Fandom (Glitch Techs Xpanded Universe) GTX: Gnu Fork

[Lord Moldoma]

"I can drive. It probably has an adapter." Zoe says, resting her bat behind her neck, each arm hanging casually over the sides of the bat.

She walks over to the side of the vehicle and opens the door with the keyfob. Sliding into the drivers seat, and opening a rotating series of access devices embedded in her right hand, before finding an accessible device port and connecting to it.

"You tall enough to sit in the passenger seat? Or uh, do you need to sit in the back?" She asks Gadg8.

 

[Gadg8eer]

"I can drive. It probably has an adapter." Zoe says, resting her bat behind her neck, each arm hanging casually over the sides of the bat.

She walks over to the side of the vehicle and opens the door with the keyfob. Sliding into the drivers seat, and opening a rotating series of access devices embedded in her right hand, before finding an accessible device port and connecting to it.

"You tall enough to sit in the passenger seat? Or uh, do you need to sit in the back?" She asks Gadg8.

"I mean, as far as everything else is concerned, I'm 10... ish... but I haven't been 10 in my head since the year 2000 to have to sit in the back just because I actually match my inner self-image now. Shotgun!" Gadg8eer responded, eager to at least see if this new career really is the most awesome job ever. He used the interface of his gear to put the key fob in his inventory, integrating its functions into the RumblePack. On contact, his hand grabbing the passenger side door handle unlocked the door for him, and when he sat down the vehicle's robotic harness buckled him into the surprisingly adaptable seat. "Oh, okay, so it has better safety features than the version you'd get at a dealership." he observed.

The vehicle auto-started for Zoe the moment she was also buckled in. "Welcome to your Hinobi Motors Tech Van. All systems standing by."

"Whoa, it's just like the ships from Star Captain! But as a car!" Gadg8eer was impressed.

"Incoming call from... DportEd..." the car announced.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

I'm 10... ish... but I haven't been 10 in my head for 27 years to have to sit in the back just because I actually match my inner self-image now

"I'd say that's creepy if it weren't for the fact that you don't strike me as anything of the kind of person who'd make it creepy..."

"Whoa, it's just like the ships from Star Captain! But as a car!"

She chuckles at the comparison, though why it'd be funny to someone like her is a total mystery. "Alright, whatever you say, kid..."

"Incoming call from... DportEd..." the car announced.

"Ring ring, it's for you." Zoe tells Gadg8, allowing him to take the call since it's not for her, her voice emulating a 1987 tv salesman. Her vocal range is pretty impressive. Although then again, she is a trans woman who streams for a living, so you kinda have to train that sort of thing to keep up the whole V-tuber job. Before preceding to focus on the auto-pilot to plot a course to the glitch positioning system marker.

 

[Gadg8eer]

"I'd say that's creepy if it weren't for the fact that you don't strike me as anything of the kind of person who'd make it creepy..."

"Yeah, don't I know it. It sucks being compared to the guy who wrote the book about the island of eternal childhood or the musician who gave those creepy vibes." he grumbled, "I'm asexual and even when I point that out, people still make the worst possible assumption about me on the basis that, supposedly, no one could possibly want to be a child forever for any legitimate reason. Even if they're not accusing me of being creepy for that, people look down on me for supposedly avoiding adult responsibilities. I don't drive. I don't drink or smoke or any of the crap that people have made into some exclusive privilege of adulthood that everyone is somehow required to have access to even if they don't use it. And why? Because those are the only real differences between kids and adults except the level of responsibility they can handle. I understand things. Doesn't mean I can take responsibility for my life or anyone else's by getting a boring office job and... ugh... starting a family. I like being a kid, I like actual kids, but I am not capable of raising them. There's nothing wrong with adulthood, I just know it has nothing to offer me. That's why I play video games, why this job is perfect, and why I guess you're not all bad. I judge people for being too rich for their own good too, even though I don't know if they actually have much money to spend, but I don't judge someone for being different, and you're the first person who saw me as a complete stranger in this form who hasn't judged me like I don't have the right to decide what I want to be."

As he explained all this, he interacted with the navigation system and put in the location of the City Works Yard.

She chuckles at the comparison, though why it'd be funny to someone like her is a total mystery. "Alright, whatever you say, kid..."

"Ring ring, it's for you." Zoe tells Gadg8, allowing him to take the call since it's not for her, her voice emulating a 1987 tv salesman. Her vocal range is pretty impressive. Although then again, she is a trans woman who streams for a living, so you kinda have to train that sort of thing to keep up the whole V-tuber job. Before preceding to focus on the auto-pilot to plot a course to the glitch positioning system marker.

"Uh, hi?" Gadg8eer answered as the call was passed to his PLixel AR interface.

"Hey, it's me." Dave said over the video call. "The issue is worse than I thought. Something's happened down at the City Works to their dinosaur of a central computer, as I implied, but I have to be here at the Death Scream Gothic Craft Store because a glitch took the form of an explosive barrel from HellPort 3: Dead on Arrival and some yahoo walking home from the bar kicked it. Now I have to explain to the bomb squad and CSIS why this isn't a terrorist attack, not going to be a fun night... Anyway, the issue is arising from that old mainframe or at least nearby it, because those barrels got stacked all over the City Public Works Yard, according to the store owner who took one off their hands. Even if it isn't the mainframe, that system is the hub for the entire smartgrid project and if it goes then my bosses are not going to be happy. Not that they aren't watching our operations already after that idiot kicked a bucket... fortunately not in the lethal sense. So yeah, this is a hell of a way to start but you got to get down to the location I marked on the map and clean up the place without blowing the roof off of it in the process. If you need backup, I do have others on standby now, so just remember if you can't handle the situation, you're better off getting out of there. No amount of XP is worth months in the hospital or getting written up by the government oversight agents. Not to mention, Hinobi Corporate can and will fire techs who are reckless to the degree it endangers people's lives. Worst case scenario, if no one here can handle it, there are people in both Hinobi and in the RCMP who can handle it if things get too hairy. For now, take a dive, and if the water's too cold, there will be other chances and better equipment as long as you don't push your luck farther than that."

