Beauty X Beast ~ Sixteen!

As Danielle stepped off the platform and into the vast subterranean workshop the next day, she was shocked to find the Beast meticulously adjusting the final details of a new automaton. At first glance, the sleek design looked almost exactly like a normal human—if that person’s skin had been cast from gleaming metal. “Is that what I think it is?”

“If you think it is the finalized prototype of the updated design you had a small part in creating with the Comte yesterday, you would be correct.” The Beast’s voice rumbled through the room, only barely and begrudgingly acknowledging her contributions.

Even with how much it seemed to pain the Beast, there was a hint of respect in his tone that hadn't been there the last time they spoke. Danielle’s smile turned to a playful smirk as the machine studiously avoided looking at her. “Are you upset because you know his work can be improved upon, or is it just me you do not particularly like? No… it's more than that, isn't it? I think it bothers you to learn *gasp* the Comte is only human and therefore fallible!”

“He is n-” The Beast cut off his heated reply, stepping back and motioning for her to come closer to the new machine. As she waited for him to put his thoughts in order, Danielle swept her gaze across the metal man laying on the workbench. The design was flawless, perfectly smooth, but she was already able to see issues she would change if she had the option. Finally, the Beast tried speaking again, only to practically stutter as he attempted to relay his instructions. “You… I am—gahh. Before installing the core, my master has instructed me to… to…”

Sensing the machine's reluctance, but uncertain as to where the Beast was going with this line of conversation, Danielle could only wait impatiently for the machine to growl out his instructions. As the moment stretched, the Beast finally released a huff of steam as its internal components clicked furiously, as if physically gathering his resolve. Words came in a rush of humidity and mortification. “He wants you to draw on it.”

“You don't mean to say he's thinking about having his oh-so-functional things be… pretty?” Danielle gasped while dramatically covering her mouth with her hands. “Scandalous!”

“Please wear the motion capture suit, so we can replicate your artistic process.” The Beast practically powered down as the instructions escaped him, not even twitching as Danielle chipperly acquiesced and put on the suit.

The Enchantress stepped out of the small changing booth and put her hands on her hips, cocking her head slightly to the side. After waiting nearly a full minute for additional instruction, but only seeing the blue crystalline eyes dim further, Danielle let out a gentle scoff, which turned into a chuckle at the enormous machine's petulance. “Your discomfort is endearing, Beast. I'll just start doodling on this friendly mannequin. Sound good?” 

The only response was a soft shriek of tortured metal as the Beast’s enormous hand *crunched* down on a tool he was holding. Deciding not to push him any further, Danielle reached for a bucket of files, wire brushes, chisels, and other carefully crafted tools meant for creating divots and impressions on metal which had clearly been for this express purpose. 

Putting the grumpy Beast out of her mind, the Enchantress gathered her thoughts and carefully viewed the entire outer shell of the machine. Lifting a thin metal scalpel, she used the sharp edge to cut a hair-thin design in the metal, treating the implement as she would a pencil on paper. Once she had a sketch of a face to go off of, she moved along the blocky torso, moving out to add impressions where she would later add fine details, such as a curve of muscle or fingernails on the tubes of metal which currently served as the creature’s fingers.

The automaton's metal skin came alive with intricate designs and patterns, each pull of a blade or brush adding depth, texture, and character. As she worked, Danielle realized that her movements with the tools were smoother and more deliberate than she had been expecting. After a moment, her eyes went wide with understanding. “Now would you look at that? My fingers are longer than I remember. It's not uncomfortable, but… let me…”

She tossed the scalpel into the bucket, then reached in and easily pinched it without looking, pulling it out without snagging anything on the way. “Yep… more dextrous. I wonder… my skill tells me I will be impacted by the aesthetics of the five people I spend the most time with. If I'm not spending any time with any other humans, does that mean I'm shifting because of my own desires, or because this is what my digits would look like without interference?” 

A *hiss* of steam pulled her attention back to the BST model three, which was vibrating in place slightly. Raising her eyebrow, Danielle carefully put the scalpel on the table and turned to face the entity. “Do you have something you need to say?”

“No,” came the sharp reply. “I’m just concerned with how much damage you are doing to this frame. Every imperfection means another place that might fold under the blow of an opponent on the battlefield.” 

Danielle could only shrug, turning around and reaching for the bucket of tools once more. Only then did additional dialogue follow the snippy answer. “I find this entire process unpalatable. Function is paramount. It is imperative to be able to recreate the design multiple times. Fine detail work serves no greater purpose. It simply slows the entire assemblage and reduces the number of protectors which surround the Comte.”

“If I understand correctly,” Danielle chose her words as carefully as she had used the scalpel to cut into the prototype, “You aren't against beautification as a concept but because you think it will have a negative impact on your creator? He must be a very good man to instill such devotion from his creations. Or, he is a superb runescripter.”

