Chapter Text
Eclipse stared at Sun. Sun was alive??? Awake? How?
Sun kept weakly trying to move and Eclipse could actually hear when the bolt in his arm casing snapped. The daycare attendant fell to the ground with a glitched grunt. He wouldn’t stop trying to wiggle away from Eclipse. Eclipse felt his chest constrict with an emotion he could only describe as unmitigated excitement.
“Sun?” Eclipse asked again. He approached Sun who still looked afraid and confused. The lord couldn’t stop his own grin. “I can’t believe it. You’re awake. You’re on, you’re working!” He crouched over Sun and raked his gloomy eyes over the prone and broken being. Sun really did just make miracles happen like nothing didn’t he?
“W-Wh-Where-” Sun tried speaking but it was clear his voice box wasn’t responding. Eclipse could actually smell smoke this close up. Sun’s fans were struggling to spin and he could feel heat rolling off of Sun.
Sun’s optics started flashing as they blinked in and out of existence. Everything the lights went out Eclipse could hear as Sun’s internals stopped in tandem. His own eyes widened as he realized Sun was quickly powering off.
He didn’t give Sun a chance to protest as he scooped Sun up in a bridal carry. Eclipse infused magic in his steps and swiftly made his way back to the castle and his lab. He had to know how Sun was functioning. He had to study Sun and fix him so he could finally have a real person!
The lord sent a text to his father and Solar, he needed all hands on deck. Moon and Selene can help too if they want but Eclipse has always doubted their science and mechanical know how. He looked down at Sun whose optics were now dim little lights. Tiny pin pricks of pure white, hot ichor staring up at Eclipse with so much fear and hatred. Eclipse could tell from that small glance Sun was turning off and Eclipse only had a small window to act before the animatronic might shut down permanently.
He decided to use his magic to teleport the both of them to his lab. He was panting mostly from excitement. It’s like a new life was breathed into Eclipse. He felt the star in his chest thrum like an excited heart beat as it responded to his rioting emotions.
He pulled out his second set of arms and did a quick sweep to clear off the nearest surface. All the projects he had been messing around with for the past few years hit the ground without a second thought. He set Sun down on the table and started running around to grab a charging cable. He took his own away when he had to remake himself to house the star but the rest still had the need to charge.
“W-W-W-” Sun tried speaking again. Static comes out of his voice box now. It was pretty busted and neglected. Eclipse came back over and leaned over the daytime attendant. He picked him up and used his other set of arms to stabilize Sun as he plugged the cord into a crusty port. He’ll need to use his magic to repair that part.
“Just be patient, I’ll get you functioning again. Yellow idiot.” Eclipse spat that insult out in a rather fond way, he rushed over to his computer as the door to his lab busts open. KC, his giant father, crouched to enter the room and was looking at Eclipse with wild eyes. Those dangerous, red optics zeroed in on Sun’s prone form and Eclipse spared a moment to realize his father looked incredibly hopeful.
“Is it true?” Came a quick question through deep panting hisses. Killcode’s voice through all these years still maintained its slow lilt and even now in his urgency it couldn’t go past the warbling growl.
Solarflare wasn’t far behind and entered calmly. His burning eyes surveyed the lab and zeroed in on the broken animatronic. His eyes rose slightly and the sentry type model managed to actually look surprised despite not having a faceplate that can emote.
“Yes, now come help me or stay out of my way.” Eclipse was frantically typing on his main console to pull up a rapid diagnostic, his body felt warmer and he couldn’t stop a giggle. Sun being alive made him feel giddy. “Sunrise woke up and we don’t have enough time to chit chat.” He read over all the reports and warnings that were flooding in.
Sun’s processor was busted and overloaded. A major data leak was happening to the chips in his head and Sun’s battery was completely busted. The power of the cord plugged into Sun was powering him just enough for everything to stay on but it wouldn’t last forever. The playful bot’s fans were spinning on maximum setting but the amount of dust and open circuitry could cause another internal. There’s also a lot of reports of internals that need complete replacing. That snap Eclipse heard earlier was the shoulder joint giving way. His diagnostics all point that Sunrise should not be functioning or online.
