Artifice - Man x Man - Book Six

Chapter 16

I don't want to process this, I don't want to think about how she came to be in this world with us.

 When we first arrived, stuck in quarantine, I couldn't help but think that there had to be some type of repercussion, there would be something that would have to occur to bring balance back into the situation. People couldn't just go to the future; something had to give. 

Running from our old lives, trying to escape the consequences of his lifestyle and fix this new world, it wasn't a big enough trade-off. Happiness and freedom couldn't be traded for. I want to get away from here, take him back to the compound.

Lock him inside, and remind him that he had promised me he was retired and should never have come for me. But, as the seconds in silence tick by, I find I'm much more concerned about his mental state than I am about him leaving me. It's a hard realization that I don't necessarily care if he has feelings for her, I just want him to be okay.

I close my eyes, deciding that I would not interfere; I would be happy for him whatever he chose, just as he would have been for me. 

"How?" I hear him speak, pulling me out of the depths of my damaged mind. Soli parts her lips to speak when Tonic interrupts us. 

"Guys." We are surrounded by vehicles, so distracted by this information that we don't even notice that we are being encroached on. I press myself closer to him, wondering how much more I have, how much more I could fight and be beneficial without drawing on him. 

His arm protectively comes around my waist as his free hand dislodges his harness from his hips. "How drained are you?" The words are stiff, trying not to move too obviously.

 Completely. 

I want to tell him. My eyes flick up to meet his gaze, finding it impossible not to look exhausted, but I try and force a smile through my respirator. 

"That good, huh?" His attention turns to Tonic and Soli. "We can't fight them off. There are too many."

Soli unthaws, taking in a deep breath through her teeth. "That doesn't sound like you."

Verando's eyes narrowed. "He's hurt." This seemed to surprise her for some reason; maybe she wasn't expecting him to care about my physical state. She runs a hand through her hair as the car doors open, and I recognize the massive, burly men climbing out. 

Their pointed teeth glint in the dull light of the hazy street lamps. I clutch his arm, trying to get his attention toward the approaching species that he hadn't gotten to see before. 

"Those things are challenging to kill," I warn him. 

"We just want to talk." One growls, wrinkling a rather feline nose, the teeth exposed to the light. "How did you purify all that water, kid?"

My temper boils amidst my oncoming migraine, I saved a nation, I had fought foes greater than anyone in this realm could fathom, and I deserved more respect than 'kid.' I fight against his arm as if I'm prepared to fight them all single-handed but he grips onto me to prevent my engagement in their threats, holding me back almost comically with my pathetic attempt to struggle.

"Down, boy." His voice is low in my ear. "You're in no state to get yourself flustered."

"Those guys must have hacked Artifice." Tonic's voice is hardly above a whisper as we back towards each other. 

"Can you shift with those metal limbs?" Verando asks him, glancing over his shoulder. 

"I can," Soli responds shortly. He exhales, gritting his teeth. 

"You can't carry Tonic." 

"Then there's only one option then, isn't there?" Her voice is hard and short.