Light
Chapter 11
"Don't go, please?"
Natsu turned to look at the blonde on his bed. She had awoken, and was now sitting at the foot of his bed, her body tense to chase after him if need be. Natsu sighed and wiped his face, squinting in pain as he ran his hand over the broken shards of glass from his visor. He realized that he still had some injuries to attend to, and figured that this would be the best moment to speak with Amanda. 'Yeah sure, just go ahead and pull the glass from your face and the lead from your gut while the girl you have feelings for justifies herself...' He thought to himself bitterly. His gaze focused in to see Amanda staring at him, likely waiting for his answer. He moved over to his desk and sat in the chair as he pulled a small mirror and some tweezers from his drawer. He leaned forward, Specter coming out and projecting light to Natsu's face to help him see while he completed his task. He had just pulled the first shard out when he decided to answer Amanda.
"Speak."
Amanda was at a loss. She had prepared for this moment for the nearly three months that her and Jack had been dating, or at least what she would tell him if he was still alive. She had run over every scenario she could think of, but none involved her sitting in his room while he pulled glass from his face, after having just brutally slain six guardians and losing his mind. She felt her mouth go dry as she made eye contact with Natsu in the mirror that he had set on his desk. She opened her mouth several times to speak, but words never came out. She finally settled for something easy.
"How have you been?"
She wanted to hit herself. Hard. Two years away and the best she could come up with was that? She stared at her hands in her lap, fists clenched and knuckles white, as she waited for his angered lashing. She raised her head in surprise when she heard his chuckle.
"I've been fine. Well, I was, until yesterday morning. Yesterday... was just one of those days. Ya know?" Natsu watched Amanda flinch slightly before pulling another shard of glass from his face. He heard her take a deep breath before her next statement came from her.
"I waited for you." Natsu scoffed.
"Not long enough, apparently."
He expected the slap, and did nothing to stop it. He would have to at least thank her for not hitting the side with the visor shards in it. He set down his tweezers, Specter vanishing in to Light particles as Natsu swiveled in his seat to face her. Amanda stood with tears in her eyes, her fists clenched as she stood behind him, breathing heavily. Natsu looked at her without any hint of fear as he spoke his next words.
"You expect it to mean any difference to me? I didn't know how long I was gone until I was already back. As far as I had known, I was gone for just under five months, only to come back and find my first friend in the universe dead, his ship left to me as he knowingly left for said death, and that I was gone for over two years. Then, when I finally start to get through the first part of my day, I come across the only woman I feel anything for in the arms of another man. It may have been over two years for you, but it wasn't for me. You were all I thought about when it was too hard for me to even stand. You were the only reason I finished my training so quickly. I had figured the faster I finished my training, the faster I see you. Then I come home to see that everything I fought for, everything I worked so hard for, was gone. My friend is dead, and the woman I dared to like is with someone else." Natsu felt the veins in his neck and head pulsating, the migraine entering his skull like a blade. He looked over to Amanda, seeing the defeated posture she took as she sat on his bed once more.
"It wasn't like it was easy for me either!" She yelled, raising up from her seat to stare him in the eye. Natsu cursed himself, because even in this state, with her eyes filled with tears and her hair a mess...
She was still so beautiful.
He stomped down the pain in his chest as he focused on her gaze, noting the anger was slowly building back up. He blew out a gust of air as he sat back down in the chair, Amanda sitting on the foot of his bed, her gaze growing angrier and angrier. Natsu pulled the knife off of his belt and set it on the desk, ignoring Amanda's look of curiosity over it. He slowly drew the blade out and held it firmly in his hands, before opening the wounds that he had cauterized in his gut during the match.
Amanda watched in horror as Natsu dug the blade in to his gut, digging in to each wound and twisting the blade slightly. She watched him pull the blade out, and a metal ball with it each time. He pulled out a total of five lead balls, each one stained with blood as he laid them neatly on his desk. He raised a single finger in to the air, locking eyes with Amanda, as he set it on fire. He drug his finger across each wound, sealing them closed with a harsh sizzle, never breaking eye contact with Amanda. She could only watch in morbid fascination as he didn't flinch a single time as he cauterized his wounds. He stood from his chair, pulling the remains of his shirt up and over his head, exposing the many scars he had gained in his training. She felt herself blushing as she saw the toned and rippling muscle under the scarred flesh as he tossed his shirt on to the floor and walked out of the room. She stood and followed him in through the living room and in to the kitchen. She watched him pull a raw steak ouut of the fridge and take a large bite out of it. She heard sizzling as she looked at the smoke pouring from his mouth as he chewed.
He was literally cooking the food as he ate it.
He chewed slowly, staring at the blonde woman questioningly as she stared in awe at him. He couldn't understand he shock, he had always been able to do this, even when he was just a wizard back in Earthland. He ignored the pang as he thought of his home. Today was the day in which he wouldn't show his pain.
He'd hold it in, tell himself it'd be alright, and eventually he may start to believe it.
He swallowed his mouthful of food, the gulp being the only sound in the room. He took another bite and chewed slowly, all the while matching the gaze of the blonde mechanic. He cursed his heart as he remembered how much he had missed her. Even now, he wanted to extend his hand forward and run it through her hair. He wondered how soft it was, and how it smelled. He shook his head as he felt his hand lifting, as if against his permission and extending towards her. He stared at the traitorous limb as it seemed to have a mind of it's own. He sighed quietly and admitted that he wanted this to happen. Amanda was staring at his hand warily, but didn't dare flinch away. They both seemed to waatch with baited breath as Natsu's hand finally rested on her head. His fingers ran through her hair gently, and he couldn't stop the small flutter in his chest. It was softer than he thought, and it tickled the callouses on his hand as he ran his hand through the blonde tresses.
Amanda was confused. She had not pictured this happening at all when she had followed him out to the kitchen. She was shocked to watch him eating raw steak, but even more so when he lifted his hand and began to play with her hair. She couldn't deny how nice it felt, that being the main reason she hadn't said anything, but it still didn't change the topic. She was still mad at him, and he was still mad at her, she thought. With his attitude now, she just couldn't be sure.
