Push through your limits: Chapter 5 "A cloudy night"
Payan gently placed his friend on the grass. Perman's eyes were barely half lidded, as he tried to make sense of his surroundings.
Muffled voices circled him in the dark. As the clouds finally let the moonlight gleam, only then did he recognized the blurry figures. Although the moonlight was dim, it was unmistakably his friends by the striking colors of their helmets.
Across them was another familiar figure, despite being muffled by his ear, the distinct mature voice certainly belonged to their senior, Birdman. At that time, they were discussing something, which he assumed was about his current state. He wished to discern them with what little he had left, to at least know what was going to happen to him. However those attempts became futile when the back-and-forth from group stopped.
Birdman's eyes fell upon him. It lingered for a while, before he turned to the rest, where he heard his first clear words.
"Hold him"
The three shared apprehensive glances, before eventually kneeling down to reach their friend. Booby shifted towards Perman's legs, whilst the other two held his left and right arm. Their grip was light, just enough to keep him steady. They knew better to use more power than they actually need.
Except all of those were thrown right out the window after Birdman started the procedure. Perman was calm at first, his half lidded eyes studied everything around him. Until he finally spotted the same ray gun Birdman used on his broken leg before. Dread washed over him, as his eyes widened from the sight.
He looked around at everyone with pleading eyes. Mumbling a "please... don't" while trying to detach from their hold. Soon Birdman crouched down, and placed a folded fabric against his mouth, telling him to bite into it. But Perman shook his head, pleading him to not continue the procedure.
Birdman looked at him, and for a second his eyes tendered. His grip on the device tightened, as he felt hesitation crawl up to him. But to the boy's dismay, the older man merely sighed and proceeded to unbind his injury.
Perman, feeling defeated, looked towards his left, where Pako was at. Her thumb was gently rubbing his arm, trying to comfort him from the inevitable.
Then Pako met his eyes. His gaze was fearful, begging for help. But Pako could merely look away, she knew it needed to be done, it was their only help after all.
Eventually, Birdman started the device and pointed it at Perman's side. The moment it reached the boy's flesh, a muffled bloodcurdling shriek escaped the his throat, echoing throughout the forest.
Meanwhile back at home, His counterpart suddenly snapped a look outside the balcony. He didn't hear anything, nor did he see anything that would've caught his attention. He just looked...
Copy was initially sitting by the bedside. His back was slightly slumped over, as he rested his weight upon his legs with his arms. It had been approximately 20 minutes after they left, and still he hasn't fully registered what had just happened.
At one point his mom sat beside him to give him reassurance and comfort. Before she eventually went down to fill in the others, after Ganko and His Dad asked about the commotion.
Mitsuo and the others had gone through several broken bones before, but never a gunshot. Even though they've mentioned he had been shot before. Just fortunate enough to be saved by his badge. It hadn't really occured to him that Mitsuo could run out of luck too.
Copy turned to his left, the red badge was sitting beside him. He had forgotten to clip it back on Mitsuo earlier after contacting the others. It's been 20 minutes and he still hasn't heard from any of them. Though it was convenient that he has a device he can use to communicate with them directly. He hasn't really found the courage yet to call them himself.
Copy stood up, walking towards the study. His eyes hovered over the notebooks he had left for Mitsuo, and couldn't help remember the moment he was scolded for it.
Copy pulled the chair away and sat himself Infront of the desk. He took an eraser and removed all of the scribbles and drawings he had left. He then reached out for a pencil from the corner, when his hand suddenly brushed against the small cake box from earlier.
His hand stayed like that for a while, before he reached for the box instead. As he pulled it, a small piece of paper fell from its side. Curiously, he picked it up and turned it over.
To: copy
Thank you for your hard work
It said, simply. Nothing more, nothing less. Turns out the cake was for him. Mitsuo had intentionally bought it to thank the robot. Except he never did what he asked for, and deliberately left him with the unfinished chores. What was there to thank him for?
Copy placed the note back on top of the box, and reached back for the pencil. He flipped back through the pages of the book and began writing. His hands trembled yet he kept going, soon enough, a tear dropped on the paper.
The Robot's eyes blurred, as the guilt slowly ate him inside. Though the paper began to soak from his tears, he kept writing and writing, ignoring the chances of the wet parchment being easily torn by the graphite.
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Back in the forest, Perman struggled against their grip. Pulling away his limbs with all his strength. The three, forgetting their friend also had a perman helmet on. Was nearly pulled along or knocked away, when Ichigō attempted to draw back his arms and legs. So they were left with no choice but to use more forced against him.
Perman bit further into the fabric, feeling helpless under his friends hold. Halfway through, he finally stops struggling. But his muscles remained tense, as quiet muffled cries escaped his throat. Until eventually, he stops struggling and crying all together.
Soon, the final layer of skin had finally sealed up. Birdman turned off the device, "there, all sealed up" he said before wiping off the sweat off his chin.
The three releases their grip from their friend, and simultaneously took a breath of relief. Birdman lets himself sit down on the grass, leaning back with his hands, as he settled the ray gun beside him.
"You're okay now, Ichigō. Try to sit up" Birdman said, his voice inviting.
But the boy remained still. His head dropped to it's side, where he last kept it two minutes before he finished sealing up his skin. His arms didn't left its place as well, but his clenched fist had notably relaxed.
Pako moved back towards him, and called him out. But Perman, did not response. So she gently shook him, and that's when she noticed him panting shallowly. He had never looked so*...tired.*
Soon the rest followed her and surrounded him. Payan placed a hand on his shoulder, gently calling him out. Booby did the same, and repeatedly shook his legs.
Pako held his arm, and felt his clammy skin. She looked down and saw the light patches of red against his pale arm. She rubbed it gently, feeling sorry for the extra strength they had forced onto him.
Despite relying solely on the moon's glow, Birdman spotted the dried up tear streaks across the boy's cheek. Something broke him from the sight.
"Ichigō, wake up" Birdman finally muttered, patting the side of his face. However Perman did not respond. In fact his half lidded eyes did not meet any of their gazes, instead it focused beyond them, as he stared blankly across the trees beside him.
Then it started to rain...