he who hesitates is toast

She has rarely been so grateful for Shuri's genius as she is in this moment, as the girl rapidly surveys the damage done. Several hexagons blur together to create a screen for Sharon's vitals; others blink with data as it feeds into the system.

The wound is easy to find, even with Sharon on her back. The system throws up an alarm, blinking red, and once Shuri has satisfied herself that she has not missed anything, she returns to it. On the display, a glowing image of Sharon's spine appears, with unhappy orange markings.

Nakia finds herself folding an arm protectively over her ribs, her hand pressed to her mouth. She'd known, she'd seen, but it's an altogether different experience to see the reality of it in the scans.

One bullet was all it took, almost enough to snuff her friend out for good. She shivers at the closeness of it all.