Page 47 of Condemned

He felt just as ancient and big beside Avalon. The girl was little. Which, he decided, he liked.

“Lesser. Huh. You know fuck all, girl.” He was good with compliments. Timin smiled. Yeah, he was an asshole.

What Zo and Kon had done with her had certainly been fun. He just wouldn’t ever expect a girl to want him when he knew he was damaged.

She stared right at him. “Well, fuck you too. I’ll think what I want to think. In some of your people’s eyes, I bet you’re a hero.”

The mouth on her. Almost as good as his. While he was considering upending her and doing something painful to her ass, like putting handprints on it, and claw marks, she pointed at his shoulder.

“You have my mouse-bot on you.”

“Oh?” He peered sideways, thankful in a way for the interruption. Spanking her would get him horny and that wasn’t going to ever be a good result. Make that hornier.

It was true. The critter was there, sitting up and preening its forepaws. Those he’d seen at work and they were not at all normal paws. Nibbles had been helping repair the weapons. No instructions, no encouragement. It just plunged at the task and did stuff. Small things like realigning cogs, welding tiny spots, undoing the tiniest bolts and screws. It had fixed things he hadn’t even decided were a problem.

He wasn’t telling anyone, wasn’t sure what Takk would think of this.

He might want to exterminate Nibbles. Having heard Avalon recount the history of finding Nibbles, there was zero doubt in his mind, his slightly screwy mind, as to where the mouse-bot had come from.

“It’s fine.” Having a mouse-bot on his shoulder was his new normal.

“But... I might want him back.”

Timin shrugged. He wasn’t sure the creature obeyed what anyone else wanted.