Kendrix didn't sleep well that night, which seemed to him somewhat paradoxical, given how utterly exhausted he was from the day's whirlwind of events. Unfortunately, his body seemed entirely unwilling to comply with his logic, meaning that he hardly felt better when his eyes opened the following morning. It took a moment for him to process why he was waking up, then realized Proxima was speaking.
"You've got another message," she said, floating above him and rotating her fins impatiently. Kendrix let out a low groan.
"Tell Beckett I'm taking the day off."
"It's not Beckett. It's Apollo." Kendrix slowly sat up to blink confusedly at his Ghost.
"The hell does he want?"
"See for yourself." Proxima's eye flashed, and projected out a stream of light that quickly resolved itself into some sort of hologram. A hologram of Apollo's young, smug face.
"Hey, greenie." the hologram said, its lips moving ever so slightly out-of-sync with the audio being played. "Hope you didn't forget about our little appointment for today.
"He was completely out of it, how does he remember that?!" Kendrix said irritably while rubbing his eyes.
"You'd be amazed what skills some people spend their immortality perfecting," Proxima replied in deadpan.
"It case you did forget," the hologram continued, completely heedless of their conversation, "It's you and me at 1200, 1v1. I took the liberty of reserving an arena for us, and have passed its coordinates on to your Ghost. I understand if you decide to forfeit, but if you do come you'd better bring your A-game. I'm not gonna go easy on you." The hologram smirked, said "See you soon, greenie," and winked out. Kendrix sighed.
"I don't want to do this."
"Nope. But you should."
"Why?! Why should I have to cater to his twisted ego?"
"You shouldn't. But he's an arrogant shithead asking to be knocked down a peg. You can't pass up the opportunity to put his teeth in the dirt. And if you don't show he'll probably lord it over you for a literal eternity."
"Yeah, and he'll be even worse after I lose." Proxima scoffed.
"Please, you can wipe the floor with him."
"Sure. I've got a guaranteed win over the guy with better armor, better guns, and 3 more years of experience."
"He might be older and stronger than you, but so is every single thing Guardians fight. Our entire lives are a never-ending underdog story, and yet we still manage to come out on top more often than we have any right to. This is no different. You're smarter than him, more collected. He's an unstable egomaniac. Use that."
Kendrix thought to himself for a moment, then sighed.
"Alright, fine. How long until noon?"
"Thirty minutes."
"Why do you keep doing this to me?!"
Nova flew them to Apollo's location about twenty minutes later. It was in the Cosmodrome, as so many things seemed to be, inside the ancient, rusted-open hull of a long-dead starship. Nova dropped him at the very edge of the structure, and Kendrix thanked him for the lift. He felt bad about the machine having to chauffeur him around all day. Once this was done with, he'd take the robot on another solo patrol. Give him a chance to stretch his legs. Or wings. Or… whatever.
Proxima led Kendrix into the ship through a cleared out maintenance tunnel that had been conveniently marked with dim fluorescent lights. As he walked through it, being careful not to trip, Kendrix conferred with his Ghost.
So... what exactly do I do here?
Simple. This path will lead you into the arena, where Apollo will be waiting. You chat a bit, talk some trash, then beat him down til he stays down.
You make it sound so easy, murdering another human.
It isn't murder. Traveller above, you're morbid. It's not permanent. Think of it like… like borrowing, rather than stealing.
Oh, great. Yeah, thanks for that. I feel so much better.
Leave the sarcasm to me, would you? You're bad at it.
The tunnel ahead began to brighten, and when Kendrix pushed through it he found himself standing in broad daylight. The ribs of the ship arced up above him into the sky, hanging over the arena proper like the folded wings of some great dragon. The sun floated directly above them, shining straight down into the space within like the gaze of a giant eye. High noon.
Just as Proxima had said, Apollo was waiting within. He was standing at the far end of the football field-sized arena, which was littered with rusted metal barricades. The Hunter's orange-and-yellow armor and cloak felt washed out in the blazing sun, and his golden helmet shone painfully with reflected light. It almost hurt to look at, even with his own helmet filtering the light. Kendrix couldn't focus on Apollo's appearance for long, though, as a loud cheer quickly grabbed his attention. His eyes shot up to the rim of the arena's walls, which was set in steps like some sort of amphitheatre.
