The wind swept over the gilded expanse, as the brutal rays of an uncaring star penetrated and baked a landscape that had long since decayed to a crisp. To many, a brisk breeze usually offers a brief rest from the cruelty of the sun’s gaze. However, here, it only offers additional punishment for those who dare have the hubris to traverse these lands. Mounds of pristine, nearly white sands obscured the horizon for an incomprehensible distance, as all that could be seen were the remains of what can be presumed to be buildings. Their remains now just another set of bones to litter the scenery, and whisper the tales of a society that was no more.

Standing amidst the endless expanse of shriveled steel and wandering winds, the service bot had not the faintest idea of what to do next. With the young girl in his embrace, he looked in each and every direction, and was met with the same sight, or lack thereof. With the building he’d come from completely submerged beneath the weight of the shining wasteland, he wasn’t even sure where he came from, let alone where he should go from here. Whatever his next move may be, he knew that he had to make it fast, as time was of the essence.

Sweat poured down the poor child’s face, leaving her visage nearly drenched with a distinct layer of perspiration. Her jet black hair was knotted and tangled, with clumps of sand embedded within. She seemed worse for wear, to say the very least. From the sensors on the palms of his hands, the bot was able to get quick, albeit dubiously accurate reading on her vitals, to ascertain exactly how much time he had left before the desert had a new set of decorative bones. Her heartbeat seemed elevated, much higher than what it should typically be, while her temperature was rather alarming. After checking a couple more times to ensure his circuits hadn’t been fried under the pressure of the expanse’s heat, the reading came back consistently as 104 F.

To say this alarmed him would be an understatement, as he could feel his vision blur and become laden with static as the situation had begun to overwhelm and suffocate him. Here he was, mere moments after what was essentially his birth, and now he has found himself beset with a life or death situation with an individual he had never met before. And, though the easiest solution stood before him, to simply walk away and forget about the whole ordeal, he felt compelled to stay. This wasn’t any sort of internal programming forcing its hand with a greater goal of servitude towards mankind, as his identity of being a service bot would suggest. His directives felt more like passive suggestions, if anything. He simply couldn’t bring himself to leave her there, to be consumed by the desert and enraptured in a granular, gilded tomb. He did not know who or what he was yet, or why had found himself born in an already unjust world. But, he knew one thing. He knew he was not the kind of individual who would abandon someone in their moment of need, stranger or not.

With a brief huff of determination, he set off into the wasteland’s maw, not knowing what may lie beyond the hills of glistening, smoldering gold. Though he marched with resolve in each step, eager to get the child the help she so desperately needed, he could feel a sense of dread and unease hanging over him. The towers of concrete and steel loomed over them as they wandered through the burning dunes, judging them for their hubris. The land before them told a story of death and decay, as the scent of the demised flew with the flaring winds, distorting the air with a sickening scent.

The girl’s breathing began to grow more raspier as her lips began to grow drier and more cracked by the second. At some points, she seemed to be murmuring unintelligible ramblings to herself, occasionally trying her best to muster up the energy to wake up. However, she only continued to lie in his arms, on the verge of succumbing to the elements, teetering between life and death. Her tattered dress swayed with the wind as he carried her, both her and the garment hanging on by a thread as he gasped raspy breaths. The bot tried his best to keep her core temperature level, using any and all energy towards cooling his arms to a temperature that he hoped would aid her. This worked to an extent, as he could feel her core temperature drop down to 102 F. Not much, but at least it was some sort of beacon of hope as hours passed while their journey continued.

As he wandered forth, he couldn’t help but marvel at the remnants of what appeared to be a sort of city. The monoliths were abundant, yet nearly identical in nature, save for differences in height. Everything that had made these structures buildings at one point had been stripped away by a brutal desert, the winds of which likely burned away all other material besides the internal skeletal structure over time. And, though these beams have stood steadfast in spite of the sands of time, it was evident that they too would eventually crumble beneath the piercing rays of the sun.. In fact, he could even see this process begin to happen to a few unfortunate structures in the distance. With a brief whimper that whistled through the wind, as if they were crying out in pain, they would crumble like sand castles, reduced to mere dust. So many stories were likely told within the confines of those structures. However, now they stand, awaiting their time to return to the Earth.

