Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The universe is never-ending, space reaching out for an infinity. That infinitude was the playground for any species that dared to reach beyond what they were capable of. The Terran Accord had been only one of many xeno species to make that leap into the stars, a frontier worth exploring with the highest of technology.

Currently, the system is quite bare. The center star was a white dwarf, and the system was not conducive at all to life in a way that terrans could understand it. That did not matter though, simply being able to touch down on an empty planet, capable of breaching even the worst conditions, was an amazing feeling all on its own. 

Gravity’s Reach awoke, systems powering online after a primary sleep cycle had come to its conclusion. It slept when she slept, two sides of a singular being. When she was awake, it was awake. 

| BOOT ERROR 104 PLEASE REFER TO MANUAL FOR PROPER INSTRUCTIONS

| HANDSHAKE WITH CASSIO BASE FAILED 

| SINGULARITY ENGINE FAILURE

Shit. Why was it throwing this error all of a sudden? She had just woken up, why did things always have to be annoying? Lupus groaned loudly, placing her hand to an annoyed face. The connection was gone and it made her feel ill. She needed the bridge between them now more than ever, but random errors in the software never ceased to annoy her. Cassio Base did not even exist anymore, so why would Gravity’s Reach even require a handshake? Spoofing it is.

| HANDSHAKE WITH CASSIO BASE FAILED 

| SINGULA0$1#65#!2$00

| HANDSHAKE WITH CASSIO BASE SUCCESSFUL

| SINGULARITY ENGINE PRIMED

Still got it. Firewall had to go down, but spoofing commands for herself was as easy as writing her name. Lupus felt a sense of euphoria, the feeling of the cold empty ocean that was space tingling into her mind. There was simply so much to see in the universe, to explore every nook and cranny… With not a single soul to stop her neverending desire for new experiences. Gravity’s Reach did not require constant refueling, its prototype Singularity Engine being more than enough to keep her going for centuries… When it did start failing, then Lupus would explore the problems with it.

The deep edges of space, far away from the planet referred to as Terra, was her bounty to explore. Other people were simply a distraction from her natural curiosity. She did not require anything more than what she had. Isolation was apparently some sort of punishment for Terrans, but not for Lupus. She didn’t have a place amongst any living soul in the galaxy. It was better that way, to look ahead and bury every little nightmare waiting in the crevices of her soul.

Darkness was her dwelling and Gravity’s Reach her body from which she dwelled. Nothing more could cause her harm, and anything that attempted to do so could easily be torn to theoretical shreds.

| GRAVITY’S REACH BEING HAILED BY COSMIC NAVY ELECTRUM

| OPEN COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL? Y OR N?

Oh? A Cosmic Navy ship hailing little old her? Not like a Cosmic Navy ship could do anything to her. She had been floating around space alone for what must have been seven years without a word from any other soul. However, even that i only an approximation since time was barely a concept for the pilot of the lone Constellation-Class Mecha. Though why she would suddenly be hailed was a slight concern for her, it’s not as though there were any notable public release notes about her or her suit. Could be fun though, shit talking the Cosmic Navy like early test flights.

| Y: COMMUNICATION CHANNELS OPEN, AUDIO ONLY

“Heyyyyyy, how’s it hangin’ shitheads?” Lupus opened with, her carefree attitude offputting to literally every person who had the displeasure of meeting her. “Cosmic Navy is out a little far out of their usual reach, aren’t they? Or trying to colonize a system with a white dwarf?”

“Hmph. I don’t quite like that tone, sir.” A gruff voice came over the communications line. Gravity’s Reach clenched its wolf-like claw at that statement, nearly prepared to rip the ship apart into tiny little pieces and let the void rip suffocate every teeny tiny terran onboard.

“And I don’t quite like being hailed just to be insulted. What the fuck do you Cosmic Navy shits want?” Lupus responded, internally rolling her eyes. “I’m very busy not dealing with you right now.”

“Yet you responded to our hail, pilot.” There was a bit of a nasty tone to that voice, which was fair. Lupus had made sure no other Constellation-Class Mecha had been built. Gravity’s Reach could foresee the awful things that the Accord would use such a machine for, and… well any and all research now belonged to Lupus and no others. “As a fellow Terran, you must understand that our way of life is at risk due to the horrible menace that is enslaving our kind.”

“Oh shit? Terrans got made finally? Wow, that’s super interesting. Where are you hanging out, dude? Around the bend over at Saia-5? I’ve mapped out this entire system, so hiding from me is not going to do you much good.” Lupus responded.

“My crew and I are retreating tactfully from the aforementioned menace that refer to themselves as the Affini. They are horrifying plant xenos that have taken Terra and have been enslaving Terrans for their own usage. Truly monstrous creatures that are wiping us out of existence. I had once heard of a powerful weapon, a prototype suit of mechanized armor that could rip through even the biggest and most durable of the fleet’s ships. You are our only hope in freeing Terra from their reign.”

“Dude, that sounds really interesting, but also what the fuck do you want me to do about it? Yes, theoretically I could rip through anything the Cosmic Navy built with my claws, but also I am one woman and I am not fighting a war against any species that took the terran homeworld.” Lupus was annoyed at this assumption, as though being born a terran somehow made it her problem.

“Do you not care that your people are being enslaved?!”

“I care very little about most others. Unless they’re hot. If they’re hot I might listen to what they say. Are the plants hot?”

“You… Why do you refuse to see the seriousness of the situation! You are terran! Not only that, but you pilot what many assumed to simply be an urban legend! But I knew if the plants were real when they were only myths, then you had to be as well.” The captain sounded desperate, more so than any other voice she had ever heard. Of course, she also hadn’t heard anything recently, so what did she know?

“I am ju… Listen, bud, I’ll call you back. Got a… got a little something happening right now.” Lupus zoned out for a moment, quickly closing the communications channel to see a rather… a rather large ship that somehow was a perfect mixture of organic and inorganic, of plant and technology, interwoven together in a manner that was beyond anything the pilot recognized. Also big. Very big. Dwarfing even the almighty forty-seven meter height of the Gravity’s Reach. A small beeping came up on the console. Definitely not a coincidence that terrans suddenly arrive in search of her alongside a several kilometer long organic ship.

| GRAVITY’S REACH BEING HAILED BY ARIA

| OPEN COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL? Y OR N?

Oh, that was the easiest yes of her entire recent life. Time to see if the plants were sexy.

| Y: COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL OPEN, VIDEO FEED ENABLED

Gravity’s Reach had a monitor specifically for video communication, without getting in the way of her sight. And oh, the view did not disappoint. When evil plant aliens had been described to her by the Electrum’s captain, she had expected something fascinating and new to her. What she did not expect was one extremely attractive plant-woman who looked like she walked right out of one of Lupus’ fantasies. So yes, they were sexy.

“Hello little one! Thank you so much for opening up to our frequency! My name is Podalyria Idaeus, Sixth Bloom, she/her! Call me Poda though if you wish!” The plant woman was definitely living up to her beautiful name. She seemed to appear somewhere between appearing within a form woven to be as terran-like as possible, though had some more alien attributes as well, somewhere between human and lizard in appearance. She had long hair, formed out of vines, cascading down the side of her head, little berries, Lupus believed they were called, decorating them to give them a vibrant green-and-red color. A wooden mask that approximated a face sat staring back at her.

“No problem at all, I had a rather unpleasant conversation with a Cosmic Navy dude, so I'm trying to cleanse the taste out of my mouth.” Lupus laughed a little at her own joke. “I’m Lupus, Pilot of Gravity’s Reach, she/her as well. Though sometimes, I feel a bit more like an it/its. How can I be of service?”

“Very polite, friendly, and cute too! In fact, we were wondering what exactly you were to begin with Miss Lupus. We caught your signal suddenly come online while we tracked a feralist ship that had attempted to flee from us.”

“Guess I’ve looped back around to a more inhabited space without even knowing it. Gravity’s Reach has been suffering some firmware problems recently, and it’s becoming a real issue for us. For me. As for the other problem you’re having…” Lupus moved her controls to grab data she had leached from her last communications hail and sent it to the mysterious alien ship tracking them. In a way, they felt like kindred spirits in their non-humanness. “Cosmic Navy is real crap at hiding their location data when choosing to openly communicate. I’ve sent it over, so you can do… whatever it is your kind do.”

“You mean to say you are unaware of who we are?” Poda looked surprised at that, as though she didn’t expect such a response.

“Learned of you when the Cosmic Navy hailed me and asked me to rip your ship apart. Now I’ve seen it, your giant ship that I cannot begin to fathom is a ship, and decided it's not worth attempting to hurt myself over.” Gravity’s Reach clenched another claw and began itching itself. “But I’ve been hard pressed to find conversation for the past seven or so years, so I thought it’d be fun to talk. Now I can say I do not regret talking to the attractive plant women.”

“It seems you and I will get along, petal. You don’t even know what the Affini Compact is, yet here you are attempting so much to flirt.”

“I’ve floated throughout space for nearly ten years! My flirting skills are just a bit rusty is all.” Lie, lie, lie. She needed to ensure it seemed like she had some game, even if she had spent seven long grueling years becoming her own best friend.

“Flower, have you ever flirted at all?”

“I’m gonna go ahead and keep saying they’re rusty instead of non-existent.” She was used to being obliviously flirted to.

“Oh you are simply too cute, aren’t you?”

“I try my hardest, though it’s difficult in a body like this.” Lupus looked down at her hand, slowly morphing into the proper metallic claw it was supposed to be, before seeing her flesh-covered hand again. 

“Would you like a new body, petal? The Compact can give you exactly what you like~.” The melodic speaking rang through the pilot’s ears, like a song luring Gravity’s Reach closer.

“What’s that tone in your voice, Miss Idaeus? Like a siren of old calling me out to sea to ensnare me in your beauty?”

“My beauty and the cornerstone of the Affini Compact, xenodrugs that can very easily give you what you need.”

“Planning on drugging me? At least buy me a drink first, Miss Idaeus. Then maybe I’ll consider letting you drug me.”

“Affini tend to take what they want, petal. Speaking of that ship of yours… It’s not much of a ship, is it?”

“Indeed it is not. Constellation-Class Solo Piloting Mechanical Armor Suit Gravity’s Reach could have been, at one point, something extremely destructive to the rest of the universe. So little ole me stole the suit and made sure no other models could be developed by terran hands. I do have all relevant data to the project stored here though, since I have to do constant repairs in both hardware and softwa… software.”

| GRAVITY’S REACH BEING HAILED BY COSMIC NAVY ELECTRUM

| OPEN COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL? Y OR N?

“Are you okay, little one? You sound a bit… distant.”

“I’m okay, sexy plant woman, I’m being hailed by the Electrum again. Want me to conference them in? Should give you any relevant data you need to track them.”

“You seem slightly unperturbed by selling out your own kind. Most terrans out here on the outskirts tend to be far more aggressive in their ferality.”

“Well, the Cosmic Navy and I have never gotten along well, so honestly they can kind of go fuck themselves. I don’t really know what you Affini Compact plan on doing with them, and frankly they probably had it coming to them.”

“You and I will need to have a discussion about this later, dear, but for now I would very much appreciate you conferencing in our little feral friends.”

| Y: COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL OPEN, CONFERENCE IN WITH ARIA

“Hey budddddddd, welcome back!” Lupus laughed a little, offering finger guns to the new appearing captain.

“W… WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!” The angry captain certainly looked feral and couldn’t have been older than like thirty-five. Was the Cosmic Navy really that desperate for people now? “YOU!” He pointed at his cam, probably indicating the pilot in the giant wolf robot. “You would dare to betray Terra?! To betray your own kind?!”

“My kind betrayed me first, dude, so uh… sorry.” Lupus shrugged her shoulders, Gravity’s Reach copying the motions. “Not sorry though. So yeah, I sold you out to this hot plant lady and her friends.”

“WEED FUCKER!”

“Now you’re just telling me how I am, and that’s just kinda rude and pointless.” Well, maybe she hadn’t been a weed fucker an hour ago, but after seeing Miss Idaeus… She was certainly a weed fucker, and would wear the badge plainly on her suit.

“She is quite right, little one, that was rather rude.”

“Being rude never got anyone anywhere you know.” Both she and the alien seemed to have a similar sense of humor, which was nice to see. Not many in the Cosmic Navy fleet could take a joke.

“You’re even worse than the weeds, selling us out like this.” The captain angrily announced. “Though individuals like you wouldn’t know the truth of pain if it stabbed you in the back!”

She could only seed red after that. It wasn’t even a great accusation to begin with, but the words began to change her emotional levels like a volume slider being moved from its minimum position to its maximum position. Her breath started to become unstable, her back arching backwards in her chair as a horrible pain struct through her upper body.

| SYNC RATE INCREASING

| 40 %

| 60 %

| 70 %

“That… wasn’t… very… NICE!” Rage suddenly coursed through the pilot’s veins, feeling herself sync completely to her greater body. Where did a fucker like this get off speaking to her like that?! To come crawling for help, and then to so openly insult her like she was less than human… Oh, she was less than human. She wasn’t human, terran, or whatever the hell they wanted to call themselves today. The alien woman had said something, but her voice was being drowned out by the flaming fire that was expanding in her mind.

Gravity’s Reach began to move its mechanical limbs around, ensuring it was capable of proper movement and propulsion in space. Coordinates locked down properly from the hiding location of the Electrum, the forty-something meter wolf machine, a dazzling light blue and very desaturated pink color, began to move through space. They wanted to see what she was capable of? She would show them what she was capable of.

| 100 % 

| FULL SYNC SUCCESSFUL

| WE ARE GRAVITY’S REACH

Being fully synced made her blood run wild, as though she had finally become herself for the brief moments of the sync. The feeling of the coldness of space was fully on her skin, attempting to freeze and kill her, to deprive her of oxygen. Not like that would be much of an issue now. Sparks were flying from her claws, the Singularity Engine generating an absurd amount of energy to expel onto her enemy. This was what she was built for, to rip and shred and to maim and kill.

It was nearly impossible to explain the fullness of what Gravity’s Reach felt went a full sync successfully occurred, two in body and mind together. No longer could she feel the blood flowing through her body, nor the moving pieces of her muscles and bones. Metal and plastic is what her form was created from, and it felt right. Freedom was achieved in a way she never thought possible, each and every time a euphoric rush raced over her mind. It felt right. Her body felt right at full sync. It was her own, a body she could use to run about the stars; to defy gravity and loop about in a neverending dance of pure unadulterated bliss.

Even now that euphoric feeling mixed with her anger, an undulating rage that needed to be expelled. Just as expected, their tiny little ship, rusted to hell and aged like the most disgusting wine imaginable, sat hiding behind the dwarf planet, Saia-5. Gravity’s Reach was fast, years ahead of anything the Accord had built even seven years prior. Bending around a star system like this was child’s play, having been floating about the system for quite some time gave her intimate knowledge of every planet’s orbit. 

“Oh dear, petal! Please don’t do anything rash. I’ll be right back!” Poda sounded worried, quickly leaving the conference as she exited her work station.

