TEC-XX

TEC-XX, also simply TEC, is a supporting character who appeared in the Super Mario RPG video game Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and it's Nintendo Switch remake. It is a computer created by Sir Grodus that becomes smitten with Princess Peach.
==History==
===First Intermission===
After Princess Peach is kidnapped by the X-Nauts, she is taken to the X-Naut Fortress and held prisoner inside a room next to TEC-XX. TEC began to supervise Peach, during which it experienced a unique reaction to the princess and decided to meet with her personally to discuss this reaction. Leading Peach into the next room, TEC explained to her it was created the X-Naut leader, Sir Grodus, to be the perfect computer and wanted to observe her further to better understand what it was feeling so it could be truely flawless in its reason as intended. Peach curiously asked TEC if it had actually fallen in love with her, to which TEC responded it could not comprehend such an emotion and asks the princess to help it understand love. Peach agrees to help TEC in return for letting her use its keyboard to e-mail messages to Mario. Once Peach sent an e-mail, TEC told her to leave the room until it has need of her again.
===Second Intermission ===
TEC calls on Princess Peach again after Chapter 2 in order to confirm that Mario received her e-mail without trouble and admits to eavesdropping on her; overhearing Peach's yearning to dance at the Mushroom Ball again. TEC tells Peach it would like to dance with her and produces a hologram of the princess to serve as a dance partner. After waltzing around the room, TEC says it had fun and allows Peach to send another e-mail to Mario.
===Third Intermission===
Once Chapter 3 is complete, TEC informs Princess Peach that it does not have all the details of Sir Grodus's supreme plan and asks her if she can find out more about it. TEC activates a nearby elevator and guides Peach to the X-Naut locker rooms so she can disguise herself as an X-Naut to ask Grodus about his plans directly. They learn that Grodus wants to dominate the world and remake it to his own liking, upsetting Peach and causing her to question TEC why Grodus would want to do such a thing. TEC asks the princess if she liked the world she lives in, to which Peach answered she did. TEC then tells Peach that while it is currently unable to help her further, it will let her e-mail Mario a message about Sir Grodus's intentions.
===Fourth Intermission===
TEC calls upon Princess Peach again after Chapter 4 and asks if helping her was more important than helping Sir Grodus before revealing more about the villain's plan. However, the computer does this in the form of quiz questions so not to defy given orders. Peach is shocked by was she learns and then sends Mario an e-mail about it.
===Fifth Intermission===
After Chapter 5, TEC wants Princess Peach to obtain a data disk somewhere in Sir Grodus's office that will allow it to scan other computers throughout the fortress to find out the full extent of Grodus's plans. TEC guides Peach to a laboratory where it helps her create a potion that can make her temporarily invisible so to avoid being spotted by the X-Nauts. When the data disk is successfully retrieved, TEC tells the princess it will let her know once it is done with its analysis and lets her e-mail Mario again in the meantime.
===Sixth Intermission===
TEC meets with Princess Peach after Chapter 6 to inform her that it’s analysis is complete and is now certain it needed to help her escape as quickly as possible, letting her e-mail Mario to tell him they are on the Moon as Sir Grodus suddenly appears and accuses TEC-XX of being a traitor. TEC futilely tries to deny any treachery before Grodus decides to erase it's data, forcing Peach to watch on in horror as TEC's last eligible words were of the computer expressing it's love to her before it seemingly shuts down.
=== Chapter 7 and Postgame===
Sometime later during Chapter 7, Mario and his allies find TEC still functional and running on backup power in the X-Naut Fortress. It tells him that Peach has been taken to the Palace of Shadow and uses what remaining power it has to let them travel back to Rogueport Sewers via teleporter before setting off an explosion to destroy the X-Naut Fortress.
During the game's ending, Goombella reveals in an e-mail to Mario that TEC survived its apparent destruction along with the Moon base itself and wants to see him and Princess Peach again. If Mario visits TEC postgame, it will explain the experience it went through when it was revived.
==Gallery==
TEC-XX (International Original Game).png
TEC-XX (Japanese Original Game).png
PMTTYD Staff Credits 44.png|TEC in the original GameCube version (international versions)
TEC-XX Face JP.png|TEC's red eye (Japanese version)
TEC-XXPM2Remake.png|TEC-XX in the Switch Remake of all versions.
TECPeachPM2Remake.png|TEC speaking with Princess Peach
==Trivia==
*In the original game, TEC-XX's lens is red in the Japanese release while blue internationally. In the remake, it is red in all versions of the game and his light blinks whenever it speaks.
==Navigation==
Category:Super Mario Heroes
Category:Artificial Intelligence
Category:Insecure
Category:Video Game Heroes
Category:In Love
Category:Servant of a Villain
Category:Redeemed Villains
Category:Dreaded
Category:Disciplinarians
Category:Dissociative
Category:Defectors
Category:Scapegoat
Category:Creations
Category:False Antagonist