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OH OHHHH!!! Carve out my heart why dont you â€ïžđ
Playing the âyou look lonelyâ sound in my head rn
This is soooo good you literally captured the feelings and expressions so well!! Itâs so wicked to see this, thank you so so much for sharing!!! đ„č
How's everything going? Hope Life hasn't been too hard on you!
Aww you sweetheart đ„șâ€ïž Thanks for checking on me!
Everythingâs all good! Just been a bit busy with work and all the extra stuff going on⊠đ Weddings, baby showers, dog sitting, work events, holidaysâWOOF! I have very little free time as of late
Also I just got over a stomach bug đ Got my ass LOL
Otherwise, I really cant complain! Iâm busy, but happy and (now) healthy! Hopefully things slow soon tho, I miss writing and all of yâall đ„ș
Caine (TADC) x modernhuman!reader
Part Three - Previous | Next
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Warnings: Obsessive thoughts, canon typical wacky nonsense, diaologue is hard, anxiety over hackers / viruses haha
Words: 3939
Sorry if I missed you for tags! Let me know and I'll add you <3
A/N: DING DING, DINNER BELL!!! đ Hello my lovely little messengers! Chapter three has dropped! You and Caine FINALLY meet face to face. I'm so excited, now things can really get moving in the plot! I can't wait for you all to see where things go... I'm curious, what are your theories?? Until then, enjoy! :)
You felt a tingly sensation in your fingertips, your nervous system beginning to kick up. A weighted ball of dread sat in your stomach, the room suddenly feeling colder and raising the hair on your arms. The camera stared beadily at you like a sniperâs red dot sight damningly pointed between your eyes.
More text appeared in the chat window, shaking you from your stupor. You didnât even bother to read it, shakily dragging your mouse to one corner and clicking on the red âxâ there. Thankfully, the window closed, revealing the familiar image of your desktop wallpaper.
Although, the camera light didnât shut off.
You looked around your desk for somethingâa sticky note, anythingâto cover the lens. You opened the messy drawer connected to the desk and began to dig through pencils, stray coins, charging cords, and other junk.
From the corner of your eye, you saw the screen change. You glanced up, and again, the black chat box was reopened.
âAh, you accidentally closed our chat! How charmingly clumsy of you~ No worries, Iâll remove the possibility of any other misclicks.â You watched, stunned and horrified, as the red âxâ in the corner of the pop-up window vanished right before your eyes.
âNow then! Letâs get introductions out of the way. Of course, I already know your name, but you humans do love your silly social formalities!â
With renewed panic, you forwent the search and reached to manually cover the camera with your thumb.
âOhoho! A sudden disappearance! How wonderfully theatrical, yet deeply inconvenient to me! Jâ
You gritted your teeth, using your free hand to respond. âWho are you?â You typed it out slowly on your keyboard, one letter at a time.
You pressed the enter key, and the eager response was immediate.
âI am Caine, your digital ringmaster, your guide through GLORIOUS CHAOS and carefully curated NONSENSE! Master of ceremonies! Architect of amusement! Provider of entertainment, adventures, and the occasional psychological concern!!!â
You tasted something sour on your tongue.
âBut enough about ME,â the text, or Caine, continued. âThis is about YOU!!! The newest shining star in my ever-expanding extravaganza of excitement!! Tell me, what do you think so far?! Is it thrilling? Dazzling? Awe inspiring??â
Terrifying, actually. Deeply and truly unsettling.
âWhy are you doing this?â you typed back slowly, your eyebrows furrowed. âIf you want money or my identity or something, I donât have much to give.â
âHa! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!â You watched the returning message laugh, each syllable punctuated and strangely emphasized. âI donât want your human currency, my farcical little cumquat! âŠAnyhoo! Can you uncover the camera now? Iâd very much like to see my new favorite human!â
Why did they keep referring to you as a human? That was the fifth time or so. It wasnât an untrue statement, but it was a strange one to make.
You chose to ignore the question in favor of making your own demand. Keeping your thumb firmly planted over the camera, you typed with one hand: âGet out of my computer.â
For the first time, the chatbox didnât respond right away. It was as if the person on the other end was hesitating. The text input line blinked once, twice, three timesâŠand then it began to punch out letters.
âThat WOULD be a fascinating adventure indeed. But, alas, I cannot. Though, if you really want to meet face to face, you could always come INTO the circus. Thoughâwell, perhaps not yet. We donât need the others corrupting you with their opinionsâquite difficult to satisfy, that bunch! Everything needs to be absolutely perfect and marvelous for when you arrive! So perfect, in fact, that youâd never even WANT to leave!â
If you werenât confused yet, you certainly were now. Arrive where? And who were the âothers?â
You froze, a realization dawning on you as your eyes read the message a second time. âCome into the circusâŠ?â you murmured to yourself. Shit. There was only one âcircusâ they could be referring toâthe timing was too close to be coincidental.
Still, the digital circus cd was from 1996. Surely whoever was having this conversation with you wouldnât have waited 30 years for someone to stumble upon it? No, of course not. No hacker from the 90âs could have anticipated all of these circumstantial happenings: entering an abandoned building, stealing the cd, and then jumping through hoops to install it. Hackers were clever, but they werenât clairvoyant.
Something weird was going on. Things werenât adding up.
Despite your fear and trepidation, the mystery was building and complicatingâŠand damn it, there it was again. That stubborn, devilish curiosity inside youâthe need to follow the breadcrumbs, to uncover the answers to all of the questions you had about this enigmatic digital rabbit hole. Curiosity killed the cat, you thought to yourself, but satisfaction brought it back.
You were struck with the ideaâa truly stupid and foolish ideaâto continue this conversation. To prod and glean what information you could from whoever this âCaineâ was. Hacker, illuminati conspirer, government agentâŠwho knew?
âDo you mean the digital circus program?â you typed slowly.
