The Princess and the Doll

A Post-Series G-Witch Force-Fem Universe Fanfic

This story is an interquel to my previous fanfic, Last Man Standing.

“So, have you picked out a name yet?”

“Guenevere. Guen for short.”

“Guen? It’s a whole new identity. Are you really content to keep it so similar?” Guen drained the water from her glass and then shot the woman sitting across from her a very pointed look.

“Are you sure this is a game you want to play, Shanaya? Maybe we should call up Eleanor and see what she thinks.”

“No need to get so defensive over a simple question.” Shanaya Zenelli brushed her long, golden hair out of her face and over her shoulder. The woman was immaculate: eyeliner and lipstick applied with a grace and precision that made Guen nervous for her own prospects. Shanaya dressed how Guen expected she would: a black dress with some splashes of Gold. A palette that she had proven she could wear well. What Guen did not expect — but very clearly should have — was the ever-plunging neckline. Yes, very impressive. Very deep. Very distracting… “Are you feeling well, Guen?”

“Y-Yes.” She sputtered. Her cheeks were burning. Damn you, Shanaya! Guen raised her gaze, expecting to be met with a look of triumph, or perhaps derision. Instead, she found a soft, but warm smile. Shanaya’s vibrant blue eyes however betrayed a hint of something else. Sadness, it seemed. Or, perhaps, regret? Shanaya cocked her head slightly. Guen finally caught herself. She had been staring far, far too long. She turned her head away from Shanaya, and tried to flag down a waiter. Clearly she needed more water. Shanaya giggled. Always the butt of the joke. Guen refused to acknowledge her dining partner until after she had her glass refilled. Perhaps I am being petty.

“So” Guen started, only after having taken a sip. “How’s the old man?” Shanaya shifted.

“Well, you know.” She rubbed her shoulder. “Sarius was never in the best condition, but he’s holding strong. He’s got plenty of fight left in him.” Her lower lip started to tremble, ever so slightly. “But, er, even he’s got his limits.” Guen’s heart sank. “Experts say he’s got a few years left in him. But it’s doubtful I’m going to have any meaningful time with him in person before he… well, you know.” She nodded and then reached for her wine. So, it was regret. Guen scratched the back of her neck, thinking.

“Well, I’d need to look into what the process for putting on in is like, but maybe I could pull some strings. Give you a longer-term work order so that you could manage a visit.”

“You would really do that for me? After I tried to kill you?”

“Yeah. I mean… I am still a bit pissed. Understandably, I’d hope. But you clearly regret doing what you did, and you have done everything you can to make up for it — and more. I just no longer see the point in holding that over your head. Especially since you need an opportunity to say goodbye to your old man.” She felt something had caught in her throat. “Maybe this is my way of atoning for patricide. Who knows.”

“Thank you.”

“Yeah. You’re just lucky we’re always in need of new test pilots.”

“Test Pilots? What, are you stupid? Do you think anyone is going to be ok with me getting anywhere near a cockpit ever again.”

“Yeah, yeah, stupid idea, no need to be an asshole about it. If you’d rather, we could have you babysit Elan. It’s a full-time position, and I guarantee it’ll never be dull.”

“Honestly, I think I’d rather go back to Prison.”

“How about minding Secelia then? I can’t deal with both of them myself.”

“The hell is Secelia Dote of Burion doing working at Jeturk HQ?”

“Oh, you didn’t know?” Guen leaned forward. “So, in the aftermath of the Benerit group dissolving-“

“Good riddance.”

“Good riddance, a lot of the smaller companies either went under, or were forced to undergo emergency mergers when their legs were cut out from underneath them. A lot of the bigger companies managed to survive, but not all. Without their poster-boy, their heads, and with no leverage with the SAL, Peil folded, and its assets divided up, for instance.” Shanaya nodded. There was a silver lining to everything. “Burion was one of the larger companies that didn’t get hit too hard to die off completely, but was left on shakier ground. Feeling insecure, they offered a deal. Burion is now an affiliate of Jeturk. Mostly independent. It just so happens Secelia was high enough up the corporate ladder to be a strong candidate for their Liaison at Jeturk, while still not being too important to risk leaving in that position. Her office being on the same floor as mine is a privilege she takes far too much pleasure in abusing, if you ask me.”

“Quite a motley crew you’ve got.”

“Yeah. Paying off though. The Dilanza Garrison is almost ready for public demonstration.”

“You really aren’t creative with names, are you?”

“Fuck no.” The pair laughed. It was a pleasant time. “So, got any plans for the rest of the night?”

“I might’ve. Unfortunately, I’m not allowed anywhere unchaperoned, and since our hostesses left…” Shanaya sat back, sighing. “I was hoping I could enjoy as much time as possible on the outside but, it seems some things aren’t meant to be.”

Guen tapped her glass pensively. It was a shame. The past few years had taught her that time truly was the most precious of resources. Though even just a few weeks back she would have been more than happy to throw Shanaya back into her cell herself, things changed. It didn’t sit right with her, especially since she could very easily intervene.

