Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Fucking hell... how did she end up here? She wanted to refuse, but now she’s walking with everyone toward the bunker. Maybe it’s because of Uzi’s words, who kept saying there were medical supplies there, or maybe because of V... who simply didn’t want Tessa to stay alone in the capsule. Or maybe because of N’s eyes, which somehow affected her.

However, there’s a problem... it’s Thad...

— Zi, weren’t you, like, planning to destroy all humans? — the guy in the cap asked, then handed the railgun to the rebel. The guy gave Tessa a strange look, making her nervously rub her wrist. — And now, looking at this... I think you made friends with one of them! — he suddenly cheered and pointed at Tessa with finger guns. — I’m Thad, just a dude from school, and you... human?

— Uh, I’m Tessa! Tessa James Elliot! — said Tessa, repeating his gesture. The green-eyed guy laughed. — Cool cap! — she said, making him laugh even harder.

— Yours isn’t bad either, though judging by the label, you’re... a company worker? — he asked, and the girl started sweating... Shit, she forgot to take off the cap... again... goddammit... — Uh...

Tessa coughed a bit and confidently pointed to herself. Now she had to make herself look like a good person, right? It’s hard, but she can handle it:

— A technician from JC Jenson IN SPAAAAACEE!!!! — she said enthusiastically, and then silence fell. Her plan was to provoke a certain question so the drones wouldn’t think the company wanted to destroy them. She had to create the right conditions for that question, since it wasn’t an easy one.

Thad stood quietly for a while, then spoke again. The voice of the cool guy echoed through the empty city:

— Then tell me, why did you send the disassembly drones to wipe us out? — and Tessa immediately hiccuped. Yes! That’s the question! She’s so smart! Holy shit! Awesome, now the main thing is not to screw it up and play the right role. Knowledge of canon pays off!

— What? What? — she asked “in surprise,” then looked at V, then at N. Thad raised an eyebrow. — We? Sent them... here?! — she asked back, and silence came again. Tessa shook her head and laughed. — Like... send drones to kill drones? What!!! Our company isn’t great, but it’s not that stupid! — she said indignantly, crossing her arms. V smirked and fell silent, as if thinking about something. — Whatever you think, the disassembly drones weren’t sent by us!

— Then who? — the guy asked, and Tessa sighed... Damn... Will the story change if she mentions Cyn? What will Uzi do then? Maybe drag her into that lab... Damn, she shouldn’t say anything yet, but she has to say something, but what?

Definitely not about Cyn. But V knows about it, while N and Uzi don’t. If she says it now, it’ll have an effect. But what kind? Positive or negative? She can’t risk that now. She can’t...

Those two might want to learn more, then they’ll take her there. Then... then... DAMN! Breathe, just breathe...

— Hhh... hhh... — The human was breathing heavily, which alarmed the drones. V didn’t wait for things to get worse and simply picked her up in her arms. For the disassembly drone, there was now another goal: get Tessa to the bunker. As fast as possible.

— What? — Tessa looked at her in shock.

— We’re going faster, — V grumbled and spread her wings. N did the same. Though now he had two passengers – Thad and Uzi. The first one was thrilled and shouted with excitement, while the small one turned into a ball of fury, since she was grabbed like a kitten – by the hood of her hoodie. — How are you? — V asked the human in her arms, whom she now carried like a bride. Tessa fidgeted nervously, and V narrowed her eyes at the wound: it wasn’t open, meaning the discomfort came from something else.

Everything’s intact. Maybe she should fly a little lower and slow down... yeah, that seems right. But... it’s not helping. V slowed down, and so did N. The guy flew up beside her and anxiously looked at Tessa in V’s arms:

— What’s wrong with her? — he asked worriedly, while Thad was checking the ground, held tightly in his grip. Uzi, meanwhile, just kept silent and crossed her arms. She clearly didn’t like flying like that.

— Guys, I’m fine, — said Tessa, giving a thumbs-up, then tightened her grip on V. She was holding onto the drone’s shoulders, afraid of falling, which V was... well, quite pleased with. Tessa, however, was in a bad state from fear. She was terrified of being there, because inside was... that J, the monster... — Let’s just finish this. The sooner, the better.

