was a more realistic approach.
"Will you obey me in battle?"
"I will attempt to, sir."
... Oh, not THAT again. Wufei pressed on the button, holding it down. This time, he had the satisfaction of seeing Heero start visibly.
"Will you obey me in battle?"
"I will attempt to, sir," the doll repeated through clenched teeth, visibly bracing himself.
"Not good enough," Wufei gritted out, upping the level before he pushed the button down. Heero tensed up violently enough to make the restrains creak.
Still no change in the doll's attitude. Wufei was feeling more and more aggravated. He better leave some time for the doll to think about it; he needed some time away too. Heero's attitude was so infuriating, it would be easy to go overboard with the punishment.
"We will continue this discussion tomorrow. I want you to remain where you are until I return--exactly."
"Yes, sir," answered the doll in an expressionless voice, locking his joints into position.
"Good," he said before stalking out.
The next day, Wufei entered the training room to find that Heero hadn't moved an inch. He didn't seem to have even blinked.
"Very good," the trainer accorded, undoing the wrist restrains. At least he was capable of obeying clear orders. "I suppose you've earned a reward."
Heero didn't react, either to the words or to the freeing of his arms, staying absolutely unmoving and unblinking.
"Lie down," Wufei ordered. Without a blink, the doll laid down on his back, staring at the ceiling. The man knelt by his side, running a hand down the front of his suit. "Roll onto your front, please."
He undid the zip, slipping Heero's arms out of the holes. The doll was pliant, unresisting. "Onto your back again.
Heero rolled on his back again, unexpressive, and kept on staring at the ceiling blankly as Wufei pulled his suit down. He tugged it back to mid-thigh and took a moment to study his doll.
"That welding was uncommonly well done... You can hardly see it..." Wufei whispered, trailing a hand over the fine line that showed where the repairs had been done.
Somehow, Heero felt like he wanted to shiver, but he managed to stop it. He didn't know what it would reveal to his owner, but he knew that he didn't want him to see.
Wufei rubbed his hands over Heero's chest, seeking out the most sensitive spots. Since he knew where all of Heero's sensors were installed, he could do that unerringly.
Heero drove his claws into the floor, fighting to keep the rest of his body unresponsive. His reflexes were trying to override his conscious control and he couldn't stand it. When Wufei's hand began to tease the inside of his thighs, he inserted his fingertips in the holes he'd made in the floor to keep from moving.
Wufei took Heero into his hand, gently. He'd verified; the parts were still operational. "System status?" he asked.
"Instability of the systems over 32% and climbing, sir.
Wufei smiled a little, stroking Heero. "At what level do you shut down?"
As Wufei's fingers brushed against a sensor, Heero shivered hard, unable to help it. "70%, s-sir."
"Inform me once you reach 65%," he ordered idly, continuing to stroke Heero, fingering his head.
Heero managed to stammer a "yes sir" even as his back arched off the floor and all his blades slid out of their sheaths. Wufei had to move back out of range. "Retract your blades," he ordered sternly. The doll obeyed slowly. Wufei waited until they were all hidden again before he started to stroke Heero again.
This time, the blades barely pointed out, but the planks of the floor splintered and broke off in his hands.
"System status?"
"S-sixty percent, sir," the doll answered dutifully. He sounded a little shaky.
"Perhaps we shall leave it there for today..." Wufei thought out loud. He paused, his hand still on the doll as he thought.
Heero calmed down a little since Wufei was not moving to add to his overload. His back was arched off the ground and he couldn't relax. When Wufei straightened up and left him, he fell back on the floor slowly, forcing himself to let the tension seep out of his muscles. His limbs were quivering.
"You may rest," Wufei authorized. "When you have recovered I want you to do your suit back up and come over here and sit by the computer."
"Yes, sir," Heero answered by reflex. There were still minute shivers running up and down his arms, and he was struggling to regain his composure.
Wufei went to the computer to start looking up records, and Heero sat up slowly. He sheathed his blades cautiously before he pulled the suit up over his hips. The touch of the cloth on his over-sensitized body made him shiver, and he had to wait for his sensory levels to readjust before pulling it up his chest. He twisted his arms behind him to zip the suit all the way up, then got up to walk to the computer and sat down in silence, just out of reach of his owner.
