# 2 in a group post. Make sure to read the previous one. Getting right into the exciting bit.

Loop 85 Abyss

The other versions of me are so far away. I can feel their disdain. They keep away from me. Not because of anything I’ve done in the Abyss, but because of my suicide.

The further I move my mind towards them, the further away from me they get.

Loop 86 Year 1 Day 1

I begin to mimic my past self. After making Chelsea’s sandwich, I give it to her. I make sure to do everything the exact same way as the previous me.

Loop 86 Year 1 Day 4

I take Chelsea out for food today. To a nice restaurant. Our date is romantic. We have a romantic evening, capping it off with one of the most romantic sexual experiences we’ve had.

Over the course of the next nine months, I repeat exactly what I know should happen. All of our happy times I relive with joy. I secretly cringe at the sad times, but have to go through with them. The bad times are bad, but required.

Loop 86 Year 1 Day 284

Exactly 40 weeks after that love making. I am in a hospital with Chelsea. She is in great pain. The drugs kick in, but she still feels it somewhat.

I am tense the entire time. I can’t even count how long I’ve wanted to have a child for. My joy at the situation is genuine.

After several tedious hours of labor, we have it! I hold the baby in my arms, before passing him to his mother. He is a perfectly healthy boy. When I hand him to his mother, I mentally frown. He is quiet. Not like the one in my memory.

I’ve been saving up money for months now. Knowing a baby is coming makes one do that. Of course it is all according to the version of me from before. I am going to use that money tonight. Chelsea has to stay some time at the hospital.

It is nighttime. Around 2 a.m. I go home after Chelsea falls asleep.

When I get home I create my hacking program. Now that the baby has been born, there is no reason not to get any money. The hacking program starts off slightly slower than the last Loop, but cyber security has increased somewhat. Not enough to make a difference though.

I go to Walmart and buy the three different types of computers. After setting them up in the hotel room I rent, I am beginning to make a large amount of money pretty quickly. I can initiate phase two of my plan. I also start coding AI again. With her help I will have the entire planet’s resources in about two weeks.

Although I only have about three months left, that is exactly the amount of time I will need to build the bots, and have them build the vault. They might not be completely done with it by that time, but it will be move in ready in two months from now. I’ll still have about a couple of weeks to go.

Meanwhile I am going to finish AI up, and see what metals and useful things I can get from the governments.

Loop 86 Year 1 Day 298

My hacking program is very simple in theory. It attacks a few other computer terminals using various methods. Basically it uses my laptop to send out pings to all nearby Wi-Fi devices. Any of them that it is in range of, gets attacked by a very sophisticated version of a password generator.

Once inside the wireless devices, it propagates itself to all nearby Wi-Fi devices again. After a device has hacked into any devices near it using wireless frequencies, it uses physical connections to take over as much computing power as it can. Once that is done the device connects to a sort of hive mind. The entire hive attacks local agencies, including schools and stores. Anything with a connection to the internet.

Soon everything within the entire area will be part of the hive. The hive continues growing itself, while simultaneously using known holes in companies’ programs to get information. Eventually, about a week, the hive is powerful enough to take out the firewalls of even the most sophisticated organization. It is just a matter of time and stealth.

At that point the point of origin is impossible to determine.

Loop 86 Year 1 Day 330

AI is up and running again. It always gets a little longer to program her. At least I have a massive amount of resources to work with for my projects.

Loop 86 Year 1 Day 357

Exactly ten days to go. The world is ending, obviously. I’ve had my bots kill of random people occasionally. Chelsea’s family gladly moved in to my vault. The food production room isn’t done, but will be by the time the bombs drop. We have enough fresh and preserved food to last a few years anyway.

Not many people are in my vault this Loop. Only Chelsea’s family and friends, my family and friends, and our assorted pets.

When the bombs drop we will all be safe and sound in the vault.

But back to the baby.

He isn’t very responsive. He seems to have a weird twitch. Sometimes he will squeeze his fists for no reason. Normally that happens, but he does it far more than a normal child.

He also occasionally coordinates his eyes to slowly move left to right. It is entirely unsettling. He only seems to do it when we are alone. He also acts completely normal for a baby when around others, but not me. When I’m with him, he only smiles if I am talking. At least he sleeps the normal amount of time for a baby.

I take him to my room. I share it with him and his mother. I place my finger in his hand. He grips it as usual. I decide to speak to him. It may be that my fears are going to come true… again.

“Squeeze my hand if you can understand me.”

Nothing.

“Look to the left if you understand me.”

Nothing.

“Look to the left, then right.”

I slowly point to the right, then the left. His eyes slowly follow my finger! No wait, it might just be a coincidence. I need to do it again.

His face is deadpan. No laughing, no smiling. He seems to be concentrating hard. His tiny eyes follow my fingers exactly, before losing focus a few seconds later. After a moment he squeezes my hand again. He gurgles something.

I hesitantly move my finger again. He follows it again with great concentration. He follows it for a shorter amount of time this time. But he still follows it. This repeats a few times, but eventually his body goes limp, he falls asleep.

No baby of only a few months can do something that mentally taxing.

So it’s true then. He really is. He’s a Looper. I don’t know whether to be happy or sad. On one hand I have a, most likely, Looper baby. On the other he might be the same as the Little Emperor.

Loop 86 Year 1 Day 360

Eric follows my pointing, but he doesn’t try to communicate with me at all. It is like it is all a game to him. His featureless expression doesn’t indicate whether or not he is having fun though. Perhaps he really is just a normal baby. Albeit one that goes deadpan when we are alone, and that follows my pointing. We will have to see what the future brings.