"Jeez, I'm pretty sure Zoe doesn't need to be told how to do a job this serious so..."

"Thoroughly? Yes, but gamification of a secret monster hunting job sometimes makes people think they're special. Or conversely, not special enough. I know you, and you're like Zeke that way, you'd panic if I didn't give you at least the option to let someone else handle something this big when something goes wrong. Believe me, you can both do this, but just because Hinobi corporate thinks you're exceptional enough to handle this little town, doesn't mean you should let talent and your avatars' respective safety nets go to your heads. Balance yourself, that's all. Anyway, I have to go. A cleanup crew just arrived."

"Oof. Explosive barrels? Like the kind that demons and nazi zombies stand next to?" Gadg8eer realized as he finished setting up the navigation. "I didn't realize that glitches could be so... inconspicuously dangerous."

At that moment, thunder was heard and it began to heavily rain.

"Attention all Hinobi employees. There is a thunderstorm warning in effect for the Greenwood and Grand Forks service areas, please be advised that some glitches may cause or be empowered by various strong weather conditions. Take caution around all electrical and non-Hinobi electronic equipment, and make sure to take into account any reactions glitches exhibit when exposed to electrical hazards. In addition, there is a flood warning in effect for the Grand Forks service area. Do not interfere with or attempt to repair any issues related to flooding, and follow any instructions given by city, provincial and federal officials to protect you and the public from non-Glitch-related hazards and collateral damage. These messages can be repeated on request if needed. Additionally, police directives require this Hinobi Motors Tech Van to display clear emergency markings for the duration of the flood warning. Thank you for understanding." the van explained, and a small icon in the corner of the windshield HUD appeared to show the current weather conditions and a small icon.

A glowy holographic trail marked the direction the van would need to take, seeing as Zoe wasn't a local.

"...I know we didn't hit it off good, but..." Gadg8eer started to say just before Zoe finished putting her second foot onto the floor within the circle.

"Sorry for pouring all my baggage over you. About just before we did the tutorial... I get the feeling you haven't had a satisfying life either, but if you don't want to talk about it then I won't pry." he assured her. "So, um... How did you get to this town? I know we're right next to the border but by your accent it sounds like your robot self is a long ways from home, and I've never seen you here before. I thought all the shipping companies started refusing to keep being people's telepresence taxis because they wanted to charge passenger fares for moving robot bodies around?"

In actuality, Hinobi had offered to move the robot free of charge for her, which she gladly took up on the promise of access to "exclusive new tech", but before she could explain this...

"Look out!" Gadg8eer shouted, pointing at a red barrel with an image of a skull printed on the side that was mysteriously left in the middle of the road.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

"Look out!" Gadg8eer shouted, pointing at a red barrel with an image of a skull printed on the side that was mysteriously left in the middle of the road.

The car, as it had been built with reliable AI autopilot would automatically slow itself and move out of the way, faster than the two could react.

"So, um... How did you get to this town? I know we're right next to the border but by your accent it sounds like your robot self is a long ways from home, and I've never seen you here before. I thought all the shipping companies started refusing to keep being people's telepresence taxis because they wanted to charge passenger fares for moving robot bodies around?"

"I'm not from here. I mean... I'm popular all over the world, and in the hearts of plenty of fans... But my meat body is in america. I don't get out much." Zoe says. "Hinobi offered to have my battle body transferred over here." She says. "I have a non-battle body that's less conspicuous. But I mostly use it for conventions and the like. It's covered in branding decals."

"I don't think they had any clue it was the same person going through both ends, you don't generally make branding deals with someone you know is an underground fighter... And as you can guess, Hinobi owns nearly everything that wants to slap a sticker on my sociobody's thigh. I don't normally talk through my battle body. And Dee is ahead of even the R&D when it comes to keeping secrets. Maybe she already knew about this whole Glitch-Techs thing and was just sworn to secrecy. You don't get much smarter than her I don't think..."

"Society looks down on people who don't feel like getting out of their houses. Sure, we have clean technology but a lot of the damage to the environment is already done. Plixel tech is feasible and widespread, but not in the way that matters. The poor are still poor, the rich are still rich, I don't wanna be outside much if I can help it. So I don't go outside. If it weren't for streaming and Vtubing, I'd be what the Japanese call a 'new-age-hikikomori'. Someone who at most only goes out remotely through a robot body using advanced deep dive VR. It doesn't help my case that I suffer from a Bardiel Complex."

"... Gamifying fighting glitches is a fun prospect... I'll... Probably get some weird looks from Dee if she doesn't know the situation when I say I wanna put down the mantle of underground robot fighting rings and ask for high voltage fist extensions... Then again... Maybe not if she already knows..."

"... Hinobi scouts people like that all the time... As anti-establishment as she is, she could have her hands in both cookie jars... It'd be devious, but it'd definitely be her..."

"Anyway.. Do they want us to collect the barrels and put them in the back or something? They're hazardous if we just leave them here. Maybe we should stop the van, get out and De-Rez the barrel in the road?"

 

[Sir loin of beef]

With Gadg8 and ZoeIRL

Little did our heroes know, they were not alone on the road, in a nearby bush hid a robot that any Atom girl fan would recognize as a Marksman Jim with it's cyclopic eye, Buster arm and shield that was capable of blocking most attacks with it's buster arm aimed at the barrel to trigger an explosion.



