So as we walked
Through fields of green
Was the fairest sun I'd ever seen
And I was broke
I was on my knees
But you said, "Yes" as I said, "Please"
Not With Haste – Mumford and Sons
September 02, 2957, 08:30 (Tower Time); The Last City, Earth
"Hmmm," Spark said. "I'm not seeing any listings." He tabbed out and back into the Vanguard postboard. It stared back at him, empty.
"None?" Azra said. She was too focused on trimming her nails with her belt knife to pay much attention. "A network error, maybe?"
Spark clicked in denial. "Not none, just none for today."
"Huh, weird," Azra commented. She inspected her hand, nodding to herself in satisfaction. "Can't remember the last time they ran out of bounties. What about-"
"Patrols already started for the day, and we have to be there for that strike with Ratamazz and Jove tomorrow, so we can't pick up any long-term ones," Spark supplied automatically.
"Hmm," Azra hummed. She finally put the knife away and gave Spark her undivided focus. "Scan requests? Points of interest?"
"Nothing at all for those," Spark answered. "I think something's wrong here."
Azra shared his suspicion. "Call up Cayde, would you?"
Call_2 Transcript 323
Azra Jax: Hey.
Cayde-6: Hey! How's it going?
AJ: Good. You know, same old. How 'bout you?
C6: Patrol schedules.
AJ: Oof. Those always seemed fun to organize.
C6: Tell me about it. You never thought you'd deal with much drama, being the higher-ups, but Echo and Nadir had a falling out and suddenly I'm re-arranging half the tables for Earth.
AJ: Speaking of patrols, can you look into something for me?
C6: If you have any weird time-off requests, now's a good opportunity, I guess.
AJ: Not that. The opposite, in fact. I can't seem to pick up any Vanguard jobs today.
C6: Lemme look at it.
AJ: Long-term stuff is up but it's like I've been assigned a glitched bounty or something. Can't pick up any one-offs.
C6: Ohhhh. I see what's wrong here.
AJ: Can you fix it?
C6: Nope. Have fun!
AJ: What-
Azra blinked a few times in surprise. "Did… he just hang up on me?"
"Yes," Spark said. "Rude."
"What was that even about?"
"I don't know."
"You think he's planning something?"
Spark ticked his shell back and forth in a thoughtful gesture. "Well, he figured out what was wrong, refused to fix it, and then cut the call short. I'd say he's certainly in on it, whatever it is."
Azra mulled her situation over for a moment. "Call Shiro?" she asked.
Call_2 Transcript 324
Shiro-4: Oh, hey Azra.
Azra Jax: Hey Shiro, uh…
S4: What's up?
AJ: Just a question. Have you heard of any… nefarious plans?
S4: Plans? Against who?
AJ: Me?
S4: No. You think someone is planning nefariously against you?
AJ: Well the VanNet is suspiciously glitched in a way that's stopping me from picking up any jobs for today, and then when I called Cayde about it he got really coy and then hung up on me.
S4: Hm. That is suspicious.
AJ: Just wondering what I should be expecting here.
S4: Well whatever's happening, I've got no part in it. I'm too busy hiding from Tyra Karn right now anyway.
AJ: Why are you hiding from Tyra?
S4: She's convinced Saladin to get a statue made.
AJ: Of you?
S4: Unfortunately.
AJ: Pfffha!
S4: And now I have to find a way to foil the plan before her Ghost can get a good modelling scan.
AJ: I can't believe it. That's hilarious.
S4: Yeah, laugh it up.
AJ: Out of all of us, you're the first one to get a statue?
S4: Huh?
AJ: I mean, it's not surprising for Tevis, but you've beat out two Hunter Vanguards and a Hero of the Red War in first for a monument.
S4: Oh. Uh…
AJ: Wait. Did they statualize Andal or something while I was in the Vault?
S4: No. I thought Cayde told you.
AJ: Told me what?
The plan had come together beautifully. Veera hadn't been sure all the pieces would fall into place. There was a certain amount of luck involved with Azra's random schedule. But the patrol cycles had just managed to work themselves out. A bribe to Cayde-6 was enough to ensure a free space on Azra's calendar.
Veera didn't even have to go looking for her. When the time came, her location pinged in the City. In a major civilian square, in fact. Veera wondered what Azra could possibly be doing there so early in the day- most shops weren't even open yet.
"Those sneaky bastards."
Azra crossed her arms and glared up at the figures in front of her. How had they gotten away with this? Obviously they'd done the unveiling when she'd been away on some errand. Either the hubbub had died down by the time she'd gotten back, or Cayde had enlisted the Hunters in keeping this on the down-low. You'd think they would tell someone when they put up a freaking statue of them.
