To her absolute horror, Naomi felt her eyes starting to sting, and it took a great deal of will to keep from bursting into tears, as she typically did when she'd felt that she'd messed up big time and hurt others in the process. And she had, hadn't she? She'd been so dead-set on protecting Jolt that she hadn't considered his feelings on the matter; the warmth of his hand and the solemnity of his gaze only served to reinforce that he was so much more than any of the robots she'd faced, and she held still, oddly comforted by that fact.

"I'm a soldier, too," she whispered and, despite her best effort, a tear trickled down her face. "An esper. But as Naomi, I'm asking you to stay and fight with me."