That did not matter to the mecha, however. All that mattered was ripping these little shits apart and letting the void take care of them. After all, that’s what they did to her, right? She might as well just issue them the same damning sentence they gave her. It was a dog-eat-dog world out in deep space, and accidents happened quite frequently. So who would miss one dumb little Accord ship?

“What are you doing?! Have you gone mad?!” The captain looked utterly shocked as she came flying into view. In a lot of ways it must have been terrifying, to be out on the bridge as a giant, hulking robotic lifeform came racing towards you at extremely high speeds. Simply put, the system was a garden in which Gravity’s Reach knew every corner and every weed.

“I’ve been mad for a long time.” Gravity’s Reach responded, its eerie metallic voice coating over Lupus’ own. In comparison to the ship that the aliens seemed to control, the Electrum was pathetically small. Perfect, however, for sinking her claws into and letting her rage run wild. The horrifying electrical current ran through her claws, far more dangerous than any weapon. “Maybe next time, think your words through, though something tells me you’ve never used your brain a day in your life.”

It had been so long since she last felt the unforgiving, unpleasant rusting steel of an Accord-made ship. So poorly designed, so easy to simply rip through. Of course, that wasn’t any fun. Just like all that time ago, Gravity’s Reach preferred to play with her prey before ending their miserable lives. How pathetic they must be to only wish to seek destruction of others. Terrans could do so much more, they weren’t like her, bred and created solely for annihilation. 

Placing the tips of her claws into the Electrum, she began to pipe her toxic electricity into the ship. Suddenly, the captain’s comms shut down as expected. The Singularity Drive produced her only weapon, dirty electrical energy that could interfere with whatever systems she pleased. One by one, she could take out their comms, their weapons, their shields, their life support systems, and whatever she so pleased. Giving into anger was so deliciously, and horrifically, sweet.

| HANDSHAKE WITH ARIA SUCCESSFUL

| SINGULARITY ENGINE POWERING DOWN

| ATTEMPTING OVERRIDE

| OVERRIDE FAILED

| SYNC RATE DECREASING

|100 %

| 74%

| 51%

| 47%

| LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS ENGAGING

| SYNC RATE STABLE

| 40 %

“Sorry, petal, but you can’t hurt others like that even if they say something mean to you.” The voice of the alien had returned, attempting to forcibly calm her down. That’s why she left, to force a remote shutdown on the Singularity Engine. Why did she have to shut down the engine’s primary firewalls earlier? Why did she have so many goddamned firmware errors?

“D… Don’t interfere… Not with my bod… body….” Gravity’s Reach could feel her grasp on herself collapsing in, her view changing back to the window where Lupus was piloting from. She hated a falling sync rate like this, falling low enough to where she could only barely keep holding on. Despite that, forty-percent was more than good enough for her end goal. Her claws shot up, the feeling more disconnected as she could feel both her muscle-filled arms move in tandem with the metal of Gravity’s Reach. She’d just need to divert remaining energy to shut down the Electrum’s life support systems.

Large tendrils suddenly arrived from seemingly nowhere, binding the wolf slash woman slash mecha’s limbs and immobilizing them.

| LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS ARMED

| THIS IS FOR OUR OWN GOOD

| ADMINISTERING TRANQUILIZERS

Flesh, steel, and plastic were all one. When one shut down, so did the other. Gravity’s Reach, her space-faring form, had been broken into and… She was having trouble thinking due to her body being forc…

The Affini Compact had obtained access to all of the Accord’s records once the Human Domestication Treaty had been signed. Podalyria had been intimately familiar with much of that data, after all, it was her job to communicate with the feralists and prepare them for their new lives as pets or wards. So what started as another simple game of dog-and-cat between the Aria and Electrum had naturally reached some conclusion. Of course, the Aria had successfully captured yet another of the dwindling numbers of ships within their little rebellion.

With knowledge at the forefront of nearly every weapons system and ships designed by the Accord, she was left surprised at the giant mechanical body that had been floating in the oxygen-less ocean before them. It was as though someone ran the Terran animal, the wolf, through several abstractions and made it into a giant robotic skeleton. Within its cockpit was an odd terran, continuing to prove the notion that the sophonts were all extremely different in attitude.

Though whether or not she truly was terran was another thing, constantly having referred to the mecha suit as her body. More than being simply in charge of communications, Poda was also an expert in xenotechnology. While most terran technology is often represented in the same, monetarily efficient ways… This Gravity’s Reach stood out to her. For what reason did this machine exist? How did its pilot exist as a theoretical free radical on the outskirts of any and all events of seven years? She had somehow missed the entirety of the Terran Pacification Program, spending all of that time simply… floating through space?

There was far more to this than what could be scratched on the top, and the affini’s vines were shaking at getting a better look at the mecha’s cockpit to find the poor terran within. She had been so horribly triggered by the Electrum’s captain that it was surprising to know that she was somehow the same sophont that was so adorably attempting to flirt just moments prior. Gravity’s Reach had no defenses whatsoever, making it one of the easiest jobs she had ever done in this bloom. Even more so, it seemed as though the machine was… assisting? Once the affini had access to the Reach’s systems, it immediately walked her to the life support systems and how to safely engage them. Perhaps some level of AI existed within the machine?

“Not with my bod… body.”

It would not be the first time that a terran felt out of place in their body. Whether it be as easy as using Class-Gs, doing body modifications, or even digitizing the sophont there have been many avenues to assist with such feelings. But this… This felt different from other examples of these feelings of dysphoria that terrans dealt with. 

While many of the ferals were being escorted out of the now-captured Electrum and processed, Podalyria had been given permission to examine the curled up terran robot. While it failed to appear fully human in design, with animalistic claws and feet and even a prehensile tail; Gravity’s Reach was still bipedal in design, with limbs and ligaments structured the same as a baseline human body. Of course, this was likely for interfacing with the terran mind to allow whoever the pilot was to easily operate the machine.

Like her own pup, all curled up in bed, the inhuman mecha found itself doing much of the same as though it were resting. A fascinating piece of technology left behind by the Accord and put into the hands of a woman who was so ready to be helpful to the Compact. The cockpit was located in through the head, oddly enough, as most attempts at mechas in the Accord were found in the body. Perhaps it was more to do with how it was operated? As the only expert in terran xenotechnology, the communications and technology officer had full lonesome access to the sophont within.

Proximity alerts blazed to life as she made her way closer to the back of the Reach’s head, instantaneously opening the hatch and allowing the affini access inside. The cockpit was much smaller than she was expecting, barely fitting the slightly more than five meter tall Podalyria, even manipulating her body out of its more human shape. Near the front of the cockpit sat the unconscious Lupus, who truly was adorable as she slept.

The sophont’s eyes were closed tight, with one major neural interface installed at the base of her neck. That must have been what allowed her to take full control of Gravity’s Reach with nothing but her thoughts and movements. An IV was also giving her nutrients through her arm, which explains how one claiming they had not spoken to another in nearly ten terran years got away with such an isolationist view.

Her hair was long, black, and slightly overgrown. There were attempts to style it out of her face, but this ship was non-conducive to such an attempt. She wore some sort of… jumpsuit with her name emblazoned on the chest. It seemed designed specifically for the pilot of Gravity’s Reach, though a heavy blanket sat overtop of her lap, draping down to the floor of the cockpit.. It could be seen as an apex in terran engineering, the movements had been so lifelike when Lupus’ anger had peaked to its crescendo. 

Quick vines removed the IV from the sophont’s wrist, quickly ensuring to safely stop any bleeding that occurred. The port on the base of her neck was also easily disconnectable, with the interface glowing a bright green and safely unlatching from within. She was light. By the Everbloom, this terran was severely malnourished. There would be ample time to investigate her needs soon enough, but she needed to get to a vet as soon as possible. Time to investigate the Gravity’s Reach would be available to her in the future. Wrapping Lupus safely within her arms, a small ping on the console grabbed her attention. Her eyes, textured like hammered metal and appearing like a swirl of the visible light spectrum, locked onto two lone lines sent mere seconds after disconnecting the pilot from the mecha.

| BRING US BACK

| TAKE CARE OF US PLEASE

Pilot Candidate No. 018

Identification Call: LUPUS
Filing Date: 4/06/2550 CE
Sex: M
Age: 20
Peak Sync Rate: 100%
Candidacy: APPROVED - GRAVITY’S REACH
Notes: Candidate has shown great distrust of authority. Unauthorized usage of Star-Class Solo Piloting Unit on file. May attempt to disobey if he disagrees with orders. Unhealthy proximity to Pilot Candidate No. 001. Approved for severance of lumbar vertebrae to encourage obedience and discourage rebellion. Limitless sync rate outweighs risk that candidate poses.

Chapter Text

[LOADING PLAYBACK: 2550 CE]

“So… Lupus has been assigned as your designated call sign. Do you know why you’re here, Lupus?” Daedalus was the type of man to emanate raw hatred from his being with every word, yet somehow seemed well put together. He wore a black suit, the EXO Mechanics logo emblazoned on the back with a similar pin strapped upon his lapel. The quintessential corporate drone was here screaming at the young recently-twenty cocky pilot. He had calmed down somewhat, but the last twenty-four hours had been grueling.

“Lupus is pretty cool. Like a wolf.” Lupus laughed a bit, smirking widely. Never taking things seriously was a pretty good coping mechanism for rough situations, even when he planned for these things to occur. “Oh, right, I took one of your precious Star-Class units out for a test flight. Gotta say, a little rough overall, but not a bad handling mecha. I’m surprised you haven’t shipped these guys out to the Accord, they’d eat them up in a heartbeat.”

“You took a heavily damaged Star-Class unit out for a joyride and operated it far more smoothly than a majority of our test pilots, who are highly skilled mind you.” He groaned loudly, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Now stealing company property… is a very bad look for you, Lupus. Regardless of where you found it, it was still our property. Meaning you committed what can only be compared to grand theft auto, flying the Star-Class around like it was a toy.”

“However… You did show exceptional skill piloting it, as I said prior. Many of our own test pilots paled in comparison to your operations. Perhaps against my better judgment, I’m going to offer you a kindness that you will almost certainly accept. You see, EXO Mechanics is working on a new forty-plus meter Mechanical Suit class, the Constellation-Class. We are gathering twenty candidates for the Pilot Program. Luckily for you, your skill level makes you an excellent prospective member of what we are trying to achieve. Your past will not matter here, Lupus. EXO operates on meritocracy. Show us skill and you’ll be rewarded.”

“That sounds pretty interesting. A brand new Solo Unit class? Forty-plus meters? Why would I ever turn it down?” He could think of a few things, like obvious imprisonment. Figuring things out like this was the most simple thing for the newly-named Lupus. Corporations were pretty obvious with their playbooks. Either die, become imprisoned, or they take something from you. Daedalus had been the man to arrest him following the whole Star-Class incident, so it was clear if someone this high up the ladder was harassing him, the third option was what the man was aiming for.

He hadn’t truly even done anything wrong. A Star-Class was going to be scrapped and turned into trash, not even reused for a new updated model. So Lupus did as he normally did, which was to reutilize other people’s junk for fun. So how, in the name of hell, was it a bad thing to reutilize someone else’s junk? They probably wanted him for something. Well, good thing he was hoping to leverage this if he did get caught. Who knew his skill would finally be recognized?

“Good to see you’re a quick learner, Lupus.” Daedalus sounded actually pretty genuine in that moment, standing to his feet and gathering a thick stack of papers. “I had these prepared before you came in, but they will simply sign you over to the company’s care for the next twelve months. At which, the program will likely be at its conclusion. From there you will either be chosen for one of the coveted three prototypes being constructed or you’ll be let go. Either way, you pay off your rule breaking through precious data we can use even after you may be gone.”

“I assume meals, board, and medical are all provided?” The pilot grabbed the stack of papers, looking over it. While not a lawyer by any means, nor could he provide the money for one, he did manage to locate that contract renewals or terminations occurred after a twelve month period of the program. The suited man offered a nod to her question, and without much of a fight, Lupus signed their name down on the contract. A specific note authorized the removal of his name and replaced it with his new call sign. “Cool, do I get one of those fancy jumpsuits I saw when I walked down here?”

The dormitory room was small, a bunk bed shoved into the corner with two desks on the opposite wall. Lupus didn’t have much belonging to him prior, in fact his theft of the Star-Class was an attempt to preemptively bargain for shelter. Being kicked out of home had its downsides, mostly walls to sleep within. And the fact he just received room and board anyway? Perfect. Twelve months is something he could wait out, he even got to do his favorite thing: pilot some of the highest class mechas that human hands built.

The guard basically pushed him into the room and said he would be processed later, but for now he had free rein to explore the dorms as he pleased. His roommate stood pacing back and forth throughout the room, a woman who was at least six inches taller than him wearing the same muted blue jumpsuit with the call sign “ARTEMIS” emblazoned over the chest. She had tired looking eyes and dirty blonde hair tied off into a ponytail.

“Heyyyya roomie. Don’t mean to get in the way of your pacing, but… I’m here.” He had nothing but the ugly haircut on his head and the jumpsuit that served as the freshest clothes he had owned in about a year. Nailing introductions as the unkempt slacker never worked, but maybe it would be this time?

Artemis looked over, the scent of an annoyance alerting her olfactory senses. It was clear as day that this woman hated him from the moment she laid eyes on him. Most people tended to dislike the human upon sight or after speaking to him. Maybe he just had too strong a personality for others? Who cared? He enjoyed his own company. Well, not really, but being lonely was tough. Luckily, the pilot knew how to play all the cards he had been dealt.

“A new one? Where’d they dredge you out of? And how the hell did you end up as my roommate?” Angrily she walked over, looking down at him with glaring eyes that embodied the age old adage of ‘if looks could kill.’ Okay, the unkempt slacker play was not working. Expected, but it never hurts to try. Most people didn’t like Lupus as he was normally, so there was always a mask to put on.

“I’m Lupus, nice to meetcha.” The shorter man pointed to his name tag. Excellent jump and landing. He was indeed great with other people. “I stole a Star-Class Unit from a repair bay and proceeded to wow our new boss with a shocker flight path. Those things are like second nature to me, so trust me I am very excited to be part of this program.” There was a certain level of nervousness to his now more-true self. That’s just how he was.

“This place is home to some of the finest minds in the Accord and somehow you got picked for such an illustrious program?” Artemis seemed skeptical, standing back a bit and leaning against the wall. Lupus sighed, dropping his usual attitude for a brief moment. The shift in energy was palpable, however. Maybe she noticed that he wasn’t trying so hard anymore?

“The choice offered was this or imprisonment. Twelve months of possibly going nowhere but getting a roof over my head with food that’s slightly a step above synthcubes? Of course I was going to take it.” He held up his hands in a protective manner. “I’m not looking to make any enemies. I just needed a place to stay, and corpos like this can either imprison you or do you one better. I put all my money on the latter.”

“... Forgive me, that was rude. We all have different situations, and normally I’d be aware of that. Been on edge as of recently, been cooped up in the dormitories for a month.. The program apparently can’t begin until all twenty of us are gathered. I’m Artemis. At least I am now.” She sat down in the chair by her desk, with Lupus joining at what was his desk in that case.

