Cold.
Absolute.
Suffocating darkness.
That was Baida’s first sensation upon waking.
No light, no sound, no sense of touch—even the concept of a “body” had vanished.
She felt like a strand of pure thought, imprisoned in an absolutely sealed, isolated cage.
“System!
Did the simulation start wrong?
Where am I?” Baida called out from deep within her consciousness, but only silence answered.
She tried to “turn” her perspective or stretch her “limbs,” but every effort vanished without a trace.
This space seemed to have no dimensions, no boundaries, yet it restricted her completely.
Panic, like cold water, began to erode her thoughts.
She recalled the three talents she had chosen before entering the simulation: [Mechanical Ascension] (spirit entering the data network), [Quantumization] (body quantized), and [Mental Barrier] (strong network defense).
Her vision had been beautiful—to become an invisible cyber ghost, freely roaming the vast digital ocean like a true digital lifeform.
But now…
“You’ve got to be kidding me?!” Baida’s consciousness let out a silent wail, filled with disbelief and collapse.
“Three talent slots was already stingy enough, and ‘Mechanical Ascension’ starts with me in prison?!
A physical prison where I can’t even stretch?!
What kind of ascension is this?!
More like a data prison!”
She tried to sense the outside world.
[Mechanical Ascension] allowed her to vaguely perceive “external” existence.
It was a…
cold metallic texture?
Some kind of standardized interface structure?
Extremely faint, barely distinguishable electrical signals?
“Wait…
this shape, this feeling…” Baida’s consciousness “felt” the walls imprisoning her.
“Square, with a metal head…
Holy crap!
I didn’t turn into a USB drive, did I?!”
This realization sent her into complete despair.
A USB drive!
A storage device!
Her grand ambitions, her cyber ghost dream—all shattered in this most basic digital container that hadn’t even been plugged into a computer!
“Help—!” Her inner scream echoed in the empty data prison.
“Is anyone there?!
Someone plug me in!
Anywhere is fine!
Please, give me some data flow, some light!
I’m suffocating!”
Time passed in absolute silence.
How long, she didn’t know—maybe an instant, maybe an eternity.
Baida went from screaming in collapse, to begging, to numb silence.
She was like a forgotten screw in a warehouse corner, unnoticed by anyone.
“No…
I can’t go on like this.” A strong will to survive pushed her to pull herself together.
“Sitting around waiting to die isn’t my style!
Herta is still waiting for me, Silver Wolf…
well, I don’t know where she is yet, but she might need me in the future!
I can’t fall here!”
She began to focus, driving the power called [Mechanical Ascension].
Since she couldn’t break through this physical shell, she would work on the inside.
“This is my ‘home,’ even if it’s a bare concrete shell right now, prison-style…” Baida encouraged herself.
“But that’s okay!
Renovation!
I’m going to turn it into a five-star warm harbor!”
She started capturing the faint energy that occasionally flowed through the USB drive’s control chip.
This energy was originally used to maintain basic data storage, but now it became Baida’s “building material.” Like a master programmer and interior designer combined, she used her own mental strength to guide this energy, weaving it into pure data streams.
First, light.
A soft white glow lit up in the center of the darkness, like the first star in the universe.
Baida “looked” at that point of light, nearly crying with joy.
With light came hope.
“Good!
Lower the brightness a bit, yes, warm tones, not too cold, like sunlight…” She muttered to herself as she adjusted it.
Next, a sense of space.
Using the data stream, she cleverly divided and “defined” boundaries within the USB drive’s storage space.
Though still physically tiny, in her perception, the space expanded.
She “built” a virtual room.
“Put a sofa here.
A soft one, the kind you sink into!” Data streams converged, outlining a comfortable single-seater sofa, its texture simulating velvet.
“And a bookshelf next to it.
No books yet, but I can put some ‘memory’ files here.
Yes, encrypt and archive the memories from the last simulation with Herta…”
She worked tirelessly, driving data with her imagination.
She also “opened” a window.
Outside wasn’t a real view, but flowing, brilliant images of a sea of stars—her nostalgia for Herta Space Station and that boundless universe.
“Perfect!
This feels like home!” Baida’s consciousness contentedly “lay” on the virtual sofa, “watching” the galaxy flow past the window.