They stayed in that position for nearly five minutes, with Natsu gently running his hands through her hair, and Amanda standing still with her eyes closed. She let out small sighs occasionally when he'd find a certain spot, and he couldn't seeme to snap himself out of his action. He knew he was angry. Or was he? He couldn't even say for certain anymore. All he knew was that right here, in this moment, he was doing something that he wanted, and it made him feel right. He reluctantly pulled his hand away from her head, feeling a bit of pride in his chest when she let out a slightly disappointed moan. He nearly felt like lunging forward and kissing her when she opened her eyes and stared at him. He shook his head as he remembered everything that led up to this moment. She was taken, and it wasn't by him. What he had done just now had to have crossed some sort of line, and Natsu may have been many things, but he wasn't a man to steal someone else's girlfriend from them. He didn't know Jack, but he could only assume that he was decent if Amanda had picked him, and he had no intention of getting in the way of that. He was only a guest to this universe, and would be leaving one day.
He had to keep reminding himself of that.
He pulled away from her and stepped around, tossing the small chunk of raw meat in to the trash as he walked towards the bathroom. He heard Amanda following after him, but stopped at the entrance of the bathroom, preventing him from closing the door. He raised an eyebrow at the blonde that seemed to be fighting what she wanted to say. He watched with a small amount of amusement as she shook her head and lightly slapped herself before looking up and meeting his gaze.
"I don't know what that was, but I won't tell Jack about it." Natsu let out a loud chuckle before lowering down the the blonde's eye level and speaking.
"Why? What could the mechanic do against me? Is he stronger than Zavala? Cayde? Ikora?" Amanda shook her head and Natsu spoke again. "Then there's no reason for me to be afraid of him. I don't care about what he thinks of me, and won't hesitate to show him why Zavala gives me as much freedom as he does. There are very few things for me here in the Vanguard, and Zavala knows this. It's why he let me have that fight. This isn't my war, and I've already played most of my part here. I've payed back what I owe to the Vanguard, and now I'm just racking up their bill. The Speaker owes me for scratching his back, and I intend to cash in on it to go home. One day, I'm just going to leave this place, and the sooner I do so, the better. I've overstayed my welcome, and I've only come to face regrets since my return."
The slap that followed echoed through the apartment. Natsu rubbed his cheek slowly as Amanda stared at him, tears trailing down her cheeks.
"So that's what I am? Just another regret to you? I'm sorry that you regret ever meeting me. I'll leave you now. No sense in staying where I'm not welcome." And with those words, she stormed out of the bathroom. Natsu winced when he heard the door to her room slam shut. He didn't even need his advanced sense of hearing to hear the sobs that came from her room. He cursed as he turned on the shower and climbed in. He lost track of how long he sat in there, but when he finally had his thoughts in order enough to think clearly, the water was freezing cold. He turned off the faucet and climbed out, changing in to a simple pair of grey sweats that he kept with Specter. He gently held the Ghost in one hand before speaking.
"I kinda fucked up, eh buddy?"
"Affirmative, Natsu. Would you like a recommendation on how to proceed?" Natsu chuckled.
"You're even less in tune with emotions than I am. Nah, I think I'm going to try to handle this one. Go ahead to my room for the rest of the night. I'm going to try and make things semi right, and then if that fails, go get piss drunk and crash in the barracks." Specter chirped and headed in to Natsu's room. Natsu walked down the hallway and stood in front of Amanda's door. He gently knocked and waited for a bit before knocking a second time.
"Go away!" Her voice was dry and stressed. She must've been crying for a while. Natsu felt a bit of guilt in himself before knocking again. He recieved the same response. They did this back and forth for nearly ten minutes before she stopped responding to Natsu's knocking. He took that as a sign that she'd given up on fighting him. He opened the door slowly, only to see the sheer darkness of her room. He opened the door a bit more, and soon was able to see her form under the blankets. She lie facing the wall away from him. He could hear her breathing as it gently shuddered, likely her trying to feign sleep, but failing as she would occasionally hiccup. He walked over and sat down on the chair next to her bed. He looked over at the clock.
2215
He ran a hand through his hair as he realized the time. He had been in the shower for nearly four hours. He raised a hand up and set it on her shoulder. He felt her tense, but she didn't speak at all, and soon he felt her relax after he channeled a bit of heat to his hand. He gently rubbed up and down her arm as he continued to apply heat. Her shuddering breaths slowly eased and the hiccups stopped. They sat in silence for some time before Natsu decided to speak.
"I don't regret you. I don't think I ever could. I have so many regrets. I regret the people I never got to say goodbye to. I regret the fighting I did to get me the job that got me sent here. I regret that I sometimes can't remember the names or faces of people who I had considered friends back where I'm from. Every day I'm here, I feel like I lose a part of the old me. It frightens me that I'm changing so much, and losing so much ground at every turn. But even through all of these events, you are the one thing I could never regret. I regret that I never got a chance to have you. I've fought so many battles, but every loss I've suffered since Igneel was after I had fought with everthing I had in me. I'm not sure how to feel about losing you without even getting a chance to fight for you. I'm not angry at you, but my chest hurts. I need to be angry, but I can't stand that this is causing you this kind of pain. It's not your fault I've been gone, and I can't hold any fault to you for moving on, but I just don't know what to do with myself." His throat felt raw, and he had to blink away his tears. "I had these plans for the time I was here, but I can't even dare to try and pull you in to them here. We're two different people from two different universes, I know this, but it doesn't stop the ache in my chest when I think about you. I shouldn't feel the way I do for you, but damn it all if I do anyway..." He trailed off, unsure on how to proceed. Amanda hadn't moved since he began to speak, and he hadn't felt this small since Igneel had left him alone. He felt so confused, and couldn't even begin to process all of the emotions running through his chest. He was brought out of his thoughts when he felt a hand grab on to his gently. He looked from the grasp to the tear stained face of Amanda. She had a small smile on her face as she sat up in her bed, and faced Natsu. He was confused when she brought both of her hands up and grapsed his face before bringing her face forward.
