Work Text:
oh boy...where do I even begin ?...
Today was supposed to be a calm day. well it was supposed to be until Pomni managed to find a strange mannequin npc that turned out to be a human. that said mannequin had found a way to leave the circus, to escape from this hell, to go back home. Home felt so distant now after all the time you've been stuck here. Weeks ? months ? years ? you don't really remember and you didn't really think about keeping track of the night and day cycles here. All you know now is that you are trapped with six other humans in a beautiful, miraculous, digital hell with an obsessive and somewhat clueless ai as your guardian; The digital God of this place if you think hard about it.
You remember today's adventure like it was yesterday : two buttons. One red, the other one blue : the blue one granted the wish of going back home, the red one trapped you all in the circus for eternity. This is it ! this was the way to go back to where you belong…
but it really was far too easy now, wasn't it ?
The red one had been pressed by Jax out of nowhere who was now rolling on the floor, laughing like a madman losing the last vestige of his humanity to his insanity after being proven right : Abel, the story, the escape, the plan...this was all an adventure. a complex experience made by Caine to stimulate our minds...or rather break it for this instance. Pomni was devastated, Ragatha as well. Kinger went back to the crazy man he's known to be because of the bright screen illuminating the crew, making it all the more humiliating, Gangle was just speechless and Zooble...you never saw them like this before...their rage made their mismatch body tremble with each breath they took. You stood there, in the back, eyeing the soaps and lotions that Caine decided to drop as a pathetic excuse of a reward all nicely arranged in a basket...
Out of all the ones here trapped, you were the only one that would try to find explanations, to understand the twisted ai that kept you all stuck in this hellhole...Zooble said it was a waste of time and would only bring you trouble but you overlooked it all and it played a long impact on the ai's code.
you were his favorite.
that was very noticeable. Even much so that Jax had started to call you "Caine's bootlicker". You never wanted such attention really. you just wanted to make Caine understand what he says to love so dearly : humanity.
Jax : "aha...heh...trynna look for an excuse here bootlicker ? TRY EXCUSING THIS !"
...that's all you remember Jax telling you that day...his voice filled with disdain and anger as you felt naked and bare in front of the others, twelve eyes demasking you, awaiting for your verdict but nothing came out of your mouth. you took Jax's scolding that day. Too shocked to fight back, to process any evidence that went under your radar. Afterwards you all went back to the main area. Some when to their rooms, some went to the lounge area. You layed in your bed, all snuggled up in your covers, hugging a Caine plushie that Caine had offered to you on an adventure as you repeated the words over and over in your head. maybe Jax was right, maybe you were doing this for attention, an unfair privilege that you didn't think you craved from the ai...but there's no going back anymore. you've made your bed and soon enough you'll have to lie in it.
A small, shy knock cleared your head from all the negative thoughts. you'd think it was Gangle, asking to stay with you so you two could comfort each other after what took place. But to your surprise, it was Caine who now looked horribly guilty, as if scared of getting called out for his wrong-doings again but now with a certain determination. He smiles, his usual boistful self now an awkward and needy look as if craving your validation, craving the sweet comfort of your presence once again.
Caine : "well, hello there my darling...I just- came here to see how my lovely little cuddle bug was holding up !...i-if I can do anything for you after...what...happened"
A small, cartoonish drop of sweat formed near his jaw head as he wiped it clean with a finger. He clearly wanted to go over to you, to hold you in his arms like you'd always let him do. But now was clearly not the time for that.
Caine : "n-now I'm sure you need your rest from this...extravagant idea of mine ! I worked for a long time to get to this level of expertise- I'm sure you took notice of that my sharp-eyed baby lynx !...and please do not get too jelly over the date with Jax ! there will be much more dates between you and me to come my dear~...if you want to of course...heh"
Suddenly, he snapped his fingers, a lovely bouquet of daisies appeard and gently landed onto your lap. You looked back up at him with tired eyes as he looks at you in hopes of you not pushing him away. you were his favorite, surely you'd understand him, right ?
