After finishing their meeting, the security officers called for two attendants, who brought TO and DH to the accommodation area of the dockyard. They walked in silence down several halls until DH’s attendant led them down another hallway. TO was about to follow, but their own attendant, a short pale human with the name Glenn, spoke up. 

 

“Your suite is further down this hallway, Ark-87.” they said. “Apologies, but we will be there soon.”

 

“We have separate rooms?” TO asked, but the question didn’t go through their translator; instead, a new alert sounded in their ear.

 

==In civilian lodgings, civilians present most guests with personal rooms unless otherwise requested; they do this for the sake of civilian privacy and safety. They often present most guests of importance with more lavish accommodations; this can be a gesture of goodwill, respect, or an attempt at bribery. ==

 

Their guide brought them a little further and then stopped in front of a door with the number 101. They took a card out of the pocket of their plain grey robes and presented it to TO with both hands. 

 

“That will let you get into your room, and it will unlock all the facilities inside.” Glenn said, bowing deeply as he took a few steps away from TO, “If you want anything, your communicator should link up with the guest services and you can place any requests.” They took another step back. “If you have a request for your meal this evening, please let me know and I’ll see to it that you have your desired meal provided for you. We have a wide range of foods available for all of King Decon’s loyal synths, so please ask for anything you’d like.”

 

“... I see.” TO said as they waited for the human to stand back upright. They didn’t. “... Is there anything else?” they finally asked.

 

“Not unless there is something you desire.”

 

The pain in TO’s arm was getting harder and harder to ignore, and they just wanted to sit down. “There’s nothing more that I need.”

 

“In that case, I will leave you for the time being.” Glenn took a few steps away before standing up and rushing off. TO had seen several civilians do that now, and was beginning to wonder why.

 

Well, that wasn’t important at the moment.

 

They unlocked the door with their keycard and headed inside. Since they had described it as a suite, they were expecting a room like C12’s; a small bed, a table, a chair, and maybe a speaker in the corner. 

 

TO didn’t expect what they saw.

 

The room was enormous; TO had only seen rooms as big as this in communal rooms back in the training center; the cafeteria and the training rooms, for example. It never crossed their mind that there would be a room this big for just personal use. 

 

As the door closed behind them, their helmet flickered and the light returned to normal; The civilians optimized the lighting here for Synth eyes, but TO didn’t know if that had been a change made for them, or if that’s just how these rooms were lit. 

 

The entire room was in a circular shape, with windows set in half and giving them an excellent view of the docks where the shield was still being repaired. By the tint to the windows, TO could tell that the other side had a mirrored glaze which would have given civilians privacy, but also allow for a decent view. Sitting right in the center of the mirrored half of the room was a very large, circular bed with more pillows and blankets on it than TO had ever considered a single bed would ever need. There was a couch with a screen before it, a sitting area with soft looking chairs and a table that held several fancy glasses and a decanter of wine, and a dining area with a sleek polished table and fancy looking chairs. Near the table, there was what TO recognized as a vending panel; it was much like the food dispensers, but the screens showed a variety of foods and items they could request.

 

There was one door that was clearly set against the wall and intended to be visible with its sleek appearance and darker border. Was it perhaps a private washroom? That made sense. If the rest of the room was this lavish, then they hoped that maybe the washroom had a tub, or at least a larger shower than they had grown used to. 

 

They had thought the tub back in the training center was a luxury, but that was nothing compared to what they were looking at now. The walls looked like smoothed out stone, and soft, warm-toned lights hung from the ceiling, giving off a fire like-glow despite the absence of fire. There was a door that went off to a separate room with a toilet - a strange one that was raised off the floor like a chair- a sink, and several devices spewing fourth steam that filled the air with nice smelling fumes. The rest of the washroom was clearly a large shower; there were seats where one could sit while they washed, shower heads like TO was used to seeing, and there was a very large panel in the ceiling which looked like it would drop a flood of water over anyone in the center of the room. There were speakers in the corners playing music, there were dispensers around a pillar in the center which held a variety of soaps, and in the corner was the largest, biggest tub TO had ever seen. They went up to it and looked to see that it was already full of hot, steamy water. Jets of water were already being set forth from spots around the tub, creating bubbles that burst as soon as they hit the surface. There were also shelves all around the tub, filled with various salts and powders for the bath. TO wanted to jump in right away, but the throbbing in their arm reminded them they couldn’t. TO hadn’t even removed their armor yet because the armor was keeping their arm in place; They had to deal with their injury before they could do anything else. They needed DH.

 

As they thought about that, they heard a faint beep in their ear. A notice came up before them on their visor.

 

==Notice; Visitor== the alert said, and it showed TO a video of what was just outside their door. It was DH; or at least TO assumed it was, as they still had their armor on. They had a box in their hand, but TO couldn’t see what it was.

