Chapter 2
Zane sits down at his work bench and slips off his left prosthetic. Placing it on the table he adjusts the lamp and grabs a screwdriver. It's pretty obvious where the bullet hit it. There's a sizable dent in the calf. He removes the cover and takes a look at the inside. All the wires are fine, but the bullet is jammed between the stabilizers.
"Damn," he sighs. He can try to pull it out but at the risk of breaking one or both of the stabilizers. Then the leg would be completely useless. He takes a deep breath and grabs a pair of tweezers. He wiggles the bullet but it's really stuck. Even pulling as hard as he dares, the projectile doesn't budge. Fuck. He's going to have to take more of the leg apart. He hates messing with his prosthetics more than he has to. They were specially made and finding good spare parts is difficult. And without his legs, Zane shakes his head, pushing the thought out of his head.
He carefully disassembles the knee and detaches one of the stabilizers. He pulls the bullet out and sets to work putting everything back together. He frowns at the bent cover, deciding he'll take it to Ellie to get it straightened out.
He slips the prosthetic back on, attaching it back into the neural converter. Standing, he bounces around a bit, making sure everything is working like it's supposed to. After a few tweeks, he's satisfied and heads to Ellie's.
"Hey there, V.H." She greets him with a smile.
"Ellie, sweetheart, could you knock the dent out of this for me?" He hands her the cover and she takes a good look at it.
"No problem, gimme 5 minutes and it'll be good as new." She smiles again and disappears into a room off the cargo bay.
Sure enough, the piece is perfect when she returns it to him.
He goes back to his room and clicks the cover back onto his leg. Then he takes a shower before joining his friends for a drink.
Zane doesn't stay as late tonight, leaving Moxxi's around 11. He sits on his bed and unhooks his prosthetics. He cleans them up and clicks off the light, staring out the window into the vast void of space.
He tosses and turns, eyes fluttering, before jolting up. His nostrils burning from the memory of burning flesh. The nubs of his legs are screaming and he rubs them, trying to make the ache go away. His eyes burn with the memories he relived in his dream. He coughs, the acrid taste of smoke suddenly making him feel sick. He leans his back against the cool metal wall. He sighs, reaching up above him, fumbling for a second, before pressing a button. A blue light appears in the corner, his digi-clone looks up at him.
"Hey gorgeous," Zane smirks at his double. It walks over and sits on the end of the bed, looking at him. It raises an eyebrow at him.
"I'm fine, just need the company," he frowns when the clone reaches out and touches his shoulder.
"Alright, you got me," tears spill over and down his face. He sits there in the blue glow of his long-time companion trying to put himself back together. How did he become so weak?
Eventually his digi-clone fades, and he just sits in the dark. Scowling at the empty space where his legs should be.
He gives up on trying to sleep. His ECHO says it's only 1am. Zane puts his prosthetics back on.
He knows he said it wouldn't happen again, but he's a liar and he knows it.
He slips his boots on and carefully puts his eyepatch back over his left eye before walking out to the common area. He stands in front of Fl4k's door for longer than he intends, clenching his hands, wondering if he should go back.
"Do you plan to stand there all night?" The robotic voice comes through the door, startling him. He curses himself for standing there so long without knocking. He presses the button to open Fl4k's door. The hunter is sitting at their workbench and they turn to him. Instead of answering, Zane just glares at them. But they seem amused, their eye curved into a sort of smile.
Mr. Chew bounds up to him, tongue lolling out of his mouth. Zane bends down and pets him, trying to avoid the creature's tongue. Broodless also comes to him, bumping her head into him and clicking happily when he pets her.
"How's my sweetheart tonight?" he asks, giving her more pets.
A weight lands on his shoulders and he yelps. Meat Thief is perched on him, dangling his tail in front of Zane's face.
"You're my least favorite," but he scratches the jabber's head. Petting the animals helps him calm down. His mind settles, the memories of his nightmare start to fade.
It takes him a moment to realize Fl4k is watching them. He suddenly wonders if it's ok for him to pet the creatures without permission. But Fl4k's eye is still curved into a smile.
"They like you," the hunter nods.
"That's because no one can resist my charm," he pats Broodless again and she clicks. Meat Thief hops off his shoulder and onto Fl4k.
"So it would seem," Fl4k answers. Their voice coming in an odd cadence. Zane looks up, but they have gone back to their work. Zane's ears burn. Was he just flirting with the hunter?
"So, what're you up to?" he straightens himself and walks over to the workbench.
"I am still repairing Broodless' leg." They respond, adjusting the lamp.
Zane watches them work, carefully adjusting stabilizers. After a few minutes, he wanders over to the bookshelf. He plucks a random one and takes it over to Fl4k's bed.. Broodless follows closely behind him and he gives her more pets. Contented, she settles at his feet.
Zane slowly flips through the pages of the book he picked up. It appears to be a bestiary about the deep sea creatures of Junpai-7. He carefully studies the drawings of the fantastic beasts. Occasionally he looks up and watches the hunter working carefully on their pet's leg. Eventually he settles more into the bed, his legs stretched out, leaning his back against the wall.
