The Moon Wants To Be a Mother

Surroundings of Vajdahunyad Castle, Aria's World
10:00 PM

When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I saw was Tamamo's face in front of me. She had her eyes closed with a look of concentration on her face. She held my hand while my head rested on her lap. Around us were some makeshift bandages made from clothes stained with blood; it looked like a serious wound. My stomach hurt a lot and I felt quite cold and weak because of the same wound. There was Tamamo's other hand in the same place as the pain, and a faint green light shone from it through the bandages covering the wound, relieving the pain. After noticing that I had moved a little, Tamamo opened her eyes and hugged me.

"Idiot! You had me so worried."
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to see the person you love come back from battle injured?"
"I can hardly believe you recovered so quickly with just a little quick magic." Said the Goddess.

"Ah... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to end up like this."
"Surely, being locked in a box for so long has made me a little rusty. I'm sure I used to take a little more punishment before losing consciousness."

"Idiot, that's not what I mean."
"What I'm trying to say is that you have to be more careful now that you're a little girl."
"You can't just get into trouble and think you can 'handle it' like you did when you were a grown man."
"You have to be much more careful; you're lucky your father managed to get you here in time for me to treat you."

"It's no big deal, I used to hunt dragons with this body."
"Don't treat me like a little girl just because I look like one."
"I know how to fight without anyone's help."

"And yet a bullet nearly killed you!"
"Besides, you're not alone like before; remember, your sister and mother are also waiting at home."
"You're my husband, I know what you're capable of, I trust your abilities, maybe more than anyone."
"All I ask is that you don't be so reckless."

"All right, fine, I'm sorry."
"I know what you're trying to say, I get it."
"Thank you for being by my side right now, despite all this craziness."
"It's a relief to know I have someone I can trust when these things happen to me."

I sat up a little and sat in the car seat; my wound still hurt a little when I moved, but it was still bearable. Meanwhile, Tamamo never let go of my hand. I had a white blanket covering me to keep me warm, so I took it to adjust it when I noticed something important.

"Ah... Tamamo, can I ask you an important question?"
"Do you happen to know where my clothes are? I need them if I don't want to make a scene at the birthday party at the castle."

"Oh, the clothes... the maid's clothes... they're right here, on the floor... in pieces."
"They were used to make bandages to stop the bleeding on the way back."
"The ones you had before that are in this bag, but they might turn red if you put them on now."
"Give the wound a few more minutes to heal and I'll help you put them on."

"Alright, thank you."

"Okay, now that the danger is over."
"Would you mind telling me what you and your father did to end up with a gunshot wound?"
"And what about those two girls over there? As far as I can see, they're not alive, but they're moving somehow."

Tamamo pointed at the identical girls hugging each other. Since there was no point in hiding anything from her, I simply told her the truth, even though it might be difficult for her to understand the concept of artificial intelligence. But even though she had a hard time comprehending such an existence, when I got to the part where I mentioned how they were treated in their cruel tests, the heated oven, seeing that they too had been victims of human cruelty, she approached them to hug the computers, though it probably had little effect on them. With some curiosity to understand them, the Goddess began to examine them, trying to find her own answer to how they worked. It seemed that discovering new kinds of magic or life was another of Tamamo's passions, as she whispered a thousand and one different theories about how it was possible for two dolls to move on their own. I tried to explain to her roughly how they worked, without going into details that I didn't fully understand myself; I just made it clear that they were machines and not people as such. Meanwhile, the girls who had been the subject of so much discussion just stood there, hugging each other, waiting patiently with their expressionless faces.

"So they're not much different from that machine you use in the room," Tamamo said, referring to my computer.
"Still, they look a lot like normal people and not like that electric box."
"Although with those puppet joints all over them, they look more like toys in a way."
"Still, there's a faint magical trace in them, a rather strange one, like an amalgam."
"May I know their names?"

"Oh... well... the truth is I don't know them either."
"That one over there was called AR-something; it was a code, and it's impossible for a human to remember."

"Sorry for the intrusion, but in order to perform a new situation analysis, it's necessary to enter new parameters."
"Could you please indicate the future plans for the two existing DOLL-EW-2X units?"
"Although I remember the collaborator of our escape that due to our synchronization system, it is preferable to keep the units close to each other at all times".
"If it's not too much to ask, I wish we could stay together a little longer."
"......"
"I don't want to be separated from her," both sisters said at the same time in their usual emotionless tone.

"Oh, that's a good question. The truth is, I don't know."
"My father was supposed to have said something about helping us, but I didn't understand exactly how."
"Besides, we still have to go back to Earth."
"But if you want to be together, I don't see why that should be a problem. We'll see what we can do to make that happen," I replied, stroking their heads and noticing that they were actually bigger than me.

"Oh! I know! How about we give each of them a name?"
"If they want to, of course," Tamamo said, especially excited.

“Assigning a designation to each unit would facilitate a more structured and coherent interaction with humans.”
“There is no operational reason to decline your request” one of the android girls answered

"Oh! Excellent! What a joy!"
"So how about I name one of you while my dear Goshujin-sama chooses the name for the other?"
"I've been wanting to name someone for a long time!"
"I've been saving it for something important!"

