Nightshift 44: M51-M60 Hallway

[tsunagari.livejournal.com]

Sai changed quickly. Whether he was less emotionally stable that usual or not, he was far better off than he'd been the night before. He would perform the mission required of him tonight. It was nothing that should put anyone's lives at stake, and holing himself up would only decrease his ability to perform his duties later.

The vial of sedative was secured safely in the sweatshirt he used as a makeshift belt. It was important that he got the item to Sakura tonight. They might not get an opportunity to get hold of a replacement if this one was lost.

M90 was in the men's block in the opposite hall. He should make haste so that his teammate wasn't delayed.

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[sixth-attack.livejournal.com]

Sechs grinned at Kibitoshin's question and for once he was able to proudly cross his arms without any pain. "Yep! That's what I was made for! Before I got here I was up in Ketheres where they were holding the Zenith of Things Tournament. It's a pretty big deal up there, only happens once every ten years. Fighters from earth and other planets come in to fight and so far I'm getting pretty high up in the ranks! I'm sure I'll be champion once I get back!" Sechs boasted without bothering to mention his team mates. Elf and Zwölf were pretty useless anyways while that pouty-lipped bitch Alita was off on that mission of hers. Damn, she had better come back alive, Sechs still had unfinished business with her...

The Replica was a tad too busy reminiscing over his beloved battles to notice Kibitoshin's barely repressed reaction. It was a good thing for the Kaioshin too; otherwise Sechs was sure to take that smile the wrong way... His hurting pride was sore enough as it is over what happened with those stupid orderlies earlier that day! Ugh! That humiliating memory stung thousands of times more than the prick of that damn needle he got poked with by that stupid nurse...! He winced at the thought and forcefully tore his mind back to the present.

"Huh? What?" he stammered. He didn't expect such a tiny hopeful voice. "Well, uh..." Ah crap, not again! He was starting to feel awkward now! Kibitoshin didn't exactly come across as fierce and brutal like most Hunter-Warriors, but Sechs knew that appearances can often be deceiving when confronting a challenger. Still, that didn't change Sechs' opinion on how wimpy Kibitoshin was. He could just barely resist the urge to slam him down for such a question. No, he couldn't do that... He healed his arm and had shown himself to be a good ally after all!

"I don't know how powerful Kaioshins are," Sechs clumsily mumbled, "but if you watch over a place as big as a universe, I bet you must have some pretty lethal powers to do the job then."

Even though Sechs' battle-prone brain had troubles processing the very idea of keeping things under control without an ounce of violence, he still gave Kibitoshin most of his attention. Kibitoshin seemed to gain a state of calm for the first time that night -- at least for a moment until he suddenly sunk like a deflated balloon. Ah crap, now what?

The slightly annoyed Replica said nothing for a moment; he was terrible at being gentle with stuff like this. Sechs didn't know any other way to deal with it except in his own gruff manner. He gave the Kaioshin a (slightly less) hard pat on the back. "Did ya at least get things fixed when you stepped in?" he asked in a rough but benign tone. "Even when it got really tough? Warriors should always keep at it even when the battle seems lost. Perseverance can get you through just about anything!"

[bitpartgod.livejournal.com]

Did ya at least get things fixed when you stepped in? Oh, no.

Sechs was trying, he could see that. Come to think of it, didn't think he'd ever heard him try so hard to cheer him up, not even when they'd first met. But the trouble was, his stepping in hadn't done anything to stop Majin Buu at all. He'd had to find someone else to do his job for him. It had been the best- no, the only- course of action he could have taken, but when push came to shove he had failed to do his job and it had nearly cost the entire universe. And then again, and again, and again...

He shook his head slightly, chasing the ghosts from the corners of his eyes. Perseverance. Kibitoshin certainly relate to that. Sechs was right. No matter how much he wanted things to be different there was always a battle to keep on with. Letting the past creep up on him like that was only going to make things even harder for him now.

