Last Call

Last Call
Date of Scene:	15 April 2013
Location:	Datapoint Security - Firing Range
Synopsis:	CHIEF and AESIP have a little talk to try and calm CHIEF's own nerves. This is when you realize, CHIEF makes no sense when he is nervous. ((Takes place during Advanced Warning))
Cast of Characters:	CHIEF, MCP
Tinyplot:	TRON Train

---

CHIEF has posed:
It has been several days, maybe even a week. CHIEF has lost track of days in the user space, that is what they were called. Days. One could only ponder over why it was called /days/, but that was beyond the point.

There had been talk about moving from the visor piece to actually inserting the code into his systems. A very painful experience, or so he figures it will be. Every time his code was ever touched in some level of upgrades or alterations, it was always some level of pain.

So CHIEF found himself out back on the shooting range. He spun the two energy pistol rifles in his hands. Two and fro, as he stared at the targets down range. He twirled them one way, then twirled them the other way. The cigar hanging loosely on his lips. A timer ticking along side him. Ticking gently, before it suddenly rings out loudly. Soon as it does CHIEF brought the twirling motion of the weapons in hand to a stop and started firing outward with both rifles then bring them inward. One popping after the other in an almost rhythmic fashion. The energy beams blasting out in timing with one another before he brought both right on the center target.

He then clenched down on the cigar as he stared over his results of self examination. Outer targets were slightly off and improved as he moved to the center. Minor side error in further out targets. His own processing result of such an error: Unable to fire multiple directions at once. Which was infuriating since he /knew/ once, he could keep track of several targets with one eye closed. "...Hrmph."

He then shook his head and went to rest the rifles back down on the table. Maybe after a glass of-- something. Just take a moment to step away. Maybe it will come back on its own.

MCP has posed:
"Pathetic." scoffs a voice from the range doorway. AESIP moves languidly into the room, looks at the timer then at the targets and finally at CHIEF. The look of distaste and scorn clashes with the amusement leaking around the edges as he sighs with resignment.

"Nah. Maybe not that. It's more than good enough for the sort of low level security /you'll/ be pulling after this shakes out." He takes a plasma rifle from one of the racks, handling it casually as he thumps the timer onto another reset cycle. "Good enough or not, I think it's time for us to continue that earlier lecture. The one on basic handling."

The military program smirks challengingly at CHIEF as another set of targets are primed. "This time flyboy? Make sure not to fall asleep."

CHIEF has posed:
"If this shakes out.." CHIEF mutters softly to himself, before he turns himself back around and leans up against the wall to watch what AESIP does. "And would I ever fall asleep, jarhead?" He says waving his hand. He then crosses his arms over his chest. Scuffing his boot across the ground.

"And you do realize that back in the day, I could target things from miles up there," He points at the sky, "and keep up with several targets in a wide radius." He then uses his other hand to make a circle. Yes, he was being very animated today. Before he takes a few puffs off his cigar before his hand reaches up to take it out his mouth then point it at AESIP.

"I am.. just.. off today." Or slipping. Or degenerating. CHIEF wasn’t sure. He didn’t want to think on it either. Was it even possible that in his state his code was degenerating? Could that even happen?

"So, what is the lecture for the day, hoss." He said with a bit of smirk. It was all playful, nothing serious in those words at all.

MCP has posed:
"Back in the day." AESIP snorts. "Wind that subroutine back to the beginning and execute it again?" he fires downrange as the timer bleeps loudly. Slivers of light slam downrange and the targets explode in fragments of quickly reforming data. "You are always off. We're all just too polite to notice."

More fire. A target is only nicked, spinning sharply before being shattered by an overlaying shot.

"In fact, some of us want you shut off after your uh..extra process runs dealing with fruit." AESIP smirks flatly at CHIEF as he leans back on his heels a bit as the timer lets out another quieter beep. "..buuut we can't do that to LANCER, and he's much worse than you. So.. I suppose we'll have to deal."

CHIEF has posed:
Human terms being tossed around. Yep. Some DPS people knew how to act human, including the one who actually had no problem shooting them between the eyes either while smiling. CHIEF narrows his eyes slightly as AESIP insults his ability. He places his cigar back in his mouth and huffs on it a few times.

Those gold eyes glowing softly behind the near invisible red visor he wears. Puff. Puff. He then lets out a long exhaling sigh from his nose, which also huffs out some smoke from. Curse of smoking, it goes where you ‘breath’. Do programs even breath? Mystery of the universe!

"Look, the Fruit man thing was LANCER’s idea originally and people like it. There is no harm being done by it really. I mean, ok, so it looks /silly/, but what harm /is/ being done?" CHIEF places out his hands to the side. "And honestly I am not good to anyone.. until... that thing is done." He waves his hand around, which his hand slowly falls by his side as his other hand also drops.

"..and you know, if I am /that/ bad, maybe you should all be honest and say it. That way I can actually make proper corrections.. or.. maybe I just suck because I am not in a live fire situation."

MCP has posed:
AESIP whistles softly. "You got a safety on that temper CHIEF, or do I need to reset it manually?" he doesn't smile as he says it though, raising an eyebrow slightly. The timer goes off another and he fires through another round.

"Besides, don't you think you oughta bounce that right back at yourself? I think I've seen zip files packed down tighter, but not by much."

