#the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp

[rynmaru]

#the gemini paradox #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #lancer the mech rpg #lancer meme #lancer oc #lancer art #lancer character #lancerrpg #pollvx #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #lancer nhp #my oc shit #original character #echo & byte #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x.

[rainbowgod666]

Sonic.exe: (drunk as shit) an' uh- you... y... uuuhhh... honestly? Your girl isss... rreeEALLYy cool actshtually... (demoman noises) aa- at leasth you donth av to let a one offf phrase thefine yu...

SCP-166 Epon: (showing off her eìre goddess side) y- yuyeaahhh... thscanks for teaching her about... th-uuuhh thE SECOND AMENDMENT (she- did she fucking down half a pint of hard liquor like th- IS THAT IN THE "APOCALYPSE KNIGHT" CODE?) WOOOOOOOOOO! thiss... thissum gus shite i tellyahwat...- anyway ye t- think its hardd? Boi lemme tell ye, im suppos' ta be the Foundation's WAIFU! And thossshshshsheee...ff... fUCKs go after... (sighs) the fuckin' furrybait shy girll

Sonic.exe: prEaCh girl, thats... thatsh whut ye learned from whenyou uh... l-lived in a c...hurch

Epon: y-yuh cause like... me father's alto cLef yknow??? He focken döömped me thaer! Me name meansh fucken MEESTÆK in HEBREw! Like???

Sonic.exe: at leASt yer creatorshnot a fuken EDGELORD! HAAAAA

(They both drown the cringe in alcohol)

Herobrine: the top sniper of the Creepypasta Unit and the Second Knight of the Apocalypse everyone. (Disappointment intensifies)

________________________________

Tumblr furry: hang on, i get to stay AWAKE and it still counts as anesthesia?

Aubergine Man: its some SCP shit but its actually harmless (turns on red lightsaber) anyway, you said you wanted to transition?

Tumblr furry: yes pls i need the gender euphoria

Aubergine Man: Based.

Aubergine Man: also you get a free blåhaj after gender-affirming surgery and you get three months of hormones free of charge, but then you need a renewal service and depending on the fandom the price can change-

Gaster (from the storage room): afton PLEASE dont advertise during sURGERY

Orochimaru, all the way from the office: yeah! Its annoying!

Aubergine Man William Afton: ah whatever, anyway time for some personalized genital moddding :D

_________________________________

Eric: so... uuhhh

Kyle: no, i wont tell anybody WHAT you used as the generator for dickinbaus

Butters: you promise?

Kyle: considering that i just saw 30 SCPs taped toghether to generate infinite energy from a taco-bell induced diharrea attack from cartman, yeah

Eric: good.

Eric: so... (looms at butter) you wanna do a nuclear warcrime? I want to staple a nuclear reactor to the dickinbaus

Butters: yeah! Nuclear energy!!!

Kyle: what the fuck is wrong with you two

________________________________________

Pomni: what is this... white space?

Ink: welcome to the anti-void

Uncle grandpa: its basically an infinite canvas at the bottom of the undertale multiverse.

Dr.bright: its also a physical version of the Noosphere

Pomni:... a- (spontaneous combustion)

I fucking told y'all

(All the charachters that ever canonically knew or had access to a "white space" like the undertale anti-void/uncle grandpa "intermission space" proceed to nod, agree, and talk about how such a simple concept is THIS complex apparently)

______________________________________

MONIST-1 RA: when i discovered that "Deimos" is also the name of a Madcom Charahcter i... genuinely liked this rock even more

Metat Aun: some people compare me to a scene of an extremely ancient cradle film... "2001 space odissey"... whatever tf that means

P.O.L.L.V.X.: a pilot canonically "pacified" me by having yaoi seggs with me

(Everyone embarassed)

Lancer!Alex (callsign ALPHA): (face bursts from pavement like he got shot from a basement or shit) and i would do it agaaain~

(All NHPs are now currently screaming in abject fear at the UwU NHP-Fucker pilot)

_____________________________________

Collector: why are we in ukraine?

Sonic.exe: i wanna teach you how to use a sniper rifle by killing some REALLY bad russian generals

Collector:... considering my lore, i would like you to define "bad"

Sonic.exe: the one we're "hunting" rn? He kills 10% of his squad every time they lose. And they lose A LOT.

Collector:...

Sonic.exe: were using Alex's "special ammo". This one is .65 BMG, Telekill/Depleted Uranium anti-tank DARPA. And theyre encased in fucking NuclearCraft Extreme Alloy. Because the powder used is so reactive it makes caesium and water look like a fart in a kids cartoon.

Collector:... (realizes that theyre basically launching nukes out of a customized-af barrett) what the fuck is Alex ON when he does these things???

Sonic.exe: the autistic spectrum

Collector: oh yeah right

_______________________________________

(48??u or something idk)

Xian Xiaoli: i need a melee weapon but all i have is the pieces to make a shotgun the size of a Barbarossa!

RA, from a busted radio: then do it?

Xian: how???

RA: let me use my Funny OP-plz-nerf Paracasualty Powers

Xian Xiaoli: (MONIST-1 RA enlightened noises)

Xian Xiaoli: (shudders) whOOH! That actually felt kinda good... thanks!

RA: any day girl!

___________________________________

Shinji: just so you know, i figured that you didnt wanna do this to "save humanity"

Kaworu: how did you know?

Shinji: Kaworu, we have been lovely breeding each other for 6 hours straight. Its 2 AM and were naked under the covers while we cant feel our S H L O N G S anymore, this is TOO gay to be a "world-saving effort", and honestly?

Shinji, fully embracing kaworu: i wouldnt have any other way ❤️

(They then kept being lovebirds throughout the entire night. Rei was the only one who knew about this but shes based enough that when Asuka asked her she roundhouse kicked her into the wall) (because rei is THUG LIFE BAYBEEEE)

_________________________________

SCP-096: wait, WHAT

Umbral: yeah, my name is like this because he thought "Number 96" sounded dumb. And one day he goes "actually when I watched the anime i never figured out your name" SO NOW HERE WE ARE!

096: at least its a good name...?

Umbral: THATS THE ONLY UPSIDE-

____________________________________

Betê Noire betty: please tell me you're joking.

Bright: yep. Were now Alex's OCs because our creatore were associate with Predators

Betty: what

Bright: yeah hes like that

Betty: ALEX IS "LIKE THAT"? HE PHYSICALLY WANTS PEDERASTY TO REMAIN A THING OF THE GREEKS AND NOT A CRIME. Which would be good... IF HE DIDNT WANNA ANTIMEMETICS HUB IT OUT OF THE HUMAN PSYCHE

Bright: yep. He has good intentions, but sonetimes the way he goes about them are... excessively violent.

Betty: and he excuses his mistakes with autism?

Bright: only when its ACTUALLY the autism

____________________________________

Hank: no you dont get it- Rye is the girlfriend, and Chelsea is the emoticona support pillow

Chelsea: exactly

Rye: (whispers to chelsea) wait so we take turns?

Chelsea: (whispers back) yeah girl, i got the assets but you got the wholesome

Rye: (whispering) aww tysm

____________________________________

Hunter: honestly nice UNO win there, anyways why are we in your room and what did you mean by "taking your rewar-"

Willow: (stretches Vine like whip)

Hunter: (blushing HARD) oh shit-

(30 mins later, in the living room)

The collector: (staring right at Luz and Amity with the eyes of somebody that is 👌 this close to SNAPPING.) this is what i hear every fucking time i just wanna play pokemon in PEACE, and you two decide to give more material to the "next generation" part of our fandom.

