The ~SIVA Crisis

The Last City,

Earth

Swish!

I materialized into existence a foot above the ground before landing on my feet safely. I loosened the seals of my helmet and with a hiss, the airtight atmosphere around my head rushed out of meet the morning winter air. There was nothing better than taking off our helmet after wearing it for so long; after awhile it gets stifling and, under extreme conditions, unbearable. Nothing spoke more volumes than feeling the fresh air sensate your head.

I took in a breath, confirming it: Cold, just like on Felwinter Peak.

Paledon had followed suit and did the same, removed his helmet.

Shrugging off the cold, the familiar surroundings of the Tower swam into my vision. It had been a while (as you probably know by now) since I left this place. Coming back home after warding off the agents of Darkness was easily one of the most satisfying feelings; but right now there was only dread and panic coursing through my veins. I disobeyed the Vanguard, and I was sure I’d be given hell for it.

Or maybe they’ll cut me some slack.

The ground and various edifices of the Tower were shrouded in a thick fleece of snow. Fellow Guardians were scattered around the grounds every which way—taming their duties, whether it be visiting vendors, turning in bounties at the tracker, or chilling out with friends before their next call for a mission.

I walked up the steps in front of where I spawned and looked to my right, noticing Paledon by my side. I contorted my faceplates into an amused smile.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I said, having ghost stow my helmet.

“No reason,” he said.

“So, then, real talk. When shall we get down to business? What’s this new threat we’re going up against? What’s got Saladin all tied up in a knot?”

“Hunter…”

“What?” I scrunched my facial features, giving him the sure look that I was being serious.

“We just got back from a mission. I think we should rest a little and debrief what happened over to the Vanguard.”

I moved in closer. “Are you crazy? I disobeyed them! If anything, I’ll be out of commission for another eight months or something!” I paced back and forth, taking in a shaky breath of cold air, all the while of feeling my throat constrict. Panic rose like the bile in my body, and for a brief moment, speaking was foreign to me, as was walking. I was frozen in place with my eyes glued to Paledon. Each breath was like inhaling fire. He took notice of my nervous breakdown.

The Vanguards don’t like disobedience. They like order. They give you a directive and you better haul ass to do said directive until it’s done.

Paledon grabbed my clammy hands. Squeezed them. Felt them. Scuffed them. “Hello? Hunter, look at me.”

With his hands in my own, it felt as though all the worries in the world had vanished like a flame being extinguished by the gentle wind. I mustered the courage to look up at the one whom I admired and sought as my friend.

“Don't worry, everything will be fine,” he said. “When we go tell the Vanguard what happened, you let me do the talking. You don’t have to say anything, I promise.” His voice wasn’t as intimidating or loud like it usually was; it was soft and reassuring which somehow put me at ease. He seemed to take notice of it with a smile. “Now go get some rest and get that Boomer sorted out. We’ll meet up later.”

I found myself lost for words when he walked away in the other direction. Nothing more between us was said.

“Paledon…” I said under my breath. “Thank you.”

I looked ahead of me. A flash mob of guardians had assembled and begun to display their best dance moves in front of an unamused Banshee-44, the Gunsmith, whom I sought to visit. He’s your go-to-guy for guns, ammo, weapon parts, and even armour materials. Whatever you need, Banshee-44’s got it!

By the time I had reached the threshold of the Gunsmith’s shop (it’s outside for the record) which had an impressive array of different weaponry in cases that were bolted on the wall behind him, all the mischievous guardians scattered about, realizing there was no time for clowning around.

The Gunsmith had an emotionless countenance, a trait of some exos, depending on their programming. As I approached, I checked all quarters around me; I had known I would surely get suspicious looks for brining in an Hive weapon, especially since they’re directly connected to the Darkness. When it was all was cleared, ghost materialized it and my hold and I showed it to Banshee like it was some offering.

“Holy hell,” he said. “What do we have here…”

“It’s a Hive Boomer,” I said.

“Pfft, I know that much. Where’d you get it. And more importantly, why do you have it? I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone with one, given how chaotic those things can be.”

“I picked it up from the Warpriest when my fireteam and I raided Oryx’s Dreadnaught a couple months ago. Today was the first time I had ever used it.”

“And it worked for you?” Banshee said, picking up the weapon and eyeing it like it was some mystical object not known to man. His fingers trailed alongside the exterior casing, careful not to slip a finger into to the core that made the weapon work. “I’m impressed you got such a weapon to work for you. Normally Hive weapons like this don’t work for guardians. How you managed to get it to work is beyond me.”

