Null Protocol || Ramattra x Reader

☙Chapter Twenty❧

It felt surreal physically stepping into a whole new world. The ship whirred as it took to the air, nearly throwing the girl off balance, but Ramattra paid it no mind. The sound of metallic thuds echoed against the ship's hull with every step, and (Y/n) trailed behind him, the only break from the endless gray walls being the warbots patrolling the ship. Every time they passed a pair of Nulltroopers, their guns would level on (Y/n) but never fire, their single laser eye following her as she passed like they expected her to be a threat, and every time she shifted closer to Ramattra until she was practically stepping on his heels.

He grabbed the scarf around her neck to pull her up in front of him with a disgruntled huff, the glare he sent her way making his feelings about the situation clear, and she sent him a nervous smile over her shoulder. "Sorry." Her whole body was shaking like a leaf, like a live wire ready to jolt at the smallest provocation, and after a beat, he spoke.

"You do not need to worry yourself aboard my ship, you are protected by both myself and my warbots."

"The business end of them guns being pointed at me is for my protection?" Her eyes followed a Nulltrooper's arm cannon as it remained trained on her the entire stretch of hallway before they turned down a branchoff.

"You are human. They are instructed to kill humans." Her breath caught, her shaking getting so bad that the next Nulltrooper that paused to look at her made her feet stutter in place so Ramattra ran into her back.

"That's right," a new voice said - a slow drawl filled with malicious intent. "We don't allow humans on our ship. Hell, our so-called leader kills any who try." The pair turned to see a new omnic walking towards them, a hand on the gun at the holster against his side while his optics zeroed in on (Y/n) with hatred. "So explain to me why you're toting around a pretty little human pet inside Null Sector."

Ramattra's guiding hand was gentle as he moved her to the side, but the chill to his voice was anything but as he stared down the other omnic. "This is our new mechanic – I have bought her undying allegiance and she will improve my warbots or die trying." (Y/n) startled, but after a beat, she realized he was covering for her and wisely kept her mouth shut.

"We don't allow humans, Boss. You made that rule, and it's a damn good one too. You know why?" The omnic made a scoffing sound so deep it had to be seeped in years of hatred, brewing so long it soiled his entire view of humans along with it. "They're only good for stabbing you in the back."

"Somehow I doubt a small town mechanic will be much of a threat to you, Darius." Ramattra's voice was curt, if a little irate, and his hand on (Y/n)'s lower back stayed there as more than just subtle reassurance. The other omnic had what appeared to be a poncho over his metal frame, resembling omnics like Zenyatta in build, with a rat tail on the back of his head and a small piece of metal jut out where his mouth would be making it look like he was smoking a cigar – this must be the omnic she saw briefly earlier, the one that took care of the Talon solider. His red eye lights were flashing dangerously down on her, never straying from the human girl like he expected her to lash out at any moment, and she did her best to keep from squirming under the intensity.

"Why is it wearing your scarf?" It took a second for her to realize he just called her an 'it', but as if he expected such hostility, Ramattra had an excuse ready.

"Claim of ownership. A pet deserves a collar, does it not?" Her face burned at the implication even as she knew it was nothing more than a coverstory. So she dealt with the shame on the grounds of getting this conversation over with – this omnic didn't appear friendly, and she wondered faintly if he'd kill her given the opportunity, regardless of whether she was Ramattra's 'pet' human or not.

Darius scoffed, shifting his weight to jut out a hip sassily. "It doesn't deserve to be claimed. All it'll be is trouble."

"She is my burden to bear, Darius, and she is on this ship to aid us." The Ravager said it with finality, and in the same breath, he switched topics. "Has our guest choked up the information we need yet?"

"No, Talon taught him well enough to keep his lips sealed." Darius rolled his head. "I don't know what you expect me to get out of a low-level grunt. He's nothing but cannon fodder, and I'd have more fun killing him-"

"He is not to be killed until you have extracted every last piece of information he may contain." The silence that followed was loud, each word Ramattra delivered reeked of fury and cold intentions. (Y/n) guessed they were talking about the Talon soldier they captured, though how Darius extracted information from the man and what Ramattra needed him for, she wasn't sure. Ramattra straightened, his cool fingers flexed on her back as he stared down the other omnic. "You know why he is here, so if you plan on joining me when I kill every last member of their pathetic organization for taking my brother, then you will do well to remember what I asked of you."

(Y/n)'s eyes snapped wide with surprise. "Something happened to Zenyatta??"

Darius glared at her, the hand on his pistol tightening. "How much does it know?" Clearly the answer was 'too much' to him because he looked about ready to blow her full of holes just for knowing who they were talking about, and (Y/n) tried to back down but the metal hand against her back kept her in place.

Ramattra glanced down at her boredly. "It is important that she is invested in our success." When Darius' hand remained on the pistol, the Ravager glowered. "Have I not made myself clear? She is aiding us and our plans, and should you make a singular transgression against her, you will not like what follows."

"Awfully attached to a pet, eh Boss?" There was no note of respect in his robotic voice as he said it, mocking the very idea - like humans didn't even deserve to be a subservient pet to omnics - and she felt the tips of Ramattra's fingers dig into her back.

"I am attached to furthering my goals, which my pet will be handling." His head cocked towards the direction the other omnic arrived from. "Has he given up yet?"

"He lost a lot of blood so I'll have to start again tomorrow." The sheer dismissal in his words made (Y/n) stiffen, like bleeding someone out was nothing to him, but the Ravager at her side made no indication of unease. "Humans are delicate, but I'll get him to break." Darius' laugh sent a shiver of fear up her spine, the sound soaked in equal parts disdain and excitement. "One way or another."

"See that you do. If Talon wishes to make me pay for turning them down, they will learn just how grave of a mistake they have made right before we tear them apart." The hand on Ramattra's staff was gripping it so tightly she swore the metal was going to snap in half.

When Darius nodded in reply, the pair of them started back down the hallway, pausing only when he called after them. "Don't be surprised when that thing stabs you in the back, Boss. There's a reason we hate humans, and if you wait long enough, it'll show you its true colors." They heard the sound of a pistol cocking. "And when it does, I'll be there to give it what it deserves." With his back to Darius, Ramattra actually growled, but he said nothing, instead pushing (Y/n) in front of him so he was between her and Darius wordlessly. Only after they were out of sight of the brash omnic, (Y/n) felt the tension leave her muscles like the springs coiled in them were finally unwinding. Compared to Darius, the Nulltroopers were lovely.

"If he acts against you, inform me immediately," Ramattra muttered, his voice teetering the line between pissed and calm. "He will likely question your involvement every day you are here, but stick to what I have said and you will be fine."

"Any chance he has some good in him still?" Her attempt at a smile was awkward, knowing the answer before he delivered the verdict. Zenyatta told her there was the possibility of change inside his brother, that his hatred for humans wasn't completely set in stone, and she'd clung to that when Ramattra seemed more inclined to kill her than spare her. But even as she accepted her death at his hands, she knew why he was doing it, and in a way, she understood it. With Darius, there was no reason for the hatred – she was there to help them, no other purpose than to aid them, yet he treated her like the devil incarnate.

Ramattra's voice had yet to come out of cold, bitter unfeeling. "If anyone hates your kind more than I do, it is him." Despite knowing better, some small part of her wished everywhere had the easy solidarity between humans and omnics that her small town did. She'd grown up around peace so she couldn't understand their anger or burning hatred, sure it had to be based on past experience but unable to truly grasp why it extended to every person they met – good or bad.