“It’s fine. This place does feel a bit… foreboding. No windows and beige all the way over. The most colorful thing is the different colored jumpsuits.” Lupus admitted, shivering a little bit. He’d been given a tab and keyboard for receiving instructions and writing out notes regarding anything he found could be improved upon for the program. He placed it out on the desk, before looking back to his roommate. “Nice pin. Work for EXO before this?”

“Mhm.” Offering a nod, she unpinned it from her lapel and showed it. It was the brilliantly-colored symbol of the Star-Class. “Star-Class test pilot and engineer. Not as… intensive as this Constellation-Class Program seems to be, but it got the bills paid. This seems more like… an experience as opposed to a job. Daedalus makes it sound like a major jump forward for humanity if things work out.”

“Well, guess we’ll see. Lots of companies claim to have the latest and greatest in technological marvels.” Lupus responded, stretching his arms out a bit. “But the Star-Class… Oh boy, those are some brilliant machines. Their flight capabilities are beyond anything else in the field, and using them just feels so freeing, you know? It’s different from everything else. And you worked on them?”

“Retooling work mostly. I would test out early Star-Class designs, and then the other engineers and I would discuss how to fix any shortcomings. Then we would implement them into further prototypes before our… semi-mass production.” Her eyes lit up at the compliment, apparently no one else had ever shown interest in her work before. “The Style Core they used in the production run was… was me, actually.”

Star-Class was top of the line in its field. Other walking mecha suits used often by the Cosmic Navy and developed by opposing companies were meant to be cheap war machines. They had thick armor and guns of all kinds, but they weren’t the Star-Class. The series had been blessed by a proprietary piece of technology referred to as the Style Core. Even with his own intimate knowledge of how the machines were constructed… The Style Core was something else, generating clean energy at an exceedingly fast rate. It was enough to properly power all of the Star-Class’s systems, including its propulsion jets, without overheating or having to redirect it when one system was favored during use.

“That’s incredible, the Star-Class operates extremely smooth even when damaged because of that core design.” Lupus didn’t like to geek out, it was considered uncouth back home to ever be excited about anything. But this lady in front of him actually was a walking embodiment of amazement. “What the hell happened with its production rollout anyway? It seems like most people don’t even know about them despite how well-engineered they are. Still shocked the Cosmic Navy didn’t roll them out as a proper part of their fleet. They’re superior in every way compared to the ‘War Chariot.’”

“Cost-cutting measures according to what I’ve heard. EXO Mechanics was none too pleased when they caught wind of it. The Cosmic Navy is the only major branch that could make proper use of the Star-Class besides some paramilitary groups and megacorps, but they barely covered the cost of production.” That was surprising to hear, no wonder everyone here cursed the Accord beneath bated breath. “Daedalus was furious, since the Cosmic Navy implied heavily they would be looking over to purchase from the run.”

“Kind of incredible that they can keep churning out money to pay for their shitty war machines and to keep expanding out of space… But you offer them something more than just a weapon, and they turn it down.” It was annoying. The Star-Class was more than just a war machine, it was an evolutionary step for humanity. If given time, they could even survive in space indefinitely. “It’s gonna fall apart at some point. Everything humanity is doing is unsustainable…”

“You said it. The Accord’s expansion isn’t, but I don’t think a single soul has actually thought about that.” The woman sounded exasperated at the Accord, which made sense in a fashion. Lupus got the feeling that EXO Mechanics getting screwed by the Accord probably put them on a collision course at some point. “EXO isn’t perfect, but they want to bring humanity back and not this… propaganized bullshit the Accord feeds everyone. A universe where it’s okay to call ourselves what we are, human, and not terran, like it’s some great thing to name ourselves after a hunk of dead rock.”

“You make it sound so perfect. Human, huh? Human…” The word was one that even Lupus had adopted. Terra was not his home, so why should it declare what kind he was? Of course, even human felt… odd. He always felt most normal when zooming about with the propulsion systems That was the truth of it all… What was more than Star-Class? Constellation-Class, he had been told. Something about that felt so… right… so right… The unkempt man shook his head a bit at the sound of fingers snapping. “Sorry, I do that sometimes. Zoning out that is.”

“It’s fine, I was afraid you might have blue screened on me or something.” Artemis laughed a little, a melodic sound burned into Lupus’ mind for eternity. The pilot smiled, looking at her. Maybe… Maybe things would turn out for the best here, at EXO Mechanics. “Come on, how about I show you around? Don’t worry, the other candidates won’t bother you if you’re with me.”

[RESUMING LIVE FEED: 2557 CE]

The sleeping sophont had been out of commission for nearly twenty-four hours at this point, safely kept under the influence of Class-Zs, once the vet had assured Podalyria that she was biocompatible with the xenodrugs. The ability to keep her asleep and dreamless was the ultimate goal, as the Aria’s communications officer worried about her newly assigned ward. While very helpful in assisting the Affini capture the Electrum and all of the ferals onboard, her simultaneous attempt to kill every single sophont onboard had… it raised some questions about whether she was a danger to others.

When the vet, Calisia Alata, Eighth Bloom, finally arrived to come see her, it was very clear that the xenotechnology expert was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

“<H-How is she doing?!>” Poda was excitable and anxious, to say the least. The state of her body had caused most of it, malnutrition was obvious right from the get-go, but she wondered what else was wrong. The sad look on the vet’s face told an entire story in a single frown.

“<Poor to say the least. She was barely clinging onto survival through whatever was in that IV. I could hardly call it living, in any case. Dirt, I could barely call it even surviving.>” Fae pulled out faer tab and began going through a variety of test results and notes fae had gotten during the proper examination of the terran’s unconscious body. “<The neural implant in her neck cannot be removed without causing extensive damage to her spine. If we were to remove it, she would need to be immediately given a Haustoric Implant to offset any damages that the neural implant’s surgery caused.>”

“<Well… is the implant causing her any pain?>”

“<Fortunately, no, despite how invasively it was surgically placed into her body, it was one of the cleanest finished products I’ve seen from a Terran’s hands. Whoever that sophont was did an exceptional job at cleanly implanting the neural interface while not damaging any of her cervical vertebrae… which leads us to our most pressing matter.>” The sound of faer voice made Poda’s emotions sink like a rock thrown into a river.

“<What’s wrong?>”

“<Her spine’s lumbar region has been severed several times over.>” Heartbreaking was the only thing that Poda could feel at hearing that. While the Affini were capable of repairing such damages, the terran still suffered something horrible. “<I’ve seen… quite a lot from the many ferals I’ve treated over my many blooms. Terrans, especially, can be very violent with one another out in the wilderness. L1 through L5 have all been severed by what I can only assume was a knife being repeatedly shoved into her back.>”

Suddenly, the events of the previous day became far more clear. Equally, they became much more tragic as to why she reacted the way she had. Her ability to walk had been lost at some point through an assault, though how she ended up that way was unknown. Maybe she could get her ward to tell her at some point in the future.

“<The poor dear… I’ll have to talk to her about her options once she’s able to be woken up.>” Poda was many things, and worrywart was one of them. She was torn, knowing that Lya would be awake from her nap soon and the needy little fox absolutely required cuddles after every sleep, regardless of length. And after hearing this, she certainly needed them as well. Having a terran in her care made her aware of how to take care of them, but…

What had happened to her? What exactly was the story of the woman before her who went by the name of Lupus? And her mecha… It was unlike any other piece of technology developed by terran hands. Over time, terrans went with cost effectiveness over utility. But this machine, Gravity’s Reach, was something beyond anything she had seen developed in the Accord. And as one who was a genuine expert in every style of weapon, every ship class of the Cosmic Navy, to the protocols on how they stored data… 

Gravity’s Reach felt like something an affini would dream up. It's only weapons systems was its claws, sharp and hard enough to cut through even the hardest alloys terrans could create. Though it lacked the strength to break through one of their ship’s tendrils, Poda could not be sure if that was because of the tranquilizers or not. But in design, it did not appear to be anything more than… a second body. A lithe and sleek design that appeared more like a wolf than a war machine, as though it was just… something more? While it still suffered from the shortcomings of any terran-designed technology, bottlenecked by available materials and a viable difference between what terrans and affini considered safe, it was still an amazing machine.

Though even upon second inspection, she had been unable to get a response from what she assumed was an onboard AI or VI to assist Lupus in piloting. Without the AI, she would have never been able to so easily deny the massacre that the terran had attempted to cause. So many unknowns, and that was when the mind of a techie like herself got revved up. While it was basically impossible for any xeno species to have invented something that surpassed affini technology, yet… Sometimes they did something different, and that was the key difference. Two unique thought processes for the same item. She could see that between how most on-the-ground Terran mechas appeared compared to Gravity’s Reach. It was a war machine versus something genuinely beautiful.

“<Outside of those notes, it seems there has been some previous damage to some of her internal organs in the past, but have healed in the meantime.>”

Oh dirt, she got sucked into her own thoughts and elaborations again.

“<Would she be ready to be moved back to my hab?>”

“<Considering that she is healthy outside of pre-existing conditions that would require her consent to repair, yes. As long as you ensure she gets the proper nourishment a terran of her size requires!>”

If she had the capability of breathing a sigh of relief, Podalyria would have. Thankfully, she could start settling in her new ward sooner rather than later.

“<In that case, I’d like to sign her release papers and take her home with me.>” It was a definitive, a fact spoken aloud into the universe. One little decision could cause a chain reaction, a proverbial domino effect, to reverberate through time and space. Or in this case, for one very injured sophont.

“ARTEMIS!?” Lupus shot to a state of wakefulness, her nightmarish memories suddenly coming to a halt. Holy hell, that was an extremely difficult bout of rest. Usually she has dreamless nights, but it seems meeting with other people might have caused her brain to start thinking about things she would much rather not remember.

“Who’s Artemis?” A voice called out, nearly giving Lupus a heart attack out of pure shock. Taking in her surroundings, there was QUITE a lot going on. 

The immediate thing to note was that for the first time in seven, or so, years she was not inside of Reach’s cockpit. It was off, it was weird, it was strange, it was every godforsaken synonym in the thesaurus! She was in a decorated room, made up to have as many board games and plushies as humanly possible. The walls were painted in bright greens and blues, with flower-filled vines edging around the room as trimmings to the paints. Additionally, there were large… She believed they were called ferns, littering the room as well, as though creating little shady spots to sit under. Unsurprisingly, there were also designated puddles of stuffed animals beneath them.

Two cuffs sat around her wrists, made of what looked like plant matter seeded with little bits of technology. Her jumpsuit was also gone, replaced with a comfortable sleeping gown, decorated with the darkness of space and little stars. While it was simply a fact that it felt so much better on her skin, she couldn’t help but feel anxious at another change. Also she was laying in a bed, a real actual bed with an actual mattress that wouldn’t keep her awake at three in the morning loudly wondering about why horses seem to have been stricken from the historical record.

However, the thing that kept her from having the anxiety attack of the century… Well, more of a who, was the girl… fox… foxgirl staring at her from the edge of the bed. She was wearing some sort of a… see-through nightgown, but that was not the thing that was the most pressing. In fact, she had just glossed over the giant fluffy orange tail that sprouted out of the woman’s lower back. And the ears, like real big fox ears sticking up. While retaining normal human hands, it looked like her feet had been modified and made to appear much more like a fox’s.

“You okay? Mistress didn’t say you would be awake.”

“What… what the fuck is goin’ on?” Lupus asked, raising her hand a bit. If she could move, she would have. All of this was just a little too much to experience this early in the… there was a window and it was night. So night, not morning. Day/night cycles were stupid and unneeded when sojourning through the void.

“Mmm…” She looked upset at that, making a noise that sounded like upsetting disapproval.

“S… Sorry. I just don’t know where I am.”

“I-It’s okay, I just don’t like that word.”

Well, shit, she didn’t want to upset the foxgirl. That saddened face, lowered to just stare at the bed.... Huh, why was that her first concern? Guess her love of others hadn’t dampened in seven years.

“I’m really sorry. Last thing I wanted to do was cause you any discomfort… Though I don’t really understand what’s going on.” Nothing made any sense, like a bizarro turn in her everyday life shifting.

“It’s okay. Neither do I.” She scratched behind one of her ears and got closer. “Mistress said you wouldn’t be awake until tomorrow, but you woke up now? Hmm, I don’t know what to do…”

“Uhhh, Mistress? Mind explaining to me a little more?” What the fuck was going on? It was only now that Lupus noted the collar around the foxgirl’s neck, latched around safely to never come off.

“Mistress is Mistress? She owns me! She told me to keep an eye on you in case anything happened.” The foxgirl got slightly closer, her orange hair cascading down her back. Her eyes were a bright blue color, too bright to be… natural by any sense, but hey that's pretty cool. Planting herself onto Lupus’ unfeeling lap, she simply made herself more comfortable before curling back up. “Mistresssssssssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!”

Loud, like a fox yipping loudly in a forest. Or something along those lines. Almost like a railgun firing its payload, a sentient mass of vines shot into the door. Now was the time to have a heart attack if any, watching as the mass quickly made its way over to the bed, before… reforming? It was as though the plant matter was weaving itself together into muscle, artificially tensing itself to form something more like a human body. Within seconds, a familiar face… Well, mask had come into view. Strands of vine-like hair with flowering plants and berries flowed through the air like a magnificently majestic shot from an old film.

“Lya! Dear, what’s wrong?” The alien woman from earlier had quickly asked as she affixed her mask to her face. Holy shit, she was huge. Like legitimately huge in comparison to the typical human body. Five to six meters tall, no wonder the Cosmic Navy was shitting itself in fear. Not only were they more technologically advanced, they were also quite literally gigantic.

“She woke up. I didn’t know what to do…” Lya poked her fingers together, cocking her head to the side as though she were lost and confused.

“Sweet flower, you did a wonderful job. Let Mistress take care of this, okay?” Podalyria, if memory served correct, happily sang and then… the foxgirl, named Lya, suddenly seemed as though she had been given an incredible amount of morphine. Peace and serenity filled the foxgirl’s face, and she curled tighter into Lupus’ lap. Attention was now directly pointed at the pilot. “Well, that was unexpected, petal. You shouldn’t have woken up until the morning came. Perhaps you need larger doses?”

“Listen, maybe y’all could explain what was going on here?” Lupus was annoyed, to say the least. Not that she was specifically angry about being in a warm comfortable bed or being in an equally silky smooth nightgown that looked like something out of her dreams. No, it was the giant plant woman acting as though she knew what was going on. Also the fact that she was so easily obtained by the vines of some random individual she had badly flirted with over a screen. “And maybe take her off of me?”

“No can do, petal, I’m afraid.” There was some sort of… condescension in that voice, as though she totally could do it but chose not to. “I’ve given my sweet little fox enough Class-Es to feel so totally relaxed that it would be just a shame to move her out of her cute little ball.” She made something that seemed like a genuine cooing noise, as though she had never seen such an adorable sight in her existence. “But to your first question, allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Podalyria Idaeus, Sixth Bloom, she/her. Normally, my floret would introduce herself, but seeing as she’s current… indisposed, I will do it for her. She is Lya Idaeus, Second Floret, she/they.”