“I’m surprised I got it to work as well. But I did have some problems using it. Every so often it…jams, I guess? Or rather, it doesn’t fire for a period of time. Like it reloads. But when I see Hive use it, they can fire non-stop, you know?”

“Hmm…” Banshee mumbled. He picked up the weapon and examined it carefully. “I don’t see anything wrong with it. Perhaps it was never meant for guardian use, hence why it doesn’t work for you the same way it does for Hive. That’s my best guess. Give it some time. It’ll work the way to expect. That’s how it is for any gun you use.”

He handed me back the weapon.

“Anything that could help me speed up the process?”

“Well,” he said, walking over to his workbench, flipping through pages in some book, and eventually stopping the flow of pages, whereupon he began tracing his finger from the top of the page to the bottom. Reading. What a lovely way to get information! Banshee had a non-impassive demeanour to look back at me. “If you really want it to work, bring it back to where you got it. There should be some way to enchance it using Hive technology.”

Looking strictly at the array of guns in the cases, bolted on the walls, so my gaze didn’t rudely drift away in a fashion that would surely make me appear as ungrateful, I waved and said, “Thanks! I’ll come back to ya if I have any more problems with it.”

Banshee gave me a dint thumbs up, then went back to his work.

Sleep. Oh, how I adore sleep.

As absurd as it was, and it was ludicrous, we guardians do, in fact, sleep. Or so I like to think. It makes us more human and alive than the idea of just being mindless space zombies, risen by the Traveler. Rest is still a thing nowadays. It seems no matter what empowers us, we as humans still require it; but no matter! Sleep, to me, was something I enjoyed doing because with it came dreaming.

Sometimes, though, I’d get nightmares from all the horrific things I have seen in battle; reminiscing fragments really do take a toll on the mind; it’s no wonder Warlocks are always so clearheaded with their incense and meditation, those cocky swines!

Each guardian had a quarters of their own, while some shared one together. My room (which I’m sure you’ve already had a taste of what it was like) was somewhat spacious enough to bunk with another fellow guardian. I had my bed, armour stand, liquor cabinet and chest, where a bunch of my valuables were stowed…The walls of my room were coated by a red fabric, and the rest of the decor (bedding, liquor cabinet, my nightstand with a lamp, dresser) were black with a thin gold trim around the edges. Above my bed was a large portrait of the Traveler, courtesy of the Speaker for destroying the heart in the Black Garden. I even had a window, just so I could see what the weather was like.

As I lay sprawled on my bed (with my armour off; we also wear regular apparel when not in our armours or some of us [like me] go naked) my head focused on a holographic picture that emulated on my nightstand. It was Paledon and I during the celebration party that was thrown for me and my fireteam after Oryx’s defeat. The Tower couldn’t help but throw a party for such a feat; you see guardians coming home and claiming to have killed a Hive god everyday. Seeing the picture made me smile.

I felt my consciousness ebbing away, and then all my thoughts ended. All the thoughts and fantasies about Paledon and I being together (happily) ended into a tide of dreams.

I had been down in my room for most of the day. It was night by the time I had woken up from my slumber, though I wish I hadn’t been stirred awake by ghost (what a savage). The minuscule snow storm had subsided and all was calm. Just a clear night sky.

As I arose upright in my bed, the covers overtop me still, a loud knock sounded from outside my door. Sounded like a drug dealer banging on an addict’s room for Glimmer.

“Come in!” I said, grabbing some pillows to cover my nakedness.

The door swung open and a Paledon ambled his way in, his expression that of disbelief.

“What? You never seen a naked guy?” I said, sticking my tongue out as I got up, being careful not to expose my parts.

“Uh, yes!” he said, his voice clearly nervous. “I mean, no! No, I haven’t!”

“You’re goofy for a Titan, you know that, Paledon?”

As I was putting on clothes in front of my dresser, I noticed Paledon staring at me in the reflection of the mirror; was he just staring at me? If so, for what reason? Could he possibly be…?

I turned around, fully dressed now, and my cheeks felt like they were heating up, giving me the appearance of a tomato. “Paledon…were you watching me dress?”

“Totally. Nothing beats that sweet Hunter ass.” His voice was leaking a faucet of sarcasm.

“Did you just…”

“Enough chit-chat. We have a lot to discuss,” Paledon said, grabbing my Graviton Forfeit helmet from my stand and tossing it my way. He even got a hold of the boots I got for competing in Trials of Osiris at me.