Though still trapped, this place was no longer cold and dark.
It was a warm, private harbor of her own making.
All she could do now was wait.
Wait for an opportunity—a chance for this USB drive to connect to the vast data world.
Waiting was long.
In this warm but still lonely harbor, Baida would often “browse” those memory files.
Herta’s focused profile as she researched, her expression when Baida clumsily handed her a Play-Doh bear, the blood-stained letter at the end…
Each review made her more determined.
“Whatever it takes, I have to survive, find a way back, or…
find new people to protect.”
Time passed, perhaps days, perhaps weeks.
Then one day, a violent vibration came!
“Hum—”
Baida perked up!
Something was happening!
She felt herself being picked up by a rough hand, stained with a bit of oil and dust.
For the first time, external sounds reached her perception clearly—a woman’s voice, tired and accompanied by coughing.
“Cough…
cough…
can this thing still work?
Bronya needs it…”
Bronya?
Baida’s heart stirred.
That name…
sounded familiar?
Then, she felt herself being inserted into a USB port!
“Click!”
In an instant, it was like a dam breaking!
A vast, chaotic, yet vibrant torrent of data surged through the interface into Baida’s world!
Unlike the tiny domain she had maintained with faint energy, this was real data flow from an active computer system.
“Here it comes!” Baida trembled with excitement.
She immediately activated [Mechanical Ascension], like a skilled surfer riding this data torrent.
Her consciousness spread along the data lines, quickly breaking free from the USB drive’s physical limits and entering the connected computer system.
It was a…
rather old personal computer.
Outdated OS, low hardware performance, storage space nearly filled with scattered files, logs, and cache junk.
It ran at a painfully slow speed.
Baida’s consciousness glided through the system like a ghost.
She “saw” records of daily expenses—tight but carefully managed.
She “saw” search history with keywords like “basic hacker guide for the lower zone,” “cheap data editing equipment.” She also “heard” the woman’s occasional coughs and her sighs at the screen.
“So, this ‘Marta’ is Bronya’s adoptive mother?
Not in good health, and financially struggling.” Baida quickly analyzed the situation.
“Bronya…
wants to be a hacker?”
A familiar sense of protectiveness surged in her again.
Though her current identity was absurd, her intention to protect remained unchanged.
“Since I’m here and staying for now…” Baida’s consciousness showed a faint “smile” in the data stream.
“Let me help you tidy things up a bit!”
First, she used her ability to silently clean up system junk, optimize background processes, and fix minor system bugs.
The computer’s speed visibly improved.
Then, she “saw” Marta worrying about a medical bill, the screen showing a pitifully low balance in her account.
“Hmm…
this needs to be solved.” Baida thought.
Directly tampering with bank data was too risky and would attract unwanted attention.
She chose a more covert approach—using [Mechanical Ascension]’s ultimate control over data, she slipped into some anonymous small task platforms operating in legal gray areas.
She took on extremely simple, low-paying but quick-payout tasks like data filtering and captcha recognition.
These tasks were child’s play for Baida; she could handle dozens simultaneously.
Tiny amounts of credits began to quietly flow, in batches, into a certain online wallet account that Marta rarely used.
Baida slightly “nudged” the system to make this forgotten account reappear before Marta’s eyes.
After doing all this, Baida withdrew her main consciousness back into the “warm harbor” inside the USB drive.
She was now more like an invisible tenant living in this household, quietly managing the chores and offering modest financial support.
A few days later, Baida finally “met” the one she had been waiting for—Bronya, or rather, the young Silver Wolf.
A small, thin girl in worn-out clothes came home.
She had short gray hair and a prematurely mature, indifferent expression, but deep within those purple eyes flickered focus and brilliance when she looked at the computer screen.
“Mom, I’m home.” Bronya’s voice was clear but carried a barely noticeable fatigue.
“Cough…
welcome back, Bronya.
How was your day?” Marta’s voice was filled with concern.
“Same as always.
The signal at the scrapyard is still terrible.” Bronya set down a small backpack and walked straight to the computer. This story is hosted at g.com.
When she turned it on and saw the unusually smooth startup speed and the clean desktop, she was visibly taken aback.
