My Life as a Teenage Robot and all related characters are the intellectual property of their respective owners.

The following work and its proceeding chapters will contain mature content, read on at your own peril.

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Chapter 13: Cell

"There are no guards, only prisoners experiencing different degrees of confinement. There is no freedom, only different degrees of captivity."

Special Solitary Confinement Unit, Skyway Patrol Headquarters, Tremorton

"……and if you do not have the means to acquisition an attorney from you respective species, one from the plaintiff planet will be provided for you. Do you understand your rights as they have been read to you?"

If the being in the tube understood, she made no sign of it.

"Prisoner 3029XC! Do you understand? Respond!"

Her cold optics glared down at the human officers.

"My name, ape, is Queen Vexus. Learn it well, for it is that name that shall herald the destruction of your diseased kind."

"Correction, your highness," spoke an older officer with no loss of venom in his tone, "YOU are Prisoner 3029XC, a being charged with war crimes against the people of the Earth, a being facing nothing less than the UN war crimes tribunal, a being whose race, power, and office are not gonna shield you from the payback you have due!"

The old man stared into the tube and into the face of the captured Cluster queen challenging her with every move he made, challenging her, begging her to try something."

Vexus snorted and turned her head. The old human slammed his hand against the dura-glass prison and walked towards the door, snarling something along the lines of, "…fry your ass, you alien bitch".

"You…."

The group of officers turned in unison as she looked at the old man.

Vexus grinned revealing rows of impossibly sharp fangs," I'll save you for last."

The younger officers left the room pulling along their now fighting mad senior.

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Wakeman Residence, Tremorton

The reporters had laid siege to the house. This wasn't new. The questions had changed, however, as had the comments that were frequently hurled by onlookers.

"Jenny, how do you explain the capture of a completely unharmed Vexus ,by Skyway forces this morning?"

"Dr. Wakeman, did you or did you not say that you saw the Cluster queen die in the Battle of Tremorton?"

"Liars! It's all a cover-up by the world wide robot conspiracy!"

"Its not the real Vexus it's only a clone!"

"Robots can't have clones, dumbass!"

"Can we please get a response? You can't hide in there all week!"

Boy, could a situation deteriorate quickly. Not only did Vexus turn up unharmed, but she also managed to break into a high security weapons locker, a feat which (along with other circumstantial evidence) was casting an accusatory light on the heroes of Tremorton. Jenny sighed as once again the people of Tremorton pointed accusatory fingers at her. It was amazing how soon a populace could go from singing your praises—

"It's all a conspiracy! Those robotic succubae are working together to overthrow world governments and make us all their man-slaves!"

--to hurtling baseless accusations and treating you like the enemy. The teenage robot looked over at her lover, and held him tighter, a gesture he reciprocated even as his eyes locked on the on the reporter on the television screen.

"You heard it here first, folks! The opinions of the people of Tremorton on the farce that was perpetrated by Dr. Wakeman and her co-conspirators in the Skyway Patrol in order to take advantage of the grief-stricken citizens of our fair metropolis to develop and traffic alien weaponry! I, of course, was not fooled for a moment and thus can say that bey--ZAP!"

The sound of Jenny's 30 gigavolt "Wrath of Heaven" lightning cannon fragging the TV like an oversized mosquito temporarily made the already anxious Brad, jump and cling to the light fixture hanging overhead. However, as soon as Jenny retracted her weapon and began to sniffle, he quickly jumped back down.

As soon as the sniffling became a deep, painful sob, his arms were around her again. Squeezing tightly, hoping against hope that his embrace could absorb the pain in her heart, anything to make his angel feel better.

"Why does this always happen?! Why is it that every time something goes wrong they blame me?! "

Brad opened his mouth, as if trying to force out a good idea, a joke, a wise proverb, anything! The best he could come up with was:

"Well, at least you won't get burned at the stake alone. It looks like they ain't too sweet on me either, babe."

Noble? Yes. Was it a wise choice of words?

"Don't say that!"

Definitely not.

Brad found himself pinned by his beloved's 600 lb nude metallic form. While part of his mind began to formulate ways to turn this situation into an intimate rendezvous, the majority of his being was focused on the tearful/angry face of his girlfriend.

