Chapter Text
r/NoStupidQuestions
Posted by [deleted] • 7y
Can a Virus be alive?
I genuinely don't know where else to go with this. I've tried talking to a local IT shop near my house about it, but nothing. One of them just laughed in my face.
I then tried to talk to “r/tech” instead, same bullshit. One of them asked if I was going to make a web series, like I was on some analog horror shit. Real funny.
So basically this is my last resort. I’m the type of guy to stay up all night watching scary stories but not the type to go to Reddit to make one up. So I'm not bullshitting this. But…I just need the help, alright?
Some background info, because you people tend to love that stuff.
No, I've never done drugs. I tried weed once in my teens but I felt like I was going to die. So, I'm good.
No, I'm not here for a web series. Like I said before, I genuinely need help.
And yes, this actually did happen. And has been happening for the past 6 months.
Even now. He's mocking me. Highlighting random words on the screen as I sit on my bed. I'm typing this on my personal laptop I tend to use for college, just to be safe. It’s switching between multiple random images of rotting animals. It irks me.
Sometimes it's worse. Sometimes it's better.
Last time it was just a 4 hour long video of 80’s top hits. I'm getting off track.
To explain the title, that's it. That's my question. Can a virus, like a computer based virus, somehow in some FUCKING way. Be alive? And I know that sounds crazy but let me explain. I just want to know if anyone has gone through something like this. Or maybe, that something like this can be possible.
-
There was a ring from the entrance bell. The young man at the counter looked up at Z and spared him a small wave. The boy was scrawnier than most, wearing his baseball cap so low it covered his eyes. Z, whose hands were in his pocket, spared him a swift nod of the head. With a small smile, Z looked around.
He had nothing set in mind to buy, he really just wanted to get out of his home. It felt harder and harder to stay still when he had nothing to do, spring break had just started so he didn’t have class as an excuse anymore. So, it was easier to just catch some fresh air by walking into shops.
Though he can’t really say this was a “breath of fresh air.” The sunlight passing through the tall windows exposed the insane amount of dust that covered the place like a blanket. He swore he could taste the film of it on his tongue.
His eyes scanned the various aisles of the pawn shop. Inhaling the smell of water damage and accumulated dust wherever he walked. Z didn’t pay much mind to it. Absent-mindedly passing the long, white sleeve of his jacket against the dusty displays as he sauntered to the technology section.
It was the easiest section to go for; a no brainer. It would provide a good maybe 30 minutes of looking at whatever broken down tech “The Golden Eyes” had to offer. Which was more than the usual bottom of the barrel. Z had tried to cheap out and buy his college laptop from here during his freshman year, only to wind up at Best Buy like anyone else.
His eyes wandered down to the overpriced for the condition they were in 3DS’s and the in equal condition game boys. They had always seemed to carry older tech on them, with the new things being displayed more near the front than shoved into the darker parts of shelves.
Z raised an eyebrow, spotting something hidden near the back of the busted tech, “Oh? Hey!”
He turned around and called out to the younger man at the front, lifting an older iMac into view for him “What model is this?
The man tilted his head as he squinted to get a better look at what Z was holding up, “Oh that one? Yeah, it's from 06’, so definitely way too old to use if you were in the mood for any sort of extra parts. Unless you're looking to fix it up.”
Z didn't really know what he meant by “fix it up” ; it looked practically new. Upon closer inspection, it did look a little dated. Small surface scratches on the screen, old crayon markings still visible on the device even after all these years. Z picked it up and got a better look at it. Being met with a purple “M” scribbled in now dusty, faded crayon on the back of the monitor.
“M?” Z questioned towards the man at the counter.
“Huh? Well I wasn't here when that thing was brought here, so just assume it was the old owner.”
Z hummed in agreement, going back to examining the device. He didn't know why, but there was a small itch he always had when it came to older tech. Something about collecting pieces of the past to break them down and see how people used to think is so interesting. Or even better when it was left with traces of who had used it before. He felt like skimming through some files.
“How much?”
The man at the counter thought for a second, “It's got enough dust on it so, it's been there for a while. 230 sound good?”
Z shot up, “230?! For this?!”
