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He thought it was just a dream. A little glitch. A stiffening of the metal bones, the joints, the circuits. The glimmer of ice caught in the notches of his titanium body…
And then it happened again.
And again.
It was just a dream, the others told him. A bad dream. You have had those.
Yes, Zane thought. And they all came true.
Of course, the others paid him no mind. They never believed in his dreams, no matter how many times they came true. And so he turned to the one he knew would listen.
But just as he was about to open his mouth…
He didn’t. Who was he to drag her into all of this? She had been spared from the turmoil - and that was a blessing. In the months after the incident, she had been at his side. Not hovering, no. just there. Quiet and watchful. Ready to dart in and give him a large hug or kiss his cheek or fetch him some tea at the slightest quiver of his lips.
And this felt wrong. He shouldn’t be comforted by her—not when he prompted the murder and suffering of thousands! He suspected she knew. She was always the sharper one, the most intelligent person he has ever known. She would have easily guessed if the other ninja did not tell her.
But he also knew that she did not know. No one could ever know what he did unless they had been in the Never Realm with him.
And so, he stayed silent. Pixal was a gentle angel. No matter how she tried to hide it, Zane would always catch a glimmer of pain in her eyes when she tended to him…cared for his still-open wounds. Best not to bother her at all.
And then, one day, he snapped.
Really truly snapped.
He had never felt so powerless…not since the Never Realm. He could not even remember what triggered it. It must have been something. They were in battle and, yes, someone tried to kill Lloyd. Or, was it Kai? Or did someone try to kill him instead?
He remembered stumbling to his car and climbing inside.
He did not remember driving home.
He did not remember Pixal running up to him and giving him a kiss, cupping his cheek and smiling in her sweet way that would normally bring tears to his eyes.
When he woke up, he felt the arms of his friends around him. At first, he thought they were hugging him. Then, he sensed the tightness of their grips—their taut muscles.
And he knew.
His eyes darted around the room. There was something here he did not want to see but he searched for it anyway. He couldn’t not—
Pixal was laying on her back. Her chest was open with wires pouring out. Her blue heart—half of his own—was shivering, energy sparking from it in small bursts that sent blue embers crackling against the air before they vanished. Her eyes were open—bright emerald green—but dulled as if coated in dust.
She smiled up at him and reached out a hand.
“Zane. You're back.” The soft, gentle tone that she reserved just for him made his heart splinter. He steps back. He clenches his hands together in a ball to stop them from shaking but it only makes it worse.
“Who did this to you?”
“Zane…”
“WHO DID THIS TO YOU?!”
Pixal opened her mouth but nothing came out.
And that is when he knew
It was him.