҉

Now they all stood before the gates, those massive doors hiding behind them... well, an adventure, and also the secret of J’s corpse. At least, that’s what N thought. But for a living human, this wasn’t exactly fun, because...

— Uh, will they even accept me? — she asked, hoping they’d leave her somewhere and deal with all the problems inside on their own, — Like, I’m human... and they don’t know the whole truth, I think they’re not gonna enjoy that much...

— Let them say it to my face, — V said with a toothy grin, switching her hand into claws and looking at the two workers: Uzi and Thad, who both broke out in a “cold” sweat. The first one, after a brief pause, just turned away, while the guy laughed nervously. — No one’s gonna be a problem for us, — she said and tapped her tail against the door. N started digging in his pockets, quickly searching for something.

The gates slowly opened, revealing the white eyes of a worker drone who squinted at Thad, then his smiling face appeared:

— Welcome back, Thad! — Apparently, the green-eyed guy had good relations with this one, since there was no sign of hostility – on the contrary, he seemed happy, like this kid was an old friend. But then his eyes moved to Uzi, — Wait... wasn’t she grounded? — he asked, pointing at the rebel, which instantly triggered her irritation, both by the words and the tone.

— Ugh, banished!!! Has my dad been saying I'm grounded? — she screamed in rage, looking at her hands. Grounded? What was her father even talking about? What the hell... ARGH! INFURIATING!

— Drones... no, genocide drones, — the guard said with a frown. Not that he hated them, but those drones had killed their kind, and according to his work protocol, he wasn’t supposed to let them into the bunker. Better to make sure they wouldn’t wipe out the entire population.

V just clicked her tongue and turned away. The only one who truly showed regret was N, whose entire posture screamed guilt: lowered head, trembling eyes, and fingers fidgeting. Then he slowly offered the guard a paper. Yeah, this was that scene... hmm...

The drone laughed and was about to let them in but then noticed another figure. A human, also ashamed. He blinked, as if not believing it. It was kind of strange – maybe even a comedic moment? After all, Tessa was taller than everyone else, and she looked... different, so they should’ve noticed her first... eh, maybe she could use that comedy to get inside without trouble?

That wouldn’t be bad, such thoughts circled in the human’s head while the guard drone was completely dumbfounded, jaw dropped.

— Ahem, a human. — he said as if it were some kind of quest, — what brought you here? — Damn, it was a quest! What, are they gonna give her a mission to clear some area or something? If so, that’s bad, but hopefully not the case. — Humans aren’t welcome here, not after what you’ve done! — he raised his voice, which made Thad absolutely lose it, grabbing his head from all the drama in the moment.

— Dude, that’s the first time you’ve raised your voice! — he said proudly, giving a thumbs-up, and immediately earned judgmental looks from the group, and from “the dude” a reply: “I tried, Thad!” — Kha... but seriously! I’ve never seen him raise his volume to 136%!

— WOW! — Tessa said brightly, also giving a thumbs-up toward the guard, surprising everyone. Too genius? Maybe dumb. Maybe... incomprehensible. Though there’s a good chance it was all of that together. Genius, stupidity, and absurdity – all good ingredients for one thing: madness. — I’m glad I was the reason for that!

Everyone’s jaws dropped: Uzi, V, Thad, N – and the guard too. After a second, things calmed down a bit, and realizing she had everyone’s attention, she decided to continue the show:

— However, I’d like to go inside... I can explain everything, I just need a chance. — Tessa clasped her hands together and bowed her head, — Just one chance! Please!

— Um... well... uhh

҉

Everything was kind of fine, but they made it through the gates. Not without problems, but the main thing – they made it! The rest didn’t matter. Tessa told the guard exactly the same thing she told Thad, but without extra details: “The Disassembly Drones weren’t sent by the company.” They didn’t need to know more. Those words convinced the guard, and they were let inside. Now they had to, as the plot went, reach that damned room, see the J-monster, and let the drones deal with the problem. The main thing – don’t get spotted by that monster. Because there’s the Absolute Solver, and it’s not exactly a fan of humans. It’ll kill without hesitation – and that’s not something she needs right now.

She needs to pretend to be sick, so they’ll leave her in a corner… And the others – she should point them straight to... but where? Damn it, she knows the bunker, but where to go? What the hell… Tsk… she needs to at least remember the layout of this cursed place… ARGH! NO, NO… DAMN!

