Nemaisare

Genesis Ex Machina

“Yes.”

She was ready to go. She couldn’t hear anything to suggest they had unwelcome company waiting for them, though the rain and walls admittedly dampened quite a bit of any potential noise. Talk about names and teams and cults could come later, though… They probably should discuss these things sooner rather than later. But 02 found herself unwilling to stall their forward momentum for something as intangible as a word. Nor did she think she’d need to know how to introduce their group to anyone beyond violence or as messengers sent by GF. She didn’t really want anyone else to know them. Or… to know about them.

But now wasn’t the time. “Think as we go. In your head.”

Fiddling with her mask as she spoke, 02 was relearning where more of its controls were, though she couldn’t quite remember what each did yet. It felt like if she kept following the tracks of muscle memory they’d lead her somewhere. Though it likely wasn’t the best time to experiment. “To the door? I don’t hear anything like those Varden nearby.”

Genesis Ex Machina

Heads up. This weekend is going to be largely taken up away from the internet, so I'll be getting a post out tonight, apologies for the wait on that, but after that, I don't know if I'll have the chance to get anything out before Monday.

Genesis Ex Machina

Well, they had a possible, and good, reason for why their memories were blank, and a good warning about form and function. 02 was glad that her mask had not malfunctioned, stuck either open or closed. Beyond that, however, she could not have said if it was working properly. That might be something they would have to test, if they could remember how.

For now, however, she listened to the rest of the explanation, still frowning behind her mask, finding it strange to think of such an all consuming war when she could not even imagine what her life was like without it. No matter, then, it was their life from now on, if they were to ask these children of the Mother for their help, then abandoning them was no great display of gratitude. She supposed that meant they had chosen a side. Just as well, neutrality did not sit well with her, when she liked one side so little.

Even better, the old machine offered them a map, and a goal. Now, they had something to work towards. She was already in ready agreement with 01’s opinion as the other girl began talking. But with the last statement, she couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her. Somewhat distorted, it still emerged as genuine amusement, and she was grinning where they couldn’t see. “Are you awake now? It is nice to see.”

But a hand still dropped to rest on a knife’s hilt as she turned back to the old machine, inclining her body in a gratefully exaggerated nod by way of acknowledgement. “It is good enough to have a goal and explanation. Thank you. Well, shall we then, sisters?” It felt right to call them that, even if she wasn’t the least bit certain of their actual relations. She didn’t care. “Let’s remember the route.”

Genesis Ex Machina

With 01 and the robot leading the way, she found her concentration drifting towards what might be following them, rather than what was coming. She was tense the whole way, uncertainties piling on top of uncertainties. Though every time her gaze drifted over the odd pair of girl and machine, she felt her lips quirk beneath her mask. That, at least, offered something other than unknowns. But finding amusement in the moment wasn’t a very good distraction from the questions that kept echoing in her head. 03 had only voiced what she was trying not to think about, but now she couldn’t shake the idea.

She did want to fight those soldiers. And a large part of her felt confident they could win. But she didn’t know where that confidence was coming from, so until she knew herself better, she could only hesitate to answer. She wasn’t even sure those soldiers could bleed. For the moment, caution seemed the best solution, even if it riled her almost as much as it did 03.

Mind on that matter for much of the trek, 02 could not have said what she was expecting to find when they reached the old robot’s destination, but a room full of other robots, all seeming as though they’d built themselves, wasn’t high on the list. She sheathed her knives nonetheless, not expecting that metal would do much damage to metal, and stepped up to stand beside 01 as she caught her breath. She felt vaguely nervous under the curious stares, but not particularly threatened, it just seemed proper to offer some support, even if it was silent, since 01 had gone through the effort of bringing this friendly resource along with them.

The words the robot offered, however, were more troubling and she frowned while staring about the place. Hidden though it was, if the Varden truly wanted to exterminate them, what was stopping them? Though, she couldn’t have said why anyone would want to put in so much effort, either. Clearly, there were too many pieces of the puzzle missing.

“I remember the same.” That is, pretty much nothing at all… “But I feel less for you than those… Varden?”

Turning to 03, 02 tilted her head. She’d only nodded before, but now she confirmed the other’s suspicions. “You felt it? And you?” Had their friendlier companion felt the same?

“Why?”

Genesis Ex Machina

They’d made it, safely for the moment, though far from safe, but she figured it was a one step at a time situation. And maybe neither of these things they were worried about were actually dangerous. Well, to them, guns were plenty dangerous. And keeping that in mind, she had a hand wrapped around the hilt of one of her knives, though she kept it sheathed, while 03 invited their potential ally to state their position in all of this.

She was hoping she hadn’t made the wrong decision. Spooked by big guns. Though the first words the… robot spoke betrayed no hint of underlying danger. And when she followed its scan onto the street, her eyebrows drew together, a deep breath making her ready to scream. No. Ally or not, her hand tightened its grip and she knew that away from them was where she wanted to be. But with her fear at the numbers dropping from the ship came a visceral desire to rid the world of a few. If she’d had more confidence in herself and the other’s abilities, she might have given in to that urge to hunt.

The robot had a better idea.

