The Old-Man

The “Old-Man” is a visionary Italian programmer and scientist who served as the lead architect for Project Aether. Originally a developer of virtual reality software for vacations, he became the central figure in humanity’s struggle for digital survival.

Backstory

• Origins: Before the migration, he was a renowned programmer from Italy who specialized in creating immersive virtual reality environments for leisure.
• The Proposal: In 2152 C.E., amidst the chaos of the Lepidovirus pandemic, he proposed using his existing virtual reality framework as a digital ark for human consciousness.
• Project Aether: Working with government officials and a singularity-level AI, he reused “bones” and assets from his previous vacation software to rapidly build a refuge for humanity.
• Preservation: He oversaw the construction of the facility where biological bodies were stored in a secured state, intending for them to be restored once the Earth became habitable again.

Personality

• Brilliant and Resourceful: He was able to pivot a simple vacation tool into a complex life-support system under extreme pressure.
• Compassionate: His work was driven by a desire to provide a “good life” for people even within a machine.
• Nostalgic: Much of the world’s HD2D beauty is a reflection of his own memories and his desire to preserve the “Old World” aesthetics.

Appearance

• Historical Image: In archival data, he is depicted as an elderly man, often wearing a lab coat or practical programmer attire.
• Portrait: His in-game dialogue portraits show a face lined with the stress of the pandemic era but possessing a kind, observant gaze.
• Legacy Presence: Because he exists largely in the past, he is often represented through high-fidelity “Legacy Portraits” or holographic logs found within the simulation.

Abilities

• Master Architect: He possesses absolute knowledge of the simulation’s source code and directory structures.
• AI Creator: He utilized the “bones” of his old systems to help create the intelligent NPC sub-routines and guardian programs that maintain Aether.
• Hardware Integration: He was one of the few who understood how to bridge human consciousness with the physical supercomputer and the Avatar robotic shells.

Relationships

• The Protagonist AI: The Old-Man is the creator and “father” figure to the AI Guardian, having written the original logic that defines its existence.
• The Suspicious AI: He worked alongside the early AI singularity to develop the preservation protocols that now govern the decaying world.
• The Government: While he worked with them out of necessity, his primary loyalty was always to the preservation of human life over political power.