god i love the idea of subspace just being a single mother to two robots who hate each other it's such good food
anyways, pronouns time
Betagraft; she/her (girlypop robot real)
Biograft; he/they
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It was especially cold in Blackrock today. The winds howled and snow was coming down, making the roads slick and dangerous. The only demons that were outside were those needing to get to places or those with the task to salt the roads.
It being freezing up in Blackrock wasn't uncommon. However, if you weren't rich, then you were lucky to make it through the freeze without being frozen to death. It was a horrible way to go out especially if you were starving on top of that.
That was how it ended for a lot of souls up here in Blackrock. You would freeze and then wouldn't be found until spring. It was cruel to let so many perish in such a way, but Blackrock wasn't really known for its empathy towards its people.
The elite were currently snuggled up in their fabulous homes, the heaters on and the poor outside. Just the way it should be! The elite took great pride in letting the lower class know it too. The tall apartment buildings would be shimmering with warm lights, taunting the cold below.
Subspace, one of Blackrock's most prized inventors and scientists, had his very own personal set up. Because of his genius, Subspace had been gifted a lab all to himself mixed in with a very generous living space.
It seemed unnecessary as Subspace had no significant other and no family. He had no real phriends and the people who he once cherished and held dear were now either dead or held a deep hatred towards the poisonous phighter. Subspace could honestly care less if he had no one.
As a matter of fact, Subspace had come up with that solution a couple years ago. Why worry about whining, organic, brats when you could have whining, robotic, brats? They were coded to love him!
Subspace was taking the evening to relax and go over some sketch designs. It seemed like tedious work, but Subspace loved what he does. The thought of one of his inventions being used to cause chaos and panic made Subspace all the giddy of the thought.
A warm and thick red sweater kept him snug while he wore his fluffy pair of pajama pants instead of the thinner ones. A pair of bunny slippers kept his feet warm, along with the fuzzy socks he wore. A blanket laid lazily over his legs and a warm cup of tea sat on the coffee table next to him.
The sketchpad was elevated by his knees as Subspace was too lazy to go sit at his desk to sketch. Besides, it felt nice to lay back on the couch and just keep warm and cozy.
The thought and feeling had Subspace yawning under his mask he has yet to take off. Subspace placed down the sketchpad on the coffee table and sighed. Perhaps he could get a nice nap in before he continued to keep on sketching.
As Subspace got comfy and closed his eye, the sudden sound of the TV being turned had him jolting awake. The TV wasn't loud or anything, he just didn't expect for it to be turned on out of seemingly no where.
Subspace thought he had laid on the remote, causing it to turn on the TV. However, as he was about to lift his butt up to check, a certain purle robot with the remote caught his attention. He had nearly forgot that she and Biograft were wandering around freely.
Betagraft was scrolling through the channels, trying to find something to watch. She seemed to be picky too as she would scroll through the channels quick if she didn't like what was on.
That made Subspace chuckle to himself. He was super picky when it came to TV too. If it didn't interest him, then he was not going to waste his precious time on it. His picky behavior usually meant he would end up with nothing to watch at all.
After skipping a few more channels, Betagraft stopped and was happy to see "Say Yes to the Dress" was on. It was a show where women would try on wedding dresses and pick the right one for them. It was filled with drama and emotional stuff. This was perfect for Subspace and it seemed it was perfect for Betagraft. At least he was raising one right.
Subspace relaxed and said not a word as he focused his attention on the TV with Betagraft. They had just started a new episode and they were being introduced to the bride and what kind of dress she was looking for.
The lady on screen was talking about wanting a pink dress for her pink wedding. That made Subspace upset as he pointed at the screen, "You better be dying them horns pink too!! Girl, vegetable green and pastel pink do not mix!!" Betagraft nodded as she put down the remote and crossed her arms, "She also wants it mermaid styled. She should be looking for ball gown type dresses."
"Exactly!! Illumina bless your marriage because if I was marrying you, I would throw that ring far in the ocean and be out of there," Subspace insulted as he took the blanket and covered more of himself up. The movement caught Betagraft's attention as she looked down at her creator and then at the blanket.
Without a word, Betagraft lifted the blanket and crawled in with Subspace. Despite being made of metal and circuits, the cold did her and Biograft as much harm as the heat could. They were designed to adjust to low or high tempatures, but they had a limit.
Betagraft's fans hummed as they pushed warm air through her systems, keeping them warm and operational. Subspace watched and hummed to himself, thinking. Despite only being a few years older than Biograft, Betagraft was a bit outdated.
While Biograft had more advanced tech to keep them operational and lethal, Betagraft got the short end of the stick. She was an early model of Biograft so she didn't have such tech, but she made up in her abilities to land some heavy damage and move quickly to avoid any damage.
Biograft was able to take hits, but they couldn't sustain as much damage as their counterpart before dying. So, to keep Betagraft safe as she was the last of her model, Subspace kept her here until he was able to upgrade her. He didn't have the resources or the plans to build any more Betagrafts. He was even locked out of her AI stream for Illumina's sake.
This was all because of Medkit and Subspace was sure Medkit would not be willing to give him the plans and passwords for Betagraft. It made Subspace boil under his skin, Medkit's betrayal still having him so mad even after so many years.
