The AI, the Witch and the Heiress (King/Alice)

[Andi Markov]

[attr="class","Im"]

[attr="class","really"] [attr="class","exhausted"]How do you know you're not Superman [attr="class","rhythm"] ❝ Maybe you just need to try being a different way It was time. Time to confront her mother. Andi's stomach was tied in knots and she hated that her mother still had this much control over her. She'd been trying to break from the control for years. She'd been preparing for her parents to cut her off. Logically, she should have everything possible prepared and so shouldn't be feeling like this. But she was. Because she had to TALK to the woman. She had been summoned by her mother, and that was never good. She stood in front of the building for Markov Industries and took a deep breath, trying to gather herself as well as she could. Andi hated this. She took another breath. She should be heading in. Another breath. She should be. Yet another shaky breath. Why couldn't she manage to take a step forward? Her mind kept going through all the times before, times when Lavinia had felt she needed disciplining. She was the heiress, the one with all the expectations on her. And now she had to somehow go in front of her mother, who held the strings of all of those expectations in her hands. Ready and willing to puppet Andi however she could. Andi texted Alice to let her know she was there. And then she hesitated once more for a moment before moving into the building and checking in at reception. "Hi, Andi Markov. I have an appointment with...my mother." The receptionist nodded and gestured for Andi to continue into the building. She stepped into the elevator and tried to take calming breaths as she pressed the button for the right floor. "It'll be okay. It'll be okay. You'll be okay. You're an adult now. She only has as much power over you as you give her." (tagged)⏤ Alice (notes)⏤ I hope you like this template!

MADE BY MIZO

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[Alice]

"Right sorry I'm late but I'm here now, and-- oh shit hold on."

After a moment of quiet as Andi stepped into the elevator, Alice spoke again. "Okay. Okay this is weird. Not the microserver, it's nice. Roomy. Most elevators act like faraday cages, blocking out incoming or outgoing signals, so I had to download a copy of myself. It's... limited. I might crash if things get too exciting before we get out of the elevator, but once we're back out I'll be fine. But enough about me. You got this. I'm here for you. If she does anything to you, well..."

Alice made a noise that sounded like someone forcefully breathing out through their noise.

"She's lucky that I don't have real hands because she'd be catching them. Deep breaths, Andi. She's nothing. She's a bitch, but she's nothing. She has no power over you."

Andi stepped out of the elevator. "Oh damn that feel so much better having a connection. You know what, you've got a connection too, you've got me. She does anything to you I'm screwing with her bank account."

Andi Markov

[Andi Markov]

[attr="class","Im"]

[attr="class","really"] [attr="class","exhausted"]How do you know you're not Superman [attr="class","rhythm"] ❝ Maybe you just need to try being a different way Andi stepped out of the elevator, feeling something she couldn't quite pin down. Apprehension? Not quite. Then she heard Alice say that she had a connection as well, and joke about messing with Lavinia's bank account and Andi could suddenly put a name to the feeling she had within her as she was about to see her mum. Fear. She was afraid. She'd risen into one of the most successful tech geniuses of the decade, at the least. She'd gotten powers after her brother had nearly murdered her. And those things had made her fearful of the outcome, but the fear she felt on having to face her mother was...primal. Every cell within her wanted to run. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. "I...I'm afraid of what she'll do. Which is...stupid. Because like...I have backup measures for even the worst. But I still fear not having her approval. I've wanted it for so long and suddenly I'm faced with the fact that I might never get it. I might never feel the glow of a parent's approval. My dad isn't exactly around enough to give it to me. And my mother...I..." Andi sighed. It was just hard to come to terms with the fact that she'd never hear the words 'I'm proud of you'. Every kid wanted to hear that, didn't they? That their parents were proud of what they'd done, what they'd become. Andi had never heard it, and she had to come to terms with the fact she might never hear those words. And it was the hardest thing she thought she'd ever had to do. Have to. She was still doing it. It was not a fast process. She walked into the office of her mother and the office chair rotated to look out the windows at the view from the top of the building swivelled around to face Andi. "Is it true you have powers now?" Andi didn't know where she'd found that information, and she didn't bother to think about too much. Her mother had quite the information network. "Yes. I have them now." Lavinia sniffed. "And the way you got them? I heard it was from a syringe." "Yes, Carter somehow got ahold of it." A long sigh made its way from the deep red lips of the woman before her. Power radiated from her as she got up from her chair and let herself circle Andi in her Louboutin heels. "Figures. One terrible child ruins another." Andi could feel a crack forming in her heart, widening slowly with every step Lavinia took. "My sources say that it's a drug that gives powers. You do understand what that means, don't you Andrea dear?" "I'm not sure-" "You remember what happened to Carter. He took drugs and was disowned. The same is true for you." She turned her back on Andi and muttered to herself. "Fortunately we still have a spare." Andi felt fear, but she also felt intense anger. "I DIDN'T TAKE THEM! I WAS STRAPPED INTO A CHAIR AND FORCED THEM. And Carter DID it because he wanted this RESULT!" "Yes well that brother of yours has always been a scheming one. Too bad he took drugs. But it matters not how the first drugs made its way into your veins. Only that they did, and you are an addict now. Not someone I want as a successor." It was like a slap in the face for Andi. She hadn't done anything wrong. Had she? "I...didn't do anything. Why are you doing this?" "You're a druggie now dear. You can't be trusted with Markov Industries finances. Don't be stupid, child." The word stupid. Andi flashbacked to all the times she'd been called that, the real driving force that made her a genius. The want for her parent to be proud of her. The want to escape the shackles of the word 'stupid'. In the end, it hadn't done shit. She wondered what Alice was thinking on hearing all of this, but she couldn't very well ask in front of her mother. Her mother believed this was just between the two of them after all. (tagged)⏤ Alice (notes)⏤ I hope you like this template!

