Amelia, Worm AU [Complete]

I apologize for the thread necromancy ahead of time. I had some thoughts on post-ending scenes that I reached out to TanaNari about, and they've encouraged me to post them here. So without further ado, here are some pre-ascension Omake that tumbled out of my brain:

Michael

"So are you ready to get dunked in a freaky mass of arms and legs before setting out on what's probably going to be the most epic asskicking sequence of all time?"

The question cut through my retrospection like one of my now-retired blades. I knew my expression must have been startled as I looked away from the window and into my partner's eyes. The few Thinkers that were present scurried around us, involved in last minute preparations, albeit discretely. It wouldn't do to disturb the former rulers of the most powerful empire in all known versions of history, after all.

ConfidenceMischeviousnessNervousness. "Not that you don't look like an utter hunk when you get all broody, but it's kind of past time for that now, isn't it?" Vicky's smile was as confident as ever, and I instinctively knew she was tempted to do something undignified just to knock the scientists off guard. Considering they were there to monitor the last-minute progress of the experimental Avatar Body unfolded across the dead plains of Wruenelle outside, that probably wasn't a good idea.

"Technically, it isn't." Be nice. "We could stop everything right now, if we wanted, and use the other volunteers. Everyone would understand. Taylia would understand."

SatisfactionAffectionEyeroll. "You're looking for excuses. She has everything under control." She stepped closer and I wrapped my arms around her automatically. "Has been since she was fourteen and politely pretending we were her regents, rather than her advisors. The munchkin hasn't stopped being a total boss since then. She doesn't need us anymore."

It took me a second to realize that thought didn't cause the same pang in my chest as it used to. I'd never expected to have kids, not with Vicky. Not with her family, not with my history. But raising Taylor and Amelia's daughter had been more than a responsibility. It became an unlooked-for blessing. "She's a credit to her parents."

ExasperationAnnoyance. "Really? You're going to fall back on regent-speak now?"

I shook my head at myself. "… You're right, that was a stupid thing to say. I'm proud of her. I couldn't be more proud. She's all we could have ever wanted."

"Damn straight. Taylia is a BAMF that's going to nurture the crap out of her subjects and stomp the fuck over anyone else who looks at them the wrong way." A nearby pair of lab coats raised their heads at Vicky's volume, eyes wide. "Just like them." She added in a softer voice. WistfulnessReflection. We fell into silence watching the swaying mass below.

Minutes later I could feel Victoria trying to conceal her fidgeting through our bond.

TensionExcitementRestlessness. Admit it. You wanted to be the first one out there. I teased her gently. AmusementAndYouDon't? Dragon and Colin are the first. IrritationDoesn'tCount. I smiled. IrritationRobotAndWifeDoesn'tCount. She sent again.

Okay, now I had to smirk. It's rare to score one on her. I'd already known never to try even before I succumbed to Vicky's campaign. What was the point?

Which didn't stop her from reacting the few times I did manage to touch a nerve like that.

Vicky whirled on me. "Listen, if you think for a minute that I'm going to let anyone else go out to space to help my sister before I do-"

I stopped her with a kiss. My wildfire, my hurricane. My natural disaster. After I lost my brother, I knew I had nothing left but revenge. The Wards gave me back my life and the Protectorate gave me a new sense of purpose. But what Victoria gave back to me was something I'd never realized I lost. An elemental energy, that feeling of heedless eagerness I could never fully let have the reigns while underneath the increasingly heavier mantles of responsibility I took on. I chuckled, a rumble in my chest. Responsibilities I did not have anymore.

SurpriseLustJoy. Vicky pressed herself against me, luxuriating in the kiss. I held her by the waist delicately until we broke it.

A technician had appeared nearby. She cleared her throat awkwardly. "Your majesties. All the preparations are complete. If you're ready?" She gestured towards the door to what Clarice jokingly called "the launchpad."

I held Vicky's eyes, transmitting all of my awe, my appreciation, my love for her. "Yeah," she finally murmured, breaking into that wide grin I knew so well. One I knew matched my own. "Yeah, I think we are."

===

Lisa

During the entire inspection, I could barely sense the potential yearning that this massive, sprawling complex invoked within her. The urge to fight the good fight once more, to protect humanity and life. The hope that it actually was a good fight this time, simple and clean. I could barely sense it.

But it was there.

Rebecca paused for a telling microsecond at the sight of those four corpses floating above. Got you. "Not enough trophies stuffed into that display case yet, huh?" Our guide stiffened at the sarcasm. Slightly more pale. Fist subtly clenched. Thinks what I said is a blasphemy. One of the staff who treat the dead entities as something holy, to be worshipped as a sign of our species' might. But he didn't say anything. Not to Crow. Not in front of Alexandria.

