Chapter Text
If there were any scientists left alive, they would agree with the wildly popular opinion that while 2021 sucked, what came afterwards deserved to be taken out to the back and shot.
It was subtle at first, a few cases here and there, nothing really too dire. Until it was everywhere. "Psychovirales" as it became known as was, in all simplicity, the classical, end of the world, zombie virus. However, in an unexpected contradiction to all apocalyptic movies, there was no classic zombie-thriller aura to it at all. This was much more terrifying, as studies discovered far too late to put in action any preventative measures.
Psychologists and scientists determined four stages. They discovered that as the virus progressed, it basically completely and irreversibly destroyed all empathy and morality in the victim, turning them into an emotionless machine, for lack of better words. And worse still, there was no cure.
At or around the same time, the first Android made their way into the world. Nobody knew where the strangely mechanical yet human species came from, but all of a sudden, they were everywhere, isolating victims of the virus and killing them. Rebellions sprang up among the humans, but their numbers were dwindling, and fast. People began to panic as the world they knew ended.
After nearly thirty years of this, the Androids vanished as suddenly as they had arrived. Humanity was in shambles, and continued to decline until the dominant species was no longer so unbeatable.
This is where this story begins. On a planet known as Earth, in the year 2124. In fact, we can narrow it down to a specific country, America. Or even further, to a mansion tucked into the countryside of New York. We can even slim it down to one person in particular, downing coffee as she sits on the couch.
Your name is ROSE LALONDE, and you are much too tired for this.
"All I'm saying is, that satellite has enough power to make NASA jizz in their coffins!" your sister argues. Your best friend groans, leaning back in her seat, her long black hair touching the floor.
"It's way too far, though! Also, last time we checked, Nevada was a hellscape of zombies!" Jade groans. Roxy pouts and looks at you. Before she can say anything, you cut her off.
"You're on your own, dearest sister." you say, knocking back your coffee and standing up. "I am afraid I must go play with the big kids now."
"Jake is not a big kid!" Roxy yells after you, and you ignore her and poke your head into Jake and Jade's shared room. Jake waves distractedly at you, bent over random bits and parts.
"Have you gotten a signal, yet?" you ask him.
"No, not since last week. And I am quite sure that that signal we received was transmission from an old radio." Jake says sullenly. The light on his complex radio system flashes a blinding red, and his attention snaps to it, instantly flipping switches and adjusting knobs and whatnot, until a faint, mechanical sounding voice comes through.
"-Houston, Texas. I'm putting all my power into this, so I don't think there will be another transmission. Repeat, I am transmitting from Houston, Texas, from the tallest building in the city. This is an SOS call from Houston, Texas. I'm putting all my power-"
Jake lunges to his feet and yells for the rest of your group. Instantly, Roxy and Jade are skidding into the room, and John follows, toothpaste foam around his mouth, shoving his glasses on. Jake cranks the volume. The person transmitting is still repeating the same message.
"We gotta go there!" Roxy says.
"All of us?" John asks, voice thick with sleep. Roxy nods, face grim.
"If there's someone else out there, we need to find them." Jade agrees. You remember when you first met Jade. She seemed like this ditzy moron, but during your first major battle with zombies, she had shown her skill with a rifle and saved your ass.
"Let's pack it up, then," you say. "It takes twenty-nine hours to drive to Houston, so better fill up."
You all load into Jake's mutant truck, the carcass of a van, buffed out with random paraphernalia, including monster truck wheels that are a revolting electric green, and set off.
John runs through the list, Jade checking and double checking everything as he goes down.
"Med kit?"
"Check."
"Shit ton of food?"
"Check."
"Hammer?"
"Why do we even have this?" Jade mutters, hefting up the comically large hammer. John glares at her, and she sighs. "Fine. Check."
John sits back and smiles tersely. "I think that's everything. Jake, what's the ETA?"
"Twenty seven hours left, Johnny," Jake says from the front. "Try and get some sleep, okay?"
"That goes for all of you," Roxy says sternly, but you can hear the smile in her words.
You settle down, leaning against John's shoulder as he casually wraps an arm around you, already half asleep, curled up around Jade.
The ride to Houston is boring. You wake up, switch to driving with Roxy, eat, kill zombies, and sleep.
It's just dawn when you enter Houston, the welcome sign rusted and nigh unreadable.
"Wow." Jake says quietly as he drives down the street. It perfectly fits the post-apocalyptic movie stereotype.
"Tallest building, right?" John asks. Roxy nods. John points to a surprisingly intact skyscraper in the center of the city. Jake, being Jake, Tokyo drifts the car down a side street, Jade shrieking and grabbing onto the aptly labelled out "oh shit handle" above the seat, hanging on for dear life. The car comes to a perfect parallel park between a burnt out dumpster and a tipped over porta potty.
"Oh no." Roxy breathes, staring up at the building. You follow her gaze and suck in a sharp breath.
