Cinder

8 - Angelic Demon

"... K-Kay?"

That was all he could manage to choke out as he looked her new form up and down.

She was back.

She ... was back.

The Simulacrum waved at him. "Yes ... it's me."

Nothing had prepared him for this. The last time he'd seen her, she was a second-hand Ion chassis walking away into a city on Luma. Now, she was ... this.

Waves of questions flooded his mind; how was she here? Why was she here?

What happened to her?

Unaware of the turmoil within his mind, she simply gave a small hum of contentment, as though that were enough to satisfy his questions. She seemed oblivious to the tense circumstances of their reunion. "Do ... do you like it?"

He was still in shock for a moment, and didn't fully comprehend the question until he registered that she was referring to her new body. "I- I just don't know how to react. This is all so sudden, I- this isn't possible, how are you here?"

"They're not the only ones who can track the flares of the Inferno," she answered vaguely.

From off to the side, the Leatherback's engines lit up with energy blazing from its exhaust ports, the first time in a long time. The roar of their engines pierced the air momentarily before dropping back down to a low hum. Gates and the others had started it up, and he saw Davis standing on the ramp; not wanting to interfere quite yet, but ready to jump in if need be.

It did not go unnoticed by Kay. "I mean no harm to any of you, Tobias."

Her casual nonchalance was completely wrong for this situation ... it set him on edge. "Yeah, that's why you felt it necessary to blow up the other ship, huh?"

She threw her hands in the air in mock innocence, as though she were absolving herself of blame. "You all would have taken off and left without knowing it was me if I hadn't, wouldn't've you?"

He narrowed his eyes. His initial reaction had been joy at seeing her again, his heart soaring for the first time in a year and threatening to cloud his judgement ... now, suspicion had invaded once more.

"There were easier ways to let us know."

"None as quick, though."

He kept his stance neutral, neither defensive nor aggressive. "Why are you here?"

Her blue "visor" blinked, winking out of existence before appearing again. Yet another human-like characteristic, seemingly for no other reason than for it to be there. "I already told you, I'm here for you-"

"But not why," he cut her off. "Believe me, there isn't a part of me that isn't happy to see you- but I can't just accept that you came here after a year with all ... all this, and you don't have a real reason."

She gave a synthetic sigh, and allowed her hands to fall to her waist. "Tobias, a lot about me has ... changed."

His eyes darted to her body again. "Yeah, I can see that."

She caught the sharpness in his tone. "Would I be right in assuming you want an explanation?"

He did not move, nor did he reply; yet his expression told her exactly that.

A synthetic sigh escaping her, she began; "After I left, I found passage off-world. For the next month or two, I went where I was needed; no one questioned a Titan, considering that they make up the majority of Spyglass's forces. It was the perfect guise for my work. I fought against what I thought to be injustice, seeking to aid those that I believed deserved it."