Outrun - Chapter 292

I helped Mira out the back door and to an elevator, taking it slow. She moved like a snail, seemingly struggling with the black exoskeleton. It wasn’t that the exoskeleton had faults—I’d checked it several times and had to admit it was high-quality chrome—just that she wasn’t used to it.

“Sorry I’m so slow- I’m always so usele-“ She cut herself off. It seemed she was slowly but surely getting a grasp on her five thought processes all trying to leak out, for better or worse.

“You’re completely fine. W-we’re not in a rush.” A tremor broke through my voice. Stupid, Shiro- she needed a reliable friend. I couldn’t let that happen again. I needed to be strong, even if I felt like collapsing into a ball and clutching at her.

I almost turned on Cold-Blooded to help control my emotions, but turning literally cold wouldn’t help the situation. None of my other Perks would be of much help either. Not like I was built for psychological support. Sneaking and avoiding things was my way of life. Not- not this. Not actually facing emotions.

Honest Face and Calming were the best of the bunch. I’d been trying to use everything I learned about both, but it was a struggle. Maybe I could summon Corvid? The crow sprite always cheered me up… she probably wouldn’t feel the same. Squeaky Clean, thus far underutilized since I didn’t share spaces with people, might help too. It was supposed to boost mood, chek?

She shifted in the elevator—thankfully this one was actually working. “Why are headed to the roof anyway- should I just jump-“

”Never-“ I cut myself off. She didn’t need judgement or me to say ‘I could fix things’. She- she wasn’t a machine I could just fix with the right tools. I just needed to be a strong shoulder to lay on. “I’m so sorry, Mira… I’m here with you.”

”S-sorry… intrusive thoughts are- why is this so difficult- I’m not actually thinking of-“ The elevator dinged overhead, making her fall silent.

“It’s okay to feel this way, Mira…” What else could I say… I should try to get her to seek professional help, right? This was way out of my league… that thought ate at me. Where were my concerns over eldritch plant monsters and mega-corps? This was so, so much worse.

I brought up the HUD, mentally sending a text to Hope to see if she knew anyone that could help. The Crusade knew how to deal with this better than anyone. They were usually the ones pulling victims from the fire. A large part of me didn’t want to say anything in fear of exposing myself… I could always just disappear if things went south, anyway.

I looked back to my mikata. She was more than worth the risk. There were very few people left in this world that I’d risk it all for, and she was one of them.

She shifted under my gaze, pulling at the tattered techwear jacket Nael dropped by. It pulsed faintly, old holo-ads working to put up an advert for some band. “D-does it look bad- I probably look like a freak bald.”

“You’re pretty as always…”

Mira pulled out a beanie from one of the pockets and pulled it- her hands caught on the halo, preventing it from sliding down quite right. The halo wrapped down and around blocking any kind of head wear. It attached to her head through two columns just in front of her ears. Any kind of hat or head accessory would be a struggle to put on.

“Here.” I stuck my hand out for the beanie, taking it from her when she passed it over. A couple cuts along the side and it fit much better. I helped her put it on, careful not to press or pull at the halo’s attachment columns. I didn’t need a medical degree to know that was a bad idea.

I turned up the heat and also passed her my poncho. Immediately, the winter wind cut at my exposed skin and flesh. I could deal with this much though. It was a far bigger concern that she’d catch a cold when we got on my hover bike. Note to self—add heating to the vehicle. And better seating options for multiple people.

We stepped out onto the roof, spotting my parked hover bike. Mira stopped next to me. “What’s that- I miss my hair- did Shiro win the lottery- is she not cold- looks like a flyer.”

“This is my baby.” I ran a hand over the unfinished metal body of the bike while trying to figure out what she actually said. Outside of a few modules and improvements, it just needed me to finish the spring-scale armor. “Just built it. Still in the prototyping phase.”

“You built this- she looks so cool when confident- how’d you learn how to-“ She shivered, shaking her head. “S-sorry. I can’t quit… you know.“

I shifted from foot to foot and lightly nudged her with my shoulder. “It’s alright… we’ll work through this together. You aren’t alone.”

”T-thanks, Shiro.” She nodded her head to the bike, shifting the subject. “It flies?”

“Chek.” I straddled the seat, offering her a hand. 

She took it, squeezing into the seat behind me. It definitely wasn’t designed with two people in mind. Just like the last time I flew with Saint, she was pressed up against my back. Unlike the last time, it wasn't nearly as unpleasant. The poncho was incredibly warm, pushing back the winter air.

I flicked a few switches and pressed a few buttons. The bike rumbled smoothly, pulling up into a gentle hover just above the roof. “Hold on tight.”