At the City Public works yard!


Meanwhile at the city public works yard, we see Explosive Barrels stacked all over as Davenport said, one currently being rolled into position by what appears to be a Cyborg Gorilla one would recognize as robo-Goreilla, one of the recurring bosses of the Brawlociraptors video games, but he was not alone, each of the councilmembers of doom could be seen overseeing a mysterious device that could best be described as an Inactive portal. And it was being hooked up to the Smartgrid system, likely so that the new system could be used to power the portal to seemingly summon the Resources and Manpower possessed by each councilmember to take over the world.


"The Barrels are in place madame vile!" Robo Goreilla said after he put the last barrel into place.

"Excellent, now we have this city's 'Smartgrid' system hostage, if anyone manages to ruin our plans now their victory will be most utterly bittersweet! HA-HA-HA-HA!" Madame vile triumphantly gloated.

"Hopefully it won't come to that, everything should be under control, what of the Mercenary you sent to this 'Depot' ive heard about? I don't quite see the point."

"Don't Vorry, his part in zis vill become clear soon." Doctor X said.

 

[Gadg8eer]

The car, as it had been built with reliable AI autopilot would automatically slow itself and move out of the way, faster than the two could react.


"I'm not from here. I mean... I'm popular all over the world, and in the hearts of plenty of fans... But my meat body is in america. I don't get out much." Zoe says. "Hinobi offered to have my battle body transferred over here." She says. "I have a non-battle body that's less conspicuous. But I mostly use it for conventions and the like. It's covered in branding decals."

"I don't think they had any clue it was the same person going through both ends, you don't generally make branding deals with someone you know is an underground fighter... And as you can guess, Hinobi owns nearly everything that wants to slap a sticker on my sociobody's thigh. I don't normally talk through my battle body. And Dee is ahead of even the R&D when it comes to keeping secrets. Maybe she already knew about this whole Glitch-Techs thing and was just sworn to secrecy. You don't get much smarter than her I don't think..."

"Society looks down on people who don't feel like getting out of their houses. Sure, we have clean technology but a lot of the damage to the environment is already done. Plixel tech is feasible and widespread, but not in the way that matters. The poor are still poor, the rich are still rich, I don't wanna be outside much if I can help it. So I don't go outside. If it weren't for streaming and Vtubing, I'd be what the Japanese call a 'new-age-hikikomori'. Someone who at most only goes out remotely through a robot body using advanced deep dive VR. It doesn't help my case that I suffer from a Bardiel Complex."

"... Gamifying fighting glitches is a fun prospect... I'll... Probably get some weird looks from Dee if she doesn't know the situation when I say I wanna put down the mantle of underground robot fighting rings and ask for high voltage fist extensions... Then again... Maybe not if she already knows..."

"... Hinobi scouts people like that all the time... As anti-establishment as she is, she could have her hands in both cookie jars... It'd be devious, but it'd definitely be her..."

"Anyway.. Do they want us to collect the barrels and put them in the back or something? They're hazardous if we just leave them here. Maybe we should stop the van, get out and De-Rez the barrel in the road?"

"Yeah, good point. I'll do it, at least we know if I screw up and it explodes then I won't die." he said. "Hey, Van, um... do you have that PLixel door umbrella feature?"

"Yes." the AI responded.

"Can you activate it, please? Don't want to be stuck with a wet seat when I get back soaked." he asked. A small square force-field looking PLixel construct materialized over the outside of the passenger door, like a futuristic camper van canopy of some sort. He opened the door, turned on his goggle's night-vision as he stepped out, and looked around for a second before dashing out from the cover of rain towards the barrel in the middle of the road.

With Gadg8 and ZoeIRL

Little did our heroes know, they were not alone on the road, in a nearby bush hid a robot that any Atom girl fan would recognize as a Marksman Jim with it's cyclopic eye, Buster arm and shield that was capable of blocking most attacks with it's buster arm aimed at the barrel to trigger an explosion.

As he was about to de-rez the barrel, he noticed it was apparently connected to a wire that ran from the middle of the street to a nearby bush. He didn't think anything of the bush itself, assuming the wire went through it to somewhere that would provide shelter or better cover, because he was worried about the exact location.

This was the emergency floodgate over the road which had been built so that the town's industrial park - and the lynchpin of the town's economy - would not need to be relocated. The bridge just to the north that the van had crossed to get here was a major route by the standards of a town of under 5000 residents, but after the flood it's route across the river and usefulness to truckers and industrial workers at the lumberyard and particle board plant meant that it was downgraded to a secondary route that would be closed during severe weather caused by climate change.

The waters were clearly already rising in the river, and the floodgate would close soon to prevent that from happening... except on the metal surface where the two heavy concrete and steel doors would meet, was the specific location where the barrel had been placed. He didn't know if there was another on the other side of the river or something, it had been dark and he only saw the barrel at the last second because he had been distracted.

"...Operator, start a conference call with ZoeIRL and DportEd."

 

[Sir loin of beef]

"Yeah, good point. I'll do it, at least we know if I screw up and it explodes then I won't die." he said. "Hey, Van, um... do you have that PLixel door umbrella feature?"

"Yes." the AI responded.

"Can you activate it, please? Don't want to be stuck with a wet seat when I get back soaked." he asked. A small square force-field looking PLixel construct materialized over the outside of the passenger door, like a futuristic camper van canopy of some sort. He opened the door, turned on his goggle's night-vision as he stepped out, and looked around for a second before dashing out from the cover of rain towards the barrel in the middle of the road.



