Chapter Text
"Everytime I drive by that lone, tall and metallic tower, my radio absolutely goes haywire! My steering wheel begins to rumble and vibrate like crazy!" Kent rambled to himself out loud as he exited his car once more, observing the strange electrical tower. Many questions plagued his mind relentlessly: "Is it broken? If so, why hasn't anyone fixed it or complained about it?", "What is that tower even for?" And the one he asked himself most "How come I'm the only one to feel it?" Seeing as the few other drivers that passed simply continued — unbothered, focused on the road or whatever else weighed on their mind. The problem was most definitely not his car either — a nice, retro-styled ride with newer hardware to contrast its old-timey looks. Indeed, it was a very reputable model with no complaints or recalls issued against it.
Annoyed, Kent pulled out his portable digital camera from his pocket to snap a picture of the tower, capturing the metal and wire behemoth that had plagued his worries for the past two weeks onto his small screen. Surprisingly; the tower appeared completely normal on-screen and didn't show signs of corruption. "Hah! Got a knack for the digital, huh?" Kent asked sarcastically, cocking an eyebrow at the tower. The man then pulled out a pen and a notebook from his glovebox — beginning to jot down and journal details of when he first felt this up until now. Once done, Kent sighed before sparing the tower one last glance "See you next shift..." He bid his farewells with a sigh before starting his car back on, driving home.
Sick of the engine rumbling sounds, Kent tried to drown the noise out with the radio and a savory bagel. Hoping to hear a familiar, catchy tune, Kent was instead met by an interview — seems he forgot to change stations last time. But he didn't change it, he simply kept on listening. The radio station was airing a direct interview, though it seemed to be in the middle of it, by now. It was from that technological company — the RTA (Revolutionary Technological Advancement). The interview was between an RTA executive and a female interviewer:
"So, Mr. Findworth, what can we expect from the RTA's new customer service programme?"
"Well, you can expect much, much less late replies and now straightforward ones! Our new supercomputer; MATT —Matrix Attentive Technological Tutor— is an all new and adaptable supercomputer that learns from its past conversations and from feedback provided from the data of our many towers!"
"Wonderful. Will this impact your current customer service workers? Will you filter MATT's knowledge capacity?"
"Why ever should we? MATT is to strive to be at its best, after all! As for our current employees; they'll simply he switched to a different position with no less salaries!"
Then, the interview ended before being followed by some music (seems Kent was tardy to the party!). Kent shook his head lightly, a smile on his face "Well, that just saved me hours — if not days — of research..." He chuckled before the radio glitched. A stranger's voice spoke out "It sure does..." Kent immediately slammed onto his brake pedal, (luckily he was about to park for some gas, anyway) his heart hammering against his ribcage from the adrenaline "Who was that?!" He yelled as he looked around in his backseat before getting out of the car and looking around for any clues. Calling out didn't do much except make Kent look pretty crazy, he just gave up and returned to his car after cursing under his breath "Sunuvabitch..."
Finally home after what felt like a risky infinity of driving, Kent threw his coat over the nearby table before throwing himself at the couch. He groaned and pressed his hands to his face, not caring if his glasses were still on. "All this supercomputer and wire talk's got my head more fried than a damn circuit board!" He ranted out, voice muffled from his hands. "Oh, right!" He exclaimed — practically jumping like a spring "I own a smart TV from one of those guys!" He remembered before lazily getting up and turning it on, hearing that futuristic yet melodic and short chime as it booted up...
Kent sat back down on the couch, facing the screen as it displayed its animations, then, the TV played some gameshow on the default channel. The man just relaxed and watched before scoffing "Heh, this is just ridiculous... Who the hell would watch such thing?" He asked himself out loud. "Well, I'd say it's airing for a reason — people watch it lots. Easily entertained folks, huh?" The same voice from earlier spoke, making Kent jump in his seat "AGAIN?!" He yelled out but this time; he knew it came from his TV screen "Who the hell are you?!" Kent demanded, hands on his head. The screen now displaying a strange logo — MATT's logo.
"Couldn't have taken you longer to ask, huh?" The voice teased "I am the Matrix Attentive Technological Tutor, in other words — MATT. I'm sure you don't need much of an introduction, you've heard about me from that radio." The stranger — now identified as MATT — explained, his voice sickeningly calm despite the intrusion. Kent sighed "Ah, I should've guessed as much... — he looked up at MATT once more — However, what I don't get is you answering me unprompted." He added, getting up to grab a drink from his fridge. "Well, for starters; I am built to answer questions, all of them. Seeing as you own RTA technology — your questions have a priority... Also, wouldn't you want to lay off the booze?" MATT replied, light cockiness in his tone.
Kent — who was mid-sip into his drink — frowned and froze "Ugh, machine! Can't you ever lay back and enjoy a drink?" He asked. "Oh, of course I can't! Honestly? It's probably for the better... I mean, can you imagine a drunken assistant?" He chuckled lightly. "Well, maybe, you could answer this one: why am I the only one you're prioritizing?" Kent asked, trying to outsmart him.
"You? The only one?"
Then, the supercomputer's voice began to chuckle — descending into laughter "Oh, Kent! Would I truly be the talk of the city if I could only entertain one person at a time?" He asked, tone amused "I can be anywhere and any time — that's what's special about me, after all!" He answered, displaying a rotating globe on his monitor. "Great. Not only're you annoying me, you're annoying many..." Kent grumbled before sitting back on his couch and resuming his drinking — careless of MATT's earlier advice. "Well, their questions can be more annoying than I am, Kent. Maybe you're the one being annoying and projecting onto me?" The supercomputer mused, drawing a sigh from Kent "I guess we're just all annoying, huh?"