Wufei was frowning at the information on the screen. "Are you familiar with your core programming?"
"Yes, sir."
"Tell me what your operational priorities are, in order of importance," he asked, feeling a horrible suspicion bloom in his stomach.
"Protect my owner. Protect myself. Obey to my owner. Protect other humans, provided they aren't a danger to my owner."
Wufei nodded thoughtfully. "I see. Percentage of self will allowed?"
"That depends on the mode, sir."
"In battle mode?"
"Fifty-two percent."
"Fifty-two?" the trainer repeated, surprised. That was just enough to give Heero the power of making his own decisions in all cases.
"Does your core programming take precedence whichever mode you're in?"
Heero looked vaguely puzzled. "Yes, sir, of course."
Wufei considered. "I would like you to try the virtual arcade again. This time I would like you to consider this fact : Although obeying me comes below protecting yourself, if you do not obey me you will be hurt. That does not comply with protecting yourself. "
Heero frowned faintly. He didn't agree, but he was not stupid enough to say it out loud.
"Let us try the battle again then." Wufei attached the headset on Heero's head, plugging him in, and began the battle.
Heero obeyed Wufei to the letter, even if he wasn't sure he could agree to each one of his decisions. It wasn't real damage after all. It was better than being punished again.
"Block, kick."
He did so. Couldn't help but think that Wufei was a bit slow, though, and in a real match he'd never give him the orders fast enough.
"Withdraw and lunge."
They reached the moment where they got to yesterday. Wufei tensed up.
"Wait."
Heero froze in place. The opponent lunged.
"Left foot, move up. Aim for its lower shin."
Heero obeyed, still thinking that in a real fight he would have been hit a long time before he could finish his sentence. The opponent crumpled, though, surprising him-- apparently there was a design flaw there.
"Excellent. Percentage free will mode?"
"Forty-seven percent, sir."
Wufei sighed. He had lowered it enough so that even if he disagreed with Wufei he couldn't contradict him. "Not as high as I had hoped."
He went to study the battle printouts.
"I want you to fight in Free Will mode this time, without orders from me."
He started the battle, setting the computer to record.
Heero didn't answer, though for some reason he wanted to smile. As soon as possible, he jumped into the fight-- much faster than he'd been with Wufei. In a few seconds he'd kicked the flaw and his opponent was toppling over. Heero stopped moving.
Wufei frowned. "I want a chance to study your moves in battle. I'm giving you a different doll. Try not to knock it out so quickly this time."
Heero blinked, confused. "... Yes sir," he answered, wondering what was the point.
Wufei started the program, and Heero fought-- or more like, began to deflect and avoid hits, since he had no clue how to fight when not trying to win. He wasn't hitting back.
Wufei let the recorder run, watching. "You may take the aggressive stance now."
In a few seconds, Heero had broken off his enemy's legs. Wufei stopped the program. he wouldn't learn more today.
"Well. Your training is flawless," he commented as Heero stood at attention. "Percentage of free will?"
"Ninety percent, sir."
Wufei nodded thoughtfully. "Odin was right, it gives you the edge in speed and reflex. But that does not temper the glitch in your programming. Remain in high free will level, I want to address this problem."
He began to walk up and down, thinking about how he was going to work on restraining Heero's anger.
"Tell me, Heero. You are aware that sometimes a malfunction occurs and you enter a state that has been described as 'berserk'?"
"Yes," the doll answered, frowning slightly. "I cannot describe how and why this happens, though. My data is damaged."
"Do you have any thoughts on what causes these... malfunctions?"
"This may be a conflict between modes, sir. Events are granted a different priority depending on the dominant mode I'm running at the time. But some events are granted a very big priority in some modes and a low one in other modes. My guess is that sometimes I get the exact same level of priority for two different courses of action."
"You cannot chose to ignore those priorities?" Wufei asked.
"No sir," Heero answered, shaking his head. "They're in my programming for a good reason. I cannot choose which I can obey and which I cannot."