“Pahhh.” The derisive noise was extended by a venting of steam. “I challenge anyone to capture the concept of loyalty in a rune. We cannot actively hurt our creator or work against him. That does not mean we are forced to like him.”

Danielle quietly listened while she rasped away at the soldier with a large file, adding texture to the metal face she was working on. “What has he done to make you like him, then? I'd love to hear more about that.”

“No.”

Though she rolled her eyes at his sheer petulance, Danielle didn't press further, simply deciding to pay undivided attention to her work. Each movement was purposeful, her skills keeping her from missing her mark, allowing her to move at a speed that would be reckless for almost anyone else. 

Though she was no master artist, she had crafted toys for years. Adding details to metal soldiers which would captivate children was hardly different from this process: an attempt at capturing the essence of a grizzled veteran. As a point of fact, having a much larger surface to work on made the process faster and far easier. 

As Danielle moved from one planned section to the next, she began explaining her thought process to the Beast, who continued to glower at her while keeping his silence. “Adding texture to its hands, feet, and knees will allow this guardian to maintain its grip on things it grabs, its footing on slippery surfaces, and stand up easier if it falls over.”

“The crosshatching across the entire surface will make it easier to spot damaged sections, whether it be from the wear of time or battle.” Danielle paused in recounting her train of thought as she pulled out a thin chisel for some fine detail work around the eyes she’d just sketched out. “It will also hide minor scratches and signs of wear and tear that aren’t important enough to fix. On a different note, adding in a false face will give people fighting against it an impression that destroying its head will render the creation unable to function. It may cause them to let down their guard, receiving a lethal wound for their carelessness.” 

She turned to the Beast, wearing an expression as serious and stoic as she had ever shown. “All of this to say, we are not just making this ‘pretty’ for the sake of it. We’re integrating function and form to create a machine capable of doing more than simply chopping away at an enemy. It will confuse them, lull them into false senses of security, and be more effective than a more basic version where all the internals and mechanisms are the exact same. Now, I can't bend these parts myself. Help me create some ‘muscle’ shapes here, here, and here.” 

Over the next few hours, Danielle lost herself in her work, with the Beast silently assisting her as she went. The room was filled with the rhythmic sounds of metal being shaped, tapped, and scraped… punctuated at irregular intervals by a *hiss* of steam coming from the Beast—a sigh of annoyance if Danielle had ever heard one. 

Once the portions of the creation which were meant to show muscles had been completed, she turned her attention to the standard-armor shapes of the breastplate and greaves. There she added swirls, geometric patterns, and even the sigil of House LeKrout she’d noticed on the few ornate objects scattered within the manor. When she finally decided she was done, the prototype truly looked like a human who had been transformed into metal while wearing ornamental armor. 

Wiping away a thin film of sweat threatening her eyes, Danielle studied her work and allowed herself to feel a rush of satisfaction. “Finished. What do you think?”

Even as she looked at the lifeless automaton, her skills subtly adjusted the final product of her rapid art. The muscles became ever so slightly more defined, scratches on the face began to look more like a five o’clock shadow of beard hair, and the eyes took on a sharp, piercing quality. Danielle watched as the changes were made at a speed visible to the naked eye, feeling as one of her skills began thrumming with a density of power she hadn't felt since she’d arrived.

Frowning ever so slightly, she looked at her arms and noticed a slight increase in her muscle tone. “Why would Resplendent Reflected Self-?”

“It’s exquisite.” The change from annoyed to impressed was accompanied by a shift in eye color—from blue to red—as the Artificer arrived within the Beast to see the final product. A soft *hiss* sounded out, not of steam, but a sealed compartment opening. The Beast's body quickly floated over to the mostly-repaired metal soldier which had fallen the day before, retrieving a glowing cube of metal which coated in swirling words that wrote themselves out, then vanished, over and again. “All that's left to do is see the difference with our own eyes.”

“That looks like the writing of the system, when I look at the status on my arm.” Even with as curious as she was, Danielle couldn't help but recoil from the sheer system energy roiling off the tiny cube. 

“That's exactly what runescripting is. Understanding and writing the language of the system itself.” Once more, the hands of the Beast transformed into a set of functional tools, quickly prying open the lifeless chest of the detailed automaton Danielle had been working on. With careful motions, he slotted the glowing cube into a compartment before quickly pressing it closed. 

It sealed with a flash, and the mechanisms of the soldier began to shift and hum to life. Gears spun, pistons began moving, and the soldier’s fingers twitched. The open chest plate smoothly closed, and finally… the soldier sat up. Though it moved with far less resistance than its previous rusty and damaged body had been able to manage, Danielle felt a moment of panic and dissatisfaction when she saw no clear signs of instant improvement, compared to the previous model. “It's still moving as if it was in its old body. Was it worth-”

“This is exactly what I’d hoped for.” The tone of the Artificer's voice was hard to determine, as it needed to escape the rumbling machinery. Even so, Danielle easily picked up on the fact that he was completely sincere—and deeply invested in what he was seeing. “I’ll update its runes with the updated motion capture from today and let it practice until tomorrow. But already, I can see numerous improvements. Look here… its grip on the sword is only seventy percent as tight, allowing for that excess energy to be used in other areas as needed. Its stance is well balanced. Swing, soldier.”