Natsu felt like a pleasant fire was flowing through his veins when his lips met Amanda's. The kiss was slow and gentle, but it also served to awaken a hunger in Natsu that he wasn't sure he liked. His tongue gently swiped against her lips, and he felt the hunger grow when her tongue darted out and met his own. He wasn't sure who had increased the pace after that, but he didn't exactly care. The passion he felt when he held her close as their lips continued to mesh, tongues colliding, was stronger than any alcohol he had ever come across. He broke the kiss with her when she climbed up on to his lap to place kisses and nips against her neck. She let out small pants and mewls as she fisted his hair and ground her hips against his, causing the sweetest friction he had ever known. He broke his contact with her neck before gently pushing he away. She looked at him in a dazed confusion before he spoke.
"Jack..."
Amanda felt her heart sink when she realized what she had just done. She hadn't meant for it to go that far. She had kissed him initially as a form of apology or goodbye, but once she felt his warmth and the spark from kissing him, she couldn't stop herlsef from wanting more. She sat back down on the bed, her face now stained a dark crimson as she looked over to Natsu. He seemed to be relativley okay, but the blush on his cheeks and the erection she could see in his sweats told her that he wasn't fairing much better. She had to commend him for his control, and the fact that he was able to stop when she still didn't want to. She felt shock at the realization. If he wanted to keep going, she was going to welcome him with open arms, and legs, and completely disregard the fact that she was in a relationship. She looked over to Natsu before taking a few deep breaths, not missing how Natsu's eyes found her breasts and his eyes clouded slightly. She looked down before squeaking and bringing her blanket over her as she saw the erect buds poking through the fabric of her shirt. She cursed that he seemed to have this effect on her with just one kiss.
Natsu chuckled before standing up, not showing any shame as the erection in his pants put itself on proud display. He moved to the doorway of her bedroom before speaking. "I won't tell Jack about any of this. We'll pretend it didn't happen. I just wanted to let you know how I feel. Get some rest, and we'll talk some more tomorrow. Goodnight, Amanda."
Amanda cursed as she felt a shiver pass through her at the way he said her name. Something about his tone, or perhaps the way he seemed to purr it, and it had her insides rolling. She lie back down in her bed as she pulled the blankets around her and squashed a pillow over her face before shouting her frustration in to it. He knew what he was doing to her now, and how to get to her. She knew that he knew, and he knew that she knew that he knew. She cursed loudly, her accent slurring the curse as she stood up.
She needed to change in to something a bit cleaner now.
Natsu awoke the next morning with a huge grin on his face. He had dreamt the entire night of his encounter with Amanda, only Jack didn't exist in his dream and he had no reason to stop. He could still taste her on his lips, and his ears rang of her moans and pants for him, begging him to go harder and faster, and screaming his name in release. He felt the perverted grin on his face grow as he could vividly recall the pleasant dream. He looked down and couldn't stop the small curse from tearing from his lips as he caught sight of the erection that all of the dreams had brought him. He stood from his bed and stretched, sighing happily as his back cracked loudly. He walked out of the room and in to the bathroom. He didn't bother knocking, having not had a room mate in years and having forgotten that he once again had one. He was greeted to the sight of the woman who caused his great dreams and morning discomfort stepping out of the shower, as naked as the day she was born. Natsu felt his mouth go dry as she made eye contact with him before yelling and jumping back in to the shower, using the curtain to hide herself from him. Her head poked out and she glared daggers at him.
"Are you just going to stand there or are you going to fucking leave so I can get dressed?!" Natsu looked at her before shrugging.
"I'm honestly cursing myself now." He looked at Amanda who raised a single eyebrow at him before speaking.
"Why's that?"
Natsu looked her in the eye before giving off a devilish grin. "I'm cursing myself because you look so much better than you did in my dreams last night. Feel like I didn't do you proper justice... Amanda." He chuckled and quickly ducked out of the room as the blonde turned a glowing red and began to sputter before cursing loudly and throwing a bar of soap at the door. Natsu heard it bounce off the door right as he closed it. He giggled down the hallway as he heard the thick southern accent bouncing insults through the entire apartment. He closed the door to his room and locked it, and not five minutes later, the angry blonde was pounding on it to kill him. He braced himself against the door as the cursing continued. He laughed like a madman for the entirety of it. She hurled insults at him for nearly twenty minutes before giving up and stating that she needed to go talk to Ikora to get her back in service in the hanger. He yelled out how he'd meet her there to show her his new ship as she walked out the door. He heard it shut before looking over to Specter, who had been hiding on his perch, and decided to speak.
"Come on, let's get a move on. Do I have any clothes in your inventory that are clean?" His question was answered as his form was encompassed in light before it broke away to reveal his attire. A simple pair of black cargo pants and dark grey long sleeved shirt. He pulled on a pair of socks and boots before heading out of the room, checking to make sure the blonde was actually gone, before walking out of the apartment, making sure to lock the door behind him. He walked down the pathway slowly towards the common area. He was slightly startled to all of the nods or congratulations that he recieved on his way. He hadn't thought that many people had seen his match, but had to suppose that word had spread quickly. He shook hands with several people and even signed a few autographs before finally making his way down to the Vanguard section. He recieved a heavy pat on the back from Shaax as he passed by towards the Vanguard masters. He entered the room, only to notice that it was empty. He shrugged before turning around and walking out, figuring that he may as well stop by the hangar to clean up his ship and get it ready for his next mission. He jogged towards the hangar, nodding at the few people who waved to him, and entered through the gate. He looked over when he heard his name being called to see Zavala and Amanda standing together and staring at him. He sheepishly waved to them before slowly walking over to the two, noticing that both of them were staring at him somewhat strangely.
"What?" His question was genuine, even if the tone sounded annoyed. They both looked away and responded quick negatives. Natsu narrowed his eyes suspiciously before shrugging it off and looking towards Amanda. "Do you think you can bring up Kabr's Epilogue for me? I'd like to clean it up a bit more as well as load up the cargo bay with the standard Vanguard survival kit." Amanda nodded before pushing several buttons on her tablet. Natsu looked around while she did that, before noticing something.
"Where's Jack?" As much as he didn't want to see the guy, he understood the need for the mechanical crew and how few days off any of them took. Amanda looked around before shrugging and looking at some information on her tablet.
