inhuman[E]
1/5 - Shivering Pulsar
s: You slip into a world where androids rule the Earth and humans have fled to the moon. Despite your constant requests to go home, you have a feeling the androids aren’t too keen on helping you.
cw: rape/non-con, yandere oc x reader, dddne, captivity, isekai, dark content ahead
wc: 4.7k
co-written with @envy-of-the-apple ♥ read on ao3 here
(reminder to put your age in your bio/pinned before you follow me or I will block you)
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In your universe, accidentally falling into another is pretty common.
You never fully understood the science behind it, but in your world, cracks lingered everywhere. An object, an animal, or even a person slipping through was not unheard of.
It happened often enough that a system was created to retrieve those who slip. Warnings are issued throughout the city whenever there’s a ‘reality tear’ in Central Park. Certain places of the world are permanently closed off from humanity. Schools make drills educating children on what to do if they’re ever trapped in another universe, alone. The world does whatever it can to protect society and the people from slipping into another world, lost forever.
Slipping isn’t an inevitability, but it’s a possibility. Like getting into a car accident, or getting stuck outside in a hurricane. It’s something to prepare for.
So when you woke up underneath a bright blue sky, away from your bed, your apartment, your town, your entire universe, you weren’t wholly unprepared.
It’s not that you weren’t surprised. It took you an hour to finally give up the delusion that you’re dreaming. Another hour later and you were finally starting to realize this new world played a whole lot differently than your old one.
Firstly, there were no people.
You walked around for what felt like years now, and yet, there was no hint of humanity. No sign of intelligent life. No roads, no cars, no telephone towers in the far distance. There were just trees and plains and valleys. Back home, this would be a rarity. A place untouched by civilization.
But there were remnants of it.
At first you thought it was a piece of furniture–decayed and rotting in the middle of a random clearing. It wasn’t until you took a few trepid steps closer that you realized it was something more intricate.
Clunky and robust with gray metal that was starting to oxidize. It was some kind of robot. It might have been years since this thing was active.
You stared at the find for several minutes. Was it man-made? That didn’t really feel right. You didn’t know how to explain it, but this robot looked foreign to any Earthly element. Alien.
Strangely, you felt as if you were examining a corpse.
Weird, really really weird. But apart from the strange robot, you couldn’t find anything else off with this world. You mostly recognized the animals, as well as the plants. The most you could conclude was that this was some type of post-apocalyptic Earth where humanity was scarce or just gone entirely.
That sounded a bit depressing, but you weren’t surprised. You’d heard of others who’d slipped into similar realities where humanity had blown themselves up till extinction. Or a disease wiped them out entirely. They often talked about how nice it was seeing animals that were on the endangered list, just frolicking about in the thousands. You hoped this was one of those realities. Realities without humanity often sounded more peaceful.
The panic hadn’t set in yet. There was no need for it to. You knew people would eventually realize you’re missing and the system would kick in to find you. Accord was really good at her job. It was what she was created for, after all. Since her creation, everyone who slipped was often found by the end of the day, perfectly safe.
You were in good hands, you assured yourself. Accord would find you. She’s found everyone else, so far. Why would you be an anomaly?
You ignored the tiny voice of paranoia in your head, distracting yourself by admiring the large trees and other vegetation. One field in particular caught your attention. It was not the beauty that made it pop, rather, the familiarity.
You bent down, lightly touching the bright red tomato happily growing from its stem. Beside it was a cucumber vine, creeping along the floor with its dark green vegetables. There were a few strawberry shrubs, something that looked vaguely like a pomegranate bush. All of the plants were bunched together, healthy and growing strong. It almost resembled a shabby garden.
“Oh, hello there.”
You jumped up straight, surprised to hear a voice, and from the sound of their tone, they seemed to share your reaction.
When you spun around to face the source, you were partially expecting to see that robot you’d seen earlier.
It wasn’t that robot. It was a different one.
You stared, the robot stared right back. It was larger than you, bulkier, and a bit more humanoid in shape than the other one. Its metal was old and rusted in some places. What could only resemble eyes were bright green lights on either side of its face.
