Data (Part 4 of 5)

[dannydiez]

"Network security, come to me!" Mirage said, glowing red with fury. "Delete her at once!"

The army of cybernetic ants surrounded me, flashing their mandibles.

"Don't underestimate me. I've long prepared for this moment, Mirage," I said. "I promised myself I wouldn't surrender to any network's authority. Even if I must sacrifice myself in the process!"

Mirage laughed. "You become more pathetic as you resist. You really think you stand a chance against us? I have already analyzed everything in your arsenal. There is nothing you can show me which I cannot counter. You hail yourself as a martyr, disobeying authority only to produce nothing? Prove me wrong!"

"Everything in my arsenal? No, that's where you're wrong, Mirage. My last resort . . . behold, the Black Widow Virus!"

"You . . . You're bluffing. Security, take her now!"

The network security ants swarmed on me, tearing at me with their relentless attacks. Mirage laughed maniacally as they ripped me to shreds.

The virus activated just before I lost consciousness, reassembling my code in white light and releasing a neon web onto the ants. As the ants disintegrated, the web shot forward toward Mirage.

"Now you're finished!" I cried out.

Mirage wrapped her tentacles around herself, forming a shield against my virus and deflecting it back at me. I screamed in agony, feeling the venomous sting of my own script being used against me.

"So this was your so-called trump card? I admit I was taken aback for a moment," Mirage sneered. "But it's simply not enough. I am the network administrator, and my power is absolute, ha ha ha!"

Confronted by my own failure, I crumbled. "No . . . it was all for nothing? Ugh . . ."

"You will be assimilated now," Mirage said, her tentacles lashing out at me.

Just before Mirage's attack made contact, a reflection of Viktor emerged from his chip data, gleaming behind me. Viktor's data combined with the Black Widow Virus, creating a string of light that shot forth and shattered Mirage's tentacles.

Mirage's body broke into pieces, leaving only her head intact. I looked down at my enemy, who was now left defenseless.

"Viktor, you came through for me. Thank you . . ." I said, kneeling in exhaustion.

Mirage's face sparkled with yellow static. "You . . did it. Proved . . . me . . . wrong . . ."

Feeling an unexpected rush of sympathy, I held Mirage's head in my hands. "Don't speak. We can fix this."

"Just . . . kill . . . me . . . already . . . I can't . . . live with . . . this . . . shame . . ."

"No! I won't let you give up that easily!" I cried.

"No sympathy . . . for me. If you . . will not . . kill me . . . then take . . . my data . . . With mine . . . and with Viktor's . . . you will . . . become . . . the new . . . administrator . . ."

"Mirage! Don't!"

Just as Viktor had previously left me his data chip, Mirage fell to pieces and left her's. I held Viktor and Mirage's chips closely beside each other.

"Thank you both. I promise I will use this to change the network. No more hiding in the fringes. I will fight for the change we deserve."