Casually Zane asks, "So where were you last night? You just… left."
"I was at Ellie's."
"At three in the morning?" Zane raises an eyebrow, a strange knot forming in his stomach.
"I needed a specific part for Broodless' armor," they turn to him. "She has trouble sleeping sometimes. We talked for longer than I intended. She misses her brother very much."
"Ah," the knot relaxes. Unsure of what it means, Zane shakes his head and goes back to the book. There's a soft silence in the room. Broodless occasionally clicks at Zane for pets and he obliges. Sometimes he glances out the window and watches the stars.
When he turns back towards the hunter, they are looking at him, eye gleaming brightly. Zane smiles and returns his attention to the book. He wonders what they might be thinking as they look at him. He wonders if they ever feel tired or bored. Looking back at the bot, he's about to ask when he notices Fl4k's gaze is still on him.
He smiles slyly, "quite undressing me with your eye, beastie. I'll catch cold."
The hunter blinks and quickly looks away. Were they… blushing? The thought makes Zane's heart flutter.
After a while, Fl4k speaks again. "Do they happen often? Your sleepless nights."
"Are you worried about me, love?" Zane smiles again, raising an eyebrow.
The bot seems flustered, struggling to find words. "Should I not be? If you are not in good health, you may fail in battle. Then the hunt may not succeed."
"Is that all?" he smirks at the bot again.
They hesitate and their eye flashes, refocusing. "That is all."
The two sit there for a moment, gazes locked. He knows the hunter is lying. They've never been a good liar. But Zane shudders, breaking contact, unsure of when Fl4k's gaze started making him feel so affected or when he started teasing the hunter. But here they were. Broodless breaks the tension by clicking at her master. They pick up the metal leg off the table and start attaching it back to the spiderant.
Zane watches them, his eyelids starting to get heavy again. He tries to fight it, but slowly flattens down onto the bed. Dozing off, he shivers, curling himself smaller. There is a rustling behind him then warmth. He pulls the soft fabric around him, falling out of consciousness.
He still has nightmares, but they're nowhere near as intense as usual. He stirs, a groan stuck in his throat. He runs his fingers over the soft blanket, vaguely remembering it being laid over him at some point. Opening his eyes, his heart skips a beat. It's not a blanket at all. Fl4k's coat is draped over Zane's body. It's surprisingly warm and smells faintly of detergent and gunpowder. He pictures the hunter washing their clothes after a mission and it makes him want to giggle. Pulling it closer to his face, he inhales deeply but silently, relishing the smell. He didn't think a robot's clothes would have a smell but they do. The hunter is moving around softly behind him, there is the sound of food being poured in a bowl and a loud bark.
"Quiet boy," Fl4k tries to hush the animal.
Zane rolls over and Fl4k's back is to him. No one has ever seen the hunter without their coat before. Their waist is small, supporting wide shoulders that are capped with yellow. Their elbows sport the same yellow. Things that look a bit like muscles cover the rest of their torso and arms, giving them a vaguely humanoid appearance. Everything below the waist is covered by baggy pants.
Zane whistles, "there's a sight to behold." He sits up.
Fl4k grunts and turns to him, "good morning to you too."
"Didn't think you had it in you, love." He runs his fingers through his hair. "You're not going soft on me, are you?" He gets up and starts to approach the hunter, coat in hand.
They look down at him and Zane suddenly feels small. He's over 6' tall yet Fl4k towers over him by at least a foot.
"You were cold." They respond, reaching for the coat in his outstretched hand. Their fingers connect and Zane feels a jolt of warmth. The hunter must feel something as well because they freeze for a moment before slowly breaking contact.
"Anyway," Zane says, collecting himself. "Thanks for, you know." He gestures to the coat. He quickly turns to the door and opens it.
Amara and Moze are sitting at the table just outside the door, both sipping large mugs. Zane groans. He must look terrible because Moze offers her cup to him. He smiles gratefully and wraps his hands around it.
"Morning, lasses," he grumbles. Amara raises her eyebrows at him and Moze gently punches his shoulder.
"Sooo," she coos. "What's going on with you two?" She nods in the direction of Fl4k's now-closed door. Zane is suddenly aware of how he looks having just come through that door. His hair a mess, shirt wrinkled.
"Nothing's going on," he frowns. Was he wishing that there was something?
"You sure?" Amara chimes in.
He sighs, lips resting on the rim of the cup and takes a sip. "Sorry to disappoint ladies, but there's nothing going on."
Moze giggles but they change the subject to the day's mission. Zane grimaces when he learns that it's on Eden-6. God he hates that planet. Even though his legs are waterproof, something about the swamp water always ends up messing with them. After a while, Fl4k joins them and Zane is grateful that the girls don't ask them the same thing they asked him. He excuses himself to get geared up for the mission. Moze gives him a playful shove when he walks by, smiling at him and raising her eyebrows. Zane rolls his eyes and walks away. He can feel the hunter's gaze following him until he closes the door.