#spamware

Illumination Information

Iris stepped toward the door, watching as people dressed similar to her and Ruri walked about as if nothing was strange. The lines of their suits all seemed to glow various colors, some even with a pulsing rainbow shimmer to them. Iris looked around to see what looked like small pixels falling as rain from the sky above, as they turned to a static ripple with a metallic ping when hitting the ground. Many walked with umbrella with them to hide under, while many others did not, and seemed to run through the weather. Ruri stepped up behind Iris, looking around to the people outside, hiding herself behind her wife.

“I-is it safe out there?” Ruri asked as she looked to all the people walking around. “I-it's like we're all naked in here...” Ruri sheepishly spoke, poking only her eyes out from behind Iris' shoulder.

“It looks safe enough, and I don't think we'll need to worry too much about how we look,” started Iris as she motioned to the other people. “Everyone seems to wear the same outfit, we should be fine.” Iris stepped forward, reaching out a hand to guide Ruri outside. “Nothing to be scared of honey, no one will worry about your outfit.” Ruri looked to Iris' glowing hand, as she nodded slowly and gripping tightly. Her tail hung low and curled around Iris' leg, scared and nervous about her new surroundings. “I wonder... is there some place we can go to ask about missing people?”

“M-maybe a police st-station?” Ruri replied, looking at a number of people standing in booths on the sides of the street. “Is this, s-some sort of marketplace?” Ruri looked to a nearby vendor, holding his hand up in the air while reciting the same phrase in an emotionless voice.

“Network security is important to you and your loved ones, transmit data here for more information.”

“Submit your data here for daily funny jokes, oldest on the network since... error...” spoke another vendor, as his face seemed to distort and scrambled as he spoke out error, and then repeating.

“This place... they don't seem to sell any sort of actual goods...” started Iris as she passed another set of booths. “They just trade information.” A sound groaned out from behind Iris as she looked over to Ruri, an uncomfortable grin crossing her face as she clung tight.

“Ca-can you find one with something to eat... I was waiting for you to be home before eating dinner...” Ruri groaned as she scanned across the other vendors.

“I'll look around for something... let's ask this person,” spoke Iris as she stepped up to a booth with a pink haired girl behind the counter. “E-excuse me miss,” started Iris as the woman quickly spoke out her standard phrase.

“Welcome to Frans's Fashion, highest fashion for any need. Transmit your data for more information...” the pink-haired girl spoke.

“H-hi, umm... we would love to see your clothes, but do you know some place we can get something to eat?” Iris asked, as she waited for the girl's response.

“Welcome to Fran's Fashion...” she started to repeat as Iris waited for her to finish.

“Ye-yes, but do you know where we can eat something around here?”

“Transmit your data...” spoke the girl again, motioning to a plate with a glowing hand print on it. Iris looked to the place and then back to the girl, her look softening, with a hint of worry behind it. “Transmit.... your data...”

“O-okay...” spoke Iris as she slowly placed her hand to the panel, feeling a small buzz and shock travel through her. She recoiled her hand, as the girl smiled back.

“Thank you for your data, please standby...” spoke the girl as a series of beeping noises sounded, and a second person appeared next to all of the clerks in each of the booths. Iris and Ruri looked around, startled by what had just happened as a pair of hands gripped Iris' shoulders. “Nooo! Why did you do that! You're pink! You should kno-” she tried to get out before all of the original clerks vanished in a flash of light, as residual pixels fluttered in the air.

“We're... pink?” asked Ruri as she looked over her hands, admiring the glowing pink lines. “What does that have to do with trying to get some help?” Ruri looked up at Iris, clutching tighter as a group of walked down the street towards Ruri and Iris.

“Good delicious data, even better when it's dumb and not secured,” spoke the first man leading the group. “And have a lot of it in there, I will get my hands on it...” spoke the man as he pulled a glowing knife from his cloak. “No one will miss you...” Iris shifted, pushing Ruri behind her. Iris' eyes narrowed, as she took count of the crowd of five before her. All the while, the shop clerks continued to recite their store phrases, as a doorway ripped open in the air behind Ruri. The pink-haired girl leaned out, holding her hand towards Ruir and Iris.

“In here, now!” she shouted as Ruri looked up to Iris, nodding together as the dashed through the doorway behind the mysterious girl.

                                                                                                          “What... is this place?” asked Iris, as she and Ruri followed behind the girl. They traveled down a mostly empty street, save for the few random people sitting in alleys, their own suit weakly glowing pink, some of them with distortions and artifact scattering on their faces.