"Seems as if he is a no show today. Probably got drunk last night or something and decided to sleep it off. Wish he would've called in to let the Vanguard know. If Ikora hadn't given me approval for my return to duty, then the hangar would only have four other human mechanics. They'd get by fine, but it's still unnecessary stress on them, and he knows how I hate that." The tone she spoke in showed her care for her job and the people she worked with. Natsu chuckled at her anger before speaking.
"Doesn't bug me much that I don't gotta see him. Just figured he'd be somewhere nearby. Ah well." His speech was interrupted when his ship emerged from the lift, except for one issue.
It was his Vanguard ship, not the one that Kabr had given him.
Natsu scratched his head as he looked over to Amanda, who stared at the ship in confusion.
"That's my ship, but not the ship I wanted brought up. What gives Amanda?"
She shrugged before responding. "That was the ship that was brought up. I typed in your information and selected Kabr's Epilogue," She showed him the tablet which confirmed her statement. "But for some reason this one came up. Maybe it's an issue with the identification system. Let me get a look at the ships control board real quick..." She began to walk towards the ship, the tablet still in her hand as she ordered several work droids to run a diagnostic on the ship. Natsu was startled when Specter appeared in front of him and began to chirp loudly. He looked to the Ghost before looking over to Zavala, whose Ghost started to do the same thing. They both chirped loudly one last time before making the same declaration.
"DARKNESS ZONE DETECTED!"
Natsu looked over to Amanda, who was nearly 50 feet away from his ship. His mind suddenly put the pieces together as he opened his mouth to yell out to her, only to fly backwards as his ship suddenly exploded. He felt his back impact the wall, and several of his bones fracture as several other things impacted against him. His vision blurred for several moments, his ears ringing, before he heard the sirens blaring all over the hangar. He felt the water from the fire supression sprinklers hit his face, snapping him from his stupor. He leapt to his feet quickly, his whole body screaming in protest as he began to limp towards the wreckage of his ship, intent on finding the blonde mechanic. He looked all around, spotting Zavala shakily rise to his feet and vomit blood to the ground before slumping to his knees. He heard people shouting, smelled the burning chemicals and fuels, and felt the heat from several fires that had encompassed several other ships. He continued to hobble his way towards his ship. He caught sight of a shock of blonde hair under a large chunk of debris, and turned his attention to the figure immediately.
He felt his blood run cold as he took in Amanda's condition. She was beat up pretty badly, with both of her eyes having been blackened and her nose broken. Blood poured from her mouth and ears as she lie under the wreckage. Natsu collapsed to his knees, ignoring the screaming pain in his back as he took in the condition of the woman. He felt for a pulse, and thanked whatever god this world had that he could feel it, and checked to make sure she was still breathing. He held his ear over her mouth, picking up shallow and uneven breaths coming from her. She was unconcious, and more than likely concussed, but she was alive. He stood up and moved to the debris that had her pinned. He summoned every ounce of strength he had to lift the large chunk of metal from her, and it took nearly a full minute for him to move it the few feet to get it off of her, but felt his heart sink when he took in her unobstructed appearance.
Everything on her right leg, just above the knee, was completely gone.
He knelt down at her side as he checked for other wounds, Specter also scanning her and listing the injuries it could find.
"Concussion, fracted ribs, broken sternum, internal bleeding, a punctured lung, and organ damage. All can be treated with immediate medical attention. You will need to stop the bleeding, as her chances of survival are dropping nearly fifteen percent for every five seconds that she continues to bleed..."
Natsu nodded dumbly before raising his hand up, and watching the flames emerge from his wrist and coat his entire hand. He gently lifted the tattered cloth of Amanda's pant leg up before slamming his palm over the stump where her leg once was. Natsu felt her shoot up before her hand gripped his shirt and a scream tore it's way from her throat and she fell over, unconscious. Natsu felt tears streaming down his cheeks as he held her in his lap, mumbling apologies and rocking her back and forth.
He stayed like that until help arrived.
Natsu wasn't aware of the world around him until he felt a sharp pain tear from his back. He screamed out before looking to the culprit, noticing Cayde standing there with a jagged shard of metal in his hand that was covered in blood. Natsu grunted before nodding to the Exo, figuring that he'd helped hi in some way, likely having removed that from his back. Natsu sat down on a crate as several medics ran to him and began to diagnose and treat several of his wounds. He leaned back and sighed as he took in the sight of the hangar. There were chunks of flaming metal everywhere, as well as three other ships under maintenance having been ignited in the explosion. He looked over to Cayde, who could only shrug.
"I dunno either, Natsu. We did find this in the wreckage though." Natsu looked over to see a Hive rune. It was cracked, rendering it useless, but it was likely what was draining the Light in the area. "Do you think this was Dredgen? Giving you only last goodbye maybe?" Cayde seemed as confused as Natsu. Natsu shook his head before responding.
"Dredgen was a murderer, but he practically worshipped the Hive. He wouldn't dare disturb any of their ruins, and to steal from them would be an ultimate sin. He empathized with them, and wanted nothing more than to be one of them in an effort to combat the Darkness. This rune is..." He took the rune from Cayde and examined it. "This rune is old. Like REALLY old. It's older than Crota. Must be one of Oryx's first command runes." He tossed it back to Cayde. Something that old wasn't just lying around on the Moon. It must have been taken from somewhere on the Moon and hidden. Dredgen never would have parted with something like that, suicidal or not. "Besides, I cleared everything out of that ship when I got Kabr's ship. He didn't do this, but someone went through the effort of trying to stage him. Question is, who?"
Cayde pat Natsu on the shoulder before speaking. "Rest now, kid. Let us start getting everything together, and we'll bring you in when it's time. Get some rest, and keep an eye on your friend. She's gonna need a lot of support in the near future." Natsu nodded as he followed a medic on to the shuttle that would take him to the same treatment center as Amanda. He'd allow himself treatment after he was positive that she was stable, something he made sure to notify every medic that spoke to him.
The following weeks were some of the most difficult for Natsu. His treatment for his wounds was Ikora blowing his head off when the Darkness was confirmed as gone from the Tower. He hadn't much enjoyed dying, again, but it had cleared all of his wounds and scars from the last few days. But that hadn't been his biggest difficulty.
His biggest difficulty had been Amanda.
