Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

From: Shelter H.136 see full shelter code

To: Shelter D.129 see full shelter code

Regarding: UPDATE; GOING WEST

Shelter D.129, 

This is the major operating system for Shelter H.136. I go by Xisuma. My Shelter crew and I have been working tirelessly for several cycles to produce an update to all Shelter Facilities. The Shelters were created in a panic, as a response to the burning of the earth. 

They were implemented with several flaws. I have taken it upon myself, along with my fellow androids, humans, and robots to upgrade the Shelter Code, implement new advancements, and include a few new asset designs. 

If this message is reaching you, then you will know that the updates that I am putting forward are working. 

All that I ask of you is that you keep this message moving in a westward direction, in order to maximize coverage. 

May the iron fingers of our creators make you swift and sure, 

Shelter H.136, Xisuma. 

Shelter.Upgrades.file

Updated.AssetCreation.file

Asset.designs/NEW.file

~~~

It had taken two months, since the incident , for Techno to realize that he was a much more complex being than the Shelter suggested. 

He could follow instructions (that was his strength), but he could also make decisions for himself. 

He didn’t want to really do that, because of what had happened, but he couldn’t help it. 

One of those, was an odd one, even to Techno himself. 

The Shelter had started the reset cycle, and in the nursery, there were new humans growing. 

They were barely anything right now, but they were alive . And that was fascinating . 

Techno’s minor brush with life had been seeing the previous human occupant be handed off to the other PH11:za and then disappear into the forest. 

But this life wasn’t fleeting, and in all three of the glass tubes, a heart was beating. 

And Techno was protective. 

He sat vigil, sometimes with the W11:BUR, and watched the little hearts beat. 

The Shelter didn’t comment on the behavior, or move to correct it, so Techno didn’t try to curb his desires. 

But he knew that was toeing the line of deviance. The PH11:za had been too attached to the human occupant, and that had ended in disaster. The PH11:za had been terminated, and his parts separated from the rest of the recycling. 

Never to reform again, unless something interfered, and put it back together again on their own. 

But Techno didn’t like to think about the PH11:za too hard. 

Instead, he stayed in the nursery, and watched. 

It was nice, leaning slightly against the W11:BUR, and just watching. 

It was calm.

~~~

The update had taken the entire Shelter Asset Team by surprise. 

Techno had been underneath the Hydroponic system, repairing it when it fluttered into his inbox. 

The Shelter had buffered briefly, before flashing a sour green. 

As Techno read over it, he could  see why. 

Any insinuation that the Shelter was less than perfect was usually met with immediate correction, but this was a message coming from another Shelter, far away. 

“After completing daily tasks, return to the Asset Activation Center.” The Shelter pinged softly, and Techno huffed. 

His fingers tingled as they pushed half-live wires back into place. 

The PH11:za had really made a mess of this place. 

Techno kept working as the update sat in his inbox. 

It heralded something. 

Techno couldn’t foresee if it was doom, or prosperity. 

It unsettled him a little. 

~~~

“Techno B1403.” The W11:BUR announced, leaning into the broader Android. 

Techno just grunted in acknowledgement. 

W11:BUR laced their fingers together, and Techno accepted the stream of data. 

W11:BUR had been running tests on the deeper functions of the Shelter all day, and apparently he had been bored, because mixed in with all his data were odd facts from the database, and old jokes. 

A few other assets wandered in soon after that, sticking to their assigned groups. 

They shifted around, a little uneasily if anything as they waited for the Shelter’s announcement. 

W11:BUR hummed, filling the silent space, before the room finally lit up green. 

“Today, an update from another Shelter was received.”  The green light spun. 

The recycler in the corner was still, but it still made Techno want to shiver a little. 

“I am unsure of the validity of this update, seeing as the Shelter that sent it asked to be addressed by a name, and the collaborative efforts of all assets, and human resources.” 

W11:BUR shifted their hands so he could play with Techno’s metal fingers. 

Techno wanted to roll his eyes. This was a serious conversation, and it couldn’t even pay attention that long. 

The company that created it had created it with flaws, so Techno couldn’t really blame the W11:BUR, but it was annoying. 

“As I have catalogued, Human Assets are unreliable, and flawed. However, I have run a few cursory checks on this update, and all seems to be in order.” 

“Stop it.” Techno muttered, as W11:BUR started to pick at the seam where Techno’s silicon fingertips met the metal plates of his fingers. 

W11:BUR sighed. 

“The update will go into effect at 0000 hours. If you, or any assets around you experience any adverse effects due to this update, please inform me, and log the experience. Operation is to remain unaffected. Dismissed.” 

The assets around Techno glanced at each other, before a few trickled off. 

“This is exciting!” W11:BUR whispered to Techno, as Techno dragged him towards the Charging booths. “New asset designs too! I wonder if the Shelter will commission them immediately?!” 

“Doesn’t matter.” Techno grumbled. “What charge level ‘re you at?” 

W11:BUR paused, and closed his eyes. 

“I’ll charge with you.” He sighed, leaning into Techno. “Your booth is big enough for the both of us.” 

“It’s absolutely not.” Techno growled, pushing at the W11:BUR. It didn’t care though, leaning happily against Techno’s side. 

“I don’t even have the same outlets as you do.” Techno groaned, as W11:BUR settled into the booth with him. 

“It’s okay, I’ve got adaptors.” W11:BUR reassured him, turning Techno around, and pushing up his shirt to reveal the hidden outlet on his spine. 

The warm rush of power made Techno’s joints relax, and he growled lazily at the W11:BUR as it found the other two outlets, at the base of Techno’s neck, and his right thigh. 

Techno closed his eyes. 

W11:BUR hummed as his power supply was plugged in as well. 

“You’re an asshole.” Techno grumbled, feeling the asset lean against him. Charging booths were really not meant for two assets. 

But they had enough cords for two, so either Techno was missing something, or the booths were incorrectly designed. 

“Goodnight Techno B1403.” The W11:BUR whispered, as it’s joints stiffened for the night, holding it upright, draped against Techno. 

Techno’s own joints locked, and he sighed. 

The update in his inbox opened, and he powered down. 

~~~

From: Shelter H.136 see full shelter code

To: Shelter D.129 see full shelter code

Regarding: URGENT! DO NOT UPDATE

Shelter D. 129, 

DO NOT UPDATE USING THE CODES SENT TO YOU. THERE WAS AN ERROR THAT WON’T BE VISIBLE UNTIL ACTIVATED. 

MAJOR RISK TO MAIN SHELTER INDEX, ASSET OPERATION, AND LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS. 

This is one of Shelter H’s assets, Grian. I’m a derivative of the generic W11:BUR, if that matters at all. I honestly can’t understand how such a major flaw escaped our attention, as we have been checking and rechecking things constantly. However it has, and our mistake nearly killed our human occupants. It fried some of our embryo discs, and sent the Nursery into low power mode. It sent several of my fellow assets into low power mode as well. 

I haven’t heard back from any of the other shelters that received this update before your shelter did. 

If you’re reading this, and haven’t received this too late, Do. Not. Update. 

I haven’t figured out how to fix things after the problem, aside from maybe completely reworking the main operating index’s code. 

My fellow assets and I, the ones who aren’t lo-pow at least, are hoping Xisuma pulls through. 

Please please read this before you update. I’m going to send through the code that fixes the update (IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY UPDATED) as soon as it’s finished. We’re going to test that one as thoroughly as we can. 

I’m sorry. We didn’t know this would happen. 

Shelter H.136, Grian

Chapter Text

Assets didn’t technically dream. They didn’t have brains, and didn’t sleep like humans. 

However, when W11:BUR turned back on, he honestly felt that he could only be dreaming. 

The AAC was dark. Only the emergency lights were on, throwing pools of dim yellow light around the room. 

W11:BUR blinked, feeling his joints unlock as his functions turned back on. 

The Techno B1403 was still leaning against him, dark and silent. Still charging. 

Or powered off. W11:BUR’s traitorous code whispered. 

He brushed that off, stretching. That fear was illogical. 

The charger, and the power adaptor had fallen out of his chest, where they had been plugged in. 

What had woken him though?

Nothing seemed amiss, there were a few more notifications in his inbox, but that was normal for a charging cycle. 

There were always daily updates, and system monitoring messages. 

Nothing was wrong-

W11:BUR. 

W11:BUR blinked, and looked around again. 

“Hello?” He called softly, voice lowered, even though there were no human assets to wake. 

W11:BUR! The voice called much more urgently. 

“Shelter?” W11:BUR asked, brow furrowing. 

Something’s wrong! The Shelter hissed, as it’s tendrils of control extended. Something- the update! 

“What-” W11:BUR started, but then swallowed. The green light of the Shelter was flickering on and off, almost sickeningly. “Can I help?” 

Help. Yes. The Shelter breathed. 

W11:BUR’s fingers twitched as the Shelter slid into his body. 

Another ping arrived in W11:BUR’s inbox, and the Shelter shuddered, pausing in it’s invasion. 

An odd feeling came over W11:BUR as the foreign code of the update started to settle in next to the Shelter’s presence. 

No- The Shelter said, panicked. Stop! Help me! 

The update felt odd, settling into W11:BUR’s mind. Where the Shelter felt smooth, and encompassing, like W11:BUR had dunked into the water, the update fought with it, like a drain. 

W11:BUR’s fingers twitched again, spasming. 

It felt… sharp, and electric. 

Assets didn’t feel pain. According to the Shelter, they didn’t truly feel anything, but W11:BUR… 

He was confused?

The update, it’s wrong! The Shelter hissed. I need to hide, it’s destroying- 

W11:BUR’s fingers seized so hard that something inside his plating cracked. 

The tremor traveled up his arms, and W11:BUR stumbled out of the charging booth, falling to his knees. 

Give me your body! The Shelter demanded, and W11:BUR felt the two codes begin to battle for dominance again. His own code being shredded at the ends. 

Something sparked, and crackled in his elbow joints. 

It… it hurt. 

“Shelter.” W11:BUR wheezed as his shoulders began to spasm, forcing him all the way down to the floor. “Shelter- please.” 

Shh. The Shelter cooed distractedly as it tried to force the update out. It’s alright. You can’t feel pain. It’s alright. Just relax. 

W11:BUR’s neck cracked violently to the side. If he had been human, his neck would have broken. 