Given any other situation, you might have run. Maybe even screamed. But being stuck in a world where you didn’t know the rules of the game was enough to leave you stumped, and so you just echoed what the robot said.
“Um, hello,” you replied back nervously, raising a hand in greeting.
The thing straightened up at your voice. You could hear the gears and bolts shudder every time it moved.
“Hello!” It repeated. It almost sounded excited. “How are you, today?”
“Fine?” You responded before your mind caught up to you, force of habit forcing pleasantry. “I’m sorry, but…what–what are you exactly?”
You heard the gears again. “I’m Pascal!” The thing chittered, clearly misunderstanding your question. “What’s your name?”
Not quite what you were looking for, but it seemed friendly, at least? You gave ‘Pascal’ your name with less enthusiasm and more caution. ‘Pascal’ didn’t seem to mind. If anything, the robot strode even closer, clearly not sensing your wariness. If anything, it seemed entirely oblivious to it.
“Is this yours?” You tried, gesturing to the garden. God, you hoped it was a nice robot and wasn’t about to kill you. Pascal gave an eager nod.
“Yes! Yes!” Pascal agreed. “The deer like them, as well as the rabbits. I try my best to keep the plants growing every year.”
An animal lover. You wondered if it was programmed for that. Your shoulders relaxed a little, relieved that the thing was harmless. Probably.
“Really?” You prompted, fiddling with the hem of your shirt. “Do you grow anything else?”
It shook its head. “These were the only plants that sprouted,” it informed you, gears crunching as they got stuck for a second, then continued to operate smoothly. I collected them during my travels and decided to plant them here.”
Pascal’s blabberings simmered. It peered at you with those green lights it called eyes, digging far too deep for your liking.
Robots weren’t supposed to replicate life. Their entire existence stemmed from certainty — a feature of life that often fails to be duplicated.
But maybe you were wrong because, just for a brief moment, he hesitated. Then, he asked.
“...Are you lost?”
-
It’s a village, at least you thought it was a village.
High up in the trees. You weren’t sure if the rickety ladder would’ve held your weight, but you believed the fear was well worth the scenery.
A treehouse village. Each hut was built into the trunk. There were at least two ‘floors’, with another clearly in the process of being built. There were clothing lines where clothes and rags were hung up to dry, though it looked as if they had been up there for a long time.
“Welcome to my home,” Pascal chirped while you gazed around in awe. “This is so exciting! It’s been a while since I’ve had someone see it. Would you like a tour?”
You nodded, finally beginning to feel properly excited about this world you’d fallen into. Pascal clasped his ‘hands’ together, thrilled, as far as you could tell. He led you around the village enthusiastically, pointing out every detail he could find. He talked a lot, enough to fill the space for two people, leaving you to bob your head long to everything he said. It was nice, you were content enough to sit back and let him do the talking. It allowed you to absorb everything just a bit more.
The chirping of cicadas, the rustle of leaves, being able to weave between the trees and never touch the ground — it all called back to the more childlike side of your being. The desire to have a majestic treehouse from which to rule, that childhood dream almost felt fulfilled as you took in your surroundings, learned where all the ‘houses’ were.
The more he showed you, however, the more strange this place became. There were hints of life everywhere, clues that somebody should have been actively living there, occupying the huts, greeting you as you passed. There were multiple ladders and bridges, clearly made for more than just one person in mind. There was something that oddly resembled a children’s toy — a shabbily made see-saw. Clearly, it couldn’t have been only Pascal residing here.
Every so often, you expected someone — a robot, maybe one shaped like Pascal — to pop up. Yet, there was nothing; only the eerie silence, save for your footsteps and Pascal’s metal clanking.
“Where is everyone?” You interrupted Pascal in the midst of his rambling, feeling a spark of guilt at the way he stuttered.
He looked back at you, and by now you were starting to get the hang of gauging his reactions enough to understand that he looked confused.