Managing a smile, he finally nodded at the question. "Well... there was once someone who could destroy whole planets. Most of the Kaioshin were- are- were a lot more powerful than him." Not that Frieza set much of a benchmark these days... "But I know people who are way, way stronger than that. They managed to fix things for me."

There was a pause. Kibitoshin knew what he wanted to say next, but whether he had the guts for it was another matter entirely. Say it, Kibitoshin! You're not a Kaioshin for nothing! He swallowed hard, looked Sechs in the eye and added: "And now I know I can rely on you, too, right?"

[sixth-attack.livejournal.com]

Holy crap! Destroy entire planets?! How could that sort of power even exist?!

A spark of intensity glowed in Sechs' yellow eyes at the mentioning of such destruction. How could power on such an enormous scale be caused by a single "someone"?! The android would have taken the info as an attack on his ignorance; he hated having his chain yanked like that. He momentarily gritted his teeth. Wait. Things were different now; maybe planetary destruction was possible from where Kibitoshin came from... Sechs was sure that the Kaioshin wouldn't BS him on purpose, especially now that the android got a first hand account of his ki power.

His jaw-clenching ceased as his defensive reaction subsided into a more curious state. Hmm... Maybe someday he'd be able to challenge a fight with someone who could destroy planets... Sechs defeated that one opponent who annihilated battleships in his past time... Imagine if Sechs destroyed someone who could abolish whole planets...!

Sechs was just about to immerse himself into that pleasing daydream when he found himself on the receiving end of Kibitoshin's abashing gaze and his even more perturbing question. The Replica paused -- no, froze like a cybernetic deer caught in high powered headlights. At that point he wasn't sure if his face was reddening or losing all color. Hopefully neither...

What?! Rely on him? That was... different. For a lone fighter like Sechs at least. Come to think of it, Elf and Zwölf had often depended on (or clung onto) him during the Z.O.T.T. He always left them in the dust though. It wasn't his fault that they were too wimpy and cowardly to catch up. Only when they got screwed around with by Springfoot Jack did he step in and protect them... Well, sort of... One of the twins did get her head blown off in that rigged game of Russian roulette but that wasn't Sechs' problem...

Yet this time things were much different. No longer cyborg in a place like Martin Landel's institute, maybe having a friend wouldn't be so bad. ...Shit! He was too used to doing things alone though! He hated feeling slowed down by unnecessary luggage! How was he supposed to get out of this hell hole?! To Sechs, there were only challengers and annoying bystanders. He didn't need anyone!

...Crap. The way the Kaioshin's dark eyes were looking into his own amber ones was so sincere... so hopeful. Within that bewildering moment the memory of Misha's pleading gaze while Sechs considered whether to kill her or not during that one match flashed through his mind. He could easily reject Kibitoshin, pick him up by the collar of his shirt and then toss him out into the hallway... Easy, but... too easy... It just wasn't right, not after all the help and care Kibitoshin had given Sechs. Dammit, his head was starting to hurt! If this kept up Sechs was sure his brain chip was going to have an epic melt down sooner or later...

After what seemed like an eternity of blinking and mumbling, the Replica finally forced out a coherent answer. "Uh... Sure. You can do that..."

Crap. This whole friendship business had better not cause him any trouble...

[bitpartgod.livejournal.com]

Wincing was all but pre-emptive for Kibitoshin these days. When Sech's answer didn't come straight away his natural instinct had been to bow inwards like a tree buckling to the wind, preparing himself for the inevitable blow that was coming, be it verbal or physical, for being so stupidly forward about it. So when Sechs actually said yes... he stared back at Sechs for an the same long, disbelieving time as it had taken for the other man to decide, then finally broke into a relieved smile.

