Fragmented Lives The Parody Pieces Chapter 21: 20 Fractions of Zero LIME, an evangelion fanfic

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Fragmented Lives (The Parody Pieces)

"Fractions of Zero"

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"Altered Lives (The Parody)" and "Fragmented Lives (The Parody Pieces)" are Copyright (c) 2003 by DBM. This work is an Amateur, Non-Commercial work by an Anime/Manga Fan. This work was created in the Spirit of the Copyright Exemptions regarding Parodies and Satire.

If you like my work, you may keep a copy for your own personal records, but you may NOT post it on any websites/newsgroups, NOR may you include it in any printed publication for sale/public distribution. If printing out a copy for yourself or a friend, you may reformat it (paragraph spacing, page-breaks, font and font size, borders, bold/italic, etc) to fit the paper you use, but please do not change any of the actual words or wording in the document.

Sole web-posting at FanFiction.Net - Author's E-Mail address on File.

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Censorship Info and Disclaimer.

NOT Recommended for Children.

Intended for MATURE Audiences.

There are NO 'sex scenes', but, just like the original NGE series, the story will explore the results and side effects of such activities. Along the way, there'll be swearing, violence, drugs, Adult situations, and frank discussions of sex education/family planning information, as well as thoughts and opinions on the morals and ethics of sexual assault, dating, courtship, marriage, alternate sexualities, pregnancy, childbirth, parenthood, Family Values, etc.

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Fandom Alerts and Disclaimer.

AU Alert (Alternate Universe).

OOC Alert (Out Of Character).

ACC Alert (Author Created Character).

SI Alert (Self Insert - Author appears in the story as a character).

SPOILER Alert (May 'spoil' surprises in the Manga and Anime TV/Movies).

' ' denotes thoughts.

" " denotes speech.

* * denotes emphasis, or electronic communication.

denotes other method of communication.

--- denotes letters deleted for censorship reasons.

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Author's Ramblings – Some thoughts on what MAY happen to 'Zero', the hideously deformed Rave Clone Prototype - for all those who don't like 'loose ends' for minor characters ;)

It starts off with an OMAKE I was thinking of for the Final Battle, but it got me thinking about the whole memory/soul transfer and absorption argument…

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OMAKE - WARNING, Here Be LIME (Risque Material) and OOC-ness!

The Fan Fiction Writer paced around his room, trying to sort out what to write next. The task was not made any easier by the fact he was at the stage where he had to think about writing Aesir's state of mind, let alone the shadowy machinations that would see Kowmoo brought into the story.

"Oh to H--L with it!" the F.F.W. growled irritably, "I just want to have fun while I write, and all this plot development logistics is getting to me…"

A sudden gleam appeared in the F.F.W.'s eye.

"Then again," the F.F.W purred malevolently, "There's NO REASON I can't tie up one or two plot elements with an Alternate Universe scenario…"

…it was dark in the cell…

Ritzy lay on her cot, her eyes closed and her expression neutral. Although she looked asleep, her Genius Intellect was currently engaged in deep thought.

The noise of the armoured cell door beginning to open came as an unexpected interruption.

Ritzy's eyes opened and her head tilted towards the door, wincing as the glaring light from the open door hurt her eyes. She blinked away the change in light and turned her attention on the portal to a world she was no longer a part of.

A dark silhouette appeared in the rectangle of light, and a familiar male voice said in quiet tones…

"…I have a use for you…"

"Oh?" Ritzy asked in tones of dry sarcasm as she put her hands behind her head in a nonchalant pose, "Couldn't Fu2ok get it up for you? Need me to wear the strap-on again?"

"RITZY!" Glando barked as his dark silhouette turned a dark shade of red, "Do You MIND? This is the Main Story in 'Altered Lives', not some H-Manga!"

Ritzy blinked, her next brilliant retort falling silent as she realised what Glando had just said.

'He doesn't KNOW it's an 'Altered Lives' OMAKE?' Ritzy wondered if Glando hadn't been reading his scripts properly again, 'Hmmm… This has **POSSIBILITIES**…'

"…what…" the word sobbed out of the distraught woman as she played her part to the hilt, "…what do you need me for?"

"We have… problems… with the MOGGY Supercomputers…"

"What?" Ritzy gasped, the concern in her voice evidence of how much the computers meant to her, "What's wrong with them?"

"Other people want in…" Glando replied cryptically, "We've resisted their efforts so far, but Mayi isn't you…"

"…I… see…" Ritzy sneered disdainfully, "So I get out of here… And for what? A chance to help you keep your schemes going?"

"No," Glando quietly countered, "A chance to live a little longer…"

"Live?" Ritzy nearly screamed, "Like THIS? If that's the choices then kill me now… I wouldn't give you the satisfaction of being your PUPPET again!"

Glando remained silent as he and Ritzy engaged in a glaring contest.

"Really?" Glando's voice hung in the shadows of the cell, "Even if it means that Mayi and Mazurka die as well?"

"You B-----D!" Ritzy spat back, "Don't threaten my friends, they're not part…"

"They are already threatened," Glando growled back, "And not by MY hand. The Base is under attack and…"

"Tell me another one!" Ritzy snorted in derision, "The last Alien attack has been and gone and we now have no more enemies to fear…"

"STEELY…" the one word sounded like an oiled dagger, waiting to fall.

"ST-STEELY?"

"They have determined that we are no longer of any use to them, and are attempting to remove any… liability we may pose…"

Ritzy slumped back on her cot in shock.

"Doctor Akatlover," Glando said in formal tones, "I am prepared to offer you a temporary reprieve of ALL charges pending against you, with a possibility of ALL charges being dropped should your services help in repelling this attack."

Ritzy looked at Glando, mistrust written on her face.

"I won't lie to you," Glando stated in a cold monotone, "Survival of the current crisis will not guarantee a long life for any of us. STEELY have long memories and an even longer reach… And I'm afraid that we are ALL on their shit-list…"

Ritzy blinked in surprise at Glando's choice of words.

"suh-so…" Ritzy's voice quavered out of her, "It's all up to me then…"

Ritzy stood. Drawing herself up to her full height and making a professional mask of her face, she closed her eyes and nodded once.

"We don't have much time doctor," Glando said with a smirk in his voice, "Security will accompany you to your workstation…"

Ritzy didn't give Glando another look as she pushed past him and out of the cell.

- - - - - - - - - -

At the Command Bridge, Ritzy's reunion with the other Bridge-Bunnies was cut painfully short.

"SEMPAI!" Mayi Buttin exclaimed joyfully on seeing Ritzy.

