Sleepy Acer - Animations - http://maxpages.com/andraiafanfic/1

Sleepy Acer

The game cube left the system, leaving only three figures in its place. A young man, muscular and good looking, a young woman, beautiful and tall, and their dog, lean and protective.

The man looked around then checked his keytool. He sighed impatiently, but a little bit of hopelessness bounced off his voice. "It's not Mainframe," he said.

The woman looked at him sadly, then looked around. The dog whimpered. "It's okay, lover," she said, "we'll get there. Someday."

"Someday," he grunted. "More like forever."

She sighed. "Well, this place looks nice. We might as well look around before the next game cube hits. What system are we in?"

They both looked up. The system they had landed in looked old-fashioned. Almost DOS. The young man raised his eyebrows in amusement. This was called a system? All he saw were huts and houses made of wood and straw, bushes, wooden fences, several farms, and off behind them, opposite the town, a lush, vast forest.

"Sleepy Acer," the man replied, looking at his keytool again. He sounded almost sarcastic. "This is nice. Not one sprite."

"Hey, it'll be okay," the woman said comfortingly. She put her hand on his arm. "Come on. Let's go knock on a house or something and see if anyone's there."

The dog barked in agreement and the man groaned. He followed her, though, and they went to the nearest farm. He didn't want to knock on the door. He felt more like sitting somewhere and feeling sorry for himself. But he knew she wouldn't allow that. He watched as she knocked on the door with a positive air. If only he felt the same way.

The door opened slowly, and two pairs of eyes looked out at them. Right away, he recognized it to belong to a small binome. He felt like groaning again. Something told him there weren't going to be many sprites here.

"Hello?" the binome asked in a shaky voice.

"Good morning," the woman greeted him warmly. "My name's AndrAIa, this is Enzo," she pointed at the man, "and this is my dog, Frisket. We've just come in-"

"Through the game cube, I saw," the binome said, opening the door a little bit wider. If I hadn't known better, I'd think you'd be from the woods. Come in, let's get you in here before it gets dark."

AndrAIa looked around. It wasn't too dark. Actually, the sky was cloudy. Too cloudy. She couldn't tell what time it was. Was the weather like this all day long? She didn't object, though, and stepped inside the house, Matrix and Frisket behind her. Frisket growled warningly at the binome before stepping in, but he left him alone, which was a good sign.

Once inside, Matrix looked around. It looked cozy. It was just a one-room house with a bed in one corner, a table with three chairs in the other, a stove near the door, and in the center a rug. His eyebrows rose when he saw the fifteen guns piled behind the door. Why would those be there?

"Come in, come in," The binome said, stepping back to give them room. "My name's Frantucket."

"Thanks Frantucket," AndrAIa said, sitting herself at the table. "Thank you for letting us in."

Matrix glanced at the ceiling and all around the room before being satisfied and sitting down at the table beside her. Frisket settled down at his feet. "So Frantucket," he said, "does this system have any portals to the net?"

"Portals to the net? Oh gosh me, how silly!" Frantucket started chuckling, but the look on Matrix's face stopped him. Frisket growled. "I mean, how silly of me! Well, Sleepy Acer is cut off from the net, no one could possibly find us! That's why we're all stuck here, no one wants us out, and no one wants to come in, except the fools that come in through the games- uh…I mean…"

AndrAIa didn't pay attention to the insult. "What do you mean? No portals? No way out except through the games?"

"The net has cut Sleepy Acer off completely," Frantucket said, "no one wants anything to do with us. Barely anyone knows of us but the guardians. And that's one reason why I'm glad we are sealed off. Them guardians can't get us. I hear they've been getting pretty nasty these days."

AndrAIa frowned. "What do you mean? Matrix is a guardian, and he isn't nasty…mostly."

"Renegade," Matrix corrected her.

"Well, whatever," Frantucket said, "that's just the rumors that have been going around. Most systems have forgotten us. We're just a lonely city, off in the bits of nowhere. We've been solitary for almost 1000 years."

"Wow," AndrAIa said, "wouldn't the population have overrun the system by now?"

Frantucket started shaking horribly. "Not. Not by the way things have been going."

Matrix definitely sensed there was something more behind this. Leaning forward he said, "exactly why did the net cut you off?"

Frantucket started shaking even more. "Haven't you heard the stories?"

"No. That's what I'm asking you."

