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Chapter Text

Rilea was born during the early days of the Dark Age.  Her mother died during childbirth and her father tried his best to raise her on his own.  He tried to raise a fighter and a warrior, but growing up in the Dark Age wasn’t easy.  He was a single father and the leader of the small village of people.  She had to grow up quickly, living in an age of Warlords and Iron Lords.  Many saw the Iron Lords as a blessed sight, as protection provided by the Risen.

Rilea saw them as an omen of death, because where the Iron Lords went, bloodshed often followed.  She was the only woman in her village’s guard, but she was among the best of them, skilled in hand-to-hand combat as well as an excellent marksman.  A few who were new to the village accused her of being Risen, that she would only draw attention to their small home, and each time everyone came roaring to her defense, saying that she was the best human warrior.  

After her father’s death when she was twenty-five, she took up his mantle and started to lead his people.  Many gladly followed behind her, despite her youth.  Some said that she was too young to lead them, and some people left the village.  She led them all for three years, and in her tenure, she met some Risen who stayed in their village for a night or two.  She never let them stay longer.  Many of them could sense her distrust and didn’t overstay their welcome.

When she turned twenty-eight she heard rumors of a city growing underneath the Traveler.   With the wilds starting to grow more and more dangerous, she took a flock of her people from their encampment on an exodus to the city.   She couldn’t protect them alone anymore, many of them were aging and several of her fellow guardsmen had fallen while defending the village.  It was just herself and another warrior left, Jasper, and he was battle-worn and weary.

It took two weeks to reach the city.  Many of her flock settled in quickly, taking refuge in the company of new people.  Rilea remained cautious and on edge, but she was relieved that she didn’t have to lead anymore.  She was on edge because here, there was Risen all around.  They were all confident in their stride and she got the impression of an air of authority about them.  Most were Titans: all muscle and armor and strength.  There were some Warlocks; scholars and powerful men and women with more magic in them than the others, and then there were the Hunters; scouts and risk-takers filled with stealth.  But the Titans drew the most attention.

“Your people are happy, Rilea,” Jasper said to her one day.  “You should be too.”

“Our people,” she corrected him.  She looked at him with half a smile.  “You helped me lead them here, Jasper.”

There was silence between them as they ate their rations.  “You’re father would be proud of you, you know,” he said.  “He was a good man.  You’ve done him proud.”

“Thank you, Jasp,” Rilea replied quietly.  “But I’m afraid that I’ve just brought more pain on them by bringing them here.”

“How come?”

“C’mon, don’t tell me you don’t feel it.  There’s been a lot of tension in the City in the last couple of weeks.  And the Risen here…” She stirred her spoon in the bone broth she was sipping on.  “I don’t like it.”

“I know you don’t trust the Risen because of what happened in our village a couple of years ago… when the Iron Lords confronted a Warlord that was passing through.  But not all of them are like that.  A lot of them here are good men and women.”

“I still don’t trust them.  I’ve seen too many good people hurt or killed in the path of Risen who were abusing their ‘gifts’ from the big guy.”  She jabbed her thumb into the sky.

Jasper didn’t make any teasing remarks after her this time.  They sat in silence while they finished their rations of soup and bread.  

“You know…  You are an exceptionally strong leader, for your age, Rilea.  There are some people from our village that want you to lead one of the factions here.  They’ve got some of the other citizens rallying for you to lead.”

Rilea dropped her spoon into her bowl and stood up from where they were sitting.  “Leave that to the Risen.  I won’t do it.  I won’t lead them into destruction.  It’s those damned factions, Jasp, and I’m staying out of it.”  She took a few steps away from him before she turned back to face him.  “I’m gonna take a walk around and see if there’s anything I can do to help.”

Chapter Text

The tension in the city was growing more intense by the day.  There was shouting in the streets as members of opposing factions argued over who’s plan for the future of humanity was right.  Rilea did her best to stay out of their way, but the arguments were turning into brawls by die-hard believers.  It was the people who were fighting, too, not the Risen.  Most of these fights between people happened when there were no Risen around, and the younger the brawlers, the more dangerous the fights were.  But when there were Risen around, none of them did anything to stop it, since they were usually fighting between themselves.

Rilea tried to break up the fights when she could.  She would wedge herself in between two men fighting without second thought and push them apart, sidearm in hand, telling them to stop fighting.  She occasionally got caught in the crossfire and earned herself new scars, but it was always something she could handle.  Cuts from knives and bruises from stopping punches she could handle. 

However, even though she was the captain of her guard at home, didn’t mean that she was stronger than every man.  Smarter, more agile maybe, but not stronger.  Jasper had to come to her aid once when a man grabbed her by the hair and tried to slice her throat.  That brush with death made her realize that she couldn’t do this alone. 

She wasn’t Risen.  She wasn’t immortal.

She had to turn to the Risen after that.  Jasper told her not to, since it was hard to tell who was associated with a faction and who wasn’t.  “They probably won’t listen, anyways,” Jasper told her.  “Probably not to you.”  

She didn’t care.  If this city was her home now, she didn’t want to continue spending the rest of her days risking her life to keep people alive.  There was a group of Titans walking towards the center of town and talking among themselves.  Rilea took a deep breath, and despite Jasper’s warnings, she strode right up to them.

“Hey!”  She shouted, catching their attention, and ever single one of them (most with helmets on), turned to her.  “I don’t know how you guys like to do things around here, but these people are literally in the streets fighting, trying to kill each other.  This City is going to tear itself apart from the inside out and you guys are just—” She scoffed and gestured to all of them.  “—you’re standing here doing nothing!”

Jasper was right.  She noticed two of them clench their hands into fists.  But before any of them could say anything to her, one of them placed his hands on their shoulders, approached her.  He was like all of them, all muscle and might, clad in ornate, gold-etched plating and fur in his collar.  Wild strawberry blond hair and thick brows, a scar across the bridge of his nose and wise green eyes.  And he was tall—fuck—he was tall.  Her head just barely came to his broad shoulders, and she was a tall 5′7″ for a woman her age.  She stood her ground, trying not to seem as intimidated by him as she truly was.

He seemed to notice all of the cuts, bruises, and bandages she was covered in and his eyebrow raised in suspicion.  “You sure you’re not in any of those fights?”  He asked her.  She could feel her pulse rising; he almost sounded amused.  She cut past all of that intimidation and a couple of the Titans with him snickered quietly to themselves.

“I’m the one trying to stop people from killing each other!” She seethed, her voice almost cracking as she snapped at him.  “Because every time a fight breaks out, none of you are anywhere to be seen.”  She sighed and paused a moment to rub her temples, then brushed her hair off her face and looked at each of them.  “Look, I only have one life to live and yesterday a guy tried to slice my neck open when I tried to keep him from killing another man.  I need your help.”

The Titan in front of her crossed his arms and looked at her thoughtfully, but didn’t say anything to her.  She could see the gears rolling in his head.  “Take care of yourself.”  Then he and the other Titans walked away from her, just like that.

“Rezyl, what are you thinking?”  She heard them say quietly as they walked away, but they moved quickly out of earshot.  She watched them walk away in disbelief.

“Take care of yourself?”  She thought.  “Take care of yourself?!”

Dejected and now even more solid in her resolve that she could never trust a Risen, she walked back to where she always met Jasper for meals.  She sat down and laid back in the patch of grass.  Her body ached and she was tired of trying to keep people together.

“I get why you stay out of it now, Jasper,” she sighed.  “The fights are getting worse and I don’t know if I can keep this up.”

“I know you're a peacekeeper and a protector, Rilea, but you need to remember that you can’t save everyone.”  He moved out of his chair and sat down in the grass beside her.  “How are those ribs?”

She reached up and pressed a hand on them, and pain burned through like hot fire.  She had bruised badly them when breaking up a fight a few days back.  She was lucky they weren’t broken.  “Still hurt like hell.  I can take it.  Not like I spent three years covering most of my skin in ink.”  Jasper knew about the tattoos.  They covered her skin starting from her collarbone, curling around her arms, the back of her hands, her back and chest, the blooms were reminiscent of sunflowers and roses.  Sunflowers were her favorites.  The roses were a tribute to her mother, who's name was Rose.  Her mother named her Rilea just before she died from severe hemorrhaging.  Her father gave her the middle name Rose in honor of her mother.

As if to prove her point, Rilea pushed up her sleeve and showed off the line art on her tan skin.

Jasper rolled his eyes at her.  “That's not my point.  You really need to start taking more care of yourself,”  Jasper scolded.  “You’re only one woman, Ri, you can’t take on the world by yourself.”

“Yeah, yeah," she sighed.  “I know.”

Chapter Text

There was commotion in the City’s center a few days later that drew a crowd to it.  Rilea watched from afar as a Titan stood on a pedestal, preaching to the crowd.  She recognized him as one of the Titans she had approached.  How could she forget the unique gold designs on his chestplate?  Rezyl Azzir.  He was talking to the Risen, trying to unite them under one banner, as “Guardians” of the City.  He talked about a threat that was coming, alien scavengers wanting to plunder the City for their own.  They had to prepare because battle was coming just around the corner.  The Risen dropped the banners that they had picked up and rallied behind Rezyl to defend the City.

He heard me, she thought.  He listened to me.

The City turned into a battleground within a day.  Chaos all around, some Guardians working to form a perimeter to fight off the scavengers, others trying to get citizens out of the way.  There were people screaming everywhere, fires scorching clusters of tents, some of which still had people inside.

Rilea went into guard captain mode when the first battle cry was heard in the distance.  She started gathering people, corralling them out of harm’s way, telling any Guardians that tried to help to go fight with the front lines.

“You can’t do this alone!”  A few of them said to her.  And each time, one of the scavenger had broken through the front lines and went to attack someone, but she jumped into action, using her scout rifle to put a few bullets into their heads.  

“I can handle it!”  She shouted to them after.  “Go help the others or more of them will get through!”  

She found Jasper finishing off a scavenger and grabbed his arm, “We need to lead these people as far away from the city limits as we can,”  she ordered.  “I know there are more people hiding, I’m going to go find them before it’s too late.” 

“Rilea, you can’t, it’s too dangerous!”  He argued.  “Let me go with you.”

“No, Jasper, stay here and protect them.”  She pulled on her goggles to protect her eyes from smoke and pulled the collar of her shirt up over her mouth.  She started to head back into the City when she heard him start up again, but she quickly cut him off.  “That’s an order, Jasper!  I’ll be back soon, I promise!”

She was determined and reckless.  She ran into burning tents to carry out children who had tried to hide or an elderly man or woman who had accepted their death.  She handed them off to others who were running away from the firing line. She killed any scavengers that had entered the streets.  She pushed further towards the front lines, helping whoever she could escape from certain death, and following the path that the alien scavengers seemed to be coming from.  

The sounds of battle roared loud in her ears as she pulled out her scout rifle then flexed her left hand in and out of a fist, activating the small, compacted metal shield she wore on her forearm to spin out into its full size.  She started to pick off any alien scavengers that broke through the first line of defense, hoping it would slow their movements into the City and buy people more time.

She had never seen so many Guardians fighting side by side before.  They were efficient, skilled, and lethal warriors fighting for one purpose, for one common goal.  It was a refreshing change to see.  Their Light was magnificent to watch, as well.  Explosions of Light in blue, violet, and orange lit up the battlefield.  

A few of the scavengers caught sight of her once they broke through, three of them rushed her at once.  She used her sidearm to pick off one of the weaker ones with docked arms and threw her knife into the mask on the face of another, but put a bullet through its skull to be sure.  Before she could get a beam on the third, two more had broken through and were running her way as well.  

One of them shot at her and she put up her shield to block their bullets, but the second charged right into her, knocking her back several feet and cracked the panels of her shield.  Before she could stand and recover, one of them swiped at her and sent her on her back.  The impact shattered one of the lenses of her goggles.  

She screamed in agony as an arc-charged blade stabbed through the joint of her shoulder and twisted, effectively dislocating her arm and making her release her grip on her sidearm.  She reached up and tried to pull the blade out while her feet swung up and tried to kick the large attacker away, but the alien on the other end pushed it in deeper, pulling another scream from her lips.  It grabbed her hand off the blade and she couldn't break free of the grip.  Tears budded in her eyes as her vision started to grow hazy from the pain.

Then she caught a glimpse of someone in the air, fists held over their head, body swirling with Arc Light.  She quickly lifted her shield to cover her face and pulled her legs closer to her body as they came down, killing the three alien scavengers that were trying to kill her.  The wave of Arc Light flashed over her, electrifying her nervous system and making the synapses of all her nerves fire wildly for a moment.  She trembled violently as her nerves calmed down as she rolled flat onto her back, a moan of pain leaving her lips.  

The Guardian ran over to her, his voice cutting through the overwhelming ringing in her ears.  “Hey, hey, don’t move…”  His voice was sweetly calm as she was swimming on the edge of consciousness.  “I’m going to pull this out of you…  it’s Arc charged so you’re not going to bleed out…”  Her head rolled to look at him and though she was experiencing tunnel vision, she could make out the decorative gold plating on his armor and the fur in his collar around his shoulders.

“Hey…” she mumbled wearily as she reached up, trying to reach for his shoulder.  She tried to turn towards him, but every movement sent stabbing pain through her right arm, shoulder, and side; she tried to stifle her cries.  “I-I know you… You’re the T-Titan… that I…”

“Shh, shh, shh…”  His voice sounded so soothing to her ears.  His hands caught hers and he squeezed gently as she gazed up into the face of his helm.  “Save your strength.  Now hold still.  This is gonna hurt like hell, but you’ll live.”  

Her eyes flicked away from his face as his other hand wrap around the knife and she tensed up.  She squeezed his gloved hand tightly right before he pulled it out of her shoulder.  Another agonized cry flew out of her and the pain made her vision even more fuzzy and dark.  She didn’t move as he picked her up and sprinted back towards the City, where he handed her off to someone who could get her medical attention.  The entire way he was whispering words of reassurance.

“You’re going to be just fine…  Don’t worry…  I’m going to find you help…”

She blacked out shortly afterwards.

Chapter Text

Rilea woke up in the infirmary a week after the battle.  Her muscles were stiff so she didn’t move at first, but she eventually found the strength to sit up.  Her shoulder was bandaged up and her arm was in a sling.  She reached up to touch her face and felt tiny bandages over some cuts around her eye.  She squinted at the bright lighting in the room and looked around.  There were other citizens in beds adjacent to her, some of which had injuries much worse than her own.  

“You’re awake!”

She looked over to the sound of the voice and saw Jasper walking into the tent, hands balancing two rationed meals.  “Jasper,” she sighed with relief.  She was glad he was still alive.  

“You should be resting,” he chided as he sat down in the chair next to her bed.  “You’re way too reckless, Rilea, you had me worried sick.  Didn’t know if you were gonna wake up.”

“What day is it?”  She asked as she rubbed the weariness from her eyes.   “How long was I out?”

“Eight days.”  Jasper’s scolding stopped and was replaced by concern.  “You really had me worried, Ri, when you didn’t come back.  Then I heard you were injured and on the brink.   You should have let me go with you.”

“I know.  I’m sorry.  Thought I could handle it.”

“But there are a lot of people alive because of you.  Regardless of what anyone says, there are a lot of people who told me about what you did for them.  A lot of people who thanked me because of what you did.”

Rilea ran her hand through her hair before pressing a hand to her injured shoulder.  Feeling in her muscles had returned, at least, and she flexed her hand before starting to tap her fingers to her thumb.  Motor function was restored to her hand at least, so there wasn’t any permanent damage.

“You wanna tell me what happened?”

“They didn’t tell you?”

“They told me about your injury, but that’s about it.  I wanna hear your version.”

Jasper helped her adjust the bed so she could sit upright against the pillows.  She stared quietly at the monitors she was hooked up to before she found it in her to recount what happened.

“I found everyone that I could, Jasp.  I told them where to go, where help was waiting.  Then I set myself up behind the front line, picking off any stragglers that broke through so that people had a better chance of making it to you alive,”  She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, trying not to get overwhelmed.  “I guess I just got detected by those things—”

“Fallen,” Jasper said quietly.  “They’re calling them the Fallen.”

“—whatever, the Fallen.  Three of them rushed me and I managed to down two of them, but before I could make it back to cover, one of them shot at me, another knocked me back, and a third…”  She closed her eyes tightly as she pressed a hand to her shoulder, the phantom of pain making her nerves erupt.  “A third stunned me, flipped me on my back, and stabbed me in the shoulder.”  She looked over at Jasper and she could see the sorrow on his face.  She didn’t realize she had started crying.  “I tried to kick it off of me and pull the blade out, but Jasp, it was just so damn strong.”  She leaned back against the pillows and wiped furiously at her eyes.  “And then he saved me.”

“Who saved you?”  This seemed to pique Jasper’s interest.

“That… that Guardian.  Maker, what’s his name?  Rezyl, I think?  The—The Titan that united everyone right before the Fallen arrived.”

Jasper huffed as he leaned back in his chair, looking thoughtful.  “He’s been named the Last City’s hero,”  he relayed.  “Everyone here seems to think of him as some kind of god because of what he did.  People like you, people who actually made a difference, they’re all just getting lost in the background.”

