The Set Up by Triad
**** COMMODORE 64 BASIC V2 **** 64K RAM SYSTEM 38911 BASIC BYTES FREE READY. LOAD"TRIAD/THE SET UP",8,1: SEARCHING FOR TRIAD/THE SET UP - - OFTWARE - [[[/////]]]]]]^^^^^^^_______ [[[/////]]]]]^^^^^^^^_______ [[[////]]]]]]^^^^^^^^_______ [[[////]]]]]]^^^^^^^________ [[[////]]]]]]^^^^^^^________ [[/////]]]]]]^^^^^^^________ [[/////]]]]]]^^^^^^^________ [[/////]]]]]]^^^^^^^_______ - ALL HE KNEW AS HE WAS COMING TO, WAS THE THUMPING IN HIS HEAD. THE LEFT SIDE OF HIS HEAD WAS THROBBING IN UNISON WITH THE BEAT OF HIS HEART. THE NEXT THING HE KNEW WAS THE REALIZATION THAT HIS BED WASN'T REALLY THAT UNCONFORTABLE. THE FLOOR WAS. FOR SOME REASON HE WAS ON THE FLOOR. LET US ASSUME I HAD NOT TRIED TO SLEEP THERE, HE SAID SILENTLY TO HIMSELF. AFTER A WHILE, WHILE COLLECTING HIS THOUGHTS, HE REALIZED THAT ALL THAT THUMPING AND THROBBING WAS NOT INSIDE HIS HEAD. SO, IT HAS SPILLED OVER, HE THOUGHT AND LAUGHED. OUCH.. . . THE LAUGHING HURT! FINALLY HE GOT THE IDEA OF MOVING SOMETHING. AN ARM. HE LIFTED IT TO HIS HEAD AND FOUND WHERE THE THROBBING STARTED. FORTUNATELY HE FELT NOTHING WET, BUT FROM THE BUMP HE KNEW HE MUST HAVE SMACKED HIS HEAD INTO SOMETHING. ONCE AGAIN HE GOT AWARE OF THE THUMPING THAT HAD SPILLED OVER. IT CAME FROM OUTSIDE OF HIS HEAD. FROM ABOVE. AND IN THE DARK ON THE FLOOR HE SAW THAT THERE WAS SOME SORT OF FAINT LIGHT COMMING FROM ABOVE AS WELL. AND THEN HE KNEW WHERE HE WAS. HE WAS ON THE FLOOR IN HIS COMPUTER DEN, BELOW THE WORKBENCH. INCH BY INCH HE TRIED TO TURN OVER AND THEN TO SIT UP. HE ALMOST SMACKED HIS HEAD IN THE BENCH AGAIN, THIS TIME FROM THE UNDERSIDE. FORTUNATELY HIS HEAD HURT SO MUCH THAT HE PAUSED HALFWAYS AND WHILE DOING THAT, HE REALIZED HE HAD TO SLIDE OUT FROM UNDER THE TABLE. NOW HE SAW WHERE THAT FAINT LIGHT WAS COMMING FROM. AND HE ALSO KNEW WHERE PART OF THE THUMPING CAME FROM. THE COMPUTER WAS PLAYING SOME SORT OF RYTHM. HE LOOKED AT THE SCREEN AND WONDERED WHAT THE HECK THAT WAS. HE HAD NO IDEA. HE NOTIZED THE DISK IN THE SLOT AND HAD A LOOK AT IT. IT WAS THAT ENCRYPTED DISK HE HAD BEEN WORKING WITH FOR HOURS WITHOUT ANY LUCK. AND NOW SOMETHING WAS GOING ON ON THE SCREEN. HE PULLED UP THE CHAIR THAT LAY OVERTURNED OVER AT THE STEREO AND SAT DOWN IN FRONT OF THE SCREEN. THERE WAS THIS CONSTANTLY SHIFTING PATTERN OF LITTLE SQUARES - 4 X 4. THAT MAKES HEX OF COURSE, HE THOUGHT, THIS IS A MESSAGE. HE RUSHED OUT OF THE ROOM, IGNORING THE PAIN IN HIS HEAD AND HE FOUND HIS NEW DIGITAL VIDEO CAMERA. BEST THING TO DO IS TO CATCH THE CODE ON FILM, SO HE COULD WORK ON IT IN HIS OWN PACE. FINALLY A BREAKTHROUGH. AND "ALL" HE HAD DONE WAS TO ACCIDENTALLY PUSH THE RIGHT KEYS ON THE KEYBOARD AS HE HAD FALLEN OVER WHILE TRIPPING IN THE DARK. HE HAD TRIPPED, HADN'T HE? SINCE THE DISK WAS STILL THERE, HE MUST HAVE. NOT THAT IT WOULD HAVE MATTERED, HE HAD A COPY, BUT STILL. MAYBE THIS WAS MORE SERIOUS THAN THEY ALL HAD REALIZED? HE FELT A SLIGHT CHILL AS HE WAS FILMING THE SCREEN. AND HALF AN HOUR LATER HE KNEW.. . . LOGO BY TWOFLOWER. MUSIC BY PATER PI/CHURCH OF 64 AND CODE BY IOPOP -