Work Text:
Evening settled on Colony 9.
After a quick dinner at the newly upgraded canteen, everyone drifted off to their respective tents. Everyone, save for a certain mechanic, still working by firelight.
“You should get your rest, you know. I’m sure tomorrow will be busy as well.” Nikol jumped as Shulk spoke to him, he hadn’t noticed the older man approach him in his concentration.
“O-oh. Um, I’m just trying to finish this last bit. The balance isn’t quite right…” He avoided Shulk’s gaze.
Shulk placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “It’ll be there in the morning. Off you go.”
Nikol sighed. “I suppose you’re right. Good night.” After the boy packed up his equipment, Shulk waved him off. With Nikol in his tent, Shulk remained alone in front of the fire.
How many times had he gotten Nikol ready for bed in the past?
How many times had he denied requests for five more minutes of tinkering or bedtime stories? How many times had he fallen asleep in bed with his young son tucked between him and his wife, the soft glow of the nighttime ether lights seeping into the bedroom from the window?
The thought of it made his heart ache. He had never anticipated that, although the circumstances were different, he would be here doing the same thing again, and after so long.
As he dozed in front of the fire, memories came to him.
***
“What do you think, Dad?” Nikol, at the tender age of nine, held out a small robot to his father.
Shulk examined the robot, a fine little contraption. It could walk well enough, but what Nikol wanted was for it to be able to pick up objects with its little pincer-shaped hands. For whatever reason, the little robot couldn’t comply with commands to extend its arms and lift the small objects Nikol had arranged on the table.
“It should be able to support the weight of these objects. Let’s run it again.” Nikol nodded and reset the small robot at the end of the table. Without issue, the small robot walked across the table.
“Okay, time to pick up the pebble!” With the press of a button on Nikol’s control panel, the robot bent over and froze, without extending its arm.
“It happened again…” Nikol sighed dejectedly, resting his chin on the table. “I wonder why this keeps happening. He gets so close, but always stops right when he bends down to pick something up.”
At that moment, Fiora appeared in the doorway of the workshop. “I thought I told you both to get dressed. I don’t want Sharla to get on us for being late again.” She had her arms crossed.
Shulk and Nikol both winced. She had asked them to get ready earlier.
“Sorry, Mum. Can we have a few more minutes? We can’t get this to work.” Nikol looked at his mother with large, pleading eyes.
“I really do think we’re close to figuring this out, Fiora.” Shulk added.
Fiora shook her head. “Not happening. The last time I gave you two extra time in the workshop we were over an hour late!”
“But Mum-“
“I don’t want us to be known as the family that’s always late to parties! Panacea will be upset if we’re late for her birthday.” She strode into the room to peek at what they were looking at. “What are you guys working on, anyway?” she said, leaning over them.
Nikol’s eyes sparkled at his mother’s inquiry. “It’s a robot! He’s supposed to be able to walk and pick things up, but he’s having a bit of trouble with grabbing things…”
“May I?” She said, gesturing to the robot.
“Sure.” Nikol nodded, and Fiora picked it up.
It was a simple little thing, and Fiora took its small arm and extended it back and forth a few times. “This joint- it’s too stiff. And this material... What are you using? I think it also may be too heavy for him to support the weight of his arm and whatever it is he's trying to lift. Try using a titanium alloy. It’s lightweight and easier to move with. Trust me.” She said, placing it back on the table.
Nikol’s mouth dropped open. “W-what?”
Shulk had to hide his smile behind his hand.
Fiora winked at him and began heading for the door. “There. The mystery’s solved. You can fix it later, so let’s get dressed, yeah? I expect you both to look decent within the next fifteen minutes.”
After she left the room, Nikol was still stunned. “I didn’t know Mum liked to tinker.”
Shulk laughed. “She doesn’t, not really. But you could say she knows more about how these things work than both of us combined.”
Nikol cocked his head. “What do you mean?”
“We can tell you when you’re older. For now, we’d better get ready, or she’ll really let us have it.” Shulk said, ruffling his son's hair.
“But Dad-!“
***
“Oi. Don’t sleep sitting in front of the fire. Go lay down.” Shulk was snapped out of his dream by Rex, who had shaken his shoulder.
“You’ll mess your back up, sleeping like that.”
Shulk blinked, realizing where he was. “Oh. I didn’t realize I had dozed off…”
Rex stared at him for a moment, cocking his head. “You okay?”
Shulk shook his head. Rex had always been perceptive to his feelings. “I’m fine. I just had a dream about my family.”
A beat of silence.
“I see. Nikol must be bringing that all up.”
Shulk shook his head again. “To be honest, they’ve never left my thoughts. Not for a moment. They were always the reason I continued to fight. If I fought, I’d see them again and things would go back to how it was supposed to be. That’s what I’ve been telling myself all these years. I just didn’t think I’d see him again like this.” Shulk said, his hand tightening into a fist.
“I know what you mean.”
Shulk stared into the flickering flames. “He…He looks so much like her.”
“Your wife?” Rex asked.
Shulk nodded. “He has her hair, her eyes. Her kindness. She’d be so proud if she could see him.” It made his chest hurt just thinking about it.
“I’m sure she would be. And we’ll set things right. I swear it.” Rex said, staring ahead into the dying flames of their campfire.
"I know we will."
Or he would die trying.