Rilea chuckled to herself.  “I’m okay with that,” she sighed.  “Give the fame to a familiar face.  Someone people can look up to.”  She looked over at Jasper to see him staring at her, eyebrows raised.  “What?  You know I’ve always hated the spotlight.”

Jasper shook his head and sighed.  “Get some rest, maybe eat something, kiddo.  You’ve earned it.”

“Jasp,” Rilea called after him as he went to leave the medical tent.  “Stop calling me ‘kiddo.’”

He laughed heartily.  “Not a chance.”

A few hours later she was discharged from the infirmary and walked outside into the sunlight, arm still in a sling and still in a bit of pain, but she wanted to get some fresh air and a walk.  Her muscles ached from being in a bed for so long.  She didn’t get far before she spotted the Titan.  He was leaning against the rubble of a nearby building, and he caught sight of her, too.  He pushed off the building and approached her, arms hanging loose by his sides.

“Got a minute?”  He asked; she couldn’t ignore the butterflies in her stomach at the smooth tone of his voice.  She nodded at him and he joined her on her stroll through the City.

“What could the ‘City’s Hero’ want with me?”  She asked in a teasing tone.  “How long have you been waiting for me to walk out of that medical tent?”

“I heard you woke up today,” he admitted.  “Gotta say, I was really hoping you were gonna pull through.  You were a wreck last I saw you.”

“Well, that tends to happen when you get stabbed.”

“I wanted to—” they both started at the same time, both of them laughing nervously.

“You first,” Rilea insisted.

“I wanted to thank you,”  Rezyl said after a moment of silence.  “You’re brave.  I heard what you did for a lot of the people in this City.  Not many people would risk their lives like you did.”  When she didn’t respond right away and kept her eyes glued to the ground they were walking on, he placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.  “Are you alright?”

“Huh?  O-Oh, yeah, I’m fine.”  She gave him a strained smile.  Maker, she hated compliments.   “Sorry, I’m just not used to getting praise.  Protecting people... it's just always been my duty.”

“‘Your duty’?”

“I was the captain of my home’s guard.  Earned the title when I finished my training at eighteen.  That was a little more than ten years ago now.”

“Wow,” he whistled and folded his hands behind his back.  “You’re young.”

“So?” Rilea scoffed.

“Who taught you?  I saw you out there before things went to shit, you’ve got some skills that some Guardians don’t even utilize.”

“My father.  He raised me.  He was my whole world.  He taught me marksmanship, hand to hand, self defense, everything I know.  The captain before me, the man I arrived with, he helped my father teach me when he had politics to deal with.  Jasper taught me a handful about engineering, too, he actually helped me design that shield I was using.  I don't know if I'm going to be able to fix it now...”

Rezly gently placed his hand on her shoulder as they came to a courtyard, stopping their stroll and he turned to face her.  She could feel his eyes taking in her face and she shifted a bit uncomfortably under the stare.  She didn't like being analyzed like this.  “When did he die?”  He asked quietly.

Rilea’s heart sank.  She should have known he would have picked up on her wording quickly.  “Three years ago,” she sighed softly.  “The wilds weren’t so kind to him.”

“I’m sorry.”

Silence fell between them as Rilea walked away from him, over to a bench in the courtyard and sat down.  She rubbed her shoulder as pain returned.  Rezyl walked back over to her and knelt down on one knee in front of her, arm resting on his knee as he looked up to catch her gaze.

“You’re wonderful,” he sighed with a smile.  “You know that?”

His words caught her off guard.  Her face flushed as she stared at him with wide eyes.  “Ex-Excuse me?”  She stuttered.

“You’re brave, strong, and humble.  You probably saved more lives that I did that day, and yet you take none of the credit.  What’s your name?”

“Why?”  Her voice got quieter the more and more flustered she got.

“You know my name, you know who I am, and you… you are this hero in the background that no one knows.  But I want to know you.”

Her eyes searched his for answers, but all she could read in his expression was compassion; true joy.  “Rilea,” she whispered.  “Rilea Fey.”

“Rilea…”  The smile on his lips grew brighter and he reached over, clasping her hand in his.  “Rilea, will you help me build this City?  The people need someone like you.  Someone to help everyone adjust to all the changes that are going to come.”

“Why?”  She was so confused by this conversation, but her heart was racing and she felt warmth spread throughout her chest.  Tears budded in the corners of her eyes.  “Why me?  I’m mortal, Rezyl, I only have one life to live.  And look where protecting people has gotten me so far.”  She pulled her hand out of his, gently too his wrist, and pressed his hand to her shoulder.  His fingers gently curled over the joint and his thumb brushed across the edge of her collarbone.

“Because you are more selfless and braver than all of the Guardians I know, because you have one life to live.  It’s refreshing.  Can you just promise me one thing?”

She laughed lightly and brushed away some of the tears with her sleeve.  “I suppose,” she said with a smile.

“Stop putting yourself in so much danger.  I won’t always be there to get you out of it.”

She laughed and leaned back on the bench.  “I guess I can do that.  If you can do something for me.”  Rezyl’s smile was contagious and intoxicating as he nodded at her.  “I’ll help you, Rezyl, as long as you can promise me that you’re different from the rest of them.  I’ve seen too many Risen—Iron Lords and Warlords—abusing their Light to trust any of you fully.  Prove to me that you’re different from the rest of them.”

He pulled his hand away from her shoulder and stood to his feet, then cast a brilliant smile her way.  “I really hope that I can.”  He took a few steps away to leave when he suddenly stopped and turned back to her.  “Oh, right, you had something to say, too.  What was it?”

Rilea looked up at him with the smile on her lips.  “Thank you,” she started.  “Thank you for saving my life.  And I would be lying if I said I wasn’t glad to officially meet you.”

Chapter Text

Once her shoulder was healed and she once again had full range of motion, she helped Rezyl in any way she could.  She surveyed the logs of how many people were flocking to the Last City for Rezyl while he helped build the walls, so that the Consensus could effectively accommodate everyone.   She helped newcomers get settled in their new homes, she helped set up the sensors once portions of the walls were built since she had some electrical knowledge, thanks to one of her departed guardsmen, and she helped lay down the foundations for parks, courtyards and playgrounds so that children, struggling to adjust to city life, could have an easier transition.

She was working on connecting one of the sensors to the rest of the system, her body spread across the tight space between the support beams below the sensor’s receiver and the receiver itself, when the wires sparked suddenly.  She let out a curse as the sparks burned her fingertips and she dropped her wrench.

“Son of a—” she grumbled as she started to shimmy herself out, when her wrench suddenly appeared in front of her face.  She craned her neck back to see who was there, and sure enough, Rezyl was standing in front of her, wrench in his hand, and a warm smile on his lips.  “Oh, hey,” she said in surprise as she took the wrench from him and went back to integrating the wires and calibrating the system.  “Just a sec, I just have to put this panel back on once I calibrate… the sensor…” 

“Do you realize how late it is, Rilea?”  He asked with a laugh.  “The sun set an hour ago.”

“I know, I know!”  She exclaimed.  “I had to realign everything on this sensor, it’s been sending false readings all afternoon.  Looks like some of the… connectors came loose…”  She jumped as the wires sparked (again) and she cursed (again) when she bumped her head on the support below her.  At least she didn’t drop the wrench this time.

“You alright in there?” Rezyl asked after the distinct metal diiinng that sounded when the back of her head hit the beam.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine, it’s just my head.”  Rilea replaced all the connectors and made sure they were secure this time, then replaced the panel cover and tightened the bolts with her wrench.  “Help me out, will you?”  She asked as she reached her arms out.

Rezyl grabbed onto her arms and helped her out of the tiny space, but he made sure not to pull too hard because of her shoulder.  When she was back on her feet, she picked up the data pad leaning against the wall and ran the diagnostic, and much to her relief, the sensor was sending out the proper readings.  She sighed heavily and slipped her wrench into the deep pockets of her overalls and wiped her hands.  “There we go, all set.”

“Good,”  Rezyl said as he swiftly lifted her off her feet and picked her up in his arms, laughing at the squeal of surprise that escaped her.  He quickly skated around the halls within the walls until they were back in the City’s streets.  By then, Rilea was itching to be back on her own feet.

“Maker, Rezyl, put me down!” 

He laughed heartily and put her back on her own feet.  “Hey, it was faster than walking.  I know how you are when you get caught up in your work, and I know you’re probably starving by now.”

She opened her mouth to protest, but the comically loud grumble that came from her stomach silenced her.  “Fine, you win.”  She resigned as they stared towards the City’s marketplace.  

“So, uh,”  Rezyl cleared his throat,  “there’s this new ramen shop that opened up, you want to give it a try?”

Rilea looked up at him in surprise and full-stopped in the middle of the street.  Usually at the end of the day, Rezyl would find her wherever she was working in the city that day and make sure she had something to eat, but they always went their separate ways.  Remembering to eat was her biggest issue since she so easily got distracted by the day’s tasks.  He looked back at her, eyebrows raised.  

“Rezyl Azzir, are you asking me out on a date?” 

By the smile on his lips and the small chuckle he let out as he averted his gaze, she knew she was right.  He pushed his hair back off his face.  “I’m trying,” he admitted, “it’s—it’s not going so well.”

Rilea’s cheeks lit up pink as she walked over and stood beside the Titan, this mountain of a man, and linked her arm with his.  “I’d be delighted.”  

His smile was brilliant as he wrapped his arms around her in a hug, picked her up and spun her in a circle.  She laughed as he put her back down.  He led the way, the entire time he didn’t let go of her hand.  They ate dinner side by side at the counter, mostly in silence since they both were terrible at small talk (Rilea especially).  They talked quietly about the City, Rilea getting more information about the encroaching Fallen that Rezyl was fighting back every day, and she told him about the swelling number of people that were flocking to the City and the progress on the wall’s sensor grid, which only had about three more miles left to link up.

By his side, Rilea never felt more at home.  The warmth of his company was a new feeling, but one she unknowingly treasured.  This was the first time in all her months living in the Last City that she really, truly felt like she belonged somewhere.  She didn’t realize it until he walked her back to her apartment in the City before he returned to the Tower to give the Vanguard his reports from the day.  When she closed the door after wishing him goodnight and he was gone was when it hit her.

Her back slid down the door until she was sitting on the ground, her head in her hands, her thoughts racing.  

This is never going to work, Rilea, she scolded herself.  You’re mortal, remember?  Your life is just a blink in his.  You’ll grow old and die before you can even have a safe life together.  There’s too much at stake.

She cried quietly on the floor for a while when this revelation hit her.  He could outlive her by hundreds of years, so why did he make her heart feel so full?

“You are this hero in the background that no one knows.  But I want to know you… Because you are more selfless and braver than all of the Guardians I know, because you have one life to live.”

His words echoed in her head, loud and clear, and she had her answer.  He wanted to know her, then why shouldn’t she know him?  What would be so wrong with just… diving in?

She picked herself up and walked into the bathroom, stripping out of her dirty working clothes and starting a shower.  She grasped onto the edges of the sink as she looked into the mirror.  She studied her reflection for a few seconds before giving herself a smile.

“Take the plunge.”

Chapter Text

CW ::: angst

Life was good for Rilea.  She had stopped letting fear get in the way of her happiness.  It showed, too.  Her heart was lighter, her mood better, and her entire demeanor was more relaxed.  And this was especially true when she was with Rezyl Azzir.  When they were together, she was softer.  She was less on edge around him like when she was with other Guardians.  She was actually at peace whenever his guiding hand was on her lower back or between her shoulder blades.  And she could tell that he was happy too, but that was really only when they were alone.  He was stalwart and tenacious in the eyes of the public, even when they were together.  He was admired by everyone in the Last City, Guardian or otherwise, so he had to keep that image.

When they were alone, it was like he was an entirely different man.  He was soft and tender and he took care of her.  He made sure she knew her hard work was appreciated and showered her with praise behind closed doors, so that she knew she was a guiding light for the people as well.  He’d heard people talking about the woman who helped them get settled in the City and everyone was thankful for her help.  He made sure she was eating, even cooked for her a few times when she was too exhausted to get food from a shop.  But most importantly, he made sure she knew she was never alone.  That even while he was away on missions or hunts, he wouldn’t waver.

He spent as much time with her as he could because even if this connection he had to her, this sweet love he had for her, was fleeting he didn’t want it to end.  He invited her to live with him in the duplex he purchased in the City as infrastructure grew, and he was shocked but overjoyed when she readily accepted.  Living together gave him the opportunity to care for someone in more ways than he could take care of the masses.

They were alike in two ways:  they both liked to be busy, but neither of them liked to be alone.  Which was why he didn’t want to tell her he was leaving.  He didn’t want to tell her that he and two other Guardians, Hassa and Tovar, were hunting down a Kell.  He couldn’t stand the thought of the worry on her face.  But they were still at war, no matter how much he played down the number of skirmishes they were actually fighting.  He had to go on this mission if it meant slowing down the assaults on the Last City.  

If it means keeping her safe, he thought.

The Wall would be fully constructed in another month or two.  Since then, Rilea’s work was more focused on keeping a census of incoming refugees and finishing the sensor grid.  She was on gate watch of sector 6 today, so before he shipped out with Hassa and Tovar, he went to the gate to tell her.   He pulled off his helmet as he approached her post, and the way her face lit up when she saw him was like a punch to his gut.  Fuck, he hated to be the one to take that smile off her face.

“Rezyl,” she hummed as he got close.  “You’re early today, I’m not supposed to be off for…” She looked at the face of a watch on the back of her wrist, “…a few more hours.”

“I know, paramour, I know…” he sighed.  “You got a minute?”

Rilea looked out towards the path that led to the gate, and it was barren for the time being.  She looked to the man she was on watch with and he nodded, so she placed her datapad down.  “Is everything alright?”  Her voice was heavy with concern now.  

Rezyl closed his eyes and gently pulled her around the corner and out of earshot, putting himself in view of anyone who would walk their way and see her.  Maker, he didn’t know how to tell her.  

He sighed heavily.  “I have to leave the City for a bit.”

“What do you mean you have to leave the City for a bit?”

“I’m going on a mission to hunt down the Fallen’s Kell.  One of their leaders.”

“Oh… alright…” She chewed on the inside of her cheek.  “When do you leave?”

“The minute we’re done talking.”

“What!?” She exclaimed.  “Rezyl, why didn’t you tell me, how long have you known?”

“I’ve known for a few days now,” he murmured, gently brushing her hair back and slid his hand on the back of her head.  “I just… I couldn’t tell you.”

“Why not?”

Her voice was breaking and he had to close his eyes for a brief moment to steady himself.  “Because you make it so much harder for me to go.  We are still at war, paramour, this mission must be done.  And when we succeed, the City will be that much safer.”

“How long?”

“What?”

“How long will you be gone?”

Rezyl sighed heavily.  “I don’t know.”

“Rough guess?”

He didn’t answer her right away.  He was trying to think of something to say to keep her from crying.

“Rezyl,” her stern, choked voice cut through his stream of consciousness and his eyes refocused on her.  She almost sounded angry, but he knew she was upset with him.  “Please.  Tell me the truth.”

He sighed and let his hand slide down to her shoulder.  “Could be a couple of months.  Could be longer, I really don’t know.”

She bit down on her bottom lip and covered her mouth with her hand.  He could see the tears forming in her eyes and for the first time, he was at a loss for words.  She sniffled and wiped the tears out of her eyes and looked away from him.  

He really had been dreading this all day.  His heart was breaking as he watched her expression crumbling.  “Hey now,” he murmured, trying to console her.  “It won’t be forever.”

“Maybe not for you,” she snapped at him.  “Two months or longer?  That’s a blink for you, Rezyl, not for me.”

“Rilea, I know, but I promise you, I will come home,”  He placed both his hands on her shoulders and squeezed gently.  “This is my duty, Rilea, there’s only so much I can do to protect you from here.  I set up a link with my Ghost to your datapad at home.  I’m going to send you updates wherever I can.”  His hands cupped her cheeks and gently held her face.  She reached up and placed her hands on his wrists.  He didn’t notice until now how small her hands were, but they were calloused like his, for she was a warrior, too.  He had never seen her looking vulnerable and scared and upset before.  Not all three at the same time.  

“Come on, now, paramour…  You’re breaking my heart, here.”  

Her hazel eyes opened and she looked up at him, and he brushed the tears out of her eyes with his thumbs.  He hated to see the devastation on her face, so he leaned down and pressed his forehead against hers.  “I promise you… I will come home.”

She took a deep breath and nodded.  She stood on her toes and kissed him before he could leave.  He had never kissed her back so hard.  He really didn’t want to leave her alone.  “Okay.  Just… please… check in often?  And come home as soon as you can.” 

Rezyl Azzir pulled her slim frame close in a hug, and she clung tightly onto him.  Fuck, he really hated how guilty this made him feel.  “I will.”

After he left and joined up with Hassa and Tovar, his Ghost asked him if he was okay. 

“We have a job to do.  Focus on the mission, Amit.”  His voice was cold as the three Guardians took off on their Sparrows.