Mira wrapped her arms around my waist. “Where are we-?”

“Out.” I pointed toward the Outskirts. Never had the chance to share my overlook with anyone before… never wanted to, more accurately. It was where I went when I needed to just get away though. Hopefully being away from this fucking city would help her just as much as it helped me.

I pulled off the roof, entering one of the many flyer lanes set up throughout the city. Flying outside of a flyer lane wasn’t technically illegal per-se, but it was heavily frowned upon. No point dragging undue attention upon ourselves.

Mira’s arms tightened around me when the building dropped out from below us, hands shaking. “I-is this safe- its freezing without hair- what a shit way to die-“

“Chek! I wouldn't drive it around otherwise.” I called out over the rushing wind. A shiver wracked my body. I desperately needed to add some kind of heating element to this thing when I got the chance. “I might even let you fly it one day!”

She went silent behind me, watching the passing lights and sights of the city. As we approached the Outskirts, I dropped our altitude lower and lower, staying just above the tops of buildings. Eventually, we exited the city entirely, floating just above the sand. Out here, the night air was even colder.

I huddled down slightly, adding a mental note to my HUD to buy another couple ponchos when I got the chance. The hover bike had warmed up enough that it wasn’t too bad, but it was still quite brutal. Especially where my legs pressed against the frigid AE3 tank. Snow was probably coming soon if it was already this cold.

I dodged a few areas of conflict and a couple of Hawks scouting for prey with practiced ease. We made it to my outlook completely uncontested, as per usual. I shut the bike down, jumped off my bike, and raised a hand to help her off. She took my offered hand. “Where is this- what a view- you come here often?”

I felt some heat rise to my neck. It felt oddly intimidating sharing this with someone else. “T-this is where I come when I just- I just want to get away… y-you know?”

Mira leaned on the bike and looked into the distant neon glows. “Yeah… I get it- she’s so adorable when shy- what a view-“

We relaxed out there, falling into silence. I sat down, leaning on my bike just as I usually did. It wasn’t as comfortable as my old bike, but it worked. Mira joined, sitting down beside me in the sand. She fluffed out the poncho, covering me slightly with it.

Over the course of an hour while sitting out there, a few texts came from Hope full of insights and suggestions on what to do. ‘Thanks.’

’No problem. Is your friend… alright? Physically? There's all sorts of lasting issues with Savant Labs.’

I side-eyed Mira leaning against the bike next to me. She stared out at the city blankly, though shifted as if noticing my attention. She huddled back into the poncho and pulled the hood of it back up over her head.

She had some bruises, scrapes, and cuts still. Outside of those and the chrome, she was fine as far as I knew. Physically, that is. ‘Had the best Medek in the city check her out.’

A message popped up into my HUD. ‘I get why she might want to avoid the Crusade… but give it some thought? We are trained professionals. Most of us, anyway.’

’I’ll ask. On a side note, do you know the rules on the Crusade’s apartments and outsiders?’ Couldn’t just leave her to fend for herself. Not when she didn’t have anywhere else to go except the Blitz Base. I didn’t want her going anywhere near that place either. Not without Uncle Ezra, at least.

‘You’re responsible for anything that happens. Otherwise, yeah, she could stay with you.’ Hope saw right through my question. A moment later, another message came through. ‘Probably for the best she has familiar faces and places around her.’

That would be… rough. I was the only familiar face around, and she’d never really had time to settle anywhere since Uncle Ezra and her were always on the move. They didn’t have long term apartments, just short stays like they were hotels. Familiar places… Big Mikes? Ichiban? Blitz Base?

I shifted in the sand slightly. Probably best to just ask her? I didn’t want her to feel caged in. Not anymore. “What do you want to do?”

”What do you mean- is she kicking-“ She bit her lip harshly.

”Never.” I answered her half-asked question. Although I hated to admit it, the Halo Cortex made figuring out her inner worries and concerns a breeze. “Do you want to head to the base and wait for your dad? O-or come with me? I’m- uh- I’m in the Crusade’s apartments now.”

Her brows pulled low. For a moment, a hint of the old Mira peeked through. “You joined the Crusade?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I forced a smirk. “I’m a perfectly law-abiding citizen of Aythryn City.”

“…” She just side eyed me, not even deigning to respond… or being too worried she’d say something without meaning it.

“I-it wasn’t by choice… but yeah.” I pulled out the Crusade badge and passed it over to her. “Squire Zuku Ichima.”

She took the offered badge, rolling it over in her scarred hands. They started to tremble. “I- I don’t want to be alone- this still might all be a-”

“It’s not a hallucination. I really saved you, and we’re really out.” I took her hands in mine, vainly hoping the physical contact would drive the truth home. “Surely even you can’t imagine I've finally struck it rich and joined the Crusade.”