"Thank you! That means so much to me, knowing you'll..." ... wait a moment. There had to be a reason it had taken him so long to answer. Mentally Kibitoshin went over the play of expression on Sech's face in the interlude, and it wasn't long before realisation dawned across his own face. He gaped. "D-don't get the wrong idea! I'm not asking for some kind of huge commitment... I just need to know you'll be there if I really, really need you. And I'll be there for you... you know, if you can find a use for me."

But what kind of use would Sechs have for him? From the sounds of it, Sechs was a celebrated warrior. If anything, sticking with him would probably only slow him down. What would Goku do...? Probably smile it off and move on. Goku never seemed to let anything like that get to him. It must have been so easy, knowing your power was so great that you'd never need anyone else's help with anything. He flopped back onto Sech's bed with a deep, melancholy sigh, staring up at the dark ceiling as though the answers could be found lurking in the shadows around the light fixtures. They couldn't.

"Look at me. Poor little Kibitoshin, can't even take tie his own shoelaces without asking someone else to help him." His eyes flickered from the ceiling to Sechs and he smiled weakly, half laughing at himself and half genuinely sad, although the line between the two was so blurred even he wasn't sure where one ended and the other began. "Pretty silly, huh?" Couldn't even heal someone without losing his head, either. Speaking of which... "Is there anything else I can do to help you?" Preferably something that means I won't have to move from where I'm lying...

[sixth-attack.livejournal.com]

Oh boy, here we go again. Kibitoshin was having another round of an emotional roller coaster and Sechs could feel himself being dragged in with the ride. If this keeps up I'm gonna heave...

One side of Sechs loudly snorted in his head, "good! I don't do commitments to anybody! It's a big waste of my time!" Yet at the same moment another part of Sechs quietly murmured, "but having someone care about me does feel kinda good... For once it's nice to not be brushed off as some stupid copy that outta be scrapped by now..." Dammit! Sechs wasn't used to feeling this muddled up! Sechs couldn't wait to get out of this institute, ever since he ended up here he felt as though he'd been thrown into an emotional obstacle course that he's been failing miserably in so far.

"No, no!" he growled with a frustrated shake of his head. Once his messy hair stopped swaying around his face, the Replica heaved out a flustered sigh. "I'm just... Ugh... I'm just not used to this sort of thing, alright?" It was true that he wasn't unaccustomed to being with others in non-volatile situations, but it wasn't the only reason why he was so reluctant about where this was all going; he was too mentally mushed up to bring them up right then. After a moment of deep breathing Sechs then added with a softer growl, "so stop fussing!"

Blinking, Sechs turned his head to watch Kibitoshin fall back upon the bed into a sad, laughing heap. The annoyance on Sechs' face softened somewhat into a more bemused expression while his lips twisted into a pondering scowl.

Damn this guy was such a whiner! ...Or was he just being too hard on himself? Crap, Sechs couldn't imagine the responsibility of watching over a whole damn universe! Sechs only looked out for himself, so it made things a lot easier but not all of time...

With a gruff sigh Sechs leaned over Kibitoshin with an expression akin to a fierce, full-grown tiger awkwardly gazing down at a whimpering cub that he wanted to help but wasn't sure how to do so. "Hey... Uh... Don't talk like that!" Sechs grumbled, "you... You uh... You did pretty well against that mirror monster with just that shelf of yours! And look what you did to my arm! It's like it never got sprained in the first place! So you're not THAT hopeless, alright?"

Ignoring his boorish side's threats of him regretting this later, Sechs reached over and gracelessly (but improving on the gentleness department) pulled Kibitoshin upright on the bed by his shoulders. He then gave the Kaioshin a lopsided grin. "Well, how 'bout healing my leg next?"

[bitpartgod.livejournal.com]

Sech's expressions seemed permenantly set in motion, changing faster than the weather and faster than Kibitoshin could even begin to keep up with. As for wondering just what went on behind that face, well, how could he even begin to understand? But he owed it to Sechs to try, not just as guardian but as his friend.