 

==Open Door; Y/N?==

 

“Yes, let them in.” TO said as they headed back to the larger room. By the time they got there, DH was already in and had deactivated their armor. They were looking around the room with big, wide eyes and their ears flicked down in awe.

 

“... Can you believe civilians live like this?” They whisper, “This is huge! Can you imagine having this much space?”

 

“You should see the washroom.” TO said. “Is yours as big as this one?” The mechanized voice fed through the speakers, and DH looked quickly at TO. 

 

DH shrugged, “No idea; I demanded a med kit as soon as they separated us, and then told Sherry - that’s the guide I had, the one with the fur, to bring me here.” They frowned as they looked over TO, “You haven’t tried taking off your armor?”

 

“It’s keeping my arm in place.” TO said, “So.. I thought I shouldn’t remove it until you were here.”

 

DH gestured to the bed. “Well, sit there and take off your armor. I’ll look at your arm.” their ears pinned back with worry, and though they said nothing TO was certain that the worry DH had was the same as the one TO themself had; that the damage would be too much for DH to fix.

 

TO did as they were told, but as they sat down, they sunk down on the unfamiliar plush bedding and nearly fell back.

 

“Why is this so soft!?” TO said as they struggled to keep their balance.

 

DH headed over with the med-kit and stopped as they watched TO sink into the bed. “Maybe more species need softer beds?” they asked. They sat down next to TO and gave themself a moment to get used to the difference in the mattress's softness. “It’s not so bad.”

 

“No, it’s not.” TO grumbled, “I didn’t expect it to be so soft.”

 

DH grinned, their ears lifting for a moment before they pinned back with concentration as they opened the med-kit. “At any rate.” They muttered as they looked through the kit, “It’ll be more comfortable when we sleep; I can have my arms wrapped around you, and they won’t go numb from being pinned to the bed.”

 

“DH!” TO said quickly, and though their armor was still up, they could feel their ears warm up. “We’re not on the ship anymore! We don’t know if we’re being spied on, or-”

 

==Scanning for recording devices== came the alert on the screen of TO’s helmet. They blinked as they watched their screen turn green while a series of commands and checks scrolled down to the side. When the scan finished, the alert came back in green lettering.

== Room secure==

 

“... Nevermind.. Apparently the room is secure.”

 

“Well, the security people said they were.” DH said. They leaned forward and put their hands under TO’s injured arm. “And they’d be dumb to lie to us, because if they got caught.. Well, wouldn’t that be spying on King Decon and His agents? They’d lose their jobs for that at the very least.” They set the kit aside once they had sorted out a few things, then looked to TO, “Alright; take off your armor; it might hurt, but we need to see the damage.” 

 

TO didn’t want to take off their armor; the burning pain in their arm was bad enough, and they knew it would only get worse once they disabled the armor that was holding their arm stiffly against their chest. Still, DH couldn’t help them unless they took off the armor. 

 

TO reached up with a shaking hand and pressed their bracelet. The armor dissolved away, leaving their arm unsupported, but DH had their hands there to grab the newly unsupported, injured limb. TO’s arm had been hurting the entire time, but they had gotten used to it. The moment the armor left their arm and their muscles tried to keep the limb up, the pain arched through TO’s body like electricity. They yelped, stifling the sound and doubling over, whimpering as they clutched at their arm with their good hand.

 

 DH held onto TO’s arm as gently as they could. “Let go of your arm.” they said, their voice firm, but very gentle. “I’ll hold it, so just let your arm relax; we need to see it.” 

 

It took TO a moment, and several deep breaths before they could pull their arm away. 

 

This was the first time since the limb had gotten injured that they had seen their bare arm; the skin was blotchy, with spots in such deep blue colors that some of them even appeared black. The elbow looked distorted, like they had somehow twisted it around wrong. Their elbow was bulging out in the wrong place, and it making to feel slightly sick. They looked away, not wanting to see the damage to their arm. 

 

Time dragged on, slowed by pain as DH silently went over the damage. When DH broke the silence with a sigh, TO panicked. “What is it?” they said as their mind raced. “Did I break something? Is my arm destroyed?” Would the arm need to be removed? How would that work? Would have to go back to the center to recover? Would Ark-1 reassign them when they recovered? What if they got separated from DH?

 

For a moment, the fear of being repurposed hit them. It took a moment for them to remember that they had passed their training and were working as active duty synths. They wouldn’t be repurposed; the officers would make sure they got treatment, wouldn’t they? They were too valuable to be repurposed, weren’t they?

 

Maybe they’d have to work in a place like the fabric reclamation center, sitting at rows of tables while they worked to pull apart old uniforms. 

 

“It’s not destroyed.” DH said quietly as they dug through the med-kit, “But it’s in terrible shape; dislocated elbow and shoulder. That can cause a whole pile of other issues.” 

 

TO breathed a sigh of relief; They remembered when Q10 had a dislocated shoulder, but they ended up being fine even if they had been in pain. They remembered how the medical officer had simply popped the shoulder back into place and sent them off to continue their training. “Is that all?” TO said as they leaned over; a sharp laugh escaped their mouth, but they didn’t know why.