Frantucket glanced left and right, holding on to his chair to keep from trembling. His eyes were wide and bulged. AndrAIa was afraid his teeth would fall out from all the rattling.

"It's…" he lowered his voice until it was nearly beneath a whisper. "…The Headless Binome!"

The what?" AndrAIa said, half in disbelief.

"The Headless Binome?" Matrix was frowning. "Who is that?"

"The Headless Binome was a resident here," Frantucket explained. "He was crazy I say, terribly crazy. It was back in the time where Sleepy Acer was accepted in the net. The problem was with the portal to the web. It kept opening up, so web creatures spilled in all the time. The Headless Binome- of course, he wasn't headless then- fought them off, and we depended on him to do that, to protect us.

"Unfortunately though, he grew to love power too much," he continued, "and he killed without thought at all, without a second glance."

Matrix felt his stomach hollow out. In some way, he felt he related, and he hated that thought. He didn't kill without a thought, he never did. But there was guilt inside him that made him dread that he was that merciless.

"One day," Frantucket said, "a portal from another system opened up. I don't know why them came in, but they did. The Headless Binome mistook them for web creatures and killed almost all of them. The ones who survived chased him into the forest, and…well…it was the last of the murdering filth. He was buried in the church cemetery, but many people rebelled, so he was taken out and buried back in the forest. And from that day forth, the forest has been forever haunted."

AndrAIa looked at him, a bit skeptical. "Haunted? But didn't you say that things have been going bad, and that's why the population is down?"

Frantucket had just stopped shaking, but the minute she asked the question, he started shaking violently again. "Um, yes I did say that."

"Why is that?" Matrix put in determined to find out.

"Every night, the Headless Binome comes out of the forest, looking frantically for his head. If he sees someone, he chops it off, thinking it's his own. Of course, it isn't, and every night, he does the same thing. He won't stop until he finds his head."

AndrAIa and Matrix were both silent. They exchanged glances that clearly said, 'is this for real?'.

"And that," Frantucket finished, "is why the net wants nothing to do with us and shut us off from any contact. Even the web can't find us."

There was a long pause. Finally Matrix said, "you don't really believe in that, do you?"

Frantucket was so surprised he stopped shaking. "Believe, lad? Believe? Sonny, you would believe it too if you had known what has been going on! You'd know if you had seen the bodies every morning. At least one person is killed each week. That's too fast, I say! And that's why this town is all that's left of Sleepy Acer. It's really called Acer, but since it's so solitary, people added the Sleepy to it."

"And this has been going on for a thousand years," AndrAIa said.

"That's right. Those who try to escape try leaving through the games. But our technology is so poor since this place is so closed off, so those who try leaving get nullified instead."

AndrAIa exchanged another glance with Matrix, then glanced out the window. It was getting dark. "Well, thank you very much for your hospitality, but Matrix and I had better go and find a place to stay." She looked at Matrix. "I guess we'll have to wait for the next game to come before we can leave."

"Wait!" Frantucket cried, leaping to his feet. "You musn't go out there, even when it isn't fully dark! Please, whatever you do, stay here for the night, I don't want anything to happen to you three."

"Well…" AndrAIa looked at Matrix. "Should we?"

Matrix looked around. "Doesn't seem like any room for us. We should find someone with a bigger house."

"No, I beg of you, don't go out there!" Frantucket pleaded, "you don't know what's out there, you can't go!"

AndrAIa smiled at him. "It's okay Frantucket, we don't want to overstay our welcome here. Don't worry about us. We promise we'll find another place to stay by sun down, okay?" She softly dug her nails into his neck.

Frantucket was starting to tremble again, but the minute she touched him, he relaxed and collapsed on the floor, unconscious.

"You overdid it again," Matrix said, opening the front door.

"He'll be up by dark. Come on Frisket, let's go." She followed Matrix outside and closed the door behind her. It was definitely darker now. The clouds were barely visible in the sky, but she could tell they were still there. They started walking further into the town, toward one of the big houses.

"This system sure is looney," Matrix said, "I didn't believe his story for a second."

"But you felt something, didn't you?" AndrAIa looked at him knowingly. "Maybe, just maybe, you regretted all your actions in the past?"

Matrix didn't answer for a long moment, and for a second, he wished AndrAIa hadn't known so much about him. She sighed and smiled comfortingly at Frisket.

