TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of heavy drug use, smoking, suicide, transphobia, and other triggering topics. If this is something that upsets you, please do not read.

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< Mainline Chapters 2 >

< Sections 1 - 10 >

< Sections 11 - 20 >

< Sections 21 - 30 >

< Sections 31 - 40 >

< Sections 41 - 45 >

< SMP Lore >

< Game Timelines >

< Cyber Space Origins >

< The Swap AU >

< Fluff Sections >

Mainline Chapters

Chapter One

“Vlad! Sasha! Dinner!” The twins mother screeched from the kitchen, holding plates of food. The two kids – both Vladimir and Sasha – rushed down the stairs into the kitchen, grabbing each a plate of food and then bolting to their rooms. “What’s gotten into you two? And why are you both eating in your rooms?”

“Sorry mom! A new episode of a show we like is on, and we don’t want to miss it.” Sasha yelled down to her mom, staring at the screen. The sound of utensils scratching glass plates echoed through the halls, going straight through their mother.

“Stop scraping your utensils on your plates! For goodness sake, have manners!” Their mother screeched once again. “And that show better not be that famous pop star, what’s his name again… He is a bad influence on you both!”

“...No he’s not!” Vlad yelled back, Sasha snickering with him as the two closed the door. Their mother just sighed and walked to the dining room table, eating her food. It felt like a pang of bitterness went through her as she ate in silence. She expected her ex-husband to come into the room and demand she do dishes or tidy. All she was was an object to him and she didn’t want her kids to end up like her. The feeling of guilt for not being a good parent washed over her as she started to tear up.

Their mother was so harsh on the kids because of the tension and hardships she had to go through when living in Russia. Her ex-husband divorced her because she wanted to leave the country. She wanted a safe place for her kids, she wanted them to have a childhood. Though their dad only cared about the money and tried to force them to get a job at a young age. He also wanted Vlad to go to war, which was something Vlad made clear he was against. His dad would call him gay for not wanting to join the army and go to war.

A few hours had gone by, and both the twins were on the shared computer in their room, digging through articles of traveling to other planets. The computer was old, beat up. One of the ones from the 90’s that still used dial up. On the walls of the room were MCR posters and several Elvis posters, along with posters of their favorite alien musician.

“What if we could go to another planet and become musicians to prove to the parents that we’re actually made of something?” Vlad suggested while Sasha scrolled through. “I mean, think of it. Mom is always bitching about us doing something with our lives. She says we’re adults anyways. Plus the job market is just… weird.”

“...You’re delulu if you think you can actually do that. Like, actually delulu. You really think this is possible?” Sasha kept looking at the article, taking it with a grain of salt. Pausing, she looked back at her brother.

“...It’s our last hope. Would you rather feel like crap on a daily basis because the job market won’t hire two Russian kids who moved to Germany to escape how horrible life was there? Would you rather have that or a new life on another planet where you can prove your parents wrong?” Vlad, now taking a turn to scroll down, finding the solution in an article on the same site. “There. That is our solution. A teleporter. And all we do is build it.”

The twins, hiding in their parents' shed, finally built the teleporter after months of hard work… sort of. Finally being able to teleport to space, the two had done it.

“Okay. Now, we pack our things. Should we leave a note?” Vlad, looking over to Sasha, who rolled her eyes. “Fine, fine. I’ll write the note then. Whatever.”

The two finished packing after a bit, then waited till night to leave. A printed note laid on Vlad’s bed, and the computer opened to the article about the teleporter. Soon, the screen flickered to the screensaver.

The twins were now on their way to a new planet, one that was called Metropolis in Cyber Space. The two began to create their own world, only digitally, and ever since teleporting themselves between the fabric of reality and fiction, their lives were brand new. A familiar voice echoed over the loudspeakers as the two entered an apartment they just bought out. As they opened the window to the scenery of electric floating cars and neon lights, the figure appeared on screen on a building in front of them. He had long purple hair and glasses that displayed his own heartbeat.

“Yo yo yo, what’s up Metropolis! It’s ya boi Jay! Back at it again! Keep in mind I have a show coming up soon, and no, I am not a bad influence! Keep your hopes up because chances are, I’m heading to your area!” Jay announced loudly, adjusting his headphones. “I got some new music I’ll be performing LIVE ONLY! And, I’ll be doing a LIVE COVER of ‘Everybody Loves Me’ by OneRepublic, too, because everyone loves me! Now I wanna hear you guys SCREEEEEAM! Because I will see! You! Guys! LIIIIIIVE!”

“He’s… even more energetic in person. Whoa.” Sasha smiled at the screen, watching Jay fumble a bit and turn off the feed. “I will admit… he’s… still my type.”

“Of course he is… What guy isn’t your taste?” Vlad looked at his sister, shaking his head. “You always think every guy you meet is hot. Oh! We should probably see with the higher ups about changing our names, any new guys here tend to change their names to non-traditional names. I want my name to be… Dex. It has a nice ring to it.”

“What, short for Dexter? Stupid fucking name, as usual.” Sasha rolled her eyes, as usual for her. Sasha was more of the sarcastic one than anything, and Vlad was the unserious one. Both were stupid and oblivious, which was likely common for teens. Maybe. “I want mine to be Ash, short for Ashley. It sounds pretty.”

“Sure, sure. Basic name, very lame.” Dex, rolling his eyes, glared at his sister. “Basic bitch.” Dex glared at his sister with a smug expression.

“You’re one to talk, idiotic bozo. Bet you can’t even spell the name of the planet. Oh wait, that’s right. You dropped out in 11th grade because of Miss Roads.” Ash glared at her brother in anger and disappointment. It was true he dropped out, but because Miss Roads was a total nutcase and never respected her students. That and she constantly took away their things.

“Not my fault she took my laptop away. It was all because she assumed I was supposed to be working when I was finished and gave myself free time during the last five minutes of class.” Dex, crossing his arms over his chest, groaned. The two just sighed and began to get ready to pass out for the night. But little did the two know that a figure was slowly approaching them, a figure that meant just pure neutrality.

“...I found them.” A static voice echoed in an alleyway, looking at a human with a knife in his hand. The human had half dark green, half light green hair. “They’re… in an apartment downtown. If he finds them, they’re cooked, just like you.”

“...T-times have changed, Darrius.” The figure, voice glitching and distorting, clearly aggressive and unpredictable. “Jay d-did this to me a while ago… and yet I’m still glitching. Y-you’ve been h-here longer than I, and look at what Jay did to you… You’re not human anymore, you’re…. You’re an a-alien like him. And y-you… have the audacity to forgive him? Just because he said that ‘times have changed’? H-have they REALLY changed?” The figure, pushing Darrius slightly while glitching. “L-look at me… I’m a failure, an error! And that’s all I’ll ever be!”

“...Rodney. Look, man… I’m sorry. I wish there was more I could do… But, we have a bigger problem at hand.” Darrius, standing up, looking at Rodney. “There’s a shapeshifter on the loose… he’s back. And he wants the new guys.”

“...What do you mean he’s back?...”

Dex and Ash, just two days later, had changed their names and began their journey as an upcoming duo brother-sister band. The two roamed the streets, trying to make some electro swing. In the surrounding area, the streets were filled with bubbles, bright lights, and large apartment buildings. There were office spaces and other work places, which seemed super boring to the twins. During the day, Cyber Space turned into a Y2k, frutiger aero, frutiger metro and a very bright place for all people. However, once night fell, it turned into a glowing, vaporwave, cyberpunk liminal space. The daytime was perfectly fit for someone like Jay, who perfectly fit frutiger metro.

