Archive of Our Own ^beta

Uzi Doorman was unusual in every way imaginable. She was loud, weird, and had extreme interests that nobody seemed to understand. Or- used to, now she had N and V. How funny, that it took a group of literal murderers for her to feel welcome. Besides her bold personality and choice of partners, she was one of the victims of an eldritch persona that wanted to destroy everything and everyone. Which, understandably, made her stand out even more. Even after defeating The Absolute Solver, even when she finally had friends and family– hell, she even got to meet her own mother! After everything she lost, and everything she gained, she was still an outsider in her own way. There wasn’t a single drone like her, not anymore, and she was fine with that. With her father, mother and strangely hot robots who required the blood of drones to survive, she had everything she’d ever need. And for the first time in her life, she was content. For a while, at least.

You see, The Absolute Solver never left, not really. It didn’t take her long to start hearing it. Feeling it. It began as a sensation, a barely noticeable feeling that just seemed to linger for a moment too long. Strange buzzing beneath her casing, passing whispers, strange- well, stranger impulses than she was used to. The sort of thing where you can’t really tell if it was actually real or if you were just seeking out shapes in the shadows. So, she ignored it. 

She continued to ignore the voices getting louder, more defined, more… real. She ignored the way her new tail seemed to twitch and move on its own. She ignored the flashes of memories that didn’t belong to her, or emotions that she had no reason to feel. 

She ignored the way her body seemed to inhabit people other than herself.

It wasn’t the first time she felt like this, technically. The Absolute Solver had stolen her autonomy, had tried to steal everything from her. But this was different. When Uzi was possessed, she wasn’t conscious. She couldn’t really feel it coming on, if you ignore the outbursts of uncontrollable power. This time, there was no power, no possession, and no blacking out.

Just voices.

Sometimes when she slept, scenes would play out. It wasn’t unusual for a drone to replay memories while knocked out, it was how they stored information after all. They were unable to come up with new dreams, even the most creative drone was limited to what already existed within their mind.

Unless you were Uzi Doorman apparently. Every now and then, just as she began to think she was misremembering things, she would fall asleep and a foreign memory would play out in front of her. She recognised the location, and rationalised it was a sort of glitch– a distorted version of the mansion she’d seen when entering N’s mind. Except, it wasn’t. She was travelling through rooms she never saw, looking at decor completely unimaginable to her, interacting with figures she’d never seen before. And the weirdest of all? She wasn’t even dreaming from her own perspective. It took her many, many, many of these strange dreams to recognise the voice in her dream.

Sometimes, when quiet whispers of people long gone would plague her quiet moments, a new voice would slip through. It was unstable, unsure of itself. It sounded… sad, pained. And it sounded just like the girl whose memories she experiencing. Even more, she realised she’d actually met this person. Sort of. Does interacting with a homicidal malware piloting someone’s corpse as meeting said corpse? She didn’t want to think about it for too long.

She didn’t remember most of those dreams at first, probably because her servers couldn’t fully comprehend a memory that didn’t belong, but as she realised it was becoming a recurring thing, Uzi began to write down what she experienced.

It wasn’t that interesting at first, just regular everyday memories; roaming around the endless halls of that damned mansion, reading books, talking to people she couldn’t discern the identity of. Then she saw it, or rather- them. N and V, back when they worked as mere butlers. It was so… strange, to see these big and scary robots so… young, so harmless. Watching herself, or rather the girl, interact with them like it was just another Tuesday… It felt surreal.

When she woke up that morning, she took a good long look at her partner’s faces. Seeing their past had been interesting, sure, but this was different. There was no threat, there was no drama. Just a couple of drones serving humans. It makes her wonder how it all went so… murdery.

Also, tiny V was mega cute with glasses.

Around the time of these dreams, she noticed her own bodily autonomy becoming... compromised. That cool ass tail of hers really liked to reach out for others, whether it was to smack them or nibble on their limbs. It was funny at first, but when it gave V a real nasty bite, she decided she’d had enough.

Uzi hadn’t begun to speak with it with the expectation that it would respond, but as she shook in her hands and scolded it, the eyes blinked. They glowed and it tilted its head in a way that couldn’t imply anything but sentience. And then it spoke.

The glitchy robotic voice was grating to her ears, like it had done physical harm to her. And going by her reaction, it might as well have. She threw the cursed limb away from herself, which wasn’t far considering it was attached to her, as she tried to get away. Only one thing on this planet had that voice, and she didn’t want anything to do with it. What had earlier been a slight annoyance was now a constant fount of panic. The constant feeling that at any moment, The Absolute Solver might take over once more. She thought she was safe, that her family was safe– but once again, she was the main source of danger for everyone around her. Uzi refused to respond to its near constant yappering, no matter how much it got on her nerves and drove her up the wall. As long as only she was affected, it was fine. As long as it didn’t try anything, it was okay.

Luckily, it seemed to be tethered to her tail and unable to affect her other limbs. Unluckily, her freaky mansion-dreams seemed to become a near daily occurrence. And her notebook was quickly filling up with useless memories. At least it was nice to see the drones so happy, before everything bad went down. Sure the humans were mean, but Uzi could comfort herself with the fact that they were all long gone.

