AN: I have updated the rating from T to M, just to be safe. My writing usually has some level of violence, language, and occasionally some extreme snuggles. For those who are familiar with my fics, I don't think it will get as heavy in any of those areas as Out of Cryo did, but who knows. I strive to maintain a healthy balance of plot and fluff, however!
A shift in the air eased Aloy out of her sleep, as though the door had been opened during the night. Blinking, she sat up, the blankets and bed pad softer than usual under her hands.
Something is different.
The orange and purple glow of the candles and harsh solid-state lighting were gone, replaced by warm, natural light.
"Aloy?"
Her eyes darted toward the direction of the voice—a floor to ceiling window, not unlike the views in the top office of FAS in Maker's End. That wasn't there before. Through it, the soft pink and orange hues of the sunrise spilled into the room where the shelf holding Elisabet's pendant used to be. The air was frigid and somehow thick at the same time. Every breath burned her lungs and she thought she might choke on it.
"Are you okay?" Seyka stood in front of the window, gazing out at distant, lush hills. Her hair was no longer in a ponytail—dark waves of it cascaded down her back instead. Gone was her Quen marine armor, replaced by the hide and machine paneling of a Nora Brave's garments. Though her clothing choice was odd, she still looked beautiful and Aloy would have been content just watching the sunrise with her.
But why were they there?
She climbed to her feet, the bed having disappeared some time ago. There was murmuring—a man's voice that was both haunting and familiar. It was too far below them to be understood, though. It was only them.
She finally answered. "What is this?"
"Always demanding answers. Always staying on the path, no matter who or what gets destroyed in the process," Seyka observed. It wasn't an accusation though—not the way she said it. She briefly touched her ribs, as though feeling for an old scar, before looking back at Aloy. "Varl died for those answers. So did Rost. And so will countless others. Beta. Even me."
Aloy stepped toward her. Out of instinct, she reached for her spear only to find that it was not there. "No! I won't let that happen."
Seyka's laugh was cold and metallic. "There is no battle to be fought here, Aloy. You're on borrowed time, as is the rest of the world. You should enjoy the time you have left."
Aloy opened her mouth to protest but no words came out. Instead, she could only watch in horror as Seyka disintegrated into metal ashes and the view behind her transformed into a barren landscape of rock and dormant machines. The last living thing on Earth let out a silent scream as it was extinguished—the red light behind it taunting her as the world took its last breath…
She woke with a start, a panicked cry escaping from her before she could completely come to. A hand settled on her bare arm as she sat up and scanned the room—her body tense and ready to fight if needed.
"Aloy? You okay?"
It took her a moment to shake off the nightmare. Same dream, different place. Different people.
She realized she hadn't responded to Seyka yet. She shifted to her right and found Seyka sitting up as well, tired but clearly concerned. True to her word, she had placed her heavy marine armor next to Aloy's stash, leaving only a white embroidered tunic and rough beige pants on. She'd let her hair down, the effects of her ponytail apparent from the slightly disheveled state of it.
Aloy reached over and placed her hand on Seyka's. "I'm all right. Sorry I woke you."
"Bad dream?" Seyka's gaze went toward the ceiling, as though she were recalling her own. "I get them sometimes, especially after the whole thing with Londra. Do you…want to talk about it?"
The memory of how creepy Seyka was in her dream still fresh in her mind, Aloy shook her head. No need to worry her even more. "I'm all right, Seyka. Really." She gave her a small nudge. "Thanks for asking, though." A sudden chill ran through her, coupled with the hum of the Base's climate control kicking on. Should probably talk to GAIA about how to control that better so that it's not always freezing in here. "Ugh," she said, pulling her hand away to fold her arms across her chest. "What time is it?"
Seyka looked around for a window that wasn't there. "Not sure. Hey." She moved closer to Aloy, which wasn't difficult considering the small size of Aloy's bed. "You should try to get some more sleep. Besides," she said with a sleepy smile. "I was comfortable. And you're pretty warm so it was a good situation."
"Thanks, I think?" Aloy had to agree with her on the comfort bit. "It's a little new for me—the um…sharing a bed thing." She yawned. "You're right, though. Back to sleep then, I guess." She moved to get settled again, only to pause as she wasn't entirely sure if she should go first or if she should let Seyka have the space she needed.