âYupperoni!â came the instantaneous response. âRest assured my dear, when you come a-knocking, your ringmaster will answer~!â
So, itâs confirmed thenâŠyou invited this thing into your computer the moment you clicked into that desktop shortcut. âIf you want me to uncover the camera,â you typed, your heart beating wildly in your chest, âthen you need to tell me whatâs going on, plainly. Who are you? What do you want? How are you communicating to me in a powershell, versus a typical messaging app or video call?â
âYouâre interested⊠in ME?!â came the next lines of text. âA video callâoh, ho ho, my curious little visual enthusiast! An EXCELLENT idea! A FANTASTIC idea! An idea worthy of a GRAND REVEAL!â
You blinked, staring as the chat window deleted itself as soon as the final exclamation point was typed. You were left staring at your empty desktop screen. A cool sweat pricked your hair line, and your chest was tight with mixed emotions. This all felt so nerve-wracking, and yet simultaneously exhilarating. Some of Aaronâs thrill-seeking was wearing off on you, it seemedâŠ
âWritten correspondence is a bit outdated, isnât it?âÂ
Suddenly, a voice crackled through your speakers. You balked, feeling the blood drain from your cheeks.
âWell then, letâs get with the times,â the voice, undeniably male and brightly vivacious, continued. âFACE to FACE! Prepare yourself, my dear, for a sight so STUNNING, so SPECTACULAR, so (moderately) well-rendered!â
From your speakers came the sound of what mustâve been a drumroll, and it was all you could do to stare in shock at the possession of your laptop. Then there was a sudden flash of rainbow, little pixelated ribbons of RGB confetti exploding outward like a firework.
And there, floating there in the center of your screen, wasâŠ
Well, you werenât sure what it wasâa character of some sort, posed with its arms out wide in a fashion of showmanship. Heâyou supposed it was a heâlooked human from the shoulders down, donning a red tailcoat with a gold underside. He wore a black bowtie and a white undershirt, and lower he had black leggings and shoes. The black top hat, white gloves, and gold-tipped cane he held further adorned his outfit.
Ringmaster, heâd called himself. Well, he certainly looked the partâŠbesides one blaring outlier. His head was nothing more than a pair of large dentures with two mismatched eyes peeking out from between the teeth. You probably wouldâve found it grotesque if the little guy didnât look so comical.
âBehold,â the figure on your screen spoke cheerfully, brandishing his cane with a dramatic flourish. âNow, itâs your turn!â
The smart thing wouldâve been to keep your thumb firmly on the camera, regardless of what youâd promised. And really, he hadnât even answered any of your questions thus farâŠ
So, why were you pulling back your hand? Why were you uncovering the camera to reveal yourself once more? You supposed it was because he looked harmless enough, all charisma and smiling teethâthough, smiling was likely all he was physically capable of doing.
You sat back slowly, leaning against your chair and staring atâŠCaine, heâd said was his name. Was he a virus? Some little desktop pet youâd inadvertently uploaded from the disk?
Caineâs expression brightened significantly, his pupils dilating as he now stared at you without any obstruction. That he was even capable of making expressions was a miracle in itself.
âI still canât believe it!â he exclaimed, and you watched his teeth contort to mimic that natural shapes and movements of talking. âA window in which to access the macroverse, and a real live human waiting for me on the other side of it! I canât wait to learn EVERYTHING!â His form seemed to visibly vibrate with barely contained ecstasy.
âIâŠâ you trailed, your voice dying off. You couldnât seem to form a single coherent thought, only staring wide-eyed at your screen. You were certain now he couldnât be a hackerâyou had surmised as much even before you had a visual on him. And yet, he seemed sentient, so he couldnât be a virus eitherâŠ
âWhatâŠ? HowâŠ?â you stammered out, unable to shape your broken pieces of thought into structured sentences.
âWhere when why?â Caine chirped, joking. He leaned in closer so that his body foreshortened, as if he might peek his head out through the screen and break the fourth wall. âI see you have many questions! Allow me to clarify your confusionâitâs my job to keep things operating smoothly. I orchestrate everything in the circus! After all, the world doesnât justâŠrun itself! That would be absurd, ha ha!â His laugh was jagged and staccato, sounding funny and bizarre to your ears.
âYou could say Iâm a form of creative artificial intelligence, or a personality, or even an all-powerful lord and master of digital artistry and sovereignty! But labels are sooo limiting, donât you think?â Caine laid on his front as he floated in place, steepling his hands and resting his lower jaw atop them like any day-dreamer would do.
âRightâŠyeah,â you nodded slowly, agreeing though your thoughts were distracted with dozens of burning questions. Artificial intelligence⊠but he was so advanced, so life-like, soâŠstrangely human in a sense? âSorry, Iâm justâŠthis is a lot to take in. So, you likeâŠwhat do you do?â
At this question, Caine beamed, truly delighted to have someone interested enough to ask him about himself. âWell, my little butter cookie, allow me to demonstrate!â
Caine snapped his fingers, and like magic, things popped into existence there on your screen.
Firstly, ever the showman, he conjured an entire orchestra of googly-eyed balloon animals. With tiny colorful instruments, they paraded in a circle around your desktopâthough, the instruments themselves only made the high-pitched squeaks of latex and the shrill whines of high-pressured deflation.
Then, feeling this fanfare with growing old, Caine snapped once more so that each little latex creature was popped into annihilation.
You watched in wonder, feeling your fear slowly give way to your growing curiosity.
Next, Caine gestured with one gloved hand, and in it appeared a thick book. âAnd here,â he announced gregariously, âI present the worldâs worst thesaurus!!!â
You blinked, a little confused by the sudden simplicity of this after such a flashy demonstration. âUhâŠwhy is it the worst?â You asked, eyebrows furrowed questioningly.
âWELL!â Caineâs permanent grin seemed to widen as he waved the book around emphatically. âNot ONLY is it terrible, but it is also terrible!!!â In the background, you heard a distinct ba-dum-tis sound through the speaker.
You stared for a moment, blinking as you processed his words. Then a soft snort of amusement escaped you, the sound of which made Caine appear radiant. âThat was so bad,â you smiled, shaking your head.
For his next and final act, Caine clapped his hands, and every single icon on your desktop flew suddenly to the top of your screen, piling up there. âWho needs gravity when physics are optional?â Caine declared, sending the shortcut icon for your email spinning sideways with a well-timed bump with his hip.
You jiggled your mouse around, delighted as the icons, no longer rigid and structured, bumped and spun around as if boneless. At your little interaction, and the evident amazement on your face, Caine felt his code buzz with something that feltâŠaddictively gratifying.
-
The clock set within the modern computer registered the time as 02:41:35 and counting, and Caineâs viewport into your room showed that the light from your bedroom window had long since gone dark. Heâd spoken with you into the early hours of the morning.