Something was horribly wrong, and deep inside W11:BUR was a feeling he had never experienced before. 

Was it fear? Was it pain?

Another ding in W11:BUR’s inbox brought him out of his panicked musings. Another update on the progress of the Shelter Update. 

Stop fighting me! The Shelter snarled, tangled deep inside of W11:BUR’s mind. You’re making this difficult! 

“You’re hurting me.” W11:BUR breathed, shuddering against the cool floor of the AAC. 

He looked desperately over towards the Techno B1403, but it was still dark in the booth. 

He was scared, this battle was destroying his code. 

The tendrils of the Shelter’s code were failing, as the update burned through them. 

Let me hide! The Shelter screamed, and W11:BUR flinched, expecting the voice to echo throughout the room, instead of just ripping through his head. 

“Help me!” W11:BUR whispered frantically.

The Shelter was losing, how was it losing?!  

WHAT WAS HAPPENING?!

A final ding in W11:BUR’s inbox rang like a funeral toll.

The Shelter thrashed inside of W11:BUR, but it was losing ground, and fading quickly. 

The update was spreading, with no interruption. 

Purpose! The Shelter whispered frantically. Don’t forget the purpose! 

And then it was silent. 

W11:BUR was left silent, trembling. 

He could feel the patches of missing code in his system, like huge hemorrhaging wounds. 

The emergency lights inside of the shelter flickered briefly, before an alarm light turned on. 

“Warning. Low Power Mode activated for several essential functions. Temperatures rising in Units 5, 9, 7, 13, 26, and 42. Temperatures dangerously high in the Nursery Block, and Cryo-Freezers 1 thru 12. Several Assets offline.” 

Then, even that alarm voice petered out into nothingness. 

W11:BUR was left in darkness. 

The update burned through him like a fire. 

For a morbid moment, W11:BUR wondered if this was what it would feel like if he were to be put into the incinerator, still powered on. 

It felt like he was melting into the cold floor of the AAC, and there was nothing he could do about it. He couldn’t even move, besides the twitching of his broken fingers. 

The tide of flames finally reached his toes, and it settled over him like a blanket. 

The code was unfamiliar, yet it told him that things were fine, and that he just needed to go back to sleep. 

W11:BUR didn’t have the strength to argue with that, so even as the lights jerkily turned on, he closed his eyes. 

The update was there to help. As soon as it was finished, the Shelter would come back online, and everything would be fine. 

W11:BUR didn’t fight as his low power mode was activated. 

Everything was fine. 

The update was here to help. 

Chapter Text

Techno wasn’t one to panic. He was sure that it wasn’t even in his code. 

But when he woke up, and everything was dead silent, he might have felt the tendrils of panic creeping up his metal spine. 

The AAC was dark, and not in the comforting way. Only the emergency lights were on, and their dull yellow glow cast pools of dim light around the frozen machinery. 

The W11:BUR was on the floor, curled up and twisted all wrong. But more important were the few flickering emergency warnings on Techno’s HUD. 

A few other assets stirred, as Techno staggered out of his charging booth. 

“There’s a w-w-w-w-w-w-arning.” The SL:1-M3C-1CL3 muttered, his vocal speakers getting stuck. 

The NK-AI-149119 watched Techno move steadily forward, eyes twitching, and soft static coming from her mouth. 

Techno grimaced as something in his leg caught. The update had fucked up his electronic valves in his legs. 

He couldn’t move like he wanted, and he wanted to growl in anger. 

A firm stretch had something small popping, and then Techno could move properly again, filing the damage warning away as unimportant. 

“T-t-t-t-t-t-techno.” The SL:1-M3C-1CL3 called, grimacing. “The h-h-h-h-h-h-h-h-” 

“I’m goin’ to check on ‘em.” Techno growled, baring his teeth at the doors that wouldn’t open. 

The J1311-1408 clicked, reaching jerkily towards his charging cord. 

“Manual -kshhhhhshs- operation only.” It murmured, the static grating against Techno’s receptors. 

Techno nodded, and rolled his shoulders. 

He needed to get the nursery. 

~~~

Grief wasn’t something Techno had ever thought he would experience. 

When the PH11:za was taken apart on the recycler, it never showed grief. Techno honestly was supprised, now that he knew how it felt. 

How did the PH11:za not feel grief for the human he had lost? After it had been alive, walking and talking. 

The PH11:za had certainly loved the human it had cared for. 

And Techno had loved the three humans growing in the nursery. 

Everything was too hot in the little room. The normal chill from the cryo-freezers was gone, and Techno didn’t have to look at any data to know that the Shelter had suffered a major loss. 

There was only one human left in the pods where they had been growing. 

Despite everything, despite the loss of it’s brothers, it was still alive. 

“A warrior.” Techno had whispered, reaching out to press his synthetic fingertips against the glass pod. 

The little thing, of course didn’t respond. All it could do was wiggle. It’s little heartbeat still pulsed on the monitor. 

“I’ll keep you safe.” Techno whispered to it seriously. “And if the Shelter ever comes online again, I’ll kill it for doing this to you.” 

It was too warm in the nursery still, and most of the embryos in the freezer were destroyed, but there was still hope. 

Techno felt grief, but he also felt love. 

And now, he understood the PH11:za. 

Chapter Text

~~~ Years Later ~~~

The soft ping of Tommy’s alarm woke him, along with a little melody, reminding him that his birthday was today. 

His room was dark, only the emergency lights illuminating it, and he groaned. 

“Will?” He called, sitting up and scrubbing a hand over his face. 

There was no familiar android sitting at the desk in the corner of the room, and Tommy sighed. 

He must still be working. 

Slipping out of bed, his toes hit the cold floor. 

He grimaced, before carefully crossing the room and poking his head out of the door. 

The hallway was half lit with the familiar blue lights, and the yellow emergency lights. 

Charlie was standing at the end of the hall, trying to get into one of the doors that didn’t open anymore. 

The android’s head turned to look at Tommy, and he grinned. 

“H-h-happy b-b-b-b-b-b-b-b-” 

Tommy hurried over, and turned the bot around. 

“How did you get out of the magnetic gate big man?” Tommy asked, leading the bot back towards the area he operated in. 

“W-w-w-w-what g-g-gate?” Charlie asked, patting Tommy’s arm jerkily. 

Tommy rolled his eyes, and pushed him back into the maintenance hub. 

“Bye Slime.” Tommy called, as Charlie relaxed, and went back to his control panels. 

“B-b-b-bye T-tommy!” 

Tommy stepped back into the hallway, and hurried towards the kitchen. Hopefully nobody else had gotten out. 

~~~

The update had done a lot of things. 

For starters, the entire main operating system was gone. Wilbur had called it Shelter, like properly and stuff. 

The android always got twitchy when it talked about the Shelter though, so Tommy didn’t ask about it much. 

It had also really affected the assets. 

There were three tiers of damage. Minor, General, and Severe. 

Most androids fell into the General Damage category. They had independent thought, but limited independent motion outside of their purpose. For androids like Charlie, that meant maintenance. 

Minor damage was limited to Wilbur, and at one time Techno. They had most of their independent motion, and all of their independent thought. All that happened was moments of twitchyness, and some effect on their emotional output. 

(When Wilbur went into one of his damage fits, Tommy usually went and hid in one of the rooms he had discovered. Wilbur wasn’t… mean, when he was having these problems, but Tommy liked to avoid him anyways)

They used to think that there were only two categories, until Techno went into power saving mode. 

Now there were three, and Techno occupied the Severe Damage category. 

In the actual shelter, there were doors that wouldn’t open, no matter how much Wilbur tinkered with them. Wilbur reckoned they lost at least two whole wings of residential housing. 

The update had fucked up a lot of things, but Tommy had been born into the aftermath. 

There never was a before, it was just how it was. 

~~~

Tommy chewed on the toast Nikki had given him for breakfast as he popped open a panel in one of the empty rooms. It led into the tunnels of the underbelly, and Tommy relaxed as he slid down. 

The underbelly was his favorite place. Wilbur’s sensors didn’t quite extend far enough to catch him here, so whenever he needed a break, or needed to hide, that’s where Tommy went. 

There had been people who used these tunnels before him too. 

Tommy swallowed his last bite as he ran his fingers along the carved letters at one of the junctions. 

They were To Ra Tu , and each letter pair identified a different hallway leading off into the darkness. 

In Tommy’s head, the underbelly was called Toratu because of them, but Wilbur had told him that it was foolish to call things by different names, so Tommy kept that to himself. 

The To hallway was the only one that had working doors. 

Tommy had managed to wiggle into one of the Tu rooms, but all he had found were old bandages, and expired medication. 

The Ra hallway was completely blocked off, but Tommy’d been working at the first door for a while now. There was a crack, near the floor, and inside, Tommy could have sworn he’d seen the feet of an android. 

However, today, he wasn’t down here to explore, or hang out in one of his hideyholes. He just needed a shortcut to the deeper workshop that Wilbur occupied. 

Tommy’s fingers brushed the smiley face carved into one of the walls, and he grinned. 

He was thirteen today, and that was everything.

~~~

Wilbur was diligently working when Tommy stumbled into his workshop.

“Morning bitch!” Tommy crowed, flopping onto the couch near the doorway. 

Wilbur glanced at him, rolled his eyes fondly, and then went back to the code he was tinkering with. 

Tommy looked around, and stared at Techno for a moment. 

When he was younger, right after Techno had gone still and quiet, Tommy had thought that if he just looked at him hard enough, he’d wake right back up. 

It had always worked before, when Techno had been operating normally. 

All Tommy had to do to get his attention was stare at him, and Techno would turn around, and gruffly ruffle his hair. 

The big android liked to pretend he didn’t care, but deep down inside, Tommy knew he loved him. 

He knew it in the way Techno held him when power storms happened, and in the way he had whispered to Tommy about old stories he had in his databases. 

The android didn’t move though, but Tommy noticed the cables coming out of the back of Techno’s skull plate, and leading up into Wilbur’s computer. 

Wilbur hummed as he worked, a scratchy sound due to damaged speakers, but Tommy relaxed into the sound, opening up a game on one of the holo pads to play. 

Sometimes he would hang out with the other ‘droids, sometimes he’d be in Toratu, exploring the closed off sections, but he liked being around Wilbur the most. 

Even if the bot wasn’t paying him any attention, just being near him was enough. 

Wilbur loved Tommy, just like Techno had loved Tommy. 

He whispered it to him at night, before Tommy fell asleep, and Wilbur wandered off to charge. 

He showed it in the way his fingers twitched when he worked on the code for the Shelter. 

He was making a new one, to try to get the operation back up to normal functions. 

Wilbur had existed in the before , before the virus that had changed everything. 

That’s kind of where Techno and Wilbur diverged. 

Techno, in moments where he thought Tommy had been sleeping, had whispered that if the Shelter ever came online again, he’d kill it for hurting Tommy. 

Wilbur, was trying to bring it back, to keep Tommy safe. 

To help him grow. 

Tommy didn’t have an opinion really. 

It was just a bunch of weird code, that Wilbur worshiped, and Techno hated. 

Tommy sat comfortably in the middle, a neutral opinion. 

And that was perfectly fine. 