Chapter Text

[ GHOST TRANSMISSION ID 1372 ] 

[ TRANSMISSION TYPE: AUDIO RECORDING ]

REZYL:  I’m so sorry I had to leave you like that.  I wanted to tell you sooner, I really did, but I’ll be totally honest with you, paramour, I had been dreading telling you from the moment I found out.  I knew you wouldn’t be happy and you would try to convince me to stay if you had the time to come up with an argument.  And I probably would have, too.  I understand if you’re angry with me and don’t even want to listen to these, but… [sighs]  Look.  I’m sorry.  I really am.  

Anyways… I promised I would give you updates so… Hassa, Tovar and I have been tracking these Fallen for a few days.  We’re hoping they’ll lead us right to their Kell’s Ketch.  There’s not much else to say about it right now… But it’s been a few days since we’ve gotten some sleep so we set up a camp to rest and eat and we’re going to pick it up again early in the morning.  So uh… yeah.  I think that’s it.

This is Rezyl Azzir signing off.  I hope you’re sleeping better than I am, paramour.  Good night.

—end of transmission—

[ GHOST TRANSMISSION ID 1373 ]

[ TRANSMISSION TYPE:  AUDIO RECORDING ]

REZYL:  It’s about… I dunno, midnight or just past it.  I know it’s late and it’s been several days since I’ve sent you a message, but it’s kind of hard when we’re either riding for days on our sparrows or in the middle of skirmishes and ambushes.  Like today, we managed to get an ambush set up on a Captain and it’s crew.  I’ll spare you the details since I know how you feel about the damned things, but the short version is that it was a successful ambush.

I would be lying if I said I didn’t like this.  I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy being back out in the field.  Conflict is simple, it’s as second nature as breathing.  And while we are at war, there will always be conflict.  Out here it’s a simple matter of who’s good and who’s bad.  It’s a lot better than the politics in the City.

Man, I hate politics.

But I would also be lying if I said I didn’t miss home.  I know it’s only been a week and a half, but… I miss you, paramour.  

This is Rezyl Azzir signing off.  Sleep well, Rilea.

—end of transmission—

[ GHOST TRANSMISSION ID 1376 ] 

[ TRANSMISSION TYPE:  AUDIO RECORDING ]

REZYL:  We’re getting close, paramour.  I know it.  Each fight or ambush gives us more information and more leads.  We’re going for days on the trail until we’re all exhausted and at this point I think we’re all running on fumes.  We’re finally sitting down for a break and—

TOVAR:  Hey, Rezyl, catch.

[pause]

REZYL:  Thanks, Tovar.  We’re taking a break to recuperate and fix up a plan for when we find this Ketch so we can finish this. 

[silence]

REZYL:  I’m really sorry these messages are so few and far between.  I thought I’d have more time to send them to you.  I’ll be honest, I don’t know how long it’s been since I last sent one to you… Ghost says it’s been about a week, maybe a little longer.  And I’ll admit, I forget that a week is a long time for you to go without hearing from me.  It’s just hard when we only take breaks once every few days, but most times it’s longer than that. 

And I owe you a lot when I get home.

This is Rezyl Azzir signing off.  Sweet dreams, Rilea.  And I promise you, I’m coming home.

—end of transmission—

[ GHOST TRANSMISSION ID 1380 ] 

[ TRANSMISSION TYPE: AUDIO RECORDING ]

HASSA:  Calling that girl again, Rezyl?  We’ve gotta go.

REZYL:  I know, Hassa, I’ll make it quick.

HASSA:  We don’t really have a lot of time!

REZYL:  Shove it, I said I’ll be quick.

REZYL:  So, we managed to locate the Ketch and we’re going to launch an assault in less than an hour.  I just wanted to call you before we head out.  We’ve got a plan and it’s solid, but I won’t lie to you, there’s a lot of variables.  It’s risky.  But it’s a risk we have to take.  I just wanted—

TOVAR:  Azzir!  Let’s go!  We gotta move before that Ketch relocates.

REZYL:  Fuck, alright, give me a damned second!  I’m coming!  Ghost, cut the—

—end of transmission—

[ GHOST TRANSMISSION ID 1381 ]

[ TRANSMISSION TYPE: AUDIO RECORDING ]

REZYL:  Our plan worked, Rilea.  Killed the Kell and a lot of Fallen with him.  Couldn’t get rid of the ketch since the cannons are powerful and hard to take out.  I’ll spare you the details of the mission since I know you wouldn’t like them.

TOVAR:  [shouting] He got himself killed to draw the Kell out!

REZYL:  Hey, bug off, will you?!

[background laughter]

REZYL:  [deep, heavy sigh]  The only important thing is, it worked.  We’ve got a few more areas to investigate, and then we’ll be on the turn around back for the City.  I’ll be home soon.  A few more weeks at most.  

[silence]

REZYL:  [whispering]  Do you know why I call you paramour?  It’s because everyone keeps telling me that I shouldn’t get involved with you.  That I should let you lead a normal life.  People like Hassa and Tovar who have been asking me if I’m ready to go down this road, because we all know where it’s going to lead.  But I just, fuck, Rilea, I can’t.  I just can’t.  You are the one by all moral standpoint that I should not be getting involved with, but I’m already in way too fucking deep.  

[pause]  

REZYL:  I love you.  Rilea, I really do, you’re wonderfully perfect, you’re strong and you have such a fire in you that—fuck…  I am in love with you.  That’s why I go on these missions.  If I can do anything to make this world safer for you, I will, because you are the most beautiful thing in it.  I just wish it was easier for you to understand why.  I know you don’t like it when I’m away for long periods…

[sighs] Let’s be honest, though, protecting you is the only thing I can seem to get right… 

[silence]

REZYL:  I can’t wait to see you again so I can tell you in person.  I just regret not telling you before I left.  And if another person tries to tell me to walk away, I think I might put a bullet in their brain.  [raising voice]  And it’s probably going to be one of these two idiots with me!

[loud background laughter]

[chuckling] This is Rezyl Azzir signing off.  I love you, paramour.

—end of transmission—

Chapter Text

Rilea listened to all five of the messages he sent over the course of three months several times over, just because she wanted to hear his voice.  And when he told her he loved her… Maker, she had never felt so much joy in her life.  She fell asleep in bed, hugging the datapad to her chest, and that was the last night that she had any sweet dreams.  After that, where she didn’t hear anything for almost a month and a half following his fifth message and she rarely slept.  If anything, she only got a couple of hours a night, and it was really starting to show.  Her supervisors (several of which were Guardians) had started to notice, and they were all worried for her.  Everyone knew what sleep deprivation could do to the human body.  Hell, even a lot of Guardians knew what it could do.

They kept her purely on gate watch, and she was secretly thankful for it.  The sensor grid was almost complete and since she was one of the few electricians they had, she was told that she could do fine tuning once the grid was done, but she couldn’t go near the actual work until she was feeling like herself again.  So she sat patiently at her post, guiding any citizens that came through to the center of the City, where they could find places to get settled in.  Refugees didn’t take offense to the dark circles under her eyes, and most of them assumed that she was working long hours to make sure people got settled in safely.  

Unfortunately, she was reaching a point of complete and total exhaustion.  Two hours of sleep a night, never more.  Oftentimes, less.  She was running on fumes and black coffee.  She knew Rezyl said he would be coming home soon, but not hearing from him in so long filled her with a sense of dread she couldn’t get rid of.  

Even still, she worked the gates. Counting, taking names and identifications of a large group of people who were coming in, led by a pair of Guardians.  The feeling of dread in her stomach grew when she noticed neither of them were him.   

Everyone had to be registered in the City’s records through fingerprinting.  Many people lost identifying documents in the Collapse, and a lot of people in the wilds stopped caring about paperwork during the aftermath.  So between herself and the man with her on gate watch, they were busy getting everyone in the system as quickly and efficiently as possible.  So while he was getting the last couple of people registered, Rilea helped everyone onto the transport that would take them into the Last City, giving them instructions on where to go and who to talk to so they could get settled somewhere as soon as possible.  

“Azzir!  Hassa and I are bringing the reports to the Vanguard.  So don’t take too long.”

No.  No, it can’t possibly be…  Rilea turned quickly towards the two Guardians that led these people in as the transport made off for the Last City.

“I know, Tovar, I’ll meet you guys up there.  Get some rest, you two look like hell.”

“So do you.”

She turned towards the gate, the datapad slipped out of her hands, and she almost collapsed to her knees then and there.  Rezyl Azzir had just walked through and pulled off his helmet.  Her eyes filled with tears when she met his gaze and saw the smile on his face.  That kind, brilliant smile.  He had grown a beard in his months in the field.  For the longest time, she never thought she would see the more than the short layer of scruff that he normally sported.  But… to be honest, she was actually quite fond of it.  

Before she could even move, he had already closed the gap between them and scooped her up in a hug.

She was in tears the moment his arms wrapped around her and she clung onto him like her life depended on it.  “It—It’s really you!  You’re home!”  She cried.  “You’re finally home!”

“I’m home, sweet girl,” he hummed in reassurance.  “I’m home.”  He set her down on her feet and cupped her face in his hands, but that was when he saw through the joy on her face.  She was exhausted:  There were dark circles under her eyes, her complexion was pale, and her eyes that were normally bright were dulled.  Concern etched onto his face as his brow furrowed and he brushed the tears off her cheeks.  “You haven’t been sleeping…”

“I haven’t heard from you in over a month, I…”  She reached up and touched his face and he could see the relief that was flooding hers.  “I was scared.  I haven’t been able to sleep.”  Maker, even her smile was tired.  “But you’re home.  And that’s all that matters.”

Before he could even say another word, she stood tall on her toes, closed her eyes and kissed him.  His entire train of thought broke and he leaned into her, his hand slipped behind her head and pushed into her hair, the other placed on her back and pulled her close to him.  This kiss was like heaven for both of them.

He had almost forgotten what her touch felt like and for a moment, he promised himself he would never leave her side again.

When Rilea pulled out of it and they locked eyes again.  Rezyl leaned his forehead against hers and smiled as she let out a small laugh. The two of them spoke simultaneously.

“I love you.”

“I love you.”

Rezyl brought his exhausted partner home after debriefing with the Vanguard.  He was honestly surprised she was still standing; he ended up carrying her most of the way home when he noticed she was swaying on her feet too much.  He set her down in bed at home and started to pull off his armor.  He chuckled as he heard her groaning tiredly.

“Come on, Rezyl…” she mumbled, rolling over in bed to look at him.  “You just got home.”

“Yeah, I just got home,”  he chuckled as he looked back at her with a tilt of his head.  “And I went three months without a shower.”  He set down the last few pieces of his armor and walked over to the bed; he leaned over the woman as she rolled onto her back and a smile spread across her lips.  “Do I have permission shower before I come to bed with you?”

He watched as she smiled mischievously at him and bit gently on her bottom lip.  Fuck, he wanted to just… devour her when she did that.  She reached up and brushed some of his greasy hair off of his forehead.  “Permission granted,” she hummed.

“Thank you, paramour,” he chuckled quietly as he leaned down and kissed her forehead.  “I’ll be back in a bit.”  He stripped off his final layer of clothing, a thick but form-fitting and lightweight layer designed to protect its wearer against the cold of space, and walked into the adjacent bathroom.  The entire time, Rilea watched the flex of his back with covetous eyes that traced over the ink that lined his skin in the shape of sharp waves and the outlines of roses before he disappeared into the bathroom.  They were both covered in tattoos.  Her's were a bit more intricate, Rezyl's were more abstract in their imagery.

He shaved the beard that he had grown over the last month down and took a long hot shower.  He scrubbed off all of the sweat, dirt, and blood that was stuck to his skin.  Long missions were great, they kept his mind and hands focused, he knew who was good and bad, black and white.  But the grime it left on his skin was, at times, unbearable.  When he was finished and dried off, he quietly slipped into some sweats and climbed into bed beside Rilea, who had changed into her nightwear while he was showering and was already fast asleep.  He sighed quietly to himself as he pulled her close and tucked her head underneath his chin, relishing in the warmth that emanated off her body.  His fingers traced the outline of the tattoos on her skin.  

It took him a while to fall asleep because he kept gazing out the window at the black sky above, twinkling with starlight, the white mass of the Moon hanging against that dark canvas.  He had started wondering while they were out on their hunt what horrors hid where they couldn’t see.  What nightmares awaited the Last City, what dangers they weren’t prepared for.  He finally closed his eyes and buried his face in his paramour’s hair.

I’m going to keep you safe, he thought.  No matter the cost.

Chapter Text

Rezyl woke early the next morning to a distant rumble that gently shook their apartment.  The Titan was instantly on alert and sliding out of bed.  He immediately started to dress and put on his armor when the second rumble came and shook the small collection of his partner’s books off their shelves, which sent her into a startled awakening.

“Rezyl,” his Ghost chirped urgently,  “there’s been a message issued out by the Vanguard, the Fallen are mounting an attack on the Wall.”

“How many fronts?” Rezyl asked as he secured the straps of his chest plate.  

“So far, four, but they say there’s more coming on the horizon.”

“Rilea, get up,”  Rezyl urged as he came around to her side of the bed and pulled her up by her arms.  Maker, she was trembling.  “C’mon, get up, we’ve gotta move.”

“Rezyl, what’s going on?”

“The Fallen are attacking the Walls.”  He slipped his hands into his gauntlets and fastened the armor plating on his forearms.  “Your sensor grid may have given us an upper hand and alerted us, but I need you to get to the safety bunkers, find any citizens along the way, and stay there.”

“Rezyl, I can help—”  She started to protest as she got herself moving and dressed.

“No, paramour,”  he said firmly as he grabbed his Inferno and strapped it to his back.  He grabbed his ever reliable Rose and slid the cannon into the holster on his hip.  “Get to the bunker and take as many as you can with you.  I’ll come find you.”  His hand gently held her jaw and lifted her face to him.  There was no fear in her eyes as the initial wave of shock had already come and gone.  Only that fierce bravery he saw when they first met.  “But you do not leave that bunker until I come and get you.  These fights are way too much for you to handle now.  Please, don’t try to be a hero today, you’ve already nearly died once.  Understood?”

She reached up and placed her hand on the back of his, and gently leaned her face into his palm.  Coming from him now, it was an order.  Not a request.  “Understood, Rezyl,” she murmured with a resigned sigh, just as a third tremor, this time much closer, shook the Last City.  His hands caught her waist as she stumbled and grabbed onto his shoulders for support.  “Go.  Just promise me you’ll come get me.”

“I promise.”  

He leaned down and kissed her before he left, hard and fervid, because every time he left her he feared it was for the last time.  He had seen many Guardians die at the hands of these pirates.  But he was a Titan.  He was always stronger than the scavengers that threatened their borders.  Always.

“This is Commander Rezyl Azzir reporting in, I’ve received your transmission,”  he said over comms, Ghost open in his palm, as he left their house.  “I’m going to join up with the rest of the Order, Commander Zavala.  Where are they positioned?”

He was out of her earshot before she could hear where he was going.  Rilea didn’t hesitate to arm herself.  She slid her sidearm into it’s holster on her thigh and slid the gauntlet that held her compact shield onto her forearm.  She left her rifle on the shelf as another tremor shook the apartment.  She grabbed onto a chair to keep from falling.

When she broke out into the streets, people were filling them, terrified cries and anxious murmurs leaving all of their lips.  For a moment, Rilea was frozen among them.  They lived close enough to the Wall to see faint silhouettes of Titans taking up their posts.  And for a brief moment, she looked at the Traveler above them.

She was never the religious type—her only belief was in fate—but for the first time, she prayed.  She prayed the Rezyl would be alright.  She prayed that they would hold their position and not falter.  She prayed that their Traveler would watch over them.

Rilea climbed up onto a crate and cupped her hands around her mouth.  “Everyone!” She shouted, grabbing the attention of the horrified people.  “We need to get to the bunkers!  Quickly!”

People started to snap out of their trances and started to move closer towards the center of the city.  But as usual, terrified people tend to lose sight of reason, and there was shouting and screaming as people tried to push through to get their first.  There were plenty of bunkers scattered through each sector, but Maker, fear is a terrifying beast.  Rilea stayed towards the back of the crowd to help and stragglers and anyone who had fallen down in the commotion.  There were some Guardians among them, mostly warlocks, that tried to keep people calm and reassured that everything would be alright.  They helped funnel people to different bunkers and control the spread of panic.  

Rilea was about to go down into the bunker when she heard crying.  Her head shot up and she looked around, coming back up a couple of stairs she had gone down.  The Warlock by her side must have heard it too.

“Where’s that coming from?”  The Warlock asked.

“I-I don’t know,”  Rilea said as she started to look around.  “It sounds like a child.”

“I’ll go high and you go low?”

Rilea looked at the Warlock in surprise.  Usually in times of crisis, the Guardians told her to hide with the rest of the civilians.  This one was different.  The woman nodded and the two of them immediately did a sweep of the block.  

“I found him!”  Rilea shouted as she saw the kid hiding underneath the porch stairs of one of the buildings, tiny hands covering his ears.  “Hey, kiddo,”  she soothed as she outstretched her arms.  “My name’s Rilea.”  Slowly the child crawled out from under the porch and into her arms.  “Where’s your mum?”  