The twins knew Jay had been through much, given his past and how horrible his parents had treated him. His parents wanted him to be this prince, given his parents were king and queen of another planet. He didn’t want that, so he traveled to Cyber Space to become an underground artist. He craved attention, not royalty. Being a jumpstyle musician was his taste, it was what he wanted. Ever since he blew up with fame, he adopted this self-centered personality, but knew his limits. People loved this about him.

“...Needs more swing.” A voice echoed from the alleys. Darrius, making himself known, looks at the others. “Hey. You’re new, right?”

“...Yeah, we are. We… wanna be like Jay.” Dex, looking at Darrius as Ash looks around, thinking of how to make their beat more swing. “But… we aren’t sure how well we’ll do.”

“You’ll both do good, trust me. Just… let us know if a shadowy wolf shows up. He’s a shapeshifter who will steal your soul.” Darrius, now walking away, began to hum a song. The twins started to walk down the glowing road. Every step made an echo-y synth noise.

In an apartment nearby, a bloody knife lays on the ground outside a bathtub filled with bloody water. Rodney’s arm lays outside the tub, his breaths shallow. A note laid on the counter.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I can’t do anything to save them. I don’t want them ending up like Darrius and Jay, I can’t let them. But why should I keep living in this torment? The pain is unlike any other pain I’ve gone through, this voice… the voices in my head… I just want it to end, just like that fuckface wanted me to. That freakazoid pedophile... She wanted me dead. She kept denying me being trans. Everyone kept denying me being trans. They avoided using my correct pronouns or name, or just… never gendered me correctly in general… All I wanted was to feel like I matter. But clearly I matter so little that my identity should be ignored.”

The note floated to the ground as the bathroom light overhead flickered in the 3am morning air. The sound of subway cars and floating cars in the near distance, the humming of the light above, the smell of fresh blood. Rodney’s body disappeared, being replaced with a half-n-half alien of sorts. One half light green, the other half pale pastel green.

“I… I’m actually in the right body… I’m the right gender… I… I’m still me, but… Wait… What…?”

Dex and Ash, taking a morning stroll at 7am, went to a nearby coffee shop with Darrius. Darrius was oddly silent, but they assumed it was normal for him, so they left him be. Dex, laughing at Ash trying to mimic some fashionista in the news, just seemed to be himself.

“Hey Darrius… you’ve been awfully silent. What’s up with that…?” Ash looked at Darrius as she spoke. Dex, nodding in agreement, also looked over. “You… okay?” Darrius suddenly signaled for the two to follow him, so they did. Signaling them to go ahead and walk ahead a bit, the twins did just that. Another Darrius appeared in front of them, mouth gaping open. The twins looked at each other.

“Wait, but… Darrius is….” Dex, pointing behind them, Darrius pointed behind them. A huge shadowy hellhound towered behind them. “...We’re screwed…”

“Oh come on! Rodney! We need you!” Darrius screamed, terrified but unaware that his friend was half dead, sort of. The twins looked around, trying to find out if Jay would come save them. “And Jay will not save you two! Don’t get any ideas!”

“OH WHO SAID I WON’T HELP EXACTLY?” Jay’s loud voice echoed through the nearby area behind the three, holding an MP3 player and his headphones. “And who said jumping is a crime?”

“...Literally no one. Also, meet your fans. These idiots are nerds for you.” Darrius pointed to the twins as they introduced themselves. “Okay no time anymore, let’s get to fighting! Use your music!”

The four, using their music, but unable to find a proper niche or something that works. Darrius was on micropop, Jay was on jumpstyle and frutiger metro, and the twins were on electro swing. Jay and Darrius seemed to deal extra damage, given their souls were unable to be found after their deaths and when they became aliens.

“Where is Rodney?...” Darrius, seeming worried, looked to his friend’s apartment. The lights were off. “...Can y’all manage for a moment? I’m going to go find him.”

Fifteen minutes passed and the group came back together. The shapeshifter had been defeated, for now. Rodney was found and explained what happened to him. Ash and Dex both died in the fight and came back as aliens.

“…And we’ll do it again. And again. Just… don’t leave us again, Rodney.” Darrius spoke.

“Ehh… Rodney doesn’t quite fit me anymore. I kinda like the name… Error.” Rodney spoke up, smiling.

“…Now that I think of it, you should seriously start a YouTube channel, Error. Name it something cool, like…” Jay thought for a moment. “…Error Shark?”

“I like it. I’m in for that.”

“Jay… We know you’re there.” Jay’s mom spoke through the phone, in a dark yet aggressive tone. “You have yet to pay what you owe us. And that’s your soul.”

“...Mom. I’ve told you, I lost my soul to the shadows here. Cyber Space isn’t safe, and you can’t just be going around and taking people’s souls. It’s not right. I’ve defended this place from the shadows for the past ten years when you ditched me. I was 17 for God’s sake. What have you ever done to me? Plus, I thought I got a restraining order.” Jay, now fuming at his parents, looked around the dark alleyway as ambulance sirens wailed in the distance. The smell of a fire gone wrong was lingering in the air. “You always denied me being trans, and yet here I am, fully transitioned and you still call me a girl.”

“You will always be our daughter though.” Jay’s dad snarled into the phone. “You don’t deserve the fame you have. You never have. You’re just a useless waste of a slug.” These words just pissed off Jay even more. The feeling of guilt and pain, the sound of his parents' non-acceptance.

“...Suck my dick. Neither of you are real parents if you treat your own son like this. You’re going against the restraining order.” Jay, now hanging up, was fuming and pissed off. He knew that Error had gone through something similar and related a lot. It was why the two got along as well as they did. The two were like bread and butter, cyberpunk and vaporwave, burgers and fries.

As Jay walked down the streets, he began to listen to “poster boy” by 2hollis in his purple headphones. The sounds of people running from a fire scared Jay a bit, so he investigated what was happening. Floating in on a giant music note, stars following behind him in a wave of colors, the building fire seemed to have been caused by an oven that was left on, and was already being taken care of by the fire department. Helping to put some of the fire out, he floated away once done to realize his phone was being blown up by his parents. Taking off his shades for a moment, he glared at his phone. Blocking the number, Jay had no clue what he had just done.

Later that night, as Jay was performing on stage, two familiar faces appeared – both of his parents. However, the two had been consumed by the darkness of the shadows. On his left hand, his primary attack – a glowstick that could be turned into anything. His left hand was his secondary, which was a throwable microphone. His melee – stars that could be launched at enemies and would target the user. His parents, becoming much larger and way more threatening, screamed as Jay attacked, shielding himself.

“You are worthless! Trash! Useless! Nobody! Self-centered! You’re a bitch! And you aren’t even trans!” Both his parents screamed at Jay. This caused Jay to lash out and create a large ball of stars. Floating with the ball in his hands,

“...Now stay in the shadows where you’ll never be able to see the light. You’re both filthy liars and cheaters.” Jay, launching the attack at both of his parents, who vanished and were sent to the Realm Of The Shadows. Dusting himself off and standing on stage, he looked at the crowd, who were blown away. Error, nudging Jay’s side, smiled.

“You did good bro. Proud of you. I could have never done that.” Error spoke, a smile appearing on his face. Darrius, Dex and Ash appeared on stage. “We got more shadows to take out? Or nah?

“Nah. It’s sad though just how many horrible parents are here who ended up as shadows. Some don’t even realize they’re one of the shadows.” Darrius spoke as Dex and Ash seemed confused.

“Wait, so does this imply that our parents could become shadows?” Ash asked, worried that she and her brother’s mom could accidentally become one of the shadows. “We want her to be safe, we want to escape our dad…”

“Dad might try to come here and be turned into a shadow, that’s the last thing we want. All we want is for mom’s safety after all.” Dex mentioned as Ash almost cried. This was one of the first – and probably one of the only times – she would be seen crying. Her usual sarcastic, tough demeanor was cracking a bit.