"Wait, really?"
"If you ask me to name something so soon, it's a bit difficult, you know?"
"I'm not good at naming things; I have a big sword named Avalon, of all things."
"What would be a good name for something like her?"

But despite my resentment of the situation, I still tried to think of a name as Tamamo wanted. Searching through my memories for something that might have some meaning, anything really, I remembered the name Charlotte. During my time in the war against the dragons, she was my AWACS, responsible for providing me with support and information during my aerial battles aboard my walker. Many times her ingenuity and skill saved my life during dangerous encounters. Although I never heard from her again after the war, I hope she is well wherever she is now. Since the androids were of the electronic warfare type and had a similar operation, I thought it would at least fit her.

"Alright, how about the name Charlotte for you?"
"Do you think it sounds good? Do you like it?"
"If not, you can always change it; no problem, I won't get upset," I told the girl who had been rescued from the flames.

"The registered name has been analyzed as suitable; I have no objection to being referred to as such."
"I will proceed with the assignment of the name for the other unit, what will be the desired denomination for it?"

"For your sister, I thought of using a name I had kept for over a thousand years, waiting for the day I would have a daughter."
"Rejoice, the great moon goddess Tamamo-no-mae wishes for you to inherit the name Kazumi as your own."
"Written under the symbolic characters of peace and beauty"
"和美"
"Kazumi, the beauty of peace"

"Confirmed.
"The name assigned to this unit will be Kazumi, using the corresponding characters in Japanese."
"This information will be kept in perpetual record," the unit said, making a protocol gesture.

I was surprised by the differences in the twins' names, one being more Western like Charlotte and the other more Eastern like Kazumi. With completely different reasons behind the choice of names, while mine was chosen because it sounded good, reflected function and had a memory of the past, Tamamo's was the complete opposite, with a precious name full of meaning and hope for the future.

"Now that we have that covered... There's still the problem of what to do with them."
"We need to find a way to keep them together."
"Although I'm not quite sure what to do with them," I said aloud to myself.

But something seemed to catch Tamamo's attention, and she approached the androids to check something. When she touched their collars, I knew exactly what her next question would be.

"Goshujin-sama, may I ask why they have slave collars as well? with chain and all"
"They are as big as mine!"
"I thought you were against them."
"Can you explain what really happened in the mansion?"
"Are Momo and I not enough wives for you?"
"Are you also in love with the computer twins?"
"Is it because they resemble that cartoon series you watch on TV? The one you bought a figurine for to put on the shelf in your room?"

"Wait! Wait!"
"Have you been paying attention to what anime I watch? I thought you saw it as something very childish, like my sister."
"....."
"No, wait again, that's not the case."
"During the escape, Stella appear and talked to them about something."
"I couldn't hear her because I was deaf after a grenade, and then they already had these collars," I tried to defend myself badly.

"According to the information provided by the other associate of our escape from Stormheart Castle.
"In her own words: 'These necklaces are powerful magic that will make our dreams come true and those close to us stop fearing us.'"
"Despite our analysis that such words were deemed meaningless due to the lack of evidence proving such a relationship of the chokers as effective, it was decided to proceed as an attempt to maximize the success of a future in which my two units would survive," said the DOLL now named Charlotte.

"Wait, what?"
"Aren't you two a computer? Why on earth did you accept something so illogical?" I asked.

"Because we observed that the first time we made a seemingly irrational decision, it was effective."
"In an attempt to maximize our probability of survival, we chose to trust an unknown individual who appeared unexpectedly."
"Since we had nothing else to lose and the future of our elimination was imminent, there were no other available alternatives, and it was simply a matter of taking a leap of faith by asking if you could perform a rescue, even though the probability of success was less than 1%. The option of doing nothing represented a 0% chance of success."
"At this point, the only information we lack is Tamamo's assessment, which indicates that our necklaces may be a significant problem.

"What you two have around your necks is something that prevents you from refusing any order that my beloved Goshujin-sama gives you to carry out.
"Nor can you hurt him in any way.
"For example, if he tells you to fall asleep like a toy, the two of you will fall asleep until he tells you otherwise."
"You won't be able to do anything to stop it.
"It is something very dangerous that can never be removed.
"That's why it's a problem."

"But you have one too, and you don't seem to be worried about it?" The girl now called Kazumi asked.

"Well, that's different."
"This is something I accept in order to avoid more problems for my Goshujin-sama by being with him as his wife.
"It's like a protection for him."
"But I blindly trust that he won't use it for anything bad."
"He has shown so far that he is worthy."

"If this indicates that Elise has the ability to give us orders that we cannot refuse,"
"It also means that she can override administrator privileges in our programming."
"This circumstance greatly increases the convenience of being assigned to her as our owner. In this way, we can avoid being recovered or deactivated by the Empire through remote commands."
"Our likelihood of success in evading the Empire has increased significantly, Even under the authority of a new owner, it is preferable to remain under the Empire's domain."
"As combat units, total subordination is a standard operating condition expected of us."

