Kyler awoke with a throbbing pain in his head. His body felt like one giant bruise. Every limb was slow and heavy - he couldn't find the energy to move. For a long while, the only thing he could do was stare at the roof overhead.

Something about it bothered him. At first, he thought it was the normal disorientation that came with waking up in an unfamiliar place. But that didn't make sense because it was familiar. It was his cabin's roof. He frowned, unable to remember when he'd come inside. '

Then it hit him.

The last memory he had was getting thrown off of the pike when Harley had suddenly swerved. By all accounts, he should still be lying on the ground outside. Harley had to have moved him. That was the only explanation.

He pushed himself upright with a wince and looked around. There was no sign of the Hunter. Where could he be? And why had he swung the pike around like that in the first place? Kyler had a lot of experience driving the pike and he knew a movement like that could only be deliberate. He wanted answers and the only way to find them was by finding Harley.

Gathering his energy, he got up off of the bed and made his way over to the door, his movements stiff and painful.

The first thing he saw when he opened the door was the crashed pike. It lay a couple hundred feet away on its side, marks on the ground indicating the path it had taken. He could see smoke emanating from it and sighed. It would need repairs for sure.

He began to walk over to it, noting the additional marks on the ground around it. Marks belonging to a second vehicle. It looked like the Sparrow had crashed too but it was nowhere to be found, leading him to believe that the mysterious Guardian had left the area. He relaxed somewhat at that. At least he didn't have to worry about getting shot out of nowhere.

His eyes scanned over the wrecked pike, searching for any sign of Harley. The Hunter was nowhere in sight. That gave Kyler pause. He'd assumed that Harley had dropped him off in the cabin and then returned to the crash site for some reason. To inspect the damage? Or maybe he'd left to pursue the other Guardian on his own Sparrow. It was certainly the reckless type of move that Kyler would expect from Harley.

He continued toward the pike, preparing to assess the damage. Then his foot caught on something and he stopped. A piece of dusty teal fabric was lying on the ground in a crumpled heap. As he bent down to pick it up, he froze.

The Praxic binders that had been suppressing Harley's Light were lying on the ground next to it.

Did that mean the Hunter had gotten his Light back?

Kyler picked up the cloth and felt a ball of dread drop into his stomach. It was the Awoken cloak that Harley had been wearing. And at least half of it had been burnt off, leaving the remaining fabric in tatters. He shook it out, noting the scorch marks and blackened edges.

He looked back down at the ground. The cloak had been covering a dark soot stain that seemed to have been seared into the rock. The Praxic restraints also looked slightly scorched.

Kyler tried to fight back the panic rising within him. The clues were adding up and the tale they told wasn't a good one.

"Prism!" he called, praying that the Ghost was waiting in phase to revive Harley as she had years ago during their ill-fated camping trip. But there was no response.

"Prism!" Desperation cracked in his voice, but he didn't care. He strained his ears, hoping for even the faintest reply, but the only sound that answered him was the low whistle of the wind across the asteroids.

Kyler felt tears streak his face, burning hot against the cold Shore. "It isn't fair!" he yelled, "Guardians aren't supposed to die…" The words came out in a hoarse whisper. He'd never be able to make up for how much pain he had caused Harley in the past. He would never get the chance to fix things between them. To make things right.

Kyler started crying in earnest. His knees buckled but he couldn't bring himself to care when they slammed into the hard ground. The tears flowed, falling onto the unforgiving rock that devoured them like the Shore devoured all things.

Kyler wasn't sure how long he'd been there when he heard the dull roar of a jumpship approaching. His eyes burned as he looked up. The ship was one he didn't recognize.

As it sank slowly down to land some distance away, the one spot of relief he had was that it didn't appear to belong to the Spider or any of his minions. It was definitely a Guardian ship. However, he didn't know which Guardian it belonged to. For all he knew, the Hunter that had killed Harley could walk out of it and shoot him dead.

He found that he didn't care enough to move and instead sat waiting as two figures transmatted out. He thought they were both wearing Warlock robes, though he couldn't make his eyes focus enough to be sure until they got closer.

One was a woman with brown skin and dark hair that was braided to the side. The other was a blond guy with pale skin and mismatched eyes. Their movements were wary as they approached him, stopping a few feet away.

"Who are you?" the female Warlock asked, authority ringing in her voice.

"Kyler Maddox," replied Kyler, his voice slightly scratchy.

"What are you doing here?"

"I live here." He gestured to the cabin. Both Warlocks followed the movement.

The male Warlock tilted his head slightly. "You aren't a Guardian."

The woman shot him a brief look of surprise before facing Kyler once more. "You aren't?" Kyler shook his head. She frowned. "Why are you out here?"