“Least I can offer it for’s 200, " The man clicked his tongue, “it's an antique if you think about it.”
Antique my ass Z thought to himself as he glared at the man. He could’ve sworn he saw him hold back a smile. The bastard knew he was cheating Z and smiled at him for it. Z huffed as he walked to the counter.
-
“$200?! Seriously?”
“Hey!” He replied with a slight hiss as he pressed the phone against his face with the help of his shoulder, using both hands to hold onto the iMac. “The guy at the shop said it was an antique! So, it was actually worth way more trust me.” Z knew he was being hypocritical. It’s not like he also wasn't thrown off by the insane pricing from a pawn shop, but Msak didn’t need to know that.
“Whatever you say man.” Msak let out a small sigh. There was a small creaking noise that followed the sound. Seems like he was talking on his gaming chair.
“Before you get on me for my spending habits, why don’t we talk about yours?” Z’s lips raised into a smug smile that could be heard in the tone of his voice. Msak let out a quick snort.
“Okay, let’s.” While Z couldn’t see it, he crossed his arms with a similar expression as Z’s grazing his face.
Z giggled as he cleared his throat, “So, your gaming chair-”
“What about it?” Mask interrupted, Z ignored him.
“I swear I’ve been hearing that thing creak since 10th grade.” Ze hadn’t realized how his voice was gradually getting louder and louder as he spoke, causing others to stare. And if he did, he just didn’t care to stop.
He continued, “And you decide to spend more cash on monster fucking simulators than getting yourself a bottle of WD-40.”
There was a loud, almost painful, gasp from the other line.
“How DARE you Z! Those “monster fucking” simulators are not just simulators. They are important, other worldly experiences. Ones that you just can’t understand, and that’s okay.” Msak feigned true compassion, making his voice come off as though he was talking to a small dog, “I just feel bad for you.”
Z rolled his eyes with a loud groan, causing his grip on the laptop to slip slightly. “Feel bad for me all you want, at least I’m not into that kinda shit.”
Msak chuckled to himself, Z smiled at the reaction.
They often had banter like this, ever since high school had started up. The two seemed to gravitate to one another from the day they met at the army base back in Fort Hood.
Z had just turned 7 years old, it was 2006. His father had been in the military since he had left high school, it was something he took extreme pride in. Spoke about the military like it was some sort of saving grace to him, and in a way, it was.
When Z had heard stories —countless stories— about his fathers up upbringing, he always thought about the hardships he had faced. Mostly because that’s what the old man brought up the most.
He spoke of not having enough to eat most days; what it was like to have to steal for a meal. How his parents tried their best to give him all they could so he could have a better future than they ended up having. This led to him joining the military to be able to pay for college, and help his parents out.
Essentially, saving him.
Maybe that’s why he forced Z to enlist. Maybe in hopes it would save him too.
Msak was the first kind face in that sea of hard as stone expressions and camouflage all around. The sounds of commands being thrown at poor soldiers by their sergeants echoed in the background as Z went up to introduce himself to a young Msak.
Back then, his hair was long. Done up in a pony tail with two long pieces that framed his face. He had on a brown, monocolored dress that stopped at just below the hip line. It matched the color of his hair. But clashed with the blue shorts he had on underneath, they reached past his knees.
The dress read “unicorn girl” on it, with garish galaxy print behind a silhouette of a mystical creature. He had made fun of him for wearing them. Msak said Z’s crocs looked stupid. And from that day on, they never really stopped bickering.
After a year of being stationed though, Z’s father was being moved 6 states up. Z was sure that —like most of his friendships– he was bound to never see Msak again. Thankfully, high school had other plans.
Msak looked so different in freshman year. His hair was short to the nape now, he always had on baggy clothes and seemed to hunch a lot more. This too, Z would poke fun at him for.
“HEY!” Z’s ear rang as heard Msak call out to him on the other line. Suddenly, he remembered what he was doing. It seems he’d spaced out so badly he’d walked all the way back home.
“Shit, sorry dude what’s up?”
There was an annoyed sigh on the other end, Z decided not to comment on it.
“I was asking if you needed any help setting up the damn thing.” There was another creak, followed by the sound of something rising up, “I’m about to head out to get some more art supplies for the professor's new project, so I could swing over there.”
