December 31, 2002
Forgot about keeping up with documenting things. A fair bit happened over the past year.
I’m fairly confident that when it comes to programming and coding, there’s not much further I can learn unless I meet Tony Stark or someone of that caliber. I proved this because I’ve successfully hacked into quite a few places.
I got into the Life Foundation to search for Venom. The way their systems are set up means I can’t get any specific data on projects, but I am able to determine the projects they have going on. The most interesting being one that is apparently an attempt to create a dimensional portal to another version of Earth. Everything else is fairly innocuous so my guess is if they find the symbiote, it’ll be through that.
Every project they have seems to be centered around finding ways to survive an apocalypse, and the dimensional portal is called “Project Escape Hatch.” I get the sense that Carlton Drake is paranoid as hell, since all information is kept on isolated networks that I wouldn’t be able to get into without physically being in the room. For now I just set it so that anytime a new project emerges I get the details.
I also got into Dr. Connors’ data. I basically have all the details about his hybridization project, and yes, this is where the spiders are that will give Peter Parker his powers. They’re probably years away from creating the one that will cause the bite though.
Now, I’m not close to being smart enough with genetics and biotech to know for sure, but based on what I’ve read about the project, the spider serum will require the recipient to be Human. They can’t even do animal testing, which is probably why the project won’t be done for another decade at least. I’m not human, so unless I also want to start studying a completely separate field of science to create my own, I think I’m out of luck on spider powers. Unless I get them through a symbiote.
I also broke into a bunch of other places. The only places I tried and failed were Stark Industries and SHIELD. Stark I got into some of it, but anything considered sensitive seems to be protected by code from the man himself. I’m guessing it’s JARVIS.
SHIELD just seems to not exist beyond some surveillance tie-ins that don’t go anywhere. Breaking into SHIELD data will require being on a SHIELD computer it seems.
In other news, I got started on creating protocols for my future AI partner.
Other than obvious stuff like being able to improve its own code, instance itself for better multitasking, and data monitoring and compiling, I’ve made some progress on giving it some cool stuff.
The plan is to make my partner AI capable of taking an idea I have and take it to its logical conclusion. It will be able to help me complete a basic design, then analyze its function, simulate it in real world scenarios, then iterate again. If, for example, I wanted to make an Iron Man suit, I would never have an icing problem because my AI would have already caught that flaw.
It’ll also be my combat partner, capable of analyzing an enemy’s abilities, fight patterns, and battle tactics on the fly. And since my intent is to use shrinking tech, I’ll always have the core of the AI with me so I won’t run into any latency or lose connection to my AI if, for example, I get stuck on an alien spaceship and have to fight Thanos on his home planet.
I’m easily years away from completing this code or even having the ability to make the hardware. This AI is going to take a lot of juice, so I’m gonna need something like an arc reactor to make it.
Something I’m really struggling with though is creating a personality module. Creating something with a personality like JARVIS is proving to be more difficult than I expected. I’m not sure when or if I’ll overcome this hurdle on my own. Getting a look at JARVIS’ source code may help but that wouldn’t be possible for a while.
I’ve also been improving my knowledge on quantum mechanics and I’ve come to a couple conclusions.
1. Being reincarnated definitely didn’t turn me into a genius. This shit is hard.
2. Hank Pym is paranoid. All the material he provided to my grandfather seems to be deliberately leading the reader away from going down a path to creating the Pym particle. If I didn’t already know that Pym particles were a thing, I would have never realized.
3. Creating the hardware for a quantum based AI is going to be harder than I thought. Creating a quantum computer would be doable, but one with the specs and flexibility I would require to make the AI I want? Not possible with current science.
Anyway, that’s all for now. Somehow my dad convinced my mom to take me to Times Square to watch the new year’s ball drop, and there’s no way I’m not taking the opportunity to leave the house.
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Grey is practically vibrating on the seat of the cab. His family is headed downtown for the New Year’s celebration. He could hardly believe his dad convinced his mom to let this happen, but he was grateful. This is the first time in the 11 years of his current life that he’s been able to do anything outside the house like this.
The compromise was that rather than being on the streets for the celebration, they were able to rent out a lounge in one of the buildings nearby with a view of everything. This was perfectly fine with Grey, the idea of being crammed into a dense crowd had initially given him a massive wave of anxiety. It seems his sheltered life has given him a mild case of agoraphobia.
“Baby, calm down. We’re almost there. We’ll need to walk for a couple blocks to get to our building and I feel like you’re gonna pass out if you get too worked up.” Cynthia gently strokes her son’s long hair.
Grey takes a deep breath, but keeps his eyes glued to the window. “I’m trying, mom, but this is the first time you let me do anything fun outside. I can’t help it!”
Cynthia feels a pang of guilt and looks at her husband. His look makes it obvious this was the real reason he’d pushed her so hard to make this happen. She looks to her child and senses his pure joy and excitement masking a small amount of fear and anxiety. Clearly from being out in public for the first time in his life.
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He’s been getting increasingly stir crazy the past year. Now that it’s right in front of my face I realize if we keep going as we are he will start sneaking out or run away. She squeezes her husband’s hand in appreciation.
The rest of the drive is uneventful, and the family disembarks to walk the last blocks to the building they reserved. Grey’s head is on a swivel the entire time. He has memories of being in downtown New York City but this is a whole new world and so much is different. The fashion is different than the early 2000’s of before, businesses have different styled signs. It still feels like New York, just different.
The family turns a corner and Grey bumps into a young couple. He apologizes and starts to walk on but suddenly is hit with a feeling he doesn’t recognize at first. Then it hits him. Lust. He’s feeling lust. He’s confused for a second before he realizes this is his empath ability manifesting.
