After a minute, Raze moved to the edge of the clearing and removed his socks and boots. He set them at the head of the trail where Sevda couldn’t miss them. He would leave her here because she’d asked him too, but he wasn’t going to make her walk back in bare feet. As she had already reminded him, she wasn’t a cyborg. She couldn’t block pain or heal quickly. Better she wore them for the walk back to the cabin.

He left and started making his way back up the trail, with Sevda’s words playing over in his head every step of the way.

The walk didn’t help clear his head. If anything, he felt more confused than ever. When he got back home, he took a quick shower to wash the mud from his feet, then dressed and started clearing away the breakfast dishes while he tried to put things in perspective. The situation was simple enough. They’d shared a night and a meal together, but that was all there could ever be. She had to leave. He had to stay. The end.

He grabbed a handful of river sand from the jar beside the sink and used it to scour the dishes clean. “I can’t leave. My place is here. And what is she thinking, asking me to go with her? She barely knows me. She sure as hell doesn’t know me well enough to say I’m staying here because I’m afraid.”

Not that she’d want him to go with her after what he said. His words had hurt her, and for all his anger, that knowledge bothered him.

“Damn it,” he muttered. This was why he preferred to be alone. The noats couldn’t be hurt by a poorly chosen word. The chickens didn’t care if he didn’t speak for days. Even among his own kind he’d been considered a loner. His siblings were the only ones who understood him, and they were all gone.

He lapsed into silence, but inside his head, the diatribe went on unabated until the dishes were cleaned and put away. On a normal day, he’d leave the cabin to handle the day's chores. After a storm, the irrigation channels usually needed to be cleared of debris, and he still needed to check on the small orchard of fruit trees he was cultivating at the far edge of the farm.

Instead, he decided to tidy up the cabin. Sevda would be stuck here for another day at least, and she wasn’t likely to want to sleep in bed with him tonight, not after everything they’d said to each other. With that in mind, he retrieved several blankets from their storage container beneath his bed and set them on the narrow couch that took up most of the living area wall. She’d have to curl up to fit, but it was more comfortable than the floor would be.

The cabin seemed too quiet without her laughing presence. After years of silence, he thought he’d be irritated by any sort of company. Instead, the quiet felt wrong.

“I’m losing my mind.” He tossed a pillow onto the couch with more force than necessary. “Everything was perfect until that damned female arrived. Maybe she brought some kind of pathogen with her. One that my medi-bots can’t fight.”

An unexpected voice responded. “Pilot Rem does not carry any pathogens. If you are experiencing mental distress, the source will not be my pilot.”

He spun around to glower at the comm device Sevda had left by the bed. “Eddi? Why are you eavesdropping on me? And for the record, my distress is most definitely being caused by your damned pilot.”

“Pilot Rem activated Sunrise Protocol. I am programmed to monitor this frequency continuously to ensure that there is no danger to her.”

“So, you’ve been listening in since we got here?”

“Yes, Raze.”

“Fraxxing wonderful. You must have gotten quite an earful.”

“Technically, I do not have ears.”

“I guess you don’t. Did you record anything you listened to?”

“No. Recording only begins if I establish that my pilot is in danger.”

“Thank the stars for that, at least. And for the record, your pilot is in no danger from me. You can deactivate Sunrise Protocol.”

“You are not my pilot. I do not need to obey your directives. I will, however, verify with Sevda Rem if she wishes me to continue Sunrise Protocol upon her return. Do you think she’ll be gone long? I would like to give her an update on my repairs.”

“I have no idea how long your stubborn pilot will stay away. She’s not very happy with me right now.”

“She seemed happy with you last night.”

He snorted. “We were both happier last night.”

“I have been with Pilot Rem for more than four standard years. It is not common for her to be happy. She tells me that is because she won’t be happy until she is free. You made her laugh, even though she will not be free until we finish this mission. Then she will no longer be indebted to Torex and can sell me to buy a place on a colony planet.”

“Wait. Back up. She’ll sell you? Don’t you belong to Torex?”

“Torex requires all planetary scouts to purchase their own equipment, including a ship. Once a scout has worked long enough to pay off the basic equipment, they can upgrade again.”

“And each time they upgrade their equipment, their debt to Torex increases again?”

“Yes.”

It was another kind of slavery, one that forced the slave to sell themselves over and over again. He hadn’t really understood how much control Torex had over Sevda’s life. She’d told him, but he had still thought of her as an employee, someone who worked for the corporations by choice. He’d been wrong.

“If upgrading added to her debt load, why do it? Why not pay off what’s owed and leave?”

“I am not sure I can answer your question. There are too many variables.”

“Let me make it more specific, then. Why hasn’t Sevda left Torex, yet? You, and the ship you control, are obviously not basic equipment.”

“I am most definitely not basic. I am a Seeker Class vessel with advanced AI functionality. It took my pilot many years of work to be able to acquire me. I have the longest range of any scout ship model currently on the market. My pilot purchased me so that she could be assigned to the highest risk missions to outlying areas like this one.”

