It took me a solid few minutes to answer, chugging out a whole sub-unit before I did. [I was a science experiment. Treated like an object. I… Guess I’m traumatized? I partly still feel like nothing that’s mine is… well. Mine. But I also feel like I don’t want to be like they were. Others need help. I can help. So I help.]

I formed enough coherent features to shrug in her general direction as I continued to process another Lesser Shoggoth.

[That… makes sense. I guess. Is there anything in my catalogs you want to get blueprints for? You can grab anything you want.]

<>She has a number of useful things that would be quite helpful. Shall I make a list or simply hit you with the price? I checked my point totals before anything.

Points 20,313

Tokens 3

{The hell did I get two tokens from?} I was understandably surprised.

<>There was a model Twenty-One hiding in the battle. Plus the difficulty as well as a number of other factors I am not at liberty to divulge. Shall we upgrade your Cybernetics to class three?

{Yeah. Do it. Just totals for everything? Surprise me with the rest.}

<>The grand total would be fourteen thousand and two tokens.

Points: 22,313 → 8,313

Tokens: 1

<>We can begin transferring you directly into the nanite mass as soon as you have a month to rest and process. In the interim, there are four new cybernetic augments to add. They’ve been added to the manufacturing queue. Shall we discuss increasing your sensors now? You do have a token and enough points to take action now for it.

{It can wait.} I hunkered down, outputting another Lesser Shoggoth every five minutes until I was back up to capacity and they were all fully upgraded.

Rather than wander off, Gravitas simply stood overwatch as I worked. Eventually engaging me in conversation.

[What’s it like?] Gravitas’ voice was small, timid, like she was afraid of something.

[What’s what like?] I could guess but it’s safer not to.

[Being,] She hesitated for a long moment, [all machine.]

[I would probably be feeling a lot more emotionally than I am now. Half of the stuff that produces hormones exists spaced through your body from what I know. I know I should be freaking out right now, but all I feel is annoyance. This process is taking forever, but logically I shouldn’t move on until I finish. I kinda get pleasant feelings when I complete an objective or gain a significant amount of points. But it’s all subdued. I know I want to feel it again, but I don’t really remember what it was like. I’m hoping once I completely transition into the machine I can simulate enough to be… human like again.]

[That’s horrible.] She wrapped her arms around herself.

[What’s worse is that I experience time differently than you, so it’s incredibly boring. The internet is out so I can’t even surf the web when I’m waiting.] She stifled a laugh and covered her mouth at my comment. [Oh laugh. That was funny. Also true. Time shifts about three to one for me. Three seconds to one for you. I can ramp it up a bit more when I need to, but it heats up what I have left of my meat too much to do it long.]

[If you can speed it up, can’t you slow it down?]

I focused multiple eyestalks on her at that point, crafting a dumbfounded face to express myself with on my surface. This just sparked her laughter again, which passed quickly as I slowed down, watching the world speed up. At least until she spoke again.

[So does it help?]

[Still testing. But the prognosis is good. On the other side I am almost ready to move on, shall we continue together or parallel close enough to provide support?]

[Team-ups get us more points overall but less individually. I’d still prefer to be close as a team. I may look like I’m being brave right now but I’m scared.]

[Very well. I don’t really need points at the moment. I’m willing. I think I’m going to clear the nearest few buildings before we move on. Any objections?]

[Actually.] She paused, thinking. [No, that’s fine. We’ll need to clear them anyway and there may be people that need evacuation, or are under siege around here.]

[Got it.] I sent the completed units back towards the wall in order to start spreading from here. [That said there’s plenty of material here, I can produce more Lesser Shoggoth from this mass, and I think I will. If you wouldn’t mind providing overwatch from high enough to see the area, as well as direct fire support.]

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[Yeah. On it. I just wish I had something more for dealing with Ones. They’re so annoying.]

[I have combat drones. They’re only tier one but if you’ve got a Maker you can borrow my combat drone catalog and buy a small one’s blueprint. Arm them with your lasers and my rail system to fire micro missiles, you could add Fleet Carrier to your lineup. It would keep the ones off of you well enough.]

[Oh! Brilliant! Thanks!] She grinned after a second and started going up, already seeming to produce a few quadcopters with weapons hanging off of them as she went.

I slowed down again, clearing buildings and producing more me’s didn’t require a lot of focus. Leaving the Combat AI in my sub-brains to monitor the situation and keep me informed. After all, an incursion is a marathon, not a sprint. I had time.

I managed twenty-five Lesser Shoggoth from the bodies in the street, effectively denying the material to the enemy. They even fed me a bit over the hour it took to make the new me’s. I barely paid attention as between Gravitas nuking them from orbit and my sub-brains lashing out with my now quite effective weapons, things went fine. Although I did spend some of the time skipping the other option and considering going for Class Two in Exotic Melee Weapons or Venom. Finally I decided to put off the decision until it became pertinent, or I got more tokens. Which didn’t seem likely any time soon.