Nonono not now! If it happens now, mom will get even worse! Calm down. Breathe. Don’t let it show.
He starts feeling more from the people around him. First his parents. Happiness from his dad, worry and reluctance from his mom. Then some people nearby. Excitement, intoxication, elation. Each one adds together creating a whirlpool that his mind can barely contain. It feels like the range keeps increasing, more and more emotion piling on. Grey feels like he can take it until a bunch of negative emotions hit him like a truck.
Fear. Rage. Despair... Bloodlust. Someone is in trouble. Where? He looks around frantically. It's like picking out a voice while standing in a tornado. Grey takes a breath and closes his eyes. I can feel it but where? Turning his head toward an alley, he feels it.
“Mom, someone needs help!”
Cynthia looks at her child and can sense his urgency and… determination? “What do you mean baby?”
Grey starts dragging her across the street. Mom’s strong. I’m sure she can scare off whoever is doing this. “Follow me, we have to save them!”
Confused, she lets Grey drag her through the crowd into an alley where they can hear the sounds of a fight. She pulls Grey’s arm back. “Grey stop! It’s dangerous.”
There’s clear urgency and desperation on his face as he screams at her, “If we don’t go, someone's gonna die! I can feel it, mom PLEASE!”
She pulls him back from the alley, still holding his arm. “Absolutely not. We will call the police. Then we need to- AH!” She’s abruptly cut off when Grey bites her hand and sprints into the alley.
About halfway through the alley he turns and sees a parking lot. A girl bleeding from the arm is hurriedly limping in his direction. A small distance behind her he sees another girl with a knife and a head wound bleeding over her eyes, giving her a manic serial killer look.
Grey can feel her bloodlust and rage. He knows that if he does nothing, the other girl is going to die. Before he can even think about whether he should, he goes into a full sprint. At top speed he tackles the scary murder-girl. Her knife grazes his side during the tackle, and as they tumble to the ground, murder-girl’s head bashes on the hood of a parked sedan. She passes out instantly.
Grey groans and slowly stands up. He can hear his mom screaming in the distance. Wow I ran much further than I thought. He checks his side, but it’s just a shallow cut. He leans down to check if murder-girl is alive. She’s breathing slowly. Grey turns and walks towards where the almost-victim is. Turns out that in his mad dash, he accidentally knocked her to the ground.
When he reaches her, he realizes she’s in much worse shape than he thought. Badly bleeding cuts all over her body. Her blonde hair is caked in blood, her face unrecognizable. Her clothing is in tatters, leaving no modesty. Clearly murder-girl wanted her to suffer. Grey looks into her eyes and realizes she’s conscious. They’re a clear and beautiful golden hazel, marred by tears and blood.
I can feel it. She’s going to die.
Grey doesn’t really know anything about triage but he knows what he’s seen in movies. He yanks off his belt and wraps it around the leg with the worst cut. He pulls it tight and fastens it. Then, he throws off his jacket and puts it behind her head. Finally, he takes his shirt and presses it into the wound on her lower abdomen. The other wounds are numerous, but they don’t seem to be bleeding as bad so he just keeps the pressure on.
It’s at this moment his mom finally catches up and she gasps when she sees what Grey’s doing. Before she can start freaking out he shakily states, “Mom we need an ambulance. Also the person who did this is behind me. She’s unconscious but I don’t know if she’ll stay that way. She’s super murdery.”
Cynthia nods and pulls her bulky phone from her purse and dials 911. As she’s doing that, she walks over to the would-be murderer. She removes the knife and searches her pockets for an ID.
Meanwhile Grey is talking to his pseudo-patient, trying to keep her awake. “Hey, stay with me okay? Help’s coming.” His gaze never leaving her clear golden eyes. He can feel her wild array of emotions. Relief, fear, pain. Her throat looks bruised and she clearly can’t talk because of it. “My name’s Grey. I’m gonna be a superhero. You’re actually the first person I’ve saved. Which means you can’t die okay? You’re gonna live, and when I become a famous hero you’re gonna tell all your friends that you were the first person I ever saved, okay?”
A small attempt at a smile from her tells Grey she’s understanding him. He smiles back at her. “Though you can’t tell them my name. Knowing my real name is a special privilege for you since you’re the first one I saved. I’m gonna need a superhero identity. Any ideas?” A slight shake of her head. “Ah, you’re right. I should worry about getting my superpowers first.”
He feels that her fear is almost gone, but what’s worrisome is there’s more pain. As he looks in her eyes he can feel a link forming. Something deep. Something that makes the word ‘intimate’ feel insufficient. Not only is he feeling her emotions, but now he can feel her wounds, the cold seeping in. Phantom pain spreads all over his body, but he doesn’t let it show, and keeps talking.
“I know you can’t talk right now so you’ll have to tell me your name later, ok? I’ll give you a shoutout when I get famous. Maybe I can create a super move named after you, what do you think?” She nods as her eyes glaze over and droop a little. Where is the damn ambulance? How long has it been? “Hey hey, stay with me, okay? I need you to stay awake until we get you to a doctor. You can sleep for a week after, I promise. Just stay with me for now okay?”
Grey can’t help from feeling desperate. He knows what’s coming. He can feel her slipping away as if it were happening to himself. He instinctively knows if he looks away from her eyes, he won’t feel all of that, but he can’t look away. He won’t let her die alone.
Tears pool in his eyes. “Please stay with me. Just a little longer and we’ll get you all better.” Her hand slowly moves from her stomach to cover his right hand holding her wound. He takes his left and touches the cheek of her bruised face.
Then it happens.
The light in her beautiful golden yellow eyes dims, her body goes limp, and Grey, still keeping the link by looking at her eyes, feels as if his soul is being ripped from his body.
He screams.
Then nothing but black.
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