Kaji cries out, and the tactic works; he jerks the proton beam away, pointing the beam at the sky, leaving a bright trail of wavy light aimed above them for a few seconds before he can think to disengage. Ib!

"You cowardly, soulless, son of a-" Kaji!

He breathes hard, staring at Ib, the fear in her eyes, her eyes, that is no doll. His teeth are gritted tight as he keeps on staring. Shoulders move, up, down, as his mind tries to think. You're no fighter, Kaji, you're a thinker. So figure a way out of this. Hard when she's looking right at him.

"We aren't- leaving you behind. And we aren't going to hurt you. We're going to take you back with us. Okay? I'm going to take you home. Just- close your eyes, and it'll all be over soon. Okay?"