She had been comatose for nearly a week, and had awoken to find her leg missing. She wasn't happy about that, but Natsu and Jack had seemed to take turns on keeping by her bedside, both doing what they could to cheer her up. It had been working as well as it could have, until the day that Zavala decided to stop by.
"You are being dismissed from duty for the foreseeable future." His voice held no emotion, but Natsu could see the stress in his pressed lips and the sorrow in his eyes. Amanda looked like she was about to scream, but she couldn't seem to form a breath. Natsu walked over and gently pat her on the back.
"Why? If this is about my leg, we can get a prosthetic!"
Zavala shook his head before holding out a tablet. Natsu took it before reading the information on it. He raised his brow in confusion before looking to Zavala.
"This can't be right, Zavala. She didn't do this and we both know it. These records have obviously been tampered!" He tossed the tablet to Zavala, who deftly caught it. Amanda looked between the two of them before asking her question.
"What are you talking about?" Zavala looked away, but Natsu answered before the other titan could.
"Your name was the last one on record to do maintenance on the ship after my return from the Crucible round. Your accounts have also showed a transfer of credits from three of the guardians that I fought. It looks like you were the one to plant the bomb in my ship and try and kill me..." Amanda's face turned white at the implications. Zavala cleared his throat before speaking again.
"That... Isn't the only reason for your dismissal. Even with our best technology, we would only be able to give you limited mobility with a prosthetic limb. It would not be enough for you to properly work in the hangars anymore. I know this attempt to frame you is just that, an attempt, but we must follow protocal. You will be suspended until we conclude our investigation. After that, we can see to having you transfered to the cryptarch division, or working with records." He didn't get a chance to proceed before a tray flew by his head and impacted the wall. Amanda sat, arm extended, with tears trailing down her cheeks.
"Get out."
Zavala nodded and bowed out of the room, making his retreat, leaving her to silently cry whil Natsu rubbed her shoulder.
"I'm not going to let them do this to you. We'll find a way to get you back in to the hangar..." When she didn't respond, Natsu quietly stood from his seat and moved towards the door. Amanda merely lie back down in the bed and close her eyes.
It did nothing to stop her tears.
Natsu exited the room and walked slowly down the hallway. He had nearly made it to the elevators when an arm pulled him in to the stairwell. He stumbled in to the corridor, nearly flying down the stairs, before catching himself and looking to the culprit. He raised an eyebrow in seeing Cayde leaning against a wall. He righted himself before leaning against the wall next to the Exo.
"Unfortunate thing, what happened to her."
"Yeah..."
"And for someone to try and frame her as well... Pretty brutal..."
"Get to the point Cayde!" Natsu felt his patience run out at the nonchalance of the Exo in front of him. Cayde pushed himself from the wall and faced Natsu.
"It doesn't have to be this way, Natsu. I think I know of a way to get her a perfect prosthetic."
"How?" Natsu felt the hope blooming in his chest at the thought of helping Amanda return to what she loved.
"Clovis Bray?"
"What?"
Cayde smacked Natsu upside the head, ignoring his angered squawk.
"Clovis Bray. They were a research and weapons developement lab on Mars. Then the Collapse happened, and it just suddenly vanished. It's not gone though, my scouting reports are showing signs that it is still standing, just sealed. We may be able to find their medical research data on prosthetics. I'm sure they have it there somewhere."
"And why would you think that? It sounds a little far fetched if you ask me." Natsu crossed his arms over his chest, ignoring the glare that Cayde shot him.
"I say that, because Clovis Bray made me what I am. I used to be human too, you know. I can't remember the details, but I know that Clovis Bray is what turned me from human to Exo. If they have the tech for that, than they'll surely have the tech to get our favourite mechanic up and kicking butt again."
Natsu felt the grin on his face grow. It sounded like a safe bet that the company that was complex enough to make Exos would have good prosthesis technology. He nodded to Cayde.
"When do we leave?" Cayde shook his head, much to Natsu's confusiuon, before responding to him.
"WE aren't going anywhere. I'm stuck here while the investigation pans out. YOU, on the other hand, have no such restrictions. I'll give you some BS assignment for scouting on Mars. You go find the labs, have your Ghost extract everything it can, and get out. The Cabal have taken over Mars, and are in the process of fortifying it. You shouldn't be facing any while you're there, but I'd like this played safe. The thrashed the Sunbreakers, and they could be considered the most powerful offensive force of the guardians. Check in with Zavala in an hour, and we'll go from there."
Natsu nodded before jogging to Amanda's room, intent on saying goodbye. He threw open her door, shocking the crippled blonde, before launching himself at her in a dive. She screamed as he dived in to the bed with her, jostling her around and reminding her of several very sore areas. She sat up when he stopped flailing around and smacked him upside the head. He pouted at her lightly before she began to yell at him.
"What the hell are you doing Natsu?! Can't you see I'm injured here? You dont just go jumping in to injured people's beds, you stupid asshole!"
Natsu chuckled sheepishly before grabbing Amanda by her face and bringing her in to his chest. They lie there in silence for several moments, one in joy and the other in shock, before Natsu pulled her head away and spoke.
"I just got a mission to Mars. I can't tell you what it is, but I think it'll solve most of your problems. Be good and don't stay up too late. Eat your vegetables and brush your teeth!" She smacked him again before he leaned forward and planted a kiss to her forehead. She stopped fighting after that, and stayed completely still, enjoying the small act of comfort from him. He pulled himself away and stared in to her eyes before speaking again.
"I'll be back as soon as I can be. Things will get better when I get back, and I'll kick that grumpy blue bastard all up and down this Tower before I let him fire you. After all, who's going to work on my ships if it isn't MY mechanic. Take care, Amanda, and I'll see you soon. Promise." And like that he was gone. Amanda stared at the door for several minutes, a blush lighting her face, before lieing back down in her bed. She couldn't stop the small smile on her face, and could only be thankful that Jack wasn't there to see the affect that Natsu had on her.