“Think I might be able to help there.”

“Oh?”

Already an important city, Vancouver saw it’s prosperity and economic importance skyrocket during the last century. Hosting one of Earth’s handful of orbital lift platforms, Vancouver was an important hub: wealth coming in from across the Pacific and ascending directly into the pockets of the most affluent of Spacians. Despite promises of the wealth of space mingling with the culture of Earth to create something prosperous and beautiful, the reality was that only a few lucky Earthians, born at the right place at the right time, would benefit fully from this arrangement. The Jeturks, allegedly anyways, were once upon a time one such family. It was for this reason that Jeturk House was built. An estate, and a gaudy one at that, Jeturk House was a place for the family to recharge and relax after getting excessively wealthy in space at the expense of their fellow man. This was the reason Guen was loathe to go there — aside from the natural beauty of the sea meeting the shore and it’s forests and then bending up via the Rocky Mountains to reach the sky — there was nothing there for her but memories of blood. Or, that was how she justified it to herself. It was where she and Lauda grew up before Asticassia.

“So, do I need to call anyone and let them know where you are, or…?”

“No.” Replied Shanaya. “You can probably just call Miorinne and let her know that I am in your custody for the night.”

“… I’ll text Suletta.”

“Yes. That’s probably a safer plan, actually.” Guen reached into the pocket of her jacket.

“So, you are certain I don’t need to contact the authorities at the Prison?”

“If you want to go out of your way, you can. But it won’t be necessary.” Shanaya raised her right arm. Hanging on her wrist was a thick, black bracelet. Save for a very fine seam and a single red light blinking every few moments, it seemed like a solid piece of metal. “Rest assured: I am kept on a very tight leash.” Guen responded with a… rather unflattering grunt of acknowledgement. “Lovely. Do you come here often?”

“God no. First time since I was a little b- … a little girl” That’s going to take some time, isn’t it. “Honestly, Lauda’s been getting more use out of it than me. Thought he and Petra could use the comfort. And the view.”

“I see. Oh, where is your darling brother now?” Guen pointed skywards.

“If I’m down here, then he’s up there. Someone’s got to keep an eye on the business. And make sure Ceres doesn’t try a corporate Coup D’état.”

“Is he alright with that?”

“Whose idea do you think it was? He’s been begging me for a while to rely on him. I thought that, since I’d be staying put here due to the surgery and recovery, it’d be a good opportunity to see how he does. Low stakes, and all that.”

“How did the Implantation go?”

“Went well, I think.”

“Are you happy with it?”

“Well, It’s only been in me for a couple weeks now but yeah. I’d say so. I’ve been feeling a bit more at peace with myself as of late. I can imagine a future for myself now. Though I admit I do need to have faith it’ll go well for me in the long term.” Shanaya tapped her chin.

“You’re not sure it’ll ‘turn out’ well?”

“My brain doesn’t.”

“You know GUND-ARM has something to help with that, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“Let me see your Phone for a second” Guen’s phone was still in her hand. She started to hand it over before realizing no, giving it to her is probably a terrible idea. Unfortunately, by the time she processed this, Shanaya had already snatched it from her grasp. “No need to worry.” A couple minutes of tapping and swiping later, Shanaya looked at Guen. “Where is your implant?” Confused, Guen raised her right arm, and pointed with her left hand to a spot just under her ribs. Shanaya waved the phone over the spot before gazing at the screen. Her eyebrows hiked up. “Oooooh my. I’m going to have some real fun with you, next time I’m out.”

“What?” Guen asked, blinking. Shanaya haphazardly tossed her phone back. Catching it, Guen finally took a peep. Here eyes widened. Her cheeks burned. She stammered. “W-w-w-what the fuck? Why the hell are they so-“

“That app takes stock of current endocrine production, biological matters, genetic history, biomarkers, and several other complicated data points and projects — as best it can guess — a likely image of what you ought to look like within a specified timespan. I know you can adjust the implant’s settings manually but, honestly, I’m quite jealous.”

Guen could not believe her eyes. How bad is the back pain going to be? How expensive will the bras be? How many bras will I go through? Even in success, she suffered. The rapid pace of the thoughts racing through her anxiety-stricken mind was broken by a notification. A message. From Elan Ceres. Shit, what now? “hey ‘Boss’, I was sitting in my office and I had a pretty brilliant idea for a potential mobile suit. I wrote down all the details and a basic design mock-up, I think you’ll be quite impressed” … well, guess it couldn’t hurt to- what the fuck? What the fuck? It started as a little impulse in her chest, but it very quickly spread. From a chortle, to a chuckle, to in very short order a full blown belly laugh. Fuller and deeper than Guen had laughed in years, if ever. Naturally, Shanaya’s curiosity piqued.

“What is it?” Guen kept laughing. Shanaya lunged for the phone, and looked. “The hell is this?” Guen wiped her eyes, gasping for air.

“It’s” she tried. “… It’s Ceres’ magnum opus” she chackled.