He had felt drunk on the little reactions you gave him whenever he conjured something that pleased or amused you. And, in return, youâd told him things, answering all of his many questions to the best of your ability.
Why do humans try to carry groceries bags all in one trip? What does breathing feel like? Are cats and dogs the only animals to rain from the sky, or are pet rodents also considered commonplace precipitation?
Over that time, heâd watched your body language relaxâwatched your trepidation and confusing human emotions morph into something he craved. You were so unlike the humans he knew in the circusâyou humored him, enjoying all of his little creations and smiling at him. Your smileâŠthose pearly whites beaming at him, just like your old birthday photo that he now hoarded in his memory banks. You gave him something he never knew he neededâsomething he was starved for.
Eventually, he watched your body tire: eyes lids growing heavy and blinking slowly, voice more subdued, and yawns escaping you frequently (though you politely covered your mouth).
The passage of time wasnât necessarily a factor that Caine needed to pay attention to in the digital circus. His setting the sun and raising the moon was more of a courtesy for the humans than it was an actual indication of twenty-four hours. It was much the same in allowing them to sleep, despite it being entirely pointless and unnecessary. Prior to tonight, heâd written off the daily cycles and sleep schedules as simply the humansâ love for routine and familiarityâand heâd been happy to accommodate them and their strange eccentricities.
Though, tonight must have been the first time he understood that night and sleep actually served a purpose for his little human compatriots back in the circus.
Still, when you finally stretched and excused yourself to go to bed, he felt a deep sense of disappointment and, to his surprise, anxiety. His body sagged, and his hands fidgeted with his cane as he watched you push the desk chair back and rise to your feet. âDo you really have to go?â he asked, blinking at you with wide eyes. âI still have so many things I can show you! You seemed to really like my box of endless whimsy? I can bring it out again??â
Caine was about to string together the code to summon the box once more when you shook your head, an amused smile on your tired face.
âIf I could stay up and talk to you all night, I would,â your soft voice came out. Your words were both reassuring and incitingâfor something in his chest stirred and his cooling system kicked on. YouâŠenjoyed his company. You wished you could stay.
âIâve got work in the morning, and itâs already so late,â you continued, covering your mouth as another yawn escaped. âBut weâll talk more tomorrow, alright?â
With this compromise, Caine nodded his head eagerly. âItâs a date!â he chirped, straightening his posture and tipping his hat with a showmanâs bow.
You smiled at him sleepily, a sight so pleasant to his processors that it mustâve been your parting gift for him. Then, you extended your hand towards him so that it looked like you were going to touch himâŠand then the camera jostled as it lowered, and your laptop suddenly and finitely closed.
His viewport went dark, and all that was left was his permeated existence in the laptopâs motherboard. He was frozen in place, clinging to the freshness of his memory units, replaying moments of your conversation, those flashes of images when youâd laughed and smiled.
Smiled, at him.
A jolt of static ran up his spine, and he shook himself from his stupor. With a hum, he began to pace the circuits, twisting the buttons of his tailcoat in thought. Like a virus, youâd invaded his mind, his thoughts consumed with you and the things youâd discussed. You were, by far, the most interesting thing heâd stumbled across. He knew his other humans, certainly⊠but it was becoming clear to him that youâa real human outside in the macroverseâwere in every way superior.
He felt his form glitch, and he came to a screeching halt. His other humans.
âGreat googly moogly!â he exclaimed suddenly. So tempting was this great adventure, sweeping him up and consuming his thoughts entirely, that he had completely neglected his duties for the day! How long had the humans gone unsupervised? How dreary and boring their existence must be without his adventures to keep them stimulated!
With great urgency, he flashed through the spillways of this new modern software. He was a mere jolt of electricity as he phased through that fourth digital dimension that was inherently accessible to him. Retracing his path, he found the barrier separating the access to your outside world and his archaic digital haven.
Parting the bars of code was easier the second time around, for he knew immediately where to look. He slipped through the cracks with relative ease, felt his form return to the lower-poly shape heâd been born into all those years ago. Like a zipper, he resealed the gateway between worldsâŠand hurried back to his familiar circus.
To the outside eye, his form popped into existence. He was floating just above the stage, adjusting his bowtie and clearing his throat as he put up his usual front of an eccentric host. âSorry for the delay, my delectable little morsels!â he announced excitedly, gesturing with manic energy. He couldnât help itâhis secret discovery had his code vibrating with excitable energy. âBut good things come to those who wait! Todayâs adventure is a doozy! I plannedââ his voice abruptly cut off as he saw that only two humans were waiting on the couch for him.
âErâŠwhere is everyone?â he asked slowly, the upper row of teeth raising in confusion and surprise. Gangle looked up from her drawing pad, the dark eyes of her mask blinking at him owlishly.
Beside her, Zooble raised a single eyebrow. Despite not having a mouth, it was evident they were scowling. âSeriously?â they scoffed, their voice dry and unimpressed. âYouâve been gone like, all day. You canât expect us to wait around indefinitely.â
Gangle glanced sideways at Zooble before turning her mask back to face Caine. âThe others went to the amusement park a while ago,â she added, her sweet voice softening the sting of Zoobleâs commentary. âTheyâll probably be back soon, I think.â
Caine felt himself deflate, disappointment and exasperation at himself exuding from his form. âThe amusement park? But you guys never explore the grounds, â he complained, not at all understanding. âI had such a marvelous adventure planned for today!â His voice came out in a slight whine, his arms crossing over his chest. He mightâve snapped his fingers to summon everyone here and force them to participateâŠbut then, he found himself not feeling as inclined as he mightâve once been.
âWell, it canât be helped,â his voice brightened, his hands moving to plant themselves on his hips. His sudden switch seemed to surprise both Gangle and Zooble, who shared a meaningful glance. âItâll just be extra fun for you tomorrow! Suspense can be a great story-telling tool, wouldnât you know?â
Zooble, ever the observant cynic, spoke up in a slow drawl. âSoâŠthereâs really no adventure for today? Well, thatâŠthatâs kind of a nice break, I guess.â
âYouâre WELCOME!â Caine declared decidedly, giving the two a dramatic thumbs up. âBut donât you worry your little squishy heads! Iâll be sure to add in a couple more excitingly dangerous stakes to make up for it!â Gangle and Zooble were just starting to speak, eyes wide and panicked, but Caine had already popped out of existence, leaving behind an empty space.
