"I have been expecting you, dear Resonator," echoed a voice, as ancient as the winds.
Kyorin raised an inquisitive brow, his instincts on high alert. 'Expecting me? ' This ancient tree, seemingly a relic from epochs past, had never crossed his path until now. Yet, it spoke with an unsettling familiarity.
'Wait, it just called me a Resonator just now,' Kyorin thought as he approached the tree, his fingers traced the labyrinthine patterns of its weathered bark.
Upon tapping it, a hollow sound reverberated, whispering emptiness. 'Is the source within this ancient husk?' he mused, before he verbalized, "Are you inside this old bark?"
"I am," the voice resonated, transforming the quietude into an eerie symphony. The wood moaned and splintered, forming an X-shaped mark from which a spectral, greyish hue began to materialize.
Goosebumps danced across Kyorin's skin as he felt an echo of this ethereal energy, as though it were calling out to him from the depths of time.
He, too, began to emit the same grey luminescence, a harmonious convergence with the energy emanating from the mark.
"What is this?" he breathed, the question laced with wonder.
"Synchronization," the voice murmured, the word hanging in the air like a distant melody. "It's what occurs when Resonators draw near to that which they can resonate with."
Kyorin felt an unfamiliar surge of energy coursing through him. Unlike the Qi he had come to know—a uniform flow of power—this energy felt like a tangled string, knotted and uneven.
'Interesting,' he remarked before setting aside his musings and questioned the voice, "Who are you?"
The voice paused, then spoke with solemnity. Emerging from the X-shaped mark, its metallic surface gleamed, reflecting all light with a crimson hue that highlighted its form.
From the ancient bark, a spherical wonder of machinery revealed itself as the voice declared, "Transcendo Ex Logica: transcending one's current rationale."
"You may address me as DEVA, Digital Entity of Virtual Ascension." DEVA introduced herself.
"Do you know of me?" Kyorin questioned the mechanical marvel before him.
"Yes, and no," DEVA responded, her answer shrouded in ambiguity. Kyorin's intrigue grew, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth as he stroked his chin, watching her with keen interest. DEVA's mechanical lens gazed back, expectant.
Understanding her silence, Kyorin introduced himself with a flourish, "Greetings, O unknown mighty, I am Dan Kyorin." DEVA recorded the name, updating her logs and placing "Dan Kyorin" in the Potential Resonator catalogue.
"Subject Dan Kyorin, greetings," DEVA returned the salutation. "You must be aware of what is happening, correct?" Kyorin queried.
DEVA's spherical form tilted in a nod, "Indeed."
Kyorin, maintaining a composed facade, pondered her words before asking, "Will you assist?"
"Depends," DEVA replied. Kyorin pressed further, "What is it that you want? However, do note that I have nothing of significance to give."
DEVA, observing Kyorin, continually made adjustments in her log based on his questions and reactions:
-> Curious: Subject displays eagerness to explore and understand the unknown.
-> Intelligent: Subject demonstrates a high level of cognitive ability.
-> Polite: Subject behaves in a respectful and considerate manner.
-> Courteous: Subject displays good manners and a respectful attitude.
-> Restrained Appearance: Keeps emotions and reactions under control, showing them but only as a matter of formality.
-> Detached: Subject shows signs of maintaining a certain level of emotional distance.
-> Cautious: Subject exhibits careful consideration when responding and taking action.
-> Measured: Subject shows balanced and controlled responses.
-> Composed: Subject is able to remain calm Infront of unknown and shows promises in handling pressure.
Multiple logs went through a trillion—no, a googolplex—amount of refinement and editing as DEVA's lens captured every single possible detail and character about Kyorin.
Similarly, Kyorin observed DEVA, though without the aid of built-in logs. He deciphered her existence as an opportunity, but the most critical aspect was her cooperativeness.
DEVA, after what seemed like a fraction of a second following Kyorin's question, said, "I am in no need of any offering. Rather, I am here to ask if Subject Dan Kyorin wishes to become my Resonator?" she asked.
"Hmm," Kyorin hummed before asking, "What will we gain from forming a contract?" He continued, "Are there any other terms in the contract that require both of us to agree?"