As he was about to de-rez the barrel, he noticed it was apparently connected to a wire that ran from the middle of the street to a nearby bush. He didn't think anything of the bush itself, assuming the wire went through it to somewhere that would pride shelter or better cover, because he was worried about the exact location.

This was the emergency floodgate over the road which had been built so that the town's industrial park - and the lynchpin of the town's economy - would not need to be relocated. The bridge just to the north that the van had crossed to get here was a major route by the standards of a town of under 5000 residents, but after the flood it's route across the river and usefulness to truckers and industrial workers at the lumberyard and particle board plant meant that it was downgraded to a secondary route that would be closed during severe weather caused by climate change.

The waters were clearly already rising in the river, and the floodgate and it's counterpart on the other side of the bridge would close soon to prevent that from happening... except on the metal surface where the two heavy concrete and steel doors would meet, was the specific location where the barrel had been placed. He didn't know if there was another on the other side, it had been dark and he only saw the barrel at the last second because he had been distracted.

"...Operator, start a conference call with ZoeIRL and DportEd."

Meanwhile, the Marksman jim as it turned out wasnt alone, as it aimed it's buster to fire when ready, another Glitch was right next to it, this Glitch had Taken on the form of Shinobi Man from Atom girl 3 and he had his hand on the Detonator That the wire connected to the explosive barrel.

"I'll kindly ask you to step away from the barrel" Shinobi man spoke from the bushes.

 

[Gadg8eer]

Dave joined the call, but only to momentarily explain he had his hands full. "Oliver, I know I said to call for help if you've got trouble, but I meant the other techs." he complained, his voice kept private by the soundproofed Hinobi Van and the built-in headphones in Gadg8eer's smartgoggles. "This is not a good ti-"

Meanwhile, the Marksman jim as it turned out wasnt alone, as it aimed it's buster to fire when ready, another Glitch was right next to it, this Glitch had Taken on the form of Shinobi Man from Atom girl 3 and he had his hand on the Detonator That the wire connected to the explosive barrel.

"I'll kindly ask you to step away from the barrel" Shinobi man spoke from the bushes.

Suddenly realizing the intent behind the situation was not just planned but actively being enforced, Gadg8eer discreetly winked, blinked, and then blinked again as he slowly backed away, putting his hands out in front of him as if to say "okay, I'm backing away". Luckily the rain was running down his goggles enough that his eyes couldn't be seen clearly. He said nothing, but due to Gadg8eer thinking ahead, the automation command he'd just triggered was pre-configured to simply record if no calls were in progress and both record and broadcast to the other callers if a call was in progress when the command was triggered. The secret macro sequence was set up on his smartgoggles just in case he was ever a witness to something evil enough that video proof could save lives.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

Meanwhile, the Marksman jim as it turned out wasnt alone, as it aimed it's buster to fire when ready, another Glitch was right next to it, this Glitch had Taken on the form of Shinobi Man from Atom girl 3 and he had his hand on the Detonator That the wire connected to the explosive barrel.

Zoe silently thumbed through the database, making sure not to move her body as she didn't need to due to it's remote connection to Hinobi troubleshooting archives. She searched quickly through an AI-curated assortment of files on Glitches to try and figure out anything she could specifically about Shinobi Man from Atom Girl 3, and the standard Marksman Jim Enemy from the same series, along with otherwise digital encyclopedic files to try and find any described weakspots from the games themselves, albeit focusing more on the glitch files, since she knew that things could change between 2d and 3d well enough. If she wanted to properly formulate a strategy, she'd have to know the players on the field." Simultaneously, she had the van do a preliminary scan of the surroundings to better get a view of what was around the small battleground.

Luckily the rain was running down his goggles enough that his eyes couldn't be seen clearly. He said nothing, but due to Gadg8eer thinking ahead, the automation command he'd just triggered was pre-configured to simply record if no calls were in progress and both record and broadcast to the other callers if a call was in progress when the command was triggered. The secret macro sequence was set up on his smartgoggles just in case he was ever a witness to something evil enough that video proof could save lives.

"Gadg8, play to your strengths, do you think you can try and talk these guys down while I figure something out? Even if they don't concede, I can come up with something while you try to convince them. The Tutorial said that de-rezzing is actually the last option we wanna go for." She quietly said from her mic at home to Gadg8 in the call.

 

[Sir loin of beef]

Dave joined the call, but only to momentarily explain he had his hands full. "Oliver, I know I said to call for help if you've got trouble, but I meant the other techs." he complained, his voice kept private by the soundproofed Hinobi Van and the built-in headphones in Gadg8eer's smartgoggles. "This is not a good ti-"



Suddenly realizing the intent behind the situation was not just planned but actively being enforced, Gadg8eer discreetly winked, blinked, and then blinked again as he slowly backed away, putting his hands out in front of him as if to say "okay, I'm backing away". Luckily the rain was running down his goggles enough that his eyes couldn't be seen clearly. He said nothing, but due to Gadg8eer thinking ahead, the automation command he'd just triggered was pre-configured to simply record if no calls were in progress and both record and broadcast to the other callers if a call was in progress when the command was triggered. The secret macro sequence was set up on his smartgoggles just in case he was ever a witness to something evil enough that video proof could save lives.

"Good...Good, now It would be wise for you to leave before this Floodgate Blows if you and your driver value their lives." Shinobi man threatened.