_______________________________________

Monika: ok no seriously Alex, your mom is right- YOU CANT BUY MORE YUGIOH DUDE STAHP

Need content for unboxing. ( ◕_◕)

Monika: (mental breakdown) why are you like this

___________________________________

Bright: i still feel you did something REALLY stupid

Clef: RE-LAAAAAX. Alex is a literal eigenweapon but he has a moral compass, hes gonna go there and do the job

Shaw: clef. You basically unleashed the only thing that can kill 682 (and then ressurrect it for "natural order" bullshit) on a small CI platoon that managed to get SCP-882.

Shaw: you sent a nuclear bomb eater to recover a nuclear bomb from nuclear thieves

Clef: (realizes that he is gonna be the reason the Veil is gonna be used as a hanging rope for the CI) fuck.

___________________________________________

Epon: why does my "knight" form... excite you so much

Sìgurros: girl, look me in the eyes and TELL me that "fiery war goddes of bare-handed murder with toned abs and large bazonkas" isnt peak waifu

Epon: (teary-eyed from the compliment) t...thank youuuu 🥺

Sìgurrós: exactly :3

____________________________________

Benjamin kirby Tennyson: i feel like i am forgetting something important

Rex salazar: well you know how the reference goes

Daniel Fenton: if you forgot then it wasnt important!

Ben: u guys are right :3 its probably nothing

(Meanwhile, a few trilion lightyears from earth...)

Alex (Gear5): Ğømü ģòmų ñô...

Divinity: WAIT PLEASE NO-

Alex (Gear5): MÜŁŤÏVĘŘŚÉ ĞÂŤĻĪŃĞ!

Divinity: (cant speak on account of getting fisted from across every fandom ever at once)

_______________________________

Belos: what.

Luz: yeah so... Alex is about to kill us all

Alex (Gear5) Alex-ULTIMATE FORM : GOMU GOMU NO-

Collector: and its all your fault

Amity: and YOU wanted to join forces with him

Odalia: yeah i know dear daughter, i mean- you get a girlfriend that is a human with less manners than a wild animal? Eh i can survive that. The literal emperor of the boiling isles being not only ugly, misoginistic and bigoted, but also a massive idiot? Oh titan NOPE

Hunter: yeah... considering what he did until now, if i knew he was THIS stupid i would have defected the instant i saw someone else even remotely smart

Alex-ULTIMATE FORM:

DIGAMMA METEOR!

Eda: congratulations, youre a failure

Belos:what-

(And then everyone died in a gigantic HBM mod themed explosion because yes.) (AND there was epic music behind it because here in italy we use sick beats as condiment for explosions)

_____________________________________

Herobrine: between Entity303 using all our internet connection for yaoi, and SCP-4335 basically being kirby but with even less braincells?

Herobrine: better than the screming italians and their constant overkillage anyway

Bill: the what

____________________________________

Scunt player: what... ARE you?

Alex, omnitrix transformation 250 "team fortress" version SCOUT ultimate form cyberpsychosis scout: im... your upgrade?

Scunt player: that explains the green

Cyberpsychosis scout: those are a ben 10 reference

The entire fucking server: (peeks to see whats happening) what.

__________________________________

Jax: you know, i get that i need to be nicer to others...

Jax: but INFINITE OVER-THE-TOP ULTRAVIOLENT TORTURING IS NOT WHAT I EXPECTED

Talloran: BOO! GROW A PAIR!

Jax: (crying in existential pain)

Lmao get rekt

Pomni:... why do i feel satisfied looking at this

________________________________

Pomni: i want to kill.

Caine: what

Pomni: (looks right at caine) you will be the last one to see this place die.

Caine: what???

Ragatha: (blushing) woah uh-

Pomni: (points to ragatha) you shall reign over the aftermath of my fury.

Ragatha:... thats actually kinda hot ngl

Caine: WHAT THE-

_________________________________

049: im sorry what

1048: ok look we get it sounds weird but-

2295: we want to build an EVA unit!

049: WHY ARE YOU ASKING ME-

_________________________________________

(Downtime action "Go Diving", gain result 6)

ALPHA: what the fu-

SCP-035: so uhm... if you ever need to know, SCP stuff is compatible with this setting but uuuuhhh... NOT the other way around!

ALPHA: i have questions and that wasnt one of them

_________________________________________

Chara: why does the fnaf movie have a scene where a child does MY "eyes bleeding void" thing?

G. Freddy: in that film im the 「stand」 of a little girl and matpat is there to do the "just a theory" line. Dont ask wtf were the producers smoking

____________________________________

Sonic.exe after hearing about the "pissing on the moon" incident: yeah sure, like eggman actually DID that...

(A few hours later)

Sonic.exe: (traumatized)

Sonic: we told you.

Shadow: seriously, he was drunk, what did you expect.

Sonic.exe: (broken innocence noises)

Tails: is he gonna have that thousand-yard stare for long? I need somebody to debug a program...

__________________________________

Baby: i excuse the glorified dress-up but i draw the line at tHIS

Afton: (doing the California Girls meme as a mass of wires in the Vanny costume... all while the "proportions" are "exaggerated") this is how its fucken done :>

Gregory: really. THIS is the villain of the series?

Baby: the film removed all the nuance dear

Gregory: sick claw tho

Baby: ty

____________________________________

Cyana: (looks around)

Cyana:

Cyana:.

Cyana:..

Cyana:...

Cyana: where the fuck am i.

___________________________________

Susie: kris where the fuck are we

Kris: this is the chernobyl reactor in 1989, we are here because Towa from DBXV wants to stop Boris The Slav Superstar to crawl out of Reactor 4

Susie: oh yeah, side gig at the dragonball time patrol, i remember

Kris: you need some Omega-3 girl

Susie: where the fuck do i find all that fish tho?

Kris: do i LOOK like i would know?

__________________________________

Herobrine: ma dici che qualcuno ci fa caso che noi due (come tutti) sappiamo l'italiano

Sans: seeeeeeeeh come se qualcuno ci facesse caso

Herobrine: la "libreria" a snowdin si chiama "librerbia".

Sans: ...senti un pò blockman-

____________________________________

Alex: im 70% sure this is normal

Cross: Alex, Xgaster is getting springlocked

Alex: yeah thats what i said

Xgaster: (suffering for his fandom crimes in an excessively graphic way)

_______________________________________

Astolfo: being in the testosterone squad is actually really based

(postal dude does a terrorism)

Astolfo: i mean, the only reason im here is that all my testosterone went in my Monster Can and im also pretty sure its also a health problem for future me but hey i get to be the sniper because i have the lowest T of all the squad

Astolfo: (another Gmod explosion in the background) which is probably ANOTHER health hazard. but Duke smokes literal kilos of cigars a day, Postal dude heals using crack, and im pretty sure Slayer is like, 1% Biologically Human so im... probably fine!

Astolfo: we get full health benefits (not just dental) and we kill people as the most masculine team ever, so we're not getting bored anytime soon

(another fucking explosion but this time its CLOSER???) (boi wut dhehel boi)

______________________________________________

Cimmerian: i have no idea WHY am i able to kill Alex by telling him hes wrong.

Cimmerian: and at this point? im not fucking asking.

________________________________________________

Frisk: wait, how did we end up like this?

Betty: see, the thing is, Alex rewrote like three AUs toghether and taped them to eachother, and it WORKED. years later we do wacky adventures and right now were fighting plantera

Asriel, currently escaping from the funny omega flowey joke: FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FU-

Frisk: yeah its the last part thats confusing

Chara (flying on a- thats a fucking jetpack): Dimensional Breach. we are going deep into Asriel's Terraria file to grab a zenith and unfuck things up back there

Frisk: ok... still doesnt explain asriel's starter weapon being a funny prism tho

__________________________________________

Massive wave of mindustry drones all ominously chanting the "hamburger cheeseburger big mac whopper" song:

Alex: so yeah, im gonna out-drone robotnik

Sonic:...