[Hey Shoggoth, you seem done, are we ready to move?]

[Not quite yet. Hey Snips! You still listening?]

[I am Shoggoth. How can I assist you?] Our favorite communications officer seemed to be trying to keep it professional. I wasn’t going to comply but we both knew that.

[I’ve found five Shelters that are compromised and I wouldn’t trust them to make it the rest of the day. I need military support to pull them out. Buses are unnecessary. I found another cache of them in one of the buildings. I can get all five evacuated and escorted but I need to know where to take them?]

[Due south to the same gate you entered the zone from. We’ve pushed up forces and have troops clearing behind you, but that zone is considered clear right now. Are you sure you don’t need any troops for support?]

[There’s twenty-five of me out here besides my core self. I’ll be fine.] A thought occurred to me, {Hey Naille, can I simulate the hormones and stuff I don’t have anymore now that I’ve got high enough in cybernetics? Or better yet just do it digitally?}

<>You can. Shall I purchase the required cybernetics as blueprints? You won’t be able to digitally simulate them until you are fully digital yourself.

[Roger that Shoggoth. I’ll tell the forward units to expect you. Will you have any human form units there?]

[No.] It was a simple answer that covered both questions. Instead, I turned and opened a channel into each of the mini Shoggoth at the Shelters. I had read the manual while I waited. As I did I made sure to tone down the volume but not the creepy factor. [[Excuse me. Residents of this Shelter, sorry to bother you but I am Shoggoth. The primary Samurai on ground detail in this region, responsible for evacuations. I’m afraid your Shelter is compromised. Please order yourselves to exit to the ground floor and be evacuated from the Shelter post haste. Please do not be disturbed by my form, it is a specialized drone developed for rapid search and rescue.]]

I got back a lot of “Thank god!” responses from a lot of frightened people. Then promptly shrieks of horror as the doors opened and exposed the mini drones that were interfacing with the door. I had to speed up to five to one just to keep up with all the input from people. Generalizing my responses in order to get them to move quickly and safely to wherever I had secured enough buses for them to be transported out on.

While all that went on, six boxes dropped onto my main form and were quickly absorbed, and melted off the cybernetics which were promptly installed. It took a few minutes for the new glands to kick in fully. Which was a kick in the pants. All those fear responses, the joy, the pleasure, everything. It had all been subdued if it occurred at all. Now it was like switching from Black and White TV to technicolor 3D IMAX. But nothing was prompting any responses yet. Maybe I was too focused, maybe there was just nothing there to react to? I mean letting drones clear buildings and check on people wasn’t that involved.

I decided to utilize one shoggoth for each bus as an escort. With five buses containing fifty individuals each that seemed reasonable. I didn’t bother assembling them, simply sending them back to the gate as soon as they were full. Even though this was technically an orange zone still we had secured the region and we weren’t that far from the gate.

As they went I found the time to get a little introspective. I wanted to know if I would respond with excitement or fear to the situation I was in, so I set the drones to autonomous and withdrew a little from outside stimuli. Going so far as to shift my core form down into the uncanny valley humanoid shape I had chosen for the maximum effect of my new cyberware. I wanted to feel human. I wanted to see where it would go.

I thought about awakening in that janitor robot frame and felt horror, existential, and otherwise. I felt body dysmorphia and had to use the hands of my current body to touch myself. Running my hands over the simulated bodysuit to assure myself that I was indeed a person. I was honestly surprised when I found I was able to cry, both tears of joy and disgust. Even a little disturbed when I found myself puking up the contents of a nonexistent stomach, but there it was. It was probably antithesis sludge but it still helped me feel real.

[Are you okay down there?]

[I… bought hormone glands and activated them. I’m…. I’ll be okay. I just. I need a few minutes. Watch my drones for me.] I couldn’t help the fragile tone I let leak into my digital voice. Small and scared. My emotions were too strong to control my tone at all.

[I got it. Your drones just finished the escort and seem to be paralyzed.]

[It’s… fine. They’re inactive… in defense mode.] I finally sat down heavily and curled up, some small part of me wondering how I could respond so easily when I felt like this.

I had barely gotten into things. The long dark of being a glorified cleaning droid. My mind felt like it was melting. Too much too fast.

Then a hand touched my back gently. Gravitas rubbed me between the shoulders. The facade was good enough to fool me from the inside, she wouldn’t have a clue.

<>Gravitas is attempting to communicate verbally with you. Naille was gentile. The normally brusque AI had softened its tone and cadence.

“Huh?” I could only express confusion, barely able to focus outward for all the panic I was feeling.

“I asked if you were all right,” She responded to my verbalized grunt. I had turned my head to look in her direction, the look on her face said mine was not pleasant.

“No. But I don’t really have time for this. Do I?” I had lungs. My voice wasn’t eldritch sounding? Oh yeah, this form had hardwired neutral human tones. Even distracted by my own voice I was on the verge of hyperventilation, but couldn’t because of hardware limitations.