Kaine's Home Page
From the Mortality Doctrine series (The Eye Of Minds series)
Info
Background
Hobbies include creating extremely complex pieces of code, taking over the real world, and inserting Tangent consciences into human bodies. Kaine is one of the oldest existing Tangents, one of the first. He has lasted as long as he has, more than the 15-20 year lifespan of a normal Tangent, because he attained sentience. Kaine was created by the VNS (Virtnet Security) and they lost all control over him once he gained sentience.
Tangents
Well, a Tangent is an AI in the VirtNet. You probably wouldn't really be able to tell if someone were a Tangent unless you took a guess. Essentially, they are just code. A Tangent can only last for about two decades. At that point, Decay sets in. Decay is exactly what it sounds like, the Tangent decays over an extended period of time. The Tangents experiencing Decay will experience AGONIZING headaches accompanied with seeing the world around them basically go insane. Buildings will bend in impossible angle, some objects may be distorted or changed from their initial size, shape, color, and state of matter, and they may even see some awful visions, while nothing around them has actually changed. As Decay progresses, elements of a Tangent's personal life that were programmed in disappear, and the Tangent's physical appearance may change. No one really knows exactly what causes Decay or how to stop it. A few Tangents don't experience Decay because they have gained sentience. They are completely aware that they don't truly exist. Being inserted into a human body through the Mortality Doctrine also stops Decay. It is unknown how Tangents can gain sentience.