Wufei couldn't help but be impressed by Heero's understanding and insight. He seemed to be farther along the way to AI then Wufei had thought.
"Protect your master, protect yourself, obey your master... Odin made it very difficult to address that," he muttered, thinking about how to solve the problem. "It may be necessary to wipe your hard drive..."
Heero jumped on his feet and all his blades sprang out. Wufei blinked and stared at him. He hadn't expected such a reaction. The doll's eyes were wide, his pupils dilated, and he looked more unnerved than a being made of metal and plastic should have a right to be.
"If you're so attached to your hard drive, I'd like to see you make more of an effort to work with me," he berated the doll, hiding his sudden uneasiness at the too-human reaction.
"Sir..."
"Go on," Wufei ordered when he saw that the doll was hesitating.
"If you wipe my hard drive clean, I'll--" The doll fell silent again and stepped back, as if afraid of what Wufei could do. That was so illogical that the trainer nearly gaped. What could he, a human, do to a combat doll with his bare hands?
"Those flaws must be overcome somehow," he argued.
"You're going to kill me," the cyborg said in a flat tone, his claws sliding in and out, in and out.
... Kill? You had to be alive to die. How had Odin raised his doll, that he thought of himself as alive? AIs weren't living beings. Never. But still... Now it felt wrong to do what, with any other doll, would only be a routine decision. Heero had developed a lot. Wufei wasn't sure which results he could get if he raised him again from scratch. Certainly not the same patterns of behavior, for sure.
"... I agree that wiping your hard drive would be a great loss, and it's one I am reluctant to undertake. But unless the flaw in your programming is overrun... Sit, let me think about alternatives."
Heero hesitated, then sat on the floor. He looked ready to bolt, though. If he had needed to breathe, he'd be hyperventilating. Wufei noted his actions and paused. He looked very much like a scared human, and for a second the trainer felt the urge to go over and comfort him.
He decided to let Heero rest, and printed off the files he was looking at.
"... sir?" came the voice behind him. He looked over his shoulder, puzzled.
Heero hadn't relaxed at all. On the contrary, it seemed that each second he had spent without being reassured about his future had worsened his condition. There were minute tremors running up his arms, and his head was lowered, his hair hiding his face from view.
"The fact that I must protect your life forces me to warn you that I am approaching a conflict between my survival instinct and you orders, sir." He wasn't pleased with having to admit it, since it could decide his owner to wipe him out, but he just couldn't take risks with his owner; it was his prime directive.
Wufei stood up calmly, picking up the printouts. "I have no intention of wiping your hard drive at present."
Heero looked up, surprised, then relaxed slowly.
"I will be forced to reconsider, if there are problems with my orders being obeyed, but at present this is my decision and I hold to it."
He stared at the kneeling figure in front of him for a long while before he broke the silence again. " I want you to run through fighting routines 4-7 tonight, 50 times each. I want a listing of your stats for each tomorrow."
He walked past Heero still kneeling, hardening his resolve not to relax Heero's education now. He couldn't teach him that he just had to show physically how much he didn't want to obey not to have to. "I'll see you tomorrow."
The door closed and locked behind Wufei.
Heero stayed on his knees, shivering.
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awwwww, FeiFei's so evil... ó_ò he can't wipe his hard drive! *pets Heero-cyborg*
and there was the touching thing again. that part always makes me want to... hit something. >.<
mwehe... but I liiiike it ^_____^
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You have to remember that Heero's a cyborg. Not a human. Touching is supposed to be a reward. It's not supposed to be especially intimate or anything, so Wufei is not supposed to care that he's breaking taboos. In his mind Heero's body is just like clothes, it's not part of Heero. he could put his brain out and into something else, or even just download heero's whole personality into another computer. There isn't supposed to be a sense of trespassing onto anything private. Heero's not even his slave, he's just .. his property.
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Heero's protective of Odin, hm? Shibby, shibby ^__^ But still, poor Hee-bot *cuddles*
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Heero views Odin as his father, even though he doesn't know that it is what he's feeling. He can't name the feeling, but he stills feels the same.
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