Chapter Fifty-Nine – Shut Down

"John please, open your eyes, please." Lin begged as he rocked the human in his arms. His vision kept blurring, and his throat kept hitching. He wanted to turn it off, more than anything. If he could stop the ache rising in his chest he would, he'd cut the pain out if that were possible. "John…" He murmured again, but the teen remained unresponsive, his vitals dropping quickly. Lin raised his head, only seeing one option available.

No one on either side spoke. None of the androids tried to stop him as he slipped down to the ground, outside the safety of the barricade. His breath was shaking with sobs as he gently tugged John's body into his arms, cradling him like a sleeping princess. John's head leaned on his shoulder securely, like he was sleeping, like he had many nights when Lin carried him to bed. The difference was the sickening warmth seeping through Lin's shirt where John had been shot. Lin fixed his eyes on the humans, who remained at their posts as the tall android slowly stumbled closer.

"Please, help him!" Lin cried as he stopped half way, falling to his knees as he got no response. No one had been authorised to move yet it seemed, the humans all looking back and forth between their group to see if there were instructions. "He's human! He's like you! You can't just let him die!" Lin shouted, lowering John's lower half to the ground. John was starting to feel less warm, though he was still breathing for now. Lin lowered his head in defeat, keeping John's head resting in the crook of his arm while running his hand through the teen's ruffled locks.

He barely focused on the world around him, closing himself off as he realised they didn't consider John important enough to save.Lin felt a strange sense of peace as he examined John's sleeping face, traces of his last gentle smile still left on his reddened lips. Lin swallowed as he ran his thumb over John's bottom lip, all chewed and bitten, marks and dried blood remained. I always told you to stop doing that…The android thought as he smiled, lowering himself to kiss John's lips. They were dry, and a little colder than usual.

"You gave me so much…saved me when no one else would have…" Lin murmured, knowing the teen likely couldn't hear him in his sleep, not to mention the surrounding noise. The android reached up to his shirt collar, the white material stained both red and blue. He tugged hard, ripping the buttons until the material was open. "You saw my life as important…" He added, the flesh across his chest rippling and retreating to reveal his white casing. Lin closed his eyes, releasing a breath as he reached for his power core.

The edges were smooth and round against his fingers. He gritted his teeth as he pushed and twisted, the core popping free into his hand. He breathed out, not enjoying the sensation in the port as the warm, glowing core was removed. Errors and warnings filled his vision, demanding he return the core. A five minute count down had begun. His senses dulled a little as his body tried to conserve energy by lowering his sensitivity. Lin felt his movements become sluggish, his head jerking a little as he focused on John.

"This…always belonged to you…" Lin said softly, trying to ignore the sensation of fresh thirium leaking from the core's port. He slowly lowered the core against John's chest before repositioning the human's arms, moving him to cover the blue light with his smaller hands. "Together…always…" The Asian added as he looked down. John looked peaceful in his arms, his hands gently holding Lin's warm core. Lin lowered his head and closed his eyes. He had less than three minutes, but that didn't matter this time. He wasn't afraid of shutting down anymore. John was with him. He wasn't alone. "I love you." Were the last words he said before waiting in silence.