“We can’t let your dad come here, it’ll be one less shadow in the hundreds of shadows that already exist. We need to protect the place from the shadows and monsters that lurk. We need to use our music.” Jay spoke, given he was the one who had been there the longest. “We don’t know what we’re up against. They could go down there just to get stronger.”

“How about we just… figure something out? Maybe recruit artists or something to help? That way we have more variety and more power. And, the more alien artists we have from Cyber Space, the stronger we are.” Error, looking at the others after speaking, swung his baseball bat over his shoulder. The others stared at him, speechless. “...What? Did I say something?”

“Yeah, actually. That’s not a bad idea. Let’s do it.” Jay smiled as he spoke, drinking from a can of soda labeled “FRUTIGER JUICE”. “Let’s kick some shadow ass.”

Chapter Two

(This chapter takes place after section 11, just a few weeks after in the middle of October of 2025. The mainline story takes place in 2023. Saying this so there is no confusion.)

“Alright, Error, get ready for it… I ain’t goin’ easy on your ass…” Venom spoke, holding a ping pong paddle in his hand with a ping pong ball in the other. Error, on the other end, getting into position while holding his paddle. Tossing the ball over gently, Error missed and sighed as the ball dropped to the floor. “Too easy…”

“Hey! I just got out of surgery, shut up…” Error, clearly frustrated, picked up the ball and got himself ready as he tossed the ball over to Venom with his paddle. Recently there was an incident where Error had stabbed himself in the chest and attempted to drown himself because of a PTSD flashback. This flashback was triggered by someone online who refused to understand him and overstepped countless boundaries. This set off Error, which unfortunately caused him to remember parts of his trauma where his mental health went completely ignored, despite being in and out of psych wards. That and he became a complete shut-in because he feared his identity would be further held from him by his parents, so he refused to do or say anything. All he did was harm himself, which is what he ends up doing in most bad situations because it’s the only escape he knows.

The two continued to play a few rounds, Venom making sure he stays as careful as possible with every move. Reed even came in to help Error due to him not being able to play very well, and just so they could check in on their partners. The sound of the ball hitting the paddles, the sound of the TV of the others playing Mario Kart Wii, the sound of chewing, the smell of popcorn… all of it filled the recreational room of the 48th floor of their suite. One thing was for sure about the suite - Darrius was slowly overcoming his fear of elevators. Reed however loved the elevator and still tormented Darrius with it.

Below the suite, chaos was unveiling and showing itself. Cracks appeared down below on the sidewalks, red glows flowing out like lava but acted like a shadow. Little did everyone know, they were under attack, and it would slowly eat them up.

Hours passed and the city was under attack. The main nine decided to try and take things out or at least try to control it at the minimum. Error just sat at the side, a can of Monster mixed with acid in his hand as he drank some. He was clearly tripping a bit but not as much, given he barely even took a sip and knew his limits due to his mental health. Breathing heavily, he tried to stand, already a bit worked up from the treacherous amount of walking he had to do just to get to the rest of the gang. Jay was the first to notice Error.

“Guys, keep fighting this, I gotta check in on Error!” Jay announced as he took his floating star down to where Error was, hopping off as it poofed. Wrapping his arms around Error in a tight hug, he kissed Error’s cheek. “Hey… cariño… You okay? You look tired, baby…”

“Mm… What does the Shadow Overlord even want…? Why does he keep coming for us…? And why is it specifically big name musicians like us…? What gives…?” Error, pulling out his knife to fight as Jay summons his floating star as the two lovers hopped onto it.

“There’s… something you need to know. The shadows want us lovers specifically. You, me, Darrius, Null, Venom and Reed. All because we’re all half-shadows. And they plan to terminate anyone who tries to help them or who sides with them. He wants control, he wants our full souls so he can feed them and regain the power he once had.” Jay looked towards the others as they continued to fight, all of them together using their music together to blend it into one genre. Darrius finally spoke up, trying to distract the shadows lunging at them.

“The Shadow Overlord once ruled this land, his music was at the top charts constantly. He dominated the area. That all changed when he was dethroned by Jay. He lost his mind, almost going Psycho. Until… he did. He became the Shadow Overlord. He was so overcome with greed that I had to do something to stop the Shadow Overlord from controlling everyone, so I created Music United, my record label. I was his next target, so I needed more people to help me. Hence… that’s why he’s after you guys too.” Darrius looked at all the incoming shadows, never realizing how many people faced the darkness or ended up getting controlled.

“Is there anything we can do from here?” Ash spoke up from below, using her glowsticks to turn them into a katana and slice at some of the shadows. Every shadow hit faded into dust and screamed in agony. People below on the streets ran away in fear as some indie artists decided to try and help out. All because the city meant so much to them.

“One of us needs to face him. Error can’t, he’s–” Jay was suddenly cut off by Error’s hand being raised, showing that he objects.

“No. I’m going. Like I said before. I would do anything to keep you guys safe. Even if I die in the process, he can’t take my life. I don’t care how beat up I am. I will fight until the problem is gone.” Error, who now hugged Jay tightly, leaving a kiss on his cheek as Jay swiftly made a quick move to make out with his lover for a moment. “Mmm…”

“Guys. It’s now or never. Error, do your thing and get in there. We’ll focus on out here, and if shit hits the fan, we’ll retreat to the safehouse. The liminal space. You know what one I’m on about.” Darrius spoke up as he suddenly walked over to kiss Error, who was now being bombarded by his partners for a kiss and hug.

“Mm… Love y’all.” Error spoke as the others said it in return. “Oh! Darrius, mind handing me my ukulele? I’ma… probably need that.”

“Oh I think I know your plan. Here.” Darrius, his voice calm as he handed Error his ukulele. “Just… please be careful, cariño. And… call us if anything happens.” Error nods after Darrius finishes speaking, and suddenly Error was teleporting himself to the Shadow Overlord.

In front of Error, just a few blocks away, was the Shadow Overlord, clearly showing signs of weakness. Throwing a knife at his massive shadow-y flame form, Error stared at the massive shadow.

“You came… all the way over here just to fight me? You are a fool. You are a coward. Why didn’t you listen to the voices? They know you better than those… liars ever will.” The Shadow Overlord, who was usually easy to convince someone, stared at Error, who didn’t back down at all. “...You… You’re supposed to be… afraid… having anxiety… I don’t get it… What is wrong with you?”

“Maybe I don’t have to listen to those voices. Those negative parts. We all have them after all. It’s how you control them and go about them that matters. You used your power to control people into doing wrong, into joining you. All because one thing didn’t go your way. You are the embodiment of negativity. You are a monster and you refuse to even see what you’ve become.” Error, who now held up his ukulele, strummed for a moment.

“You can’t… You can’t do this… I… I need your soul!” The Shadow Overlord, starting to get angry, suddenly screams, launching several attacks in Error’s direction, to which Error just teleports away and plays his ukulele while dodging and singing a song he wrote for his partners, including a few references to songs by asteria and Odetari. In the back, the others began to join in and sing with Error, making their own parts as they fought by Error’s side.

Error’s shadow effects went from being purely neutral to almost fully a good over neutral, a rainbow effect. A good person at heart with good intent, but with trauma that fails to be understood. Small angel wings hovered over his back in pure white with golden outlines, but could be easily toggled off (if Error ever wanted them off).

“...What? No, impossible… You can’t dethrone me…” The Shadow Overlord, now afraid of Error, tried to escape. Until Error threw his knife at him and The Shadow Overlord poofed, turning into a jellyfish ghost with a translucent light purple inside and a dark purple but translucent outline.

