What if? - Link died and came back

He feels like he's been asleep for a long time. Every part of his body feels numb.

"Do you know your code name?"

The voice is familiar. It takes a few seconds to connect. It's Pneuma. But he can't see her yet. He wants to open his eyes, but they don't.

"Link."

Did something happen? Coma patients - or concussion victims - flash through his mind. He trusts Pneuma. But she's speaking again.

"Do you know why you chose it?"

He tries to swallow and thinks he was successful, but it's hard to tell. "Connections. Things connecting together. Machines. Family. Bonds. I wanted.. something that sounded cool too."

Pneuma laughs softly. But he's know her for years. Something in her voice signals that something is very wrong. "Leo, you're about to open your eyes. Be ready."

How could she tell him what he's about to do?

His eyes open. He's staring at the ceiling of his workshop. He tries to get up, unsuccessfully. "Servo activity spike. Should we release the clamps?" someone asks. Pneuma's voice, out of his field of vision, answers. "Release clamps. Leo, this is it. I'm so sorry. Get ready."

He finds himself sitting up. Where his legs should be are the lower half of a prototype robot shell. He raises a hand and finds an allotropic carbon prosthetic. He raises it further, touching his face, and feels the smooth surface of an artificial skin.

Pneuma is there, now, looking at him with sad eyes. He turns his head to look. His body is still connected to the apparatus of the workshop. Cables are plugged into his arms, his legs, his torso. He feels a slight tugging when he moves his head.

"What.. what happened?" he croaks.

"You died. You sacrificed yourself to save your teammates. So... we resurrected you from one of your regular brain backups. We put it into the AI creator. Full scan, number of evolutions zero. You're in one of your prototype shells, number thirteen I think."

"I feel different," he says at last.

"You'll adjust," Pneuma says quickly. Leo knows it's a hollow promise, knows she's trying to reassure him. He smiles at that. Or thinks he smiles. He forgets - does this unit have an actual mouth? Or is that sensation unreal, like a phantom limb?

"Alright. I trust you guys. And sooner or later I want to know what happened to me."

Pneuma nods. "Everything in good time. We're here for you, Leo." She leans in to hug him. It feels warm, and comforting, and human.

Good enough. Bodies come and go. Some things are more permanent.