Zoe silently thumbed through the database, making sure not to move her body as she didn't need to due to it's remote connection to Hinobi troubleshooting archives. She searched quickly through an AI-curated assortment of files on Glitches to try and figure out anything she could specifically about Shinobi Man from Atom Girl 3, and the standard Marksman Jim Enemy from the same series, along with otherwise digital encyclopedic files to try and find any described weakspots from the games themselves, albeit focusing more on the glitch files, since she knew that things could change between 2d and 3d well enough. If she wanted to properly formulate a strategy, she'd have to know the players on the field." Simultaneously, she had the van do a preliminary scan of the surroundings to better get a view of what was around the small battleground.

"Gadg8, play to your strengths, do you think you can try and talk these guys down while I figure something out? Even if they don't concede, I can come up with something while you try to convince them. The Tutorial said that de-rezzing is actually the last option we wanna go for." She quietly said from her mic at home to Gadg8 in the call.

Spoiler: Shinobi man's file

Shinobi man
Shinobi man, otherwise known as DXN-024 is the boss of one of the inital Eight Selectable stages of Atom Girl 3, he like most of the other bosses in that game can be Affected by any weapon from the Atom buster to the Rocket Punch though the Electric shock only temporarily stuns him, the Weapon that works best on him is the Twirling spin, the weapon you get from defeating Twirl Woman.

Spoiler: Marksman Jim

Marksman Jim
Appearing in many forms throughout the Atom girl series the Marksman Jim seen here is a standard marksman jim, their shields are mostly Impenetrable unless you're using Weapons that can wipe the entire screen of enemies, otherwise you have to wait for them to shoot at you for you to shoot at them.

 

[Gadg8eer]

Zoe silently thumbed through the database, making sure not to move her body as she didn't need to due to it's remote connection to Hinobi troubleshooting archives. She searched quickly through an AI-curated assortment of files on Glitches to try and figure out anything she could specifically about Shinobi Man from Atom Girl 3, and the standard Marksman Jim Enemy from the same series, along with otherwise digital encyclopedic files to try and find any described weakspots from the games themselves, albeit focusing more on the glitch files, since she knew that things could change between 2d and 3d well enough. If she wanted to properly formulate a strategy, she'd have to know the players on the field." Simultaneously, she had the van do a preliminary scan of the surroundings to better get a view of what was around the small battleground.

"Gadg8, play to your strengths, do you think you can try and talk these guys down while I figure something out? Even if they don't concede, I can come up with something while you try to convince them. The Tutorial said that de-rezzing is actually the last option we wanna go for." She quietly said from her mic at home to Gadg8 in the call.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I actually have to take this." was heard, as Dave gave a worried look to someone off-screen to let them know it really was more serious a situation. "Zoe, what is this?" Dave asked, suddenly very concerned.

"Good...Good, now It would be wise for you to leave before this Floodgate Blows if you and your driver value their lives." Shinobi man threatened.

"The scan says they're glitches - Shinobi Man and a Marksman Jim - but they're acting like actual straight up terrorists. Should I notify my bosses and the other Techs or the CSIS agents I'm talking to?" Dave said, wiping sweat from his brow and straining to keep his voice calm and collected. Fortunately, Dave was a trained soldier who knew how to do that. Unfortunately, Dave had PTSD from his time as a soldier, working against his training or at least against properly returning to civilian life mentally.

"...is it okay if I ask why you're doing this? Most terrorists seem to want press coverage, and you're pretty clear that you're going to flood the town." Gadg8eer asked the two figures hidden in the bushes.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

"Two glitches. They're operating outside of their in game programming suspiciously. Neither Shinobi Man or a Marksman Jim would be this crafty or jump to this level of violence just by spawning in right...? There's no way they could know the threat that I and Gadg8 pose to them... Unless... It's just a hunch but... Dave, we might be facing off against a greater opponent who's controlling them from the shadows." Zoe explained as best as she could to Dave.

She preemptively gripped her bat, preparing to make usage of it if the situation called for it.

"If that's the case, it's highly unlikely these are the only two glitches doing this. We may want to pull out. This is definitely something worth notifying your contacts about..." She told Dave.

 

[Sir loin of beef]

"I'm sorry, sir, but I actually have to take this." was heard, as Dave gave a worried look to someone off-screen to let them know it really was more serious a situation. "Zoe, what is this?" Dave asked, suddenly very concerned.


"The scan says they're glitches - Shinobi Man and a Marksman Jim - but they're acting like actual straight up terrorists. Should I notify my bosses and the other Techs or the CSIS agents I'm talking to?" Dave said, wiping sweat from his brow and straining to keep his voice calm and collected. Fortunately, Dave was a trained soldier who knew how to do that. Unfortunately, Dave had PTSD from his time as a soldier, working against his training or at least against properly returning to civilian life mentally.

"...is it okay if I ask why you're doing this? Most terrorists seem to want press coverage, and you're pretty clear that you're going to flood the town." Gadg8eer asked the two figures hidden in the bushes.

"Two glitches. They're operating outside of their in game programming suspiciously. Neither Shinobi Man or a Marksman Jim would be this crafty or jump to this level of violence just by spawning in right...? There's no way they could know the threat that I and Gadg8 pose to them... Unless... It's just a hunch but... Dave, we might be facing off against a greater opponent who's controlling them from the shadows."

"If that's the case, it's highly unlikely these are the only two glitches doing this. We may want to pull out. This is definitely something worth notifying your contacts about..."

"Oh we have our orders, all we can say is that If you or your Comrade take a step towards that Barrel and try to play hero we are going to Destroy you and this Floodgate, Not necessarily in that order." Shinobi man then heard a voice Speaking in a German accent talking from his communicator.

"Yeah, what is it Doctor?" The Mechanical ninja asked.

"VAT IS GOING ON!?" Doctor X practically shouted into his communicator as soon as a lookout minion had Spotted the Van.