“That explains absolutely nothing. And I am excellent at extrapolating something from nothing. I once retooled a Star-Class Solo Unit from an actual trash pile and managed to extrapolate an entire miserable conversation about my existence through like two sentences.” Lupus remembered how everything started with the signed contract. Her body shuddered, wondering how different things might have turned out if she had chosen to take imprisonment or whatever else was being offered at the punishment buffet that day. “So I am not following in the slightest.”

“Okay, seven years you said earlier…?” Podalyria sat down on the edge of the bed, humming a little bit as she put together pieces of her next sentence. “In the seven years you have been isolating yourself in empty star systems, the Terran Accord ‘went to war’ with the Affini Compact.” She pointed to Lupus when referring to the former, and herself when referring to the latter. “The Terran Accord lost and signed the Human Domestication Treaty, placing all of you little cuties under our protection! Some of you are far too adorable or feral to take care of yourselves so when that happens you end up domesticated! We help you become your happiest and best self.”

“And what do you get out of it?” A famous question that Lupus had no idea had likely been asked to this specific affini dozens of times in the past.

“Just a cute little pet that I get to make sure is happy and loved for all time!” There was no way in hell that was true, but fuck, Lupus was good at telling when someone was bullshitting her. Podalyria sounded absolutely genuine as she began to intently fawn over the, probably very high, foxgirl.

“You know, I feel like most people wouldn’t you know… believe that but… You’re telling the truth, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am, I don’t lie period.” Podalyria suddenly turned her attention to Lupus, staring deeply into her eyes. “From now on, however, when referring to a group I will need you to use the term sophonts instead. That is the correct term, and my little Lya gets triggered at specific vocabulary.  There are more words to cover, but we will go over those later. Understood?”

A certain level of pressure was being exerted onto the human, a force that was not too similar to the vibes that were emanated by Gravity’s Reach. It was attempting to burrow into Lupus’ skin, to shake at her very core, but she was remaining steady for the time being.

“Understood. Last thing I want to do is upset her. I already did that when I woke up.” Perhaps an incorrect move to admit her mistake, but lying wasn’t her style anymore. Except for herself. “I apologize.”

The Affini sighed a bit, snaking out a vine and petting her… pet human. 

“You didn’t know the rules, so I will not punish you this time. But I will be administering any punishments I deem necessary while you’re in my care.” 

“In your care? Listen, I am not your pet, lady. And I belong to no one. I belong to the stars.” Lupus felt a little bit of her anger tickled, attempting to move her upper body out of place. Wait, she was pinned down by the foxgirl. Okay, so that plan was flawed from the very conceptual stage.

“Petal, as adorable as it is watching you try to move, having Lya on your lap was very much intentional. I know you are incapable of moving your legs, or feeling anything below your waist.”

“Should have expected you to be poking around at me…” She felt her eyes widen, as a hand quickly moved to the base of her neck, feeling the cool piece of exposed metal. 

“We did not do anything to you, petal. And no, you are not my pet. However, you are under what we are referring to as an indefinite wardship.” Once more Podalyria closed the gap between herself and her guest. “Typically wardships are a determined amount of time, in which one is normally evaluated to see if they are to continue forward with domestication or may move onto living as an independent sophont, whether or not they are dangerous to themselves or others.”

Extrapolation of meanings was her specialty, and this was something she could work with.

“Let me guess, my little tantrum out in space after that idiot Cosmic Navy Captain insulted me means I might be a danger to others.” She was fully sarcastic, and that seemed to draw the ire of the Affini before her. Two vines quickly grabbed at Lupus’ face, enough to keep her from speaking and only focus her mind on Podalyria.

“Do. Not. Speak. Over. Me. Are we clear?” If looks could kill… Again. Though she was sure that Podalyria could most certainly rip her clean in half if she so desired. Offering a bit of a nod, she felt the vines loosen their grip, but continued to float around her face, lightly touching her. “Good girl, knowing not to upset me. You are correct, however. The actions you took could have cost nearly fifty ferals to be harmed, or even killed. All of that occurred even while you knew that we would be dealing with them. Trust me, the domestication board wanted to label you for immediate domestication, but I argued for a wardship. I will evaluate you personally and decide whether or not you will be domesticated.” She tilted her head again, looking deep into he…

Wow, the Affini’s eyes were extremely pretty. They were a deep, swirling vortex of hues and shades that almost seemed imperceptible to the human eye. Textured like hammered-metal, they were exquisite pieces of art formed by nature. Prior forces started to beat again on Lupus’ heart, trying to break through her defenses. It was difficult enough as is, but the dancing of colors made it far worse.

“I’ll tell you a little secret, though. I think you should be my pet, little Lupus. Would that sound nice? You were alone for so long, and that’s far too sad…” Her voice trailed off, though its melodic tone was lulling the human into a false sense of security. “Be truthful, if you were deemed independent, what would you do?”

“Keep searching…” Why did she answer? Well, Miss Podalyria was very kind to her and it felt rude to not answer correctly and truthfully. Plus, prettiness played an extremely important part in the decision. Were the berries in her vines edible? They looked edible and far tastier than anything else she had ever eaten.

“For what?” It was an honest question, one that was so wholly loaded.

“A place to die.” Dread. Her breathing began to speed up. EXO Mechanics burned in her head. The screams haunted her to this day, never leaving her mind. The flames could be felt on her skin, being dragged away to Gravity’s Reach. The blood dripping down her forehead and the pain skimming about her lower back. Everything was beginning to close in on her, memories she had long banished into the void rearing their ugly faces before her yet again. “It wasn’t my fault… It wasn’t my fault!”

Anger surged through her, like a colossal wave crashing down and enveloping her being. Much to the Affini’s surprise, Lupus managed to draw on enough strength, possibly fueled by adrenaline, to get herself to the edge of the bed. Vines shot out to ensure she didn’t fall off the bed.

“Whatever you do, Lupus, you cannot turn back. When you get synced, do this one final favor for me. Please, whatever you do, do not look down.” Icarus said, his breathing breaking up as communication signals were lost. The last time the doors were closed.

Looking down, the floor was extremely long ways away, and she’d probably die if she fell from that height. No… No… Quickly, she moved back and latched onto the closest physical thing she could find, a vine. Hugging for dear life, her breathing continued to get worse as the two cuffs around her wrists began to beep.

“It wasn’t my fault… It wasn’t my fault… It wasn’t my fault… It wasn’t my fault… It wasn’t my fault…” Rocking back and forth, she did not even dare to look back up at the Affini. Nothing mattered, her mind focused solely on the past. Every mistake that occurred that day was at the forefront, reminding her that time and distance could never separate her from The screams haunted her to this day.

“<???, ????????????>” Miss Podalyria said in what must have been her native tongue, as a small prick was felt in the side of her neck. Regret seemed to be the emotion that came out in that haunting melody-filled language. Soon the rocking abated, as did all thoughts together, as she fell back into a deep sleep, hopefully free of the boogeymen that creeped in the nightmares of the past. Looking up for one final time, she saw an expression of great concern on the plant woman’s mask. Lupus could not help but shake her head one last time before the darkness consumed her.

“It wasn’t my fault.”

Pilot Candidate No. 001

Identification Call: ARTEMIS
Filing Date: 3/01/2550 CE
Sex: F
Age: 22
Peak Sync Rate: 98%
Candidacy: APPROVED - ROSE’S CHARIOT
Notes: Excellent and loyal member of the Pilots Program. Previous employee of EXO Mechanics and served as engineer and testing pilot of Star-Class series of Solo Piloting Mechanical Units. Unhealthy proximity to Pilot Candidate No. 018. Overall, an extremely trustworthy pilot who has served EXO Mechanics dutifully. Keep watch over relationship with No. 018, only concern regarding candidate.

Chapter Text

[LOADING PLAYBACK: 2550 CE]

Lupus was exhausted. And hot. And sweaty. And generally, he would much rather be sleeping for another hour rather than his designated assignment. When first joining the Pilots Program, there was an assumption that those involved would be test piloting these new crafts. Turns out that only one of three designs was even remotely finished and even then was around four months out from being capable of withstanding propulsion tests. The other two primary designs were around seven months out.

“Lup, stop staring at nothing and please get back to wiring.” Hephaestus said, staring down the shorter man with an annoyed glare. EXO Mechanics believed that a human touch was required for most things, and that computers and automation should be reserved for things out of human reach. It’s this kind of thinking that has EXO producing higher quality products than its competitors. Of course, it meant labor costs went up as a result in addition to the final production cost. 

“I’m a pilot not a manual worker…” Lupus growled a bit, causing the red-headed older woman to roll her eyes.

“Get over it Lup, every member of the Pilot Program has to pitch in. This is a major step forward in human technology, so Daedalus has been very clear about everyone having an intimate hand in these prototypes.” Heph walked over and watched as the pilot candidate had, against better judgment, returned to his job of wiring up prototype boards for the cockpit’s interfacing systems. While he didn’t quite understand what they did, and likely would not until he actually got the chance, it wasn’t too difficult to wire up some of these boards. The intricate traces that littered the green board… “Lup! Wake up.”

“H-Huh? Oh sorry, Heph… I zoned out again, didn’t I?” 

“You did, which is fine. I've been handling you for a month. But don’t do it with a soldering iron in your hand.” She patted the short man on the shoulder, and grasped it a little. “You’re doing a good job with it, okay? You’ve come a long way in the past few weeks.”

“Why do they want me doing this anyways? Kinda defeats the purpose doesn’t it? Like I’m a pilot, if I get chosen I’ll be working inside of the machine, not down here.” Lupus had to admit, it felt nice to be praised for his efforts. For the most part, he spent every single day of the last month learning from Hephaestus about the construction of the giant robot that was held in the hangar they sat in. Forty meters truly was astounding once you actually saw it with your own eyes. The fact something like this could be out there in space within less than a year… It excited him to no end.

“EXO is a meritocracy, for better and for worse.” The muscular woman crossed her arms. “Those who don’t get chosen to be pilots are likely to be offered a new contract, and a position, if they’re good enough with their assignments. Daedalus might be an ass, but he’ll grab as much talent as he can and try to mold them into someone who can help EXO surpass their competitors.”

“Guess that makes sense. If someone was already working hard for you before, you wanna keep them if they become loyal.” Lupus sighed a bit and returned to his work. It wasn’t necessarily difficult, but understanding what needed to be wired up on one board to another board while keeping a steady hand was a little bit time consuming. Especially when the pilot had a shaky hand.

“It’s how I got my job here. It’s how most of the workers here did. Contracts are lucrative at the company, so long as you keep doing your job.”

“You make it sound so simple, Heph. All I want to do is pilot one of these things…” He stared up at the mecha again, most of its outer body and mechanics had been put together. Workers were going up and down and about as they worked on attaching another some sort of proprietary metal alloy plates to the mecha. “I wonder what it’ll be named.”

“Gravity’s Reach is what I’m leaning towards right now. Something about it just screams… it has its own gravity?” Heph shrugged her shoulders.  “I don’t know how to explain it, the name just feels right. The other two are Rose’s Chariot and Reaper’s Canyon. Those three will serve as the flagship examples of the Constellation-Class.”

“I can’t wait to see all three of them. They’re unique, their own forms, and not just all the same like the Star-Class.” He sighed a bit, starting to daydream about being inside all of them.

“They all have their own unique strengths and weaknesses as well. Constellation-Class Mechas are meant to operate on their own frequencies with their own pilots. In a lot of ways, it’s like the suit chooses you.” Heph noted, looking out at the work being done around them. “That’s how I view it.”

“Really, huh?” Lupus looked up one more time at the mecha, Gravity’s Reach, standing tall above him. “You’re a wolf too, like me. I guess we’re destined for each other.”

Hephaestus let out a chuckle at that, ruffling the pilot’s hair.

“Mmm, if there was ever a reason to play favorites, it’s because of you, Lup.” Heph grabbed some tools before turning to head back to working directly on the mech. “Keep doing your work, and I’ll come check in on you later. Gotta make sure that Aries is on task, or Icarus will give me another earful.”

“Check ya later, Heph.” Lupus offered a friendly wave, trying to stave off the red on his face. Embarrassingly enough, he couldn’t keep calm from a second with all the tall muscular women. Even his roommate was a tall muscular woman, and he couldn’t deal with all of this. Either blushing furiously because of women like Heph standing a good foot taller than himself or generally feeling envious of how Gemini looked. Genes, fucking genes, choosing how you looked was ultimately the most unfair part of being human. Gemini was to short, unassuming, anxious, and ugh… Thankfully no one could hear him stewing in envy. 

Why was being like this, Gemini was nothing but kind to him. Most of the Pilot Candidates were, for the most part. Most of the candidates shared a similar love of the mechas they were working on, and to have so many others who shared that same interest… It felt nice to not be a total outlier. Sure the candidates had broken off into their little groups of closer friends, with his consisting of himself, Artemis, Gemini, and Orion. Not to mention that Hephaestus definitely favored him for whatever reason.  For the first time in his life… he didn’t feel the need to be alone.

“Wow, you look exhausted, Lup.” Orion said, chewing on some sort of protein bar. EXO provided slightly better food than most, where even protein bars had an undistinct flavor, but had a hint of sweetness to it. Heph had said that it was similar in taste to an old-Earth treat called a granola bar, whatever the hell that was. “Is it really that hard sitting around doing nothing all day?”

“Wiring together boards for eight hours a day was not how I expected to be spending my days, okay? It’s very mind numbing just sitting there following plans to wire this contact to that contact…” Lupus yawned, laying his down on the mess hall table that his group of friends often sat at. “I’m tired.”

“T-To be fair, you’re always tired.” Gemini spoke up, the two of them also eating the same bar. “Have you not been sleeping well?”

“Not particularly. Though I haven’t ever slept well, so I don’t know if that’s to do with shitty mattress or just a me problem.” Lupus looked at the bar he had grabbed, a bland looking dinner that accurately reflected his mood. “Where’s Artemis?”

“Working in her hangar still. She gets more responsibilities since she already worked for EXO.” Orion shrugged their shoulders a bit, eyes looking extremely tired. “Though I don’t know why she would be actively seeking out more work to do. Our contracts pretty much deny us pay for our labor in exchange for room and board. Kinda shitty, ain’t it?”

“Artemis is an overachiever, that woman is. Oh wow, her eyes when she’s figuring something out are something else, Ori. Sometimes I just get lost in them…”

“Wow, you’re down bad for her aren’t you?” Gemini looked less than impressed at that, causing Lupus to shoot up to his full upright posture. “I’m pretty sure she’s gay, so you’re kinda out of luck on that end Lup.”

“Wow, you’re real out of the loop, aren’t you both?” Orion laughed a little at that, pointing at Lupus’s confused face. They leaned over and whispered to Gem, their face turning a bright shade of red out of embarrassment. 

“O-Oh I had no idea.” Gem looked at Lupus and offered a nod. “I’m really sorry, I didn’t know.

“Don’t worry Gem, neither does Lup.” The silver-haired candidate turned to look at Lupus with a cocky smile. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out at some point.” 

“Don’t talk about me like I’m not here, Ori. I am very much here, and I would love to hear about your really great theory about me. Also no! I do not have it bad for my roommate, Artemis is just my friend and I respect her boundaries.”

