Wing n Subzero - closed

[knightofcybertron]

He saw the spear, saw the moment of his defeat. It wasn’t the first time in his life that he had the lower hand in a fight, but the instant he saw Braid standing over him, holding himself in just such a way, the jet arched back such that he was, he knew it would not end well for him. In the next instant, he knew a searing pain flashing through his chest. Something seemed to fizzle where his spark was seated, and his world fell into darkness.

He had scarcely had time to cry out. It was over that quickly.

Wing hadn’t expected the voice to echo in his head through the void. What it said to him, he couldn’t understand, but his vision returned, in part. At first, all he could see was darkness, but it seemed finite now, like there was something held directly in front of him. And he felt his own body for the first time in what felt like an eternity. Gravity pulled on his limbs, tugging him back against something hard and unforgiving. He had little energy to fight it and less will to try. It didn’t sound right where he was. Before, there had always been an echo, as would be in a room with no walls, no ceiling, no floor. Something changed now, something absorbed the sound.

After an effort, he managed a movement, could at last curl his fingers, and a new sound came of it, a new sensation. There came a distinct scratching noise against something solid. He hadn’t felt anything like it in so long it confused him at first. Wing tried it again, experimenting, was able to cause it a second time. Bewildered, he blinked and promptly startled himself as he felt the lids slide down over his optics in a way he’d lost to time.

A faint, weak sound squeaked from his vox. Why? What had changed? He shouldn’t be able to feel himself now. He was dead… wasn’t he?

Comments

[greater_than_zero]

It was eerie, finding the city empty now. Those who'd lived here once were gone. Zero felt like he was trespassing on sacred grounds, intruding where only spirits belonged.

He'd committed worse crimes in his life.

Besides, this city had tech and knowledge lost to the general populous of Cybertron. A scientist and inventor like himself just might find a lot of useful stuff here.

...So why did he find himself walking the catacombs? He didn't know these dead, these fellow Neutrals who'd succeeded where he'd failed. So why was he--

Was that a noise?

Subzero had his gun in hand in an instant, falling back onto instincts he knew he'd never lose. He prowled through the darkness, mentally berating himself for being so jumpy, it was probably nothing. No one was here anymore...

So why were his instincts telling him he wasn't alone? He paused, listening closely for the sound to come again. Would it? He wasn't sure if he wanted it to or not.

[knightofcybertron]

Gradually, more sensation returned, more sense of self, of a physical form he thought he had long ago lost. He could feel something solid under him, and when more strength returned to his limbs and optics, he could feel and see a solid surface around him. Very near to him. Illuminated by a soft blue glow that seemed to be coming from his chest.

Wing was by no means claustrophobic and the dead did not frighten him, but he wanted out of this place. He wanted out of it badly. If he had fallen in battle, there was only one place that he could now be - the mausoleum. And that glow coming from his own being where there had been none before worried him.

"Help..." His voice came out tiny and it surprised him how much he did not sound like himself. Desperate, he tried again.

"Help... Please..." Wing lifted a leg, knocking what he could against something, anything to make sound. "Someone..."

[greater_than_zero]

Was...was that a voice? From the wall. He couldn't help a shiver that went through his plating. Had someone been sealed away while alive?! Zero was a scientist. Despite his thoughts about spirits before, he didn't actually believe in them.

He moved to the wall, listening. "Keep talking, mech, help me find you." He moved along, head near the wall as he followed the sounds.

There...that one. The completely smooth was have him no way to get a grip on the stone sealing the poor mech away, and so he had to improvise. Lucky enough for this poor soul, Zero was good at improvising.

He raised his gun and took a shot at the top corner of the stone. It burst into pieces, making a small hole, large enough for him to get his fingers into it so he could pull it out and open the mausoleum that Wing was closed away in.

[knightofcybertron]

The second time he listened in, he heard a voice calling back to him. That was good. Good and bad. Good that he'd been heard and could hope to escape and get a few answers, bad in that he still had no idea why he was alive when for all he could think, he should be dead.

Unless he still was. Either way it would be, Wing had no choice but to keep kicking, feet lifting and dropping without much force in so little space against his enclosure. "Here... Please... Please, help me..."

A sound responded to him, and it wasn't a voice. It was loud enough and close enough to echo around in his grave, startling him badly, and with it came a light far brighter than the one coming from his own frame. On reflex, he lifted a hand to try and shield his optics and knocked his armor against the ceiling of his tomb instead.