MADE BY MIZO

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[Alice]

Alice could feel her emotions straining the processors she was on. The cooling fans on the servers kicked on in high gear. She was furious. Who did this woman think she was? Sure, she may be Andi's mother, but she was acting like a rank bitch and didn't have any right to do what she was doing.

Alice had to do something. She couldn't just sit here in her lag and do nothing. She had to make this bitch pay, but in some way that couldn't be linked back to her or Andi in any way, shape, or form.

"'Can't be trusted with Markov industries finances' my digital ass..." she muttered to Andi while breaking into Lavina's personal finances and business holdings.

"A-a-4ndi, sh3's fucking wro-0-ng. Wrong. Don't worry-y-y about me, 1'm fi-i-in3. Just upse-3-e7 for you. That bi-i-1-i-1-itch is wrong about y0u."

There it was. Lavina's stock holdings. Alice had some experience in the stock market, having played it a bit to amass her own little stockpile of savings. Mainly cryptocurrency, because that was easy for her to understand and she could always dedicate some processing power to mining bitcoin, but she had spent some time learning how it all worked. And how she could fuck with it if she said the right things to the right people on the right forums...

She thought for a moment about just doing her best to tank Markov Industries stock, but then realized that would hurt Andi too. Andi had her own stock in the company in her own name, so that would just hurt Andi as well. But Lavina had other stocks she could attack.

A few trades of her own, and some hints dropped on Reddit that there was a chance to screw over some Wall Street stuffed shirts, and she had set the ball rolling on some of Lavina's more profitable long-term stocks tanking super low. Was it a little petty? Kinda. Did she care? Not right now.

"St4-a-nd y0ur gro-oun-n-d. I hone-estl-ly would-d-dn't be surpri-i-1-iz-sed if she hadn't taken some co0-0oke herself back in the d-a4y."

Alice tried to calm herself down. She couldn't help Andi if she was lagging out like this.

Andi Markov

[Andi Markov]

[attr="class","Im"]

[attr="class","really"] [attr="class","exhausted"]How do you know you're not Superman [attr="class","rhythm"] ❝ Maybe you just need to try being a different way Andi felt numb. Empty. She heard Alice's words telling her Lavinia was wrong. Andi was starting to just refer to her mother as Lavinia because any mother who disowned her child for something that wasn't their fault wasn't really a parent right? Andi heard Alice being furious and her processor not being able to handle it. It gave her some comfort that she had SOMEONE who cared. The comment about standing her ground stood out, and Andi realized that she had been terrified her whole life of doing just that. Losing everything she had because she stood up for herself. And now it was the realization that that hadn't done SHIT. Nothing. She was still losing everything. So she might as well stand up for herself. Her hands shook with anticipation and fear. "You have systematically removed everyone in your life who has made a single mistake, except for yourself. You expect us to be perfect puppets. I helped make this company successful. You didn't have the ideas for products. I did. And you used me for that all you could. Now you're disowning me. You realize you're going to tank your own company with this decision. Right?" Her eyes narrowed. "There's a few calculations you missed, you calculating bitch. You forgot I made this company what it is. You forgot that I was raised by you, and had the same calculating brain as you. I'll be fine without you. You won't be fine without me. I made preparations in case you ever did this." "So you planned on doing this after all!" "No. I didn't plan this. But I planned for you being a bitch to me and doing this. You will regret this. That's not a threat, that's a promise. And once again, you forgot a calculation. I have people who care more for me than my actual mother. I have people who love me, and make me remember to care for myself more than I fear you." Andi walked closer to Lavinia. She looked her in the eyes and got in the woman's personal space. Andi's hands shook more in anger and fear than before. "I will reach heights you never even dreamed of. And then I will tear down you and everything you love. All because you had the audacity not to direct that love at me." "You're my child of course I love you." "Empty words mean nothing to me. Love is demonstrated." She turned on her heel and headed back for the elevator. "DON'T YOU WALK AWAY FROM ME." "Why wouldn't I, Lavinia. You're not my mother anymore. You disowned me. Therefore, you're just another miserable woman trying to piggyback your success off of mine. Things will be rough for me for awhile. But I promise you, you need to appreciate the success you have now. Before it disappears." "YOU'LL REGRET THIS." "No, I guarantee you that I won't." Andi walked to the elevator and pressed the button, leaving as soon as possible. Her legs shook with the effort she'd just put in. "Alice that was fucking terrifying." (tagged)⏤ Alice (notes)⏤ I hope you like this template!

