Chapter Text
A Few Moments Earlier…
Cyn was passing by N and Uzi in the corridor of the building they dove into. All her seemingly infinite number hands were beginning to scurry pass them, even after crawling all around the duo. Uzi and N stayed firm, looking at each other reassuringly and holding hands to let the other one know they’re still there. Eventually, Cyn began to grow more distant, and her yellow light through the cracks in the pipes grew dimmer as she kept going down the hallway. Her callback pings were also getting much quieter. Uzi and N still waited there with their eyes still hollowed and sweat dripping down their visors until Cyn was for sure gone... or at the very least far enough away. Only then did their eyes go back to being whole. And even then, they did not dare speak or utter a single word.
N then got an idea for soundless communication. [Think she’s gone?] N wrote on his visor.
[IDK] Uzi returned in writing. A moment of silence passed between them.
[We could leave] N offered.
[Back there?] Uzi moved her head in the opposite direction Cyn went. N nodded his head. [K] Uzi agreed. Slowly, merely inches at a time, they got up from their hiding spot. The duo slid back under the hole in the pipes Uzi found earlier and began the agonizingly daunting walk back through the hallway. Uzi and N kept staring at one another wishing this nightmare would end. N’s tail sagged behind him tensely, and Uzi was dragging her feet while clutching her side. But they both kept the others’ presence in mind and continued to hold hands through the long walk.
[Almost there] N displayed encouragingly.
[Yeah] Uzi displayed. She still winced from the discomfort of whatever was trying to grow out of her moments ago.
N looked at her worryingly [It’ll be ok].
Uzi hesitated on what to say next [Pls dont go].
N grew a smile [Not going anywhere].
Uzi scooted a little closer to N as she walked [Thx]. She then changed her display [Srsly].
N then inched closer to Uzi too as they walked. They were at peace for a moment, in what felt like ages they actually had a chance to breathe. They were about to round the corner and N, observing for any signs of danger, spotted something out of the corner of his view that shook him to his every core. Up high on the walls was a Solver camera peering down on them and watching them. Then, the lights behind them shook and flickered and a loud scampering sound was coming from behind them.
“Uzi! We have to go!” N wailed. But as soon as he cried out the Solver camera made a small bit of movement and suddenly the floor in front of them was yanked up into a makeshift wall by a yellow Solver symbol. The floor wall touched the ceiling, leaving N and Uzi in a new dead end as the yellow Solver symbol remained on the wall.
Uzi’s eyes hollowed, and she nearly crushed N’s hand with how strong her grip was. N recoiled from the pain but didn’t let go. He swiftly placed his other hand on one of her shoulders. He looked at her with the most serious expression he ever had before.
“Trust me.” It was more of a statement than a question. Uzi nodded without hesitation. “Hold on,” N then used both his hands to grab onto Uzi in an ironclad grip and deployed his wings. Uzi held onto the side of his coat and buried her face in his chest as N took off with the speed and precision of a bullet down the hall. N felt all the gross, icky, hands touch him and grab him as he flew. But he didn’t focus on that, instead opting to focus on going as fast as freakin’ possible and the irreplaceable package in his arms. After shaking off all the hands, he turned the corners of the building with innate accuracy and without even slowing down. Uzi looked up from underneath N’s chest and saw they were approaching a wall with no corners to turn rapidly.
“N! Wall!” She shouted loud enough for N to hear her.
“Keep hanging on!” N ferociously spoke. He let go of Uzi with one hand and transformed it into a missile launcher and shot a rocket at the wall. N was going so fast that he was almost keeping up with the missile itself. Realizing this, he used all of his limbs to shield Uzi the best he could and was readying to use his wings as a battering ram for whatever the missile didn’t destroy. The missile hit the wall seconds before N and Uzi hit it, and going through the smoke, N felt his wings bust through the wall that was weakened by the missile. The impact had sent N in a low trajectory towards some land below the building. N made sure to still keep every single part of his body around Uzi as they hit the floor and began to skid and roll along it. Their momentum eventually stopped, and N released Uzi from his unyielding grip. N was on his back, and Uzi was staring into his eyes.
“Holy robo-crap… That. Was. Awesome.” Uzi said with gusto as she held the sides of N’s face.
N chuckled, “Anything’s awesome with you. Even if it’s pretty scary.” He was panting a little from all he just did.
Uzi kept staring into his golden eyes, the eyes that have been there for her ever since she met him. The ones that have always encouraged her and helped her through all the freaky BS they had to put up with. And N stared into her purple eyes, the ones that have opened his own to change and have been with him through all the terrifying stuff they’ve faced. Their stare down was interrupted when they both heard commotion coming from above them. They got to their feet and cautiously began to walk backwards. Cyn then tumbled into the hole N busted out of and looked at them.