"Situation Mayi?" Ritzy said, leaning over the younger woman's shoulder to stare at a computer screen, brushing off the greeting with cold detachment.

"Uh…well…" Mayi said uncertainly.

"S--T!" Ritzy suddenly exclaimed, roughly pushing Mayi aside to rapidly key in a series of code variations.

The effect was immediate, external hacking attempts on the MOGGY supercomputers slowed to a trickle as the changed code took effect.

Ritzy gave a sigh of relief, then turned to Mayi.

"…Sorry," Ritzy tersely apologised, emphasizing her statement with a friendly squeeze of Mayi's shoulder and a small smile, "We have a crisis right now, later… we'll talk…"

"H-Hai! (Yes)" Mayi stuttered, her face going pink.

Ritzy took a nearby seat and hurriedly did a sweep of the Computer systems, the fluttering of her fingers over the keys punctuated by the occasional obscenity.

From his seat above the activity of the Bridge, Glando watched impassively.

- - - - - - - - - -

Sometime later, and in another part of the Base…

"I knew I would find you here," Glando murmured as he walked over to the Rave Clone who was contemplating the crucified White Giant code-named 'Little'…

'Click,' the sound of a gun being cocked stopped Glando in mid-stride. Glancing around, he noticed that a smiling Ritzy was looking at him down the barrel of a SPAS-12 Semi-Automatic Riot Squad Modified Shotgun…

Glando raised an eyebrow, as he raised his own hand-gun, "Really doctor? A Shotgun? Not… 'Compensating'… for a certain… 'lack of something' are we?"

Ritzy's smile widened to show her teeth as she replied, "You're just jealous cause mine's bigger than yours…"

"You forget," Glando said in tones of mild annoyance, "I have Rave with me…"

"Really?" Ritzy grinned sweetly as the Rave Clone moved between her and Glando, "What an AMAZING co-incidence! I have 'Rave' too! Oh ZEE-ROW! Come on down!"

Glando turned pale at the muffled thumping sound that came from behind him. With a tremble he turned and saw…

…The hideously deformed mass of the Rave Clone Prototype known as ZERO…

"Good God!" Glando gasped as he noted that Zero was not only there, but was completely unrestrained… And was LOOKING at him with several pairs of eyes…

"And now for the 'icing' on the proverbial cake," Ritzy said merrily, "Zero?"

"…hhunny…" Zero gurgled, several mouths making lop-sided grins, "…hhime hhome…"

Glando dropped his gun in shock at hearing the phrase his wife had always used whenever she'd come back from the Labs…

The Rave Clone stood by, a puzzled expression on her face.

Zero suddenly blurred into motion, bounding over to Glando and knocking the stunned man to the ground before squatting atop his prone form, a deformed paw muffling any outburst Glando could have made.

"Rave?" Ritzy reached out and tapped the surprised Clone on the shoulder.

Rave turned to Ritzy, and away from the sight of Zero's multiple limbs 'patting' Glando down, obviously looking for more weapons or injuries…

"First," Ritzy said, her expression changing to one of complete seriousness, "The makers of the Original Anime 'borrowed' icons from several sources, not just the STEELY 'Monoliths' from '2001', but also some of the themes from another Stanley Kubrick movie, 'A Clockwork Orange'…"

"Is that why there is so much Classical Music in the Anime?" Rave hit the 'thematic' nail squarely on the head.

"Yes," Ritzy confirmed, raising her voice to be heard above the sound of ripping cloth that came from the general direction of Glando and Zero, "And I'm afraid it gets Worse, Much MUCH Worse! They also borrowed the 'Ultra-Violence' theme from 'A Clockwork Orange' as well…"

The Rave Clone's eyes widened in sudden fear, all thought of Glando forgotten.

"Don't worry," Ritzy reassured, "They also lifted the 'Curse of Roddenberry', the short life expectancies of those wearing 'Red Shirts' from 'Star Trek'…"

The Rave Clone gave a sigh of relief.

"However," Ritzy said with a grim expression, "Aesir is only the first course, and Shakey will soon be in DEEP S--T! You have to go and help him!"

"How?" the Clone asked.

Ritzy smiled serenely as a column of light shone down on her from above, giving her the sort of soft and gentle illumination, more often used on Saints in religious paintings.

"Shut your eyes, then tap your heels together three times while saying there's 'No Place Like Home', dear," Ritzy crooned in Maternal Tones.

The Rave Clone did so, with the result that she suddenly levitated upwards towards the crucified White Giant. With a special effect lifted from the High-Tech remake of the movie 'The Blob', Rave was sucked into the White Giant.

The White Giant began morphing into a Giant facsimile of the Rave Clone it had just absorbed. The Giant White Rave Clone facsimile suddenly levitated, ghosting up and away through the Ceiling…

"GO GETTEM Rave!" Ritzy cheered, "Punch their Lilly-White Freckles!"

After Rave had disappeared, Ritzy produced a large hypodermic syringe filled with a cloudy liquid from her pocket, and walked over to Glando and Zero.

"Zero Dear?" Ritzy asked, indicating Glando, "If you would be so kind…"

Zero twisted, moving Glando so that his bare buttocks became an easy target. With a satisfied smirk, Ritzy plunged the hypodermic needle DEEP into Glando's butt cheek, slowly pressing the plunger and injecting the contents into the man.

"Aaarrggghhh!" Glando screamed as Ritzy withdrew the needle from his buttock, "What the F--K was THAT in aid of?"

"What the F--K, Indeed," Ritzy observed with a grin as she produced a cigar from another pocket, "You could say it was just a little prick for another Little Prick, but I can't really say that since you *ARE* the Biggest Prick in town… Figuratively speaking of course…"

Ritzy's commentary was cut off as Zero Man-Handled Glando back onto the ground, the movement revealing that Glando's right palm seemed to have some sort of biological specimen embedded in it.

"You… TWISTED… Little Man," Ritzy said in disgust, "Tell me, did having that… THING… in your palm improve your sex life when I wasn't available?"

"RITZY!" Glando screamed, "For the Love of God, HELP ME!!!"

"But I just have," Ritzy pouted apologetically.

"WHAT? HOW??"

"That injection was a mixture of Vitamins, Minerals, Omega-3 Fatty acids, Aspirin derivatives, Natural Oyster Extract, and Viagra…"

"WHAT??!!"

Ritzy sighed, noting that an important Plot Element had evidently been glossed over, "It's just my little present to you and Zero, or should I say… 'Yoo-Hoo'?"

Glando's face contorted in deep shock at the mention of his wife.