By now he was used to the scowling and the growling and the sighing and didn't take it nearly so personally as he might have done when they first met. It all seemed natural with Sechs now, like talking to a big, irritable bear rather than a person (android, Kibitoshin...) but without the tooth and claw to back it up. Well. He hoped. Those teeth were worryingly sharp...

But Sechs didn't look like he was about to do any biting right now. Looking up at him from the bed, in fact, he looked oddly pensive under all the blustering, like he truly meant every word he was saying. The words were slow and halting, like he'd had to pull them out of some barren part of himself he'd never even realised was there, but they really did seem genuine. Kibitoshin hesitated, then nodded. Slowly, the little grey clouds of self-pity began to dissipate from his own face, and he surprised himself by managing to give his friend a far happier smile. "Alright," he agreed, "I'll stop."

He would have been happy if Sechs had left it at that. Truly, he would have. But when Sechs actually complimented him, well! How was he supposed to stay so low now? A great, powerful fighter had just told him he did 'pretty well'! By the time Sechs pulled him up (almost without leaving bruises, too!) the Kaioshin was almost back to normal- no, he was better than normal. Buoyed, Kibitoshin balled his hands into fist and pumped them furiously; had his t-shirt had sleeves he would have gone ahead and rolled them up too, just to show how serious he was about this! "You got it! Let's see what I can do!"

[sixth-attack.livejournal.com]

And with that Kibitoshin's little emotional roller coaster flew upwards into an ecstatic spiral that didn't otherwise exist a few moments ago... The guy was like a rubber band, always snapping back into his optimistic state. Kibitoshin's returned enthusiasm both amused and surprised Sechs. The Replica didn't think his awkward attempts to cheer up the Kaioshin would work that well. He must be getting better at this sort of thing -- not that he was planning on making such an effort to help people from now on of course!

"There ya go!" Sechs chuckled as he gave Kibitoshin another gruff pat on the back. "Alright, let's see what this damn place did for my stab wound..."

Figuring that Kibitoshin would need a good look at the stab wound in his leg and feeling curious himself over how the injury looked, Sechs rose to his feet and unceremoniously shoved his grey pants down. Once he clumsily kicked the lower part of his uniform off his ankle, the Replica heavily dropped himself back onto the edge of his bed. Standing on his injured leg wasn't going to make it get better sooner and he was pretty anxious to see Kibitoshin's ki energy at work again.

Like his misadventures in the showers earlier that day, Sechs didn't appear bothered at all by the absence of clothes and was oblivious to whatever embarrassment he may be causing for others around him. This was like a trip to the cybertech -- erm, doctor, right? It wasn't that big of a deal to him. Plus the stupid grey uniforms were overrated anyways!

With the same (lack of) gentleness and care he gave to his arm brace, Sechs tore away at the gauze until it was messily unraveled from his thigh. When the lengthy white (and red) bits of the bandage fell away, the spot where the monster's piece of glass purged into his leg revealed itself as a fleshy line gunged up with blood and held firmly together by...

Metal staples?! Huh. He used to be made of metal, but now he was in a flesh body being held by metal staples. Wasn't that ironic? He couldn't help but give out a hollow "heh!" at the sight.

[bitpartgod.livejournal.com]

All had been going well. Sech's wrist was fixed, Kibitoshin had been pulled out of a blue funk, and now he was going to prove just how helpful he was all over again.

Then suddenly Sechs dropped his trousers and Kibitoshin literally (and liberally) choked on his own enthusiasm then and there. "S-Sechs!" He leapt to his feet, flushed a glowing shade of pink for his embarrassment. "You can't just-! I mean-!" Well, actually, he corrected himself silently, he can just, since he just did. He tried again. "It's immodest!"

Did... androids even have any concept of modesty? The question quite confounded Kibitoshin, and for a moment he simply frowned into space, altogether forgetting to be outraged. I guess if they're not human they might not- No! He had to focus!

