[CLOSED] I walk from my Machine

[looksfine]

Characters: Kyle & Aya | Chekov & Aya
Date: Beginning of March
Location: Inside Kyle and Aya's mind | Aya's Suite
Situation: A shared moment between co-hosts of the same (temporary) physical form | Aya goes to Chekov with help redesigning her new body.
Warnings/Rating: All the usual fun stuff that comes with DC: discussions of death, war, loss, etc.

(Individual Starters Below)

Comments

FOR KYLE

[looksfine]

[Aya had been in another's mind before. Shared his pain. Seen his past.]

[This was different. She and Kyle were separate, yet coexisting as a single, living entity. Most of the time, she was capable of retreating into the far recesses of his mind. Allowing him to live out his day. It was his body, after all. But her consciousness always remained inside him. Sharing his every thought.]

[Then there were the moments when they both pulled inward. He was able to see her in his mind's eye as she was before. The form she had come to associate just as much with her own identity as anything else. And she could see him. The plane they existed on was ever changing. A blend of his memories and hers. Mixing and swirling and evolving. Sometimes appearing before them as projections. Others, as distant images in the "sky" above.]

[It was how Kyle would be able to know instantly that, content as she was with their (temporary) arrangement...to paraphrase an expression a dear ally of hers would use...all was not well.]

[imaginate]

[It's unbelievable to have a piece of what he lost back with him, the point he didn't even second-guess the original decision. Life had taken some adjusting but they were both fine. It was new, however, to have someone giving him opinions on how he did certain things, even if things improved when he took her advice. He wasn't in the habit of soliciting it.]

[He'd never felt safer than when they were both asleep - or rather, he was, and she was awake. He never had a single nightmare. Instead, he dreamt of the sky.]

I almost don't want to be separated.

[Quietly, as they're both waiting for Chekov to arrive.]

[looksfine]

I understand.

[And she did. And he knew she did, because he would be able to understand how she felt just as much. It should have seemed scary. To be so close to a single individual. But, if anything, Aya found it a comfort.]

I can only hope you will not later resent me for wishing to separate again.

[imaginate]

Nah, I get it. We have our own lives, too.

[He fidgets, then becomes calm and still.]

You okay in there?

[looksfine]

I am fine.

I believe the term often used for such states is...reminiscing.

[imaginate]

It is.

Never thought I'd miss being one with a cosmic force, but there you go.

[looksfine]

And you are certain it does not cause you discomfort in any way?

[Physically or Emotionally]

[Aya did not have to explain the reasoning behind her question; not a moment after she asked, there was a strange rippling portal that appeared behind her. It echoed her every surface thought. In this case, a memory of the time she have traveled inside Razor's mind. He had been docile at first, too overcome with the pain of reliving his worst moments over and over again. The loss of Ilana. A pain Aya had shared.]

[A pain she had unknowingly intruded upon when she had no right, as he had conveyed to her more than once. She knew that now. How sacred one's mind could be.]

[imaginate]

[Kyle regards the portal with wariness, but then crosses the landscape and shuts the door. He understands. He doesn't need to see it from her to believe that she's worried.]

[Firmly:] No, it doesn't.

[In fact, it made him feel alive, and at peace, even if it was only briefly. He missed the power, and the freedom that had come with it.]

Besides, if I was, you'd know instantly. Okay?

[looksfine]

[She was grateful for the allowance of what little privacy remained. Not for any sense of shame or desire to hide the truth about her past...of Razer's past...but because she did not wish to sully the moment with less than pleasant thoughts. If this was truly to be the last moments they shared together before splitting.]

You are speaking logically.

[A faint smile. Perhaps some that was a touch of her influence on him, just as her tease was a direct result of his ever-present mentality in her life.]

I should also point out the obvious in stating that, because of your actions in assisting me in my time of need...I do believe that, in the future, I shall owe you a favor in return.

FOR CHEKOV

[looksfine]

[Her request had been granted. Somewhat.]

[Aya had the materials she needed to rebuild herself a body. She had the energy to form the internal construct. The memory of the exact design parameters. There was just one problem left: she required an engineer with the skills to assist her.]

[She called Pavel Chekov. Requested that he meet her in her quarters. Kyle would be there as well, of course, until the moment when his presence was no longer necessary. However, for the moment...it would be Aya in charge once more.]

[starcharter]

[Chekov can't say he's ever worked with an AI before. He genuinely wants to help, but he also thinks it'll be an opportunity to do something he never had a chance to do back home. Equal parts altruism and scientific curiosity.

He arrives at the designated suite, knocking politely on the door.]

Hello? It's Pavel.

[looksfine]

[Aya opened the door, wearing a gentle smile on Kyle's face. Though the voice that emerged still carried hints of his timbre, the softness to it was uniquely hers.]

It is a pleasure to see you, Pavel.

I thank you in advance for you assistance in this matter. There were very few I could entrust to aid me in my current predicament.

[starcharter]

[He can't help but stare briefly. Chekov had been informed of the situation, of course, but seeing Kyle's body as a vessel for someone else is more than a little unnerving. But Aya seemed rather kind from what he can tell. And Chekov imagines Kyle could fight off any intruder if he so wanted to.]

I am happy to help. I imagine sharing a body with someone must be inconvenient for you both.

[looksfine]

[It was, in truth, hardly different from the kinds of stares she had received in the past, in her usual form, and thus did not bother her.]

[While Chekov was busy staring, Aya moved to allow him access inside, shutting the door behind them both. There wasn't the slightest hint of discomfort in any way, and in fact, at the implication, she immediately shook her head.]

Not at all. [She spoke for both herself and Kyle, whom she knew felt the same as she did on multiple levels.] It is difficult to explain, but our current state is...oddly comforting.

[Given their respective pasts with their universes' Entities.]

[starcharter]

[Chekov gives her a bit of an odd look, considering what she said.]

Do you mean it is comforting not to be alone?

[He's only had someone in his head once before. It had been calming, in a way, though he couldn't imagine doing it all the time.]

[looksfine]

Yes.

But it is more than just the companionship. Kyle is the first person who I can objectively state will understand me and my thought process. He has experienced what I have experienced. Felt what I felt. It is a sensation of absolute trust and partnership.

[starcharter]

A little like a Vulcan mind-meld-- you share experiences, memories, and feelings with someone else.

[He remembers the sensation when Spock had mind-melded with him. A weird sense of unity and tranquility. It helped that they already had a high level of trust in each other.]

I apologize. Perhaps I should get started so you may return to your own body.

[looksfine]

[There is a noticeable, momentary stillness in Aya's expression when Chekov references the Vulcan. She says nothing, but it would be apparent that her opinion of Spock had been...less than amicable, in the time they briefly shared conversing.]

You need not apologize.

I understand the desire to ask about our unique situation. Were I in your position, I would do the same.

[starcharter]

[He catches that look but doesn't comment. Spock can be... a little difficult to get along with sometimes. He's never had a problem, though it might be because they tend to have the same interests and come to the same conclusions-- even if they do it in very different ways.]

Where should we begin? May I see the components?

[looksfine]

You may.

[Eyes glowing softly with mutual power, she lifts one of Kyle's hands and summons a small selection of scrap metals. Clean, white and ready for warping into the proper shapes and sizes. A second summons brings the proper blueprints for Checkov to follow, including precise metric measurements of each and every angle.]

I can answer any further questions you may have, but these parameters should be mostly self-explanatory.