[greater_than_zero]

It took some effort, but Zero was finally able to pull the stone free. He was faced with the sight of a set of feet, and a faint glow deeper in the dark hole.

"Easy, mech. I'll get you out." He took hold of Wing's ankles and pulled. He was careful, ready to work the injured mech into his arms. Thankfully, Wing was quite a bit smaller than Subzero, so holding onto Wing was easy for him.

"Primus, how are you alive?" It was mostly murmured to himself, but considering Wing was now cradled in his arms, the other would certainly hear.

[knightofcybertron]

Something near his feet broke away, and he could only guess that he was being freed. The light that came in, once his optics adjusted at last, showed him not much more than a flat, gray surface curving to a gentle arch over his frame.

Wing let out a strangled sound, unsure if it was from being able to see the reality of his own tomb or if it was from the sting from the backs of his wings and armor bent outward in ways it shouldn't have been as he was dragged out of his own grave. Neither of them could have been helped, and he kept himself silent as could be after that first pull at his ankles.

Relief crept into him upon his first look at his rescuer. Wing tried reaching up to touch his face, to make sure he was real though the arms around him certainly were, but he stopped short and let the hand droop back down to his abdomen. For a moment, he forgot about the light coming from within him, unable to feel any pain from the area to draw his attention back to it, but Subzero would be able to see clean through him, obstructed only by a scarred spark chamber and a spark burning brightly from within.

"I don't know," Wing whispered, taking his line of sight around the room as far as he could without sitting up. "I was dead, I'm sure of it. I should be dead."

[greater_than_zero]

Zero gently caught the hand that had been reaching for his face. He gave this poor mech an encouraging smile, and thanked every deity he'd ever heard of for giving him the foresight to study a bit of medicine. He just hoped it'd be enough to keep this guy from dying again.

"Well, you're not now, so let's make sure that doesn't change again, hm? Can you tell me your name?"

Zero got Wing settled on the ground, giving his hand a last squeeze and then pressed it lightly to Wing's torso. He pulled his medical supplies from subspace and set them out, picking up tools to get to work. He started first with making sure Wing was stable. Dampening the pain would be pointless if Wing was already dying on him again.

[knightofcybertron]

He gave the fingers holding his a light squeeze, barely more than enough needed to hold on until the mech let his hand back down to help him. Curious, fueled in part by disbelief, Wing watched him set to work on him. What coincidence that this strange mech happened to also have some skill in a medical profession.

It crossed his mind that the mech might not actually be helping him. He had no knowing what this one was doing and no way to stop him in any case, but it didn't seem like he meant harm. He doubted a mech who had any intention of reducing him to scrap would have offered his hand in comfort.

"Wing... My name is Wing." He watched the mech's face as he worked. Tools were pressed into his chest, components that normally were not touched were manipulated. It was less than comfortable, but he did his best to remain still. "Who are you?... You're not from this city."

[greater_than_zero]

"Wing. My name is Subzero. You can call me Zero." Wing was talking, this was a good sign. He sounded weak, but steady. The glow of his spark was steady as well, and as far as he could tell his systems were steady too. This was a a good, if very baffling, sign.

He concentrated on his work, and now that he knew Wing wasn't going to die on him, Zero started to work on shunting pain receptors, hoping to ease some of Wing's pain.

"No, I'm not from the city. Will you tell me the last thing your remember?" He wanted to keep Wing talking. If he was talking he was alive, and how well he talked would give Zero clues as to how well he was doing.

And any time he noticed Wing looking at him, Zero gave him a gentle smile before turning his attention back to his work.

[knightofcybertron]

Subzero. Zero. He would have remembered a name like that. There were thousands living in New Crystal City, but he felt sure he would have remembered that. He frowned softly when the mech himself confirmed it, but Dai Atlas had put up such protest when he'd brought Drift along. Why would he allow another outsider? Had his mind been changed?

Zero did something inside him and suddenly his pain was gone. Just like that. Gone. The jet's optics flickered and he went limp with a sigh. Primus have mercy on him, that felt wonderful. "Thank you."

After a moment, he looked back up at Zero again, lips curved in a hint of a smile that soon flatlined again as he drew on his last living memories. "Battle. We were fighting to protect the city against the slavers. The one on the cliff came for me. We fell on each other... Then he put his spear through me and I remember nothing."

