I, Simulacurm. [Worm/Titanfall]

[royalMJD]

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Interviewer: Dr Joseph Martinez



Interviewee: SUBJECT FW21582 "Taylor"



Date: 21.01.2710



Site: Typhon Fold Research Facility 03-Kappa



Foreword:



[BEGIN LOG]



(Interior: Subject FW21582 is strapped to a medical gurney with IV drips inserted into her upper arms. There are sedative injectors on standby. No staff are currently in the room with Subject FW21582 – Observation is being performed via cameras and speakers)


Dr Martinez: Good morning, Taylor. How are you feeling today?


SUBJECT FW21582: (Subject FW21582 shows no signs of responding to the question)


Dr Martinez: I hope the new medication hasn't been too jarring.

Dr Martinez: We noticed you haven't been sleeping recently, Taylor. The team and I are starting to grow worried.


SUBJECT FW21582: (Subject FW21582 appears to start sobbing)


Dr Martinez: Taylor? You can speak to us, we're here to help.


SUBJECT FW21582: (Subject FW21582 finally turns to the camera)


SUBJECT FW21582: H-Help? Help?! You're not here to help. I'm lying here strapped to a table with needles in my arms, my legs are fucking gone! And you keep asking the same questions over and over. Fuck you and your help.

Dr Martinez: Taylor. I've told you this before; it was the only way we could save you.

SUBJECT FW21582: Yeah, well, I don't feel very saved. How many days have I been stuck tied to this bed for? Days? Weeks?


(Dr Martinez starts to show signs of visual frustration)


Dr Martinez: Look, Taylor, you know how this works by now. The more you cooperate with me, the easier it will be for today's interviews and testing session to be over. Then I can leave you alone, and you can go back to resting.


SUBJECT FW21582: (Subject FW21582 begins to sob even more)


SUBJECT FW21582: What more can I give you? I've already told you everything I remember. That I was shoved in a locker before blacking out and waking up outside of here, wherever here even is!

Dr Martinez: We're just trying to clarify and clear up some...irregularities in the story you've been telling us.

Dr Martinez: (A pause as Dr Martinez appears to contemplate his notes for a moment, and let Subject FW21582 calm down)

Dr Martinez: Alright, Taylor. New question. You claim to have been seeing moving shadows in your peripheral vision recently? Are they the reason you haven't been going to sleep

SUBJECT FW21582: (Subject FW21582 pauses before answering again)

SUBJECT FW21582: The shadows? Yeah, I didn't notice them at first, but I swear they're here with me. Every time I close my eyes.

Dr Martinez: Can you describe these shadows to me Taylor? Do they have figures or are they just shapes try and go into as much detail as you can.

SUBJECT FW21582: I…I can't really describe what they are. Sometimes I feel like I see a person, sometimes it's just dark, but I know they're always there. I can feel them watching me.

Dr Martinez: Okay. We're going to run a quick experiment, okay? I'm going to slowly dim the lights in your room, and I want you to focus on the shadows.

SUBJECT FW21582: Wait what? No, please don't.

Dr Martinez: I'm sorry, Taylor, but we have to do this. Now just do your best to focus on what you see.

SUBJECT FW21582: No! God no! Please don't turn off the lights


(The lights in Subject FW21582's cell are slowly dimmed)


SUBJECT FW21582: NO! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU, I'LL DO ANYTHING, DON'T TURN OFF THE LIGHTS. PLEASE!


(One-minute passes, and the lights grow dimmer. Subject FW21582 starts to hyperventilate.


Dr Anderson: (Dr Anderson, a secondary observer, speaks up after the monitor screens start flashing amber)

Dr Anderson: Martinez, take a look at this. We're getting some strange readings. Could be background noise?


(The lights go dark and through thermal cameras Subject FW21582 can be seen freezing before she starts to struggle and thrash against her bindings before releasing a scream)


SUBJECT FW21582: WHAT ARE YOU?! GET AWAY FROM ME! HELP ME PLEASE!


[NOTE] A monochromatic rift starts to appear above Subject FW21582's head, and the observer room is bathed in crimson from every monitor present


Dr Anderson: Sudden temporal Fold detected! Gravitational readings are going through the roof! Administering sedatives now!

Dr Martinez: No, wait! I want a few more readings!