 

DH pulled out a syringe from the med-kit and then looked through the various vials of medication. They pulled out one and read the label before giving a little triumphant exclamation. “This is basically what they used back at the center.” They said as they focused on the dosage, “It’s weaker that what we use, but if I up the dose it should be the same thing.” They uncapped the syringe and slid it into the top of the bottle, drawing out a good amount of fluid.

 

“What’s that for? Is it an accelerant?” TO asked. 

 

“No, not accelerant.” DH said, “You don’t need an accelerant; you’re not in training and when we leave here, we’ll be travelling for another two periods before we get to Arkane; you have some time to heal up.” They went to TO’s good arm, found a vein at the underside of their elbow, and put the needle in, “These are painkillers; good ones.”

 

“... But Q10 had a dislocated shoulder, and they didn’t need any painkillers-“ 

 

“You gave them your own painkillers, remember?” 

 

“Well, yes, but I mean when the officer popped the shoulder back into place-“ 

 

DH glanced up, “TO.” They said seriously; they always got that serious look on their face when they were dealing with medical issues, and somehow it made TO’s heart swell up even though they were still in pain. “I don’t think you understand how very painful this is going to be. I have to fix the shoulder first, then the elbow. Not only will the affected joint feel like fire, but so will the other joints because they’re injured, and there’s going to be a lot of pressure on them.” They finish administering the medication, then pull the needle out and put it in a small disposal container in the med-kit. “You’re going to need something to dull the pain.”

 

“Alright.” TO said, their ears dropping once more. Well, pain was alright, so long as they knew they’d recover. Besides that, it couldn’t be as bad as the joints being dislocated in the first place, right? They had managed the pain while their arm was stuck in the vent, so they were certain they could manage this. 

 

“We just need to give the medication a moment to work.” DH said. They looked over the arm once more, then glanced up at TO. “... I was really worried about you.” They said, “You were stuck, you were hurt, and I couldn’t get there fast enough-”

 

“Well… if you had gotten hurt, it would have been my fault, anyway; it was my plan, remember?” 

 

DH shook their head, “Your plan worked; there was only trouble because I didn’t grab onto the ship-”

 

“Which was the insurgent’s fault in the first place for shooting at you.. And for starting the whole thing.” They let a soft smile work at the corners of their lips. “... I worried about you too. Fault or no, I still didn’t want you to be hurt.”

 

“Well.. you got hurt.” DH said, “And I’m going to do what I can to help.” 

 

There was the strangest sensation in TO’s arm; as though the pain that they had been feeling morphed into this icy feeling. “I think it’s already working.” TO said. “My arm feels cold?” 

 

DH nodded and set the ice aside. “Alright, you’re ready.” they said. They reached into the med-kit and took out something that looked like a padded leather sausage. They put it into TO’s good hand. “Put this in your mouth, so you don’t bite down and hurt yourself.” They said. They took TO’s arm and for a moment TO could feel the pain shooting through the cold. “Are you ready?” 

 

TO nodded as they put the bit in their teeth. They took a deep breath and braced themself against the pain. 

 

DH nodded, took the upper arm, held onto TO’s back and pushed the joint into place. 

 

TO’s vision went white as the pain came, shooting through their entire arm, their shoulder, and to their neck. They cried out, dropping the bit and whimpering as they doubled over. It took them a moment to even realize that DH had put their arms over TO’s shoulders and was now gripping them, pulling TO against their chest and holding them close as TO breathed through the pain. 

 

“I’m sorry.” DH whispered, “I’m sorry, but we have to do this.” They said, “We need to fix this.” 

 

“I know.” TO whimpered.

 

“... And the elbow is going to be worse.” DH said. 

 

TO nodded, took several deep breaths, then sat up and looked away from DH. They picked up the leather bit from where it had fallen and saw tooth marks already in it from their fangs. 

 

“Just do it.” they said before putting the bit back into their mouth. They closed their eyes, wincing as DH took their arm in their hands once more. 

 

“Alright.. three, two, one-“ 

 

The pain was absolute, and for the second where it seemed like TO was experiencing the purest pain, time drew out- like they had once more entered through a portal and time was being stretched out. They felt like they had to lean into the pain; to accept it and embrace it, as though that was what their existence was, and they’d never be free of this pain again. Their vision faded, and they felt dizzy and lightheaded as their world went momentarily black. 

 

When they came to once more, they were laying down on the bed, their head in DH’s lap. Their arm lay against their chest, and DH was gently scratching the back of TO’s neck; something TO almost missed because of the pain. 

 

“Done?” TO asked, their voice shaking. 

 

“Done.” DH said, “The worst is over, just rest now.” 

 

TO relaxed as they let the pain slowly ebb away from them thanks to the painkillers and the treatment from DH.