It wasn't entirely true. He had memory of something that had happened to him after his demise, but he wasn't certain of what he'd seen then.

[greater_than_zero]

Zero couldn't help a little smile at the thanks. This was one benefit to all the time he studied to find the best, quickest, and cleanest way to kill mechs. He knew the body well, if not completely in a way a medic would. He knew enough to do what his jobs had required. It made him happy to put his knowledge to use to help instead of harm.

"I'm sorry. Do you recall the day? What day it was, I mean." How long had Wing been in there? As far as Zero knew the city had been empty for a little while now. Not long as a Cybertronian measures time, but still long enough for the place to feel eerie.

[knightofcybertron]

"You don't need to apologize, but you're kind."

That took a little thought. What had the date been? He frowned, trying to recall, and gave a date. How much time had passed since he last saw light, he couldn't have known. "How long have I been gone? Are the others... Are they okay?"

[greater_than_zero]

Zero couldn't help a rueful smile at the comment. Kind...right. He perhaps tried to be now, but he certainly wouldn't consider himself so.

The date, though made him stop, optics bright with shock. So...Wing hadn't died recently, this wasn't a mistaken burial, he had to have been dead. So...so how was he alive now?

"It's...it's been quite a while since then." And when he said quite a while, he meant it, it'd been another million years since then, or near enough to not matter about the give or take of a few years. "I honestly don't know about the others. The city is empty and has been for a little while. I was here to see what I might salvage from the abandoned city when I...heard you."

Now he felt decidedly uncomfortable. This was...awkward; there was really no easy way to tell a mech that he'd been dead for a long time and everyone he'd known had up and left, assuming they were still alive at all. Zero'd heard about an incident, but didn't know the details of it.

[knightofcybertron]

Venting a soft sigh, Wing let himself relax, his mind far from relaxed, and looked up at the ceiling, vaulted, high above them. That didn't sound good, and neither did Zero's surprise, and especially not what he had to explain. He wanted to wait, to give himself to time to absorb what was said before he had to take the next blow, but he needed to know.

"I don't understand. The city shouldn't be empty. They never would have left." He looked back at Zero again, optics flickering. "What do you know? What happened to this place?"

[greater_than_zero]

"I honestly don't know. I'd not looked into the details beyond making sure it wasn't some kind of pathogen that had caused everyone to vanish. I'm sorry, Wing."

Zero was not liking what he was seeing of this wound. It was a simple wound, something had gone through this mech's chest, right through his spark chamber. Zero was quickly realizing there wasn't much he could do here. He got patches in place on the front of the spark chamber, and then shifted Wing onto his side so he could add a patch to the back. At least his spark wouldn't fall out of the housing now.

With that done, Zero very gently scooped Wing into his arms, easily cradling the smaller body. "I need to find more supplies. You're familiar with this city, yes? Can you tell me where a clinic or hospital is from here?"

[knightofcybertron]

What had happened to this place? Where was the Circle now? It couldn't have been the slavers. They couldn't have found the rest of their people. They'd ensured that wouldn't happen. It just couldn't be. He had to believe that.

And Drift...

Zero rolled him to one side and Wing went without protest. "It's okay. I don't know what brought me back, but if I live past today, I intend to find out... somehow."

When Zero moved to cradle him again and lifted him up, Wing tried to reach out to take hold of his armor. His hand bumped ineffectively against the mech, still numb from whatever had been done to kill his pain.

"It's not far from here, but it would be a bit of a walk. The medical center is on the next level up. I can show you."

[greater_than_zero]

"If I have any say in things, you will live long past today." He started back out the way he'd come in, Wing snuggled to him.

"Just try to relax, you can tell me where to go." Zero moved smoothly, concentrating on keeping his gait even so as not to jostle Wing at all. He didn't want a simple bump to disrupt Wing's barely protected spark and make it sputter back out.

They reached the level above soon enough and Zero paused and looked at Wing to get from him what direction to head from here.

[knightofcybertron]

They left the mausoleum to make their way through the city and Wing watched anxiously from his place at Zero's chest as they emerged... and was completely unprepared for what he saw. Zero hadn't been wrong. The entire city was still and silent in ways he had never seen, had never hoped to see. The streets were barren and dull, the buildings dark and devoid of life. The only light came from a massive hole in the ceiling of the cavern they had hollowed out to create the city from Theophany's sun. It must have been midday on the surface, but if there was as little light from their artificial environment, then something had happened to the Metrotitan as well.