But why?
Azra stared up at the statue as the Speaker gave his speech. She didn't pay much attention to the words. Something about bravery and sacrifice, yadda yadda. She'd heard it all before. They'd been talking about bravery and sacrifice constantly since the fighting stopped (as much as it ever stopped) two days ago.
The statue featured three Guardians: A Hunter, a Warlock, and standing proud and strong in the middle, a Titan. Their features were hidden behind generic armor. As the shadows cast by the wall grew longer, the lights in the sculpture began to turn on. The Hunter's gun shone a warm golden-orange. The orb in the Warlock's hands was an unearthly purple. The Titan's right fist, which was raised triumphantly in the air, glowed blue-white.
That statue had been destroyed in the attack on the Tower. This new one was done in a reminiscent style. To one side, a Titan lunged forward, a crystalline Ward of Dawn bared front on his arm. On the other side, a Hunter with a glass Arc Staff crouched ready to spring, looking like a frame taken for a movie poster. Between them a Warlock rose on transparent wings, holding a sword over her head. The Light constructs shimmered faintly in the morning sun. No doubt come evening they'd glow in obvious purples, blues, and oranges.
They hadn't even tried to make it generic. The figures wore no helmets. Sylas-4's face was scrunched together in a look of angry determination. Veera looked down with impassioned focus. Azra had been posed with her hood down, smirking slightly like she knew something the observer didn't.
DEDICATED TO THE HEROES OF THE RED WAR, the statue's base red. MAY THEIR LIGHT SHINE ON FOREVER.
It was practically heresy.
Veera found the Hunter with her arms crossed and a stubborn expression on her face. She was easy to pick out- the streets were fairly free of pedestrians. That would change in an hour when the shops opened and people began their daily errands.
"Hello," the Warlock greeted lightly as she walked up. "Admiring the sculpture?"
"How come I didn't know this existed?" Ara asked in accusation. "This thing's been up for months now and nobody mentioned it to me?"
Wait she hadn't known? "I thought Cayde-6 had told you of it," Veera explained defensively, "and that bringing it up would just embarrass you." It wouldn't have been in good form to rub it in- everyone could see Azra chafed under the popularity.
Azra shook her head. "This thing… Ugh, my hair's so long." The statue did wear a stylishly unkempt haircut. "So I didn't have time to cut it during a humanitarian crisis, sue me."
Veera knew that it was hard to look at a photograph of yourself (or a statue, in this case) and not be a little critical, but Azra was more upset than was justified by the bad hairstyle. "I think it is charming," Veera argued. "It looks rather impressive at night."
"Of course you'd say that," Azra groused. "You like all the adulation."
"Is it really that bad?" Veera asked.
"They got your nose wrong," Azra pointed out.
There was a moment of silence as the two Guardian's scrutinized Statue-Veera's nose.
Well, whether or not Azra had good reason to hate the statue, she still did hate it. And certainly nobody had asked her permission; Azra would never have given it. She thought the sculpture had Azra's at least grudging acceptance (it still stood, after all), but if she hadn't known… A statue kept secret from one of its subjects stood on tenuous moral ground, at least as far as Veera was concerned.
And, well, it did get her nose wrong.
"I was going to take you on a date today," Veera said, disappointed. "I had plans."
"Oh, so that's what that was about," Azra said. "I thought I was about to get kidnapped or something."
"Wait, you had plans?" Spark asked. "Past tense?"
Veera crossed her arms and nodded to herself. "I think something better just came up."
October 02, 2957, 09:31 (Tower Time), Approx. 160km WSW of Old Charlottesville, Appalachian Dead Zone, Earth
The Golden Gun shot ricocheted off the stone. "Damn," Azra swore.
"You need to improve on your aim," Veera said smugly. She twirled a sphere of Void Light on her finger and flicked it. It hit the rock squarely and detonated, leaving a spiderweb of cracks and a cloud of rock dust. Her shoulders were tense, though she grinned in satisfaction.
"It's hard to aim when I have to focus so hard on just making the damn thing," Azra complained. She let the Gun disappear and shook out her hands.
"Shame," Veera said in feigned disappointment. "I guess you will not get to destroy a statue of yourself after all."
They were in a clearing- Azra had picked it out. Nestled squarely in the middle of the Appalachian Dead Zone, nobody would think to look for them (or the two missing statues of them) here. They were free to take their time.