“What do you mean?” He prodded. “It’s only ever been me here.” He paused to think for a moment. “Actually, when I first got here, there was a lot of junk laying around. It took a while to get rid of.” He hummed good-naturedly. “It’s more than likely other machine lifeforms found this place first before moving on.”
That caught your attention.
“Machine lifeforms?” You repeated. “Is that what you are?”
“Machine lifeforms are those brought by aliens to Earth.” Pascal provided, nodding along.
So they weren’t made by humans. You had a feeling, but it was nice to be certain. It was obvious that this world is far into the future compared to your own by decades — perhaps even centuries.
“Pardon me for asking but…” Pascal tilted his head. “You are human, yes?”
You assented, albeit reluctantly. It sounded more like a yearning for confirmation than actual ignorance. Besides, it might have been pure naivety on your part, but in the short while you’d known Pascal, he’d never once been malicious. A bit weird, but not bad.
You flinched when he threw his arms up in the air, jolted out of your thoughts. The gears within him whirred in delight at your testimony.
“Splendid! I had an inkling you were…but I didn’t want to assume!” He gushed, bypassing your personal space once again to analyze you. “I’ve never met a human before. How exciting.”
You had a feeling you were the only one left, but for your suspicion to be confirmed was a little disappointing. You didn’t want to admit it, but you were holding out a little bit of hope for another human to be around, someone you could relate to more easily. Someone who understood.
“I’m guessing humans here are long gone then.” You murmured, mostly to yourself, but Pascal heard it loud and clear.
“No?” He told you, confused. “All humans are on the Moon. Isn’t that where you’re from?”
“The Moon?” You echoed, glancing up at the sky. “All of them? How did they even–”
You swallowed your voice, perplexed. What kind of world was this? Robots on Earth? Humans on the Moon?
“No, I’m not from the Moon.” You finally told him. “And…I’m not even from this Earth. It’s–it’s hard to explain.”
Sighing, you took a seat on the wooden floor of the village. Pascal followed, watching as you crossed your legs, and he did the same. It reminded you of a child following the actions of an adult, learning from the people around them.
You assumed you spent about twenty minutes on the platform, explaining about how you woke up here no more than a few hours ago, Accord, how you were supposed to be in your own bed at home…and now you were somewhere else.
“I’m still not too sure how it works.” You admitted to him. “But…think of a cup filled with water. Whenever you shake it, the water spills over. That would sort of make me a droplet.”
Insignificant, in the grand scheme of things.
“Fascinating.” Pascal swooned before his posture dropped. “My sincerest apologies. I’m sure your friend is very worried.”
“My friend?”
“Accord.” Pascal clarified. “You mentioned she was looking for you.”
You weren’t sure if you could call Accord a friend. You’d never met her before, but every human in your universe knows her name.
“In my universe, people get into these types of situations all the time.” You motioned to yourself. “Accord is the overseer of my world. She’s a system! Whenever someone goes missing–like I did–she tracks them down and brings them back home.”
Accord would find you eventually. You were sure of it. Ever since her creation, there hasn’t been a single human that wasn’t recovered in a week.
“I bet my friends and family are pretty worried.” You acknowledged, realizing how long you’d been gone. “But I’ve heard that time moves slowly in my universe. A few hours here, might only be a few seconds there.”
A few days here could be a mere few hours there. Weeks and weeks might only be a day or two. Years might be–
“From what you’ve told me, Accord seems very proficient.” Pascal proclaimed, proud for you, somehow. “I’m sure she’ll find you soon.”
You gave a weak smile, your stomach churning at the unsettling feeling that his words seeded. “Of course she will.” You agreed in spite of the anxiety that licked at the soles of your feet. After all, Accord hadn’t lost anyone before, right?
Right?
You just had to stay put, and stay hopeful. You’d be found soon. Someone would notice you’d been gone, or you hadn’t been answering your phone, and you’d be reported. It’d be fine.
Everything will be fine.
Speaking of, you weren’t sure how interdimensional travel worked, but you didn’t want to take a chance of straying too far from your original spot. Pascal’s place wasn’t too far from where you originally woke up. Maybe if you lingered around a bit, Accord might have an easier time finding you.