He wondered if these conditions extended to the entire planet. Was the world before him reduced to nothing but wastes, the remnants of which nothing more than unidentifiable obelisks and towers? Or, did he simply draw the cosmic short straw and found himself born in a desolate wasteland. The equivalent to being born in Wyoming today. It couldn’t all be nothing but unforgivable hardship out there, can it? He supposes the situation he has found himself in does provide evidence to the contrary, after all. The girl before him is proof that life, at least human life, has persevered and adapted to some extent. And, if she’s made it out here, there’s bound to be some sort of established society, even if life has regressed to the stone age. However, that begs another question. If she has some sort of familial unit, how did she manage to find herself out here all by herself? Of course, the first person he meets who would likely be able to promptly answer such questions is now struggling to live, with her life in his hands. Just his luck.

He shrugs to himself as his thoughts begin to wander, thinking nebulous thoughts as some sort of refuge from the rather drab environment. You’ve seen one massive tower of concrete and steel, you’ve seen them all. Every so often, he takes a moment of pause to measure her vitals and ensure he isn’t carrying a corpse. He finds himself feeling surprised she’s made it this far, as by his calculations, they’ve been walking for about three hours at this point. Surely, she should’ve perished by now, as these conditions are beginning to make him question his own internal and external integrity. Confusion aside, he was relieved she had soldiered on, as his aimless wandering seemed to get them nowhere. Her temperature would even dip down to 100 F every so often, as he continued to drop his internal temperature, something he could only do for a few more hours, lest he burn out his refrigeration components. This feature was meant to cool drinks, not prevent heatstroke.

His trek would continue, lonely as ever, as the only person he had ever met lay in his arms. And, being essentially a newborn, he did not have a whole lot of places for the mind to wander to in moments of tranquility, or in this case, ennui. Everything in the horizon blended together, and he feared he was walking in circles at some points. The last thing he wanted now was a repeat of the Cyndi Lauper Incident. He decided to make it a point to himself to connect to the Nebulous Network when he could find it, and download a variety of topics so that he may have some choices to ruminate on. That is, if the network is still around. He hoped it was, as these preinstalled databanks just aren’t cutting it, considering they’re all more than out of date by this point. However, he would soon come to regret his need for excitement, as his rather tedious walk was about to come to a sudden and swift end.

Beneath them, he could’ve sworn he heard a gentle shift in the sands in tandem with his footsteps. He brought his trek to a halt, before taking a moment to examine the stirring desert floor. The muffled purr of the ground would cease and continue with no apparent pattern, and with time, only continued to grow louder. He darted his eyes around their environment, taking note of their surroundings, in order to plot the best route to leave the scene, but this offered no real guidance. It appeared that their surroundings in every direction more or less looked the same, much like the rest of the desert. However, the more he examined the bounding and rolling dunes surrounding them, the more he noticed it appeared that they were in the middle of some sort of miniature valley. Wrapping around them were rather steep and precipitous hills, nearly as tall as the concrete towers. Some in the distance were even tall enough to cast their own shadow as the sun had begun taking its slumber, and descended beyond the curvature of the horizon, ready to bathe the earth with its blistering rays on the morrow.

[https://imgur.com/a/6b7e99q][https://i.imgur.com/qecBMJK.png]

The ground continued to stir and contort, the grains on the surface were now shifting at the will of the planet. The girl shook and jostled in his grasp, as the bot struggled to keep his hold on her. Despite this, he tried his best to move forth, each step seemingly leading them closer to the source of the planet’s quivering. What were once low murmurings of a wasteland long in slumber, were now the cries and shrieks of the earth ready to give way. He picked up the pace, and elected to sprint as the ground finally gave way. As he ran ahead, he noticed sand behind him begin to pour and cascade into the crust, which had now cracked and splintered into an open wound. His lead on the pursuing collapse would be short-lived, however, as with one final step forward, he could feel a distinct lack of a surface. He audibly gasped as he felt his foot slip into an abyss, his grip on the girl beginning to loosen. Before he knew it, they found themselves falling into an ever expanding crater, drifting into darkness. He was merely one last morsel to be consumed by a world that had ravaged everything else. Despite his best efforts, he found himself being pulled back into the crust, from whence he came.