Azra narrowed her eyes at the stone figure. It, along with its Warlock companion, were sitting lopsidedly in the middle of the clearing. (They'd left Sylas's statue in its place in the plaza. It seemed rude to take it without asking him, and besides its remaining presence meant that the vandalism was clearly deliberate). Azra could use a grenade launcher or something, but blowing the whole thing to smithereens seemed to… quick. She'd already tried firing her Dusk Bow at it, but it turned out that the statue was not actually alive and therefore the life-sapping properties of a Tether didn't really have much effect. She could keep taking pot shots at it with her Golden Gun, or…
"Stand back and watch this," Azra bragged. She summoned her Staff, but instead of taking it two-handed as she would for melee, she hefted it like a spear. She wound herself up, lining the shot up with her free arm, before heaving the Arc Staff javelin-style at her stone likeness.
The Staff struck the statue in the shoulder and burst, causing the rock to crack. Azra flicked her wrist and the Staff appeared back in her hand. She hefted it again, preparing for another throw.
"That is so cool," Veera said. It sounded like a complaint. She spun another ball of Void Light in her hands but didn't let it loose.
"It's not very economical," Azra explained. "Grenades are better for clearing groups. This only looks easy." She hurled the Staff again, striking her stone likeness square in the sternum.
"You have found an incredibly diverse array of ways to use that thing," Veera commented.
Azra just shrugged. "Didn't have anyone to tell me what I could do. Meant I didn't have anyone telling me what I couldn't do either. One of the main weaknesses of an Arcstrider is our lack of long-range capabilities."
Veera scowled at the statue, still. The nascent grenade in her hands swirled with a promise of destruction.
"What's wrong?" Azra asked gently. Veera didn't answer right away. She'd been just a little on edge this whole time, but nothing that Azra could see should be causing that. "You thought I wouldn't notice?" the Hunter prodded.
The Warlock's breath caught and her anxiety pierced the Light with a bitter-edged sting. She let the grenade disappear and put her face in her hands.
"Hey," Azra said immediately, dropping her Arc Staff as well. "Hey, no pressure. It's alright. She cast about and located a decently-sized log at the edge of the clearing. Its tree was freshly fallen; the wood was free from rot or moss. "Let's sit down," she suggested.
Veera let herself be led over to Azra's chosen sitting place. They sat, Azra scooching close enough that their hips bumped and she could feel the warmth through Veera's clothes. Azra began to offer acceptance- "You don't have to-"
"I am nervous," Veera interrupted. "Traveler, how many dates have we been on without my realizing? And I am still so nervous."
"Azra, Veera just asked you out on a first date!" Spark teased.
Veera unholstered her sniper rifle and directed her focus to a Psion that was trying to pick them off at a distance. "If this is not the first date, how many dates have we been on?"
"Like… ten?" Azra said, feeling embarrassment like a physical pain. It had been an unspoken sort of thing, right? No need to draw a ton of focus to it. Had… had Veera not known?
"Ten. We have been on ten dates," the Warlock said in flat disbelief. She let a couple of shots off, the crack of her rifle muted in the near-vacuum.
Azra shifted her weight. "I mean… ish? Some of them were kind of riding the line…"
Azra swallowed a lump in her throat.
"This does not feel real," Veera continued. "How can this be real?" She sounded giddy and anxious.
Azra's stomach was a black hole. She'd worried about this. If Veera doubted, wasn't it Azra's fault? She thought she'd been dating Veera for years and Veera didn't even notice. What else should she have been doing?
"I… can't make this any more real than I already have," Azra said quietly. She could kiss Veera, she supposed. She'd done it before, when emotions were high, and maybe even enjoyed it then. But here in the calm the thought hadn't even crossed her mind. That wouldn't be real, would it?
"Oh, Azra," Veera said, sounding wounded. "No. It… that isn't it. Not at all."
The Hunter shook her head, demurring. "I didn't mean to make this about me. I'm sorry."
Veera took Azra's face in her hands, forcing their eyes to meet. "I have been worried," the Warlock said, "irrationally so, perhaps, that things would… change between us. I dreaded our relationship to be different now that it has been acknowledged. Nervous because, in the end, I have been so happy being your friend, for being able to share things like this with you." Her voice cracked. "I suppose at some point I thought that to be in jeopardy. That we needed the perfect date or else you would realize how… how foolishly thoughtless I can be and then I would lose this."
Thoughtless? Veera was one of the most considerate people Azra knew. Obtuse at times, maybe, bullheaded, but she was always there to listen or help if Azra needed it. "I chose to be here," Azra reminded her. "I continue to choose to stay." Veera shouldn't doubt that Azra wanted this to happen. She'd happily been letting it happen for years.
"And I chose to ask you here," Veera said in response. "And I know you. Do not forget that."