KC moved swiftly over and inspected Sunrise. Sunrise’s rays tried to suck back into the daytime model’s casing as he tried scooting away from the giant model. KC held a large hand up and over Sun’s torso. Eclipse didn’t glance back but he figured KC will probably use his magic to start stabilizing Sun and help to stop the active damage.
“Sunrise.” KC started to speak, “Do you know who I am?” His words were slow and deliberate.
Sun’s frame was shaking as the large hand laid on him. Eclipse could hear Sun’s casing rattling from his place at the console. The lord will need to assess the amount of damage to Sun’s code to rule out the possibility of a body migration. He needed to see just how much was corrupted and how much Sun could actually remember. According to what the computer is telling him, the yellow animatronic shouldn’t have even been able to know Eclipse’s name.
“N-No000o-” Sunrise’s voice box glitched as he spoke.
Eclipse purses his lips, he knows Sunrise wouldn’t recognize Killcode in his true body but…the damage report…
“I am KillCode.” The tall animatronic answered calmly. “Do you recognize that name?” His voice was still calm and a red light slowly emanated from KC’s open palm. He enveloped his ancient magic over Sun’s prone body. Soft tendrils of energy wrapped around and cradled Sun’s shivering form. “I like your outfits, Eclipse dressed you well.” KC complimented as his magic seemed to clash with an invisible force.
“Are you really focusing on that right now?” Eclipse grumpily called from the console.
Sun was still shaking and even moved his non-broken arm to push KC away. It was futile but he made the attempt. Small sparks were emitting from him and smoke from an unknown source poured out of him. Eclipse started up a program to start repairing Sun’s code and memory issues while moving back over to help with the physical mending.
“What’s your magic telling you?” He looked at his father. Even after all this time learning and studying magic side by side, KC’s magic and understanding was always leagues above his own. He wasn’t sure about the swirls of sparks flying off Sunrise. Eclipse was confused by KC’s red magic seemingly being denied by the weak yellow bot.
“Sunrise,” KC leaned forward to shade the little sun. He gave them a smile, “is using magic.” KC’s eyes turned to crescents as he purred. “This is rather good.”
Sunrise was still wiggling and pushing KC. “Is that why he’s still functioning?” Eclipse asked as he grabbed more cables. Sun needed another source of power and he needed to access his internal wiring. The lord had to move fast or Sunrise was going to start burning from the inside out before his code could even be transported safely into his main computer.
“Unknown.” KC started lifting the red glow of his gentle magic. “It exploded. Damaged Sun from the inside out.” The large animatronic was explaining, “Sunrise, he did something tied to his emotions.” Killcode turned his warm red eyes to Eclipse, “I did not realize Sunrise would have a talent for wild magic.”
Eclipse shivered as he looked down at the yellow bot, “Just hold still, we’re fixing you idiot.” He didn’t like wild magic at all. It was all whims and the nuances of nature. Eclipse was never one to dabble in it. “I doubt you even know what’s really going on but just settle down.” He could tell from the reports that Sun’s pain censors weren’t functioning so at least he’s not in pain.
“F-F-F-Fuu-00-cc-” Sun’s voice box popped and screeched, “Y-Y-Y-Y-” Eclipse assumes Sun just tried cursing him out.
KC held a claw on Sun’s arm, “Be still. We shall be gentle. You have our word.”
From how Sun was shaking it was obvious he was terrified. Eclipse can’t blame the idiot since his father does look horrifying. Eclipse opens Sun’s chest and when he starts rummaging around to find the specific cords he needs the door to his lab opens again and Solar enters accompanied by Moon. Looks like the lighter eclipse decided to drag the sleepy Moon into the lab with him.
The two looked at Sun on the table and Solar started swearing. “Dammit, Eclipse.” He ran to the computer to read the reports over, “You didn’t think to call me? Or text me again? This is pretty serious.” He started typing, “These reports look awful…” The mechanic groans as he rapidly switches between all the physical and mental diagnostics.