As they fell, he couldn’t help but gaze at the girl, who had slipped from his grasp and now fell alongside him. Neither of them deserved to be in the situation, her even less so. To condemn her to such an end at such a seemingly young age was a cruel twist of fate brought upon by an uncaring world. While ruminating upon the unjust hand she had been dealt in her desperate search for survival, he figured that it was his duty to make the most of the short time he had been given. Though time was figuratively abundant for both of them in the grand scheme of things, he figured that the world would benefit more from her continued existence. She possibly had family, friends, and an entire life waiting for her beyond the crushing will of the wasteland. And, who was he to disrupt any of that in a selfish bid for survival. Perhaps, he could make the most of his brief time here, and use what little time he had left to ensure she wouldn’t meet an abrupt end.

While they continued to free fall, he quickly grabbed her arm, and pulled her entire form towards him. He proceeded to lay with his back facing the quickly approaching ground, and propped her back against his chest. He hoped that such an arrangement would lead to him at least somewhat breaking her fall, despite the fact he had the density of a refrigerator. In any case, he hoped that his body would serve as an adequate shock absorber so that the impact would at least merely harm her, and not end her life. His eyelids slid down to cover his optical apertures, as he quickly realized that these moments very well might be his last.

***

Before him was darkness, an infinite abyss stared at him with judgment. A sinking feeling began to consume him as he was met with his own mortality. He did not know he could experience fear to such a degree. It penetrated and consumed him, as the veil of perpetual pitch washed over his form. Though he was met with an uncertain and unnerving fate, forced to live out his days encased in darkness, he knew deep down he had done the right thing. And, given the opportunity, he would do it all over again. If he could wish for one thing, it would be to have one last glimpse at her right now, to know that his efforts to save her were not in vain. Either way, ruminating over such fantasies would be a waste. All he could do now is wait for his fleeting conscience to fade, just as his body would eventually would, while eternity consumed everything that he once was.

As he waited for his fate, he couldn’t help but notice how strange death sounded. It oddly sounded like “Dance Hall Days” by Wang Chung. Who knew the voice beckoning souls to reach their end would be Jack Hues of all people. Such a discovery struck him as serendipitous, and he wished he was still around to tell others about what would audibly greet them in the beyond. And, for that matter, he wished he had friends in life to tell about this discovery in the first place. He waited, and waited for his thoughts to eventually fade, but soon came to realize the aforementioned song only grew louder with every passing second. What once sounded muffled and otherworldly, now sounded as if it emanated from a cheap boom box in the very same space as him. It was then that it occurred to him that Wang Chung was not of the ethereal, infinite plane, but instead was based in reality, as was he.

The curtain of ink was soon pierced as he began to cautiously open his eyes, slowly letting his visual cortex focus on the scene before him. Soon, he completely focused on his surroundings and found himself in shock at his situation.

Not only was he alive and well, save for some scrapes and scratches he could feel on his head and torso that he knew weren’t there before, but it seemed someone had created a makeshift shelter out of the pit he descended into not long ago. He was rested comfortably on a battered couch, with a blanket covering his body that added much needed warmth from the freezing air pouring in through the crevice that loomed above. The impact probably put him into an emergency sleep mode while he performed a system reboot so that internal damage could be repaired automatically. Relieved, he let out a raspy sigh as he slouched into his seat, tiredly rubbing his face in exhaustion at the grueling day he trudged through. What a birthday.

