Page 10 of Light Leech

He nodded. “I can make someone’s bones more brittle with a high burn pulse, but I can’t suck the bones like I used to.”

Naoma gagged.

Boyband shrugged. “Probably a simple tech problem for Ral.”

“That still doesn’t explain why Kuni ate teeth,” I said.

Boyband looked at him, then groaned when Kuni didn’t answer for him.

“The kid stared at me while I was eating teeth, so… I asked him if he wanted a taste.”

“Without him asking,” Naoma said.

“Yup.”

“Without even–zeg. Without even a sign that he wanted a taste?”

“He looked at me.”

“Boyband!”

“Mom!”

Kuni shocked him and he cursed.

Naoma smiled. “Thank you, Kuni.”

“I didn’t like it, like I said. I won’t try it again, I promise.”

“You’re not in trouble.” She winked at him.

A new voice. One I had missed since she lost consciousness in Arabasia. “Can I shock you too?”

“Ral.” I ran to embrace her.

Boyband’s glare was quick to expire. “You’re joking, right?”

She waved him in. “Come and find out.”

He shook his head, but gave in.

She blew a kiss to Naoma, then cocked her head at Abbas.

“Good to see you too,” Akna said, just behind her.

I pulled her in, forcing her to stand by Boyband.

Boyband glared at me, but struggled to hide a grin. “Hihow, Aknie.”

“Babyband.”

“Ralia, are you calling me that again behind my back?”

She let go and stepped back to take us all in with a sigh. “Zeg, you’re all so beautiful. Now say it back.”

While the rest of her body appeared normal, despite the lines of tech enhancement, she had forgone a psuedo-skin covering for the half of her face that she had lost in the battle against Nichley. Half of her face was done up with the typical light-enhanced makeup, while the other was a chromatic shimmer that caused the color to shift depending on the angle of observance. Her nose was intact, bearing a scar across the bridge, and her lips looked fine under a coat of red lipstick. Her hair on one side remained the same curly silver with hair-thin green tendrils coming out from the robotic side. They twisted with the other hair implanted into the metallic portion of her skull. Knowing Ralia, they had a purpose to serve beyond fashion.

“It looks beautiful,” Kuni said, though it came out as a direct response to her command.