They reached a three-story building, probably the biggest house in the town, and she knocked on the door. They had to wait for a moment, but the door burst open, and a woman binome stood in the entrance, a happy smile on her face. Behind her, they could see the midst of a party going on.

"Oh, visitors!" the woman said cheerfully. She glanced out at the sky, and her smile lessened. "Oh dear, almost sun down. We should get the guests home before it's too late." She turned back to AndrAIa and Matrix. "Do come in, I'll be with you in a second. You must be strangers to this system. Game hoppers, I suppose?"

AndrAIa and Matrix exchanged a bewildered glance, but they followed her into the house, Frisket behind them. The woman hurried into the center of where the party was going on and announced in a loud voice, "Thank you all for coming! We've had a splendid time! Do come back tomorrow if you wish. It's getting dark, so I suggest you all get home to your families."

To AndrAIa and Matrix's surprise, the guests didn't object. There were no whines or complaints. They all got up and gathered their things, then left. In a big hurry, if you asked them.

AndrAIa watched the whole commotion with interest, and when the guests were all gone, she said, "Wow…that took less than three nanoseconds."

The woman who had answered the door the door shrugged and smiled. "It's what the town does to us. My name's Mrs. Sheperd, if you don't have a place to stay, you're welcome to stay here."

"How did you know we were from the games?" Matrix asked.

Mrs. Sheperd frowned at him. "Why, games are the only way people can get in these days. The Net has blocked us off from any contact because of our legend." She sighed. "Hopefully you have the technology to get out of here when the next game does. Those who try get nullified."

AndrAIa and Matrix exchanged another glance. That old binome was telling the truth back in that farm.

"Oh well, let's forget that and move on to more pleasant things," Mrs. Sheperd said, "I'll take you to our guest room so you can get settled. I suggest you get some sleep and such." She was smiling again as she led them upstairs.

"Um, excuse me, Mrs. Sheperd," AndrAIa spoke up, "We haven't introduced ourselves. My name's AndrAIa, this is Matrix, and Frisket is our dog."

Mrs. Sheperd bent to pet the dog, but Frisket growled at her. AndrAIa smiled. "Sorry about that," she said, "he's really very friendly." She petted him on the head, and Frisket gave her a happy glance.

Their host stopped in front of a room. "Here you go," she said, "I hope you have a pleasant night."

Matrix looked around. "You seem like you're used to having visitors," he said.

"After what this town's been through, no one's alarmed," Mrs. Sheperd said. "Actually, this is a hotel. I know you probably couldn't tell, but it is, so it's normal. Other people room in this place too, so you're not alone."

"Visitors through the game, or…?" AndrAIa asked.

Mrs. Sheperd sighed. "Actually, they've had run-ins with the you-know-what. They never want to return home, so they stay here, and I welcome them. Now, I'd better be going, see you in the morning!" she turned and trotted off.

Matrix gave AndrAIa a bewildered look. She just shrugged. "Hey, don't ask me," she said.

After AndrAIa and Matrix got settled in the room, they decided to go downstairs and meet whoever else stayed here. AndrAIa checked the window as they went down the stairs. It was dark. She shuddered and felt around her belt to make sure her trident and throwing stars were still there.

When they reached the main living room, they saw about four binomes sitting around the coffee table, taking in the fire in the fireplace. Two men and a female, giving her baby a bottle of energy. They all looked up when they came in.

"Ah, new folks, I wager?" one of the binomes said, standing up. If he were a sprite, Matrix would guess he'd be around 1.9. "Welcome to Sleepy Acer. Hopefully you'd enjoy it a little."

"Um, thanks," AndrAIa replied uncertainly. She and Matrix sat down on a separate couch, and the binome sat down.

"My name's Jo-Bob," he continued, "this is my brother Billy-Bo, and his wife, Franny. That's their baby boy, Charm."

"Charm?" AndrAIa said politely. "That's uh…a pretty name."

Matrix hadn't said anything. He was looking around the room, a suspicious expression on his face. AndrAIa touched his arm. "What is it?" she asked.

"I feel something," he told her in a low voice. He turned to the others. "What time is it?"

Jo-Bob glanced at his watch. "Well, it be almost midnight, I'd say. Time to get the baby to bed. It's way past his bedtime."

"You're telling me," Franny said, "but every time I try, he cries, so I have to stay up with him."

