"Silver?" The computerized female voice cuts through the void, dragging my mind back to consciousness. "Silver, wake up."

I jolt upright in bed, holding a knife and glancing around quickly. "Whoa, calm down" Rho says. I look to the only source of light in the room and see her avatar projected onto my bedside table. "Sorry to wake you," she continues, "but I thought you'd want to hear this as soon as possible."

"It's fine" I say, nightmare already fading from memory as I put the knife back under my pillow. "What'd you find?"

"I think I may know where Agent Carolina is."

These words cause me to awaken fully. I sit up straighter and stare at her expectantly. "Well?"

"Have you ever heard of Malevolent Depths?" she asks.

The name sounds familiar and I try to place where I've heard it. "It's a city, right?"

"And a ship" Rho nods. "The Covenant began building it toward the end of the war, to replace their flagship city, High Charity. When the war ended construction was put on hold until a private company bought the ship. They finished building the ship and renamed it. Since construction finished it's become a trading hub, as well as a hot spot for smugglers."

"So, it's pretty much the perfect place for Carolina to hunt for Freelancer tech" I guess.

"Exactly" Rho confirms. "A few of the more well-known dealers there have already gone out of business, and there have been reports of a mysterious woman in Spartan armor, though the color is unconfirmed."

I remember from Carolina's file that she had been given a very basic version of the camouflage unit, which would change her armor's color. "That sounds like who we're looking for" I decide. "When was she last seen there?"

"A few days ago" Rho answers. "She might already be gone, but-"

"But it's the closest we've gotten yet" I finish for her. I swing my legs over the side of the bed and try to rub some of the sleep from my eyes. "It's a good lead. We should check it out."

"You don't need to go right now" Rho says, waving her hands as I stand. "You still need rest. Your shoulder-"

"Is fine" I say. I swing my arm around to emphasize. "See? All better."

"You could still wait until morning," Rho persists.

"The longer we wait, the lower our chances get of finding Carolina and Epsilon" I argue. "We leave now."

"At least tell Nick before you go" she requests half-heartedly as I stand and start dressing.

"I'll pass by his and Tinu's room on my way to pick you up. I'll tell him then."

Nick leans against the doorframe, looking like he'd only just dozed off when I woke him. He runs a hand through his hair and hides a yawn before speaking. "I'll wake Tinu. We'll suit up and meet you in the hangar."

"No" I say. "I'm doing this one alone."

"No offense, Si, but that's really fucking stupid" Nick says. "You are literally planning to walk onto a giant Covenant ship, by yourself, in order to look for someone who's first reaction to seeing you will most likely be to shoot you."

"It's not a military vessel" I explain. "This is a civilian ship, a city."

"That doesn't mean there won't be soldiers there," he counters. "You might need backup."

"I'll be fine."

"You always say that!" Nick snaps. "When will you learn that we're all just as willing to fight for you as you are for us? We're in this together, Si."

My eyes harden as I look at him. I don't want to have this discussion again. "This is my decision, my orders. I'm going alone and that's final."

He open his mouth to argue, but is stopped by a whimper behind him. Nick turns to see Tinu thrashing on her bed and mumbling in her sleep. He steps further into the room and kneels next to the bed, reaching out to take her hand.

"Nightmares?" I ask even though I already know the answer. A lot of us have had trouble dealing with what we've been through and what we've done. Tinu's nightmares have always been particularly bad, which is why Nick's never bothered to get his own room. He prefers to stay close so he can help her.

"Yeah," Nick whispers. His eyes are fixed on Tinu's face and he gently brushes some hair off her forehead as he speaks. Tinu continues to thrash, pulling her hand away and clawing at the sheets. "I can't wake her up, not when it's this bad. I've tried before but it just makes the dream worse. All I can do is sit and wait for it to be over."

"You can comfort her when she wakes up" I offer, knowing how useless it sounds. "Let her know it's not real."

"Except that it is real," Nick says, shaking his head softly. "When your nightmares are memories, it's hard to find any comfort." There's an edge of bitterness in his voice that I haven't heard before. It fades away as he looks back at Tinu. "Still, I try my best. It helps her just to have someone here."

I stand there for a few moments longer, wishing there was something I could do to make this better but knowing that I can't. Eventually I turn and continue on my way, leaving Nick and Tinu alone.

"Be careful" Nick says without turning around.

"I will" I promise.

"Don't get killed." I can hear Nick straining to add the joking tone to his voice.

"Don't worry" I respond, trying to use the same tone. "I won't."

"You really should bring someone with you" Rho suggests once I retrieve her. I turn down a corridor and follow the directions to the hangar that Rho shows on my HUD.

"I am," I say, smiling under my helmet. "I'm bringing you."

"That's not the same and you know it" she admonishes. "There is very little I can do to help you if something goes wrong."

"So, I'll just make sure nothing goes wrong." I offer up the solution as though it's obvious.

"This is serious, Silver" Rho says sternly. "We only have the one ship. If you get hurt or captured, no one will be able to come help you. You'll be stranded."

"Which is no different from any other mission" I point out. We get to the hangar and I begin inspecting the pelican for any new damage received during our last mission. It all looks fine, so I move around to the back.

"It's completely different!" Rho practically shrieks. "You're going to a giant Covenant city. The people there will think you're a terrorist. They'll want to kill you."

I walk into the ship and sit in the cockpit, checking fuel levels. "They won't know who I am."

"They might" Rho argues. "Spore knew who you were. The Covenant told him. For all you know, everyone on that ship could be able to recognize you."

"Which is exactly why I can't let anyone come with me," I say softly. I stop prepping the ship and turn my full attention toward Rho. "This mission is too dangerous. There are too many unknown variables. I can't risk anyone else going."

"What about someone the Covenant won't recognize?" Rho asks, still trying to persuade me. "What about Agent Washington?"

"No" I say forcefully.

"But you worked well together on your last mission" Rho says. "I thought you trusted him."

"It's not that I don't trust him…" I say slowly before going silent.

"Then what is it?" Rho asks, voice equal parts curious and caring.

I'm quiet for a while, not knowing how to explain. "It's me" I finally say. "Everyone who's ever worked with me, every partner I've had, they've all gotten hurt somehow. Manny's gone, Gold is still under mom's control, and Neon is dead."

"None of that was your fault" Rho interrupts.

"It doesn't matter if it's my fault or not" I say sharply. "All that matters is that it happened." I take a deep breath and force my voice to stay even. "I can't let that happen again. I won't get anyone else killed." I turn my attention back to the controls.

Rho is silent for a while, but I can tell she's unhappy. "This is stupid and reckless" she finally mutters.

"Of course it is." I flip a switch and the engines roar to life. "It's one of our plans." I enter the coordinates as we lift off the ground, setting a course for Malevolent Depths.

Yay for plot and moving the story further!