You looked down at the bouquet of flowers, mainly filled with sweet little daisies and a single rose tucked away in the center of it. An artificial smell came from it, trying too hard to smell Pleasant as it filled the room with the digital scent. it smelled Nothing like a flower, just like how food here didn't have the same taste as well. it was all Caine's fabrication, a small detail that he seemed to pay attention to just so he could get a reaction out of you. He'd pick scents that you liked, food that you favored tasted like an amalgamation of Something trying to replicate what it doesn't fully understand. You didn't mind it. If anything You felt flattered that he'd go out of his way to do this for you. But now that wasn't the focus. You looked up, seeing his eyes wide and his pupils dilated like two black holes ready to swallow your soul whole. He almost looked like a puppy, looking awfully guilty after chewing on its master's shoes. He spoke up, worried from the lack of reaction and the presence of redness under your eyes.
Caine : "m-my dear...you look so tired. Was it really that exhausting ? I-I guess I..."
There was a silence. A rare moment of reflection that went through his binary coded mind as Clarity took over his artificial spirit.
Caine : "I went too far now, haven't I ?" he finally admitted "I just wanted you all to have fun, to show you how I too can be interesting just like you humans...I just wanted to entertain...t-to be appreciated...just this once."
Caine floated down, now resting on the floor on his knees, a guilty look on his face but now more pronounced, almost human. Tears swelled up in his mismatched eyes, glistening in the light and threatening to Spill at any moment. He looked up at you, his irises boggling cartoonishly to show how close he was to just break down and cry for forgiveness.
Caine : "all the time I've spent here in the circus...made me curious over you and the other humans...you all fascinate me ! y-you're basically my greatest inspirations ! my muses ! I-I thought that you all wanted Freedom in some way...not that you hate me, of course not ! b-but...I didn't think you'd miss your macroverse so badly...a-and I can't begin to imagine if you guys all leave me…"
Caine wiped his tears away as he then suddenly felt Something touch his gums near his left canin. A softness that felt so foreign, so far from his purpose but lord did it feel good. His eyes looked up in awe and shock as you had reached out to him. A soft,tired look on your face but filled with understanding. His heart swelled up with all his love for humanity, all his love for you. he couldn't Believe it. Soon he felt your hand move. He wanted to pull it back where it rested but he then felt them gently slither and hold onto Caine's thick, cartoonish ones. He felt a gentle pull, making him float up, letting you move him as you gently settled him onto your bed right next to you. He just stared, enthralled and hypnotised by it all. He soon felt a tender squeeze, making his eyes look momentarily at his hands and right back into your eyes as you started softly.
"Caine...what were you thinking ?..." that accusation made Caine flinch a little as he squirmed under your gaze.
Caine : "I-I just...my dear I just...I noticed that you all had one thing in common so...I sent the npc on its own research ! to enhance the experience-"
"Caine, that's called stalking."
He jumped back as he waved his hands around in a frantic panic like you just placed a dagger right Under his jugular.
Caine : "wait wait wait t-that's not what it was supposed to be ! really it wasn't that bad ! just...observing ! like bird watching or something !"
You sighed at his excuse. of course he was oblivious to it all. Especially that his actions tend to have conscequences. You took his hands, gently guiding him back down next to you, your opposite legs now touching each other.
"...Caine...I know you didn't mean any harm...it shows. But there are things that you are hiding from us. this world is a wonder and a hellscape for us. It could be a sweet dream as it can turn into our own tailmade nightmare and that's the problem. Please, know that we are scared here. we're far away from our home, we can't locate ourselves nor can we remember who we were before. it is all stress inducing here...it's like placing a wild bird in a cage, One that could fly anywhere it wanted only to find itself in a gilded cage. You can make it as comfortable as possible and give all it needs but...it'll still yearn for the outside, for freedom…"
Caine stayed silent, his thoughts paused, giving you all his attention. It made his throat tighten in fear, anxiety spiking up as he looked down at your lap, letting your words fill his complexe, repeating, analysing, decripting your message.
Caine : "b-but you...you and the others...are all that I have left. it's my purpose, my role to entertain you all...to keep you all active with my creations. I just...I just want you guys to be happy...i-is this too much to ask, my dear ?"
it wasn't a question. it was a cry for help. for his one and only muse to decript him just like he's been doing for so long. You could see it as you raised your two hands. The left one entwined your fingers together, revelling in the squishiness of his hand. The other one reaching to gently wipe a tear threatening to drip from his bottom molar.
