EX//MACHINA: EXORDIUM

Chapter VII - Ties that bind

— W-what do you mean?

Peter considers moving away when he sees the blade quickly finding its way to his neck, but his body freezes completely. Everything was so confusing, so nonsensical; he hadn't had a single moment to process what had happened since he woke up. The voice in his head wasn't helpful, and the person he felt most attached to, even without any recollection, now wanted to kill him.

Aside from fear, he feels an absurd amount of heartache.

— Alright, I'll keep it simple, but you'll answer me properly. — Amy stares directly at him, her dark eyes filled with anger and red from frustration. — You can hear me, right?

— Y-yes, I can, what—

— Not you, darn it! I'm talkin' to the voice in your head.

She knows. Peter feels his heart tighten even more, believing that everyone in the world knows what happened to him, who he is, who Vega is. And none of them even try to help him, they just threaten and curse, look at him with disdain or fear.

— Tell this crazy woman I can hear her. — Vega breaks his silence, leaving the boy relieved, as he wouldn't know what to do if he decided not to respond. — And if I were you, I'd use all the words I used.

— He said you're crazy. — the boy speaks and closes his eyes, expecting a cut to his neck that never comes. Instead, the coldness of the blade moves away from him, much to his surprise. — A-and that he can hear you.

Even though she had put her weapon aside, Amy didn't seem satisfied at all. A quick look at her hands showed Peter that she was holding back her emotions as much as possible. In addition to her watery, red eyes, Amy's hands were trembling, her face was stern, and her expression marked by something beyond mere anger: she was feeling hatred.

Maybe that hatred wasn't directed at Peter, he knew that; maybe it was for Vega. However, he was the one who received the glares, so what was the point? He didn't even know her, so why did it hurt so much?

— What do I do?

The boy asks the voice in his head, knowing that the option to trust him was the only one left.

— Just relay what I say.

— Yeah, I reckon he said that. — the girl speaks after taking a deep breath. — Vega, I don't expect you to have pity on me, I don't reckon that if I ask you nicely, you'll give him back. You know I'll hunt you down to the end for what you done, but I wanna ask you one thing.

— What is she talking about? What did you do?

— Don't listen to her, Peter, I'll explain exactly what happened to you when we get back. — Vega responds calmly, much to Peter's indignation, who couldn't be more nervous. — Tell her to ask the question.

— He said you should ask the question...

— Why... — she hesitates to say that, as if something were corroding her from the inside. For the first time in that discussion, she avoids eye contact, and Peter notices that despite her efforts not to cry, a single tear had escaped. — Why did you have to take him away?

— Tell her you left on your own.

No. Peter thinks when he hears Vega's response, almost instinctively. Everything in his body, even his soul, screamed at him not to say that, that it wasn't true, he hadn't left. On the other hand, this was probably the remnants of his memory acting, memories of a time when he might have loved the person in front of him.

Whatever it was, it didn't matter now; she wanted to know directly from Vega, and his only job was to relay it.

— He said... — his vocal cords seemed to reject that phrase, even though he was trying to say it. — that I left on my own.