“Something’s wrong with mama,” he cried as he clung onto the woman.  “She won’t move.”

The warlock jumped down to her.  “What’s wrong?”

“His mother… Where is she, sweetie?  Where’s mama?” He pointed a shaking hand to a woman who was knocked unconscious a couple of houses down; hidden by a banner that had fallen from it’s strings.  Just as warning sirens started to blare.  

The Fallen were on the Wall.

Rilea placed a hand on the back of the boy’s head and hid his gaze.  The Warlock rushed over to the woman and pressed two fingers to her neck.  “She’s alive,” he said as he started to pick her up.  “She needs medical treatment and fast.”  

The two of them ran towards the sector’s hospital, the entire time Rilea kept the boy’s face hidden in her shoulder so he couldn’t see the Wall.  The Warlock took the boy from her when the mother was taken away for treatment.  “Get back to the bunkers,” he told her.  “I’ve got it here.”

“Thank you.”  Rilea nodded to them and left the hospital in a hurry.  Rezyl told her to stay at the bunkers because it was safer.  He said he would come find her.  And she promised him she wouldn’t try to be a hero today.  She saved a kid and his mother, that was enough heroism for her without risking getting hurt.

The battle waged for hours.  Rezyl was fighting alongside an Iron Lord, a fellow commander, and the rest of the Firebreak Order.  Magazines were running dry faster than they could be replaced, the Titans alongside him were a wall of metal that never moved, not even when Fallen managed to get up to the top of the Wall.  They would die within seconds: ether masks crushed by fists, necks snapped and broken, or by bullets straight through their chests; then their corpses were thrown right back down to the rest.  But they never lost ground.  

It must have been close to six or seven hours before they heard a deafening battle cry and the Fallen started to pull back.  They had called a retreat, their ranks broken from the amount of bloodshed.  All six fronts pulled away from the wall and back into the wilderness where they came from.

There was an order to pull back.  The Fallen had retreated.  The day was theirs.  The City was safe.  But what about the ground the pirates had gained?  There was hesitance among the Firebreak Order.  They were waiting for orders from their commanders.

How “safe” was safe?

“Azzir!”  Rezyl looked up at the Iron Lord that approached him, his fellow commander in the Order, Lord Radegast.  “Gather your men.  We’re not pulling back now.”

Rezyl Azzir grinned beneath his helm and nodded.  He turned back to the Titans by his side, all reloading empty magazines, pauldrons splattered with blood, but fierce resolve on their shoulders.  He loaded more lead into his Rose and snapped the chamber shut with a flick of his wrist.  He and the Iron Lord met up again at the edge of the wall, staring down at the scorched land below.

“Firebreak!”  Radegast’s voice boomed over their command and everyone was at attention.  “Into formation!”

“How far do you think we can get before sundown?”  Rezyl asked.  “We’ve got about four hours.”

“A few miles, maybe.  We’ll reclaim as much as we can.”

The Striker chuckled.  “Let’s aim for five.”

“Well, then,”  The Iron Lord and Rezyl Azzir both raised an arm.  “Let’s get moving.”  They simultaneously dropped their arms and pointed forward, shouting the orders to march forward and reclaim the land the Fallen had stolen from them.  As their fellow Titans started to descend down the Wall, the two Commanders exchanged a look, nodded, and followed them down.

When citizens started to rejoice that the battle was over, Rilea was frozen. 

The battle was over.  It was over. 

So where was he?

Every hour, every minute that passed where he didn’t turn up, was a reason for fear.  She asked any Titan she saw returning if they knew where he was.  No one ever had any answers.

The sky burned red and violet as the sun began to set and the air was getting chilly with the autumn wind.  Winter was just around the corner.  She was still sitting on a crate outside the bunker, freezing and shivering, but refusing to move.  The warlock she had run into that morning had heard she was still there, so he brought her a blanket and draped it around her shoulders.

“Do you know what order he was with?”  the man asked her quietly.

“No… he never told me.”  She didn’t even look up at him.  She had chosen to focus on small detailed repairs on her shield.  It didn’t need to be fixed, but ever since the first attack on the City where it was broken, it wasn’t as responsive to her hand’s movements.  

“Well… the Firebreak Order never returned after everyone was told to pull back when the Fallen retreated.  There’s a chance—”

“Look, I don’t mean any offense, but…”  She finished screwing on the cover panel on her forearm.  “Please just… leave me be.”

The Warlock didn’t say another word, but he heeded her request and left her alone where she sat.  Daylight was slipping away every minute.  Hope was slipping through her fingers like sand in an hourglass.

She didn’t even look up when a pair of greaves appeared in front of her.  She had listened to enough people today telling her to have faith.  When she did look over at them, she recognized the etchings that embroidered them with gold.  Her hands were shaking at this point, a combination from the cold, the relief, and the slight bit of anger she felt that he didn’t tell her he was going to be gone for so long after the battle had ended.  

Rezyl sighed softly and knelt down on one knee in front of her.  He took the small screwdriver out of her hands and replaced it with his own.  He gently kissed the back of her hand and tilted his head a bit to the side, trying to catch her gaze.  “I’m sorry I’m late,” he apologized quietly, tilting his head again when he saw her lashes flick upwards a bit.  “We were ordered to fall back after they retreated, yes, but we decided to push them back as far as we could.”

“How far did you get?”  Rilea asked, her voice small and choked.

“Five miles.”

He watched her shoulders sink as a sigh left her lips.  He felt relief when she finally met his gaze.  A shaking hand reached up and touched his face as if to make sure he was real.   “I thought you were dead,” she whispered quietly.

“I would never leave you like that,” he assured.  “It takes a lot more than some scavengers to kill me.”

She let out a small laugh, a beautiful sound that filled his heart with joy.  “Yes, I suppose that’s true.  You’re too stubborn to die.”

Now, he was laughing.  “I thought you were the stubborn one.”  He reached up and brushed the hair off her face.  Her hair was getting longer, but it gave him more reason to touch her and brush her hair out of her eyes.  “Let’s go home, paramour.”

As she stood by his side and they walked home, Rezyl’s Ghost appeared on his shoulder.  “Lord Radegast is dealing with the Consensus for you two disobeying orders.  He said to let him worry about it.”  His Ghost swirled around Rilea’s head and she laughed.

“Why?  Does he know?  About us?”

“I think he suspects,”  Rezyl admitted.  “But he’s not the kind of man to ask too many questions.”  He noticed that his love’s eyes were on his Ghost, mystified and marveling at the small AI.  He gently reached down and grabbed the back of her hand, and flipped it palm up.  His Ghost settled in her palm and she froze, eyes wide as she looked up at him.  He tilted his head a bit with a smile.  “I trust you,” he murmured.  “I call him Amit.  I always just call him Ghost around other people, but you can be trusted with his name.”

Rilea held the Ghost in her hands carefully, like if she held too tight he would crumble.  “Amit…” she mumbled softly, her eyes softening as her lips curled in a gentle smile.  He floated up to her eye level with a twirl of his shell.  Her smile grew brighter and she gently kissed the top of his shell.  Rezyl laughed as Amit made a series of beeps and chirps in embarrassment, seeming to forget about his words.  

When they stood on their doorstep, night had fallen and covered the City in darkness, the only light coming from street lamps and from lit windows.  Rilea walked inside without hesitation, but Rezyl lingered for a beat, his eyes on Luna, his hand a tight grip around the railing.

“Rezyl?”  Rilea’s voice cut through his train of thought and he immediately relaxed his posture as he looked over at her.  Her face was written with concern as she stepped back out onto the steps.  She gently placed a hand on his arm.  “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah…”  He hummed with a small tilt of his head as he reached over and placed his hand on top of hers.  “Everything’s fine.  Now get you pretty little butt inside, it’s getting cold at night and you—” he reached over and gently pulled on the collar of her thin shirt “—are not dressed for it.”

Her cheeks flushed and she looked at him with raised brows, softly biting on her bottom lip through a grin.  Fuck, he cursed to himself as his thoughts started to turn darker, greedier at the look on her face.  She’s doing it again. 

“Fine,” she purred.  “I’ll go back inside…”  She reached over and brushed her hand over the fur in his collar “…but only if you come with me and get all this armor off.”

Now Rezyl was giving her an eager smile as he quickly picked her up by her waist and pulled her against his chest.  Her legs swung around his hips as a gleeful laugh left her lips.  He pushed the door open with his foot and chuckled as he pressed his face into her neck.

“Is that supposed to be a threat, paramour?”  He asked as he shut the door behind them.

Chapter Text

CW ::: nothing bad, just a very fluffy chapter with a small dash of Rezyl angst <3 so prepare your heartstrings

Thirteen nights.

For thirteen nights now, Rezyl has woken up from nightmares, bolting awake in bed, feeling like he is unable to breathe, drenched in cold sweat.  Visions of what horrors lie in wait on the moon plaguing him ever since the Battle of Six Fronts.  Ever since the Iron Lords discovered something in Site 6 that destroyed them and killed Lord Radegast, killed all of them, all but Lord Saladin.  Ever since the Vanguard went hunting the Ahamkara to keep Guardians from “making wishes” with prices too high to pay.  

These dreams had haunted him before, yes, but it was never this intense.  Never this vivid.  

Rilea was woken by it almost every time.  Every time he was nearly stumbling out of bed, gasping for breath and sweating.  Every time she would ask him what’s wrong.  And every time, he would give her a dismissive answer.

“It’s nothing.”

“Are you sure?”

“Just a bad dream.”

“Honey…”

“I’m fine.  Go back to sleep, paramour.”

Every night he would walk out onto the porch and sit for a while, trying to compose himself and erase the images from his mind.  It was easier to do now that the nights were getting colder.  The cold air would freeze the sweat on his skin and ease the nightmares away from his conscious mind.  And as he stared up at Luna, his thoughts would drift.  

He wondered what horrors hid up there, just out of sight.  What horrors his eyes couldn’t see.  What horrors that the City couldn’t defend against.

What horrors could get her killed in the crossfire.

Rilea was growing tired of the dismissal.  Every night he would be gone from bed for a while, and her worry kept her from sleeping.  Every night, she would stay in bed and wait for him to come back, and he would simply hold her and run his fingers through her hair until it lulled her back to sleep.  Not tonight.

She pulled on a jacket and her slippers and carried a blanket out with her to the porch.  He was just sitting there, calmly breathing, focusing.  For a split second, she almost felt bad for interrupting him.  She slipped through the door and walked quietly up to him on the stairs, then draped the blanket around his shoulders.  He looked up at her with surprise.

“I told you I was alright,” he sighed as she came to sit down next to him.  He tilted his head at her as she took hold of one of his hands.  “You should be back inside, it’s cold out here.”

“You’re not alright,” she sighed.  “You’ve been having these… dreams for two weeks now.  Something’s… it’s not sitting right with you.”  She looked over at him with concern.  “Rezyl, you can tell me.  Whatever’s troubling you… you can tell me.  But if you don’t know… or don’t understand… you don’t have to say anything.  But I am here for you, Rezyl.  I always will be.”

At first he was at a loss for words.  This was a much softer, empathetic side of her that she rarely showed.  He sighed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, then pulled her close to his side and wrapped the blanket around the both of them.  He didn’t say anything for a long while.  For the longest time, they just sat there, sharing in each other’s warmth.  No words.  

They sat there until the sun came up and painted the sky pink and amber.  

“I…” he started slowly, trying to figure out how to word his plan without setting her on alert.  She lifted her head from his shoulder.  “I’m going to be gone for a few days, alright?”

“What’s going on?”  She asked as she started to stretch out stiff muscles.

“I think I just need a little bit of time to clear my head.  Get out of this… whatever it is that’s all muddled up in my brain.  A few days to sort through it.”

Rilea looked over to the sunrise that was starting to color the horizon.  He adored the way the rays made her skin glow and her freckles stand out.  “Okay,” she sighed.  “But, honey, please, take as long as you need to.  I worry about all the stress this is putting on you.  Just… if you’re going to be gone for more than a few days, will you let me know?”

He smiled softly at this woman, this tiny spitfire and warrior, who was looking out for him more than his Ghost.  He chuckled softly and leaned over, pressing a kiss on her forehead.  “Come on, let’s make you some breakfast before I head out.”  

Rezyl picked the tired woman up and carried her inside, then set her down at the dining room table.  “Amit, start a pot of coffee,” he said softly as his Ghost appeared at his shoulder.  Rilea propped her head on her hand with a drowsy smile wide on her lips.  He immediately got to work making breakfast:  strawberry pancakes.  They were her favorite.  He only knew they were her favorite because she could eat them any time of day.  She had made them for him a couple of times in the last couple of weeks.  For her, they were a comfort food.  

He tried to let the process keep him busy.  It kept his mind off of conversation while he was trying to keep this lie straight in his head.  All he had to do was keep her from asking questions and making promises he wasn’t sure if he could keep.  Dodge the questions to keep from answers.  

He looked down as he felt her hands slide around him and rest lightly on his abdomen, her forehead pressing on his back.  “I’ll be on gate watch for the next few weeks,” Rilea hummed softly.  “And there’s been talk floating around about a project to update the sensor grid.  Increase its sensitivity and detection range.  I’ll likely be heading the team if they do.”

“That’s good,” Rezyl murmured as he flipped the pancake in the frying pan.  “Sounds like a promotion.”

“It is… but I might see you less… Longer days.  I’ve got time to think about it though, they don’t want to start the project until the weather warms again.  Easier on the power grid.”

He hummed in acknowledgement as he slid the pancake onto a plate and poured more batter into the oiled pan, just as the coffee brewer chimed.  Rilea’s touch lingered as she stepped away to pour herself a cup and get some cream.  Rezyl watched her from his peripherals.  

Her movements were slow and tired, but deliberate.  She was always like that.  Mind always at attention no matter how tired she was.  He knew it came from her years living out in the wilderness, keeping watch in shifts with other guards.  The unfortunate part now was that she was still a light sleeper.  She woke at any sound, no matter how quiet.  He could come home late at night, be as quiet as he could taking off his armor, but she woke every time.  

Rilea walked back over to the table and sat down, once again propping up her chin in her palm.  She smiled dreamily at the Titan while he finished cooking and plating breakfast.  She leaned back in her chair when he carried the plate over to the table, placed his empty hand on the back of her chair, and then set the meal in front of her.  She reached up and too his hand before he could walk away, and intertwined their fingers.  She looked up with a small smile.  “Thank you.”

Rezyl couldn’t help but smile back at her.  “You’re welcome, paramour.”  He leaned down and captured her lips in a brief, featherlight kiss.  When he moved to back away, her hand pulled his downwards, pulling him right back in for another kiss.  This one was sweeter, warmer, and quite a bit more intoxicating.  He pressed into it, his hand catching her jaw to lift her face into a better position.  When he pulled away from her, she let out a small gasp, and he chuckled.

“Eat your breakfast,”  he said softly, like it was an order.  He gave her another soft kiss, and she hummed with delight.

“As you wish,” she purred in response.

He chuckled and left her side to get his armor on.  While he was behind the closed bedroom door, his Ghost appeared at his shoulder.  “Are you sure you should be keeping the truth from her?”

“It’s the only way,”  Rezyl sighed.  “If I tell her the truth… she will most likely convince me to stay.  She’s the only one who’s better than you at convincing me not to do something.”

“And why would that be a bad thing?”

“Ghost,”  his voice was stern.  “I can’t keep going like this.   I can’t go another sleepless night.  I have to find answers.”

“And what makes you think they’re on Luna?”

“It’s just the next place to investigate.  I've already looked all over Earth, you know this.”

“Rezyl… what are you looking for?”

He paused a moment as he went to go slide Rose into its holster.  What was he looking for?  If he was being honest, he didn’t really know.  He was looking for answers.  He was looking for a antidote to cure this poison from his mind.

“Nightmares,” he responded firmly.  “I’m looking for nightmares.”

Chapter Text

Rezyl found the nightmares he had been looking for.  Hordes of them hiding in the dark.  A witch at their command, cruel and enticing, and her consort at her side, a knight with a mighty broadsword.  Her dark magic restrained him and crippled his Light in the dark, but he emerged the victor.  Not even these monsters in the dark could smother him or break him down.

Rilea was right, he thought.  I am too stubborn to die.

It had been two days that he spent in the Hellmouth, fighting off hordes that tried to smother his Light, his Ghost waiting from the safety of the surface of the Moon.  When he finally emerged from the dark depths back into the Light, he told his Ghost everything.  About the witch that called herself Xyor, the hordes, the knight and his battle.  They had to warn the Vanguard.  If the Hive were this prevalent here, they wouldn’t stay on Luna forever.  They would come for Earth eventually, it was only a matter of time.  But at least they could have time to prepare.

He brought home with him a trophy of his victory: a piece of bone from the witch’s consort, her champion.  The monstrous Knight that he had defeated.  He grafted this trophy to his Rose while they took the long journey home, adorning his piece as if it were a crown.  He sent a message ahead to Rilea, telling her he was coming home.  That he had found his answers.