“...What the… Is this really his true form? Why is he… derpy?” Ash spoke as she looked at this… thing. “Is this really what he became when he faced the dark side? He… doesn’t look like he’ll promise any cookies.”

“He looks like he’ll eat my browser cookies though.” Darrius laughed a bit as he spoke, looking at The Shadow Overlord.

“I’m scawy! Vewy scawy! Be vewy afwaid of da almighty Psychooooo! Ooooo! (Translation: I’m scary! Very scary! Be very afraid of the almighty Psychooooo! Ooooo!)” He spoke as he tried to do something, literally anything.

“Okay welp, this is lame. I think we’re gonna go play video games now and leave you to figure that out.” Error, turning around as he walked away slowly, the others following. Some of the others were pushing the shadows back to the Shadow Realm so that there could be some form of peace. Toggling his wings off, he looked at some of the holographic signs that displayed the top artists. He and Jay were both tied at first, just how he wanted it.

Chapter Three

“Are… you sure we can handle another sibling?” A quiet voice echoed, a young girl spoke from her mother’s side as her dad was beside her mom. Her brother was also there, and her sibling was also there, however they were in the background drawing. The family was plotting to adopt someone. A certain someone who had no family in this universe. This family had been through a lot, being pushed into Cyber Space after a huge financial struggle that caused them issues in the long run. In Cyber Space, they were given a chance - free housing until they could be financially stable enough, an actual space to stay, food, water… They were safe in Cyber Space.

“I’m sure you can. Trust me.” Mary, the mother, spoke as she hugged her daughter, Scar, tightly. Scar sat down beside her sibling, Quinn, and started to do her homework. Footsteps down a hallway could be heard, the footsteps of a lonesome 19-year-old boy. The one and only Error… also known as me. The worker lady beside me instructed the parents to walk with us to a room.

“He’s… been known to have outbursts. Anger outbursts… and is suicidal. He’s still human, unlike you guys. None of us could contain him but this Jay boy. Jay is the only thing at the moment who seems to calm him. We’re unsure if a family could tame him at all, or if he suits your taste. He isn’t fond of people, either. Not sure what happened with him, but he won’t open up to anyone but Jay. He’s also, uh… queer. Transgender and pansexual. Not sure if you can uh… take him.” The lady spoke, passing Mary and ben a file of my records that documented my violent outbursts and suicidal moments in grave detail. While this was happening, I sat in the corner of the room in a chair. “He’s… been diagnosed with C-PTSD and likely has bipolar disorder stacked onto an autism diagnosis. Autism and C-PTSD is confirmed.”

“...He may not be perfect in your eyes, but he’s perfect in ours and I’m certain we can take him. God says to love all, and welcome them with open arms. So that’s what we’ll do.” Mary spoke up as her husband nodded, agreeing. “We will welcome him regardless of his religion, sexuality, gender or background.”

Looking at them softly, face partially covered by my arms being propped up by my legs that were on the chair. Mary looked back at me and then signaled me to move a bit closer. Hesitating, I moved my chair up to her as she held my hand. Her voice was quiet, reassuring even, gentle yet calm.

“Hey… it’s okay buddy… We’re here for you…” Her words were caring as she rubbed my hand with her thumb. She made me feel safe, comforted, loved. Right there in that office, I signed the adoption papers, consenting to being adopted. Spending a few nights with them felt comforting, I finally had a place to stay after being homeless for a while. At this point I was an indie musician, barely racking up anything. Quinn gave me pointers, trying to help me out as much as possible to support me.

Fast forward to today, October of 2025, and the others now know my story… And my partners. Which lands us into some funny moments. Reed and I were watching Animal Planet, but the others were screaming about wanting to watch Snapcube fandubs of Sonic again.

“You… wanna know why I’m as obsessed as I am with bugs…?” Reed spoke while looking at me and holding my hand, Venom on my other side as he held my other hand. “It’s… because my uncle and grandpa were obsessed with them… They were researching bugs and wanted to share that with me. Both… were killed in a lab accident, and I swore to research bugs as much as I could to honor them. It’s… not just a hobby of mine, it’s out of respect for the ones I lost doing the thing they’re passionate about.”

Softly snuggling into Reed, I softly nuzzled into them with a gentle kiss on the cheek, Venom cuddling into me. The others soon joined in cuddling Reed and I, the two of us both enjoying the attention.

Chapter Four

Sitting at my desk, I opened my files, then went into my music, then played “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” by Daft Punk. Working on a few things for the website for Cyber Space, Jay came behind me and patted my head, then rubbed my shoulders as I purred softly. The feeling of his claws on my back felt nice, and then I felt his chin on the top of my head.

“Are you coding again? Seriously? You’re literally addicted to coding…” Jay spoke, rolling his eyes as he looked at my screen. Kissing my cheek softly, then my neck a bit, I let out a soft moan. “Darrius wants you by the way. Says he wanted you to try something on for him.”

“...That’s the twentieth time this week… He’s…” I froze for a moment, trying to think of the words, but I was unable to. Sighing, I let it go and shook my head. “I can’t even word anything right now, I failed.”

“No, no you didn’t. If you did, you would have failed all of us. And… you didn’t. So, you’re not a failure. Just because you screw up a bit on words doesn’t make you a failure.” Jay then snuggled into me after speaking, kissing my neck a bit more. Smiling as he looked at the website, gently holding my free hand. “I mean, look at you… You get so worked up every time I touch you… Even just my voice makes you freak out. You know I’ll love you always.”

Standing in Darrius’s office, sitting on his desk, I sigh. His hands trailed around me, looking me over for the millionth time like a hungry shark feeding on its prey. Once he spoke, his voice was deep, low and almost near seductive.

“Your skin feels a bit cold… No worries, I have the room heat on… Anyway, you’re still just as perfect as the last time I had you try on things. And when you sat in my lap like a koala last night when I came home from work. And… every other time. It’s always so cute when you do that…” Darrius holds my chin with two fingers, then kisses my lips softly. Letting go, he hands me a white crop top, extremely short black shorts, fishnet gloves and fishnet stockings along with black platform boots. “Try this on. I wanna see how you look in it and what I can add to perfect it.”

As I slid everything on, Darrius stood back and watched. He once again circled around me to check how everything fit me and made sure it made me look good. Once finished, he tapped his chin and then grabbed a spike collar and slid it around my neck. He also slipped spike wristbands around both my wrists and handed me a black crop top jacket with a hoodie. Nodding with a smile, Darrius kissed my cheek, then my lips, and sat me on his office desk.

“Now you look perfect. Even though you always look perfect. You’re still my perfect shark, maybe too perfect.”

That same night, things fell apart fast. Everything went from being happy to intense, just in mere hours. Null and I were in our separate rooms on a Discord server for a friend’s server. This person I trusted very well, however his friend group I was slowly warming up to. I already felt comfortable around them and Null could tell that. However, all of that changed. Null and I started to flirt with each other. Nothing sexual at all, just playful flirting. A user started attacking the two of us as Null started to shake in his room, already feeling the intensity and that I was likely to snap at any moment. Everything happened so fast that neither of us could process anything, and right then and there– boom– I pulled my knife out and sliced a bit of my thigh, then went to vent about it in the server’s vent channel.

Just hours later, I was in the bathroom crying my eyes out as Null was freaking out over he and I both being harassed. What had happened was some kid decided to get salty over us showing the most basic form of affection towards each other. The person wanted to claim that I was “throwing a tantrum” when me self-harming wasn’t me throwing a tantrum. They mocked Null and argued with the two of us despite us coming to a conclusion, and all they wanted to do was make us stop showing affection. They treated our love like it was some novel by telling us to go to the romance novel section to flirt, which was the farthest from okay in any capacity.