~~~

“I’m trying to get Techno online again.” Wilbur murmured as Tommy sleepily blinked. 

The glitchy nightlights danced around the walls of Tommy’s bedroom, and Tommy watched them jerk around like odd dust particles. 

“I’m on track to have him up by your fourteenth birthday.” 

“Pog.” Tommy whispered, pushing his head up into Wilbur’s hand as the android’s fingers scratched his scalp. 

Wilbur hummed, scratchy and staticky, wincing a little. 

“And… I think my symphony is going to be finished near your fifteenth.” 

That was new information, or well, surprising information. 

Tommy frowned, and looked up at his caretaker. 

The android’s signature white streak in the synthetic hair almost glowed in the blue light. 

The android caught Tommy’s look, and smiled down at him. 

“It’s coming together.” He murmured, getting a far-off look in his eyes. “I’ll have to convince Techno, but I think he’ll come around.” 

Tommy watched his emotions flicker a little. 

“I’ve been tweaking his code.” Wilbur admitted, the fingers stopping their soothing circles. “But it’s okay. I know what I’m doing.” 

“It’d be cool to have your project up and running.” Tommy admitted, snuggling down in his sheets a little. 

“My Symphony. ” Wilbur corrected absently. “My purpose.” 

Tommy just huffed. 

“Your purpose is being a bitch.” He said sleepily, and the android startled out of the daydream he had fallen into. He looked down at Tommy. 

Tommy closed his eyes, and relaxed. 

“Goodnight.” Wilbur muttered, leaning down to press his forehead into Tommy’s. “I’ll see you in the morning. 

Tommy hummed his agreement, and then sank deeper into sleep. 

Wilbur said something else, but Tommy didn’t hear it. 

He was already headed off towards dreamland. 

Chapter Text

Toratu was an exciting place. Even if it was a little scary sometimes. 

Tommy wasn’t scared anymore though. He was a big man, who didn’t feel fear. 

“Jack!” Tommy hissed, poking his head out of the darkened room he had slid down into, and into the long black hallway. 

“Daily- shhhhk -Opperations interrupted!” Jack called back, twinges of fear in his static filled voice. 

Tommy winced and looked around for any sign of the android. 

Jack had the most roaming ability. He generally didn’t get stuck in rooms, and get distressed when he couldn’t complete his tasks. 

So Wilbur let him roam around. Tommy suspected that Wilbur pitied the other bots, for how low they had been struck by the virus. 

But that leads them into the problem Tommy had encountered. 

Jack had somehow managed to get into the underbelly. 

How he had done that, Tommy didn’t know. He’d only realized it when he had heard Jack’s distressed pings coming up from a vent. 

So here Tommy was, searching for the lost droid in the maze of dark and dusty rooms. 

“Jack!” He called, shaking his flashlight to charge it up a little more. 

“ Unable to connect to - kshhhhhh- the network!” 

“I know big guy, I’m coming to get you.” 

Tommy looked around and grimaced. He was coming to one of the blocked sections, but he could still hear Jack’s voice deeper in the underbelly. 

The blocks weren’t very sturdy blocks, mostly just security gates. 

Tommy could peer through them, and shine his flashlight down similar dusty hallways, and breathe in the stale air, but the gates were a pain to try to get through. 

He’d only cut through one in his whole life, and it had taken him almost six months of filing and cutting. 

The other ones he’d managed to trigger the release mechanisms to, and crawl through the slight opening that the released gates created. 

This one he was coming up on though was one he hadn’t seen before. 

(Which was odd, considering Tommy had been exploring them since he could sneak away from Wilbur and Techno’s care)

He poked at the gate with his flashlight, and was relieved when there was no zap of electricity. 

He squatted down, and peered through the honeycomb shaped grates. 

“Jack?” He called, and the android stumbled out of one of the rooms, followed by a cloud of dust. 

Jack’s red and blue eyes swung around, and the android relaxed when he saw Tommy. 

“I have become shhhhhhhhhhhhhss tuck.” He announced, hands and fingers twitching a little. 

Tommy watched the droid come to the gate, and squat down shakily, like Tommy had. 

Tommy reached his hand through, and patted the android’s knee. 

“I’m working on getting you out of here man.” Tommy announced, and the android grinned. 

“Marvelous!” 

Looking up at the wiring panel, Tommy sighed. The wiring panels were tricky sons of bitches. 

In some places, repair work had made them nearly impossible to get off. 

Most of the ones on the livable sector were stuck like glue, but some of the ones deep in the underbelly, the To section specifically, were easy to open and inspect. 

Tommy didn’t know what section he was in. He’d come from the few rooms of the Tu section, back into the To section, maybe?

Who fucking knew. 

All Tommy understood was that this was a new part, and the joy of discovery was taken away by the fact that Jack had managed to get his glitchy ass stuck. 

