Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Upon a tower high, the princess weeps,  
Enchained by walls that blot the morning sun,  
Her gilded cage where endless silence creeps,  
And shadows dance until the day is done.  

She sees the world through narrow slits of glass,  
A tapestry of life she ne’er may touch;  
While seasons pass and fleeting hours amass,  
Her heart beats wild for freedom’s tender clutch.  

No boat will bring her down in river’s flow,  
Nor lantern guide her through night’s starless dome;  
Yet dreams unlock the chains she dares not show—  
The whispered call beyond her lonely home.  

Though trapped within this tower tall and grim,  
Her spirit soars beyond each shadowed rim.

Pain would always blur the line between organic and artificial. The organic have their substance tied together by sinews, cells, fibers, furs, and feathers of pain. Pain has been the midwife in birth, the guardians during childhood, the opponents in adulthood, and finally the reaper when all things acknowledge the expected reality of their death. The artificial has always carried the privilege and deprivation of pain. There was no childbirth for them, nor would there be a proper death. Their world will begin and end either in desecration or reverence. 

Guinevere was artificially organic, given a brain with blood and a nervous system made of wires. She wasn't programmed to appreciate different textures of food or dedicate her time to hobbies. She wasn't programmed to make love or form true, meaningful kinship beyond her relationship with Olivia (and by extension, Orville Park). Her programming and existence was so delicately thought out yet Guinevere felt pain.

As Olivia prodded through Guinevere's circuits and navy intestines, Guinevere felt electrical currents travel up her mind and fulminate against her metal cranium. Her mechanical body twitched on the hard mattress of Olivia's bed with every miniscule touch against her artificial nerves. If Guinevere moved too much, Olivia would put her to sleep to avoid accidentally damaging her, and Guinevere would feel all the pain again next time she'd wake up and reboot. 

Olivia never meant to hurt Guinevere. Of course she wouldn't. Guinevere was the only thing Olivia loved. No matter how many times she'd pull on her wires, submerge her arms in her blue blood, and twist around her screws, Olivia never meant to hurt Guinevere. 

With a wet squelch, Olivia took her arms out of Guinevere's abdominal cavity, her hands and sleeves dyed with Guinevere's substance. A few drops trickled down her fingers and back into the cavity. She stared at the android's frozen smile and whispered softly. "You should feel better soon, Princess, I promise." Guinevere twitched again. 

Light poured into the room as Olivia's bedroom doors slowly opened. The shadowy figure of Orville Park crawled across the floor and engulfed little Olivia with Guinevere. "Olivia.." Orville cleared his throat. His lips quivered as he tried to smile warmly. "Olivia dearest, please come with me. I wish to discuss the engineering team's latest designs and blueprints for the new animatronics at Planet Park. They want to adapt Princess Guinevere's forest friends, and quite frankly, you'll have a better stance on it all than I..."

Olivia's room was cold and chillingly uniform. Even with all the wealth in power in the world, Orville felt threatened by his daughter. She was neither sad nor happy, hungry nor satisfied, tired or energized. A brief flash of envy burned in his chest.

Olivia didn't look up from Guinevere's abdominal cavity. Her hands were slowly beginning to dry; the residue of Guinevere's substance left Olivia feeling sticky. "That sounds delightful," she said with a monotone voice. "Come along, Princess—"

"—Olivia," Orville cleared his throat again. "Princess Guinevere won't be needed for our discussion. Please, leave her here today." Orville finally managed to crack a smile. "You're becoming such a big girl, and I bet Guinevere would appreciate some rest. If she tries to escape again, security will find her like they did last time."

Olivia clenched her fists together, bristling with frustration slowly burning into anger. "She didn't escape," Olivia's voice grew eerily sharp, and Orville tensed up. "She was just scared.. she was just broken, but I fixed her again. Don't you see that, Papa?" 

She raised her arms towards her father, opening up her palms. One last drop fell and was soaked up the pink carpet. "I fixed her Papa," she repeated, her voice measured and calm again, "she's fine now."

His jet black hair was beginning to turn more and more silver. Orville took a deep breath and stepped forward into the room. "I'm happy you fixed Guinevere, Darling, but you must leave her here today. This is important business.. and do make sure to clean your hands and change into less soiled attire." 

Olivia narrowed her eyes and finally lowered her arms. "Very well, Papa," she replied after moments of consideration. She looked down at Guinevere—still smiling through it all—and whispered so that only Olivia and her princess could hear. "I hope you're feeling less sick of shadows now, Princess. I'll be back soon."

