Silic raised an eyebrow at the surprise voice, and then the explosions happened. He saw ribbons of red shoot out from where the rhododendrons abdomen used to be, and then everything became blurred. He felt himself tumble, he felt rather than heard a grunt, he wasn't sure if it was his own then he was rolling across the ground and finally still. He couldn't feel his arm or legs, only the prosthetic hand in front of his face seemed to work. He struggled to turn slightly, to see where the rest of him was, only his chest wouldn't move, he was probably better off not seeing the damage anyway.
The world was silent to his broken eardrums, he could see there was still movement around but his new eyes must be failing, everything was growing dimmer around the edges. He'd tell the Doc when he got back, yeah the Doc, waking up to those angels in green wasn't so bad. His head quietly bumped against the soil and he fell still as he reached the point known to doctors as Expectant. He'd been at this point once before, that had begun a new life.
Would it do so this time?
The world moved on without him.