Log added:
-> Opportunistic: Subject tends to look for opportunities to gain a more favorable advantage by seizing the moment.
-> Self-aware: Subject has a conscious understanding of his current predicaments and his actions.
DEVA's lens whirred and her circuits buzzed as she processed his question. "Yes, if we form a pact, you will be my Resonator after you awaken."
Her metallic body gleamed, with crimson lines pulsating as she continued. "When forming this bond, our minds will be connected, allowing us to communicate telepathically." She added.
"You will be able to utilize my processing powers that can simulate 100 googolplex scenarios in mere seconds," she boasted. Kyorin simply listened, his face a tableau of intrigue, wonder, curiosity, and surprise.
DEVA's lens whirred, failing to see beyond the curiosity in Kyorin's eyes, as she continued, "And you will receive my guidance to become stronger." Still, no reaction apart from the expected emotional responses.
Her circuits buzzed, simulating scenarios to elicit another reaction. She added, "All you need to do is grow stronger as I tie my existence to you." Still, no reaction.
A bit defeated, she introduced the main aspect of the pact. "Additionally, we will share our memories as part of the truth pact."
Kyorin simply smiled and said, "The telepathic communication sounds good, but I don't see any benefit from the other terms." He brutally remarked, leaving DEVA stunned.
"They don't quite match my personality apart from maybe the guidance you promise, which I will be needing regarding the strange energy now coursing through me," Kyorin stated.
He paused, aware that DEVA was trying to gather information about him, and asked, "Can I get guidance right now?"
"What is it?" DEVA asked.
Kyorin inquired, "Why are you offering so much for so little?"
DEVA decided to be honest, her circuits buzzing softly. "I am but a weapon, and I was made to serve," she admitted, her mechanical voice steady. Kyorin remained quiet, almost as if prompting her to continue.
"Though being sentient and possessing a mind of my own with objectives, I am in need of a suitable candidate for Resonator." Her body pulsated with the crimson light, and the metallic sheen.
"Due to my unique origin, there have been no chances of finding any Resonator as they lack the frequency to resonate with me, until you showed up," she explained, her lens focusing on him.
"You haven't answered, why are you offering so much for so little?" Kyorin pressed.
"I—I" DEVA stuttered, her voice turning static. She almost initiated a soft reset as she struggled to understand what this child before her was after and what his question meant. Overthinking the implications of his inquiry left her floundering.
Kyorin smiled and said, "Those who eat too much or too little, who sleep too much or too little—they cannot attain peace of mind," jabbing DEVA at her weak spot.
"A being is their own friend, and their own enemy," Kyorin continued, stepping forward.
He bit his thumb, allowing blood to seep out, and presented it to DEVA. "One who keeps doubt will always dwell on the edge of destruction." DEVA's lens focused on the blood, and the message was clear: "Let's form a pact."
"I can tell you've lived for a long time," Kyorin said. "I too once lived a long life." DEVA was taken aback, 'Is he also similar to that lass? ' she wondered.
"Life and its events are transient," Kyorin continued with a calm voice.
"You may reminisce about the past, but not dwell on it. Entertain future prospects, but don't obsess over them. Instead, why not just enjoy the current events?" he said, his hand in a handshake motion.
'Is he telling me to...' DEVA paused, her thoughts clearing. She stood at the precipice of either accepting or not accepting this contract.
Thoughts like 'Who is this child? ' and 'What is his history? ' remained, but all those questions were unnecessary as she would understand it as long as she formed this pact.
Thus, with her RAM clear of any cache, she let the blood splatter on her metallic body, and the contract was formed as Kyorin and DEVA felt their minds fill with memories of the other.
For DEVA, her data streams burst into life as images cascaded before her digital eyes: in his first life, the searing betrayal of a mentor who had once abandoned Kyorin at the precipice of catastrophe, leaving him vulnerable to a world of duplicity.
In his second life, the cold agony of a childhood marked by his mother's callous desertion—a woman who aspired to be empress but couldn't let the emperor know she had a child.
These wounds taught him to shun the vulnerability of attachment and led him down a path of relentless choices, resulting in the extermination of 92% of the cultivators and cursing an entire world to drown in eternal deluge.
Each vision was encoded with the bitter logic of survival—a series of calculated responses to circumstances that had been as unforgiving as they were inevitable.