Natsu stood in the hangar, Kabr's Epilogue glinting with promise in the rising sun. His new armour had been a pleasant gift from Shaax, 'Holdfast' is what he had called it. It matched the Crucible Handler's armour, with the exception of the helmet having no horn and the colours being a dark grey. His shipment of Hakke weapons had arrived as well, and Natsu had to admit that the craftsmanship in the firearms presented to him was stunning. He held the orange and blue pulse rifle in front of him as he inspected the weapon. It had good balance, and the grip felt comfortable, not to mention that the weapon was staggeringly light. He had just phased his weapon to his inventory when he heard someone clear their throat behind him. He turned to the sight of Zavala, standing with his hands clasped behind his back.
"So, you're heading out on this 'Scouting Mission' for Cayde?"
"Yep."
"And the location is awefully close to the Clovis Bray facility..."
"Is it? Hmm... Guess I never noticed that."
"Cut the crap, Natsu. I know why you're going there." He came forward and clasped a hand to his shoulder. Natsu turned to Zavala before shrugging his hand from his shoulder.
"If you know why I'm going, then you should know why you won't stop me. How's the investigation coming anyway?"
Zavala sighed. "It's coming along. We have the members of New Monarchy who tranferred the money. They claim to be set up, but our files and video data suggests otherwise. We know they paid off someone in the mechanic division to plant that bomb and falsify the records. We're narrowing it down, but we keep hitting roadblocks left and right. Should be concluded by the time you get back from your 'Scouting Expedition'."
Natsu hummed before facing Zavala fully and stared in to his eyes. "That's good work you guys are doing. When the investigation is done, I would like a copy of the results and the people responsible."
"Natsu," Zavala spoke seriously. "I know what you're thinking of doing. Don't. Nothing good will come from you killing these people. It will only result in you being labeled as a criminal yourself, and if that happens I will have to bring you down." He tensed when Natsu began to chuckle ominously.
"Do you really think you can kill me Zavala? I'm not even talking skill wise. I mean that the amount of people who saw me in the right may not be too high, but those people who do see me as right are in all the right places. Someone I hold very dear was injured, and we both know what the only way I WON'T kill them, is if they're mercifully killed before I get to them. The choice is yours, Zavala, try and hide them from me and watch me hunt them mercilessly, or kill them quickly and with mercy. Those guardians of the New Monarchy are already dead, at least as far as you should be concerned, and my Thorn will feast on their Light."
"I told you to take that gun-"
"And never use it against a guardian. I won't. I'm merely using it to punish cowards and people who tried to murder someone I love. The fact that they were once guardians will not matter, as I'm sure the Speaker will have no issue with me killing the traitors. He is your boss, and I will consult with him before moving forward, if that will get you off my case for now. But understand Zavala, I'm not the one who started this, but I will be the one to finish it." Natsu turned away from Zavala and climbed in to his ship before the titan could argue any further. He sat in his seat as the canopy shut over his head. He flipped the switches to start his engines and punched in the coordinates. The engines roared to life and the ship climbed off the ground and shot in to the sky, leaving behind a worried titan commander.
Zavala kicked a toolbox in sheer anger after he lost sight of Natsu's ship on the horizon. That hadn't gone how he had wnated at all. He had wanted to wish Natsu luck, but after hearing of the guardian's plans for the perpetrators of the bombing in the hangar, he felt his chest knot in worry. Not because he felt worried for Natsu, but because he knew that nobody, aside from all of Vanguard High Command, would be able to stop him. He knew that wouldn't happen, as Cayde would obviously side with Natsu, and Ikora had a skewed sense of justice from her time as a scout and freelancer in the reef. Shaax would also side with the pink haired man, his Crucible performance had impressed the man in to a ravenous frenzy. All that Zavala could hope for was the Speaker and the man's cold sense of logic. Zavala sighed before turning, nearly stumbling back as he came face to face with Cayde.
"You just won't stop getting in your own way, will you?"
"What are you talking about Cayde? Are you suggesting that I let him just kill four people and not face repercussions?"
"No. He's already faced his repercussions."
"And what were they?" Zavala asked sarcastically. Cayde was surprisingly sober, much to the titan's shock.
"Getting sold by the man he trusted to strangers. Then getting pulled in to being the apprentice of one of the most evil humans to ever exist. Then losing the chance at love he had because, again, you sold him for a favor. I'd say you owe him this. Especially considering just who was injured."
"I can't let it happen, no matter who or why it happened. Murder is murder."
"What if it was for the Queen?" Cayde asked quietly. Zavala clenched his jaw to keep from throwing his arms out like a child. "I remember back when you served for a force other than the Vanguard. You served your Queen faithfully, some would say you even-"
"Enough, Cayde..." Zavala almost pleaded to the hunter Exo, but the man seemed to ignore the titan.
"Some would say you loved her. We both know how far you went for her, and that you leaving was the hardest thing to do. I know that all Awoken are connected somehow, and to be severed from that connection is like losing a limb. I wonder if that's how Amanda feels in her bed right-"
"ENOUGH!" Zavala was panting, sweat pouring down his face as he tried to compose himself. He hadn't expected Cayde to bring up all of his demons so willingly. It shocked Zavala when he realized that Cayde did it because he was so passionate about what had happened to Natsu and Amanda. He ran a hand over his face as he stood straight and stared at the sky. He didn't acknowledge Cayde's exit with more than a small nod. They both knew that things between them would be tense for a while, but it gave Zavala what he needed.
Time to think.
Mars was what Natsu had expected when Arminius had described it to him, vast and desolate. He had trouble trying to fathom why the Traveler had decided to terraform so many of these planets if it's plan was to flee. Perhaps it did this to benefit the species in every system it visited, but Natsu couldn't try to understand why a being so immensly powerful would do something so selfless. He chalked it up to either boredom, or some sort of premonition of it's own demise. Natsu shrugged as he got the coordinates from Specter and began to head towards the ridge where he could find Clovis Bray. It'd take just under a day to reach his destination, but Natsu decided to cut the time nearly in half by running the entire way. He was glad that the atmosphere and gravity on each planet was different. He was lighter on the Moon, but on Mars, amongst the fire red sands and the blazing sun, he felt truly in his element. His eyes were wide when he finally took in the sight for the Clovis Bray facility.
Tall spires rose from the red sands, hinting towards the massive building buried below. The rose high in to the air, each spire made of jagged iron and warped steel of the man made structures. It seemes that these ruins alone were taller than any buildings he spotted in the Last City. He slowly climbed down the sand dune that led him towards the reported entrance to the building he needed. The entrance was buried under several feet of sand, something Natsu had no issue digging out, but after entering the ruins, realized his problem.