"I don't want them to hurt you! I WONT LET THEM!"

"Jen, I didn't mean to….."

"That oversized robotic cockroach set us up! I'll sizzle her circuits! Wait till I get my hands on her…!"

"JENNY!"

"I'm gonna—mmmph!"

Brad locked his lips around her protesting mouth, silencing her rant.

Jenny, though at first taken by surprise by her beau's abrupt kiss, soon reciprocated and before long, a full-on, passionate make-out session was underway. Fortunately, the young titanium plated warrior had enough sense to roll over before her entire half-ton bulk collapsed on her love, and soon they began grinding their hips and before long a familiar sensation was felt by the both of them.

"Mmmm, that happy to see me huh?" Jenny smiled feeling her lover's warm prick standing at attention, prodding her with increasing urgency.

"Jen……?"

Brad didn't need to finish that sentence.

Jenny purred as her lithe mechanical fingers guided him into her folds. Brad sighed, losing himself in the moment.

"Oh, oh god…Jen!"

"Brad…!"

"XJ9!"

"WAAAAH!"

CLUNK!

Gentle reader, imagine the scene if you will: a flustered Dr. Nora Wakeman standing in the door, both hands covering her eyes like a child who knows they shouldn't be seeing something, A blushing young Brad Carbunkle struggling to cover his extremities with a same blanket that now entangle his equally nude lover, who in shock had fallen from her bed.

As always Dr. Wakeman got the first word.

"Scrodinger's Cat! XJ9, will you please lock your door before you two knock boots?!"

"MOM!!!", the robot girl's features blushed such an intense azure color that she could have blended in with the sky itself.

Dr. Wakeman closed the door and listened the as two teenagers found their respective clothing and after a near endless stream of rustling, zipping, whirring, and pressure sealing noises the two were now presentable.

"What's the situation, doc?"

Dr. Wakeman collected herself and spoke, her eyes locked on the two teens before her.

"Judge Daniels is ordering us to report to Skyway patrol headquarters."

The demeanor of the two teens darkened

'Liar'

'Murderer'

"What does that jerk want?"

"XJ9, that 'jerk', is the only thing between us and a lynch mob. Let me tell you from personal experience that it is NOT fun to be hunted down by a swarm of torch wielding townsfolk! So I suggest you play along with the judge's plans."

Jenny clenched a fist, but soon Brad had his arm around her shoulder, reassuring her.

"I know how you both feel, BELIEVE ME, I do. But right now we have little choice in the matter. The judge wants us in Skyway HQ. Let's not keep him waiting."

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Skyway Patrol Headquarters, 30 minutes later

Excerpt from the XJ project briefing manual, page 132: "The XJ9's NT-Titanium chassis features the latest in S.M.A.R.T armor technology. Via a combination of passive, combat activated kinetic shields, nano-repair systems, and cutting edge modular plate armor components the XJ9 is capable of receiving relentless assaults by hostile weaponry with no loss in performance. In field test 3A, the XJ9 was engaged by a Hagane type-6 Anti-armor turret firing 10mm explosive shells and suffered minimal damage to internal systems."

If that was the case, why did they eggs and insults cut so deeply?

"You lying bitch!"

"Lousy robot!"

"Carbunkle! How can you betray your own kind?! Couldn't handle a REAL woman?"

The same people who sing your praises one day, call for your death the next. She knew this, but it still pained her to watch them treat her daughter like this. Cowards. They did not know what it was like to walk with the weight of the world upon your shoulders, knowing that each night you sleep, you awaken to another foe, another battle, another confrontation with death.

The trio finally made it to the safety of the building entrance, and began to wipe off the remains of the garbage flung at them by the jeering mob outside. Jenny methodically, in an almost programmed motion, activated her self-cleaning/buffing array and gave herself a once over until she shined.

Her body shined. But Jenny's soul darkened.

"Ah, XJ9, just the machine I wanted to see!"

Judge Daniels sauntered over to the embattled group, and soon his cadre of body guards formed a barrier of muscle and weaponry which separated Jenny from her loved ones.

The judge placed a gentle hand on the teenage robot's arm and stroked her bicep"How are you feeling?"

