Cedric awoke with a jolt, taking the environment in around him. He was surrounded by whites and blues, the walls of the medbay no doubt. He quickly looked down, it seemed his mess had been cleaned off of him. He wore a comfortable white gown, the feel of his bare ass against the bed he now resided in felt awkward. He looked around, and saw Killer sleeping in a nearby chair, her body covered by her wings. Did he see Grey before? When was that? He looked around, but saw no clock. He shifted his gaze to Killer - and a jolt of pain shocked his head. He felt sleepy, tired, and his left arm felt like he'd just finished a three hour workout. His mind blanked as he stared at Killer's sleeping form. Was she okay? Was she alright? Did she need anything? Wait, what?

Cedric held his panging forehead with both hands, fighting the instinct to protect and preserve. He just met Killer, they had no repertoire. Why did he care so much, damn it? He forced the thoughts away, as painful as it was. He felt a distinct guilt for doing so, a guilt that he shouldn't feel. Killer was just a loyal asset, right?

He continued to stare at Killer, entranced. He heard the chattering of a beak and a sound somewhat reminiscent of someone clearing their throat. He ignored it. After a few moments, the sound happened again. He wanted to turn his head, but couldn't. He was busy right now, couldn't they respect that?

"Excuse me."

A shy male voice finally freed him from his stupor.

"Huh? What? Oh, sorry. You are? Wait, you're the corvid from before."

The bipedal crow nodded. He had slick black feathers, and was expertly preened. He had claws for hands with his wings attached, similar to Rainbow. He cleared his throat once more with furled claws. He wore a set of clean white scrubs that seemed quite out of place for a pirate vessel. With his other claw, he held tightly to what appeared to be a dedicated medkit, similar to the one the medics used when tending to himself and Bengal - but much larger.

"Yes, I am Tender." Cedric chuckled painfully at his name.

"Something amusing?" He clacked. He did not appear irritated, but seemed to be genuinely curious.

"Sorry, it's just that the battle plans we were readying yesterday also involved raiding a tender vessel - the Helmsberg."

Tender narrowed his eyes to him, out of concern more than anything.

"That's wasn't yesterday, I'm afraid." He said simply.

Cedric cocked his head, "What do you mean? I know I passed out after Grey grabbed me, but I'm already awake now here in the bed."

Tender stroked his beak thoughtfully. "Perhaps... You should see something."

"What? What's wrong?" Cedric asked, now feeling genuinely scared - he hadn't been this afraid of the unknown for a long time.

Tender gently pulled away the curtain that was in front of them, revealing the sleeping form of Grey - her left arm no longer natural, but now replaced with what was clearly a well-crafted prosthetic. Cedric gasped in horror at the sight. He jolted from his bed, leaning his right arm against it as he stepped forward - startling Tender.

"Who fucking did that." Cedric growled towards Tender, rage filling his body.

"Who fucked with Grey?"

"Well, I'm afraid Scourge..." Tender said steadily. "That you did."

"I... What?" Cedric slumped onto his medical bed, desperately attempting to make sense of the situation.

"That's impossible... I'd never... To Grey of all people. Maybe to a stranger, even you - but to Grey..."

Cedric held his face in his hands, processing the information.

"I mean, there's the crew sure - but you know, Grey, well..."

Tears began to well in Cedric's eyes, breaking up his speech. He lifted his head high and closed his eyes, hoping it would assist him in hiding his distress. It was a failure, of course. His lips quivered as he spoke his next words.

"I actually give a shit about her man."

Was all he could manage to say before the tears flowed freely from his sore eyes. His head hung low in melancholy, he had nothing else to say - and was already vulnerable enough. Hardly befitting of a man, or a soldier for that matter. Disgusting, he thought to himself. Pathetic.

Tender cleared his throat once more, "You truly don't remember. Well, I will explain everything that happened. First however, I must perform a check-up - especially now you are awake, and seem to be - physically at least - in proper shape."

Cedric simply nodded. He no longer had the emotional energy to speak, let alone barely move. He barely paid attention as Tender set his medkit on a nearby metal rolling cart, the sound of wheels against a freshly cleaned floor filling the ambiance of the room. It was a lonely sort of echo, one heard only by those stuck in a medical bed - awaiting an operation or care. The corvid man carefully organized his diagnostic tools, all of them similar but simply more advanced than the ones he was used to. Tender checked his ears, his temperature, lungs, heart rate, the usual. Finally, he produced a small scanning device from his kit. Cedric barely raised his head to it, raw curiosity was his only driving force to see it in action.