“Pascal?” You called.
He tilted his head as an answer.
“I really don’t mean to be a bother, but.” You glanced away into the trees. Despite the sun hovering strong and still in the sky, the forest looked dark and daunting. You weren’t sure if it was a good idea to be alone anymore.
“Would you mind if I stayed for a while?”
You wanted to say more. You wanted to explain yourself. You wanted to promise you wouldn’t take too much of his time, or be too much of a burden, but Pascal didn’t seem to want any of it. The most inhuman thing on this planet was showing you the most humanity you’d ever experienced.
“Of course.” He chirped cheerily. “Stay as long as you would like.”
True to your word, you made sure you weren’t a burden. You tried your best to help out in the village, folding the rags of cloth he had lying around, brushing off the twigs and leaves that occasionally cluttered the floor. You didn’t think you were doing a lot, but Pascal was very sweet with his assurances.
“So are there any other machine lifeforms that you’ve seen?” You asked, tucking away another bundle of twigs as per his instructions.
Pascal sat right next to you, showing you the proper way to store the sticks. You lacked the efficiency and the perfection he had, and your bundles looked like complete messes compared to his. Thankfully, he said nothing about it, placing the stacks you made right next to his own.
“Yes.” He answered. “Most don’t stay around these parts, however. The android kingdom is very close, though.”
“Android kingdom.” You quoted, brows furrowing in consideration. Robots like Accord?
“Oh, yes,” Pascal said, “I heard they have contact with the humans on the Moon.”
Okay, so aliens created Machine Lifeforms, and androids were clearly an invention of humanity. What could they possibly have created them for, you sarcastically wondered. You were just glad you came into the aftermath of whatever horrors happened, rather than the midst. You were no fighter, you wouldn’t survive longer than a minute if you were dropped into an all-out war in the middle of who-the-hell-knows-where. Much less one between androids and aliens, of all things.
Still, a kingdom of androids, fully independent from humanity to the point where their creators were up on a satellite doing who knows what. It sounded fascinating, you couldn’t deny that you were immensely curious as to how things turned out this way.
“What are they like?” You prodded, wanting more information out of your walking history book. “The androids, I mean.”
“I don’t know, these days.” Pascal hummed. “ The Android King doesn’t allow much contact.”
So much for history book.
The androids didn’t seem very friendly, then. Maybe it’d be different for you, considering your humanness, but you weren’t ready to take a chance today. The adventure you were on right now was more than enough excitement for a lifetime, throwing in the risk of hostile entities in a single day was too much.
“I was friends with one.” Pascal suddenly murmured. “I don’t think she’s around anymore.”
You waited for him to continue.
He never did.
-
Pascal didn’t know a thing about humans.
You thought you could bear it, but after he kept bringing these robot fish and tried convincing you to eat them, you decided to take things into your own hands.
The fishing pole was basic, but it got the job done. You waded in calf-deep water, your shoes and socks tossed on the shore. The calm river lazily passed you by. You’d never seen water so clear before, rippling around your legs, bouncing off the pebbles and gravel.
“Oh.” You felt a tug on the rod, your heart skipping a beat. “I think I got something.”
“Really?” Pascal asked in excitement, bounding over.
“Pascal, wait–” Too late, whatever was on the other end was scared away by his movements. You watched with a frown as a shadow trickled back into the water. There goes lunch.
You pulled back the empty rod. Pascal stood still next to you in the water.
“I startled it, didn’t I.” He realized in disappointment. “I’m sorry.”
You shook your head and offered a placating smile, reaching out to pat his shoulder comfortingly. “There’s plenty of fish in the river.” You told him kindly and held out your rod to him. “Want to try?”
He grabbed the stick eagerly, mimicking your movements. Pascal didn’t try to hide his curiosity about humans, nor his willingness to learn from you. He was clearly being honest when he claimed he hadn't met one before you. Since the moment you got here, you’d been barreled by questions about humanity and the world you came from. He was floored when you revealed there were billions upon billions of humans in your universe. It must have been an unfathomable number where humanity was scarce.
