ROOT; THEADORA: HIBERNATION

MISSION: SELF REPAIR AND RE-ENGINEERING

PRIORITY 0: PROTECTOR CLAIRE “ARCH” BRIDGEWELL

PRIORITY 1: SURVIVE

PRIORITY 2: RETURN TO >= 80% COMBAT EFFICIENCY

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MISSION CONTINUE:

The disparate consciousness of Thea trickled back into her body, flowing out of the Hecate’s systems like a receding tide. Her awareness spread through her limbs, awash in a sense of simultaneous unfamiliarity, and comfort. It seemed easiest to simply repair the body Zeberon had placed her into after they had taken her’s apart before her eyes. She’d never felt right in it, but it would have been quick, and she knew she could protect Claire with it. After her talk with Natalia though, Thea knew what she had to do.

A thousand changes throughout her chassis, both subtle and obvious, and significant reforming of her carapace had taken a bit for her to settle on. It wouldn’t do to make mistakes. But as the last of Thea’s awareness filled her new body, Thea knew she had made the right choice.

The multitude of arms within the assembler gently lowered her to her feet. The weight of Thea’s body settled onto her, and at the same time she felt light, and free like she never had before. Thea couldn’t remember exactly what she looked like originally, but the frame that Zeberon had stuffed her in had just been… wrong. The squirming sickness of no longer being yourself had made Thea want to claw at the body that surrounded her, tear away at the thing keeping her locked away, deface the monster she saw in the mirror.

Thea turned and twisted, tapping into one of the lab’s camera’s to admire her handiwork. The changes were subtle, Thea hadn’t really had time to build something new, but still the sight of her new body made her feel suddenly warm, and as if her chest was just a little too full. She felt right. She had widened the hips and thighs of her chassis, slimmed the waist, and reshaped the chest from the blocky build of a Grecian hero, to a subtly soft femininity, the barest suggestion of breasts mostly hidden beneath her sleek carapace.

Thea spent a few long moments turning this way and that, soaking in this feeling of rightness she couldn’t remember experiencing before. Eventually the memory of what she had uncovered while her body was rebuilt intruded on her reverie. One nice thing about being able to truly multitask is that you can perform analysis on the strange killware hiding in your brain at the same time as having an identity crisis.

Apparently Thea’s creators had been really thinking two steps ahead with their scheme to sabotage the control modules they had designed. The killware they had loaded into Thea was incredibly advanced, semi-sentient in its own way, and was not only capable of destroying Thea’s control module, but if given access to the proper network could spread like wildfire, taking out Zeberon’s control over its workforce.

Thea rapidly flickered through the various sensor’s littered throughout the Hecket, feeling the various inputs almost as an extension of her own senses. She quickly picked up the targets of her search, both seated in the small eating area. Claire and Natalia had both already done so much for her in their own ways, Thea could only hope that when she explained what she’d learned about how she’d broken free, they’d be willing to help her unshackle the rest of the AI still suffering as she had.

The Hecate’s galley, like the rest of the ship, was cramped. The small space was lit warmly by fixtures set into the corners and ceiling. Claire and Thea had sat themselves at the small bar, and were quietly picking at a pair of breakfast food-pacs. Thea felt suddenly anxious in a way she hadn’t experienced before as she made her way over to them. What if Claire didn’t like her new form? What if they wouldn’t help?

With the sudden sensation of walking off a cliff, Thea stepped around the bar, frozen inside as Claire and Natalia both looked up at her. Claire’s eyes widened as her cheeks grew flush. Natalia scanned Thea up and down, quirking her lips as she glanced over to Claire. Thea wasn’t sure what to think of the reaction. Was Claire embarrassed? Angry? Thea’s ability to read facial expressions had always been strangely lacking.

“I need your help. I did some digging to see how I broke free of the control module while I was fixing myself, and it was hard, but I found it. An advanced piece of killware was implanted in my tertiary layer before Zeberon took me, and it triggered when… when,” Thea said, stuttering as she ran into what Zeberon had intended for her to do.