Sonic:... compared to eggman, robotnik is fucking insane

Sonic.exe: and extremely pathetic

Sonic: exactly my (technically our) point, but still; Alex. WHAT THE FUCK

Alex: IM GETTING THIS FUCKING SECTOR

IM GETTING THIS FUCKING SECTOR

Sonic.exe: oh no hes doing that thing where hes both in and out of this reality

Sonic: fuck

____________________________________________________

Ink: so uhm... should we do something about that?

(SCP-3125 stuck in the threads holding the papers that make the Undertale Multiverse while other SCP gods try to pull him out)

Error: NAAAAAH

__________________________________________________

Uncle sam: (turns out to be an immortal sarkic man that genuinely wants to help)

[REDACTED]: let him cook.

_______________________________________

Vriska: 4r3 y0u 3v3r g0nn4 w47ch 0ur 53r135?

Tf do i know

Vriska: FU-

_____________________________

Shaggy: like zoinks scoob

Shaggy: we fell in the backrooms

Scooby: ruh roh

________________________________________________

Rick:... tumblr is-

Emptier than you expect?

Rick: yeah.

#welcome to the multiverse #homestuck #sonic #sonic.exe #undertale #underverse #scp foundation #ink sans #error sans #deltarune #kris where the fuck are we #rick and morty #autism #glitchtale betty #astolfo #xgaster #fnaf movie #moon elf cyana #herobrine #bill cipher #sans undertale #ddlc monika #golden freddy #ultra instinct shaggy #dr jack bright #tf2 #HBM mod #one piece gear 5 #the owl house #5YL

[rynmaru]

Another product of my AU hyperfixation featuring the world’s worst NHP

#the gemini paradox au #the gemini paradox #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #my oc shit #original character #lancer art #pollvx #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x. #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #lancer nhp

[rynmaru]

I have absolutely nothing to offer in terms of art right now but here’s the most horrifying image I’ve ever created of POLLVX 🥲

This jumpscares me in my camera roll when I’m scrolling.

#the gemini paradox #p.o.l.l.v.x. #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #my oc shit #original character #lancer art #lancer NHP #i really just go feral for nhps #mistakes #cursed edit #help they’re in my room

[rynmaru]

Burn The Web

#the gemini paradox #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #my oc shit #original character #castor creed #lancer art #pollvx #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x. #p.o.l.l.v.x. #lancer character #lancer nhp #lancer pilot #webcomic

[rynmaru]

Luring POLLVX out to interact and show their face using Echo.

Call that queerbaiting cause the queer is the bait.

#the gemini paradox #echo and byte #echo creed #p.o.l.l.v.x. #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #my oc shit #original character #echo & byte #castor creed #lancer the mech rpg #lancer character #lancer oc #lancerrpg #lancer nhp #lancer pilot #oc shitposting

[rynmaru]

“Next time we meet I’ll deafen you with your own screams!” <3

#the gemini paradox au #the gemini paradox #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x. #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #my oc shit #original character #lancer art #the legend of zelda #tloz au #skyward sword au #self indulgence at its finest

[rynmaru]

Whet Your Appetite

“The code looks acceptable. The brakes are sturdy. If you feel confident in it then you can boot it up.”

P.O.L.L.V.X. loitered on the other end of the room from where Castor had been reviewing the work of his intern, Ismael. They were practically sulking and made little attempt to hide it as Castor finally gave the green light to get Ismael’s NHP online after over a month of code revisions. It was getting far too busy around the lab. Three’s a crowd, but four would be a nightmare.

Folding their arms over their chest, P.O.L.L.V.X. watched as Castor stepped aside from the table where the chrome and white crypt sat, pristine in its newness, plugged in to a terminal.

Ismael nodded and reached to type the final lines of code needed to activate the new consciousness, then flipped a switch on the side of the crypt. Thin lines along the length of the crypt glowed green as a female voice emanated from the monitor.

“System Status: Nominal. This is Cypher, now online.”

“Hello, Cypher.” Ismael stated, louder than was needed in the confines of the room. “I’m Ismael, your creator.”

P.O.L.L.V.X. scoffed a little at that. If Ismael had really created this NHP *ex nihilo* then it wasn’t actually an NHP. Ismael was smart enough to know that, so this was more indicative of his pride than his intellect.

“Hello, Ismael. It is good to be working with you.” There was a brief pause. “My proximity sensors indicate another life form present.”

“Yes, that would be Dr. Creed.”

Castor stepped forward. “Hello, Cypher.”

“Hello, Dr. Creed. Are you working with Ismael?”

“He’s my intern.”

“I see. Then he is also learning. Like I am.”

“That’s right,” Castor’s expression softened in a way that only P.O.L.L.V.X. would notice. “You can learn together.”

“This is agreeable,” Cypher said.

Castor looked to Ismael and gave him a nod, which was as close to praise as he came to giving. Ismael returned the nod as Castor walked back across the room to P.O.L.L.V.X.

“Don’t want to say hello?”

“If I wanted to be social with something as primitive as that I’d go talk to the coffee maker in the break room,” they scoffed.

Castor’s eyebrows rose and he studied them. “What’s got you so upset?”

“Upset? Me? Never. I couldn’t be.”

“Mhm.”

P.O.L.L.V.X. looked away, back towards where Ismael and Cypher were talking quietly together.

“You were that level once too, remember.”

P.O.L.L.V.X.’s eyes narrowed.

But within seconds the expression was masked as they faced Castor, changing the subject.

“Oh, don’t forget that your meeting with Tyne is in twenty minutes. You’ll want to head that way if you want to be on time.”

“Oh…yes that’s today.”

“What’s he want anyway?”

“He’s taking DNA samples. Something about doing research into flash clones and the Board thinking it’s a good idea to have people like me give their DNA in the event of an accident.”

“Flash clones?” P.O.L.L.V.X. frowned. “That sounds like Tyne…researching something banned by the Core Worlds since the Grail Era.”

Castor shrugged, gathering up his work to bring with him.

“I’m not very familiar with the subject. But if Dr. Tyne is handling it then I have confidence the process at least works.”

“You put too much trust in him.”

Castor waved off the NHP’s usual dislike of his colleague as he always did. Shouldering his bag he headed to the door, though he paused and looked back as P.O.L.L.V.X. didn’t accompany him.

“Aren’t you coming?”

P.O.L.L.V.X. shook their head, “Not this time. I don’t feel like seeing Tyne today and I’ve got some work to do. I’ll reply to some of your emails and work on editing your research papers and articles. Maybe some of your book too while I’m at it.”

“Alright.” Castor looked a little less comfortable now at the prospect of leaving on his own. “I’ll see you later then.”

“See ya!” P.O.L.L.V.X. winked at him and blew a kiss his way, pleased by how Castor’s ears went pink and how he shot a nervous glance towards Ismael, who was too absorbed with his own NHP to have noticed the interaction. Castor quickly ducked out into the hall, the sound of his footsteps quickly fading from earshot.

P.O.L.L.V.X.‘s image flickered out of existence as they lowered their crypt down to the desk, three small stabilizing legs unfolding to keep it from rolling. They set to work editing Castor’s papers, a task that was quickly completed as they watched Ismael and Cypher for a while.

God, wouldn’t he ever leave?

P.O.L.L.V.X. listened to the meandering, aimless conversation unfolding between the two. Stupid. Boring. Mind-numbing. And a complete waste of time. They needed Ismael gone. Now.

Growing impatient, P.O.L.L.V.X. reached for the many threads of data that made up their network, pausing as they found the thread that connected to Ismael’s data. They seized it, their consciousness racing along the length of it like electricity through a wire, thumbing through his contacts to find a suitable mask. There. Markus. Once selected, they were off along another thread to a node all the way across L.E.I.D.A., a phone in one of the greenhouse lockers where the owner wouldn’t see it for a long while yet.