Was she the only worker drone in her colony to actually see a living human?

Awesome.

On a more less awesome note, a new drone joined the butler staff.

Cyn.

It was… conflicting to see her alive and well. She wasn’t actively trying to hurt anyone, and seeing her and N interact so fondly with each other… it made her sad. Sad knowing what would happen to them. Cyn wasn’t always murdery and possessed, at some point she was just a regular drone. And she had friends, family.

Nobody seemed to like Cyn very much, at least not among the humans. Uzi couldn’t exactly blame them, she was creepy as heck, but she was harmless. Tessa, as the human was called, loved that drone– glitchy voice, broken limbs and all. At some point though… her way of speaking became downright worrying. As if she- or, it, Uzi guessed– knew more than she should. Wanted more than was… normal. Uzi wasn’t sure when The Absolute Solver took over Cyn’s body, there was no obvious change in behaviour. It was all subtle, but the difference was definitely there compared to when she was first brought in.

N and V had noticed her acting strange, especially regarding her new tail. She considered telling them, but decided it was best to just… not. They’d been through so much, she didn’t want them to have to think about The Absolute Solver more than they already did. Call her a sap, but seeing them as regular drones made her sentimental in a soft and gross way, bite her.

Luckily they hadn’t found her notebook, or they just let it be, or else she’d definitely have things to explain.

Cyn wasn't like the other voices she heard. The Absolute Solver was a semi-constant nagging malware attached to her, and the human cried to her at night, but Cyn didn't speak. She never said a word. Uzi would think it was because she wasn't there, but that wasn't true. While the drone didn't speak, she could feel her. It wasn't even a physical feeling, she just felt like Cyn was there. Her silent company a near constant sensation. It wasn't bad exactly, but it was a little creepy- shocker. It was almost as if she could feel someone staring at her, except from inside of her? As if she was constantly waiting for someone to speak to her, but they never did. It was quite the contrast to her in Tessa's memories, but that made her think.

Was that really Cyn that Tessa had adopted?

Sometimes when Uzi was alone, writing down her dreams, Tessa spoke to her. Not Cyn, not The Absolute Solver, Tessa. It wasn’t exactly coherent, but she was speaking. Of course she’d heard the sniffles and cries, but now it was a lot worse. It took Uzi a moment to realise she wasn’t talking to her, like The Solver was. It was more like… she was mumbling to herself.

“Alone…”

It always sent shivers through her whenever she spoke. Her voice sounded so… cold, so empty. Like she was a mere husk of that cheerful and confident young woman she used to be. Tessa always had this pep in her step, she was loud and stubborn. Uzi liked her. Whenever Tessa spoke up, she’d listen. She couldn’t exactly explain it, but it felt respectful to do so. Like listening to a dying woman’s last words, or in this case, a dead girl’s sorrowful cries.

Sometimes, Uzi tried to respond, to comfort her. It felt weird, really freaking weird, to feel the need to comfort someone who was dead. But if she spoke, didn’t that mean there was something left of her? No memory chip or programming, but an organic person. Could she somehow see, or worse, feel what was going on around her? Despite being… well, whatever you’d call the monstrosity that had become of her. It made her feel sick. This had all been a lot easier before she knew them personally. Was this what N and V were going through?

It seems Tessa isn’t fully conscious, at least not conscious enough to respond or hear Uzi. She tried to comfort herself with the theory that this Tessa was merely a distant memory, a trace of a person embedded into The Solver’s code. A permanent trace of what she used to be. 

“I’m… so cold-”

“I think you should be grateful.”

Her last dream had been… uncomfortable, more so than usual. Tessa had had a fight with her parents over an upcoming party, and 'Cyn' had been acting even weirder than usual. It’d gotten bad enough that Tessa actually noticed it this time, even past her biased affection for the tiny drone. The humans had locked Tessa in her room, with J and Cyn as her only company. She couldn’t remember the exact words exchanged, but Uzi could feel that it wouldn’t lead to anything good.

It didn’t take long for Uzi to realise what was going to happen in her next dream.

She knew the basic beats of what had gone down that night, the night where The Absolute Solver attacked, but her recollection of the night was heavily skewed and fever-dreamy, so basically she had no idea what to expect. A big part of her didn’t want to know, ever. But she also knew she couldn’t prevent it. Maybe… maybe the possessed part of her would decide to skip that particular day. Maybe it’d be fine.

Uzi hoped it would be fine.

It was in fact- not fine.

Uzi woke up in a cold sweat, her systems going hay-wire trying to handle her mortal panic. What… what was that?

“Uzi..?” A sleepy voice from beside her mumbled, but she barely registered it. Her hand clutched at her chest, her entire casing shaking with how violently she was hyperventilating.

That…

She wanted to close her eyes, to just pretend she hadn’t seen anything. But complete darkness would mean she had to see… that. 