“Hmm, I dunno, like I said I’m sure you’ll figure it out sooner rather than later, bud.” Taking a sip of their water, they leaned back slightly. “It’s good to be ahead of the curve on your life, knowing where you’ll end up before you do. And sure, just friends. Got it.”

“I guess we know too now, huh?” Gemini smirked slightly, causing Lupus’ eyes to twitch slightly. Being mocked by Orion was one thing, they were very good at deflecting onto him. However, Gemini doing it was absolutely infuriating. So much so that…! The pilot slammed his head into the table and screamed into it, eliciting laughter from his companions.

“Wow, better get your boy back to his room, Orion.” The sarcastic voice of Cassiopeia called out as she walked by. Stars, it was like schooling all over again with the others pilots serving as classmates. The only difference was that at some point they would be fully competing against one another for the privilege of piloting one of the behemoth beauties. “Seems like he’s finally blown a fuse.”

Lupus raised his face off of the table and looked at, yet again, a woman who was significantly taller than himself. The haughty, near-regal looking blonde was apparently the daughter of EXO Mechanics’ chairman. Nepotism continued to be strong no matter where Lupus fled to, but… Ugh, as much as he hated to admit it, she was brilliant. She had laughed heartily the first time she had asked Lupus to look over schematics she had drawn up for Reaper’s Canyon, as he now knew it to be called. The look on his face must have been priceless.

“You’re not wrong. But you’re still a bitch.” Fuck, she was also a source of envy and he hated it. How confidently she carried herself, so naturally. Her hair was always perfect to boot, like what the fuck how was that fair? Lupus’ hair only got semi-presentable because Artemis would not let him leave the room without her making sure he didn’t look like a corpse.

“Thank you, I aim to be. Only the best can rise out of this bunch.” Cass laughed again, as she tended to do when she spoke to anyone. “Or get a contract out of it by the end. Let me just say, though, someone like you really has no place here.”

“Unfortunately for you, I signed a contract that put me here, eat shit Cass.” Lup rose up to his feet, grabbing his protein bar. That was enough social interaction for right now. “See you three later. Not you Cass, but them. You suck and I hate you.”

Walking away and turning his brain off, he made his way back to his dorm room and basically collapsed into his desk’s chair. Unwrapping the protein bar, he began to chew on it as his mind began to separate. How he both loved and hated being around others. It was as fun and exhilarating as it was draining and obnoxious. Maybe that was just how relationships with others went? It was difficult to navigate, not like he had a good track record with interpersonal relations.

Life was hard, that was all he could think about at the end of the day. When it was just himself, he was lonely, sure, but he figured that’s how it ended up for most people out on frontier worlds. Kelveria was not a great place to live, mostly a world split owned by a variety of corporations. In retrospect, EXO Mechanics was likely the least obviously evil. Tiring life, corpos at every turn slowly draining the life out of not only the human species, but any other poor xeno that gets caught in the Accord’s crosshairs.

Lupus shuddered at the mere thought of more and more xeno species being forced under the curse of capitalism. All he could is hope that EXO’s Constellation-Class Units would be some sort of breath for the future. How nice that would be, to separate from humanity to just curl around in space for eternity with nothing more to deal with but where to see next. Anything was better than the life he lived now. Even with everything going his way for the first time in a long time, it still felt… hollow in quite a few ways. Though why was difficult enough to understand.

Suddenly, the pilot found himself being physically shaken back to reality, where his very tall and concerned roommate stood over him. Within a month the two were more or less inseparable, and with Lupus’ constant zoning out, she was often taking care of him when it happened.

“Hey, you back with me, Lup?” Her voice was sweet like honey, like Lupus was the only thing that mattered. “You weren’t responding for like five minutes, I was really afraid you might have fallen too hard again.”

“S-Sorry, Artemis. I got caught up in my own head again.” Lupus really did feel like a different person when he was with her, like a part of himself that wasn’t allowed out on a normal day-to-day basis got to walk around.

“It’s okay, I just get worried when you’re like that.” She ran a hand into his hair and sighed a little. “You dropped your protein bar, Lup. You’ve been having a rough time recently, I think, haven’t you?”

“I’m fine, I promise. Just exhausted from not sleeping and then working in the hangar.” Lup grumbled a little, watching as the blonde picked up the protein bar with a frown. He didn’t mean to cause her more work than she needed to do, but it was happening a lot recently.

“I really can’t leave you alone for more than five minutes, can I?” She gave him a smile, before grabbing his hand and getting the pilot candidate to his feet. It was clear that he was disassociating again, so she did what she always did as of late. “Looks like I’m taking over for you, okay?”

“H-Huh? Shit, sorry, did I do it again?” Lupus grimaced a bit, while his hand was grabbed and patted. She shushed him several times over, making her way out of their shared room.

“It’s okay, you’re alright, Lup. Like I said, I’m going to take over for you from now on since you’re having trouble functioning.” Artemis was good to him like that, a good friend who cared about him and his troubles and didn’t tease him. “Let’s go get you all showered up, okay?”

“Mhm.” Lup found himself being walked away by the much taller woman, following in her stead. Sometimes this happened and it was okay. Over time, more and more of the members of the Pilot Program were becoming aware of their… odd relationship, to say the least. A majority of them respected Artemis too much to comment on it, but others like Cass tended to make it a problem. Others, like Hephaestus, often did the engineer a favor by watching over Lupus in case he disassociated during a dangerous task.

Luckily, no one used the showers in the middle of the night. Even more lucky was the fact that not a single soul complained when Artemis locked the door behind them. Sometimes she would simply let Lupus take care of his own cleaning while ensuring he was responsive, though something seemed… different today. He wasn’t sure what, but there was this glint in Artemis’ eyes that he hadn’t seen before.

Once they were locked secure in the showers, Artemis turned around and looked down at her roommate. That glint was more notable than ever, the eyes of a predator staring down its prey before it struck. Each individual step forward felt like a step towards finality. While realistically, it probably only took a few seconds her her to strut close enough to be in reaching distance, it felt like hours had passed and time slowed down just for the engineer.

“Okay, so I’m gonna be laying down some ground rules for here on forward, okay?” Artemis sounded serious, more so than she ever had been. Of course, it was hard to deny her when she stood so much taller. “I’ve talked to Heph, and she’s told me that you’re doing a very good job at improving your work. But I also know you’ve been dissociating more often during your shifts too. And that it’s happenin…” She grabbed his face and reoriented it back towards her. “I need you with me, Lup. I know it’s tough, but you need to focus. I know something is wrong, I can see it in your eyes, but don’t worry. I’m here for you, and I’ll make it all better, okay? You were gonna get past it all, right? Be the best pilot out of everyone? If you are, you gotta let me take care of everything else from now on, okay?”

Offering up a nod in response, a crushing feeling around his heart made him like he was unable to breathe. Some odd feelings were coming over him, as the blonde woman walked him closer to the shower stalls and began to undress him.

“W-What are you doing?” That, for certain, got his attention as the woman looked slightly annoyed at him speaking up.

“Clearly, I can’t trust you to shower properly, so I’m going to wash you for you. Then we are going to get you a new protein bar so that you’re properly nourished. After which, you and I will retire to our room and I’ll make sure you’re relaxed and rested for tomorrow. Going forward, I will be deciding your routine from when you wake up to when you sleep. And when I’m not able to look after you, Hephaestus will be my eyes and ears.”

These were not recommendations that Artemis was making, no. These were facts she was speaking into existence, undeniable to anyone who heard them. Her hand was once more gripping Lupus’ chin and keeping him staring at her. Those were the eyes of someone who was wholly serious and was not making suggestions, rather orders. Offering another nod, Artemis gave the sparkling smile that was just so damned easy for her to do. How could teeth even be that white?

“That’s my good girl. Come on, now, let’s get you cleaned up.” This time, Lupus did not even have the moment to process what she had been called, nor the sizzling on the pan as the egg cracked, as she found herself stripped clean and walked into the shower stall, Artemis seeming more confident than the last few weeks had shown. Her loose hand reached down and grabbed the shorter woman’s ass a bit, causing Lupus to yelp suddenly.

“Ugh, you make the cutest sounds, you know that? You know, when we first met I thought I would absolutely hate you.” Artemis admitted, stripping off her own jumpsuit and the simple clothes beneath before leaving herself completely nude. Lupus was already embarrassed enough being forcibly stripped down and fully exposed to her best friend, let alone staring at her. “But gosh, you really are adorable when you’re not pretending to be a flirty idiot. Then I saw you be so cutely clumsy, and I wondered how could someone like you possibly be here. I gotta say, the fact you know so much about mechas but are so wholly incapable of even feeding yourself is impressive.”

“I-I-I…” Lupus tried to speak, but Artemis pressed her index finger to seal those lips. Her attention turned to the shower valve to a very hot temperature, heated drops of water battering down her back. 

“I? I what, sweetheart? Gonna have to use your words, Lup.” She tilted her head, her grin wide and voracious. The shorter woman just barely came up to the taller woman’s chest, the size difference causing Artemis to bite her lip just slightly. “Can’t speak? Oh don’t worry, you won’t have to. Miss Artemis will give you everything you need from now on. You’re okay with that, right?”

Lupus was about to give a response, but the same finger hushed her.

“I know you are, Lup. Genuinely, I’ve never felt such a pull for companionship before. Most other people just suck, you know?” Artemis did not allow any responses, grabbing a wash cloth and a bar of soap. “But you… You got me. And then I saw the way you kept enviously eyeing me, Gem, Cass, literally all of the women here. At first I just thought you were kind of a perv, but… just a little egg waiting to crack, weren’t you?”

Lupus felt as her skin began to get wiped down with the now lathered wash cloth. It was a bit rough, but not enough to cause her any pain, but more… more like she was enjoying how roughly Artemis was washing her? She let out a small groan as the the cloth makes it was down her cock, quickly moving in between her thigh and crotch.

“And honestly, Ori kept giving me shit for not breaking it sooner, but I was gonna wait for you to get to that point on your own. But Heph told me how many times you dissociated today. And then I saw how bad it was, and now… Oh poor little Lup, you just need some help, don’t you? Without the threat of not having somewhere to sleep you’ve been far more vulnerable. But now you’ll always have a place to sleep. Even if things don’t turn out for you here, I’ll keep you as my pretty little pet forever.”

“I-I don’t understand.” Lupus whimpered slightly, her mind rushing at a million miles a minute. Why couldn’t she think properly like she usually could?

“Of course you don’t. You’re my pretty little pet now, and something tells me thinking might be a little hard for you right now.” Rough and hungry, she finished cleaning up between her genitals and thighs before quickly taking her and pushing her up against the stall’s wall. The heated water was growing warmer, and steam was truly beginning to envelop the entire room. With the door locked tight, there was nowhere for that steam to escape to. “Oh? What’s this? Someone’s get excited.”

A rough and callused hand found its way around Lupus’ cock, which had slowly been growing hard through the entire sudden event. A gasp escaped from the black-haired woman, causing Artemis to resemble a full-on predator. 

“Oh, even when you’re all hard, it’s so small. Gotta say, that’s pretty adorable though. Do you like it when I touch you there, sweetie?” Lupus wanted to deny Artemis once again, but failed when another pleasured choke of breath came out of her mouth. This was far beyond any bliss she had ever inflicted on herself, it was as though she had been masturbating wrong for her entire life up to this point. “I guess that’s a yes, I know how hard it can be for pets to talk when they’re… just so ecstatic.”

Then the mere touching turned into a motion, and Lupus couldn’t help but being humiliated despite the steam covering her up for the most part and the fact they were isolated from everyone else in the dormitories. Was she actually going to cum over this?! Over being… Oh, it felt so good being jerked off by Artemis’ hands. She was so naturally strong, smart, tall, so well put together… Fuck, she was lucky to be in this situation at all wasn’t she?

Right at the end though… The calloused hand stopped the motion, as a breath laugh found its way to the side of Lupus’ neck. Breathing and panting, she, admittedly, let out a small whimper at being denied the nature of release.

“Awh, what’s wrong, Lup? Didn’t you enjoy what Artemis did for you?” Condscension dripped from her voice like sap did from a tree, thick and slowly. It only made the shorter woman feel more desperate for finishing. Her hand attempted to move, but a fast and stronger hand restrained her. “Oh my, we can’t be having you do that, my dear. I’m the one who decides when you get off from now on. Isn’t that fun?”

“N-no…” A finger shot into her mouth, not over her lips, but directly between them. 

“Shush, no speaking over Artemis. Ever.” Even though her face was obscured by steam, it was clear as crystal that she was serious. “Doing so will earn you a punishment… But… Oh, you’ve had such a rough day today.” Her finger retracted and the hand returned to Lupus’ crotch, a ghost of a feeling making sure that her dick didn’t go flaccid again. Hell, the feeling was even more pleasuring and making her even worse off. She needed to cum. “How about you beg for it? Wanna do that for me? For mistress?”

She didn’t want to beg. Not a day in her life had Lupus ever begged for anything. But fucking goddamnit, the pilot needed to cum. She needed it, and it sounded like it would make Artemis happy. Making Artemis happy was even better than cumming, wasn’t it?

“I remember when I decided I would have to break you sooner than later…” The dirty blonde’s hand continued its phantom dance, just barely enough pressure to keep the shorter woman excited. “It was so innocent, the way you were staring at Gemini. Anyone else, I would have thought they were a pervert and I would have smacked them across their face. But that was envy, and you didn’t even know! Then I saw how horribly clumsy you were.”

The woman began to do it again, to begin stroking Lupus’ cock a few times and stopping to keep her from reaching a climax.

“Then you quite literally fell into my arms, like a princess. Rolling right off the top bunk… You looked into my eyes, for a brief second all you could think about was me. Those adoring eyes, an adorable egg that just needed a little help being broken.” Again and again, she would do that as she spoke. It felt like she was in a chastity cage, but… she wasn’t. She quite literally could not finish with Artemis choosing to do it for her. Wasn’t that far worse? “But I wanted to give you some time. But Orion showed me you were clearly not getting it. So they gave me a little nudge. Come on, beg me, Lup. Seal the deal if you wanna cum so badly.”

She felt like that might do it, but nothing came out. No, sh… She needed to!

“P… Please, mistress…. Please let me cum… I-I need it…!” She mumbled lightly, seeing the fact of her tall Mistress come completely into view from the thick fog of steam.

“Hmm…? I don’t think you’re being loud enough for me. Wanna try that again?” She smirked, while biting the side of her lip. “Louder.”

“Please, Mistress! I need to cum! Please finish! I need it!” Desperation was in her face, which was apparently the emotion that Artemis was hoping to get.

“Good girl.” And with that, she finally stopped the on-and-off teasing, choosing to roughly finish this little… session? Whatever the hell it was, pure euphoria overran Lupus’ mind as she finally found release, even though the steam obscured her from actually seeing it happen. Pleasure that was out of sight, but still in mind. Normally, the feeling was brief and was gone within moments. But the euphoria continued to drape over her mind, as though the only thing she could feel was Artemis’ strong and rough grip on her cock still. A gentle hand began to stroke Lupus’ neck, as she began to slide down the wet, hot ceramic walls of the shower. “Doesn’t it feel nice to be my good girl?”

