Babbage landed on the deck, forming a triangle with the children and Bondrewd, his red mechanical monocular eyepiece fixed on Bondrewd.
Bondrewd stood fairly close to the children, making it difficult for Babbage to attack. Cutting between them was hardly realistic, either.
"Mr. Babbage, would you like to invite these children as well? Still, your path might not be quite right for them."
Bondrewd merely stood where he was, his tone faintly teasing. He made no move to take the children hostage.
"..."
Gil, who was piloting Babbage remotely, fell silent for a moment.
-Shit, he's right.
The problem was that saying "let them choose freely" here would amount to exactly what Bondrewd had said.
Saying he wouldn't invite them would make him seem less sincere.
But if he did invite them, this whole "Mechanical King" look was really...
"Lies. Deception. What you want is living expendables."
A mechanical voice, tinged with electrical static, emerged from Babbage's acoustic array.
"Deception? Mr. Babbage, you know I have never lied. They have talent. They deserve a better future."
...While Babbage and Bondrewd faced off,
Rabani had already reached his companions and gently tugged on Iso.
"...Iso."
Rabani quietly called her name without saying anything more, merely giving her a look that said to follow his lead.
Iso nodded and made an "OK" gesture.
"What's wrong...?"
Longo looked up, his cheeks stuffed like a hamster's. Babbage's sudden appearance had left him without time to finish swallowing.
"...First, let's, get, farther, away-"
Iso lowered her head and whispered with only her breath, without using her vocal cords.
Whatever was happening, and whichever of those two was good or bad, neither was someone they could afford to cross.
The only sensible move Iso could think of was to get farther away first, then work out