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Vernon is regretting directing his boss to buy this hunk of junk ostensibly known as a vehicle. Not very much, but a little. Mostly because she then made him drive it, and this is a finicky and temperamental beast that keeps listing to the left, but in amounts that change a bit on every single bump. They are driving through what is colloquially called 'the wasteland,' which is a desert about half as hospitable and twice as rocky as it sounds. He is having to adjust often. It's annoying. Not very, and honestly, having a functioning vehicle that is not potentially going to explode is a bit of a novelty for him, but enough that he will think fondly of that other vehicle boss-lady had been eyeing before he steered her this way. That sure would have been nice to drive. It would have been painting a gigantic target on their backs, but still. He can dream.
Yvette follows Vernon's gaze, then Zash's gaze, and sees the now returned gun.
".... they did take your gun. Didn't they."
"I... honestly don't know if they did. I wasn't fully conscious. But it would've made sense."
"And they really, really thought you were very incredibly dead or close to death, and. All of the blood was yours. And the gun is. Also yours? And... regenerates by whatever mechanism you do?"
He winces a bit, and doesn't reply.
Is this the part where they figure out he's a monster and then throw him out of the car and flee, because it's looking like it might be.
"... Okay. Uh. Well, we'll get you to Jeneora and. Figure it out from there, I guess. Do you have a, a place you want to try to get to, or is it just 'anywhere but there'?"
He blinks at her and tilts his head, not following her logic very well. "I didn't have any specific plans. I just wanted to see if Jeneora was doing better after last time their plants were in trouble."
"No, no, absolutely not. Put that back, 'red state' is an artificial designation made by our dumb wasteful forefathers who liked to toss things away and get new ones instead of putting the work in to try and fix them, it does not literally mean it's dying, that's just the textbook answer. It means designated by the system to be a net loss to keep alive. That could happen for any number of reasons."
"Excuse me, I was going to leave it at that. I'm saving my intense and impassioned rant about the wastefulness and shortsightedness of a Last Run for if I need to actually argue anyone out of it."
Zash blinks a few times at her and then gives her a small smile again. "So you really are a plant engineer?"
She gives a little awkward smile back.
"Yeah. Actual certifications and everything, even."
He leans forward suddenly, recovering all of his lost energy all at once. "Could you teach me? I know a little bit, but rescuing plants from a red state is—difficult."
"I--I mean I would be happy to try, but it's very much like solving a puzzle when half of the puzzle is in another dimension and you can only make observations about it from careful observation of the history of the plant's treatment and reactions and how it responds to certain things. But. Sure?"
"... Just really set on keeping some of the mystery, huh. It's no fun that we've figured so much out already?"
"So my cover story for you two is that you're married," says Vernon, conversationally.
"—eh? I'm not sure that's—not that I don't like her, but—we barely know each other?"
"Right, but why the hell would you be here if I'm taking my naive niece on a dumb get rich quick scheme?"
Yvette is spluttering.
"Why do you insist on having cover stories! Can't people just, just, be friends or friendly acquaintances and just, it is ridiculous to be called your niece, I look nothing like you."