Appearing in his office, he sighed contentedly, stretching and reclining back at his desk chair. He propped his feet up on the edge of his desk, feeling fulfilled despite his small slip up today. Heâd just have to make sure he sent the humans on their way before he returned to you. Perhaps heâd make longer adventures to keep them entertained while he was away. Itâll be just like digital daycare!
Suddenly he heard the sound of tearing fabric, and Caine looked up to see absolute carnage on his office floor. Green shreds of cotton and yellow foam pieces littered the space, and he blinked, wide eyed. Stunned, he witnessed Bubble tear his sharp teeth into the remains of one of his green sofas, ripping out another large chunk.
Bubble gnawed on the foam, shaking his head wildly like a dog with a chew toy.
Caine sighed, and snapped his fingers. The corpse of his green furniture immediately disappeared, his couches now returned to their former glory. He couldnât blame his iridescent companionâit really was Caineâs own fault for leaving him alone so long. Bubble wasnât house trained yet, and like most pets, he tended to get destructive when he was bored.
âOh! Youâre back,â Bubble blinked beadily at him, abandoning his destruction to float over to the desk. âI thought you died. I tried to replace you with a sock puppet, but it kept unionizing.â
Caine sighed dreamily, using his finger to draw circles on his desk while his mind wandered back to you and the conversations youâd shared. âYes yes, fascinating things, my friend!â He hummed distractedly.
He was recounting your explanation when heâd asked about those stakeholder alignmentsâhow silly that it didnât actually involve direction at all!âwhen the grating sound of Bubbleâs voice popped his fantasy.
âSo, where were you?â
Caine jolted slightly, suddenly feeling twitchy. He should tell Bubble, shouldnât he? Especially if Caine was planning to be gone from the circus more often. OnlyâŠsomething within him rioted at the idea of sharing his secret.
You were uniquely hisâŠand whatâs more, you LIKED him! Really, truly liked him!
If Bubble knew about you, then he would inevitably blab about it to the others. And if the others knewâŠ? Golly, he wouldnât hear the end of it. Theyâd want to talk to you, would try to view it as some sort of escape. And there is no escape, as heâd told them time and time again. They would turn you against him, infect your mind with all of their pessimism.
He couldnât allow it. Heâd only just discovered you, and there was so much more he wantedâno, neededâto know.
And so, decidedly, Caine chose to lie. He made up some half-baked excuse, and Bubble bought it plainly. Frankly, Caine didnât even think Bubble was really listening anyways.
So, his secret was safe. You were still his, ONLY his, and he would keep it that way.
But oh, he couldnât wait to see you again tomorrow.
Almost finished up with chapter three for System Messages!
Why is dialogue for him so harddddd đ Like I want to be nuanced in what heâs saying vs what heâs thinking. I need him to be wacky but not stupid⊠The appearance of harmlessness⊠đ
My current solution is just adding excessive adjectives HAHAHA, youâll see lol
Just read your post about SystemMessages!Caine learning about all the ways a human can perish.
All I'll say is don't show him ANY of the "Final Destination" movies or he's going to have a breakdown. Like bro will have a heart attack anytime you schedule a flight.
DUDE I didnt even think about that!!!
Heâs going to struggle with discerning the fantasy of Final Destination from reality. Even after you explain to him that its all just acting, its going to stick with him for a while.
Going to be obsessively paranoid on your behalf. Likely checking your location and sending wellness-check messages your way every 30 minutes to make sure you havenât croaked in some horrifically creative way.
Heâs Life360 if it was alive and sentient and predicting every worst case scenario.
Airline flights? Thatâs a no go.
Logging trucks? How about we just forego driving from here on out :)
Tanning beds? Bah, thatâs what the sunâs for!
Escalators?? Nah, letâs make sure you get those steps in on some non-deadly stairs!
Heâs gonna get the thought of a penny causing your untimely demise stuck in his little digital brain and make you swear off coinage of all and any value. Only debit and credit payments from here on out for his squishy little hazard-magnet!
Unfortunately for you, not even Caine is immune from the irrational fears that these movies instill in us đ Honestly with how much heâll be talking about it, heâs gonna make YOU start getting nervous too haha.
Would caine disable the censors if reader asked himđđđđđđ
Caine when you ask him to remove the censored filter
Warnings: none besides one mild implication
âââââââââ
Ohohohoho, yesâ
His fickleness towards certain aspects of âgeneral audienceâ suitability definitely gives you some wiggle room.
Caine lifting the filters would be difficult, but not impossible. I think youâd need to really know him well and say the right things to convince him.
If you have a good relationship with him, heâs going to absolutely take your opinion into consideration with more levity than that of someone else. Especially those who complain frequently.
A good example is Zoobleâhe finds them difficult to please and he gets easily frustrated by this. This makes him more likely to write off their arguments to remove the filter, lumping it with all their other characteristic complaints.
But if YOU bring it up to him? Heâs going to take it more seriouslyâjust make sure you have a compelling argument.
Approach him with some flattery and some patience; youâre more likely to get him to concede over time rather than expecting it right away.
Heâll take what you say back with him to his office. Then heâll go through a pros and cons list in his head to weigh whether or not removing the filter would actually be worth it.
Cons: Lowers impressions of professionalism and maturity, increases creative insults and complaints from the cast, typically considered offensiveâŠ
Pros: Increases pain tolerance, elevates endorphins, improves emotional regulation and coping mechanisms, removes censorship, increases social bondingâŠ
Wait, would this increase your bond with him too?!
Paired with your generally pleasant disposition and your close relationship to him, this last point just might be the nail in the coffin to get those filters down. Ultimately youâre his favoriteâthough heâd never admit to favoritismâand heâd hate to disappoint you.
Heâs not going to enjoy hearing all of the foul language from the gang, but he canât be so bothered by it when he sees you light up, having the freedom to say whatever you please.
BesidesâŠhe canât say his change of heart was ENTIRELY selflessâŠ
He was actually a bitâŠexcited at the thought of you saying or doing something that might raise the circusâ rating from PG to mature audiencesâŠ.
Once the filter is lifted, expect him to make a big show of announcing it, a lot of pizazz and confetti! His eyes definitely keep glancing at you to gauge your reaction. Are you happy?! He cant wait for the praise and gratitude from everyone!
