Thunderjaw Heart - Horizon Zero Dawn Fanfiction

-273° C

"Why did the Old ones need such long tunnels ?", Asked one of the cultists.

He was the only person who seemed unseated in this environment. He was constantly looking around him, rubbing his hands and biting his upper lip.

"Are you dumb ? For the machines, idiot.", Kïma answered bitterly.

Omega decided that she was their expert on the Ancient domain, and no matter which question they asked, she had to answer it as good as possible. Aloy had to admit she was impressed by her knowledge.
Though she was aware that the collector studied their culture for a long time, she never thought she knew that much about them.
Omega seemed to be impressed as well, even if she didn't show it too much. When Kïma answered her questions, she would half close her eyes, looking at her and then raise her eyebrows, before asking something else.
And let's not talk about Bast, who was staring at Kïma just like she was a goddess.

"We should work together, tiny girl. Your experience and knowledge in Ancient stuff could be damn helpful for us.", Omega admitted eventually.

"Keep dreaming. I still have a strong urge to kick you in the face for what you did to me and what you threatened to do to Aloy and Bast.", Kïma grinned.

Behind this ghost of smile, she was hiding a strong and cold promise : I will kill you. Aloy knew it.
She kept on walking, looking around her in this freezing corridors that haven't seen the sun for centuries.

"We both know you won't do it once you'll be free.", Answered the woman with pink hair, winking at her.

"We both know I will do it later."

"We both know that I had to do what I did, and we both know it could end... In another way. If you know what I mean."

Aloy froze and threw a look at Omega. She didn't like the way she was talking to Kïma. Way too flirty for someone who beat her a few hours ago.

"Oh, you mean me kicking you in the face ? It's basically the same thing.", She said quickly, preventing Kïma from answering.

To be honest, she was a bit disappointed when she didn't notice any difference in Kïma's expression.

"I wasn't talking to you, fucking Nora."

"Oh, look, we almost reached the end of the tunnel. Man, what a shame, I really wanted this conversation to keep going.", Kïma declared ironically.

Indeed, a triangular door appeared after the corner. It opened in a second, breathing out an even colder air on the group.

"Are we in the cradle yet ?", Asked one of the guards.

"Kinda looks like it is...", Kïma whispered, walking towards a sort of big rectangular metal box. The top was made with glass, covered by a thin layer of ice.

Kïma placed her hand on it and wiped the cold powder away. And she didn't move anymore.

"Something wrong, tiny girl?"

"..."

"Hello ?"

"There is... There is a child sleeping in there..."

Aloy felt her heart skipping a beat. An Old one ? She knew they found something big when she looked behind Kïma and saw all the other boxes in the huge room.
She noticed a wall covered of buttons and small levers, probably controlling the ice beds. There were also some androids in some glass closets, but according to the way they were leaning against it, they had been shut down.
Omega walked to the box and stayed next to Kïma. She burst into a loud laugh that echoed all over the room and put her hand on the collector shoulder, exclaiming :