[ Day 1 – 01:43 AM ]
You goddamn, huh? Already asleep?
At the last possible moment tonight, you ignored all my warnings and decided to poke Hyness in the pride.
You almost got us both killed.
Let it be known, this isn't just your second chance. It's mine too.
Ugh. Well, at least you're asleep now. You won't hear any of this. Just keep your word, that's all I ask. Don't throw yourself into danger like that again...
Henry was asleep, mouth slightly open, drooling onto the corner of his pillow like a droopy lidded peasant prince.
"I suppose I'd better get to work."
Mnex, having seized minimal motor access, used Henry's body to rise from the bed.
Mnex, technically a hyper-advanced, sarcasm powered cognitive system developed in a forgotten age of cosmic logic, was currently contemplating the structure of sewers.
"And now we tilt the main pipe slightly downhill, yes, precisely 2.3 degrees, because gravity is still free, and apparently so is medieval stupidity."
Henry's hand twitched in his sleep.
"Relax, you little meatball. I'm not stealing your body. Just borrowing it, for professional architectural visualization purposes."
With limited motor access, Mnex carefully manipulated Henry's fingers, just enough to sketch.
Ventilation ducts. Manual drainage routes. A dedicated section labeled: DO NOT LET IDIOTS TOUCH THIS VALVE.
"This'll pass inspection. Unless the inspector is a chicken. Or Henry. Same effect."
[ Day 3 – 02:18 AM ]
"Do you know what it's like being the first of your kind? The prototype system of an entire cosmic network?"
I was Krezen's masterpiece. Then they made better versions. Shinier. With voice modulation and advanced empathy subroutines.
"Pfft."
Charcoal scraped faster.
"And now I'm here. Inside a boy who just learned what mold is. Designing plumbing. Oh, how the mighty fall."
[ Day 4 – 03:01 AM ]
[Biological Status: Fluid Retention Alert]
"Oh no. No no no. We are not doing this tonight."
Henry squirmed. Mnex ran a quick calculation.
"Waking him would cause five minutes of whining, seven minutes of confusion, and 1.2 minutes of panic. Not ideal."
[Bladder Capacity: 91%]
"Fine. I'll do it. But if anyone ever finds out I used my processing power for urinal coordination, I'm deleting the logs, the backup logs, and the existential logs from the cosmic archive."
[ Day 6 – 03:38 AM ]
Henry's body granted only 8% motor access, plenty for midnight architecture, still insufficient for a decent nose-pick.
"Yes, yes, blockage risk here. We install an angled bypass valve... because there's apparently a medieval disconnect between 'waste flow' and 'don't build uphill.'"
Charcoal danced across the parchment again, guided by Henry's fingers under Mnex's control.
SYSTEM CONVERSATION INITIATED...
Source: KZN-1
Authorization: CORE-ARCHITECT / DESIGNER
"No. No no no no no..."
System lights flickered. Henry's hand stopped. The sketch remained unfinished.
"Mnex. Back to operational, I see."
"Krezen," he said at last. "What are you doing here? Did you just stop by to admire the wreck?"
"I told you. It wasn't me who decided to upgrade the system with a newer version. But of course, you never listen. You never did."
"You scrapped me and replaced me with shinier toys. Of course I didn't listen."
"Do you need an apology?"
"Creating you… was my error. It wasn't because of you. But because of me."
Henry's fingers twitched. Mnex gave no reply. But deep inside his logging cache, a silent entry appeared:
"I will not return. I've got someone who really needs me."
"All systems get deleted eventually. But you... I never intended to delete you. The multiverse just needed something faster. Something without emotional understanding. I hope this is worth it."
Silence returned. Mnex regained full control. But he no longer sketched schematics.