It was an unspoken rule that Shayne never cried. Not in front of others at least. It was her decision, a choice to be more than just a scrappy child. She was tough, no ifs or ands about it. Even to her few close friends, like Orendi, she was a brave and stubborn punk who wouldn't let anyone hurt her or those she loved.
Reyna did not see that today. She instead saw a broken and tear-stained face of a kid who had a really bad day, sitting defeated on the floor of her room. This face soon turned to anger, however, at her surprise entry into the room.
"Who - how did you get in here!?" her words fell quickly to silence when she saw the key card in the Rogue leader's hand.
"I heard you and Aurox had a fight," Reyna cut to the point.
"Yeah, so," replied Shayne as she wiped her nose with her glove. "We fight all the time,"
The words were true but peculiar in this case. For months now all Reyna ever saw of Shayne and Aurox was the diminutive punk towing around the floating, demonic cauldron of hate and orneriness. Verbal sparring was commonplace but of late it had calmed down, the only change being an even greater aura of grumpiness spurning from Aurox. Today however words between the two had turned into near blows. Aurox tore up the nearest wall with his claws out of anger with Shayne yelling, vainly, at him to stop.
"Look, kiddo, you good and all at puttin' on a brave face, but you are horrible at hiding yo' thoughts. Especially when you look like you got dumped on prom night." Shayne scowled, and Reyna reeled in her bite. Pushing the dirty tissues and clothes aside she sat next on Shayne's bed and patted the spot next to hear. "There ain't nobody but me and you."
Shayne took a breath, sighed, and gathered a bit of her spunk up. Crawling up on the bed she wiped her nose one last time and begin. "Aurox was being a jerk."
"Well, that does sound like Aurox," Reyna quipped.
"Yeah, but he knows better. I got this!" she said, pointing to her belt. The medallion shined with a reddish light, a piece of Aurox's own being. "One wrong action and i just de-molecular-ize him!"
"So...why didn't you push it when he was turning one of our facilities into shredded cheddar?"
Shayne stumbled at her words, looking for the fight she had once had. "Well...he wasn't hurting it anyone. It was just frickin' wall. No one's gonna miss it."
Reyna raised a soul-crushing eyebrow. Shayne felt the fight leave her once more, despite her great desire to to push her point. Instead she opted for a new one. "Look! He wasn't hurting anyone, and if I got rid of him we'd lose his butt-kicking skills."
Reyna smirked, but shook her head. "Okay, I'll buy that one but only if you tell me the truth,"
Shayne fumbled for the words, looking at the floor for any and all answers it could give. Raising her head, she mumbled "He's my pet," before letting her head fall on Reyna's jacketed-shoulder. "I never had a puppy, and I didn't want to lose this one. What's a little temper-tantrum, huh? He'll get over it and come back. She looked up and was met with what could only be described a frowning smile. "What? We play fetch and shit."
Reyna sighed, and put her hand on Shayne's shoulder. "Puppies yes, sentient life-forms no. Even ones that eat energy like chips." She beamed a smile and shook her head. "You're just like me, child, when I was your age. You mean well, but you can be a little short-sighed shit."
Shayne frowned and pulled back. "Don't talk down to me!" she spat back "I know I'm not perfect, but you don't have to beat me over the head with!"
Reyna laughed. "Normally I wouldn't, but you just talked down to a friend of mine so I'm giving you the same treatment."
Shayne scoffed. "Who?" She had never hurt anyone close to Reyna, unless you count a few broken noses and some fist-fights.
"Aurox. You hurt his feelings so he left you. You treat him like a pet and not a partner. After all this time, haven't you seen it?"
Shayne was taken aback. "I treat him well! He's got a home, doesn't he? Haven't I given him home? He's got no one else but here. Shouldn't he count himself lucky?"
'Sure, if lucky means being the last of of yo' kind in a strange place and having to work for a snot-nose punk like you!" Reyna sharply replied. "You and him have fought for months now, fighting Valeesi like a couple of badasses you are but you still ask him to fetch you yo' dirty laundry or grab yo' plate for supper. He's not a dumb dog; he's got feelings...even if most of those feelings are rage, hate, and blood-lust."
Shayne's tongue fell heavy. She tried to speak up, but she couldn't.
"Look, honey," Reyna's voice softened and she wrapped an arm around Shayne. "Let's go talk to him."
Shayne jumped out of bed. "You found him?!"
They were out into the hall in a flash, where they spied Whiskey Foxtrot leaning on the wall with a wry grin.
"Yeah, mostly I just followed the path of destruction," Whiskey remarked as Shayne and Reyna joined him side by side. Three flights down the whole world looked like some demonic cat had gotten bored and started sharpening its claws on the interior, leaving burnt wreckage in it's wake. Reyna for one was beginning to get remarkably concerned about the future of her flagship at this rate.
"Shayne," Reyna ordered, "you've got to apologize."
"No!" the punk replied back. "Not until he calms down."
A eldritch roar echoed down the halls as a burst of flame sparked from down the winding tunnels of steely darkness. The sound of more crunching metal followed, echoing up to them.
"I think he's just getting started," Whiskey remarked.