Jay and the others got rightfully mad, asking for usernames to report them. Null, trying to write all the users down, I sat in the bathroom alone with my knife. I had already self-harmed once, and as I sat there I contemplated it again. The feeling of feeling like shit crept up on me, like I wasn’t being enough or that I wasn’t enough. Just when I thought I had made new friends, they turned on one of my husbands and I.

A burning feeling covered my thighs as I slashed away again, blood pouring down my thighs as I let out faint screams. My husbands rushed into the room with Reed, Venom and Dex, all showing worry. The lights were out and there was blood everywhere on the ground, the counter and even the mirror. The sound of hopelessness filled the room as I whined and whimpered. Reed was the first one over, speaking in a calm, hushed tone as to not scare me more than I already was.

“Hey, hey… baby, hey… I’m here… shhhh… It’s okay… I’m here now… Let me bandage you up… Venom, guys, help out a bit here, clean up the blood for me… I may need to take him to my medical ward. Watch the kids for us if I have to.” Reed spoke as they examined my wounds - deep gashes that were bleeding out a lot. “Shit– He cut through a few veins… I don’t want it clotting, I’m rushing him to the medical ward at the hospital and doing immediate surgery to repair this and stitch him up.”

Reed rushed me to the hospital, and got me straight to the emergency room, calling every staff member available for help. The feeling of dread set in, since I was also bleeding out more than anticipated. After the surgery hours later, I had to stay in the hospital for upwards of a week just so they could be sure I was safe and mentally okay. It had turned out that these few humans were being investigated, and those that even so participated in the argument who were on the side of the one user were given attempted murder charges.

The night I came home, I had bandages around my thighs. My sons and daughter, who hadn’t seen me in a week, all hugged me as I entered the door. They all cried, knowing that I was in pain and hurting. As I sat down on the sofa, everyone just curled around me, then put on The Incredibles… until we were rudely interrupted. An emergency alert was broadcast, stating how monsters had escaped and were now being controlled by the Shadow Overlord.

“...Really? And I just got back from being hospitalized…” As I spoke, the others sighed and glared at the TV.

“I’m gonna rip into some monster’s skulls… I swear…” Venom spoke, holding up a knife. Reed tried getting him to put it down as chaos erupted in the living room. Outside, shocks could be felt followed by a slight earthquake as monsters erupted from a huge volcano-like structure in the far distance.

“Ohh shit…” As everyone turned their heads to look out the window after I spoke, I just stood there, silent, the world around us going completely dark, as if it were a late night. “I think I can handle this…”

“Honey, you… you’re hurt, stay back…” Null spoke, scared that I would get hurt. His hands intertwined with mine as Dex wrapped himself around me, kissing me a bit. “If… it helps, we can fight for you…”

“...I wanna give it a try, even despite being injured. Reed? You have the robot form of yourself, right?” As I spoke, Reed nodded. “Good. Then you and I go in there. You gather research on these guys and I fight. The more research we have the more we can learn their weaknesses and how to beat them.”

“...I’m in.” Reed nodded as they switched to robot form.

Both myself and Reed began to make our way towards the volcano. Looking at it closely as a bunch of monsters stood in front of us. Neither of us had any idea how to get through, but it was worth the attempt. Getting through the entrance was easy… until we heard voices behind us. The others… had joined us…?

“WAIT FOR US!” Biro screamed out, the others holding their weapons steady. As they all began to attack, Reed and I both sighed.

“None of you have any idea what you’re doing or getting yourselves into! Look at these things!” As I spoke, I pointed to the monsters before us as they attacked us.

“Well neither do you!” Venom spoke, looking at Reed who just glared at him. “Sorry love… Okay, okay… do either of you have a game plan?”

“What if I seduced the guards guarding the door as you guys snuck in? I mean, they’re both dudes. I could easily, ya know…” Looking at the gang, they all sighed.

“Might be our only choice for now. Error, do it. We got this.” Jay spoke as I stood over at one of the guards. Pinning him to the wall as he shrunk below me, looking down at him as my eyes glowed. The other guard was too flustered to move, passing out with how hot I was being. The others began to sneak their way in as I winked at them faintly.

Minutes later I joined the others on the fourth floor of the volcano, panting and blushing from the completely normal encounter I just had. As we all began fighting and slashing away at the enemies, Reed began collecting information on them, one by one. As we slowly reached the top floor, a loud rumbling could be heard. None of us had any idea what was to come ahead of us, or who could have been up there.

Once at the top, we saw a guy in a cage, a maroon colored guy screaming to be saved. The Shadow Overlord held onto the cage as Jay, Null and myself looked out at the cage, the three of us going for him immediately. As I got him down and out, I held on to him. He immediately started rambling about himself and his life like it was the end of the world.

“Psycho, I don’t know why you think caging up innocent yet extremely sexy-looking civilians is okay. I mean… didn’t you learn from the first time we fought?” As I looked out at Psycho in his shadow form, I swear I could have heard an echo from around us. One of the guys blushed when I called him sexy. Setting the guy into Null’s hands carefully, Psycho launched an attack at me as I used one of my protect shields to protect the gang, leaping up at the Shadow Overlord.  Attack after attack did more and more damage the angrier I got, until… The final blow was dealt and the Shadow Overlord returned to his octo form. Screaming in pain and anger, he hissed at us.

“I will be back! I’m moving locations! And believe me, I will be stronger!” As he teleported away, the building we were on went from volcano to regular building, another volcano popping up in the distance. As I sighed, I checked in on the new guy. The rest of us invited him back to the suite, where he eventually got comfortable.

A few days went by, and I had been working on another project while listening to more Daft Punk, specifically “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” once again. The person we rescued sat behind me in my chair, letting me sit in his lap as I snuggled up with him, nuzzling into him. Reed stepped into the room, handing me a few notes.

“Got new details on the monsters we fought a few days ago. Also, you feelin’ any better?” Reed, being the doctor they are, checked the guy we rescued for injuries, moving around on his body.

“Yeah… I’m fine. Mr. Caring over here already checked me at least ten times in the past five minutes and kissed me a bunch too…” The guy blushed as I cuddled more into him, blushing a ton.

“Yeah, well… he does that.” Reed smiled as I got to work immediately, staying up extremely late and risking my own sleep… just to update the website for Cyber Space.

Chapter Five

“Okay, Chaos Polycule, listen up.” My voice echoed through our living room, the rest of the polycule on the sofa, watching the TV behind me. On the screen was a huge winter storm heading our way. “Within the next few hours, or, well… less than two days, we could be fucked. Right here, in Radar City, a huge catastrophic snowstorm was located. And unfortunately we’re the next targets. Reed, you’re weather smart, help keep us updated. Jay, Null, the three of us will go shopping for things we need in case of a power outage. Venom, Dex, Kai, and Darrius, keep the kids occupied and don’t let them out of your sight. Velvet is the oldest of them all but I’m sure that she can probably help keep her younger siblings intact. I’m still having major anxiety so… I’ll stock up on en-”

“You are not using energy drinks as your go-to anxiety relief.” Jay cut me off as I sighed at his comment. Grabbing my vape and using it for a moment, both Jay and Null place a kiss on my cheek at the same time. “...It was that one asshole again, wasn’t it? What’s her name…?”

“Jane? The purple dragon-wolf furry girl? The streamer who called him an ‘asshole’ and claimed I was Error’s ‘boy toy’ because she ruined her own poorly managed server and blamed him? The transphobic asshat who claimed he isn’t valid because he uses xenogenders to describe himself despite Jane being trans herself? Yeah. Her.” Null responded as he held my hands. Kai snuggled himself around me while nuzzling into me, wanting me to feel better. The others joined as I began purring like a newborn kitten.

