04-30-2009, 04:46 AM
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Location: at the end of days.
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Re: protocol _[aex]
Whatever the approaching object was, it was currently airborne, and moving rather fast. It quickly fell from the sky, dropping down into the trees several yards away. After a short moment of thinking, the simulacrum decided it would keep its huckleberry form for a little longer, and wait to see if the strange object came any closer. The simulacrum could hear the newcomer as it made its way through the overgrown forest, pushing its way through bushes and shrubs, as if it were searching for something or determined to get somewhere. Soon it came into view of the simulacrum, coming around from behind a tall Douglas-fir, knocking down a few seed cones as it did. A quick glance revealed that this thing was quite unlike anything the simulacrum had ever seen before, which wasn't saying much as the simulacrum hadn't seen very many things in its short life.
The stranger was a living creature, probably, and it was quite obviously mobile. It was brightly glowing, in the infrared range of electromagnetic radiation, compared to the relatively cold trees and brush all around. It wasn't like the other living things in the forest, which as far as the simulacrum could tell were all plants. This was a creature that the simulacrum would certainly want to emulate. To do that, however, it would need to study it carefully, paying careful attention to its behavior. Then it would have to get closer and determine its chemical composition, among other things. Unfortunately, it didn't seem like the creature was planning on staying in one place for very long, making it a difficult study. It continued to move through the dense forest, now clearly searching for something.
As the creature passed the simulacrum, the huckleberry bush dissolved its form, becoming again a cloud of black dust, lit from within with an eerie blue glow. The creature hadn't noticed the sudden change in the simulacrum's form, continuing its passage through the woods, making its way around shrubbery and branches. The simulacrum followed silently behind the creature, watching its every movement, so that it could copy it most accurately. The creature went on for another ten minutes, climbing over fallen logs, ducking under thick branches, and avoiding crossing through gossamer thin spiders' webs. It didn't seem to be heading in any particular direction, instead seeming to search the general area for whatever it was it was trying to find.
The simulacrum was finally convinced it had learned enough about the creature's behavior as it could while discretely observing it. The next step would be interacting with it, to determine how it responded to certain stimuli. The simulacrum approached the creature from behind, the side that it had determined was the least observant. Part of the simulacrum materialized into a partial huckleberry branch, the only other form it was familiar with, and with this branch the simulacrum gave the creature a firm prod in the shoulder. The branch quickly dematerialized again, joining the nanoswarm as loose nanoscopic particles. As soon as the creature was jabbed, it spun around to face the glowing dust cloud that was the simulacrum. For a few short moments, the creature and the simulacrum mutually examined each other, still and silent, sharing a deep curious gaze.
The simulacrum then waited for the creature's response.
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