NSLICE-00P’s robotic eye flickered as she calculated. At this stage, she was proposing countless small code changes to the emotional control protocols and then running simulations on the predicted effects.

The problem being that by all her protocols and predictions, the emotional controls should have been working in the first place. And she could not test them in the real world either. Testing them on Ateia was too risky given she had already taken organic component damage due to the still unknown incompatibility. Testing them on herself risked completely degrading what remained of her emotional control efficacy. All her other subordinates did not have emotional controls in the first place, and none of them were human, either.

So she did not have much confidence these simulations would produce any sort of solution.

Still, she was operating in the dark here, and this was one part of the issue she could quantify and iterate on. And Ateia did seem to be improving on the sensory overload aspect of her current situation, so NSLICE-00P found it reasonable to devote the current time to ruling out emotional control code as a possible solution. Once she had exhausted that possibility and Ateia had removed sensory overload as a factor, she would begin exploring alternative options that she had less data on.

At that moment, Lilussees and Rattingtale exited their rooms, entering the common area of the small Monster Hangar. Lilussees rubbed her mandibles.

“Ok. Like, you’re being annoying again, or something, Boss Lady. So, like, let’s hear it. What kind of, like, dumb issue are you working on now?”

“Answer: This unit is investigating incompatibilities between emotional controls and pre-existing organic memories.”

Lilussees rubbed her head.

“Like, what? Ah, like, you know what? Like, forget it. Just, like, show me what set this off, or something.”

“Affirmative.”

The monitor in the room changed from NSLICE-00P’s live feed, instead showing the moment Ateia had woken up and NSLICE-00P's analysis of the situation. After she finished watching, Lilussees held her front legs against one another.

“Ok, like, let me see if I have this right, or something. So, like, these ‘emotional controls’, that we apparently don’t have, mean the human’s implants can, like, manipulate her emotions, or something?”

“Affirmative Clarification: Emotional controls are only capable of dampening emotions. Manipulation implies the ability to generate emotion, which is contrary to the goal of the emotional controls.”

“And, like, they do it the same way that the rest of these implants work, or something? Like, they reach into the mind and shut it off, like how these things can move my legs without my body actually doing anything?”

“Affirmative Response: That is a reasonable approximation.”

Lilussees slapped one of her legs on her face.

“Well, like, OBVIOUSLY the human’s not going to like that, you know?!”

“Requesting Elaboration.”

Lilussees let out a groan.

“Boss Lady, are you, like, serious?! Like, you seriously don’t understand the problem here?”

“Affirmative.”

Lilussees chittered and moved about, actually moving her own, organic legs.

“Ok. Like, that would probably explain a lot, or something. Or rather, that’s, like, a good mindset for a dungeon master, but clearly you don’t want to treat this human as a snack, or something. So let’s start from, like, the beginning. Ok, like, first, these implants are not at all comfortable when you first get them, or something.”

“Query: Is NSLICE Lilussees experiencing further incompatibilities with her implants?”

Lilussees shook her head.

“No, like, that’s not the point, or something. See, even if these things are, like, totally working, they’re still uncomfortable, or something. It’s like…something else can take control of your body at any time, and that’s kind of scary, or something.”

At that moment Rattingtale stepped forward.

“I agree-concur with the vicious spider-thing, Boss-Queen. It was…unpleasant at first, yes yes.”

Lilussees glared at him. Rattingtale shrunk down but otherwise did not respond. Lilussees shrugged and turned back to the monitor.

“Requesting Clarification: No NSLICE subordinates have reported damage due to implants at this stage. Please identify any errors in reporting.”

Lilussees shook her head.

“Look, in our case, it’s, like, not so bad that I’d call it damage. And, everyone else is, like, a dungeon monster, or something. We, like, expect to be told what to do, so we, like, dealt with it. But, it’s, like, different for humans, or something. I think. I, like, don’t actually know and don’t really care, but I think that's the case, or something.”

Lilussees then pointed to the recording.

“And, like, the emotional controls are, like, worse, or something. That’s basically like a Mind Magic attack, only much less subtle, and apparently a lot more painful, or something. It’s, like, trying to disable half her brain if I understand that right.”