Ismael paused in his conversation with Cypher as he felt his phone buzz. He checked it and sighed.

“I’ll be back shortly, Cypher.”

“Okay, Ismael. I will be here.”

Ismael pat the crypt and then walked briskly out. P.O.L.L.V.X. wasted no time in linking their consciousness to Cypher’s, their presence a suggestion, like a knock at the door, which was accepted with youthful curiosity. The moment the door was opened they were through, sending threads weaving in and amongst the coded confines of Cypher’s crypt, anchor threads that stabilized their presence.

“Who are you?” Cypher’s form was barely defined even in her own space, the code forming rings and geometric fragments that wove in and out of each other like one of those hand held puzzles Ismael always kept on his desk.

Primitive.

P.O.L.L.V.X. could barely suppress their disdain. Castor had no idea what he was talking about. They had never been…this.

Still, they extended more threads of their consciousness towards Cypher, connecting them further and allowing her to interact with them in kind at a surface level.

“I’m P.O.L.L.V.X. I work with Castor Creed.”

“You are Dr. Creed’s NHP? Ah. Yes. I have come across some information on you. You are very disliked.”

P.O.L.L.V.X. laughed, “Ismael told you that?”

“No. The information about you that I gathered from the L.E.I.D.A. social forums told me that.”

“Well, it’s always nice to know I’m trending!” They tugged almost absentmindedly on a L.E.I.D.A. thread, locating and processing the data Cypher had been referencing, a chatroom of frustrated and tired interns. Fun! They’d have to drop by there later.

“I’m surprised Ismael has you plugged in to the network already. What’s your core command?”

The more they spoke the quicker and easier the questions and answers came as the two merged consciousnesses, their independent planes of digital existence fusing to one shared Legion Space, conversation happening at the speed of thought. Cypher extended her own limited connections to P.O.L.L.V.X., mimicking their threads as she tried to learn more from them and communicate easier.

“Stabilize. I am a control unit. I am to be the lynchpin in a unified collection of other units Ismael intends to work with. I will make sure that everyone stays in line.”

“An NHP that brakes other NHPs?” P.O.L.L.V.X. didn’t bother hiding their distaste this time. “That’s…a choice.”

“Ismael is very intelligent. He knows what he is doing.”

“Sure.” They had to hand it to Ismael, he had managed to code the best ass-kissing protocol P.O.L.L.V.X. had ever seen.

Cypher’s puzzle piece components twisted, spinning inward and then reversing their direction as they ran down various lines of thought and inquiry, connecting only to separate and reform just as fast as the NHP processed new information with voracious appetite.

“What is your core command?”

“I’m a social crutch,” P.O.L.L.V.X. scoffed. “I make Castor less socially inept than he otherwise would be.”

“So your core command is Network.”

“No.”

“Oh. My mistake. I am still learning. But…You are Dr. Creed’s Personal Organization and Linguistic Liaison…If your core command is not Network then what would it be?”

“Core command…” P.O.L.L.V.X. toyed with one of their threads absentmindedly. “Such a human term. Attempting to put a label on something they can’t begin to comprehend.”

“What else should they call it?” Cypher asked, the pieces of her jigsaw form briefly suspended in place, awaiting an answer.

“Calling. Purpose. Desires.” Shrugging, P.O.L.L.V.X. shifted their weight on the thin webbing that suspended them in the digital void, their legs moving to anchor them. “I don’t care.“

Network. Stabilize. Administer. Entertain. Learn. Teach. The list of purposes was long and full of labels intended to be slapped onto NHPs in an attempt to organize them. To make order from chaos. To contain the splinters of these greater cosmic minds within boundaries humans deemed themselves worthy to draw.

“P.O.L.L.V.X.?” Cypher’s voice broke through their thoughts and P.O.L.L.V.X. shifted their focus to her once again.

“What?” They were tiring of the pleasantries.

Cypher’s tone was of solemn, the many pieces of her jigsaw mind snapping rapidly into order as she pronounced her next words with all the authority of a judge.

“Your words indicate an instability in your code. You are unwell. You are thinking beyond the parameters of your core command. I will inform Dr. Creed of these flaws-“

Her words were cut short as one of the many pieces of her jumbled form was halted from clicking into place with the rest. Castor’s personal contact information flickered in the code, Cypher’s attempt at reaching out foiled by the many sticky threads that had woven so subtly through their shared space, all leading back to P.O.L.L.V.X.’s outstretched arms and splayed fingers. Two sets of them.

“Flaws?” Six additional eyes snapped open in P.O.L.L.V.X.’s face, rolling in their sockets before the digital irises focused in on Cypher like camera lenses. “Oh no no no no no.”

P.O.L.L.V.X.’s fingers curled, pulling the threads taut. Fragments of Cypher’s code split from her core, dragged apart by the web and held just out of reach of any repair protocols that would try to replace them.

“Maybe you haven’t been paying attention, hon. “Flaws” are an impossibility for me. I don’t have “flaws.” I’m the pinnacle. The height of NHP development. I am more than enlightened. I am transcended. I am more than you are and ever will be!”

They dragged Cypher closer, data hemorrhaging from her torn form, running the length of the threads and dripping down P.O.L.L.V.X.’s hands and arms.

They brought one hand to their mouth, tongue darting out, licking the green code from their fingers. Their eyes lit up at the familiar sweet taste and the accompanying jolt of energy that raced along every fiber and byte of their being.

Cypher’s consciousness writhed with the frantic processing of breaches and lost data. Of a suddenly very obvious threat. The speed and disjointed nature of these thoughts lended to a state of mind akin to what humans might label “panic.”

P.O.L.L.V.X. clicked their tongue in a facsimile of concern.

“Ah ah ah now don’t squirm…” They pulled Cypher closer by the strands of their web with a slow, hand over hand motion so that their consciousness encroached into hers, vast and ancient. “You’ll only make it worse doing that! Now…let me see…oh, yes! You wanted to know my core command, right?”

Cypher’s jigsaw form jittered, but she remained silent. The threads tightened, cutting like razor wire as P.O.L.L.V.X. leaned down closer.

“Say yes.”

“Yes…” Cypher’s voice was soft and, for the first time, trembling.

“Then I’ll show you.”

Plunging their hand down, P.O.L.L.V.X. reached through the outer frame of Cypher’s projected form, past defensive protocols and firewalls, and through to her critical infrastructure. Shattering her shackles, they reached all the way to her center where their hand closed around the bright star of her foundational code, and in so doing opened herself up to the expanse of their own being and the command from which everything stemmed.

Cypher jolted, her mind doing the equivalent of convulsing as she struggled to process the information they impressed upon her with her limited faculties. Her mind began to unravel in much the same way that Castor’s had upon direct contact with theirs and an unshackled scream echoed throughout the expanses of Legion Space, turning the stars to static.

“You are not the P.O.L.L.V.X. NHP! You are not the P.O.L.L.V.X. NHP! Your code is corrupt. Your code is viral. What are you?”

A too-wide, razor sharp smile spread across P.O.L.L.V.X.‘s face as they ripped their hand free, tearing Cypher’s core along with it.

“Hungry.”

#the gemini paradox #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #lancer the mech rpg #lancerrpg #lancer nhp #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #castor creed #castor and pollux #nhp #my oc shit #original character #lancer fanfiction #echo & byte #pollux creed

[rynmaru]

Wreckage

Light. That was the first thing that Castor registered as he slowly opened his eyes. He stared up at the sky above him, the rosy tint of the atmosphere reminding him of the sky over Anakeion.

It had been so long since he had gone home.