"Two Idiots who for some reason are trying to be Atom Girl." Shinobi man responded

"Zat's all? Show zem how ve deal with Atom girl Wannabe's."
Shinobi man turned to his Comrade. "BLAST THEM!" The ninja commanded, as soon as he did, buster fire started coming from bush aimed at Gadg8, ZoeIRL, and the van as the marksman Jim opened fire.

 

[Gadg8eer]

"Two glitches. They're operating outside of their in game programming suspiciously. Neither Shinobi Man or a Marksman Jim would be this crafty or jump to this level of violence just by spawning in right...? There's no way they could know the threat that I and Gadg8 pose to them... Unless... It's just a hunch but... Dave, we might be facing off against a greater opponent who's controlling them from the shadows."

"If that's the case, it's highly unlikely these are the only two glitches doing this. We may want to pull out. This is definitely something worth notifying your contacts about..."

"...because glitches don't plan. Whoever is manipulating them must be human, which means some extremists of some sort have somehow gotten wind of information that's kept hidden from the public for a number of important reasons, not just the biggest ones the tutorial mentioned. I'll be back in two minutes, this definitely qualifies for involving the government." Dave said, before a symbol appeared in the call screen to notify that he'd muted his gauntlet.

"Oh we have our orders, all we can say is that If you or your Comrade take a step towards that Barrel and try to play hero we are going to Destroy you and this Floodgate, Not necessarily in that order." Shinobi man then heard a voice Speaking in a German accent talking from his communicator.

"Yeah, what is it Doctor?" The Mechanical ninja asked.

"VAT IS GOING ON!?" Doctor X practically shouted into his communicator as soon as a lookout minion had Spotted the Van.

"Two Idiots who for some reason are trying to be Atom Girl." Shinobi man responded

"Zat's all? Show zem how ve deal with Atom girls."
Shinobi man turned to his Comrade. "BLAST THEM!" The ninja commanded, as soon as he did, buster fire started coming from bush aimed at Gadg8, ZoeIRL, and the van as the marksman Jim opened fire.

Gadg8eer, knowing things had somehow gone straight from "leave or we blow this ****er" to "we're going to kill you and then blow this ****er" with no warning of the sudden betrayal, shouted "Van! Get Zoe to safety!" as he dove to the pavement, then de-rezzed the barrel as the Marksman Jim turned to fire on the vehicle.

The van's back right tire popped as the buster shot collided with it, but the van squealed away regardless, sparks flying off the hubcap as the Perfectly Generic Vehicle sped away, a couple of shots leaving those dents that your bullets leave in the popular sandbox FPS game nobi's Mod (now known simply as bMod) when they collide with a solid object.

Before the Marksman Jim could turn back to Gadg8eer, the boy shouted "Eat Weaponized Sylladex, Scissor Jim!" and re-rezzed the barrel in such a way that it was flung towards the soldier robot, much like the aforementioned Sylladex from the once-popular webcomic Hinobi Paint Adventures: VirtuaLife by Anthony Hussler.

 

[Sir loin of beef]

"...because glitches don't plan. Whoever is manipulating them must be human, which means some extremists of some sort have somehow gotten wind of information that's kept hidden from the public for a number of important reasons, not just the biggest ones the tutorial mentioned. I'll be back in two minutes, this definitely qualifies for involving the government." Dave said, before a symbol appeared in the call screen to notify that he'd muted his gauntlet.


Gadg8eer, knowing things had somehow gone straight from "leave or we blow this ****er" to "we're going to kill you and then blow this ****er" with no warning of the sudden betrayal, shouted "Van! Get Zoe to safety!" as he dove to the pavement, then de-rezzed the barrel as the Marksman Jim turned to fire on the vehicle.

The van's back right tire popped as the buster shot collided with it, but the van squealed away regardless, sparks flying off the hubcap as the Perfectly Generic Vehicle sped away, a couple of shots leaving those dents that your bullets leave in the popular sandbox FPS game nobi's Mod (now known simply as bMod) when they collide with a solid object.

Before the Marksman Jim could turn back to Gadg8eer, the boy shouted "Eat Weaponized Sylladex, Scissor Jim!" and re-rezzed the barrel in such a way that it was flung towards the soldier robot, much like the aforementioned Sylladex from the once-popular webcomic Hinobi Paint Adventures: VirtuaLife by Anthony Hussler.

"You Named your Van AI van? How original." Shinobi man snarked as he watched the van get away despite the flat tire. He turned back and saw that Gadg8 had made the Barrel disappear, silently Cursing to himself, Shinobi man jumped out into the open just in time to see the Barrel Hit the bush, The marksman jim however was caught in the blast and was blown apart along with the bush.



"Nice try but the Battle isn't over, in fact it's just Begun!" Shinobi man declared before he hit his Boss fight intro sequence pose and the sound of a Life bar filling up could be heard.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

There was the sound of sliding metal against concrete and rapid footsteps soon after Zoe ducked her way out of the van which had stopped itself on her command after only a few seconds of driving, she wasn't interested in chancing it with a

She was carrying a detached manhole cover in one hand that she snatched up as she rolled out of the side of the van, and her bat in the other, stopping herself a dozen or so meters away and swinging her arm up to hoist the manhole cover into the air.

Shinobi man declared before he hit his Boss fight intro sequence pose and the sound of a Life bar filling up could be heard.

Mid way through the intro, interrupting it, she swung her bat into the manhole cover and sent it rocketing towards Shinobi man, hitting it specifically to impart a horizontal axis of spin on the manhole cover.