"Ah, haven't seen one of these before?"

Tender clacked amusingly. Cedric simply nodded.

"It's an Omnispectrometer, one of our newest magitech additions thanks to the success of Prez's command - if you can call it a success. It can scan many frequencies at once, great for getting scientific data or information on a patient."

"The raid already happened?" He barely managed to ask through his tears, now slowly receding as he wiped his hand across his brow.

"A couple days ago, yes. The crew called it a success. For me though, I'm afraid I have to disagree. The losses were... Unacceptable for the gain." He said steadily as he unfolded the shiny new tool.

"That bitch, I'll be she had something to do with this." Cedric growled.

"On the contrary." Tender interjected, "Prez seemed concerned for your well-being."

"Really? Doubt it." He replied. There was no way she didn't plan this somehow, the timeline was just too similar.

"Hmm." Tender hummed as he began his scan, "There was an ancient book I read a few months ago. One of the sentences stood out to me - correlation does not equal causation. I don't mean to insult your intelligence, but I do ask that you consider the words."

Cedric wiped his face, attempting to clear it of dried tears.

"Well, she can tell me herself then. I don't know anymore. I'll be stuck swabbing decks anyways from here on out."

"Perhaps not." Tender said with some comfort, "There are many - " He stopped suddenly, producing a fine set of rectangular reading spectacles from one of his scrub pockets and placing it gently on his beak, looking somewhat away from his device.

"This is odd."

Cedric looked up to Tender's now contorted face, as much as a crow could - anyways.

"What's wrong?"

"Your hormones... I expected them to be different from the norm, which they are of course - but this... This is unlike anything I've ever seen. To be frank, you're a pioneer in medicine now."

"Pioneer as in how?" Cedric questioned cautiously.

"Well... You get to name it." Tender said, his chuckles sounded more like a series of guacs and subtle caws.

Cedric chuckled in return, "That's a good joke. But seriously, what's wrong?"

Tender turned his head to face Cedric's straight on - his chuckles dying down.

"It is a good joke, but in this case - I'm also being quite serious."

"So, what I have a new disease that nobody has ever seen before?" Cedric asked, now completely enraptured in curiosity. What a strange honor to have.

"Not a disease, but a pheromone. These Omnispectrometers are updated on the regular with new data, I thought it was a fluke when I used it on Killer over there. However, it seems you two have the same pheromone. I've never seen anything like it - it's incredibly complex. I honestly can't tell if it's a single pheromone, or multiples linked together. It is quite extraordinary."

Cedric stood stunned for a few moments, still trying to register all the new information - it was a painful struggle, one that was already giving him a migraine.

"Okay well... You're the medical expert, what is it?"

Tender clacked his beak thoughtfully. "Well, you tell me. Do you feel any sort of connection with her? Some kind of link you can't describe?"

That had to be it, there was no other explanation

"Yeah, actually. It's like... We share emotions and feelings now. If it's intense, it almost feels like a feedback loop. What I don't understand is how."

"Ah, that's helpful. What were you doing beforehand that may have caused it? Sharing bodily fluids, sexual intercourse, touching each other in any way shape or fashion?"

In a normal circumstance those questions would be invasive to ask, but in a medical setting Cedric knew it was imperative that doctors had all the information possible.

"Nothing like intercourse, no. But uh... She did drink my blood."

Tender by now had picked up a holopad and began diligently writing notes as Cedric spoke, his claws were dexterous and agile - clearly, he was more than all too used to note taking. Cedric would want nothing less from a doctor.

"And you, did you drink her blood or ingest her saliva?"

Cedric shook his head, "Not that I can remember. We made physical contact though - just not sexual."

"I see." He simply said, quickly jotting down more notes. He finished off his business with a quick tap of the touch pen on his holopad before re-inserting in its designated holder to the back of the device.

"Well, for better or for worse - biologically, you two are inexorably linked now. Have you come up with a name?"

Cedric thought for a moment longer, before settling on a good name. One that may bring him immortality.

"Fuller. Call it the Fuller Pheromone."

Tender nodded, not seeming to want to pry into the name's origins.

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"Now, about what happened after you thought you passed out."

"Don't bother." Grey's unmistakable voice cut through Tender's explanation, he respectfully backed down as Grey appeared before Cedric - standing strong as ever.

"Grey..." Cedric couldn't bear to look at his injured lover. His guilt was immeasurable, it cut deep into soul - another failure. He was sick of it.

"Give us some privacy Tender, you've been working your ass off. Take a break or something."