Sitting on one of those steps was the unmistakable purple and gold form of Oroa, who was pumping her fist in his direction. Unfortunately, she wasn't alone. Sitting with her were Beckett and Trinity, who were also looking in his direction. It was hard to tell at this distance, but he thought they were smiling at him. Beyond them were at least two dozen other Guardians, peppered around the stadium, most of whom Kendrix didn't recognize. He spotted Oroa's friends from the bar, a few Guardians whose outfits he recognized from the Tower, and-
Her.
He had to do a double take to be sure, but standing at the very top of the stands was the Hunter from the elevator.
Is she… following me?!
Hard to say, though I doubt she bumped into you by accident last night.
For a moment, Kendrix stared at the woman, feeling more unsettled that he thought possible. And though it was impossible to be certain with her wearing her helmet, he thought he could feel her staring right back. Why was she here? What did she know about Riksis, and why did she seem so determined to discover the truth about him?
Decided that asking unanswerable questions would only feed his unease, Kendrix forced himself to focus on his irritation instead.
Why didn't you tell me there'd be spectators?!
I didn't want to stress you out! Plus, in my defense… I didn't think there'd be this many. It's rare that so many people show up for just a one-on-one. Apollo must've been telling anyone who would listen about this.
Great. That's just great. Now I'll get to humiliate myself in front of my friends, Apollo's fan club, *and* my new stalker.
Oh quit whining, you'll do fine. Besides, most of them are probably here for you, not Apollo. See the slayer of Riksis in action.
You know, I think that's actually worse.
Kendrix did his best to push his fear and self-consciousness aside, and began to walk out into the arena.
"I'm surprised you actually showed," called out a snide, almost sing-song voice. Apollo jumped down from the barrier he was standing on and began to saunter towards Kendrix. "I'm a busy man, greenie, so let's make this quick, yeah?" Kendrix could practically smell the bravado.
"Works for me," he replied, trying to sound nonchalant. "Although, if you're in such a hurry, maybe we should call this off for the day. There's no shame in forfeiting." Apollo stiffed, and Kendrix allowed himself a small smile of self-congratulations.
"Nice try, greenie." Apollo's suave mood had suddenly turned sour. "You're not getting off that easy. Rules are simple. Anything goes. Guns, Light, fighting dirty, whatever. One round. First person to give up or die loses. Get it?"
"Sure thing, Sunshine."
"Don't call me that," Apollo grumbled.
"When do we start?" Kendrix asked, ignoring the comment. Apollo's head cocked to one side, and Kendrix could practically see the smirk glowing through his helmet.
"Now."
Almost quicker than Kendrix could react, the Hunter yanked a knife out of his belt and lunged forward. Scrambling, Kendrix pushed himself back off the ground, letting a Glide carry him up and away from Apollo's strike, so that the blade's swing just nicked the trenchcoat-like tail of his robes. Trying to take full advantage of the brief escape, Kendrix whipped out his Duke and took aim, firing a handful of bullets in Apollo's direction. But the other Guardian had already jumped up into the air, and in a movement that defied all logic, jumped again, propelling himself straight at Kendrix, knife still in hand.
Kendrix ended his Glide, causing him to fall right to the ground with a thump, while Apollo sailed right through the space he had been. Kendrix whirled around and tried to shoot again, but the Hunter had already dodged behind some cover. He stood still for a moment, trying to spot a flash of orange or gold, but then a rifle round sprouted from his shoulder and Kendrix dove for cover himself.
"First blood," he heard Apollo crow. "This match is as good as mine, greenie."
You can't beat him at the precision game. Try something else.
Like what?!
Casting a wider net.
Kendrix felt his Duke dissolve into data, being replaced with the two-handed weight of the Khvostov.
Alright, we'll give it a go.
Kendrix leapt over his cover and began pushing forward, spraying round after round from the rifle as he did, wherever he thought Apollo might be hiding. Some of the bullets must've hit close to him, as he saw a flash of gold dash from one barricade to another. Having discovered his adversary's location, Kendrix forced a grenade to coil to life between his fingertips, and lobbed the compressed Void right over the barricade. He was rewarded for his efforts with a shout of pain from Apollo as a purple vortex blossomed and the Hunter rushed out into the open.
Kendrix unloaded the rest of his magazine in Apollo's general direction, and even seemed to land a few hits, but the other Guardian quickly dove behind another piece of cover. Kendrix did the same so that he could reload.
That didn't work either. he mentally muttered to Proxima as he pushed in the new clip.
He's playing things too carefully. You've gotta draw him out, make him get sloppy.