While he took a moment to rest, it wasn’t long before another realization would take hold. He did not fall into this pit alone, and he surely did not tuck himself in while in sleep mode either. If anyone were to do this, it would be the young girl he had put so much effort into saving. However, she was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the room consisted of only piles of sand and what appeared to be remnants of a living room of some sorts. Above, he could see the metallic hull that had been torn open under their weight, as the glow of the night sky flooded the bunker’s inner chamber. Torn and weathered pieces of furniture dotted and lined the room, such as discarded beds with linen that had been reduced to mere patches and string. However, there did appear to be some additions and adjustments to the room that were definitely not present before his fall. Besides him appeared to be a newly fashioned entertainment set up, as a boom box stood atop a fixture’s surface and continued to play Wang Chung, while a set of lit candles and tins of preserved food surrounded it. Along with the assortment of survival gear that littered the floor, there also appeared to be empty and discarded metallic tubes. One could assume they were filled with water at some point, if the droplets that lined their rims were anything to go by.

As the scene continued to unfold, he couldn’t help but notice there was something off about the situation he found himself in. He began ruminating over everything that had happened to him up until this point. That’s when he realized it, the young girl was nowhere to be seen. She wouldn’t leave him behind, would she? He supposes he can’t completely blame her if she did. She’d be reasonable to assume that the impact killed him. He was out for quite a bit as well, at least long enough for sunset to shift into midnight. Perhaps the scene he awoke in was a sort of makeshift memorial in his honor she put on display in gratitude for saving her? The candles would indeed be an apt choice, however the music choice was definitely something to be desired. He couldn’t blame her for that, as he’s pretty sure her cassette choice would be rather limited in the middle of a desert. And perhaps the food was an offering of some sort? No, he shouldn’t be daft. She’d be wise to take any and all provisions into the barren wasteland above, not leave them with the corpse of some machine she had technically not even met.

Such contemplation was a waste of time. If she was here, he knew he would have to make haste and find her. Or he would risk having her fall into yet another precarious situation, something she seemed rather predisposed to. He shot up from his seat, and took a second to neatly fold the blanket he awoke wrapped in, and set off to find her. This bunker appeared to be no mall, and he figured it would only be a matter of time before their paths crossed once more.

Upon leaving the room, he found a site he was all too familiar with. A dark corridor lay in his path, with wires jutting out of both the ceiling and the wall, decay pervading nearly every space of the path ahead. Though sturdier than the mall he had awoken in, he could tell this place was a few years from reaching the same point of destruction. He wandered ahead feeling the aged copper and iron that lined the walls. Though this place was likely created for the very scenario that blanketed the surface, this too crumbled under the elements. Goes to show that human engineering can only go so far in comparison to the wrath of nature. He shuddered to think what would happen to him if he wandered the surface for too long. Surely he would be no different than the other remains that he’s discovered in his limited travels.

Unlike his previous treks, this one would be surprisingly short lived, and this time bear fruit as he found a favorable sight upon entering the first room he saw. Ahead, at the end of the room was the girl, surrounded by discarded machinery. She sat by the only working radio in the room, her station lit by candle light as she worked away, tuning and fiddling with radio components. She grunted in frustration as she struggled to get any signal on it, endlessly tuning it while only being met with static. He cautiously approached her, scared to startle her, as any break in her concentration was surely to cause an upset.

Bringing up his index finger, he approached her with slight trepidation and tapped on her shoulder, “Um, miss?”

Her eyes widened in surprise as she jolted forward, ramming her torso into the wooden desk, while yelping in surprise.

“Oh my goodness!” She said, trying to regain her composure, “I-I knew you had been asleep for quite some time, but I did not expect you to be awake just yet! I thought robots like you needed solar energy to run!”

He let out a slight chuckle, “Believe me, miss, I’ve had more than my fill of solar energy.”

“Right! Right! You carried me through that awful desert! Oh, mister, I can’t thank you enough! You saved my life!”

Once she regained her composure completely, she beamed with happiness and lunged forward, giving the service bot a tight hug, as well as quite the shock at her speed. Caught by surprise, he paused as she hugged him, before returning her embrace and hugging her back.

She pulled back and continued to smile at him, “Oh my! I think I’ve forgotten to introduce myself! You’ve done so much and you don’t even know my name. My name’s Kayda!”

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“Well, the pleasure is all mine, Miss Kayda,” the service bot said, kneeling ever so slightly to meet her at eye level and shake her hand.

She giggled at him, “Man! The rumors are true! Standard service bots really are super proper and stuff! I thought it was just old people complaining, comparing bots to how they used to act in the good old days.”

