-2: 78
A while before the explosion in the Dome of Eternity. The opposite side of the Ark from the elevators.
Marian hummed as she walked around the shopping district in the Ark, happily swinging bags full of snacks.
Suri adjusted her visor and said, "I still can't believe you went all the way here just for snacks."
Marian stuck out her tongue and said, "You just don't get it, Suri! Although, you were a former idol, I guess, so that probably explains it... you didn't get to eat much good food, right?"
Suri's ears turned red and she said, "That's not true! I absolutely ate proper food. I just..." She trailed off and murmured, "...I couldn't keep it down."
"...Oh. Sorry."
Suri sighed. "It's fine. I was a mess back then. Tetra Line was toxic beyond belief before things changed. And I was already a bad person before I became a Nikke, so..."
"Mm." Marian nodded. "I see."
"...Isn't this the part where you say that I've become a better person?"
Marian giggled and said, "Well, I don't know if I can since I didn't know the past you. Right, Eternity? We don't tell lies around here."
Eternity nodded, the white-haired Nikke looking at Suri with blase golden eyes. "Apologies, Suri. But lying is a bad habit."
"...Wow." Suri stared at Marian and said, "You are a TERRIBLE influence on AIs. First Endless and now Eternity..." She paused and then side-eyed Marian. "...You aren't trying to get Eternity on your side so that you could drag her in bed with the commander, are you?"
"What? No! I would never~" Marian giggled.
"...Aren't you like super possessive of Commander? Trying to drag more girls in defeats the purpose, doesn't it?"
"Oh!" Marian smiled and said, "I just do that to make him spoil me more! I don't really care since I know that I'm number one in his heart."
Suri gave Marian a blank stare.
Marian kept smiling.
"...Woooow." Suri shook her head. "...You're scary. But I guess that makes sense. You did save his life. And he technically saved yours. And you were also his assigned Nikke, right?"
"Yep! And besides, Commander told me to be his! So I know that he'll never leave me." Marian casually pulled out a tin of lemonheads and popped on in her mouth. "Commander chose me. And I chose him. So it doesn't matter what other women throw themselves at him, because he'll always make room for me first."
"...That's some CRAZY self-confidence and trust there. But I guess that's love for you, huh?"
Eternity nodded. "It is nonsensical. Irrational. But it matches the definitions of unconditional love in my databases." She paused. "...It also explains why Commander calls me family. And that makes me happy."
Suri glanced over and said, "Do you even know what happy is, Eternity?"
Eternity paused. "No. But I know that I am not unhappy. Therefore, I must be happy."
"That's- I mean, technically that's true, but you can be 'not unhappy' and still not happy... Wait, can you? I mean, if you're not happy, you're not happy. But if you're NOT not happy... Ugh, forget it." Suri grumbled.
Marian giggled and said, "You know, Suri, you're sounding a lot like Anis these days~"
Suri turned a bright red and said, "I-I am not!"
Eternity narrowed her golden eyes and then said, "Elevated heartrate. Tensed body. Reflexive actions to conceal chest and weakpoints... Conclusion: Girl crush."
"!$#@!$%!?!" Suri let out an unintelligible scream and pulled off her visor, spinning to look at Eternity with trembling blue eyes. "I do NOT have a girl crush on Anis! And how do you even know that word?!"
Eternity let out a bright smile and said, "I have been studying what it means to be human since Commander Hoopa declared me to be one. Recently, I have been researching a show called 'Drake and Josh.' Not to be confused with the Drake from Matis, but instead a young teenager called Drake Bell from the early 2000s."
Suri gave Eternity a blank stare. Then she sighed and put her visor back on. "...Maybe I should request some personal leave too. I have to deal with SO much bullshit..."
Eternity nodded. "Mental health is good to prioritize. Did you know that in the early 2010s before the arrival of the Rapture threat, mental illness was the leading cause of deaths among-"
"Could we not?" Suri massaged her temples. "I just want to relax for a bit... You know what? Gimme one of those snacks, Mari."
"Sure!" Marian let out a bright smile and handed over a chocolate bar.
Suri unwrapped it and took a bite, munching on it without comment.
Marian smiled and hummed to herself, looking around the various stores.
Eternity stayed close to Marian and said, "Are there more snacks you wish to purchase, Mari?"
Marian nodded. "I'm looking for sweets! It's the one thing in the Ark that doesn't use splendamin, I think? Or at least, only a little bit of it. Sugar is sugar, after all."
Suri paused and said, "Huh. You know, that's true, isn't it?" She looked at her chocolate bar and said, "...This is just a bunch of chemicals and sugar, isn't it?"
"Mmhm!" Marian nodded. "Artificial flavors and sugar, along with some fiber for texture!"
"...Not sure how I feel about that. But I guess it's better than whatever the heck Splendamin is." Suri sighed and took another bite.
Eternity tilted her head and said, "Splendamin is simply cultured-"
"NOPE!" Suri crossed her arms. "I do NOT want to know! Especially if you're going to say something like 'cultured cells' or 'cultured human flesh repurposed for optimal nutrition!'"