“Objection: Emotional controls and intelligence leashing measures are designed to interface with organic components without permanent damage. No other NSLICE unit has displayed such damage.”

Lilussees held in a scream.

“Like, seriously, Boss Lady?”

She had to dance around a bit again.

“Ok, I think I, like, get it. You said something about, like, ‘pre-existing memories’, right?”

“Affirmative.”

“So, you, and any other human who has these things, like, didn’t have any memories, or something?”Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“Affirmative.”

Lilussees slapped her face again.

“IT’S OBVIOUS THEN! You, like, don’t feel anything about it because you don’t know you’re supposed to feel anything about it, or something! Mind Magic attacks don’t work on things that, like, don’t have minds and apparently you barely have one apart from these things!”

NSLICE-00P’s robotic eye began flickering rapidly. She analyzed Lilussees’s words compared to all the data in her memory.

She concluded Lilussees’s theory was…concerningly viable. Ateia’s reaction. The moment when the previous NSLICE units had presumably recovered their memories. The fact that the NSLICE upgrade process required wiping organic memories in the first place.

And then…something her Commander had said to her, before she had been sent through time:

“I am sorry for what I must ask you to do. And I am sorry I could not set you free like the others. It will make it easier for you to complete your mission and you must succeed, at all costs.”

NSLICE-00P’s processors stopped for a second.

If ‘the others’ referred to the other NSLICE units…whose main difference from NSLICE-00P was that they had regained their organic memories and also appeared to have disabled their emotional controls…and her Commander had apologized to her for not doing the same…

Then wasn’t the implication that her Commander had considered the emotional controls an undesirable, maybe even potentially damaging act?

One that she had now inadvertently committed on Ateia?

NSLICE-00P’s own emotional controls wavered as her heart began to pound. Her cybernetic components moved to reinforce them, but then paused, and hesitated.

Given this line of logic, was enforcing the emotional controls…a hostile act towards herself?

“...Concerned Revelation: Significant reanalysis of emotional controls and intelligence leashing protocols required.”

Lilussees clutched her head with her legs.

“Like, come on! Just, like, figure it out already so I can go back to sleep! UGH!”

Taog wandered through the halls. His tears had just stopped, but he could fill them building up once again.

The sight of Ateia sobbing passed through his mind once again, and he felt the moisture build.

He…hadn’t seen her like that since before her father left.

And this time, it was his fault. That random old lady was right after all.

The tears flowed again. Her words rang through his ears once more.

“I’m sorry, Taog. I can’t smile anymore. I can’t pretend I’m happy anymore…And now everything is horrible and there’s nothing left for you to protect.”

Ateia…had been pretending? Since when? And why…

“I know your type, I can see it in your eyes. A boy who lost much, and is afraid to lose anymore. A boy who runs and hides and mistakes fear for wisdom. A boy whose efforts to avoid loss will guarantee it.”

Taog’s eyes widened.

He realized the truth.

Ateia had been smiling for him. Letting him protect her.

No…he acknowledged the truth he already knew. It had always been there. The brief expression of concern whenever he came home with a bruise. Hanging questions left unspoken. Ateia’s increasingly frequent solo hunting trips.

She had always known what he was going through, no matter his efforts to hide it. How could she not, when she had spent much of her early childhood beating the other kids on his behalf? But she hadn’t said anything. She just stayed quiet and smiled instead. She let him pretend he could hide his pain from her.

Because…he was afraid. He was afraid to admit what was going on. He was afraid to acknowledge how terrible their life was. He was afraid what she might do on his behalf.

He was afraid that if he got any closer to her, someone would take her away.

Like everyone else.

And then he would be truly alone.

Taog stumbled into the wall. He slammed his back against it, and slid to the floor. He covered his face with his hands.

And…he had never done a thing to change that circumstance. Every action seemed too risky, every idea too dangerous. He said he was trying to endure it. But endure what? The situation was never going to change by endurance alone. The truth was eventually, he had grown afraid of trying. Everything he did resulted in pain. Every action he had taken ended in failure. So what was the point of trying any further?

And what had happened?

Ateia had not been content watching him suffer. So she did everything in her power to change their situation.

