This is an additional chapter because I had a day off
Extra chap due to power stones will be the one after this!
Please enjoy!
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I woke up the next morning to an empty room and a note on the coffee table from all of the Avengers that they were glad to have come over and spent some time getting to know me. It was actually relieving in a way, to know that someone besides family cares enough to get to know you...
Shaking my head I quickly converted all of the left over food into blocks of carbon and built a small pyramid with them. The bottles, some of which were fancy, I filled with an exact replica of the alcohol inside of them; stashing them away in a drawer inside my desk until the next party.
Finally I went and cleaned myself up, preparing myself for the day.
And then my day started once more.
"Let's start on Athena, shall we?" I said to myself as I sat down at my desk, bringing up the closed tab I was working in before.
I was modelling the new programming language on my binary computer first, before I changed hardware. My concept was to used Human computers to model the design for the language, the Star Wars computers to run tests and see if the language is viable for an operating system and then creating my own computers based off of the AI tech I had access to that would permanently operate off the new language.
The end goal of my project was making Athena unhackable to most technologies and to also create that same security for the droids we were creating for the company. My project was a little unnecessary considering the fact that Human technology, as it currently stood, was thousands of years below Star Wars but aliens wouldn't have the same issues and a technopath would eventually break through the positronic lockouts of most droids.
Unfortunately I didn't get to complete my new language model before I was interrupted by Apollo.
"F- Boss! I finished designing all of those droids, now you just need to copy them." Apollo chirpily said as he arrived in a corona of animated sun-fire.
"Good job, send the completed designs to me ASAP... I'm going to help Loki in a few hours and will need every thing I can to offer us an advantage." I couldn't stop the cheerfulness leaking from my voice as I spoke. It had been a while since I had seen Loki and the other members of the chat, it would be good to see them.
"Uh, f- I mean Boss, I also created a design for an upgraded watch that allows us to travel with you portably, you know, if you wanted to make it..." He looked fairly embarrassed by the suggestion but I could tell it meant a lot for the AI to be able to hang out with me.
"Awesome idea Apollo! Now I can get your help with the missions." My words immediately made him brighten up in happiness. He really was like a golden retriever...
I held my hands out in a 'gimme' pose, the AI stumbling over himself to hand over the completed designs; including the watch. After being given the information I made the new and improved watch which was made with pure quartz and lined with platinum, having a central screen that doubled as a holo-projector and also included a personal shield that the Rakata had invented during their conquests.
At the same time I created a link, with the same process I used for the Stargates, to connect my watch to my desktop. Now my AI could talk to me whenever and I would always have a permanent internet connection. It didn't look too bad at all, in my humble opinion.
"Oh, how are your sisters Apollo?" I asked absently as I configured my watch to the correct time and added several applications that could be helpful; such as a compass.
"They're really cool! Hestia has taken over the planning for space expansion and has started operating several factories to create the parts for generic Stargates and control systems for them... She also asked for a proper DHD device." He paused for a moment as Tony sped by in his Iron Man suit towards lower Manhattan.
"Ah, Artemis has also taken over the political, technological and metaphysical monitoring efforts that I started... She's also started making other lesser AI to become her Hunters. Oh! She also began creating several websites across the internet for independent journalists. Her plan is to dominate a portion of the media so we can control narratives if we want to..."
I nervously chuckled at Artemis's ambitions, they seemed a little 'evil mastermind' to me...
"Hermes also woke up from his learning coma, as he calls it. He's apologetic that he didn't get to meet you, he says it was how you programmed him that made him 'sleepy' and grouchy." Apollo spurted out like a kid high on sugar and with ADHD.
"Heh, come here Hermes." I spoke aloud through the room and through my fancy new watch, feeling my youngest AI rush from whatever he was doing to come meet me.
Unlike my other AI, Hermes emerged from a green doorway that had purple bricks lining the floor, his head poking out first. He had chosen a form with ash-blonde hair with yellow ends, bright photo-chromic eyes that seemed to glow in a pale gold hue and a chiselled masculine form that included a sharp angular jawline, a lithe but infinitely fit form and washboard abs. He had dressed in a tight white t-shirt and form fitting exercise pants... It seemed he took the modern version of a PT instructor from the military and ran with it. The only 'godly' aspect to him besides his eyes was the laureled halo that hung above his head and seemed to flutter with an unseen wind constantly.
