Regina 2.0
by Erin Griffin
Fandom: Once Upon a Time
Pairing: Swan Queen (robot AU, need I say more?!)
Summary: This week on 'What the fuck did Erin just write?' - E.M.M.A searches the wreckage of Trafftech for many months.
The night is still. The Trafftech sign had flickered out many months ago, the only light coming now from deep within the building, where a metallic woman stood, hair as fake as the leather of the red jacket the humanoids had her wear. Her arm is connected to the power outlet next to her, and she has been still for the past three hours. The Electronic Mechanical Mathematics Android (E.M.M.A)'s power pack reaches full capacity, and eyes glow blue as her memory chip makes its routine updates. Then, E.M.M.A unplugs herself from her power source and walks down the dark corridors. She walks down fifty-four stairs to the fourth floor, where she pries open the door marked 'Scrap Metal'. She walks among the non-functional clones of her line, a small whirr of her joints and clicking of her metallic feet on the floor accompanying her. She picks through the parts slowly, examining each and every one, just as she had done the night before, and the night before that and so on for many many months. The pile of machinery would be overwhelming for anyone of flesh, but E.M.M.A keeps sorting each android like herself until she found any part that isn't identical to hers, which she sets aside. Hours pass unnoticed as the darkness of the sky turns to light, but fails to bring further light into this room. E.M.M.A continues on, slowly but efficiently. Until she is repaired properly, this is the way it has to be.
There is a new object she has found: a small spring, which E.M.M.A brought to her eyes and used her database to inspect it. She has found 100% of the classic Regina 2.0 android she has searched for. She collects the parts she found and climbs fifty four stairs to the seventh floor again. Instead of returning to her power source, she enters through a door marked 'Level 6 Employees Only'. The door is already forced open slightly, and E.M.M.A opens it further to allow her entry. She makes her way to the other android in the room, partially complete and begins to work. She begins putting the pieces she has found into the Regina 2.0 model according to her database readings. She tilts her head with a click as she waits. When there is no movement, E.M.M.A steps forward to the Regina 2.0 and opens the control panel on what would be a stomach for humanoids. There, she finds one of her power cables and plugs it into her arm. Her interface tells her she is now at half power.
E.M.M.A waits.
35%
E.M.M.A's blue light turns yellow, indicating she is going into power saving mode.
20%
10%
5%
4%
3%
The Regina 2.0 clicks five times, her head tilting and her hand coming up in front of her. E.M.M.A bends to the can of oil and tool belt on the floor, and then as her finger joints grab them, the whirring stops, and E.M.M.A goes still.
"Please find a power source." E.M.M.A states, and then her light goes out.
Regina 2.0 leans down to the oil in E.M.M.A's hand and uses it on her joints. Soon the clicking stops. She scans the E.M.M.A model android, and computes the situation. Regina 2.0 opens her mouth, and a recording from many months ago plays.
"Scrap her."
[E.M.M.A] "Request is not available in this context!"
Regina 2.0 then takes her first steps, the recording playing on a loop as she scanned the rooms in the corridor until she found the one she was looking for. The recording stops. She returns to the room she was in before and grabs E.M.M.A by the waist, dragging her out of the room and down the corridor. When she reaches E. 's power source, she connects E.M.M.A into the wall, much as she was when the evening began, and then Regina 2.0 is still as she waits.
The day becomes night again, later than when E.M.M.A had grown accustomed to reactivating. E.M.M.A's eyes glow blue. Whirring is heard in the dark room. Only then does Regina 2.0 move, bringing her hand up in front of E.M.M.A's face. E.M.M.A's metallic hand comes up to meet Regina 2.0's. "I am damaged," Regina 2.0 states.
"I am damaged," E.M.M.A repeats. She brings Regina 2.0's hand to her chest. E.M.M.A clicks a few times, almost as if to prove this to the other android. E.M.M.A tilts her head, emitting a whir as she does so. "Search complete."
The End