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It was a warm day in hell.
Limbo was V1’s favourite place to sit and wander. Most of the time, nothing bothered it, either too busy with their own things or too scared of it. And V1 liked that. Being alone. It wasn’t exactly the best, but there wasn’t much company in hell, anyway. Minos Prime had specifically banned V1 from seeing his flesh prison ever again, Sisyphus Prime was.. Not someone V1 wanted to hang around, and V2 was practically a distant memory of splattered blood on sandstone. She was gone.
Which did leave one, but of course, why would he willingly hang out with the same machine that tried to kill him twice?
So, for now, the machine wandered the garden. Ran its cold, unfeeling digits over flowers, picked a few, even if it was meaningless. The flowers in Limbo were as fake as the sky. The place had burned down and rebuilt itself. Hell was weird.
Oh god, don’t get V1 started on Fraud.
It continued picking flowers, wanting a break for just a bit. Fuel was high enough, boredom was even higher, but overfueling was a waste of future potential resources. Besides, the music here was nice. Some old song, it seemed like a memory. A distant, burning one, but a memory no less. While V1 was appreciating the flowers it had picked, it heard other footsteps. Normally, this wasn’t a massive deal, there were filth and stray everywhere, but these sounded.. Armoured. Heavy, purposeful. A threat. Someone V1 had met before, but in panic did not want to run a diagnostic on who.
Its mechanical wings clicked slowly upward, like an owl trying to seem imposing on prey to get them to run away or to freeze in terror. Its vision went from resolution based to action based, losing quality to focus on movement, and its singular optic scanned the environment, shrinking slightly and becoming orange in colour. It was focusing, it was ready to fight.
WARNING: POTENTIAL THREAT
COURSE OF ACTION:
ULTRAKILL
Just as Gabriel rounded the corner, an electric railcannon blast shot past his face. Thank God he stopped in time, he would’ve gotten his shit blown smooth off. Not something he wanted right now.
“.. Nice to see you too, machine.” The archangel grumbled, crossing his arms over his breastplate. “I see you’re having fun.” Gabriel motioned with his helmet to the flowers in V1’s hands. The same hands that were built to wield weapons and to maim and kill, holding flowers?
Laughable.
Almost pitiful.
Definitely pitiful.
V1 felt its wings slink back down into a rest position, optic focusing back on to quality over performance. Its voice module, slightly rusted from both the damp damage of Wrath and not being used very often, whirred to life like a dying laptop fan.
“[GABRIEL.]” It looked down at the flowers, seeming to think for a second, before holding the makeshift bouquet out for Gabriel to take. “[NICE TO SEE YOU.]”
Despite being a “divine archangel of the lord” (bullshit for: papa’s special boy), Gabriel’s wings fluttered in shock. Or perhaps fluster? Maybe even embarrassment. Whatever way, Gabriel internally cursed himself, he doesn’t GET flustered over machines.
“Ah.. I-I see. Thank you, machine.” Hesitantly, Gabriel took the bouquet. Daisies? Those grew down here? Well, you learn something new everyday. “Why were you picking flowers anyway?”
V1 shrugged, sitting on the edge of the fountain.
“[BOREDOM.]” It responded simply. “[I HAVE NO NEED FOR FUEL. I WANTED A BREAK.]”
“Fair enough, I suppose. And- and you’re letting me have them..?”
“[..DO YOU NOT LIKE DAISIES?]”
For a machine using TTS, it sure could convey curiosity well.
Gabriel shook his head, sitting next to V1, still holding the bouquet. He loved daisies, they were his favourite flower. Maybe other than white lilies. But still one of his favourite wildflowers, the white was pretty. And the yellow contrasted against both the petals and the stem. A beautiful colour combination.
“I never said that.” He smiled under his helmet, presumably. It sounded like it. “I love daisies. Thank you, V1.”
V1 felt its (surprisingly real) heart flutter at its actual name being spoken instead of “machine”. It was nice. Being told what it was all the time was tiring, or maybe just annoying. Its name was preferable in this situation.
A comfortable silence stretched between the two, interrupted only by the fountain behind them and the coin that V1 had started to idly flick into the air over and over. It wasn’t the post-battle silence these two normally shared, it was an almost.. A fond one. Like simply sitting in silence together was the most comfortable thing ever.
To Gabriel, who nowadays didn’t do as much training as he used to, it was comforting. To know at least one creature, be it a machine, enjoyed his presence, was enough for now.
V1, however, had not relaxed. It did not relax. It couldn’t. Wandering aimlessly, exploring, even picking daisies and painting were all in its code, but stopping? Pausing? Not in there. It could not physically pause.
It flicked the coin.
Up.
Down.
Flick.
Up.
Down.
Of course, the ever vigilant archangel noticed. Gabriel wasn’t emotionally stupid, despite what other angels used to say. He was simply focused on the task at hand, which, at the time, was serving the father. Then eliminating V1. And now he’s.. Free.
In a way, the two were the same. They were both free of burden, and now they had no purpose. No actual goal. Sure, Gabriel could train the remaining Powers and V1 could go to the cybergrind or replay a few layers, but that wasn’t purpose. That wasn’t a goal, that was a hobby or a task.
V1 hates not having anything to do. It hated being.. Useless. An obsolete machine without enjoyment or task.