“You must be really new data to not know that much,” spoke the girl. “It's The Net, all of the different systems from the Allagan empire all link together and talk. We share data and information, and... well this is it.” Iris groaned, letting the girl know of her displeasure. “What's the matter? It's not my fault you don't know how to manage your data properly!”

“You TOLD me to do it!” Iris shouted back angrily. “You said the give you my data and you would help us!”

“That? That was just the script that I have to run for work, geez you two really need better Operators.” Ruri moaned loudly, rubbing her belly again as the trio neared an open door, with white light spilling out from it. The pink-haired girl sighed as they approached, turning to look over to Ruri and Iris. “Look, I saw your data, I know that you're barely a few revos old. But you already getting into trouble with putting your data out there, and doing it on an unsecured connection no less...” The girl paused before the open door, looking Iris in the eyes. “We'll go talk to my uncle, he should be able to help make sense of this better than I can.”

“That's good, because none of this is making any sense to me...” spoke Ruri as she rubbed her stomach. Iris spoke softly to Ruri, trying to help assure her that things would be getting better.

“What's wrong with her, she got a virus or something?” asked the girl.

“Noooo, I'm hungry!” Ruri whined. “Are you sure we can't stop somewhere for at least a small snack?”

“We'll stop some place soon sweetheart, they should have something around here, I hope,” replied Iris, looking over to the girl.

“Hungry? I... what's that?” the girl asked, as Iris gave her a dumbfounded look.

                                                                                                               “Come in, come in little Hanna! It has been far too long!” spoke an elderly man coming to the door. “Are these your friends? So good to see you with new friends!” the man spoke as he motioned for Iris and Ruri to step forward. “Come here, let me...” stalled the old man, as he looked over the pair.

“Best be careful around that green girl, I think she has a virus or something,” spoke Hanna as she swiped her hair back from her eyes.

“No, child... this is something else entirely... Come in, quickly, and lock the door.” The man moved with a seriousness and quickened pace not seen previously, as he checked over the different entrances and windows. “Tell me Hanna, what do you know of the fable The Outsiders?” The girl shrugged looking over to her uncle and back to the Valeths.

“I dunno, they come from the world beyond, act funny and strange, and they can do whatever they want,” Hanna scratched her head glancing between Ruri and Iris. “Are you trying to tell me, that these two dummies are Outsiders? Uncle, they don't even know how to secure their connections, and you mean to think they will break the script?” Hanna grabbed a small cube from a bowl on a table, quickly popping it in her mouth as Ruri's ears perked up at the sight of the girl eating. Hanna's suit lines rippled a bright blue, as Ruri's eyes locked on the cubes.

“Hang on, what?” Iris spoke up, shaking her head. “We're just trying to find a friend, and something to eat. We aren't here for starting a revolution.”

“So, you did come from the other world?” asked Hanna, as she crept closer to the pair. “From the non-digital place?” Ruri looked over to Hanna, and to the bowl of glowing cubes on the table. Hanna bounced in close to Iris, looking over every angle she could of the hyur. “What is it like over there? Do they have revo-cubes there? What about puppies? Do you have puppies out there? What abou--” she rambled as her uncles cut her off.

“Later, child. First, this is important for both of you,” spoke the man as he pointed a cautionary finger towards Iris as he reached over with his other hand to slap Ruri's hands. Ruri dropped the cube from her hand, barely an inch away from her mouth. “Don't. Eat. Anything!”

“Oww hey!” Ruri protested. “It's just a snack, and I'm starving!”

“If you want to go home, you won't touch it!” the man snapped back. Ruri slumped to the floor as Iris stepped over and sat next to her. “Two, don't do anything that would make some of this world's data become mixed with your own. And three, don't spend too long in here. Spending more than two days in here at a time will cause enough background corruption to you data that your terminal won't recognize your data as you.”

“Meaning...?” asked Iris, biting her lip as she was afraid of the answer she was about to hear.

“Meaning you won't be going home if you don't follow these rules,” the man spoke sternly, looking to Ruri and the cube sitting on the floor a few inches in front of her.

“How do you know of all this?” asked Iris, flicking the cube away from Ruri, as the miqo'te let out a soft whimper. The man sighed, looking to Hanna before looking back to Iris.

“I used to be an Outsider, like you, and I have trapped myself here...”

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