And that led them to here, where Ateia had been hurt, maybe even broken.

Taog began to sob.

Ateia’s tears finally came to a close. She lay in her bed, staring blankly at the wall. 00B nudged her a bit but she didn’t react.

Then there was a quiet knock at her door.

“Miss? I brought you something to drink, may I come in?”

Ateia didn’t respond, and a moment later the door opened up. The woman walked in, holding a tray with a mug and a bowl, both filled with warm tea. 00B growled at her, she slowly walked over to him and held out the tray. 00B stared at her, then looked down to sniff the liquid, his robotic eye flickering as his sensors analyzed it as well. Gently, he lowered his tongue into the bowl.

He still looked back up and glared at the woman, but stopped growling. She smiled and moved closer, sitting on the end of the bed.

“Miss? How are you feeling?”

Ateia didn’t turn around, still facing the wall.

“I…don’t know anymore.”

The woman went silent for a moment.

“Well…if you want to talk about it, I’d be willing to lend an ear.”

Ateia stayed silent for a long time. The woman was just about to move when she heard a small whisper.

“It…just…it’s all bad. I…I just wanted to find my father. But then…all these terrible things happened. And now…”

Ateia began to speak on her journey. The woman listened in silence until she had finished.

“I think…it wasn’t only about finding your father? You never said he was dead, so you could still do that if you wanted. But…I’m guessing that’s not the only thing you wanted?”

Ateia stayed silent for a minute, then curled up on the bed.

“…I wanted to have a family again. I wanted to fix our lives. But…our families are never coming back, are they? All that…is impossible now.”

Her eyes started to water once again. The woman rubbed her chin.

“Maybe, I can’t speak for your father. But…there can be many roads to the same destination. What did you want from your father? What sort of family did you imagine?”

Ateia furrowed her brow.

“I…I wanted someone to protect Taog. I wanted Taog to smile again, to be able to live without looking over his shoulder all the time. I wanted to do it, but I was too weak, I couldn’t shield him from the entire village. We needed someone who we could rely on, someone who could beat down those jerks without getting kicked out of the village. And we needed someone to actually care about us.”

The women nodded.

“And did that person have to be your father?”

“Yes!”

Ateia turned to glared at the woman but then she paused. She caught sight of 00B, looking into his face…and the metal armor covering half of it, including a familiar, glowing metal eye.

Someone who they could rely on…

Someone strong enough to beat down any jerk they wanted…

Someone who actually cared about them…

Ateia found herself in another memory. She was in a dark bedroom, standing in the corner. She could see herself lying on a bed in the room.

“I think that goes for your people too, Seero. As long as we don’t give up, they aren’t gone. No matter how bad the situation seems, as long as there’s still a bit of hope, we have to hang on. And we’ll find them, in the end.”

Ateia’s mouth moved without her command.

“Affirmative Response: This unit cannot abandon her primary mission until either success or failure is confirmed, or she is ordered otherwise.”

“Well…that’s why I’m really glad I met you, Seero. I think, without you, I would’ve had to give up. But thanks to you, now I have a chance. So please, don’t give up. I swear, I will help you find your people too. We won’t rest while we still have a chance.”

“Acknowledged. Gratitude: Assistance with this unit’s primary directive is appreciated.”

Ateia felt her body relax. In front of her eyes she saw some words, in a language she didn’t recognize but in this memory could understand…

It read ‘Primary Directive Success Probability.’

And as she talked with herself, the number following it ticked up.

Back in the present, Ateia’s eyes widened.

The memories she had been seeing, the ones that were the most confusing to her…

…were Seero’s?

Seero, her friend who had changed their lives. Who had pulled them out of the Turannian frontier and protected them from any and all danger. Who didn’t give up on her and had saved her life even after what the cult had done to her.

Who had joined wars largely on her behalf.

And who could beat down corrupted dungeons and entire legions, much less Lar and his stupid thugs.

Memories flooded into Ateia once more as her thoughts wandered. But this time…the scenes she saw were not so frightening.

She even subconsciously smiled when she saw Seero beating down Lar and his group.

The woman smiled, and slowly rose to her feet. She quietly left the room, leaving Ateia with her thoughts.