“Yeah… Just… I hate that and the community she associates with, thinks she’s oh-so innocent when in reality she’s not… Okay, we’re… off-topic. Let’s just go get what we need and get back.” As I spoke, everyone went to do what was needed. When Jay, Null and I went shopping there was practically nothing on the shelves because people were stocking up. We kept looking around, getting water and other things.

“You think this is enough…?” As Jay spoke, he looked to the ground below at the water bottles, non-perishables and other important foods. Nodding, I cuddled his side, clinging to him. “Clingy as always… Okay, okay pup, we can cuddle… Come here…”

The two of us began cuddling on the sofa in our hoodies, and Jay wrapped a blanket around me. Melting into him, I yawned a bit as Null joined while purring, followed by the others into the huge cuddle pile. The snow outside began to fall, being rather hard. Minutes passed as we watched the TV, all cuddled together. The power flashed a few times, then went out. The kids all groaned as their gaming consoles went off.

“Hey, hey, back in my day we had a GameBoy! Battery-powered! You could be stuck with that!” Venom told the kids as Reed actually handed the kids National Geographic magazines. “...Really? Nerd stuff? You could at least give ‘em gaming consoles.”

“They’ll learn from these. They don’t really learn from games unless it’s the game’s intentions.” Reed then came back to the cuddle pile, nuzzling against me.

“...I want my GameBoy now…” As I spoke, Venom handed me my GameBoy. Oliver looked to his side, grabbing his Windows XP laptop.

“Shit, I just realized this runs on dial up, I won’t be able to access the site, let alone my store and who bought things…” Oliver groaned and closed the lid.

“Y-you wouldn’t have had it a-anyway, this storm sucks already…” Kai cuddled into all of us, nuzzling Null’s side and purring loudly.

After playing countless rounds of Uno, Sorry and Monopoly, the power suddenly went back on after over a day of being off. The kids silently screamed in joy (because both Null and I are sensitive to loud noises and yelling) and ran to their room, hopping back online. Null sighed as I cuddled him and kissed him a boatload.

Chapter Six

Tick…

Tock…

Tick…

Tock…

Tick…

The clock stopped ticking.

And it wouldn’t resume its ticking.

Not unless…

“Breaking news, outside of Clock City…” The news reporter said on TV as the entire polycule sat by the TV, myself included. All of us were enjoying watching a show when we were interrupted by the news, but we couldn’t hear the TV over Jay and Kai chugging Frutiger Juice, seeing who could chug faster and Venom and Darrius wrestling over who is the better man. Oliver and I were tossing a foam football over the huge chips and salsa mess when we heard the reporter continue. Everyone froze when she spoke. “...The clock in the central town has stopped ticking, which could permanently alter the time rifts between fiction and reality. If nothing is done, we will be left hopeless and frozen. Idols of Cyber Space, you have 24 hours.”

“...Are we deadass right now? Seriously? We were just hit with a snowstorm and now this?” Venom, clearly annoyed, pointed to the TV that was now paused. “I think one of us from every city should go to fight whatever is in there. Or, well, deal with it.”

“Look, we gotta do something. Either now or never.” Darrius spoke quietly, looking down at the TV, concerned. None of us knew what to do. “Each city has a specific level that you need to be to unlock it, or at least one person in your party who is over said level.”

“And if we gather different aliens from each four of the major cities of Cyber Space…” Oliver spoke, and suddenly froze. He glared at the rest of the polycule. “I… forgot to mention… Each of the four main cities - Metropolis City, Clock City, Radar City and Punk City, us being from Metropolis… - have different types of aliens. Metropolis has aesthetics and animal/elemental aliens, Clock City has robotic aliens, Radar City has 80’s and 90’s themed aliens and Punk City has cyberpunk and cybergrunge themed aliens.”

“...AND YOU’RE ONLY TELLING US NOW?” As Venom yelled, Oliver giggled and apologized. Reed was just in the back, taking notes as always. As everyone settled down, Venom popped the question. “So… which one of us is going to do this?”

“Error. He’s level 130. More than enough needed.” Oliver, pointing to me as I look down at his finger on my chest. Clinging to his side, I softly purr as the others nod in agreement. Grabbing my stuff, I step out the suite and brace myself for anything.

Heading to Punk City first, I meet up with a cybergrunge alien. She appeared friendly, so I introduced myself.

“Yo, sup. Name’s-” I was suddenly interrupted by her.

“Error? I know you. You’re the most popular alien. I’m aware. No need to give me a whole life story, don’t want it or need it. Name’s Lucy, but everyone just calls me L. She/her pronouns only, I will drop kick you if you misgender me. I take it you heard about Clock City?” She spoke, nudging my side a bit. On her Team Skull tank top was a pansexual pride pin and a trans female flag.

“Yeah. I was gonna gather up people from each city to help with whatever is in here.” As I spoke, the two of us walked through forests until reaching Radar City, where we saw two aliens - one robotic and one dressed in a Back to The Future shirt and a pair of jeans with a pair of Converse. “...Who are they?”

“Are you two…” The one with the Back to The Future shirt spoke. As Lucy nodded, he nodded in return. Or she. Their voice was androgynous so we had no idea. “Name’s Andrew. Any pronouns are fine. I’m intersex and nonbinary. Unimportant though. One of the citizens managed to escape before everything paused in Clock City and everything is slowly pausing, starting with here. Metropolis is next since it’s the neighboring city. This is Cog, he knows the railways like no one else. He came directly from Clock City.”

“Everything in the city went black and white just years before the clock started slowing down. No one believed the clock could stop. But… then it did.” As Cog spoke, he started to lead us to the railway underground. All of us began riding the railway on a bullet train that led straight into Clock City. When we got there, the first thing we saw was the clock being off and everything being frozen. There was strange music playing, it sounded just like “General Release” from Buckshot Roulette. As each of us walked through, dust kicked up in the air and the sun beamed down on us. Behind us, we heard footsteps. Sixteen, to be exact. Eight pairs of feet.

“...You have gotta be kidding me, you guys followed?” As I turned around, the polycule was behind us. Sighing, I facepalmed myself as Jay hugged me, then cuddled into me, planting kisses on my face.

“Baby I can’t leave you behind, you know me… I wanna protect you…” As Jay spoke, I sighed and held his hand. Null and Cog immediately began hitting it off and started talking about trains.

“...You? Like the Pacific Big Boy 4-8-8-4 too? The steam locomotive?” As Cog spoke, Null nodded and the two continued yapping about trains. The more we walked onward, the more it felt like we were trapped. Like we were being watched. Cog led us up the clock tower, and once we were at the top, the Shadow Overlord stood there, taking the form of a massive scary face.

“...Wowo, who could have predicted this? Definitely not me and definitely not the readers either.” After I spoke, Cog threw a metal pipe at the Shadow Overlord, who flinched a bit then growled.

“GO FOR THE BELL AT THE TOP!” Lucy screamed as each of us dodged attack after attack being thrown at us. Lucy threw one of her pink and green boomerangs at the bell, making it echo loudly with a high pitched echo. The glass clock broke behind the Shadow Overlord from the noise and the glass fell slowly to the ground below. As we inched closer, the Shadow Overlord was slowly being pushed out the area that broke. That was, until he started to push forward. “Shit… He’s onto us, he got smarter…”

“So he learns from our moves…” Andrew looked to Lucy as he held a vinyl record he used as a weapon. “We might be finished if someone doesn’t do something…”

“Someone do something! Come on!” Andrew, Lucy and Cog all look at each other, scared of what their next moves could be or possibly do. No one made a move, it was as if we too were frozen in time. What felt like minutes passed when really it was just a minute of us looking at each other, wondering what to do. No one had an idea, not any of us.

