She walked along the spots of blood that covered the floor and the smeared footprints that followed behind every two steps. She didn't expose her Fangs just yet, and kept only her Sybaris under her arm with its polished grey muzzle pointed downward. She didn't want to have to pull the trigger, if it needed be. The death of another Tenno at her hands would be a scar she would bear for the rest of her days, and one that would bring her inescapable, bitter distrust. She had to get him back.

Her steps slowed as she approached a darkened hallway. Sinewy webs lined the entrance, and the intrusive, damp smell of wet earth circled her, making her feel light-headed as she stepped in. She shook off the feeling and rolled the blood back into her arm, which had grown tired from the jogging. She flipped her flashlight on, shining into the oppressive gloom with barely a few meters in front of her reflecting the weak light. A web of green cascaded down her helmet, pulling taught and exposing much further than the primitive reaches of the flashlight allowed.

With her vision somewhat restored, she continued. Dripping, she noticed, constant dripping, echoed from some way down the hallway. The pit-patter of tiny footsteps scraped down the wall and scurried away into a secluded crack in the floor. It was only the dripping and the anticipating click-clacking of her heels against the floor that escorted her ears, as her eyes gave her nought but blackness and her mouth nervous breaths. It was now that she silently regretted her choice in footwear; it may have kept up her reputation for bringing an aspect of style to their work, but in these dark hallways, with no one to appreciate it, she realised their utter uselessness as they continued clicking with each passing step, sending dull echoes through the halls.

The darkness grew thicker. It enshrouded her vision, letting her only barely see the ends of her fingertips and the ever-present golden shimmer from the magazine housing of her rifle. She squinted, trying to pick apart any details from the blackness. She found nothing. One final drip rang across the halls as she came to a cautious stop, and her feet stood parted, one behind the other.

Something indiscriminate, hiding from her in the shadows, only came to her attention now. It was the sound of footsteps. Footsteps that didn't belong to her. Footsteps that were coming closer.

Instinct brought her weapon into her shoulder, and guided her hands to the ready. She flicked the safety off, and hugged the wall. A breath in, a breath out, and she looked round the corner. It was coming nearer, yet she saw nothing. She recalled the familiar sensation of fear, the inescapable dread that gripped her on her first sighting of the Infested. Her determination cast it away, and she looked down the sights. Nothing. It was near.

She heard the breaths as it ran, the sound of rapid footsteps coming down hard and fast onto the ground as it came closer, and closer. Her heartbeat steadied, and she closed her left eye. The ever-present mist stilled...

And it revealed. Led by a long flash of silver, something struck her down, punching the breath out of her lungs and pinning her to the ground. She felt the cold touch of steel on her quivering throat, trying her best to keep her breathing steady. She drew a breath, along some relief in that she wasn't dead.

But for how long?

The form upon her was humanoid, definitely. It drew harsh breaths, wounded and ragged. The pressure on her throat eased as it lay motionless on top of her and the mist trailed into the air, uncovering its bone white visage. The Tenno stood up, and offered a shaking hand. Antheia took it with equal tentativeness, never averting her gaze away from the Ash in front of her. Antheia took a comforting step back, eyes widening as it clasped a blood-spattered hand over the faceplate and undid the locks, sliding it off with ease and slotting it on the back of the helmet. Her heart beat twice when she saw his face; once for relief, once for fear. There was no mistaking the owner of those shadowy grey eyes.

He immediately bowed his head and brought his hand to his chest. Was it in guilt, or borderline respect?

"I apologi-"

She didn't stop her hand striking him, and again after that. No tears came to her eyes. She loathed the shameful satisfaction that came to her, and quickly stopped herself before she struck again. Once he'd recovered, Ash returned her vicious look, but kept his thoughts to himself.

"I can't forgive you." Her voice shook very slightly. He didn't seem to notice.

Not yet.

"That is your choice to make. We need to go, the others are in danger."

A screech attacked her ears from some distance down the corridor, but its horrid nature was enough to snap Antheia out of her bitter mood.

"Yes, we... we need to go."

Ash replied with a brief nod and hastily led her through the invading eerie darkness of the catacombs. He stopped for nothing, never breaking his stride. It made her question how he managed to see so well, even without any helmet to assist him. However, she found herself keeping shut her suspicions, for what reason did she have to doubt him?

The pair took the next few turns, and down another stretch of corridor filled with that same, repugnant smell of wet earth, before a sudden sea of white rushed to flood their vision. It ebbed almost immediately, revealing the somehow comforting gold-adorned halls of the Tower.