Eternity paused. Then she nodded. "I see. This is a 'faux pas.'" She smiled, looking proud. "I am learning."
Marian smiled. "You are, Eternity! Good job!"
"Thank you."
Suri groaned. "...I should have stayed dead. This is hell. I'm actually in hell."
Marian giggled. "Well... no rest for the wicked, right~?"
Suri sighed. "Fair. I guess this is karma... though, considering that Riss is still alive, I still think it's kind of unfair."
Eternity shrugged and said, "Extenuating circumstances. For an individual so crucial to Miss Anis's past having her brain preserved after death for decades, to be turned into a mass-produced Nikke recently, and also recover her memories... Most would call it a miracle. It should not be expected or calculated in karmic retribution."
"...The fact that you're saying things like 'calculations' in regards to karma concerns me. Is Enikk doing that for her decisions?"
"...Trade secret?" Eternity blinked. "Is that the term that should be used here?"
"...Forget it." Suri threw her hands up in the air. "I don't wanna know." She immediately started munching on her chocolate bar again and said, "Let's just get back to shopping-"
Suri suddenly paused.
Marian tilted her head. "What is it, Suri?"
"...I thought I saw something in the alley over there. Something purple."
Eternity frowned. "...My sensors did not detect any motion or activity."
Suri frowned. Then she sighed and said, "...Must just be all the stress. I need a nap. And a spa. Maybe a vacation... Commander's already secured a spot on the surface, right? Think I can get PTO approved?"
Marian laughed. "Well, if you beg, maybe?"
"...You are FREAKY. But I don't judge." Suri paused. "Okay, maybe a little."
===
Liberalio watched the three Nikkes walk away. Then she glanced over at her companion, hidden beneath a white hooded-cloak. "Nihilister. Do you sense it as well?"
Nihilister pursed her lips, still tense. "First of all... I don't get why you're so relaxed about us being in the godforsaken Ark of all places, especially when I'm at less than half power. But... yeah." She stared at Marian with her crimson eyes and said, "...That one definitely has the Gene. But more than that..." She shifted her gaze a bit lower, towards Marian's abdomen.
Liberalio stared at Marian with her violet eyes and said, "An heir already... is it not?"
"...I don't get it." Nihilister frowned. "I still haven't met this King or whatever you've been bewitched by. And that Nikke has the Gene, but she's just a candidate. But..." She stared at Marian's abdomen again and murmured, "...That's definitely A Queen there. But... she should be a Nikke, right? That woman."
Liberalio just let out a dreamy smile and said, "Father works in mysterious ways."
"...You're weird. You definitely got reverse corrupted somehow." Nihilister stared at Liberalio, frowning. "...Isn't the Queen screaming at you to go back?"
Liberalio shrugged and said, "I learned that Mother is a fake, so I chose to stop listening to her. But I do believe she thinks that we are here to retrieve Invidia."
"...Right." Nihilister frowned. "Those idiots took her pieces here, didn't they? Do those humans not know anything about us? If they're not careful, she'll just eat the Nikke that touch her fragments and then revive herself."
Liberalio sighed and said, "Unlike Father, most humans are quite dull..."
"...You keep saying that. Have you even noticed how weird you are now, Liberalio?"
Liberalio tilted her head and said, "I could say the same about you, Nihilister. You are much calmer and rational now."
Nihilister let out a bitter laugh and said, "Well. When that crazy New Hope and a handful of Nikkes manage to almost kill you and force you to give up 75% of your body, you tell me how you feel afterwards. I'm weak right now. So weak that a normal Nikke could take me out." She paused, genuinely terrified. "...You aren't planning to do that, are you? Take me here and have them experiment on me because I'm this weak?"
"Hm?" Liberalio looked at Nihilister and said, "Why would I do that? You're basically my sister, are you not?"
"...Okay. You have absolutely lost your mind. ...But thanks, I guess." Nihilister murmured, finally relaxing. "...If you're serious about it and keeping me safe, I guess I won't cause a ruckus. Even though everyone here is so weak... and unprepared." She frowned and said, "Two Heretics managed to sneak into the bastion of humanity undetected... Are they that cocky that they don't care? Or are they that unprepared?"
Liberalio tilted her head, as if listening to something. "...No. I do believe it's because some humans from outside of the city are planning to make themselves martyrs and open a whole in the Ark's ceiling to call in Raptures."
"...What?"
*BOOM*
Nihilister's eyes widened. Then she ran a clawed hand through her crimson hair and said, "You're fucking kidding me. Are these humans suicidal? Do they WANT to kill themselves off? At this rate, the greatest threat to their species isn't us, it's them!"
Liberalio giggled. "They are quite silly, aren't they? But come." She held Nihilister close and said, "Father is moving. You should meet him."
"H-Hey! I didn't say you could...! Oh, forget it. You aren't going to listen to me anyway." Nihilister sighed. "...Fine. Let's go meet this 'father' that you keep talking about."
Liberalio smiled and said, "Don't worry. I am sure he will accept you as well."
"...That's the part that worries me, you know?"