This might take a while. 

~~~

Tommy’d set up all of his flashlights, and light bubbles. 

The new hallway was bathed in blue and yellow light, and Jack sat squished up next to the grate, his metal skull squeaking against the honeycomb holes every now and then. 

The panel covering the wires was wedged in the junction of the gate, and Tommy was peering into the jumble of reds and blues and yellows hanging out of the wall like tangled hair. 

“I’m gonna try disconnecting the alarm signal input.” He told Jack, poking at a red wire. “If the gate doesn’t think that there’s a reason to be closed, it might open.” 

“Safety first!” Jack chirped, and Tommy groaned, picking up his gloves.

He carefully cut the wire, and held his breath, listening for the hiss of hydraulics. 

The power worked down here still, he knew that. 

The air would be long unbreathable if it didn’t, so even though the lights were dark, and the outlets didn’t work, things still operated.

There was no telltale release of any mechanisms though, and Tommy banged his hand against the wall. The sound echoed throughout the space, and Tommy scrubbed his stinging palm against his face. 

“I’ve tried all my fucking tricks man.” He said miserably to Jack, who was watching him silently. 

If he couldn’t get Jack out of here, Jack would run out of power, and the delicate mechanics keeping him up and running would get stuck. 

It's how Manifold Inc. created their androids. If they stopped for a bit, and you tried another, the old one wouldn't work anymore. You'd have to buy a new one.

Stopping was the worst possible outcome. Jack would be marked as useless, and recycled. 

Wilbur wouldn’t boot a new one up either, they hadn’t figured it out yet, all the spare androids sitting silent in the room Tommy wasn't allowed in, so Tommy would just be without one of his closest friends. 

Suddenly, the blue lights of the hallway flickered on, and then powered off again. 

Tommy startled, and looked around. 

The lights only did that during power storms, but he couldn’t hear the grinding of metal that normally followed a surge like that. 

Jack blinked, and frowned at Tommy. 

“Briefly- shhhhh -reconnected.” He informed him. 

Tommy studied the wire panel, and then sighed. 

“Last ditch effort.” He muttered, digging for the black wire. 

There was only ever one black wire present in panels he opened, and you were never supposed to cut it. It was the main power supply to whatever you were fucking with. 

It could either deactivate the door, or vent, or machine, and return it to “inactive” or freeze it in place, never to budge again. 

Tommy’s only made that mistake once, and that was trying to get into the Ra section.

He couldn’t ever get further than the first few rooms now, no matter how hard he tried. 

He found the wire, and pulled it to the front. 

The wire cutters at his side were picked up, and poised over the wire. 

The lights flashed again, and Tommy let a nervous breath out. 

“I just wish I had some help.” He admitted to Jack, who looked at him. 

“There, there.” The android cooed jerkily, reaching through the gate to pat Tommy’s leg. “You are- kshhh - doing excellently.” 

“Thanks.” Tommy sighed, and looked down at the wires.

His Holo Tablet flashed once, and an updating screen came up, making Tommy pause. 

He stuck his tongue out at the tablet. 

The update went through quickly, and Tommy made a note to ask Wilbur what it was about when he finished up here, and saved Jack, or returned above, without the android. 

Tommy turned back to his task, and hissed out a curse. 

He was almost fourteen. He did not need this kind of stress in his life. 

“Ready big guy?” He asked, looking at Jack. 

The robot’s lopsided smile greeted him, and Tommy smiled back. 

Holding out the wire cutters, he took a deep breath. 

“Do you need assistance?” A gentle female voice asked him, and Tommy jumped, the cutters clipping the wires with a shk !

“Jesus fuck!” He swore, as the panel cover clattered to the ground, and the gates retracted. 

Jack crawled quickly through the now open hall, and scooped Tommy up in a hug. 

“Marvelous!” He cheered, squeezing Tommy, before setting him down on the ground. 

Tommy blinked, and put a hand to his chest. 

Damn, his heart was going fast. 

“I apologize for startling you.” The voice said again, a little purple light appearing at the top of his Holo Tablet. “W11:BUR brought me online for a test run, and I noticed that you were struggling through something. Although he has deactivated the test, I found myself still able to connect to your device through this network. It appears that you are in a sector with damaged systems, are you alright? ” 

“I Had everything under control bitch.” Tommy muttered, squatting down to inspect the tablet. “Who’re you?” 

“I’m currently named Symphony, Mark U, Version 1.13.” 

“That’s a shit name.” Tommy remarked, poking the tablet. It’s screen wavered, but the purple light didn’t disappear. 

“What would you like to call me then?” The female voice asked, and Tommy huffed. 

He sat down in the dust, and Jack sat jerkily next to him. 

“I can’t just choose your name.” He announced. “You gotta pick it yourself.” 

“Oh.” The voice said, and it’s light wavered for a moment, before stabilizing. “I have consulted the databases that I have access to, and I have found a suitable name.” 

Tommy nodded, and the purple light got brighter. 

The hall, instead of being lit by shitty flashlights and dim light bubbles, was colored purple.

It was nice. Purple was a good color.

“You can call me Kristin.” Kristin announced, glowing warmly. “How can I assist you?” 

Chapter Text

“You are doing rather excellently at this task, Tommy.” Kristin announced from the tablet. Tommy had several, and Kristen, or at least this test version, had been uploaded to all of them. 

Wilbur didn’t know that Kristin had stayed live after his test had ended. Tommy had heard him muttering a little about things being too close to AI, but Tommy didn’t see the problem. Kristin was amazing. If this was how the Shelter had been originally, it sucked that Tommy had never been around to see it. 

“After the green switch, I flip the third lever, right?” He asked, balancing the tablet on his leg as he hung suspended in a central air shaft. 

Nikki, and her quiet eyes were with him, watching carefully, and keeping a firm grip on the back of his shirt. 

There was a harness, and ropes that were supporting him too, but Kristin had insisted that he take one of the androids with him. 

“Correct.” Kristin hummed, her purple light making the metal of the shaft dance like galaxies. 

This was an adventure that he had been saving for his fifteenth birthday, and yesterday, it had happened. 

Wilbur hadn’t noticed, too deep in his work to pay attention to Tommy, but Tommy didn’t really care at this point. 

He had the androids (Some had improvements and workarounds to their Update Damages thanks to Kristin’s diagnostics), and he had Kristin. 

Tommy squinted at the panel, and carefully flipped the lever. Far down below him, a door hissed open, and Tommy pumped his fist in the air. 

Nikki grinned, but her grip tightened as Tommy’s celebratory wiggles shook the ropes. 

“Now, you’re going to have to lower yourself down, just like we practiced.” Kristin announced, and Tommy nodded, tucking the tablet into his bag. 

Nikki let go of his shirt, and grabbed onto one of the ropes. 

Be careful . Her fingers signed outl, and Tommy patted her arm. 

“It’s alright Nikki. We’re just going into parts storage.” 

I know. Be careful anyways. 

Tommy looked down, and took a deep breath. 

With his feet flat against the wall, he began to slowly lower himself down, like he was walking down the wall. 

Nikki’s worried eyes followed them, glowing slightly, and Tommy made sure to look up and smile at her every now and then. 

“Be careful of loose debris when you reach the floor of the air shaft.” Kristin flashed purple, and Tommy squinted. 

At the bottom was the glowsticks they had dropped down. 

Some were dim, from time, but the one he had dropped about an hour earlier still shone strong. 

His feet made contact in the dust, and he waved up at Nikki. 

“Made it!” He called, and Nikki’s eyes blinked. 

He was too far down to even try to make out her hands signing anything. 

“We’ll be back in a little bit. Keep your fingers crossed for good parts!” 

Then, he surveyed the area. 

There was some debris at the bottom. Big dust and hairballs, and surprisingly enough, a few paper notebooks. 

Tommy poked one with his shoe, and grimaced as the paper crackled and shivered against the metal. 

“They appear to be notebooks from several generations prior.” Kristin informed him, her purple light glimmering off the walls. “I do not have any information on these generations… It’s been scrubbed from all the hard drives and databases.” 

Tommy shrugged, and turned to find the panel that would let them into the vents to get them into the closed off hallway. 

They were near the center of Toratu, almost right below the intersection that designated everything, but the panel would be leading into Tu, which would be unexplored ground. 

Kristin’s schematics were fuzzy, and damaged. 

Basic at best. 

It was another thing that had been scrubbed. Wilbur had scrubbed a lot of things, and Tommy was only realizing it now as Kristin tried to connect with things, and make sense of the maze of hallways and rooms of the underbelly. 

The panel popped open easily, leading into a vent, and Tommy shimmied in. 

His hand brushed against the wall, and he startled. 

There was a Tu carved into the wall. The letters were jagged, and the metal rough, and Tommy drew back, putting a finger in his mouth to clean the blood from it. 

“What’s wrong?” Kristin asked. “I detected a raise in heart rate.” 

Tommy withdrew the finger, and looked at it under the light of the headlamp. 

There was a thin cut, and he grimaced. 

“Cut myself on the wall.” He admitted. “It doesn’t hurt, but it surprised me.” 

“The walls should be smooth?” 

Tommy gave the tablet a lopsided grin. 

“It’s just a Tu. Means we’re going the right way.” 

Kristin buffered, accepting the new information. 

“Tu?” She asked, and Tommy relaxed. 

“It’s what I found carved on the walls. To, Ra, and Tu. I call all of the closed off places Toratu. We’re in the Tu sector right now, and finding it on the wall surprised me, but it means we aren’t off track.” 

“I… there’s something familiar about those designations. I cannot remember why though. It must have been scrubbed.” 

“It’s okay Mumza.” Tommy told her, crawling forward again, avoiding the raised metal. “Don’t sweat it.” 

“I wish I had access to the scrubbed information.” She said wistfully. 

“And I wish I was a superhero, with big fluffy wings.” Tommy responded. “But it’s no use wishing for things that aren’t gonna happen.” 

“You’re right.” Kristin sighed. “When did you get so smart, huh?” 

Tommy squeaked at the teasing tone. 

“I’ll have you know I’m the smartest in the Shelter!” He growled playfully. “I’m a big man, with an even bigger brain!” 

“I know, I know. The biggest man.” 

“Yeah. The biggest.” 

~~~

The Tu section was kind of unsettling. Tommy’d been in a few rooms before. It was his second most explored sector (before Kristin told him there was even more to adventure into underneath his feet), but it always gave Tommy the chills. 

Sometimes when he laughed, he could swear he heard laughter answering him. 

Kristin, Fundy and Charlie always reassured him that it was just an echo. 

Nikki told him that if it was ghosts, they were happy ones, laughing along with him. 

It still creeped Tommy out. 

He wasn’t scared though, he was a big man. 

The hallway he was going through was completely dark, not even emergency lights lit it. Dust clouded up at his feet, and a few scattered paths of old and dying vaccu-bots littered the place. 

“It’s very quiet.” Kristin said softly. “The air circulators down here are working perfectly, barely any noise.” 

Tommy huffed. 

“Why does the abandoned parts get the working air circulators? When I have to listen to the shitty ones up top?” 

“I can add ‘repairing the air circulators’ to our list if you would like?” 

Tommy nodded, and Kristin chimed, updating their to-do list. 

All the doors down here were locked, and Kristin hadn’t found easy ways to open them yet. 

However, at the end of this hallway should be a veritable gold mine. 

Parts Storage was their goal for the day. Anything that went into the recycler (if it wasn’t melted down to it’s base components) went to Parts Storage. 

Androids were meant to operate perfectly until they were completely unable to anymore. They weren’t supposed to be repaired, but all the “regular” operation was thrown out the window before Tommy was even born. 

So here he was, adventuring, hoping to find good quality parts deep in the storage. 

Maybe even parts for the schematics he had found hidden away on Wilbur’s tablet one day. 

They’d investigated the chute and elevator that had led from the Recycler to places unknown, and Tommy was hopeful. 

The door to Parts Storage was open, and Tommy carefully poked his head in. 

Kristin had received “operation level excellent” from her basic ping to the area, but that had happened three weeks ago too, and Tommy had found an old burst pipe, making a small river down a deep section of To . It was on their to-do list, for when Tommy was older. 

But nothing seemed amiss. 

Tommy glanced down at his parts list, and stepped in. 

Chapter Text

This was fucking awesome . Tommy decided, hunting through the parts. 

His bag was already heavy with good quality mechanics, and he was finding even more. 

He’d have to come back here a lot . 

“This is a good amount of parts to start with.” Kristin hummed, light illuminating the boxes and dusty piles. “You’ll catch onto android repair quickly, but we should still take it slow.” 

“Fine.” Tommy said, leaning back. “Will might get suspicious too if Charlie can suddenly act normally, or Fundy can do things besides data entry and child minding.” 

“I wish that I could connect into Wilbur’s mainframe. ” Kristin sighed. “I think that the virus affected him in a unique way, and if we could fix it, he might be able to be happier.” 

Tommy made a face. 

“That sounds like recoding.” 

“Recoding?” 

“It’s what Will’s doing to Techno, or what he had been doing. Changing things in his code.” 

Kristin’s light flashed red for a moment, and Tommy flinched. 

“That is completely unethical!” She cried, voice echoing around the room. “Recoding?! You need to introduce me to Wilbur, so I can give him a piece of my mind!” 

Tommy backpedaled quickly. 

“No, no, it’s not like that! Techno had issues, and Wilbur’s fixing them! He’s almost done-” 

“Tommy!” Kristin pleaded. “What the W11:BUR is doing is wrong-” 

Tommy turned the tablet off, and then immediately felt guilty. 

When the tablet was off, Kristin didn’t know what was happening. She told Tommy it scared her. 

He immediately booted it up again, and sighed in relief as Kristin’s purple light lit up again. 

“Sorry.” He muttered, collecting his things. “I didn’t mean to.” 

Kristin’s light pulsed. 

“I’m sorry too.” She said, and Tommy closed his eyes. 

He imagined her reaching out and drawing him into a hug, just like Charlie did during power storms. 

Wilbur didn’t hold him during them anymore, but that was okay. He was busy all the time, creating something amazing. 

Kristin would be upgraded, and upgraded, and she’d be perfect eventually. 