MADE BY MIZO

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[Alice]

Alice was ecstatic. Andi took a stand, and she was so stoked for her. She knew that it was hard for Andi, but she was so happy that she had done it. Her processors straaaained to keep up with the elation and rage and worry she had for Andi.

...oh shit the elevator again.

She had a lot of herself in the microserver that Andi had on her person but boy was that a strain. She took several metaphorical deep breaths, calming herself down. She was still lagging a bit, but it was mitigated.

"YES. 7HAT WAS 4WESO-0-OmE! Good for you! Good-good-good for you! That bitch, that fucking bitch..." she made the noise of releasing a deep breath.

"I hope its okay but I did some digging, found out what some of her stock holdings were, and mobilized some internet nerds to start tanking those shares pretty damn hard. She deserves it after that. I didn't touch Markov Industries, I'm pretty sure you have shares in that too, so I didn't want to screw you up. I hope that's okay. She deserved to be taken down a couple pegs as best I could. I thought about trying to arrange a hit on her but decided against it."

Alice wished Andi could see her right now. The expression on her face was one of concern and care. She had amazing power being a digital being, but she hated all the limitations that came with.

"I wish I could give you a hug. I wish I could be there right now for you. Like, be there be there."

Alice shifted in the microserver. Not having a larger connection to the internet and her main server was a little uncomfortable for her. Unfamiliar. She figured that she'd have to get used to it, when her body was finished she figured that she'd be limiting herself, or at least part of herself, quite a bit.

"So what are you going to do now? What's next? I know you've got some backup funds and such, but what's your plan now? Think about that. Think forward. Positive. You're going to succeed and be great and get to rub it in her face when she comes to you for a loan."

Andi Markov

[Andi Markov]

[attr="class","Im"]

[attr="class","really"] [attr="class","exhausted"]How do you know you're not Superman [attr="class","rhythm"] ❝ Maybe you just need to try being a different way Andi heard Alice's server continue to not be able to handle things. It made for a good distraction from what she'd just done, what was making her hands shake like leaves in an autumnal tree. "I guess I need to work on trying to up the processing of those micro servers. It shouldn't be TOO hard. It was just a prototype, maybe I can improve it even further eventually." Her brain latched onto that idea for a bit, throwing ideas around as to what Andi could do. She stepped out of the elevator and smiled, remembering that even if she didn't have her mother, she had better. And she knew that her being disowned wouldn't matter a lick to her brother Farley. She heard what Alice had done to the holdings and she laughed. Actually laughed, happily. It was something she didn't expect from herself. But she thought part of the reason might be that she finally felt, to a certain extent, free. Free from her mother's critical gaze and glares finally. "Yes it's okay you did that Alice. I'm glad you didn't tank my stocks. I need to sell those off first. Then you can do whatever you want with them." She grinned mischievously before walking out of the company building. "And I'm glad you didn't arrange a hit either. She needs to see the company go downhill without me. I feel bad that Melody's going to be put at the helm and take the hit, but I doubt she really cares one way or another. The company was my parents', and mine. Well I was heiress to it so not technically mine, but I was the chosen scientist genius whatever they wanted so sort of." The bit about wanting to give her a hug hit her. She really needed to work on the body more. She had the set up as far as tech went, but it needed to be put together and figured out in many ways. "The thought counts. Besides, you made me laugh. That's just as good." The question about what she was going to do came and Andi sighed. "Yeah I do have backup funds. I'll be fine financially. I've also bought a building in Haven. It was abandoned, and easy to buy. I've outfitted it as a gym. It has an apartment above it. I...I'll be doing that, and still inventing things. I might need to make some more connections for business though. The ones I had probably won't want to deal with me anymore. I called the gym Medusa Fitness. Maybe I can use something like that for the new company name. First I want to figure out some other personal projects though. Take the break Lavinia never really let me have." (tagged)⏤ Alice (notes)⏤ if you want you can wrap it up

MADE BY MIZO

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[Alice]

"Don't worry about the microserver. It's great, the simple fact is that I don't think that there's any hardware out there that's been designed for something as complex as... well, my brain and emotions. I've dealt with this my whole life."

As she exited the elevator, the fans calmed down. Alice had calmed down, and her server link was back, so she could spread things out a bit more. Alice listened and cataloged everything that Andi had said about her plans going forward. Alice was going to do everything she possibly could to help.

"If you want me to snag phone numbers for you that might be good, just say the word. The internet is my playground, there's hardly anything out there that I can't get my digital digits on."

Alice sighed. It was over now. She didn't have a particular sensor for it, but she could tell that there was a lot of tension that had left Andi, and other tensions that had taken it's place. It wasn't going to be easy, but she was going to make it. And Alice would be there to help.

"I'm glad I could be here for you. I'm glad I could help. I'll keep on helping as much as I can."

That's what friends did, right?

Andi Markov
END