Jumping to the Shadow Overlord, biting one of his wriggling tentacles, he yelped and fell back out of the clock. I knew I was risking my life for these new friends and my partners, but it was a risk I wanted to take. A risk I was willing to make. I fell slowly and thought about myself and my inability to change, the one thing I needed to do but couldn’t ever do. The one thing I was working years to do but couldn’t ever figure out why I couldn’t ever change who I was. I felt that if I changed who I was, I was changing and rewriting the personality I worked so hard to get while traumatized. The personality I absolutely loved. I wanted change but feared what it would do to me as a person.

But it didn’t have to be that way. I could always change and still be who I am. It wouldn’t change or affect my personality or who I am. Change is hard and sometimes takes years, decades, even whole lifetimes. I was willing to make the change for the greater good. Grabbing my knife and slashing away at the Shadow Overlord, I sent him back to the shadow realm where he belonged. Teleporting back up with a few scratches on my face, I smiled at the others as I was buried in cuddles by my partners.

Tick tock…

Tick tock…

Tick tock…

Tick tock…

The clock ticked once again.

The 48th floor of the Pink Midnight Motel and Suites was packed now. With not just the polycule but our new friends and their families all in the different rooms. All of us in one area. Well, except Lucy. She went to join the relationship with Alexa and Ash. However, Lucy’s family was still on the floor with us regardless.

Chapter Seven

“Error… I need you in my office, immediately. Along with all the other guardians from the three other cities. This is extremely important.” Burney spoke into his old-school phone. As I moved from the recording booth to the fifth floor of the record label’s office building, Burney sat at his desk with the other guardians all there.

“Why… are we all here?” One of the guardians asked, from Radar City. This was Tina, and she had colors of neon pink, electric blue and black coated all over her. Her body was see-through and dimly lit like she was glowing. “Okay, just… seriously, you’re wasting our time. There’s a bandit outbreak in Radar City and I need to get onto it.”

“I would like to step down as owner of Cyber Space. I will still be the creator, yes, but I need someone to take my place and fix things up. Whoever gets it can see all files, records, new souls entering and becoming shadows, logs of everything ever… I’m doing this because I am not mentally well. The Shadow Overlord is tormenting me still, along with the visions… the visions are getting much, much worse. Because of this, I must step down to focus on my health to better myself.” As Burney spoke, the others shook their heads and sighed.

“I don’t have time for this, I couldn’t do something like that at all.” Arson, guardian of Clock City, spoke up, their voice echoing a bit as it ticks and burns with the sounds of clocks and flames echoing in it.

“I’m not as powerful as everyone else. I’m gonna politely decline.” Grimsley, the guardian of Punk City, spoke up as his deep and brooding voice echoed through the office in a ghostly way.

“I’m usually busy dealing with bandits and outlaws. I can’t, sorry. Can I leave now?” Tina spoke, her singular milky white eye glowing while staring into Burney’s soul.

“I know you three are busy. I was going to say the person I wanted was Error.” As Burney spoke, the three looked at me as I looked around. “He knows more about computers and computer data than anyone in this room. He also knows world building more than I do. So, I want him to take my place.”

“WHAT? I’m sorry, huh? I couldn’t possibly, I’m too busy working on music and YouTube, and my husbands-” I was cut off by Burney, who covered my mouth.

“Error. Calm down for a second, I don’t want you spiraling. You’re the only one I know who can do something like this. I trust you more than anything with this sort of thing. Label yourself as the new creator, the king, the overseer, I don’t mind. But just know, I want you to carry my legacy if I, for whatever reason, have something happen to me because of my health. Whatever you do, please. Do NOT let the Shadow Overlord know of the Data Center.” As he finished speaking, Burney pulled his hand away. The other guardians nodded and then began to walk out of the room, heading back to their respective cities through teleportation. “Error… I’m afraid to tell you that the Shadow Overlord infected my file with a virus. I unfortunately don’t have much longer. You… have had every power this universe can allow for a long while now. I never told you because I didn’t want you overthinking it. You, you are the one that needs to protect Cyber Space. Please… do it for me. For them. For everyone.”

Looking down upon the city, new faces appeared, laughing and smiling as they walked upon the streets. Struggling artists begging for money, artists making music in local coffee shops, people just starting their nights, artists celebrating new milestones… All of it was beautiful, something worth protecting. Something I wanted to protect, something I needed to protect. Not just for my sake, but for my husbands’ sake as well. All nine of them. And for my children as well. I wanted them, too, to see their future and live in a world where they can feel something instead of nothing, where they can feel alive and not dead.

“Error… The virus… Please… Let me take you to the Data Center. You need to see it before something happens to me.” Burney grabbed my hand and teleported me to the Data Center. There, I saw everything he described. It was like I was given administrator access to a whole computer, because that’s basically what this was. As I walked around, he showed me how things worked and what he wanted to work on. Things he probably would never be able to upload to the universe. Not only did I know he was seeing things but I knew a virus was actively killing him. “Now… Error… Before, uh… Before I go to… officially go away, there’s… something I need to give you.”

In front of me, a popup menu appeared that said “Accept Administrator capabilities?” Hesitating, I looked to Burney, who nodded. Looking back at the popup, I hit “Yes” and suddenly… I could see not just the data but all of the files, lines of codes, everything. Burney sat down on the ground, knowing he wouldn’t last much longer. Sitting aside of him, I saw his head lean back against the wall.

“So… why exactly does the Shadow Overlord hate people? Why is he so… manipulative?” Looking at Burney, I hoped to get an answer before the virus would take him over completely. I knew he didn’t have much longer, so I needed it now.

“...He wants control, something he never had. His family grew up wealthy, and while his smug yet cruel personality shined through, his parents were controlling of him and who he was. He never got a chance to really ever see what it was like to not be under strict control. Everything he did was watched and under constant surveillance, even who he dated. If his parents didn’t pick someone for him, they weren’t a good fit for him. To him, it felt like arranged marriage, which was probably the only thing he was against that you’re morally supposed to be against. So, when he moved out, he finally had freedom. He wasn’t being controlled at all, but he was a nobody. He wanted to be somebody. But… because of how his parents raised him… he unfortunately went down an alt-right pipeline and became extremely hateful…” He hesitated and I could visibly see a countdown now. Burney had less than a minute left to be here, and I would be the last thing he would end up seeing. “Kiddo… I know you can see it too… I wanna tell ya somethin’... You’re immune to the viruses the Shadow Overlord can put into you. You’re the only one who’s file is different from everyone else’s, because your file somehow can go in and out of universes. You have what he wants… Protect it from him, please… protect your power… and most of all… protect the people. Protect your husbands. Because only administrators have the ability to get viruses here. You’re the only one who can’t… And I want you to protect the power you have… Please… Error… I love you platonically.”

Crying as tears rolled down my face, I pulled him close to me as I cried into his shoulder, feeling his body flicker in and out, then suddenly disappear. His file disappeared from the file registry as I stared into the void. It felt like eternity there. Looking above, I saw my file in the administrators. I was the highest ranking person right now apart from the Shadow Overlord, who had Administrator permissions as well. However, both of us were far away from each other, still both sharing the same tag.

Emptying out Burney’s office, all of us left it completely empty apart from a memorial for Burney. Walking out behind the rest of the polycule, I shut the door calmly before me and nod. The fifth floor became off-limits unless you wanted to go to the roof or wanted to check on the memorial. Everything else was being worked on getting moved to lower levels so that Burney could have a place of resting. It felt peaceful, but everyone saw me now as a higher up. The praise, the constant bowing from people felt nice. While the fame and attention was amazing and being “worshipped” (if you can call it that) felt awesome, I still liked returning to a normal life everyday with my loving husbands. Every now and then, I still felt Burney’s presence in some way. People still remember him and constantly think of him. And honestly? I think it’s great.

