Work Text:
Soong Technologies flagship vessel, Obsidian Fury
Sky Covington was as close to a friend as Lore had. He was an android of complex emotions, anger, ambition, desire, tenacity, confidence …fear. The list was as endless as it was varied. Brilliance was a heavy burden for Lore to carry when his genius was acknowledged by no one but him. At least, he had one person who comprehend his gift on some level, as much as a human could at any rate. Sky Convington managed his wild mood swings as best she could while still offering whatever support and comfort he would allow.
Lore spent hours practicing combat training for meditation and focus, not that the android needed to train. He engaged in the needless activity in an effort to keep the inner demons of his past at bay. The madness was constantly there, gathering at the edges of his mind, threatening to take over and spew out over everything and everyone within sight. It was evident in a neutral expression that morphed to a smirk with a laugh that could make organic blood run cold. Other times Sky could hear it when his voice abruptly turned brittle and condescending. Thankfully, for her, these episodes had diminished to some degree over time. He was as much a prisoner to these events as he was the perpetrator.
Sky kept coms connected to the holodeck just in case something happened. Today his training devolved into a full-blown demolition session. The curses he hurled to nothing at all would make the most seasoned sailor blush. Most of them were aimed at his long dead father for deactivating and dismantling Lore when programming inconsistencies were identified. Her heart broke for the feelings of rejection and abandonment he still dealt with. The fall out was devastating for Lore’s Home world. Lore’s anger led to the destruction of Omicron Theta and death of hundreds of colonists, not to mention many other atrocities. Sky accepted she would never know the true extent and depth of his transgressions.
Suddenly the holodeck went silent. The hair on the back of her neck stood at attention. Not good at all. She jumped up and rushed to the Holodeck. Inside, Lore sat in the corner with his body against the wall, his eyes closed, face distorted in anguish as he repeatedly banged his head against the hard surface behind him, Dislodging a small access port cover behind his left ear.
“Why did father deactivate me? Why did he not love me?” Lore demanded.
Sky knelt in front of him, pulling him to her, wrapping her arms around him tightly. “I wish I had answers for you, bright eyes.” she whispered, kissing his cheek. She softly pressed the access port cover back into place. Surprisingly he did not flinch at the gentle touch as he usually did. Her heart hurt for him. If only she could have been there to protect him, to stand up for him. However, she was not yet born when the catalyst for his lifelong obsession to prove his worth set him on a collision course with fate.
His body relaxed slightly in her arms.
“Objects in the rearview mirror appear closer than they are.” She said softly, “It’s an old Earth saying. To me, it means our past is never far away, for better or worse. We have to make peace with it or let it devore us whole. Even with your superiority, Lore, you are not an exception.”
“I know,” he acknowledged quietly, his expression softening. The storm inside him appeared to recede by the nanosecond.
Suddenly the despair vanished from him entirely as if it were nothing more than an allusion. He sat up abruptly. Piercing yellow-gold eyes met cautious steel blue ones. He rapidly switched positions with her so he knelt in front.
“You look beautiful, kitten. You make a common tank top look exceptionally tempting” He praised tugging playfully at the hem.
Often, Lore used seduction as a weapon to manipulate. Sky could not always tell his motivations. Connection? Control? Something else? Truth was she would give whatever he required of her. They both know it.
He was shirtless and shoeless. All he wore, kneeling in front of her, was black jogging pants and a black chain with a chaos cross pendant around his neck. His dark brown hair disheveled, completing his carefully cultivated, if currently untidy, appearance. God, he was irresistible like this.
She reached up and traced the chaos cross with one finger, studying it.
“Lore, maybe it’s time to put this aside?”
She understood she could be naively hopeful, but she refused to let go of all her optimism. His road to redemption was long and arduous...assuming his desire for repentance was genuine.
“Indeed, kitten.” He flashed a smile that actually reached his eyes. That was new. Sky could not help but return his infectious smile. She pushed the hair from his face as he leaned in for a kiss so profound it made her temporarily question the existence of the known universe. Maybe the hope she kept alive was not futile after all.
As if reading her thoughts, he whispered, “Anything is possible”