He stayed where he was at first. Close, but not too close. Close enough to hear, far enough to not get in the way. That felt like the safest place to exist these days.
Then she waved him forward. Right. No hiding now.
He stepped in beside her, slower than he meant to, eyes locking onto the display like it might bite him if he looked wrong. Red, green, blue, yellow. It took a second for it to stop looking like chaos. Then her voice cut through it. He followed where she pointed, forcing himself to keep up.
Enemy. Ours. Movement. Trajectory.
His brow furrowed. The sudden bloom of green dots made him flinch before he could stop himself. Fighters. Real people. Moving into that mess. He exhaled slowly. Get a grip.
She talks like she's done this a thousand times. Of course she has. You're the only one here playing catch-up.
His gaze drifted to the small cluster pushing deep into red space. Brave or stupid. Probably both. "You can actually see it," he muttered, almost to himself. "Before it happens."
His eyes flicked toward her, studying her profile for a second before looking back to the display. There was something strange about standing next to someone like her and realizing she was just… watching.
He shifted his weight, arms hanging awkwardly at his sides. Say something normal. Just once.
"You've done this a lot, haven't you?" he said, voice quieter now, less uncertain but still rough around the edges.Then he added, because apparently self-preservation wasn't one of his skills, "Is that why they call you the Liberator?"
There it was. Out in the open. No taking that back now.
He kept his eyes on the screen this time, like it might shield him from whatever answer came next.