Nirann, for a few moments, observed in silence. He watched the smallest details of Freyr’s body language, not that one would really [i]need[/i] an electronic eye to see what she was feeling in her expression. In any case, given the context, it was easy to infer what sorts of thoughts were likely running through her mind. Reaching out, he took her hand carefully in his own. His hand might have been cold metal, with the strength to crush a metal bar as if it were a tin can, but his touch was as measured and precise as a surgeon. They were already close to the water, so he gently guided her along with him as he took a seat on the edge of the vessel, his feet hanging off into the water below.

“I want to show you something real quick.” Nirann remarked. He brought up a holographic screen in front of himself. He loaded a short video clip, then pushed it over in front of Freyr. Front and center in the frame was Marae. The distinctive mosaic on her scales had a different pattern, but it was still unmistakably her. It was nighttime in the video, though it was still clear enough for Freyr to see that she was sitting in the sand on a beach, holding another Rothian close to her. They were both looking up to the sky, in which they could see the Milky Way galaxy…from outside of the galactic plane. The video seemed to have been recorded on a Rothian colony in one of the Milky Way’s satellite galaxies. Aside from the location, there was nothing in the video that would stand out to the average person, but Freyr would easily notice the fact that the other Rothian looked [i]exactly[/i] like the holographic avatar Nirann had used when they had first met him back on Rothia. Yet, the pair of them were clearly in contact with one another in the recording, even nuzzling one another quite affectionately. He clearly was no hologram.

“I don’t spend most of my time back home walking around as an armored death machine.” Nirann remarked, still messaging Freyr directly. “We can make synthetic bodies that are quite remarkable. I mean, that one is centuries old, and Marae still didn’t have any idea there was metal instead of muscle under my scales until our first date. Even then, that was only because I told her myself. Point is, you’ve been through a lot Freyr, and I know it isn’t easy. I know you have a lot to fear when it comes to bringing back your family, but if we [i]do[/i] find their minds, you shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not we can even bring them back at all. I can’t say for sure if their minds will still be compatible with their original bodies, but since their minds have already been digitized, well…I wouldn’t need to pull too many strings to have a pair of Human bodies fabricated. Take it from me, the experience of being in one of those bodies is outright identical to being in an organic one. Or at least, it can be.”