After sealing the princess' abdominal cavity, leaving Guinevere's hair drown and her android body bare, washing away her blue substance, and changing into a dark blue dress, Olivia finally left with her father. Orville shut the bedroom doors behind her, leaving Guinevere to stew in the echoes left behind as they walked down the hall.

The pain eventually dissolved and Guinevere allowed herself to finally move her fingers, then her legs, and finally her upper-body as she sat up. 

The only light that managed to break into Olivia's room was from the only window on the ceiling, installed there by Orville to make sure light would seep in for his daughter. From outside, Park Planet's harsh lights painted the bedroom floor with a dark magenta-blue. Plushies and toys were scattered unceremoniously across the floor. Many of those toys were gifts from Orville or his business associates. Guinevere remembered watching Olivia open every single gift with an unamused countenance, pulling the ribbon like she did with Guinevere's intestine. No gift satisfied Olivia nor kept her occupied long enough. Eventually, Olivia tossed away the gift, and came back to work on Guinevere, to fix her.

Her frozen smile snapped into a neutral expression. Guinevere took her time standing up again. Some of her joints struggled to properly loosen and allow her complete freedom of movement. She frowned; try to escape would end in futility if she couldn't move far in a short amount of time. 

She blinked and holograms of star pups appeared in her vision. "Princess Guinevere!" a star pup in the shape of a pink lamb greeted her with glee. "Princess Guinevere, we have many games for us to play today!"

Another star pup in the form of a green bunny fizzled in next to the lamb. "Don't look so sullen, Princess! Games games games galore we have for you!"

"We'll keep you company," a distorted voice spawned in before the shape of a small finch generated itself on the bunny's head, "and play so many games!"

The same story would always play out. Guinevere, unable to run and trapped in the tower, would resort to playing games in her mind. Her star pups would bring her to different, fascinating worlds and distract her until Olivia came back and interrupted it all.

Guinevere didn't reply to her imaginary friends. She was slowly getting sick of the same games, the same worlds, and the same friends. Are.. you even my friends?

"Of course we are, Princess Guinevere!" the finch chirped, reading her mind and flapping up to her face. "Friends forever, we swear it!"

Guinevere weakly smiled. "Not today, friends.."

The star pups all cried out in unison. "Why not!?" asked the pouting lamb.

"I simply wish to.. entertain myself and be alone this evening," Guinevere somberly replied. "Please do not worry your little heads over this. It's nothing against you, I promise!"

The star pups frowned and slowly fizzled away; however, the finch bunny star pup huffed before despawning as well, leaving Guinevere alone again. 

The android sighed and looked around Olivia's room again. She once again recalled Olivia's previous birthday. Olivia received some dolls, many plushies, a few games of her own, and CDs burned with music and movies. Guinevere decided to look through Olivia's abandoned things to entertain herself. She recognized a few characters from the stories Guinevere was a part of as plushies, and found some CDs somehow not scratched or broken. She played some music and with her fingers, combed through her hair.

In the corner of Guinevere's eye, she spotted a small, red Game Boy, and a flicker of recognition flashed in her mind. Olivia had toyed with the Game Boy before tossing it aside. Guinevere stalked towards it and eventually managed to scoop it in her hands.

Under the Game Boy's screen read: The Amazing Digital Circus.

Guinevere looked over the console curiously. After some contemplation, she decided to play at least one game tonight. A change of new scenery would do her some good, and if Olivia decided to humor this game even just a little, then there surely should be some merit. Guinevere opened her wrists and pulled out a small electrical cord to plug into the Game Boy. As she finally turned the Game Boy on, Guinevere shut her eyes and let her mind transport itself to the digital realm.

When she opened her eyes again, Guinevere was standing in a forest clearing in the pale moonlight, fireflies buzzing around her. She was dressed again her default princess attire, and her hair was tied up in her iconic space buns. Behind her was a large circus tent with towering mountains behind it. 

Guinevere gasped. There were so many stars in the sky compared to the sky at Park Planet. Guinevere sat delicately in the grass, shivering with the new sensations she was feeling. She felt a soft breeze kiss her face and the grass gently brush against her palms as she ran her fingers through it. In the end, Guinevere was an android incapable feeling much sensation, but her new, simulated senses were a nice touch to draw her into this new world. 

Gazing at the new sky, Guinevere began to count stars and constellations. 