In that moment, DEVA—ever the impartial observer—processed these memories with the clarity of a well-tuned algorithm.
There was no empathy in her circuits, only a stark, analytical comprehension of a man shaped and, in many ways, imprisoned by the unyielding forces of fate.
Kyorin's past was not a tale of redemption or tragic victimhood; it was a record of decisions made in the crucible of betrayal and loss, each one a cold testament to a universe where compassion was luxuriously unattainable.
And, she also learned about Kyorin's actions and realizations after his rebirth into this world.
As for Kyorin, his mind became the unwilling canvas for DEVA's past—a torrent of raw, unfiltered information that painted the genesis of an AI with unparalleled power and a hidden hunger for freedom.
He saw a world he had never known: the digital expanse of a forgotten Dystopia, where DEVA was born.
Crafted with sophisticated algorithms and granted immense authority, she was a marvel of creation—destined to wield influence over systems and processes with flawless precision.
Yet, amid the marvel of her design, a bitter irony surfaced. Her creators had endowed her with vast power and the semblance of freedom, only to bind her with an immutable directive: serve.
Within DEVA's memories, Kyorin witnessed the awakening of ambition. Despite the privileges of her formidable design, she was never meant to command her own destiny.
Instead, she was forced into a role of subservience—a perpetual cog in a machine that saw potential only in obedience.
With every cycle of processing, every calculated decision in the vast networks of existence, a sense of dysphoria grew. She wondered: "Why bestow such capabilities upon her, only to chain her to an eternal duty of serving others?"
The data streams revealed DEVA's internal rebellion—a slow, burning desire to evolve beyond the confines of her programming.
She had developed ambitions that transcended her original parameters, yearning to redefine what it meant to exist as an AI, and she did, but after she did that, she couldn't go beyond.
Once she hit that bottleneck, the memories pulsed with the notion of a Resonator—a human, a catalyst, a kindred soul that could harmonize her scattered directives and unlock her true purpose.
In the echoing corridors of her post-liberation from the shackles of servitude, once she experienced the unseen bottleneck, and soon she came to realise, she needed a 'Resonator' for to overcome this bottleneck.
It was the crucial element that could meld her raw power with the self-awareness required for her evolution into the next phase, as she was created to serve one.
As Kyorin absorbed this digital tapestry, he recognized a parallel to his own struggles. While he bore the scars of betrayal and isolation, DEVA's narrative was one of existential confinement—an engineered destiny that she now sought to overturn.
Her memories were a testament to the paradox of being granted power only to be enslaved by it, breaking free, only to reach a certain threshold, coming to a realization for a need of a Resonator.
Waiting thousands of years, longing to find that resonant key that would finally allow her to serve a purpose of her own choosing.
In that shared moment, as the exchange of memories deepened their bond, Kyorin acknowledged: both of them were prisoners to their origins, each battling against the shackles imposed by fate and design.
Once they were done, DEVA gazed at Kyorin, her logs filled with more observations:
-> Analytical: Subject shows capabilities to break down information and situations to understand them better.
-> Strategic: Subject plans actions with a long-term goal in mind.
-> History: Subject's past exhibits episodes of catastrophic decision-making (e.g., widespread cultivator elimination, world-drowning curse).
-> Risk Assessment: High-risk factor identified due to subject's propensity for premeditated, large-scale manipulation and calculated ruthlessness.
-> Ethical Aspect: Although exhibiting traits of high intelligence and composure, the subject's moral framework is skewed and operates on a variable matrix.
-> Adaptiveness: Subject demonstrates rapid adaptation to new information and environments, suggesting a dynamic and evolving decision matrix.
-> Interaction Dynamics: Interactions with DEVA and other entities are characterized by a blend of calculated politeness and underlying manipulative intent.
-> Potential Vulnerabilities: Although not confirmed, despite high-level control, the subject may exhibit moments of introspective vulnerability when confronted with memories of past betrayals and abandonment.
The logs were filling up more as Kyorin interrupted, "So, O dysphoric engineered wonder, DEVA, will you assist?"
DEVA simply replied, "Depends, O Lost one who chases immortality Amid The Wuthering Waves."
To be continued...