"Frea, wait up!"
The huntress stopped at the top of the hill, her brilliant white cape fluttered in the soft breeze coming off the mountains.
"Come on, Dex. Use that space magic you Warlocks adore so much and get a move on," she laughed.
His annoyed grunt echoed over the comms. "You're such a comedian." He finally managed to trudge through the deep snow to join her. "Are we almost there yet?"
"Almost." Frea pointed toward one of the looming cliffs. "There's a cave at the top, it gives a great view of the entire Forgotten Shore sector. It's a nice place to camp out for the patrols here."
"So you slack off during your patrols then?" He crossed his arms.
The huntress punched him playfully in the arm. "Hey, I always take my patrols seriously. This is just more efficient." She shrugged. "And it's better than wandering out in the cold."
"Oh yeah...sure," Dex said sarcastically.
It didn't take Frea much effort to scale the cliffside and reach her perch. The cave was a protected haven from the freezing winds of the Cosmodrome, offering a pleasant reprieve from the nearly year long winter here. She nimbly pulled herself up and over the ledge into the entrance. With a quick glance, she confirmed the camp she left here days ago was still untouched by hands before removing her helmet. The icy air entered her lungs as she sighed, blowing a wisp into the air. The cavern wasn't very deep, merely a hole in the rock, but it kept everything inside hidden from curious eyes.
"Little help here?" Dex called, his voice now without the comm interference. Frea turned back and spotted him struggling to climb over the last obstacle. Warlocks weren't the most agile out of the Guardian classes.
"You need to work on your climbing skills too." She chuckled and bent down to firmly grasp his outstretched hand, pulling him up into the cave.
"I'll try to remember that for next time." Even with his helmet still on, Frea could hear him breathing heavily underneath.
She opened her fingers to let go of his hand, but his grip on hers tightened. Her gaze dropped down to their intertwined hands, the air between them suddenly tense.
"Dex-" she began.
"I know we've been a team since day one." His shaking voice cut her off. She lifted her eyes back up to meet his but his expression was hidden behind his mask. "And you only think of me as a brother but I..."
"Guardian!" Her Ghost materialized out of nowhere, the bright red shell decorating it glittered in the bleak cavern. "Lord Shaxx has requested your prompt attention." Dex immediately released Frea's hand as an awkward silence fell over the group, the only sounds to be heard were the whistling winds outside. "O-oh." The Ghost stammered, finally realizing its interruption. "Pardon me." It blinked out of existence once again.
The quiet lasted for a few seconds longer before Dex let out an exasperated sigh and turned away. "Go, I'll take care of patrols here. I'm sure whatever the Crucible handler wants, it's important."
Frea hesitated for a moment before replacing her helmet. Her heart throbbed nervously in her chest. She already knew about his attraction to her, he wasn't very good at hiding it, but right now she simply didn't have an answer for his near confession.
"Dex." She gently placed a hand on his back. He flinched from her touch. "I'm sorry."
The Warlock moved back to face her and poked her visor, trying to lighten the mood the best he could. "Don't be, now get going. You know how Lord Shaxx gets when you leave him waiting."
"Right, don't think I can survive another one of his 1v1 sessions." She lightly laughed and summoned her Ghost into the palm of her hand. "I'll see you around, okay."
The last image she saw before teleporting to her ship was him waving her goodbye.
No matter the time of day or night, the Tower was always noisy. Frea enjoyed watching her fellow Guardians and others hustling around. Vendors were spread along the outskirts of the plaza, selling their wares to any Guardian in need of a new weapon. And others stood around in groups, trading stories of their great adventures and raids. It was a nice distraction from the battlefield for a time. The huntress walked past the vaults and around a rowdy group of Titans in the middle of a soccer match. One of them head-butted the ball and launched it straight into the Cryptarch's table, earning a hard stare from Master Rahool and laughter from the spectators. Frea entered the hallway leading toward the Vanguard offices at the center of the plaza. There she found Lord Shaxx out in front of his room, talking with some rookie Guardians. It wasn't often they got new people, it can be difficult for the Ghosts to discover those worthy enough to fight with the Traveler's light. But when they do, it was usually Shaxx who trained them until they were ready for battle. Judging by their armor, this group seemed to have been resurrected just recently, and whatever they were talking about had the Crucible handler acting more lively than usual.
