Chapter 1:

EVE Probe Two was never anything special. That is, not until she met Nos-4-a2. Both of their worlds changed entirely when they met; one turning from ordinary to strong and the other turning from ruthless to thoughtful. The closer they became, the more evident it was that they would need to leave Nos's dangerous lifestyle behind and settle down on a planet. Of course, Nos-4-a2 picked Earth for Two's sake, and after one more refueling on Trade World, they would be on their way.

"Stay inside, love. This'll only be a few minutes," Nos-4-a2 ushered Two back into the ship, glancing around to make sure that no one was around to see. They had returned to the dangerous planet for one reason only: Nos's custom-built ship. The crystals that he needed to power it were only sold on Trade World and the engine was running low. He only needed to fill up the power cell half-way to make it to Earth.

But with the Trade World's bad reputation, he couldn't help being overly alert. He hunched menacingly under the bow of the ship where Two waited. His scarlet optics created a hazy cloud of red light in the thick, polluted air, all his other sensors easily detecting any suspicious sounds or movements.

Around the back of the ship, a worker was replacing the crystals. Nos-4-a2 felt he could trust this "company" not to tear apart his ship for scrap because they respected the villain that he used to be, the villain they still thought he was.

The impatient android fidgeted and looked around the ship. Just a bit longer... the worker would finish replacing the crystals and they could leave that horrid place. He let himself sink into his thoughts while keeping his senses alert. Somehow, even through his high-power sensory systems, Two still managed to catch him off guard.

"What's taking so long?" she asked warily. She didn't like Trade World any more than he did.

"Don't worry darling, we won't be here much longer. Go back inside," he quietly waved her off. She scrunched up her eyeforms and shook her head, hovering closer to her vampire and holding onto one of his arms.

"I'd rather wait with you," she said. He looked down at her, not able to keep himself from smiling through the threatening disposition he put up. Even though they weren't in the clear yet, he couldn't help looking forward to their upcoming life. It was almost the perfect time to ask her the one burning question that all relationships strive to reach, and though she might see it coming, it was thrilling all the same. Just looking at Two made Nos's power core flutter.

His optics became distant with fond thoughts as they hovered in silence. Two looked around at the stacks of garbage and strange rodents that foraged around in them, deciding that her companion was a more attractive sight. When she looked up at his face, she found it riddled with an almost nervous expression.

"You alright, Nos?"

Nos-4-a2 blinked down at her in surprise, "What do you mean?"

"You were making a face. Is everything okay?" she reiterated.

"O-Oh, erm, absolutely!" he nodded quickly. Leave it to her to notice the little details... the look in her pixelated eyeforms told him that she didn't buy it.

"...Fine, you got me, I have a surprise for you," he admitted.

She immediately lit up, "Really? What is it?"

"Ah, that's the catch, little one!" he laughed, "If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise."

The little probe pouted at the Energy Vampire. That sweet little face almost always won him over, but he felt that this particular issue was too big to let go.

"Not this time, love. You're going to have to wait," he smiled with a pat to her shoulder.

"Fine..." she sighed.

Before Two could start to ponder what Nos could be planning, the worker darted around the side of the ship, calling out that he finished the job as he disappeared into a nearby alley. He vanished in a blur, immediately fading into the shadows. Nos pondered, briefly wondering if he was overdoing the evil act.

"What was that all about?" Two mumbled.

The tall robot looked after him in confusion before picking up a minute energy signature on the other side of his ship. His motors froze when he recognised the familiar frequency: something that he'd both hunted and fled. He protectively held Two, preparing to shield her from any incoming projectile, and extend his wings to their full capacity. His optics met her eyeforms for a fraction of a second, but it felt like it lasted a lifetime. Her sweet blue pools of light were shaped in an unknowing expression, but he only had enough time to utter three words: I'm so sorry.

Blinding light flooded in from every direction. He didn't have to see the source to know it was danger.

"Nos-4-a2, we have you completely surrounded! Release the robot or prepare to be shut down!" the voice of Buzz Lightyear himself rang out from the Star Command hover bikes. Two emitted an immense amount of electrical terror, and he immediately let her go. She clung to his hand as he tried to push her away. So much confusion and pain emanated from her core; it was heartbreaking not to soothe her, but they had bigger problems. He glared up at the light source directly in front of them.