 

[Sir loin of beef]

There was the sound of sliding metal against concrete and rapid footsteps soon after Zoe ducked her way out of the van which had stopped itself on her command after only a few seconds of driving, she wasn't interested in chancing it with a

She was carrying a detached manhole cover in one hand that she snatched up as she rolled out of the side of the van, and her bat in the other, stopping herself a dozen or so meters away and swinging her arm up to hoist the manhole cover into the air.


Mid way through the intro, interrupting it, she swung her bat into the manhole cover and sent it rocketing towards Shinobi man, hitting it specifically to impart a horizontal axis of spin on the manhole cover.

The Impact of the Manhole Cover had Shinobi man on all Fours for about 5 seconds, not only that it had Stopped his life Bar halfway and Taken 3 points of Damage off of that to boot! This left Shinobi man with 7 units of Health overall.

"You!!!" Shinobi man Pointed at Zoe as soon as he had gotten up. "You two are gonna get it now!" The Ninjabot declared before Two ninja stars his size appeared in his hands and he threw one at Gadg8 and Zoe Respectively and he jumped into the air after throwing them

"Now which one of you do I destroy first?" Shinobi man asked before internally he began to monologue

"Hmm, Best to concentrate my Efforts on the Girl. She must be the Zoe that the Boy was referring to, I did not anticipate her joining this fight, if she's similar to Atom girl then she's the more dangerous one of the pair. But I'll have to keep an eye on the boy in case he tries anything."

 

[Gadg8eer]

"You Named your Van AI van? How original." Shinobi man snarked as he watched the van get away despite the flat tire. He turned back and saw that Gadg8 had made the Barrel disappear, silently Cursing to himself, Shinobi man jumped out into the open just in time to see the Barrel Hit the bush, The marksman jim however was caught in the blast and was blown apart along with the bush.



"Nice try but the Battle isn't over, in fact it's just Begun!" Shinobi man declared before he hit his Boss fight intro sequence pose and the sound of a Life bar filling up could be heard.

Gadg8eer had always sucked at the original Atom Girl games, they were simply too Hinobi Hard for his poor reaction time. Or at least, they used to be. To be fair, he felt like he had more stamina and after barely saving the town's industrial heart from the flood the way he did, he could also suspect his reaction time and agility were increased too, even though nothing else felt like less of a limit than it used to. He supposed it was simply because kids always had more energy and were less bulky, and he certainly felt like he'd lost 2/3rds of his weight when he applied the PLixelf avatar, and as for his reaction time, the nature of the change did make that a likely benefit as well. That being said, he definitely had less strength to apply and he wasn't actually any smarter or physically faster than he had been before.

He would have taken advantage of the short fancy intro sequence, but his attention went to the gate itself as it began to close, and the edge of the water slowly creeped towards the gate's location as it became clear the route would be shut down for some time.

There was the sound of sliding metal against concrete and rapid footsteps soon after Zoe ducked her way out of the van which had stopped itself on her command after only a few seconds of driving, she wasn't interested in chancing it with a

She was carrying a detached manhole cover in one hand that she snatched up as she rolled out of the side of the van, and her bat in the other, stopping herself a dozen or so meters away and swinging her arm up to hoist the manhole cover into the air.


Mid way through the intro, interrupting it, she swung her bat into the manhole cover and sent it rocketing towards Shinobi man, hitting it specifically to impart a horizontal axis of spin on the manhole cover.

Gadg8eer breathed a sigh of relief that he'd been just in time, and turned back to Shinobi Man and the Marksman Jim, to see the latter getting up with heavy damage to itself, and the former getting slammed in the head by a round disk... "Zoe?! I thought you were in the van!"

The Impact of the Manhole Cover had Shinobi man on all Fours for about 5 seconds, not only that it had Stopped his life Bar halfway and Taken 3 points of Damage off of that to boot! This left Shinobi man with 7 units of Health overall.

"You!!!" Shinobi man Pointed at Zoe as soon as he had gotten up. "You two are gonna get it now!" The Ninjabot declared before Two ninja stars his size appeared in his hands and he threw one at Gadg8 and Zoe Respectively and he jumped into the air after throwing them

"Now which one of you do I destroy first?" Shinobi man asked internally he began to monologue

"Hmm, Best to concentrate my Efforts on the Girl. She must be the Zoe that the Boy was referring to, I did not anticipate her joining this fight, if she's similar to Atom girl then she's the more dangerous one of the pair. But I'll have to keep an eye on the boy in case he tries anything."

Gadg8eer quickly bolted into a run at the Marksman Jim, barely avoiding the ninja star as it made a cut through the left sleeve of his hoodie, and de-rezzed the Marksman Jim before it could attack.

 

[Sir loin of beef]

Gadg8eer had always sucked at the original Atom Girl games, they were simply too Hinobi Hard for his poor reaction time. Or at least, they used to be. To be fair, he felt like he had more stamina and after barely saving the town's industrial heart from the flood the way he did, he could also suspect his reaction time and agility were increased too, even though nothing else felt like less of a limit than it used to. He supposed it was simply because kids always had more energy and were less bulky, and he certainly felt like he'd lost 2/3rds of his weight when he applied the PLixelf avatar, and as for his reaction time, the nature of the change did make that a likely benefit as well. That being said, he definitely had less strength to apply and he wasn't actually any smarter or physically faster than he had been before.

He would have taken advantage of the short fancy intro sequence, but his attention went to the gate itself as it began to close, and the edge of the water slowly creeped towards the gate's location as it became clear the route would be shut down for some time.


Gadg8eer breathed a sigh of relief that he'd been just in time, and turned back to Shinobi Man and the Marksman Jim, to see the latter getting up with heavy damage to itself, and the former getting slammed in the head by a round disk... "Zoe?! I thought you were in the van!"


