A/N: Beware. Beware the…well, I'm not going to tell you what to beware of, because that would be spoiling it. Just…beeewarre on general priiiiiiiinciples! whoooooOOOoooooOOOOO!
Ahem. Yes. Beware.
"What you did was extremely dangerous."
Saladin's voice echoed through the room behind her. Min did not look around at him. She sat on the cold marble floor, still in the plain clothes that Lev had dressed her in after her dousing. Her knees were drawn up, her arms resting on them.
After the Fallen had gone, Saladin and a handful of the others had unsealed the Temple- much to Kalina's delight. At Saladin's request, the other Guardians had taken the records of Site Six out of the Temple and to the Vanguard. They would be safer hiding in the Tower, behind the huge City walls and under the eyes of hundreds of Guardians.
Min wasn't entirely sure why it mattered any more. The records had been hidden and the replication chamber at Site Six had been sealed, to keep SIVA out of the hands of those who would abuse it. That servitor, the armor of the Devils that had fought with it- all were lousy with SIVA. They'd already gotten their hands on it.
Now Minerva sat alone in the center of the grand temple. In front of her stood a dais with a cold brazier, large enough for Shaxx to have laid in it comfortably. Ringing the room, carved niches in the stone held enormous statues. All held various weapons in front of them, as if they leaned on them. All seemed to be putting the weight of their non-existent gazes directly on her.
She had been alone, except for Lev. The Ghost had tried to talk to her, but when he got little but one-word answers, he'd started exploring the room, scanning the statues and the name plates grimed with dust in front of them.
Gen had gone with Kalina deeper into the Temple. The Awoken had been extremely eager to explore, trying to draw Min along with her, but Min was far from in the mood.
She was not much in the mood for Saladin's company, either, and resignedly readied herself for the lecture.
When she said nothing to his words, he moved over and crouched down beside her, lifting his own eyes to the brazier and the statues beyond.
"There is no truer hallmark of a Titan than this one," he said after a time. That got her attention, and she looked at him.
"As what?"
"You did something extremely dangerous," he repeated, the corner of his mouth lifting up a little.
"Some might say it was reckless," she said.
"Are you one of those?"
"Yes," she replied without hesitation. "It was thoughtless and entirely reckless of me."
"Possibly. But who is to say that a Guardian should never be thoughtless or reckless? What you did to stop that Servitor, I could see many of those standing here watching you now, doing precisely the same thing. It's what an Iron Lord would do."
"I don't want to be an Iron Lord," she said, and hearing herself say it she realized it was true.
"More's the pity," he told her. "But I shall not force you into it, or even try and talk you into it. Our paths we walk are our own, Minerva. They are made up of our own reasons, and our own choices. I believe that I shall extend the invitation to your comrades, however. They have proven themselves just as well. Do you think they will accept?"
"I don't think Gen will," she said after a long moment.
"And the young Wolf?"
"Why do you call her that?" Min asked.
"Wolves have been tied with the Iron Lords since the beginning," he said. "They are our companions, in our Sigil. We were Iron Wolves, before we were Iron Lords. The young Hunter has a wolf's light in her eyes. She knows the fundamental truth of Wolves both four-legged, and iron. She is an Iron Wolf if ever I saw one."
"What fundamental truth of wolves does she know?"
"That the strength of the pack is the wolf," he said, looking at her quietly. "And the strength of the wolf, is the pack."
She met his eyes but said nothing. After a time, he regarded the brazier again.
"I should relight that," he said. "It's time this Temple became a Temple again, instead of a tomb."
Min frowned in thought a moment, then tilted her head in a questioning gesture that he understood immediately.
"I think that's very fitting," he said with a nod. "So long as you have the energy."
Min and Saladin got to their feet. Min walked up the few steps of the circular dais, lifting her right hand. Flickers of Sol flame appeared through her fingers. Fenris played a beam over part of the brazier, and she heard the faint hiss of gas.
"Let the world no longer be without it's Iron Wolves," Saladin said, and Min dipped her fingers into the bowl. Immediately, it was filled with roiling flame as her Sol caught the gas.
The light lifted and played over the statues, filling the chamber with warmth. Saladin put his hand on her shoulder and smiled again.
"Even if you don't wish to be a Wolf, or a Lord, I do hope you and your fireteam stay for a time. It is good to have company here again, and if nothing else, our work is not yet completed."
"What are we going to do about the Fallen?" she asked. "SIVA?"
"The House Devils got that SIVA from somewhere," he said, all trace of mirth vanishing. "They have managed to augment their armor and at least that one servitor with it. Without strict guidance and measures in place, it's only a matter of time before it starts to spread out of control again. Your armor will be studied; if SIVA remains active on or within it, it may hold some answers- give us a starting place. I'm afraid it can't be returned to you."
She nodded and sighed. "It was my only set."
The smile returned as he nodded. Stepping past the brazier, he gestured at one of the statues. "I do believe I can help you there. I likened the young Wolf to Jolder, but she is not the only one that reminds me of her. Jolder, as well, would often run into battle without care or thought for her own safety, determined only to save her companions, to protect all around her. I also don't believe I'm grossly mistaken in your measurements- you and she are of a very similar height and build. I think I have something that will accommodate. A thank you, for what you have done."