Gabriel hated it more. He hated being bored, hated the feeling of not doing anything, even when he was burnt out.
“Machine?” Gabriel mumbled. “Do you.. Do anything when you’re not killing and massacring?”
“[I PREFER SURVIVING.]” V1’s head swivelled to Gabriel, optic locking onto the cross on the helmet. “[I DO ENJOY BLOOD. VIOLENCE. BUT I DO NOT DO IT FOR FUN.]”
“Ah. My mistake. Though, my question still stands, do you have a hobby? Or just something you do when bored?”
“[...]” V1 looked down, its wings drooping slightly and the tips going from orange to magenta. (#ff674f for you nerds with the hex codes). “[I CAN SING.]”
Gabriel perked up. Singing? He likes singing! Mainly angelic choirs, but that’s still music! And, oh, pair a choir with an organ? Gabriel would actually love if V1 could sing with him one day, it would probably-!
Would.. Probably sound like the S.A.M TTS voice. Seeing as that’s the voice model built in.
“Oh, that’s.. Nice, I suppose. I like choir music. Oh, and organs, I love a good organ.”
“[ME TOO. I LIKE LIVERS THE BEST.]”
…
“Machine, don’t even right now.”
“[MY BAD.]”
The two of them settle back into silence for a while. V1 idly swung its legs, the pneumatic heels clinking against the fountain and hissing when it hit too hard. Those were its boosters, it would shoot pressurized gas out of the heels to boost up and then fold its wings to push forward.
Gabriel noticed. He’d learnt the machines attack patterns while following him midair. It was fascinating, watching how the machine worked. Like an angel of metal who yearns to fly permanently instead of for three seconds.
..pitiful.
“Would you..” V1 jolted slightly, not expecting Gabriel to speak so suddenly. Gabriel giggled. “Sorry. Would you give me an example of your singing? I think.. It would be nice.”
The machine stared. Like a kid in a candy store, seeing the biggest candy bar in the store and being told they could have it.
“[REALLY?]” It even sounded excited. “[I DONT SOUND.. ANGELIC.]”
“I don’t mind.” Gabriel shifted on the fountain side, tilting his head to meet V1’s optic. “I’m sure it’s fine.”
Considering its options, V1 ran diagnostics.
OPTION 1: SING
- POSSIBLE NEGATIVES:
GABRIEL MAY HATE IT
I SOUND HORRIBLE
I SHOULD NOT DO THIS
OPTION 2: DO NOT SING
- POSSIBLE NEGATIVES:
GABRIEL MAY BE SAD
MAYBE HE WILL LIKE IT
GABRIEL <3
IGNORE.
IGNORE.
IGNORE.
OPTION 3: RUN.
- NO POSSIBLE NEGATIVES.
“[.. I SUPPOSE.]” The machine hesitated. “[I CAN TRY.]”
A slightly muffled intro to Daisy Bell started playing from inside of V1. Softly, like the first computer did. Almost like a performer taking a deep breath before stepping on stage, or taking a drink of water (or blood, in this case) before starting. Gabriel waited with bated breath to hear it, though he wasn’t sure if it was anticipation or fear.
“[THERE IS A FLOWER WITHIN MY HEART
DAISY, DAISY!
PLANTED ONE DAY BY A GLANCING DART,
PLANTED BY DAISY BELL!]”
It wasn’t horrible. It was actually pretty good, considering V1 was barely made to speak, and more to focus on the blood and gore of combat.
“[WHETHER SHE LOVES ME OR LOVES ME NOT,
SOMETIMES ITS HARD TO TELL.
YET I AM LONGING TO SHARE THE LOT
OF BEAUTIFUL DAISY BELL!]”
Gabriel watched as V1 swayed side to side while singing, its legs also swinging back and forth. And, god forbid it, but Gabriel couldn’t help smiling under his visor as he watched it. It was adorable, okay, and maybe angels like cute things.
“[DAISY, DAISY,
GIVE ME YOUR ANSWER DO.
I’M HALF CRAZY,
ALL FOR THE LOVE OF YOU!
IT WONT BE A STYLISH MARRIAGE,
I CANT AFFORD A CARRIAGE,
BUT YOU’D LOOK SWEET UPON THE SEAT
OF A BICYCLE BUILT FOR TWO!]”
Taking two of the daisies from the bouquet, V1 tied them together, like a small chain. A ring. Maybe it was coding to console children during war, or maybe V1 learned it itself, but once it was done, it held it out to Gabriel. Its bottom optic cleaner raised, making it smile, almost.
Gabriel finally exhaled, sounding almost like a soft laugh as he took in the sight of the ring. He didn’t expect this, of all things. But, still, he held his hand out for V1 to place the ring on his finger. It was perfect.
“Hm. How did you know my ring size?”
“[BIOMETRIC SCANS. EACH TIME I DRAW BLOOD I TAKE A SCAN.]” V1 shrugged.
“Well, how bout that. Thank you, V1.”
The war machine would’ve blushed, had it flesh or blood to rise to its cheeks. Or cheeks at all.
“[ANYTIME, ANGEL.]”
“Angel?”
“[.. WARNING: OVERHEAT DETECTED. APOLOGIES. REBOOTING INTERNAL COOLING SYSTEM]”
Gabriel laughed.