Ever since the newest MD Glitch ad, I’ve seen new Murder Drones content on TikTok and Twitter.

In response to @royaltea16's inquiry - a batch of fic recs centered around N! (With a couple general-focus fics that write him very well tossed in.)

+ GENERAL RECS +

Nearly any fic by Star_Going_Supernova, who is an N freak in juust the way I am - I haven't read a fic by them I disliked. Great at exploring the nuance of N's character, and also dives into the under-explored relationship between N and Cyn at various points in their timeline. I'll have a couple of their fics in this list, but /please/ don't stop at those, go browse their works!

+ INDIVIDUAL RECS +

Pack Instincts by Drillist An /excellent/ "what-if" where N doesn't switch sides upon meeting Uzi, but instead continues working alongside J and V while lowkey questioning everything and everyone. Explores the relationship between N, V, and J in a way I pretty much consider canon, it makes so much sense and works so well. Unfinished, but ongoing.

change is coming (i am still here) by Star_Going_Supernova AU where N is mute - he can't speak, can't change his visor off anything but the killing 'X', and all he's ever been is a mindless hunting machine. Despite this, he manages to show there's something more to him than that, and Nori, taking a chance, reaches out to the murder drone that almost killed her - as a friend (or more like a stray cat she's managed to tame). Also becomes /adorable/ once the colony accepts N as their 'guardian monster', especially because all the drone children think he's the coolest thing ever and he's only too willing to accommodate them and play with them :) Unfinished, but ongoing.

Press Start by Mr_kodeo A 'game system' AU where N obtains video-game menu powers - leveling, stats reading, and unlockable abilities. Has a pretty great handle on N's characterization and mindset, as leveling dangles in front of him the power to, maybe, have things go a little better for him… Also, it takes reader input - N's choices are periodically put up as polls for readers to decide. Unfinished, but ongoing.

sick as a dog by sapphofinch Oneshot featuring sick N and Nori taking care of him - as well as accidentally discovering they have something in common and dang, she's starting to like him fr. A lovely domestic snapshot. Complete.

hope is the thing with (bladed) feathers by Star_Going_Supernova AU where Tessa escapes the Gala with N, and the both of them struggle to survive a mid-apocalyptic world as Cyn sics her disassemblers on tracking them down. Initially, N is a worker drone, but Tessa transfers him into a disassembler's body early on, and he has to get used to the entirely different body (and hungers). Part of a series with two supplementary works. Chock-full of sweet moments between Tessa and N and their growing codependency. Do mind the tags, particularly if you check the other fics in the series. Unfinished, but ongoing.

The Cage The Body Builds by DeeTheTeaDrinkingDragon More Nuzi-focused than N-focused alone, but such a sweet story of the two of them taking care of each other, illustrating just how comfortable with each other and in-love they both are. <3 Complete.

Servant and Subject by Skak Almost-but-not-quite a roleswap AU; more like it shuffles the deck. N, or Nathaniel, is an adult Tessa's personal drone assistant. Subject 002, who insists she has a name and it's "Uzi", is the most aggressive and vindictive Solver Drone held in the facility on Copper-9. This fic takes a deeper look into the exact relationship between Tessa and N, and the inherent imbalance with your 'best friend' also being a form of property you have complete control over. Unfinished.

Broken Idols, Restored Memories by The_Mad_Mystic AU where Uzi's shot in the pilot doesn't screw up N's memories, it /restores/ them - /all of them./ All the way back to Tessa and the manor. Unfinished, but ongoing.

Get Up, Puppy by On_Solar_Wings AU where N suffers yet another bout of amnesia - and an unknown entity who only allows herself to be referred to as "Her" takes ownership of him, leading him around to her own ends. A wonderfully angst-ridden dissection of N's willingness to help and be obedient, and how that goes for him when the person in control abandons all pretenses of kindness. Unfinished, but ongoing.

and when the ice sets in, i'll need you by sapphofinch Pacific Rim AU centered around first N and V, discovering they're drift-compatible (and they are VERY drift-compatible), and then chapter 2 introduces Uzi who wriggles her way into their dynamic in a niche just meant for her. Unfinished, 1 chapter projected til completion.

Drones of Primus by Bigbook29 Transformers AU, with some natural departures in characterization due to their alternate backstories. Uzi lives in an underground bunker neutral to the war between the Autobots and Decepticons… except she firmly believes the Decepticons are on the right side of the war, and wants to someday leave and join Megatron's army. N, meanwhile, is an elite soldier on the Autobots' side who idolizes Optimus Prime - and has fought on his side for millennia of war. Mostly Uzi-centric, but N gets a lot of focus as well as a main character. Unfinished, but ongoing.