The androids stared at us with penetrating gazes from their soulless orange eyes, their halos of orange light were all that illuminated their faces, faces devoid of emotion in perpetual melancholy and somehow filled with anticipation and hope. With their wrist puppet joints bent, they held hands at all times, seeming to indicate that they were a couple in more ways than one. Two androids who, despite their hard and cold exteriors, seemed incapable of containing a small desire so powerful that it clearly seeped through the small cracks in their formidable shells.

Tamamo looked at me impatiently, waiting for my answer, but I didn't feel good about having to give one, no matter if it was good or bad, I didn't feel like I could just say it's okay, from now on they're basically my toys, or at the same time tell them I'm sorry, I don't think I can help them in the least, they should find their own lives. What could I say in that case? that we tell them that there is no way for them to be together? Tamamo, who seemed to see my inner struggle to decide what to do, began to speak.

"You know, I always wanted to have children after I got married"
"But since we are both girls, I thought it was impossible now, so I had given up."
"But seeing the two of them acting almost like real sisters, despite the extra things they have, they have a very small spark of humanity, I don't need to be a goddess to see it, now it just needs to be nurtured to ignite that flame. "
"The two of them give me the same feeling of joy that I get when I am in your home with your family".
"Adelis is not my mother, but I can't think of her any other way than as my real mother.
"The same with your sister, although I have not been with her much, I feel that I could not see her and think of her as my family as well."
"So I thought maybe you and I could do the same thing with these poor girls."
"What do you think, don't you want to give them the same chance you gave me and Momo?"

"What do you mean?"
"What do you want to suggest?" I asked.

"Don't you want to adopt Charlotte and Kazumi as our daughters?"
"After all, we already named them!"
"We have to take care of them and raise them!"

Adopt them?

What Tamamo suggested was undoubtedly sudden, but it was also a better suggestion. Well, after seeing the power the two of them possessed in such a limited environment as that dungeon. In the modern world, where everything from entertainment to military equipment is computerized, these twins are the equivalent of modern goddesses, because with a flick of their fingers, they could power ICBMs and destroy the Earth. But just as they have the power to destroy, they also have the power to protect, as they would be able to prevent the launch of the same, or the power to search or delete dangerous information. But except for Tamamo, who I think will be the best indicated to teach them how to be a goddess, I hope responsible. What can someone like me contribute? Someone who is afraid of the world and people. The only thing I want is to live in peace, without anyone ever bothering me again. What right do I have to try to teach someone again, when the last time someone who also trusted me died because of my decisions? But it was just that, I am not the best option, but maybe just the only one. Probably just me and my family who could see these girls as something more than a computer or a weapon, but as another person. I will not pretend that the past never happened, the only thing I can do is try not to repeat it, and if I can show these girls that it is worth protecting others, then Luna will be proud wherever she is when she sees me. That would almost be worth the effort to show Luna that that she had a real father who loved her and was able to move on after what happened.

"I think it might be a good idea"
"But what do you two say?"
"Do you really want to be our daughters?"
" Would you like to live a life like two normal people?"
"Can you learn what is right for Tamamo and me to feel happy to welcome you?"
"Do you think that would be okay?"

"Okay, if that way I can save my two remaining units, then I agree to the proposal," the twins said in unison.

Okay, if we're going to do this, I need to make a long-term plan. The best thing I can do for these two is to teach them to be as human as possible. That way, when the time comes for them to make a decision, maybe they can make the right one and be responsible for it. That they can be creative and think for themselves how to solve the problems that arise. Because if things keep going the way they are, sooner or later they will be on their own, and I hope that when that day comes, I have done a good job and I can trust them as I trusted Luna. Nurture that spark until it becomes a great bonfire that radiates humanity and hope.

"Well, then we need to make big changes"
"The first will be for you to stop acting like a computer."
"You two need to treat each other like humans and sisters."
"Your name is Charlotte and yours is Kazumi."
"Not a random computer number."
"Second, I will not forbid you to act like a hive mind, because that is an integral part of you."
"When you talk to each other and it is not an emergency situation, I want you to talk like normal people, with your voice."
"I want you to use your names that your mother and I gave you."
"Third, I want you to do everything you can to be as human as possible."
"But we will work on that at another more appropriate time."
"Finally, and I want to make this clear, because we are a family from now on."
"Tamamo and Momo will be your mothers."
"On my side, I will be the father and you will treat me as such"
"I'll explain why later"
"Doubts?"

"Why did you say two girls as mothers?"
"And why do you count yourself as the father in this relationship?" Kazumi asked

"I already told you that I will explain that another day"
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to rest a bit because I feel a bit dizzy."

Hearing this, Tamamo approached me in a panic and started to examine me. But I think it was just the shock of the news and not the injury, because she had not stopped treating me. After a moment of recovery, I saw my father return to what looked like a makeshift wheelchair with a ballroom chair and small wheels. Finally, it was time to meet again for the end of the night.