The door burst open.
Blindy stumbled inside, covered in dust, tangled in webbing, looking like the ventilation shaft had tried to wrap him up and sell him as street shawarma.
Steam from the ruptured pipe he had so “accurately” shot began to thicken in the air.
Under the dome, temperature dropped sharply as the compensating systems kicked in, and the fog started condensing right there in the open space.
Within seconds, humidity hit the dew point. Tiny droplets, almost microscopic, gathered into a fine artificial rain that began tapping softly against the metal floor, like someone had turned on a weather simulator.
[Dick, taking a heavy breath into the mic]“Here we go again, for fuck’s sake…
Author-grade ‘cosmo-science™’… sounds smart, smells like bullshit from three light-years away.
But hey… I don’t get paid to question it. I just talk.
Moving on…”
Blindy came crawling out, breathing hard, still not fully convinced he was alive.
He looked toward Zeros, standing at the edge of the platform with his back turned.
“Hey… b-b-buddy…”
He swallowed, voice catching again.
“you—YOU good… right…?
We… we not clappin’ anymore… right?”
Zeros turned.
Slow. Measured.
Rain traced thin lines down his faceplate. His eyes glowed faintly, dimming with each blink.
In a low voice, quiet, almost poetic, he said:
“I’ve seen things you wouldn’t believe, Blindy.
Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Taurus.
Gamma rays flashing in the dark near the Burhauser Gate.
All those moments… will be lost in time.
Like tears… in gutter water.”
Blindy froze.
He had no idea what the hell just happened.
Zeros stepped forward, tossed the katana aside, and in a completely different tone snapped:
“Time to get the fuck out, you piece of shit.”
He walked past him without even a glance.
His boots splashed through water, through rain, through blood, through everything that was left behind.
Blindy turned slowly.
Saw the aftermath.
The bodies.
The mess.
Swallowed.
“Jeez… Zeros… buddy…
sometimes you scare the hell outta me…”
Then he noticed the sword.
His whole face shifted—like something just clicked way too late to be useful.
“Huh… Shiori’s got one like that…
Maybe… yeah… maybe I take it…”
He stepped forward, picked it up, and immediately grabbed the still-hot blade out of pure habit.
“AAAAAAAAA—FUCK—!”
His hand burned instantly, and he jerked it back, shaking it like that was gonna fix anything.
“AH—shit—shit—shit—!”
He held the sword out in front of him, face tightening like he was about to convince either himself—or reality.
“Alright… Blindy… this is it…”
A quick nod.
Then another.
“This your moment, yeah…?
You walk up… calm… cool… like you meant to do that…”
He adjusted his grip—very carefully this time.
“You give her the sword…
nice… smooth… like it ain’t even hot…”
He glanced at his hand.
“—which it is—
very much is—”
He sucked in a breath.
“Don’t scream.
Don’t panic.
Don’t drop it—
especially don’t drop it—”
Another nod, faster now.
“Yeah… yeah… you got this…
Just walk in… hand it over…
say somethin’… good…”
His face tightened.
“Like…
‘Hey… uh… found this… thought of you…'”
He winced.
“…nah that sounds dumb as hell—”
He shook his head quickly.
“Don’t think.
Just go.
Just—just go, buddy—”
He blinked.
“—not him, not dick-droid—
me—
I’m the buddy—”
A deep breath.
“…shit.”
He set his face like a man who had absolutely no idea what he was doing—but was committed anyway.
“Okay… step one…”
His grip tightened slightly.
“She smiles…
Yeah—she definitely smiles…
’cause she’s happy…”
A small pause, quieter now:
“—please smile—”
He straightened again, forcing it back.
“That’s step one.”
Another breath.
“An’ step two—”
From behind him, Zeros’ voice cut in:
“You coming?!”
Blindy jumped, spun around, and hurried after him, already muttering under his breath:
“Step one—give the sword…
Step two—she smiles…
—that was step two, right…?
Or—wait—no…”
He frowned, trying to keep up both physically and mentally.
“Whatever—whatever—”
He waved it off like the plan would fix itself.
“Step three—I take her to dinner…”
He steadied himself, as if that settled something in his head.
“Yeah… yeah, that’s good…”
He kept going, voice dropping into nervous excitement:
“S-s-step four… hugs…”
Then suddenly—
“STEP FIVE—OH SHIT—OH SHIT—!”
He yelped in excitement, sped up, and caught up with Zeros.
Together, they left the platform behind them. A place that would never be the same again.