Ash didn't stop, only affording a few looks this way and that, and the odd sideward glance at Antheia. She followed suit, glad at least to be with another Tenno, regardless of who it may have been.

But still, amidst all her relief, she felt a little tug against her skin like a hook in her gut, one that would not relent, however much she tried to remove it. Their somewhat peaceful reunion had been a weight lifted off her slender shoulders, but she sensed something behind it that she felt she needed to know if she were to trust him.

"You've been awfully quiet." He lent a comment over the voice-link. Was it him that started the idle conversations between them now?

"What did you expect?" Somehow she felt it impossible to stay angry at him, but she kept a tinge of sourness in her voice as she replied.

"Well, I've been gone for the past week or so, have I not? I certainly haven't been enjoying it, I thought I would receive somewhat of a warmer welcome, don't you think?"

"I would have, if you didn't try to kill me earlier."

He didn't reply at first. They started down a long stretch of grand hallway, being whisked through golden doors as they ran.

"That was someone else." He said, finally. She cocked a quizzical eyebrow and waited until the Tower ceased its beastly growling and slumbered once more.

"Someone else?"

"Yes."

It was her turn to not give a reply. Her eyes settled on his free hand, which hung in a loose grip on the handle of his blade. The blood that was there before had gotten lighter, and there was more of it, much more. Her voice was strung taut when she dared ask.

"Whose blood is on your hands?"

He only gave her a glance and reply monotonously, "It is not a 'who'. I don't know, either. Something not of this place. I tried to kill it."

"And?" She pressed him.

"I failed. Death escapes it, somehow. I'm not one to fight something I can't win against, so I ran. Into you." She could imagine his smoky eyes eying the walls as they ran, lost in the maze of the Tower and the fog of his thoughts.

"We can't stay, then." She decided.

He gave a dry laugh, one she had come to miss, and shook his head.

"No, we can't. What I fear, however," his voice dropped to a miserable tone as his paces slowed to a halt, "is that they won't believe me."

Ash flung the doors open with one hand, staggering in with the other hand on his blistered side. He took a moment to catch his shallow breath and looked up.

A gunshot violently shook the air, leaving a gaping hole in the floor right where Ash was prepared to take another cautious step. He wasn't entirely surprised that it was the Ember who pulled the trigger.

"So that's what its like, is it?" Ash forced a chuckle.

"What makes you think you can show your wretched face here again, Ash?" She growled, smoking like the barrel of her pistol, which she held much more accurately now.

"At ease, sister, he's not here to hurt us." Antheia held her hands by her head as she turned the corner and lowered them slowly and calmly. The Ember's aim wavered upon seeing her but still did not come off Ash. Antheia stood her ground by his side, hands loosely hanging by her hips.

The Ember's claws rasped against the stone floor, ending with a final, ominous consecutive click as she stood before him, Lex pointed firmly to his helmet. He didn't move a muscle.

"Ember, what are yo-"

"Quiet. We'll talk later." She didn't even turn her head, still staring at the worn paleness of Ash's faceplate with her own eyes of fiery loathing.

"Now, as for you. Kneel." A small downward gesture with her Lex was all she needed to bring Ash to his knees. Antheia made no effort to quell the ever-increasing dread that crept up her throat like a centipede.

"And why, may I ask?" He irked her with a wry smirk.

"Keep quiet. It might save you a lot of pain." She stared him down, burning through his composure.

"Embe-"

He didn't finish his sentence. A shell sprang from the magazine housing, blood burst from a freshly made wound in his leg and a cry erupted from his throat. Ilene gave a stifled whimper, silent until now. The Nyx grimaced under her helmet, and turned on the noise filtering to drown out his pained howls.

He clenched his leg and pressed down hard on the wound with his thumbs. The blood flow slowed, and eventually stopped as the warframe dissolved the bullet and replaced the old flesh with rejuvenated, new skin.

"Apology accepted." She jeered over her shoulder as she made her way back to the group. When she passed Antheia, though, she opened a secure channel between the two and said sternly: "I hope you've come to your senses now, Saryn?"

She gave no answer. She didn't need to, since her throat was already choking on the pity she held back so dearly for him. Why she felt it, she did not know. But she couldn't leave him alone, not again.

"Come on, Ash, we're going home. And with you coming with us, ok?"

