Beauty X Beast ~ Seventeen!

After nearly a solid week of being allowed to pursue her own proclivities, not once being called back to motion capture or be a part of the artificing process, Danielle was starting to get on edge. Though it turned her stomach, she needed to have contact with the Artificer in order to make progress with his recruitment—even if actually following through was only a backup plan if every other attempt to rescue her father failed.

Touching an oversized paper, she walked down the stairs into the subterranean workshop, nervous mainly because she was coming here uninvited for the first time. “Hello? Beast? I have a new design I wanted to run by you, and while I'm here… maybe we could talk?”

Compared to each of her previous visits, the underground workshop was very dark, only partially lit by an assortment of shining crystals evenly spaced along the ceiling. Even so, the stark white walls and floor allowed the low amount of light to reflect off every surface and provide her with the means to avoid running into objects. As she descended, she continuously called out, trying not to overstep the restrictions that had been placed on her.

“I'm really not trying to intrude! I just haven't seen you in a week, Beast! I'm not sure what you've been up to…” Her eyes were drawn to the enormous curtain stretched across the room. As the silence stretched, for a few long moments, Danielle seriously considered taking just a little peeky-peek at what was behind it. Still on the stairs, she hesitated about descending any further; “Don't do it. I know myself well enough to know that my curiosity would push me to look. If I don't get any closer, the temptation will fade. Right?” 

While she deliberated, her choice was made for her. The light in the room shifted from a soft blue white to a concerning flashing red. A bell started clanging, and Danielle sprinted up the stairs, shouting her apologies as she went. Yet, as she burst into the great hall, she noticed dozens of clunky guardians streaming toward the exits. “Wait, they're not after me? What's happening?”

“Madame Danielle! There you are!” Sneezy’s nasally voice was filled with relief, “Did you not notice Duke wasn't following you? We could be decommissioned for being unable to keep track of our charge. Please don't put us at risk like this.”

“Sneezy!” Danielle let out a sigh of relief at the site of the familiar face. “I'd give you a hug, but I don't think I could get my arms around you. What's going on?”

“There's an intruder; you need to come with me-” 

The huge doors at the end of the hallway were suddenly thrown open, sending a half-dozen guardian automatons reeling. Silhouetted in the doorway was a man in heavy armor, who paused for only a split second before striding into the entryway with clear purpose. Panic surged through Danielle as she looked over the gleaming sword casually held in one hand, the firm set of the unknown man's jaw… and the way his eyes locked on her.

“Gasteel Company?” Danielle's thoughts escaped her mouth as a squeak, and she stumbled backward, hand reaching for the door to the stairwell. “I can’t let them-”

Suddenly, the lights returned to normal, the clanging bell silenced, and all of the guards that had been taking attack positions settled. Most notably, the intruder stopped as well, standing straight and waiting patiently. The sudden lack of sensory input had Danielle looking back and forth, trying to figure out what was happening, only for an echoing, metallic laugh to fill the air.

She whipped around, only to find the Beast descending from the shadows of the ceiling.

“I got you! That's what you get. Painting along the entire hallway inside the house? Don't think I didn't find what you were doing outside, either! Haa… that was worth whatever punishment my lord will choose to lay on me. I had my doubts, but it seems you and my master were correct. The realistic appearance and fluidity of motion adds an entirely new dimension of intimidation.” 

In the ensuing silence, Danielle struggled to contain her emotions, so as to somewhat temper her reaction. Chiefly among her thoughts was relief that this ‘intruder’ wasn't actually a threat. Even so, that initial solace was followed by a wellspring of indignation that the Beast would cause her such distress. Squeezing her hands to try and stop them from shaking, she wordlessly glared at the Beast, who simply remained in place waiting for her to say something. Eventually, the moment stretched too far, and the automaton spoke from sheer irritation. 

“Why are you not impressed with how realistic he looks?” The Beast fully settled on the floor, its eyes shining brighter as he watched the Comte’s guest. “Days were spent putting together a compound which would work to mimic natural skin. Do you have any idea how much effort it takes to create functioning eyes without causing them to shine with an inner light? Well? Say something. Your silence irks me.”

“Beast,” Danielle finally managed after taking a deep, shuddering breath, “Had it occurred to you, even slightly, how absolutely terrifying the prospect of Gasteel Company raiding this estate and dragging me back to wed the baron is? How swiftly I can be thrown into a comfortable room, never again to read interesting books or create something that could be of use to the world? You played a cruel prank by using one of my greatest fears against me.”

“Preposterous. If they crossed into the estate without permission, they would be breaking the agreement the Comte made with the crown. That would set him loose to aid their enemies. It will never happen, so you have no reason to react so negatively.” The Beast paused—perhaps slightly uncertainly—as he waited for her to understand his points and therefore be excited over the realism of the creation. “Are you not pleased with the final product?”

Instead of answering, Danielle simply dropped the paper she was still clutching, returning to her room without a backward glance. Though Sneezy followed her, she turned and firmly closed the door without allowing him entry, calling through the barrier in a heated tone, “This is the first time I've truly seen you as a beast.” 

No one attempted to enter the room, or even interrupt her as she seethed, though Duke scootched closer and offered his cushion for emotional support. Mealtimes passed without interruption, but she didn’t once step out of her space, instead focusing her energy into angrily reading over her notebook, trying to see areas she could improve without needing to face the Beast and his casual dismissal. 

It was only the following morning when a soft knock on the door pulled Danielle from her slumber. 

