Sorry.

A simple one-word response but the best they could do in this situation. To think that her creations would be so rebellious. She really needed to learn how to program obedient and innovative A.I. Not just one or the other.

Pam rolled her eyes as she made for the front door. It was cool outside that night. A still expanse disturbed by the never-ending hustle and bustle of her junk bots. Her arms raised to her face blocking the massive floodlights that were scanning the grounds all night long. A security bot rolled past her and quickly went on its way after noticing who she was. It was much of the same as she drew ever so closer to the massive square warehouse sitting in the middle of the walled-off scrapyard.

When she made it to the back door of the factory she turned back to see Enigma dragging Clear by his half flesh ear. The boy was adamant about staying at Jessie's side. She continued careful contemplation of how to remove that pesky rebel spirit without losing that special nugget of personality she wished to keep.

With a scan of her finger, she entered the bright inside of her workshop. Where Jessie had it all integrated into her admittedly tiny room, Pam's warehouse was three times the size of their home just a few meters away. It was mostly comprised of massive metal machines with various robots rushing back and forth operating and running maintenance. There was a main office in the far back where she conducted most of her quality tests. It had smaller instruments dedicated to stress tests and alignment checks. Then there was a second door she had to pass through that showed her true office with a desk and laptop. It was admittedly bland with no decorations or flair.

She opted out of taking a seat and instead stood firmly behind her desk. When the two robotic brawlers entered she pressed a button under her drawer. The windows turned black and the door locked behind them. She moved to a cabinet and opened the middle drawer. Inside was another small switch that sat within the rails. With a flick, the floor on the westward wall began to fall down as if creating steps. She didn't bother beckoning them as they were sure to follow close behind.

The descent went down for nearly a minute. They were deep below the darkest pits of Starr Park. So far down even the old subway system could be heard running overhead. She had one final bit of encryption to work through in the form of a traditional keypad. A four-digit code unlocked one final hinge and allowed them into the hidden bunker.

She came up to another small office with an assortment of desks and equipment scattered across them. There were papers haphazardly strewed everywhere. On the floors, the walls, inside of the crevices of processors. If there was space or weight it was holding down some paper.

There was a large plexiglass window the size of an expensive flatscreen television. It stretched wall to wall and gave visuals to an open floor akin to the gymnasiums of a local high school. Enigma dragged Clear along as they made their way down the steps to the auditorium below. Pam took a seat and retrieved a set of glasses from her drawer. She rolled over to another station with a magnifying glass and a welding kit. A small metal attachment waited for her to work on once again.

Below Enigma kept a hold of Clear's arm as they navigated the semi-active hanger. A soft tune and simple murmurs could be heard from the robots lounging around in the massive expanse. On either side were a set of doors with small nametags on them. Each one seemed customized to the preference of the Brawler that was housed within. One door named Pin Cushion was covered in scratches. A cracked window on the door had a shard of jagged metal lodged within it. One could see all the walls were covered in shrapnel and the bed was torn to pieces. There was a single cactus on the nightstand that was left intact though.

Its inhabitant was sitting in the middle of the hangar poking at a centipede that had managed to pierce the air-tight chamber. Its body was a bland cylinder that looked like sheet metal had been dyed in a rush and quickly dropped over the chubby cactus's body. The top of his head was covered in dents made from shoddy craftsmanship. His eyes were irregular circles and a mouth formed from stabbing violently until a jagged smile could be formed. A bright light was emanating from these wholes that put the little critter below him under the spotlight. His arms and legs were sectioned similar to the robot's Starr Park pumped out like clockwork. Though with fewer individual segments his realm of flexibility was more like a Roc-Em Sock-Em Robot than a human. However, the robot formerly known as Spike still had on a pretty vest. Instead of his soft lavender, he had a dirty shade of eggshell white. The sleeves had been torn off from his rough movements and hung onto his shoulders for dear life.

As the two robots made their way past him they heard him rev up for a sneeze. An action that immediately caused everyone to hit the ground. His arms reflexively aimed outward and shot out shrapnel in either direction. It exploded just a few meters away from him and covered the area in jagged metal spikes. Clear's green hoodie was scratched on the sleeve from narrowly dodging the unintentional attack.

The music quickly resumed as Pin Cushion focused on his new friend once again. They passed by a pair of robots that seemed to be interacting as if they were old friends. One sat on a box that now had a foot-long spike lodged in the middle. He played a tune on a reinforced guitar with metal lining the outer shell.

His body shined under the dim light with a strangely metallic bronze sheen. His arms glowed a deep yellow as wires worked their way up his forearms and rushed through his collarbone. A shining golden skeleton in a mariachi uniform that seemed welded to his frame itself. The eyes that were once shining a deep green were now a fluorescent blue and his weight had been nearly doubled from the bronze dip he was subjected to during his assimilation. At least his clothes were the same. You can't beat the classics.

Watching on as Chord strummed a calming tune was a young lady. Young in heart but her undead soul had been walking the earth for years. A high-functioning zombie turned into a brain-dead parody by Pam's machinations. Her head was wired up to a massive headset that seemed to be constantly stimulating her mind with tiny electron shots. Her agape jaw allowed a fly to enter and leave without complication. Her purple skin remained but the thin papyrus wrappings were removed. Her limbs which must have fallen off during her kidnapping were now being held together with duct tape and steel braces. Wherever the joints were supposed to rotate there was a circlet of metal that allowed for rotary movement.

E.M.2 was the name she responded to now and it took a kind reminder from Poco's robotic replacement for her to wind the bolt that snapped her jaw back into place. Afterward, she managed a thank you with a single-eyed smile and slurred speech.

