Teva and Skyler busied themselves tying on their aprons as they rushed into the back door, getting ready for their shift. Grabbing a handful of menus, Teva strode through the kitchen and into the dining area to set them out when she heard voices.
"...getting sick of waiting, Weez,"
"I said I'd get you the creds, and I'll get you the creds." Teva tensed up, recognizing the distinctly nasal tone of her boss and 'father', Weez Greezer. Mostly she heard it when he was chewing her out over a mistake or telling her to be more flirty with the customers, but hearing him now...he almost sounded afraid.
"This isn't about the creds," said a third voice. "This is about you bein' thoroughly unreliable. And if you aren't reliable..."
"No, listen!"
Teva dared to sneak quietly around the corner, catching sight of Weez behind the counter and three figures in black raincoats across from him, one much taller then the others, and with glowing red eyes no less. Her weaselly owner and boss did in fact look very afraid, sweat pouring down his already grimy face.
"I-I promise, give me one more month! Business is finally pickin' up, I can make you back double what you gave-"
"Fucking hell, who left the auto-fryers on again?"
Teva watched in horror as Skyler barged out of the other side of the kitchen, holding a burned stirrer in one hand. "Look at this shit! If I catch who's doing this I'm gonna...uh..."
There was one horrific millisecond as everyone involved stared at one another, unsure of what to do. Then without warning-
BANG!
One of the goons was launched backwards in a shower of sparks as Weez opened fire with the scatterbolter hidden underneath the counter. The tall figure ducked around his companion easily, and Teva squeaked in horror as he drew a gun and unloaded shot after shot into Weez's chest. Then the third figure rounded on Skyler, drawing his own boltgun...
Emergency Protocols Activated. Combat Protocols Engaged.
The command shot through Teva's head like lightning, her electric blue eyes turning pure white. Without a moment's hesitation, she bolted forward, grabbing cutlery from a nearby table and chucking a fork clear across the room. It struck the back of the stranger's gun hand with perfect accuracy, and as he screamed and dropped the gun, the robot diner girl vaulted over a display case, slamming her fists into his chest three times before grabbing his head and slamming it into a table with such force that the surface cracked in two. Teva blinked, then looked down at her bloody hands in shock. "Did I just do that? How did I just do that?" she asked in a panic, the white eyes flickering back to their usual blue.
"I don't know but if you could do it again that'd be awesome," Skyler shouted, turning her around to face the red-eyed stranger, his gun drawn and pointed at them. He hesitated a moment, glancing between Teva and the broken table, before turning around and slamming something on the counter before bolting out the door. Skyler and Teva shared a confused glance before the something opened up and started beeping. The two made it out the door and halfway down the street before the Diner suddenly exploded, flinging glass and metal into the streets as the shockwave knocked them off their feet.
"Ohh, my poor gyros..." Teva groaned, pushing herself up. "Skyler, are you okay?"
"Yeah...m'good...." The two glanced back as the Greasy Gear went up in flames, the neon sign snapping off its foundation and crashing on the ground. "But I think we just lost our job."
---
Teva dabbed at her arms with the wax, trying to get the worst of the scratches and scuffs off her silver skin. It was hard to see in the dim light of Skyler's apartment, and with everything still whirling around in her head it was hard for the little robot to stay focused.
"Hey, catch."
She looked up and shot her hand up to catch a chrome package tossed to her. "Is that...why do you have synthoil?"
"My ex was a cyber, had most of her digestive tract replaced when I met her," Skyler explained, plopping down on her ratty sofa across from her friend, an ice-pack resting on her head. "So...are we gonna discuss what just happened?"
Teva slurped down the synthoil, thinking of her departed 'father'. "Poor Weez...what was he doing hanging out with guys like that?"
"Yeah, I guess there's that..." Skyler admitted. "But I'm more interested in why you were hiding your epic kung fu superpowers."
"Huh?"
"You know, when you vaulted over the counter and beat the everloving fuck out of the guy trying to shoot me? I think that big guy was so scared he didn't even try to fight you." Skyler shifted position of her icepack with a wince. "Not gonna lie, it was fucking cool watching you do that."
"I didn't think it was cool!" Teva insisted. "It just...popped out of my programming. Some function I didn't know I had! I don't understand, I'm just supposed to be a servicebot."
"Then maybe you should poke into this function and see what it does," Skyler suggested. "It doesn't seem dangerous. You had full control over yourself, right?" Teva nodded mutely. "Then go ahead and turn on asskicker mode, let's see what kind of bot you are."
Teva hesitated for a moment, then tried to reach out for the programming block that sprung to life in her head. To her surprise, she found it easily, and it activated with a mere thought, her eyes turning white again. More data streamed into her head; environmental conditions and optimal maneuvers all attuned to help her in a physical altercation.
Tsuna Mode Engaged. Insulation Matrix 0%
Blinking in confusion, she recited those phrases aloud for Skyler. "Tsuna mode...insulation..." Skyler repeated, feeling out the words to see if they rung any bells. "Uhhh...nah, I got nothing. You don't have a manual in there, do you?'
"I don't think I do. Let me try something..." The robot girl concentrated for a moment, feeling around in her programming for what move to take next. Activating a couple of functions, she decided...
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