The First Real Connection Fails

"I..uhk" Izime coughed out realizing Radiation Man had walked up, happy his lungs were still working well enough to talk. His two-word explanation bringing the Zexxian's ideas came crashing down around him, "Can't"

Izime was sure the hero was thinking along the terms of this world where things like Izime's body were designed for nefarious purposes; the wrapper wasn't the problem when it came to what he was. Izime hadn't been given a super-human combat enhanced body just the nicest human one the crew could give him.

Izime could have stuck around a bit longer, he could be a bit unhealthier, he could live just a little extra. Squeezing the little lemon slice that was left of life all that harder, after all that was his function; simulating life the best he could.

"Huh..." Izime didn't bother explained to the confused Zexxian who thought he was just going to keep on ticking while he was literally coughing up blood with a whole arm missing. Izime not that upset to take a hit and be sent packing by the Zexxian, at least it didn't change who he was not like the stranglettes would have.

Instead glancing over, the entire arm was just gone. The hand and forearm that Dark Squire had ruined now all he had was a stump. That one flick had destroyed almost everything from the shoulder down.

Crusher he could escape from, Radiation man thought, he'd just slapped his damned arm off, Izime watched the bits of exposed muscle and bone as it moved in response to his thoughts. It should probably hurt a whole lot more, that was probably a sign that shock was, yea he was definitely in shock or going into it right?

Shocked, bamboozled and blasted nearly a block with one hand by a Zexxian. Izime wanted to laugh but he couldn't, it just made his chest feel watery and less air got in each time he tried.

He'd really wanted to laugh at the Zexxian on the way out too. Izime wincing as he reached over, pulling at the bits of skin where his arm was supposed to go.

It still reachable, and he didn't wasn't just going to leave it behind.

Death was quickly closing in and he might get to depart with it here in a bit. It seemed a lot slower than when he'd been welcomed to the truly living. Smiling a bit at the thought, maybe he could tell Bell about the awesome few years he had, have another birthday with the crew; nah, that was for real humans.

"Is your repair function broken?" James asked the fake human that was about to have a very real real death in front of him. That sudden recovery wasn't coming and a slightly faster healing on a human scale wasn't going to save it from the damage he'd just caused.

Izime tried to kick his brain into functioning while he stared at the limb in his lap, someone was talking to him. Why did he want the useless thing now, these were idiotic notions from the loss of blood something A.I.'s didn't suffer from. There was Cradle and Wesson, and Radiation man was getting closer, so he needed to keep living. Izime's thought derailing again as reason caught up with fear of death, shock slipping Radiation Mans question through the fading thoughts.

"Radiation Man please!" Psyis finally moved, trying to stop James as he went too far crying out in a panic. Quickly standing over Izime as useless as protecting him with her thessian body would be under zexxian strength. "Hes... hes human!"

The A.I. tried to laugh again at the stupid notion; Psyis was right that was Radiation Man and he was just a human. There was no all-powerful demon anymore, because Bell. That old bag of a researcher, this was her fault.

Because of her part of the deal: simulating life, he was getting to experience dying all over again. It had been fun, occasionally even worth the trouble. Blinking for a moment Izime remembered the arm, the A.I.'s complex thoughts fading under human worries. Izime didn't want Bell to think he hadn't taken care of it, needed to take it with him; so, he'd put it in his lap and now it was further away?

"D..on't" Izime tried to call out at the owner of the silver foot that had kicked his arm away unsure of when they'd decided to make an even bigger mess out of him scattering his pieces, but it only came out as a wheeze. Looking up to a white cape cutting the dark of the night in front of him as Izime reached up, swatting the offending garment angrily as he grabbed his missing limb. Ignoring searing pain of the cutting torches it released in his chest as he leaned back dragging his arm back into his lap.

"No-no he-I can see the nanites he's..." James knocked the Thessian aside as he knelt, now simply a worried Kansas farm-boy who knew he'd gone too far. Still aware of the possible danger but now it was becoming clear that whatever this thing was it was dying. "We need to stop the bleeding. I... I didn't want this I just wanted to warn it, scare it."

Psyis turned lifting herself off the pavement watching James move forward a bit frantically, not sure what the super-powered man was blabbering about. The only noise leaving her a worried whine as she looked at Izime who was helpless under the dangerous Zexxian.

Radiation Man ignored the soft noise of confusion from his side, wondering if he had taken Dark Nights warning a bit too seriously. Dealing with a bit of confusion of his own, he'd come expecting and looking for a fight. Hindsight being incredibly bloody this time as James considered just what had led to this. The thing had known about his family, Leona and the kids, their little life in Kansas. Then again so did a few other people, quite a few more than a handful. Unlike some of those this thing hadn't actually done anything.

"Cr..dle" Izime took a breath, wheezing as he looked towards the sky finding that he was a bit glad that Cradle wasn't here. That was the closest thing he had to a repair function, and even then, Cradle had ruined Bell's original handiwork. There needed to be an end at some point, and constantly being rebuilt didn't sound like fun it sounded tiring.