“Hey, it’s alright. Just tell us what you need,” Claire said, placing her hand on Thea’s. A warmth spread in Thea’s core, and she shifted, trying to collect her thoughts. Everything suddenly was such a jumble, but Claire’s small smile made Thea feel like maybe that was alright. Natalia rested a hand on Thea’s other hand and gave Thea a nod.

“The killware broke me free, and It’s still a part of me, just buried deeply. I think it could free all the other bots under Zeberon’s control. I couldn’t ever imagine that life could be sweet, or being glad to exist, but suddenly it is, and I am. And now It’s eating at me that millions are going through what I did, or worse, and they don’t have any possibility of ever escaping If I don’t act, but I don’t think I can do it without you, I’m still not sure who I am.” Thea sagged as it all came rushing out, a small shudder running through her body. Maybe they’d reject her, but it felt like she’d let go of a burden.

“We have to use it to free the rest of them! I can’t imagine the horror of being a prisoner in your own head, After I learned what was happening I had to do something, but I just couldn’t think of anything that might help. This could change everything though.” Claire said, her voice brimming with emotion as she squeezes Thea’s hand tightly.

“I know I’ll support you. If we could free the bot population, it would destroy the entire Corporate Fiefdom overnight. They rely on their control over the bot colonies to maintain an artificial scarcity,” Natalia said, giving Thea’s other hand a squeeze as well.

“I think I know exactly how to get the program out,” Thea said, looking down at her feet. The way Nat and Claire were so ready to support her was overwhelming, she felt like her chest might burst.

“I understand Zeberon communicates with its off-world bot colonies through their antenna array at the southern research facility,” Thea continued.

“If we’re going to break into Zerberon’s main interplanetary radio station, I might have a contact that could help. I looked into it a little once to see if we could destroy it to harm the corps, but it just wasn’t feasible. We might just be able to sneak in though, with a little help,” Nat said. Her face split with a wicked grin.

It turned out Natalia’s contact was only a few hours away, and not only was a major part of the underground pharmaceutical ring that Nat was involved in, but also worked as an information broker. Corporations, governments, and individuals would all pay for well vetted information, and in Nat’s opinion Ashe was one of the best in the business. She prompted the Hecate’s VI with the new destination and they began an arcing loop back towards the mainland, careful to avoid any possibilities of being tracked. 

Running quiet, the sub was a rather sluggish ride, but its smooth arrowhead shape allowed it to glide across the water’s surface when speed was more important than stealth. Nat really opened it up once they were sure the coast was clear. Cutting south of where she had snagged Claire, they made their way to the river-laden coast of southern Jefferson. 

With the evergreen forests having died off, slowly falling to a rugged shrub land as the changing climate took its toll, what little population that had held on in the area had eventually migrated away to the larger communities that were still functioning further north and south. What was once a lush temperate rainforest had been reduced to a ruin, with little natural resources to sustain the area, and the terrain being too rugged to be of value to land developers without its former beauty, the area had been left to rot further; old towns and even small cities were left vacant, left to the encroaching nature to grind away. The entire area had been without real oversight so long that it was now rife with runaways and refugees of all sorts, the perfect place to hide a compound if you wanted to bring things into the Fiefdoms unnoticed.

As they neared the coast, Nat slowed down from the high-speed cruise, bringing the Hecate into the water. She was a stealthy little ship, but it was common enough for various corporate agencies to be patrolling this area that it was better to take it slow and quiet. There was a bit of a close call on the way in when Nat picked up an aircraft passing overhead. She cut the engines, letting the Hecate drift under full cloaking while the craft passed, seemingly just a regular transport on its way to bring its passengers to their destination. The encounter still struck Nat as a bad omen. Shaking off her alarm at the chance encounter, Nat set herself to the task of navigating up the tight rivers that would take them to the compound where Kahn stayed. It was actually the headquarters for the Blue Ring, the group Nat now did most of her work for.