How?
You seem to be pretty good at pissing him off, you figure it out.
Kendrix thought for a moment. Then, doing his best to mimic Apollo's own snide, singsong tone, he called out across the arena, loud enough that even the audience should've been able to hear.
"Is that all you've got for me, Sunshine? Honestly, I'm a little hurt. You promised you wouldn't go easy on me!"
"Shut it, greenie!" replied a venomous voice. One far closer than it should have been.
Kendrix dove to one side as Apollo suddenly leapt over the barrier. He pulled into a crouch as the Hunter lunged towards him, knife glowing red-hot with flame. Without thinking, Kendrix responded in kind, thrusting his hand forward and grabbing Apollo's wrist, filling his hand with enough Void force to hold back the Hunter's body weight. The knife sparked and sputtered, the tip of its blade mere inches from Kendrix's throat.
"I told you to quit calling me 'Sunshine'!" Apollo growled through gritted teeth as the two of them stood, shaking, each trying to find a way to overwhelm the other.
"Quit calling me 'greenie', and maybe I'll consider it!" Kendrix replied, growling right back. Then, in a swift mental motion, he turned the force of Void keeping Apollo at bay inwards, wrapping it around the Hunter's wrist. Apollo screamed as his wrist crumpled and the knife fell from his spasming hand. Kendrix pushed off him, cracked the butt of his Khvostov against Apollo's head, and quickly stepped back several paces as the Hunter fell to his knees, gripping his injured left hand in pain.
"Seriously-" Kendrix drawled, no qualms about metaphorically kicking Apollo while he was down. "-this is what you were going to go after Riksis with? Some knife tricks and a couple half-decent rifle shots? Where's the fire?!" Kendrix scoffed. "I did you a favor getting there first. If it weren't for me, he would've torn you apart."
"SHUT UP!" Apollo roared as he surged to his feet, panting heavily. Kendrix noticed one of the ornamental wings had snapped off of Apollo's golden helmet. Probably from when he struck with his rifle. "You want fire?! I'll give you fire!"
Giving up on his left hand, Apollo thrust his now-empty right one high into the air, the sun blazing down on him with its judgement. Sunlight turned to fire, and fire turned to form as Apollo snatched the Golden Gun out of the sky.
He swung the weapon down and aimed it straight at Kendrix's heart. He ripped his helmet off of his face, and Kendrix could see the fire in his smiling eyes.
"This weapon can turn a humanoid to ash at twenty meters, and I've got you at point blank." Apollo explained, his voice now filled only with wrathful satisfaction. "I thought I'd drag this out for a bit, make a show of beating you, a demonstration of how I'm better than you in every way. But you just had to go and ruin it, steal my thunder again. So I'm ending this, here and now. Say goodbye, Kendrix."
He pulled the trigger.
Spacetime warped at Kendrix's almost instinctive call, coiling into a spring to thrust him up and away from danger. But the bullet of golden flame was coming too fast, from too close. A Glide wouldn't be fast enough. There was no time.
No time at all.
Kendrix felt it all crash in on top of him, the Void swirling the fabric of reality around him into a cocoon of negation. He vanished, but it wasn't like the quick, practically imperceptible flash of transmat. This was something deeper, more fundamental. He wasn't becoming data. He was becoming nothing. And everything. All at once. It happened, simultaneously an instant and an eternity. An infinite string of zeros, all still adding up to nothing, nothing, nothing...
Kendrix Blinked back into existence and found himself on the opposite side of Apollo's burning silhouette. Pushing past the shock of his experience, he drew as much Void as he could into his fist, and jabbed Apollo into the right arm from behind.
The Hunter, still reeling from his target's sudden disappearance, cried out in shock and pain as the bones of his upper arm snapped and his flaming Gun flashed into nothingness. Kendrix swept Apollo's legs out from under him, and the other Guardian went down into the dirt. Kendrix yanked his Duke out of transmat and rolled Apollo over with his foot, aiming the barrel right between the eyes of that smug face, twisted by fear and rage.
"We done here?" Kendrix asked, his voice cold and even.
Apollo's eyes narrowed, and the Hunter glared at him for a moment. There was a hocking noise, and a globule of spit struck Kendrix in the chest.
"You know, part of me hoped you'd say that."
He pulled the trigger.
Kendrix found a ladder leading out of the arena and into the stands, and tiredly pulled himself up. When he reached the last few rungs, a pair of muscled and armored arms grabbed a hold of him and hoisted him into the air.