He came clean to Rilea after he gave the Vanguard all the information he knew.  She was upset that he didn’t tell her the truth, and even more upset when his Ghost revealed that he didn’t follow Rezyl down into the darkness.  But her anger didn’t last long, and eventually embraced him.  He was alive.  He was the victor.  He came home.  That was all that mattered.  But to never do something so foolishly stupid again.

An invasion came faster than anticipated.  Rezyl didn’t follow them into battle this time, he was out on another mission to hunt down more Fallen, to try and thin their ranks before they could plan another attack on the City.  The battle had just ended when he returned home.  People were calling it Burning Lake.  Their victory was mere inches away from a loss.  And he could hear Lord Shaxx’s outrage from the postmaster when the Vanguard announced they were going to launch a counterattack on the Moon.  

Over five hundred Guardians stormed the moon to establish a beachhead, but they were hopelessly outmatched.  A mere few of them survived when the Vanguard called a retreat and declared travel to Luna forbidden.

Rezyl thought what he had encountered in the depths of the Hellmouth was bad.  This—this was bad.  The Consensus thought they could combat and defeat whatever was hiding on Luna and they were terribly wrong.  Even Rezyl had tried to warn them of the potential threat they actually faced, that it was so much deeper than what he had witnessed.  He had barely scratched the surface of the Moon.  And now hundreds were dead because of the Consensus’ arrogance.

The Vanguard was a joke.  They thought they could defeat the Hive on Luna when they barely won on Earth.  They didn’t understand this enemy, what made them think they could beat it?

Over the next several months, he made it his responsibility to thin the herd.  Every day he went on solo patrols to hunt down the growing numbers on Hive on the surface and beat back the Fallen.  Maybe if he cut down enough Hive, he could find a weakness in them.  Something to use against them.  Something to defeat them.  In his mind, he couldn’t trust anyone else to get the job done right.  And he was steadfast in his resolve.  The more he fought, the closer he was to keeping Rilea safe.  He came across new settlements of people every now and then, people tired and weary from living in constant fear of Fallen invasion.  He did his duty and led them to the Last Safe City, where they could live out the rest of their lives in peace.  Winter and spring had already come and gone, and summer was warming the air in Old Russia.

There was another Guardian protecting the little settlement of tents he just came across, but she was Ghostless.  The Fallen had gotten her Ghost on their last attack.

He was quiet as she recounted the attack.  How it was almost over when an Arc-charged blade cut through her Ghost.  The last Fallen left standing had ambushed her from the shadows.  She threw a knife through its brain and crushed its ether mask with the butt of her gun.

“You do what you must to keep people safe,” she told him.  “But I’ve only got one more life to give.  We’ve been slowly moving towards the City, but…”  She pushed aside the cloth on her stomach, a bullet wound in her side.  “Those damn things keep catching up to us.  Lost a few people along the way.”

He offered to help her escort these people to the City, and she thanked him for his help.  When they arrived, Rilea helped them all get settled and helped Rezyl bring the injured Guardian to the hospital for treatment.

The two of them sat quietly on the porch that afternoon.  Rilea held his Ghost in her hands, her thumb tracing the edges of its shell.  Amit made small, delighted chirps in response.

“Where do you go?”  She asked him quietly.  “When you go out on these patrols, where do you go?”

“Wherever I can help,” he responded.  “What happened to the sensor grid project?”

“It’s, uh… it’s been put off for a while.  I’m sure you heard that the Hunter Vanguard went missing last year.  Until they can fill the position, the project is on hold.  He was the one who was going to initiate it.”

Rezyl scoffed at the thought.  “The Vanguard should be doing whatever they can, now more than ever, to protect the City.”

“I know,” she sighed.  “But, like you told me before, it’s politics.  The Consensus will focus on filling the gaps instead on updating the grid.  It’s just how it is.  Besides, there hasn’t been a direct threat to the City since Six Fronts.”

“Doesn’t mean something won’t happen.”

Rilea didn’t know how to respond, so she remained quiet.  As much as they both hated politics, Rilea kept up with it.  There hadn’t been any Fallen threats to the City since Six Fronts, so the Consensus assumed they had given up.  But she wanted to get the grid project going.  The sensors didn’t give them enough leeway before to be prepared for the last attack.  If the grid was updated to have more range, they could know about approaching threats sooner.

She reached over, took one of his hands and he intertwined their fingers.  She looked down at his hand and noticed that some of the individual sections of his tattoos were blocked in.  Origianally, they were all just line art, but now some of the pieces were filled.

“When'd you start filling in your tattoos?”  Rilea asked curiously.

“Hmm?”  Rezyl hummed as they looked down at their hands.  “Oh... yeah.  Started getting them filled after each mission... if I have the extra glimmer.”

Rilea smiled a bit.  “It looks good...”

Silence fell between them.  Rilea looked up at the sky that was starting to burn crimson as the sun set.

“Do you ever think about throwing in the towel?”  She asked quietly.

Rezyl raised his eyebrows and looked over at his partner.  He tilted his head at her.  “No… why?”  

“I have…”

“How come, I thought you enjoyed life here, what you do.”

“And I do… It’s just that… I don’t feel like I’m helping anyone anymore.  It’s not like I’m a young captain anymore, out there in the wilds protecting a small village of people.  I’m already thirty years, Rezyl… Almost thirty-one.”  She sighed heavily and leaned her head on his shoulder.  “I just wonder how much longer the Consensus will keep me around.  Of everyone on the board, I’m one of the few mortal people involved in the City’s infrastructure.  I guess it’s only a matter of time before I’m replaced by a Guardian, just like the rest of my coworkers.”

“Rilea…”  Rezyl looked over at her sadly.  “I know it’s been hard for you…  I know you don’t like it when I’m gone for long periods, but I go out there to keep our enemies at bay.  Anything I can do…  Is there anything I can do to make this easier on you?”

“It would be nice if you were home more…  I know you’re trying to make things safer… but I miss you around here.  It’s lonely without you…”

The Titan sighed and pressed a small kiss to her forehead.  “I’ll do my best.”

Something deep down inside of him was screaming.  He knew that what he said was a lie.  And the tattoos?  He wasn't filling them.  He'd noticed a week or so ago.  They had just started darkening on their own.

Chapter Text

CW ::: mentions of blood, gore & death; angst; medical/hospital details; violence. 

It took a year for Rilea to be busy again.  Once Andal Brask lost the Vanguard Dare to Cayde-6 and took up the title of Hunter Vanguard, the sensor grid project was pushed through.  Rilea was relieved to be back to doing work that could make a difference.  She was also relieved that she was still on the project.  She wasn’t the head of the project, but she was their lead engineer.  She would be doing a lot of the work updating each sensor’s software individually.

Rezyl was going back out on his missions.  Rilea wasn’t too worried about it.  She missed him at home because she didn’t sleep well without him, yes, but most of the time she was too busy to have the energy to say something about it.  It was hard because his check-ins were sporadic, at best.  

Then Jasper died, his age finally caught up with him.  And with no one around to give her an outlet for her grief, she dove head first into the sensor grid project, forgetting to eat and neglecting to sleep if she could.  She would go two days at a time without sleeping, sometimes longer.  Why should she bother to tell Rezyl if he was never around long enough to hold an in depth conversation?

When Rezyl was home, he was scolding her.  Scolding her for not eating, scolding her for not sleeping, chiding her for not taking care of herself.  He told her that he knew her role was important, but she couldn’t keep working herself to the bone.  Then he would take her to dinner and make sure she ate.  When they got home, they would take turns in the shower (and on occasion, shower together) then he would coax her to bed afterwards, and run his fingers through her soft hair to lull her to sleep.  It worked like a charm every time.  

After a while, however, Rilea got tired of the scolding and the nagging.  It was grating.

“You know how I am with work!” She snapped at him.  “I lose track of time!  I don’t have you around every day anymore to remind me to go home and eat!  You’re never around anymore, Rezyl!”

Rezyl felt equal parts guilt and anger when she said that.  “Fuck, I shouldn’t have to tell you to eat!  Damn it, Rilea, you’re going to work yourself to death!”

“Well that’s fucking fine, it’s not like you’re ever around anymore to see me.”

“Don’t you put this on me, Rilea,” his voice was low and tight with the anger he was restraining.  “It’s not like I’m the only person in your damn life.”

The expression that came to her face shut him up quickly.  A look of grief and anger that made his stomach clench.  “No, you are, Rezyl.  Jasper died a few months ago, he was the only other person I had left.  I’ve lost everyone.  Everyone, but you.”

His anger immediately washed away with that shock.  He didn’t know.  But he understood now why she was working so much.  It was how she distracted herself, it was how she grieved.  “Rilea, I…  Why didn’t you tell me?”  His voice was soft and quiet.  He crossed the room to embrace her, but she knocked his arm out of the way with the back of her hand and walked away from him.  She didn’t give him an answer.  She shut herself in their bedroom and locked the door.

Rezyl felt awful now.  He set down his Rose, shed off his armor and left it on the coffee table, then sank down on the couch.  “I’ve fucked it,” he muttered to himself.  “I’ve really fucked it this time, Amit.”

“She is right, though,”  Amit chirped.  “You… you’re not really around anymore, so why should she tell you anything?”

“I know, I’m trying—”

“No, you’re not, Rezyl,” Amit cut him off, “you’re not trying, don’t even lie to yourself about it.  You don’t have to keep going past the Wall on all these solo hunts.  You could be around for her more.”

Rezyl looked at his Ghost with raised brows.  “I thought you were supposed to be on my side?”

“I am.  I’m trying to get you to do better.”

Rezyl rolled his eyes and laid down on the couch with his hands folded on his stomach.  “I want to do better, Amit, I really do, I just—”  He groaned and rubbed his eyes in frustration.  “I can never get it right.”

“Well, you can start by apologizing.”

He laid there in silence for a long time.  And when he gazed down at his arms, he noticed that more of his tattoos were filled in.  It was all the way up to his biceps now, with the exception of the roses that mirrored each other on his forearms.  He sat up and pulled his shirt off and walked up to the windows that overlooked the Last City.  He caught a view of his refection in the glass.  There were parts of the tattoo that spread down his sides and waist that curled around to the front of his abdomen that had filled up as well.  And when he turned around and looked over his shoulder, the lower half of his back was starting to fill in as well.  Rezyl sat down on the couch again, slid his shirt back on, and ran his hands through his hair.

What’s happening?

Rilea didn’t speak to him for a few days.  She just focused on working.  She was in the middle of running a diagnostic on a new sensor in the Twilight Gap when all of a sudden multiple sensors in the sector started to go off.  These sensors were just replaced today.  Confused, she walked over to an associate running a diagnostic on another sensor.  

“Is there something wrong with the connection?”  The man asked while showing her his datapad.  “Or something wrong with the program maybe?”

“No, no, no, that’s not possible,” she muttered in confusion.  “We’ve been running the same program for all of them, so all of them would be going off.”  Just as she went to go up the ladder to the top of the wall, an explosion went off on the outside.  She fell off the ladder with a scream and the man with her caught her before she could hit the ground.

“Sound the alarm!”  She shouted.  “The City’s under attack!”  As multiple people started pulling mounted levers and alarms started to blare, she pressed her hand on a control panel that connected her with the Vanguard.  “This is Rilea Fey, Sensor Grid Project lead engineer.  The City’s under attack!  Just outside of the Ridgeback District at Twilight Gap!  They’ve got—”  Before she could tell them about the heavy firepower, another explosion hit the wall and blasted through one side of it.  The blast sent her back into a nearby support beam and knocked her unconscious.

Rezyl heard the alarms start to blare.  He was in the Hall of Guardians speaking to his Vanguard when the first blast hit.  

Lord Saladin and Zavala were both immediately at attention.

And then that transmission came in and turned his blood to ice.  Rilea's voice echoed through the Hall, clear as day, and then an explosion knocked out the feed.

He was already running out of the Hall before Saladin could even command everyone to their battle stations.  

“Amit, you have a ping on her datapad?”  He asked as he descended from the Tower and landed on the ground in the City below with a grunt.  Just as Lord Saladin’s voice echoed over all Vanguard channels.

[ Attention all Fireteams:  The Fallen are attacking the City.  Rally at Twilight Gap.  The Fallen must not get past the Wall. ]

“Rezyl, I’m only linked in with her personal one, and it’s at home.”

“Damn it!”  Rezyl cursed to himself as he jumped onto his sparrow and raced along the edge of the Wall towards the Ridgeback District.  Guardians were swarming into formation in the Gap under the command of Lord Saladin as the City’s gun emplacements started to rain fire down on the Fallen.  “Then get me a location of her transmission.  Find her.”

“Working on it.”

He joined the battle, Arc Light coursing through him as he leapt off his sparrow and slammed his fists on the ground.  How were they scaling the wall so quickly?  Walkers on the other side continued to bombard the Wall to carve them a path and it was working.  Splinters of metal rained down on their defenses.  When the Light faded from his fists, he pulled out his Rose with a twirl and immediately put all six bullets into six skulls and loaded more lead into the chamber.  He fought alongside Guardians he’d never met before to try and push them back, but there were so many of them.  Blood splattered armor as both enemies and allies fell.

“How are there so many?” He asked his Ghost as he crushed a Vandal’s throat underneath his foot.

“It looks like three different Fallen houses, look at their banners.  They’re working together, why?”

“Same reason they always have,”  Rezyl grunted as he knocked off a Dreg that had tried to tackle him from behind, then put a bullet through its skull.  The Titan caught a glimpse of Saint-14 as he headbutted a Captain to death.  “Saint!”  He shouted, shaking out his hands.  The Titan looked over at him with a nod.  “Give me a boost!”

He could hear Saint-14 laughing as he crouched down on one knee and cupped his hands on his thigh.  Rezyl cracked his neck and ran at him, Arc Light swirling around his body and leaving a glowing blue trail behind him.  He jumped onto Saint-14′s hand and the Titan gave him a hefty upwards push, sending him flying into the air.  When he came down, fist first, the impact eviscerated all Fallen in a five meter radius.  Guardians swarmed the area around him to regain some ground.

“Have you found her yet?”  He asked his Ghost, as bullets bloomed from his Rose.

“I got a lock on her transmission, but there’s not a lot of life signs from that section…  I’m reading five—no, wait, four life signs.”

“Draw me a path and get me on comms with Lord Saladin.”  He ran towards a Captain and jumped, charging his knee right into it’s mask, then wrapped his arms around the Captain’s head, pulled the Fallen over his shoulder, and twisted its neck to snap it as its body hit the ground.  

[ Saladin!  We still have injured civilians in the Wall. ]

[ Get them out of there, Azzir.  Take a team with you.  Get them back to the City.  We’ll hold the line— ]

Another explosion hit and blasted a hole through the Wall.  Rezyl’s eyes widened as the Fallen’s battle cry echoed in the distance.

[ Go, Azzir! ]

Azzir grabbed two nearby warlocks and another Titan.  “Follow me, there’s civilians trapped in the Wall.  We’re ordered on extraction.”  The three of them nodded and followed him into the Wall.  They shot down any Fallen that were inside.  There were the bodies of innocent people strewn about, some people were missing limbs from the blasts, blood pooled everywhere on the floor.  “Ghost, give me the life signs again.”  He looked around.  He’d never been inside this portion of the Wall.  There were four signatures coming from levels above them.  “On my six, Guardians.”

Rezyl climbed the ladder up a level and found one of them.  The man was hiding behind some crates, and one of the Warlocks helped him stand and led him out to safety.

The next level up, Fallen were standing over two citizens who were knocked unconscious, and Rezyl put a bullet in both their brains.  The other two Guardians with him picked them up and carried them out of the Wall.

“The next level is where her transmission came from,” his Ghost confirmed.  “But… Rezyl you have to understand… there was a whole team of them working on the grid.  It… it might not…”

He ignored his Ghost as he climbed up to the next level when another explosion hit the wall.  He grunted as the impact threw him off balance, but he pulled himself up.  There was a Captain in the colors of House of Kings standing over a body, the last life sign.  It said something foreign as its massive hand picked the person up by the neck, but they were limp.  Still breathing, but motionless.

Rezyl recognized the band of amber around the arm of their navy jumpsuit that marked their station.

[ We’re losing ground!  Azzir, are the civilians out of the Wall? ]

“Rilea!”  He shouted, catching the Captain’s attention.  It cast the woman aside like she was a doll, and he heard her moan in pain as she hit the floor.  

His Light surged and he charged the Captain and drove his knee into its chest, knocked it on its back, and then he jumped in the air and drove his fist downward, punching an Arc charged fist right through its chest.

He rushed over to the seemingly lifeless woman.  He lifted her torso up from the ground and placed a hand behind her head to support her neck.  He stared in horror at the blood that wet his hand, back of her head was caked with it.  Hot tears were budding at the corner of his eyes.  “Ghost, give me her vitals.”

Amit scanned over her body.  “Her vitals are weak and she’s bleeding somewhere internally.  She doesn’t have a lot of time, Rezyl.”

He lifted her body in his arms, stood, and cradled her head against his pauldron with his hand.  “Where’s the nearest hospital?”  

“A mile into the City.”