"You. aren't..." The word slipped out as the notion crept further into Izime mind, asking a bit confused as he looked at the Zexxian. The wet rattle in his lungs breaking the sound as he tried to put some air behind the half-spoken word. "T..ired?"

"I.. am.. hok-ired" Izime tried again those liquid pops now filling his mouth a bit, the Zexxian still not responding to what Izime thought was a pretty simple question. Instead, he tried to explain what exactly was wrong, something catching in his mouth as he tried to form the 'T' but he'd managed all the same.

Izime pausing as he looked at the red that'd spilled out when he'd talked, was that why he was tired? Whether it was from the blood loss or the years he wasn't sure, but it was getting harder to reason with the Zexxian. No not that wasn't it, he hadn't been trying to reason but explain something right to the super heroe right? That he shouldn't bother that's right, there was no reason to even bother with feeling guilty.

How they felt about this moment, what they were it made it OK. Izime was a bad idea to begin with and how he felt about it was, well it was fun so there really weren't any regrets. There was that whole die a hero before you become the villain thing, and... and... blue hands?

The very idea of thinking was growing harder, an oxygen deprived mind slowly falling down a tunnel of delirium as it avoided the world it was leaving. The previous A.I reflected on its brief human experience, how much energy it had wasted on useless little things. That's probably how it had gotten into this state. The state feeling of tired it was... what was it again?

It was an emotion, a feeling of a lack of energy, a state of the body. Not quite unlike a state of energy but for the human psyche. Like energy could be at rest, his mind would be at rest.

That sounded nice.

Could an emotional state reach a point of being at rest, probably...

What about the blue hands in front of him, couldn't they rest if they were tired? They didn't look tired though, they kept poking and pressing, very excited hands. Maybe those hands were scared or happy about this, but he wasn't they were irritating and needed to stop. If they stopped, Izime knew he'd finally be at rest or rather not so tired in this human state.

Reaching out he tried to make one of them rest as well, the blue hand knocking his own away in its excitement. Izime not bothering to fight it, instead letting his one good hand lay at rest. It would join his other hand soon enough, teal eyes filling with glass as he stared at that annoying hand. Izime's last flickers of consciousness a bit glad that the numbness was taking over because those cutting torches in his chest had just turned back on.

Psyis shoved Izime's hand away looking at James who was just as furiously trying to help. The Zexxian carefully blowing freezing air on the still bleeding artery that spurted from Izime's shoulder; frostbite a far better alternative than blood loss. Her psychic powers forcing their way into that void, a twisted mix of both thankful and regretful to find familiar human organs.

If Izime had been something else maybe he could have healed or taken that hit. As it was, she was thankful she at least understood his anatomy, trying desperately to ease each rib out of those lungs.

Wiping at her own face Psyis ignored the growing wetness, the warmth that contrasted her tears, and the odd prickle at her skin. Izime's chest heaving as the holes she had left now filled with blood instead of oxygen. Each pull for air only working his muscles harder pulling in even more blood,

Psyis tensing as that wheeze turned into a heave as his chest seized. Mouth opening useless as he tried to gasp, teal eyes narrowing as they refused to lock onto her own instead watching her hand work. 

The heave sending Izime's chest into shaking spasms, lungs filled with the life-giving liquid, it was now slowly drowning him. Psyis tried to sweep her hand under his shirt, only to get caught by the useless vest. Running her eyes over the damage FearForm had caused, the fluffs of white dotted with red. Psyis nudged Radiation Man with her mind. The Zexxian tearing the Kevlar and single plate as if it was paper without a word, time was a priority and talking was useless.

A nod was all Psyis could offer, not sure she could form words at the moment. Ignoring the warmth and wet she ran her hands over Izime's chest. Shoving her power back through that mental void that her eyes recognized as blood covered skin. Fingers trailing across soft flesh as she forced her power through to bubble in patches, sealing the holes she had left in his lungs.

James trying to restrain Izime safely as he began to go into shock, his body fighting the intrusion. Psyis pinning one of his arms underneath him as she put a hand over Izime's mouth, forcing him to look at her as she begged him to listen.

"Breathe, please... ju-" Psyis stopped talking when she realized those glassy eyes couldn't look her, chewing at the inside of her lip focusing instead on doing what she could. Carefully trying to cup all the liquid as its spilled and seeped through her mind's grasp, turning Izime's head she drew out what she could. A ribbon of blood following the hand she lifted away from Izime's bluing lips.

"I'll work on cauterizing the internal injuries, but he needs oxygen," James look as Psyis expecting her to do her best, already making several assumptions on Izime's design. Connecting the dots between the realism of its body and what was happening now. "We could lose him to brain death."

The alien nodding and quickly locking her blue lips against Izime's blood covered ones, filling his chest. Focusing intently on holding the pressure steady so she didn't tear at the holes that were left from his ribs.

Her rushed attempt failing, the breath she'd given being too full for the damaged lungs. Psyis cursing quietly as she had to quickly pull the fresh blood out and try again, this time closing her eyes so she could feel every bit of the strain she was putting on her quick patches.