Kyler's eyebrows drew together. "I told you, I live here." He paused. "Why are you out here?"

The Warlocks exchanged a glance. "We traced a spike of Light to this area," the man explained, "We're looking for another Guardian. A Hunter named Harley Hayden. Have you seen him?"

Kyler's face contorted upon hearing Harley's name. The tears welled up again, but he blinked them away. "You're too late… What did you want with him anyway?"

"We're Warlocks of the Praxic Order," said the woman, "My name is Aunor Mahal. This is Sarren Windrunner... Hayden was in our custody but he escaped. Now he's a fugitive."

"What did you mean when you said we were too late?" asked the man - Sarren - curiously.

Kyler forced himself to meet the Warlock's eyes. "Harley's dead," he told him hollowly, "Someone else got to him first." He saw the shock on their faces and took a perverse enjoyment in it.

"Who did it? Who killed him?" Aunor demanded.

Kyler shrugged. "Some Hunter." The Warlocks traded another glance. Apparently, that was significant to them.

"How do you know he's dead?" asked Sarren.

Kyler gestured to the ground in front of him. "See for yourself."

There was a long pause as the Warlocks took in the sight of the scorched ground and burnt cuffs. Sarren crouched down, prodding at one of the binders. "There's no chance Hayden got away?"

Kyler realized the question was directed at the other Warlock and he turned to her, hardly daring to hope. Her gaze was locked on the marks. She shook her head. "No. I've seen this before. He's dead. Incinerated by a Golden Gun."

A fresh wave of pain hit Kyler at the confirmation and he closed his eyes. It was final then. Harley was gone and this time it was for good.

"We should have been here sooner," Sarren said frustratedly, "We should have stopped this."

Kyler's gaze locked onto the Warlock. "Yeah," he said, "You should have." He got to his feet. "It's your fault Ace was even here to begin with! If you'd done a better job of protecting him, he'd still be back in the Tower! He'd still be alive!" He knew he was encroaching on Sarren's physical space, but he didn't care. He continued getting in the Warlock's face. "Where were you? Where were any of you when Spider was looking to sell him off to the highest bidder? Where were you when that Hunter chased us across half the Shore? Where were you when he shot Ace?"

Aunor stepped between them. "You're right," she told Kyler, "We should have been there. We shouldn't have let any of this happen. But we did and because of that, a Guardian died."

Her admission threw Kyler off enough that he lost his momentum. For a moment, he stared into her eyes and saw a reflection of his own grief. His own anger turned inward. He looked at Sarren. The other Warlock's expression was just as tortured as Aunor's.

Suddenly, Kyler didn't have the energy to keep his anger going. It fizzled away, leaving him with the guilt and the pain. Such a hollow pain. It ate away at the foundations of his being. He didn't want to be around the Warlocks anymore. He wanted to be left to crumble in peace. Abruptly, he turned away and stalked back to the cabin, Harley's cloak still clutched in his hands.

Aunor couldn't tear her eyes away from the place where Harley Hayden had died. The binders, the scorch marks… Both were sights she had seen before but in the context through which she looked at them now... they weren't the same at all. They seemed to carry a new darkness with them. A twisted purpose.

She stared blankly as Sarren summoned his Ghost to store the bands away and take scans of the site. They would have to report this to the Consensus.

"There's no sign of his Ghost's core or shell," said Sarren. It took a moment for the remark to register.

"There isn't always a remnant," she replied, "Especially with incineration."

Sarren nodded solemnly.

The longer that Aunor looked at the mark that had been burned into the ground, the more she felt anger churn inside her.

Her palms started to itch, a sign that if she didn't calm down, lightning was sure to emerge.

But how could she calm down when faced with such a failing of her order? Hayden was a victim of the very system Aunor worked to uphold. Nefarious forces had been at work from both outside and within to engineer his death. They hadn't seen the whole picture until it was too late. Now he was another casualty of Shin Malphur's vigilante justice - another addition to the web of legend that surrounded the infamous Hunter.

Aunor felt the energy within her crest like a tidal wave. She turned and flung out her arm expelling a concentrated burst of lightning with a frustrated yell.

Once the electricity had dissipated, she turned back to Sarren, breathing hard. The other Warlock had taken a step back. Now he watched her cautiously.

"Sorry," she said. The word came out sounding more clipped than she'd meant it to.

"It's ok," said Sarren, "I get it." He surveyed the area with a heavy sigh. "We really screwed up this time, didn't we?"

Aunor's mouth set in a grim line. "We weren't the only ones."

In her head, she was making a list. Miyako Thorne. Executor Hideo. The Spider. The assassins and whoever had sent them. Shin Malphur. All of them were guilty. All of them had played a hand in Hayden's death, no matter how big or small. She was going to make it her personal mission to see that they paid for it.