SUBJECT FW21582: (Subject FW21582's restraints start digging into her body, and her screaming and thrashing become even more intense, blood starts leaking from her nose and eyes)


Dr Anderson: Blast your readings, Martinez! We're going to lose the subject, and then we're next! Her blood pressure is skyrocketing, and her pulse is a fucking seismograph!

[NOTE] A Wailing klaxon starts to sound as the door to Subject FW21582's room seals itself before an automated message begins to play


Facility 03-Kappa OVERLORD: Warning unstable Temporal Fold detected, warning unstable Temporal Fold detected, warning unstable Temporal Fold detected.

Dr Martinez: Fine, god dammit! Administer emergency sedatives now!


SUBJECT FW21582: (Subject FW21852's eyes roll back before her body suddenly goes limp as needles depress across her entire body, the rift collapses, and the only sound that can be heard from the cell is Subject FW21852's shallow breathing and the wailing of the alarm)


Dr Anderson: Blood pressure, pulse and brain activity are all stabilising, and blood oxygen levels returning to normal. Jesus, Martinez, never do that again.

Dr Martinez: (Dr Martinez doesn't respond to Dr Anderson. Instead, all of his attention is fixated on the readings coming from the monitors)



[END LOG]



ADDENDUM TO FW21582_Interview8



Date 23.01.2710



[NOTE FROM TEAM]



Subject FW21582 at 0416 hours showed signs of an unknown temporal power causing visible temporal flux in her containment cell. Whether this is because of the circumstances in which she arrived on Typhon or her proximity upon arrival to Project HOURGLASS, it is unknown. Further testing must be conducted.



Sedation was authorised after gravitational wave readings exceeded facility safeguards. Temporal resonance immediately ceased when Subject FW21582 was rendered unconscious.



RECOMMENDATIONS:

• Subject FW21582 threat rating updated to reflect new status as "Temporal-Risk"
• Subject FW21582 containment status updated to reflect new threat rating
• Relocation to deeper and more reinforced facility chambers before further testing commences
• Dr Martinez undergo immediate retraining in IMC emergency temporal procedural management

---

Spoiler

Betad by: No one! All work is written by me with the power of Microsoft Word's grammar checker, so forgive any minor errors. This is my first published story, so feedback is always welcome.

This story is a Worm x Titanfall cross. Prior knowledge of both universes is unnecessary, as logs like this one will help fill in gaps. This is just a quick snippet of the main story to come, which will primarily take place in the sunny city of Brockton, so I hope you enjoy.

Worm is owned by Wildbow, while Titanfall is owned by Respawn Entertainment

 

[royalMJD]

1.1

---

██ . ██ . 2711 IMC Typhon Facility 09-GAMMA


The dull buzzing of an alarm was what woke Taylor at exactly 0700. Same sound, same frequency, same tone. For the last eleven months, it had been the exact same noise. On the alarm's fifth ring, her hand reached up and struck the clock, and the room returned to silence.

She allowed herself a few deep breaths before swinging her legs out from under the sheets and placing both feet on the ground, shivering at the sensation of cold metal on skin. Her legs were four months old. Vat-grown replacements, Dr Martinez had told her. A reward for her ongoing 'cooperation' with his testing.

Most mornings, Taylor still expected to wake up and look down only to see two stumps, and some mornings she still expected the slight delay that occurred when her legs were freshly attached. How they had fixed her legs so quickly was a question she tried not to think about.

The legs didn't change the fact that she still hated the IMC for stripping her of so many basic rights in the beginning. But she didn't live in a bed anymore, strapped in all the time.

She had learned to enjoy the small victories.

Her moment of peace didn't last as the lights in her room brightened far too quickly.

"Subject FW21582. Waking cycle complete."

The voice seemed to emerge from every wall panel at once.

"Good morning to you as well, Overlord"

A low hum passed through the wall panels in acknowledgment.

"Your biometrics indicate a slightly elevated stress response while resting. A deviation of 3.4%. I have logged this change"

Taylor stood, stretching her arms over her head and rolling her shoulders, hearing the satisfying pop of her back.

"Yes, well, thank you for that wonderful information, Overlord."

Taylor crossed her room, retrieving her standard IMC subject test uniform from a hanger in the corner. She dressed slowly as she moved through her familiar morning routine.

"Dr Joseph Martinez has requested your presence at 0730 hours in Simulation Room Three. IMC personnel will arrive shortly to escort you."

Taylor flinched at the sudden interruption, then blushed, realising no one was there to catch her reaction anyway.

"Of course he has," she groaned.