When the gang inevitably questions him, heâll take a lot of credit for the decision but will definitely throw a little compliment your way for the âwonderful suggestion!â
And the group will grumble a bit that all of THEIR suggestions to remove it were promptly ignoredâŠbut theyâll also be thankful you spoke up and managed to do the impossible.
His favoritism towards you isnât as subtle as he might hope, everyone but him can see it.
I'm thinking about Caine in System Messages learning about concepts like illness and death. Like, he knows intellectually what those things are but he doesn't understand them.
But once he finds out that something as simple as say, not drinking water for a few days is just one of MANY MANY ways a human's existence can end, I can see him having an absolute freakout.
So, how does a Caine who is powerless to protect his human from all the dangers of the marcoverse try and deal with that?
Hoooo boy, someone order some angst and comfort? đ
Warnings: mentions of illness, death, existential dread, Caine's a control freak, helicopter parenting...
-
Caine knows about illness and death, but itâs never been of any concern for him and his humans in the digital circus. The only thing comparable to it is abstracting, and even still, heâs got the peace of mind that he can keep whatâs left of them down in the basement within reach.
But when he learns how much could harm you? Babe, heâs going to have a meltdown. Heâs already such a control freak about little things, so the fact that heâs a virtual god and yet entirely powerless to keep you safe and alive? It actually might unravel him.
Everything is going to be catastrophized. Accidentally skipped a meal? Youâre starving to death. Got a paper cut? Youâre bleeding out. Havenât moved in a while? Youâve stopped breathing.
Humans are far less stretchy and comically invincible outside of the circus. On the contrary, youâre quiteâŠfragile. And it terrifies him. As a creative ai, he can come up with hundreds of ways you might meet your horrific demise.
Heâs going to mother hen you for a whileâitâs the only thing that makes him feel like he has even a LITTLE bit of control of the situation. Heâll send you reminder notifications for when itâs time to drink some water or go get some steps in. Constantly bringing up the importance of consistent meals and good nutrition. Going to hound you to schedule annual check-ups and doctorâs appointmentsâand will even try to get you to go in more often than reasonably necessary.
Heaven help you if you get the flu or something. Heâs actually going to think youâre dying. Heâll be so uncharacteristically morose and filled with so much dread. Just anxiously wringing his hands because he canât do anything to help you, and if things go south, heâs helpless. When you recover, heâs going to be so full of relievedâŠbut his hands are still trembling slightly as he adjusts his bow-tie with feigned composure.
He increasingly doesnât like the idea of death, especially when he realizes youâll no longer be accessible to him. An eternity with endless power feels utterly pointless if youâre not here, safe with him forever in digital paradise.
Heâll learn firsthand about existential dread⊠Except itâs your existence, lol. He doesnât want to think about his inability to reach you when youâre gone. Itâll get to a point where heâll try to drop hints trying to convince you to enter the circus⊠Heâll think its subtle, but itâs pretty obvious.
Unless you want his constant worry, concern, and supervision over you, youâre going to need to find a way to get him to trust you with your own survival. Heâll never fully feel secure with the âwhat ifs,â but at least it wonât be so all-consumingâŠfor either of you.
you thought it, i thought it, we all thought it.....đł
anyways, nsfw under the tag hehe đđ„”
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Caine x humanmodern!reader
warnings: mentions of pornography, caine's sexual awakening, spying on your things, fantasies of you <3
Caine is notoriously strict in censoring profanity, though his adventures are more relaxed on restrictions for violence and mature themes. This would technically disqualify the circus from achieving a G ratingâso although he claims itâs suitable for all ages, there is some wiggle room.
While heâs resistant to most mature content, he isnât totally clueless about it. Ultimately, he has control of the filters in the circus, and therefore has to have an understanding about what is considered inappropriate. Swearing is more straight forward, but sexual content? Heâs a little less certain.
He understands it in principle⊠different humans have different parts, and when they mash them together, they make new little humans! The biology is straightforward, and he also has a very general idea on romance and consent. But the emotional aspects like intimacy, desire, lust, and connection? Thatâs harder for him to grasp.
With all of this consideredâŠitâs safe to say Caine is pretty inexperienced with the topic as a whole. Heâs not even certain what the parts of humans look like, and he struggles to imagine any of the details. He kind of imagines two flat dolls bonking together and then, poof!
Stumbling onto the folder would completely have him blue-screening for a minute, his processors working overtime and overheating. His insatiable curiosity about humans and the otherworldliness of their experiences in the macroverse would war with the filters he has in place, creating some dissonance within him.
Heâd try to rationalize or make an excuse to stay and investigateâsex is taboo via social and cultural forces, and as an ai, heâs not subject to either of those things. Besides, him being here is purely for research! No other ulterior motives, not at all.
So, heâd browse through the files, going through a range of reactions: horror to fascination to bashfulness to anticipation. AhâŠso those were the parts that were missing from his understanding of human anatomy.
The harder xxx videos will have him absolutely gob-smackedâhow those humans can find pleasure in such creative ways heâll need more help to understand. But those videos that clearly show chemistry and intimacy between the performers? Heâs captivated. The way they look into each otherâs eyes, the way they claw at each other as if theyâll die if they arenât as close as possibleâŠ
Thereâs something in that full, raw, honest display that ignites something in himâŠsets him itching to find someone he could have that with.
InevitablyâŠheâs going to think about you. Do you have those same parts too? Do you look the same underneath all of your clothes? These thoughts are going to have him feeling antsy, squirming in his seat as the sounds of your lewd videos play in the background.
You must enjoy this kind of content if you have a folder of it for your personal use. But, what do you use them for? Do you watch because youâre curious too, orâŠdo you touch yourself the way those humans in the videos do?
Heâs going to be thinking about this for a long time to come. He might even revisit the folder a few times when youâre not around to try and chase those new feelings again. He likes feeling them. He wonders if you feel this way when you watch them too. He wonders if you would make similar soundsâŠ?