He finally understood. “More risk, more pay? She bought you to be free sooner?”

“Yes. My pilot was indebted to Torex for both her upbringing and her cybernetic arm before she ever became a scout. To pay off her debts with lower risk missions would take another decade of her life.”

“Thank you for explaining, Eddi.”

“You are welcome, Raze. It is part of my programming to see to my pilot’s health and wellbeing. The data I have collected indicate that you can make Sevda happy. Happiness is a desired condition that leads to wellness and stability.”

He chuckled. “Are you matchmaking, Eddi?”

“I am merely explaining the logic behind my decision to speak with you about my pilot.”

“Right. Of course, that’s all you were doing. Thank you, Eddi. I’m going to find Sevda in a moment. I’ll bring the comm device when I do, and I’ll let her know you have an update.”

“Thank you.”

The cabin fell silent. It wasn’t a comfortable silence, though. Something told him it would be a long time before he enjoyed quiet solitude again. He looked over at the blankets and pillow he’d set out for Sevda and frowned. He didn’t want her to sleep somewhere else tonight. He wanted her with him.

He tossed the blankets back under the bed, put a fresh log on the fire, and headed out to find Sevda. He had no idea what he was going to say, but he had a feeling his first words should probably be an apology.

Sevda didn’t turn around until she was certain Raze was gone. She didn’t want him to see how much his rejection had hurt. It had been stupid to make the suggestion at all. They barely knew each other, but somehow… Veth, she had wanted him to say yes, but he hadn’t. She was the only female on the whole planet; his only chance to live, and he’d chosen death instead. Despite that, she still wanted to try and make him change his mind.

“I’ve lost my mind. That has to be it.” She ran a hand over the rough edge of one of the grave markers. The name Talon was carved into the stone. She couldn’t imagine how hard it must have been for Raze to carry each of his dead siblings up here and bury them. It must have taken days. Then, when the war had ended, he’d come back here to stay with the only family he had.

Her throat tightened, and a few stray tears welled up and spilled down her cheeks before she got herself back under control. She had only been able to visit her family’s graves once. She had been sent to the city before they were buried, and once there, she hadn’t been permitted to leave again until she turned seventeen. In the scant few days between her seventeen birthday and the day she was to report to Torex for training, she had made the journey and said her goodbyes.

She caressed the weatherworn stone beneath her hand. “He’s never found a way to say goodbye to all of you, has he?”

Her only answer was the trill of birdsong and the whisper of the breeze through the branches of the trees that surrounded her.

It wasn’t fair. They’d both given Torex so much of their lives already. It must have taken Raze years to establish himself here, working alone with no one but the noats and chickens for company. Now, he was going to lose everything again.

She wandered from grave to grave, paying her respects Raze’s family. it wasn’t her fault, but she was a cog in the machine that would descend on this place someday and disturb what should have been their final resting place.

“I’m sorry. I wish I could do more. I can’t save this planet. I can’t even save your brother. I tried, though. I’m just not what he wants. He’d rather die here with you than leave with me.”

She finished her visitation and turned back toward the trailhead. There was only one way out of the clearing, so at least she wouldn’t get lost. Part of her was tempted to take the path all the way back to the valley floor. Maybe the floodwaters had receded enough by now that she could get back onboard her ship and stay there until repairs were done. Her comm device was still at the cabin. She could use that to let Raze know she wouldn’t be coming back. It would be easier than facing him again.

She was still contemplating her destination when she spotted the boots set neatly in the middle of the path. He’d taken off his shoes and left them for her so she wouldn’t have to make the trek in bare feet.

“You are a complicated man,” she muttered. Was this a peace offering? An apology? Or was he just being practical again? After considering things for a moment, she decided it didn’t matter what his reasons were. She couldn’t steal what had to be one of his few pairs of footwear, and as much as she didn’t want to admit it, she couldn’t make the trek to the ship in bare feet. She would have to go back to the cabin.

She slipped on the socks and boots, lacing them up as tight as they would go. They were still ridiculously oversized, but at least her feet wouldn’t take a beating. She had enough cuts, bruises, and scrapes already.

She tromped through the trees and turned up the hill with a low groan. It hadn’t seemed that far on the way down. Of course, the only times she’d been on this trail, Raze had been carrying her. It was easy to ignore the steep incline and increased gravity when someone else was doing all the work.

Still, the sun was shining, the air was clear, and the path was easy to follow. How many times had he traveled along it to pack the dirt so tightly? A hundred? A thousand? She mused as she walked, her thoughts whirling like the dust motes that danced in the sunbeams that streamed through the forest canopy above. Why leave the boots if he didn’t care about her? And if he cared about her, why wouldn’t he even think about leaving with her before Torex came?

She was still trying to make sense of his actions by the time the end of the trail came into sight. Before she made it to the top, though, Raze appeared. He descended the trail with his hands jammed into the pockets of his coat and an unreadable expression on his face. Neither of them said a word as they closed the distance between them.