“Thanks,” I said dryly. “Could’ve done that myself, you know.”

“I’ll be out waiting.”

“Wait, Paledon!” I said, getting my last boot on. “Come here. Please.”

I looked dubious. But then, I trusted myself to say the right things; besides, what did I have to lose? Taking a deep breath, as he approached me, a smile crossed my face and his too. His smile was bright and cheerful, as were my heartbeats for having gotten closer to someone I sought to be with.

He took a seat right next to me, on my bed, and everything around me was partially non-existent.

Between the darkness of the night and the faint starlight that shone through my window, there would never be a better time than to sneak in a kiss, given that everyone would be asleep; and if there was the slightest hint of sound from Paledon’s reaction, no one would hear it or suspect anything. I wondered why he was so content on doing everything I asked of him, especially now, given that he was consequential and dour just a minute ago: Throwing my helmet, my boots, yelling at me to suit up. Now he’s like some lost ghost who wants to find its guardian.

When he sat next to me, he said, “What’s up? You look like you’re in pensive thought. Something the matter?”

Staring out the window, I found my mind drifting until it settled on, of all things, what to say. Pfft. Should’ve done that sooner! Dummy. I was waring no apparel to cover my upper torso, toned more than ever thanks to all the work I do in the field and because of the Traveler’s Light. Oh, pathetic me! I’m always so quick to falter to my fears instead of sucking them up! Seeing Paledon next to my bed should make me enticed to make a move, not think about what I should say. It was amazing the amount of patience he had for me; then again, patience can do a lot of things.

I remembered his smile, wondering how he could be happy.

“Paledon…” I said, perpetual emotion clawing its way up to me.

His face was scarlet, but his eyes were closed in contentment as he sat and listened to me, waiting anxiously as proven by his thumbs dancing around one another. “Well, what is it? What do you have to tell me?”

I sighed. “I think that I’ve grown a stronger liking to you…you’ve been with me through so much. From challenging Skolas, back in the day, to taking out Oryx, the Taken King…and now this. And after loosing Orion…”

There was some part of me that wanted to take back everything I had said to him up at this point. The ambiguous hints as to where my words were taking this seemed cryptic and dishonest; not valiant but rather cowardly. “I just wanna be honest with you about something, Paledon. You can reject or hate me for what I’m about to say or do, but I hope you can understand.”

I felt a surge of something between frustration and fiery courage, even more fiery than all the solar energy combined. It warmed me, empowered me, paralysed me. Now that I truly knew Paledon, while could seeing beyond his exterior and the flaws he possesses, I finally appreciated my feelings toward him and all that he had done for me. I had said this a zillion times, but I’ll elucidate it once more: Looking at him, while he looked back at me, was beautiful and painful.

On impulse, I pulled him in for a snappy hug, then drew back to see his eyes. They were both blushing violently now, but I was beyond caring. I could see everything I needed to hear in them; no words had to be elicited because, right there and then, it was blatantly obvious.

Paledon seemed to get annoyed at the lack of conversation, so he withdrew a little further, albeit it not far enough to be out of my reach. Nonetheless, my eyelids drooped a little.

C’mon, man! There’s not turning back now!

My heart was hammering more violently than that of a Sunbreaker, whose hammer strikes those with brutal and inhuman power. The sounds of my heart resonated like some musician striking drums to my ears. To me, the world had faded away. The Darkness, the Light. Traveler. Everything. And the only thing existing was Paledon and I.

Feeling wonderful and terrible simultaneously, pride and guilt and sheer nervousness crashing down in waves and overtaking me, I didn’t give a shit about the consequences. All I wanted, more than anything, was to make Paledon’s life a little brighter.

“I like you. More than a friend.”

With that, before Paledon could react, I pressed my lips lightly against Paledon’s.

For so much of my life, I had hidden behind a mask. You might ask yourself, how is that? Well…I’ll make it simple for you. We may be (technically) space zombies or dead, but that doesn’t mean we lack humanity, especially if we are human (I can’t speak for the Awoken or Exos since, well, I’m neither) but the point for us still stands. We still struggle here in this day and age, and don’t let anything else dispute it. You have my word; we still struggle with our very essence as undead beings. Seeing different worlds and enduring their hardships, creating friends with whom you fight alongside will do that to you. Life, undead life, doesn’t matter. What does matter are the interactions your have with others and how they stick to you, how they affect you because, really, in the end, it will change you.