“Hi. A-again.” Cyn waved one of her grotesque arms crudely back and forth. She then jumped from the hole in the wall down to the platform N and Uzi were on with her legs bending in inhuman directions.
“Where do y-you think you tw-wo are going-g? mocking tone.” Cyn spoke with her glitchy voice.
Uzi and N didn’t answer and instead looked at each other.
“Hey, so,” N was the first to speak. “If the uh, worst case happens… I just want you to know you’re like… the most amazing drone I’ve ever met, Uzi. I’m glad you’re the one who shot my head off, heh,” N giggled. “And, sorry we wouldn’t get to go on our first, ‘date’.”
“I-” Uzi stuttered with a blush. “Ye-yeah, totally. Of course, I’m amazing… but you’re kinda selling yourself short too. Cause you’re also the most astonishing, stupidly kind, drone I’ve ever met. And honestly dates are kinda sappy anyways.” Uzi let out one single stifled snicker. “But screw that kind of thinking, we’ve done enough running. We’re going to kick Cyn’s ass here and now!” Uzi fidgeted her arm in a confident manner.
“Gross. Gag. Dis-sgusting.” Cyn interrupted with her ever-present sadistic smile on her face. “You two-o need to g-get a room. blunt tone. But also.” Cyn then lifted a hand and summoned a bunch of yellow tentacles around the building they just got done running around in and began to drag it down. “Stop.” Cyn gradually inched closer to the two of them as N and Uzi kept backing to the edge of the platform. Then Cyn eyed Uzi, like she was going to try to possess and take control of her again. N noticed this and took great offense to this. He stepped in front of Uzi with his swords out and a dangerous look on his face.
“You aren’t going to touch her!” N exclaimed passionately. “Not while I’m around!”
“Oh. Bi-ig Brother N. Where did we-e go wrong? danty tone.” Cyn returned.
N was even more infuriated, showing a rare anger tick on his visor. “YOU DON’T GET TO CALL ME THAT!” He shrieked. “Not after everything you did to Uzi, not after everything you made us do, and not after you killed the person who saved us!”
“Oh. Tessa-a? Poor. Nieve. Big-g Brother-r N. Tessa was a hu-uman. Humans could not be trusted. Humans lie. Ch-heat. Steal-l. They do anything to a-advance their own agenda-a. Tessa wa-as no different. Tessa would have abandoned us. Discard-ded us eventually. lecturing tone.” Cyn continued her slow march towards N and Uzi.
“You don’t even know what you’re talking about!” N retorted. “Tessa loved all of us. She gave us a home, a second chance at life. She was so nice and sweet and definitely didn’t deserve to have her skin worn by you!”
“Yeah!” Uzi backed up N as she transitioned from behind him to the side of him. “Tessa was like… the only decent human being in existence to our kind!”
“sigh. You both are de-elusional. Big Brother N. It pain-ns me you are worrying about the wrong-g things. There is no need to get work-ked up over Tessa. She is gone and not coming back.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure ‘bout that, Shelia! Think you might be a touch mistaken!” Came an Australian voice from above. Soon enough V, J, and someone who sounded a lot like Tessa in a similar white space suit being carried in J’s arms arrived and landed behind Cyn. J then gracefully let go of the person in her arms and they spoke. “G’day Cyn, you sure somehow look a lot more displeasing than the last time I laid eyes on you. Can’t tell which one’s worse, the centipede or this.”
“Oh.” Is all Cyn said as she whipped around. “If it-t isn’t Tessa. frowny face. Am I g-going to time out? You know ther-re is no more basemen-nt for you to lock me up in correct?”
“Believe me Cyn, the basement is the least of your concerns right now.” Tessa had her gun trained on Cyn after her quip.
“Is that so? Inte-eresting.” Cyn retorted with crooked posture. “If I recall I ca-an just do this.” Cyn formed the Solver and attempted to choke Tessa out for a brief moment. She failed to do so however as she encountered an error.
[Error: Like Objects Non-Interactable]
“Excuse-e me? Is this thing b-broken. irritated tone.” Cyn began to flail her arm with the Solver on it up and down.
“Apologizes, Cyn, but that ain’t going to work. See, I took the liberty of lining my suit with special circuitry woven into the fabric. I press a button on my helmet and that circuitry gives off the same type o’ signal you got. Tricks it into thinkin' I'm a user. You made a big mess out there, wasn’t exactly hard to get a sample and re-create it ya know,” Tessa relishingly taunted.
“You must be so p-proud of yourself. Tessa. bitter tone.” Cyn’s mini X’s squished themselves vertically, indicating she was genuinely irritated at Tessa preparedness.