Taylor moved back over to her bed and sat on its edge, lacing up her boots. With nothing to do after getting dressed, her mind began to wander. Thoughts of what Martinez might want from her today plagued her. These last few weeks, he had been drilling her with questions, and it was starting to get to her.

Idly, her fingers traced patterns in the air as white and purple arcs of energy jumped between them.

Taylor didn't notice at first but when she looked down at her hands, the world around her grew quieter. Her vision remained locked on her hand, and the rest of the space around her gradually drained of its colour. The constant hum of the facility stretched into a low metallic groan, and at that moment, Taylor's world grew still. Yet she didn't blink as her vision began to darken further and the arcs of energy began to coalesce. A rift was opening at the edge of her perception

Suddenly, her body felt misaligned.

Taylor's feet buckled.

She hit the floor hard.

Her stomach rolled as the world around her grew muted. Next came the pain. It wasn't sharp. It was pressure, and it came washing over her all at once.

"Subject FW21582 phase shift threshold detected."

Colour snapped back into place all at once and Taylor gasped as the voice cut through the haze in her brain.

She shook her head rapidly to clear her vision as the realisation of what she had just done hit her.

The energy dissipated between her hands.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," she cried out as she tried to stand up off the floor, stumbling as her balance still hadn't returned.

"Overlord, please…don't call for the guards again!" Taylor pleaded with the walls of her room.

"Reminder, Phase-shift transitions are restricted to authorised testing environments and pose great bodily harm should they occur unsupervised," Overlord replied mechanically "Unsupervised activities present unacceptable risk to the subject",

The doors to Taylor's room slammed open.

All she could do was fall backwards and sigh.

Today was going to be another long day.

---

The synchronised stomping rang out as a harsh reminder of who was escorting her as Taylor was wheeled to the front door of Sim Room Three's observatory in cuffs.

White ceiling lights passed by, each reflecting off the polarised visors of her escorts.

"You know, I can walk now." Taylor murmured, trying to get comfy in the wheelchair.

Neither soldier responded. She shot them a frustrated glare, but any further commentary died when she saw the first guard rest his hand on his rifle. The rest of the trip was done in silence.

When they finally reached the door to the observation deck, it opened with a hydraulic hiss and Taylor spotted Dr Martinez arguing with a technician by a row of monitors, each displaying technical readouts and surveillance feeds from all across the facility.

She noted that a few of the feeds were trained directly on her own room, but she was quickly wheeled away to a separate section of the observatory by the guards.

She could still hear Martinez in the background, "…I don't care if your device says it's normal. Just replace it!"

The technician seemed to hesitate. "But, Sir, command has specifically stated- "

"I don't care what command has stated; I need this monitor replaced, and I needed it replaced yesterday!"

Taylor couldn't see what happened next, but from the scurrying of feet, she imagined the technician had run off to do whatever Martinez had asked for.

When all was quiet, and she wondered what was taking so long, she heard the deliberate striking of leather heels on metal as Martinez approached.

"Good morning, Taylor,"

He turned to her escorts before gesturing at them with a flick of his hand. They complied at once, removing Taylor's cuffs and leaving the room. The door slid shut behind them with a dull thud.

Taylor slowly stood up from the wheelchair and began testing her balance before rubbing her wrists. "You know, the cuffs are unnecessary."

"Merely a precaution," Martinez replied. "Overlord reported a phase-shift threshold breach."

Taylor looked away. "I lost focus."

"That makes it the third time this month", Martinez said as the smile slowly dropped from his face.

Taylor, unable to meet his eyes, spoke to the floor. "Yeah, well, I'm still trying to get used to…" she waved her hands around the room "Everything."

Martinez focused on her for far too long before responding.

"And you're doing very well considering the circumstances of your arrival," he said. "Far better than either you or I could have predicted."

Taylor still refused to meet his gaze. He turned away before the silence became too awkward, tapping commands on a screen mounted to his wrist.

"I requested you here early today for a very specific reason."

A few more taps, and a door at the far end of the observatory split apart, revealing a corridor bathed in harsh white light. Yellow warning signs lined the walls. Voltage warnings and Radiation.

Martinez didn't seem bothered in the slightest as he began to walk towards the doorway before glancing over his shoulder.

"Well?" Martinez said before walking further into the corridor.

The hesitation lasted only a moment. Taylor glanced over her shoulder before steeling herself, as she took a step forward and followed him in.