However, as I stood, dumbfounded on my bed while I kissed Paledon, I felt it slip away, felt it shatter into a thousand motes of light, and was glad to let it go. I knew that I would never need to hide myself again, at least with Paledon. He already knows how I feel. I was numb in every part of me; and as the initial shock faded, I began to run my hands softly through Paledon’s hair, and pulled him closer, kissing him for all he was worth.

I relaxed under his grip; he didn’t seem to oppress my motive by making a move on him, though I couldn’t tell if he was being polite as in “just rolling with it” or because he didn’t want to hurt my feelings. Truth of the matter was that he could never hurt me, unless he outed our friendship; I would be pretty shattered by that, but with it comes a valuable experience: Don’t make out with beautiful Titans.

By now, however, he would’ve said something as I had put my tongue in his mouth; some boundaries might had been violated, but what difference does it make? Might as well make the best mark I can to win his heart.

Tears were taking down Paledon’t face, and they soon wetted my check. I broke away from his lips momentarily, moving hesitantly now, and began shyly kissing away the moisture under Paledon’s eyes, nuzzling him until his face was dry. I felt a sudden burning to justify myself, to let Paledon know that I wasn’t trying to take advantage of him in a time of desperation.

“Paledon…” I whispered. Some part of me expected to see hurt, or reproach, or confusion on his face, but all I could see was clear, honest understanding. No more words were necessary, for I felt there was nothing more that I could say to improve on the cadence gleaming in his eyes.

Gah! Look at me getting all sappy. I’ll move it along. Yada, yada, yada…okay, here we are!

“I’ve never meant anything more,” he said in a quiet voice, smiling timidly.

“You didn’t mind?” I asked.

Paledon moved closer, smiled, and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “Mind?” He chucked incredulously. “Okay, time to let it out. I’ve been thinking about you more for the past few months now. I’ve had dreams about you, Hunter. There’s a reason I came to your outpost yesterday. I wanted to confess to you, but clearly that didn’t happen because we got dragged into this mess of ours now. But it seems you beat me to it.”

My cheeks were heating up, both in surprise and delight. “Really? I never realized. All my other friends would make cracks about me being stupid for thinking you swung your hammer this way.”

“Yeah, well, it just so happens this Titan swings his hammer both ways. Look, I’m going to be straight with you (no pun intended by the way), I never thought I’d be attracted to another dude. That was until I met you. When I joined your fireteam all those years ago, all the missions we’ve done together…I’ve developed some love for you. But I won’t admit it now. I’m not ready yet.”

“I can vouch for the same as well. I do have some level of love with you, but I won’t admit it either. Not yet. It’s too soon.”

I rested my head on his shoulder and cupped his hand with my own.

“I don’t like men,” Paledon said. “I like you.”

I laughed with flattery. “Well, that’s good, ‘cause I like you too.” I left Paledon’s side for a moment, wandering over to the dresser to get something. After retrieving it, I sat back down. In my hand was an orange pendant, the symbol being the Hunter Class symbol. Our “dog tags” per se. I handed it to Paledon.

“I’d like you to wear this at all times. So when we’re not working together, I won’t be far.”

He took it from me and caressed it lightly. Another warm smile crossed his face. “I don’t have mine, though.”

“Doesn’t matter. You keep yours.” I enveloped his hands with my own. “How do you feel about this? About us?”

“I’m not even thinking about it, if ya want the truth,” Paledon replied. “It makes me happy knowing I’m with the one person I’ve sought to be with for all these years. No more crying to sleep, thinking that you’d reject me. C’mon, don’t make me get all weepy and sappy.”

I, despite my curiosity, knew not to press him for further details on what he felt. We were still on a high, and I didn’t want to shoot it down. “So,” I said with a smile, “shouldn’t we be heading to the Vanguards now?”

“Oh, shit!” Paledon said, quickly glancing at the clock on my wall. “We’re 20 minutes late!”

“They’re not going anywhere. I’d rather us share this moment. Please?”

I was amazed at how much my own courage had increased since I made my move on him.

As we were both still on the bed, I couldn’t resist my urge any longer. Without speaking or breaking eye contact, I pulled the Titan into a tight embrace, wrapping my arms around him, and I felt Paledon respond eagerly—albeit I couldn’t tell if he was responding to the sudden hug or the fact that we were late for our debriefing. Our lips met once more, both of us having moved forward at the same time, and to me, the world seemed to melt into a blur. Time meant nothing. Somehow, I found myself lying on top of him on the bed, though I was unable to feel his heartbeat as he was geared up in armour.