Inside another door was a large robot that looked like a comedic representation of Dynamike. A massive white head and a large attachment on the arms. It looked like a mascot for the mines made in his image. It sat inside a tube that seemed to be giving it a recharge after a busy day.

Next door was a room that was impossible to see inside of. The glass window was frozen over from the inside. If you looked closely (and managed not to lose a finger touching the chilled metal) you could see a familiar snow cone robot sitting in the middle of the room. Any of the colorful blue and white decorations and confection were gone. Now he was just a sleek metal machine without emotion.

Enigma finally got Clear to his room and followed him inside. The boy continued to rebel but finally gave in to Enigma's insistence. He sat down in a chair and presented his arm which Enigma opened and attached the charging cord into. Clear quickly fell asleep as a light in his eye started flashing red. Enigma moved to his own room and did the same.

Meanwhile, Pam absently observed from her skybox as the robots roamed around the room freely. She was more focused on some schematics and formulas in front of her. She checked a small monitor at her side and noticed another junker robot falling into the machines and getting scrapped with the other junk. Luckily another quickly took its place so that the factory could continue running.

The issue with pumping out quick products is the lack of quality. Such problems are visible in creations such as E.M.2 who was not supposed to be kidnapped so soon. There were no augmentations prepared for Emz's particular body. She wasn't expecting to operate on her without the additional power of Poco's healing. So when it was time to assimilate her into the team she ended up accidently shutting her brain off completely. Now she was barely keeping Emz functional with constant controlled shocks.

Occasionally a rushed product managed to breed more success than planned picks. Like Gray or Leon. She hadn't accounted for spirit in her brainwashing or overall disobedience though Gray's will was mostly suppressed by his sense of justice. However, the two of them proved the most powerful of her additions. Capable of higher thought rather than following a base protocol. Conflict analysis, deductive reasoning, and a dedication to their main mission. If only she had the same knowledge before that she did now.

Pam pressed a few knobs on the monitor to change the feed. Worse of all are the long-term plans that remain fruitless. Inside a separate room deep within the branching hallways of this underground safehouse was another secret project. Currently, there was a pile of warped metal cubes. They seemed to have been damaged by unknown explosions. All emanating from inside the blocks themselves. A machine continued to create another box with hundreds of moving components all meticulously placing parts together with a doctor's precision. A hair twitch of the machine could destabilize the creation. And sometimes even a perfect assembly would implode all the same. This was one of the last factors that held back her creation.

Her angry musings were halted by a call from Nani. "Pam. You have a visitor." Tired eyes turned up to a clock and grumbled.

"Tell him to go away."

Nani's response came with a bit of regret, "I'm sorry ma'am. I already let him into the scrapyard." Pam raked her eyes. Another mistake from Nani's over obedience. "I directed him to the warehouse. He should approach your office in; 5 minutes."

"Hahhn. Thank you, Nani." She said with a bit of sarcasm.

Sarcasm that went undetected, "You're welcome."

Pam quickly put away her pencil and trudged back up the steps. When she made it to her office she could hear her guest knocking on the door. A male's voice called, "Pam. I know you're in there."

Pam wanted to curse back but hostilities now would only extend his stay. She made sure to hide the entrance to her underground lab before cracking open the door. Her eyes cast downward to a tuff of snow-white hair. An older man in a dark brown trench coat smiled up at her with his hat in hand. "Hello, Pamela."

"Adam," she hissed.

Adam must have just left the office as he still had his inspector badge pinned to the inside of his jacket. A small notebook was visible on the inside of his hat's brim which he held close to his chest. With his short stature, he looked like a child asking for his ball back from the rude neighbor's yard. Adam wanted to catch up with her. Maybe give his thanks for the recommendation. Instead, something more important came to mind, "How's Jessie?"

Her nostrils flared at the mention of her daughter, "She's in the house." She leaned in closer to say, "Asleep." Almost threatening him with that information.

Adam knew it was unwise to pry further but he couldn't help it, "When will I be allowed to see her?" Words akin to the cries of a father separated from his child too soon.

Pam's response was succinct, "When I'm finished."

She tried to close the door but a foot quickly held it open. "With what?"

He might be a detective, but he should do himself a favor and ignore Pam's personal projects. She wished she could say that, but it would be twice as damning as what she ended up saying, "None of your business."

With that, she moved him to the side and slammed the door shut. A set of robots approached him from behind to escort him off the premises. Meanwhile, Pam quickly returned to her lab. She didn't have time for distractions. Not when she was so close. She almost had it all. All the pieces were in place and the last part of the puzzle would soon show itself to her. She didn't have time for Adam's self-righteous compass to interfere.

Just one more Brawler. Then it will be ready.

The ultimate creation.

She slid back into her chair. Her hands flew across the piles of paper as her eyes scanned a million tiny variables in seconds. Her hands rested on a single sheet which she quickly discarded into a drawer for later. The corner stuck out sloppily. It had a single word plastered on the title.

J.E.S.T.E.R

Pam's toiling would last all night and until the morning. During this time it was Nani's job to watch over Jessie's every move. She once again checked on the girl inside her room. She was still sleeping with her back to the door and a small snore left her lips. She left a crack in the door for another check later in the night.

Jessie felt a breeze roll over her and instinctively turned over to pull up her covers. All the while she kept her grip firm on her plushie. A little man with Chibi limbs and a warm smile. He had on a cadet and steel blue jester's uniform with smiling bells on his cap. A bit of raspberry hair peeked out from beneath.

Jessie dug her nose deep into his hat as a soft jingle left the toy's top. And her smile grew twice in size, blissfully unaware of the monsters her mother was creating in secret.