"He isn't coming back, is he?"
The voice had surprised him. Last he saw of the purple haired woman, she was off somewhere staring at the wall where Spike had been last. It had been three days since he left.
"I suppose not," his deep voice said evenly.
Carefully, Jet started the Bebop's engine. The machines roared to life. It was time to leave Mars. His comrade had fallen, they both assumed it. He eased the ship into the air. In no time, they were in space. He was so focused on getting the ship away from the planet's surface that he didn't notice Faye leave. As long as she didn't try to open any doors leading out, he was okay with being alone again.
"You're a fool, Spike," both Jet and Faye said, not knowing the other spoke at all.
Faye knelt in the empty space where the Swordfish once docked. The hot pink relic wasn't coming back. The Red Tail sat alone close by, safe and contained. It would be lonely now. She squeezed her eyes shut. Anger rose up in her chest while equally warming tears filled her eyes. She refused to cry for him. Instead she slammed her fist on the ground. She bit her lip to suppress a cry or shout. In her mind, he didn't deserve any remorse.
In the public, gathering area, Jet wanted to turn on the TV. He hoped a big bounty would be broadcasted, something to distract him; something to bring Faye back. But as he reached for the remote, he remembered. Big Shot was no more, just like his hunting partner.
He let out a huge sigh. Even the bonsai trees couldn't give him peace of mind now. He had dealt with plenty of loss in his time. This was almost too much to handle. In a way, he was glad Edward and Ein left when they did. She didn't need to go through something like this. He was tempted to set the Bebop's course for Earth to look for her. He knew better than that. She didn't need to be brought into this.
His phone went off then. He switched it on. An old friend from the ISSP showed up on the small screen. "Yeah?" Jet said not trying to hide his feelings.
"Guess someone already told you," the guy started.
"Told me what?" he perked up a little but instantly feel back down. If his face showed nothing but sadness and grief, this wouldn't be good news.
"We found him, Jet. It took a lot of time wading through the other casualties but we found him."
Faye had managed to drag herself back in the room. She still looked dazed but her curiosity would never die. Jet wished it hadn't risen for this call.
"I'm sorry, Jet. The Syndicate has fallen but I'm afraid your friend went with it."
He let his head drop down and hang. At least his suspicions had been correct. He picked his head back up, "Well thanks, I guess, for the call." The man wanted to say more but he didn't want to listen. He pressed the button and the screen went black.
Faye hung onto the door frame. Quietly she said, "What do we do now?"
Jet stood. He tried to sound together even though his knees felt weak, "The only thing we can. We'll travel through space and continue on where he left off. It's the least we can do, right?"
She didn't even try to smile, "Yeah. Sure," was all he got as a reply. She shuffled back out the door and out of sight.
He didn't bother to go after her. Instead he went back to the pilot's seat. He sat down but didn't touch a thing. He only stared out the large window. For some reason, that old man's voice resonated through his head, "When a life is born, a new star appears. That is the guardian star, the star that warms this planet is someone's guardian star as well. And when a life ends, the star falls and disappears." He had thought that quote to be utter nonsense at the time, but as he stared out into space, a single star blinked bright a few times the disappeared.