"Creator? Is something on your mind?" Betagraft turned her head to Subspace after noticing that he seemed to be in deep thought. Subspace snapped out of it and shook his head, "I am fine. Just thinking about that ugly dress her mother picked out for her daughter. The woman has no taste!!"
Betagraft watched Subspace for a moment more before turning her head to the TV to watch. It was true, the dress did not look good on the demon trying it on.
The two of them watched the show, only talking to gossip about what was going on in the show. It was a lovely moment between the inventor and his creation. It was a rare one at that too.
Subspace was always working, he had no time to just enjoy his time with his creations. Besides, they were killing machines, they weren't meant to be treated like they were actual children.
However, the loneliness ate at Subspace some days. He would be in his lab, working on the next thing Blackrock wanted him to do without anyone but himself and some Biografts lifting the heavy things.
Not many demons wanted to stick around Subspace anyways. Subspace didn't complain, but it was nice to get out of Blackrock and meet new demons and talk, even if the interaction would be less than pleasant. Especially if it was with his long time enemy, Medkit.
"Creator. You're doing the thing again," Betagraft snapped Subspace out of his deep thoughts. Subspace decided to sit up and let the blanket cover his legs, the somewhat chilly air hitting against his covered torso as he did so.
Subspace scratched at his wrist, "I am sorry. Did I miss anything?" Betagraft gave Subspace a held glance as if she was trying to determine if he was alright. She gave up and filled him in on what happened, "She picked the ugly one."
"The mermaid style one!?" Subspace gawked. Betagraft nodded, "Yeah, that one." Subspace groaned and placed his hands on his head. If he ever saw that lady, he would personally blow her up for even daring trying on that hideous wedding dress.
As they scrolled to find something else to watch, Betagraft's time with Subspace came to an end as a certain other robot came rushing in to pester the hell out of them. Betagraft was nearly ready to get up and fling herself onto the unsuspecting robot.
Biograft bounced over and was instantly looking for Subspace's attention. "CREATOR I FOUND A SCARF," Biograft's voice blared, making Betagraft cringe. While her voice box was much quieter, Biograft was a loud mouth. It was an intentional feature that Subspace made on them so that the enemy would never not hear them.
However, it came with its downsides when it came to quiet time. In one moment you would be relaxing and in the next you would be needing to cover your ears if you didn't want a giant headache.
Subspace sighed and played along, "A scarf? How quaint!! Very good, my creation. You have found a scarf." Biograft seemed to glow in pride as Subspace seemingly praised them. The orange highlighted robot always was looking for Subspace's approval any time they got, even if it was fake approval. Biograft didn't know any better anyways.
Then Biograft's attention turned to the sofa that Subspace and Betagraft were occupying. On top of that, the two were sharing a blanket. That sent a shock of jealousy through the orange robot.
Betagraft saw that look and was instantly ready to fend them off. Her legs shot across the couch, her metal feet nearly on Subspace. Subspace was confused and was about to ask Betagraft why she was suddenly such a couch hog, but his question was answered swiftly.
Biograft pounced where Betagraft's legs were placed, earning them a foot to the chest. Betagraft pushed him away with her foot, not wanting to him to hop onto the couch, thus ruining her and Creator's quiet time. Besides, they would just whine and cry until they got Spongebob or some other baby crap.
"Go! There's plenty else for you to do!" Betagraft growled as she kept kicking away the other robot. Biograft hissed and growled, clawing his way up. Their hands dug into the couch to try and keep on, but Betagraft was starting to push him away with both of her legs, refusing him to come up.
The two robots yelled at one another, each one wanting the other to leave. Subspace had quickly pushed himself away from the scene, not wanting to get caught between the two scrapping robots, not again.
Having enough and being mad that his quiet time was ruined, Subspace began to scold the androids, "You quarreling brats!! You are just as annoying as Playground!! Cease your yammering!!" The two robots stopped and got up at attention as Subspace began to scold them. Their fans and wires tingled in despair at how their creator was so upset with them.
After a moment, Subspace began to feel a bit... bad. Weird, he never feels bad, but these were his creations. They were wanting to spend time with him, but they were being annoying about it.
Sighing, Subspace got up and sat in the middle, tossing the blanket on himself. He then pat the two spots next to him, signaling that the two can have a spot each.
Biograft flung himself onto the spot and dug himself into the blanket. His head popped up a moment later to stare at the TV, which had started another episode of "Say Yes to the Dress." Betagraft was less of an animal about it as she climbed under the cover to watch the show too.
"Now no phighting!! Otherwise I turn off the TV!!" Subspace warned, but the two robots were too invested with the show to care at the moment. They were too caught up in watching the women try on pretty dresses. Surpringly, Biograft seemed very interested.
Subspace relaxed and stretched his legs, enjoying how his muscles were relieved of tension amd stiffness. Moments like these were nice, but it felt so unnatural. These weren't real people, they were just robots programmed to think a certain way, and they were also programmed to look up to him.
No one in sound body and mind ever "loved" Subspace, especially after all of the things he's done. Even then, these robots weren't like normal stupid robots you would see. They were special, they did think. They thought how to win battles, how to solve tasks, and how to impress their Creator. That didn't mean they were smart, but they had intelligence.
They were all had Subspace had, and it's all he wants. He chose to give up all his phriends, they were all dead or dead to him anyways. For now, he enjoyed the thought that he gets to stay warm with his robots while the poor gets to freeze.