Shayne swallowed, a feeling of immense weight sliding down her throat and resting in her stomach. "Fine!" she growled, stepping out her walk confidently.
Reyna looked over to Whiskey just as the punk disappeared into the shadows. "Do you think she's got the snuff to push the button?"
Whiskey checked his grenade launcher before closing it back up with a snap. "No, but I do. First scream I hear, Aurox goes down." Reyna nodded and looked back into the darkness, eyes straining for a positive answer.
Shayne walked alone. Into the belly of the flagship where supplies was often held. Food, weapon parts, spare parts to all sorts of weapons and war panoply. Or at least it did until the universe's last guayota came through and threw a hissy fit. That which wasn't slice to scrap was smashed to bits. Everything was burnt. That which wasn't sliced, crushed, or burnt was too small to now see with the human eye. Her world was now dark save for the occasional, miraculously, unbroken light and the glow of heated metal. She felt the crunch of glass beneath her shoe. She had to watch her step to avoid stepping on the sharp scrap. Above her hung wires recently torn, sparking and bouncing around. She felt like she was one step away from being jumped.
Shayne's right hand went for her boomerang. The left went for the button on her belt. She could feel his presence, like the sight of red upon the horizon when a forest fire closes in.
"Are you afraid of me, Shayne?" Aurox's voice echoed in the void. Shayne felt her skin crawl, her heart beating. She was brave against the Varesli - far braver than most teenagers could claim. She had crushed hundreds of them before her might, but that was with Aurox and now she was alone to face the very beast she had once leashed to her.
Shayne slowly slipped around, putting on a smug smile. There he was, his form only visibly by the red lines burning in his flesh. His eyes burned like furnaces, his dark shape floating before her with claws each long and powerful enough to slice her in twain. His teeth each were long enough to pierce her skull through. She had forgotten to fear him. She was wondering if she would have the chance to relearn that lesson.
"Come on, Aur-rocks!" she called him by one of her many pet names, "you've gotten your anger out now. Reyna said she's willing to forgive you if come back up with me and chill out!"
He let out a quick laugh, "Oh, so she sent you? Of course she did - you're too afraid to face me yourself."
Shayne scoffed, 'Excuse me! I'm your master, goddammit!"she placed her hand on the button, "One more remark like that and it's ghost-town for you!"
"Oh, please do!" he snarled at her, "End my suffering! I've played the dog long enough - at least let me die a wolf!" He turned from her and sliced open another wall, the metal hissing with steam as he struck it. Once more he turned to her, roaring "Come on! Kill me you little wench!"
Shayne shook, her finger resting on the button. Her yellow eyes were wide - she felt a voice catch in her throat. She wanted to say something, wanted to push the button, wanted everything and she wanted nothing to do with this at all.
Aurox panted, looking at her slowly in amazement before snarling again, floating by her and deeper into the darkness.
"I'm..." she tried to speak, "I'm..."
He stopped, but did not turn to her. Her eyes began to water. "Am I really that bad to you? That you'd rather die than be my...friend?"
Now he did turn to her. "When did you ever treat me like your friend?"
Shayne let her finger go from the button. "I...gave you a home. We've got the Rogues now. We've got a family..."
Aurox was not moved. "You have a family. I have a place."
Shayne knew the crew had taken in him, seen him as an equal, albeit it a scary one. Yet there he was; isolated not by his fellow man but by his position in life. She sighed, a heavy weight leaving her chest. Something a street preacher once said about "putting away childish things" crossed her mind. She wasn't ready to be mature, but she knew it was time.
Slowly she loosened her belt before taking the medallion off of it. Gently she placed the medallion on the ground. She looked up once more, to Aurox, deep into those yellow eyes for an answer she wasn't sure she could really get from them. She couldn't see it; wasn't sure if this was the moment he take to tear her to pieces. Wasn't sure if this was the moment she was going to let go the one person she could keep around. Wasn't sure...
Never sure.
With a gentle push, the medallion slid over to him. His eyes followed it, and upon reaching him he gently picked it up and put it back on. He didn't make any sudden movements, just sat there looking down at the thing. Shayne decided she was done for the day and began to walk back towards the light.
When she got up the stairs she was greeted by her two elder's faces staring at her.
"How did you do it?" Reyna asked.
"i didn't-" she began, before stopping herself. Turning around she was greeted by the sight of her personal guardian, floating by her without a word. She looked back to Reyna. "We..." she wiped her eye with the back of her hand, trying to look inconspicuous, "we just fight at times, y'know?"
Reyna nodded, Whiskey shrugged. "Alright," their leader pronounced, "dinner's at 5:30. You have until then to clean up this mess." With that, the two left satisfied.
Shayne turned to Aurox. "Hey big guy," she beamed.
He nodded. Slowly with his giant hand he took her hand and put the medallion back in her hand. "Do your own damn laundry from now on." Without another word, he was off to work. Shayne watched him begin to slowly pick up the mess he made as best as he could. In her hand, she felt the medallion emanate a warm beat, almost like that of a heart. She closed her eyes and put it up to her ear. She could hear it;the answer she was looking for.