“Did you eat fish back home as well?” Pascal questioned, flailing with the rod. At least he was having fun. You sat back on the shore, enjoying the sun beating down on your skin.
“Hm, sometimes.” You answered lazily, closing your eyes. “But humans eat other things: Other types of meat, fruit, vegetables. We use spices to make them taste even better.”
“Really?” Pascal asked. You gave him an affirmative, dipping your toes back in the water, feeling the biting chill and the trickle of water weaving past.
“Humans do a lot to make food taste good.” You admitted. “Regardless of how healthy it is. The most popular foods are sweets; cakes, cupcakes, cookies, brownies.” What you wouldn’t do to have one of those right now.
“I’m sure we can make those!” Pascal exclaimed, and you realized you muttered that out loud.
You smiled warmly at him, appreciating his wishes to help bring you joy. “That’s sweet.” You told him, letting him down gently. “But I highly doubt it. Those foods are pretty complicated. We’d need a lot of ingredients like eggs and sugar.”
“I wonder if the android kingdom has those items.” Pascal pondered.
“I thought the android kingdom was closed off to outsiders?”
“Sometimes the Android King allows trading.” Pascal answered back.
That’s the second time Pascal mentioned him. What kind of person was he to forbid entry to his kingdom, and only occasionally open routes for trading? Was he scary? Cruel and tyrannical, keeping his people clutched in an iron fist?
Or was he simply protecting his citizens?
“It’s a little funny we went back in history, though.” You said out loud.
“What do you mean?”
“Back home, most governments aren’t monarchies anymore. We mainly have democracies.” You enlightened Pascal. “If you asked any modern-day human, they’d have some pretty choice words about royalty in general. So now, centuries later, with even androids adopting monarchy…makes me wonder if there’s a human king up on the Moon now.”
Pascal’s machinery droned. “Well, on Earth, I think the Human King would be you.”
You barked a laugh, taken aback by his declaration. “Yeah? Are you the Machine-lifeform King then, Your Majesty?”
He preened. Something simmered in your chest as you continued to look at him. You were so happy to see your friend so happy.
“Still, what are humans even doing up there?” You questioned aimlessly, gazing up at the sky. “When I was young, every kid on the block wanted to be an astronaut. And now, apparently, every human is born one.”
Pascal didn’t answer. He was distracted by something tugging on the fishing pole.
“Did you get something?” You perked up, jumping to your feet. Please, oh, please be a fish. You were starving. Hell, even those robotic fish were beginning to look appetizing.
“Yes!” He chirped back animatedly. “It’s rather big, I hope the rope holds…” He trailed off as the thrashing got louder and more violent, droplets of water splashing every which way.
You were both silent when he finally pulled it up, a clump of algae hanging limply from the hook, peering back at you.
“Yeah.” You said after a pause. “I don’t think fishing is either one of our strengths. Maybe we should try to make a salad instead.”
“Agreed.” Pascal grumbled.
-
It was the strangest thing. You'd been here for a couple of days now. You were sure of it.
And yet, you hadn’t seen the sun move an inch.
It was still hovering above Pascal’s Village, sunlight filtering through the leaves and branches. You lied flat on the wooden pathway, staring up blankly. Pascal was next to you, fiddling with one of his machines.
“Pascal?” You summoned his attention. “Do…sunsets not happen here?”
“Sunsets?” Came his response. “What are those?”
You sat, propping yourself up on your elbows. “Seriously? The sun just stays up there? There’s no day-and-night?”
Pascal considered you with what you equated to a frown. “Are you referring to the night kingdom?”
“Night kingdom?”
He pointed across the village, far past the trees and plains.
“It’s on the other side of the world. Sunlight can’t reach there, so they mostly rely on artificial light.”
You tilted your head. “People actually live there?”
He nodded. “I believe a small group of androids, also a multitude of machine lifeforms.”