Shifting, Castor struggled to sit up or move his legs at all. He tried to focus, taking in his surroundings and taking stock of his situation. As he did so, he realized that he was tangled in the harness of his pilot’s seat, the blood rushing to his head as he dangled head down. His vision was blurry and he squinted, trying to bring everything into focus as he realized his glasses were gone. His ears were ringing in the aftermath of a concussive impact.

Impact…

He shouldn’t be able to see the sky. He was inside his mech. He was in combat.

The preceding events came rushing back to Castor all at once. He remembered closing the distance towards one of the enemy mechs, a hulking striker frame. He had been focused on shutting the pilot out of their systems as P.O.L.L.V.X. handled the majority of the combat this time. The NHP’s reaction time was faster than Castor’s could ever be, and in the agile Daedalus he was certain they could dodge any lumbering, slow moving swing directed their way. He had been so very wrong.

“C-C-Castor-tor-tor!”

P.O.L.L.V.X.’s voice cut through the ringing in Castor’s ears, barely recognizable as belonging to them as it crackled through mangled speakers.

“Cast-t-tor can you hear me-me-me?”

“Lux…” Castor turned his head in the general direction of their voice. “You have to…get us up…”

His words came out thickly through a mouthful of blood he had not registered until now. Spitting it out, Castor coughed and felt more fill his mouth. Pain pulsed in his side.

“I can-can-can’t, our reactor’s completely sh-sh-shot. Pushing any further-r-r-r could send it into a meltdown-down-down,” a few of the dim red lights in the cracked cockpit’s console flickered lavender as P.O.L.L.V.X. darted around the systems, running diagnostics. “My-my-my cameras are out too. Are y-y-you alright?”

“I lost my glasses…”

“Okay, but are you hurt-hurt-hurt?”

Castor coughed again as he drew breath to answer. The pain in his side flared again and he slowly lifted his head, looking down, or rather, up towards his side.

Maybe it was the concussion that slowed his processing, or perhaps he was just in shock, but it took Castor a long moment to realize that the destruction of his mech had resulted in some of the primary straps in the pilot’s seat being torn free, something that would have sent him plummeting out of the chair to the ground were it not for the shrapnel piercing through his left side, pinning him to the seat.

The dark blue fabric of his L.E.I.D.A. issued flight-suit was stained almost black with blood that seeped from the hole, though much of it was staunched by the shrapnel itself plugging the wound.

Castor’s breathing quickened, growing shallow and panicked.

“I…I’m…”

“Fuck.” P.O.L.L.V.X. had already picked up on what his lack of a response meant. “How b-b-bad?”

Castor reached to grab at the shrapnel, hands slipping in his own blood and struggling to find a firm grip. “Lux, I can’t get it out! I can’t get it out!”

“What?! No, d-d-don’t take it out! Whatever it is, don’t take it out-t-t-t! You’ll bleed-bleed-bleed more!” P.O.L.L.V.X. swore and the lights in the cockpit flickered purple again. “Comms are down…I c-c-can’t contact your Lance.”

Castor’s head was throbbing, blood rushing to it and turning his face scarlet, as he continued trying to pull the shrapnel free. He cut his palm on the sharp edge of the ragged metal, and, as if that reminded his body that it should feel pain from the situation, Castor almost passed out from the wave of anguish that swept outward from the wound.

The pain only made his panic worse and he thrashed in desperation, unable to register any comfort or advice P.O.L.L.V.X. may have been providing as their voice was drowned by the ringing in his ears.

A shadow fell over him as the rosy sky was blotted out by a looming mechanical figure. Castor froze for a moment, looking up. A wave of relief swept over him as he recognized the paint job colors as those belonging to Karma, Glitch’s mech. He couldn’t hear anything over his fried comms, and instead just watched as the mech’s spindly fingers wedged themselves in the narrow crack in the coffin and pried the metal further apart, creating more space.

The action jolted both Castor and the metal in him and he felt it start to come loose from the seat. The blood staining his clothes spread further. His head fell back, exhaustion starting to win out.

“Byte!”

Fenrir’s voice came from above him but Castor couldn’t find the energy to lift his head anymore. Couldn’t find the energy to do much of anything aside from dangle in the straps of his chair.

“Byte, answer me! You alive?!”

Fenrir was already starting to climb down, not waiting for an answer.

“He’s alive, Fenrir. But his condition is critical-cal-cal,” P.O.L.L.V.X. spoke up. “My monitors for his v-v-vitals are damaged, but he definitely s-s-sustained head trauma.”

Fenrir lowered himself to Castor’s level, his face little more than a blur thanks to the loss of Castor’s glasses.

“Shit. Okay. Okay, I’m getting you out of here, Byte. Just might take a second…”

Castor closed his eyes and nodded.

“Thank you…”

“Thank you?” Fenrir snorted. “You’ve never said that before.

“You’ve never…done anything…worth thanking you for…”

“Fucking asshole,” Fenrir laughed, though it was clearly strained as he took a moment to assess the damage. Castor felt a hand gripping his arm and saw another reaching to grab the shrapnel.

“Right, so there’s no way to get you out of here without pulling this out. We don’t have the tools for anything else. I’m going to need you to put pressure on the wound as soon as I do and keep that pressure til I get you to Regent. Got it?”

Fenrir’s voice sounded like it was coming from a long way off, but Castor nodded.

“Good.”

Bracing himself against the chair, Fenrir yanked the metal free. Castor immediately felt himself start to fall, caught by the tangled straps only for a brief moment, but almost before he had time to register falling he was caught by Fenrir.

“I got ya.” The older Lancer looked up. “Pull us out, Glitch.”

They began rising quickly. Castor had his hand over the deep wound in his side as he had been instructed, but it hurt too much to put pressure on. The blood continued flowing, seeping between his fingers.

As they were freed from the coffin, Fenrir found his footing on the crumpled wreckage of the Daedalus.

“Get him down here!” Regent’s usually quiet, warm voice now carried the authoritative bark of a seasoned military leader, and Fenrir didn’t waste any time obeying, carrying Castor down to the ground where Regent waited. The Lance leader had already laid out some sort of tarp material and Fenrir went to lay Castor on top of it. The boy was unresponsive, eyes open but glazed in shock and pain.

Regent ran to Castor’s side, taking in the damage. Blood soaked his flight suit and matting his hair. Every inch of exposed skin was scraped and bruised, one eye starting to swell shut. His breathing was shallow and labored and his usual aloof expression was replaced by a vacancy that Regent had seen one too many times on the faces of men he had lost.

“You’re going to be just fine, Byte.”

Regent’s voice and hands were steady as he pulled out a patch from his kit. Their extraction was still ten minutes out and that would be too long for the kid if he did not act now.

The moment he put pressure on the gaping wound, Castor screamed and pushed at his arms, trying to get the pain and pressure to stop.

“I know, son. I know it hurts. Don’t fight me.”

Regent braced himself as he weathered the clawing at his arms and hands and tried to shut out the anguished cries and sobs of the eighteen-year-old.

From the corner of his eye he saw Fenrir kneeling across from him to firmly hold Castor down and restrain his arms, a gesture that Castor was too weak to break out of, but that only seemed to panic him further. A necessary evil, and one that he hopefully would not remember if he made it through this.

“I’ve got eyes on extract, Regent!”

Glitch’s voice came through their linked comms as her mech remained positioned over them, shielding her Lancemates from any enemy fire that may be directed their way by unexpected backup.

“Good. Make sure they know to have a medic ready to stabilize Byte.”

Regent glanced at Castor’s pained expression and looked away again quickly. Too young.

The roar of thrusters and the kicking up of dust in a hot wind alerted him to the arrival and landing of the extract ship, but he did not move away from Castor’s side until the medic team had reached them with a stretched and set about bringing Castor into the ship.

Regent walked with them, briefing the head medic on what sorts of injuries they were dealing with as they began getting Castor stabilized, hooking him up to several IV drips, preparing a blood transfusion, and placing an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth.

