Chapter Text
Tessa stared out the window at the clouds that masked the horizon, clumps of hail pelting windows and threatening to shatter them. To say she was bored would be an understatement. There wasn’t much she could do without getting in trouble with her parents, and her drones were far too busy with manor duties to play games.
James entered the room, carrying a large package over to one of the few tables stationed in their library. He then began to carefully open it, using a box cutter to slice through the tape that sealed it shut.
Tessa was curious, watching from a distance to see what her father had brought into the manor. She occasionally saw him carrying different objects, but he never allowed her to catch glimpses. This time, though, was different.
“Tessa.” He started, but his tone wasn’t condescending or ill-mannered. It was friendlier than usual. “Since you haven’t inconvenienced your mother and me, I’ve decided that you are responsible enough to have a computer.”
She looked neutral on the outside, trying to mask her overexcitement. Usually, Tessa didn’t receive such extravagant gifts from her family unless there was something expected of her. She walked right over, eager to figure out the details of her new electronic device.
James allowed her to view the contents of the box. It was a beige box computer, coming with a keyboard and mouse. The CRT monitor looked to be in excellent condition, and came with a couple of discs that likely contained games and movies. “I expect you to take care of this device properly and make sure it stays in the condition I got it in.”
“Yes, father,” Tessa spoke quietly, waiting until he left the room before deciding to indulge herself in whatever the beige box was capable of. Upon hearing the door close, she began setting up the computer.
It booted up, revealing a screen that allowed Tessa to create her profile alongside a password. She made sure it was something only
she
would know. Once finished those steps, she was taken to a vibrant homescreen with tons of color rather than a default screen consisting of a single color. It was bright, the background purple with a couple of blue-and-pink buildings, white stars, and some vaporwave aspects. Not much was thought of it.
“Maybe the previous owner didn’t like the original wallpaper?” She mumbled thoughtfully, browsing through file folders containing random jargon she couldn’t be bothered to skim through until she came across a program that interested her. “DarkXWolf17?” Tessa’s interest was piqued, and she decided to run it, just to see what it could/would do.