Artificial

Fallen Gods

Operator Velox

Riot struggles against his binds, kneeling in the corner of the dropship.
"We can't leave him! He's our brother!"
"I'm sorry," Evo answers, stone-faced, carrying Wraith's corpse on his shoulder. "We have to regroup. These special forces were an unknown factor. We need time to adapt to this new threat."
"He's going to die!"
Evo prepares to answer, but I step in front of him.
"He's made his decision. He wants a hero's death, avenging his love." I pause to hold back a sob. "That's exactly what he'll get."
"Ayala, tell them they can't do this!"
"My name's not Ayala. That's not who I am anymore."
She pauses, and we stare at her for a second, shocked by her outburst.
"And I'm not the superior, Evo is. It's his decision, not mine."
Riot's gaze drops to the floor.
"Rest in peace, buddy," he whispers. "You went out like a true hero."
We all let out a sigh, and are silent for the rest of the flight.

The door to the barracks opens, and I pretend to be asleep. I can tell it's Evo by his footsteps. The sound, weight, and cadence is perfectly even, every time.
They stop at the bunk next to mine.
"It's not your fault, you know."
I remain silent.
"I know you're awake. There's no way you could sleep on something like this."
I groan, and roll over.
"It is my fault, Evo! I got her killed!"
"No, you didn't. She knew what she signed up for."
"Yeah, she signed up for a full training program. I told her she was ready too early, and she died because she wasn't."
"Hey, I signed the same papers you did, you don't see me—"
Someone kicks in the door, and we both turn around to see one of the medical staff rush in with a clipboard.
"Vel, you'll want to see this."

I practically knock the door to Wraith's room off the hinges. Wraith is sitting on an exam table, talking to a doctor. The doctor applies a generous glob of bio-foam to the back of Wraith's neck, and I freeze, mesmerized as it quickly, fluidly assembles into muscle and skin, covering her spine and the circuitry that is entwined with it.
"You're cleared for combat action, Wraith," the doctor concludes, and looks to me.

Wraith follows her gaze, and watches in horror as I tackle her off the examination table into a flying hug.
"Wraith, little baby, you're okay!"
"Yep! Can't keep the Force Recon girls down, right?"
"Absolutely, little sis. And guess what? I brought you a surprise."
"What is it?"
I retrieve a bag of gummy bears from a hip pouch, and we share laughter and memories while we slowly but surely empty the bag.

As she pops the last handful into her mouth, she crumples up the bag and asks, "So, where's Apex? I need to catch up on all the cute couple shit we missed while I was passed out."

..FUCK.