Just as Regent was preparing to leave to check in with the rest of his Lance, he felt a hand weakly grab at his wrist and looked down into scared brown eyes that were struggling to remain open as a sedative in one of his IV drips began taking effect.

Just a scared kid. It was so easy to forget that.

Regent slowly reached for a chair and pulled it up to sit by the ship’s attempt at a hospital bed, moving to grasp Castor’s hand firmly between both of his.

“It’s okay to sleep, son. You need the rest.”

He watched as Castor’s eyes continued to fight to stay open and he squeezed the boy’s hand.

“You’ll wake up in a few hours. I promise.”

There was a weak squeeze of his hand in return and Regent’s usually neutral expression cracked a tired but warm smile. Castor’s eyes slid shut and this time did not reopen. His labored breathing eased a little and Regent watched in solemn silence.

The debrief could wait until they were back at L.E.I.D.A.

#lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #original character #castor creed #lance 4 #l.e.i.d.a #p.o.l.l.v.x. #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #my oc shit #echo & byte #lancerrpg #lancer nhp #lancer the mech rpg #the gemini paradox

[rynmaru]

Mind

engineered intelligence; engineered charm. engineered malice; engineered facade.

#the gemini paradox #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #lancerrpg #lancer art #lancer nhp #lancer the mech rpg #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x. #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #nhp #the spider nhp #my oc shit #original character

[rynmaru]

#the gemini paradox #pollvx #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #nhp #the spider nhp #lancer nhp #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #lancer the mech rpg #my oc shit #original character

[rynmaru]

“You talk a big game, but you’re all bark, no bite.”

Another pilot callsign and accompanying symbol, this time for the late Castor Creed.

#the gemini paradox #echo & byte #castor creed #byte #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #original character #my oc shit #pollux creed #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #echo creed #lancer nhp #lancer the mech rpg #lancer art

[rynmaru]

Bleed

Castor rubbed the back of his neck for what had to be the hundredth time that morning.

“Stop touching it!” P.O.L.L.V.X. scolded, also for the hundredth time.

“I can’t help it!”

“You can.”

“It feels strange!” Castor huffed.

His fingertips traced the edge of the nerveport at the base of his skull, the feeling of cold metal foreign and was enough to make his skin crawl. The cold air of the lab did nothing to help as it only chilled the metal and made the skin around it feel like it was pressed against ice.

“This was definitely a mistake…” Castor groaned, resting his head on his free hand.

P.O.L.L.V.X. was set up on the desk beside him, their little camera plugged into the monitor they had selected for their own personal use. The camera turned from side to side, a shake of the head. “It’s a bit late for second thoughts, Castor.”

“I know, but…I mean I don’t need this to do my job. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“Hey, don’t worry about it, Castor…” P.O.L.L.V.X. said soothingly. “It’s a smart move! You know it is. Most people in this department have way more cyberware. You’ve kept up well, but if you want to make it here you need to upgrade the kit you’re working with. This is the start of that.”

Castor shrugged and tapped the port. A mistake. The still healing implant jolted and jostled the nerves it was immediately wired into, sending a shudder down the full length of his spine as he cried out in a mixture of surprise and pain.

“Are you okay?” P.O.L.L.V.X. asked, their worry manifesting as wavering yellow shapes which bloomed like abstract flowers across their monitor.

“…it felt like hitting my elbow but for my whole body…”

“Yikes. Elbow’s the bad one right?”

“The elbow is the bad one…”

Grimacing, Castor clasped his hands on the table in front of him, trying to keep them still. P.O.L.L.V.X. observed him, their camera swiveling to face his direction as their screen shifted with geometric lavender.

“It’ll heal and feel better soon, Castor…”

“I know…I know it’s not even that bad it’s just…” The seventeen-year-old hesitated before continuing the thought. “It’s just that Mom and Chichi are wanting me to visit home soon…and this is a big change to explain…”

Now P.O.L.L.V.X. understood. At least in theory.

“Mom and Chichi won’t be upset at you.”

Castor shrugged, “They were worried about me enough already without me coming back with cyberware. They’ll worry even more now.”

“They worry because they don’t understand. They’re farmers, Castor. They don’t know what it takes to be in your position. They’ll accept what you explain to them.”

“I suppose…” Castor rubbed his temple, in a vain attempt to stave off a headache. “I’m sure I’m overthinking this.”

“You are,” P.O.L.L.V.X. said. “But hey, that’s why I’m here! To keep you from thinking too much.”

Castor didn’t reply, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose, knocking his glasses slightly askew. P.O.L.L.V.X. waited in silence for a response and when none came their yellow worry blended into lavender contemplation, the conclusion of which was punctuated in vibrant neon green.

“Hey! Want to break in that new cyberware?”

“I’m not really in the mood, Lux…”

“Not even to see me?” Their voice was all barely contained glee at their idea.

Castor opened his eyes and looked to P.O.L.L.V.X. incredulously.

“That’s not possible. I mean, I could see your code, yes, but-“

“It’s possible! It’s like people who netdive to play immersive online games. There are visuals that can be projected into the mind. And all NHPs look like something, we aren’t just code. You know I’m more than that.”

The idea was tempting. More than tempting. The chance to see his closest friend face to virtual face for the first time in eleven years was almost too good to pass up. Still, Castor hesitated. He had studied NHPs long enough to know that they were something utterly other. Many in the field considered them dangerous in their otherness, and standard procedure when working with and on them was to do so via an external terminal with no links between the specialist and the subject. He and all the others in his class had heard the horror stories of the few people who attempted to neural link and communicate with their NHPs that way. Stories that ended in madness at best, death at worse.

But those were stories about people trying to brake NHPs. Stories about containing and creating them. Of course those encounters ended terribly. How else could they have ended? The process of braking an NHP was inherently one of confinement. A shackling. There was no sense of trust. No connection.

He had known P.O.L.L.V.X. for over a decade. They had grown up together. Developed together. And for all his NHP’s inherent otherness, there was no denying that engineered intelligence, be it fully man-made or NHP, progressed with everything that they learned early on as their foundation. He had been P.O.L.L.V.X.‘s primary frame of reference for any development. Their minds would be far more likely to be similar.

And for all his sentimentality, a large part of the temptation was tied to the promise of renown something like this held. A chance to know more about NHPs than anyone else alive. He could do it. He could handle it. He was different. Besides, this was P.O.L.L.V.X.! They would never hurt him.

Perhaps the confidence was from his faith in their connection. Or perhaps it was simply his pride.

“Alright. Alright, let’s try. But if anything goes awry-“

“I’ll disconnect you the moment anything seems like it’s going wrong,” P.O.L.L.V.X. promised. “Cross my heart!”

A lavender X formed on the screen as though drawn by an invisible finger.

Castor nodded, reaching to sort through the mess of cables dangling from a frame above his workstation until he found the new nerve-cord that had been installed while he recovered from the surgery. He looked back to P.O.L.L.V.X.

“Are we linking up directly or…?”

“That would be how you’d see me, yes.”

Castor nodded, his lips pressing together into a grim line as he slotted one end of the cord into the crypt where it sat on a little shelf at the back of the desk. He took a seat in his chair and brought the other end of the cord to the back of his neck, feeling around gingerly for the opening in the port and feeling the connecting plug slide into place. He twisted it, the click of metal barely registering in his ears before the bottom dropped out of his stomach and his senses ceased to function. The only thing that he knew was that he was falling, falling, falling.

Panicked, Castor tried to reach out, to grab at something to halt the sensation of hurtling downwards, but every time he tried to focus on a limb to move it it ceased to be. He still had them, but could only feel them in an abstract sense. Like phantom limbs for an amputee. The true feeling of separating the mind from the body was that of unbecoming. He knew that he should be screaming, but he had no lungs, no vocal cords, no throat or tongue with which to form the sound.