Min felt a little macabre. I have a dead Guardian's mark, and will soon have a dead Guardian's armor.
If she was one to believe in superstitions or portents, she'd really start to wonder about her knack of collecting the belongings of dead heroes.
They could hear voices again, as Gen and Kalina came back toward the central chamber, returning from their explorations. Hearing them, Saladin gave Min's shoulder a rough pat.
"I should get to work, I'm sure the Vanguard are going to have many questions, and I need to get that armor into the right hands for examination. Linger with your friends."
As he stepped past her, though, he suddenly halted. "Oh, one more thing you should understand, Minerva. About wolves."
She looked at him and he met her eyes with an intent, curious expression she couldn't place. "What's that?"
"When a wolf chooses a mate," he said. "It's for life."
As he walked off, she stared after him, at a loss.
A few moments later, Kalina appeared from a shadowed doorway. "Well, that's cozy," she said, noticing the brazier and heading over. "And warm! This place is beautiful, but it's colder than a banker's heart on foreclosure day at the widow's and orphan's home."
Min couldn't help it. As morose and empty as she felt, Kalina's words brought a shadow of a smile to her face.
"Where's Gen?' she asked.
"Pushed him out one of the windows," Kalina said, warming her hands at the brazier and then rubbing them together.
"Wanted to see if he'd bounce?" Min asked quietly, watching the flames.
"Nah. He wanted me to. Said one of the few ways he hadn't died yet was murder."
On the last word, she wiggled her eyebrows and put on a dramatic voice. Min gave a faint laugh, shaking her head.
"No, really. Where is he?"
"I told you," Kalina said. "I pushed him out the window. Have you ever heard of a Thanatonaut?"
Minerva blinked at her, taken aback a little by the abrupt change of subject. "A…what?"
"So, no then? Yeah, I hadn't either, but apparently it's a thing."
"What's a thing?" Min asked, getting a little irritated.
"Thanatonauts," Kalina said. "They're a group of Warlocks that purposefully off themselves any chance they get."
"Why would anyone want to do that?" Min asked.
Kalina shrugged. "Gen said that they do it to see visions. I guess when some of them die, they get visions of their past lives."
Min felt herself go completely still, feeling a cold that had nothing to do with the snowy mountain around them. "I thought trying to figure out your past life was forbidden," she heard herself say.
"Well, it is. I said the same thing to Gen. He said, they don't do it to see their past life per se, but to see things like weapons or tech- things we can use here but have been lost or forgotten. Apparently, the Tower's gotten quite a few Golden Age guns, sparrows, and ships that way. The warlock sees them in his little 'death vision', wakes up and describes them, and they reverse engineer them from that."
"So, Gen sees these visions when he dies?" Min asked, and Kalina shook her head.
"I asked him that, too. I asked him how many things he'd seen, and he told me that in all his time offing himself in new and creative ways, he'd seen a grand total of not a goddamn thing."
"No visions?"
"Nope. He keeps trying though. Apparently, he's determined. You gotta admire his tenacity."
"You didn't really push him out the window, did you?" Now Min wasn't convinced Kalina was joking, but as she asked the Hunter laughed.
"No, of course I didn't. He did say he hadn't been murdered yet, but I wasn't going to volunteer. He decided to go back down and poke around in the Observatory again, make sure the Fallen hadn't done it too much damage. Leave it to him to be worried that a bazillion year old ruin got damaged."
Min looked back into the fire. She wasn't a warlock, and they didn't necessarily happen when she died, but she wondered if the strange flashbacks she kept getting weren't something like a Thanatonaut's visions. After all, her flashbacks had to be from her past life. They seemed determined not to let her go, no matter how determined she was not to remember them.
"Min? You ok?" Kalina asked. Minerva nodded slowly, but this time Kalina bobbed a little, trying to meet her eyes. "I don't believe you."
"You can't help, Kalina," Minerva said again. It wasn't said with malice or dismissal, just an exhausted statement of fact.
"I can listen," the Hunter replied. "I can do that much."
"Can't listen to what I can't articulate," Min told her. "Someone might have words for how I'm feeling, for describing what's happening in my head, but that someone is not I."
"Well, can I tell you what I'm feeling then?" Kalina asked. Min looked at her, brows beetled in puzzlement.
"Of course."
"I'm worried about you," Kalina said. "Gen is too. We want to figure out what's happening to you as much as you do. That's why Gen and I were talking about Thanatonauts."
"He thinks I might be one?"
"No, not really. I mean, like I said, they have to die to see these visions and you see them without dying, sometimes. How many did you see out there today?"
Min shrugged self-consciously. "Two or three," she admitted after a moment.
"And back on that boat in the Plaguelands? At least one other one then, yes?"
Minerva reluctantly nodded.
"And none of those came with you dying. So, what did happen then? If death wasn't the trigger, then what was? Maybe we can talk it out?"