"I mean," Ritzy continued with a shrug, "Just because we couldn't recreate your wife's BODY, didn't mean that we couldn't copy her MIND, the intellectual essence trapped in the Core of Unit Won, and download it into a suitable vessel… H--L, my mother did it with herself and the MOGGY supercomputers…"

"Y-You mean?" Glando's pale face was now sweating profusely.

"…yehhss…" Zero gurgled, "…hime feeling like 'Beddy-byes', mhy liddle stallion…"

Glando's eyes widened in sudden horror as he realised that Zero had used the phrase that his late wife would use whenever she wanted to 'Ride the Wild Baloney Pony' with him…

"B-But!" Glando began grabbing at straws, "She's in the body of a Rave Clone, and the Fan Fiction Writer doesn't DO 'Underage' Hentai (Porno/Erotic) Material?"

Ritzy lit her celebratory cigar and took a deep, relaxing lungful of aromatic smoke before blowing a smoke ring and replying in smug tones…

"Have you forgotten? In the main storyline of 'Altered Lives', the bulk of the Rave Clones were created when Zero was about **5** years old, BEFORE your son Shakey was born… And since the original TV Anime is supposed to end sometime in late 2016, most of the child pilots will have turned 15… So with all of the rest of what goes into creating Clones, that makes Zero here at LEAST 21 years old… She's 'legal' my Dear Commander Casanova, in ALL jurisdictions…"

"Don't get me wrong, Glando DEAR…" Ritzy said apologetically, "Don't think that what is about to happen to you as being the 'Screwing you get' for the 'Screwing you got', (let alone the 'Screwing-Over' you did), but rather…"

Ritzy suddenly struck a suitably Heroic pose, one hand on her hip as the other held her shot-gun in profile, her lab coat swirling dramatically to complement her pose (like the cape in SPAWN, or BATMAN)…

"Think of this as being the 'origin' of a new version of an Old Legend," Ritzy sparkled as the lights came up, suddenly juxtaposing her against a dark and misty background, "Think of me as being a 'Cupid' for the New Millennium!"

"Bon Appetit, Mon Petits" Ritzy cooed, as she stalked off.

"RIT-" Glando's strangled scream of protest was cut off as Zero, or should it be said, the mental essence of Glando's wife 'Yoo-Hoo' in a borrowed body, slid fourteen inches of tongue down Glando's throat.

Ritzy thoughtfully closed the doors to the chamber behind her and locked them, so that no-one could accidentally disturb the two 'love-birds'.

Especially not since poor 'Yoo-Hoo' had over a decade of 'Marital Duties' to demand… err… 'catch-up-on'…

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Fragment - Not Forgotten. Some time after the Final Battle in the City.

In the rubble-strewn wasteland of the City, a false peace settled like the eye of a Cyclone. It was helped in part by the absence of the masses who had once called this City home. The once busy heart of the City was dead and gone, obliterated except for small pockets of power and light maintained by the last of those unwilling, or unable to leave.

Not so the underground Base…

Once, the entire NERVIS Base had been blacked out by the concerted actions of expert saboteurs. The situation had nearly sealed the City's doom when an Alien Attack eventuated. The Post-Event Crisis Analysis session had recommended measures be taken to ensure that it could never happen again. Accordingly, the existing Diesel Generators were bolstered with the covert installation of a Steam Turbine Generator diverted from installation in a Nuclear Power plant elsewhere in the country.

…Not that Glando had installed a Nuclear Power plant to go along with it…

The Technology that spawned the AVE Marias, also spawned the means of generating vast amounts of heat through the Hi-Tech destruction of matter itself. Dubbed C-2 for 'Continuous Conversion' (or 'Certain Chaos' by the doubters), the New Technology was initially intended only as Power Cores for the AVE Marias.

Despite the spectacular destruction of the only known Prototype Power Core, Glando was somehow able to obtain a 'spare'…

Currently, most of the NERVIS Base and the inhabited surface of the City were powered by Glando's jury-rigged emergency backup.

Most of the NERVIS Base, not all of it…

Deep in the pitch-dark reaches of the NERVIS Base, servomotors laboured as an armoured door slowly groaned open in protest.

It appears that power still flows down here… sent Clone#85, her dilated crimson eyes observing what the infra-red portion of the spectrum revealed.

In the black air near her, Clone#104 nodded, It appears that the Commander did indeed have this area on his special priority circuit…

The knowledge caused the tense squad of Rave Clones in the vicinity to warily re-evaluate their unlit surroundings.

Going In… Clone#59 stated as she slid sideways between the partly open doors.

Just inside the door, Clone#59 reached out to where another's memory said a light switch should be. Pausing to cover one eye with her hand and partially preserve her Night Vision, she flipped the switch. With a stuttering buzz, some of the overhead fluorescent lights sparked into intermittent life.

Clone#59 scanned the room with her uncovered eye, automatically sending back the images to her sister Clones.

Workbenches and computer consoles lined the room, as well as various apparatus attached to electrical conduits and tubing. All around the room, scorch marks and melted metal showed where power surges or short circuits had occurred. Numerous pipes and sensor leads dangled from the ceiling, some having fallen to lie on the stained floor, or to drape across a large metal slab that stood in the centre of the room on silent gimbals.

Clone#59 dropped her hand and walked over to the slab. She paused as she looked down at the mottled grey thing lashed there, noting that an unpleasant smell of rot and putrefaction emanated from it.

Clone#59 reached out and gently touched the silent shape.

For a moment, nothing happened, then several slits in the thing opened, revealing dull red irises that stared blankly…

#59 to Base Clone#59 sent, I have confirmed the existence of Zero…

Roger! replied the Group Mind, Upgrading Mission Parameters from Corpse Retrieval to Rescue…

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Fragment - House Call.

In a secret Lab somewhere in the remains of the NERVIS Base, a grim-faced Mayi Buttin was conducting a physical examination on a most unusual patient.

The fact the patient was 'In A Bad Way' from the combined effects of severe dehydration, starvation, festering bedsores and general neglect, was more than enough to repulse even a trained Medic like Mayi.

That the patient had more limbs than any two inmates in a 'freak show' was further guaranteed to make the event one that Mayi would never be able to forget, no matter how much she wanted to.

The fact that the patient, as damaged as they were, was strapped to a large metal slab with Kevlar reinforced restraints because they could accidentally kill people without meaning to, only added to the unique ambience in the room…

"…god…" Mayi swallowed back her bile as she checked the wounds the Rave Clones had already attended to. At first, Mayi had thought that the mottled flesh was the result of bruising. Then she'd smelt the tell-tale reek of decaying meat…

The grotesquely deformed mass of mindless flesh known as 'Zero', lay on the metal slab, apparently unaware of its condition, and the care given to it.