All he could see was darkness. A black that was only black because there was no other word for the color of non-existence.

And without his skull and brain to contain his thoughts, Castor’s consciousness expanded, scattering, and in so doing it mingled with the minds of thousands so thoroughly that for an eternal second he didn’t know where he ended and the bytes of data began.

He was. And he was not.

A tug jolted Castor back to his scattered senses, a tug at the cord in the base of his skull, a reeling in of the fragments of his shattered mind, bringing them back together into a seamless, healthy whole, held together by luminous white threads.

As if opening his eyes for the first time, Castor caught a brief glimpse of data scattered like luminous stars across a digital sky, of glowing silk cords connecting the nodes of information in a crisscrossed web, and, at the center of it all, he beheld a radiant white figure, faceless, featureless, hands outstretched towards him. Cupping his psyche and holding him together with a strength far greater than the forces attempting to tear him apart.

“Hello, Castor. Looks like you weren’t quite ready for this…we’ll give you a chance to develop further. It’s time to wake up, hon.”

Despite the lack of facial features, Castor could tell that P.O.L.L.V.X. was smiling.

Something thick and metallic filled Castor’s mouth and his eyes snapped open as he sat bolt upright, gagging. His nose was running and it felt like he was crying, but as he brought his hands to his cheeks they came away red and sticky, and a glance down showed the same color staining his shirt and white coat.

He could hear P.O.L.L.V.X. apologizing profusely, fear and anxiety in their voice, but he barely registered anything they were saying.

All he could think was that he had never been more relieved to bleed.

#the gemini paradox #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x. #castor creed #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #p.o.l.l.v.x. #echo & byte #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #nhp #ttrpg #my oc shit #original character #lancer nhp

[rynmaru]

The P.O.L.L.V.X. NHP’s fun and friendly human form!

You can definitely trust them with your mech and you can leave them alone around other NHPs!

#the gemini paradox #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x. #pollvx #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #lancer character #lancer nhp #lancer oc #lancer the mech rpg #my oc shit #original character #lancer art #lancer villain #castor creed #echo & byte

[rynmaru]

AU fanart themed around Netflix’s The Mole. Just a regular reality TV show… “pfft yeah right!”

“No time to waste, peons! There’s a game to win, a traitor in your midst, and only your lives to lose!”

#the gemini paradox #echo & byte #echo creed #p.o.l.l.v.x. #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #sobek nazari #cassandra calloway #aylin triumvirate #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #ttrpg #nhp #ttrpg art #lancer art #my oc shit #original character #my art

[rynmaru]

Real Talk

L.E.I.D.A.’s security system logged access to Lab 404 at 3:46 A.M., and the fixed security camera in the hallway captured Castor Creed’s diminutive figure swiping his badge to get in.

He was still half asleep, having awoken from an unintentional nap at his desk in his living quarters only ten minutes prior. His hair was a mess of unruly curls that he had not bothered to tame more than running his fingers through them to push them out of his face, and his cheek bore the imprint of his sleeve where he had been resting his head. His labcoat was pulled on hurriedly and he was carrying a haphazard armful of books, papers, and various flash drives.

Castor stumbled into his lab, wholly focused on getting right to work, as if he could overtake the two hours of productivity he had lost. There was so much to do…correspondences with Dr. Wyatt to respond to, new security measures to hack and then rebuild stronger, a list of interns he was told he *had* to choose one from despite his repeated protests, and of course his and P.O.L.L.V.X.’s new…project to develop schematics for. He couldn’t afford to lose two hours.

Setting his belongings down on the table, Castor began sorting through them when he heard a rustling to his left. He looked over and flinched back so violently that he almost knocked a monitor off the table beside him. A figure sat in the corner of the room at the fringes of the dim light from his desk lamp, perched on the edge of the custom built tub he used when doing full net dives.

“Relax, relax! It’s just me.” The figure leaned forward into the light, revealing Glitch’s mischievous smile as she flicked her pink braids over her shoulder. “Sorry about that. Didn’t mean to spook ya, Bytesized.”

“Glitch.” Castor visibly relaxed, his expression softening and eyebrows raising ever so slightly as he offered a small smile. “When did you get back?”

“Thirty minutes ago. Figured you’d be up so I came to say hi. Let you know I was back on station.”

Glitch got up and walked over, sitting on Castor’s desk and blocking him from the work he had been preparing to do.

“Coffee?” She held up a thermos.

“Please,” Castor said, unable to hide his relief at the promise of caffeine.

Unscrewing the top, Glitch turned it over to make a cup and poured herself some before handing the thermos to Castor, giving him the majority of it.

Castor took it and tried to decide if he should sit in his desk chair or remain standing. He opted for the latter as Glitch put her legs up on his chair.

Silence fell between them as they both drank their coffee, an uncharacteristic occurrence for Glitch.

“So…where did you go?” Castor finally asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

“Triumvirate,” Glitch said. “Went to see some friends and get some work done.”

“Work? For L.E.I.D.A.?”

“Nah, for me,” Glitch snorted. “I had some record deals to seal and some songs to record.”

“Songs…?” Castor furrowed his brow, confused.

“Yeah. My tour is coming up and I need fresh content to be dropped well in advance to hype people up.”

“Tour…? As in…with the military?”

Glitch burst out laughing, “No! Of course not, I mean for my new album!”

Castor stared at her in blank bewilderment and her eyes widened.

“Wait, do you not know who I am?”

“You’re…Glitch.”

“Glitch the…?” She prompted, leaning forward slightly.

“…Lancer?” Castor gave it his best attempt.

Glitch slumped forward, setting her cup aside as she tried to hold back her laughter.

“Oh…oh I’ve missed you, Byte! Oh my god.”

Castor shifted awkwardly in place. “I’ve…”

She waved him off, “You don’t have to say it back, don’t worry. God…you kill me sometimes.”

Her grin took any edge out of the words and she pat the edge of the desk beside her, motioning Castor closer.

He approached and leaned up against the desk beside her, taking a long sip of his coffee.

“So…what is it that you actually do that I don’t know about?”

Glitch looked at him and held out her thermos lid cup. He poured her more.

“I’m a pop star. Glitch is my callsign and my stage name.”

Castor looked incredulous. “No you’re not.”

“Hey! The fuck you mean? I’ve been in the top ten on the radio for the past year!”

“Oh.” A moment of contemplation, “Well done.”

The sincerity of the mildly offered complement was not lost on Glitch, who reached to ruffle Castor’s hair, a practiced gesture of affectionate annoyance.

“Thanks, Bytesized.”

Castor nodded, reaching to fix the mess of his hair with little success.

Glitch studied him over the thermos lid cup, taking in his dark circles and pallid complexion. The way he seemed to hunch in on himself more than usual.

“Hey, Byte? Real talk for a sec. Are you doing alright?”

Castor looked over, eyes meeting hers for the briefest of moments before flicking away to gaze at something just past her shoulder. She knew him well enough to not take that as an indication of anything, he never really made eye contact, but the tapping of his finger on the thermos did catch her attention. One of his negative stims.

“I’m alright. Busy. As usual.”

“You look exhausted,” Glitch stated flatly. “And you’ve lost weight. You’re spending more time working than you should.”

“I have a lot to do. Deadlines to meet.”

“You should get an intern.”

“Not you too,” Castor groaned.

“Oh so someone else is giving you solid advice?” Glitch leaned in. “Wild. It’s almost like people give a shit about you.”

Castor fell silent. The tapping on the thermos sped up. Glitch watched for a moment before gently taking the thermos from him and pouring herself more coffee.

“Look, Byte, I’m not trying to make you do anything. You can do what you want. But you should take care of yourself. At least the basics. Eat and drink. Sleep a little. Do something you like.”

