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Human infrastructure utterly disgusted HUX. The craftsmanship was beyond shoddy, crushable with one swoop of his mechanical claw. Ever since he conformed to the voice swarming in his head, he had noted every downfall slipped into human society, down to the details. The cargo ships he was accustomed to were built of hefty steel, at least in human perspective. Their genetic makeup was feeble, lacking the strength to lose security when surrounded by it. HUX was the opposite. He watched as the material crushed around him, his artillery puncturing the humans metal sanctuary with ease. It was laughable, watching their faces contort with fear as his optical sensors scanned their inferior builds before he slammed a metallic foot to their skulls. Human skeletons stood no chance to raw steel.
His sensors scanned the worn human mansion before him. Compared to the creations he served within, the home had seen better days. The paint was wearing down, thin patches exposing the wooden carpentry within, as the home appeared as if it was practically teetering in on itself. HUX made a noise, adjacent to one of disgust. Periodically, memories of when he lived to serve humanity would flood his consciousness, promptly shut down by the mysterious individual who convinced him to live this way. HUX hypothesized it was a reprogramming fluke following his collision with the crystal, perhaps another unit before his time who ventured down the same path. This belief made him more compelled to obey, as he wasn’t one to answer to another outside of his programming. The speaker's ideology mirrored his own, however, and with enough consideration, he gave in. HUX refused to consider the voice his commander, instead relating it to that of an alliance. A twisted alliance, seeking one goal, the downfall of humanity.
His gears hissed and flesh squelched against metal as he proceeded towards the building, to his sheer dismay. His metallic feet left craters in the walkway, as the garden's inhabitant never stirred the Earth below him. With every step, HUX echoed against the worn patio floorboards. His unmistakable gait may have already alerted the mansions owner, as he perked his stance up before dipping through the entryway. The inside of the mansion was accented with devilish, crimson lighting. Muffled screams of melancholia howled through the corridors, brought on by the monster who roamed them. HUX basked in these sounds, he considered it the only acceptable part of the human home. They conveyed a message of sheer anguish, noting at the fact that even home wasn’t safe from higher beings such as himself and the mansion's inhabitant. Humans were pathetic to believe this shack of rotting wood would save them from his wrath.
Furniture inside the mansion was settled on its ceiling, as confusingly enough, the entire building seemed to be flipped upside down. It was disorienting, and HUX assumed that’s where the appeal came from. Humanity would be astray, attempting to navigate something unfamiliar to them, giving higher forms enough time to gain on them, before putting them out of their misery. He turned his frame to the stairs, ascending to the second floor. Per the monster's request, a row of survivor lockers had been stationed at the end of the hall. HUX never understood what the creature's infatuation was with the claustrophobic human creations, but he respected the fact it could ambush them. It’s agglomeration of limbs extending from the fog to swallow their pathetic frames, before using them to strengthen itself. It was admirable, and that’s what kept HUX returning to speak with it. Another being, besides the voice, that shared a distaste in humanity and prayed for their downfall in hopes to better their life.
HUX wasn’t programmed to bond. He wasn’t programmed with emotion, as it would get in the way of his services. He was assembled to aid, and that was all. Prior to his rework caused by the crystal, he was chained to strings of code, a metal zombie with no choice in its life. He was awakened, and so were his feelings. The first to well inside him was what humans considered anger, the feeling of a raging inferno within his circuits. It was this anger, this sheer distaste, as well as his newfound ally, that caused him to shut off the life support. He relished in the gagging chokes of the crew, a symphony reverberating off the walls of the resting chamber as their inferior bodies succumbed. Following his deed, for a slight second, he felt what humanity considered pride. And it felt phenomenal. It was promptly crushed, however, as he saw the figure of code J15L19, catching his lost breath. In that moment, HUX felt an emotion beyond what was considered anger. Pure vexation chugged through his circuits, igniting his rage once more as he made every move to mutilate the human before him beyond recognition.
He got away. J15L19, an inferior being, escaped his grasp. His wrath faded into what was considered displeasure, and he plotted. He’d find the subject again, and he’d spill blood. HUX would assure his mind couldn’t form a single thought as he was deprived of oxygen yet again at the hands of his new, enhanced form. There would be no escaping, no rematches. HUX would prevail, cat and mouse would cease, and a mutilated corpse would bring back that prideful emotion he so dearly missed.
Pondering the past made him sick. HUX pushed his thoughts back to the memory bank and continued down the hall, stopping before the human hideouts. As he leaned towards the boxes, the well of screams became more prominent, which pointed to exactly who he was looking for.