They never showed it in the series. Everything happened here, but there were no models or maps of the outpost, not even a basic layout of this floor. Even if they had existed… she probably wouldn’t remember them all anyway… damn it… the complex is huge, there’s no way to memorize it.

— Tessa, — said Uzi, walking behind. She stopped the girl, grabbing her hand, and the whole group halted. — Are you okay? You’re breathing too fast…

— M? — Tessa mumbled and froze. All the drones were looking at her. Maybe this was her chance? Maybe she should say she wasn’t feeling well? Yes, this was a chance…

She had to say it...

...

...

...

— Don’t worry, Uzi. Let’s keep going, — she exhaled. But why did she say that? What made her do it? Damn… does she feel guilty toward them? Her heart ached, hurt… could she have gotten attached to them? No, no, that’s impossible. It can’t be. How ridiculous… these drones are nothing more than tools. Yes, that’s what they are. You shouldn’t get attached to them. Tessa, breathe. Just breathe. But now quieter. They must not hear it. They must not worry... Damn it... why does she keep thinking about them? They’re just pieces of metal and that’s it… yes, that’s all. Nothing more...

— N... does this happen often? — Uzi asked, pointing her flashlight toward a puddle of oil. V frowned. N froze, while Thad looked around. As for the human…

— No… no… — She grabbed the revolver and started pointing the barrel from one crate to another. — "Why didn’t I stop? Idiot…" — she thought, panicking as she aimed the gun toward the ceiling, where the J-monster was. She’d drawn attention again.

— What is it, Tessa? — V approached and looked at the barrel of the revolver, then at where it was pointing. The disassembly drone frowned. — Did you see something? — There was no answer. Strange… Tessa just trembled. Her grip on the revolver was weak, the weapon threatening to slip out of her hands with the first shot. — N, fire a rocket up there, — she said, switching to her submachine gun. If Tessa was afraid of something, it needed to be destroyed.

N hesitated but changed his arm to a rocket launcher and sent a missile into the ceiling. The explosion lit the surface with bright fire, revealing...

The body of a centipede covering the entire ceiling

It moved, thrashed, and that alone terrified them. The creature stood there – or was that its body? Unknown. V immediately sent a burst of bullets, but they only ricocheted off the monster’s armor.

— No... no... oh god… — Tessa fell to the ground and began crawling backward, her hands shaking, the gun long gone from them. She trembled in terror. Why did she come here? She knew that thing was crawling around here... STUPID... STUPID… DAMN IT… — God… no...

The drones stood in confusion, not knowing what to do. N, for whom Tessa had been a beacon of kindness and enthusiasm, froze. That bright, full-of-life girl was now desperately crawling backward, staring at the monster in horror. His heart sank. What could have caused such fear? Even he understood that Tessa had encountered this creature before, and it had left her soul scarred.

— WE’RE LEAVING, NOW! — Uzi shouted and rushed to the human. She leaned down and tapped on the helmet’s visor. — HEY! CAN YOU HEAR ME?! WE’RE LEAVING! — N grabbed Tessa by the arm, lifted her to her feet, and ran forward. V unleashed a rain of bullets toward the monster and ran after the others.

The creature didn’t tolerate such defiance. It aimed a swarm of human-like arms straight at them. V calmly fought back, covering her teammates. Her movements were fast and precise, but the path ahead quickly came to an end. They’d reached a dead end. More arms appeared, and it became harder and harder to fight them off.

V and N fought with all their strength against the monster’s onslaught while the others tried to shield Tessa. She sat pressed against the wall, hugging her knees. The air grew thick, as if something invisible was squeezing her lungs, not letting her breathe. Her chest was being crushed with such force that it felt like it would burst at any moment. Her heart pounded like a trapped animal, but the blood seemed to stop reaching her brain. Everything around her blurred, sounds became distant, and the world lost its shape, shrinking into a single pulsing point of terror. Her thoughts shattered like glass: nothing remained but pure, uncontrollable fear that paralyzed her completely.

