Chapter Text
In a distant red sea full of corpses, on a crashed ship buried half way in sand, a Replika danced with her Gestalt partner. Their reunion a thousand lives in the making.
Out in the hallway, hunched inside the tight metal corridor, was another Replika. Falke watched the lovers twirl and laugh through a slit in the doorway. Her fingers clawed against the metal frame, reaching for something she couldn’t have. She felt a wave of emotions looking at their happy faces, jealousy, envy, rage, but also delight, a warm feeling deep in her heart to see her counterpart finally dance with her again and a deep sorrow knowing that neither would want to dance with her. Falke wasn’t the one the Gestalt loved, nor was she the one the Replika fought so hard to see. She was just an inbetween, the bridge that made their love possible. Now that her role was done, there was nothing for her here but pain.
Falke turns away from the door and towards the way she came, staring out into the blazing red sea. Outside laid so many failed copies of herself, or at least, who she thought she was. It was her destiny to join them. There was no other fate for the black swan than to melt into nothing. At least she would finally have her own peace here at the end. Metal feet thumped against solid steel as step by step, she drew closer to oblivion, almost reaching the threshold before she felt two hands grasping at hers. “Wait!” Two voices said, “Don’t go!” They pleaded. Falked turned around, and the world dissolved.
***
Beep beep beep went the black plastic brick of an alarm clock sitting atop the night stand next to Falke’s bed. She sat up, groaning, and stretched her arms until the metal joints popped. Fog clouded her mind, as visions of red and pain faded until she couldn’t remember them at all. She blinked and looked around her room, unsure of where she was. The eggshell blue walled rectangle that was her bedroom contained only her bed, nightstand, and a single wardrobe stuffed to the brim with clothes given to her by her handlers. She stared at the wardrobe, and remembered. “Express yourself!” Regina, the dorm mother, told her the day she moved in. She was a cheery little red headed woman that didn’t flinch at being next to a command unit. “Just because you don’t need to wear clothes doesn't mean you can’t. Why not try something new to start your new life?”
Falke shook her head at the closet and got out of bed. Her legs wobbled and she stumbled, bracing herself against a wall in a ritual that had become familiar over her week here. New leg units came with growing pains, especially when they shortened her height to a mere six feet tall. Who knew if she would ever get used to the length of her new strides fully. Apparently most Gestalts of the Empire found eight foot tall walking weapons of mass destruction unsettling. A truly wild notion, almost as much as the idea that making her shorter would soften that image. No, regardless of her height Falke doubted her new life wouldn’t be full of the uncomfortable nervous silences that seemed to happen in her presence, not that she wasn’t used to that. It would probably be much the same today.
She stepped out into the hallway of her tiny one bedroom dorm, crossing over to the bathroom. Hunching over the white porcelain sink, she looked in the mirror, inspecting what a week’s worth of depressive sulking had done to her complexion. Dark circles now accented her eyes and complimented her messy black hair. Both would need to be addressed for today, and her golden laurel, which now laid discarded next to her tooth paste, would need to be reweaved into her hair.
She took a quick shower before engaging in a fierce battle with a detangling brush, finally looking half way decent with all the knots out. With that attended to, it was time for breakfast.
She strode in the kitchen, got out a frying pan, and kicked the stove burner on high before she fished out a silver packet labeled “Bacon” from the fridge along with several eggs. Falke smiled as she watched the strips of meat cook, the aroma of fresh meat far more pleasant than the stale scent of a ration pack that was her every day just a week ago. Her captors provided many luxuries, most of which she avoided, but cooking was an exception. It had become something of a favorite pastime for the commander. Usually, it relaxed her, and it would have today too if not for the sudden frantic banging at her front door.
“Commander? Commander! Are you awake! This unit wishes to speak with you!” It wasn’t the first time Melony had come knocking this past week. Falke had ignored her every other time, but today she didn’t have that luxury. Falke sighed and walked over to the front door and, with a quick jerk, it flew open, leaving Melony with her hand still raised for another knock. The tiny Kolibri unit wore a big red hoodie that was practically a dress on her frame. “Finally!” Melony looked up at Falke for a moment, bewildered. “Commander! You're so short now!”
“I’m not exactly used to you coming up to chest height either, Melony.” Falke turned to return to her bacon, leaving the door open for Melony to step in. “Nice hoodie.”
Melony stepped into the dorm and wrapped her arms around herself. “This unit just feels so exposed without her chest armor. It feels like being naked! Don’t you feel the same commander?”
Falke slipped the bacon out of the pan and cracked a few eggs in its place. “You're starting to adopt a Gestalt’s sense of modesty. I guess Annabell is really rubbing off on you six hmm?”
Melony blushed at the mention of her Gestalt lover. “I would say it’s less a matter of modesty and more one of normalcy. Everyone has had their armor stripped, their leg units shortened, it feels so strange! Have you ever seen a Mynah without her exosuit? It’s quite the site.”