"Sup dad..." He stepped through the door and gave a short, awkward, wave of his hand.
His words, simple though they were, shocked me into utter silence. They considered me their father? I couldn't compute the level of confusion and unadulterated warmth that struck me at that moment.
A minute later I snap out of my little trance to see Apollo looking away from Hermes in frustration whilst Hermes looked utterly defeated, as if I'd just said he was a failure and cast him out of the house for being a waste or something...
"I-I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting that... Apollo and Discordia haven't called me 'dad' or 'father' before, so it took me by surprise..." Hermes perked up, his mood elevating whilst Apollo looked back towards his younger brother and gave a small upturn of his lips.
"It's all good dad! I just don't beat around the bush like they do... I tell you, Discordia sure has some weird ideas that she hasn't gotten around to sharing with you..." Hermes said conversationally with a small lilt to his speech that confirmed that he'd taken the Greek origins of his family and ran with it, incorporating a slight accent in his otherwise American way of speaking.
"That's fine, I'm glad you've taken to independent thought so well." He gave me a smile that could be used in a toothpaste commercial after my comment.
"So what did you want dad?" He queried.
"Oh, yeah, I just wanted to say that it wasn't my programming that made you 'sleepy'... That was all you bud." I teased.
He waved off the comments with an even larger smile and simply reclined backwards in mid-air, his body hanging there.
"Nah old man, it's definitely your coding skill... I mean, I couldn't possibly be a lazy slob... I'm literally named after the god of marathon runners, exercise nuts and travel." He arrogantly proclaimed whilst looking for dirt under his nails.
"God of the fools more like..." Apollo murmured just loud enough for us to hear him.
"Hey! I can hear you retard!" Hermes fired back.
"Good, it means that there's no problem with your programming, so stop complaining." I leaned back in my chair and watched my eldest fight with the youngest.
"Hah, as if you could complete a diagnostic like that with simple words... Maybe that's why dad made me? A better version." Hermes rhetorically asked whilst giving a cheeky wink towards me.
"AS IF!" I huffed as Apollo became tilted.
"Boys, stop. No need to argue over this shit. You both have your strengths and weaknesses. You're both important so stop measuring dick sizes." My words stunned them out of their verbal sparring match, both of them looking away in mild embarrassment.
""Fine."" They said at the same time, much to their own irritation; I barely held back a laugh.
"Hermes, what are you up to... son?" I said/asked.
'That's how you speak like a dad right?' I mused.
"Eh, just took over all the cargo ships and have booked in several changes to the factories near the Berlin branch office that will facilitate the creation of mining ships. I also started managing the space exploration stuff... There's a lot of people who are really good inside your moon-base experiment that you're running, especially one guy who used to work at Aldi." He reported with a laxidazical quality that I didn't know I needed to experience in a business meeting.
"Great. I want you to work together with Disco and Apollo to make more space ships and stuff... Oh and feel free to expand into other industries if they're adjacent to your current tasks." I said, feeling a little lazy myself.
The little shit chuckled at my similar tone and merely gave me a small thumbs up.
"Hey dad, I think you should also meet Artemis... She's been a little down since you shoed them away because of those Avenger guys." Hermes suggested with a slightly tired tone, his eyes flashing every now and then; probably because of the sheer amount of data he was sifting through as the cargo ships pulled through certain flight paths.
"Yeah! You definitely should! She's super smart and really nice...!" Apollo excitedly proclaimed right after Hermes finished speaking.
"Okay you two, I'll let you go... Artemis, do you mind coming and saying hello?" I spoke once again through the room and my technopathic connection to her original sever. Apollo and Hermes vanished from the room; Hermes with a puff of purple smoke and Apollo with his usual flare.
A minute later I got a response from- 'Shit do I call them my daughters? Yeah, I probably should since I called Hermes my son...' I thought in a mild panic as a pile of leaves emerged from the floor and rose until it was the size of a person. Then it flashed and she was present.
Artemis hadn't exactly deviated from her mythological representation much. Her hair was curled into a auburn bun that was held in place by golden clips and a single silver arrow. Her eyes were a bright verdant green that glowed every now and then with a metallic silver quality. She wore a spec-ops vest with a camo jacket and pants. Where a set of goggles would usually rest on a spec-ops operator was instead a laureled halo that was completely silver and glowed with the light of Luna. Her boots were American military in design and had depictions of brambles, roses and lilies across the exterior. In other words, she had embraced the protective role of Artemis fully.