He turned to her and rose, coming up just over an inch from the top of her head. They stood, sharing nothing but silence, but that changed within a moment. She found herself peering over his shoulder under his embrace, eyes wide with surprise. Her heart beat twice again, but this time no fear came. It was a warm feeling, a feeling of summer rain, a feeling of fresh grass, a feeling of comforting warm sunlight, a feeling of... affinity. In this moment he brought his mouth to her ear, and spoke in the voice of a different man:

"Thank you, Antheia."

But it was only the moment. He left her there, slightly light-headed, and stalked over toward the rest of the group, staying particularly clear of the Ember. The Nyx looked wary, but seemed more attentive to her mental injuries than anything else. Ilene looked at least somewhat cheerful for his return, giving him an anxious pat on the back and a merry welcome. He did not return the gesture to his pupil, much to the disappointment plastered across her face, and instead went over to the Nimda, who was toying with a cubic gadget of some sort in his hands and paying no heed to Ash's arrival. Ash whispered a few words in his ear, to which Tosh gave him a worried look, then stepped away a few paces, dropping whatever he held in his hands to clatter onto the floor.

The Nepthys rolled her eyes and began to walk over to him, scowling all the while. "Come on, Ash, stop terrifying him, he's-"

"Infested." The word stopped her dead in her tracks and silenced the air between them.

"What do you mean? He's fine." She gestured her hand towards him, a puzzled yet concerned look on her face.

"I don't know what you're talking about, I swear. I just want to get off this Tower. Nothing more." Fear was apparent in his voice; Ash could smell it souring in the air.

"Don't lie to me." Ash ignored the Nephthys, staring right into the Nimda.

"Ash, stop it!" Ilene's exclamations had started to get the unwarranted attention of the Ember and Umbra, who both eyed him with furrowed brows.

"He is not fine." His hand was creeping to his sword.

"To you he may not be, but he's proven useful to us so far. On the other hand, you've been nothing but a burden to me, Ash, so I suggest you keep your wretched hands off him until we return home." The Ember scolded him over the voice-link, and made a point of keeping her hand on the hilt of the small cannon hanging off her hip. He backed away, but not too far.

From the back of the scattered group, Umbra observed with caution, and questioned why she hadn't searched the Nimda's mind upon their first meeting. She cursed through her teeth at her amateur's mistake. Dismissing any further thoughts, she instead looked into his. What slowed her steps was the fact that there were none. Blackness. Not a single thread, not a single cognitive, free thought. Behind the ever-present throbbing of his heart, she saw nothing.

Wait, she had missed something. Its shape shrunk from her sight, but what she saw she didn't quite comprehend. Like a raging blizzard, white and clouded, it was an eye.

They had been walking for hours. The Tower stretched out forever, an endless blur of brazen gold and ivory white. There were some beautiful features of the Tower that met them along the way, notably the proud pink spring blossoms that adorned the hallowed shrines of the old gods, and the sparkling fresh waterfalls that flowed indefinitely from deep wells inside the walls, and the unassuming trees that stood tall, their arms reaching for the heavenly white suns that hung above all that bathed the rooms in cold white light.

Umbra kept her distance from the group, still processing what her eyes had shown her. Questions swarmed like tempestuous hornets in her mind. Why did she not detect a single thought in his head? Was he truly Infested? What was that eye?

She studied Tosh again. His movements didn't seem to have anything particularly unusual in them, and he had nothing but help to offer from their first encounter. Ash didn't move from his side. She found comfort in that, somehow.

"Sister." Ilene's inquiring voice filled her helmet.

"What is it?"

"We aren't getting anywhere. This is a dead end. We arrived here." Her concern was apparent, and it spread all too quickly to Umbra.

And she was right. The pillar which Lissandra had to weakly lean against after the jump, where Antheia had fallen, the barely perceptible markings of the portal warping the ceiling's material. They were back at the beginning.

"This is the place." Umbra spoke to all, commanding their attention immediately. They were all too happy to return home, it seemed.

"About time." Lissandra sounded relieved, for once.

"There's no psynapse link here. The Beacon doesn't work. How do you expect to get us through?" Tosh spoke up, louder and bolder than he normally did. Why did she feel desperation forcing his words?

"There are still dregs of rift energies displacing space and time above us. We may be able to use it to our advantage and boost our jump. A pseudo-psynapse, if you will." She explained.

"You had better hope we can, I'm not staying here to rot." Lissandra's brash tone was not like her, which lifted a few eyebrows from the other Tenno.

