Reboot: Mechanic

"Is there anything I can help?" Waiting for a few seconds, Vanessa asked Mary. 

It was clear that she was uncomfortable with not being able to help in anything. 

She had already felt utterly useless once when she was ambushed dearly and required Shi Tian's assistance.

And now that she had recovered, she thought she could be somewhat useful, but the truth was far from it.

She was still incapable of assisting much aside from the incident in the Horology Restaurant. 

Mary pondered for a moment, clearly undecided whether or not to include Vanessa in their plan. 

"Please, I don't wish to be a good-for-nothing here." Vanessa pleaded when she saw Mary pondering while focusing on the screen. 

"Fine, I'll send in another clone for you as well. You can control the clone with the arrow keys while Nathan will control it with the WASD keys." Mary resigned, unwilling to discuss the topic further. 

Since Vanessa was adamant about assisting them, then creating another clone wouldn't be much anyway. In fact, it would just create more decoys and distractions for the cybersecurity bots. 

Hence, regardless if Vanessa got caught early or not, it would still help her save time nonetheless by diverting some of the cybersecurity bots' attention. 

And with Mary greenlighting Vanessa to help, Shi Tian swiftly moved a bit to the left side, allowing room for Vaneesa to swoop in to control the arrow's keybind. 

"You can move over here, Vanessa." Shi Tian said, opening up the specific channel interface to join Mary. 

He was mimicking the same process as Mary on how she managed to bypass the firewalls. 

Mary, who was focused on dodging the cybersecurity bots, was sweating a bit on her forehead but still managed to take a small glimpse at what Shi Tian was doing.

She couldn't help but be impressed slightly that Shi Tian was able to mimic her action, albeit much slower than her process. 

"It's good that you paid attention, so I don't have to teach you how to breach the firewall and meet me there." Mary praised slightly, still focusing on the cybersecurity bots that seemed to have increased their efficiency. 

It was clear that the bots were enraged by Mary's skills in constantly dodging without getting hit once. 

Numerous lines of code continued to swarm through Mary's screen, and from normal people's perspective, the screen seemed to be bombarded with a strong virus type, unable to recognize a single thing in it. 

"Have you breached the cracked firewalls yet?" Mary asked after a few minutes. 

Given that she had infiltrated the software already. 

There were cracks in the firewalls, allowing Shi Tian to easily phase through the software compared to having to manually break the firewalls open as Mary did. 

"Yeah, I'm in, Mary." Shi Tian nodded his head and responded.

"Good, I'm going to send two clones to you now. The clones are manually controlled with the WASD and arrow keys respectively. So Nathan, turn on the double monitor function. That way, Vanessa can focus on her own clone while you focus on yours." Mary instructed.

A double-screen monitor, both controlled by a singular holographic keyboard, was the limit of her Iron Sentinel. If it were any more, then the Iron Sentinel would be incapable of doing more. 

After all, breaching through firewalls and software security required a ton of electrical power, and the Iron Sentinel could barely maintain such high usage of voltage and watts. 

The cooler built-in to the Iron Sentinel had already been activated to cool down the system, preventing the computers from overloading and powering off. 

Shi Tian followed Mary's instructions and activated the double monitor function, splitting the screen into two separate interfaces. One side was designated for Vanessa to control her clone, and the other was for Shi Tian to control his own.

With this setup, both of them could work in tandem to create diversions and help Mary navigate the virtual battlefield without overloading the Iron Sentinel's systems.

Vanessa eagerly took her position at the controls, her fingers ready to manipulate her clone. She glanced at Shi Tian, who was already immersed in his interface, and asked Mary, "What's our next move, Mary?"

Mary, still focused on dodging the relentless attacks from the cybersecurity bots, replied, "We'll create distractions by sending your clones to different locations near the bots. Nathan, you control yours to lead the charge, drawing their attention. Vanessa, yours will follow closely, causing more confusion. Keep them moving erratically to avoid being an easy target."

Vanessa nodded, and both she and Shi Tian initiated the creation of their respective clones. 

Digital avatars, mirroring their movements, materialized on the screen. Shi Tian's avatar was marked with an "N" above it, while Vanessa's had a "V."

Mary sent quick instructions. "Now, move them out. Nathan, head toward this coordinate." She displayed a virtual map with a marked location close to where the bots were concentrated.

Shi Tian's avatar, controlled by his WASD keyboard inputs, moved swiftly toward the designated location, zigzagging and performing unpredictable maneuvers to avoid detection.

Vanessa followed suit, guiding her clone with precision using the arrow's keyboard inputs. Her avatar, marked with a "V," mirrored her movements on the screen, weaving through the digital terrain in a way that would make it difficult for the cybersecurity bots to pinpoint.

The distractions were underway, and the tension inside the Iron Sentinel was palpable. Mary continued to fend off the bots, using the chaos caused by Shi Tian and Vanessa's clones to her advantage. 

The diversion was their best chance to complete the hacking undetected and leak the crucial information they needed.

As Shi Tian and Vanessa distracted the bots, they were akin to playing a retro game style of the spaceship. Not only did they need to avoid obstacles, but they were also tasked with damaging the cybersecurity bots. 

The clones didn't have substance, but Mary was generous enough to give them a set of codes, allowing them to go on an offensive every 30 seconds.