---

The air in the corridor was cooler than the observatory and tasted more sterile. It reminded Taylor of her early months here. Medical rooms, gurneys and needles. Not one of the memories was pleasant.

An involuntary shudder went down her spine as they kept walking.

As Taylor passed by, another warning sign appeared.

WARNING: IONISING AND LASER RADIATION

NO ENTRY FOR UNAUTHORISED PERSONAL

Taylor's footsteps slowed as she looked to Martinez. He was unbothered, moving further down the corridor at a steady pace. He didn't explain where they were going, just expected her to follow.

"Environmental radiation readings are below the acceptable safety threshold," Overlord stated from somewhere above her.

Taylor kept walking.

After what felt to Taylor like several minutes, they finally reached a sealed bulkhead with a biometric scanner nearby.
Martinez walked up and pressed his wrist against the scanner without slowing.

The scanner flashed green as the bulkhead doors groaned open, revealing the vast empty chamber beyond. The observation deck sat high in a far corner, overlooking the whole chamber.

Martinez led her to the centre where he finally stopped. Taylor, close behind, folded her arms before finally asking Martinez the question that had been plaguing her the entire walk here.

"So", she said cautiously, "are you going to explain what we're doing here?"

Martinez still just stared forward into the chamber before finally answering. "I've studied other subjects with people like you. The fold, its power is extraordinary. And unfathomably dangerous."

"Today was the final sign that something needs to be done. Now, when your power activates, it displaces you in this reality, we both know this."

Taylor's brow furrowed and she hesitantly nodded. "That's one… way to describe it"

"What you don't understand, Taylor, is that your phase shift is abnormal. Something else is interfering with your ability to shift, and your body is unable to handle the forces acting on it."

He turned towards Taylor, a serious look drawn on his face.

"You don't know how close you truly are to your own death each time you shift."

Taylor snorted. She could very clearly remember the darkness, the pressure, the shadows.

The pain.

She clenched her jaw.

"I wasn't trying to get myself killed."

"I know." He paused, "And that, Taylor, is exactly what is wrong. Your foundation is flawed"

Martinez turned around once more and tapped a few buttons on his wrist pad. Panels in the floor that Taylor hadn't spotted earlier opened up, and prefabricated structures arose from the ground.

"If the body doesn't know where it is at all times, the brain can't comprehend the idea of displacing itself from our reality"

Concrete and steel buildings rapidly filled the chamber. Ropes and cables littered the chamber, trenches appeared, and sand and mud replaced the smooth steel.

Taylor's arms went slack.

"An obstacle course?" she said, "That's your solution?"

"It's a controlled stress environment," Martinez stated, "It's designed to test your balance, coordination, cardiovascular endurance and decision-making under pressure. The course can be adjusted through my wrist pad or up at the observation room."

Martinez tapped his wrist pad again, and Taylor saw new obstacles and terrain appear and disappear. Climbing holds, balance beams came and went.

She glanced up to the observation deck, then back at the course.
"This is supposed to help me how?" She asked. The skepticism clearly echoed in her voice.

"Physical control builds instinct." He continued. "This instinct will help stabilise the transition."

Taylor walked slowly towards the course.

Towering steel loomed over her, and it seemed even bigger when she was up close. Running had never been her strength, nor had climbing, or balance, or anything physical for that matter. She'd spent the last three years of her life trying not to draw attention to herself.

"I don't think I can do this." A pause. "Look at me." She gestured vaguely at all of herself before pointing towards the obstacles.

"I've never done anything like this in my life, and now you want me to do it under the context that if I don't get stronger, I'm not going to survive?"

Martinez said nothing, and Taylor felt her head drop.

"I'm not expecting you to succeed, Taylor," Martinez said neutrally.

Her gaze snapped up to meet his.

"I am, however, expecting you to try." He continued. "Choosing not to try is the only outcome in which I cannot help you survive"

The words caught her flat footed. For a moment, there was silence, and she didn't know how to respond.

She had expected pressure. A demand. Some carefully disguised order framed behind polite pretences. Instead, Martinez stood there, watching and waiting. There was no urgency in him, no visible disappointment when she didn't immediately move. There was nothing.

That almost made her as uncomfortable as being forced would have.

Turning back to the obstacles, she grimaced. Her eyes traced the narrow beams suspended over trenches and the climbing nets that would certainly hurt if she fell. It looked less like random obstacles and more like equipment designed to test every physical insecurity she had.

