Page 58 of Ruin

He debated giving her the injector of hull sealant he usually used as a temporary fix on puncture wounds, but thought better of it. Instead, he bent and tore off a mostly clean strip of cloth from the nearest body, and handed it to her.

The look she gave him—a cross between appalled consternation and exasperation—had him swallowing down a laugh.

She took it with a huff and bandaged him up. Deciding he’d live, she turned her attention to Hush.

Much to his delight, the Drifter froze and stared down at the top of Lira’s head like she was a primed nanite grenade, expression wavering between pleasure at being fussed over, unnerved, and guilt when she tutted, as if he felt bad for getting shot solely because it was causing her distress.

“I suppose you don’t have bandages, either?”

“Uhh… ”

Bending, Ruin tore off two more strips and handed them to Hush with a smile. He, in turn, handed them to Lira wordlessly.

Finished with the Drifter, she looked around for the first time.

Ruin braced for her reaction. He knew she wasn't squeamish, but this… this was a level of carnage that’d turn even a seasoned warrior’s stomach.

Horror was plain to see in those expressive green eyes, but to his surprise, it was almost immediately overshadowed by relief when she caught sight of Beep. That made him wonder what awful shit she’d seen while Vargot’s slave.

“Aww, Beep!”

Ruin watched bemusedly as she tiptoed her way through the body parts to get to her pet.

“You did so good! Are you okay? Did you get hurt?” she cooed.

The bot seemed to soak up the praise—antennae twitching and wings fluttering in a way he could only describe as happy.

Hush limped over to his side, favoring his injured leg.

“Well, that was fun,” he quipped, his usual grin in place despite the pain evident in his eyes. “Your little bird saved our tails. Wouldn’t think it to look at ‘er, but she’s tough as fuck.”

Pride swelled in Ruin's chest, mingling with the lingering fear from seeing that plasma bolt strike so close to where she’d been hidden. He swallowed hard, pushing down the emotion.

“Mm, she is, indeed.”

From the corner of his eye, he caught Hush cocking his head, lips twitching as they both watched her check the robot over for injuries.

“And you sayI’mweird.”

“Youareweird,” Ruin huffed.

“Yeah, but not ‘fuss over a robot’ weird.”

“Quiet, you. She’s adorable.”

“I’m not arguin’ that. But she’s still weird as fuck.”

Ruin couldn’t dispute that, so he ignored it.

Hush chuckled at his lack of a response and bent to yank one of his blades out of a nearby body before straightening.

“Where you think I could get a bot like that?”

“Fuck if I know,” Ruin replied.

But damn, did he want one for himself. He wondered if that model in particular was uniquely capable of experiencing emotions and forming attachments, or if Lira had done something when she fixed it.

Question for another day.

---