Giving Sechs his best masterly-scolding-teacher look (the one he, ironically enough, usually saved for his Ancestor), he sighed and tried to put a more clinical spin on the situation. Well, at least he could see the staples more clearly. And at least Sech's was wearing underwear. Even in spite of the fact that he was still blushing like a maiden on her wedding night, he cleared his throat officiously. "I think you should take off the gau-"

Oh.

Ouch.

Watching the gauze rip away was like watching an extremely large band-aid being torn off of someone's skin, but Sechs didn't even wince. Think positively. The cut wasn't too messy, even in spite of its depth and splinters and crust of blood. "I think," he said, "I should be able to do something. Hold on."

With that, Kibitoshin dropped down on one knee next to Sechs and put his hands on the cut- gingerly, so as not to hurt Sechs and so as not to have to touch too much of the blood. With one last, "Here goes..." he closed his eyes, concentrated, and allowed his hands and Sech's leg to become enveloped in glowing golden warmth.

[sixth-attack.livejournal.com]

Pausing, the Replica gave the pink-faced Kaioshin a nonplussed look. What was all the fuss about? This was like his time in the shower or even when he got his Fizziroy body upgraded. Back then Sechs had been so excited by the upgrade's powerful boost that he nearly ran out into the arena without his battle gear! But that annoying Deckman #100 had to ruin his fun and chase him down with his clothes! Then he made that weird remark about his Solenoid Quench gun... What was it that Deckman #100 said again? Something about him being "happy to see him" or something? To this day Sechs didn't get it, he didn't have his Quench gun anymore back then, so what the hell was Deckman #100 talking about?!

...Nope, still didn't get it. Oh well, that didn't matter anymore...

"Whaaat?!" grumbled Sechs as a hint of annoyance entered his bemused expression. Kibitoshin's blushed admonishing face barely fazed Sechs. Instead he gave out a guttural sigh. "Geeze, you're starting to sound like the nurses here!" Fine, if it bothered peachy Kibby so badly then he would just have to stuff the stupid pants back on once the healing was done. He momentarily stuck out his lower lip into a pout. What a pain!

Sechs' befuddled irritation faded off once the golden light reemerged once more from Kibitoshin's hands. He didn't experience as much awe at the sight of the healing aura but the pleasant warmth he felt was more willingly welcomed this time.

The repugnant wound didn't take on as much of a dramatic change as his injured wrist did when Kibitoshin healed it, but Sechs could still feel something being repaired deep inside his leg. He figured that the wound was just taking longer to heal because of how much more complex it was compared to his sprained wrist. Either way, he was pleased to sense some muscles being reformed and tiny hints of regeneration within the edges of his stitched skin.

As he watched the ki power do its work on his leg, the Replica's tense posture on the bed relaxed while his amber eyes grew half closed. Hmm... Not bad! He could certainly get used to this!

[bitpartgod.livejournal.com]

Slowly, slowly, Kibitoshin could feel Sech's skin thread back together under his touch. There really was no way of describing what it was like for him; Kibito had been given centuries, maybe even millenia, to perfect and experience his healing skills, but the East Kaioshin in him had never so much as bandaged a paper-cut. The decade or so he'd spent as Kibitoshin wasn't nearly long enough for him to get a proper grip on what was an ability that was simultaneously so very close and so very alien to him.

But even he, for all his faults, didn't need experience to know something was wrong. As with healing Sech's wrist and his own shoulder he knew his ki energy was draining faster than it should have done, but this... already he could feel his body begin to slowly fold in over his friend's knee, like a kite dropping out of the sky in still weather.

This wasn't supposed to be happening. Even with each injury taking more out of him than it should have done, it wasn't supposed to-

But what if he'd underestimated Sech's injury? What if it ran deeper than he had anticipated? Now that he really thought about it, those blood clots had looked rather dark, and... suddenly nervous, he opened one eye (and that was one very heavy eyelid, more like eyelead, really) and looked up into his face. He seemed calm, pleased even, wearing an expression that reminded him irresistibly of a cat after a big meal. He couldn't let him down, not now. Yet surely Sechs would understand if he stopped... just for a minute, maybe. Then he could try again when the breath came to him smoothly rather than in great, shuddering gulps.