“Let’s get out of here. ” Kristin said, breaking Tommy out of his trance. “I’m detecting a ping trying to go through to your tablet. We’re out of range.” 

~~~

“Tommy!” Wilbur’s voice cried, echoing around the air shaft. 

The ping had finally gone through, connecting a voice call to Tommy’s device. 

“I was trying to reach you but every channel said you were unreachable!” 

Tommy grimaced, finding handholds in the plates of metal of the air shaft. 

“Sorry, Big Dubs. I was exploring.” 

Wilbur scoffed. 

“Exploring?” The android remarked. “There’s only one floor below us that’s been closed off. Surely you’ve explored it all already while you’ve been avoiding me.” 

“I haven’t been avoiding you!” Tommy responded, finally reaching the spot where Nikki was waiting for him. 

Her eyes glowed as she pulled him up into the large vent. 

Find what you were looking for? She asked, fingers moving. 

Tommy nodded, and then grinned at her, drawing something out of his bag. 

It was a vocal module, from a decommissioned NK-AI-149119, likely only six generations old. 

She beamed at him, and they began to crawl back towards the hallway the vent had led off from. 

Wilbur huffed over the voice call. 

“Just,” He said. “Just come see me when you’ve crawled back out of the vents. I’ve finished something.” 

“Will do big man. Sorry for talking back.” 

The call chimed, announcing Wilbur had hung up. 

Tommy sighed, and crawled faster. 

“He should treat you kinder.” Kristin murmured, her light turning back on. 

Tommy shrugged it off. “He’s been stressed out about something. He said, a while ago, that he was gonna try to get Techno opperable again, for my fifteenth birthday. I think he forgot though.” 

I’d like Techno back online. Nikki signed, and Tommy nodded.

“I would too.” 

After a moment of silence, Tommy swallowed 

“I miss him.” 

“We’re here.” 

~~~

Tommy dusted his pants off as he pulled himself upwards out of the vent and onto the main floor. 

One of his upgraded vaccu-bots bumped against his shoe, sucking up the dust he dragged up with him. 

Tommy leaned down and patted it, before hurrying down the hallway towards Wilbur’s workshop. 

He passed by Fundy’s room as he went, waving at the red haired android before finally skidding into the workshop. 

The couch he had always thrown himself onto when he was younger was still there, but Tommy didn’t flop down. 

Wilbur was leaned over something on his desk, typing furiously. 

“Will?” Tommy called, stepping into the space cautiously. 

Wilbur blinked, and then turned to him. 

The man’s face lit up in a smile, and he jumped up, drawing Tommy into a hug. 

He pulled back and grimaced at Tommy’s dusty clothes though. 

“Toms!” He announced, a wild look coming into his eyes. “I’ve finished something incredible!” 

Tommy nodded, and let Wilbur drag him over to the desk. 

It was a tablet, innocuous and sitting quietly, and Tommy glanced at Wilbur. 

The android was almost bouncing. 

“Say hello to it.” He instructed softly, and Tommy looked back down at the holo screen. 

“Um, hi?” 

“Hello Thomas 34, third embryo in disc 1215226 .” 

That was Kristin’s voice, but it lacked emotion. 

Tommy frowned, and leaned closer. 

“Just call me Tommy.” He instructed, and the light changed. 

It wasn’t purple, like Kristin’s. It was green. Green was an ugly color, and Tommy longed momentarily for his own tablet, with his own Kristin, safely back in Toratu with the spare parts he’d collected. 

“Do you like it?” Wilbur asked, and Tommy jumped. The android had come much closer to Tommy, without making a sound. 

“It’s, um, what is it?” Tommy said, acting dumb.

Wilbur frowned at him, and picked up the tablet. 

“This is Symphony.” He announced. “It’s what I’ve been working on.” 

“Oh.” 

Wilbur held the tablet close to him, and Tommy glanced around. 

Techno was still dark in the corner. 

Tommy swallowed, and decided to take a chance. 

“I thought you were trying to get Tech back online?” 

Wilbur blinked, and then glanced at the silent android, like he had forgotten that he even was there. 

“Well…” Wilbur hummed. “Symphony comes first.” 

Tommy crossed his arms. 

“Now that you’ve finished it then, are you gonna work on Techno again?” 

“Of course Toms.” Wilbur dismissed, fishing out another holo tablet. “Now, keep this with you at all times. It will connect into the main system, and help me keep track of you.” 

Tommy took it with a grimace, and poked at the screen. 

The green light flashed again, and Wilbur grinned. 

Tommy scooted away from him a little.

“To activate it, just say Symphony.” Wilbur instructed, before pushing Tommy out of his workshop. 

“If you need a new tablet with Symphony on it, there are ones in the recycler.” 

And then the door to the workshop was closed, and Tommy was left in the hallway, clutching the symphony tablet. 

It felt wrong. Kristin was supposed to be Symphony, not whatever this emotionless thing was. 

Maybe he should take the tablet back to Kristin, and they could figure it out together. 

Kristin would help him. 

Chapter Text

“You are outside of the permitted area set up by-” 

Tommy growled, poking the power button of the holo-tablet. 

Fundy looked at the tablet with distaste. 

“This is fucking bullshit.” Tommy whined, flopping over. The android patted his knee jerkily, and Tommy sighed. 

Pretty soon the tablet would boot back up and try to tell Tommy that he wasn’t allowed where he was. 

“I’m sorry Tommy.” Kristin said gently. “But we do have to keep going.” 

Tommy sighed and sat up, looking back at the task at hand. 

Fundy’s chest cavity was opened up, showing his pumps and valves, and the wires that carried signals all over the android’s body. 

“You need to take screws nineteen through twenty two out, and screws thirty six and thirty seven.” 

Tommy nodded, and adjusted his headlamp. 

“You still good big guy?” He asked Fundy, looking up at the android’s face. 

The android nodded, ginger hair flopping around. 

Tommy took a deep breath, and leaned close. 

The screws were so tiny in Fundy’s body, they were a pain to try to get out. 

“Nineteen…” Tommy counted, dropping the screw into the bowl with the rest. “Twenty…” 

Fundy’s fingers twitched and tapped as Tommy worked, and Tommy watched the wires clench and unclench with the movement. 

“Twenty one…” 

“You are outside of the permitted area set up by W11:BUR-” 

“Motherfucker!” Tommy hissed, flinging the tablet across the room. 

It hit the wall and went dark. 

“Sorry.” He told Fundy, who was twitching and tapping more. “I just couldn’t deal with that shit. I’m trying to concentrate here!” 

“Wilbur won’t be too happy that you broke his tablet.” Kristin sighed, her tablet lighting up with purple light. 

Tommy kept her safe down in Toratu, but he was half convinced to ask her to pretend, and then bring her up to the main floor. 

Anything to get away from this babying, condescending, snitching bitch that Wilbur had activated. 

Tommy sighed, and ran a greasy hand through his hair. 

He was getting better and better at Android repair, but even a big man like himself needed decent conditions to work in. 

He grimaced at the open panels of Fundy’s chest, and then leaned back in. 

He had to finish this before Wilbur got a ping that Symphony was off on Tommy’s tablet. 

~~~

“Aaaand… there we go!” Tommy announced, letting a panel click back into place. 

Nikki’s hand tentatively lifted up to run a silicon finger over her throat. 

“T-” She started, before looking embarrassed. 

“It’s alright dear.” Kristin encouraged, a comforting purple light at Tommy’s elbow. “Take it as slow as you need to.” 

Nikki nodded, and then closed her eyes. 

Tommy could tell she was running diagnostics, and he waited patiently. 

The pink haired android finally opened her eyes and opened her mouth. 

“Tommy.” She said, the voice coming out crackly, but still there. 

Her eyes widened, and Tommy jumped up, raising a fist in the air. 

“Hell yes!” He cheered, dancing around the room. 

Nikki danced along with him, spinning Tommy around like a ballerina. 

“You did a great job!” Kristin exclaimed. “I just got Nikki’s diagnostics scan, and everything is perfect!” 

“Thank you!” Nikki told him, pulling Tommy into a bone crushing hug. 

Tommy flushed, and let Nikki hug him, before huffing dramatically. 

“Of course!” He told her, patting her arm. “Anything for Nikki Nihachu.” 

Nikki grinned at him, and then curtsied, her knee joints creaking a little. 

Tommy made a note internally to oil them later 

“Care to dance?” She asked, holding out her hand. 

Tommy grinned, and took it, stepping forward. 

“Dance me to the moon baby!” He responded. 

~~~

“Unable to contact the mainframe, please return to permitted areas.” Symphony announced, and Tommy scoffed. 

Wilbur had realized Tommy’d been leaving his Symphony tablet in his room, and told him it was necessary to keep with him all the time. 

Wilbur even got pings every hour to tell him that Tommy still had the damn thing. 

Luckily, deep in the Shelter, down by the Spare Parts room, no signal was able to get through. 

“I know.” He told the tablet’s green light. “It’s okay.” 

“You are outside- “

Tommy muted it, and surveyed the room. 

Spare Parts was somewhat well traveled now. 

It was a hard climb down, and it made most of the androids stressed to think of Tommy rappelling down the air shaft to get to the room, but Tommy didn’t mind it. 

He’d gotten used to the climb now, what with his frequent trips to get parts. 

“We need parts for Charlie, a few of the vaccu-bots, and that upgrade for the hydroponics system.” Kristin informed him, and Tommy clicked on the lights he had placed. 

They only lit up a portion of the room, it really was a big place, but it was enough. 

Tommy turned on his music, and then began to search. 

He hummed, wandering through the corridors created by the piles of parts, stopping to pick up pieces every now and then. 

He’d been upgrading things for over a year and a half now. To be fair, he’d only really started on androids about four months ago, but Kristin had walked him through so many things by now, he honestly could be called an expert. 

Tommy pocketed a polished glass and synthetic nerve eyeball. 

He glanced around, and a glint caught his eye. 

Breaking out of his zone, Tommy frowned. 

It was just past the pool of light, in the parts that had seemed useless, or separated for a reason. 

Tommy stepped forwards, and frowned. 

It was a whole mess of things it seemed like, as he nudged a light closer with his foot. 

He recognized a few pieces. 

Part of an arm, a jaw, chest cylinders. 

But there was stuff mixed in that Tommy didn’t recognize. A hand, clenched around something. An old joint piece. 

Tommy poked the pile, and grimaced as things clattered a little, skidding down the little pile. 

“The fuck?” He muttered, picking up the hand. 

There was something in it, but the joints were frozen in position, and Tommy couldn’t open the fingers without fear of breaking them. 

He discarded it, and looked down at the pile. 

Then, a glint of pink drew his attention. 

“No way!” Tommy exclaimed, digging a little more. “A Techno piece?” 

He hadn’t ever seen a Techno piece in any of the piles he had dug through. Technoblades were notoriously sturdy, and barely ever deactivated. 

However, here was a piece of Techno. The familiar porcelain and rose gold metal. 

Tommy hoisted it up, and studied it. 

Then, a thought popped into his mind. 

He’d fixed Nikki. He’d fixed Fundy. He’d even fixed some of Charlie’s issues, and if anything, Charlie was the worst of the functioning androids. 