[ Azzir, do you copy!  Are the citizens out of the Wall? ]

[ I copy!  I’ve got the last survivor.  We’ll be clear in 30 seconds! ]

Rezyl started running down the corridor in the Wall, trying to get as much distance between himself and the Gap as possible.  “Stay with me, love,” he murmured softly.  He shouldered through a door and summoned his sparrow when he was outside.  He looked over at the battlefield.  Maker… there were Fallen everywhere.  He climbed onto his sparrow and nestled Rilea close to his chest.  “Stay with me.”  He took off for the City as Lord Saladin’s voice erupted over comms.

[ Fireteam leaders:  Do not advance on the Wall.  Fall back to the Ridgeback Distract. ]

Rezyl cranked the throttle and picked up speed.  He couldn’t bring her to the District if they were falling back.  His sparrow roared through the empty City streets.  Citizens were taking shelter in the bunkers.

[ I repeat:  All teams rally at the Ridgeback District.  Do NOT advance.  The City is lost. ]

Rezyl was appalled.  He looked around him.  The City wasn’t burning.  There was no smoke in the air.  How was this a loss?  He held onto Rilea tighter as he took a sharp corner and rerouted his course for the next district inward.

[ Shaxx!  Do you copy? ]

He pulled up to the hospital fast and released the stabilizers to swing his sparrow around by the doors and he hit the brakes.  He jumped off of the sparrow and carried her inside as it transmatted away.  “I need a doctor!”  He shouted.  Three medical personnel rushed over to him and guided him to an empty bed.  He was almost pushed out of the way as they started to examine her; they checked her pupils and her pulse while another doc started to cut through her dirt and blood covered uniform.  He was frozen there, his heart pounding in his throat.  

[ Shaxx, your orders are to retreat. ]

“Pulse is thready, we need to get her pressure up fast.  Prep OR 3 for surgery, 3 pints of O neg on standby.  Sir, you need to move out of the way.”

He backed out of the way and they wheeled her bed off past doors he wasn’t allowed to go through.  For a moment, he felt like everything was moving in slow motion. He walked out of the emergency room and back out into the empty street.

[ This battlefield is not your stage, Shaxx!  This is not about glory! ]

His frozen blood started to boil.  Anger replaced the fear that flowed through his veins.  He summoned his sparrow and hopped on, then punched the throttle and started to fly back to Twilight Gap.

“What are you doing?” His Ghost asked.  “Rezyl, there’s not time for heroism!”

[ Shaxx!  For the final time:  Fall!  Back! ]

“We lose the wall, we lose everything we’ve fought for,”  Rezyl growled.  “It’s cowardice to fall back.”

“Rezyl, think about Rilea!”  Rezyl slowed his sparrow.  “You’ve done your part, for once, Rezyl, take your own damn advice.”

He pulled up to a full stop and looked at his Ghost on his shoulder.  “And what’s that, huh?  Don’t be a hero?”  His Ghost was silent.  Rezyl Azzir was a hero.  He represented hope for the people of the Last City.  He couldn’t just give all that up now.  Dozens, if not hundreds of Guardians were laying dead on that battlefield.  It was an insult to their memory if he obeyed the order to retreat.  “That’s what I thought.”

He punched the throttle and took off towards the Gap.

Lord Shaxx and his fireteam had bought them a window.  Once everyone saw it, they rallied behind him and pushed back the Fallen from the battlefield.  They fought until the sky burned red with the setting sun and the Fallen finally called a retreat.  They had once again, defeated even the combined Fallen Houses.

But there was no music that night.  There was no feast.  No celebration.  Their dead closely matched the number of them still living and the grass was red with blood.  Rezyl’s armor was splattered with blood and he was weary, but anger still remained.  He was more staunch in his resolve than ever now, seeing that Saladin was willing to let the City fall than to push forwards.  If there was anyone on the Consensus left that he could put faith in, it was Lord Shaxx.  His decision was risky, yes, but it saved the day.

Rezyl removed his armor and had his Ghost transmat it back to their home.  He rode his sparrow back to the hospital, where Rilea was still in surgery.  When she finally came out, he got the full prognosis:  a nasty gash on the back of her head and on her forehead, in the hairline (and most likely a concussion), a few broken vertebrae (thankfully no damage to her spinal cord), several fractured ribs and some internal bleeding in her abdomen (something must have fallen on her when she was unconscious and burst some vessels) that was remedied, and lots of bruises and some more cuts, but not as major as the ones on her head.

He sat with her while she slept in the hospital for hours.  His Ghost had scanned her body, and assured his charge that she would be fine.  It would be a long healing process, but she would eventually be alright.  The entire time he was with her, he clutched onto her hand.  He couldn’t take his eyes off her.  Her head had been shaved so they could stitch up the gash on the back of her skull, but she was covered in bandages.  Her torso was caged in a cast so she wouldn’t move, it was the only way for her spine to heal.  

For a long time, he kept whispering apologies.  He was sorry that this happened to her.  Sorry that he couldn’t get there sooner.  Sorry that he broke his promise to keep her safe.  

Sorry that he failed.  

She hummed softly when the anesthesia started to wear off, and his heart flooded with relief.  Her eyes fluttered open and she looked around the room in a daze.  Then her gaze settled on Rezyl and tears filled her eyes.

“What happened?”  She asked quietly, her voice raspy.  

Rezyl dragged his chair a little closer and leaned his elbows on the bed, still holding onto her hand.  He pressed his lips against her skin as he reached up and brushed the tears from her eyes.  “What do you remember?”

“I remember… the sensors going off.  We thought it might be a false signal or a malfunction… then the explosion…  I don’t know… it’s all hazy…”

“The explosions must have knocked you out,” he murmured softly.  “I raced as fast as I could to find you and get you out…  You weren’t even awake when I got to you…  You’ve got some cuts, gashes, bruises and a few broken vertebrae and some fractured ribs, probably from the explosions.  There was some internal bleeding in your abdomen… but the doctors were able to find and repair the damage.” 

She let out a weak laugh.  “That all?  All things considered… I think I’m pretty fortunate.”

The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes, his lips gently pressed on the back of her hand.  “Fuck, Rilea…” He sighed.  “I’m so sorry…”

“Why are you sorry?”

“I promised I would keep you safe.”

“Hey…”  Her fingers gently intertwined with his and she gave his hand a tiny gentle squeeze.  “This is not your fault…”

Rezyl stood up a bit and pressed a kiss against her bandaged forehead.  “Get some sleep.”

He had moved to leave, but her hand caught his wrist tightly.  When he looked back at her, there were tears in her eyes.  Her voice was barely a whisper.  “Don’t go.”

He chuckled and smiled at her, and tilted his head at her.  “I’m going to get your doctor and tell him you’re awake,” he laughed.  “I’m not going anywhere.”

Chapter Text

Rilea was in the hospital for another three months following Twilight Gap.  The broken vertebrae were taking the longest to heal and she was bedridden until they did.  For a long while, she barely spoke.  Temporary paralysis had taken everything from her:  her life, her happiness, her faith.  She wouldn’t be able to go back to work afterwards, she wasn’t even sure if she was going to be able to walk.  When the vertebrae did finally heal, she remained inpatient for weeks of physical therapy and rehabilitation.  She had to relearn how to walk and regain strength in her back and legs.  

Rezyl took some temporary leave from the Vanguard.  He told them that after Twilight Gap, he had to rethink some of his priorities, and they did as well.  But eventually, he started to get antsy.  There was rage towards the Fallen that fueled his fire for revenge.  Rilea would still have a life if not for the Fallen.  She would still be able to walk.  He spent much of the first month keeping her company in the hospital, but he wasn’t made for staying in place.  And the longer he stayed out of the field, the longer his anger simmered.

Rilea knew that he was growing anxious staying in one place, so she assured Rezyl that she was fine.  That she was in good hands with the doctors here.  He didn’t have to spend every waking moment with her.  Just come visit every couple of days.  And though he said he would, that was another empty promise.  She realized that they were both alike in the sense of being workaholics.  He only came to visit when he was home, and that was about once every five or six days.

And when he did visit, she started to notice small changes in his personality.  He smiled less.  He talked less.  He seemed to be avoiding sleep, no matter how tired he was.  Only a few times he had passed out, his head on her bed, clutching her hand.  He started to become a little more physical, but not in a violent sense.  He touched her more, caressed her more, he seemed to find comfort in the warmth of her skin.  He continued to fill in his tattoos.  Both sleeves were blocked in up to his shoulders with the exception of the abstract roses.  Rilea loved them.  She thought they looked marvelous.  But whenever she said something about it, his answer was... sad, almost.

But there was one thing she noticed the most.

He had stopped calling her “paramour.”

He came looking for her one day while she was in therapy, so he was shown to the rehab gym where she was working on walking.  She had spent the last three weeks getting back the strength in her legs and lower back.  She was with a physical therapist on a straight track with two railings on the side for support.  Adorned in loose pants and a tank top and sweating her ass off, short hair sticking to her neck and forehead, she caught sight of Rezyl standing by the door.  There was a small smile on his lips as he started over to her.  For a moment she was so excited to see him and tried to rush over to him; she took her hands off the railing and she forgot she didn’t have the strength in her back to fully support herself yet.  She sank down onto her knees, with a small groan of pain.  Both he and the doc were at her side to help her back up, but she brushed them both off.  She grabbed onto the railings and pulled herself back onto her feet.  She looked over at the physical therapist and tilted her head, wordlessly asking for a few minutes alone.  When the doctor walked away, Rezyl walked onto the ramp with her.

“You’re getting stronger,” Rezyl remarked.  “Good.”

“Yeah, well, they won’t let me leave here until I can walk on my own again, so…”  She gave him a strained smile.  “I’m trying.”

He extended his hands.  “Well, don’t let me stop you.  Let’s keep going.”

Rilea looked at him with raised browns and half a smile.  She took his hands and grasped onto them tightly while she tried to support herself.  He slowly started walking backwards and she took some unsteady steps forwards, following his path.  

“You know…” she started.  “You’ve seemed a little distracted lately.”

He didn’t even bat an eye.  “There’s a lot of work to be done, Rilea.”

She sighed softly.  “I know.  There’s always work.”  She took a few more shaky steps.  “Hopefully I’ll be walking on my own and out of here in a few weeks.”

“You shouldn’t rush your body, Ri,”  he sighed.  He looked down at her and tilted his head.  “I understand you want out of here, but you need to give yourself time.”

She bit down on the inside of her cheek. And took a few more steps.  Her legs were shaking badly.  “I-I need a break.”  

He nodded and closed the gap between them, pulled her hand up to his shoulder then slid his arm around her back.  He walked her over to the chair at the end of the ramp, supporting most of her weight until she was sitting down.  She leaned back in the chair and the doctor came back over to give her a glass of water.  She looked over at Rezyl to see a resigned look on his face.  She leaned her head into his view and he met her gaze.  She reached up and cupped his cheek; Rezyl’s hand came up and placed on top of hers.

“Hey… don’t look at me like that.  I’m going to be alright.”

He sighed then reached up and ruffled a hand through her hair.  “I know.  You’re just as stubborn as I am.”

Five months to the day of her admission, Rilea was discharged from the hospital.  She could walk on her own just fine, though she had a small limp now that was only noticeable when you were looking for it.  She carried a pack over her shoulder of her belongings and let out a small sigh of delight when a light, late summer breeze brushed over her face and ruffled her short hair.  When she got home, Rezyl wasn’t anywhere to be seen, but as she shut the door and set down her pack, she could hear the shower running.  She smiled to herself as she snuck into the bedroom and changed out of the clothes she had been loaned from the hospital and into some of her own, something familiar for him.  She quietly walked back out into the living area and sat down on the couch.

She heard the bedroom door open and she looked over her shoulder with a smile.  He was only wearing his sweatpants and drying his hair with a towel, so she got a full view of his ink.  It was filled in up to his collarbone, now.  Rezyl’s eyes widened when he realized that she was there and he dropped the towel.  His Ghost immediately materialized out of thin air and circled around her head.

“Welcome home!” Amit chirped happily. 

Rilea laughed as she stood.  “Yes, I’m home.”  She looked over at Rezyl and he still stood there, shocked.  She walked over to him and took his hands.  His hair was still wet from his shower.

“You’re home…”  He murmured softly, his head tilting to take in her radiance.  One of his hands lifted and cupped her cheek, thumb tracing over the old scar on her skin, index finger brushing over the new one in her hairline.  “I saw you two weeks ago and you were still struggling.”  She closed her eyes and sighed with delight as his fingers pushed through her hair until he held the back of her head.  “You’re so strong…”

Rilea opened her eyes and gazed at him lovingly.  “Rezyl…”  She sighed softly.  “We need to—”

He shushed her and leaned down, pressing his forehead on hers.  “No… please, sweet girl, you’ve just come home.  I haven’t been able to hold you in ages.  Please… just let me have you… I just want to touch you…”

She wanted to open her mouth to protest, that she really needed to talk to him about how much he’s been changing.  She just wanted to make sure he was alright.  His hand slipped around her waist and gently pressed on her back, over the scar where the incision from her surgery was.  The scar itself was still sensitive, but when his fingers touched it ever so gently, she nearly sank against him with the thrill that electrified her neurons.  “You’ll always have me,” she assured quietly.  “I’m not going anywhere.”

As his hands slid down her sides to her hips and he effortlessly lifted her off her feet, Rilea pressed her lips against his and wrapped her arms around his neck loosely.  He kissed her with a sense of urgency and desperation, but she could feel his desire emanating off of him.  His skin felt like it was on fire, his grip on her bottom was firm as he carried her into the privacy of their bedroom.  His kiss was hot and fervent, his touch like sparks on her skin when he finally sat down on the bed with her in his lap.

“Rezyl,” she gasped when his broke from her lips and trailed kisses along her throat.  He faltered for a moment, pausing his assault on her skin, his hands already halfway up her shirt.  Rilea giggled lightly as she leaned her head back and pushed her hands into his damp hair.  “Slow down… I’m staying right here…”

He let out a pent-up sigh and leaned his head on his shoulder, his lips pressing on her collarbone.  “Sorry…” he mumbled in embarrassment.  “I… I missed you… I think a lot more than I realized.”

She cupped his jaw with both her hands, lifted his face and smiled compassionately at him.  “Then come home more… I know you’re trying to keep me safe from out there… but I feel safer when you’re by my side.”

He closed his eyes and leaned into her hands, one of his lifting and closing around her wrist.  “All right…” he sighed.  “I’ll try to be home every night… whenever I can…” 

She smiled warmly and leaned forward, closed her eyes and pressed a kiss on his lips.  “Good…”

They laid side by side, skin and hearts bared, cuddled in each other’s warmth, a tangled mess of limbs.  Rezyl’s fingers danced up and down her skin, tracing over every tattoo and scar, from the new ones on her spine and stomach, to the older ones on her shoulder and cheek.  Rilea, exhausted from their make-up session and cuddled up with her back pressed against his chest, was nearly falling asleep against him.  His hands finally settled her abdomen, gently rubbing circles on her skin.  As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t rest.  There was one question on her mind that she wanted to ask.

“Hey, Rezyl?”  She asked softly, and he hummed in response.  “Why’d you stop calling me ‘paramour’?”

He was silent for a moment, though he still continued to gently massage her skin.  “Because you are no longer my paramour,” he started, but his hand slid up and covered her heart before she could respond.  “You are my love.  My greatest desire.  There’s nothing immoral about this love for me anymore.  Twilight Gap made me realize that.”

She shifted in his arms and turned onto her other side.  His hands aligned on her spine and pulled her close against his chest.  “How so?”

“In the years I’ve known you, love, I had never felt more fear and anxiety thinking that I had lost you.  I know…” He sighed and pressed his lips against her hair.  “I know I will lose you one day.  But I wasn’t ready to lose you like that.  I love you too much to let you go.”

“My years in this world are finite,” she whispered.  “You and I have both known that from the moment we met, and yet you stayed with me.  Through everything.  Rezyl, I…” she looked up into his eyes, his beautiful emerald optics that had captured her from day one.  “I love you, too.”

He gave her a small smile, leaned over and pressed a kiss to her forehead.  “Get some rest, sweet girl.”  She nestled against his chest while he ran his hand up and down her spine.  But while his lover slept, Rezyl stayed awake.  He was at war with himself.  The Vanguard was flawed; they only fortified the wall after Twilight Gap, when it should have happened after Six Fronts.  The Consensus was arrogant, especially the Speaker; who exiled Osiris because he was concerned about a Vex invasion, which the City was woefully unprepared for.  And to make matters worse, he sent Saint-14 after Osiris, and he has since gone missing.  His patience for the City’s “leaders” who sought “peace” was growing dangerously thin.

Chapter Text

CW ::: angst, domestic violence, corruption

It had almost been two years since Twilight Gap and Rilea started to grow more and more worried about Rezyl.  He was around remarkably less, and when he was home, he was… different.  He spoke remarkably less, and whenever he spoke to her, he seemed cold and dismissive.  She was almost certain he wasn’t eating, even though she made something for him whenever he was home.  He barely slept.  He doesn’t even come to bed anymore, but he was always attentive to her when she had nightmares.  She had started having them ever since Twilight Gap and her brush with death.  Someone had suggested she talk to someone, that what she was going through was textbook, but the only person she was ever willing to talk to wasn’t talking to her anymore.