With a shudder, Mayi finished her examination and squirmed out of the wrecked lab, pausing outside to take several deep cleansing breaths of the dank tunnel air.

"What is your opinion?" the quiet voice of a Rave Clone brought Mayi back to unpleasant reality.

"It…" Mayi bit back the neutral pronoun, "…SHE… needs to be in a Hospital…"

"That is not advisable," the Clone promptly replied.

"To H--L with 'advisable'!" Mayi retorted, "She NEEDS professional help! Those bedsores are more than 'septic', there's necrosis of subdermal tissue! If starvation doesn't kill her, it'll only be because gangrene or organ failure from blood poisoning did the job instead!"

"We will take care of her," the Rave Clone insisted.

"HOW?" demanded Mayi.

In answer, the Rave Clone walked up to Mayi and flexed an E.T. Field around them. The bubble of energy protected them both from the sudden rain of debris that crashed down around them.

"What?" Mayi exclaimed, a fearful look in her eyes as the rubble piled up against the E.T. Field, obscuring everything beyond the golden wall.

"We will Medivac her to the Clone Zone," The Rave Clone quietly informed Mayi, "There, we can give her the sort of constant care a Hospital could give her."

Mayi shook her head and sighed, "I KNOW you've got some of the 'learning' necessary, but there's a difference between knowledge and experience that…"

"We have experience," the Rave Clone insisted, "Have you forgotten how we served in the Hospitals after the Final Battle? How we served with the Field Teams digging survivors out of the rubble?"

"No," Mayi grudgingly admitted, "But that was all 'Trauma' injuries, NOT the sort of 'Palliative Care' that you'll have to give her…"

"Mondai Arimasen (No Problem)" the Clone replied, "We are nothing, if not fast learners. We will take care of our own… Regardless of the progress of her Medical Condition, she will still be safer with us, than in a Hospital…"

Mayi shuddered, the Clone's words bringing up recent memories of how some wounded NERVIS staff had been murdered in their Hospital beds by vengeance crazed mobs…

"We knew you would see it our way," the Clone murmured, noting Mayi's reaction.

"What will you tell the others?" Mayi asked by way of trying to change the subject.

"This is on a need to know basis," the Clone's words were low and smooth, her tones very much like a certain former Commander of Nervis, "We will tell Mazurka, but the others will not be informed. It would only… distress them…"

Mayi nodded, not finding any flaw in the strategy, nor any heart to oppose it.

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Fragment - Renovation.

The Clone Zone had been purposefully built as accommodation for the bulk of the Rave Clones. On the order of Glando Atari, one-time Commander of NERVIS, it had been equipped with ALL of the Modern Conveniences. Ostensibly the facility was to act both as housing and 'half-way-house' where the Clones could learn how to be human.

Yeah… Right…

Actually, the Clone Zone was a contingency plan of STEELY's that Glando had subverted for his own ends. Instead of the Clone 'containment systems' of deadly Nerve Gas and Nuclear Warhead that STEELY wanted installed, Glando substituted other, less lethal 'look-alikes'.

…While adding the substituted originals to his own personal stash of weapons…

Regardless of original intents or subsequent deceptions, the fact remained that the buildings of the Clone Zone were built to CONTAIN the blast of a Nuclear Bomb, rather than just survive one. Subsequently, they were probably the most robustly constructed buildings in the entire city, a little fact that had played no small part in the survival of the facilities during the Final Battle.

However, it IS a human trait to change your mind about the things in your life, and housing and accommodation are no exception. Which is why the Rave Clones were 'renovating' several buildings near the Clone Zone, increasing the size of their residential and training complex, while giving free rein to their developing talents as Architects, Engineers, Construction Workers, and Interior Decorators…

At least, that was the story the Clones told Shakey and Aesir… Mazurka and Mayi knew differently, namely, that the 'construction zone' was partly a cover story for the creation of palliative facilities for the Clone known as 'Zero'…

Not that it was likely that Shakey and Aesir would ever find out such deception even if they DID visit the buildings in the 'renovation site'…

The Clones had extensively altered the floor plans of the other buildings to the point that the creation of an entire 'secret floor', let alone a single spacious 'secret room' that would not be noticed, was mere child's play.

Zero's room was a tasteful shade of beige, with polished steel fixtures of the type found in only the best 'Nursing Homes'. Fully self-contained, it featured several hygiene innovations specifically geared for the demands at hand.

It was here, that Zero found her new home, under the watchful eye and diligent care of the Rave Clones.

And found something else as well…

The Rave Clones clustered around Zero's slab, attaching various leads to the pale flesh. Their task was hampered not only by Zero's current body shape, but also by the fact that her internal organs were as scrambled as her exterior.

Holding Countdown to Operation advised the Group Mind, as elsewhere, other Clones completed other tasks.

Core waveforms to strength sent Clone#32 in the AVE Hangar.

Synaptic emulators on line Clone#29 in the old Base Operations Bridge.

Interface filter within tolerance Clone#71 from the room outside Zero's.

All systems are GO for Neural Interface! confirmed the Group Mind, All Units clear Contamination Zone… Time minus three… two… one… INITIATE!

In her room, Zero's body twitched, her eyes opening wide as the other Clones attempted to connect Zero's nervous system to the data stored in an AVE Core…

Initial contact is green. Data merge commencing

Flux detected? Increase filtration of line noise

Core Download rate increasing?

Sympathetic waveforms detected in target host!

Data gorge in progress! Cut back?

Synch rate spike? NO!! OVERLOA…

The secret room housing Zero, vanished in a not-so-silent ball of light…

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Fragment - Reunion…

Shakey Atari was playing a superb game of basketball. The crowd went wild as he weaved and dodged, shaking off the other team's attempts to take the ball like a dog shakes off water, he…

…Suddenly slipped and fell over on his backside…

"…Itte…" Shakey hissed as the pain made itself known. Abandoned for more important concerns, the basketball he had been practicing with when his day-dreams had run away with him, rolled off against a wall of the Training Hall…

"I don't believe this," Shakey groaned, as he got to his feet and painfully stumbled after the ball, "I can't even win when it's just me, myself and I…"

"At least it IS just Me, Myself and I," Shakey muttered as he bent to pick up the ball, "I'd never live it down if anyone el-…"

Shakey's comment was cut off by the unexpected boom of thunder and a powerful shuddering vibration in the floor he was standing on. He reacted without thinking, diving for the relative safety of a nearby building support.

"Quake?" Shakey asked himself nervously, "Didn't feel like one? Explosion?"

