Was there ever a Ghost in the Shell?

After all the chaos that had been going down at the Outer Plait today, Pankaa had sought refuge in the Guru's forest far away from the lands of his clan. The forest was huge and in the heart of the mainland and more importantly had plenty peaceful places that were shielded by the trees of blue that would help to give him peace of mind. He knew the planet and the Mazoku especially were in no real danger given what his brother had told him but it still all worried him and even now with all of the ships leaving there was still lots to think about and he needed somewhere good to think.

And what better place than one of the hidden groves he and Ozera tended to go to to discuss their schooling work? They were perfect, always a good size and always buried deep within the forest with plenty room on the inside of them no matter how small they seemed on the out. It hadn't taken him long to discover one of these very spots he sought but he noticed quite quickly thanks to his large ears that... Well someone else had discovered the grove too and it wasn't Ozera, this voice was unfamiliar to him. He'd flatten his ears back against his head as he carefully and as quietly as possible made his way through the undergrowth and crawled through the grove's opening after the source of the noise-- Keeping his ears back and flat so that they wouldn't be as likely to snag on any loose twigs and branches.

Once on the other side he'd push himself back upright and scanned the area inside- The trees around it kept most everything else out including most light though some managed to slip through the branches creating just enough to see with. It created quite the cozy atmosphere actually and he hoped that he hadn't accidentally been tailing some kind of creature that wouldn't take kindly to his presence! Except... No it wasn't a creature at all, there was another person already in here, in the center of the grove. They were a bit taller then he was but small enough to have been able to easily fit into the grove's entrance. Moreover though they didn't seem like they were someone local to Namek-- And what had they dug a hole here for? Did they realize how loud they were being?

Despite his efforts to remain quiet though the Avali couldn't hold back a gasp when this individual opened a capsule to reveal... Patchwork. The very same Patchwork that had come to him for help in wanting to be able to feel. The Android now though wasn't moving at all and had none of the same personality it had back at his workshop. Had this person brought him here to hide what they had done? And just what had they done to the poor robot?

"HEY! What're you doing with him!?" Was Patch broken? Or worse yet destroyed completely? After Pankaa had just given him the ability to feel pain? Was he now responsible for having made someone else suffer? ...The Avali fanned out his end tail feathers like a peacock in order to try and make himself seem bigger and scarier then he actually was, pointing a black coloured pole with golden ends and white ringed patterns near both ends at this new person who had brought Patch here, he tried to look fierce in his expression too but he was admittedly scared this person was one of the people who had come to destroy the Mazoku castle and anyone strong enough to do that was someone who could probably overpower him in a battle and his brother wasn't here right now to help him if it came down to that.

"Who are you?! What happened to Patchwork?! Did you do this!?" There was a slight tremor to his voice but he stood firm for the moment, trying to get a better look of whoever this person was.

Despite his accusatory and intimidating approach the person who had brought Patch here only flinched at his initial shout, probably out of surprise at not being here alone more then because he was actually frightening. Pankaa would slowly lower the pointed staff when the Saiyan questioned him softly about knowing the Android before pointing out that he had been her friend. "Oh... Yeah, I knew Patchwork" He'd lower his own tone as well after noticing just how upset the girl seemed to be-- He probably shouldn't of shouted but he had no way of knowing what she was truly doing here beforehand.

The Avali would cautiously approach closer to get a better look at Patch and this new face who was with him. She claimed to not have been directly responsible but clearly felt responsibility for what had happened, whatever it was that had happened that resulted in the Android ending up this way. Pankaa would take up some of the space next to the Saiyan as he crouched down beside her, "He came looking for me cause I do tech work... He said he wanted to be able to feel things" He felt a strong pang of guilt for having accepted to help the robot now, seeing what had become of him now, he hoped in their last moments that Patchwork hadn't suffered because of what he'd done.

"I'm really sorry" He'd say softly seeing the Saiyan curl her tail around herself as he face twisted with grief. Had this happened at the Mazoku castle grounds? He... He should have been there. Why hadn't he been there...? He'd move to put one of his hands on the girls' shoulder to try and comfort her after hearing her try to hiccup out her guilt. "Hey, don't go talking like that, it's not your fault" He truthfully had no way of actually knowing that, as he hadn't been there but it wasn't just on this one lady to keep the Android safe surely? He'd sigh lightly as he looked down to the Android. If pain was a teacher he wondered what Patch had learnt from this.

The longer he looked to the Android the heavier and warmer his eyes felt, he hadn't thought it was possible for him to potentially cry over the lose of a robot but Patch had certainly felt like more then just an Android from their first meeting. Maybe he was just feeling more emotional because of the Saiyan next to him's grief? "H-hey, maybe I could try and fix him? Put him back together again, yanno?" He had done it once before when he helped Patch to feel but... He knew this was different and a lot of the pieces had been badly damaged or outright destroyed. Maybe offering to try such a thing was cruel and offering false hope in an attempt to comfort them both but, well, he didn't know what else to do to try and feel better about the Android laying lifeless before them. Maybe if he believed he could do it hard enough then maybe just maybe it really would work?

... No amount of wishful thinking like that could undo death though even for an Android and Pankaa would rub the palm of one hand against his own cheek to brush away his own tears too. Why had he helped the Android when he had, but not when they then needed him most?

Pankaa had half the mind to maybe just apologize and leave the grove to give the Saiyan space-- He wasn't sure if that was what she needed right now or if someone here to try and help was actually, yanno... Helping? Was he just making things worse by being here? But still. He felt partially responsible... Patch had come seeking his help and that help saw him suffer in his final moments. Not to mention he assumed this had all taken place during the whole situation that took place at the Mazoku castle grounds, as a Mazoku himself and as the person who helped Patch to be able to feel, he was responsible.

"I-I can leave if you'd prefer to be alone right now, but I just wanted to say I'm really truly sorry if this occurred on Mazoku grounds. I'm not a part of that specific group that was causing trouble... But I am part of the Mazoku and I should have been there to help, nobody good should've been harmed there. I'm sorry" He hung is head down in shame, if only he had of known then what he knew now. Seems they were both beating themselves up for things they now could not change.

The Saiyan remaining silent would prompt him to start slowly shifting and crawling his way back towards the bramble entrance, thinking it was her silent way of wishing he would leave so she could have some time to herself-- He'd stop mid-motion though, one of his ears twitching as she spoke up again but what she asked made him look guilty. He didn't want to give this poor girl false hope, even if he could by some chance fix Patch's mechanics there was something else- Something more to that machine that he couldn't simply fix or mend with tools or magic and he knew that.

He'd sit back down and glanced aside for a few moments. He knew what the answer was but he didn't want to have to give it either. "... I don't think so. Not fully at least." He admitted. Though, he did have another idea... "B-but, you know there is another way you could still maybe see him again, there's a candle-- My brother has a few of them, they let you visit the dead-- Temporarily but still" He had experienced using one of those very candles himself when Cabasa used one to send the both of them to see Gandigan, he knew they were legit! But this also depended on Patch being somewhere there in the Afterlife.

"I-I could get you one, if you wanted. I'm sure Nero wouldn't mind one being used for this" He'd forgotten he hadn't even introduced himself yet, did she even know who his brother was? Was this an even worse idea then just trying to fix him? He wasn't sure, but he was sure of wanting to help.