Underneath my words was a different sentiment. You could go. If you wanted.

It didn't need to be said that going would require me. The research unlocked within Eden had made that plain; two memory imprints were necessary to begin to handle even a fraction of a Scion-type Entity's power. In the beginning there had been talk of testing with a single shard, just to see what happened. Those voices were roundly discouraged, not that it mattered. Taylor and Amelia were too thorough. In the wake of their victory, there was nothing left but pairbonds. Any attempt to prove differently usually ended up with another pairing being connected in improbable circumstances. Scientists had stopped trying.

"I hadn't realized another one arrived," Rebecca's smile was dagger-thin, as if she was humoring me. The slight tilt of her body away from me showed otherwise. Knows she was caught. Instinctive deflection. Uncomfortable the one thought she'd tried to hide was found.

"They're getting real busy out there, aren't they? Like sharks in a frenzy going after chum from the bucket." A subtle shift closer to her, as if to brush against her personal space. I said what I said.

"A crude analogy for what we likely could never comprehend." She crossed her arms, the closest finger sliding across her bicep towards me. SincereApology. IKnow.

I didn't really want to go, but I would. For her. This is your final revenge on me, isn't it, Taylor? I had stopped getting my backup updated years ago. Signed the no-revive paperwork from my lawyer, even. Not that that would really stop my enemies if they wanted a copy of me, but I'd left some zingers buried there just in case they ever got their hands on it. Their desperation for a date, underaged consent jokes, broad-spectrum stuff. Yet I would give up my humanity for this woman.

It was terrifying how scared I wasn't. The pairbond pulsed in my head, denying me the outrage of my values, for whatever they were worth.

"Doesn't seem too hard to imagine. Fractal limbs as far as the eye can see. Think they're using them for something else in between fights?" I shifted my posture noncommittally. I'm just saying.

InterestNostalgia. ItWouldBeAnAdventure. UnknownButWithPurpose. "Not really." Rebecca said nothing more. To our audience, it was a sign of her not deigning to entertain my fancies any longer. To me, it was a sign of her focus on the topic.

"Ah~." Ah. Ah…

It took an effort of will to hide the sudden hurt that welled up deep inside of me, shocking me with its intensity. Everyone always decided to leave me in the end, didn't they? Rex. Taylor. And if Rebecca prioritized the unknown over me, even if I followed…

I couldn't stop the shiver that went through my body.

My jaw clenched. Now she knew. I knew she knew. She knew I knew she knew. Ad nauseum. Just another step in the spiraling game that we had enjoyed wrapping each other up in, familiar and warm like a shared sweater on a cold winter day.

NoIt'sNot. The barest flicker of an eye replaced what would have had to been a movement of the head decades ago. An empathetic denial.

Confusion must have been written on my face, because Rebecca stepped closer and laid her hand lightly on my shoulder. The closest gesture we allowed ourselves in public for something intimate. More than a hug or a nuzzle.

It'sNotAnotherStepInTheGame. IChooseYouEveryTime. AnyChallengeInterestsMe. ButYouAreTheOnlyOneWhoMakesMeHappy.

"Cold?" She asked, eyes soft.

"Just a little," I responded with a weak smile, applying the barest pressure back on the tips of her fingers. "I should warm up if I move around."

"Then we should move away from here. Continue our journey." The guide started at the subliminal rebuke for slacking in his duties. Amusement.

I grinned. She learned that from me, folks.

…

It's amazing what you remember right before you die. Years ago, the hospital room would have been filled with the steady beep of a heart monitor, the noise of the doctors and nurses rushing around outside softened by the door. Nowadays a pod could manage the functions of all that equipment and the room was necessary only for the privacy of the patient.

There was no-one in my room. The few well-wishers I had left yesterday, and the doctor who administered the serum had respectfully closed the door not a minute ago.

The one I wanted to be there had been gone for years. She had stopped getting her backup updated too. I hugged her photo in my arms as I floated in the medical fluid, some picture of the pair of us together at a diplomatic conference in another dimension I didn't care about. Perfectly professional, except for the comforting hand Rebecca had placed on my shoulder right before it was taken.

I flicked off my power, one last time. I was tired. Had been for a while, though I didn't regret it. There were no more obligations left for me. Just rest. The bioplastic frame of the photo dug into my weak arms.

I hope you remember that I chose you too. Every time. From all the way at the start until all the way to the-