The automaton went through several of the sword forms Danielle had been taught the previous day, and even she was able to see that the motions were less… comical. Not that a deadly machine swinging dozens of pounds of sharpened metal around was ever truly funny, but there was a clear shift toward actual skillfulness. 

The Artificer mumbled, deep in thought, “Yes… it seems that form actually can enhance function, though I'm not completely convinced on the embellishments yet. Still, your comments about a false face were intriguing, and I am interested in seeing how that plays out.”

“Form factor.” Danielle had been only half listening to the Artificer as he spoke, and the words she said caused him to look away from the automaton and give her his full attention. “That's what we should call it. The size, shape, and physical components, combining function with the design and overall look of the thing. I'm willing to bet heavily that this well-designed form is going to not only meet every expectation you have for your standard work but exceed it in ways we don't know yet.”

“I'm looking forward to you being proven correct.”

Although they hadn't engaged in the usual motion capture routine they had settled into over the last few days, the entirety of the morning had already been eaten up with the reworking of the metal soldier. After a gentle dismissal from the workshop so the Artificer could continue with some secretive portion of his work, Danielle found herself slowly ascending the stairs, disappointed that she wasn't going to be included in the mysterious, magical portion of adjusting the automaton’s core. Even the thought of returning to the library and getting ahead in her reading wasn't enough to cheer her up.

When she finally got to the top of the stairs, Danielle smacked her hands to her cheeks and tried to shake off the negative feelings. “No, this is good! I haven't had free time since I got access to the library. At least, not time I haven't filled with study and work. I'm doing something new today!”

Over the next few moments, her smile faded a bit as she tried to think of anything else to do, only to remember she was not allowed access to the majority of the building. There were no other forms of entertainment or people to sit and have a conversation with. “Nothing to do, beyond study. Or, I guess I could stand out here and slowly go insane by staring at white walls stretching on as far as the eye can… that's it!” 

After a few inquiries, which were distractedly approved by the Artificer, Danielle soon had dozens of cans of paint being delivered to her by a stream of household utility-automatons. Grabbing a brush, she selected warm, inviting colors, and began painting on the wall directly opposite to the door into her bedroom. “I'm sick of the first thing I see in the morning being a cold, sterile wall! We're going to breathe some life into this mansion!”

“Madame, may I please politely inquire as to why you are defacing the Comte’s walls?” Doc interrupted after she had been fiercely swiping her brush over the wall for a few minutes. “We will be tasked with cleaning it up, and these paints are not water-soluble. Someone will pick me up and use the side of my body to scrape it off before repainting the wall to a neutral white. It's not a pleasant experience for me, so I would appreciate knowing you started this project with plenty of forethought.”

“The Artificer himself approved this project.” Danielle didn't bother looking away from the splotches of paint she was adding to her picture. If she had, she would have seen the automaton immediately relaxing.

“I see. In that case, is there anything we can do to assist, or should we just keep your paint supplies well-stocked?”

“No…” Danielle’s reflexive denial faded even as she voiced it, and she slowly turned to consider the guard. “If you were going to draw on the walls, what would you put on here?”

“I am not equipped to draw on the walls.”

“But if you were?” Danielle patiently persisted. 

The razor-edged guard went quiet for a few moments, only the high-pitched hum of tiny gears spinning showing it hadn't lost power. “I suppose I would put together geometric patterns originating from a central point. Perhaps hexagons held in place with straight lines?”

“Like this?” Danielle quickly sketched out a recreation of Doc's words, stepping back and considering it when she was done. “Huh, looks kind of like a spider web?”

“Oh yes.” Doc stepped forward, gleaning in the bright light of the hallway. “Spiders are so very interesting, aren't they? So tiny, almost unnoticeable normally, but as soon as someone sees one, it's all they can think about. They never look away or forget where they saw it last.”

“Everything okay there, Doc?” Danielle's soft chuckle was only met with silence, the machine simply staring at the wall. After a few moments of waiting, the Enchantress turned toward Sneezy, “How about you-”

“Massive fires.” The machine unhesitantly responded without waiting for her to finish the question. “Forest fires, exploding volcanoes, birthday candles… you know. Anything like that.”

“Want to give it a try, Sneezy?” She motioned at several paint cans set to the side, oranges, yellows, and reds. “Actually, let's make a game of this. Why don't you see how many of your friends you can get in here, and let's start painting the entire hallway.”

“What's the game?” Doc finally turned away from the simple painting Danielle had etched on the wall.

The edges of Danielle's lips curled up as she let out a mischievous chuckle. “I want to see how much of the hallway we can get painted before the Beast notices.”