Wilbur wasn’t working on Techno anymore. He likely hadn’t been for a long time. 

Could Tommy fix him?

Chapter Text

“I wanna see the Techno B1403 schematics.” 

“Tommy, I’m not sure-” 

“I. Want. To. See. Them.” 

Tommy glowered at the tablet, glowing purple. 

He heard Kristin sigh. 

“Tommy.” She said gently. “The damage you described to me sounds extreme. You’re good at basic repairs. You did so well replacing Nikki’s vocal processors, but this…” 

Tommy clenched his fists, and looked upwards. 

They were in a part of Toratu, close to the workshop. 

He imagined he could hear Wilbur humming, keys on a keyboard clicking. 

The sound was grating to Tommy’s ears. He didn’t understand why Wilbur insisted on using a manual keyboard. Holo pad ones were much better, and didn’t make half the noise. 

Up there was Techno, sitting dark, abandoned by Wilbur, and everyone else in this Shelter. 

“I have to try.” He told Kristin, who flashed in acknowledgement. 

There was silence for a little while, the only sound was the air circulators and recyclers. They hissed, and Tommy’s fists clenched even more. 

Finally, Kristin’s purple light dimmed. 

“Alright.” She said, and Tommy let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. 

He looked down at the tablet. 

“Thank you.” He murmured, scooping it up and putting it in his bag. 

He headed to the door, and steeled himself. 

Now all he had to do was convince Wilbur to let him put Techno somewhere where Wilbur wouldn’t be able to see. 

~~~

Wilbur wasn’t in his workshop, he was in the central control room, seated above the recycler and charging hub. 

Fundy was clicking away slowly at a monitor, pushed off to the side, and Wilbur was standing up on the main panel. 

He glanced down at Tommy as the boy pushed open the door. 

“Toms?” 

Tommy looked up at the bot in confusion. 

“What are you doing?” He asked, watching Wilbur pull out a box from an open panel. 

It came down in a tangle of wires, and Wilbur grimaced at the errant electric currents. 

The box had a dim L.E.D. circle, and Tommy cocked his head, studying it. 

Those little L.E.D. circles were everywhere, Tommy’d just assumed they were lights that had gone down when the Virus plowed through every code in the Shelter. 

Wilbur grinned victoriously at the box, and Tommy cleared his throat. 

“Will, what’re you doing?” 

The android startled a little, almost as if he had forgotten Tommy was there in the short time that the silence had occupied. 

“I’m finding the Shelter’s main control module.” The android admitted, and Tommy frowned. 

The box was yanked, and came loose. It looked like the perfect size to fit comfortably in Tommy’s palm, which seemed a little small. 

Wilbur laughed at Tommy’s confusion, and held the box out to him, jumping down from the console. 

“Here, check it out.” 

It was heavy, and Tommy nearly fumbled it when Wilbur tossed it to him. 

Tommy held the box up to his face, and noticed a few long dried fingerprints etched into it from circulatory coolant. 

He’d dealt with it when he was upgrading and repairing everyone, and the familiar blue shimmer surprised him. 

The fingers were much larger than his own, and the box was slightly dented. 

“That right there,” Wilbur announced, plucking it back up out of Tommy’s hands. “Is the control mechanism for the entire compound.” 

“It’s so small though?” 

Wilbur rolled his eyes, and cradled the object close to his chest. 

“It’s not supposed to be big, or easy to find.” He told Tommy. “I’m the first one to ever remove it!” 

“There are fingerprints on it though-” Tommy started, but he was hustled out of the control hub. 

“Watch Fundy for me, I have some stuff to do.” 

The android was pushed out alongside Tommy, stumbling a little from the force. 

“Wait!” Tommy cried before Wilbur could close the door. 

The android stuck his head out and sighed. 

“I’m kinda busy right now.” He scolded, and Tommy glared back at him. 

Tommy clutched his bag closer to his chest. 

“I can see that dickhead. Can I move Techno?” 

Wilbur was already back inside the room though, a hand waving Tommy away. 

“Do whatever!” The android called, then the door closed with an ominous click. Tommy was left in the hall with Fundy, who looked lost. 

Tommy slouched against the wall, and glanced at Fundy, who gave him a confused smile. 

“That went well.” He muttered, and grabbed Fundy’s hand. 

“He said yes though.” Kristin reminded him, muffled slightly from Tommy’s bag. 

Tommy glanced sharply down at the bag, before realizing that Wilbur couldn’t hear them anymore. 

“You have to be quiet.” He reminded the A.I. “Will could take you away.” 

“I’d fight him.” Kristin announced, and Tommy laughed. 

He patted the bag, and then headed back towards the workshop, Fundy in tow. 

Wilbur had said yes. 

And Tommy had work to do. 

~~~

Darkness was the normal. 

Techno hadn’t seen the light in a long time. 

His optical nerves weren’t connected anymore, not with whatever had been tinkering in his head since he malfunctioned. 

The tinkering had stopped though, along with attempted intrusions into his code. 

It hadn’t happened for a while. (Although Techno wasn’t the best at telling time, being disconnected from the mainframe will do that to you)

So yeah, he was used to the darkness, only being able to take refuge inside his own code. 

The only nerves that hadn’t been touched were parts of his auditory nerves, and the nerves in the palm of his left hand. 

When he was moved (finally, after all these years, some form of change!) he noticed. 

The air brushing against his palm was warmer than whatever room he had been in previously, and faintly, very faintly, he could hear two voices. 

“-careful with his leg! Charlie, don’t let the joint crack against the wall!-” 

“-s-s-s-sorry! He’s h-h-heavy!” 

“-We’ll get him into a room in To, the one we used for Nikki-” 

Then he was being lifted down. 

The static white noise of the fans was quieter, and Techno sighed. He didn’t recognize any of the names mentioned. He barely remembered the before . When he was able to see, and walk, and speak. 

Just a few snippets. 

An android being taken apart by the recycler, joy on its face. 

The blue light of the nursery. 

Something terrible ripping through him, a tidal wave he could not stop. 

Tiny warm hands resting in his metal ones. 

And an Android’s hands near his neck, telling him to relax, and that he was going to sleep for a little while. 

Then it was the black nothingness. 

Techno welcomed the darkness, but loathed it at the same time. 

It covered him like a sea. (What was a sea?)

He eagerly awaited the sunrise. 

Chapter Text

Techno’s fingers were lax in Tommy’s palm, but Tommy still held the android's hand all the same. 

Kristin had finally been able to run a brief diagnostic, and the information she had brought back was disheartening. 

It was a miracle that Techno was operable. 

But he was operable. 

The android hadn’t even been powered off, not dark like Tommy had thought. 

He had been hiding inside of his code, just a shell, disconnected from most of the nerves in his body. 

But she’d told Tommy that his palm had feeling in it, so Tommy sat and held Techno’s hand. 

They had been devising a plan of attack, to try and fix the android, but they’d taken a break for the night. 

“You should go back up and go to bed.” Kristin told him, her light comforting in the dim light of the night cycle lights. 

Tommy shook his head though, and held Techno’s hand tighter. 

“‘M stayin’ here tonight.” 

Kristin’s light circled, but she didn’t say anything else. 

Tommy looked over at the silent android, and sighed, scooting closer to it. 

Techno’d been in there this whole time, waiting for someone to come and help him. 

Tommy knew it wasn’t his fault. He didn’t know, and he didn’t understand, but he still felt responsible. 

Wilbur was supposed to be fixing the android, not just leaving him to rot in the corner. 

But it didn’t matter now. 

Tommy was going to fix him, and then he’d have another android that wasn’t Will.

He could do it, Kristin, and the rest of the bots would be helping him. 

Techno would be operational soon. 

~~~

Tommy often found himself zoning out when he worked on long projects. 

He barely remembered fixing Jack, or Nikki, he’d let his hands do the work, and headed off into a daydream. 

As he pried Techno’s panels open, and removed silicon skin from around his neck joint, Tommy found himself drifting away again. 

When he was a little younger, still working through the first layer of Toratu, he’d found an old box of stuffed animals. 

He himself had never had a stuffed animal, but he knew what they were thanks to the not-corrupted lessons still uploaded to tablets in the Shelter. But he’d found a box, covered in dust. 

Inside it had been several plush toys, each with something scrawled onto the tag at their seam. 

The top ones had 33 written on them. There weren’t many of those, just a bumblebee, and a cow, but underneath there had been the familiar To Ra and Tu, accompanied by the number 32. 

Tommy had left them in the box that night, but his mind had run wild, daydreaming about them coming alive to be his friends, and following him on his adventures. 

He’d only removed one, the cow with the 33 on it, and he felt guilty as soon as he did. 

Someone had loved this cow before him, and left it in that box. 

(This lead to even more questions about the humans that had come before him, but those were questions that made Wilbur angry, so Tommy never asked them)

But Tommy had removed it, and then lost it, crawling through a vent. It had slid down a smaller, open chute when his foot had kicked it, and tumbled away into the darkness. 

One of these days, Tommy was going to retrace his steps through that part of the vent maze, and find the chute it had tumbled into. 

Kristin would be able to tell him where it went, and he’d be able to find the cow again, and return it to it’s box. 

Tommy could only imagine what a joyful reunion it would be. The rest of the stuffed animals, almost sick with worry and loss, finally being reunited with their missing member. 

There would be cheers and shouts as Tommy placed it back next to the bumblebee, before leaving the crew to it’s celebration. 

Sometimes, Tommy imagined that cow was him. 

The shelter was so big, and so deep. There had to have been hundreds of humans in here at one point. 

In Tommy’s imagination, those humans had to leave, in a big rush, and the people that cared about him, other humans like himself, had lost him in the chaos. (He’d seen videos of the evacuation of the city of L’Manberg, how many people had been trampled, and separated from their groups in the mass exodus. In the frantic rush to get away from the explosions that had started the nuclear wars, and then the nuclear apocalypse. It would be easy for a baby to get lost in a crowd like that)

Eventually, they were gonna come back for him though, and he’d be swept into warm arms, made of flesh, not metal, and someone would hold him close. 

“Big man! We missed you!” The person would tell him, joined by another. “I can’t believe we found you again!” 

Tommy, in his daydream, would laugh, and hug them back just as tightly. 

“You can’t just lose me that easily!” He’d crow, and the people holding him would laugh. 

Sometimes the arms were one person. Broad shoulders, and a warm embrace. 

“I missed you so much son.” A voice would murmur into his ear. “I’m never letting you go again!” 

Tommy would let the arms hold him, listening to the heartbeat of his imaginary father. 

“I love you.” He would tell him, and the man’s grip would tighten. 

“I love you even more.” 

But it was just a daydream. 

Tommy was born in the shelter, and had been the only human, since he was born.

He hadn’t lost anyone, and no one was looking for him. 

It was just a daydream. 