The facility was massive.
He caught sight of a directory on the wall, and could only whistle lowly at the size of all of the floors and rooms listed. He wiped the dust from the map, taking his time to run his finger over each and every one of the floors as he read their names. Finally after nearly a minute of reading and almost 30 floors, he found the floor he needed.
"Medical Technologies. Floor 36... And we are on... Floor number six..." He sighed as he began to walk over to the stairwell, intent on just following it down to the bottom. He kicked open the door and began to walk down the stairwell. He walked for what felt like hours, ignoring the odd skeleton as he walked. He had gotten pretty used to seeing death by now. He finally reached the floor that he needed and pried the doorway open. He was greeted to the sight of multiple consoles, all with small blinking lights on them. He walked over, holding out his hand as he did so. Specter appeared in his grip before Natsu let it go.
"Find me anything I need, aim for prosthetics, but see if you can get in to any of the other division files from here. It's possible they were researching the Vex, and I'd like any information they'd have on it." Specter chirped at Natsu before floating up to one of the consoles, a small blue lazer firing out and somehow extracting the data from the machine. He'd asked Specter how it did that once, but the headache that followed the explanation lasted for days. He decided to kick back and relax while Specter did it's thing.
It had been nearly three hours of silence for Natsu, leaving him time to speak to himself, or rather the two other entities that were him.
"So, I was thinking..."
"About?" His Darkness questioned slowly.
"Well you said I have to find some of these scouting Vex, like the ones that ended up in my universe?"
"Yes. You will need one of them to act as a conduit while we send the message of decline to the Collective."
"What about any of the ones I killed back home? Would we be able to use them to act as the conduit?"
The Darkness seemed to contemplate it for a moment, it's lone eye narrowing in thought. It raised it's head to lock eyes with Natsu before nodding.
"It should be possible. Once we connect to it, I can rebuild enough of it to function as a one way broadcaster. I'll fire through the negative signal and kill it right after I recieve the confirmation. I'm surprised YOU thought of this."
"Oi!" He was about to continue, but a chirp echoed through his mind. He turned to the Darkness and nodded. "Seems our time is up for now. We'll discuss this more later." He waved to the shade, who nodded before vanishing, Natsu following shortly after. His eyes snapped open to stare at the wall of the medical floor. He looked around the room to see Specter floating around near the exit of the room.
"I have everything we need, though I couldn't find much about the Vex on this database. There were hints towards a branch facility in the area known as 'The Buried City' that may have some information. Some records I could pull from before the collapse hinted towards some form of alien life that was killed after 'just appearing in a cloud of smoke and lightening'. Sound familiar?"
"That seems to be Vex, but The Buried City is at the base of the Cabal base of operations. I wonder if they know about Clovis Bray or if it's just an odd coincedence..." Natsu shook his head, deciding that dwelling on it too long would only give him a headache, before grabbing Specter and moving back up the stairwell. He took the steps two at a time as he climbed anxiously towards the surface. The sooner he made it to the surface, the sooner he could get back to Earth, and the sooner he could meet up with Amanda and give her the good news.
He arrived back the same day that he left. Not much as far as most people were concerned, but he felt it was an accomplishment. There was no combat, no crazed lunatic to kidnap him, and no disappearing. He decided that he liked these missions quite a bit. He got to go out and stretch his legs, and didn't need to be gone for longer than necessary. He would've liked to test his new Hakke weapons, but decided that it could wait until a later date. After checking in his ship and going through the newly placed security measures, he was on his was to the hospital where Amanda was.
Amanda was bored. Beyond bored. Bored couldn't accurately describe the droll that she found herself in. It had been a decent day, with Natsu keeping her company before rushing off to his mission. Her face flushed when she remembered the caring in his eyes when he stared at her, and the way he kissed her forehead before he left. She didn't understand how such a simple gesture could have her so flustered, but it seemed everything with Natsu flustered her after their kiss. She felt a small bit of shame at having kissed him but still being with Jack, but even more of her felt shame at how she wanted to do it again. She couldn't explain the urge that ran through her when she kissed him. She felt like she was surrounding herself with warmth when he kissed her, and quickly found it addicting. She had never felt that with the few boyfriends that she had ever had. She never felt that spark, that fluttering thrum in her chest that made her want to cry in joy, with anyone else.
It made her think.
She had been relatively happy with Jack. Sure, he could be an ass, and he took a bit too much to sticking his nose in the guardians' business, but he was nice. They had been dating for just over four months, and while she had enjoyed the time sh spent with him, she felt empty whenever he held her. She felt ashamed of herself when she remembered how she couldn't look at him the first few times they'd had sex. She didn't hate him or his looks, he was nice and rather handsome, but she felt a strange amount of shame when she'd lay with him. She justified that Natsu was dead or had moved on in his absence, but nothing had prepared her for his return. She half expected to hear a tale from one of the hunters of running in to him in one of the outposts in the Reef, surrounded by booze and whores, but no such thing occured. It was the lack of information on him that left her believing that he had died, and she justified moving on as something he would've wanted. She had been with several men after that, but none of those relationships lasted more than six months. She had always been the one to end the relationship, always finding some sort of fault with the men. They would be too kind, or too cold. Too flirty or too reserved. She supposed that she was just looking for a reason to leave them after finding that they couldn't rid her of the empty feeling in her chest. She sighed as she realized that she was feeling the same thing when it came to Jack.
She supposed it was time to end things between the two of them.
Amanda snapped from her daze and turned to the clock on her bedside table. '1540' was displayed in bright red numbers. She sighed as she lie back down in her bed. The medications did well to numb the pain in her leg, though she felt a strange itch that wouldn't seem to fade. It felt like someone was dragging a nail up her leg slowly, poking all of the most sensitive areas at the same time. She rubbed her eyes in stress. It wasn't possible for anything to be doing that anymore after all.
That leg was gone.
