The silence around me is strangely comforting as I sift through the ruined robot's metal carcass. A hydraulic joint here, a bunch of wires there, and a bunch of armor plating in between. I make quick work of disassembling it, and quickly get at my prize: the power core. It shines a fickle shade of pink, the chemicals and electricity reacting inside to produce energy. I place it carfully in my bag, and grab the rest of my spoils, layering them above my precious cargo.
I stand up, and stare for a moment at the midday sun. It's a beautiful day to scrounge for scrap, but I should be getting back to Ame and the others. I don't like to leave on my own for too long, in case I hit another "episode". Thankfully, it's been a few weeks since the last one, and I'm feeling better, settling into a daily routine.
As I walk calmly, a clatter among the rubble puts me on alert, and I turn to face the sound, grabbing my pistol and hoisting it to chest level. It's only got three bullets in it, so I have to use them sparingly. Thankfully, it turns out to be a bear cub, trailing after its mother not a few metres away from me, with its back to me. It turns to look at me, and I smile, seeing a peaceful presence on its features as it turns back and keeps ambling along.
I holster my pistol, and keep walking. "It seems I've gotten used to the prospect of death, doesn't it?" I say to the sky, and to myself. "It's not that I'm desensitized, but that I'm at peace, I guess."
The sky says nothing back, and I chuckle. "Oh well. There's worse I could do for myself."
As I walk, I glance off to the side of my footpath and see something I haven't seen before. It's a Omnic unlike any other, with a large, hammerhead-style front end and what seem like legs, but are actually four coiled tentacles. I stand completely still as it moves around a ruined car park, inspecting its surroundings, with what I assume is its back towards me. I dare not move, nor radio for help, for I know Omnic behavior well, and anything that alerts this thing to me is my demise.
As I hold my breath, It slowly turns around, stopping to fully rest its robotic gaze on me. It stays still for a moment, and then continues on. I let out a sigh of relief in my mind, not willing to do so in the real world.
My radio crackles to life. "Dragon, this is Willowtree. Come in, Dragon."
Without warning, the Omnic launches itself at me, its tentacles coiling around behind it as it flies with pinpoint precision, bearing down on me. I draw my pistol and wait until it's close to me, rolling forwards so I'm under it as it presumably aims for where I was. A tentacle hits me while I'm rolling, and the other three soon follow, until it's wrapped me up. I know not to struggle, but my body still does so as it constricts me tighter until I'm in an inescapable grip. It lifts me to its optic, and surveys me as I try to maneuver my pistol into a useable angle.
Just as it beeps, I manage to wriggle my pistol so that it's angled at a glowing red glass orb located at the base of its tentacles. "Eat lead, infidel." I snarl as I pump all three precious bullets into what looks to be the power core. It sputters, and drops me, moving jerkily away from me as sparks shower from my target. I get up, and walk towards it, more angry than anything else, and when I get close enough, I bash the damaged Omnic with my pistol until it falls over, a low hum disappearing from the air around me.
I breathe in and out a few times before placing my pistol back in its holster and grabbing my radio. "...Willowtree, this is Dragon."
"Dragon, listen. I just spotted some atypical Omnics over your location. They've got-"
I cut him off. "Tentacles, yeah? Listen, you alerted one to me with that stupid radio of yours, big brain. I nearly got turned into mashed potatoes because of you."
He's silent on the other end. I sigh. "Listen, just watch the skies for me until I'm home. I may be a bit longer."
"...Affirmative." I take his response to mean his cooperation, and I move to the now-dead Omnic, semi-cautious, but also wanting to examine it for parts.
As I work, I find something that I haven't seen before. It looks like a jet turbine, but if it was squished down to be the size of the top of a soda can. I find two of them in total, and I place them both in my bag. I grab the tentacles as well, disconnecting them and setting them on the side as I delve further into the bot's inner workings. I salvage all the wires, and all the armor plating, as it looks suprisingly strong. I end my search when I find the power cores- two of them, which surprises me. "I guess it would need more power to sustain flight," I muse as I disconnect them from their casing, the thin oval-like shape fitting nicely in my palm. Sadly, both ahve bullet holes, so they're unusable. I toss them into the junk pile, and stand up, having finished my job. All my spoils go into my bag, which is now nearly overflowing, and the tentacles go over my shoulder as I trudge homewards.