"Kendrix, that was incredible!" Oroa bellowed, crushing him in a bear hug that made his just-healed bones cry out for mercy.
"Very impressive for a new guy," Trinity agreed, giving him a glowing smirk when Oroa set him down. "Not many Warlock get their Blinks so early. Although, you Voidwalkers tend to have an easier time with it, so don't go getting too big of a head."
"Well done, Kendrix," Beckett added, clapping him on the shoulder. "You fought with tact and efficiency, as I expected you would."
"I'm not so sure." Kendrix replied with a sigh. "I felt so… cruel, making fun of Apollo like that. I don't like going down to that level."
"Oh please," Trinity said with a scoff. "I like the guy, but he was practically begging you to smack him around. I just hope he'll chill out after this."
Kendrix's eyes wandered across the other spectators. Some were scrutinizing him, others were smiling or waving, a few were simply leaving. He ignored them all, until he found her.
The Hunter was still standing where she had been at the start of the fight, leaning unobtrusively against a pillar. Her visor was still trained on him, its cold, black surface revealing no emotion or intent. Gathering his courage and indignation, Kendrix took a step towards her. But then a voice rang out, interrupting his movement.
"Kendrix! I'm not done with you!"
"Speak of the devil," Trinity muttered. Kendrix turned to watch as Apollo pulled himself up to the top of the ladder and stepped into the stands. He had put his helmet back on, and its wing had even been repaired, presumably by his Ghost.
"You owe me a rematch! Round two, best out of three, whatever!" Apollo's words were harsh, but his voice was filled with desperation.
"Apollo…" Beckett said warningly. But Kendrix stepped in first.
"No, actually, I don't," he said cooly, turning to face Apollo as the Hunter stomped over.
"Excuse me?" Apollo asked, incredulous.
"I said, I don't owe you a damn thing." Kendrix repeated, his voice sharpening. "Listen here, Apollo, and listen well. I only came to this fight cause I hoped it would help you reconcile things in your head, help you make peace with whatever it is you had against me. But seeing as that didn't work, let me spell it out for you. You said this would be one on one, one round. That was the deal. Well I did what you asked. You don't get to change the terms just cause I came out on top."
Apollo's posture rose slightly as he started to speak, but Kendrix just pushed over him.
"I don't owe you a second round. Hell, I didn't even owe you this round! I don't owe you anything, and I never have! You act like Riksis was your kill, your… victory, that you were just days away from going out there and taking the bastard down. But from what I can tell, you'd been dragging your feet about it for weeks, if not months! Anyone could've completed that bounty, and I guarantee you wouldn't have dared hounding some other Guardian about it. And even if you were somehow justified in having this… delusion that he somehow belonged to you, I didn't go out there to steal your glory! I was fighting for my fucking life, Apollo. Riksis almost killed me half a dozen times, and I only got out of there alive cause I got more lucky than anyone has a right to!"
Apollo's fists had clenched at his sides, but he didn't try to say anything.
"Now I don't know you, so I'm trying really goddamn hard not to judge you. I don't know why you're like this, and I don't care. You can figure out how to deal with your raging inadequacy complex on your own time! Cause I may have a literal eternity of life on my hands, but if you think I'm going to waste another SECOND of it on this schoolyard ego bullshit, then you're even stupider than you've made yourself look!"
Kendrix had realized he was shouting, but also found he couldn't care less.
"So here's what's gonna happen. You're gonna drop this issue. You're gonna keep your mouth shut about any of this shit around me. You're gonna leave me the hell alone. Cause if you don't, I swear to whatever gods give a damn that I will find a way to make you! Understand?!"
"THAT'S ENOUGH!"
Kendrix froze as the voice thundered across the stands. That's when he noticed the embers of orange flame fizzling in the air around him.
"What…?"
Kendrix's focus was yanked away as a tall armored figure strode towards him and Apollo, and the embers winked out. Given his build, Kendrix assumed the man was a Titan, but beyond that the figure was unfamiliar. His armor was mostly white plate intermixed with patches and straps of leather and fur. Some of the plating going up the left side of his body was colored a rough orange, including the left half of his helmet. The helmet's right side also sported a long, curling horn that looked surprisingly genuine.
That's Shaxx. He manages the Crucible and oversees most of its matches.
Oh. Shit.
Yup.