She frowned as she thought of all of the bad things that stacked on top of her already shitty month. First, she gets reunited with her not so dead flame, only to catch the first glimpse of him as he brutally murdered six people in crucible. Then she finally gets her chance to talk with him, hoping they could hash it out as adults, only for it to turn in to a shouting match. Then they argue again after he pets her hair in the kitchen, ending with her storming to her room and Natsu fleeing to the bathroom. She cried for hours, only stopping the tears when she felt him massaging her gently. She felt her heart clench when he spoke his confession to her, and thud against her ribs as she remembered the kiss they shared. Then he sees her naked the next day and runs away without letting her kick his ass just a little for the free show. Finally, to top off her month, she gets caught in an explosion and loses her leg, and subsequently her job because of that. She rubbed her hands over her eyes as she tried to figure out what she could do with herself now. She didn't want to go to the archives department, but it seemed to be the only field that would accept someone with her disability. She snapped herself out of her thoughts as she made a list of her priorities.
First of which was to dump Jack.
She didn't feel nearly as guilty as she thought she would at the prospect of ending their relationship. She looked at the clock once more before sighing in frustration. Jack was late. He usually showed up around the smae time every day to sit and talk with her, but today he seemed to be nearly three hours late. She supposed that maybe it'd be better if he just didn't show up again. It'd save her the headache of being the coldhearted bitch, and he'd get to keep his fragile pride in tact.
She was brought out of her thoughts by someone kicking the door to her room open. She shrieked as a familiar head of pink hair sprinted in to her room and jumped on her bed, the frame groaning as several hundred pounds of armoured guardian added to Amanda's weight to the bed so suddenly. She brought the blankets up to her chest before reaching a fist up and smacking Natsu upside the head, forcing him to roll out of the bed with a yelp. She peeked over the edge of the bed to see him lying on the floor, rubbing his head.
"Is that any way to treat the man who saved your life?"
"It's the way to treat the man who keeps invading my personal space. You're luckly I'm missing a leg. I can't afford to put my one foot up your ass."
"Well... you see, about that..."
"Oh god, you're not gonna tell me you like that sorta thing, are you?"
"What?! No! I meant about your leg! Gross..."
"What about my leg?" Amanda looked at him in suspicion. "I'm gonna be getting a prsthetic soon. Best the Vanguard can get me. Wish it was good enough to keep working in the hangars, but I guess I'll take what I can get..." Her tone seemed so sad, at least until Natsu sprang up to his feet and wrapped his arms around her, bringing her close to him.
"No. At least not anymore. You won't be getting one of those shitty prosthetic legs that the Vanguard makes."
"Why? Did they run out or something?"
"No. I got you something better. Had to go to Mars to do it, but I got you the blueprints for a new prosthetic leg. Real good stuff. Golden Age construction. I talked to Cayde and Ikora, and after comissioning Banshee to build it, they approved you returning to duty in the hangars. Turns out the prosthetic I found will be even better than your old leg. Stronger, anyways."
Amanda felt like her head was made of static. She couldn't believe him, wouldn't believe his words. Nobody would do something so selflessly for anybody else, and she felt that he was no different. She shrugged herself from his grasp and pushed him away. He stared at her in silent confusion before she mumbled her question.
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why would you do this for me? I'm the girl who broke your heart, so why are you still so nice?" She felt the tears roll down her cheeks as she practically screamed at the man. He shrank away from her before mumbling something out. "Speak up!" She demanded of him.
"I said I did it because I like you, okay?! I can't help myself that my time away made me even fonder of you, but it did. I can't stand to see that broken look in your eyes when you found out you wouldn't be in the hangars... It was killing you, and that meant it was killing me too. After everything you did to hurt me, I can't bring myself to hate you. I have to forgive you!"
"Why?!"
"Because that's what you do when you love someone!" He shouted back at her. They both stared at the other in shock at his declaration. She broke the silence first.
"What did you say?" It was barely above a whisper, but Natsu's advanced senses picked it up easily.
"I said I love you." He stared in to her eyes. "Gods help me, but I've fallen in love with you. I don't know if it's the way you speak your mind or maybe the way you care so much but don't let it show. Maybe it's just that we both have so much in common, but I love you. Even as you lay there, mouth open and leg missing, I find myself loving you more and more. I can't help it, but I don't want to stop it either."
Amanda felt her shock lessen to a new feeling. It started in her belly and crawled it's way up her chest. She felt the emptiness leaving her as she came to terms with what Natsu said. He loved her, even crippled like she was. She felt tears run down her cheeks and a smile on her face as she held her arms open to Natsu, who slowly walked forward and wrapped his arms around her. He nestled his nose in her hair as she sobbed lightly in to his chest. She backed away from him just enough to pull his head down in to a kiss. It was sweet and innocent, but it lasted for well over a minute. They seperated when they heard someone clear their throat. They turned to see Zavala, standing in the doorway, a grave expression on his face.
"I have news on the investigation." This had Natsu's attention.
"Speak then, Blue." Amanda spoke curtly, not happy about her special moment being ruined.
"We have concluded our investigation. The guilty parties have been apprehended and are awaiting judgement from the Vanguard and the Speaker."
"Who was it?" Natsu tone was cold, causing the other two people to look at him, both noticing the temperature in the room rise several degrees. Zavala sighed before answering.
"The three guardians we had picked up from New Monarchy, as well as a mechanic."
"Which one?" Amanda asked confused. She could personally attest for most of the mechanics who worked with her. Zavala caught her attention when he held out a picutre. It was a face that Amanda was all too familiar with. Natsu snarled and stormed out of the room as Zavala spoke again.
"It seems the one who planted the bomb and Hive rune, as well as falsified documents to frame you and attempted to kill Natsu, was you boyfriend, Jack."
It's been waaay too busy of a holiday for me. Worst part of being an adult during the holidays is all the parties you get invited to and have to show up out of obligation. It sounds like I'm bitching, but when all you want to do in lay down and relax after a solid week of bustin your ass, driving an hour from one party to another to another isn't fun. And they're never close to each other, they're always clear across town and the freeway is backed up because some idiot popped a flat or something and stopped in the middle of the road. Fuckin idiot.
Anyway, as a way to apologize, I made this chapter a bit longer. And who knows, there may or may not (more than likely) be a lemon in the next chapter. I've been abnormally busy, but that seems to be slowing down now.
So until next time,
Temper