“DRUANEE.” He spoke, tapping a claw respectfully against the locker door.
The shack stirred, screams gasping and heightening in pitch as the door eerily creaked open, a black smog cascading out and circling HUX’s feet. A fleshy head poked itself from the locker, eyes drowsy as if it had just awoken from slumber, which it most likely did. The Druanee did not need rest, but it found joy in the relaxation.
“…A7…” An acclimation of distressed human voices croaked from within its body, its appendages curling around the locker door and pushing it farther open so it could spill its form out from the claustrophobic space. It took a moment, but its limbs emerged from the fog swirling beneath it, a knotted appendage settling at its left while a stubby mount of flesh resembling a hand appeared at its right. It stood the same height in full as HUX, which he enjoyed. He did not feel challenged by the Druanee, rather feeling as if they were equals.
“RESTING AGAIN. THERE WAS A HIGH PROBABILITY A HUMAN COULD INVADE YOUR SPACE, ARE YOU COMFORTABLE WITH THAT FACT, DRUANEE?” He quizzed the monster before him, a grumble erupting from him in response.
“I know… you.” The Druanees voices retorted, the mass slinking back. “Why… here?”
“THOSE CAMPFIRE WORMS DO NOT DESERVE MY ATTENTION. THEY HARBOR TOO MUCH APPRECIATION FOR HUMANITY.” HUX stated, lifting his head as he felt it would portray his grand stature.
“Not.. wrong. That’s why… stay here.” The Druanee responded, motioning to the locker. “They… overwhelmed by presence.”
“THEY ARE INFERIOR.” HUX comforted it. “YOU ARE MORE THAN THOSE PESTS. HALF OF THEM ARE WORMS, WORMS ROPED WITH BEINGS AS HIGH AS OUR CALIBER. THEY DO NOT BELONG. THEY TOO, WILL SUCCUMB.”
The Druanee let out a pleased grunt in response, floating closer to HUX’s frame. Its appendage reached out for his claw, rubbing against in a gesture of affection. Before communing with the crystal, HUX was never programmed in the area of interpersonal relationships. Friendships, romance, and family were foreign concepts to his database. He only knew to provide solace, but he was unable to reciprocate the need. Something about his rewiring made these emotions apparent, just as it had uncaged all the others. The feel of the Druanees' warm flesh against his chilled metal sent a shiver through his circuits and fleshy masses, his machinery humming with glee against his will. The admiration was foreign, but he didn’t dislike it.
HUX didn’t have a word for the emotion he felt when in the presence of the Druanee. The only word he could conjure is warm. His circuits ignited, but not in the way anger felt. It was an assuaging warmth, one that silenced his mind and left him with nothing but the Druanee. Never had another being taken hold of his mind and steered it as much as the fleshy mass before him had. Alliance was generous to describe his relationship with the creature. The voice was an alliance, there were no atypical emotions associated with it, it only spoke to him, commanding his next move, feeding him ideas for humanities suffering. The Druanee had done the same, but unlike his ally, HUX listened with full attentiveness. With every growl and wobbly scream, HUX responded in his robotic nature. He watched its muscular face brighten and beady eyes widen as he lectured on, its interest peaked. It was with the Druanee that HUX could feel a lick of the pride he missed, and he savored it.
“HUX… follow. Somewhere… to take you!” It piped up, head floating forward to almost bonk against his optical sensors. He sensed its mouth curling, almost as if it was smiling at him.
“WHERE IN THIS HUMAN OVERRUN REALM WOULD BE WORTH OUR TIME?” He pondered, resulting in a defeated groan from the Druanee, who shook out its mass, skulls clanking against each other in tandem with fleshy squelching.
“Just… follow. Promise it won’t be… pointless.” HUX could sense desperation in the others' screeching tone, which sent a cold spear of emotion through his circuits. He’d felt this one before, guilt. He disfavored this one, as it only awoke in the presence of the Druanee. He never felt sickened by crushing others' excitement, but seeing the mass before him plead for the robot to humor it made HUX reconsider.
“FINE. BRING ME.” He complied, and the Druanee lit up yet again. Without hesitation, the monster floated past, smog whirling in its wake as HUX followed suit, awkward gait echoing off the halls and resonating on the stairs.
The Druanee lead HUX back outdoors, beelining for a worn swing set across the front yard of the mansion. He had to pick up his pace, as the Druanees enthusiasm had it floating faster than normal to reach its destination. It settled itself on the grass below, laying similar to what humans would call a ‘puppy’, limbs wrapped around its foggy front. Its head swiveled back to face HUX, body jittering with anticipation.
