The Rules

At Felix's library Error put Felix down after carrying him there. Felix had a cast on his broken leg and bandages on his arm. To get around, Error gave him crutches.

"Thank you," Felix said softly.

"Won't people ask how you broke your leg? Especially since nobody was there to see it?" Error asked. 

"Myeah.. but I'm not really that important to people. If I told them I fell down some stairs enough times people would begin to believe it," Felix said. 

"Oh.. alright then," Error said. 

Felix hobbled over to the ladder with his crutches. He paused before the ladder.

"Uhh.." He sighed. Error picked him up again, climbed the ladder and placed Felix into the vent. 

"Thanks," Felix said. 

Felix crawled through the vent and pulled the crutches with him. He moved the tile and carpet out of the way and pulled himself into his room above. 

He sighed, home at last. Felix didn't even crawl into bed, he just laid on the ground and fell asleep for the night.

***

In the morning Felix tried to move his leg but it didn't do much since the cast was holding his leg straight in place. He sighed, he wanted to stretch. Instead he sat up on the ground and looked at the plasterwork of Error's cast.

It was white, great. People were going to want to sign it now.

Felix thought about what to do about this. There wouldn't be enough room for everyone, so if they filled it all up others might feel left out. If nobody wanted to sign it, and there were never any signatures, people might constantly ask why. Felix would have to paint his cast. That way nobody would feel left out because there wouldn't be any signatures, and the reason there weren't any signatures was because it was already covered in art.

Felix hopped up to his feet and swung his arms around for balance. He picked up his crutches off the floor and hobbled to the door. Outside his room Felix looked out the balcony. Nobody was there. 

"Huh.." Felix grunted to himself. Usually there'd be someone somewhere. 

Felix pivoted down the balcony and hopped down the stairs on one foot. He continued out inti the main halls of the ADC. The paint studio wasn't too far, and Felix was just mastering the flow of the crunches. He focused on trying to get as fast as possible, but at the same time he couldn't help but notice the strange emptiness. 

After a bit Felix was stopped by a couple of kids in a balcony above him.

"Felix!! Felix!!" Olive hissed. She was trying to be quiet but it really wasn't working.

"Yes?" Felix asked. He was rather tired still, and really hoped this conversation would be over soon.

"Why aren't you hiding? The beast is on the first floor!" Olive said.

"Beast!?" Felix lit up in anxiety. Was it a monster? a dragon? an animal??

"Yes! It's very scary! You need to get up here!" Olive said. Felix pathetically hobbled 'faster' trying to get to the next staircase down the hall. 

"Hey Felix! How'd you break your leg?!" Olive asked.

"I-" Felix started.

"Actually nevermind!" Olive said. Felix sighed and continued hobbling to the stairs. 

It was several minutes later when Felix got to them on the balcony.

"You could've helped me up the stairs.." Felix sighed.

"Sorry, I thought you had it," Olive said.

"You have a gun!" Nate said, standing with the group. He pointed to Felix's revolver in his holster. 

"Maybe you can shoot the beast!" Another kid in the group said.

"... I don't know. I'm in crutches, I'd have to give it to..." Felix began to take his gun out of his holster to try and give it to somebody else, but he remembered what Maxwell had told him. He couldn't just give the gun to these cardboard brains. Felix didn't even know what they would do with such a power. He at least trusted himself more than these kids, but that also meant he was the only one with a weapon that could make a difference. He was going to have to go face the beast, in crutches. 

"Felix?" Nate asked. Felix had been quiet while he was thinking. He tucked his gun back in his holster and sighed.

"Is it really dangerous?" He asked.

"Yes! Very! It might even be infectious!" Olive said. 

"You saw it?" Felix asked. Infectious? Monsters? Here?

"...No, but I know where everyone says it was. I don't know if they left that place, come on!" Olive grabbed hold of Felix's good arm and began to drag him to the destination. Felix didn't budge. He pivoted on the crutches at his own rate while Olive continued her futile attempt to pull him there. 

***

On the first floor Felix was pushed and dragged yet again to Law Lake. The geeks left him at the entrance and ran away, as far as their feet could carry them. Felix noticed a hole in the dome's side. It was like a panel had fallen off due to water damage and rust. It didn't appear to be a break in, so maybe a monster hadn't made it in after all. 