Her hands trembled, disobeyed, her body frozen, refusing to follow her commands. In her head, one voice screamed: “Run! Save yourself!” But she couldn’t move. Panic, like a poisonous fog, wrapped around her, tightening deeper and deeper, through every cell, every nerve. She was trapped, helpless, paralyzed… and the monster was closing in.

Her eyes widened in horror, breath came out in ragged bursts, echoing hollowly in her own head. The pain was gone – only cold fear remained, an abyss she was falling into, seeing no bottom.

That fear bound her so tightly that there seemed to be no way out at all

V glanced back out of the corner of her eye and saw Tessa, who looked so… helpless… it felt wrong. She was facing a creature like that again. Again…

— N, get the laser, — she said, slicing through one of the monster’s arms. — We need to end this. — After those words, N nodded firmly. His arm shifted quickly, and V rushed into the attack. The drone changed his hands into blades and decided to fight in close combat.

Splashes of oil, severed limbs – V’s blades flashed like lightning, destroying every threat. It gave N enough time to aim. In an instant, the disassembly drone fired a rocket into the ceiling, illuminating the centipede’s body. The fire spread quickly and just as quickly died down, causing no damage.

— THERE, N! — she shouted; it all happened fast. Just a few seconds, yet the boy did everything perfectly. His arm held steady for complete precision and then the shot followed.

A yellow laser beam split the creature’s body. A painful howl filled the space. The creature began to twitch in agony, and its limbs fell heavily to the floor. V stood among the carnage, looking around triumphantly; a smirk crossed her face. Victory – even if not over her own fears – still felt… good to feel. Tessa should feel better now, definitely.

— Simply magnificent! — she said, slowly walking toward Tessa, who now only whimpered, pressed against the wall. Something in her helplessness hurt. Her voice carried a fear V had never heard before.

— Tessa, that problem’s gone, — V reached out her hand, trying to make her voice gentle. It felt strange to do that after so long… — Come on. — The human didn’t respond, just kept repeating some kind of mantra... V didn’t like it and decided to act a bit more firmly. The disassembly drone reached for her shoulder, trying to shake Tessa... but…

— NO! NO! PLEASE, NO! — She pushed her hand away in terror... her voice cracked, and she cried...

V froze for a second, feeling something break inside her chest. Those words… No, she wasn’t trying to hurt her. She wanted to help… But something in the cold emptiness within her body suddenly came alive, stabbing from the inside, as if she really was a monster. And that feeling consumed her. She didn’t know what to do... they don’t have hearts, but something in her chest hurt, so much that she wanted to rip it out – just to finally stop that tormenting pain.

The others quietly watched the scene with worry: to them, V had always been an unshakable fortress, and what lay inside was a mystery... now that those walls were breaking, what would become of her?

What would spill out of this figure – the psychopath and maniac?

N was breathing heavily; he was scared for his friends. Especially for Tessa, because she wasn’t like them. A human is weaker than drones. Tessa could die if she loses too much blood, could die from lack of food, could die from lack of oxygen… she’s fragile, like glass. She needs to be protected – he understood that and tried his best. But he couldn’t forget about V either. Since Tessa appeared, the disassembly drone had become more alive. She laughed, joked, and interacted with them more, and was especially kind to one person – and... it seemed that now this played a cruel joke.

N knew what it felt like to be rejected by someone you love. He’d gone through it already – how many times had he tried to connect with V, at least exchange a few words, only to get mockery or outright silence in return?

The irony was that now V was the one rejected – even if it wasn’t exactly that, the concept felt the same. At least, that’s how N saw it. N was a good drone, kind and earnest, always trying to help his friends however he could.

— V? — Now it was N shaking her shoulder, and when she turned her head, she saw her own reflection in his eyes. Tears. They ran down her face – though they were just pixels on a display, nothing, merely an illusion of emotion. But they reflected something real… could it be… — V! — His voice tore her out of the suffocating grip of that pain. Of course Tessa was afraid of her. After all the terrible things she’d done. Why did she ever think she deserved Tessa’s trust? — V! — N shouted again, worried, snapping her out of her daze. — Protect her!

All she could do was nod, standing up as her arms transformed into blades, ready for any threat.

She would protect Tessa… at any cost

— Guys, — Thad broke the silence. — I know this isn’t the time, but that centipede… A-A-A-A-A-A!!! — his screams echoed down the corridor as he was dragged across the floor. — HELP!!!