After a few more moments, Cedric heard the curtain close. Grey sat down next to him, her new arm mechanically clacking and whirring about. It reminded him of the sound of plate mail clanging together as she moved her arm. He didn't need to see it to know it was moving.

"Hey." Grey started, but Cedric refused to look at her. He simply couldn't face another failure, not again already.

"Want a bacco stick? I'm lighting one up regardless, so.."

Cedric winced as he turned his head to see a now cybernetic arm handing him a bacco stick. It was structured well, its wires somewhat exposed yet protected by a sturdy metal frame made of a metal he didn't recognize. Demure cogs and wheels whirled within it as she moved her digits or the arm as a whole.

"Fuck..." Cedric whispered in disbelief. He shakily took the cigarette from her hand, searching his bedside for a lighter.

"I got it." She said, lighting it for him - he placed in his mouth the same time she lit it with her lighter, as soon as the exchange was done he inhaled deeply and looked away once more.

"Kipper's work, not as bad as it seems."

Cedric could hear the metallic clanking of the arm, she was most likely looking down at it, moving it around a bit.

"Cedric." Grey started slowly, giving him time to respond. He refused to. Tears welled in his eyes once more - he refused to show her his vulnerable side. He had no right to face her now. He failed to keep his wits about him, and failed his task assigned to him by Prez. He'd be lucky to continue residing on the Ravager as a whole, he figured.

"Cedric." Grey started again, this time with more intent and a higher volume. He didn't respond - instead attempting to hide another sniffle.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you, damn it!"

He jolted his head in her direction out of instinctive response, still finely tuned from his late mother's behavior. Before he could look away again, she kissed his cheek.

"That's better."

Confused, Cedric simply stared.

"I don't understand..." He said. He genuinely didn't. She should be upset, angry - and yet, she was not. It made no sense.

"What, you think that because you crushed my arm to nothing I'd love you less?"

Cedric looked away. She was blunt and assertive, but being reminded of an action he had no memory of that permanently disabled her was not something he wanted to acknowledge. He held his face in his hands once more, hoping that it would relieve some of his stress. It only made him feel a little bit better.

"Right, sorry. I know you're upset, and I know you think you've done a terrible thing. Considering the circumstance though, I forgive you - you know?"

Cedric could hear her puffing on her cigarette.

"I need to tell you a couple things, better tell you now than wait. You're trying to figure out this Phage thing right? Well, I got some information for you. My arm is gone, you took it. Don't you want to at least know how and possibly why? It's terrible, I get it, but nothing we say or do is going to reverse what has already happened - so we might as well move on. If I was pissed about it, I wouldn't be talking to you right now."

Her words resounded in the air for a few agonizing moments - strangely, it made him feel much better. Acknowledging and understanding that it happened, and accepting it so quickly. Grey was truly a remarkable woman. He let out a long, agonized sigh - before finally deciding to face her again. He looked at her up and down, the same Grey he's known up to this point - just with one arm less.

"Right, okay."

Cedric wiped his face one last time, and steeled his resolve. Too much time had passed already, he couldn't hate himself forever - especially with Grey's support.

"The last thing I remember was asking you for help after you picked me up. The whole thing with your arm - I don't remember a single thing, just vomiting and jizzing myself. God, thinking about it now that is so embarrassing."

Grey shrugged her strong shoulders nonchalantly, she didn't appear bothered the slightest by his vulnerability.

"Things happen, good or bad. At least you didn't shit yourself."

"Real comforting..." Cedric was not amused, still feeling the aftermath of his emotions.

"Yeah well, if you didn't like that you're really not going to like what I tell you next."

Resigned to the consequences of his actions, Cedric steeled himself once more.

"Yeah? Well, lay it on me. What happened. The whole thing."

She simply nodded, taking a deep breath into her furry muzzle.

"Well, I woke up early today to get some exercise in and heard the commotion near medbay. Accidents happen, but never with that much yelling. Naturally, I ran to investigate. Of course, I was terrified when I saw it was you - with Killer no less. I followed you two into the medbay. Naturally, I was pissed - I thought Killer had done this to you, I was so angry I didn't even consider the fact that she had been helping you there herself."

She took a breath and quickly stepped to her bed to pick up a water bottle before returning. She took a sip, and continued again - with Cedric listening intently. Up to this point, he remembered what happened, but couldn't make out the voices around him besides Killer's.

"I was trying to find a space to fit in to help you, but then you shifted to the left too hard. You almost squashed Tender. Thankfully, you squashed his table instead as you went down. Killer and Tender tried to help you up but weren't able to, so I put my squats to use and lifted your ass up myself." Grey followed her last statement with a grin, evidently pleased with herself. As she should be, Cedric thought.

