this story uses a lot of ideas from the NIER universe, think of this as an alternate take to Nier: Automata but with a completely different story and characters. i do have some cameos in mind so the connection is more clear.
[life matter detected. Scanning...species identified as Fratercula, common name: Puffin]
"Pod, can you access the database and report the current number of living creatures with this parameter?"
said the hooded creature quietly, the tone of her voice made it clear that "it" was a female, the torn white robe reflected her almost angelic white hair perfectly; like a beam of light reflecting off a mirror's surface.
[understood. Requesting access to main database...access granted, proceeding with numerical identification of species. Processing...]
The hooded creature sat atop an inclined fallen brick wall overlooking the ocean, as it sat down it flashed a bit of its porcelain skin. The clothing underneath seemed to be almost a part of "it", there were lines where her shoulders and legs joined with the midsection of her body, almost like a doll.
"tell me, who are you? Where are we?"
I asked politely, not wanting to even try to attempt to get on her bad side, I had seen her throw a 7-foot-high rock. Singlehandedly. I did not want that chasing after me in a fit of rage.
[android unit 6Q, surveillance and research division, current operational days. 164250. Clearance level 6]
Spoke the floating box that was scanning the puffin which rested upon an old oak branch.
"thank you, Pod. But...I can take care of my own introductions. This here is my pod, it's a companion machine assigned to all surveillance units here, combat units are assigned shards, which look more like triangles, they're outfitted with insane amounts of weaponry. This one here though, its just a recon unit"
The silver haired creature corrected, still facing away from me. It punched the floating box playfully as it corrected its lacking introduction.
"say, aren't you from the village atop the hill? That's a long way down from there, are you oka-"
Paused the creature as she turned to face me, her eyes widening like a cat's upon waking up, her body perked up with energy. She proceeded to dash towards me, leaving behind a shockwave of dust, mud and leaves.
I proceeded to hug myself in fear, fearing that the incredibly strong creature would turn me into a mist of innards and guts with a singe punch at those speeds. An action which didn't last long since nothing seemed to have happened for 2 seconds. I was alive still. Or at least, I thought I was.
[the human seems to be in high levels of distress, please refrain from further fear inducing actions]
The Pod materialized instantaneously beside the girl which was now leaning down in front of me, our faces only separated by 3 inches of empty space. Her eyes were now covered by a black blindfold-like cloth, her lips were somewhat full and very pink, almost too perfect to be real, her nose was perfectly angled, and she did not brandish even a single thing on her face that someone would consider as "ugly". Me on the other hand, I had been born with only one arm, I also had a scar running from the nape of my spine to the place where my left hip rested. I was an abomination compared to the beautiful woman bending in front of me. I wasn't even worthy of her time.
"p..please don't hurt me, I haven't done anything to you or your Pod. I may be an abomination, but I swear to you I'm not dangerous this is just how I was birthed please spare me"
My knees began to shake with the anxiety of being stared at, back at the village, stares were soon followed by pushes and punches. The woman physically flinched in response to my pleas.
"a what? An abomination? Not at all! You're not boring like the rest of them! 2 legs and 2 arms? That's boring! Do you know how many species of birds there are? I didn't even know that muffin over there existed!"
The girl gestured with her hands a lot, as she tried to explain to me her fascination with my affliction
"incorrect. Proposition: fix linguistic statement about the avian species "puffin" immediately."
the Pod spoke immediately. Bumping itself into the top of the woman's head, making an extremely loud "thunk".
"just like me, and you, we are all different. Think of yourself as that puffin over there. You have many things that make you, who you are. I bleed, and I feel too but ill never feel the pain in the way you do. My body doesn't even need the same type of fuel to function. Yet we look the same. Don't let it get you down."
As she finished speaking she removed the cloth around her eyes, revealing a lavender set of eyes. She smiled as she removed her own arm without much effort and proceeded to offer me a handshake with her remaining arm.
"I'm a freak too, let's be friends"
her arm extending to mine in the form of a handshake soon followed, i pulled myself up using my arm and then proceeded to extend my own into hers. she firmly grasped my hand, shaking it quite vigorously.
"there's no need to be alone, i am quite familiar with the feeling, and trust me, its not something anyone finds pleasant. no matter how much they may say they do, and you look like someone that would say such a thing."
i simply nodded and shook her hand as well, i looked up at her as she let go of my hand finally, she was brandishing a shining smile, her cheeks like crescent moons, pulling me in with their allure of the night.
"so...Pod here already told you a million things about me, maybe you could return the favor? no rush or anything but i am a very curious individual and i'd like to get to know a bit about you"
6Q proceeded to use Pod as a chair and sit on it mid-air. she removed her hood and placed her right palm on her cheek as she patiently waited for my own self-assessment.
"my name is...Ika, i was born in Valerde, the village that isn't far from here, im 16 and...that's about all there is to me. i don't do much around there since i don't really...have a purpose over there"
upon hitting his last word, 6Q stood up, her face having changed from an alluring smile into an empty expression, her posture was different as well, it was firm and matter-of-fact. she had changed into a completely different person in a matter of nano-seconds. the forest seemed to go completely silent and she leaned down to face him.
"you don't understand what it means to have no purpose, you have no idea the pain of knowing you're replaceable. im just a weapon, i know i am, i know i always will be. do you know what you are? i was told the meaning of my existence the second i came into this world, there's no secrets in my existence."
6Q had been staring at the ground the entire time she was talking, but once she finished she placed her hands on both of his cheeks and lifted her head so he could see her face, she had long eyelashes, almost too perfectly aligned. Ika's train of thought was stopped as a small shine appeared from her eye, it was a tear. 6Q had her upper lip quivered the whole time, but her body didn't shake, nor did she gasp for air, she cried in an empty silence Ika had never witnessed before.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you upset or anything. I'm just used to introducing myself as the parasite of the town is all."
Ika moved the tear away with his finger and let out a faint smile. 6Q's eye widened at the sight, she quickly looked away and put her blindfold back on.
"Go back home, it's best we're not seen together. My kind aren't very popular around these parts."
She turned around and began walking slowly towards the end of the forest. Only to be stopped by a voice behind her.
"Your kind? What are you exactly?"
It was Ika, he was struggling to stand due to his injuries but still tried his best
To keep up with her. To spare him from any further harm she stopped and gave a short answer.
"I'm an eraser"