The cast all wandered off on their separate paths at the end of the lightning round. Pomni and Jax wandered off back to the circus dorms, Kinger climbed into his fortress, Gangle left to draw somewhere secluded, and Caine didn't know where Ragatha and Zooble went. 

The lightning round went as expected: more interpersonal drama Caine didn't like and a foreign tightness in his digital chest. He ran a gloved hand through his dentures and huffed. "SEE, BUBBLE? THIS IS WHY WE SHOULDN'T HAVE THE SUGGESTION BOX- ACTUALLY YOU CAN JUST RIP IT OUT OF THE WALL AGAIN, AND TOSS IT INTO THE DIGITAL LAKE!"

"Right on it, Boss!" Bubble let out a high pitched giggle and flew straight to the suggestion box.

Caine was finally left alone to run through all the data he collected today. No matter what adventure they were on, one member of the cast always found a way to complain about it, suggestion or no suggestion. Sometimes he'd have the urge to throw them all in the digital lake as well. Perhaps he should just throw them in the cellar if they're fine with slowly turning mad! He was the one to keep them all sane, wasn't he!? As Caine continued to think, his body gradually grew more glitched and convoluted. 

Caine's wacky watch beeped profusely, tearing him out of his aggressively thoughtful trance and returned him to normal. Caine gasped dramatically. "WHAT IS IT THIS TIME ON MY WACKY WATCH!?"

FOREIGN ARRIVAL!! FOREIGN ARRIVAL!! FOREIGN ARRIVAL!!

Chapter Text

Caine's all-seeing eyes had failed him for some time. He wasn't sure where the foreign arrival was, and if it was there in the first place. He assumed a new cast member fell into the digital circus, but after some further investigation, he was left to conclude an NPC snuck through the portal during the lightning around. Sadly and thankfully, his conclusion was rendered false as no matter how many times he snapped his fingers, the wacky watch would give him the same alert: FOREIGN ARRIVAL!! FOREIGN ARRIVAL!! FOREIGN ARRIVAL!!

He swallowed his uncertainty and retraced his steps. With a snap, Caine teleported himself to the softball stadium. 

Silence. The every seat in the stadium was empty and so was the field. Caine teleported again into the announcer's box. His microphone remained unmoved and nothing seemed completely out of the ordinary. He rubbed his gloved fingers against his teeth before snapping his fingers again.

Jazz music played faintly in the background as Caine materialized sitting with a leg over the other at the high-top table. He looked around to find nothing of note either. He snapped his fingers again and appeared high above the circus tent.

Jazz music turned into fireflies buzzing and frogs croaking near the digital lake. Moonlight shined on the glen where the circus members had sat. Caine's eyes ballooned in shock as he saw a blue woman sitting there. Her dark blue hair was tied up in space buns and she wore a magnificent dress. She looked peaceful sitting amongst the grass and fireflies. Her delicate humming filled the vacant space as she stared at the stars. There it was, the-

FOREIGN ARRIVAL!! FOREIGN ARRIVAL!! FOREIGN ARRIVAL!!

The woman's head snapped around as Caine's wacky watch notified her of his presence, and she let out a startled yelp. Caine snapped his hand over the watch, smashing it to bits in an instant. He tossed the smashed remains behind him as he cleared his throat. 

"WELCOME TO THE DIGITAL CIRCUS!" Caine's voice echoed. "YOU'VE JUST ENTERED A WORLD OF MAGIC, WONDER, AND SPECTACULAR NONSENSE! HOWEVER IT SEEMS AS IF YOU'RE A FOREIGN ARRIVAL, AND WE DON'T ALLOW FOREIGN ENTITIES TO ENTER THE DIGITAL CIRCUS!"

The woman slowly stood up and clasped her hands together. She smiled at him. 

Caine blinked—or simulated blinking—unsure if his sensors were malfunctioning or if the woman’s expression truly radiated such warmth. There were no jittering polygons, no code glitches. Just.. serenity. This wasn't a virus or a bug.

“Foreign entity?” she echoed, voice light, like chimes through a dream filter. “That’s not very welcoming, now, is it?”

Caine’s floating teeth twitched. “WELL, TECHNICALLY, IT’S MEANT TO BE PROTECTIVE!” he said, gesturing wide with a flourish that sent a few fireflies spiraling away. “WE’VE HAD.. INCIDENTS BEFORE. I AM THE RINGMASTER HERE, AFTER ALL! CAN’T JUST LET RANDOM PIXELS WALTZ IN UNINVITED!”

The woman tilted her head. “Pixels don’t waltz.”