She would always wake up, either clutching her stomach or her throat, her back searing with pain and her head splitting.  A few times she had stumbled out of bed and collapsed on the floor, as if her legs had lost all their strength.  Rezyl would either come rushing in from the living room or jump out of the chair that was by the window in their bedroom.  He was only soft when he was talking her down off the edge after a nightmare.  He would whisper to her quietly, smooth his hand over her hair, and rub circles on her back until she was breathing easily again.  He would carry her back to bed and lay with her, soothing her back to sleep.

But that was if he was home.  Every other night she woke in the dark, petrified and anxious out of her mind.  All she could do to comfort herself was curl up, hold her head, and cry.  Just get it out.  But when she was on her own, it was nearly impossible to fall back asleep.

Lately, he seemed to be trying to be home more since it was close to the anniversary of Twilight Gap, and her nightmares usually got more intense.  But the more he actually stayed home, the more she started to notice the changes in him.  A few times when she was plagued with insomnia and feigned sleep, she could hear him talking to himself.  Whispering to himself.  She would peer over at him through slitted lids, but found that he wasn’t talking to anyone.  Not even his Ghost.

“Rezyl?”  She asked him quietly one morning.  They were still curled up together in bed nude, sharing in each other’s warmth.

“Hmm?”  He opened one eye and looked at her.  “You alright, love?”

She sat up in bed, stretched and looked over at him.  “Can we talk?”

Rezyl stretched his arms and let out a yawn.  He swung his legs over the bed and reached for his sweats.  “What about?”

Rilea chewed on the inside of her cheek and took a deep breath.  He always got upset when she asked him about this.  “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Ri.”

“No, you’re not,” she insisted quietly.  “Rezyl… you’re not alright.”

She could see the tension growing in his shoulders as he stood and slipped on his sweats and a sleeveless top, and slowly let out a heavy sigh.  “I am alright, Rilea.  Stop asking.”

“You’re never home anymore, Rezyl,” she started.  “You leave for a week or two at a time and you never check in, even when you promise to.”

“It’s work, Ri—”

“You’re not eating, I can’t recall the last time you ate something, and it’s certainly taking a toll on you.”

He stood and ran a hand through his hair, his brows furrowed in frustration.  “Rilea, stop—”

“No!”  She stood up and slid on a robe.  “You do this all the time now, you dismiss me whenever I try to talk to you.  You never talk anymore!  We used to talk all the time, but now you can’t even seem to hold a conversation with me.”

His shoulders started to noticeably rise and fall as his breathing grew heavier and he clenched his jaw.  “Rilea,”  his voice was tense and he spoke through grit teeth.  “I’m not going to ask you again.  Stop.”  He walked away from her and out of the bedroom.

The woman was right on his heels.  “I won’t stop!  Rezyl, you’re not eating, you’re not sleeping, you’re not taking care of yourself!”  She followed him out into the living room where he was pushing his hands through his bedhead.  “Maker, Rezyl, I hear you talking to yourself at night every now and then!  You’ve been so paranoid!  What’s wrong?”

“Nothing!”  He snapped at her, his voice taut.

“For fucks sake, stop lying to me!”  She strode over to the other side of the coffee table to get in his view.  “You’ve changed so much since Twilight Gap.  Hell, you’ve changed so much since you came back from Luna!”  She looked at him with concern written all over her face.  “Maker, what happened to you down there?”  

“For the last time, Rilea,” he growled in a voice so low and dangerous that for a moment, it sounded inhuman.  His expression was twisted with anger  “Stop.”

Her heart panged in her chest as she looked at him.  “Rezyl…” Her voice was quieter, softer, but still filled with concern.  “Why are you hiding from me?”

“You wouldn’t understand.  You wouldn’t understand what this is like.  To fight for peace and for hope just to see everyone around you destroy it for their own agenda.”  Rezyl turned away from her and gripped onto the back of a chair, the wood straining against the strength of his grasp.

“I think I have an idea.  You’re not the only one around here that’s been fighting for peace.”  She walked over to the table and picked up his cannon.  She felt a strange sickness in her stomach when her hand wrapped around the grip, but she held it up so it was in his view.  

“Have you really not noticed?  Have you even considered why you’re changing?  You went to Luna with two weapons and came back with one.  Your Rose wasn’t—”

Her words were broken off when Rezyl turned so quickly and lunged at her out of nowhere, grabbed her by the throat, ripped the cannon out of her hand and dropped it on the table, then pulled a fist back.  Arc Light was dancing about his hand and forearm.  Rilea tried to speak, but she could barely breathe underneath the grip on his hand.  She was standing on her toes when he lifted her just slightly.  Her hands tried to pull his off of her neck as tears filled her eyes and streamed down her cheeks, but he was so strong.  Almost inhumanly so. 

“R-Rezyl—” She could barely get his name out as her head started to spin.  His fingers pressed hard against her carotid and her head began to spin from lack of oxygen.  There was a look in his eyes that she had never seen, dark and dangerous, like the blue Arc Light swirled in his irises.  Her hands clasped tightly around his wrist.  “R-Rezyl—I-I can’t—”  Her eyelids fluttered as he eyes started to roll back.

“Rezyl!”  His Ghost appeared out of nowhere and floated in front of his face.  “Snap out of it!”

His eyes focused on the Ghost and he blinked a few times in recognition.  The Arc glow faded from his fist and his eyes widened when he saw that Rilea was almost blue in the face.  Immediately he let her go and backed away from her.  Rilea collapsed to her hands and knees, coughing and gasping for air, and scrambled as far away from him as she could, all the way until her back pressed into the wall.  Her entire body was trembling.  She placed a hand over her neck as she continued to gasp.  Anxiety made her feel like her throat was closing, so she was struggling to get air into her lungs.

Amit hovered over her for a moment and scanned her neck, checking for any permanent damage.  She was going to have some… very, very bad bruising.  “Breathe slowly,”  Amit reminded her quietly.  “Slow, deep breaths…”

Rezyl sank down against the wall at the opposite side of the room and held his head in his hands.  He was shaking.  He leaned his elbows on his knees and pushed his hands into his hair.  He’d never seen so much fear in her eyes before, so much despair, so much tribulation.  That look was burned into his memory.  It took him a moment to register the tears streaming down his cheeks.  He hadn’t cried since he found Rilea near death at Twilight Gap.  

He’d almost killed her.  He’d almost killed her, and he didn’t even realize it.  It was like he blacked out.  His fingers curled tighter around the locks in his fists.

Amit flew over to his Guardian.  “Rezyl… What happened?”

“I don’t know,”  Rezyl croaked.  He looked up at his Ghost as tears slid down his cheeks.  “I-I don’t know.  I-I didn’t even… realize—”  he looked over at Rilea who was on the ground, visibly shaking and still trying to regain her breath.  “—what I’d done…”  He looked over at his Ghost.  “How… how am I supposed to make this right?”

His Ghost bobbed a bit as if to shake his head.  “I don’t know, Rezyl…”

Rezyl sat in silence for a couple of minutes before he stood.  He walked over to Rilea slowly and knelt down in front of her.  He didn’t say anything for a while, he waited for her breathing to level out.  And it pained him that when he reached out to touch her face, she flinched and closed her eyes.  He pulled his hand back a bit at first, but then very gingerly cupped her jaw in his hand.  Again, she flinched when he touched her and she started to tremble, but she didn’t move away.

His thumb gently caressed her cheekbone and brushed away the tears that still fell from her eyes.  Slowly, he reached down and pulled her hand away from her neck.  He closed his eyes.  Her skin was swollen and red marks littered her entire neck, but the bruises themselves were the size of his fingers.  The guilt was overwhelming and he dropped his head in shame.  He swallowed back the bile in his throat.

“Rilea… I—”  he looked at her as tears returned to his eyes, “—I’m so sorry… Fuck, I’m so, so sorry…”  

She slowly turned her head to look at him, but she couldn’t even find words to say.  Her throat was still tight and sore from coughing.  Eventually, she reached up and placed a hand over his and pressed her cheek into his palm.  

“What’s happening?”  Her voice was raspy and weak.

“I don’t know,” he mumbled.  “I don't know, I didn’t even… realize… I promise you, Rilea… this will never happen again.  I will never hurt you like that, ever again.”

Her eyes filled with tears.  “Do you promise?”

“I promise.”

Rezyl opened his arms wide and Rilea slowly crawled closer to him.  She started to cry again, but they only came out as stifled sobs, followed by hiccups.  He embraced her tightly to his body and ran his fingers through her short locks.  He rocked her gently in his arms as he cried silently into her hair.  The entire time he kept whispering apologies to her.  He kept promising that he would spend the rest of his days making it up to her. 

Chapter Text

Rezyl’s head was constantly splitting as of late, the only relief for it he ever found was when he was in the field, with his Rose in his hand.  It made it impossible to think or focus.  Almost all of his tattoos were filled in.  The only exceptions were the nine roses among them and a few areas on his back.  Two on each of his arms, five of them on his back, all of varying sizes.  For the longest time, it was small pieces over the course of the week.  Nowadays, another section was filling in every day.  

Despite his own mental turmoil, he was trying to do better for Rilea.  He was trying so hard to keep all of the promises he had made.  He came home to her every night, he laid with her until she fell asleep and comforted her through her nightmares, which became more frequent during the following weeks.  He would get up at night and sit in a chair by the bed, still unable to sleep.  He would watch her rest and started to learn the signs for when she was having a nightmare so he would wake her before the worst of it forced her out of sleep.  Most of the time, he could find peace in the calm on her sleeping face.  Occasionally, she would smile while she slept.  He prayed to see that smile every night, because it meant her dreams were good and sweet.  In the morning, she said that she dreamed of him from the early days of their love, when everything was new and exciting.  She still loved him to this day, but Rezyl knew, deep down, she was still afraid.

Every now and then she would flinch when he went to touch her.  The guilt he felt for what he’d done would never go away.  He didn’t know what had come over him that day.  But ever since that day, he noticed he was losing time.  Especially out in the field.  He’d been losing time for a while now.  Even his Ghost had commented once that he seemed distant when they were out on patrol.  Like his mind was elsewhere, or not even there at all.  He wasn’t like himself.  His Ghost can account for everything, but Rezyl can’t.  It was enough to drive him close to insanity that he couldn’t make up for this missed time by himself.

On top of everything, Rezyl was more frustrated than ever with the Consensus.  The Concordat faction had tried to overthrow the Speaker and the Consensus in a coup a few weeks past, but they were brought down by New Monarchy.  It was like the Faction Wars all over again.  

There was one thing he was starting to realize:  there would never be true peace so long as there were people in power, grabbing for more, laying waste to everyone below them.  There was no point in fighting for it by killing Fallen or Hive to keep the Last City safe if the unrest was coming from the inside.

Occasionally, he would fall asleep beside Rilea or in his chair.  It was a rare occurrence, but whenever sleep found him, it was never restful.  Most nights lately he dreamed of a dark figure dancing in the distance, singing a violent tune that was achingly familiar.  He was frozen in place in the dark, restricted.  Caged.  The song slowly grew louder as she came closer to him.  He would force himself awake before she got too close.  Those nights he would slip out of bed and sit by the window, quiet and pondering, his eyes shifting between the lights of the City and his love who still slept in bed.

These dreams forced him into insomnia.  And the longer he went without sleeping, the harder it was to force himself awake.

He’d been awake for twenty-three days now.  Twenty-three dreadful, exhausting days.  He slipped into sleep unknowingly while he was keeping watch over his partner.  When he opened his eyes, he was in the dark ebony halls of the Hellmouth, frozen on his knees, restricted.  Caged, just like every dream before.  Bound by invisible chains.  An orange lamp covered in thorn-like spines hung high above him, barely casting any light on the floor he knelt on.  His eyes focused in the dark.  At first everything was silent.  Then whispers in the distance, an ethereal figure in the distance.  Then the song that split his skull and made his ears ring.  Rezyl writhed and struggled against the chains, but he found no strength in his muscles this time to break free.  His ears bled as the figure approached, her cruel voice growing louder.  The bone chilling tune started to take shape as she got closer. 

He was so tired that he couldn’t force himself awake.  He slumped down on the ebon floors and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to shut out everything, to shut his mind off from the song.

“My beautiful Champion…”  

Rezyl’s eyes opened at the sound of her voice.  His blood turned to ice in his veins.  

He was forced to look up at the demon witch that hovered over him when a clawed finger lifted his chin.  Xyor, the demon witch whose consort he killed, floated above him, three eyes peering deep into his soul.  His jaw clenched.

“I am not your champion,” he growled.  

The demon woman’s head tilted.  Her voice was angry and cruel when she spoke again.  He flinched as her claw dug into his skin. “You have shown your devotion in bones and paid your price with blood.”  Her entire hand moved and she cupped his chin and her fingers dug into his cheeks. 

His eyes widened and fear made any color he had left drain from his face.  His Rose.  He felt a painful burn starting to release from the witch’s palm and he writhed in pain as tears leaked onto his cheeks.  The pain spread throughout his entire torso.

“It’s time for you to come home and fulfill your role…”

His mouth opened as the pain grew hotter, but no sound left his throat.  All air had left his lungs and he felt like he was suffocating.  He closed his eyes against the pain, for a moment he even prayed for death if it would end this suffering.

“You will continue to kill for me, Champion, but I thirst for more… for Light…”

When she released him, Rezyl’s eyes opened and he was back in his bedroom, sitting in the armchair.  There was air in his lungs, there was no burning, and Rilea was still asleep.  He felt moisture on his cheeks so he reached up and wiped his eyes.  When he looked at his hand, his eyes narrowed at the black on his fingers.

…What?

He stood and silently walked into the bathroom, the door closed behind him.  He flicked on the light and looked at himself in the mirror.  Eyes widened at the reflection in front of him.  Blond hair was darkening to black at the roots.  The tattoos on his skin were all filled in, everything but the roses.  Those roses emanated a faint green glow.  But what struck fear in him and made him feel sick was his eyes.  His irises were… brighter, but not in a good way.  They were yellow-er, more chartreuse than emerald, and almost seemed like they were glowing.  The whites of his eyes were black.  Black, sludge-like fluid leaked out of his eyes and onto his cheeks, poisoning his skin.  He tried to wipe it away, but it just kept coming back, leaving dark streaks on his cheeks.  His hands started to shake as he turned on the faucet and splashed some water on his face.  Maybe he was hallucinating.  But when he looked in the mirror again, everything was still there.

Rezyl took a step back from the sink and sank to the floor.  He held fistfuls of hair in his hands as he tried not to freak out and wake his lover who was still sleeping in the next room.  Somewhere in the back of his head, a whisper.  A low hum with vicious, murderous intent.

He didn’t even think.  He silently left the bathroom, had Amit gather all of his belongings and put them on his jumpship, which was currently sitting in orbit.  Amit tried to ask questions, but the Titan gave him a look so dark that even his Ghost shut up and did as it was asked.  Rezyl cloaked himself and picked up the holster for his cannon and wrapped belt around his hips.  When he picked up his cannon, he saw for the first time how different it was.  Hive bone had spread around the barrel, warped the chamber and the hammer.  There was an eerie glow at the end of the barrel, a swirling orb that matched the green glow of his eyes.  He slid the lead out of the chamber and looked at the bullets, sharply pointed and warped to look like thorns.  He slipped them back in place and closed the chamber with soft click.

He looked over at Rilea while she slept in bed.  He felt overwhelming sorrow to be abandoning her like this.  Before he left, he grabbed a piece of loose leaf and wrote her a note.  His final apology.  He tucked the note underneath his pillow and walked around to her side of the bed.  His fingers ghosted over her hair and around the frame of her face as he gazed down at her for the last time, then pressed a featherlight kiss over her lips.

His voice was barely even a whisper.  “I love you, sweet girl…  Forgive me…”

Rilea woke the next morning with a yawn, but when her eyes opened she realized that Rezyl was nowhere to be found.  She got out of bed and slipped into her robe, and she called out for him.  No answer.  She looked around the entire apartment.  He was nowhere to be found.  Nothing of his was here, no clothes, no armor, no weapons.  Not even a damn sock.  

Panic set in.  She dressed and hurried out onto the streets.  She visited everywhere she could think of, every place that she knew had meaning to him, to the both of them.

Nowhere.

She took the elevator up to the Tower.  It was the only place left he could possibly be.  Every Guardian in the Tower looked at her strangely.  At this point, tears were streaming down her cheeks.  And she looked everywhere.  From the North Tower to the Hanger.  She even asked Amanda Holliday if his ship was anywhere in their manifest.

It wasn’t.

Fear was gripping her heart by the time she ran into the Hall of Guardians.  All three Vanguards over at her.  Commander Zavala and Master Rey exchanged a look.  Cayde-6 looked at both of them in confusion.  He’d only been Vanguard now for about two months.

“Rilea,”  Ikora Rey said softly.  She was the only Vanguard who knew her name.  “What’s the matter?”