“Oh my, am I an old soul? Surely there exists more service bots such as myself out there.”

“Nah, not really. They’re all kinda funny now. They don’t talk like butlers like you do. At least the ones I’ve met though!”

“Well, I suppose that would make sense. Things appear to be far different from what they once were. It would only make sense for the cultural zeitgeist of not only mankind, but machines as well, to morph over time. I might as well be from a far off land.”

She tilted her head in confusion, before sighing, “Sooo, what you’re saying is you’re kinda new to this place too?”

He looked perplexed as well, “Indeed I am. Though, pardon my line of questioning if it is intrusive, but you seem disheartened by that. May I ask why?”

“It’s nothing really! It isn’t your fault. Just that I’ve been wandering around this desert for like a day before I ran into you, and I haven’t found anyone to help me get out of here,” she said with a sullen expression, her gaze pointing to the floor before she began to slouch in her seat.

“Oh dear, then it may seem we’ve found ourselves in a rather similar pickle, have we not?”

“I guess…” Kayda said, still frowning.

“Do not fret, though we found ourselves alone at the onset of our individual journeys, we now have each other!” He said, while his eyelids slid upwards to form a crescent shape, simulating a smile, “We shall find the way out of this wasteland together.”

“Oh, sir, you already saved my life with no questions asked! I-I can’t ask you for any more help than I’ve already gotten. I don’t wanna bother you with my problems.”

“Nonsense! It would be my pleasure. Like I said, we are in the same predicament, are we not? It would only make sense for us to band together and use our combined efforts to find a solution.”

She smiled once more, while fixing her hair so that it was no longer blocking her right eye, “You mean it, mister? That’s so cool of you! Oh thank you, thank you!”

He chuckled and patted her on the head, before walking to the corner of the room to retrieve a chair he had noticed when he initially entered. She sat and waited for him as he dragged the wooden fixture over to where she was sitting, while the radio she was fiddling with continued to hum static. As he positioned the chair a few feet away from her and next to the table, he tapped on the ham radio’s bright orange shell as he took a seat.

“Trying to call for help, are we?”

She nodded, “Yeah, but I can’t get anything! I don’t know what the range is on this thing, but I thought it would reach SOMEONE. So far, I got nothin’!”

“That’s to be expected, I suppose. While I carried you, I did not find any nearby settlements, nor a single sign of life. And that was after about half a day of walking!” He pauses, “That reminds me. You were on the brink of death for the better part of a day, were you not? How are you sitting before me, perfectly fine?”

“Oh! I think it got cold enough that I wasn’t so hot anymore, I think? All I know is that when I woke up it was finally night time! And you were taking a nap or something. I figured you were super sleepy and found a nice couch and blanket in this place, so I tucked you in.”

“Yes, that was the state I found myself in when I awoke not too long ago. I suppose that explains that.”

“Yeah! And after that, I found lots and lots of water and food in this place’s storage closets! It tasted a little funny, but it wasn’t too bad. I was super hungry so I didn’t care,” Kayda giggled to herself.

“Well, it would seem that we were met with a stroke of luck after a day’s worth of hardship! I must say, you are a resourceful young lady, and I am quite proud of you!”

She beamed with glee at his words, smiling widely as he showered her with praise. One could assume that this was the first time she ever received such praise, as it appeared just a few short words were enough to make her whole day. She tripped and tumbled over her words, as the excitement at her praise began to overpower her.

“Thanks, mister! O-Oh! I also left you some beans. I think robots eat. Do robots eat?”

“Ah, I am afraid we do not. Though, if I were being entirely honest, if I could eat, I do not believe beans would be my first choice,” he chuckled softly.

“I get you! Beans are yucky!”

“I shall take your word on it, I do not doubt that for a moment.”

She smiled yet again and continued to mess around with the radio, continuing to get static, channel after channel. He watched, impressed that someone her age even had a basic understanding of how to operate a radio of this nature. He decided to let her continue the search herself instead of intruding, as he felt firsthand experience would only help cultivate her budding electronic skills.