”I always knew you’d succeed one day- just not like this-” She twisted her hand, dropping the badge into mine and slipping away. “Sorry.”

I bit back a remark. Her apologizing over everything was just… deep breaths. Of course things couldn’t just go back to how they were. How selfish could I be? She survived a Savant Lab, and I- I couldn’t even deal with a bit of repetition. My heart panged with even more self-hatred than I usually felt.

“I’ll take you to my apartment then.” I fidgeted in the sand, not knowing what to do with my hands. “I-I also kinda have a bar? It’s not- there’s tech stuff all over it, but it's super safe.”

“As long as I’m with you.” 

“Chek.” I stuffed my hands in my pockets and looked out over the city. I couldn’t promise that. Not when I knew full well I’d be going through three Savant Labs and taking down the parent company of Visceral Cybernetics soon. I wouldn’t bring her with me- I couldn’t. Not this soon. Maybe call the Crusade in on the labs instead? It’d reduce the time we had to spend apart. They were more qualified, anyway.

We stayed out there for a while longer. Uncle Ezra finally managed to get a message through. Several in the span of a few seconds, even. A call came next. I disconnected it from my HUD, handed it to Mira, and put in some earbuds to give them some time. From the faint smile, she seemed to appreciate the motion.

It was… Mira broke down into tears, constantly leaking them down into the sands below. I tried to pretend I didn’t notice, especially when she kept glancing up at me with a face flushed with embarrassment. How could I not notice though?

I kept myself distracted as best I could by diving through the EF shop for anything that might help the current situation. There were a few things that might be useful, but no cure all that I could buy and give her. Even the gifts of the eidolons, for however miraculous they were, had their limitations. Echidna had the best bet with chrome optimization, but that required it to be ripped out of her, which wasn’t an option.

There was something though. Something that sent my heart trembling with anxiety, and yet might be exactly what I was looking for. An offering by an unknown eidolon, Hummingbird.

「Hummingbird’s Flower Emporium - 25 EF

• Find a flower to fit your needs!

  • Flowers for superior workouts!

  • Flowers for better times in bed!

  • Flowers for greater hair growth!

  • Flowers for anything under the sun!

  • Buy now! Buy now! While prices are low!」

25 EF for just a flower was expensive. I had enough to experiment though. I looked through the catalogue of flowers offered by Hummingbird. There really was a flower for anything under the sun. The only drawback? Hummingbird only dealt in mutant or magically enhanced flowers. Both of which were… triggering for me.

I settled on two types of flowers. Mutant Hibiscus, which was the hair growth one. Mira always loved her long golden locks… growing them back might be a physical sign for her that she was recovering. Or might help her mentally, at least. She’d mentioned her hair several times already.

The other one was Aetherial Lavender. Aetherial Lavender had enhanced properties of calming, stress-relief, and soothing of headaches. There were a whole host of other benefits claimed by the eidolon, but those were the ones that caught my eye. Two of them, then. One would be for my workshop and one for my apartment.

Unfortunately, there was no ‘heal-all’ flower in the shop. There were just ones that targeted individual symptoms. I didn’t buy them right away, either. I wasn’t sure how they would appear, and I didn’t want to spook Mira if a hummingbird sprite popped out of nowhere to deliver my purchases.

Beside me, the phone call ended. Mira turned away and handed the phone back to me with a tap on my shoulder. “T-thanks.”

I took it, sliding it back into my pocket. I’d have to get her a new phone and clothes soon. Um- a couple guns too? I probably had something in my Aether stash that could work. I pulled out my earbuds. “How was he?”

“Relieved.” She wiped at her eyes and curling up next to me. The hood draped low over her face, hiding it in the shadows. Unfortunately for her, I could see right through the shadows like they weren’t there. Every single dripping tear and small sniffle burned into me. I should’ve realized sooner that something was wrong…

I stretched out a hand. After a few moments, she dropped her trembling one into mine. We stared out at the city, neither one of us saying anything. She silently cried, ‘hiding’ it in the hood. Even if she didn’t want to talk now, I’d be here when she needed me. Pushing her now would only backfire. Strong shoulder. Even if it hurt, it was the best I could offer.

After a while of just silence between us, it was cut off by a rumble from her stomach. She sat up, rubbing at her swollen eyes. “Are you hungry?”

”Sounds like you are.” I chuckled and stood up, dropping my hand down to her. “Big Mikes?”

She ducked her head, though stretched up to grab my hand. ”The burger shop? Sounds perfect.”