Lin listened as the human's footsteps scraped the cement, getting further and further away. He wasn't about to get his hopes up. Humans hadn't done him any good so far. What was the point of putting his faith in this one? Even without a diagnostic, he knew he was in bad shape. Even if the human were genuine, it was unlikely he could be repaired. The vision in his right eye was black, and as he raised his hand, he could feel the shards of shattered glass in the socket. The component itself was broken. The gouges on his cheek had revealed his internal systems to the dampness of the warehouse. Most of his limbs were completely useless. He was losing power and thirium in a slow trickle, though a lot of the leaking seemed to have stopped as the artificial skin tried to repair itself. He didn't have enough energy to repair all of it though, so his system was slowly moving skin from undamaged parts and using it to cover his wounds.
Silence filled the warehouse after the human's departure, and Lin settled back against the rusty metal surface. The boy probably wouldn't be back. There was no point in raising his hopes. It would be better to go back into stasis and save what power he could. It was as he prepared to go into standby mode that he noticed the camera by his leg. He twisted his body and reached out, curious as to what the human had been doing so far out of town. He turned on the heavy Nikon, resting it on his useless legs as he touched the smooth plastic surface. It was digital. He could interface with it.
He closed his eye as he connected, able to see the images the human had captured. There were hundreds. The newest ones were of him. He had to admit, there was something both peaceful and tragic about the way he looked, like he was sleeping. There were more images of the warehouses in this area, which had clearly been taken that day. Going further back, there were others of more abandoned places. There was a theme park with old androids shut down and standing like statues, just left beside rides, as if waiting for the park to reopen. There was an old hospital that looked like an abandoned horror set. Old houses, some of them burnt out husks. There were parks where children and androids played, and maintenance androids working. He'd caught some maintenance androids fixing cables, and another android walking a group of dogs. Androids seemed to be a consistent subject for this human. He somehow put a lot of emotion into those shots. Many of the androids almost looked…alive…
Lin disconnected from the camera. What did he care about this human's curiosities? He was just another human, like all the others. He'd probably come back when he realised he'd left his camera behind and Lin would be lucky if he didn't get sold off as spare parts. He shivered at the thought. It didn't hurt to have parts removed, but to be taken apart, to have his central core and all of his memories destroyed. It was a terrifying thought. To be murdered…He closed his eyes and lowered his power output, slipping into standby mode to save energy.
He had no idea how long it had been the next time he opened his eyes, but it was dark. He'd been reactivated when a voice had called him, and a hand was lightly shaking his good shoulder. He focused his one good eye and was surprised to find the blonde from before. He looked relieved as Lin looked up at him, saying something about how he'd been afraid he'd run out of power. Lin looked down at his hand as the human placed something in his upturned palm.
"You fixed it…" Lin murmured in surprise.
"I got a replacement part," the young man corrected as he knelt at his side. Lin closed his hand around the small piece, almost hesitant as he raised it to his ear. The human teen worried his lip as he watched him slot the part into his audio socket. It clicked into place and Lin winced as a loud whistle sounded in his ear. He quickly adjusted to the amplified sound of the world. He could hear the human's light breaths, the beating of his heart, the breeze drifting through the building. Too loud. He altered his audio sensitivity. "Can you run a diagnostic now?" the blonde asked hesitantly.
"I can," Lin confirmed, closing his eye as he started the program. He could sense the human moving as he sat like a statue. He felt a light touch brush his fringe aside to look at the broken black pit that had once been his right eye. His gentle fingers stroked and caressed his damaged face. He could analyse the warmth on his cheek as the boy leaned closer, a light breath caressing his plastic shell. His sensors were still working despite the damage. The teen was warm and never handled him roughly, afraid he may cause more damage. Lin gasped as he opened his eye, his LED flashing red. "My power reserves are almost depleted…I'll shut down within three hours," Lin announced in an almost defeated tone.
"Wait, you just need more power, right?"
"My power core is exhausted. Although the damage to the rest of my systems is quite extensive, it is repairable…I just don't have the power reserves to last," Lin replied regretfully as he lowered his gaze bitterly. He'd always known it would happen. From the moment he'd dragged himself in here, he'd known he'd bleed power and thirium until he finally shut down. He would have done so quietly without ever knowing if this boy hadn't come along and roused him. He wasn't sure whether to be grateful or resentful.
"You can't give up now! What power core do you use? Is it an RK600 model?" the human demanded urgently, knowing that it was likely one of the newer parts on the market. Lin looked at the teen almost sullenly. He spoke so easily about things like giving up. The human looked impatient. "We don't have time; you said three hours! Tell me what I need to find!" What's the harm? If he wants to waste the next few hours on a lost cause, let him.
"Yes, I am RK600 and RK700 compatible. Most of my components come from the latter line," Lin replied, though he had little hope. The human nodded in determination before asking for a final time check. Lin almost sighed as he looked up his diagnostic, bringing up a timer in his field of vision. "My systems will shut down in exactly two hours, thirty-three minutes and fifteen seconds," he reported as the human pulled out his phone and set his own timer.
"Just wait for me, and save as much energy as possible, alright?" the blonde ordered, leaving Lin little choice but to agree. If he went into standby mode, he might gain a few extra minutes. He gave the human one last look before closing his eye. He set an internal timer to reactivate when he had five minutes left. He didn't want to die in his sleep.