Moon was smoothing his pajama pants over. “I kind of thought you might have been lying.” He stood by Solar, “this code is…” His own red optics scanned over everything on the screen, “huh.”
“Don’t huh me, Moon! Eclipse, Me and Moon have the code, you focus on keeping his body stable.” Solar got Moon to come over to the panel and they both started typing away to try and save what parts of Sun’s code they could. Their robotic fingers were blurred as they rewrote and stopped the deletion and damage. The code Eclipse launched earlier had its progress not only halted but the progress bar started ticking back. With Solar and Moon working together they were able to slowly gain back ground.
Sunrise’s eyes turned a solid blue as he went into a factory repair mode. The nanny bot finally went limp and Eclipse nodded to Solar. He got to work with the wires in Sun’s chest. It was a downright mess inside.
“Hey…how do you know this guy?” Moon asks quietly as he keeps typing. “I know you don’t exactly show up everyday with a random, decrepit animatronic.”
“I just do.” Eclipse answers hastily. When his father mentioned Sun was torn up from the inside he wasn’t kidding. Burnt wires, black endo, and casing that’s fractured all around. Seriously, how did Sun wake up?
“With no battery how did he even power on? I mean it’s good he did. But how?” Solar was still typing.
“I wasn’t looking at that.” Eclipse thinks he’s going to just have to build Sun a new body. He’s literally toast. He leaned back. “Can you stabilize his code and bring him into the computer? I have to get supplies to make him a new body.”
“We can.” Solar was glaring. “It’s…His code is self repairing and adapting it’s just-” Solar wasn’t sure how to continue.
“It looks like the code is holding magic?!” Moon grinned in an excited way. “I’ve never seen code do this before! It looks like a beating heart! It’s the most intricate set of digits. It's like the code itself is fighting off all our progress similarly to how an immune system works in a human!”
“Yeah, It looks incredible.” The lighter eclipse model complemented the code on screen. He turned back to look at KC and Eclipse. “Is this what a machine mixing with wild magic looks like?”
“Stop asking questions, We don’t have time.” Eclipse pulled some more wires haphazardly. Sun’s temperature was up to a simmering hiss and it was going to be the ugliest patch job to get things moving. “Can you two get his AI inside the computer before his body blows?”
“Not likely-” Solar starts to answer but Moon cuts him off.
“I’ve started a subletting program. I think the code just needs to be shown we’re not here to hurt him.” Moon’s hands had a light blue glow. He was starting to type in not just binary but an ancient spell casting language. “I think this guy needs a bit of magic and machine. You know?” He grinned at Solar and for once dropped the stupid butler act. He was starting to act like the wizard and programmer that he used to be.
Solar gave a smile, “We need three minutes to start the upload and probably ten more minutes for his conscious to fully download.”
“You only have five to get that all done.” Solarflare’s calm voice penetrated the chaos. “Readings show the frame will reach critical temperatures and start combusting in that time frame.”
Solar started swearing under his breath again. “Moon, I’ll keep typing and make sure your program is running, go help with keeping the body cooled.”
Moon gave a playful salute before coming right over to KC and Eclipse, “I will cast ice and minor wind spells while you work on his internals. Right now, I think Solar’s plan is the best bet.” Moon wastes no time and starts summoning blocks of ice around the prone animatronic. The night capped model is careful not to let the sharp ice shards touch Eclipse or KC.
“I rather missed your magic, Moon.” Killcode kept things casual as he too moved to assist with his own ancient ice spells. The temperature surrounding the bot began to lower and Eclipse could actually see the parts that were putting out so much heat.
“How long until the download is done?” Eclipse called out as he moved the melting unit in Sun’s chest out and into the open. It was still soft to the touch from the heat it was emitting. The body is totally scrap at this point.
“Download starting now, It needs four more minutes.” Solar called as his second row of rays popped out. He was deep in concentration as he made sure everything was running smoothly. Once the download started, there wasn’t much he could do.