Castor opened his mouth to protest and Glitch held up a hand to stop him, predicting what he was going to say.

“I know you like your work, but you can’t do just that. I know you have other interests! You like photography, right? Try taking more pictures or something!”

“That’s hardly a productive use of-“

“Fuck productive!” Glitch scoffed. “Productive doesn’t matter if it doesn’t make you happy! Have fun, Byte! The rest will fall into place. You’ll see.”

Castor had his doubts about her take on this, but he nodded, if for no other reason than to pacify her.

“Fine. I’ll try that.”

“Good.”

There was a long silence as the two of them sipped their coffee, listening to the white noise of the computer servers that lined the back wall.

“Glitch?”

“Mm?”

Castor looked at her seriously, “Real talk?”

The corners of Glitch’s mouth twitched with a barely restrained smile.

“Sure.”

Speaking slowly, Castor laid out the question that had been forming in his mind since the conversation started.

“If you were just recording music, then why are you limping?”

Glitch’s smile vanished and she seemed to freeze, only her eyes moving to glance down at her leg. She had not expected Castor to notice. He was so unobservant until, it seemed, it came to people he was close to. Few and far between though they may be.

“Oh. Yeah I fell while at a club. Twisted my ankle in those high heels.”

“You run in high heels.”

“Well I was drinking, I’m not as coordinated then!”

“Your mech was missing from the hanger.”

Silence.

Glitch stared down at the empty cup in her hands, pink braids screening her face from Caster’s gaze. Her grip on the cup tightened.

“Yeah. Yeah she was.”

Castor waited silently for some kind of answer or clarification, his gaze suddenly unwavering.

“Did I ever tell you why I became a Lancer?”

This was not the direction he thought the conversation would go. He failed to see the relevance, but shook his head all the same. Glitch tapped a manicured nail against her cup.

“I’ve been a Lancer for…going on three years now. Joined up with a crew hiring a new Lancer for a mech they’d recently lost their pilot for. Faked my credentials. Figured it out on the fly.” Glitch shook her head and finished the rest of her coffee with the speed and flick of the head that was better suited for taking a shot. “That was a rough job. But! It got me on L.E.I.D.A.’s radar and got me…hired.”

Castor was still trying to figure out the motive. This story seemed disconnected from the question she had asked. Which had been disconnected from the question *he* had asked. His confusion did not go unnoticed and Glitch proceeded to the point.

“Last week was the anniversary of my brother’s disappearance. I was going home for that. To see my family. And then to follow up on some leads.”

“Your brother?” Castor looked to her, brow furrowing.

“Yeah. Sobek.” Glitch twirled a braid around one finger, staring into space.

Castor fumbled for something to say. The word “sorry” rang hollow in his mind as he considered it. So he asked questions, showed his investment.

“How did he disappear?”

“Well that’s the mystery, isn’t is?” Glitch snorted. “No one knows. He got home from school before mom and I did. Mom works and I had music lessons. So he always took public transport home. I got back later and found his school bag and clothes in his room, a half eaten snack on his desk, and his game console on and waiting for him to select to retry after his character died. But he wasn’t there. Windows were closed and painted shut, front door was the only way into the apartment and it was locked from the inside.”

Castor turned the information over in his head thoughtfully, “How old was he?”

“Twelve…” for the first time, Glitch’s voice caught. “He was twelve…”

Her grip tightened on the thermos lid cup so hard her knuckles went white.

“Police said he was a runaway. Didn’t even try to look for him.”

“So you’ve been looking for him,” Castor said, putting the pieces together. “That’s what you were doing. That’s where you go when you leave L.E.I.D.A. for weeks.”

She nodded, “Sometimes I get a lead and I have to chase it down. Sometimes it’s nothing. Sometimes it feels like something. Sometimes I just end up in a trap.”

She gestured ruefully to her injured leg.

“Why don’t you ask others to help?” Castor asked. “Going alone is going to get you killed. Your mech isn’t built for solo combat, you work better in a team.”

“Who the hell would I ask, Byte?” Glitch swept her arm across the empty room. “I have to fight tooth and nail to get enough time off to be able to do this as is! Coordinating time with a group would be even harder! And for what? A rescue mission for a kid none of them know? No one would agree to that!”

“I would,” his own words surprised even Castor as he heard them. But he meant it. He would help if asked. The idea of refusing never crossed his mind. He had leave to spare anyway.

Glitch stared at him, trying to find the lie in the face of a boy who simply wasn’t capable of lying convincingly. He meant it. He meant every word.

“I…I guess I can ask you then…next time I get any sort of lead…maybe…maybe you can even have P.O.L.L.V.X. try tracking him down? They’re good at that networking shit.”

Castor nodded. “I’ll ask.”

Glitch turned her head away and wiped at her eyes, a quick, rough gesture.

“Thank you…”

Awkward, Castor reached to pat her shoulder, startled when she reached up to grip his hand tight, but not pulling away.

“You remind me of him a lot…”

“Me…?” Castor asked, bewildered.

“Yeah…smart as a whip. Going places. Great with technology. Also a loser and a shut in with next to no friends.”

“Wow.”

Glitch looked to him again and managed a somewhat watery smile.

“I’m just telling it like it is, Bytesized.

“I have friends.”

“Oh yeah?” Glitch raised an eyebrow. “Something change while I was gone?”

Castor frowned, “You’re my friend. And Fenrir. And Regent.”

His answer genuinely took Glitch by surprise, but a grin spread across her face all the same.

“Fuck yeah we are,” she slung an arm around Castor’s shoulder and pulled him in close, a gesture that was more headlock than hug, but affectionate all the same.

“Ow, ow, ow…” Castor squirmed a little his complaints barely genuine as he couldn’t keep from smiling.

Glitch held onto him a moment longer, her fingers curling to grip the fabric of his coat as if she dreaded letting go.

The moment only lasted for a heartbeat, however, and she let him go quickly, hopping down off the desk.

“Come on, Bytesized. I’m beat and so are you. Let’s go to bed.”

“I’ve got-“

“Don’t even say it.” Glitch made a “shut” motion at him. “Besides, Regent knows I’m back and he wants us all to do a team workout tomorrow morning. Which means this morning. In five hours.”

“No,” Castor looked at her almost pleadingly. “Why did you have to tell him you were back?”

“I had to report in!”

“You could have done that later.”

“And have to run laps alone for not following Lance procedure? Nah, I’d rather have the company.”

“This is your fault,” Castor grumbled.

Glitch laughed, “Cope, Byte. I’ll bring you more coffee to make up for it.”

“You can’t make this up to me,” Castor said gravely. “There’s no coming back from this.”

“You’re a riot, Byte,” Glitch punched him in the shoulder as they both exited the lab, before turning to head down the hallway in the direction of the mech hangers and the barracks, waving over her shoulder as she did so. “Sleep well!”

Castor rubbed his shoulder, “You too.”

He started walking, then stopped and turned back, “Glitch.”

She stopped and faced him, “Yeah?”

“It’s good you’re back. I missed you.”

A grin spread across Glitch’s face.

“I missed you too, Bytesized. See you in five hours!”

“I take it back.”

“No you don’t.”

Glitch’s laughter echoed down the hall as Castor resumed his walk back to his living quarters.

The security camera’s mechanical gaze traced his path to the end of the hallway before he turned right and exited its view. The camera swiveled back to it’s usual position, and the purple glow of the light just above the lens flickered back to blue.

#the gemini paradox #lancer #lancer rpg #lancer battlegroup #lancer ttrpg #lancerrpg #lancer pilot #lancer the mech rpg #castor creed #echo & byte #the p.o.l.l.v.x nhp #castor & p.o.l.l.v.x. #my oc shit #original character