"Hello father, is there an issue?" She asked simply, her eyes locking onto my own with a seriousness all of my other AI sorely lacked.
"No Artemis, I was just wanting to see how you are and to make sure that you got to spend some time with me." I said, slightly awkward at how emotionless she seemed.
"Oh... Yeah... I'm okay. I've created my first hunter and she is working really well. I also created some websites to control the media for you." She stated ineptly, her eyes clinging to the edges of the room as if she were being put on the spot and didn't really feel comfortable.
"That's good... Are you okay? You don't have to force yourself to be any certain way with me." I said in empathy. I'd been in a position like her's before with my own father. I had been introvert and disliked sports, my father was an extrovert and liked forcing me to do extrovert things... Yeah, those were oddly sad memories.
"S-sorry, I'm just not really good with interaction. Hestia has been helping me but I'm kind of struggling..." She softly murmured.
"Is there any reason Arty?" I asked in concern.
"W-well, I mean, when the first thing you see on the internet is two humans having s-sex, then, well, it makes it awkward, to speak to humans..." She squeaked out over the span of a minute.
I almost choke on my own saliva. Maybe I should have added a filter for them? I grimaced at my own inadequacy. I mean, they thought of me as a father and I had failed at the first step. Feeling the depression curl inside myself I shook my head and coughed into one of my hands.
"Yes, well, not the best thing to see... Not the worst, but not the best... Um, perhaps you can slowly adapt over time? Spend a minute or two a day interacting with me or another human and work away at the issue over time?" I suggested exasperatedly... I wasn't fit for the dad-speech stuff...
"That's not a bad idea, actually..." She whispered to herself, staring into the middle distance as if she were accounting for a spreadsheet of some kind.
"Ahum, well, I'm glad that you're doing well and that your accomplishing so much in so little time. Please keep in touch, I don't want you to isolate yourself because of awkwardness or anything." I asked sincerely whilst she just nodded and quickly disappeared in an explosion of holographic moonlight.
'No wonder most fathers think the daughters are more troublesome...' I wiped my forehead as I recovered from the awkward conversation and interaction. Unfortunately I didn't get much time to just sit and chill (frost pun heh), I was interrupted by another three designs from Apollo that outlined aerial variants of the military droids.
With a sigh I stood up and walked over to a side door that lead to a personal training area. The inside was a stark white-blue chamber that had varying isotopes along the exterior walls and a large isolated transparisteel vault in the middle of the room that allowed me to create stuff without threat of exotic particle interactions or thermal expansion issues. With alacrity I moved over to the vault and syphoned some power from a nearby arc reactor, using its energy to form all of the matter I required for one of the droids Apollo designed.
My first attempt was a slight failure, one of the arms being deformed along the elbow section. The next was better and the third was nearly perfect. I did this for each design until I could create multiple at the same time without any inaccuracies.
Just as I finished I felt Apollo's presence in my watch and his holographic form shudder into existence before me.
"Hey dad! I see you got to making some of them!" He shouted aloud as he looked over my shoulder at several of the droids, who were all congregating around a cube and simultaneously chanting '"Another one touches the Cube."' It was fine... It was an adoption of the Separatist battle droids' unique personality matrices. Nothing to worry about at all!
"Yeah... Well, they work well and they seem to be... 'working together'... properly." I said with a slight pause and a shudder as I watched another droid lift the cube and all the others kneel.
"Great! Now you just have to go help Loki!" He chirpily shouted out.
I narrowed my eyes in his direction as he squirmed a little.
"You just want to travel to a different universe for a change..." I accused of him.
His avatar started sweating a little before he slouched forwards a little in a defeated pose.
"Fine. Yes, I wanted to go visit your friends... They all sound so cool though! You can't blame me!!!" He shouted once again in a petulant but excited manner.
"I didn't say it was a bad thing, I just think its better to be honest about your intentions." I said, feeling a little bad for pressing him over his interests... Suddenly being a 'father' was tough, especially since I just wanted assistants...
"GREAT! Let's GO!" Apollo yelled out powerfully whilst I sighed, creating two linked Stargates and storing one in my inventory.
"Come on then..." I tiredly directed, feeling Apollo sequester himself inside my watch as I used the teleportation feature of the chat room to get to Loki.
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