"You will both stop this childish bickering at once. Am I understood?" Shaxx said in a voice as rough and impassable as a cliff face.
"But Lord Shaxx-" Apollo began to protest.
"Silence!" the Titan snapped. "Apollo, you asked me to organize this match under the Crucible tradition of old, so that you might resolve your conflict with this young Guardian. I did as you asked, and now your score is settled. Regardless of how you feel about its result. Understood?"
"Yes, Lord Shaxx," Apollo replied, his voice suddenly hollow.
"Good. As for you- Kendrix, was it?" the Titan continued, turning towards Kendrix. "The Crucible is a place where we strengthen one another, not tear each other down. Our world is a dangerous place, and we cannot afford to give in to our grievances with one another. We are relied upon by one another and, more importantly, by the people of the City, to present a united front in the defense of humanity. Am I clear?"
"Yes, sir- er, Lord." Kendrix quickly replied.
"Good. Because if either of you turn one of my matches into another belligerent squabble like this, you will both be banned from all of my arenas. Now, if you'll excuse me, I am required elsewhere. I suggest you both take some time alone to collect yourselves."
With that, Shaxx swept himself away in a flash of transmat.
Well, that guy hates me.
Nah, you're fine. Shaxx has been running the Crucible since it was founded. He's dealt with more unruly Guardians than there are stars in the sky, and I doubt you or Apollo are anywhere near the worst he's seen. The guy just knows when to bring the hammer down, you know? And you did take it a little far.
I guess so Kendrix admitted. But what was I supposed to do? He just wouldn't leave me alone!
Yeah, I know. Fortunately, even if Apollo is still ticked off, I don't think he'll risk his standing with the Crucible or the Vanguard with another outburst.
I hope you're right.
Kendrix glanced around for the Hunter in question, part of him wanting to apologize, but Apollo was already gone.
Well, we've still got half a day on our hands. What do you want to do?
Kendrix glanced around, and spotted Trinity starting to leave with the others. He recalled the sparks of flame that had risen up during his argument with Apollo, and an idea sprung up.
"Hey, Trinity!" he called out, jogging over to her. The Exo stopped and turned to look at him. "Uh, Beckett mentioned last night that you might be able to give me some pointers about this whole Warlock thing? Do you think maybe you could spare some time to help me out?"
Trinity smiled at him. "Sure, I should be able to find an hour or so this afternoon."
"Great! I'll be ready."
"Cool cool. I'll be in touch." Trinity gave a two finger salute and vanished into transmat.
About three hours later, Kendrix found himself out in the wilderness at the base of a small, snow-capped peak, sitting cross-legged across from Trinity.
"Alright," the Exo Warlock began, her mouth flashing violet as she spoke. "The most fundamental thing to understand as a Warlock is how our Light manifests. That's what separates us from the other classes. Titans' Light reacts to their physical strength; that's why they're all muscle-bound hulks. Hunters' Light is physical too, but on a more subtle level. It's influenced by their metabolism, their agility, and general survivability, rather than raw power. But for us Warlocks, Light is tied directly to our minds. We manifest it with our thoughts, our emotions, our memories. That can make us the most versatile Guardians, but also the most chaotic."
Trinity paused, evidently making sure he was following.
"Ok. I think I understand." Kendrix assured her. She nodded, then continued.
"The next most fundamental concept is the elements. There are three, and I believe you may already be familiar with them. They are Arc, Solar, and Void. What exactly each of them is is a poorly understood, and therefore hotly debated, topic. Many claim that they are extensions or aspects of the Light. But I've had enough Fallen Arc bolts and Hive Void rounds fired at me to know that Light isn't a necessary component to the elements' existence. It's simply what we Guardians use to access and manipulate them."
Kendrix nodded, indicating his comprehension.
"Now with Warlocks, each element can be tied to a particular aspect of the mind. Arc is the element of thought, of focus and consciousness." Trinity snapped her fingers, and strands of pale blue electricity began to arc between her fingertips. "It's the easiest of the three to control, although to truly wield its power requires an intense state of trance-like meditation, that often takes years to even achieve, much less master. It is also the least versatile, manifesting almost exclusively in an offensive capacity."
Trinity clasped her hand into a fist, snuffing out the Arc, then raised a single finger. After a moment, a bout of orange flame sprung up from its tip.
"Solar is the element of emotion, of rage and fear and love and sorrow. It manifests differently with each emotion, making it the most versatile, capable of manifesting weapons, healing wounds, and even generating shields. But this also makes it the most capricious, the most difficult to use consistently."
