A Girl and Her Tank
You were Isara Gunther, and as you worked on your tank, you were lost in thought.
Turn. Turn. Turn.
You were currently adjusting the turret with a wrench, making sure it was properly placed. You were sure Dr. Eggman was more than capable of building a tank based on what you have seen, but honestly, it was better safe than sorry. One wrong move and you could get sho-
….
You choose not to finish that thought and think about something else.
Dr. Eggman was… an interesting individual. To say you understood him completely would be a boldfaced lie, really. But you think you got enough from him that, despite the megalomania, despite the poor first impression, you think… you think you get him on SOME level.
Gee, Welkin would think you had Stockholm syndrome if he could hear these thoughts… wherever he was…
But it was true. Sage was kind enough to fill you in on some details here and there when you asked while you were trying to familiarize yourself with this super advanced tech (at least, it was advanced to you). Even some stuff she didn't tell anyone else (though you get that feeling that's just because they never asked).
His family neglected him. The only relative he felt any connection to died, framed as a horrible madman. Said neglectful family did so because they were busy mourning his cousin over taking care of their own son.
You still felt the pain of the loss of your father, and you had a loving adoptive family to fill the void. You couldn't imagine losing a relative and then having the added wrinkle of feeling unloved by those you had left.
It didn't excuse his actions but….she could understand, like she said.
And ultimately, poor first impression aside, the doctor hadn't been so bad. Not only were you fed and housed, so were several others of your people, and all that was expected of them was to pull their weight. There was no beatings or prejudice either. Despite his clear reservations, Dr. Eggman had even offered even more of them a place to stay. It was nice to have someone who had no opinion on their kind one way or the other. Would it be even nicer if they had a positive opinion? Yes. But it was better than the alternative.
You had actually quite enjoyed making that giant robot… When you suggested the new name, you were half-joking, expecting your new boss to scoff at best and yell at you at worst. But even though he grumbled, he acknowledged your contributions by accepting the new name. You had to admit, that was unexpected, and it made you feel good. Alot better than you had since ending up revived in this insane New world.
Of course, Fighting those aliens had been… frightening, but they came out victorious. It was just another battle, you supposed. You had been in plenty of those.
And building an entire city wasn't something you ever expected to do, even with assistance. And yet…
You put the finishing touches on your tank as you mused more.
Were… were you the bad guy now? Sure, you weren't doing half the horrid acts of the Empire, but were you not Conquering as they would? You didn't know what to think anymore.
What would your family and friends think? Were they….were they even out there sti-
"Miss Gunther, are you quite alright?"
Isara is snapped out of her thoughts by Agent Stone. He had been the first to show her around, and he often checked on her. You appreciated the man, even if you found him odd.
"Uh, yes. I was just… thinking…" You answered, looking down. Stone didn't pry, just handing you some coffee.
You smiled and drank it. You thought you would never enjoy coffee, but Stone was practically a savant at making the beverage.
"If you need to talk, I am here." He said simply.
"...Thank you." You said simply, wiping a tear.
"Can you tell me about what goes into repairing a tank?" Stone requested, in a clear but appreciated attempt to change the subject. You smiled genuinely and launched into a tirade explaining as he requested as Stone listened intently.
If you were the bad guy now… maybe that wasn't the end of the world.