The woman was visibly shaking at this point.  A new stream of tears rolled onto her cheeks.  Her voice was broken when she finally spoke.  “Rezyl’s gone.”

The Vanguard didn’t believe her.  Not at first.  He was a hero of the Last City, so why would he just disappear?  It would take them six months to realize that he was really, truly missing, and by then it was too late to start searching.

Rilea knew Rezyl.  If Rezyl didn’t want to be found, he wouldn’t be.  She returned home that evening cold, drained and empty.  She curled up in bed and hugged his pillow to her chest.  She heard a small rustle as something fell to the floor.  She sat up and walked around to his side of the bed and found a folded piece of parchment.  Tears formed in her eyes as she picked it up from the floor, flicked on the lamp, sat back down on the bed, and unfolded the parchment.

Rilea, my love, my paramour,

I can’t forgive myself for the pain that I’ve caused you.  I promised you that I would never hurt you again and I can’t risk losing you in the crossfire of my mistakes.

I love you too much to let my mistakes corrupt you, too, sweet girl.

I hope you can forgive me. 

- Rezyl

Chapter Text

Rilea’s world had fallen apart.  She was broken.  It was ten years to the day since Rezyl had approached her after the Faction wars.  Since he disappeared nine months passed, and she left the City.  It was full of pain for her there.  She had used the last of her glimmer to buy a new scout rifle and some better armor, an upgraded energy matrix for her mounted shield and several months worth of dry rations.  She installed the matrix before she left and it saved her life numerous times, as it could reflect bullets from Fallen weapons.  Being back out in the wilds renewed her, it gave her motivation to go on—to survive.  It hardened her heart and protected her from the pain that lingered.

She took the long journey back home, hoping someplace familiar would do her some good.  Maybe she could visit her father’s grave.  Someone must have found the abandoned settlement and claimed it as their own, but they were not kind people.  Her once peaceful home was now inhabited by rogues and bandits.  She arrived just after dawn and was greeted by a man at the gate, grinning wolfishly.  She merely rolled her eyes.

“There’s a toll around these parts, sweetheart,” he drawled at her.  “Pay your tithe and we won’t have any problems.”

Rilea’s hand hovered over her knife underneath the cloak she wore.  “There’s no tithe to pay.  At least, not for me.”

She strode past him and caught looks of concern from some women inside the village.

“I don’t know who you think you are, princess,” the man said.  “But everyone pays when they come through here by order of the mayor.”

He made the mistake of trying to grab her.  She flexed her hand, her shield spun open, and she backhanded him with it. He stumbled back, cursed at her and attempted to charge her.  Rilea ducked underneath his arm, drew her knife, and stabbed him in the shoulder.  Screams filled the air around them as people looked on in horror.  Another man tried to restrain her, he managed to pull the hood off her head, but Rilea knocked him back with the shield as well and drew her sidearm.  She pointed the gun at him while he was clutching his bleeding nose.  He immediately backed off.  Clearly he valued his own life more than his associate’s.  

She turned the gun on the man who was on the ground, clutching his shoulder.  “This is my home!”  She snapped.  “My name is Rilea Fey!  My father built this village, and I’ve come home to pay respects to his grave.  You follow me—”  She cocked the gun.  She didn’t have to finish her sentence. 

“Okay, okay, fine, fine, just don’t shoot me!”  The man was clutching his arm and whimpering on the ground.  

Rilea lowered her weapon and slid it back into its holster.  She looked around at the people who had grown silent and were whispering.  She caught a glimpse of a hooded man staring in her direction as she slid her knife back into the sheath secured on her thigh after wiping the blood off on her cloak.  

She took the trek up the mountain side to the graveyard.  Her father built it on the mountain because it made people feel closer to the gods.  It was a 4,000 meter uphill trek, so by the time you reached the top, you were tired and breathless and the air felt thin, but it was the closest you could get to heaven.  Her father had built a shack up there so people could spend as long as they wanted and rest since the trek was so long.  The path was weathered and slippery from the rain they’d had over the last several days, and she nearly fell down the mountain a couple of times, but she continued onward.  It took an entire day for her to reach the top.  But when she reached it, she felt a sense of tranquility she hadn’t felt since the love of her life had disappeared.

She watched the sunset bleed into the sky through the clouds that were finally breaking from the steps of the shack.  She removed her armor and her cloak, and sat there until the sun went down, then closed the door to the shack as she went inside.  She sparked a fire in the hearth and dragged the old bed closer to it.  Something about the musty sheets made her feel safe.  No one had been up here in a long time.  Maybe for the first time in weeks she could rest without one eye open.

Dredgen Yor had been taking a short reprieve in a village of bandits.  He had changed everything about himself since he had that dream.  He took a new name, for starters.  As his corruption spread, his hair was turned completely black, his eyes an eerie, glowing jade green, and the darkness that spilled out of his tear ducts was a constant flow.  He wore a low hood to hide his face from any bystanders, and his armor had slowly been replaced from metal to Hive plating.  He wore a rebreather like a mask to further disguise himself, but mostly it was to keep the sludge that leaked out of his eyes from getting in his mouth.

He learned the hard way that it tasted like licorice. 

On top of it all, almost all of the roses had filled in, all but one.  There was one left that was still empty one the back of his hand.  Each time he took a life of a Guardian, a petal would fill in.

He was a hunter in this world now, and he didn’t discriminate in choosing his victims—he killed mortals and Lightbearers alike, citizens and political leaders, anyone who was hungry for power when they didn’t deserve it.  He could end the lives of Guardians with his Weapon of Sorrow.  That’s what Xyor had called it.  She still spoke to him whenever he slept and dreamed, filling his mind with poison and encouraging his twisted version of peace.  His reign of terror.

This village was, ultimately, the best place for him.  Everyone had some sort of criminal background, so there were fights and brawls in the street often, but since they knew he was a Lightbearer, no one bothered him.  His Ghost was on his shoulder when he walked into town.  Here he could rest for a while.

Well, that and the fact that he had killed two men who wanted to “see” his cannon.

Then she arrived maybe a three and a half days after him, clad in worn armor, guns strapped to her back and her hip, a bronze clasp that covered the length of her forearm, a tattered gray cloak around her shoulders, hood up.  She refused to pay the tithe, and Yor rolled his eyes.  Another person walking into a beat down.  

But much to his surprise, she fought.  And, damn, she fought well.  

Then the bronze on her forearm unfurled into a shield and Yor froze.  He’d only known one person with a gadget like that.  He watched her move with a cautious but curious gaze and as people started to scream.  He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, Thorn concealed in his hands.  He recognized the way she moved.  He’d taught her how.  And when long brown waves fell loose when another man pulled off her hood, his lips parted a tiny bit in shock.

His old love was coming back to haunt him.

“My name is Rilea Fey!  My father built this village, and I’ve come home to pay respects to his grave.  You follow me—”

“Okay, okay, fine, fine, just don’t shoot me!”

Before she left, she looked at him.  It was a passing glance, she certainly didn’t recognize him, but his eyes locked onto her amber irises, and for a moment, his heart stopped.  But just as quickly as she arrived, she was leaving.

Yor leaned back in his chair and his thumb ran over the barrel of his Thorn.

“Was that her?”  His Ghost asked quietly.  “Was that… really Rilea?

“Yes.”  Yor looked off in the direction that she went.  Where was this graveyard?  He stood from his chair and slid Thorn into the holster on his hip, the headed in the direction that the woman went.  

“Rezyl…”

“That is not my name.”

His Ghost sighed.  “You don’t have to keep doing this.  You could…”

“What?”  His voice was low and angry.  Yor cast a sideways glance at the Ghost that floated on his shoulder

“You could stop.  Reconcile with her.  Make things right.”

“And what makes you think she wants to reconcile with me?  What would stop her from telling the Last City?  I can’t let anyone taint the memory of Rezyl Azzir.”

“Why do you think she would?”

Yor was silent.  In all honesty, he wanted to believe he could stop and have a normal life with her.  But with how much he’d changed and how much blood was on his hands now, he knew it was wishful thinking.  He wasn’t the hero she fell in love with anymore.  Hell, he wasn’t even the man she fell in love with anymore.

“I don’t,” he admitted.  “But I can’t take that risk.”

“Please,”  his Ghost floated in front of his face, “don’t go down this road.”

Dredgen Yor narrowed his eyes at the Ghost.  Its shell sank in defeat and it disappeared.

He followed the same path to the graveyard in the cover of night.  It was early morning when he reached the summit.  Up here, it was misty and the air felt thin as he breathed in.  Not that it mattered for him.  She was nowhere to be seen.  Then he caught sight of a small shack, smoke billowing from the chimney.

When he pushed open the door, he heard a click as she cocked her sidearm.  She seemed to know he was coming.  When he closed the door, she was standing with a cold look in her eyes, her gun pointed at his face.

“Come now,” he sighed and tilted his head at her.  “Is that how we greet guests?”

“It’s how we treat intruders,” she stated.  “You don’t belong here.”

“Are you certain?  Pretty sure I paid my tithe.”

“Is that why you’re here?”  She scoffed.  “To collect some glimmer?”

“I’m here for something more than glimmer.  Now put that pathetic thing down, you’re making a fool of yourself.”  When she clasped the grip with both hands in response, Yor sighed.  He really didn’t want to do this the hard way, but she wasn’t going to give him much of a choice.  “Alright, then.”

His movements were in a flash.  He grabbed the barrel of her gun and pressed the release and the cilp slid, then he pulled back the slide to release the bullet in the chamber.  He grabbed her wrist and pulled it over her head, and he watched the shock flash over her face.  She didn’t say a word, her other hand flew up and grabbed his wrist, then she ducked under his arm and spun, breaking herself free.

He taught her that, too.

Dredgen Yor turned to look at her, cannon in hand.  It would be easier to just pull the trigger now, but he wanted her to know him again.  She was standing in a defensive position, knife in hand.

“Get out,” she growled at him.  “Now.”

“Do you really now know who I am?”  He purred as he tilted his head at her again.

“I don’t know you.  Nor do I care.  Does that really matter?”

“Oh, it does.”  He reached up and pulled off the rebreather and lowered his hood.  Jet black waves framed his face and glowing green eyes riddled with darkness stared deep into her soul.  “I’ve changed since we last saw each other, an unfortunate side effect of corruption.”  He watched her knuckles start to turn white as she gripped tightened onto the handle of her blade.  “But you?  You haven’t changed a bit.”

Rilea lunged at him.  He swiftly moved out of the way of her blade and grabbed onto her wrist, then dug his thumb into the pressure point.  She let out a gasp of pain as the blade slid out of her hand.  Dredgen Yor took her by the wrist and threw her up against the wall.  She moaned in pain as she slumped to the floor, clutching onto her head.  While she was stunned and dazed, he walked over to her as she was trying to stand and get her bearings.  He chuckled lightly.

“Come, now, sweet girl,” he purred.  “Stop trying.”

She looked at him with confusion.  She was starting to place his voice, his laugh.  “Who are you?”  She challenged quietly.  “What do you want with me?”

“Ah, now, that is the million glimmer question, isn’t it?”  He leaned an arm on the wall above her head and placed a hand on her shoulder, his thumb pressed harshly into the scar on the joint.  He watched with a devilish grin as she closed her eyes and trembled a bit in pain.  “I’ll give you a hint.  I know everything about you, I know every inch of your skin, every scar, every blemish, every beauty mark.  I’ve made it all mine at some point or another.  I know your secrets, paramour, your desires, your needs… I know it all.”

Her eyes shot open as tears leaked onto her cheeks.  “No…”  She whispered.  “No… You can’t be…”  Yor froze for a moment as she reached up and touched his face.  Her thumb wiped away some of the darkness on his cheeks and caught sight of the scar under his eyes and over the bridge of his nose.  He was melting on the inside as she touched him.  Fuck, he’d forgotten what her hands felt like.

She gently cupped the sides of his face with both hands.  “Rezyl… What’s happened to you?”

His brow furrowed and his jaw clenched.  “I’m not called that anymore,” he growled through grit teeth.   “I am Dredgen Yor.”

Her hands slowly dropped from his face.  “No… You’re Rezyl Azzir.  The man I’ve loved for nearly a decade, who saved my life twice, who stayed with me through paralysis, who taught me how to better fight and defend myself.  Who showed me that love, no matter how wrong or unapproved of, was worth fighting for, who—”

“Enough!”  His hand shot up and grabbed her by the jaw, his fingers pressing into her cheeks harshly.  A small gasp of fear—or surprise—left her throat.  Her entire body tensed up as his grip grew tighter.  “Rezyl Azzir is gone!”

“Then why are you here?!”  She snapped at him.  Her hand grabbed onto the chair beside her for balance and she drove her foot into his stomach.  Yor let out a grunt as he stumbled away from her.  “Why are you here, Rezyl?!”  Tears spilled out of her eyes onto her cheeks.  “I loved you!  I cried for you!  I mourned for you!  Do you mean to tell me that you never loved me?”

Dredgen Yor stood up tall and stared her down with anger burning in his eyes.  “In another life, I did.  But that was another life; a different man.  The man you loved is gone, I am merely a shell of who that hero was.”  He slowly raised his cannon until the barrel was level with her head. 

Rilea took a few cautious steps towards him.  “Then you’re here to kill me, is that it?”  He didn’t pull the trigger, so she took a few more steps.  “There’s nothing I can do to get you back?  Nothing I can say?  I can’t convince you to stop and lay with me just one more time?”

Yor’s cannon lowered a bit and his eyes closed.  “No.”  His voice was a quiet whisper.  As much as he would love to have her just one more time, Xyor was whispering words of encouragement in his head.  She was trying to ease his internal suffering, she said that if he pulled the trigger, his pain would disappear.

She stepped closer to him as his cannon pressed into her chest, right over her heart.  He reached up with his empty hand and cupped the back of her head, fingers pushing through her hair.  She looked up at him sadly.  She knew her fate now, but she was ready.  If her love was gone, then there was nothing left for her in this life.  

“I know I can’t win against you… years of sparring with you proved that.  So… if I am to die… If there is any love you have left for me,” she had to pause and take a breath as she heard him pull back the hammer, “bury me next to my mother and father.”  She reached up and placed a hand on the back of his head as his forehead pressed against hers, the gun still trained on her heart.  Tears were spilling onto her cheeks.  “Please.  There’s already a stone for me there, you don’t even have to carve the date in… Just bury me with them.”

He nodded slowly.  He took a brief moment to gaze upon her face.  Freckles that covered tan skin like stars that covered the midnight sky.  Gorgeous hazel eyes that lit up every room.  Soft, cerise lips that he’d ravished with his own.  The scar on her cheek that he used to run his thumb across.  She never told him how she got it.   

“I’m sorry, paramour,” he murmured softly.  

He leaned down and kissed her, lustful and hungry, and she clutched onto him tightly.  This was the last possible gift he could give her before his corruption replaced any remaining love with apathy.

His finger feathered the trigger.  Her entire body stiffened for a half a moment and her breath stifled in her throat, but she went limp as a final breath left her lips.  His arms were instantly around her and he sank to his knees, clutching the lifeless woman to his chest.  His hand gently tucked her head against his neck and he cried.  Dredgen Yor sobbed and wailed in agony for what he’d convinced himself he had to do.  The last promise he ever made to her was to never hurt her.

He broke that vow, just like every other vow he’d made her.

When his tears were spent, he carefully wrapped her in the sheet that was on the bed.  He laid her on the bed gingerly, then stepped outside the shack.  He took the shovel leaning by the stairs in hand, and walked among the gravestones until he found hers.  The text was weathered, like it was engraved over three decades ago, but legible.  Rilea Rose Fey, it read.  Beloved daughter and valiant warrior.  Her headstone was in the shape of a blooming rose.

He had to take a moment so not to burst into tears again.  He never knew her full name.  Rilea Rose Fey… after all this time, it took him putting a bullet through her heart to learn that she was his rose, his reliable rose that never faltered or failed him.  Even if he kept failing her.

He used one of Thorn’s bullets to engrave the day of her death.

He worked hard all day to dig a hole for her.  By the time he laid her to rest and buried her, the sun was setting, painting the sky crimson, citrine, and lilac.  He sat down at her covered grave, a bloom from a nearby rose bush poised in his fingers.  He’d harvested a bouquet for her and didn’t mind the thorns that made his fingers and palms bleed. He looked down at his hands and noticed the rose that was empty had filled.  His corruption had completed the moment he pulled that trigger.

He placed the blossoms on top of the mound of dirt and waited for the cover of nightfall to leave.

His heart was heavy, but he no longer had any strings.  Maybe that would make everything easier.  Even killing.

— — Two Years Later — — 

She woke in a daze, face down in the dirt.  Her entire body was stiff and her muscles ached as she pushed herself up on her knees.  Her vision slowly focused and she looked down at her hands, gloved in pale leather.  She pressed her hand against the stone in front of her to gain some semblance of balance as she tried to focus on the weathered writing.

Ri___… Rose… F__… 

“Guardian?”  A soft voice called out.  It sounded so familiar, almost motherly.  She looked up from the stone and her eyes focused on the floating AI in front of her face.  “There you are!”