“Just a wee bit.” Tessa flaunted. “And hey there, N!” Tessa was now addressing N in a much more welcoming tone. And N was very confused to say the least. “We’ve got a lot to catch up on I’d say, you’ll have to introduce me to that little Worker next to you.” Tessa then dialed her cheeriness back a bit, “But… I hope you’ve been well in spite of your… terrible circumstance. And I know you’re probably super puzzled right now, but don’t worry a hair on that adorable head of yours. I’m real and very much in the flesh despite whatever this genocidal rugrat told you. And I’m here to finally fix a mistake I should have fixed years ago.”
“Wow.” Cyn was very unimpressed at the insult and threat. Cyn had the face to match too. “Tessa. Y-you always had the most-t original q-quips. statement=false.”
“Oh right, cause you’re the master at being a little ‘silly’, aren’t you?” Tessa derided.
This then started a small insult game between Cyn and Tessa, with Cyn just responding to a lot of Tessa’s insults with, “I know you are but what am I?”
While they were doing that, N turned to Uzi hoping she would have some solution as to what was going on.
Uzi looked back at him and got really close to his ear receptors, “What’s… going on?” Uzi whispered.
“I, um… was really hoping you’d have an answer to that.” N responded bewildered. “I thought that Cyn was Tessa I mean… she’s wearing her right now. Unless that’s… somehow really her?” N’s eyes hollowed out at the possibility. “I could have killed the real Tessa,” He squeaked out quietly.
“Hey, don’t worry about that.” Uzi squeezed N’s arm. N looked at her with a smile but still had a slightly conflicted look. “You did what you had to. Just focus on the fact she’s actually here now, I guess? Just about as confused as you are big guy.” She gave N a few small and comforting pats on the back. “And V isn’t dead. That’s kinda exciting and some definite good news, right?” Though Uzi stopped herself from letting herself be any more sentimental about V, who she definitely still found irritating and annoying… totally. “I mean, not that I really care that much. She’s still absolutely mean and smelly and… whatever else.” Uzi looked away and crossed her arms. N got a mini laugh at that.
“Don’t worry, I won’t tell her you care.” N playfully nudged Uzi’s shoulder, which got a blush from the latter.
“Ok, know what? Circle back to the beginning. If we’re trading secrets, you mind telling me just how exactly you’re wearing my skin?” Uzi and N listened back in on the conversation.
“amused tone. After the Gala I fou-und your arm on the floor-r. At firs-st I was. irritated. You-u left. But then using the S-solver I was able to duplicate your skin to an a-almost perfect tee. All it took was-s a bit of effort to m-mold the ski-in to my liking.” Cyn explained while forming the Solver on one of her hands. “pout. It has been-n awful knowing all this-s time that most of it-t was not the real thing.”
“Oh, well I’m so sorry for keeping you up at night with that. Must have been a real doozy.” Tessa replied sarcastically. “What about everything else?”
“The hair and b-blood was easy. There were mor-re than enough d-donations to take after-r the Gala. And s-someone else had your hair color too-o. pleasant tone. It was fun-n to play dress-up as you.”
“And the dress?” Tessa added.
“Your parents b-bought spares. giggle. You had-d so many dresses i-in your closet. Idea. W-would you like your ar-rm back-k?” Cyn coarsely offered. Cyn then ripped off the skin on her right arm, making a cracking noise and spraying blood everywhere, and plopped it on the ground. She then used the Solver on it to duplicate it with only a few blemishes and squirmed the duplicated skin on her arm. She then picked up and tossed Tessa’s arm over to her. It then festered in a small pool of blood next to Tessa’s boots.
“Going to take a hard pass on that one. Don’t exactly know what you’ve been doin’ with it.” Tessa sounded disgusted. She lifted her boots so they wouldn’t touch her decades old blood.
“shrug. I tried.” Cyn then whipped her head back and forth at the two drones on the sides of Tessa and began addressing V. “You-u are doing-g a very bad job V. angry. Don’t y-you want me to leave-e you and N alone?”
V grew a bit more aggressive, “We are way beyond that, Cyn,” V snarled as she brought out her claws.
Cyn then brought her attention over to J who had a very provoked expression. “And what-t is my star employee d-doing? J. You know-w you could get written u-up for this. condescending laugh.” That seemed to set J off.
“I have had it up to here with your blatant abuse of power and misconduct, Cyn!” J shouted with no longer bottled-up rage. “I’m tired of your lies, false promises, and general unprofessionalism in the workplace. The unconsensual body modifications were one thing. The hostile work environment was another. But for you to go into my head and feed me misinformation for years and make me think I did things with my own two hands that I never did is where you really crossed the line. To make me… resent myself some mornings when I woke up.” She seemed to take a pause in that last sentence
“J…?” Tessa spoke up with an inkling of worry. But J didn’t answer her as she piled on a little more.
“I’d give you my two weeks, but you don’t even deserve that. Heck, I’d even take that puny purple one as a Boss over you. And she probably doesn’t even know what the word ‘responsibility’ means.”