"Ah!" The Titan noticed Frea as she entered the hallway. "Hive-bane, we were just talking about you." His naturally loud voice boomed out from his horned helmet. The group of Guardians turned around, their eyes widened in terror.
"I'm rather concerned over what you were talking about, Shaxx." The huntress reached up to remove her helmet. "Should I ask?"
"Did you really save the Last City three times?" One of the rookies, a Hunter, skipped up to Frea. Her eyes wide and shining with curiosity.
"Can all Guardians be like you?" A large Titan joined in, stepping a little too closely. Frea had to strain her neck to look up at him.
"Uh, yeah sure. Of course," Frea said awkwardly. The unexpected attention made her uncomfortable.
"Alright." Shaxx grasped the Titan by the shoulder and roughly pulled him back. "Training is done for the day, you all run off now. You can ask the Hive-bane questions later."
"Yes, Shaxx!" All three of the new Guardians spoke in almost perfect unison while straightening to full attention.
"Lord Shaxx." He corrected, crossing his arms.
"Lord Shaxx!" They nearly tripped over themselves as they ran out of the hallway.
Frea watched them go, a playful smile spread on her lips. They reminded her of when she was a rookie so many years ago. Times were so different for her now. When she turned back she noticed Shaxx watching her intently.
"You called for me?" She asked.
He waved her in and she followed him to his desk. His office was messy as ever, books, tablets, scraps of metal, and weapon parts were scattered on nearly every surface. A dismantled sword sat off in a corner.
"Yes, I need your help with something." He grabbed a report off his cluttered desk and tossed it to the huntress. "There's been sightings of Ascendant Hive in the Cosmodrome. We need to clear them out and see what they've been up to."
Frea studied the carefully written words. It included multiple accounts of missing Guardians and those who died attempting to infiltrate the nest. No one has gotten close to figuring out why these Hive are on Earth. Normally they preferred darker places like the Moon.
"Shouldn't be too much of a problem." Something clicked in her mind and she looked up. "Wait...we?"
A soft chuckle escaped Shaxx's helmet. "Yes, I'm coming with you."
She frowned. "But Shaxx, you shouldn't put yourself in any unnecessary danger. I have a fully capable clan, we can take care of this." Frea wasn't unhappy about Shaxx wanting to join her, his centuries worth of experience was invaluable, but it was unusual for Tower leaders to go on missions. Her sense of duty to protect someone so irreplaceable overrode the desire to fight at his side.
"I am aware." Shaxx placed his hands on his hips as he squared off with her, daring for her to challenge his orders again. A very Titan thing to do. "I've lost too many Guardians to this nest already, I need to be there to see it for myself."
The huntress's mouth twitched with irritation. He wasn't leaving any room to argue, he was just as stubborn as she was, they sometimes clashed because of that. "Fine." She sighed. "I have someone who can join us then, so at least we'll have a full fireteam."
"Excellent." The Titan relaxed. "We'll leave at dawn tomorrow."
He went to turn away from her but she took hold of his arm. "But first, promise me you will not leave my side. If you die out there the Commander will never forgive me."
Shaxx's head titled as he peered down at her. She had grabbed his upper arm, where there was no armor, and under her fingertips she could feel him tense up. Frea's face flared hot and she immediately released him, realizing that she might have just overstepped her bounds. He didn't give her the chance to apologize however, as he clasped her by the shoulder, her armor did nothing to hide the warmth from his large hand.
"There's no one I trust more," he said. "I know I'm in good hands."