“Hmph! Still nothing, mister,” she paused, and looked at him with her head tilted in uncertainty, before she brought both hands to her mouth as she gasped in shock. “Oh! I’m sooo stupid! I can’t call you mister all the time! I totally forgot to ask you what YOUR name was! I’m so sorry!”

The question took him aback. He pondered to himself, his eyes narrowing while he began to parse out the question she directed at him. It was then that it occurred to him that he had no identity to speak of. He had not even thought of what his name may be, as no one has yet to ask him. Upon waking up, he only knew his designation number given to him while he was on the assembly line. Beyond that, he was essentially a nameless vagabond, birthed by a desolate wasteland.

He shifted his gaze to her and said with astonishment, “I do not think I have one, believe it or not.”

“Oh, really? You don’t have a mom or dad or anything that would have named you? Or a super computer thingy?”

“The closest thing I’ve ever had to a mother figure was Cyndi Lauper…'' He murmured to himself.

“...What?”

“Long story, I digress, it isn’t important.” He said hastily, “But yes, I do not have anything resembling what you would call a familial unit. I was essentially just born today, for all intents and purposes. And, by extension of that, no one was around to give me a proper name. I haven’t thought about my name until you asked me just now.”

“That’s so sad! I’m sorry about that, mister. It must’ve been scary to be all alone when you woke up for the first time.”

“It is alright, I had my PEZ dispensers to keep me company. I was too preoccupied trying to escape the facility I found myself in.”

She laughed, “You got one of those things? Can I see?!”

“Sure, by all means. I only picked them up because they were quite nifty. It would be a waste to not share their splendor,” he said while opening the storage slot embedded on his upper torso.

He clawed around his storage compartment, going off by feel as he batted around the various trinkets and junk he picked up in his journeys. Finally, he was able to pull out a dispenser and present it to Kayda. The small device was corroded, the plastic covered in grime and dirt, while the visage of an anthropomorphic bear stood atop the trinket’s base. The bear smiled at her as Kayda grabbed the candy dispensing device from the bot. She playfully tilted its head back over and over again, fascinated by such a simple little fixture.

“They say these things used to be super popular a super long time ago! I’ve seen a few in museums. They didn’t let us touch them though.”

“That is understandable. If these mere toys are in such scarcity at this point in time, it would make sense for scholars to preserve what little of these are left. They can likely even be considered relics, in that regard.”

“Oh,” she said quietly, “Does… does that mean you want this back?”

He simply shook his head, “Ah, if there are already others being preserved, I see no harm in you possessing that one. In fact, go ahead and keep it. Consider it a little souvenir of your time out here. Hopefully it can provide some fond memories of an otherwise harsh wasteland.”

“Thank you so much! You’re so nice, mister bot!” She smiled, before looking down at her newly bestowed gift, “Hmm, I think I have an idea. Sir, since you don’t have a name, could I maybe name you? I totally get it if you don’t want me too though!”

“No, I do not mind that at all. In fact, I think it is a wonderful idea! I do not fancy myself creative in the slightest, so this should work out wonderfully.”

“Cool, cool! Cause, I already got an idea! I got it from the PEZ dispenser!”

“Is that so?” He said with curiosity in his voice.

“Yeah! This little guy looks like a teddy bear! And, you found it! So, why don’t I just call you Teddy? Since you found it, it’s kinda like you picked out your name yourself too! Sorta.” She said, happily pointing at the bear’s head while she further explained her reasoning.

“Hmm. I must say, it is hard to argue with the points you’ve made there. Very keen persuasion skills, if I say so myself. Well, how can I argue with such a sound line of reasoning?”

She tilted her head in confusion at his manner of speech, finding it difficult to parse the phrasing used, “So… Does that mean yes?”

“Indeed it does! I apologize for any misunderstanding issued on my part. Such idiosyncrasies were enabled by default, and I have grown accustomed to them. But yes! I do very much like the name!”

“Awesome! I’m so happy you like the name! It’s been good getting to know you, Teddy!”

“The pleasure is all mine, Miss Kayda. We are very fortunate that our paths crossed at such dire straits.”