All we needed to do now was defeat the Shadow Overlord.

Chapter Eight

“How can I make Cyber Space better…” Thinking aloud usually helped me. As I walked around the Data Center, I looked through old UI ideas Burney had either trashed or had planned that didn’t make the final cut. Some were clearly inspired by Windows XP, some by various Linux distros. There was even one with a frutiger aero vibe. Tossing the ideas I didn’t like, I went with a sleek, frutiger aero vibe mixed with Linux and Windows XP. I picked pieces I liked from each and added them to a UI, which would be displayed on holographic displays on our left and right sides of our vision. These would show off our heartrate, stamina, hunger, thirst, and our current mood. This info could be easily accessed by any medical professional, so they would know when and if we were lying about our health.

I wanted the user to pick a background and color they like for it, along with a language, font and different behaviors. I also wanted the user to have little widgets they can use at any time that allow them to see things like the time, their location, the weather, and notes or reminders. I also added a “companion” mode so that the person can have a little tamagochi in case they get lonely. They can pick whatever pet they want, from snakes to pandas to bugs. I have a little shark.

As I finished what I had, I began to upload it as I exited the Data Center. Stepping out and heading back to the suite, I walk slowly. My thoughts start flooding me over as I realize… if the Shadow Overlord is an administrator too, doesn’t that also mean that he too can be infected by a virus? Turning back to the Data Center, I rush to find the files and sort through them all. There were too many, it felt as if I would have been in the system forever. Ages maybe. Heading towards the back, I find a file labeled “unknown” in all lowercase. Looking into it, I found a virus labeled “Do Not Open”. This virus can kill the biggest administrators. Did Burney purposely infect himself just to hand over the entirety of Cyber Space over to me? He never left his office, so how could he have even encountered the Shadow Overlord again? The only time he ever left was to head to the Data Center, which could only be accessed by him, and now only me.

A few hours had passed and I decided on taking Jay, Null and Venom with me. The four of us were heading into the HQ of the Shadow Overlord in the Shadow Realm. Jay used his abilities to cause a distraction outside while I went in to try and hack the system from within, gaining access to security while Null would give Venom the signal for when to infect the Shadow Overlord using stealth. As I hacked in, I sent the keyword to Null: “biscuits”. Null then gave Venom the signal as Jay distracted the nearby enemies outside. Venom, sneaking past all the enemies inside, entered the Shadow Overlord’s bedroom where he was sleeping, slipping the USB into his shadow-like body as it slowly began to infect him as he slept.

As we watched the Shadow Overlord slowly be taken down by the virus, the four of us left the premises with wide grins on our faces. Finally, it was over. His reign of terror was over. He was no more.

“Son… I know they’re gonna try and kill me at some point… so I want you to try and take them down and take over for me. You won’t have administrator permissions, but you will have my spot as Overlord. So I want you to take over for me… Julius.” The Shadow Overlord spoke to his son weeks before his death. Julius Juicy, the creator of the Frutiger Juice… is the son of the Shadow Overlord. The one now in charge of the Shadow Realm.

Chapter 9

“Why isn’t this stupid thing working?” Jay, trying to fix a small earpiece used for communications with the polycule, adjusted the earpiece on his ear carefully. All he heard was static coming from it. And slight voices, but they weren’t any of the polycule’s voices. It sounded like an angry war veteran screaming at something, but in a way he sounded… upset. Worried even. “I keep hearing a voice that isn’t any of you guys’ voices…”

“That’s… odd. You sure you aren’t hearing things like Error? Because… you know he hears things when he’s stressed.” Oliver pipes up, knowing he was the one that made the earpieces in the first place. “I mean, I designed these to be perfect and tested them at least twenty times before, so…”

“No, no… It’s just… This voice is different, something clear but unclear… I can hear the voice but I can’t make out what it’s saying. I know it’s a guy, and I sense he’s… having something happen to him. I’m not sure, but he sounds like he’s in danger. I… I wanna help him, I… I have to, it sounds all too much like…” Jay pauses. He knew exactly who it sounded like. He recognized the panic and the agony in the tone of the voice. While yes, this was for sure PTSD, it was eerily similar to…

“...Error?” Oliver spoke, placing a hand on Jay’s shoulder. Jay nodded, knowing I suffer from C-PTSD. While different from PTSD, it’s still similar in a sense to it being a complete trauma response to something triggering. “...Yeah. Figured as much… Go find him, then, whoever this mystery man is.”

Jay, walking through the streets, kept trying to find the source of where the voices were coming from. Sometimes they lasted moments. Sometimes seconds, sometimes minutes. Until… He reached an abandoned barn. This barn had several radio broadcasting systems in it, and there was an obvious screaming noise coming from inside. Jay, being scared yet calm, knew what to do. Entering quietly, Jay steps slightly closer yet quietly to see a man who looked to be about his own age. Refusing to touch him without permission, Jay just gets slightly close enough to help. In front of the soldier and scattered around him was an army uniform from Vietnam, several photos with burn markings and scratches and a knife. The knife was covered in blood, likely the blood of its own soldier.

“Hey… It’s okay… I’m not gonna hurt you, you’re safe now…” Jay’s voice was quiet yet calm, gentle yet reassuring, the tone he used when I had a PTSD episode.  “The fear you’re feeling is only a part of the memory… Can you tell me some things you see…?” The man’s voice echoes as he pants, trying to breathe calmly as he looks up at Jay.

“Mm… I… I see you… T-the dirty wooden floor… The broken lights above… T-the shattered glass… M-my hands… The gates f-for the animals to stay in…” The soldier’s voice was shaky, but still stable. As the soldier spoke, Jay nodded and listened.

“Okay, that’s good… Good… Okay, can you tell me what you hear…?” After Jay spoke, the soldier nodded and slowly tried to sit up. Gesturing for help, he clenched his bloodied wrists as Jay sat him upright and began to bandage him up.

“Mm… Your voice… The birds are chirping… There’s cars… I hear wind chimes…” As the soldier continued, Jay nodded along and then, once finished bandaging his wounds, sat aside of the soldier.

“Okay… Good, good… Could you… tell me what your name is…?” After Jay spoke, the soldier told him his name, which is Phong. Jay didn’t force Phong to speak at all, he just sat there with him, letting him absorb the moment if needed. But then, he spoke up about what happened.

“I… I served in the military… We had serious training… Our troops needed to do practice drills to make sure we were ready in case of a strike from other countries… There were landmines… None of us knew that there were, not even our sergeant knew… Unfortunately, I watched many of my friends get killed out there on the field. But… one of the landmines triggered a huge wave of other explosives on the field… I tried to flee, I really did… I tried getting the others to safety but ended up harming myself in the process… One of my legs, or well… My calf and foot of my left leg… It got ripped off… I… I don’t even wanna speak of the horrible things I saw out there… The aftermath… All I know is I found a way to get here safely and try to reach out for help… I was here for weeks now with barely any food or water…” Jay just sat there listening to him.

“That… sounds difficult… How… can I help you…?” Jay asked as he looked into Phong’s orange eyes.

“I… I want a place to stay… Please… I promise I’ll do something in return for you…-” Phong suddenly stopped and shook his head, sighing.

“Hey. You can stay with us. We’re expanding the suite anyway. We… have a lot of kids so it’d feel cruel of us to have a room as big as ours not be bigger.”

A few days went by, and Phong slowly got used to the chaos. If anything, it felt like he was part of the family. And, just yesterday… he became part of the polycule.