Quite literally, her brain was empty. All she could do was feel the hot water beat down upon her skin as Artemis hummed in delight, beginning to was her hair as though nothing had just happened. Though she couldn’t hear anything… She was just happy to be Artemis’ good girl . That was all that really mattered, right?

“Holy shit, you weren’t lying when you said you were gonna obliterate her.” Orion said, eyes wide as they and Gem watched the tall blonde leave through the door with her hand clutched around a glassy-eyed Lupus’. “Couldn’t wait any longer before you cooked her like one of those synth omelette??”

“Nope. I already ordered her a pretty little collar too in advanced.” Biting her lip, she seemed oh-so pleased with herself, as she freely rested her head on top of Lupus’. The size difference was far more apparent between the two when they were like this. 

“Wow, going all in aren’t you?” Orion noted, a face dressed with an expression of being impressed.

“Six weeks was all I need to realize this one was mine.” Artemis cocked her head to the side, smiling with a loving face as she pulled Lupus closer to her side. “Look at her, Orion, isn’t she absolutely adorable? She is, isn’t she?”

Orion looked down at Lupus, who was more concerned with being as physically close to Artemis as possible. 

“She looks like you just overwrote her entire existence, Artemis.” Orion sounded thoroughly unimpressed at that, but offered a small nod.

“I mean I kind of did, but you were the one who told me to break her sooner rather than later, weren’t you? Plus, she’ll be better for it. Just keep an eye on her when I’m not around, ‘kay?” She pressed a small kiss to the top of Lupus’ head, looking absolutely enthralled with these new developments. “See you three later~! Come on, Lup, let’s go get your dinner.”

Gem and Ori watched as the other duo walked back off to the mess hall, the shorter of the two staring up at the silver-haired terran. It was honestly shocking to see how quickly the top pilot worked

“You failed to mention that to us, Ori.” Gem’s accusatory finger made Orion take a deep breath.

“Shut up, I didn’t think she was actually serious about that stuff. I just thought she’d push Lup to stop staring at you like you killed her puppy or something.” They threw up their arms in self-defense, making a motion like cracking an egg open.

“No, now she is the puppy. Wait, is Artey gonna parade her around in a collar? Won’t she get in trouble?” Gem was being Gem, both of them terrified for what might happen to Lupus.

“She’s EXO’s number one test pilot and one of their top engineers, she quite frankly can do whatever the hell she wants.” It was true. While Artemis tended to downplay her accomplishments, she was far higher up in the company’s food chain than she would ever admit. In some ways, she held far more sway than even Daedalus. “But Lup is in good hands. I’ve known her for a few years, and that is the most raw love I’ve seen come out of that woman.”

“Think she’ll let us hang out with Lup still? We’ve been researching the history of mechanical suits, and I really do enjoy that time we get to spend together.”

“That’s really up to her. I’ve worked at EXO long enough to know Artey takes control of literally everything she wants. Looks like Lup just ended up being her newest want.” They sighed a little, nodding their head to begin walking. “But we’re her friends, so she’ll probably drop Lup in our care at some point.”

“We are very scared of her.”

“Aren’t we all? I just thought… I thought Lup would last longer is all. Clearly I was wrong. I think she was made to be like that.”

[RESUMING LIVE FEED: 2557 CE]

Eyes shot open, this time having managed to get through an entire sleep cycle without suffering from any damning monsters inside of her brain. Though she were sure a couple weeks of her life were stolen by the big, wide eyes of the foxgirl… Of Lya staring down into her own eyes.

“Good morning!” Lya chirped, far more awake and excitable than the prior night.

“G-Good morning.” Lupus responded, not used to be this close in proximity to anyone who wasn’t her… her beloved. “You’re a little close, aren’t you?”

“Mistress needed to run out for a bit, so she left me in charge of you!” Lya looked exceptionally proud of that job, though looking over someone who lacked the ability to move around properly was a relatively simple task. “She said that she already told you who I was, but I’ll tell you too in case you forgot! Sometimes Class-Zs make me forget some stuff too. I’m Lya Idaeus, Second Floret, she/they! It’s super nice to meet you.”

“I’m Lupus, she/her. It’s nice to meet you too, Lya.” Offering a hand out, Lya eyed the palm before giving it a quick nuzzle and leaning into it.

“Yay! We’re friends now.” She leaned off of Lupus’ body and sat next to her. “Welcome to my room! Well our room until Mistress gets your room ready. I don’t think she was expecting to take another sophont in, but you’re here now! And I have like tons of games we can play and stuff if you wanna, and also lots of books that Mistress compiled for me and it’s just super fun to have another floret here!”

“O-Okay, gonna need to slow down a little bit, Lya.” The pilot put up her hands and motioned for the foxgirl floret to calm down a little, which she nodded and did. “Now first off, I’m not a floret.” While having not been explained what exactly a floret was, Lupus could make a rather good assumption that it was the equivalent of a pet.

“Huh? Weird. Mistress said something earlier about you being more of a floret than she thought.” Lya tilted her head a bit in thought. Certainly that was a concern to be dealt with as they came, though her final memories of the previous night are admittedly hazy. The last thing she really remembered was Lya planting herself on her lap and then… nothing.

“As for anything else, I certainly need to get going at some point. I don’t like being away from Gravity’s Reach for too long.” Mostly because she had not been separated from her greater body for nearly a decade.

“Gravity’s… Reach?” She played around with the words for a brief moment, chewing on them before shaking her head. “Never heard of it!”

“It’s my suit… my ship… my… It’s important. I haven’t been outside of it for almost seven years.”

“Oh wow, seven years? That’s a lonnnnnnng time. I don’t even remember where I was that long ago… Most of my memories before Mistress are kinda fuzzy. But it’s okay, because Mistress loves me a lot and tells me those memories were no good for my little foxy head.” She playfully knocked on her own head, before beginning to play with the light fur that decorated her ears.

“So… those are real?” Lupus raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

“Yep!” Lya chirped simply, before pulling her tail out and hugging it. “My tail too! It’s suuuuuper comfy and cuddly. Wait, do you want a tail too?!”

“H-huh? No, I mean I don’t know! I just wanted to know how. How do you just… have those?”

“I dunno! The affini can do all sorts of stuff that every other sophonts can’t. I wanted little fox paws and ears and a tail! And Mistress says when I’m ready, she can make sure I’m the cute little foxgirl I was meant to be! You’re gonna love it here~!” Lya giggled before sliding over to the side of the bed, she reached to a board game box sitting prepared. “Mistress got this for me so we would have something to do until she got back! It’s called Affiniopoly! Have you ever played it?”

“I don’t think I’ve ever actually played a board game, so that’s kind of a solid no.” She grimaced, really not wishing to partake. There were far more important things to do, like escaping from this hell pit and returning to her… cockpit. Guess there were a lot of pits involved with her current status.

“Ooooh, right, right.” Lya nodded furiously but began to unpack the game anyway. “When I play with my friends, I’m the best of the best! In this game you basically have a bunch of ferals living out in the wilderness. As you go around the board you get to domesticate them! Whoever has the most domestications by the end wins!”

“And this is a game… that you play for fun?” Big eyes stared back at the woman, as though she said something weird.

“Of course! So getting to play this with a feral is going to be super fun~!” Lya was domineering, to say the least. She basically steamrolled over anything Lupus was saying. Perhaps that was just part of living with one of these affini, picking up some of their habits. “I’m going to be the vine! You can be the shoe.”

“I don’t want to be the shoe though.”

“Okayyyy, you can be the flower!”

Fuck. She got suckered into playing, didn’t she?

There was far too much to do today before she could return back to her home. Phylica, a close friend, would be petsitting but that would be in an hour or so. Podalyria could only hope that Lya could keep her eye on her ward slash probable pet until then. She giggled a little bit, knowing her precious little one probably took the request seriously and was still staring directly into Lupus’ soul.

The most important thing was re-evaluating the indefinite wardship decision. Lupus clearly had some… severe issues relating to her past. She was an expert at putting on a mask, a show for every sophont she spoke to. A flirt at first glance who shifted into a behemoth of a creature driven solely by rage to a pouty little woman to one who was absolutely terrified and holding onto her vines for dear life.

Without a doubt, this one was going to become a pet. However, keeping her as a ward for the time being would give Podalyria time to break and adjust her to life in the Compact. Gravity’s Reach, however, served a major block on the road to recovery. While ships of the Accord, once captured, were decompiled or retooled for far better use… This mecha was something more, and if Poda was going to being caring for Lupus, she would need to have a better understanding of the machine.

After that, she would be returning to the vet to go over some new results that fae had found regarding the terran. Apparently it factored into why the Class-Zs were not having the intended effect they should have. The little one had been terrified the previous night, horrible nightmares consuming her restful sleep. Knowledge was power, and knowing more about Lupus beforehand would be helpful in this journey. Lya had been a volunteer, albeit one with trauma to work through, but was increasingly easy to get her to be open about her problems.

The cockpit of Gravity’s Reach remained untouched, as Podalyria had put in a request to have it be left as is until she could examine it thoroughly. If anything did happen to the wolf-like robotic skeleton, it might cause extensive harm to her ward. The same blanket she had taken off of Lupus initially sat draped over the cockpit’s chair, old and musty. But it was well-loved and sewn by terran hand. The affini would need to take it back and clean it, knowing that it might be a good way to have the little one open up.

All of the systems on the mecha were shut down, however, showing little to no signs of life. It was possible that the biomechanical neural interface between the pilot and ship were required for its engines to be primed. Otherwise, it would remain dormant and even she, an expert in terran xenotechnology, would require a ton of time to spoof the connection. It might be easier to eventually bring Lupus to show her freely. That was down the line, however. For now, she needed to collect any personal effects that the woman might have had.

But there was not much to her name, it looked like. That blanket had been the only obvious personal possession of the emotionally unstable woman, as most of the cockpit were monitors, keyboards, the front panel that… oh? Hidden behind several of the monitors there seemed to be a frame and something pink? A grabby vine reached out and loosened the frame with…

Podalyria’s eyes widened as she looked down at the framed photograph and the item that came along with it. Bright pink leather glowed lit up the entire room, and by the Everbloom… Upon closer inspection, the tiny heart-shaped tag read on the front and back sides:

Lupus - Artemis’ Good Girl

Alone, Nevermore

The photograph revealed a an image of Lupus with a terran woman, likely the aforementioned Artemis, with the former sitting comfortably in the lap of the latter. One long arm was draped over Lupus’ chest, while the other rubbed the collar’s tag between two fingers. Her core reverberated, shaken by how utterly adorable the two of them looked together.

Not only was Lupus used to already being a pet, she had a pinnate too! It would be truly a wonderful thing if only she could hunt down this Artemis woman… Things suddenly got a whole lot more complicated, didn’t they? Once more she looked down at the collar, well-worn and loved… The way into Lupus’ heart, to break down her walls might start here.

Chapter Text

[LOADING PLAYBACK: 2550 CE]

“Hey, Lupus, come back to me.” Lupus’ eyes shuttered a few times, coming out of her dissociative state again. Draco looked concerned, she usually did since being paired up with the other candidate for work in Hangar 001, home to the newly christened Gravity’s Reach. 

Progress was coming along quite well on the fully plated mecha. The externals were quickly reaching a usable phase, which meant Sync Rate testing was coming up sooner rather than later. It had been about two weeks since the bathroom incident and… things had changed quite dutifully amongst the candidates. As a collective, it was without a doubt a commonality that every single soul held respect towards Artemis. Her ability to pilot anything in the Star-Class, in addition to her work on the Constellation-Class Singularity Engine. If all things worked out, it could quite literally be the most major breakthrough in energy for the entirety of their species. Of course, that was all theoretical based around whether or not the engine would power the Constellation-Class.

But in that respect, every candidate needed to be aware of… the changes she was inflicting upon all of them. Quite literally, during the morning roll call in the mess hall the day after the incident, she proudly announced to everyone some important changes that were extremely humiliating for Lupus and second-hand embarrassment for everyone else. What could they do in this situation? Artemis was the linchpin holding the project together, that was the reason she was Pilot Candidate No. 001.

“Hey, everyone I have a VERY important announcement, so listen up.” The mess hall was tiny, just enough room to fit the twenty pilots so they could eat their meals. She dragged Lupus to the center, dandling her arms over the shorter woman’s chest. Everyone simply watched with confused eyes, wondering what she could be prepared to say. “Lupus is going by she/her pronouns now, so you all better use them or else you’ll face my wrath. Second, Lupus is now my pet and therefore any slights towards her are slights towards me and we all know how I feel about that. Third, I cannot be with her every single waking moment of the day, as much as I would love to be, so if you’re working with her and she begins to zone out, please bring her back to us. She might hurt herself, and we can’t have that, now can we?”

It was hard to say no to Artemis, especially for Lupus. One night was all it took to make her into a submissive little bitch who would quite literally do anything Artemis told her to do. Honestly, she was impressed all things considered at how quickly she had fallen down the rabbit hole. It wasn’t just a kink thing for the taller woman, it was a genuine lifestyle that she lived by… And in some ways forced others to be aware of. The other candidates did their best to treat Lupus as they normally did, minus being careful not to step on any toes via jokes.

Draco was a kind enough soul, she didn’t quite fit into Lupus’ friend group, but they worked well enough together. In this case, the duo were installing the neural relay that would connect the pilot candidates to the Constellation-Class for the Sync Rate test. Without a doubt, it was the single most important assignment for the entire group, placed onto very anxious shoulders.

“Shit, sorry… Happened again. It always does.” Lupus sighed, leaning her head to the side for a moment.

“Not to tell you how to live your life, Artemis already does that for you, but have you considered seeing Dr. Lep?” Draco was taking a look at the schematics on her tab, while the shorter woman rolled her eyes.

“She’s like a medical doctor, not like a brain doctor.” It was difficult to actually seek out any help, and Artemis had said the EXO was not the place to seek assistance for whatever was causing her to dissociate so often. The neural relay ran down to the mecha’s core, directly into the Singularity Engine. Whatever the hell the engine really was, no one knew. Artemis had said it was proprietary technology that would shift the landscape of humanity. However, it was important to ensure that the relay had a solid connection from the core to the seat in the cockpit. “I don’t think she’d be able to help me, EXO doesn’t really care about our mental health, now do they?”

“Not particularly, no. But it’s actually pretty scary how often that happens, like how do you live with it?” Draco was looking over something, before pointing out to a bracket that Lupus needed to tighten. “Bracket E4 isn’t secured.”

“Got it, got it.” Lupus got to work while also thinking about the offered question. “It’s… difficult? The past couple of weeks it’s been easier since no one lets me disconnect from reality for more than a few minutes at max.” It didn’t take very long to secure the relay down so it would stay in place once the inner paneling was assembled. “But yeah, before here it could be hard. I was lucky it didn’t happen during my little joyride. Probably could have killed me. There have been times though where I just… would lose hours of my life because of it.”