“Jeez, another one?” Z scrambled through his right jeans pocket for his keys, “Hasn’t it only been like 6 days since the last?”
“Thems the breaks of art school.” He could practically hear the other man’s pout, “But, like I said, you need any help?”
Z shook his head although Msak could somehow see it through the phone, “Nah nah, I got it.”
Msak let out a snort, “Ah yes, I forgot. Oh forgive me grand Z I forget such a man as yourself never needs any help!” The boy tossed his hand dramatically against his forehead, posing to no one in his room.
“Damn right I don’t!” And with that, Z hung up the phone and stuffed it into his pocket.
Time to get to work.
-
It was a completely mundane process at first, setting it up. Maybe even a bit boring. But it was something I did enjoy doing. Tinkering with things, meticulously cleaning them too; often did that with my guns. I own a good bit of them– but that's besides the point.
All this to say, nothing seemed out of the ordinary at all. I’d grabbed a wet cloth and cleaned up all of those crayon markings I found. Well, most of it. For whatever reason that damn “M” was caked on. Like BURNT into the back of the damn thing. I brushed it off at the time.
I decided to plug it into a small spare section I had on my desk where I was hoping to get a second monitor soon after I fixed up my current PC, but I guess an old iMac would do for the time being.
Then came booting up the thing. I think a part of me didn’t expect it to actually turn on, it was literally a 13 year old computer that was rotting at the back of a pawn shop. I thought at most I’d get around an hour of usage out of it till it just completely gave out.
What I wasn’t expecting was for it to, once again, just be completely fine. The outside was just a bit dusty and marked up but that was it, and so was the inside. Completely pristine like if time had never even passed.
When you first open it, it has a beautiful, nostalgic background. Bubbles lined a green and blue background with tall buildings, water and plants littering the screen.
Frutiger aero was such a product of its time.
All of the apps on the thing were just tossed around, no sense of organization at all, which made it kind of a funny sight against such a neat and pretty looking backdrop.
And of course I started looking at the apps, because who wouldn’t? It was so cool to see tech so weirdly preserved, I just had to know who the person behind it all was. So I sat down and started digging.
But, weirdly enough. It was mostly children's games from the early 2000’s. Most of them were preinstalled. So, obviously there was bugdom 2, one of the best games to come out and I swear my soul on this. If you haven't checked it out yet, you gotta.
Anyway, I’m going through every single installed app right, and this had to be the most shocking thing. It had minecraft installed. Obviously still an alpha version, looked to be the oldest version of the game actually. It already had a world seed on it , just titled “ :D “, dated 09/25/2009 4:16 pm, so this thing had been rotting away in there for damn near 10 years at that point.
I shrugged and just created a new world and played on it for a while. For a good while.
I wanna say when I stopped it was like 7 pm at night by this point. I like to think it was just the nostalgia of seeing such an old version of the game like the ones from my childhood again, and actually being able to play it was even better. But a part of me likes to act like he knows better now than to have ever assumed good things from this device.
When I stopped playing I exited the game and was about to just wash up for the night to chill on my bed, when I got curious about other things.
I guess since there was so much left behind on the thing, maybe there were some sort of images saved onto it. And low and behold, there were. But they all made no sense.
Random screenshots of highlighted letters in texts, saved images of multiple pokemon, (which like yeah if this was some kids computer that makes sense) it also had so many and I mean SO MANY minecraft screenshots. And get this, every minecraft screenshot taken was in the span of 4 months.
And each and every one of them had this weird, smudge on them?
It’s kinda hard to explain. It was obvious these were all taken from a kid given the spelling in the chat.
As I kept scrolling through disorganized image after disorganized image. I came across something else. Multiple saved images of different medical procedures, specifically IV insertion. Weird medical guides to the process of it, along with those simple to read info images on Type 1 diabetes.
I’m not gonna lie given the fact I have it myself that kinda freaked me the fuck out.
When I clicked on one of the medical related images, everything went dark. The computer I mean, like it shut down completely.