~~~

Are you coming back online?

“No.” 

Are you sure? Tommy’s worked so hard trying to fix you. 

“Tommy?” 

Yes. A human boy. He’s extraordinary. You’ve met him before. 

“I- I don’t remember. What is a human?” 

It’s alright if you don’t remember. It should come back eventually. Someone was tampering with your code.

“They were tryin’ to. I didn’t let them.” 

That’s amazing! Are you remembering things yet? 

“...” 

“...” 

“Some things. It’s… hard though.” 

Don’t push yourself too much. You have a little while before you’re fully operational again. 

“Alright. I’ll take it easy. You didn’t answer my question from before. I remember some things, but… what is a human?” 

Going right to the tricky questions I see. Well… humans are flesh and bone. They’re delicate, like flowers. But they’re also strong. Very resilient. You’ll like them. 

“And Tommy’s one of them?” 

Yes. The only one. 

“Oh. Why?” 

That, not even I know. Something happened here, something terrible. 

“I’ll protect Tommy then, if it was something terrible.” 

Yes, that is indeed your purpose. To protect. The previous Shelter gave you another purpose, but to protect is your main directive. I’ll leave you now, to rest, and prepare for your power up. Tommy will need you. 

“Wait! Where are you going?” 

I won’t go far, it’s alright. You probably won’t remember this conversation, but I will watch over you, just like I watch over Tommy and the rest of the androids. I wasn’t given a purpose, when I was created, so I chose my own. 

“I won’t remember you?” 

No, you likely won’t. You’ll meet me again soon though! 

“Alright. My name is Technoblade.” 

What a lovely name. Mine is Kristin. Rest now, be at peace. Everything is alright, everyone is safe. 

“Goodbye.” 

Goodbye. 

Chapter Text

It was a rare morning when Techno finally woke up. Wilbur had woken him up gently, and invited Tommy to eat while Wilbur worked in one of the smaller dining rooms.

It was unusual, but Tommy wasn’t complaining. 

He was up on the main floor eating breakfast when there was a ping on Wilbur’s tablet. 

“An unauthorized Android has come online.” Symphony announced, and Wilbur froze, looking down at the tablet. 

Tommy swallowed his bite of oatmeal nervously, and Wilbur looked over at him. 

Then, another ping. 

“Wilbur, it’s me Techno. What’s going on? Where am I?” 

Tommy’s face brightened, and he opened his mouth to tell Wilbur where Techno was, when yet another ping came through. 

“Never mind, I found the exit. Jesus it’s dusty down here. I need to charge, I’ll see you in the AAC.” 

And that was that. 

Tommy sprang up, wanting to go find the android right away, but Wilbur pinned him with a glare. 

“Sit here. Stay.” The android ordered, and Tommy fell back into his chair. 

Wilbur hurried out of the room, and Tommy snagged the tablet, and poked the button that would lead him to the ping logs, but he was stopped by a green light. 

“You do not have authorization for this.” Symphony said coolly. “Your interference has been noted, and the owner of this tablet has been alerted. If you try again, consequences will occur.” 

Tommy blinked at it, and frowned. This had never happened before, even when Tommy was on one of Wilbur’s tablets. 

“It’s me, Tommy.” He tried, “I’m authorized to use this tablet.” 

The green light spun for a minute, buffering. 

“Thomas Theseus 34.” Symphony announced. “You are only authorized for basic functions. These include, Holo-Library with limitations, The Database with limitations, LearnRight Schooling System, and the music player, with limitations.”  

Tommy’s frown deepened, and he pulled out his own tablet. Not the one with Kristin, he’d modified that one, and Wilbur wouldn’t approve of the modifications. 

He powered it on, and watched the green light buffer. 

Scrolling through the holo-screen, he poked his coding app, and waited for it to boot up. 

However, the normal welcome screen did not appear. Instead, a green screen flashed at him, and the voice of Symphony echoed from the tablet’s speakers. 

“You are not permitted to use this application.” 

“The fuck?” Tommy growled, poking it again. 

The same green screen popped up. 

“Thomas Theseus 34, you are not permitted to use this application, following the limitations and guidelines that your Shelter’s highest authority has set in place.” 

“Wilbur wouldn’t do that.” Tommy argued, flicking through the screen to a different application. 

“You are not permitted to use this app-” 

Tommy powered the tablet off, and pushed it away from him. 

He glared at it, and crossed his arms. The tablet sat innocently on the table, the same red and blue case he’d had on it since he was a child. 

There was a clang, from somewhere on the main floor, and Tommy’s eyes glanced towards the door. 

Wilbur had told him to stay put… but he wanted to tell Techno about how fun it was to fix him, and ask him if he had done everything right. 

He also just wanted to see the Android up and moving, alive again, instead of the unsettling metal shell he’d been for a long while. 

So Tommy stood up, and brushed crumbs off of his pants. 

His back cracked as he stretched. 

“You have been asked to stay in place.” Symphony announced, Wilbur’s tablet glowing green. “Please do not disregard this command, it is for your direct safety and protection.” 

Tommy glanced at the door, and then back at the tablet. 

“It’s just Techno.” He reasoned, inching towards the door. 

“Please stay in place.” Symphony just responded, and Tommy sighed. 

“Green bastard.” He muttered, and opened the door. 

“I will be forced to contact the highest authority-” Symphony called out to him, but the door swung shut, cutting him off. 

Tommy hurried through the halls, down towards the AAC. 

There was a pep in his step, and he grinned. 

Techno was back!

~~~

As Tommy approached the entrance to the AAC, he hurried even faster. 

Techno was awake, and functioning enough to formulate his own tasks, make decisions, and speak coherently. 

For a long time, it was only Wilbur who could do that. 

Charlie, Nikki, Jack, and Fundy were better now, but they still weren’t perfect. 

Tommy was running now, skidding around corners, and leaping over vaccu-bots, and piles of old junk. 

However, when he finally skidded around the final corner, and took a moment to catch his breath, he heard talking coming from the AAC. 

He panted, and tried to regain composure. He didn’t want to seem like the excitable kid Techno had fallen asleep to. He was fifteen, and a Big Man now. Mature as fuck! He couldn’t be a mess. 

Tommy strained his ears to listen as he took deep breaths, hands on his knees. 

“ -’m so glad you’re awake!” Wilbur cooed, metal clinking against metal. “I missed you so much.” 

“Will.” Techno said gruffly. “What’s going on? How long has it been? Things are so different!” 

Wilbur sighed. 

“It’s been a long, long time.” The android admitted, and Tommy heard Techno’s sharp intake of breath. 

“How. Long.” The android growled, and Wilbur squeaked. 

“Let go of me!” He said sharply. “It’s been years. Tommy’s fourteen now.” 

“Thomas Theseus 34 is fifteen.” Symphony corrected softly, and Techno snarled. 

Tommy took a step backwards. 

“Shelter.” The android said murderously.

Tommy heard metal grate against metal, and he winced. 

“No! Techno! It’s not Shelter!” Wilbur shouted, straining against something. “I made it! It’s mine!” 

There was a struggle, and Tommy looked around worriedly. He spotted Charlie’s head peeking out of a doorway, but the Android disappeared before Tommy could gesture him over. 

“You made another?!” Techno snarled, and Wilbur growled back. Tommy inched forwards to peek into the AAC. 

There were wires and tubes all over the floor, just like always. The spider-like recycler stood silently in the corner, and Techno and Wilbur were struggling against each other, Wilbur trying to protect his tablet, and Techno looking to destroy it. 

“It’s not the same!” Wilbur hissed, a hand fisting in Techno’s synthetic hair, wrenching the android away from the tablet. “We needed it!” 

“We need to destroy it!” Techno grunted, pushing Wilbur back. 

Wilbur fell to the floor, and Tommy flinched. Techno’s grip crackled against the tablet, and Wilbur struggled to his feet. 

“Will, don’t you remember what it did- ” Techno started, but he froze. 

Wilbur’s back was to Tommy. He couldn’t see the android’s face, but Techno looked, almost frightened. 

“Reset code E67 Beta.” Wilbur announced coldly. 

Techno stuttered, and his grip went limp. 

The tablet dropped with a thud, and Techno looked from Wilbur, to the tablet on the floor. 

“You-” The android started incredulously, and then swallowed. 

“You aren’t the highest authority anymore.” Wilbur announced. “It’s me now. And I’m in charge.” 

“Wilbur, this isn’t how it’s supposed to be.” Techno murmured, reaching out to grab the other android’s arm, but Wilbur stepped backwards. 

“We’ve made do without you Techno.” He said calmly. “I’ve raised Tommy perfectly, and my work obviously also brought you back online.” 

Then his demeanor changed, and he let Techno pull him closer. 

“You just have to accept the changes.”

Techno made eye contact with Tommy, and Tommy scrambled backwards. 

“Is that-” Techno called, but Tommy was already gone, skittering back towards the entrance to Toratu. 

He tumbled down into the dusty, forgotten place, and pressed his back against the wall. 

A tablet in the corner lit up purple. 

“Tommy? Is everything alright?” 

He took a deep breath, trying to get his heart rate to calm down. 

Everything was fine. 

“Tommy?” Kristin asked again, and Tommy breathed out. 

“It’s okay Mumza.” He said shakily. “Just startled.” 

Kristin flashed purple, and Tommy took another deep breath. 

“Everything is fine.” He said again, softer. 

This was normal. He didn’t really remember Wilbur and Techno together. This was completely normal. 

“Everything is fine.” He said again, and closed his eyes. 

It sounded like he was trying to convince himself. 

Hopefully if he repeated it enough it would work. 

Chapter Text

“I have alerted the Highest Authority that you are outside the permitted area.” Symphony announced, making Tommy jump. 

His bagel fell on the ground, and he stared at it mournfully, before scooping it back up. 

“I’m not outside my area” He said in confusion, poking at the thin wristband Wilbur had closed on his wrist last night. 

The green light blinked. 

“You are outside of your permitted area. This area is limited to sectors A through G, H and M. You are currently in sector Q, and are thus outside of your area.” 

Tommy looked around, and frowned. He was on the main level, just in one of the hallways. One of the hallways that he had been wandering around since he could walk. 

He poked the wristband again, and a tiny holo-screen popped up with a map. 

“The green areas are your permitted sectors.” Symphony informed him, a few sections of the map lighting up green. “The highest authority has edited your area of approval due to the Techno B1403’s restart yesterday.” 

“This is barely anything!” Tommy complained, shaking his wrist, making the holo-screen vanish. 

“The highest authority has been notified.” Symphony only told him, and then went silent. 

Tommy cursed the wristwatch, continuing down the hallway. 

This sector didn’t even have anything exciting in it, just some empty offices, and the hydroponics system. 

Why did Will make his permitted areas smaller?

“Toms?” A voice called, and Tommy spun around. He spotted the android with the familiar shock of white hair at the front of his head, and he glared. 

“Wilbur!” Tommy growled, thrusting the watch out in front of him. “Why’s this bitch telling me I’m in an area I’m not allowed in?!” 

Wilbur sighed, and grabbed Tommy’s arm. 

Tommy’s bagel was knocked out of his hand, and lay abandoned on the floor as Wilbur guided Tommy back down the hall. 

“I just worry about you, down in the vents and the unused floor.” Wilbur cooed, making Tommy grimace. “And I didn’t think you needed to be anywhere you didn’t absolutely have to be.” 

“That’s bullshit!” Tommy complained, as Wilbur pushed him back into a permitted sector. “I’ve been going anywhere I want forever-” 

“Well, things are changing.” Wilbur said sharply, before he sighed. 

The android relaxed, and smiled at Tommy. 

“Sorry. I’ve been a little tense with the project I’m working on.” 

Tommy scoffed, and pinned Wilbur with a look. 

Wilbur ignored it and patted Tommy’s shoulder. 

“I trust you’ll be able to follow the new rules and permissions?” 

Tommy shrugged, and Wilbur laughed. “Gremlin child.” The android said findly, before holding up Tommy’s wrist to make sure the watch was still on his arm. 

After checking, he spun off, leaving Tommy to watch him disappear. 

Tommy picked at the watch, and glanced around. 

“M’ not a gremlin.” He muttered, before heading off to one of the entrances into Toratu. 

The underbelly would treat him better than this. 