N looked back, torn between two thoughts – to run to Thad or stay with V and Tessa. V felt him leaving, and only a faint “I’ll protect her” slipped from her chest as he ran after Uzi.

V just stood there, thinking about something... her mouth repeated the words “I’ll protect her” as if it were a prayer, while her mind was occupied with something else:

— "I need to repent for my sins, wash my hands clean, I must correct all my mistakes and not allow new ones, and earn forgiveness."

Silence filled the space, but it wasn’t ordinary silence. It was the silence before a storm.

— <Giggle> I recognize that pistol, Tessa… — a voice sliced through the air like a knife. That voice... no... no...

V sharply looked up. Dozens of holo-projectors stared back at her, slowly turning, like the eyes of a monster lazily examining its prey.

— No... no... — Tessa looked up too. The cameras stared at her as if she were already caught in a trap, with no way out. — Not you… please not you! No… no! — she pressed herself against the wall, eyes wide in terror, her heart pounding like mad.

— <Disappointment> I thought you’d be happy to see me, Tessa, — the devices spoke in eerie synchronization, each of them pausing for a moment as if savoring her fear.

— No... no... — Tessa desperately tried to move back, but behind her there was only the cold wall. A dead end with no escape. Her body trembled, fingers clenched into fists, her heartbeat thundered in her ears.

— I even built a tracker into the disassembly drones to find you... — Cyn’s voice echoed through the corridor, growing closer with every word, filling the space. The holo-projectors tilted, as if fascinated by something. — and finally, I found you, Tessa! We’ll finally bring our family back together! — The cameras lowered and began to glow. Within seconds, a hologram appeared – a drone wearing a maid’s outfit: a black ribbon on her head, hair neatly tucked under it, yellow eyes, and a soft smile. — <Giggle> I’ve waited so long for this!

...

...

...

There was no response, which made her frown as she took a step closer:

— I know you’re... <Shy nod> not too happy to see me, but I’d like to talk about everything. — And at that moment, a shot was fired at her. It was V, breathing heavily. Her hand had shifted into a submachine gun, smoke rising from the barrel. The disassembly drone was trembling uncontrollably. — V, don’t interrupt our conversation. — Cyn sighed and snapped her fingers; V instantly powered down and collapsed to the floor. What was on her display was unclear, but... — <Deep thought> I don’t like using my administrator privileges this way. — And Cyn took a step forward.

— Why... are you here? — Tessa barely forced the words out, looking at Cyn’s hologram; her mind wasn’t thinking at all... there was only fear...

— <Giggle> I came here for you, Tessa! — Cyn said, standing right in front of her. She reached out and touched the cap on her head. — You’re still wearing the Jason brand... well, well! — A short laugh escaped her before she tried to pat Tessa’s head — but failed. — <Disappointment> I forgot I’m just a hologram... anyway, <Joy> Tessa! I’m already on my way to this planet, and I can tell you I’ll be there... in just a few days! — The joy was all hers; the human, however, fell completely silent.

҉

Uzi felt like something about all this was off. They had defeated that monster way too easily – its core had crawled off somewhere, and they were searching for it... to finish it off for good. But it seemed to have just vanished into thin air.

— N... something’s not right here, — she shared her suspicion, tossing one of the boxes into the air. The rebel hoped to find that chunk of meat-on-legs inside, but no luck. — let’s go back to V and Tessa, — she said, grabbing her gun. Damn railgun!

— Uh... okay? — the boy quickly agreed, and they started walking back. The two drones moved very carefully, because... there was no light. It flickered here and there, and in some places disappeared completely. — This is creepy as hell... kind of! — he said, switching his arm into a chainsaw. It cut well, but the reach was too short.

— I feel like something’s about to jump at us, — Uzi said, readying her weapon. The rebel’s eyes tracked every slightest noise, finger on the trigger – ready to shoot. — Um... or maybe not.

Their path stayed quiet – surprisingly calm, without any horror elements, which was... quite odd, given the whole eerie atmosphere. Maybe she’d just watched too many horror movies?

— Uh, Uzi... where’s Tessa?

Wait... wait! Where are V AND TESSA?!