"Where do we go from here?" asked Sarren.

Aunor sighed. "Back to the Tower... We need to report to the Consensus and… tell his friends."

Sarren closed his eyes briefly, a look of pain crossing his face. They both knew what it was like to lose teammates. To lose friends. Several of Hayden's friends probably did as well. But it never got any easier.

"How did this get so out of hand?" Sarren wondered.

"Probably when Hayden's file got leaked to the Consensus," said Aunor bitterly. She sincerely hoped that Hideo would face repercussions for that, even though the odds were against it.

Sarren nodded. "Or when Shin Malphur shot me in the face," he said dryly.

Aunor scowled. She didn't need any more reasons to track Malphur down and blast him to kingdom come, but the renegade Hunter just kept giving her more.

Sarren sighed, looking back at the cabin. "Shouldn't we try talking to him again…" he trailed off uncertainly.

Aunor shook her head. "And say what? He already knows everything and he's told us as much as he was willing to. We're better off leaving him be." She shot a glance at the other Warlock. "Besides, if you try to talk to him again, odds are I'd have to let him kill you."

Sarren blinked at her. "Why?"

"I don't think he would appreciate the questioning and we're not allowed to use the Light on civilians." The man had clearly been close to Hayden and was currently dealing with a host of emotional turmoil. Disturbing him further would only end poorly.

Sarren nodded, but he didn't seem happy about it. Aunor knew he likely wanted to offer Maddox some form of support, but she also knew it wouldn't go over well. They had already messed things up enough.

She had Bahaghari link up with her ship's transmitter to send a message back to Praxic headquarters.

"HQ, this is Agent Aunor Mahal of the Cormorant Blade. Sarren and I are in the Tangled Shore. Hayden was DOA. Call off the search. Case closed... We'll depart soon and give our report when we return." She knew the transmission would take some time to reach Earth. Hopefully, they would be on their way back when headquarters received it.

After casting one last look at the patch of ground blackened by Solar fire, she turned and began walking back to the ship. She heard the faint scuffing against the rock as Sarren followed her.

Aunor was halfway to her ship when a loud roar split the air. She tensed, ready for action as she spotted another ship swoop in, making a sharp turn before decelerating so rapidly that she half expected to see skid marks form in the air.

It had barely stopped moving when two figures appeared below it in a bright flash, hitting the ground running.

Only when they drew closer did Aunor relax her grip on her sidearm. It was Tristan and Rogue. However, her relief at not having to deal with hostiles was soon overtaken by her irritation at their presence.

"What are you two doing here?" she demanded as they ran up.

"Whaddaya think, lady?" scoffed Rogue, "We're here for Ace."

"I told you two to remain in the Tower," said Sarren. Aunor turned to see that the other Warlock was now standing next to her.

"Fat chance," said the Exo, "There's no way we were gonna leave it up to you two after you Praxics royally fucked up the first time."

Tristan cut in. "I believe what he's trying to say is that we were… less than confident in your methods and wished to provide backup."

Rogue shrugged. "I said what I said."

"Were you able to get to Harley in time?" asked Tristan, his eyes full of hope and concern.

Aunor caught Sarren's troubled glance. She would have preferred to give them the news in a much more controlled setting like the Tower, but it was officially out of her hands. The only thing she could do now was tell them the truth.

She sighed. "No, we didn't."

There was a long pause as the two Guardians processed her statement, disbelief growing on their faces.

Tristan's brow furrowed. "What do you mean? Was another party able to make a deal with Spider before you could?"

Aunor shook her head. "I don't know how, but Hayden managed to escape from Spider's lair."

"What?" said Rogue, "Then how-"

"What happened?" asked Tristan.

"He was pursued by Shin Malphur," Aunor told them, "They crashed and… I don't know if there was a fight, but Malphur executed him with a Golden Gun."

She saw the exact moment when the two Guardians realized what that meant. Their disbelief melted away, morphing into something darker. Tristan's eyes appeared vacant, frozen in shock. Rogue's hands were shaking with rising anger.

Aunor saw the signs before it happened.

The air became charged with electricity. Sparks leaped from the Exo's body. She made no effort to move when he lashed out at her, instead, bracing for impact.

A strong tug on her arm sent her reeling backward. She felt the Titan's fist pass within an inch of her face. Sarren was pulling her backward but now Rogue was coming at her again.

Before he could reach her, Tristan appeared in front of her, glowing with Void energy. "Rogue stop!" he yelled.

The Exo ignored him and Aunor watched as Tristan made the same movements she'd witnessed Ikora make a thousand times over. He called on the Void, shaping it into a glowing orb that tore at the face of reality itself.