Min must have looked hesitant because Kalina looked serious again, reaching out and catching her hand. "You don't know what's happening, Min, and I get how scary that can be. So, let's talk it out. If we can find out what is triggering these things, maybe we can figure out what they mean. Figure out what happened to you."
"I'm not supposed to- "
Kalina let out a dismissive snort. "C'mon."
"I don't…want to," Minerva said. At that Kalina gave her a gentle smile.
"And I really, really get that, Min. I do. I don't want to know who I was before I was Lightborn either, but me? The other Guardians? We have a luxury that you don't have. Our past lives don't keep sneaking up on us making faces. We don't have people like Eris Morn who think that we're Chosen Ones or something."
When Min looked away, Kalina tightened her grip on her hand, ducking her head again to catch her eyes. "Min, this isn't going to leave you alone. You're one of the most Titany Titans I know, so be a Titan. Do what you did with that servitor today. Charge in head long! Let's figure this thing out. The sooner we do, the sooner you can kick its ass. Make it your bitch, nes pa?"
Min blew out a breath, then turned around and sat on the steps of the dais, in the pool of warmth cast by the brazier. Never had she felt so tired, but so wired at the same time.
"Lev?"
"I'm here," he said, from near her shoulder. She looked at him, surprised. She hadn't noticed he'd returned to her side, but of course he had. He'd been translating.
"We might need your help too," she said.
"I'm with Kalina. Any help I can give, I'm on it."
"Ok," Kalina said, and sat down next to her. "So, let's think. We know that something about Eris caused that really strong one you had in the Tower. You said you felt cold, like you were going to die. So, someone reaching toward you has a negative association."
"I would say that it's not just 'someone' reaching toward her, but Eris herself," Lev said.
"Right. She's not reacted that way to anyone else," Kalina agreed. "And we already suspect you may have known Eris before, because she feels like she may have known you. So, what else? What happened on the boat?"
As they talked through her experiences, Min felt both better and worse. It was uncomfortable describing what had happened, but at the same time she had to admit it felt like progress.
Eris, and her reaching out. That was the first one.
The boat itself.
Cold. The cold had something to do with it. In nearly every case, she'd either been cold or felt cold in the flashback.
Something big on the horizon, that bit was new, limited only to one of the ones she'd had that afternoon. So was running in or being surrounded by a crowd.
"I found you on the road to the Cosmodrome," Lev said. "There were a lot of people there when you died. And it may have been cold as well."
"It certainly was when you were Lightborn the first time," Kalina agreed. "You were all but frozen by the time I got to you. Also, when you died on the moon you said the name 'Nastya'. You didn't remember it at the time but- "
"But that name was in one of the flashbacks this afternoon," Minerva nodded. "Someone I knew?"
"A sister? A child? A friend? A cousin, or an aunt…lover maybe?" Kalina asked.
Min shrugged weakly, watching the dancing shadows at the edges of the room that the brazier cast. "No idea."
"And you said you felt cold again," Lev spun his shell in thought, ignoring the slightly perturbed glance Kalina gave him. "Someone put a blanket on you."
She nodded. "And the name Mike. I've heard that a couple of times as well. On the boat I think, and then out in the courtyard after I took down the servitor."
Mike. Eris. Nastya. The boat. The cold. A blanket around her. Shouting crowds. Something big on the horizon. They all swam around like caged birds in her head, bumping into the walls as they desperately looked for an exit.
She gave a frustrated sigh, lowering her head into one hand and closing her eyes.
"Min?" Lev asked, as Kalina's arm was suddenly around her shoulders.
"I think that's pretty good for tonight," the Awoken said. "You're exhausted. I'm exhausted. Food wouldn't be a bad idea, either. Food and then a good night's sleep. Don't think about it anymore right now."
Min nodded and got to her feet. Kalina rose with her.
"If you have any more flashbacks, and you're not in a firefight at the time, try and concentrate on it. Anything you see, or hear, or even smell, might give us another clue. The more clues we have, the more we can put together, and the sooner we can figure this out. Get it to stop. Ok? I'll let Gen know about everything we've got so far. I mean, he's the warlock. It's time we start making him earn his keep."
Min looked at Kalina as the Awoken smiled at her own joke. She suddenly felt an absolutely enormous surge of gratitude toward the Hunter for all she'd done for her, all she continued to do. With her exhaustion she felt like the exposed nerve in a tooth, emotions beyond her ability to control them.
She didn't know if she'd had any friends, any family back before she was Lightborn. She supposed she probably did- most people did, after all. All she knew for certain was her time as a Titan, as a Lightbearer. And in this life, Kalina and Gen, Binky and Lev and Poet- they'd become her family. She had no idea what she would do without them.
She had no idea what she would do without her.
Kalina was looking back at her, and she didn't ask what was wrong. She didn't try and break the mood with her usual levity- asking if she had something on her face, or if Min wanted to take a picture so it would last longer. When Min started to move, taking herself completely by surprise, Kalina did too and there was anything but surprise on her face.
The Awoken's hand went up to Minerva's cheek as the Titan's arms went around her waist. Under the stone gaze of long dead Iron Lords, the two kissed.
And it was perfect.