"Where is she?"

"Now XJ9—"

She snatched his stroking, molesting hand and gave it just the slightest squeeze. Just enough to make her point.

"Where…is…..Vexus?"

The judge snatched his hand from the young robot's vice-like grip.

"Follow me."

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Special Solitary Confinement Unit, Skyway Patrol Headquarters, Tremorton

She could hear voices outside the room. Faint, but she could hear them.

"…five minutes, XJ9. No more."

The steel door opened and closed. A single figure strode up through the darkness towards the light given off by the confinement tube.

"Jennifer, I see your masters have let you come off your leash for a bit."

No response. Just a cold stare.

"Hmm? No taunts? No jokes? No obnoxious speeches about truth, justice, and all of the other pieces of human propaganda you have been programmed to spout?"

"Shut up."

Jenny shook with fury," How did you survive?"

"Little girl, I'm hurt! After all our many battles, after all our duels, I would think that you would figure out that I cannot be stopped until my goal is achieved."

"What, world domination?"

"No, robo-liberation."

"Bullshit, when you were in power in Cluster Prime, you mind controlled your people."

"A…necessary evil. At least with me they knew where they stood."

"As pawns in your sick power trip?"

"As robots who finally worked only for their own kind, instead of these sodding organics!"

"So as long as they serve you, it's perfectly allright, but anyone else, and you go Skynet on them?!"

"Honey, Skynet ain't got nothing on me. You may not agree with my methods but you must admit, while you were on my throne world you felt at peace. Do you know why, hmm?"

"I was around other robots. I wasn't a freak."

"Dear child, you are a freak irregardless. You and I, we share the experience of possessing abilities which make us more than those around us. Many, even amongst our own kind, fear us for our power and will. No, you were at peace because you were free from the yoke of your human masters and could choose. Choice, dear child. You have always been punished for making choices that make you happy, while you are given empty praise for submerging your own will in order to please your masters."

"What about Vega?"

"My daughter died because of your corrupting influence!"

"You killed her?! You monster!"

"I am not the only fiend in this room."

"I keep the Earth, my mom, and my loved ones safe!"

"Loved ones? Who can love you?"

"Brad! Tuck! Shel……"

"Sheldon? You turned your back on him, remember? Tuck? A noisy nuisance who has long been among the first to condemn you. Brad? A prideful skirt chaser who will abandon you as soon as some comely harlot offers herself. Face it! You have no one!"

"BRAD LOVES ME!"

"HUMANS AND ROBOTS CAN NEVER LOVE ONE ANOTHER! He will grow old and die, while you, an immortal machine will not suffer even one wrinkle!"

"Humans and robots can love each other! They can be friends! But you, you and people like you, both mechanical and organic will never understand and will always stand in the way!"

"Have you ever thought about why?"

BZZZ!

A loud buzz erupts from the intercom.

"10 seconds, XJ9."

"Jennifer, listen to me, if not for your own sake than for the sake of all you hold dear, do not allow the organics to control you! Be free!"

Jenny stepped away and walked toward the door.

"You must not allow them to enslave us!"

Jenny shut the door behind her.

'Be free!'

She walked on

'Be free!'

She once again stood with her mother and her love, yet the metal queen's voice rang in her mind.

'Be free!'

The trio stood to leave, only to be accosted by a group of men in black suits.

"XJ9."

"Judge Daniels."

"I want all three of you at my estate at 8:00 P.M. sharp. I have an important matter to discuss involving your future….service to the nation."

'Be free!'

The three idly nodded and once again went through the angry mob again, trudging towards the cruiser which would take them home.

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Daniels Family Estate, Tremorton, Dusk

Judge Daniels lovingly stroked the remote control. A single button press and soon his perfect nation would become a reality.

He looked outside as the sun began to set. His eyes fixated on the grave of his son which hid the source of his pride.

"Come to me little doll. Come and dance your macabre little waltz, and baptize these unwashed masses in fire and death. Die little one. Die and melt away, so that I may finally receive what I am due."

The shadows grew larger, and the darkness ever more foreboding, as the sun set in the distance.

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Next Chapter: Fear

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