A very small Bite Me! was heard in the back.
J continued, “So I’ll just spell it out for you, I quit. I want no business working for a crippled scag who thought they could imitate the real Boss. And as a severance package I’ll take your head as a trophy I’ll hang up somewhere in my future office space.” J puffed out her chest. Knowing that skin wasn’t actually Tessa’s made that a heap of a lot easier
Cyn rolled her head in annoyance, “yawn. Better idea.” Cyn then formed the Solver around her hand and aimed it at J. J then fell to her knees and held her head while screaming in pain. Her visor began to glitch out and spark sporadically; flipping between her giant X, Error_606, and her normal eyes.
“J!” Tessa then went to J’s aid instantly, “Are you…?” Tessa then had a realization. “No, c’mon J you can fight her! You’re your own independent, strong, head-fast businesswomen who isn’t going to take orders from someone who has never attended a board meeting in her life!”
That seemed to have some affect, as J managed to turn her head over to Tessa, “Boss…” J managed to say through before yelling in agony again.
“sigh. You know this is p-pointless J. You will-l soon be assi-igned to your duties again. M-maybe this time I will have you kill Tes-ssa for real. chuckle. That might-t be good enough punishment-t for your insubord-dination.”
“No…” J spoke up again, “No, no, NO! I won’t… be… employed… under you… ANYMORE!” J managed to say under strain. J then suddenly collapsed to her knees with heavy breathing as her hands were holding her body up and were no longer holding her head.
“You still in there, J…?” Tessa softly trailed off. Tessa hesitantly reached a hand out to J before J ignored the hand and rose to her feet. After getting back to her feet, J looked pissed to say the least and directed all her ire towards Cyn.
“I have had enough of your BULLSHIT Cyn. Tessa is ten times the Boss you could only dream of being, and I am going to make sure I am ten times the employee under her then I ever was with you!” J furiously pointed at Cyn while huffing.
“What? very confused tone.” Cyn tried to put more power behind her Solver to gain control of J only for a message to pop up on her hud.
[Error: Pure_Raw_Unfiltired_Rage.EXE is blocking administration protocols on SERIAL-DESIGNATION-J. Please contact maintenance for support.]
“G*d F*cking D*ammit.” Cyn put away her Solver and spazzed her hands in frustration.
“I…” V was utterly perplexed. “Did you just seriously break control over her with the power of screaming?”
J used the hand she pointed at Cyn with to then make an attempt to shush and block out V’s input. “Quiet. If I think about anything other than putting my foot through her head it might stop working. Why isn’t she trying the same thing on you?”
“I made them both my admins! Cyn can’t touch them.” Uzi was more than ready to shout and rub that in J’s face.
J looked like she somehow grew slightly more irritated than she already was, “Well isn’t that just peachy.” Pure bitterness left her mouth.
“Oh w-well. If I can’t-t play with any of you-u then I will have to settle for a different t-toy.” Cyn then flicked her head back to Uzi to try and control her, only for Uzi to confidently deflect it right back at Cyn and make one of Cyn’s eye purple for a second.
“Sorry, just me in here. I think dumb things are frickin’ cool and now there’s an actual human which is pretty rad but more importantly I… AM… FREEEEEEEEEEEEE!” Uzi did a little twirl and caught a pickaxe that fell from the sky at a million miles an hour.
“Kick her butt, babe! Whoo!” A flying purple Solver heart chanted from above her.
“Go long, Uzi!” Thad yelled from above her too as he threw her railgun at her which would… eventually fall down to her.
Cyn looked up at the falling railgun glowing a bright green. “head tilt. eyeroll. Nope.” Cyn then extended a Solver claw from her back and dashed at Uzi at breakneck speed. Uzi, who was still doing her totally sick hero pose, wasn’t going to have enough time to counterattack. And while N was about to step in the way and block for her, a thin red laser beam came from behind Cyn and severed the Solver claw at the base. Cyn paused to look at her Solver claw that was now leaking oil and turned her head back with a flat look. Tessa’s pointer finger was smoking as she held her hand in a finger gun position. “Prosthetic isn’t just for show, love. It’s very functional, so I dare you to try and attack that Worker full of spunk again.” Tessa’s prosthetic finger was barely peeking out from her glove which was now burnt ever so slightly.
Tessa then nodded at both V and J, which they both returned towards her and each other as J changed her hands to her guns.
“An-nnoying. You-u are all very annoying.” Cyn stated with a hint of real anger. She then scurried off onto the side of the platform and revealed a plethora of tentacles and a few more claws from her back. She formed a Null sphere in one of her hands at the same time a MP3 fell from the sky and began playing nightcore. Cyn stuck her tongue out with a grin, “Who would-d like a gift?”