heavyweaponsbot | 7th Transmission

I-I'm here, I-I'm, I'm fine.

[A little shaken up - he's heard sounds of battle - but fine.]

I'm-- n-not in th-the barracks, but, I-I'm-- fine.

Good.

Where are you?

Th-the-- library. I'm with K--Kairi.

Coming.

A-Alright.

[Inside the library, Xanth waits near the entrance, mace in hand. The weight of a blunt weapon in hand is both familiar and comforting.

With his back to a shelf, Xanth watches the doors and listens.]

[Fortunately for Xanth, it's probably next to impossible to confuse a zombie noise for the sound of a Topkick's engine. The truck rumbles up to the library, and honks.]

[Xanth pushes the door open, then breaks out into a smile of relief. He's sure Ironhide can't get sick, but there is still danger. Ironhide provides familiarity and comfort that the weight of a weapon just can't.

Xanth pushes open the other door to make room for Ironhide to come in.]

[It's probably a familiar sight by now, Ironhide's transformation. He does it quickly enough, to better keep the door area blocked, in case anything followed him.]

[Once he's transformed, he turns around, backing into the library. He's taking no chances.]

[And once Ironhide's inside, Xanth pulls the doors closed. They shut with a resounding thud, and then silence falls.

Xanth looks up to Ironhide, his smile fading into a concerned frown.]

D-Did you-- h-have any trouble get--g-getting here?

[In answer, he lifts a hand, curling his fingers into a fist slowly -- the joints pop before he lowers it again.]

None at all.

[Xanth lets out a sigh of relief. He pushes his bangs back, then tucks them behind his ear.]

G--Good.

[He glances to the stairway, and then back up to Ironhide.]

K--Kairi and I, we've-- w-we've been here a... a c-couple of d-days now. She's up i-in-- o-one of the s-studies now. She's-- sh-she's fine, too.

[He lets his hand come to rest lightly on Xanth's shoulder -- as much of his hand that fits, anyway.]

Good. I was getting worried.

You need anything?

[There's not much room on Xanth's shoulder for Ironhide's hand, but Xanth appreciates it all the same.

He scratches his cheek thoughtfully.]

U-Um. Well-- we-- w-we could use s-some more food. And-- water. W-We... we're... r-running kind of l--low.

[The opportunity to carry enough supplies to last them for days was nonexistent. They grabbed what they could, but it wasn't much.]

[He grunts, looking the boy up and down. Then he looks back the way he'd come. His hand slides off Xanth's shoulder, palm extending toward him.]

Up you get.

[Time to go on a food run.]

[For a moment, Xanth just looks at the hand, confused -

but then it clicks.

With a flash of a smile and without a second thought, Xanth climbs onto Ironhide's hand.]

[He hauls the boy up, letting him sit up on one shoulder as he turns to go. Xanth will be safe up there.]

[Or he'll die making sure of it.]

Move out.

[With that, he starts marching for the kitchens.]

[Xanth settles down quickly and holds himself steady. He has to duck when Ironhide passes through the library doors, but that's alright. He remains secure.

Ironhide's shoulder may not be the most stable perch, but Xanth has never felt safer.]

[It will be the safest place in the whole keep, if Ironhide has anything to say about it. He'd sooner die than allow someone to harm Xanth while the boy is with him.]

We can drive back. Pile whatever you need in the back.

R--Right.

[Silently, Xanth thinks of the supplies they'll need. Anything as preserved as possible; plenty of water; utensils for the sake of cleanliness...

But how much would they need? Enough for a few days, surely, but what if this was the new normal? What if people kept dying and returning and infecting each other until the end of time?

That was a terrifying thought. Xanth swallows, apprehensive.]

D-Do you-- do you think... th-this will last?

[He says nothing at first, just keeps marching. Optics front, scans playing over the area before them.]

[It's a possibility. But it's not one he wants to think about. He could lie, but Xanth has always deserved to hear the truth.]

It might. Best be prepared.

Th-then we-- we should-- f-find something f-for you, too.

[Because he hopes, hopes, hopes Ironhide will stay with them until this is all over.]

I will be fine.

[He hasn't really refueled in a while. He's getting tired. But he'll push on, long as he can.]

