A.N.: Chapter Six!

So, I got a bit exited to write a bit more. This story just keeps giving me new ideas, Destiny is also party to blame for that though.

Chapter Start!


The members of 404 all had varying thoughts about the things they just heard.

UMP 9 was exited about the 'rewards' Hunter spoke about and started looking for the gun he mentioned.

G11 was napping, obviously.

416 was curious about the part where he mentioned that he was seen as a hero. That was something Spark had yet to talk about. Maybe she could ask him later?

45 on the other hand was able to pick up something that the others apparently overheard. When Hunter spoke about this 'Cayde', his voice got a sad, almost depressed, undertone. She got curious about that so, she decided to ask Spark about it.

Spark himself was saddened by the tone of his guardian's voice. He wish he could be there to lend his support, even if he could only give Hunter some reassuring words. His guardian should not sound so depressed.

"Mr. Spark." Spark was snapped out of his musing by the voice of 45. "Can I ask you something?" she asked.

Spark welcomed the distraction, he did not want to think about his hunters problematic situation, it would only stress him out. "Yes, Ms. 45, you can, but do you want to?"

He got that joke from Sundance, Cayde's ghost. She was a cheerful one.

UMP 45 found the joke not as funny as he did, judging by her deadpan expression. She choose to ignore it for now.

"I just wanted to ask, who is this Cayde your guardian was talking about?" Spark blinked, or as close to blinking as you could as a sentient sphere of light wrapped in a disco ball. That was a question he did not expect. It brought the memories of his hunters depression right back up.

"That question could take some time to answer, how about I answer it on our way to the next location?" he needed some time to sort throu his thoughts right now, only then can he answer.

45 was about to say something when she was interrupted by the voice of her sister. "45-nee! Look, I found the gun he was talking about!" was 9's exited exclamation. Spark and 45 looked over to the exited T-Doll just to see her hold a standard issue Sanvis Ferri gun, the ones normally carried by vespid units. It was a futuristic looking assault rifle type gun with little in terms of firepower and a range that makes it just good enough fo mid range fire fights. It was black with a purple stripe on each side. Otherwise its completely black. This one had one difference thou, it had a carving on its side wich read:

"Payback, because Forgiveness is overrated."

It appears to be a small inscription to discern it from the standard issue versions. 45 had to admit that it was a bit fitting, you use it as payback to SF after all. 416 seemed to be interested in it as well, she would most likely want to know what kind of improvements Hunter made on it with the small amount of time and resources he had at hand.

Just after 9 got her sisters attention, she pointed the rifle at the wall and pressed the trigger. With a small high pitched sound, the gun shot its projectile, a small energy blast. It was faster then any normal bullet and, after impacting the wall, left a smoldering hole in the wall. It was impressive, nearly double the firepower of the original model. One question remained.

"9, what does it use as ammunition?" came the question from the elder of the UMP sisters.

The one to answer it was Spark, who just finished scanning the gun. "It uses the power cores of the Sangvis dolls that use it," he said in a tone that implied that He was impressed by his guardian's work. "It has a higher energy consumption than the original model, but the firepower is considerably higher. It is also half automatic with an estimated range of a hundred meters. A good improvement using the salvaged parts of the Dolls Hunter defeated."

45 liked that description. If the guardian could do that with limited resources then what could he do with the resources his ghost could provide? But, no matter how impressive, the UMP sisters would not be able to use that thing, they are after all calibrated to SMGs and could not use it properly. Maybe 416 or G11 could take it? Thoughts for another time.

Spark and 404 grabbed anything that could be of value and had Spark store it, including spare Vespid power cores for the new weapon they fittingly named Payback. As soon as everything was done, they got back to the jeep they used to drive here and started heading southeast.


It was five minutes in when Spark decided to answer 45's question from before.

"So, Ms. 45 asked me something back at the outpost that I think I can answer now. She asked me about Cayde." He started, somewhat nervous. Cayde was a sore topic for him and his guardian.

"Hmm, yes I remember your friend talking about someone with that name. Something about talking Inspiration from him to make the audio diaries." came the thoughtful reply from 416. She was also a bit interested in that part, even if she was more interested about the parts that talked about the hunters combat capabilities.

"Oh, are we gonna hear about Mr. Hunters background story?" came the ever exited voice of 9. She really just wants to hear more exiting stories about Spark and his guardian.

G11 appears to be sleeping, but was also paying attention to what was being said, just a bit interested in the topic.

"Yes, the story about Hunters connection to Cayde may be a bit long, but I can always tell you some important parts." Spark said, readying himself for the memories he is about to recall.

"Cayde-6 was the hunter vanguard, a mentor of sorts for the new hunters that join the ranks of the guardians. He took few things serious and always made jokes at the most important of moments. He was always there to cheer my guardian and me up, he brought life to the tower. Cayde was the sort of person you could always rely on, even if he didn't appear like that at first.

"Hunter always thought of Cayde as an oder brother, so to speak. Cayde helped him, guided him and encouraged him if things seemed like they would escalate beyond control." Spark slowly got into the explanation, his voice taking on a sad tone.

"What happened to him?" 45 was the one to ask. She was curious about the tone Spark and Hunter used when taking about Cayde. It gave her a strange feeling, as if she knew that tone frome somewhere.

Spark paused for a moment before speaking again. "Uldren Sov" he said with a surprising amount of venom in his voice. He sounded angry, something the T-dolls had not heard from him before. "The prince of the awoken escaped from the prison of elders with the help from outsiders. Cayde went to confront him and the fallen barons that followed his command. He fought them all alone, he never stood a chance.

"They first killed his ghost, Sundance, most likely when she came out to heal him. She Was just as cocky and confident as Cayde himself and it cost her. Me and my guardian arrived to late to help. When we arrived at the scene, Cayde was dieing and Uldren was escaping with his barons, Cayde's gun, the Ace of Spades in his hand.

"My guardian was never the same after that. He became a lot more like Cayde, always a joke at hand and confident in every situation. But behind that lied a lot of buried pain and grief, something he only showed when we were alone. I miss his old, silent and somewhat dense self and the borderline idiotic questions he would ask from time to time, but I know that he needs that mask to heal and, who knows, maybe this world will have something that will help him heal. "

A solemn silence fell on the group, none knowing what to say to the story they heard. All but one were silent out of respect to Spark for talking about such a painful memory, even the normally energetic UMP 9 was silent.

UMP 45 on the other hand found herself thinking about something else. A person with a fake smile who hides their true thoughts from others. She knew someone like that. Someone with a trauma in her past, even if she herself can't remember what it was. 45 would really like to know in how many ways these two people resemble each other.

How many similarities are there between UMP 45 and the guardian known as Hunter?


A.N.: There you have it.

Our heroes are on the move again and the girls Were delivered with one of the many trauma of the guardian they are searching for.

Until next time.