Felix heard something in the water. He pointed his gun down into it. Maybe it didn't matter if a panel fell off or was broken into. A monster could still get inside that way. The broken panel faced the Wilderness. 

Coming up for air was Una. She shot up through the water, stood up and walked over to Felix, but she was not the same. The right side of her face, encapsulating her eye, but avoiding her mouth and ear was a metal cybernetic device. 

"Greetings Felix," Una said. She made no expression and stood perfectly straight. Felix didn't know what to do next. Was she dangerous? He didn't move his gun away from her just yet. 

"Una? What happened to you? What's going on?" Felix asked her. He felt his eyes burn into the side of her face. How could this be real?

"Earlier than scheduled, my parents made the decision to assimilate me into the society of the machines. I will keep my residence here in the Adolescent Chambers until I come to age, but as of now it is my objective to create my own objective. According to my list of objectives, apologizing to you will now be initiated.

I am sorry that I was selfish yesterday. I will try to be more polite in the future so that others may be as respected as I do. On the contrary, you still have not convinced me that I am not entitled to certain things. I have now concluded my apology," Una said. Although it was still her voice, she said it in such a dull, uncaring tone that Felix couldn't believe it was really her. She didn't even smile when she looked at him. It was just the blank stare of an android, "What have you been up to Felix? I see you have Maxwell's revolver," Una pointed to it, "I also see that you have a cast on your leg, as well as some wrapping on your arm. Are you in danger or possibly require medical attention?"

"Oh.. No, Error helped me, I'm ok. Are.. are you ok? I mean.. is this what you want? How do you feel?" Felix squeaked. He held in so much emotion, yet he couldn't identify how he felt. He relaxed his firing arm. 

"How I feel about the enhancement is irrelevant Felix. My emotions will no longer affect anything that I do or choose. I will now finish all of my objectives in a purely logical way," Una said.

"But is this what you want?" Felix asked. 

"Ditto," Una said. 

"Oh.. then, what's your objective?" Felix sighed.

"IF Felix is within the Adolescent Chambers, THEN talk to him and be his friend," Una said. 

"I do.. have a lot to talk about. You wanna sit down?" Felix asked.

"I only want to sit down if you think it adds progress to my 'talk to him and be his friend' objective. You are the moderator of that procedure. You decide what is progress and what is not." Una explained. 

"Ok..ay.. Uh, sit down Una?" Felix said. 

Una sat on the ground. Felix followed.

"What would you like to discuss today Felix?" Una asked. She sat with her legs folded. Felix didn't make eye contact. He didn't want her to see if he began to cry. 

"A lot actually, I broke my leg, heh.. I was exploring and I got caught in a trap. I shot myself out, I mean I shot the trap, but these monsters called devil wolves came over and tackled me anyway. I shot the one, but the other locked me up with a dragon. The poor dragon was turning into one of them and he couldn't see anything either. Together we escaped but he was turning into a monster so terribly, that he dropped out of the sky. I broke my leg and he tried eating me but Error saved me. Now I'm back here and I think we're being invaded by aliEns," Felix said. He squeaked at the end in a voice crack.

"That is very interesting," Una said blankly.

"..But in what way?" Felix asked. 

"Error rescued you from other aliens. That is evidence suggesting he sees you as a friend," Una said.

"Yeah. I think maybe he used to believe I was one of those.. monsters. Like I was, some type of trick created by them, and that I'd hurt him on their behalf," Felix said.

"That may still be a possibility. There is no way for me to tell the real you from a trick if the trick is good enough. This idea of a fraud disguised as a gwenen can lead anyone to being suspicious. We know very little about this alien threat, but hearsay suggests they are much more advanced in technology than we currently understand. Better evidence is needed to confirm these rumors, but for now research is not in development," Una said.

"I guess that could also mean that you could be a fake," Felix said. He looked at his good foot as he clawed at the rubber beach with it.

"Yes, it could, although as far as I know I am not a fraud. I have no evidence to prove this to you, but I have successfully convinced myself," Una said. 