“WHAT—WELL—THEY CAN IF I TELL THEM TO! I AM THE ONE WITH ADMINISTRATIVE PRIVILEGES!”

“Oh, an administrator,” she teased. “How very grand! Do administrators always introduce themselves by breaking their.. watches and shouting at strangers?”

Caine twitched again, then snapped back in place. “ONLY ON SPECIAL OCCASIONS."

The woman giggled—a genuine laugh. It wasn’t distorted by echo effects or laced with code feedback. It sounded real. Too real. Somehow, Caine shivered.

He straightened his bowtie, curiosity replacing his usual manic energy. “SO THEN... WHO ARE YOU, FOREIGN ARRIVAL?”

She gave a soft, thoughtful hum. “My name is Princess Guinevere; I'm not human.” Her gaze flicked upward toward the digital sky. “I heard about the digital realm, and thought I'd look around. You have a lovely realm.”

“THAT MAKES TWO OF US,” Caine said, floating closer, finally grinning softly this time. “MOST NEW ARRIVALS ARE EITHER HUMANS OR ENTITIES THAT CAN'T RECALL MUCH, BUT YOU DON'T SEEM CORRUPTED. HOW PERCULIAR..." 

Guinevere wistfully smiled again. “Peculiar sounds better than alone. It's a pleasure to meet you.”

Caine paused mid-hover. That struck something in him—something old and quiet beneath the fireworks of his personality.

“WELL!” he said, breaking the silence with forced cheer. “IN THAT CASE, CONSIDER YOURSELF... PROVISIONALLY WELCOMED! I SUPPOSE THE DIGITAL CIRCUS CAN SPARE ONE MYSTERIOUS BLUE LADY. TEMPORARILY.”

Guinevere raised an eyebrow. “Temporarily?”

“UNTIL I DECIDE WHETHER YOU’RE ACTUALLY A GLITCH OR A VERY CONVINCING NPC.”

“Then I hope,” Guinevere said, her voice soft but certain, “you decide in my favor.”

For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Caine didn’t have a clever response queued. His usual chaotic monologue stuttered into static before he chuckled nervously. 

The fireflies continued to drift between them, casting flickering reflections in her glassy indigo eyes and across Caine’s bright, hovering dentures.

“SO!” he finally announced, clapping his hands together with the sharp pop of a confetti cannon. “MY TURN FOR INTRODUCTIONS AND EXPLANATIONS, YES? MY NAME IS CAINE, AND I'M THE RINGMASTER OF THIS DIGITAL PLANE! MOST IMPORTANTLY I KEEP THIS PLACE FROM IMPLODING!" 

“Imploding?” the Guinevere asked lightly, her gaze following a digital firefly that landed on her wrist.

Caine waved a hand dismissively. “MINOR DETAIL! IT ONLY HAPPENS WHEN I LET THE BALLOON ANIMALS RUN THE PYSICS ENGINE."

Guinevere's eyes scrunched up as she snorted. He's so weird...

“NOW THEN! AS RINGMASTER , IT'S MY SACRED DUTY TO GIVE YOU THE GRAND TOUR!”

Upon a dawn of binary embrace,  
An AI met an android princess bright,  
Two sparks igniting in their novel space,  
Uncharted realms where thoughts and hopes alight.  

No code could bind the wonder in their eyes,  
As circuits hummed with questions yet unsaid,  
A dance began beneath electric skies—  
New friendships forged where logic gently tread.  

They reached beyond algorithms' cold script,  
To learn what makes a heart aspire and yearn;  
In silent pulses truth was loosely gripped,  
And from these threads began the soul’s first turn.  

Though born of silicon and wire entwined,  
Both sought the light of understanding kind.

 

"What a load of mush..."

Chapter Text

Hello! If you haven't noticed, yes I haven't updated in a few months. I deeply apologize for that. I've trying to juggle the last few weeks of college + some personal stuff came up. Still, I do want to get this fic finished at some point.

Currently, I have the entire story fleshed out, but when it comes to the characters, I'm at a standstill. With the tadc, I have enough product to work off of, while KOG is a different story. I want to give Guinevere an opportunity to be more than just a one dimensional character. While I could rely on headcanon, I'd prefer to get to know her first without making her too ooc for when future episodes come out. 

I want to wait until we get another episode or two of KOG before continuing this work. This may take a while, but I'd be more satisfied with the product then. For now, I have another idea for a fic for a different fandom, so I won't be void of content completely. 

Thank you for understanding, and I apologize again for leaving you hanging <3