"You looked up to me and asked me for help, you son of a bitch you made me cry in public." She smacked his shoulder with a furled fist from her prosthetic arm, stuffing her cigarette back in her mouth with the other. He rubbed it gently in response.

"Well, you went out cold after that. But... Cedric... Well your eyes were different."

Cedric froze. No, it couldn't be...

"Heart shaped?" He squeaked meekly.

Grey answered his question with a grave nod, her ears barely following the movement.

"But that means..."

"What's wrong? You know why?"

Cedric gingerly touched the side of his face, the mask reinforcing his breathing with its traditional static. The soreness in his eyes, the sudden mood shift to caring for Killer... His almost instant infatuation, it all tracked.

"What about now?" He asked, looking her straight into her seemingly glowing dark brown orbs.

"Looks normal." She replied.

"So that symptom is temporary... Son of a BITCH!"

Cedric jolted up in unchained rage, senselessly throwing his arms about in frustration. He slammed his fist in the wall behind him, crashing through the metal and blacking out the entire medbay. He stared into the darkness, continuously pounding the wall he could no longer see. How could he have been so stupid! So idiotic! So fucking asinine!

"Whoa! Whoa! Cedric chill the fuck out dude! This shit isn't easy to replace!"

He whirled around to to the sound of Grey's voice, he began to yell into the darkness - but stopped, remembering he was in the medbay. A medbay that was now dark from his anger. Only the lights of the their burning cigarettes piercing the darkness, and many others present in the medbay not asleep were already complaining about the lack of luminescence. He could hear Tender calming them down back and forth, assuring them that a repair team would arrive shortly. He forced his voice lower, his body shaking with emotion.

"Don't you get it Grey? I killed Faring because I thought she was going to suffer from the Phage, just as her mother said she would. Yet, look at me now. I'm fine, and myself and Killer have some link. Faring could still be alive, but not suffering! Do I look mind controlled to you? Do I look like I've lost my independence?"

"Oh yeah?" Grey replied calmly, the light from her inhale illuminating a darkened face. "I haven't told you how you took my arm yet, and now there's a blackout here because somebody couldn't control themselves. So yeah, I'd say you aren't in right mind right now."

"Damn it..." Cedric flopped back onto the bed, reined under control by Grey's grounding. She lightly punched him on the arm.

"Hey, happens to all of us. As I was saying before, your eyes changed before you passed out. I thought you were dead, or close to it - and I took that anger out on Killer. Couldn't lay a finger on her, and poor Tender was trying his best to get us under control. He's an older guy, probably older than all of us. Corvids live a long time, unlike the rest of us. He'd be what... Almost fourty-nine now? Way beyond the norm of thirty-five to fourty for the rest of us. He tried his damndest though - I commend him, best damn doctor I've ever had. You know, I don't know why he's on a pirate vessel in the middle of nowhere - living on the outskirts. He could do great in the core. Anyways, I'm getting off track. Point is, when I went after Killer - you went after me."

Cedric slowly puffed on his cigarette introspectively, it would run out soon - and it was too dark for him to see where the nearest ash tray would be.

"I don't understand - I was passed out." He said again, he had absolutely no explanation for what happened after he lost consciousness.

"Physically maybe, but not mentally - if that makes sense. When I endangered Killer, it's like you moved on your own. Your eyes were open, and your pupils were shaped like hearts. You rambled on about not letting anything hurt her. I will admit it pained me at first, but then I noticed that you weren't being yourself. I moved to stop you instead, which of course caused Killer to go after me. Two versus one, a super soldier and a super assassin - not a good combo. Well, I found an opportunity and went after Killer again, because you seemed... Weaker than usual? Learned real quick that you weren't the case when I stretched out my arm to grab Killer and subdue her. You grabbed my arm, and just... Squeezed. It took a few seconds, but you shattered my arm. Unrepairable. I started crying like a bitch from the pain, though to be fair you had just destroyed an entire part of my body. When you saw that, you started crying, without saying a word. I've never seen so many tears fall from someone's face. You flopped over after that. Killer followed shortly after."

"Jesus christ, what a mess..." Was all he could manage to say. What else could he say? Nothing, really. But he could do - and that was exactly what be planned on pursuing. He needed to find the source of the Phage, or at least a repository of information on it. He needed to find out what it was, and how to reverse it. After that, he wasn't sure what he'd do.

"Okay so..." He began, "What now?"