Taylor's hands curled at her sides, and behind her, Martinez shifted his weight and gestured to the first obstacle but said nothing. Simply waiting as all while the weight of the decision rested with her.

That was what made it so hard to refuse.

Taylor didn't move.

Seconds passed. Then minutes.

She was prepared for the correction. For Martinez to clarify. To remind her that refusal wasn't really an option...yet nothing came. No guards stormed in with guns trained on her. No warning from Overlord about compliance echoed in the chamber. The facility that she believed was so used to noting down every deviation of hers, remained quiet.

The absence of demands and instruction felt foreign, almost unsettling.

For the first time since arriving on Typhon, Taylor realised that no one was making the decision for her.

Which meant not moving was also her decision.

She slowly exhaled and began walking to the start before even more self doubt could creep in.

This time, the ground felt unfamiliar. Textured, rough, uneven. She was so used to the solid, flat flooring of medical chambers and cells that when she first stepped onto the dirt, she stumbled and had to catch herself. Her feet had yet to be accustomed to terrain like this.

Once again, Martinez said nothing, watching with the same measured gaze. He offered no words of encouragement, no motivation, only his attention.

The first obstacle appeared simple. A rope with a bell attached to the top.

It should have been simple; all she had to do was climb the rope and hit the bell. It was no more than 15 feet, but when she held onto the rope, her throat tightened.

Her body recognised this feeling before her mind did. The moment when someone else was going to decide what she was worth.

For a heartbeat she didn't move.

The bell did not mock her. It didn't taunt her; it made no sound. It simply hung there.

She imagined falling from halfway up, imagined hitting the ground, imagined the disappointment that Martinez would feel, imagined the disappointment she would feel. She almost let go.


Instead, Taylor pulled.


The first pull was awkward, and the rope strained louder than it should have. More strength than technique, and her arms were shaking as she struggled to lift her weight off the ground for the first time. Feet, unable to find a solid hold to stand on.

She barely rose at all before doubt flashed through her mind.

It was too difficult. She wasn't built to do this.

Her foot slipped.

She hung on as hard as she could. If she fell now, she didn't know if she'd have the confidence to try again.

For a single moment, Taylor hung from a rope, four feet above the ground. Contemplating whether she really could do it. The ground was close enough that she could simply drop down and quit if she wished.

She pulled again.

She shifted her grip and tightened her legs around the rope, finding purchase. It felt unstable, but it worked. She didn't slip.

She pulled again.

This time, she focused solely on the next foot of rope.

One arm out. Pull.

One arm out. Pull.

She settled into a steady rhythm as she climbed. Inch by inch, she moved. Her shoulders began to ache, and her palms felt like they were on fire.

The last stretch was the hardest. Her arms shaking, fingers gripping the rope so hard her knuckles turned white. Her vision began to blur as tears started to form in her eyes.

Just as she was starting to grow worried, she'd never reach the top, she felt something brush her head.

Lifting her right arm, she struck the bell.

The sound rang clear across the testing chamber. Undeniable proof of what she had just accomplished.

Taylor stayed there for a second at the top of the rope, catching her breath. She descended slowly, taking care to avoid burning her hands sliding down the rope.

When her feet were planted again, she looked up at the bell. It suddenly didn't feel so far away.

Her arms still ached and her hands burned, but the fear she was waiting for never came. Turning her head, she locked eyes with Martinez.
He had been standing there the entire time. Hands behind his back. Composed. His expression hadn't changed, he hadn't moved to help, he hadn't gone to tell her to stop.

He waited.

For a second, she was unsure he would say or do anything. A correction, a reminder. Instead, he nodded. It was a small one, a slight dip of the chin, but it was enough for her.

The smile that formed on her face was the first one in months. It was small and uncertain.

And for the first time that day, she did not look away from his gaze.

High above them in the roof of the chamber, the cameras watched her.

…

It never once occurred to Taylor that she wasn't wearing her glasses.

---

Spoiler: Author Note

"Betad by: Myself (and a grammar checker)

Hey everyone, hope you enjoy the first full chapter of I, Simulacrum, and the beginning of the first act "Cold Start." Only 5 chapters in this arc as its the setup leading us to Earth Bet and Worms main timeline.
As always, feedback is welcome. I'm still trying to find my style and rhythm as someone learning to become a better writer. But I hope you enjoy!

Worm is owned by Wildbow and Titanfall is owned by Respawn Entertainment.