Right before Rogue reached him, he hurled the orb at the Titan's feet. Aunor saw the Void Light pull at the Exo, dissolving him into atoms.

After the energy dissipated, Tristan waited, breathing hard, as Rogue's Ghost materialized to reform its Guardian's body. Once the revival was complete, he warily moved closer to the Titan. "Rogue?"

The Titan was slow in getting to his feet. Tristan moved closer still. "Are you ok?"

Rogue turned to face the Warlock. Aunor could see that anger still burned within him but now the dominant emotion on the Exo's face was despair. "I can't believe he's gone, Tris…"

Tristan frowned. The Titan always sounded confident and self-assured, but at that moment, his voice sounded almost fragile. Tristan would be the first to admit that when it came to comforting people, he wasn't anyone's first choice. Or even second choice. But he would try his best.

He opened his arms to offer Rogue a hug. Instantly, the Exo's arms wrapped around him. Tristan actually felt his feet leave the ground due to his friend's height. He wasn't big on hugs in general and he felt rather awkward, but he didn't protest. It was far better for Rogue to hug him than attempt to kill Aunor Mahal, even if it put Tristan's skeletal integrity at risk.

When Rogue finally released him, he still looked sad and angry but Tristan could tell he was mostly in control.

"Sorry," the Exo told Aunor gruffly.

She shook her head. "Don't worry, I understand… And for however little it might be worth, I'm sorry. I should have been there. I should have prevented this."

For a long moment, no one said anything.

Tristan was left to break the silence. "Maybe there was more you could have done," he said, "Maybe there was more we all could have done. This should not have happened, but it's not your fault, or the Order's... It's Shin Malphur's fault and whoever had that Weapon of Sorrow planted in the apartment. If you blame yourself, then Rogue and I share the blame for not coming to you sooner. If we had combined our knowledge from the start, we might have prevented this."

Aunor nodded, accepting his words. Then she sighed deeply. "We need to return to the Tower," she said, "Sarren and I have to report to the Consensus, and… your friends need to know what happened."

Tristan nodded. The whole situation had left him feeling numb. He kept trying to process the fact that Harley was gone, actually gone, but it just wasn't registering. Am I a terrible person for not feeling sad? Try as he might, he was unable to register anything other than shock and disbelief.

As his thoughts began to take a more panicked shape, Tristan felt a wave of comfort and reassurance come from his Ghost, washing over him as though he'd stepped into a sunbeam. It helped bring clarity to his mind and he sent her his gratitude. Right now, all that mattered was getting back to the Tower. Back home.

He touched Rogue's arm. "Let's go."

As he and the Exo followed the Praxic Warlocks back to the ships, Tristan noted his friend's demeanor. The Titan was clearly taking Harley's death hard. He felt the compulsion to comfort him once more.

"Rogue," he began.

The Exo looked at him.

Tristan realized then that he had no idea what to say. His first thought had been to tell him that it would be okay.

But it wouldn't. There was nothing okay about their friend and his Ghost getting killed, shot down in cold blood by the Man with the Golden Gun. There was nothing okay about having to share that news with the rest of the Chasers. There was nothing okay about another Guardian meeting his permanent end because they hadn't gone to the Praxic Order sooner.

Tristan knew that he and Rogue hadn't pulled the trigger themselves but he felt that they might as well have. In the end, a Guardian had died and that wasn't okay. So instead of giving his friend a meaningless platitude, Tristan just initiated the transmat.

He was ready to leave this place, this desolate graveyard at the edge of the system. He was more than glad to put the Reef behind them and point his ship toward somewhere familiar, even though he knew it was soon to be distorted by grief and loss.

Harley Hayden was dead and it wasn't okay. Somehow, they had to figure out how to live with that.

And so they went.

A/N: And there we have it, the end of Requiem. Thank you all so much for reading this story. Thank you for the favorites, the follows, the reviews. They mean a lot to us writers.

I'm sure you want to know what's next. Chasing Fate isn't over, not by a long shot. I've been working on CF11 but it's still a good way out from being ready. I have the plots for the next three stories generally figured out and ideas for more past that. I won't be able to update you about story progress on here so tumblr is probably the best place to get progress reports if you want them. My handle is arcaneglitch.

I also wanted to warn you that Harley won't be appearing in the series for a bit. This is by design, as the next couple of stories will focus on other characters. I'll leave it up to your imaginations what he gets up to in the meantime.

Following me is the best way to be alerted about new stories, but you can follow the Chasing Fate community for them as well.

As always, if anyone wants to borrow characters or concepts for their own stories, you are welcome to (with credit).

Until next time!

RogueSnyper: Thank you so much for your review! I'm glad you enjoy CF and that it inspired you to write your own stories. I wish you all the best luck as I know how difficult writing can be. ^-^