A feeling of warmth found its way within Teddy, as he repeated his newly given name over and over again in his head. He had never known such joy before, and it had not occurred to him how lonely he felt up until this point. Once a stranger in need of help, little Kayda was now the closest thing to a friend he ever had. Despite being so young, he was impressed by how capable and adjusted she was. He assumed most children in her situation wouldn’t be nearly as adept in survival if they were to find themselves in such a weary and brutal landscape. Which begs the question, how and why is she out here to begin with?

“Excuse me, Miss Kayda?” Teddy inquired, “Earlier you spoke of family, and asked of my origins. I was wondering if it would be okay for me to ask you the same? What’s someone your age doing out here all by yourself?

“Oh…” She paused and tensed up as she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, “Um…”

Teddy interrupted her as she stammered and struggled to get her words out, “I do apologize if my line of questioning was in any way offensive, I have no place asking such rude-”

“No, Teddy! It’s okay, you don’t gotta say sorry. It’s just…” She stammered yet again, her gaze darting back and forth as she spoke with trepidation, “W-When I think about it I get all stressed. It all happened so fast.”

She shook as she began to recount the events leading up to her current situation, her knuckles whitening as she gripped the arm of her chair tightly. As she trembled, her hair fell once more and covered a majority of her face. Images of the past few days shot through her memory yet again, each more distressing than the last. The once cheery young girl now rocked gently in her seat, seemingly mere seconds from a breakdown.

Teddy took note of this and quickly shot out of his seat and to her side as he rested a hand on her shoulder in order to offer some sort of comfort to her. He could feel her trembling calm upon feeling his touch. She hastily moved the locks of hair blocking her face and tried to covertly wipe the tears that had begun streaming down her cheeks as she weakly gave him a pain laden smile. He moved to wipe a remaining tear from her cheek before moving back ever so slightly.

“Again, you do not have to offer details to your situation if it presents an excessive amount of distress. I do not wish to exacerbate any discomfort on your part, you do not have to spare your comfort for my curiosity.”

“N-No, like I said, it’s okay. I just had a long couple of days, that's all…” She hesitated, her gaze fixating on nowhere in particular, “I’ll tell you, it's the least I can do, since you let me name you and stuff.”

She sat up in her chair while Teddy returned to his, ready to keenly listen to Kayda’s origins. Kayda looked down to the small trinket gifted to her while she began to recount the days prior, wincing every so often as she struggled to find the right words. She returned her gaze to Teddy as he patiently waited for her to feel comfortable enough to tell her story.

[https://i.imgur.com/VyztNRj.png]

“So, uh… I guess it all happened like yesterday? Or maybe the day before? So much happened I can’t even remember right.”

“Take all the time you need, Miss Kayda.”

“Right… right. I come from a city near the ocean… Wakefield. I was home asleep, when suddenly these big guys in glowing armor smashed through my window and handcuffed me! They told me the Grand Mistress wanted me but wouldn’t tell me why! They beat up my parents and destroyed my room… And, before I knew it, we were in this ship flying to some place they kept calling Penumbra.”

Teddy carefully listened to her tale, but couldn’t help but notice that it sounded as if she was having trouble recounting the events along with specific details. He suspected there were indeed some omissions, but he was in no place to inquire about events that don't pertain to him. Everyone is entitled to some sense of privacy. That, and she’s also a child that has been put through so much in such little time, so it would make sense that her perception of events would be scattered and disorganized. As she told her story, he couldn’t help but notice the fear deep within her eyes, her gaze alone telling a much deeper story than what she was letting out.

“We flew for such a long time… I begged and begged for them to take me home, but they wouldn’t stop talking about how they needed me in Penumbra. E-Eventually, everything went red and the next thing I knew, the ship crashed in this desert, and the men who took me were nowhere to be found.” She looked to the ground and sighed, “I was walking around the desert for sooo long. I-I really thought I was gonna die out there. But then, I saw that little house thing you came out of, and started knocking real hard on it! And, now I’m here.”

He listened to her story with intrigue as he nodded along, tilting his head at the mention of the peculiar city name. From his internal database, no such city existed. However, that’s to be expected, given his current situation, he realized. Rubbing his chin inquisitively, he stood up and paced around the room slowly, trying to make sense of her situation.