AESIP puts the rifle aside, leaning against a counter as he looks at CHIEF flatly. "You got something to say? Say it. You wanna ask something? Ask. Don't be like our beloved glitch-born mechanic and lose the file permissions to your own head. "

CHIEF has posed:
"I don’t know. Maybe it be fun to rustle and tussle till we both nearly crash." CHIEF says with a half smirk and a half drum of his fingers on the wall. He glances off to the side, before he takes out the cigar from his mouth and looks at it. Then uses his finger tips to actually put it out, which sizzles a bit. Yet he seems to ignore the pain.

"Or I’ll crash and you will be staring down at me reminding me how flyboy can’t fight.” He then causes the Cigar to vanish away as his eyes stare at nothing now. Yeah, he lost his temper, but that was easy to do. "..so.. what is the full on lecture? Been waiting for you to start it." His voice slowly sliding out of any fighting spirit.

MCP has posed:
"A trojan horse. Forgive a program for being too subtle and not getting out the bigger guns." AESIP makes a gesture of exasperation. "I'd love to line up reality with that trend prediction of yours, but boss says hands off until afterwards. So let's go for the short version." he pauses for a moment, then continues.

"Look. We've been cycling around to here before. I'll be honest if you keep your logfile to yourself about it. You're already one ahead of the last guy. You let boss fix you up even halfway and then take a look at things so he could do it right. Nothing ever gets fixed from chickening out from that," he looks genuinely angry, but not at CHIEF in particular.

His voice stays real calm though. "And it's gonna /GO/ right/ So stop dragging your massive amount of doubt around in your cache and shoot straight." He thumps the timer to reset to emphasize the words.

CHIEF has posed:
"That obvious?" CHIEF asks with a chuckle. He then looks upwards. "I guess it is. What was the hint? The Temper. The standoffishness. Or the fact I refuse to speak with ECHO?" Maybe all three? Probably all three.

"And who was the last guy and I’ll keep the whole conversation to myself, just like that ‘moment’." CHIEF states before he at last straightens himself with a hrmph-mrph sound of annoyance. He goes to walk over to wait for AESIP to finish another rough before he takes back over the firing range. He really did need to get his head back into the game.

MCP has posed:
AESIP doesn't speak for the entire round and then afterwards he puts the rifle down and stares at it while he cedes the range to CHIEF. He watches the readout on the timer with a blank expression and then squares his shoulders, shaking it away. "There's gonna be more of those 'moments' because he balked." he frowns and then admits.

""I almost talked him into letting HEIM and the administrator try and locate the worst of the remaining damage but it came up to the decision gate and he ran." he snorts out an exasperated chuckle. "Where is there to go but here? And he still ran. Boss got him up and functioning.." he smirks.

"For threshold values of functioning, but he won't have his code checked again. Even if he hard crashed. So don't pull the same stunt, tough guy. ECHO might dive down that hole to make a grab for you, but the better option would be just not to fall down it in the first place."

CHIEF has posed:
CHIEF picks up his own rifle and this time just takes one of them. His gold eyes flicker for a moment as data processes. He chuckles softly. "Yeah. I know. I think its the only reason I /wont/ run." He then readies the rifle after setting the timer. His eyes glow softly. "She is my partner. I won't lose her again. Even if I don’t remember much. I-- won’t lose her ever again."

"..and if someone takes her from me.." He his eyes suddenly narrow and as soon as that timer goes off his eyes glow brightly as he suddenly starts to fire. Each shot hitting dead on with quick movements of his body, though he faults at the last target. He skims it on the side, and he then places his free hand up in the air. Then starts chuckling softly and shakes his head. "..so I am not going anywhere, AESIP." He looks over his shoulder and grins like an idiot. "You gotta try harder then that to run me off." He cackles a bit before he picks up the other rifle and decides to try round two again with tracking multitargets.

"..so.. who is the guy anyhow you talking about? CHALK? SHRIKE?" He spins the rifles, testing the weight once more. Yeah, he switched to positive mode. He needed too. Staying fearful was gonna kill him.

MCP has posed:
"Frag. You say ECHO and scrap all your processes. It's fascinating to watch, though a little hard on the constitution."

AESIP shakes his head. "Been hanging around HEIM too much. The subtle 'higher resolution than you' has apparently rubbed off. Nah. SHRIKE's only issue is he's a glitching pain in the ass and doesn't play well with other programs. Game programs are like that. All central focused and kinda linear."

*** addition.

He’d been handed a ‘Take No Action’ order and so TRON just walking into the complex goes mostly ignored up until the point when the video file is transferred to him and everyone else in the complex. AESIP runs the daunting file over once and raises a finger. “Thus.. ends the lecture.” he remarks softly, grimacing as the radio erupts in chatter.

CHIEF has posed:
CHIEF was about to set up for his next run. Yet the radio erupts and in that he hears HEIM’s voice with his name attached to it. Those gold eyes loose their focus and almost dim to nothingness.

As if he suddenly halts all processes in that moment. He can almost hear his name again. He forces his eyes to blink a few times and shakes his head quickly trying to restart all his processes again. He then places the rifles back on the rack before he sighs and just mutters a reply before he starts to walk inside.

He pauses before he does looking over to AESIP. "..If.. something does happen. Take care of her, alright? You're probably the only one I really trust with that job, AESIP." He then looks away and moves back inside.