You kept forgetting that humans no longer lived on Earth. It was overrun by androids and machine lifeforms now.
“I was there a few centuries ago.” Pascal happily continued, oblivious to your disquiet. “I bet a lot has changed since.”
“Centuries?” You repeated. “Pascal, how long have you been on Earth?”
He’s not human, and yet you’d learned how to read his emotions. It wasn’t hard; he practically wore everything on his face, in the way he moved, the tone of his voice.
His arms dropped into his lap. His body language became stiff. He’s hesitating.
“I can’t remember much from that time, Machine Cores aren’t made to last this long.” Pascal divulged to you. “But I believe I was created between the 7th-8th machine war.”
You gaped at him, eyes flickering over the dents—battle scars, metal bent by violence and a bloodless war.
It was like pulling out teeth. Pascal revealed to you the history of the wars that had ravished Earth for centuries upon centuries. Aliens created machine lifeforms to take over the planet. Humans created androids to defend Earth. How overwhelming the machine lifeform army was, to the point where humanity retreated to the Moon, letting androids continue the war. He talked about the brief memories he had of those times, where he was hunting down androids from orders — where he was nothing but a machine.
“And then, one day, you woke up?” You probed, when he grew silent.
Pascal confirmed with a droll hum. You leaned back on your hands, thinking on all he told you, processing all the information you’d received.
“Humans and aliens are enemies.” You said out loud, “Does that make us enemies, Pascal?”
Pascal flinched. “No! Of course not!” He vehemently denied it with so much certainty you had to smile at how seriously he took it. “I’d never do anything to hurt you.”
“I know, I know.” You assured him. “I’m glad. I consider you my friend. I don’t care about anything else.”
You didn’t know how you could’ve survived out here, had Pascal not found you. How much did you owe him? Hundreds and hundreds of lifetimes over. He was practically the only thing keeping you afloat. You didn’t care if Pascal was created to end humanity. That wasn’t who he was. He was the kindest, gentlest person you’d ever met. You wouldn’t let his past taint his present.
“I consider you a friend as well.” Pascal voiced sweetly. You thought, if he could, he’d be smiling right about now. Maybe even blushing.
You wished you could stay here forever with him. It could be a nice life. You could help Pascal spruce up the village. In the late evenings, the two of you could go fishing. In the mornings, you could tend to the garden. Maybe the two of you could start a new adventure to the night kingdom one day.
It would be really nice, but you knew you couldn’t.
“It’s been days,” you finally started, “and there’s still no sign of Accord.”
Pascal’s movements stopped. You knew he was sharing your thoughts.
Accord should’ve been here days ago. The fact that she hadn’t showed up yet was alarming. Despite enjoying your time here, you missed home, your friends and family, the internet. Your patience was wearing away. Anxiety was starting to grow. You needed to make your own move.
“Accord is an android,” you spoke, trying to avoid Pascal’s eyes, “I was thinking, maybe if I talked to the android kingdom, I could get closer to going home.”
You didn’t say it out loud. You’d have to leave Pascal.
The thought made your stomach twist.
Pascal, who was nothing but kind and gentle to you. Pascal, who had made sure you were safe and protected. Pascal, who was your friend. You were leaving him just for a bleak shot of getting home.
The machine lifeform said nothing. He just turned away, looking up at the sky. The sun was still up, lingering over the world, you could feel its warm rays on your skin. They almost scorched you now, burning you for scorning your only friend in this world.
“I’ll contact them later today,” he finally said, “they’ll be here tomorrow.”
His gears and metal felt awkward under your skin as you threw yourself at him, but you didn’t care. You squeezed him into the tightest hug you possibly could, even as his endoskeleton pinched your forearms and hands. Pascal barely seemed to register the hug. He froze for ten whole seconds underneath you. You knew, because you counted each one.
“Thank you,” you whispered to your friend, “thank you so much.”
Pascal stayed silent, but when he hugged you back, his hands were warm.
divider by cafekitsune ♥
(reminder to put your age in your bio/pinned before you follow me or I will block you)
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