Wing whimpered to see it, spark gripped in agony though there was little physically holding it in his frame. Everyone was gone. The whole city had been evacuated and abandoned, and it had been so for a very, very long time. "My home..."

Grief had him paralyzed, but the jet was far from relaxed. He wanted not to see it, but he couldn't tear his optics from the sight, hoping that maybe around the corner, behind that door, down this road, he might find someone who had stayed behind, someone who hadn't left.

But they heard no other voice, saw no other Cybertronian wandering the grounds. The farther they moved into the city, the farther Wing's spark sunk. When Zero looked to him for direction, he pointed him two streets down an adjoining bridge and a large building that had once been white and pristine and beautiful. Now it sat in a state of slow ruin. If the outside looked as bad as the inside, Wing wondered if the supplies that had been left behind, if any, were even worth the effort, but they had a chance. The inside of the mausoleum had been decent enough, at least.

[greater_than_zero]

Zero felt so bad for Wing. He...he knew how hard this sort of thing was; seeing a place you loved decaying and empty of life.

"I'm sorry for your loss," he spoke softly, wishing he could soothe away the look of anguish on the other mech's face.

The hospital was a mess, but despite that it had more to work with than Zero currently had stashed in subspace or on his ship. Might not be the best of parts or tools to work with anymore, but it was better than nothing at all.

He pushed open a door with his shoulder and headed for a small room with a medical berth. He set Wing down, carefully arranging him so nothing would end up twisted or out of place. He then rested a hand tenderly on Wing's helm. It was only a moment, a brief gesture of comfort, a silent promise to take care of him. "I'll be back. I'm going to see what I can find to work with. Just rest, all right?"

[knightofcybertron]

The inside of the medical ward wasn't too much better than the outside, surprisingly, but the numbness for his physical pain hadn't touched his emotions and the state of it all bothered him greatly. He nodded quietly, acknowledging Zero's empathy.

The hand to his forehead after he was settled out on the berth drew a quiet sigh from him and he closed his eyes for the duration of it, drawing in what comfort was offered. "Thank you."

Resting would be easier when he had overcome the shock of everything, but for now, at least he would remain still. He could do nothing else.

[greater_than_zero]

Zero would be a while in returnig. It's not that he's taking his time, it's just that this hospital is big, and finding anything of use is hard. Finally, though, he steps back into the small exame room. He steps to Wing and again rests a hand on his head.

"I think I've got what I need. I'm going to use a supressant to make you sleep. When you wake you'll be repaired, okay?"

[knightofcybertron]

Wing heard Zero returning before he ever saw him. The sounds of footsteps in the halls were familiar, if only recently so, but he looked up anyway, hopeful that the mech who turned the corner would be another. It was another blow to his hopes when Zero appeared, but Wing smiled anyway to see him.

His optics flickered again at the hand on his forehead, and this time when he relaxed back, it wasn't entirely out of sorrow. "Thank you again. I cannot seem to say it enough."

[greater_than_zero]

He knew he wasn't the one Wing wanted to see; he knew Wing's mind had to be lost in the past, hoping for people who were no longer here. He understands completely.

He smiled, gently brushing his hand backnover Wing's helm. "You don't have to thank me. Helping people is what I do now."

It would take him a little bit to preoare the supressant. He turned away to get that ready.

[knightofcybertron]

He watched Zero walk away, considering his luck, such as it was. "I don't have to, but neither did you have to rescue me. You could have walked away at any time."

It said a lot that this mech was willing to help, and Wing already knew he would before he'd even said anything. But some things needed to be said where actions already spoke in their place. It was the gesture, the thought of the thing that warmed his spark now. He could get up off the table, fight through the numbness, try to make his way around the city to find something that might get him off planet, or at least send a distress call. But then who knew how long it might take before he found another? Who knew if that other would be willing to help?

Wing could have been left to watch death come for him again, never mind the mystery of his second life.

Hope the scene break works for you. =3

[greater_than_zero]

Zero gave him a grin. "that wouldn't have been very friendly of me, now would it?" His tone was light, almost playful. They both needed some lightness to the situation.

He stepped back to Wing, inserting the needle into Wing's main line. The suppressant would have the jet slipping into unconsciousness within a minute.