“Mom, did you clean the computer?”
“No, I didn’t?” Marta poked her head out from the kitchen—a small cubicle.
“Maybe it auto-updated?”
Bronya wrinkled her small nose, clearly unconvinced.
She opened a few programs; the speed surprised her again.
Subconsciously, she touched the ordinary USB drive that Marta had placed beside the computer—Baida’s physical body.
The moment Bronya’s fingers touched the USB drive, Baida felt a faint but extremely sensitive mental fluctuation.
This child…
had an innate affinity for the digital world beyond the ordinary!
Bronya seemed to sense something strange too.
She looked at the USB drive, a hint of confusion flashing in her purple eyes.
“Weird…” she murmured softly.
“It feels…
cool, but also kind of…
comfortable?”
She didn’t dwell on it and soon immersed herself in her digital world.
Baida “observed” from the sidelines, watching the young Silver Wolf hungrily devour hacker knowledge, attempt simple scripts, and cautiously explore the chaotic maze of the lower network.
One night, Marta approached Bronya carrying a simple data editing device—an old portable screen and input keyboard.
“Bronya, here.” Marta’s face held a gentle, apologetic smile.
“Happy birthday.
Mom doesn’t have much money, so I could only buy this used one…
I hope you can find it useful.”
Bronya looked at the device, her eyes instantly lighting up, but soon dimming again: “Mom, this must have been expensive.
What about your medicine…”
“It’s okay, Mom’s health is fine.” Marta patted her head.
“As long as you like it.
My Bronya will definitely become an amazing hacker one day.”
Bronya hugged the device tightly, burying her face in it, her voice muffled: “Thank you, Mom…
I’ll definitely succeed.”
Hidden inside the USB drive, Baida clearly “saw” the worry and determination in Marta’s eyes, and “felt” Bronya’s complex emotions of joy, heartache, and fierce resolve.
Her heart (if data consciousness counted as a heart) was moved.
“What a sensible child…
and what a difficult life.” Baida sighed.
Just then, she “heard” Marta, after Bronya had gone to sleep, sitting alone at the computer, whispering a quiet prayer:
“Gods, if there really are gods in this world…
I don’t pray for a long life for myself.
I only hope that Bronya can grow up safe and happy.
She’s too smart, too strong-willed.
I’m afraid she’ll walk down dangerous paths…
If there is anything out there that can help her, even just keep her company so she won’t be so lonely…
I would pay any price…”
These words struck Baida’s consciousness like a hammer.
Company…
protection…
not letting her be lonely…
It was exactly the same as her original intention to protect Herta!
A strong impulse urged her to respond.
But she was just a USB drive, a data ghost.
How could she communicate with people in the real world?
Suddenly, an idea flashed!
[Mechanical Ascension]!
She could influence data.
Then what about…
text?
Baida focused, mobilized the data stream, carefully avoided the computer’s core systems, and in the note field of that nearly empty online wallet account Marta was viewing, in the smallest font possible, she wrote a single line:
[She will be safe and happy.
She is not alone.]
After writing it, she immediately erased all traces of her actions and nervously “observed” Marta’s reaction.
Marta had only been checking her account out of habit, not expecting anything.
But when she saw that line of tiny text that had suddenly appeared, like an illusion, she froze.
She rubbed her eyes and leaned closer to the screen.
It wasn’t an illusion.
Those words carried a strange, soothing power.
Marta’s face first showed surprise, but soon that surprise was replaced by a nameless, warm reassurance.
She looked at her sleeping daughter, then at the ordinary USB drive.
In the end, she didn’t make a fuss.
She simply turned off the screen, a long-lost, truly relaxed smile appearing at the corner of her mouth.
“Thank you…” she whispered softly, not knowing who she was speaking to.
Inside the USB drive, in Baida’s “warm harbor,” the starry sea images seemed to glow even brighter.
She knew that her second simulation, though it had started bizarrely, had truly begun.
She had found a new star to protect—a star still young, but destined to shine across the universe.
A star named “Silver Wolf.”
And she was certain that her bond with this home, with this girl, had already been tightly woven through this silent communication and quiet protection.
The data prison had truly become—in the cold digital ocean—a warm harbor built for those who needed it most.