“That’s rough, sis. Sorry to hear it. Well, I’m glad I can keep you from burning yourself or doing something else. Can you grab my knife? I left it in the box, and I need it to remove some of these stupid zip ties we were using to keep the relay in pace.” Draco was a kind soul, a rare commodity on the planet that was for sure. Most of the candidates fell into that category; it was almost like a family the more they lived and worked together. Lupus had always thought that was just capitalist bullshit propaganda, but these people were becoming her friends, for better or for worse. 

On the other side of things, having her… what did Mistress call it? Her egg cracked? Whatever it was, Lupus had been forced to figure her shit out if only for the benefit of her friends. Apparently, Orion was suffering watching her drill holes into the back of Gemini’s skull with every look and Miss Artemis wanted to just scoop her up into her arms and keep her safe. Honestly, it puts a lot of things into perspective for the short woman. While she would need to wait for the meds to arrive, Dr. Lep had given the okay on the prescription. All medications were covered under the lucrative contract that her owner had.

There was something… exciting about it? She would get to be who she was meant to be. Lupus had never been a huge fan of looking at herself in the mirror, but she assumed that was a universal appearance. Everyone was normally repulsed at how they looked, right? Everyone wanted to just generally kill their friends because they looked far cuter or prettier than she did? Normal feelings from a very normal person about… okay, maybe it was easier to just accept she was a transwoman than to sit here and try to figure it out. Because Miss Artemis already figured it out for her, and it was easier to just let her do the heavy lifting in mental gymnastics.

“Shit, Lup, you gotta wake up, sis. Come on, come one.” Oh, she had lost track of herself again. Though Draco looked like all the blood from her face had drained. She wondered why that was? Looking down, it was an instantaneous reaction as her mind suddenly began to process the pain of attempting to grab a knife by the bladed end. Blood was dripping down her hand, and she let out a yelp at the pain. The stronger woman got Lup to her feet, and began walking her out of the cockpit. “Come on, let’s get you to the med bay. And please, don’t look down. I know you don’t like heights.”

“S-Sorry I didn’t even realize I was grabbing onto it.” The pain was quite bad; the two sharp sides of the blade had dug into her fingers, but most of the pressure got shoved into her palm.

“It’s fine, I should have been keeping a better eye on you.” A grimace appeared on her face, hoping that this would not make its way up the chain of command.

Asclepius was a good doctor, hell, one of the finest on the entire planet. Standing at six feet tall, even, the woman looked like a stereotypical doctor who decided to moonlight as a mechanic. Her moon-white hair could sparkle in the darkest dungeons, wound up into a tight bun, as her piercing blue eyes intimidated those she decided to look at. With rounded glasses, one in the past might have mistaken her as a priestess for some form of moon goddess.

“You really have to take better care of yourself, Lupus. You’re going to harm yourself quite badly next time at this rate.” Lep, as her friends called them, finished up suturing the pilot’s hand closed and had begun to bandage it up.

“I can’t help it, sometimes it just happens.” Lupus argued back, lip nearly quivering. The good doctor had almost immediately given her a painkiller to take off the edge when the two arrived. Draco scurried off afterwards, afraid to face whatever ramifications came with screwing up the clumsy trans pilot watch.

“Sometimes it just happens is something anyone who isn’t you says. You picked up a knife at the blade’s end and then proceeded to grip it without telling you had harmed yourself. Next time, you really need…” Lep looked at Lupus, who really did look quite pitiful as she looked down at her now bandaged hand. Letting out a sigh, the white-haired woman rubbed the bridge of her nose. Like all of the members of the project, she was fully aware of… Artemis’ need to exhibit her sexual kinks in public and that Lupus had, for better or for worse, become her partner in it.

Lupus was slowly melting away from the sort of dumb, fake it ‘till you make it masked woman into someone who was wholly submissive to quite literally anyone she spoke to. Even now, it was hard to seriously reprimand her. She fell into constant dissociative states, her mind wandering too far into the darkness. While easy to will her out of it, to help treat it was… Well, Lep would never deem herself any sort of psychiatrist or even a therapist.

Patting the small woman on the head, the doctor sighed.

“Just look out for yourself, okay? And if you do get hurt, well that’s why I’m here.”

“I try… Sometimes trying just isn’t enough though.” Lupus seemed content at the head pat, but grimaced as she spoke. “There’s a lot of times where I’ve probably almost died because of this.”

“Unfortunately, Daedalus does not believe that mental health is something the company should be concerned with. Hopefully, when your contract expires, you can seek out proper mental health care.” Lep stood up for a brief moment, observing prescriptions on her tablet. “All we can do for right now is make sure you don’t die.”

“Well, I appreciate the sentiment, regardless.” Lupus chuckled a little. “I’ll do my best to not di-”

“WHERE IS SHE?!” Artemis made no sounds arriving, simply blowing through the open door to the medbay. Her face looked like she might be on the verge of a complete nervous breakdown. Within a second, she was by Lupus' side and looking at the bandaged hand.

“H-Hey I’m okay!” 

“Shit. You did a good job though, is this all sutured correctly?” Artemis looked more disappointed in herself than anything. “I’m gonna take her back to our room, is that okay?”

“One, yes you’ll need to reapply the bandages every twelve hours to be safe.” The bandaging literally flew out of the doctor’s hand into the taller woman’s. “Second, even if I told you no, there might be some damage to the feeling in her palm, you’d still take her, wouldn’t you?”

“Almost certainly.” Artemis had proceeded to scoop Lupus into her arms, princess-style, and held onto her with a death-like vice grip before leaving down the hallway without allowing the doctor to say anything more.. “Send her antibiotics down to our room when they’re ready.”

Not allowing any more stares from the other pilots or general staff, the engineer had essentially shoved Lupus’ face into her chest to almost hide her. But in that moment, the short pilot could truly take stock of how amazing Artemis was. She was quite literally everything, the perfect example of a shining human being. Her intelligence and engineering skills were unparalleled by anyone in EXO Mechanics. Apparently the only reason she hadn’t been promoted to Head of Engineering was because of her exceptional skill at piloting.

That was another thing. Weekly flight tests were a common task assigned to the pilots, to make sure that every candidate was used to the controls of the latest models of Star-Class. Even if they had worked with earlier models, the newest production run was far closer in design philosophy to the Constellation-Class than the older ones. But, of course, Artemis always scored highest in handling. And much to her pride, Lupus only barely trailed behind. The looks she gave after those test runs… intoxicating. Utterly and unimaginably intoxicating. 

Her physical strength and endurance too was nothing to sneeze at. Buff lady was buff, far buffer than any of the ladies present in the program. Her workout routine was one that Lupus had attempted to join in on, but…

“You’re such a silly girl, Lup. You need your exercise to stay healthy, but you’re gonna stay tiny and cute like I want you to be.”

The idea was shut down instantly, and Lupus did not have it in her to fight against it. And she chose her… this short, stupid bitch who might have… no.

“I-I’m okay, I promise.” It was a lie, even with pain meds, her hand hurt like a motherfucker. Bandaged and sewn up, she thought that Dr. Lep was just trying to keep her anxiety down.

“No you’re not, Lup.” Artemis looked down with that same predatory glint that became a permanent fixture in her eyes. But this time it wasn’t aimed at completely ripping her clothes off in the mess hall again, but rather in protection. While Lupus was always unsure about the seriousness of her threats, having managed to so far avoid punishment, there was something… primal lurking beneath the color of her irises. “Doc will get me a full report on your hand, but that is a really deep cut. Who wasn’t paying attention to you? I’ve made sure everyone knows that they have to constantly keep an eye on you.”

“Please, Draco did not do anything wrong. It was my fau-”

“It wasn’t your fault, pet.” A small snarl escaped from the woman’s lips. “You literally cannot control when you dissociate, we’ve more or less proven that. Even when I’m keeping your attention constantly, you still manage to lose control a little. I think it’s time for a reminder to everyone what you are.”

Their dorm room had once been a relatively empty place, but Icarus, the project head, had been quite vocal about ensuring the comforts of the candidates. Apparently ensuring everyone’s individuality was important in relation to Sync Rates? It didn’t make a whole lot of sense to Lupus, but she also didn’t know the specifics of Sync Rates yet or anything. Hell, maybe Artemis had harangued the man until she could make their little home comfier.

Beige walls had been covered up with a variety of posters that belonged to Artemis, mostly regarding music she enjoyed and a few promotional posters she had apparently designed for the initial Star-Class production run. The bunk beds had been disassembled and pressed together so that Miss Artemis would constantly be cuddling her after a long day’s work was finished. Or… if she needed something more. 

Additionally, there were materials for sewing and knitting that Artemis had purchased if only so she could continue to create more things to dote on Lupus with. It was quite incredible how much effort the blonde was putting into caring for the black-haired woman. Suddenly, she was dropped into the bed while her Mistress stared down at her with those big, loving eyes… filled with the murderous glee to publicly murder Draco for not paying close enough attention. But also, she knew that she wouldn’t do that. Draco hadn’t meant for this to happen.

For a moment the two just gazed into one another’s eyes, before the taller woman grabbed something from her desk and joined Lupin their bed, quickly cocooning the smaller woman into several blankets.

“Is this… really necessary?”

“Hush, mon louve.” Artemis had a small box in her hands, index finger carefully drawing circles onto it. “I would like to mark today as a one-off accident, however previous incidents over the past couple of weeks have had me… concerned, to say the least.”

“It hasn’t been that bad.”

“You grabbed a knife so tightly that Dr. Asclepius had to stitch it back together. Two days ago, you nearly burned yourself while soldering again. Five days ago, you choked on your protein bar. Eight days ago, you slipped in the shower after assuring me that you could take care of it yourself! And then you came in, all tearing up about how much it hurt and I had to make you feel better.” 

“Okay maybe it has been that bad.” Lupus tried to avoid looking at Artemis in the eyes, but the stronger woman forced her gaze back.

“It has. You can’t help it, I understand that your mind tends to wander when you get lost in thought.” Suddenly, she found herself being pulled up onto the blonde’s lap and latched onto in a protective manner. It was a simple gesture, one that another might use to make someone else feel safe. Well, that was probably partial intention here, but also an assertion of dominance between the two. “And since some people, like Cass, are having trouble remembering to watch out for you I will be ensuring they have a visual reminder. Now, admittedly, I had this commissioned before I even broke you the first time but it finally arrived so…”

Opening the small box, she withdrew a bright pink collar with small black diamonds embroidered onto it as its primary design. A tag sat connected to a ring in the middle with her name and ordering her as “Artemis’ Good Girl.” As much as Lupus enjoys being the constant center of Artemis’ attention, there was no way the woman was intending for her to wear this… was she?

Without missing a beat, the blonde latched the collar around Lupus’ neck, before locking the latch with a miniature old-Earth styled padlock.

“There we go. Now everyone here will be constantly reminded who you belong to.”

“Y-You collared me?!” That was… unexpected. Sure, they had this whole master and pet thing going on but… 

“Yes, pet, I did.” Artemis began to run her hands through Lupus’ hair, it was already pretty scraggly, but it was growing out. She wanted her girl to feel as adorable as she truly was, and had begun to take near-religious care of the shiny black locks. Her word was already beginning to turn out, and leaned her down into it. “Mine… All mine. Aren’t you?”

“Mmmmmmm…” The pet wanted to not say anything, but she was so easily sucked into that melodic tune of a voice. She was her’s, an object to be possessed. “Why me…?”

“Hmm? What did you say, pet?” The blonde had begun to pull up a thicker blanket she used for both of them. This was to further keep her close during cuddle time. No one dared to interrupt and could instantly be put up to the top of the engineer’s shit list if they did.

“Why choose me? I’m sure someone like you has the pick of the litter when it comes to women willing to be… pets?” It was an honest question, one that had pricked up at the back of her mind. “And we’ve only really known each other for like seven weeks.”

“Because you belong to me.” Another fact. “Yes, you were a little annoying the first twenty seconds I knew you, but that’s different from the real you I’ve come to know. My feelings don’t need to have some logical conclusion to follow, because they’re emotions, raw and primal to their finest extent. Even if you don’t believe you are worthy of belonging to me, you do anyway. That’s my choice I’ve made, not only for you, but for myself as well. You’re kind, witty, intelligent, and so many other things I hope to learn about you. Also you’re very fucking submissive. What’s not to love about that?”

A hand covered up Bell’s face, as her body was manipulated into the little spoon. Her injured hand was kept safe from harm, as two strong muscular arms wrapped around her waist. Into the crevice of her neck, a face pressed inward and breathed heavily onto the sensitive parts of her skin.

“It’s better to let me do the thinking, right? It’s far too much for a cute little head like your’s… So shh, just let me do it for you.”

Realization creeped over tired eyes, a light ghost of a nuzzle against the crook of her neck causing the tiniest and most imperceptible hairs to stand up straight on end. She was right… It was easier to just… let Artemis think for her…

“And you are not the least bit concerned about this fraternizing amongst the Pilot Candidates?” Daedalus frowned a bit, sipping a bit of the brewed high-class, organic coffee that being in such a high position granted him. Living as a member of EXO Mechanics’ Board of Directors certainly had its positives, including a cushy monetary bonus.

“I know the people working beneath me, father.” Icarus responded, his eyes narrowing. The young man had short hair, ruffled out a bit and not styled in the least. Though its natural state may fool some into thinking he might have put in the effort. “Artemis may work under me on this project, but she holds far more sway than either of us with the Board. If she so decides to want Pilot No. 018 for… whatever reason she deems fit, fine. She’d get what she wanted one way or the other, and quite clearly, I don’t care. Besides No. 018 injuring herself, her work has been exceptional.”

“His work, I believe you mean. With the amount of those working underneath you, I’d expect you to get their sexes correct, Icarus.” Disappointment dripped from the older man’s mouth, as his son crossed his arms in annoyed defiance.

“Say what you wish, Synchronization Tests are due to begin within the week.” Icarus’ eyes narrowed as he pulled out his tab and showed off some models that he had been working on. “Gravity’s Reach, Constellation-Class’ primary prototype, is nearing practical testing. And with it, the Synchronization Grid which will propel our company beyond its competitors… Beyond the Accord, as the Director wishes.”

“Promising theoretical test evidence regarding Post-Sync outcomes, Icarus. Be sure not to fly too close to the proverbial sun, though. A failure to produce tangible results will cost us both our heads.” He growled slightly, causing his son to return the gesture.

“Don’t pretend like Star-Class was my fault! Even the Director knows the Cosmic Navy hosed us. We were selling at a loss to them, so don’t you dare try to pass the blame onto me, old man.” Icarus turned around on his heel, stomping out of the room, not even letting his father continue ripping into him.

As the project head, Icarus was in charge of every facet of the Constellation-Class’ production from managing the many Pilot Candidates to serving as the boss to the rest of the crew and employees that earned a salary at the company. More importantly, he was the only buffer before his long suffering team and his asshole father. For some reason, he believed that Icarus was incapable of running the project despite his successes managing Star-Class’ original production run. The nerve of that man! Oh, how he couldn't wait to... Ugh. He needed to vent.

“You seem tired, Ica.” Heph frowned a bit, looking at the slightly shorter man. “Old man giving you shit again?”