Opening the door as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, she froze upon realizing her visitor wasn't one of her normal friendly guardians. Her hands dropped to her side, and her lips pressed into a firm line as she stared up at the towering form of BST model three. “What do you want, Beast?”

The entity's hand swung out to the side, wrapping around something out of her line of sight. A moment later, a tall, gleaming machine which she easily recognized as the design she’d been attempting to show the Artificer the previous day was deposited on the ground. As she looked over the flawless craftsmanship, which had perfectly captured her sketches, she glanced up at the silent Beast, raising an eyebrow and speaking in a clipped tone.

“You made this? It wasn't the Artificer trying to fix your mistakes?”

“I fully generated the construct.” The Beast let out a long hiss of steam. “My lord was… quite displeased with my actions.”

After waiting a heartbeat for him to say anything else, Danielle archly inquired, “Is that why you went to all this trouble? Because he was upset with you?”

“I will admit,” the Beast turned to the prototype and pulled open its chest cavity as he spoke, “It has been quite a long time since I have had to take the concerns of others into account as I performed my duties. It is… let us say, possible that my initial test run was not conducive to a continuing beneficial working relationship between us.”

“All of that to say…” Danielle leadingly stated, refusing to let him off the hook for his actions—not even looking at the enticing, gleaming display the Beast was trying to distract her with.

“Look at this exquisite craftmanship…!” Steam erupted from the Beast in no less than three locations, and its eyes dimmed significantly when she started closing the door. “Fine, fine! Don't starve yourself to death because I did something suboptimal. I apologize. It will not be an action I repeat.”

“Thank you, Beast.” Danielle slowly reopened the door. “I'll let it go. Once. Now, as much as I’d love to look at the peace offering you brought me, breakfast is calling. Just so you know, an apology would have sufficed, but… I am excited to see this.”

She walked past the mechanical entity, who simply remained standing in place for a long few moments before scooping up the metal object and following after her. “The Comte was quite pleased that he didn't need to come back and redo this design on his own. Based on this model, he has given me permission to grant you access to three new guardian designs. If you wish to practice on them, we will manufacture and add in the runescript on our end. Additional house guardians are always welcome.”

Only his final comment incited Danielle to show a reaction. Her steps slowed slightly, and she cocked her head as she looked back at the Beast floating along as he followed behind. “What do you mean additional guardians? I wanted this to be a new housing for Sneezy. Even with the detailing I've done to clean out his rust and dust, he's practically on his last legs. His canister has soft spots, for system’s sake! He’s at risk of bursting if he takes the slightest tumble.” 

“Then he should be decommissioned-”

“Even the Comte told me he didn't like decommissioning his guards who’d been around for a long time.” Danielle cut off the interruption with a sharp motion of her hand. “Sneezy is fun and absolutely dedicated, so why wouldn't you reward that instead of throwing him away? He's already a quality person, losing that over mere quantity of guards sounds completely reckless.” 

“Quality over quantity, you say?” The Beast appeared taken aback, but at the same time, didn’t sound as if he hated the idea. “Even a week ago, I would have dismissed your comment outright. Still… as much as the prank I played on you yesterday was perhaps slightly out of line-”

“Perhaps? No, wait, slightly?”

He continued as though she hadn't interrupted him, “-it did highlight the significant advantage such an upgrade could bring to bear. How about a compromise? An upgrade for the guards who merit it, followed by blank cores being added to future iterations.” 

“How will you determine who ‘merits’ it?” Danielle felt her anger melting away as they devolved into a deep conversation on the noticeable changes certain guards had after a long period of time. According to the Beast, only rarely did they develop past their initial design, and usually when they did so, it was in a negative manner. 

Swamped in the details, Danielle barely tasted her meal, though she was decidedly hungry after missing several meals. “Why is this such a concern? Shouldn't you be able to exchange one core for another without any issue?”

“Yes… and very much no.” It seemed the Beast was uncertain how much information he should reveal, but eventually caved and told her the bare minimum. “Runes, as I know you now understand, are system symbology that contain a fundamental understanding of a concept. By using a blank core—no personality or memories—we are assured that the script connecting the core to the body of the automaton will integrate correctly. You see, in past attempts at moving a favored creation to a new housing, even a perfect replica sometimes caused issues. It's a problem the Comte has looked into in the past, but there was no clear rhyme or reason for the failure.”

“Really? It seems pretty obvious to me.” Danielle popped a fried potato into her mouth and chewed in silent contemplation as the Beast reeled from her casual statement. A low *hiss* of steam permeated the air, and she rolled her eyes as she began to explain. “Don't blow a gasket, Beast. This is what I was talking about when I first arrived. Other people might have perspectives you just don't. Tell me this, when there was a mismatch, what did Comte LeKrout do to fix it?”

“He didn’t,” the Beast explained to her slowly, as though she were the one not noticing what was obvious. “Per my previous statement, there was no obvious explanation for the mismatch. He instead replaced the internal mechanisms and returned the core to its original housing.”

“What he should have done…” Danielle drew her words out, only then realizing that she had perhaps not fully forgiven the Beast. Her smirk shifted slightly as she realized she was edging too far into petty retaliation. Taking a deep breath, she gave a clear explanation instead of dancing around the subject any further.

“If a core is essentially the mind of the automatons, and they change and grow over time in unexpected ways, doesn't that mean the runes themselves will change over time? If the Artificer isn’t accounting for those shifts, of course the integration between a new body and its current mind won’t work.”

For a brief moment, the crystal eyes of the Beast blazed with red light.