She went for it, letting her head rest on the makeshift pillow as she faced away from Seyka. Moments later, Seyka's arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her in close.
"Much better." Seyka's breath fluttered on the back of her neck, sending an entirely different kind of chill down her spine. "Is this okay?"
With sleep already beginning to take her again, Aloy could only mumble something that sounded like "yes". The sense of protection Seyka's presence gave her was something she was not used to at all, but it was something she wanted to explore more.
She had no more dreams that night.
When Aloy woke again, her instincts told her that it was morning. A light fog hovered over her mind, no doubt from the interruption caused by her nightmare about Nemesis. It would go away eventually, maybe after some food.
As though on cue, her stomach growled. She cringed, hoping it wasn't loud enough to wake Seyka, who had rolled over during the night and now faced away from her.
Seyka stirred anyway. "…was that your stomach?"
Great. "Ah…yes. Yes, it was."
"Good. Because I thought someone had left the front door open during the night and a machine got in." She rolled over—a challenge in the tiny bed—before leaning in to capture Aloy's lips in a brief kiss. "Also, good morning."
Aloy knew she was grinning like an idiot but didn't care. "Hi." This was all so new to her and while she was determined to learn as much as she could, as she did with everything else she encountered, this wasn't something she could just analyze with her Focus. She wished she would stop getting so nervous whenever Seyka made a move but that was easier said than done. "Did you sleep well?"
"Mmhmm. Better than I have in a while." Seyka reached out, her fingers coming to rest on the back of Aloy's head. "Even if your bed is smaller than the bunks on our ships." The next kiss was quick as well, but this time there was something that lingered, something that made Aloy want to go back for another.
"Well, I've never been in a Quen ship before, but I think you might be exaggerating just a bit," she said, though it came out as more of a whisper than she intended. Tilting her head down, she closed her eyes and moved in for another kiss.
This time it was different. Seyka's hold on her tightened as the kiss deepened faster and more intense than anything they had done before. She wasn't sure exactly when she let her fingers thread through Seyka's long, dark hair…and the short hum Seyka let out only made her want to keep going. It was almost too much for her.
A low, harsh rumble made them both freeze.
Seyka burst into laughter. "Somebody's hungry. Seriously, it sounds like there's a Stalker in the room."
Trying to ignore the heat in her cheeks, Aloy was about to respond with a comeback of her own when her Focus lit up. "Aloy. Are you awake? I-I wasn't sure, but I heard you guys talking."
Let's hope that's all she heard. She had no idea what Beta had been exposed to while on the Odyssey either through her education or media but she certainly wasn't ready to share anything about this part of her and Seyka's relationship. "Hey, Beta. Yeah, we're up. We were just about to get some uh, food." Her pause made Seyka laugh silently, and she took a moment to shoot her a dirty look.
"Good," Beta said, unfazed. "I was thinking we should contact Sokorra again today. GAIA helped me analyze Korreh's flute. The pieces are from a Glinthawk but there's more. The parts have traces of a substance that are used in some of the newer machines HEPHAESTUS has been making."
Aloy sat up and finished Beta's thought. "You think whoever took Korreh might be hiding out near a Cauldron."
"Yes. IOTA to be precise."
"We'll be right there." She ended the call and returned her attention to Seyka, who was lying on her side, hand propping up her head and neck. "Guess we should eat something and get ready to head to a Cauldron. Are you up for another trip?"
"Diviner Alva said she has a lot of data to sort through and from how she talks about you I doubt she would forbid me from helping you on a mission," Seyka said. She sat up as well. "Let's get some food before you actually turn into a machine, though."
"Very funny." Aloy took Seyka's hand and squeezed it. "I feel bad we were interrupted by, well, all that."
"We have a lot of lost time to make up for," Seyka said. "But I'm glad we get to help your friends. It makes the whole 'end of the world' thing slightly less upsetting."
Aloy stood up and began rummaging through her stash for her armor. Maybe a distraction from Nemesis was what she needed, at least while there was no new data to actually do anything with. "I can live with that. For now."