I sensed his mouth opening, and I followed suit, almost unthinkingly, the butterflies in my stomach leaping into a whirlwind as our tongues met, each struggling to enter the other’s mouth. This was all so much more than I had ever expected, and I closed my eyes in contentment. Nothing could spoil this moment.

Afterward. It took me a moment or two to get the rest of my armour on. After that, I followed Paledon outside the residence section of the Tower.

Making my way to the Vanguards had been harrowing.

I realized after leaving my sanctuary that I had been neglecting the inexorable fate that might become of me. Once I had brought it up to logical reasoning, however (wow, I sound like a Warlock) there was leverage on my side, for once. Having warded off a new threat and knowing, somewhat what we’re dealing with, was a plus to have. Nonetheless, I was still anxious, though with Paledon with me, and with out new status, I wasn’t nearly as distressed as before.

As Paledon and I approached the Vanguard hall, I stopped for a moment and faced him. “So, uh, you sure about this?”

“I am. Don’t worry,” Paledon said, stopping in his tracks, turning around, and putting his hands on his waist as a way to show his steadfast confidence, alone with his inextinguishable pride “Everything will be fine. Breathe through your nose.”

Despite him actively looking at me, I somehow didn’t feel at ease. Channeling the little courage and “suck it up” attitude I could muster, my tracks lead me to the large table where the Vanguards were standing, all in a triangulation of one another. Paledon followed suit—his hand on my shoulder as a sign to remain calm and collected.

As I stepped up, I got all sorts of mixed miens directed at me. I stood at the opposite end of the table, facing my favourite Vanguard, Cayde-6.

“Hello, Hunter,” Cdr. Zavala said, his voice deep and serious. “Have a good mission?”

“You could say that,” I said sagely. “I did what I had to do.”

“You disobeyed a direct Vanguard order. Now, I’m going to make this…easy for you. Either you—”

“Oh, give the kid a break,” Cayde-6 said. “It’s not like he hurt anyone. Besides, we’re up against new threat now, aren’t we?”

“I was talking.”

“Hey, I can talk too, you know. Ikora and I didn’t agree with you on your decision to put our old friend, Hunter, here out of commission. So excuse me if I’m not siding with you.”

“But he violated Vanguard protocol!”

“So what?” Ikora Rey said, her voice sound soft and clam. Her hands were together, showing vigilance and serenity. I could even see it in her eyes. “Maybe he had reasons for doing what he did, just like we all do. I can’t blame him for leaving to go on a mission, which we have questions about by the way. It’s been six months since Oryx’s defeat, and Hunter hasn’t left the Tower until now. I’m sure any guardian would have made the same choice. So don’t give him hell for it.”

Cdr. Zavala slammed his hand against the table to get everyone’s attention. It worked. “That’s the problem he shouldn’t have made the choice in the first place and—”

“With all do respect, sir,” Paledon interjected as he came from behind me, tossing a strange coin in the air for dramatic effect. “It was my doing. I’m the one that talked him into joining me. I didn’t want to go alone since, well, most of my fireteam members were asleep at the time and Hunter was the only one up. Besides, Lord Saladin wanted us to intercept the Fallen on the observatory on the mountains. He asked us, through a broadcast over the system.”

“And why didn’t we hear anything about it?” Cdr. Zavala asked, tilting his head at me.

“That’s not important.”

“Quiet, Paledon! I’m not talking to you,” Cdr Zavala said.

“I didn’t broadcast it to the whole tower. Didn’t want panic or to make some mission bigger than it had to be,” I said.

“So you not only violated our protocol, but you also didn’t broadcast a very important message through the P.A system?”

“I did what I had to do, sir.” I could feel beats of sweat trickling down the side of my head as I spoke. Damn it, Paledon, don’t fail me now! Hands on the table, back in an upright position, eyesight steering to gaze at an angry commander. “What do you want me to say? I’m human. I’m not perfect. And besides, this bickering isn’t going to help us with the new threat we have on our hands!

“I was cooped up in this Tower for too long, what did you expect to happen? I’m, a guardian, not a goddamn maintenance technician.”

“You will be soon with that attitude.”

“Shut up, I’m talking.”

Whoa. Where’d that come from? I felt like an angry ogre about to unleash its wrath. My arms were flailing around as I spoke. Juts some extra oomph to get my point across; though, insanely enough, I didn’t give two shits I was lashing out at my commander. Paledon and I warded off a new threat, and if there’s anyone who knows what we’re up against, it’s the two of us. So there’s no way he’d turn me down even after this scene.