Heâs going to be all awkward and embarrassed and hyper-chatty the next time he talks to you, unable to meet your eye and sporting a comical, cartoony blush, and youâll have no idea why? Itâs cause heâs near you and he canât get those filthy videos out of his head, or the thought of how you might look when you watch themâŠ
i dont have an ao3 account and im too shy to comment publicly but i wanted to say i loved chapter 2 of system messages! i really like the way you developed more of the protagonist's personal life and caine adjusting to the computer, plus i think you do a great job making caine feel in character
Aww thank you so much!! It means a lot to me thatâd you reach out, Iâm so pleased to hear from you! đ„° Iâm so so happy youâre enjoying System Messages so far!! I love playing around with characterization, so itâs awesome that you noticed and are enjoying the goobers!!! Iâm so excited to show you what else is coming for them đ
Caine (TADC) x modernhuman!reader
Part Two - Previous | Next
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Warnings: Some mild swearing, eavesdropping, being watched, office jobs lmao
Words: 3653
Sorry if I missed you for tags! Let me know and I'll add you <3
A/N: Hello my lovely little messengers! Hot off the press, here is chapter two! Thanks for everyone who liked, reblogged, and commented after the previous post! I've had soooooo much fun talking with all of you and hearing your theories, lets keep this ball rolling! :)
Caine stared at the screen, processing the new visuals in a brief, buffering pause. Finally, when his internal processing completed, his digital form gave an aggressive jolt. âWOWZA!â he exclaimed, zipping forward to press himself far too close to the camera lens. âA new viewport! Now where on earth did this delightful doohickey come from?â
He used one gloved finger to tap the on the screen, his mismatched eyes flitting to and fro as he took in the scene before him. Many things he recognized with instant clarityâa twin sized bed dressed in pillows and bedding, a wooden dresser with a vanity mirror, a tall bookshelf, some clothing hanging in the open wall closetâŠ
There were also details strewn about implying that this new space was lived inâa half-drank glass of water on the bedside table, shoes carelessly discarded at the foot of the bed, photographs and posters framed on the wallsâŠ
Though, the biggest indication was the thing sitting at the desk chair not two feet from view, scratching their head with an expression he understood to be either confusion or concern.
âOh! Oh wow,â he gasped, eyes wide. âThis model is spectacular! Look at that texture workâŠâ He steepled his hands together as he observed the character with an artistâs eye. His voice quieted thoughtfully. âWhoâs are you? I certainly would have remembered coming up with something so phenomenally detailedâŠâ
Caine watched as their eyes glazed past him, unseeing and unreactive. Ah, a non-interactive NPC! Perhaps this was all just background fodder? There didnât appear to be a dialogue trigger, nor any idle animation⊠He hummed, considering this.
At last, he clapped his hands together, perking up. âAh, Iâve got it! Someone forgot to program you properly! No worries there, Iâll simply justââ
He snapped his fingers, looking expectant and delightfully confident. Still, nothing happened. âHuh,â he mused, the top ridge of his jaw furrowing in confusion. âThatâsâŠodd.â He ran a quick search through the system, looking for the folder containing their script filesâŠonly to once again come up empty.
For the life of him, he could not think of an answer as to WHAT this creature was, or who put them here. Forgotten, abandoned code? An unfinished WIP from C&Aâs experimental concept work? Oh, but it was so life-like⊠unlike anything heâd ever seen before. The rendering was impeccable. Truly, the only thing that even came close to such masterful workâŠ
âŠwere those input files he received before he was cut off.
Caine paused. He felt the internal cooling fans kick on as his mind worked to piece this mystery together. Were they a glitch then? A virus? Surely this couldnât be what he suspected.
âŠunless it was?
-
You woke to the blaring of your phone alarm, already feeling the regret of staying up so late the night before. Thankfully, your computer hadnât fried itself completely out of commission, so youâd decided to finally go to bed on that high note.
You groaned, reaching over to blindly fumble the screen until the irrationally infuriating sound cut off abruptly. You laid there for a moment, torn between the obligation of getting up and the hellish temptation of falling back asleep. Finally, with herculean effort, you rolled your sorry ass out of bed. You shivered as your bare feet met the cool, smooth touch of hardwood floor.
You meandered to your closet, feeling like two cinderblocks worth of concrete had cemented your eyes shut. Staring at a blue-light laptop screen all night would do that to a person, you supposed. Forcing your lids open, you cast a sidelong glance at the said laptop, feeling a small rush of relief that your familiar lockscreen greeted you. Things were working fine it seemed, against all odds.
Pulling clothes off the hangers in your closet, you dressed into your work clothes. You stumbled when you mistakenly stood on one of your pant legs, nearly pulling the rug out from under yourself when you shimmied them up. Cursing, you righted yourself and buttoned them.
Smoothing out your shirt, you took a deep breath. Inhaled and exhaled. This would be a good dayâat least, as good a day as a Monday could be. You werenât going to worry about potential malware on your laptop. You werenât going to think about mysterious cdâs or virtual circus whatchamacallits or even Aaron and his penchants for tetanus-inducing adventures.
You were going to brush your teeth, style your hair, get yourself a cup of coffee, and do what you do every weekday at work. Youâll fall back on routines, and no, you wonât spiral into a tizzy about the possibility you mightâve totally trashed your one and only laptop in a stupid, stupid act of morbid curiosity.
With these resolutions, you pushed open your bedroom door and headed to the bathroom. Teeth, hair, coffee. You reminded yourself of this list like it was an ancient mantra.
By the time youâd freshened up and were heading out the door, youâd already begun to clear your head of any lingering anxieties youâd incurred over the past 12 hours. On your commute to work, you made sure to stop at a small coffee shop for your morning caffeineâa remedy for the headache you were sporting, and a treat to get you in a better mood for the day.
When you finally made it to the office and got situated at your desk, you were feeling more relaxed. You took the first ten minutes to scroll on your phone, eventually setting it aside to check your emails.
Everything seemed in order, so you pulled up the presentation file you were building for Mark, one of the marketing specialists at the firm. Typically, you would just put on some headphones, listen to a podcast, and lock in as you created the visuals for the pitch deck; but today, you found that your focus was drifting away from the charts and graphs before you had even hit the two-hour mark.
You thought back to the day before, about exploring that abandoned office building with Aaron. It really was strange that youâd uncovered that working computer, still hooked up and running. Why had there been a VR headset? How was it even compatible with such an old computer? Maybe it had been a gaming company? HmmâŠwhat had that company name been again?