What business would a group of people have with this child? He thought to himself as he focused his gaze back to her. Does her situation have anything to do with my sudden awakening? And, what became of the men who took her from her home? Perhaps I am overthinking it. Correlation does not inherently mean causation, after all. This is an odd set of circumstances to say the least.

Kayda watched Teddy pace back and forth as he continued to rub his chin, a light metallic tapping noise emanating from him with every tap of his finger. It seemed she had lost him in the labyrinth of his own mind yet again. She was curious as to how long he could go like this and was even surprised it was taking him this long to parse out what she had just told him. After all, she was taught that at their prime, service bots were able to process complex thoughts at a fraction of a second. But here was Teddy, taking minutes at a time to even figure out what to say back to her.

Soon though, she grew slightly impatient and began to wave at him in an attempt to gain his attention once more. Upon noticing her, Teddy scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, and quietly paced back to his chair and took a seat again.

“You, uh… seem to think a lot,” Kayda said with a light chuckle.

“Oh! Do I? My apologies, Miss Kayda. I was simply trying to dissect your situation and formulate theories as to why you were suddenly taken from your home in such a manner, as well as ascertain why exactly your assailants suddenly vanished.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Kayda said quickly, “W-What happened, happened. Now, I just wanna get home…”

Kayda lifted her legs up to her chair and brought her knees up to her chest and sighed, before burying her face into her legs. Her hair billowed and covered what little could be seen of her face. Her form trembled as Teddy began to hear her lightly sob. She shook, trying her best to keep everything in. Moments before, Teddy could hear the fear in her voice clear as day, as it sounded like she was trying her best to keep it all buried within her. Now though, it seems the anguish and anxiety of it all had begun leaking through as she continued to tremble, trying her best to contain her sobs.

Teddy rushed to her side and laid a hand on her shoulder, in an attempt to let her know she was no longer alone. At the sensation of his touch, her sobbing had begun to peter off and her trembling form began to ease up. She lifted her head and looked up at him. Teddy had not said anything, but was simply letting her know that in such a dark time in her life, she had no reason to feel alone. And though he was but a machine, Kayda could feel a warmth coming from him she wasn’t all too familiar with.

“It is okay to be scared, Miss Kayda. Lots of people would be terrified in your situation. Just know that your situation isn’t permanent. It is like I said, I will be more than happy to assist you on your journey home. It would be my pleasure.”

She wiped her tears and smiled at him, before lunging forward and hugging him tightly, “Thank you so much, Teddy. You don’t know how much that means to me. I don’t even know where’d I begin trying to get home…”

Teddy pulled back and returned to his seat, trying his best to keep a jovial tone with her, but part of him shared the very same anxiety. In a wasteland such as this, how does one even traverse it and make it out alive? And if they were to survive the harsh dunes awaiting them outside, who knows what dangers lurk beyond this inferno of a biome. He pushed those worries to the side, as if they were both equally afraid, nothing would get done.

Soon, Kayda returned to fiddling with the radio in an attempt to reach any form of civilization, while Teddy took stock of what this bunker had at its disposal, and what could be packed up and used in the future. A sun bleeding pure plasma upon the endless expanse of gold awaited them in a few hours, and it wouldn’t hurt to be prepared. After preparing Kayda a pack of food and water, he returned to the radio room and found a rather amusing sight.

With her hand still upon the radio’s dials, Kayda’s head rested on the surface of the desk, a puddle of drool forming under her mouth as she lightly snored. Teddy chuckled before turning off the radio and lifted her up.

“I suppose it is my turn to tuck YOU in, Miss Kayda. I do not mind returning the favor,” He said in bemusement before lying her down in the very same makeshift bed setup she made for him.

He pulled up a stool across the room and stretched his legs out, before returning his gaze to the infinite abyss above. The stars shone down upon them as Teddy had begun to drift into sleep mode, finally able to destress after the day’s harrowing antics. As his consciousness faded, only one thought ran across his mind.

How am I going to do this?