The burden of responsibility was once again upon the two sisters. Ilene looked to their comrades, and then to Umbra, who gave a comforting, simple nod. They sat facing each other, cross-legged, on the cold floor, and closed their eyes. Their minds wandered, floating up to the ceilingn, where small gashes that hid incomprehensible, mysterious energies shimmered and blurred in and out of existence. Umbra caught such a sliver and worked it apart with tiny, invisible arms, threading and unthreading the tiny lattices of time and space interwoven to create the tapestry of the Void. It was truly beautiful.

Ilene must have noticed this too, for stars shone in her black eyes like the twinkling moon on a midnight sea, and her mouth hung open, stricken with awe. She looked back down to Umbra, truly pleased, and grinned.

"Are you ready?" Hope shone with the stars in her eyes.

"You know I am." Umbra returned a weak smile.

The two then began to stretch the threshold, gripping it with powerful arms of psychic will and tearing it into reality. A rip opened before the eyes of the Tenno, sucking in small pebbles and odd globlets of water from the nearby fountains, then loose pieces of aged bronze, then entire sections of the masonry. The field intensified in its unrelenting strength, the Tenno only managing to withstand its incredible pull and at the same time dodge the fist-sized chunks of rock flung by their heads.

And just when it seemed they would be sucked into the Void, the rift stabilised. It now gave a mellow, mysterious glow, fracturing into the air in tiny shards of shimmering glass. Lissandra impatiently nudged Antheia out of her trance and beckoned for her to follow with a forward shrug of her shoulder. Her eyebrows furrowed under the blazing crest of her helmet as an unwelcome sensation of doubt and suspicion formed at the back of her mind. She kept it at bay and reached a hand through, then a leg, then the other, and soon her whole body. The silken end secured by a steel brooch of her Uru syandana fluttered behind her footsteps, held aloft by the cold cosmic wind of the Void, before disappearing as well. Ash, with some incredibly unlike eagerness, stepped through after her, followed by an equally eager Antheia.

Now it was only the three of them. Umbra let off a small disturbance in the psychic flow, enough to show her sister she was going through. The portal shook when she stood up and walked over, but it held. Umbra vanished into the shadows as she went onto the other side. Two were left. Ilene took great care to keep the rift steady as she came alongside it. Tosh stayed near, looking round every few seconds, perhaps in fear of some kind.

"You have nothing to fear. Come on, after me." She spoke reassuringly, but held an authoritative tone. He had grown strangely timid. Her eyes narrowed, but she carried on through. Colours blurred into another as the dark blanket of space draped round her helmet, and then soon formed back into the familiar shapes of the Tenno she knew. She was through. Well, not entirely; Tosh was still on the other end. She tried to step through again. But she couldn't. Panic rose from her chest, rising up to grip her throat as she looked back. The others had noticed. He wouldn't let go.

She tugged and pulled, but the hand was clamped down, and her pulling back in. The Ember rushed to her and fired into it, but it only shook slightly. Ilene shrieked and grabbed her Zauber, plunging the barrel into the vile flesh and pulling the trigger. The energy orb inside devoured its flesh, and set her arm free. She staggered, off balance, before something even worse closed around her legs, pulsating with putrid black blood pushing against the arteries covering its surface. It dragged her screaming across the ground, held back only by the Tenno grabbing her arms. Her limbs and joints burned with pain as the two sides pulled her this way and the next. Any harder, and the joint would pop from its socket. Her warframe pulsed with energy, sending small shocks to try and ward off her attackers, but to no end. She was being sucked through, even with the might of four Tenno behind her.

Whatever had latched on to her was something worse, for she felt her own mind being pulled away. The psychic essence inside the webs of her intellect began to shatter and break free; flowing into whatever had her in its grip. Her grips with consciousness were slipping, but she tried all the harder to reign them in.

Something horrible spoke to her, something else, only a hint of a male human voice left in it:

"You cannot leave. We will not let you. You belong here, Child of the Void." It tempted. She refused.

"Do not oppose! Submit!" It punished her with another psychic onslaught, draining her of her already spent energy reserves. Her muscles weakened further, barely holding against the imploding gravity of the cosmos.

"Close the portal!" Umbra screamed over the howls of the air flying past her, into the rift.

But... but I'll- She hesitated, sobbing as new pain tore into her legs. The hands gripping hers were slipping, and tears filled her eyes.

"You need to close it! NOW!" Umbra's voice was raw, and desperation flooded through.

I... She couldn't hold on.

Her eyelids closed, sowed shut from the pain, and the portal closed with them. She knew nothing more.