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“No. No, no, no, no, no.” Heart was lying in an awkward position. Was it hurt? Oh god was it dead? Slash rushed over to Heart’s side. Heart shifted to look at it. Thank god.
>You’re like an angel.< Heart said reverently. Slash laughed, relieved. Slash was pretty sure any human would’ve been horrified if Slash had been an angel. It was a good sign that it was in good enough condition to send binary and a complete thought. On the other hand, that complete thought didn’t seem… lucid.
Slash crouched down next to it and picked it up carefully. Jostling anything important could cause more damage. >God, you’re beautiful< Heart said. Slash abruptly realized it was reaching up and cradling its head. >Mm, I don’t tell you that enough.< Heart said dreamily. Slash, caught off guard, didn’t know how to respond.
An explosion fired off nearby. Right, probably should get out of here. Why humans had decided that explosives were appropriate excavating tools was beyond Slash. Slash turned around and quickly pulled up the old dusty GPS to find a repair shop. Most robots didn’t use Heart’s parts so there was a good chance there’d be some remaining. Heart tried to move closer to Slash as best it could with only its arms functional. Slash noticed, and shifted so it would be as close as possible without further hurting it.
Heart traced the edges of Slash’s spikes absently. Slash didn’t get why it was calling it beautiful, it had been outdated even before the Roboloution. It was rather beat up too. 100 years had taken their toll despite Slash’s best efforts. So why was Heart blabbing on about it? Why now? Complementing Slash certainly had no place in Heart’s thoughts. Especially right now.
>How hurt are you?< Slash asked. >Can only move my arms. Took a hit to my head. You’re gorgeous.< Heart listed matter-of-factly. Oh. It made sense that something happened to the processing center. Lots of delicate machinery that could be thrown off-kilter. It also happened to be the most dangerous place to get damaged. Hopefully, it was something like the battery needing to be replaced. Joints were easy enough. They were most often the things Slash had to repair because for some godforsaken reason they just had to float. Apparently, it was pretty complicated to make that happen.
Slash readjusted its grip on Heart and started planning what repairs it would need. The repair shop was a good 5 or 10 minutes away. Hopefully, Heart could hold in there.
Heart appeared to be studying Slash. It was a bit hard to tell with only screens for faces though. >Are you alright?< It asked. Slash glanced at it. >You’re the one who got sent through a wall and you’re asking me if I’m ok?< >I’m finee,< It said dismissively, >You’re the one who looks like a kicked puppy.< Slash nearly dropped it in surprise.
>A kicked puppy?!??< It asked flabbergasted and a little bit offended. Heart giggled, egged on by Slash’s response. >Yeah! Like you got kicked! And you’re a puppy!< Slash was glad it wasn’t in a state to say anything more than that. It probably wouldn’t have been able to handle it.
It was funny, even in such a state Heart could distract it. Slash sighed fondly and tried to get itself back into order. Just in time too. There’s the repair shop. Slash nudged the door open and carefully maneuvered around the displays in the front. None of them had the necessary parts. The back it was.
Just its luck. Slash’s screen flickered in annoyance. >Locked, I’ll have to break down.< It set Heart down on a nearby bench. >Ohhhh gonna show me your muscles~?< Heart asked, quickly breaking down into giggles. Slash scoffed. >I don’t have those.<
The door itself was surprisingly sturdy for being 100 years old. Slash really doubted it would stay standing if it gave it a shove though. It didn’t want to use its meat cleaver, it didn’t want to dull it unnecessarily. There was a bit of tubing that seemed sturdy enough. Slash grabbed it and slammed it into the door. A couple more hits and it broke open. Slash kicked the remaining pieces out of the way.
Heart was staring. Maybe. Slash wasn’t sure. Again, screens for faces and TVs for heads. >C’mon.< Slash said, scooping Heart up again. Heart laughed gently and traced the lines in Slash’s paneling, saying nothing. Slash hurried through the door and sat down Heart. Heart made a disappointed hum but didn’t say anything.
The back was thankfully mostly untouched. A couple of screw types were gone, but Slash had worked with worse. >I’m gonna repair the hit to your head ok?< Heart laughed. >Like I’d say no.< Slash wasn’t completely sure what that meant but moved ahead anyway. Slash gently unscrewed a panel on the back of Heart’s head. Nothing looked quite damaged on first inspection. After a bit more poking around, Slash found the problem.
It wasn’t too bad all things considered. A few parts that’d be very expensive if it had needed to pay for them, but luckily neither economy nor crime was really a thing anymore. Well, except for the scavengers. Nonetheless, Heart would be fine. To say Slash was relieved would be an understatement. “Oh thank god,” Slash murmured. >Good things?< Heart asked. >Yeah, you’re gonna be fine.< Heart leaned back to make eye(?) contact with Slash. >I’m always fine when you’re around.< Heart purred. Slash chuckled. >Sap.<
Slash gently lifted Heart up again to get to the back of its head. Heart began humming a simple tune. It was relatively used to being fixed up by Slash. It was difficult to see the back of your head after all. Slash worked to gently replace the damaged parts. Heart continued humming. They’d have to fight more later, but for now? They had a quiet moment.