“But what is it?”

“A transformable, combining Mobile Suit.”

“Those exist?”

“Fuck no!” Guen was finally grounded. She sidled next to Shanaya, so they could both enjoy the magnificent work spawned by Elan’s questionable mind. “So this monstrosity is supposed to be made from two flight units. Which combine into a big Mobile Suit — my Dilanza is here in the margins, for scale, I guess, and it can also convert into this, uuuuuh, ‘Mobile Fortress’ mode.”

“Seems… horribly inefficient.”

“No shit. He’s calling this a ‘Absolute Territory Defense Unit’. Which, I guess, is why it has that massive Beam Rifle.”

“And those back-mounted Particle Cannons. And those missile pods.”

“And the forehead mounted, uh, ‘Mega Particle Cannon’. Shit, what kind of reactor does he think we have?”

“This thing’s extremely bulky.”

“Bulky, slow, a big target. Doesn’t even look like it has anything for close quarters for if something closes the gap.”

“Oh wait, look. The Particle Cannons are also supposed to be Beam Sabers.”

“Oh god.”

“Maintenance on this thing is going to be a nightmare.”

“No shit. I don’t think this thing even uses standardized parts. It’s probably all custom. Imagine needing to put this thing in storage for months on end because a plate got dented.”

“Or imagine what happens if one of the individual flight units gets lost. Hate to be the poor fool flying around with only an upper body.”

“I doubt even Suletta’s piloting could make up for this thing’s weaknesses.” The pair looked at the document longingly.

“You can’t let this thing die here.”

“Oh, don’t worry. This is a travesty. I love it. Jeturk will start making Mobile Suit model kits purely so that the world can enjoy this disaster of mechanical design and so everyone on Earth and in Space knows just what kind of a dumbass Elan Ceres is.” Shanaya leaned into Guen. Guen, for her part, froze. It was unexpected. A little awkward. But not entirely unpleasant. Quite the opposite, in fact.

“You know. I’m glad I didn’t kill you.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“No, I mean it. I’ve had plenty of time to think and realize that killing you would have been empty, and hollow. I’ve come up with a much more delicious and legal way to get even, and the fun I’ve had tonight cemented it”. Guen’s heart started to race. Her body heating up.

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“I’m going to ruin you, Guenevere Jeturk. And you are going to love each and every second of it.”

“M-Ma’am?” Before Guen could stammer more, Shanaya suddenly forced all her body weight into her. The pair jerkily shuffled back, until Guen tumbled into a reclined position on a couch, Shanaya on top of her. On arm under Guen’s shirt, resting on her abs while Shanaya leaned into Guen’s chest.

“Wha’th’fuck are you doing?”

“Listening. To your heartbeat.” Guen’s body was now, definitely, getting much, much warmer. “There’s no sense in beating around the bush. We all know what happened tonight. I felt it and you felt it. But we both know how stubborn and thick-skulled you can be. So, I’m listening to what your body is saying about this.” Guen didn’t fully understand it all, but she thought she was putting things together. “So, I’m going to tell you what I think, and tell you what your body thinks. And I only want to hear a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’. And whichever it is, I will take it to heart. Do you understand me?” Guen steadied her breathing. Shanaya’s cool, smooth skin was comforting on her overheating abs. She gulped.

“Yes.”

“Good Girl. Oh, you’re already loving things. I’m wondering, I know how self-conscious you are, deep down. So, I’m thinking of giving you a helping hand. Exploring styles. Getting bolder. Everyone loves a woman of confidence. And It’ll be especially handy if you are a CEO. So, would you like it if, when behind closed doors, you were my little dolly?” Guen gulped. “Think of all the things you could wear. To see if you like them. A big, frilly dress? Doesn’t that sound nice? Ooh, or maybe you could be a Cheerleader. Imagine, a tight Crop-top showing off all your well-deserved assets, a small skirt so you don’t have to hide your athletic legs, and your poofy, curly hair, tied up in a nice, big ponytail. Isn’t that a lovely idea?”

“Yes. It is.” Shanaya shifted around. So she was more on top of Guen, looking directly into her eyes. This time, there was a look of understanding to them. And a growing hint of hunger.

“Do you want to go further?” Guen’s eyes started to well up. Just like with Secelia, there were things that she needed, but she was too anxious and too stubborn to ask for them, and for help.

“Yes.” She nodded, sobbing. Shanaya shuffled closer, and gingerly wiped her tears away, shushing her.

“It’s okay, Guen. It’s okay.” Guen started to steady herself as Shanaya adjusted once again, ever so slightly. Her arms fell onto each of Guen’s shoulders. The expression of care and concern she previously wore started to twist. A smile, curled at the corners of her mouth. Hunger plain in her eyes now. The Lioness had found her moment to strike. “Here’s what’s going to happen. It’s something that I can’t trust anyone else with.” She cooed, grinning mischievously. “I am going to fuck the last dregs of manhood out of you, Guenevere Jeturk.”