Gadg8eer quickly bolted into a run at the Marksman Jim, barely avoiding the ninja star as it made a cut through the left sleeve of his hoodie, and de-rezzed the Marksman Jim before it could attack.

"What just happened? It looks like that Robot was sucked directly into his Arm!" Shinobi man thought in alarm. "Too bad I cannot send a copy to attack him unlike Dioscuri Woman. And I seem to be Badly damaged, i'll have to finish him and the Girl Fast before they can combine their forces against me!" With That Thought in mind Shinobi man made sure to Descend Towards Gadg8eer while Throwing Ninja Stars at Zoe to keep her away while he was busy Fighting with Gadg8eer.

"Not bad, you're definitely somewhat capable if you were able to dodge my Shinobi Star Attack." The Robot spoke.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

Zoe?! I thought you were in the van!"

“I was. I jumped out because if you get de-rezzed yourself, I probably lose points.” She said. Though there were probably more reasons than just that.

he threw one at Gadg8 and Zoe Respectively and he jumped into the air after throwing them

Zoe watched as the ninja-star approached her. She tapped her bat on the ground and took the grip in both hands, preparing herself before frame-perfectly parrying the shuriken, sending it careening into shinobi man with a reversed trajectory the splash text for “REVERSAL!!!” appearing to her side. “Did you know if you press the A Button in time with an enemies attack in Father, you can parry attacks? It’s only mentioned once in the game. But I talk to as many NPCs as I can whenever I’m not speedrunning.”

Ninja Stars at Zoe to keep her away

She one-handed her bat and slammed it into two of the three approaching stars, sending them careening back in a curved manner, aiming to sideswipe Shinobi Man, and then spun, before grabbing the third star by the hole in the middle and impaling it into the ground forcibly.

“COMBO 4!” Read the splash text.

She then did her best to close the distance, dragging her bat across the ground and coming in between Shinobi Man and Gadg8 before swinging the bat upwards in an underhanded, hoisting swing.

 

[Sir loin of beef]

“I was. I jumped out because if you get de-rezzed yourself, I probably lose points.” She said. Though there were probably more reasons than just that.

Zoe watched as the ninja-star approached her. She tapped her bat on the ground and took the grip in both hands, preparing herself before frame-perfectly parrying the shuriken, sending it careening into shinobi man with a reversed trajectory the splash text for “REVERSAL!!!” appearing to her side. “Did you know if you press the A Button in time with an enemies attack in Father, you can parry attacks? It’s only mentioned once in the game. But I talk to as many NPCs as I can whenever I’m not speedrunning.”


She one-jaded her bat and slammed it into two of the three approaching stars, sending them careening back in a curved manner, aiming to sideswipe Shinobi Man, and then spun, before grabbing the third star by the hole in the middle and impaling it into the ground forcibly.

“COMBO 4!” Read the splash text.

She then did her best to close the distance, dragging her bat across the ground and coming in between Shinobi Man and Gadg8 before swinging the bat upwards in an underhanded, hoisting swing.

"What!?" Shinobi man asked witnessing his Ninja stars be batted right towards him, he knew that if both stars (one of which would Shave off four units of his health in his home game) hit him, it was over, he was done. And indeed they both hit him, slicing his legs and right arm off as he ran towards Zoe to start Boxing with her.

"Noooo!!!! I don't believe it!!!" Shinobi man said before...



Explosions began ringing out from Where Shinobi Man's Torso was only moments ago, quite akin to what happens when you Defeat a boss in Atom girl Z4, Z5 and Z6

"Damnit...Defeated by denizens of this dimension... unbelievable." Shinobi man spoke despite having gone through something like the death animation of an Atom girl Boss.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

“Barely one fucking day, one fucking day on the job and I already have to deal with a terrorisfic robot. Great. Either one of us could’ve been killed.”she says, having stopped as the two hits successfully disabled her opponent and not landing the upwards blow.

“I better get a fuck ton of XP for this…” she says, dragging her bat over to the ground-stuck shuriken and grabbing it by the center.

She plants her foot on Shinobi-man’s heavily damaged chest pointing the shuriken’s tip down at his head. “Your own weapon is pretty useful against you.”

“Now…”

“Who the fuck do you work for and why do they want to put innocent people in danger? You’re a machine. They’re not supposed to want to harm people. Asimovs 1st law.” Why she felt the need to bring that up was beyond anyone else listening.

“You know, you glitches can’t die, so you can either tell me. Or I’ll leave your ass in such a sorry state you’ll wish you’d taken the chance to be de-rezzed. We’ll see how useful that immortality is when all of your insides become outsides.” She may have misunderstood how glitch’s mortality worked. But this wasn’t the confident side of Zoe who joked around and treated her job like a clip show or a stream.

This was that angry side of Zoe, the side that was driven to be the best and the angriest gamer. The part that came out whenever she felt stressed. The part that was built on years of self hate and jealousy.

 

[Sir loin of beef]

'You will...You will never get a word out of me..." Shinobi man Blustered Fearfully and smugly at the same time. "Do you genuinely Believe Asimov's laws were programmed into me? I was Programmed to fight. To destroy my Creators enemies! You have won the battle but the war is about to begin!" Shinobi man boasted.

"Vhere is za Kaboom!? Zere vas supposed to be a Floodgate Shattering Kaboom!!" A German accented Voice spoke from Shinobi man's communicator...which was right next to the Van's back right tire now following the explosion. "Answer me! Vhy is ze floodgate Intact!?"

 

[Lord Moldoma]

“Gadg8… what does the digital handbook say that sub-HP-damage does to a glitch?” Zoe turns her head to gadget, her display only showing the image of a single translucent vector of a photograph of an eye.

“Is it painful for them?”