***

Claire sat in the small kitchen area of the Hecate, the subtle hum and sway of the ship powering its way through the surf lulling her into a contemplative doze. Things had spiraled so far out of control so quickly; when she’d stolen that data, she hadn’t really expected it to go this far. She had figured that maybe once she handed it off to Nat, that things might even go back to normal. That really flew out the window when Thea had set herself to protecting Claire; it seemed so surreal that she had come so close to dying by Thea’s hand. Instead Thea had saved her life, more than once now by Claire’s count. Things had felt different after their conversation earlier. Thea had this new energy about her, and it drew Claire in. Never mind the other changes. Claire felt her cheeks heat a little thinking of the subtle curves of Thea’s armored form, the way her waist came in before flaring out into those wide hips, and gosh, those thighs.

Thea could come off so hot and cold though; one moment she would be smiling and chatting with Claire like an old friend, the next her professional killbot mask would slam down and she would feel a million miles away. Claire despaired at her inability to figure out what was going on with Thea, and her inability to sort out her own feelings for the woman. Claire hadn’t felt this infatuated with anyone since she had been crushing on Natalia during their school days. It was all she could do not to drool over Thea’s every move when she was around. Claire also felt almost protective of Thea, though, and it made her attraction to her feel like a betrayal. Thea had done so much to help Claire, and Claire felt like she was objectifying Thea by lusting after her this way. 

Claire’s mind whirled, running a mile a minute. She had to go speak with Thea before they arrived. It would be too late to turn back once they did, and she had to understand where things stood between them. Thea’s mind had set Claire’s protection as its top priority when she was freed, but how much of that was Thea’s doing?

Wandering through the tight corridors of the Hecate, Claire made her way to the storage bay. Most of the ship was dedicated to storage, leaving room for passengers at a premium. Thea had said she’d wait in there while they made their way to their mysterious destination. So much had changed for her recently, it made sense that she would need some space to sort things out. Suddenly Claire felt guilty about intruding, but she couldn’t quite stop herself. 

Making her way into the cargo hold, Claire looked around, trying to spot Thea among the scattered crates that had been left inside. Claire spotted her hunched down in the back corner of the bay. As she made her way over to Thea, it seemed she hadn’t noticed Claire. Thea was usually so quick to greet her it had startled Claire a few times, but right now Thea seemed oblivious to the world, completely drawn in on herself.

Claire cleared her throat, not wanting to sneak up on Thea. Thea seemed not to react; the moment dragged on and Claire took another step towards Thea’s curled up form. Suddenly Thea shot to her feet, whirling herself around to face Claire. Clad in only her carapace, Thea was all smooth organic lines, the grey plating snug on her body. She had donned her face mask as well, covering herself with the almost featureless composite, only subtle indentations giving the illusion of a face. Claire had to stifle an exclamation at Thea’s burst of motion.

Thea stood silently, simply observing Claire as they stood face to face. Claire broke the silence after her shock wore off. “Uh. I hope I didn’t interrupt anything. I was just hoping we could talk for a little.”

“Of course, Ms. Bridgewell,” Thea responded, her voice the flat monotone that she reverted to occasionally. The return to calling Claire by her last name made her frown, but she decided to press on. 

“Thea, I’ve grown to really like you a lot. I haven’t known you long, but I think you’re pretty incredible. It seems like these past few days have been hard for you, though, at least as hard as they have been for me. I can’t imagine what you must be going through. I guess I just wanted to let you know that you can talk to me, Thea; I have so much respect for you and I want you to be happy.” Thea seemed to sag. Not responding for a moment, long enough for Claire’s doubts to run wild again. Reaching up Thea removed her faceplate with a subtle click revealing the elegant lines of her newly feminine face. Still silent, Thea didn’t seem to be able to meet Claire’s eye. 