-
Z let out a harsh curse as he leaped down to the ground to examine the onslaught of cables. Something told him all those cables would blow a fuse eventually, he just didn’t expect it to happen this quickly. With a small groan he reached out towards the white cable that belonged to the iMac, straining slightly to reach it. Yet, before he could, there was a loud THUM.
The computer had booted itself up again.
Z had checked if it was due for any updates so a spontaneous one seemed out of the ordinary, but it was old as shit tech. So he didn’t think much of it and climbed back up to see what had happened.
Nothing seemed changed when he reopened it. Seems to have just glitched out. As he was about to walk away to make himself something to eat, Z heard a small ping come from the computer.
A popup message.
“Update Required”
Ah. He should have guessed. If it didn’t update before it surely needed one by this point. Maybe that would explain the small blackout.
As he read through the letters on the screen, something stirred within him. Something telling him that it was off somehow. In a way Z couldn’t pin.
“Hello dear user! Due to an extended inactivity on this device it is now in need of a system update. Please press the button below to continue.”
The button below just read “start.” What got to him was the framing of the popup. It looked as if someone had overwritten an error message, the button on the bottom being a deep red color. It flashed ever so slightly as he contemplated pressing it.
On one hand, it was an odd message in some ways, but on the other hand, Z had only been 7 years old when this computer hit the shelves. (His mom and dad didn’t really like him having access to the internet that early on, so he never had anything connected to the good old World Wide Web till he was 12.) So, he really had no idea what a system update message even looked like on these things. With a small hint of hesitance, he pressed “start.”
Z held his breath without realizing it as the computer's light dimmed. He could hear the fans starting up as if the device was suddenly overheating. On top of that, it began to shake. Violently. Not enough to move erratically around the desk, but instead a rapid vibration shook through the entire computer. Z didn’t know what to do but to stare.
And just as it had come, it ended just as quickly. The fans were dead silent, the vibrating hum quieted; it was just Z alone in a room with a computer.
The computer's light had returned. A small hum could be heard as the fans started back up, Z raised an eyebrow. Nothing seemed to have changed from that update at all. Same exact looking software and everything. He leaned forward and grabbed for the mouse once again. There must have been some sort of article he could still pull up from the web about the way the computer had shaken so violently from that update.
The software wasn’t anywhere near the current days, but he was still able to find something. It was just an iMac user help center, explaining how usual updates are performed, how long they took. It said it usually took 60 minutes to damn near two hours depending how much you had downloaded.
And given how much this kid had, an update so rapid made no sense.
Even from a modern day standpoint, system updates take 30 minutes to an hour. Never—what— 30 seconds? Something tells him he was cheated at that pawn shop. They knew this thing would get busted eventually and still sold it to him for that price. Z sighed, he was still the one who decided to take it home.
Not wanting to let 200 dollars go to waste, he took a deep breath, and decided to just leave it for tomorrow.
-
Now, this is when I really should’ve just decided to take this thing out back and smash it to bits. Because genuinely screw those 200. I swear to whatever watches us when we sleep, that the computer started talking to me. Not vocally, not yet. I had that article open and it started to highlight letters, like in the screenshots that kid took. It did them slowly. Like it was asking a question, and well, it was.
M i
c
h
A
?
“M i c h a?”
I guess my fight or flight finally kicked in and I leaped down to unplug the computer.
And I just left it there to collect dust for 2 solid months. Unplugged as I just used my other desktop to focus on other things.
One day, when I come back from college, tired as all hell; I might add. I see that the computer is on. I look down to the cable that still lay on the ground. I felt something inside of me. Not fear but this dread that hit my gut. What could even be happening.
Something told me to investigate, try and understand what was going on. So, I slowly inched toward the computer and grabbed the mouse, opening up files and apps again. Nothing seemed unchanged. It was fucking with me.
Just like before it would look like nothing was happening at all to lull me into some sense of false security. I thought of myself as better than falling for something so obvious, and to some extent, I was. I turned it off, hearing a high pitched buzzing sound emanate from it as the screen turned black.
I left the computer there, four months passed without me feeling drawn to it at all. I swear I’d forget it was even there if it wasn't for the times it just turned on. Usually while I was trying to sleep; still unplugged. I couldn’t begin to explain to you why I kept it for so long, or well, why I still do.