Shakey hugged the floor, making no sound for several minutes. When no further noises or vibrations came, and NO Rave Clones came to make sure he was safe…

"Okay… No aftershocks, or follow-ups, No alarms and NO Clones…" Shakey ran through the options as he slowly rose to a crouch, "Scheduled demolition? E.T. Field Training? Too bad there's no windows or I could see what's going on…"

His body hurting too much for him to enjoy dreaming about being a 'Hero', Shakey decided to partake of that OTHER old sports favourite, 'Hitting the Showers'.

Or in HIS case, 'Shower'… Namely the one in the apartment he shared with Mazurka and Aesir in the adjoining apartment building…

Being in the Clone Zone Secure Building meant that while there were NO shortages of shower facilities, ALL of the showers were Co-Ed, or to put it another way, since the building was designed to only house females, there were NO showers specifically set aside for people of Shakey's gender.

Although, the Clones HAD told Shakey that they DIDN'T mind if he used theirs…

"Not likely," Shakey had muttered under his breath at the time, "Knowing MY luck, I'd either walk in on someone, or they'd walk in on me…"

The fact that the other person in question might be Aesir rather than one of the Clones, had most DEFINITELY made Shakey's mind up for him. Shakey knew what would happen if he walked in on Aesir in their apartment's bathroom…

Shakey's lack of enthusiasm over the Clones' offer wasn't helped when the Clone known as Twelve, tried to 'reassure' Shakey about the matter by offering to wash his back for him… Anytime…

Shakey stowed the basketball in an equipment locker on his way out of the Clone Zone Training Hall. He broke into a jog as he made his way through the complex, trying to get as much exercise as he could from his allotted exercise session.

'I don't want Mazurka to get on my case because I'm too flabby,' Shakey thought morosely, 'She might threaten to get me a Personal Trainer again…'

Not that such a thing was necessarily bad in itself, but after having had the Clones teach him about self defence…

Shakey sighed as he remembered their first attempted lesson, that of 'grappling' or 'wrestling', "…Could have been worse… Aesir could have been there…"

Shakey walked into the apartment he shared with Mazurka and Aesir, not bothering to shut the door behind him.

On moving into the Clone Zone apartment building, Mazurka had adopted an 'Open Door' policy in her new home. More than just a sign of trust in the security the Clones provided the building, it was also a subtle show of gratitude to the Clones, and a tangible proof that the Clones could talk to Mazurka anytime they wanted to. That the Clones were welcome in Mazurka's home… Anytime…

The policy had even been applied to the Bathroom. Although initially suggested as a joke, Mazurka had implemented it as a way of clearly showing when the bathroom was in use. A closed door was proof that the room was probably in use, and that anyone else should knock before entering and possibly surprising the user. The fact the door also had a lock, meant the latter was unlikely.

As the bathroom door was wide open, Shakey didn't need to knock and check if there was anyone inside. He entered and gratefully shut and locked the bathroom door behind him, ensuring his privacy before disrobing and taking a well-earned shower. He quickly washed himself under the shower jets from the 'water-saver' nozzle, thoroughly enjoying the way the needles of water soothed the protests of his well-exercised muscles.

'I could stay in here all day,' Shakey thought dreamily as he leaned against the wall, luxuriating under the caress of the warm water, '…sooo relaxing…'

For several minutes Shakey did nothing but stand beneath the stream of water, stretching slowly as he got the last kinks out of his muscles, letting the shower wash him clean of sweat, suds and stress.

But, all good things must come to an end, and sooner, rather than later, Shakey straightened up and turned off the water with a sad little look on his face…

'But if I do THAT…' Shakey reluctantly left the shower and towelled off, 'Aesir will say there's not enough Hot Water 'cause' I've used it all…'

Shakey gave the rarely used bathtub a wistful glance, commiserating that 'If it wasn't for the water and power restrictions…'

'Still… At least I was able to shower in peace this time,' Shakey smiled happily at his accomplishment, remembering how Aesir would ALWAYS demand that he let Ladies hog… err… *USE* the bathroom facilities first. At least, except for those rare occasions when Shakey had actually beaten Aesir to the bathroom first, and she was left to bang on the door, and yell at him to hurry up…

"Such is life…" sighed Shakey in resignation as he exited the bathroom, leaving the door wide open.

Just outside the bathroom, Shakey suddenly stopped as he became aware that he wasn't alone in the apartment.

In the hallway connecting the rooms of the apartment, was a single Rave Clone.

Shakey blinked, sensing that something… unusual was going on.

To start with, the Clone's blue hair was more of a shaggy unkempt tangle than Shakey had ever seen on any of the Clones, the Second Rave included. Then there was her clothing, some sort of baggy Toga-type thing that looked like she'd wrapped a bed-sheet or curtain around herself several times before tying the loose ends off over a shoulder. Finally, there was the way she was standing there, just looking at Shakey in a strangely intense way.

"…Um…" Shakey asked, his 'Vague Sense of Impending Doom' EERILY silent, "Is… Is there anything I can help you with?"

At the sound of Shakey's voice, the Clone's face began to quiver, her breath husking into a sob as tears began to stream down her face. Before Shakey could do or say anything else, the Clone suddenly moved, closing the distance between them and embracing him in a fierce hug.

Making Shakey aware of what else was unusual about her…

To start with, her height… This Clone was at least a good foot taller than any of the other clones, as Shakey's face barely came past her chest.

And since we're mentioning chests… Shakey found his face cushioned by FAR MORE 'Pectoral Padding' than any of the Clones had. Not that Shakey had been 'taking notes' on such matters, but when you considered how the AVE Pilot 'Snug Suits' tended to cling to a person's body…

"Twelve?" Shakey's words were muffled by cloth and flesh, "Is that you?"

The Clone smiled as she caressed Shakey's head, running her fingers tenderly through his hair as she sobbed, "No… It's me… My Son…"

======================================================================

Fragment - Like Creator, Like Creation?

Mazurka blinked as she took in the scene in her kitchen.

Several Rave Clones were standing silently in the kitchen, a rough circle focussed around a single Clone seated at the kitchen table. The attitudes of the standing Clones matching those of other Clones spread throughout Mazurka's apartment building, especially the pair standing guard outside Shakey's room.

Ones of troubled worry.

"You must be Mazurka!"

Mazurka blinked at the voice that addressed her. Although it sounded much like any of the Rave Clones, it held a louder vibrancy, a cheery emotional fullness that the Clones' normally quiet voices lacked.

The single Clone who had been seated at the table was now standing, a pleasant smile on her face.