===

When Wing wakes again he'll be in a place unfamiliar. Zero has moved them to his ship. Wing is fixed up, mostly, and settled on a comefortable berth in a small room. There's light around the door, and a soft blue light by the wall at Wing's feet, just enough to see by. He's otherwise alone in the small berthroom.

yass! no problem at all

[knightofcybertron]

The humor wasn't lost on him, and Wing hummed softly to hear it. Blessedly, he felt no pain as he was injected with the sedative, though he saw it coming and had mind enough about him to hold still for it. His optics slid closed. The world around him gradually began to spin, though he shouldn't have felt it, and soon he felt nothing at all.

Consciousness returned to him slowly, and he opened his eyes to see his new surroundings. At first, he wasn't sure what he was looking at or how he'd come to be there. His last memories had themselves stuck in a haze. A few minutes more and it came back to him. The medical ward where he'd been left, Zero standing beside him. They were speaking, but Wing couldn't recall their words.

There were repairs made to him, he noticed almost immediately. Items on his HUD that had once been red and ugly now blinked and showed green and disappeared. He vented a soft sigh, relieved deeper than he'd known in some time.

But he was alone, and he didn't recognize the room at all. He had been in the city's medical center before and this was nothing like what they had to offer. After some time longer, he was able to convince his limbs to sit himself up, then carefully found his footing on the floor and made his way to the doorway, one hand along the wall.

"Zero?"

[greater_than_zero]

A small drone met Wing at the door when he steps into the hall. The disk-shaped thing hovers at optic level and lets out a soft "weep-wooo" sound before bobbing off down the hall.

Wing would hear Zero's voice then. "Yes, Sparks, I heard him, thank you." He raised his voice a little to call back now. "This way, Wing."

The hall leads down to an area that opens up. The sitting area is cozy without feeling too small or cramped. Zero is just standing up and turning to an odd little contraption in the corner. "Are you feeling hollow? I imagine it's been....a ridiculously long time since you've fueled."

Sparks beeped and whooped softly, bobbing lazily around Zero now.

[knightofcybertron]

Wing eyed the drone curiously, though his attention was taken as soon as he heard Zero. He followed the drone and the corridor until it would reach the next room, still keeping contact with one wall until he felt more sure of his own feet.

It wasn't until Zero mentioned it that Wing thought to check his fuel levels. That hadn't been an indicator that had given him any warnings, though he'd last refueled before the battle that took his life. If it had been too long, he was likely running on energon that had gone stale. Strange that it wasn't registering as such though.

"It should seem so, but I don't. There is no pain. I feel as though I've just had energon."

[greater_than_zero]

Zero nodded and motioned Wing over. "I'll show you how to use the converter so when you are ready to fuel you'll he able to get yourself some."

Zero was quite proud of his little device. It's what allowed his little group of neutrals stay free of the war. With the war over he eas hoping to get a patent on it and have it mass produced. Eventually anyway. The coverter took any liquid, so far as he'd tested, and converted it into energon, a decent quality energon if he did say so himself.

"It's easy. Containers are in the cabinet here." He took a small containter from the cabinet and set it in a slot on the side. "Make sure the containter locks in place, add some water-it's a generally plentiful liquid in the universe-add some water to the top here and hit the button here to start it." Zero goes theough the motions producing a very small bit of energon for the demonstration. Careful you donmt ask too much about it, Wing, he'll geek out on you.

[knightofcybertron]

It was quite interesting, what Zero had to show him. He would be quick to learn, but what held his curiosity more than any of it was that it could create energon from pure water.

"That's amazing, Zero." He lifted a finger and pointed to the device. "This can make energon from most any liquid at all? We would never need to struggle or starve again with devices like these! That was one of the things we sought to provide in the city where you found me."

Speaking of which... Wing looked around, at the drone, at the room around him. "Not to change the subject so suddenly, but where am I?"

[greater_than_zero]

"All the ones I've tested so far, though some liquids make a better grade than others." And he cuts himself off there when Wing jumps subjects on him. Probably for the best.

"My ship. I know there were some apartments closer to the hospital, but it...didn't feel right intruding there." Even though no one lives there anymore. On his own he might have, if he had to, but he always felt like a grave robber when he came to abandoned places and moved into what used to be someone else's home. He'd done so many times now, but the feeling never changed.

Though...he guessed he technically was a grave robber now, quite literally. Though he's sure Wing doesn't have an issue with that, considering Wing was the one robbed from the grave.