The emotion in the air was a bit too much to deal with. Veera let Azra's face go. Both Guardians sat in silence for a moment, staring at the trees around them, the cracked statues, anything but each other.
Finally, Azra spoke. "Traveler, where did we both get such emotional baggage?" she asked dryly.
"I have an idea," Veera replied. "Several ideas, in fact."
The Hunter took a deep beath, but there was nothing in the Light but forgiveness and the cool sweetness of fears relieved. They had both been taking this a bit too seriously. Nothing here was in question. "I think we're bad at this," she warned her companion.
Veera straightened, a gleam in her eye. "Well then we had best stop messing around and use some real ordinance," the Warlock declared, purposefully missing the point. "These statues shall be rubble."
Azra was the first to actually break the statue, an expertly-placed shot from her Scout Rifle breaking off the offendingly bad representation of Veera's nose. The Warlock scoffed in exaggerated outrage and swore vengeance. They slung jokes back and forth as they chipped away at the stone until the air was so sweet with mutual fondness that Azra could pull a Golden Gun made from joy instead of pain. Veera answered Azra's worst subclass with her own, letting out Arc bolts that sang in pure giddy relief.
Barely twenty minutes later, the Guardians had stopped to appreciate their handiwork. No chunk of stone remained large enough to identify its original purpose. They stood, Veera with an arm around Azra's waist and Azra with hers slung over Veera's shoulder. Veera kept waiting for the moment when Azra's grip would loosen and she would pull away, but it never came. It was… nice, Veera decided. Tucked up against Azra like this, it felt like there was nothing wrong in the world. She had absolutely no urge to move. Azra was warm and smelled pleasantly of campfire smoke and pine pitch. Her Light was the barest hint of wild starlight in Veera's awareness.
"You have mentioned on occasion," Veera began, suddenly curious, "how your Lightsense is different now, after the Vault. Stronger." Azra shifted an inch or so in recognition, settling her weight on her other foot, but didn't verbally answer.
"…What do I feel like?" Veera asked.
Azra hummed for a second. Veera felt it resonate in her chest, as close as she was. "You know," the Hunter said slowly, "Right after a big thunderstorm in the City, when the rain's washed all of the smell out of the air besides itself? And everything's calm compared to before, and all the shoplights are reflecting off of the wet streets?"
Veera closed her eyes and she could almost see it. The dull wash on the damp asphalt, contrasted with sharp-edged brightness on the puddles. The hushed tones people used to speak, as if they were afraid to disturb the silence.
"It's my favorite time to be in the City," Azra said softly.
"I can imagine why," Veera said. Azra snorted and shoved her with a hip. "Not due to its association with me!" Veera exclaimed. "But… it is quieter, and the air smells new, and there is beauty if you stop to look for it. That sounds just like you."
"Well, yeah," Azra said, sounding childish.
"You can try guess my favorite place in the City if it will make you feel better," Veera teased.
Azra snorted. "That's easy. That garden with the ridiculous amount of windchimes."
"You think one windchime is a ridiculous amount of windchimes," Veera accused.
Azra shrugged. "It is. Uselessly noisy."
Veera's stomach chose that moment to growl- she hadn't even realized she was hungry, with all of the excitement. "I suppose now is a good time to mention that I packed a picnic," she said. "I found a nice place in Madagascar where we could watch the sunset." She supposed she should move out from under Azra's arm and make preparations, but she really didn't feel like it.
"Sounds wonderful," Azra commented. She, too, made no indication that she was going to let go.
They stood in agreeable silence for a moment.
Their two Ghosts, seemingly fed up with their Guardians' nonsense, appeared in realspace to usher things along. "Lazy," Veera's Ghost teased, coming to hover in front of her face. "Planning to move any time this week?"
"I am extremely busy," Veera said in her own defense. "It turns out that hugging Azra is a very time-consuming task."
"You know," Azra argued semantically, "after a certain point it stops being a hug and starts being a cuddle."
"Well then we shell consider this an experiment," Veera announced. "We test the boundaries. For science."
Azra rolled her eyes but held her free hand out for her Ghost. "Mind flying us to Madagascar?" She put on her best 'pathetic and sad' face for him.
"…You know I can't say no when you pout at me like that," Spark complained. Azra's sad face melted away to a grin and humor-filled eyes.
Both Ghosts let out beleaguered sighs. "Fine," Veera's Ghost said, "but don't expect me to sit around watching you two make eyes at each other."
"Oh, he will," Spark said confidently. "Did you know he's starting a photo album?"
Veera raised an eyebrow at her Ghost. "You are starting a what?"
"Oh look at that," Ghost said, voice suddenly several registers higher. "Time for transmat!"
Azra was still laughing when they dematerialized.