"What do you want from me, Rangers?! I haven't done anything!" he called out angrily. Two remained a deer in the headlights, frozen by Nos's side and doing everything in her power to keep contact.

"It's time to face what's been coming to you. You'll be coming with us, and if you don't release that probe immediately, we will use force," the speakers blared.

The vampire glanced at his companion, stiff with fear, and tried once more to shake her off.

"Eve, let go!" he whispered harshly. Her eyeforms were expanded to the size of saucers as she met his optics. She gave a hardly detectable shake of her head and gripped his hand tighter. "Let go now!" he hissed. The urgency of his tone appeared to reach her the second time as she pried her fingers from his metal. He hovered away from her and put up his hands, nodding at her to do the same thing. By that point, she seemed to be completely frozen.

A Star Command space cruiser lowered itself into the area and two Rangers on hover bikes came down to pin them in on either side. Boiling hatred seared through every one of Nos-4-a2's systems as tears brimmed along the bottom of Two's visor. It took his every ounce of willpower not to offer her any comfort, or to lash out at the Space Rangers surrounding them. All he could do was glare up at the light and hover forward. A separate pair of Rangers broke between them, but all he could hear was a cry of fear before they pushed him into a Star Command space cruiser, binding his hands together with metal cuffs.

"Where are you taking her?!" he demanded. Without him, Two only had the Earth to turn back to, and there was no way she could find her own way back from Trade World.

"Somewhere you won't be able to have any control over that robot's mind, and where we can remove any corrupted programming," one of the green-and-white clad officers responded. Anger once again heated the Energy Vampire.

"If you harm a single atom of her frame, I will rip the foundation of Star Command apart bolt by bolt!" he thundered.

"Shut up and get in the cell! You'll be taken into questioning when we reach the main station. Until then, we have permission to shoot if you resist," the other Ranger, a scaly red reptilian, hissed.

He bit his tongue as the bars slid shut. His talons scraped against each other in the heavy cuffs. To think they were almost to safety...

~~~

"Yes, Commander, we have the Energy Vampire in the brig, we are on our way," the captain confirmed to his superior. The other three members of the team silently celebrated their victory.

"Great job, Lightyear. It's about time we caught that slippery rat. You're sure there's no way for him to escape?"

"Yes, sir. Two Rangers are standing guard as we speak."

"Fantastic! Is that all?"

The team all shared an unsure glance, but it took a moment for Buzz to decide to voice their concerns.

"Well, Commander, he hardly resisted at all. We're afraid that he might be hiding something up his sleeve," he said carefully.

"You're taking all the necessary precautions, though, aren't you?"

"Absolutely sir, but that's not all. He had a female model with him who is currently being kept in the infirmary. She seems to be completely hysterical. We don't know if she's been brainwashed or if she's some sort of pet. All the other victims have referred to him as 'Master', but this one keeps calling him 'Nos'. We're not sure what to make of it."

The grey-mustachioed man on the other side of the screen appeared to be stumped as well. "There's no way to know what Nos-4-a2 is up to. I suggest that someone goes in there and tries to get more information from the victim; maybe gain her trust. If you can manage to salvage her sanity she'll prove as a valuable witness of his evil."

"We'll get right on it, sir."

"Commander Nebula out."

The screen blinked off and Lightyear turned to face the rest of the team. XR was pretending to be invested in a system status panel, Booster was sitting at attention, and Mira was watching intently.

"Mira, I think you should try to gain the robot's trust," Buzz announced.

"What? Why me?" she exclaimed.

"You heard the Commander, Princess! We need someone who can try to reach out to her."

"And that person has to be me because...?"

The captain thought for a moment before replying, "You're the most sensitive member of our team, so you'd have the best chance of relating to her."

"...It's because I'm the only girl, isn't it?"

"Yup."

The Tangean sighed in exasperation and stood up in her station, walking to the exit while mumbling something about sexism and biases.

XR gestured as if to roll his eyes as soon as she was out of the Bridge. "Just what we need..." he sighed, "First the Vampire, then his crazy girl-pet, and now a moody princess."

~~~

A/N: I'm not a great fan of this story... but I was writing it before I decided I was going to post out of order. Here it is!