I get the idea that Tech is the most aware of how physically fragile Echo is.

"Fives?" Echo asks. He sits up, looking dazed.

Tech pushes him back on the makeshift medical bed, a kitchen counter. "lie down, you hit your head on a rock when you dodged the cannon fire."

"oh." he lays back down, "where are we?"

"a nearby farmhouse. We had to make a strategic retreat when their reinforcements arrived. You have a mild concussion. I suggest you lay still for a while." Tech gathers his tools, "now I need to see to Wrecker." Echo rolls over to rest as he walks over to Wrecker, "I told you to flank left."

"you didn't say whose left." Wrecker complains.

Tech rolls his eyes, "yours, obviously." he wraps his arm in a bacta strip. He kept glancing over at their newest member.

"Tech, are you okay?" Wrecker asks.

Tech realized that Wrecker had picked up on his anxiety, he smiles gently at him "I'm fine."

"is Echo okay?" Wrecker asks, whispering as though he were afraid Echo would hear him.

"he is resting, as you should."

Echo wakes up from a nightmare, terrified. He sees Tech sleeping in a chair with his arms and head resting on the counter by his feet. The old lady who lived there comes out and looks at Echo.

"that nightmare sounded quite frightful, are you alright, my dear?" she asks, "would you like some tea?"

"yes, Ma'am. Tea would be nice." He says. He focuses on his breathing to calm himself down.

The lady smiles, "when my boys had nightmares I always made them dorjing* tea, it worked wonders helping them sleep."

Echo nods and she hands him a cup. He sips it while looking at Tech. "how long has he been there?"

"he hasn't left your side since he finished working on your brothers. Running scans and such, he fell asleep only a few hours ago. Please try not to wake him." she pats his bad arm then takes the cup, "if you want, I can help you move him to the couch. It's far more comfortable."

He nods and, between the two of them, managed to drag Tech to the couch. They rest his head on the arm and he automatically curled his legs. Crosshair slept on the other end, the back of his head on the arm and his knees in the air.

"would you look at that, they left plenty of room for you, dear." She says. She pushes him into the middle and smiles, "get some rest, dear. You all have a big day tomorrow."

Echo leans on Tech and drifts off to sleep.

The mission went well, mostly. Tech and Echo were attempting a repeat of their mission against Admiral Trench. Hack the command center and make the droids stop. That part worked. Tech scanned the data that Echo was downloading when he suddenly yanks him out.

"what was that for?" Echo asks.

"I located a virus in the code but you may already be infected. I need to run a diagnostic on you." Tech says, pulling him to his feet.

Echo yanks his hand away, "I'm not a computer!" he says angrily.

"you are part machine, and possibly susceptible to computer viruses. I don't want to take unnecessary risks."

"since when?" Crosshair says from the doorway.

Tech glares at him before walking out, "we may find the information elsewhere, blowing up the base is our best option at the moment."

Crosshair and Echo look at each other and follow him.

Tech carried out his scan on Echo just after arriving on the Marauder. He nods in satisfaction at finding nothing before working away at his data-pad.

"I'm not as fragile as you seem to think I am." Echo says.

"yes, you are." Tech turns the pilot's seat to look him in the eye, "you are a cyborg. You can be affected by both a computer virus and an organic one."

"you don't know that."

"You can't swim, as your legs would drag you down and your missing arm would offer little assistance. Your head is no longer waterproofed, so you would short circuit."

"we can fix that."

"not with what we have available. Your missing arm limits what you are capable of."

"then build me a new arm."

"that will take time, resources, and and information I do not have yet. You are also missing half of your immune system, and therefore would take longer to fight off a sickness. It means you are also more likely to get sick."

Echo quietly thinks for a moment, "then why keep me at all?"

Tech is silent, trying to find the right answer. "Because we want you, you're one of us. There are risks in everything, and we will face them together."

Echo smiles at that.

*any resemblance to a real tea is purely coincidental.

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