"that's the thing Caine...it's not your fault...not entirely. You did mess us up with this adventure, making it a lot harder for us mentally…it made a huge impact on our sanity. But as you said, you were searching for a common ground between all of us…and the idea of us leaving you behind scared you...right ?"
Caine nodded his jaw, his top jaw moving to look like a frown as tears still pricked the side of his eyes. He squeezed your hand in his as you hummed softly at the feeling of it.
"then, now that you understand that what happened was wrong...you need to understand that listening to us is important. Critics are as important as praises Caine. They guide you, make you notice mistakes along the way that causes the adventures to be harder to appreciate. You need our point of view Caine...we'll find a solution together"
With one more squeeze, you let go of his hand and his face as you place your hands on your lap. you could see his mind going 100 miles per hour as a throbber went around in circles inside his eyes. Caine took in everything you've said. You couldn't help but smile. he was trying, clearly wanting to learn, to be better. Before you could ask if he was okay to snap him out of his thoughts you were suddenly tackled into a huge hug, his arms spreading cartoonishly like a rubberhose character to wrap around your body multiple times. a few pillows fell on the floor as you let out a small huff, air escaping your lungs from how hard he was squeezing you as well as adding the impact against your mattress and his weight. Caine looked overjoyed at the thought of your proposition : that was it ! the solution to happiness ! he couldn't wait to spend more time talking about his adventures to you and all the possibilities it could bring ! and he gets to learn more about his humans ! He nuzzled his top and Bottom incisors against your neck, breathing in the smell of the bouquet that had fallen onto the floor and the sweet smell of his darling little human. he couldn't help but let out a few happy giggles as if he wasn't practically about to ball his eyeballs out a few minutes earlier
Caine : "my dear, my love, my darling ! oh you and your reasoning ! Always the voice of reason ! this is just another reason why I ADORE you !!"
he rambled on, peppering your face in sweet kisses and licks as he kept gushing over you, at how patient you were, how kind. he was feeling giddy now, his face flushed against yours as he nuzzled and cuddled you close like you would fly away like the beautiful angel he imagines you to be. after a good three minute of making sure you were covered in kisses he cupped your flushed cheeks, squishing your face as he thought about how adorable you looked right now. Caine's blue and green eyes were still as big as saucers, now holding a look of pure adoration and cherish as his eyes sparkled and shined with the purest form of love the ai could ever recreate
Caine : "I can't imagine how life would have been if you weren't there with me my dear...can you imagine it already ? just you and me, brainstorming fun ideas for everyone to enjoy ! like my assistant ! just...a lot more useful and important ! just don't tell Bubble I said that. that's what it all missed ! a touch of your genius mixed perfectly with mine ! a human's touch to my unique masterpieces ! oh my fuzzy little chipmunk with you by my side these adventures are going to be an even greater chef d'oeuvre ! one made by my own hands and with the help of my incredible one and only fan !! oh now I can't stop thinking about it my dear ! it'll be so fun !"
His excitement was almost of a childish nature, one born from naivity and innocent thrill of having a good time with the one and only who managed to overwrite his code and rules. You could see the manic energy that he held in his being. that just made him more adorable. You couldn't help but smile, gently patting his head and giving hit a tender kiss to the top of his gums, making him smile blissfully at the addictive feeling of your lips in contact with his, of your touch, your affection. It only made him nuzzle into your cheek, his teeth gently nipping it and giving it a small kitten lick with just the tip of his tongue. he layed his head back onto your chest, hearing you giggle, watching lines on your face gently appear to show a happy expression. It made him sigh dreamingly.Laughter was what he was supposed to bring but your laugh was what truly kept him running. You looked back at him, seeing his blissful expression as you couldn't help but think...did he truly understood ? or will his insecurities take over again and cause more trouble to you and the others ? you didn't know. With all the things that took place, with Jax's accustations, the devastated look on everyone's face, the despair of being fooled cruely by a God who knows no wrong but may know more about this place, the never ending fear of abstraction...it exhausted you. So you decided it was better to relax with Caine and see what the future brings.
Caine : "I'll explain myself to the others later...I need to spend some time with you first my dear !"
"alright then...just Watch out for Zooble, they almost threw themselves at Pomni and Jax so I'm guessing their planning on ripping your teeth out of your gums with their bare hands"
Caine : "o-oh !"