Trinity doused the flame, then splayed and steepled her fingers on both hands, forming a roundish sort of cage in front of her chest. A sphere of glowing, tearing violet bloomed in between her hands.
"Void is the element of our most primal thoughts, our instincts, our unconscious mind. It is easily the most powerful, and the hardest to control. It manifests primarily as the manipulation of gravity, whether to let us glide around, empower our strikes, or create black hole-like effects to consume matter and energy, 'burning' our foes."
Kendrix nodded again, though the mention of the Void somewhat dampered his enthusiasm.
"While every Guardian can theoretically use each of the elements, most of us gravitate towards one in particular. Even Warlocks are no exception, though our almost universal curiosity means we're the most likely to have our fingers in multiple pies. I, for example, am a pretty passionate person-"
Kendrix had a flash of recollection of Trinity and Oroa's 'dance' the previous night, and couldn't help but agree.
"-so I tend towards Solar, making me what's called a Dawnblade. You, if my sources are correct, are likely a Voidwalker. The name's self-explanatory, I assume."
"...yeah." Kendrix said softly, glancing down at his hands. Remembering the mark they'd left behind.
Trinity nodded sympathetically.
"Oroa told me what happened. Well, she told a lot of people, but… anyway. The Void is a tricky thing. Like I said, it's the hardest to control, especially for new Guardians. Even someone as talented as you won't be able to master it quickly."
"There's… something I don't understand, though." Kendrix said hesitantly. Trinity gestured for him to continue. "You said that anger… rage… was connected to Solar. And today when I got mad at Apollo, that's how it was."
"Yeah. I saw the embers."
"But when I was with Oroa… when I lost it… that was Void." Trinity nodded.
"Common misconception. What you were feeling then, that wasn't anger. Anger is an emotion, a tool humans use to communicate and comprehend one another, even if it doesn't always feel like one. When you were angry with Apollo, you were using your anger to communicate to him that he was harming you, to assert your needs to another person. But when you faced that Devil, and correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm guessing you didn't have any intention of communicating with him, much less understanding him. You just saw something, and wanted it gone. It was fight or flight, and you chose fight. That primal desire to kill in the name of your own survival isn't emotion, its instinct. And instinct calls the Void. Believe me, I've watched the fire of enough Dawnblades and Sunbreakers go violet when they cross that threshold to know what I'm talking about."
Kendrix was silent. It made sense, or at least he thought it did, but it wasn't enough to make him feel better.
"I just…" he began, his voice hardly above a whisper. "I just want to be more than a weapon."
"You are, kid." Trinity said softly, her voice filled with a sudden compassion. She moved over to sit next to him, and put her arm around his shoulder. "And you always will be."
Kendrix felt a strange warmth, and looked up to see the two of them surrounded by a circle of soft, golden light.
"What…?" Kendrix began to ask.
"Healing rift." Trinity answered joyfully. "I told you Solar can do the most. Here, let me show you." Trinity cupped Kendrix's hand and placed it in her own. "Now, close your eyes." Kendrix did as he was asked, placing himself in darkness, the sound of Trinity's voice all he could hear.
"Solar is like fire, in a way. And fire, it destroys, sure, but it also lives. It eats, it breathes, it grows, it dies. It sheds warmth and light all around it. It's life, and it can give itself to us. Now, I want to imagine someone, someone you love. Someone you'd do anything to protect."
In his mind's eye, Kendrix saw a little light clad in spears. And, a moment later, a living ship, so far from home.
"Now think of all you can give to them, all the life and love and joy you can bring for them. And let it flow."
Kendrix did as he was told. He felt a sudden warmth in his hand, and his eyes fluttered open in surprise.
Resting just above his palm was a tiny sphere of golden light, shining with the same comforting warmth as the rift around him. Kendrix felt Trinity squeeze his shoulder with encouragement.
Kendrix stared at the little ball of love and life that he had made. And he couldn't help but smile.
AN: Just wanted to take a moment to thank you all so much for reading. This is the most time and effort I've ever put into a personal project, and seeing so many of you following and viewing it means so much to me. In terms of story, I know things have been pretty heavily Destiny so far, which isn't an easy thing to read if you're not familiar with the games. But for you Transformers fans out there, I hope you tune in for the next couple chapters. We'll be expanding our horizons in more ways than one!