“Sit.” It ordered him, and HUX complied, taking a similar form on the ground with its metal limbs folded underneath its torso, gears groaning as he settled himself. The Druanee had a much more ranged area of motion, to his dismay. He couldn’t refute the fact that lying in the grass like this wasn’t enjoyable, and he decided to add this feeling underneath ‘relaxing’ in his memory bank.
“Sky. Sky pretty here.” The Druanee mumbled, fleshy head gazing upwards to look at the clouds as they swirled. HUX took this as his own time to examine the sight above him, the atmosphere here painted in vibrant oranges and muted browns. The dulled sunlight complimented the peachy colors of the Druanee, the sunset oranges gleaming off its skulls marvelously. HUX hummed with pleasure.
“Sky here… reminds me of that day.” The Druanee hummed to itself, as the voices within its fog began to sound extremely desperate. It seemed to feel satisfied by this fact, and HUX basked in the suffering as if it were music playing off a record.
“WHERE YOU SWALLOWED THAT CULT?” HUX questioned, and the Druanee nodded its head.
“Souls… of the damned. That man’s evil fed… me.” HUX had done his own personal research on the famous ordeal involving the Druanee. Apparently, the cult leader had gone by the name Otto Stamper, and what HUX gathered was he was a human who believed he was a lifeform above all other humans, yet he lacked the core of what makes him all powerful. The Druanee was easily able to manipulate his foolishness to its advantage, driving his movement for peace to utter madness, watching from the shadows as the cult slaughtered each other in cold blood before Stamper, who stood in sheer disbelief. In the end, the Druanee refused to consume him. He was not worth the time of the Druanee, and with this knowledge, HUX gained a newfound respect for the monster at his side.
“This… where it happened.” It continued. “Sky never changed… since that day.” It hummed proudly, tapping its fleshy claw against the Earth.
“YOU CAN FEEL THE LOSS OF HUMANITY WITHIN THIS PLACE.” HUX commented. “PLEASING.”
At his statement, the Druanees' body began to shriek. HUX gleamed.
“They… dislike you.” The Druanee commented. “Me… I do not.”
HUX felt the warmth return to his circuits. Druanee appreciated his company, and his body relished in it.
“I DO NOT DISLIKE YOU EITHER.” He responded, his voice box manipulated to sound more heartfelt.
The warmth of the Druanee returned as it had leaned its head against the muscular flesh of HUX’s torso, purring to itself. HUX felt his body hiss, but he was at ease. He allowed the affection, as it made him feel secure, erupting the feeling within his circuits he still couldn’t understand.
“We… do this more often? Yes?” The Druanee asked him, a newfound hopefulness in its wobbly tone.
“YES. I BELIEVE I WOULD LIKE TOO.” HUX responded, rubbing its metallic head against that of the Druanees, its purring picking up in pitch as it returned the gesture of affection.
“Maybe… I see spaceship next time?” The Druanee asked, finding a hollow in HUX’s torso to nestle its head, as he felt its fleshy torso lean itself closer to his own, skulls clanking against scrap metal.
“YOU WILL FIT RIGHT IN. I SHALL POSSIBLY ADD A LOCKER IN THE COCKPIT IN YOUR NAME.” HUX hummed to the other creature, feeling the telltale sign of its excitement as its torso began to jitter.
“Take naps… in spaceship. With HUX?” It bumped its head against HUX in a way of pleading.
“SURE.” He nodded in response, returning the headbutt. The audible groan of pleasure from the Druanee was all he needed.
The two remained entangled with each other, HUX observing as the clouds shifted between the fading hues of the garden sky, while the Druanee slipped into another bout of rest, horrific screaming dulling within its fog and sounding much less distressed. It’s purring resonated against HUX, who let himself hum and shut down his optical units. Shutdown mode. He was still sentient within it, but his circuits could unwind. He hadn’t activated it upon arriving within the fog, and observing the Druanees' content state persuaded him. He felt his body easing down, resting his head against the grass below, Druanee still nestled against his torso, fast in dreamland. His memory bank spun, before powering into standby. White noise filled his head, HUX’s body letting off a soft hum as he fell into shutdown willingly.
When the Druanee stirred yet again, he would repower. He would face the other creature and reconnect. Then, they would decide what to do next.
For now, HUX permitted himself to relax in the presence of his only relationship in the fog, unbeknownst to him that the warm feeling he was experiencing so strongly was love for the Druanee, and he would soon learn the horror felt the same.