Mazurka's eyes widened in surprise as she noted how the Clone TOWERED over the other Clones. Mazurka's eyes widened further as she realised what the over-sized Clone was wearing…

Some of Mazurka's own clothes…

Although, 'wearing' was probably NOT the precisely correct term, as the clothes that fit Mazurka properly, were definitely straining at the seams as they tried to cover certain parts of the Clone's anatomy.

"Ahhh… Y-Yes," Mazurka stammered, "I'm… Mazurka Kutsarug… And… You Are?"

The large Clone sighed, her face falling, "That's something we NEED to talk about… Please, take a seat… We've got a LOT to go through…"

Mazurka folded into the seat that a Rave Clone held out for her, gratefully accepting the gesture of help.

The large Clone resumed her seat on the other side of the kitchen table, waiting until Mazurka was settled before continuing, "Well now, as for who I am… I can tell you who I… know… myself to be… Despite the fact that… objective analysis of my own memory, however subjective THAT is, indicates that I… don't look like I should…"

Mazurka stared at her visitor.

"However," the large Clone said with a smile and a shrug of her shoulders, "Just to start things off, let me state that I remember… that my name is Yoo-Hoo Atari… And that I'm the mother of the young man you've…"

The Large Clone's words were interrupted by the sound of Mazurka's comatose body hitting the floor with a thud…

"Would somebody Please get some smelling salts," sighed 'Yoo-Hoo' as she put a hand to her face, "And some booze if there's any available… I don't know about her, but *I'm* going to need a drink before this is through…"

The Rave Clones blinked, their expressions more worried than ever…

"…Uhhh…" moaned Mazurka as the pungent scent of smelling salts filled her nose and made her twist her head away, "…wha…?"

"Feeling Better?" asked a concerned voice.

Mazurka opened her eyes to see that a Rave Clone was supporting her.

"Rave?" gasped Mazurka, "What happened?"

The Clone merely pointed away from them, prompting Mazurka to followed the direction of the Clone's arm, her gaze coming to rest on…

An over sized Rave Clone, wearing Mazurka's clothes and drinking…

"BEER?!" exclaimed Mazurka, sitting up straight as she recognised the label on the can the Clone was drinking from, "Where'd you get THAT!?"

"Apparently a truck was making deliveries when the Final Battle started," the Large Clone replied, "A building fell on it, but some of the cans survived…"

"GIMMEE!!" ordered the unwillingly-'tee-totalled'-by-lack-of-supply Mazurka.

Seconds later, Mazurka had inhaled the contents of a six-pack of slightly dented but still relatively intact cans.

"YESSSSS!" hissed Mazurka, as the alcohol began to course through her body.

"Now then," the Large Clone said pleasantly, "We were discussing who I am…"

Mazurka's emotional reunion with her favourite drinking partner was suddenly smashed back to reality.

"Uh…" Mazurka's voice quavered, "You said… you thought you were… Shakey's Mum?"

The Large Clone nodded, "Yes. And before you state the obvious, I'm NOT a Rave Clone… Or at least, not one like my girls here…"

"Yuh-YOUR Girls?" stuttered Mazurka as the amounts of beer proved insufficient.

"Uh-huh," replied the Large Clone, "In addition to remembering being Yoo-Hoo Atari, Shakey's Mum, I ALSO remember being Yoo-Hoo Atari, Brilliant Scientist and Vital Part of the AVE project. As well as being the Chief Genetic Engineer on another little project going on behind the scenes, the RAVE Project…"

"You… KNOW?" Mazurka demanded, "About THAT?"

"Of course," Yoo-Hoo shrugged, "In addition to being the Chief Genetic Engineer of the project, I was the ONLY Genetic Engineer in the project… If it hadn't been for my husband helping out in the Lab…"

"YOU!!" Mazurka suddenly lunged across the table and grabbed 'Yoo-Hoo' by the front of the borrowed clothes the ersatz Rave Clone wore, "WHAT exactly WAS your ongoing 'role' in raising Rave SUPPOSED to be?"

Yoo-Hoo blinked, as Mazurka glared balefully at her.

"Mazurka?" a soft touch on Mazurka's shoulder accompanied the quiet voice of a genuine Rave Clone, "STEELY used her as much as they did others… She does not know what they intended to do with us. She only created us, and used… that body in early AVE synchronisation experiments…"

Mazurka released her grip before sinking back onto her seat, a sullen, untrusting look on her face.

Yoo-Hoo quickly regained her composure, "If I'd known you were one of those people who were against Genetic Engineering, I'd"

"TELL HER!" barked Mazurka as she stood up and walked from the room, "Everything! Tell her every last DAMNED thing…"

Yoo-Hoo watched Mazurka leave with a concerned look on her face.

"Tell me what?" Yoo-Hoo asked in worried tones, as the Clones closed in.

Safely out of the kitchen, Mazurka went straight to Shakey's room, pausing as she saw the guards outside it.

"He took it bad?" Mazurka stated, tilting her head towards Shakey's door.

The Clones nodded.

"S--T!" swore Mazurka, "I don't know how this happened, but I'm going to want a full update on things… AFTER I have a shower!"

Mazurka stormed off to her room, muttering things best left unprinted under her breath. Her stream of sub-vocalised invective became MORE than audible when she entered her room and noted that her wardrobe was open, and several different outfits lay draped across her bed…

Just as they would be if someone had discarded them after trying them on…

"BITCH!" shrieked Mazurka, seeing red as she realised who was responsible…

It was an angry Mazurka who slammed the bathroom door shut seconds later.

A few seconds later the bathroom door opened and a half-undressed Mazurka walked out. She marched to the Clones guarding Shakey's room and said in calm and polite tones, "Oh, and by the way, if there's **ANY** of that beer left, I would like it brought here…" before returning to the bathroom and slamming the door shut again.

The Rave Clones blinked, their expressions more worried than ever…

======================================================================

Fragment - Finding A Place…

Mazurka's apartment was no stranger to the sounds of voices raised in argument or accusation. Given the personalities of those who lived there, it was a foregone conclusion that there would be 'friction' of one sort or another.

Tonight though, the muffled voices that drifted through the closed door of the apartment were remarkable for other reasons…

"What do you mean, I 'can't' see him? He's my son!" an over-sized Rave Clone said in tones that were equal parts demanding and pleading.

"He's NOT your 'son'!" Mazurka stressed the words, pounding the kitchen table for emphasis as she glared at her blue-haired opponent, "And you AREN'T going anywhere near him until we get this mess sorted out!"

"But…"

"NO BUTS!" roared Mazurka, "You've already done enough damage just by coming here unannounced! How did you think he'd feel? He saw his mother DIE, and now YOU turn up claiming to be her!"

"But I AM her!"