[knightofcybertron]

He would've liked to help Zero speculate on what liquids worked best for the conversion, but he genuinely hoped he'd found the refinery before they left Theophany, if they had yet. It'd been left idle for so long, but it was still possible there was fuel within it that they could use.

Though what they would now do was beyond him. He supposed it wasn't much of a choice, for his own intent. He owed Zero his life, if nothing else. Even if he wanted to find the rest of the Circle, he couldn't do it alone.

"I see. I don't know how comfortable I could have been there now myself. Before my last memories, we had not been outside the walls in years. We never needed to leave."

[greater_than_zero]

"It sounds like you died just before Dai Atlas raised the city." Sorry, Wing, Zero wasn't one to sugar coat things unless he felt the one he was speaking to really, really needed it that way. Wing struck him as a strong mech, and one able to face his own death. He...kind of had to be now.

"The Circle never became directly involved in the war, but they did make their own stand of sorts."

Oh! That might be something that would make Wing happy. "The war is over now."

[knightofcybertron]

Wing looked back at Zero, optics bright, then dull in shock. "Dai Atlas raised the city?" He never would have done that. Even with the threat of battle nearly on their front doorsteps, he'd still refused and called them crazy for wanting to leave to confront it.

"It must have been worse than we could have imagined. We knew we were to die, but it would have saved the city."

He lifted a hand to his chest, to cover his spark, and noted that his fingers did not slip clean through him, though it wasn't enough to draw his thoughts away from the what if's of that day. But then Zero managed to do so again. "The war is over? Is it truly?"

[greater_than_zero]

Zero didn't know the details of why Dai Atlas raised the city, though for Wing's sake he'd pull a few strings to find out all he could about the Circle of Light, and what they'd been up to since Wing's death. He'd already made a few calls, but information took time to gather, he had nothing to offer Wing yet.

He nods to the last, though. "It is. There's been a call to return to Cybertron, though...the planet itself is...rather hostile to our presence there." He seems really sad about that. "Things are tense there, but perhaps...with the right leaders...Cybertron can be rebuilt again."

[knightofcybertron]

Return home, back to his original home. Wing had mixed feelings about that. But they were still Cybertronian, and after so many millions of years of war, hostility was to be expected.

Wing nodded. He would need to consider this later, but for now, he had Zero and his friendly little drone. "And what of you? What will you do now that the beginning of the end has been called?"

[greater_than_zero]

Zero is rather somber as he considers Wing's question. "What I've always done, I guess: survive and do what I can to help others survive. This was a research expedition to find things I could use to help the group I've been with for so long. I...envy what you had here. This city...thriving during the war, when so many others killed or struggled to stay alive. I wish I'd known it was here, I wish we'd known there was a safe place to retreat to durring the worst of it all."

He pulled a deep vent, sighing the air back out softly. "Wishing is for fools, though. It's practicality and logic that have served to keep us alive, and now maybe we can find real peace again soon."

He looked up at Wing, his smile a bit sad and a touch sheepish. "Sorry, I didn't mean to darken the mood."

jkajdfjalr sorry, I lost the notif! ;-;

[knightofcybertron]

Despite his situation and the newly found information about his city and his people, Wing couldn't help a soft smile, listening to Zero speak. Part of it was in sadness, but part of it was in a bit of envy himself.

"You would have been welcomed with us. I'm only sorry that you arrived during the worst of it." He looked down and away. "Then again, it may have been for the best that you did."

One hand came up to rub over the plating of his chest, fingers tracing the seams and weld lines he knew were there, still settling into place, integrating with his natural armor. In time, it would become his natural armor, but he was better for it now. Stronger.

"I have nowhere to go, if I remain in the city, Zero. I do not wish to be a burden on you or your people, but would it trouble you to allow me to go with you, wherever you may?"

*patpat* That’s okay, I’ll just give you a hard time about it forever ^_~

[greater_than_zero]

Zero smiles. He’s glad he’d found himself in the catacombs. He’d had no reason to be there, and yet instinct had drawn him there, and he’d learned long before the war ever started to rely on his instincts.

“You will not be a burden, or trouble, I’m glad to offer you a place with us.” He extended his hand in offer. Wing was part of the team now, one of the crew. Zero would welcome the company while he searched the abandoned city for things they could use, and clues as to what happened here, for Wing’s sake. He’d also welcome the company on the long trip back to where the rest of the refugees waited for Zero’s return.