And in the middle of this work was a single humanoid figure, her blonde hair bedraggled, and barely covering the ruin that her metal skeleton had become.
Yet, disposing of Roll was not a consideration, and not merely due to the fact that she had the most experience in dealing with the human boy. Rather, there was no desire to toss away things that didn't immediately work. The machines could have infinite patience, and no matter how long it took to fix one of their own, they could, and would, do exactly that.
So, she hung immobile, and unactivated in the web of arms that was cutting apart and rebuilding her body. Just what the plan was couldn't be seen, but it was obvious that there was work being done on her. What was not able to be salvaged was being taken away, and what could be kept, was being rebuilt.
They were going to make her better.
He could see that his friend was tantalizingly close, but Ranma was frustrated by the fact that he couldn't go to her. From the moment that he'd known that she was broken, he'd been horrified, but now he couldn't do anything to help her. It had been so much easier to blast the bad guy that had hurt her, but now he could only watch as she hung just out of reach.
The repairbot turned her sensors towards the human boy who had his face pressed up against the glass separating him from the repair bay and understood what was going on. "You are worried about her."
"Of course I am! She's my friend," he declared, turning to glare at the feminine shape before looking back at where Roll was currently being worked on.
"That's okay. I understand. But you shouldn't be overly concerned."
"Why not?"
"She will be okay," the repairbot reassured him, placing a manipulator on his shoulder.
"How d'ya know that?"
"I know because we know that we can fix her."
Blinking away tears, the human boy glanced up at the robot's human shaped 'head'. "Really?"
"That's what they are doing now. Fortunately, she was able to keep her core systems intact and powered."
"'Core'?"
"Think of it as her... 'self', if you will. Her mind and spirit."
"Then she'll still be herself?" the pigtailed boy asked.
"Yes, in a new body."
"A new one? What's wrong with her old one?"
"It's broken, and you'll need her to... change a bit," the repairbot told him.
"Don't know if I like that."
"That's okay. She'll be the same girl that you knew. Only a little... older looking."
"Older? That mean that she'll be bigger than me?"
"Something like that. But only for a little while."
He frowned, confusion showing in his eyes. "Why's that?"
"Simple. You're going to grow big and strong, aren't you?"
"Sure am!"
"Well then, she needs to grow with you, and this is the perfect time."
"Then she'll be growing up?"
"And getting new abilities too."
"That'll be cool," Ranma admitted, looking suitably impressed. But then a bit of depression passed over his features, and he leaned over towards the glass again as a pink helmet was lowered in towards Roll's head. "But I just want my friend back."
"And you'll have her again," the repairbot said, rolling over to stay close enough to comfort him, while:
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(Posted Mon, 29 Dec 2008 04:17)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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