“Please…”

It hadn’t started so bad, it seemed like just another day in the Elliott manor. Everyone was stressed and preparing for the upcoming party. Tessa was so nervous, she kept rambling on and on about human boys and making a good impression. It was a little bit pathetic in all honesty, but Uzi couldn’t blame her considering the environment she seemingly grew up in. But at some point N and Cyn joined her– and- wow, Tessa really loved N. Not that she could blame her– but more importantly, her mother was pissed.

Uzi felt some primal urge to feel bad for Cyn, but knowing what they did, knowing that probably wasn’t Cyn anymore, she bit down that urge.

Tessa, J and Cyn was banished to Tessa’s bedroom, while N was sentenced to the birds– meaning everything that happened from here on out was the truth, the unaltered version of history. A strange combination of Tessa’s upset and Uzi’s steadily growing anxiety made for quite the stomach ache– which Uzi had never experienced before since… well, she wasn’t human. She’d experienced quite the array of organic sensations since these dreams began.

And not only was Tessa locked in, she’d been chained inside. Her parents had always been… extreme with their punishments, but this was harsh, even for them. Tessa was crushed, both because she’d been kicked out of her own party before it even started, as well as the fact that N might die out there. All because he took the fall for a system that wasn’t even Cyn.

Suddenly, the room went dark. Something familiar flashed before her, before crashing out the window. The Absolute Solver. Cyn as Uzi had known her. It felt offensive at this point to associate the two. Cyn wasn’t The Solver, and neither was Tessa. Uzi knew that now.

J, seemingly finally understanding the weight of the situation, decides to help them flee. She bites and gnaws at the chain, spitting on it when it finally decides to give. They looked at each other, knowing that they had to fix this.

If only they knew.

The snuck out, creeping around the damned manor. They acted so… childish. Tessa was only a kid. A person her own age. She exchanged excited banter with J, styling with a sword she’d gun they’d stolen from some exhibit. Humans were laughing down in the dinner hall, oblivious to the looming threat.

Once they finally reached the gala, they burst through the door. “Everyone stand back! This…” She spun the gun around, “is a citizens murder!” Tessa yelled as if she was starring in some sort of action movie. Opposite of them stood The Absolute Solver, looking so innocent. Uzi wanted to scream, to cry out to them that they couldn’t beat it. To run away while they could. Please.

“I'm sorry…”

But Tessa didn’t know. She didn’t have the knowledge Uzi had, she hadn’t seen what would become of her.

The Solver picked up her parents and tossed them aside, causing Tessa to gasp. Her grip on the revolver tightened as her hands shook. “Tessa, remember you didn’t have to-” The Solver taunted, before being bombarded with whatever Tessa could grab. She threw the gun, plates, glasses, whatever she could reach. As if that would stop it.

To everyone’s horror, The Solver seemed to have lost it’s patience, and the entire hall turned black. People panicked, some tried to flee.

Nobody survived.

A blinding yellow glow forced Tessa to shield her eyes, the last thing she heard before complete chaos broke out– a glitchy voice, so far from the tiny drone she’d come to love.

“You didn’t have to see this.”

It was quick, it was meticulous and brutal. The closest humans got slain first, claws digging into their organic bodies and tearing them apart. A red liquid that Uzi recognised as blood gushed out. Tessa was hyperventilating bad enough for them to become dizzy, her entire body shaking with fear. Uzi was screaming at her to run, but being a prisoner in this mortal body, she could do nothing but watch. Watch as dozens got slaughtered, listen to their screams. Finally, finally Tessa turned around to flee, but now J stood in her path, actively stopping people. Tessa cried, she begged J to listen to her, but she didn’t listen. She sobbed, apologising as she clung to J’s uniform; apologising for being so blind, apologising for bringing that monster inside at all, anything to try to appease the drone and let her leave. 

“J, I-I’m so sorry… mom, dad, I-I’m-”

A scorching pain, horrid enough to case her vision to black out for a moment. A sensation unlike Uzi had ever felt before, but akin to having her core ripped out. Tessa slowly looked down, finding one of The Absolute Solver’s claws embedded deep inside of her torso. “J-J-?” she stammered, the glowing X that had replaced J’s eyes being the last thing she saw before getting pulled back.

If the intrusion had hurt, then what next was pure torture. She screamed, she cried and yelled until her throat was sore. Blood was everything. The metallic smell making her nauseous. She cried out for her mother, she cried out for the father, she cried out for mercy.

But nobody listened.

The next thing she came to, she was laying outside in the snow. She’d been flung through the window so quickly she didn’t even feel it until she was laying on top of the scattered glass. Staring up at the night sky, she felt so, so cold. Everything hurt. She could still hear screams coming from inside, but it was distant. It was almost peaceful, laying out in the snow. She coughed, tasting her own blood on her tongue. She had to move, she had to do something. Tessa managed to roll onto her stomach, running on pure adrenaline at this point. She crawled. She didn’t know where, she just needed to get away. 

She didn’t get far.

As silence fell over the manor, she could hear steps in the snow behind her. Tessa wanted to scream and kick, to continue to fight, but she just couldn’t. 

“Told you you wouldn’t like it,” The Solver’s monotone voice called out. Tessa sobbed. “You- you-”

“I like you, Tessa. You will not die yet.”

“Please… I beg to rest…”