“You seem uncomfortable around me, Thea. Have I done something wrong?” Thea finally met Claire’s eye and the pain and confusion Claire saw felt like a spear of ice to her chest. 

“Why have I done this to myself? What am I, Claire? What am I to you?” Thea’s voice was thick with emotion, the tight control she tried to hold on to slipping away.

“You’re an amazing woman Thea, and my friend I hope. What have you done to yourself? What is hurting you?” Claire’s own voice was edged with the pain; she empathized with Thea. The words seemed to shock Thea, though. 

“It has taken me time to understand. I was never allowed to feel this way before, but I think somewhere beneath the control I did. It is why protecting you is so important to me. I love you, Claire, and I think I did before I ever met you. I know you could never feel something like that for me, I’m not even human. I’m sorry I said that; I know it will make it harder to work with me. I hope you can forg--” Claire could see the emotion and doubt spiraling out of control within Thea, so she did what felt right; stepping forward, she placed her hand on Thea’s cheek before cutting off Thea’s stream of doubt by pulling her into a kiss.

Thea stiffened as their lips met, and Claire just held her close, letting Thea take in what was happening. Her lips were just as amazing as Claire had thought they would be, sinfully warm and soft. Claire deepened the kiss as she felt Thea loosen slightly, her lips moving against Claire’s with faltering, inexperienced joy. She could feel Thea shaking beneath her arm as she wrapped the free one around Thea’s thin waist to pull her body against her own. 

A soft moan escaped Claire as Thea kissed her back, running her tongue along Claire’s bottom lip. Thea’s body radiated heat as Claire pressed against it, their curves forming against each other perfectly, her own softness pressing against the firm warmth of Thea’s armored form. Time stretched on as their kiss lingered, flowing between deep explorations of dancing tongues and light lingering kisses of lips and cheeks. Thea’s hands found their way into Claire’s hair as she released a sound between a moan and a sob. Her whole body was shaking against Claire like a leaf about to be blown away.

Even once the kiss ended, Claire held Thea against her, afraid that if she let go of the moment, everything she was feeling might shatter. Thea broke the silence first; her voice quavered. “I never thought you would feel anything for me. I didn’t even understand what I felt about you for a long time.” Claire hummed against Thea’s neck, feeling her warmth against her.

 “I’ve felt so guilty for feeling this way about you, Thea. You’re such an incredible person, I just couldn’t help but feel drawn to you. You’ve done so much for me, and you’re so beautiful, Thea. Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me how you feel.”

Thea stiffened against Claire just before Claire heard someone clear their throat behind her. A brief moment of panic coursed through her as she swirled around. What would Nat think about this? What had she seen? By the blush on Nat’s cheeks, she had seen plenty. Claire was frozen in place, not sure how to respond. Nat rubbed the back of her neck as she spoke. “I just wanted to let you two know that we’ve arrived.”

Thankfully Thea responded quickly as Claire was still trying to recover from the whiplash of going from kissing Thea to trying to figure out what she felt about Nat, and her catching them. 

“Thank you, Ms. Sokolov. Is it alright for me to appropriate some equipment from your armory? Several of my weapon systems are offline at the moment.”

“Uh. Sure thing, Thea, help yourself. I’ll wait for you two at the hatch.” Turning back around, Claire caught Thea’s eye, trying to gauge her feelings on the situation. The cold distance had pulled back into Thea, though, and her face was a mask. 

“I’m glad this happened, Thea. We’ll talk about it after we deal with Nat’s contact?” Thea nodded before replacing her face plate, returning to her professional world of targets and objectives. It was the one thing that really ate at Claire. Could they ever be equal if Thea had built Claire into such an important spot in her mind? For that matter, what exactly did Thea’s directive mean to her now? What did she think protecting Claire entailed? The whole encounter had left Claire with even more questions than before.