“What do you think?! Daedalus wouldn’t know his way between any of the real work we’re doing down here and the piss in a toilet, Heph! He’s a piece of shit, and if his contract didn’t stipulate a ridiculous notion of tenure, I would have motioned for him to be replaced.” Icarus spat angrily, sinking into the chair opposite of Hephaestus’ desk. Despite the fact that she was technically working below the man, his lack of an office meant he blew off steam in her’s.

“EXO really doesn’t miss anything in those contracts, do they?”

“Nope. Not at all. Those things are truly ironclad. The only reason he doesn’t reach in is because Artemis holds sway over a majority of the board. That woman is terrifying, and luckily that emanation of terror serves our project.” He angrily sighed, shoving his face into his palms. “Tell me how we’re looking at starting Sync Tests.”

“Good news and bad news. Which do you want first?” The dark-skinned woman raised an eyebrow.

“Bad news. It never makes sense to lead with the good stuff.”

“Well, the bad news is that Lupus may have severed a tendon in her hand while working up in Gravity’s Reach.” Hephaestus said, resulting in the man nearly screaming in frustration.

“Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Really?! Why do I keep assigning her those tasks? Her nearly falling to her death should have been my wake up call! Artemis is gonna fucking kill me.” 

“Calm down, Ica, she’s fine! You know, minus maybe not being able to control like two of the fingers on her hand.” Heph certainly knew how to look on the brighter side of things. “She’s okay, and none of us are on Artemis’ chopping block. At least not right now. But, onto the good news. Before she hurt herself, Lupus and Draco managed to finish the Neural Relay. I had to go back and ensure they were secured down, but we can begin tests with the Crown as soon as tomorrow.”

“The Crown is complete too, then? Wonderful!” On a dime, he leapt to his feet and clapped his hands together. “This gives us an accurate report detailing all information regarding the pilot’s Sync Rate?”

“Dangerous though. After we get an accurate first reading, we cannot use it a second time without risking serious harm to the candidate’s health. We have a single shot to collect the data, and since you know the software, you’ll need to be there.” The woman gave the man a look, a look filled with a fatal form of solemness. “We can’t screw this up, Ica. We can’t.”

“I know. We need results now, even if I tell my dad we don’t… We need it. Who do we use as the guinea pig, though?” Icarus felt gross referring to any of his employees or those under his care as such… but it was true.

“... Lupus.”

“You’re insane.”

“We need her out of the program. Artemis is growing far too protective of her, and the clause in her contract stipulates that a low Sync Rate gives her the chance to relinquish her contract early… We get her out of this, we don’t have to worry about an angry Artemis placing it over us.” Heph’s face reflected her own disgust at her own words. “I love Lupus. You love Lupus. She brings the kind of energy that somehow makes everyone work harder. Or maybe it’s just Artemis basically threatening to kill anyone after her public announcement. But her energy during those Star-Class sessions was… infectious.”

“Yeah. We need to get her out of here before EXO Mechanics kills her and then Artemis kills EXO Mechanics.” A serious look overtook the man’s face, pulling up a form on his tab and digitally stamping it. “Tomorrow, at 1300, we begin Synchronization Tests with Gravity’s Reach. Pilot Candidate No. 018, call sign Lupus, will proceed with testing the Crown for her peak Sync Rate… After tomorrow, hopefully we can all sleep easier.”

[RESUMING LIVE FEED: 2557 CE]

A loose vine curling around the underside of Lupus’ face, and tilting it up, caused the woman to suddenly snap back to reality. Lya sat curled up in the spot she had been in prior, napping ever so slightly, while Podalyria looked down with a concerned look on her mask and in her colorful eyes.

“Dear, are you okay?” 

“S… Sorry, I didn’t realize that happened.” Years. It had been several years since she had dissociated like that, and she wondered if operating Gravity’s Reach and being physically linked to it had helped her to not do it. Or maybe it was different when there was literally no concept of time.

“M-Mistress!” Lya yawned a little bit, bouncing over to her owner’s embrace. Happily, the foxgirl began nuzzling into the affini’s chest. A pang of envy overcame the other woman, memories attempting to resurface, but she quickly packed them away into a tidy box in the corner of her mind. How could they just be so… open about this? Why must they torture her like this with their… such an open and cuddly relationship?!

Ugh, it was disgustingly sweet.

“Shh, shh, I’m back, petal. And I won’t be leaving for a long while, so let’s enjoy our time together, okay?” Her voice was sweet like nectar, drawing in Lya much like how a predacious plant lures in a fly, getting it drunk on sap before killing it. “That includes you, flower. Don’t worry. We will be having many talks today, but we will spread them out so as to not overwhelm you with too much information. Now first, would you like to be carried around or would you prefer a wheelchair?”

“Wheelchair.” While it had been nearly a decade since she had last operated the accommodating device back at EXO, surely it was preferable to dealing with the embarrassment of being lifted around… in anything that wasn’t her arms. 

“Understood. However, you will find that the furnishings of our hab are a bit… big for you. I will be lifting you up, do you understand?” Not much of a choice, but at least the warning was being given. Though… No, it was fine. Nothing she couldn’t handle! Lya had found a comfortable spot wrapped up in the large alien’s vines, while a rather comfortable wheelchair had found its way onto the floor.

Muscle memory was one hell of a thing, instantly kicking in, as she found herself growing comfortable in the chair. After being allowed a few minutes to get used to maneuvering herself around in the perfectly designed wheelchair, she followed the giant Affini who walked in slow steps alongside her. To be fair though, even if she had been able bodied, capable of walking, Miss Podalyria would still need to walk slowly. Like damn, those were some mighty fine and long legs.

On closer inspection, she noticed that every bit of her was strung and woven together expertly. Like she was attempting to perfectly emulate the human for. Sure, on first inspection, that is what she believed was happening… To see it up close was an entirely different story altogether. Perfect human simulation… shapeshifters it seemed like was their true nature.

“Do you wanna talk about what happened?”

“I don’t know what you mean.” Playing stupid usually worked.

“How long were you like that? Lya rarely falls asleep like that unless there’s nothing to keep her entertained. Originally, I was going to have a friend of mine look over you, but when I felt Lya be lulled into sleep like that, I assumed something had happened.” 

Odd way to put things… How could she feel Lya be pulled into slumber?

“Can’t tell you something I don’t know.” Emotions turned off was a good second step. “It happens sometimes.” More like a lot. “And I typically don’t come out of it until some… some sophont wakes me up. It’s really stressful, not going to lie.” Looking down at her scarred palm, she could remember the pain vividly, knife slicing through her hand like synthetic butter. Her mind is so hazy and distant, no memory of the actual moment in her head. To this day, her index and middle finger were incapable of having any true range of motion outside of their normal curled state.

“That sounds quite inconvenient. Does it happen when you are stressed, or…?”

“Always. Quite literally, it would always happen. It hasn’t happened in a while, but maybe the lack of external stimuli was responsible for it? I have theories, but nothing concrete.”

Difficult. Awkward. The way she liked her conversations when they started to go south. Dumb and flirty was only one avenue to mask herself. There were others. Shutting her emotions off was a good secondary weapon to utilize.

The affini sighed sadly, placing her pet down onto her own chair, causing her to whine.

“Shh, shh, shh…” Almost instantly, Lya suddenly began to look far more distant and disconnected than normal, much to Miss Podalyria’s amusement and awe. “There we go, no more worries, petal. Mistress is right here.” Like a viper striking at its prey, a loose appendage of plant began to cuddle up against the foxgirl’s face. “There’s much for us to discuss, flower. You’re a mystery to us, you know that, right?”

“Oh, how so?”

“The Department of Xenobureaucracy aboard the Aria has detailed records on almost every bit of Accord business. And I know you didn’t build that forty meter machine we have docked here, which means one of the Accord’s many corporations funded and constructed it.” It was truly incredible how quickly the communications officer was at changing her tone. With Lya it was pure bliss, loving adoration for her pet, while with herself it was very cool, cold, and calculating. Even the pet name felt a bit distant. “You knew that though, didn’t you? After all your name doesn’t exist.”

Turning to pick up Lupus, she ensured that the terran-sized seat, with arm rests to keep clumsy terrans from falling, was comfortable. But that’s when she did something odd. Instead of utilizing her true height advantage to intimidate the pilot, she adjusted herself to be eye-to-eye with Lupus, while continuing to be in constant physical contact with her pet.

“Lupus is just a call sign, yes, but it is the name I’ve come to prefer. As for information about me, you’re free to ask. There’s nothing of note about me, though.” A half-truth, the truest apex of deflecting mechanisms. 

“Company. Who did you work for?”

“EXO Mechanics. Defunct as of 2550 CE. Primarily known for their Star-Class Solo Piloting Units, primarily meant to be utilized as weapons.” She closed her eyes for a moment in brief thought. “Star-Class were relatively non-intrusive suits that could possibly be used for a variety of reasons. Weapons, as I said, but also could be used for extensive operations in other industries. Is mining too dangerous? Use a Star-Class instead.”

“How did you get involved with them?”

“Took a joyride in one of their trashed units. Thought it would be fun after I got kicked out of my house. In reality, I was hoping to get caught. Heard it was a good way to meet with higher ups, when you took their toys.” A smirk appeared on her face, as she leaned forward a bit. “Turned out that the big boss was impressed with my skills and offered me a contract.”

“Gravity’s Reach. What was its primary intention?”

“An extension of the self. That’s what it was in the end. Not a weapon. Not a machine. An extension of myself.” Fuck. That was not a half-truth, that was a complete and utter one. Unfortunately, she could not bring herself to tell even a tiny insignificant fib about the mechanical body. 

“What was its primary intention?” Her voice was like a mist, one surrounding her being. But it got worse, far more so, as it surrounded Lupus and began to solidify. 

“I tol-”

“No, I am asking a question and you will answer. What was its intention.” Not even a question, instead a tone so forceful that it triggered a piece of her brain left untouched for years, as dust slowly faded it away. Breath hitched for a moment, the clouds in her mind clearing up as the authoritative voice ripped away the walls within.

“Gravity’s Reach was the first prototype of the Constellation-Class developed by EXO Mechanics. Head engineer Hephaestus described Gravity’s Reach as a Reconnaissance and Sabotage Operative. The pilot would use the extensions to live isolated for up to years at a time, sabotaging Cosmic Navy ships one by one. Utilizing its Singularity Core, leftover dirty energy would be piled in excess to the ship’s claws, it's only weapon. Tipped with an alloy proprietary to the company, it could easy tear through the hardiest and densest of metals.”

“Good girl, telling me all of that. Why did you not tell me that first?” Lupus breathed heavily, the term of endearment scratching an itch that had been long gone for years.

“Gravity’s Reach is not a weapon. It is myself. It is my body. We do not like being separate from one another for long periods.” That was the truth, viewing her body as a weapon made her feel ill. The mere thoughts were disgusting, putrid to even think Gravity’s Reach was something

“Thank you for telling me that, sweetheart, I know that must have been rough to tell me.” Her voice was angelic, familiar in its tone so easily capable of bypassing her walls. Unfair, really, like using a cheat code to bypass levels in a video game of old. But it was the truth!

“How do I access the files regarding EXO Mechanics that you have stored on the Gravity’s Reach?” 

“You can’t. Any attempts at spoofing the connection will corrupt the files.” It was a dumb thing, especially if Miss Podalyria wanted it! She was very nice, and her voice was very soothing. It reminded her that it was easier to not have to think.

“What’s the encryption key?”

“Me. The ship is biolocked to my biodata, meaning without me strapped in, you would be unable to access the data without the ship’s safety features wiping it.” An unfortunate side-effect of having one pilot per specified mecha.

“Would you be willing to do that for me?”

“Yes. However, if you had access to the data from EXO Mechanics, you would be horrified to find out why EXO Mechanics is listed as defunct. You would likely hate me afterwards.” She sang it like a happy song, her inhibitions gone and unlocked.”

“What did you do, petal?” Miss Podalyria sounded sad, causing the terran to frown slightly. What had she done… It had been so long ago, after all. Oh wait, of course!

“I killed them all, of course!” Lupus chirped happily, looking up and seeing Affini's face twist into a pained expression.

“W… Why would you do that, petal?”

“Because Mistress told me to.” The easiest answer she had ever given. A short command from her Mistress to do what needed to be done. When Mistress told her to do something, it was easiest to follow along with those commands. Lupus giggled slightly, thinking about Mistress more than she had in so many years made her feel a warmth that had had long been cold. But a slight frown appeared on her face, moving to her neck. “She told me to survive.”

“You have to take care of yourself, my sweet.” A sad voice crackled over the comms.

“No… No, we’re coming for you. Gravity’s Reach can do anything.”

“Listen to my voice, pet. Listen to its cadence. You are a pet, and in this situation, Mistress wants her pet to be safe. Close your eyes. Are you hearing my voice? Just droning on, and on, and on…? That’s my good girl. T… That’s my good girl.” Her voice was alluring, a siren casting her out to sea. “Drop. Good. Good. When you wake up, you will lose your submissiveness. You will survive. Until you hear this cadence again, this part of you will not exist . Survive . And then find me .”

“Huh…? Where’s my collar?” A pouting frown appeared on her face, looking up at the Affini with big eyes. “Have you seen my collar, Miss, my neck feels cold without it?”

Pilot Candidate No. 006

Identification Call: ORION
Filing Date: 3/23/2550 CE
Sex: M
Age: 24
Peak Sync Rate: 91%
Candidacy: CONTRACT UP FOR RENEWAL, ASSIGN TO PILOT FOR UPCOMING CONSTELLATION-CLASS, INFILTRATOR AND DESTROYER HELL’S EDGE
Notes: Personal communications being sent out on unknown signal and frequency. Continue to monitor for any possible note as to where these signals are being sent to.

Addendum: Several communications intercepted and attached for reference. Deemed unrelated to project concerns, and is personal in nature.

Does NOT violate the candidate's contract, please just stop looking into this and sending to me it’s actually embarrassing to have to read Orion’s conversations that lead into roleplays whenever someone picks up on the communications. Seriously stop doing this, for my peace of mind, it’s literally giving me a migraine dealing with this. - Icarus

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[MemoriesofSalvation]: Is something the matter, petal? You seem upset today.
[OrionBattler]: It’s nothing, just my best friend got hurt pretty badly and it’s a little stressful. She zones out a lot while doing dangerous and non-dangerous work, and today she cut her hand wide-open.
[MemoriesofSalvation]: Oh dear, that does sound rather bad for her. Is the poor flower okay? Oh, if only we were there to help her. Are you certain you won’t share your coordinates, little one?
[OrionBattler]: I could get into hella trouble for piggybacking onto the extended signal to begin with. As much as I’d love to meet you, I’d have to wait until my contract expires.
[MemoriesofSalvation]: Oh, waiting is so, so, so hard. But it’s worth it, if I get to wrap you up as tightly as I can eventually. Wanna hear what I plan on doing to you once you’re safely trapped within my vines, petal? Oh why even ask, of course you do.

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It gets worse from here. Seriously stop sending these to me or I will make sure you’re reading every bit of your co-worker’s very detailed smut. - Icacrus