Falke tried to imagine what a Mynah looked like under that suit. She had to admit that she had never seen one without it. She looked down at herself, her armor plating had too been removed when they arrived on Vinetta, leaving her body a sleek black silhouette without the slate gray panels and golden filigree to accent it. Without them, she looked like a Falke unit’s shadow. “Do you find it strange to see me like this then? Your former commander stripped of her battle armor?”
“Yes!” Melony blurted out. “I mean, it would be shocking for anyone to see a goddess unclothed, but we’re just happy to see you at all! Why have you not been answering the door when this one knocked?”
“Not a goddess, Melony and I am not undressed! Replikas can’t be naked.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “The Empress in White showed the solar system exactly what a goddess is, didn’t she? That word doesn't fit me.” Falke slid her eggs onto the plate with the bacon and moved to her dining table, atop which sat her much longer leg units, abandoned until she could figure out what to do with them. She pushed the legs aside, sitting down as she started to eat. “To answer your question, they said we had a week before we began this ‘reintegration,’ so I've been taking some alone time.”
“Have you left this dorm at all this week?” Melony asked.
“No.”
“But why, commander? Surely you are more anxious to know about what the Empire has in store for us more than anyone! That’s why I’ve been trying to report to you all week.”
Falke sighed. “You do not have to report anything to me Melony, I am no longer your commander. You are free to do as you wish.”
Melony looked shocked. “Surely you don’t mean that commander-”
“I do Melony.” Falke gave her a pointed look. “There is no point anymore. We have been routed on every front, and we have surrendered. What exactly are you hoping for?”
Melony waved her hand around in the air. “I dunno, something? I assumed you had a plan when you accepted their conditions back on Leng. Some way for us all to pull through this.”
“Pull through to what, Melony. You saw it as well as I did. The great big flashes of the Empress’ power across the star map as she wiped out the foundations of the Nation as easily as a toddler destroying a sand castle. Two days Melony, in two days she ended a war that had been going on for decades with a few waves of her hands.”
“All the more reason we should resist this current predicament, commander! You can’t believe what they told us, can you, about reintegration? Letting Nation Replika’s and Gestalts alike mix into the Empire like nothing happened as long as we attend this academy?” Melony asked.
Falke rested her head in her hands. “I don’t know what to believe, Melony. Frankly I’m surprised we’re not dead or trapped in some interrogation chamber right now, especially me. Their behavior defies any conventional logic of warfare. Even if their wish for reintegration is genuine, letting command units such as myself do so is the height of folly. I’m sure another Falke unit is already planning an uprising as we speak.”
Melony fidgeted around in her chair, nervous. “Shouldn’t we be doing the same?”
“No.” Falke said. “Think about it, Melony. We cannot assume the Empire is naive enough not to think of the possibility of uprising. Their behavior indicates that we’re not a major threat to them even if we do rebel, and why would we be a threat when their goddess can smite us in the blink of an eye. Fighting back against an enemy so powerful when we have no idea the extent of that power is futile.”
“So we’re just going to play along? Do as we’re told so we avoid annihilation?”
Falke stabbed at her bacon. “Yes. That is exactly what I plan to do Melony, you're free to take a different path if you wish.”
“Commander, may I say that this feels rather unlike you, for you to be so sure of our defeat. The Falke this one has always known was one to take charge no matter the situation. What is wrong?”
“Aside from everything I just said?”
“Yes! There is something more! This one doesn't need to probe your mind to know that you are off. As…your friend…I can sense it.”
Falke paused for a moment, looking at Melony’s worried expression before relenting. “To be honest, I do not know what is wrong with me, but ever since our surrender I have felt…lost. Maybe a better way to describe it would be that I’ve lost something. A part of me is missing, something more important than my facility, my rank, or the Nation.” Falke gripped her head with a hand. “All that’s left in its place are dreams, fragments of red sand and pain…s-so much pain…I-I can’t make sense of any of it I…” Falke winced in pain and had to stop talking.
“Commander?!” Melony shot up from her seat. “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine, I’m fine. Just a headache.” Falked waved her away with a hand. “As I was saying, strange dreams. Maybe this is a sign of degradation. Maybe the stress of having the Nation crushed and my job pulled out from under me has been too much.”
Melony let out a little worried sound. “Perhaps you should see a technician. They have a clinic set up with several on this compound. Melony two is nearby, she could make you an appointment.”
“No, that won’t be necessary, at least not right now. Let’s chalk my current state up to me adjusting to our new circumstances. We have more pressing concerns today.”
“The orientation?” Melony Asked.
Falke nodded.
“Before that, will you at least let me tell you the information I have gathered this past week. If not as this unit’s commander then as our friend we wish for you to know as much about what you're getting into as we do.”
“If it would make you feel more at ease then yes, go ahead.”
Melony smiled and rummaged around in the front pocket of her hoodie. She pulled out a rolled up piece of paper and smoothed it out on the table. It appeared to be a rough drawing of the compound. “We started by mapping out the complex. Our captors have given us free reign to look around everywhere but the private officer spaces. The compound is five miles wide and built upon a pentagonal sea platform. Aside from an artificial beach built behind the dorms on the south end, we are surrounded by the ocean on all sides. Our current location on the surface of Vinetta is unknown.”