"NO YOU ARE *NOT*!!" Mazurka insisted, "You just think you're her, but you are NOT his mother!"

The over sized Rave Clone claiming to remember being the mother of Shakey Atari, suddenly slumped into a seat and rested her face in her hands.

"You," Mazurka growled, "…Are the Rave Clone Prototype known as 'Zero'… Who has absorbed memories that belong to ANOTHER person entirely…"

Mazurka paused to draw a breath before pressing on with her attack, only to stop as the sound of a sob punctuated the silence.

"…but…" Zero raised her head from her hands, revealing a tear-streaked face, contorted in emotional anguish, "…i… RE-member…"

'S--T!' Mazurka's heart softened as she saw the tears of her opponent, 'She's not taking this too well either… But then, who would?'

"We also have such memories," offered one of the regular Rave Clones as she came to Mazurka's rescue, "We know many things that his mother knew… But we are NOT his mother, nor are you…"

"We are sorry," another Clone said, "We are responsible for your confusion…"

"We were trying to restore your body using the data from the Core of Unit Won," added a third Clone, "But there was a data-gorge during the download procedure…"

"Data-gorge?" Zero repeated, her ersatz persona momentarily distracted, "Didn't you use progressive synaptic filtration to control substrate data flow?"

"We did," a Clone agreed, "But there was an equipment malfunction that accrued residuals beyond planned safety parameters…"

Mazurka stood and stared as Zero and the Clones began a lengthy 'jargon banquet', completely forgetting the purple-haired woman's presence. From past experience with 'tech-talk' sessions with Ritzy and Mayi, Mazurka knew she'd be better off waiting until things settled down.

Especially since there were cans of unopened beer nearby that were screaming out 'drink me'… With a sigh, Mazurka took a seat and reached for another dented can…

Quite some time later…

"I SEE!" Zero hissed with a look of intrigued enlightenment on her face, "You tried to restore the Psyche from data held in the Core, but since the original engrams obtained from this body were so 'juvenile', the computer assumed they were 'juvenile' memories, and that Yoo-Hoo's were more recent adult memories! The fact that the mind in this body appeared as a 'blank slate' caused the computer to overcompensate and download ALL it could in an attempt to fill a perceived void!"

"Yes," the overly loquacious Clones confirmed.

"But…" Zero looked slightly confused, "That does not explain the physical reconfiguration of the body?"

"We included a sub-routine derived from memories of our own experiences in instantaneous regeneration," a Clone advised, "Zero's body evidently knew at a subconscious level that it was not as it should be. We believe the influx of data acted as 'shock treatment' and prompted the body to try 'healing' itself…"

Zero interrupted with a satisfied smile, "…using the new-found memories as a 'template' for corporeal restitution! Of Course! Why didn't I see it sooner?"

"Not enough beer…" Mazurka slurred despondently.

Zero blinked as she noticed the number of beer cans that were now empty.

"Err…" Zero said with a worried look, "Does she usually drink THAT much?"

"No," the Clones chorused.

"That's a relief," Zero sighed.

"Usually she has a bigger supply," the Clones added with dead-pan expressions.

"And she was in charge of my son?" Zero began to sweat…

"Hey!" Mazurka protested, "Don't knock the booze! It got me through, and in doing so, got ALL of us through! Now… We STILL have things to sort out, 'Bluey'…"

Mazurka stood up, her Brilliant Mental Engine once more up and running…

"Do you accept that you ARE NOT Shakey's Mum?" Mazurka asked

"Yes," Zero admitted with a sad look, "But… it's hard…"

"So now," Mazurka said with a determined expression, "We need to figure out just who and WHAT you are going to be… In this world, and in Shakey's life…"

"First," Mazurka continued before anyone else could speak, "You ARE a Rave Clone? I mean even though you're… based off a Prototype… you're still just another 'one of the Girls', right? You can read each other's minds, fly, create force fields, etc, etc…"

"Um," Zero said with an embarrassed look, "From attempts made when you were in the shower, it appears that I have NO telepathic abilities whatsoever…"

"None?" Mazurka looked surprised.

"Sorry!" Zero shrugged, "Probably because I never lived with the other Clones in the tank, so my mind and body never synchronised with theirs… Might just be a case of the wrong frequency of psychic resonance, but…"

"Whatever," Mazurka said dismissively, "You've already shown that you've got the ability of 'regeneration', so I guess you could have other 'special abilities'… We can find out exactly what you have and don't have later… And get you any training needed to control them, but right now…"

Mazurka leaned forward on the table, gazing intently at Zero, "What about Shakey? We need to resolve just what you are, and are NOT in his life… For THAT, we'll need to talk with Shakey… But to start with, regardless of what the other Rave Clones are in Shakey's life, you CAN'T have the same place…"

"Why n-…" Zero began.

"Because," Mazurka cut Zero off abruptly, "Shakey and 'Rave', first and foremost are teenagers… The 'Generation Gap' applies regardless of anything else… Second, Shakey and 'Rave' have been through serious trials together, they know they can trust and depend on each other… They DON'T know that about you! Third, Shakey and 'Rave' see each other as someone they have deep feelings for…"

"Deep feelings?" Zero asked, raising an appraising eyebrow at the blushes that appeared on the faces of the 'regular' Clones in the room…

"It's… complex…" Mazurka sighed, longing for more beer, "ALL of the Clones see Shakey as a Close Friend at the very least… Many see him in a 'Family' light, either as a sort of 'brother' or a 'Kissing Cousin'… MORE than a few would prefer to see him as a 'boyfriend', of the 'eligible bachelor' variety…"

"Really?" Zero looked intrigued, "And how does Shakey see them?"

"As I said," Mazurka REALLY longed for more beer, "It's complex… He's in a truly unique relationship situation, and since he's afraid of doing the wrong thing and hurting anyone, he tries to act as a 'nice guy', or 'big brother' to them all… But, he IS a teenage male, and the Girls ARE attractive…"

Zero smiled slightly as she noticed the Clones' blushes had deepened…

"I think…" Mazurka paused thoughtfully, "…that's probably the main reason he's half-committed himself to having Aesir as a girlfriend…"

"He's got a girlfriend?" Zero leaned forward, intently focussed on the topic of conversation, "What's she like? Nice girl?"

"Aesir… is…" Mazurka choked politely, "…a girl with a tragic past… Shakey could have any girl he wanted, IF he wanted, but… they've survived a lot of bad times, often by relying on each other, and I think he feels obligated to help her deal with her problems… Sometimes, I think he thinks that if he has Aesir as a girlfriend, then he won't have to deal with the dilemma he has with the Clones…"

"I understand," Zero nodded, "He's using her as an excuse not to get too close to any of the Clones, and thus not be in the position of hurting them…"

"I suppose I should ask now," Mazurka shifted uneasily in her seat, "How you feel about these things?"