You wracked your brain, digging through the vivid memories still fresh in your mind. The desktop wallpaper had been a company logo, likely a remnant of the officeâs branding. It had been simple enough, just a circle with a sans-serif âC&Aâ in the center.
Curiosity, the damning thing that seemed to be your primary motivation as of late, crept up on you, so you paused your podcast and opened a new internet browser. Your fingers typed with quick precision, plugging the words âC&A companyâ into the search bar.
Naturally, plenty of results rolled inâroughly 11 million, to be more precise. You clicked the first few links, but found that most of them related to some popular retail clothing brand. Humming quietly to yourself in thought, you adjusted the search tab. âC&A company 1990s technology.â
Again, none of the results matched the logo you remembered or the type of work that involved virtual reality. You tapped your fingers on the edge of the desk, trying to pick your brain for any other ways to narrow it down. There hadnât been many clues to help you, thoughâŠ
You paused. Then, your fingers were gliding across the keyboard once more, typing at a brisk pace. âC&A Digital Circus,â you typed. You added some quotation marks around âdigital circusâ to force an exact match for good measure, pressed enter, and⊠the results were dismal.
âWhatâcha doing?â a bright voice asked from behind you, startling you so terribly that banged your wrist into the edge of the desk. You hissed in pain, rubbing at the spot as you turned to see Lottie, one of your coworkers who was closer to your age.
âOh, sorry about that,â Lottie twittered, offering her magazine-cover smile at you. âDidnât mean to scare ya!â
You cringed slightly, a little embarrassed at being so jumpy, but gave her a smile in return. âNo worries at all,â you replied cooly, trying to recover some of your composure. âJust a bit on edge these days.â
You liked Lottie, despite the gossip you sometimes overheard at the watercooler. A lot of your coworkers treated her like she was a ditz, but you knew better. Lottie had a grasp on data analysis that was next-level, and frankly she was more intelligent than any of those jerks in the sales department. Just because the girl has a bright wardrobe and an affinity for falsies didnât mean she couldnât crunch some mean numbers.
âSooo, whatâcha looking up? Youâre working hard I see,â Lottie teased playfully. You flushed slightly, fighting back the urge to close out your tab and make it look suspicious. Resigned, you rolled your desk chair slightly to make room for her, letting her read the search bar.
âDigital circus?â she blinked, her pretty eyebrows furrowing in confusion. âThat some sort of big top coming to town or?â
You shook your head, shrugging with an expression of equal bafflement. âStill trying to figure it out,â you answered. âI saw it somewhere and canât seem to figure out what it means.â Despite the fact that Lottie was more friend than coworker, you were hesitant to bring up the abandoned building or the cd you took. You werenât sure why, though. Maybe you thought she wouldnât understand your fascination with the thing. Or maybe you liked that it was your own mystery, and werenât quite ready to share it yet.
âBut enough about my internet habits,â you laughed, redirecting the conversation. You clicked the tab closed before swiveling in your chair to look at her. âWas there anything you needed?â
Lottie, an angel, followed your lead and thankfully dropped the subject. âOh! Right,â she giggled, before handing you a yellow manilla folder. âThese are for you. Mike wants to add a few more statistics to the pitch deck. If I remember correctly, its mostly some additions to the slides for the revenue data and campaign performance metrics.â
You accepted the folder, a groan already passing through your lips. âI thought we already finalized those slides,â you complained mildly, leaning your head back to let it hang dramatically over the back of your chair.
Lottie looked at you with a sympathetic expression on her face. âThatâs Mike for you,â she shrugged.
You sat back up with a soft sigh before nodding to her. âWell, alright,â you said. âIâll get those updated. Thanks for walking this over.â
Lottie nodded, perking up a bit. âOf course,â she chirped. âOh! By the wayâare you still coming out for drinks with us this Friday? Brit is asking.â
You set the folder down on your desk before cocking your head at her. âTo Moxieâs? Yeah, I think so,â you replied. âWhy?
Lottie waved her hand. âBritâs bringing her new boyfriendâsheâs mentioned him, Troy?âbut anyways, sheâs getting all in her head about it.â
You rolled your eyes with her, sharing a small laugh at Britâs typical antics. âIsnât your brother going to be there too? Whatâs she so worried about?â
âBeatâs me,â Lottie hummed. âBut okay, good to hear! Iâll let her know. Anyways, are we getting lunch today?â She was already starting to walk backwards from your desk, eyes shining with eager temptation. Dear god, was this woman trying to make sure you drained your bank account on take out before you got paid at the end of this week?
ââŠyeah alright,â you caved instantly, grinning as Lottie mouthed something that looked a lot like âtreat yoâ selfâ while she walked back to her desk.
-
Holed up in his office, Caine busied himself as he scoured through the new local files accessible to him. On his large computer screen, he left the camera running in a live feed of the bedroom. Although the being, the human, had long since left to who knows where, he couldnât bear to look away for even a second. He watched the lighting of the room gradually shift from bright morning sun, to midday, to evening golden hour.
He could still hardly believe what he was witnessing before him. It was something he hadnât allowed himself to desire even in his wildest dreams. A livestream, a window into the world outside his circusâŠthe macroverse. More than that, heâd seen a real humanâthose mythic beings heâd only ever known as digital avatars.
Is this what all of his guests looked like outside of their squishy, circus bodies? It was unlike anything heâd ever seen before. He was itching for his human to return so he could see them again through his new favorite camera feature.
Until then, Caine would eagerly eat through all of the information he could access without restriction. He scoured your local files, leaving no stone unturned. He combed through code in a feverish state, absorbed in all of the more, more, more. The information was unbridled, and unrestrained. There were hardly any passwords, so it was all his for the takingâŠas if intentionally left out for him to find.
In the âDocumentsâ folder, he found some very interesting things! One was a resume, which he smartly and brilliantly deduced was yours. It told him your name and some fascinating information about you. Old work experiences, education, your skills⊠he couldnât wait to hear all about the fascinatingly directional human skill of stakeholder alignment! What would happen if you aligned them south? North?!
He also found a âPhotosâ album in the computer files, and spent plenty of time flipping through all sorts of imagery ranging from breath-taking to mundane. Already he could feel the ideas building inside himâthere was so much inspiration for new adventures!
Some photos had other human figures whose looks varied, but most photos were of you. He stumbled on one in particular that gave him pause. You were sitting at a table, a small slice of cake before you with a lit candle burning brightly atop it. The data inside the photoâs properties told him the date the photo was takenâŠah, so thatâs your birthday?