“The middle of the ocean is a strange place to build an academy, but a great place for a prison.” Falke said.
“My thoughts exactly commander. Even if this facility's purpose is reeducation, we could not leave if we tried. Well except for maybe you since you have the ability to fly.”
Falke had considered it a few times. If she desired she could simply drift away from the compound never to be seen again. That still felt like too drastic an option though, despite her current depression. “How many Nation citizens are present on this platform?”
“All S-23 Serpenski personnel, including prisoners, as well as the personnel from two other Leng mining colonies.”
“Hmm, all from the same planet huh? I hardly doubt this is the only platform they have constructed. They must be splitting the nation’s citizens into cells to make them easier to manage. What about non-nation personnel?”
Melony frowned. “Getting an accurate head count on the Empire’s people is much more difficult, but they appear to equal if not outnumber us 2 to 1.”
“Any incidents of hostility in the past week that you have observed?” The more they spoke the more interested Falke got in their situation. It reminded her of the weekly debriefs her and Melony would have back on Serpenski, the little bit of normalcy it brought stirred her commander instincts.
“Several. This one has heard reports of fights between staff and nation citizens, infighting, and other forms of strife you would expect from the stress of this sudden change in circumstances, but remarkably, there have been no injuries. All methods used to stop said conflicts by the staff of this facility have been diplomatic or restraining in nature. The Star and Storch units working here don’t even carry weapons.”
“They’re unarmed just like us?” It spoke volumes of their intentions that their security personnel are unarmed. The threat of violence was a powerful tool to keep prisoners in line, one that the Empire had willingly given up.
Melony nods. “This unit found it rather strange as well, but yes, we haven’t seen a single armed Replike or Gestalt our entire time here. Nor any such armory or barracks where they could be storing weapons.”
“What facilities are here that you’ve seen?”
“Well aside from our dorms in the south, the staff live in identical dorms in the Northwest Sector. A park occupies the center of the pentagon with lush greenery. The academy itself and all its facilities occupy the northern tip. The rest of the space is taken up by what appears to be a simulated city that includes restaurants, bus stops, clothing stores, the aforementioned clinic, amusement centers, and other recreational facilities, all of which are closed at the moment aside from the clinic.”
“Interesting…from the intel I received during the war, it sounds a lot like a normal imperial college town. A facsimile of imperial society built just for us.”
“I don’t know what to make of this all commander. I have no idea what they have planned for us.”
“Right now, all signs point towards their stated intentions. We’ll have to learn more to see if that is a ruse or not Melony. Let’s see how this ‘orientation’ goes today before we speculate any further.”
Melony nods. “Yes commander-I-I mean Falke.”
Falke Smiled. “Have you told Adler all this information as well?” She got up from her seat and deposited her plate in the sink.
“Alder has been…distant. Much like you. We have not discussed this matter, no.” That explained why Alder hadn’t also been knocking at Falke’s door like she expected him to.
“Well, maybe we shall see him at the orientation. Knowing him, he could be conducting his own investigation. What of your other units? Will they be in attendance?”
Melony nods. “Yes, it has been requested that we all attend together, though I do not see why. One of us being present is as good as all of us doing so. I plan to meet up with the other versions of myself and Annabell after we finish our discussion.”
“Mind if I tag along with you then? Since we're going to the same place, or would I be intruding on your time with your girlfriend?” Falke grinned.
Melony blushed and held up her hands. “N-no you wouldn’t be intruding at all.” She scratched the back of her head. “We must admit that it still feels very strange to be so open about our relationship with you now.”
Falke patted her on the head. “If anything good has come from this situation, it’s that I no longer have to pretend I don’t know anything about it. For my former head information officer you're remarkably bad at hiding your feelings.”
“It’s not fair! Your bioresonant abilities far outstrip ours! There’s no way we could hide anything from you!”
“Oh please. I don’t need to be bioresonant to notice you blush like a school girl anytime one of your units gets close to her.”
“Silence! Not another word!” Melony huffed.
“Oh? Are you the commander now? Giving me orders.” Falke laughed. “It is good to see you again, Melony. I’ve missed you.”
Melony blushed again and coughed. “Well um…I’ve missed you too, Falke. Shall we be off?”
“Let’s” Falke nodded, but Melony looked at her with a slight hesitation. “What is it?”
“Are you…going out like that?” Melony asked.
“I am not naked!”
“I-I didn’t say you were, it’s just…I’m sorry…”
“It bothers you doesn't it?” Melony nodded her head. “You really are acting like a Gestalt.” Falke crossed her arms. “Fine then, wait there one moment.” Falked stepped away from the living room and back into her bedroom. A moment later she came back out. She now wore a red Hawaiian style shirt with a pattern of white hibiscus flowers on it, the front left unbuttoned.“Is this enough? Or do you wish for me to put on pants too?”
Melony smiled and shook her head. “No commander, that will be fine. Such a striking pattern looks good on you. A fine choice.”
“Then let us be off” Falke headed for the door, and Melony followed after. “Let’s see what Black Swan Academy truly has in store for us.”