Gather what you need, first.

[Xanth frowns - even machines needed food - but he makes no argument.]

A--Alright...

[He would search for fuel if he knew what to look for. The word energon springs to mind, but he's not even sure what that looks like.]

Good.

[Even if he did tell Xanth, it probably wouldn't be healthy for the boy to handle energon. Or safe.]

[Probably not, but he doesn't realize that.

When they reach the entrance to the Great Keep, Xanth just waits for Ironhide to deem the area clear and let Xanth down. No use trying to jump from this high - he'd only hurt himself.]

[He waits. And he waits. There's a good five minutes that go by before he decides it's safe to let the boy off his shoulder. And even when he does lift Xanth down to the ground, he's wary, tense.]

Need to make this fast.

Y--Yeah.

[Every sense on edge, Xanth readies his weapon and pushes the door to the Keep open. Before he enters, he looks and he listens.

Nothing yet.

Xanth hurries inside. The kitchen is very close from here.]

[And Ironhide keeps close behind. He can't sense any trouble. There's no life signs nearby.]

[For now.]

[So he sticks close, ready to haul Xanth out of trouble if some comes running.]

[It's just a few strides down the hall before Xanth reaches the kitchen door. He listens, hears nothing, and then peeks inside.

The kitchen is empty.

Pushing the door open now, Xanth goes for the dry goods and things in jars. Anything that will keep for more than a couple of days is high on his list. He makes a point to glance in the refrigerator, but aside from a couple of loaves of bread, anything in there would go bad too quickly to take.

There wasn't a great amount left, but there was enough for Xanth to amass a good supply. Preserves, bread, some pickles, a little dried meat - definitely enough to last a few days. But water is also a concern.

He goes for empty jars and fills them with the cold boiled water from the stove. Xanth would prefer canteens of some sort, something less prone to breaking, but they must make do. The same can be said for the amount; there isn't very much. Thankfully, the hot springs are next to the library - they could make more water runs there.]

I--Ironhide, I, I-I've got-- wh-what I can.

[The entire time, he waits, crouched in front the kitchens -- his scans going mad to try and detect any encroaching threat.]

[Nothing.]

[When he hears Xanth return, he nods, and starts to transform. There should be room enough in the cab for the boy, even if he's still his Elegante-size. Xanth might have to lie down, but he'll fit. And be protected.]

Load it.

[And Xanth does. It takes him a few trips to load everything into Ironhide's bed, but he does it quickly. Then, with only a moment of hesitation, Xanth climbs into Ironhide's cab. It's cramped, but that's okay - Xanth can curl up small enough.]

O--Okay. I'm-- I-I'm ready.

[And... there may only be one seat left. The other torn out by Xanth himself, after the Elegante began to sink.]

[There's a grunt, and the truck rolls out. Back toward the library again.]

[Xanth sees Ironhide's missing seat and remembers. He touches the remaining fibers, still torn and frayed from his frantic cuts, and feels a pang of guilt. But he had to do it; it had been an order. Orders from Ironhide are not to be disobeyed.

(And if he hadn't taken it, he very well may not have made it to the Shore.)

Unless Ironhide tries to start conversation, Xanth will remain quiet until they reach the library.]

[Even if it hadn't hurt -- and it hadn't, since the seats weren't anything vital -- he had felt what Xanth was doing back then. So, of course, he feels the boy's touch on the missing component.]

[He doesn't speak up right away, but waits a moment or two.]

Just another scar, boy. Have plenty of them. What is one more?

[Really, it's okay, Xanth. Which is what he's trying to say.]

[At that, Xanth looks up. It gets him to smile, though it's a slightly sad one.]

Y--Yeah...

[Scars are just scars. Xanth has plenty, and he knows Ironhide does, too. But it feels different knowing that he is the one who made this one.]

[Ironhide is, likely, one big walking mass of scar tissue. So to speak.]

Going to get through this. Just like the End.

[Xanth's smile widens.]

Y...Yeah. We-- w-we got-- through that. W-We can do-- a-anything.

Feel better now?

Yeah. I-I... I do.

[The Elegante couldn't kill either of them, and after all that, what's one little zombie plague?]

7th Transmission - Audio

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