"Well..." Grey looked up to the ceiling as the lights suddenly turned back on, and had to cover her eyes for a few moments in response. She reached far behind Cedric to procure an ash tray from his bedside table, one that he hadn't noticed when he awoke. She tapped her cigarette clear of ash, and tossed it inside after dousing it in the ashes. Cedric followed shortly after, his cigarette already burned to the filter line.

"Sounds like you got a date with Prez."

"Tender mentioned she actually gave a damn about what happened - but I'm not convinced. Let me ask you something - how many males died in the raid?"

Grey thought for a moment, shaking her body out for a few moments. Cedric was able to garner a substantial glance at the side of her breasts, he felt an odd sense of satisfaction. They were lovers after all, or at least he assumed so. Her gown was not any different from his own, but her fur did a far better job of protecting her vital parts and providing warmth. For Cedric on the other hand, the medbay's air wisping through his butt crack when he moved was extremely uncomfortable, and somewhat cold.

"A few. About a twenty percent loss - it was necessary, but I'm not happy about it."

Cedric shifted on the bed, fully facing Grey. "I was going through the software after the meeting that day. There was an anticipated fifty percent loss, almost all of the males were on the boarding teams. It's like she wanted them gone. Speaking of, did we get what we needed?"

Grey sighed, and Cedric at that moment realized he already knew the answer.

"Nope, barely a month's worth. Got a lot of other shit though - ammo and the like."

Cedric sighed and clasped an index finger and a thumb on the bridge of his nose, "I fucking TOLD that bitch that would happen - but no, I'm a male - I'm not an officer, I have no agency. What a fucking useless commander."

"You're right." Prez's voice sliced through his curtains and into his medical area, like a well-placed shuriken.

"Son of a bitch..."

"No, but the daughter of one." She replied quickly. Cedric carefully observed the vixen as she peeled apart the curtains leading to his bed, he could see from the corner of a wizened eye that Grey was adopting a defensive stance, almost dominating in fact. She stood tall, standing between himself and Prez. She inched closer, he tried to ignore her bare back sticking out from her gown. It was a challenge of alphas. Given Grey's robust size, it seemed she would be the victor here - her new prosthetic arm was not doubt much stronger than her old one, one of few boons granted from losing it.

"I thought you were going to take Cedric to your quarters later - so why are you here now?" Her ears flattened and a shallow growl erupted from her throat. Her fur vibrated ever so slightly in response to the threat as she began to bare her fangs.

"To take him to my quarters now, obviously. Relax wolf girl, what are you gonna do - harm me? Your commander?" Prez flipped her long hair out of her eyes, he saw now that her orange hair was organized into a neat pony tail, but it seemed some strands had broken free.

"I just might." Grey growled in response, inching closer.

"Don't bother. Cedric, you're coming to my office - now. That's an order." She stood straight in front of them, comedically dwarfed by Grey.

"No, he's not." The calm voice of Tender now followed behind her own.

"He's still recovering. Your orders-" He gave a quick wink to Cedric, "Have no agency here. As the ship's primary doctor, I will decide where my patients go. Is that understood, ma'am?"

Prez looked back and forth between Cedric and Tender, idly ruffling her hand through her hair. Her tail brushed back and forth, lightly touching his pulled away privacy curtains.

"Fine, I'll make it quick then. You were right, we should have been more careful. Just because I don't like males doesn't mean I'm an idiot. About the boarding crews, that's coincidence. Most of the females are the ones working in technical positions, so the males are more readily available. The deal is still on, get a crew together in a week. Train them the next. We have another opportunity coming up if we move now, but it won't be as rudimentary as our last operation. The captain hasn't said anything yet about how bad it went, so the crew thinks they will be living in the lap of luxury over the next couple weeks. If you really can make a team work, which I'm not confident in, I'll still make you Field Operations Officer - but only if it works! The crew do what they want, so good luck getting them to work together. Oh, and if your plan doesn't work - you will absolutely be scrubbing the decks until you die!"

Cedric looked to Grey for guidance, she simply shrugged - seeming to be just as surprised as he was. Cedric adjusted his gown to cover himself further as he rose completely from the comfortable medical bed. He already wanted to be back inside it, nice and comfortable - but for now he needed to show strength. He was given a second opportunity, and he sure as hell as going to take it. He stepped a few paces forward, facing Prez. She was quite short compared to him, perhaps closer to Killer's height. He looked behind himself, she was still fast asleep in the lounge chair set up for bedside visitors. Maybe she was much more drained than he realized. He looked forward again, a new determination filling his eyes with life and his body with strength.

"I'll make it happen."