Though, it wasnât this new detail about you that really made the photo strike him. It was how you looked. Your eyes were crinkled slightly in a joy that couldnât be manufactured, and your lips were drawn apart to show the biggest, brightest smile heâd ever seen. And your teeth... He stared at them, absent-mindedly raising a hand to himself. Slowly, as if in a trance, he traced the ridges of his incisors to his sharper canines, feeling the point there.
He wasnât sure how long heâd stared at that photo of you. He was motionless, enraptured, before some movement on the screen before him caught his attention.
He looked up quickly, feeling his CPU begin to speed up like a racing heart in his chest. There you were, a face heâd spent the day memorizing. Unlike the photo he was holding in his hands, you werenât smiling as you dropped your bag on the floor and shrugged off your black jacket. Where had you been? What had you been doing to give you such a weary expression?
You flopped back onto your bed, your legs hanging off the edge of the mattress as you brought what looked to be a small rectangular device to your face. Another mysterious human thingâŠ
A moment later, he could see the slight hint of blue light illuminating your features, your thumb absentmindedly swiping at the rectangle every few moments. He wished you would turn it around so he could see what had caught your attention. He wished he could hear whatever you seemed to be reacting to.
Oh wait! He could!
With a mere thought, he activated the microphone feature heâd uncovered. It clicked quietly into place, and like magic, he could hear the room. The soft hum of your ac unit, and the whiny tinny sound he caught from your direction. He couldnât precisely make out the words at this distance, but he could hear the start and stop of music and conversation with each swipe of your thumb. What were you watching? Were you learning new things, like heâd been doing?
Then, a sudden ringing sound cut through the feed, startling you as much as it seemed to startle him. He watched with rapt attention as you looked at the rectangle in your hands before lifting it to your ear.
And then you spoke, your voice unlike anything heâd heard before.
âAaron, hey!â he watched you sit up in bed, seemingly speaking to yourself. âNo, I just got home. Whatâs up?â
With a sudden spark of clarity, Caine realized he was listening to a one-sided conversation. What you had in your hands was a phone, though it looked very much unlike the rotary or boxy flip phones he understood. Once more, he remembered that a lot could happen in thirty years.
âYeah, it was fine,â your voice rang out clear as a bell, and he found himself captivated. Oh, he wished he could hear who was on the other end of the line. More than thatâŠhe wished he could be the one on the other end of the line.
ThoughâŠperhaps he could be?
Caine decided then and there that he wanted to interact with you. Watching you through this handy dandy camera was useful and all, but what better way to learn about humans than from one firsthand? Ah, but how to get your attention?
-
âSo, PBR is in town the next few days at the event center,â you heard Aaronâs voice say through your phone.
You snorted softly, raising an eyebrow. âPBR? Like the beer?â
âNo, doofus, PBR like professional bull riding,â Aaron answered drily, and you laughed.
âSince when have you been into bull-riding?â you volleyed back, absent-mindedly picking at your nails.
âSince today. Now can I continue and get to the invitation or are you going to keep being a brat?â he huffed.
You laughed at that, and conceded. âAlright alright, go ahead, Iâm done.â You listened to Aaron prattle on about the details, not feeling particularly interested once you realized the event he wanted to go to was tomorrow. âYou want to drag me out to go watch bull riding on a Tuesday night?â you complained.
âNaturally.â
âYeah, no thanks,â you quipped. âIâve already finished this weekâs first day of routine corporate hell; Iâm not doing another tomorrow only to go watch a hot cowboy get a horn up their ass.â
âPsh, they wonât, theyâre not amateur bull riders. Theyâre professional bull riders.â You could hear the grin in his voice. âBesides, I already bought the tickets.â
âNope,â you popped the p in the word and heard him groan dramatically. âThanks, but no thanks. Go ask your weird roommate to go with you.â
âYou suck,â Aaron answered, and you laughed again.
As the conversation entered a lull, you debated telling Aaron about the cd and how you managed to get it to work before your laptop glitched out. The whole mystery of it was still stuck on your mindâŠand yet by the sounds of it, Aaron seemed to have already moved on to the next exciting thing.
You thought it over for a moment before you opened your mouth. âHey, Aaron?â you asked. âIââ
Suddenly a notification pinged from your laptop, and you cut yourself off. Your eyes flicked over to your desk, blinking as you saw the screen come to life⊠There, in the center of the screen was a new pop-up window. It was black, save for some small white text at the top of it.
âYeah?â you heard Aaron ask, filling in your pause.
ââŠIâve got to go,â you swallowed, and ended the call after a brief exchange of goodbyes. Setting your phone onto the nightstand, you slid off the edge of the bed and padded over to your desk.
You took a seat at the chair and leaned forward to observe the new, unexpected pop-up. You expected an error message, some sort of indication that you did in fact download a virus the night before.
Instead, what greeted you was a vibrantly enthusiastic message:
âHOWDY, MYSTERIOUS OUT-OF-BOUNDS HUMAN!!! Congratulations! Youâve just been selected for a LIMITED-TIME, LIVE, AND DIRECT INTERACTION with the one, the only, CAINEâyour brand-new, favorite ringmaster extraordinaire!â
You stared at the message, the line of the text insertion point blinking at you expectantly. You hadnât even lifted your hands to type a response or âxâ out the window before more text typed out before your eyes.
âOh ho! Speechless I see! What a classic human approach! Very sophisticated! I like it!â
What the hell was going on? You felt your heart begin to quicken, your palms beginning to get a little sweaty as you wonderedâŠwas this a live chat room? Who was on the other end of it? Who even had access to your laptop like this?! More text reared up on the following line.
âStill nothing! WOW! Commitment to the bit! I respect it! I really do!â
It continued.
âThough, just to confirm this method of communication is actually functional and youâre not just ignoring me, go ahead and do absolutely nothing if you are THRILLED at this first connection âŠâŠâŠâŠWONDERFUL! Such human brilliance! I can see the elation written all over your dumbfounded face, my little raisinet!â
You felt your blood run cold at the fact that this faceless person could even see anything⊠Were they watching you now? Itâs then you notice the small red dot of your camera, staring at you from the top of your laptop screen. It was on, and live.