All the windows are busted out, and you mean all of them. You can't see a single intact window all up the building. John grabs your arm and points up.
"Look!!"
On the very top floor, there's a figure, waving frantically out of the window. You whip out Jake's telescope thingie and zoom far in.
The figure isn't human. It's got a metallic head, topped with a backwards baseball cap, and is waving a sign.
HI WE'RE ON TOP FLOOR ELEVATOR IS BROKEN SRY
"Well?" Jade asks.
"We need to go to the top floor. And the elevator is broken." you say to a chorus of groans and one singular whoop from Jake.
The five of you make your way up the absurd amount of stairs and finally reach the top. You're greeted with a shut door, once again with a sign written in neat, thin orange pen.
Striders: Into The Striderverse
And below it, in messier handwriting,
containment area or whatever dont enter ig like knock first or something idk
"Let's knock," Roxy whispers. John raps on the door, and instantly there's a gleeful mechanical shriek from inside, and the door flies open, leaving you face to face with the robot from the window.
"HELLO, DAWG!" the robot greets you. "ARE YOU HERE TO SAVE OUR UNBEARABLY HOT ASSES?"
"Uh. Sure?" Jake says, evidently as confused as you are. The robot isn't fazed.
"COME INSIDE, DAWGS!" it screams, opening the door wider. You step inside and try not to stare.
Wires are strewn across the floor, hooking up to turntables and various other equipment. There's a figure slumped against the wall that you clock first as a bundle of trash before you realize what it is.
"Why do you have an android?!" John yelps, staring at the android in shock.
"Nunya business. Are we doing this, because I'm gonna need the tall dude." a voice says from behind you. You whirl around and stare at the lanky teenager standing with his hands in his pockets, backed by a robot, sheathed in a cloak.
"Me?" Jake asks. The kid nods, his eyes covered by dark sunglasses.
"My brother's in the other room." he says. "Don't worry, he's not contagious."
"What..." Roxy starts. "Is your brother a-"
"No!" the kid snaps. By the wall, the android stirs, and Jade whips out her gun, pointing it at the android's face. You watch as the android's dull red eyes flicker feebly for a few seconds before going dark, the rest of the body slumping down again, its one hand jerking slightly before falling still.
"I think your boy is broken," the taller robot says. "Maybe insert another token?"
"Not the time for raps." the kid tells him. The robot nods and crouches next to the android, scooping the body into his arms. The android reacts slightly to that, its hand tapping vaguely at the other robot's chest before coming to rest again.
"So he's an android, then?" Jade asks the bot.
"Yup." the bot says. "He's kinda jacked up, though."
"I'm good with robotics," Roxy offers, stepping forward. "Is he out of power, or...?"
"We don't got enough power to go around, man," the robot tells her.
"USE THE GENERATOR, MY DUDE!!" the short robot yells, grabbing a cable and jamming it haphazardly into the android's spinal port. There's a shudder of electricity, but no other reaction.
The tall robot sets the android down gently against the wall, adjusting him so the cable isn't dislodged.
Jake exits the other room with the kid, both of them looking grim.
"What's wrong?" you ask. The kid just shakes his head. Jake sets a hand on his shoulder reassuringly.
"Rose, start plan 413, please." Jake tells you.
Fuck. You pull out the med kit and your needles, readying yourself.
"What's that for?" the kid asks warily.
"Where's the sedative?" Jake asks you. You hand it to him, and he disappears into the back room, one hand barring the kid from entering as he shuts the door and locks it. There's a pained scream from inside, and the kid instantly slams his fist against the door.
"Dirk!" the kid yells. "What the FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!"
"Don't worry!" Jake calls back, out of breath. A moment later, he appears through the door, bridal carrying a guy who looks about his age, who also looks kind of dead.
"Damn, Dirkbro don't be doin' well, now." the taller robot comments.
"Is he dead?" the kid demands, sounding absolutely terrified. Jake shakes his head, shifting the teen - Dirk, you suppose - in his arms.
"Not yet. You did very well at keeping him sane, though." Jake says. "What's your name?"
"I'm Dave. They're Sawtooth and Squarewave. That's Dirk." Dave says, pointing to the bots and his brother in turn. John stares at him.
"You named it?" he says in shock. Dave glares at him.
"He's not an IT, asshole. He's my brother." Dave snaps. John, knowing not to antagonize, backs off.
"Shall we, then?" Jake asks, hefting the door open with his foot and motioning to the hallway with his head.
"We can't leave the house, dawg," Sawtooth says. "Our bro can, but not me or Squarewave."
"WE'LL BE FINE!" Squarewave screams reassuringly. Dave nods sharply and heads over to the android. You must admit that as strange as it might seem to give the species that murdered most of humanity both a home and a name, Dave really does seem to care about him.
