Cyber Stories

Chapter 13: Questions and Expectations

-Rumble POV-

I kept my flight at a steady pace, gliding behind Phoenix as the lake came into view. My whole form ached, especially my helm and chest, but I'd never admit that out loud until it was actually fatal. And honestly, even then...

Phoenix was abnormally quiet, flying just ahead of me. She flew so graceful, her legs ever so slightly tucked up under her. She was confused, frustrated maybe?

She gently sat down at the lake, looking at the water as she tucked her wings in against her frame. Her expression wasn't the bright and cheerful expression I had come to expect from the femme.

I started and stopped about 5 sentences before I reached one I could manage, "I'm... sorry you had to see what that place really is..."

She continued to stand in front of the still water. There was no wind, just the sound of the birds in the trees surrounding the area. "Why... why does that..." she paused to finish structuring her sentence, "why does that femme drain the light out of your optics?" She asked, finally looking at me. The look in her optics broke my spark. She looked so broken and confused.

It was only then that I realized all effects of Cynth on my mind had simply vanished entirely. This always happened when Phoenix was around.

I wanted to tell her everything, I always did. But how could I begin to explain to her something I didn't yet understand myself?

"...She's...the Supervisor of the Facility. In that place she outranks even Commander Netsu," I explained, "...It's drilled into our helms every moment of every day to obey the chain of command."

Phoenix paused, soaking in the information. "She... she made you and your brother fight. It's like she wants you to hate him but... you like your brother, right?" She asked. She had such a simple understanding of siblings.

"...of course I do," I responded, my voice a bit soft as I thought over the last few days. Ruvik has been acting strangely, but... He was still Ruvik. None of the years we spent growing up together were lost, nothing was changed... At least as far as I was concerned.

But... what would Ruvik have to say on that?

She frowned, the wheels in her processor still turning. "There's something else going on besides just chain of command..." She says softly.

I started, then stopped, looking down and thinking for a moment, "...Something else indeed." I muttered softly to myself, my voice going quiet again.

Phoenix let out another cough, finally sitting and laying down in the sand. Her armor was dented in between her wings.

Looks like I wasn't the only one stubborn about speaking up. Without alerting her, I looked over the wound, ensuring it wasn't anything serious.

She remained silent for a moment. "Thank you for the violin. It's beautiful," she says, trying to change the subject.

My attention snapped back to her, "oh...uh...You're welcome...I tried to smooth out the edges the best I could...I'm much more attuned to weapons craft I guess..."

"It's the same fundamental principle." She says, picking up a rock and perfectly skipping it over the lake, "I'm glad though that you're alright." She says softly.

"Yeah, I've uh... I've taken much worse hits," I responded, trying to play it off. I wasn't exactly lying, I had been hit pretty hard before, even by Ruvik in sparring.

But this felt different. Ruvik was usually precise with his blows to avoid doing just this to me. But this time, it's like he was trying to end it as fast as possible.

She went quiet again, no doubt a lot on her mind. Should I try and speak up? Change the topic?

How do I make her happy? What makes her happy? Music? Music! Music makes her happy.

SONG.

I disconnected my audio buds from my datapad and let it play out loud, searching a bit until finding a song I thought she'd enjoy.

One my Mother showed me, said it reminded her of love and peace.

SLEEPWALKER

I lay beside her as I let the music play, my wing getting an urge to drape itself over her but I held it back, unsure if it would be welcome right now.

She looked at me, offering a soft smile. She laid her helm down and closed her optics to listen to the song. She started to lean into me, her frame finally relaxing. She had been so tense.

I allowed my wing to lower over her, curling gently to tuck her close to me.

She tensed back up under my wing for a moment, her optics snapping open. Only for a moment however. She relaxed seconds later, cuddling up to my frame.

She was safe.

I felt my own form relax, my helm laying down beside hers. It was only then I realized how exhausted I was, the weight of the last few days bearing down on my optics.

I caught myself a few times, but eventually sleep overcame my defenses.