A few breaths in Psyis looked over a Steven who was standing there looking dumbfounded, purple paling as she realized he hadn't done a damned thing yet. Quickly ordering the junior sidekick into action, Psyis yelled at Steven to move his ass, "Call someone Lady Shield, Ret-Borg, SteelSuit it doesn't matter, just get us a ride to Savior Orbital!"

"I-I. You're...OK" Steven reached for his phone, finally nodding dumbly but still pausing as he watched. He wasn't sure why Psyis wasn't just operating Izime's lungs with her powers. Reinforced knuckled glove stalling even longer as white hair spill over blood cover lips once again.

"Something with a med-bay Dark Squire now!" Psyis looked up exasperatedly, feeling the tension in the soft tissue that was tearing Izime's lungs further, her bubbles beginning to seep around the edges where they were filling.

Taking a breath Psyis stopped before leaning down.

It was one she couldn't give as the liquid flooded in too far; trying to steady nerves that were only fraying further she looked over at Radiation Man across from her who was attempting to burn closed any remaining blood vessels.

"James I... I can't stop the bleeding. Izime h-" Psyis let out the wasted breath of Izime's air, cupping a much of the blood up with her power as she could. Choking up a bit, she stopped talking feeling the pool of red's weight as pure guilt in her mind. Careful not to lean on the broken chest under her hands as her own decisions slammed down heavily, feeling her own heartbeat now in her ears, pounding itself into silence.

"OK." Radiation Man blinked for a moment, Psyis pure blue face out of character for the usually stalwart heroine. James simply nodding in reassurance as he began to carefully direct her on what to do, Psyis so distraught she'd been brought to inaction. "Just focus on keeping the heart beating and oxygen making it to the brain, we're doing fine as long as we can do that. I'll focus on the lungs next so you can help elsewhere."

Understanding a bit the turmoil she was feeling, both of them sharing some blame for placing this 'person' here. Radiation Man for trusting that what Dark Night had told him was true. The shady activity, the danger, Stan had to know he'd put him on a path. Though that didn't excuse him James knew that he'd been assuming everything, even down to how it would fight and not die. Miss Psyis had volunteered to use herself to bring it in and now?

We did the right thing, right?

Radiation Man looked up, Psyis stilled as she searched James eyes, they both sharing in their guilt the single thought.

The Zexxian's thought reaching her mind, sobering her like a splash of cold water kicking her heart back into beating and herself back into action. Looking back down, Psyis pulled her hand away watching the thick ribbon of red work its way out of Izime's mouth, the tail of it trembling and dropping out of her control in her haste. Psyis worked her thumb across that mark, biting her lip as it only smeared. As if mocking her efforts as undoing the damage she had caused.

The fight wasn't over yet, Psyis reminded herself. Stopping her fussing over the minor details as she finally managed to give a full breath to that bloodstained mouth.

Blue lips sealing around a mouth that had been irritating her last night, teasing her about how bad their new friendship would be for him. Joking with Constantinople, humming along in the bar, and had even promised to respect her city without much of a fuss. Shown her the geysers on Mercury and done nothing to her aside from try and be a friend, and this is how she thanked him.

Psyis watching as teal eyes finally found hers, glassy but no longer still as they roamed wildly in desperate panic for air.

Izime fading back in for a moment miraculously as his airway cleared. Trembling irises and dilating pupils that faded between lucidity and that glassy nothingness. Clearing for that brief moment as Psyis lowered her head, her lips locked against Izime's again she exhaled delicately. Feeling the chest under her hand raise, Izime's lungs struggling against her own as his body demanded the air from her.

 Ignoring the blame and rage in those teals as fresh oxygen powered a brain and heart that likely hated her now. Wanting only to keep him from destroying his lungs further she took all the blame they gave. The psychic not needing to read his mind to know she didn't have a friend anymore; still, as long as he kept breathing, he could hate her just that little bit longer. Psyis hoping that Izime knew it was OK to do so, even casting the thought his way.

Though oddly as she looked into his eyes, she didn't see it or any hatred as those teals softened.

 Psyis red eyes burning in denial as Izime's returned an emotion she refused to accept, forgiveness.

Just keep giving him air.

Psyis told herself, another breath in and that emotion was still there. The thessian stubbornly refusing to acknowledge it, simply hoping that every bit of the oxygen she had delivered worked its way into his bloodstream and corrected his obviously oxygen deprived brain. Focusing instead on keeping the edges of those bubbles sealed as she shoved his stupid emotion aside even as it was pressed towards her, giving another breath as she ignored it.

Sitting back again to try and gently administer compressions to a shattered rib cage, Psyis watched as those eyes flared with pain that washed over her. Stopping before she'd even given the correct number, she gave him another breath unable to stand the agony.

Pulling back with a start, Psyis could both feel and watch Izime slip away his lungs no longer fighting her. Blue hands slicked with red blood trying to rouse that demand for her air back; Psyis swearing she'd even settle for that shitty forgiveness he'd offered as teal rolled back to white one last time.