“Dude, I can’t wait to ask this guy questions.” Moon looked excited as he maintained his icy spells. “He’s giving off so much magic and it feels so much like mine!”
“Not the time, Moon.” Eclipse hissed. He couldn’t disturb anything as Sun was safely downloaded. He was even using star power to control the outcome. He couldn’t lose Sun. Not again. He needed this new lifeline.
He stared at Sun’s blank face and willed the bastard to fight and survive this hodge podge download. His body was cooling but the wild magic inside of him was still raging. It was like some kind of chaotic maelstrom was unleashed and he had to shift his magic to contain the small lashes of power. He could feel his own fingers starting warp from the ambient energy wafting from the sleeping attendant.
The seconds ticked away and Eclipse felt his own stress rising. Everyone watched as the download slowly rolled to completion. Solar’s rays popped out fully and his back straightened.
“It’s done, He can be shut down.”
Eclipse acted fast, his first set of arms grabbed Sun’s faceplate and lifted him from the table, he quickly unplugged the sunny model and held the power button.
Everyone let out a sigh of relief as the overheating model shut down and all the ambient energies settled.
KC was nodding, “Do you need any more assistance from me, son?” He reached out and tenderly placed his clawed hands on Eclipse’s tense shoulders.
Eclipse shut his eyes and centered himself. Sun’s Ai was safe in his mainframe and he now has time to fix Sun with no worry of random explosions.
“I’m alright now, go back to bed.” He shrugged his shoulders and moved back to his computer to look at Sun’s Ai. He could see spikes similar to rays undulating in the program that keeps him asleep and safe. “I can work on his body. The rest of you still need to charge. I don’t need help fathering supplies and you’ll all only be in my way since none of you know thaumaturgy or alteration.” He grit his teeth for a moment. He looked at Moon who was disappointed, at KC who looked sad to be kicked out, and Solar who looked mad he was being written off. Solarflare didn’t really give a damn. “Thank you, for dropping what you were all in the middle of and for helping me. For helping Sun.” Eclipse felt like he lost some kind of battle thanking them but looking at how they all shifted he felt perhaps Earth was right in her lessons.
Solar sighed, “Fine, I’ll go let Selene know things are alright. He panicked from your text and basically worked himself into a mini shut down.”
“I can help you with looking over him.” Moon walked to join Solar, It would appear he’s going back into his dumb butler persona, “It would be dower for me to not look over one of my masters.” Moon finished with a flourish that didn’t fit the mood. Moon was already back to his games. “I do believe he’ll be rather peeked by this evening's turnabout.”
“Sure, Moon, sure.” Solar just sighed as his second set of rays tucked back into his housing. All of his stress evaporated. “I’ll be back to check on you in the morning. If you don’t join us for breakfast I’ll send Earth and the twins to come see you.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Eclipse just tutted as he moved to his supply closet. He doesn’t need specific parts to repair Sun’s resting body. He just needs the pure elements to work. He turned his audio receptors to their max and he listened as everyone did leave. KC was silent as he left but the sound of his door clicking shut was the only tell he was alone in his lab.
Eclipse turned his dark eyes back to the Ai safely tucked away on screen. His star shaped pupils shook as more emotions raged inside him, he giggled again as he hugged himself. Finally, Sun will survive and he even retained memories. He had enough fight left in him to personally curse Eclipse out.
Eclipse felt like things would change. Moon was interested in programming again. His father finally has a reason to pick up and study magic again. Eclipse himself felt as whatever force Sun was commanding warped his star altered body.
He laughed joyously in the privacy of his lab. His pupils were shining far brighter than they have in so long. He’ll maybe have a way out of his endless hell. The monotony of functioning day in and out with no real upward movement won’t dull his mind.
Sun was a symbol of change. Eclipse wouldn’t be alone anymore. He’d finally be opposed, challenged.Sunrise might even kill him.
He couldn’t stop laughing. Things were finally going to be interesting again!