With a small hiss and a synthesized "Battery power: 49%" Dave hefts the other up into his arms like he weighs nothing and strides over to the door.
"Come on." he tells you, leading the way down the stairs. Jake follows suit, the rest of you trailing behind.
"How are we going to get everyone into the car?" Roxy whispers to you. You shrug.
"Who knows? I'm sure Jake and John will manage." you say back. "I'm worried about Dave. I think he's dealing with something deeper than this."
You and Roxy both watch Jade trying to chat with Dave, who's only stiffly responding. Both people are clearly forcing themselves to have the conversation, but you can't blame Jade for trying. She sticks by his side, though, as you all make your way down the massive amount of stairs.
There is something off about Dave, though, something you can't put your finger on. He seems scared almost, like he's constantly aware that something is about to jump out at him.
"This is the car!" Jake announces. "Let's see how this'll work!"
"That's not a car, dude," Dave says. "That's a fucking limousine. It's beautiful."
"I like you." Jake says after a moment.
"Striders are unbearably attractive," Dave shrugs and the android's head slides off his shoulder with a faint error noise, but no other reaction.
Jake and John, as usual, Tetris everyone into the van, with Roxy and Jade in the front seat, Dirk slumped into Jake's lap, and you and John on either side of Dave and the unresponsive android.
"Are there seatbelts?" Dave asks warily. Roxy cackles loudly from the front, making Dave's frown only deepen.
"No. Hang on!" Roxy says cheerfully, flooring the gas pedal. Dave grabs the Oh Shit Handle as Roxy's terrible driving skills carry you all out of the parking lot. The second you're on an actual street, John turns to Dave.
"So. Nicolas Cage, yes or no?" he demands. Dave blinks at him.
"Absolutely not. He looks like a rat got Pinocchio'd into a real boy." Dave says. Jake makes a whistling noise and you get to see the fascinating shade of red John turns.
"He is an AMAZING ACTOR AND DON'T DISRESPECT HIM LIKE THAT!" John says loudly. Dave chuckles, the first laugh you've heard from him so far.
There's a whirring noise all of a sudden, and everyone (barring Roxy, thank God) stares at the android in Dave's arms.
"What-" the android glitches, then speaks again, the words less mechanical. "What happened?"
"Your signal got through," Dave tells him. "Guys, this is Hal."
"...guys?" Hal repeats.
"My name is Rose Lalonde." you say. Hal instantly turns his - their? - head in your direction. You notice that Hal's eyes are still closed, and suddenly, the amount of damage on his body becomes clear.
Androids don't bleed, humans figured that out at the beginning. They can be damaged, though.
"You're damaged, pal," Jake says, echoing your thoughts.
"I'm fine." Hal says much too quickly.
"Dude, you look like trash," Dave tells him. "Run a diagnostic."
The android sighs and dips his head, touching two fingers to his chest.
"SEVERE DAMAGES SUSTAINED. SYSTEM SHUTDOWN IMMINENT IN NEXT FIFTY-SIX HOURS." Hal says in a robotic (ha) voice. He finally opens his eyes, or what's left of them. They glow a dull red, and flick back and forth, unseeing. Panic crosses Hal's face but is quickly replaced with a neutral expression.
"Eyes gone?" Dave guesses. Hal nods. Dave swears and touches the back of Hal's neck, opening a panel.
"Uh, green muscley dude, stop staring at my brother and c'mere." Dave calls. Jake's head jerks up from where he was indeed staring at Dirk. You have no idea how someone can be gayer than you, but here you are.
"Hal, you cool with this?" Dave checks. Hal shrugs. Jade snores loudly from the front seat, making you jump.
"Who's that?" Hal asks.
"Jade," John tells him. "And I'm John!"
"I'm Roxy," Roxy says, chewing gum loudly as she speaks, just to be obnoxious.
"There's water in the wires," Jake says grimly. "I can either replace one damaged part at a time and risk you dying, or I can hard reset you completely, with no chance of you dying."
"No hard reset." Hal says instantly, flipping the latch closed. Jake sits back in his chair, pulling Dirk against his shoulder. Hal gingerly feels for the space next to Dave, and finding it empty, he slides into it, leaning against the wall of the van. "Where are we even going?"
"No idea," Dave admits. Hal turns to him, dull eyes somehow focused on the other.
"You got into a car with a bunch of people you literally do not know, and didn't even bother to ask where they were taking you?" Hal asks slowly. Dave has the decency to look guilty.
"....yeah." he admits. Hal facepalms with a metallic smack.
"You're so dumb." he groans.
"We're going to New York," Roxy calls back, pivoting in her seat. John screams and lunges forward.
"HANDS ON THE WHEEL EYES ON THE ROAD WHAT THE FUCK ROXY?!" John yells. Roxy cackles and turns back to the road.
Dirk groans and stirs, and instantly Hal and Dave are fully on guard as Dirk opens his eyes.