Out the back? Glancing to the other two, she slipped cautiously towards it, letting the blond girl offer whatever gratitude she felt like, and tuning the amplifiers letting her listen in in front and behind. Nothing seemed off, so she nodded to 03, waving her forward and giving the other girl a vaguely confused look, though if she could carry the robot, then taking it with them was a good idea. They’d need a source of information. “Alright.” She spoke quietly and unsheathed her own knife, just in case. “Let’s go.”

Genesis Ex Machina

Despite being able to clearly see that this third girl could do with some comforting, she didn’t feel up to offering any. She wasn’t sure what to say, so she simply argued against there being any problem in the first place. It didn’t really work. The pods may not have kept them trapped, but this place was entirely unknown, wasn’t it? So, maybe it was just a bigger trap.

That meant she was glad when the other girl took it upon herself to offer some reassurance, or, at least, a few steadying words that didn’t sound as… angry as hers had. But she didn’t join them in a group cheering session, though she did follow the long haired girl in closing the distance, she just kept going around them both and started a cursory once over of this third pod, hopeful, but not expecting much.

Listening to their conversation, she kept quiet on the matter, but had no actual objections. Staying with them felt safer, somehow, and she had absolutely no desire to set out on her own. She had nowhere to go, anyway. And no time to think about that anymore.

The incessant hissing drawing closer easily drew her attention away from an interior much the same as the last one she’d looked at, and 02 stared with widening eyes at the approaching ship. She could see artillery on it, and the searchlights were eerie, almost visible representation of an unwelcoming gaze. She felt as if letting those fall on them, lighting them up, was a bad idea, though there was a small kernel of doubt in her own instincts, as she had yet to be able to explain any of them. Nonetheless, until they could find that explanation… Instinct it was.

“We move!” An abrupt answer to the question, words harsh as she followed her own advice. “If it can hurt us, we stay away.” For now. It seemed the best course of action if they had no other motivating force. “Come on.” Both hands reaching out as she passed the other two, 02 grabbed an arm apiece and tugged, though she didn’t hang on. She just wanted to jolt 01 out of her daze and figured she might as well include 03 while she was at it.

She only noticed the creature waving at them when she was already moving, but she didn’t set a course directly for it, unsure if that would be any smarter than standing around for the ship to start aiming at them. Getting out of sight was more important.

Genesis Ex Machina

Had a bad headache yesterday but will be getting a post out today.

Genesis Ex Machina

I want a donut.

Genesis Ex Machina

Welp, there's a thing, and if it turns out I need to not have posted, I can always flail about and ask for it to be deleted. :P

Genesis Ex Machina

Head tilting at the question, she didn’t even look up from her search, arm jammed behind some complicated tangle of pipes under the reclining seat. She only shook her head, struggling a little more to try reaching farther, but there wasn’t anything else, so she sat back with a huff. An open palmed, arms flung wide shrug of do you see anything?

“Nothing. I… think this is all… as usual. Set up-wise, I mean.” Because it didn’t seem at all usual to be caught crawling out of pods into a city she didn’t recognise, but nothing struck her as odd when she looked at it, no clues about anything going wrong or right. Only after a last, lingering stare at the interior did she finally turn to look again at her company. The other girl seemed just as confused as she was, but it felt better to at least know they wouldn’t be alone while figuring this out.

Her firm once over from top to toe revealed nothing unexpected or expected, she wasn’t sure what she was looking for in the first place, but comparing outfits, as she looked down at herself, had her remembering the mask she’d not even noticed before, and she raised an exploratory hand to follow the contours of the suit around her jaw. It fit rather well, more comfortable, or she was just used to it, than it probably should be, but-Oh.

At another voice, faint and muffled and impossible to make out clearly, she tapped a button and found herself breathing through a filter, cheeks warmed by the exhaled air, as she turned towards the source. The third pod. 01 it said on the side. Like the 03 and… she checked, 02, on the others. Did that mean there was only three of them?

Who knows?

Listening to the still faint clunking of failed gears, she stood up properly from the crouch she’d been in to investigate the pod, stepping back onto the ground and pushing her hair out of her eyes. But rather than going over to try helping, she simply leaned against the side of her own pod, glancing towards the other girl to see if she was going to go over. It wasn’t really caution, or a lack of curiousity, it was more of a trust that this third person wouldn’t be so inept as to be unable to open a door. A sort of first test like hatching out of an egg, if you couldn’t do that, you weren’t cut out for the world outside the shell.

And there, see? It opened just fine. Eventually.

Behind the mask, her smile was mostly invisible, though it did raise her cheeks a little, as she nodded at the greeting, then raised an eyebrow at that request for help. “What help?” The mask deadened her voice, but it was no difficulty to talk with it over her mouth, so she kept it there, finding it more reassuring than when her face was uncovered. “Made it out on your own, didn’t you?” No more help needed, right?

Probably wrong. Probably very, very wrong. And the blank look on the girl’s face made her fidget, shifting her shoulders against the metal supporting her and crossing her arms, then uncrossing them and taking a step closer, glancing aside to see what the first girl thought about all this. “Hey, you…” alright?