AndrAIa paused, trying to figure out how to bring the subject up. Finally, forcing a laugh, she said, "you know, Enzo and I are new here and we heard about some legend in Sleepy Acer. We've heard stories, but we want to know if it's true."

Jo-Bob gave them a surprised glance, and Billy-Bo dropped the glass of Champaign he was drinking.

"You want to know if it's true?" Franny repeated. "Of course it's true!"

"You don't seem to frightened, though. Wouldn't you have left town by now?"

"User above, of course!" Franny said, "we are all scared stiff, but we can't do anything about it. The only thing we can do is to stay indoors and not go outside at all during the night. If we do, then…"

"The headless binome will getcha," Billy-Bo whispered. The baby broke out into a cry just as he said it and Franny had to rock him to quiet him down.

"I thought he only got you if you were in the forest," Matrix said.

Jo-Bob nodded. "True. But not until lately. He used to kill only those who ventured into the wood. But twenty-years ago, he started going past that, and entering the village. He'll kill whoever walks the road. And if you're trying to hide from him, say, in an alley or under a cart, he'll find you. He can see through things, just not building walls."

"So we're safe in here," AndrAIa confirmed.

"Safe as ever."

With trembling fingers, Frantucket lit his bedside candle and sat on his bed, covers up to his chin. He eyed the window that looked out onto the forest. How he hated his house! During the day it was okay, but at night, why did he have to live in a farm right by that haunted wood?

It was pretty dark now, and for some reason, he wished AndrAIa and Matrix were still there. He would have felt protected. Heck, even that dog would make him feel better.

He jumped when he heard lambs bleating, and through the window, he could see them run past the house and toward the village. His heart stopped in his throat. It was time.

Off in the distance, he could hear hoofbeats coming from deep within the forest. Then a horse whinnied. His eyes widened and he drew the covers up to his nose. Oh how he hated this. Every User blasted night, that cursed being would tramp past his window and toward the village. He hated seeing it.

The hoofbeats were getting closer. He wasn't sure if he could handle this. If he had enough time, maybe he could run to a neighboring house before the Headless Binome reached the village. He had no idea what he was thinking, but right now, fear was blinding his thought.

The hoofbeats got closer and closer, and Frantucket was starting to lose his mind. The only thing he could think of was getting away. Getting away, getting away.

Finally, he threw himself out of bed and out of the house. It was too late before he realized what he was doing. He took off running to the neighboring farm, and suddenly remembered how far away it was. And the hoofbeats were getting closer.

This was a horrible mistake. A terrible one. And it was too late to go back on it.

A shrill scream split the air and AndrAIa jumped to her feet. Matrix was already making his way to the door. Jo-Bob stood up.

"By George, what do you think you're doing?" he cried after him, "don't go out there!"

"Someone's hurt!" Matrix said, "and I intend to find him!"

"Matrix," AndrAIa hurried up to him, "maybe it isn't such a good idea to go out. Can't we wait until morning?"

"I don't believe in this ghostly crash, so I'm going out there."

AndrAIa winced. Sometimes she hated his stubborn ways. She hated when he cursed also. Finally, she decided to follow him.

The night air was freezing, as if just the presence of the ghost brought on the cold. She unsnapped her trident, and Matrix readied his gun. They stood there for a moment, looking around. AndrAIa shuddered and rubbed her arms, trying to lose the goosebumps.

"I don't see anything," she said finally.

"Me neither," Matrix confirmed. But he wasn't about ready to go back in.

AndrAIa glanced behind them, toward the forest. She couldn't see anything.

Hoofbeats echoed through the air. Her mouth sagged a little when she realized it was coming from the forest. Then, before her very eyes, a horse appeared, carrying a headless rider. It was coming in fast toward the village.

Her eyes widened. She felt her entire body freeze. "Matrix…." She whispered, her voice caught in her throat.

Matrix turned around and saw the being also. "Cursors!" He shouted. He grabbed her and pushed her into the house. He stayed in the doorway and pointed his gun at the ghost. "Targeting…full delete!"

The gun fired, and AndrAIa watched as it hit the ghost. For a moment, she felt like rejoicing.

But the shot didn't even effect it. The horse kept going, the rider holding on to the reigns. That's when she realized it was coming straight for the house!

TO BE CONTINUED...

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Page Updated Thu Nov 23, 2000 12:48pm EST