I guess I thought 4 months was long enough of a rest. And I plugged it in once again. I didn’t know why but, I missed those hours I spent playing on that old as shit minecraft this thing still supported. I’d had a rough week, I guess I needed some sort of release. Something simple and fun.
I went to the minecraft app, opening it and instantly felt my heart sink. The old world seed I had seen and ignored was there, still with a happy face as a title. Then, there was mine, and I knew it was mine because the date hadn’t changed since I last played on it. Its title had been changed from “Some bullshit” (creative. I know.) to a very ominous “Your World.”
“Your world”? As if there was someone who had used it and knew I had created an entire other world seed. The worst part was, that didn’t seem so far fetched. Because the world seed that had last been touched on September of 2009, now had a new date and time displayed.
09/25/2019 4:16 pm
Exactly 15 minutes ago. Right before I had come back into my room.
I genuinely always saw myself as someone who would survive apocalypse scenarios. I believe myself to be witty, to be smarter than I was at that moment. But, yet still, I opened it.
I opened that damn world seed and started walking through the seemingly endless patches of pixilated grass and distorted sounding cows. Once again, nothing. Just another tease from whatever the fuck was tormenting me mentally for the past 6 months at that point. I gained nothing from wandering around aimlessly for what felt like hours on that world. I didn’t build, didn’t hunt, didn’t even sleep; just kept walking.
And then, I found something. A house. Well, a mansion really. It was large and beautifully made. Tall columns guarded the entrance, it was beckoning. I don’t know why but I went back and crafted myself an axe before entering. As if that was meant to protect me.
I entered the house and was startled by the immense amount of lag. Everything had been running just fine, I didn’t know why it suddenly decided to bug now.
Then, the screen went black again. I stared at myself in my reflection. Eyeing the clock behind me, it was 9:56 now. Had 5 hours really gone by that quickly?
The screen lit up. This time, back to the article I had opened up all those months ago on the help center for the iMac.
Once again, it highlighted words and letters.
you’re
a
New
person.
where
is
m
I
C
h
a
?
Again with the “Micha’ mention.
I didn’t know what to do. Was that guy who sold it to him playing some kind of fucking trick on me? Was this shit rigged to give a mini heart attack to whatever poor soul decided to buy it?
Who the fuck is Micha?
Suddenly. The webcam turned on. I just stared at myself, my eyes were wide. I looked so confused.
The screen began to display images so quickly I couldn’t register what they were, not at first at least.
Gore. Rapid vile images flashed over and over again on the screen, the fans growing ever louder as it continued, almost like a scream.
I shot up from my chair, panting as the fear subsided to anger.
“You think this is fucking funny? Huh, is that it?” At that point I was sure that the bastard from the pawn shop was fucking with me. “You tryna scare me? By using some gross ass photos? Try again cause this shit ain’t scary!”
It was. Terrifying actually. What made it worse was how fast the photos were shuffling between one another. Fleshy colors marred with dark red and the white paleness of teeth in screaming mouths. All combined together as they flashed into a gross amalgamation of degeneracy.
A halt. As if the words had reached and suddenly he (it?) wanted to switch gears.
“You look scared.”
It (he?) spoke. To me.
I know this sounds like some made up fucking joke but it spoke to me. I damn near broke my chair scrambling to get down to unplug the damn thing. But it never turned off. It stayed there, that basic frutiger aero wallpaper seemed mocking to me now.
No comfort provided just something to haunt me.
And that voice. The voice seemed…wrong. Not human, a deep groaning sort of voice. Alien in nature. And definitely not the same voice as the guy who had sold it to me, even with a voice filter on I doubt he could sound like that.
So if anyone out here who will listen to me, try and tell me what I can do with this thing. I don't think I can return it, I don't want to curse another poor soul. So I was thinking about taking it out back and shooting it repeatedly. But on the other hand, who is micha? Why did it matter to this guy? (thing?)
As I’m typing this out it’s flashing a good amount of porn and gore on the iMac. I’m not touching that thing till I have more evidence on what’s going on. Or how I can fix it.
I swear it can see me. Through the tape I put on the webcam. I don’t know how.
So if anyone can help me.
Please do.