"Uh huh.." Felix said, "Well I'm gonna go get my cast painted." He got up, eager to be away from her. 

"May I come?" Una asked.

"Er… I was going to do this alone. Why don't you.. do something for yourself?" Felix suggested.

"What in particular would you like me to do?" Una said.

"Whatever you like to do," Felix said. 

"No activity is better or worse to me Felix. I am not influenced by favoritism," Una said. She stood up. 

"But how are you supposed to have fun then?" Felix asked. 

"I am not influenced by fun or enjoyment of an activity," Una said, "I am only motivated by my objectives being completed." 

"But what's the point of being productive if you're not getting anything out of it?" Felix asked.

"Progress," Una said. Felix didn't know what to say.

"...Just, choose something…" He sighed. He began to hobble out of Law Lake. Una watched him. She started to shake, and then violently quake. Felix heard this and turned back. She seemed just the same, but she was audibly vibrating.  

Felix ignored it and hobbled out faster.

***

At the paint studio Felix put his leg up on a table so he could paint it. His paints were beside him, and he was painting whatever striped pattern he could think of. For now it was dark yellow greens, like the plants in Error's capsule. 

Felix looked at his work so far. He was almost down to his knee now. He put his brush down to take a break, and suddenly began to cry. He inhaled and shivered out his weeps. There was something terribly alien and wrong about his friend. There didn't seem to be anything she truly cared about anymore. She was completely emotionless, cold and calculating. She at least still wanted to be his friend, but it wasn't the same as before. She just did whatever he told her to do like she wasn't able to make her own choices.

He was crying in public, but he didn't care. The other painters glanced at him, but didn't approach, except for one. 

Tito tapped Felix's shoulder.

"Felix?..." Tito said. 

"Hi.. Tito.." Felix sighed. He tried to wipe his tears away but his eyes filled right back up again.

"You heard about Una?" Tito asked.

"Yeah.." Felix said.

"I'm sorry," Tito put his hand on Felix's shoulder.

"Yeah.." Felix squeaked. He gasped a little more before attempting to stop crying again, "I just don't understand," He looked up to Tito, "Why would Una's parents do this? She doesn't know how to have fun anymore. Didn't they make this place for us to have fun? They were supposed to leave us alone!.. Leave us alone until we come of age.." Felix fumed. He held his head.

"It isn't fair.. but we'll be alright. We'll stay far away and maybe her parents won't catch us too. I saw it when it happened. When they took her. They popped out of the wall, a secret door. At first they asked politely, but then they just grabbed her. Big machines with many eyes and arms. Huge metal feet that spread out when they step. They disappeared behind the wall. Now she's one of them, and who knows what they could be using her for. Adults are just like us you know. Terrible greedy people…" Tito said.

"You think Una's being used by someone?" Felix sniffed.

"It's a possibility. I'm just saying that she's not really the type to trust anymore. I hate to give up on such a beautiful athlete, but she's too hard to understand now. She scares the fur off me. I don't even think she's even the same person, she's basically gone..." Tito said.

"..." Felix looked back to the floor. This seemed so familiar, "But what if you're wrong?" He asked.

"Then I'm wrong?? I don't know everything Felix. I have to act according to what I think I should do right now. I can't just focus on Una, I have sport to work on. She isn't my only athlete ya'know," Tito said.

"You used to act like it.." Felix hissed under his breath.

"Huh? Felix what?" Tito only heard a little of what Felix said but it was enough.

"I think I've been a fool," Felix said. He put his leg down off the table.

"In what way?" Tito asked. Felix stood up and grabbed his crutches. 

"About Una, she's my friend. I have to try and figure this out properly. I can't just ignore her. I have to try and.. and help her," Felix hobbled out of the paint studio.

"You'll be even more of a fool if you come back with a robot controlling your face just like she does," Tito said, crossing his arms.

"Then maybe we'll have something in common again," Felix said as he went out into the hall.

***

'In dreams I express

in the wake compress

I wake and make shapes written only in Straight lines

Stranger lines lie behind until time reminds how much of me is left

Or has already left

The time is void of light but is so kind

It always exists at least inside the mind

Stranger lines are divine behind

But behind they are hard to see

Strange in the light I can never be

It's too me'