Luckily for her, Jethro barely even noticed the awkwardness caused by his question, and carried on with his mindless talking.
"Problem is, Scorch is still in the Hatchling Phase. He can't start cultivating until he gets to Juvenile, you know? Like most mechbeasts." Jethro sighed. "I have to find a way to speed the process up."
But he never elaborated on how.
Padva watched him tuck the module away. Her gaze lingered on Scorch, who had retracted slightly into Jethro's jacket but was still watching her with those intelligent, unnervingly calm eyes. Her usual bluntness resurfaced, cutting through the awkwardness of the gift.
"Jethro," she said, her voice low and serious, her silver eyes locking onto his with unusual intensity. "If you could tell me the truth this time, would you mind? I am curious to know what happened to him. So what really was it?"