Zero blinked, "Feel what about what?"

"Well…" Mazurka tried to be tactful, "…the fact the Clones were created with your… his mother's DNA… That they are… related to him… 'Half-sisters'…"

"Half-sisters?" Zero looked incredulous, "My Dear Mazurka, I can assure you that they're nothing of the sort! They MAY have a goodly portion of my DNA in them, but they also have a not-inconsiderable dose of Non-Human DNA as well… Genetically speaking, they're no more his 'half-sisters' than you are!"

"Perhaps," Mazurka reluctantly agreed, "But you have to admit, if they DID make a 'couple' and had children, people would talk if the child were 'different'…"

"Huh," Zero responded, "I VERY MUCH doubt Shakey could get any of the Clones pregnant no matter how hard he tried! If there WERE any fertilisations, any 'mis-births' wouldn't be due to 'inbreeding', but to good old Chromosome incompatibility - the very thing that results in most of ALL natural spontaneous abortions… About a third of all pregnancies if I remember correctly…"

"A third?" Mazurka was aghast, "I knew birth rates were down due to 'Second Strike' but I never thought…"

"Second Strike had nothing to do with it," Zero snorted contemptuously, "Late last century, humanity finally created the tools needed to help them observe and understand the process of their own reproduction. What we weren't expecting to find out, was that a good third of ALL sperm-egg fertilisations either failed to implant in the uterine wall, or else spontaneously aborted if they did so. Completely natural occurrence, due to incorrect gene coding in the zygote…"

"I've never heard about that before," protested Mazurka.

"I'd be surprised if you had," Zero replied with a wry look, "When it was found out that God was literally taking 'one in three', many people couldn't believe it! Especially 'Fundamentalist' Christians in the USA… Huh, even though their own Christ said 'suffer the little children to come unto me, for of such are the Kingdom of Heaven…', their own views were that little children and babies went straight to Hell if they weren't baptised…"

"That's sick," Mazurka wore a sour expression of distaste, "What sort of God would condemn the innocent?"

"Oh, it gets worse," Zero said in sour tones, "Baptism among early Christians was done by fully immersing someone in water, that's why 'John the Baptist' performed his baptisms at rivers. Despite all the talk that immersing someone under the water signifies being in the grave, the waters of baptism actually symbolise the amniotic fluid in a mother's womb that cushions and protects the developing foetus… That's why a person is said to be 'born again' when they are baptised… Pity people couldn't think through the connection… Be 'born again' and you are innocent, yet be born 'naturally' and you are tainted with sin…"

"You amaze me," Mazurka said with a shake of her head, "You really aren't like the other Clones at all…"

"As I told you," Zero sighed ruefully, "I'm not the person they are…"

"Anyway," Mazurka demurred, "Back to what you can be, I think that…"

"Mazurka," Zero held up a hand as she interrupted the other woman, "You said I can't be what 'Rave' is to Shakey because I haven't shared the sort of things he's shared with her in their lives?"

"Ah… yeah?"

"However… I DO have memories regarding Shakey's infancy, so why can't I…"

"So do the other Clones," Mazurka abruptly pointed out.

"Even giving birth to him?"

"Yes," confirmed a nearby Clone, "We remember the Delivery room…"

"Even the pain of the contractions?" Zero asked quietly.

"Yes," the same Clone confirmed, "Although, we could not understand why a natural function required to continue the species should hurt so much?"

"Well," Zero smirked proudly, "He WAS a decent-sized baby, as well as being my first… Probably would've been easier the second time around… Still… You remember taking care of him as a baby, changing his nappies?"

"Yes," another Clone confirmed, "But we do not understand how white milk can change into that colour…"

"Speaking of milk," Zero said wistfully, "You remember breast feeding him?"

"Yes, including the discomfort when our breasts were swollen with milk, and the relief that came as he suckled…"

"What about the time he tried washing himself with toothpaste instead of soap?"

"Yes, and the time he used shaving cream instead…"

"What about…" Zero wore a bemused, far-away look on her face as the memories of another woman came thick and fast to her lips.

The Rave Clones countered each challenge with their own memories, matching Zero memory for memory. Mazurka sat and listened, feeling more than a little envious of the motherly reminiscing of the Virgins in the room…

Sometime later, Zero fell silent as the weight of the memories grew too much.

"Now you know," Zero said to the room as tears ran down her face, "The only life I remember that was truly worth the having… And I cannot even have that…"

"I'm sorry," Mazurka's low tones matched the way she was feeling, "But as you just proved, your memories don't make you any more Shakey's mother than the other Clones are…"

"I know," Zero conceded, "But… I still feel that way about him… Like he's my baby, and I'm the one he calls Okasan (Mother)…"

A startled look appeared on Mazurka's face, only to be replaced by an expression best described as 'Cunning Plan Mode'…

"No," drawled Mazurka, as a warm smile stole over her face, "You can't be his Okasan… However, you just might be able to be his… O-BA-san (Aunt)…"

"Obasan…" Zero rolled the word in her mouth as she looked at Mazurka, "Obasan…"

Mazurka leaned back in her chair as she proceeded to flesh out her plan, "The way I see it, you probably could fill the place in his life that a younger sister of his mother could… Like an aunt, you could have taken care of him as a child… Like an aunt, you could have been at the actual birth… And like MANY aunts the world around, you COULD even have been a 'wet-nurse' to him…"

"…but…" Zero's hopeful face fell, "…would he accept me… as… as an… aunt…?"

Two Rave Clones placed hands comfortingly on Zero's shoulders, "He accepted us as his half-sisters… He will accept you… given time…"

Zero's eyes brimmed with tears of a different kind.

"Well then, now that's settled," Mazurka's warm smile turned into the sort of wintry scowl that made the experienced Rave Clones in the room flinch violently and 'make room', "About those clothes of mine you're wearing…"

======================================================================

The END of this Fragment of "Altered Lives (The Parody)"

======================================================================

OMAKE - Finding a Place.

"Perhaps," Mazurka reluctantly agreed, "But you have to admit, if they DID make a 'couple' and had children, people would talk if the child were 'different'…"

"Huh," Zero responded, "I VERY MUCH doubt Shakey could get any of the Clones pregnant no matter how hard he tried…"

Well, if you want a volunteer to try and find out?

TWELVE!! snapped the Group Mind.

What? came the confused reply, Are we doing this by the 'Clone with the lowest number goes first' thing or something?

=========================The END of the OMAKE=========================