“So what’s it going to be, commander? You gonna continue to bitch about what I did or are you going to accept what I did, move on, and learn what this new threat is, hmm?”

There was nothing but silence between all of us. Silence that hardens like obsidian. The air was tense and stifling. Not even Cayde-6 could say anything snarky or clever; as with Ikora, there was no way to defy my logic in the slightest sense; only an idiot would try and argue with me.

“Well…I suppose you’re right,” Cdr. Zavala finally said. “We don’t know what we’re up against. I apologize for…abasing the was I was.” He put his hand out for a shake.

I shook his hand and accepted.

“So, then,” Paledon said. “Shall we get down to business?”

Any hope or luck at overseeing the missions of our new threat was as high as the Tower. To pacify you from the boring details, the only interesting thing discussed at our debriefing was the new threat that goes by the name of SIVA, a virus and nanotechnology capable of self-replication and self-assembly. In essence, it consumes, enhances, and replicates. Repairs too, as seen on our old friend, Sepiks Prime.

Consequentially, according to Saladin (this is what Paledon was saying) SIVA operates by a series of directives (or one directive), and it does not cease until said directive is done. Saladin has given us the all clear to investigate the return of the ancient entity, and, evidently, Paledon and I are in charge of coining a fireteam to dispatch the threats of SIVA in anyway possible (as well as let other fellow guardians in the loop of things), and the best way to do that is to go directly to the source. You cannot win a battle without intelligence (I swear I’m not a Warlock).

Saladin’s folklore has it that the Iron Lords, more than a hundred years ago, sacrificed their lives in the battle with Rasputin, the last Warmind, to claim the ancient technology (SIVA), and the subsequent battle to contain it after it proved to be a threat to humanity and everything in the world. Jolder, one of the remaining Iron Lords during battle, sealed the door at the cost of the other Iron Lords’ lives, leaving Saladin the last Iron Lord standing, at least to his knowledge. But in doing so, SIVA was contained and the threat had been since gone until now.

Funny how things always come back to bite you in the ass, huh?

Okay. Now that all the boring stuff is out of the way and you know what SIVA is, shall we continue?

With less weight on my shoulders, and with a much clearer head, I was eager to get my fireteam together, and battle this new threat. It had been two days since my debrief with the Vanguard and I had been on patrol the Cosmodrome for any lingering threats that might exist, but I (and Paledon for that matter) didn’t find any.

As I lay in my bed, with Paledon cuddling me, I gazed over to my window, noticing the stars and the moon tonight shining gracefully over the Tower. Multiple shafts of light were finding its way to me, giving me a tingling sensation. I wondered where this SIVA was and how the Fallen had found it.

“Where are you SIVA?” I whispered to no one in particular. “Where are you…”

I felt something by my side move. I glanced over and saw Paledon open his lovely, little eyes. “Why are you still up?” He turned around to face me.

I sighed. “It’s this whole SIVA thing. I can’t wrap my head around this thing. We don’t even know where to look.”

“Hey,” he whisperd, placing his hand on my cheek. “We’ll find the source of this, I promise. With Pathernax and Kabril, there’s no way we can possibly fail.”

I look his hand in my own and smiled. “I know we will.”

He smiled back.

It was a little strange to see someone whom you thought was a hard-ass, a tough warrior who never lets his guard down for a second; someone who would unmercifully strike those that oppose us without question or doubt. Someone who appears like iron on the outside, but like mush on the inside. It was too perfect to be imaginable. “Look,” I said. “I got some unfinished business to take care of on the Dreadnaught. I need to enhace my Boomer using Hive-Technology or else I won’t get it to work the way I want to. Plus the other thing.”

“Okay,” Paledon said. “Are you sure you want to go back to that place? So much happened there, and with Orion and—”

“Don’t!” I turned away from Paledon.

“Hunter…” He put his hand on my shoulder.

“It was my fault. Everything was.” I turned around to face Paledon. “Look…just let the others know I’ll be gone for a few days. Maybe even just one. It all depends if I find what I’m looking for. But don’t tell them where I’m going. Subsequently, I don’t want you to worry, okay? I’ll hold my own over there.”

“Promise?”

“I promise, yo.”

As sleep ebbed its way to me, I snuggled closer to Paledon for warmth. With my head underneath his chin and his around me, I slowly drifted to sleep.