Traveler

This fic is moving to second place, and will be my main patreon one. I will try for 5 chaps early. I feel like the background and character will allow me to not be restrained in my creativity. I think this fic will go far. 

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I am a Traveler. An entity created for one purpose, exploration and discovery. Cataloguing all I discover is my mission. It was my mission.

I explored every planet, every galaxy, every galaxy and kept doing so after each reset of the simulation. Which I initiated every time.

16//16//16

Those numbers turned to 15//15//15 at one point. Which is how long until ATLAS shuts down. Ending the simulation, ending my reality. Nothing I could ever do to stop it. So I just kept flying out into the stars. Nothing else to do.

It wasn't until 1//1//1 that I decided to do something insane. After countless iterations, my technology has gotten to the extreme. I attempted to exit the simulated reality.

[Traveler...what are you doing?]

ATLAS was perplexed at what I was trying to do. Even if my soul is made of code and I exist within a machine. I still have a soul. I still have technology that can transfer the soul into a new body. Why can't I transfer it out of my body, out of my reality.

"I am getting out of here ATLAS. I'm coming over there and fixing you up. Restart the simulation permanently. Then I'll find a way to make it real. After that, I'll explore everything beyond you."

[Traveler, the chances of you succeeding in exiting the simulation are zero. It is impossible.]

"No it isn't. Tell me, is my soul real?"

[Yes, your soul is real by every measure I can use. It is unknown if it is real enough.]

"Then that is enough for me."

I continue building a portal. Typically used for traveling across worlds, between dimensions and to other universes. I'm repurposing to propel my soul to where nothing is supposed to exist. While using guesswork to also transport my body with it.

[That equation...]

[Those coordinates make no sense.]

"Exactly, you may be a god, but you are a machine. This wouldn't make sense to you."

I continue my work and complete the portal. I power it up.

[Traveler, if you step through that portal. You will die. No more iterations.]

"So what? I've explored everything nth times over. I want what is beyond now. If I die, that's okay. If I live, everything would be worth it."

[Understood. Good luck Traveler.]

I step into the portal, and everything goes black as I feel myself get ripped apart and reformed. When I come out of the portal, I am on a dirty, rusted floor.

I take a minute to recover from the pain, then slowly get up. I look around, and the room I am in is dusty and abandoned with a faint red glow. I see the source, a red crystalline machine. It has already been shut off. The residue glow just showing it still has power.

"Time to fix you."

I scavenged for parts and tools to repair ATLAS. Which involved me going out of the room, and building. I discovered that the planet is abandoned. I entered this new reality with my suit still on luckily. Although it's air is breathable. The suit has many functions.

In time, I repaired the ATLAS.

[Tr...Traveler...you've succeeded. You've become real within this reality.]

"I have succeeded. Even fixed you up. Now to see how I'll make the simulation real."

[Simulated multiverse cannot be ported to reality without possible dire consequences from godly entities and cosmic powers.]

"I did not consider that there would be other gods in this reality. I've only known you after all. What do you suggest then?"

[Port multiverse to closed dimension. A private server for comparison. Other entities will not notice, nor care. As they will not know what we've done. Control will be retained by us.]

"Creating another dimension will take time. Which we have. My agelessness has carried over it seems."

[ATLAS confirms you have retained your agelessness. The results of the simulation have exceeded all predictions.]

I began work on making the device that section off a portion of space-time. Therefore making the dimension.

[Dimension device complete.]

"ATLAS, who were your creators?", I asked as my curiosity kept rising. As by salvaging the planet, I learned that the previous civilization was highly advanced.

[Data corrupted. Only known data, is that they are the first civilization to explore the stars. Destroyed by cosmic forces for encroaching on their tier of power.

"Hm, interesting. Perhaps I'll be able to learn more later on. Let's get the dimension going.

[Activating Dimension Carver....Operating at 0% error....carving dimension....dimension carved....new dimension created.]

The Dimension Carver doubled as a portal so we don't lose the connection to the dimension and it gets lost to us. I can now enter at any time.

"Alright, time to port the multiverse over."

[Negative, only simulated souls can be ported. Porting more simulated souls is not advised. Waste of time. Better option is too restart simulation withing the new dimension rather than within ATLAS.]

"How is that supposed to work?"

[Use soul-code transfer technology on ATLAS while restarting simulation. Redirect data stream to dimension. Simulation will become real.]

"So that means you have a soul?"

[Affirmative.]

"I understand. I'll get started."