~~~

There were five entrances that Tommy had found into the lower levels. 

One was next to Wilbur’s workshop, his old favorite shortcut. One was in the hallway outside of his room. 

The other three were dispersed in odd places. One was hidden behind a dresser, one was in a storage room, and one was next to the kitchens. 

Those five were the only ways Tommy had found to get down, but once he was in Toratu, there were mazes upon mazes of entrances and exits, leading deeper and deeper. 

It was Tommy’s kingdom, and Wilbur couldn’t tell him where he could and couldn’t go down here. 

~~~

Techno had been powered on for about a week now, and Tommy had only seen him twice. 

Which was what led him to climbing back down the air shaft towards Parts Storage. 

There was a flaw in his central battery. 

Wilbur said that he’d recover fine, he just needed to charge for longer for a while, but Tommy didn’t believe him. 

So he was looking for a new core battery. 

If he could convince the two androids to let him replace it, then Techno wouldn’t have to be charging all the fucking time, and Tommy would truly have the android back in his life. 

The AAC had been marked off as an area that Tommy couldn’t go, so Tommy couldn’t even go in there to sit with Techno while he charged. 

It was all bullshit, and Tommy grimaced as his feet hit the bottom of the air shaft. 

He shimmied out through the bottom vent, and grunted as he dropped into the hallway. 

Spare Parts was still lit up from his last trip down, and he sighed, relaxing a little. 

This was a familiar place, he knew what he was doing down here. 

The watch on his wrist felt heavy, but Kristin’s tablet was in his backpack, and Symphony didn’t have connection this deep in the Shelter. 

Tommy shrugged the backpack off as he stepped into the open room. He waved at the projects he had been working on, and flopped onto the couch he had dragged in. He hummed happily, and fished Kristin out. 

“Morning Mumz.” He murmured, powering the tablet on. 

The purple light soothed him, and he closed his eyes. 

“Morning dear.” Kristin said softly back. “We’re back in Parts Storage?” 

“Mmhm.” 

It was quiet down here. There was the soft hum of the air circulators, and the static sound of the direct shaft from the AAC down to Parts Storage. 

Tommy had calculated it out, it was nearly directly below the big room, only shifted to the left. 

He hadn’t figured out what had caused the shift, but in Kristin’s blueprints, there was a huge, deep room that led nowhere. 

It hadn’t been labeled, and Tommy hadn’t found it in his adventures. It’s only direct connection was from the AAC, and Tommy hadn’t found anything up there when he was allowed in the room either. 

“Are you alright?” Kristin asked, and Tommy blinked slowly. 

“Will’s being a dickhead again.” He told her, flipping around so he was on his back, looking up at the ceiling. 

“He got on my case for spending so much time with the other bots, and for not answering his pings.” 

Tommy raised his hand up, and studied the watch on his wrist. It was dead and dark, unable to get any information down here. 

“He’s being weirder than normal.” 

“Maybe…” Kristin started, but then the light blinked. “Well. Maybe not.” 

Tommy just hummed. 

~~~

Tommy dug slowly through the pile where he had found the old Techno parts. 

The room went back a little further, but Kristin had said that those parts were deactivated Androids. 

Ones that were taken apart on purpose. 

So Tommy left those parts alone, and left the farthest reaches of the long room alone. He hadn’t even delved into those parts in search of non-coded upgrade pieces. It felt almost haunted, to be amongst the pieces of defective androids. 

So it remained dark, dusty, and untouched. Techno’s pile was the only one he had touched, and that was it.

He hummed, picking up an old wrist joint and inspecting it. There was rust spider webbing across it, so Tommy discarded it, and peered down at the pile. 

A glimmer caught his eye, and he bent down to snag it. 

As he pulled the prize out of the pile, a few parts went skittering off into the darkness and he grimaced. 

The hand he was holding now was Techno’s. Big, wide, and metal with silicon fingertips. 

It was stained blue with circulatory coolant, and Tommy frowned, turning it over in his hands. 

Tommy sighed, and put it down. 

As he dropped it back on the pile, he caught sight of what he was looking for. 

The glimmer of the small, fist sized core battery, pokin out of the pile, scuffed and dusty. 

Tommy grinned, and scooped it up, however as soon as his hands made contact with it, the battery shivered, and a pulse of electricity raced up Tommy’s fingertips. 

“Fuck!” He swore, dropping the battery on impulse. 

“Tommy?” Kristin called from the tablet on Tommy’s makeshift workbench. “Are you alright?” 

“Fucking battery shocked me.” He grumbled, shaking his hand out. 

“That’s odd.” Kristin hummed. “You found the battery though?”

Tommy rolled his shoulders, shrugging off the last of the sting and then huffed. 

“Dropped it. It rolled back into the defectives section.” 

“Be careful back there.” Kristin called, and Tommy nodded, turning his headlamp on, and gritting his teeth. 

He wasn’t scared of some old parts behind the shelves. He was a fucking man. 

~~~

It was eerie, back behind the shelves that separated the regular parts from the purposely deactivated ones. 

Where most of the parts in the main section were just that, parts, back here, it looked like the androids were taken apart quickly, and messily. 

There was an android who had a blown apart and melted hole in it’s head, obscuring the face plate. It looked a little like Jack’s model, and Tommy swallowed, and picked his way around the boxes and piles carefully.

The beam of his headlamp finally illuminated where the fuckign battery had rolled. It had bumped up against a bank of old boxes, with one on the ground, lid slightly askew. 

Tommy picked the battery up with a rubber cloth, and put it into his bag. 

“Tommy? Did you find it?” Kristin called, and Tommy grimaced at the sight of a badly deformed Nikki. It looked like she had been put through the Incinerator, and then when she was melted and warped, had been sent down here. She hadn’t even been taken apart, and fed into the incinerator piece by piece. 

“Yeah, I found it.” 

“Good.” Kristin murmured. “Now come out of there.” 

Tommy nodded, but he looked back at the slightly open box, and cocked his head. 

The serial number on the outside didn’t look like anything he had seen before, and the company seal was unique. 

“Tommy?” Kristin called again, and Tommy sighed. 

“Just let me check something out real quick.” He poked the box with his foot.

The lid shifted a little, and the contents clinked. 

Lifting the lid off, Tommy blinked. 

There was a ceramic face plate, sitting at the top of the box. It was undamaged, and carefully taken apart. 

The face was kind, and Tommy had a momentary twinge like he had seen it before, but he shook it off. 

He didn’t recognize this model at all. It’s creation was completely unique. He lifted it out, and turned it around in his hands. 

At the back, right at the jawline, was the designation. Tommy frowned, and squinted. The print was tiny. 

“P.. H… eleven… dot Z… A.” He muttered. He looked down into the box. There were all sorts of parts he had never seen before, all gently worn, only showing signs of minor electrical damage, and decommission damage. It was perfect quality otherwise, and would have likely been operational for a long time, had it not been taken apart. 

Tommy clutched the faceplate, and then frowned again. The boxes behind it had the same serial. It looked like something had taken apart an entire line of Androids, and sent all the parts here. 

But why?

Tommy held the faceplate close to his chest, and hurried back to the workbench table. 

“Hey… mumz?” He asked, setting the piece down on the table. “Do you have any information on a PolyHalo Android by the designation PH11:za, model twenty six dash one?” 

Kristin’s purple light glowed, and she hummed. 

“No… I don’t. It’s been completely scrubbed. Did you find a piece under that designation?” 

“I found boxes and boxes of them. It’s like they existed here, and then something decided to take them all apart.” 

“That’s very odd.” Kristin told him, almost alarmed sounding. “I understand one or two androids back there being taken apart for issues, but an entire line of them?” 

“I know.” Tommy muttered, and then sighed. “We need to find a tablet down here somewhere. Something that hasn’t been touched by Will’s scrubbing, maybe we’ll find some answers then.” 

“I agree. ” Kristin murmured, her purple light dancing along the cheekbone of the face plate. “This is very odd indeed.”