Server Beast

Non-Descript Indian guy moves through the building with purpose and poise. Eyes ahead, neck straight and with the slightest shuffle in his walk, he appears to be heading somewhere important. In one motion he pulls the plastic card attached to his belt by an extendable metal cord, swipes the card in a well displayed card reader mounted on the wall next to a door, turns the handle of the door, opening it and releases the card from his fingers like a magician. The card disappears with a recoiled snap, appearing instantly next to his belt.

Inside the server room, the noise coats him. Countless tiny fans wurring away their days bring the noise level to a dull roar. The room is white, except for the tall black server cases that line the middle of the room. Walking down the row of servers, Non-Descript Indian Guy sees the tiny green lights blinking at him. Thankful for his presence, they tell him of their busy days and how well everything is going.

However, just towards the end of the row, one server is not so talkative. Two red eyes look back at him, angry. Opening the case, Non-Descript tries to soothe the savage beast, but finds the task much harder than he at first suspected.

Suddenly, there's a pounding on the door to the server room. The pounding says that a person wants his attention and that they've tried knocking and it failed to be heard. He walks to the door, and opens it, only slightly, fearing someone might see the nakedness of this room.

"E-mail’s not working," some employee tells Non-Descript Indian Guy. Non-Descript never bothered to learn his name. All he knows is that the man's body is too out of shape and his face to round to be of any real use to an artist.

"Yes," Non-Descript Indian Guy tells this man. "I know. I'm working on it now."

"You should tell everyone," the man says. "They're kind of freaking out."

"What would you suggest I do?" Non-Descript asks. "Send out and email?"

With that, Non-Descript lets the heavy metal door close, secure in the knowledge that this random employee could never enter this sanctum. Not to mention that next time, this man would be less likely to pound on the server room door when there was a problem.

Looking back and the glowing red eyes, Non-Descript Indian Guy saw an image form in his head. A giant robot, built from quantum strings and dark matter. The hero, a dark skinned man wielding a long curved knife, looks up at the Techno-Demon in mild amusement. The flowing silks fall around the man like a maiden's hair. His chest, exposed, reveals powerful muscles underneath the exotic fabric. Yet, what draws your eyes is not the build of the man or even the gigantic robot he faces. What pulls you in is the look in the man's eye - joy.

With that thought safely locked away, Non-Descript Indian Guy sits down to slay this more mundane beast before anyone else can come pounding on his world.