Kibitoshin's hands slowly fell from Sech's leg. It wasn't completely healed, that much was obviously, but it was a good start. It wouldn't hurt so much now, at least. He gave Sechs a weak smile. "Is that... you know... okay for now?"

Hopefully it would be. Not that anyone was going to get a chance to object, of course; a few moments later, as the glow died from the Kaioshin's hands, Sech's face slid sideways in his vision and he collapsed. He was gone before he hit the floor.

[sixth-attack.livejournal.com]

Having drifted deeper into the warm, golden state of calm, the Replica nearly missed Kibitoshin's wavering words. Instead Sechs simply nodded and gave out a drowsy murmur. "Huh? Uh, sure, whatever..."

Suddenly, like a light switch being flicked off without warning, the blissful warmth vanished into nothingness, leaving the wound healed halfway and still stitched together. Perturbed and just a tad annoyed to find that the healing had stopped so abruptly, Sechs' eyes flickered open just in time to catch sight of Kibitoshin collapsing over like a rag doll.

"Whoa! What--?!" Sechs could barely finishing uttering out his yelp before he tried to stoop over and catch the falling Kaioshin but was too late. It happened all too suddenly and his sluggish mind was still waking up from his dazed stupor. With his hands still reaching out, the Replica's face blanched as he watched Kibitoshin flop over with a dull thud.

Sechs froze. Within moments he experienced a quick succession of reactions. First it was bewilderment over the sudden change in events, which was then shortly followed by a sting of irritation. "What is he doing?! He was almost done healing my leg there!" Sechs angrily brooded to himself until a sense of worry swiftly took over his callous mindset. "Wait a sec! He wouldn't do that on purpose! Oh no--!"

Within seconds the Replica scrambled off the bed and was crouched low by the unconscious Kaioshin's side. Wincing from the remaining pain in his leg, Sechs rolled Kibitoshin over onto his back and hastily parted the curtain of white hair from his face. Sechs blinked. Holy crap! He was out cold! But how..? "Kibito? Kibito! You... You alright..?" He gave Kibitoshin's shoulders a shake. "C'mon man! Wake up!"

But Kibitoshin didn't wake up. For a moment that terrified Sechs more than he'd like, he thought that the Kaioshin had died. Yet a second later he caught sight of him breathing. Whew! Yet what got him to faint like that in the first place...?

...Oh right! When Kibitoshin healed his wrist he ended up looking pretty drained after. The ki power was taking up his energy! Dammit, he should have asked Kibitoshin about what happened, but he got too distracted by his wrist's recovery to notice how weary Kibitoshin was! Healing his leg must have completely sucked his power dry! Now a new feeling that felt far worse than the first three overcame the Replica: guilt.

"Shit! Now look what you've gone and done Sechs! You idiot! You should have left the stupid wound alone!"

Gritting his teeth together, Sechs mentally swatted away at his guilt like a pestering fly. Now wasn't the time for beating himself up! It wasn't his fault that this happened (although his guilt begged to differ...) but it was his problem! Whether he liked it or not the Kaioshin was his friend now, he couldn't leave him like this! With a few pained grunts Sechs struggled to lift the limp healer up until he managed to clumsily place him back onto the bed. Dammit, this would have been much easier if he had his Fizziroy body back...

Once the concerned android finished awkwardly shuffling the Kaioshin into a more comfortable spot on the bed, he hastily pulled his pants back on and then gracelessly sat himself down beside the unconscious Kibitoshin. The same expression of a confused animal took over Sechs' face as he gazed down at his friend. He tried to think of what to do but his flustered brain came up with nothing. The Replica sank into a defeated slouch. What was he supposed to do now...?

"Kibito...shin...?"