When he was less than three feet away, he stopped and planted his feet on the ground like he was preparing to block her. She came to a halt and tried to muster an indifferent expression. “Is this your way of telling me I should have gone with my plan to hike back to my ship and leave you in peace?” she asked.

“What? No. I was bringing you your comm device. Eddi wants to talk to you.” He pulled her communicator out of his pocket and held it out to her. “And I, uh, I wanted to apologize.”

“Thank you.” she took back the offered item and slipped it into her pocket. “And thanks for the boots. You didn’t have to do that.”

He rubbed his knuckles along his jaw, and his cheeks actually darkened in a blush. “Yeah, I did. I dragged you down there, yelled at you, then left you with no way to get back safely.”

“I was the one who told you to leave,” she pointed out.

“You had your reasons. And uh, I’m sorry about that, too.” He moved in closer and cupped her cheek in one calloused hand. “I don’t think you’re a freak, Sevda. I never did. Whatever else happens, I want you to know that.”

She shrugged. “You wouldn’t be the first one to think that. You won’t be the last, either.”

The corners of his eyes crinkled as he broke into a grin. “Now who's the grumpy one pushing people away?”

“You don’t have a monopoly on that tactic, Bear.” She hadn’t meant to use the endearment, but her heart seemed determined to override her head. Or maybe that was just her libido.

“I don’t want to push you away anymore. Odds are, you’re going to be the last friendly face I ever see.”

She nodded. “Even if I don’t tell them about you, they’re going to find you eventually. I understand why you don’t want to leave, now. But I still think you’re lying to yourself.”

He scowled, but his thumb stroked across her cheek at the same time, lessening the impact of his stare. “You haven’t been in my orbit that long, scout. What makes you think you know me better than I know myself?”

The truth spilled out of her in a torrent, her words as much a personal confession as they were an observation about him. “I know you. Veth, I’ve been you. You think you aren’t worthy to be alive, that you don’t have the right to every lungful of air you breathe because you didn’t die when they did.”

His eyes widened, but he didn’t deny her words. “I wasn’t there. I was scouting a way out of the valley when the attack came. By the time I made it back, they were all dead. My entire unit. My family. Gone.”

She lifted her hand to cover his. “But it wasn’t your fault. Just like it wasn’t mine that my family died in that fire and I didn’t. We’re still here, and they’re not, and it hurts.”

He nodded.

“You’re not going to tell me I’m wrong? No arguments?” she asked softly.

“No arguments. You’re even smarter than you are stubborn, did you know that?”

“Was that you trying to flirt?” she teased.

“Maybe. I’ve never actually tried before.”

The look she gave him was one of incredulous shock. “Never?”

He shook his head. “When I was in combat, I didn’t need to flirt. The female cyborgs were uh…accommodating. It was part of their programming, and none of us could reveal that we were self-aware.”

“But the wars ended years ago. I mean, you never…”

“Not until you.”

“You really have been determined to punish yourself, haven’t you?”

“Says the woman who flies the riskiest missions she can find to earn enough money to start a new life somewhere. You don’t get to start that life if you die trying to buy your freedom, you know.”

“How did you know about that?”

“I had a chat with Eddi while you were out here.”

Sevda wrinkled nose. “That fraxxing AI talks too much.”

“Maybe. But I’m glad she did.” He leaned down and brushed his lips against hers, and she threw her arms around him, rising on her toes to kiss him back.

It was so much easier to stay mad at him when he was doing all he could to push her away. When he was being vulnerable and sweet and kissing her, her resistance melted faster than a snowball in a supernova.

“So, we’re not fighting anymore?” she asked.

“I don’t want to fight with you. There are better things we could be doing with the time we have left.” He kissed her again, his hand sliding into her hair as he made love to her mouth with a single-minded focus that made her toes curl.

“We could have more time if you agreed to come with me and start again somewhere new.”

He groaned. “I made a promise to them. After they were all buried, I promised them I would be back someday, and that I wouldn’t leave again.”

There was so much pain trapped in his words that her heart bled. “Raze, do you really believe that you’d lose them if you left? Your siblings aren’t here on this planet.” She laid her hand on his chest. “They’re in here. We can’t leave the ones we lost. We take them with us no matter where we go.”

He lifted his hand to cover hers. “They were all I had.”

“Well, now you have me. I don’t have many friends, but I keep the ones I have.”

“Friends?” He lifted his head, revealing brown eyes full of heat. “We’re more than friends, aren’t we?”

“I don’t know what we are. We can’t stop fighting long enough to get that far.”

“We’re done fighting. At least, I hope we are.” He released her and took a step back, then took her hand. “How about we talk instead? I want to know more about you than what little Eddi shared. Friends do that, right?”

“Yeah, they do. Why don’t you show me what you’ve built here, and we’ll talk.” She squeezed his hand and let him lead her up the hill to the plateau. She was determined to use what time they had left to convince him to come with her.