It felt as if waking from a nightmare, gasping for breath. The air was humid and stale. Keria Hagai clawed through the strange dark water as fast as she could, her vision blurry, her entire body aching with every movement. There was only one thing on her mind, in spite of everything that had happened.

She screamed for the little boy, falling below the surface as she did so. A small cry answered her and she found him struggling a few feet away, his head slipping under the water and obscuring him from view. Keira swam up to him frantically, wrenching him back up to the surface. He coughed and sputtered, hugging her around the neck to bury his face. Keria panted as she treaded water, holding on to him with one arm. She spied a small ledge up ahead and swam toward it, feeling her muscles tightening as she did so. The little boy clambered on to the rock first, then turned to look down at her wearily. His hair was plastered to his forehead and his clothes were dripping profusely. Keria heaved herself on to the ledge beside him, sobbing from the effort. She collapsed on her back, breathing heavily. Sputtering out water, she pushed the bangs from her forehead and reached for the boy, who cuddled up beside her and shivered.

"You alright?" Keira asked.

He smiled at her and nodded. Keria sighed, rubbing her throat. Her voice was low and strained. She forced herself into a sitting position and the child stood up, plopping himself in her lap. Keria hugged him instinctively, looking up at the ceiling of the cave, which seemed miles away. She felt a twinge of pain in her neck as she did so and winced.

"How did we survive?" she wondered aloud, "Ugh. God, it feels like I've been hit by a truck."

The little boy sighed and leaned back against her, wiggling his toes. Keria gently ran her fingers through his hair to check for any wounds. Finding nothing, she inspected his arms and legs. He seemed to be perfectly fine. Keria frowned, sweeping her gaze across the still dark blue water. She crawled to the lip of the outcrop and met her confused reflection below. Something was strange about it…

Curiously, she reached out and dipped her finger in the water. To her astonishment, it glowed a dull green and faded. She jerked her hand away from the surface.

"It's Eco…Oh my God, I don't believe it…"

She touched the water gingerly again and it glowed a pretty light green, then faded away. Keria grinned. The boy had come hesitantly to her side to see what she was doing.

"It's green Eco!" Keira exclaimed excitedly, "It's green Eco! That's how we survived!!"

She beamed at the kid and gently took his hand to place it in the water. There was a bright flash of neon green, and Keira's smile widened. The boy seemed amazed at what he had done. Keira snatched him up into a hug, burying his face in her shoulder.

"Oh thank the Precursors…you're a Channeler, sweetheart!"

She finally let go of him and he sat back confusedly on his haunches, watching as his companion flopped backward once again, giggling like mad. She wiped the relieved tears from her eyes and sighed. Memories of her father's lessons reached her, the ones she almost neglected to attend because she'd wanted to play with her friends instead.

"Green Eco in its purest form, Daddy," she said softly, "It saved my life."

Keria had never shown much of a reaction to Eco, but the boy had a greater ability than she did. When they had hit the water, the Eco activated, 'cushioning' their fall and preventing them from severe injuries. She owed her life to a child barely three years of age…

Rolling to her feet, Keira studied her surroundings, noticing that the ledge she was on led to a narrow path that snaked up the side of a cliff. Her thoughts were on Torn now, and the group of Krimzon Guards that had come to arrest them. She squeezed the water out of her hair, looking around futilely for her Blaster, which had been no doubt lost in the fall. With a small sigh, Keira scooped up the child and tickled him, happy to hear him giggling again. Her footsteps echoed slightly and her knees were knocking a little bit, but she was able to make it up the narrow path, the boy clinging to her tightly.

"All I have to do now is get the hell out of here," she said, adjusting to his weight, "And Torn…I hope he's alright…"

*******

The rocks stabbed at him through his uniform as another powerful shove from the Guards forced him to the ground. He cringed, but said nothing. Blood had started blossoming through the patch of blue on his uniform. The Guards gripped him tight and heaved him to his feet, cracking a rifle across his shoulders to make him stand up straight.

"Well, well. Look who we found crawling around in the woodwork."

Torn scowled at the sound of Errol's voice. The Commander sneered back at him distastefully, as if he were scum under his boot.

"I keep forgetting how terrible you look. At least you were presentable two years ago."

Torn rolled his eyes, ignoring the spike of anger. He tensed in the Guards' grasp and they tightened their hold on him.

"What do you want?" he asked, staring at Errol's boots.

"I want to know what you were doing here, protecting those despicable Underground members."

Torn smirked; at least Errol had told him flat-out. The Commander waited patiently for a reply, tucking his arms behind his back.

"Of course. You aren't going to tell me, am I right?" Errol said, beginning to pace back and forth, "You don't want to talk, because you think you're protecting someone, or you just won't give me the honor…correct?"

Torn just glared at him, straining in the grasp of the two KGs. He finally spoke, in a deadly quiet voice that dripped hatred.

"I was trying to save her. She's dead because of you."

"Why should I care?" Errol spat, "Why should you? The Underground members fight only to subvert our authority; to turn Haven City into the filth that is the slums! They should never be worthy of any respect!!"

"I don't work for the Baron anymore- I'm not that kind of authority. I refuse to further associate myself with that bastard and his army!" Torn hissed in reply.

Errol was seething already. "How can you say that?" he fumed, "Those soldiers were your comrades!"

"What comrades? They're faceless- reduced to nothing but mindless goons."

Torn felt the rifles dig deeper into his back. Errol fixed him with an odd stare; a strange mixture of anger and pity. He allowed himself a slight shake of his head, calming his voice.

"I can't believe what's happened to you, Torn. You used to be a formidable soldier…"

The ex-Guard avoided Errol's gaze, feeling the rifles digging even further. He tried to move, but the former comrades stopped him. Errol laughed, directing the attention back to him.

"Just think…you used to be someone I respected. There was a time when I could almost accept you as Captain without hating you for taking Phoenix's place."

Torn snorted. "I didn't want to take his place, but it happened. And I don't want your respect. Not after what you've done to this city, to Damas and Jinny!!"

He had struck a nerve. Errol pursed his lips and nodded to one of the Guards. The butt of a rifle cracked against the back of Torn's head. He cried out, sinking to the ground. Stars burst into sight at the corners of his vision. Errol's boots came into view as he lay there, breathing in the dirt.

"I didn't kill them," he hissed, "And the Baron couldn't understand why you left before all of that happened. He wasted no time in telling me how highly you were respected; how one day you'd be fit to run the city." The Commander sneered down at him in disgust. "But look at you now. You started to care for the very scum we sent you to rat out."

Torn was breathing heavily, grimacing in pain. His eyes were shut tightly; the stars were beginning to fade. He felt a hand grasp him roughly by the collar of his uniform and heave him to his feet. Errol threw him back against the Guards, snickering.

"Don't blame yourself for that girl's death, Torn; after all, she was a rat just like the rest of them."

The ex-Guard shook his head, his eyes snapping open. "No, she wasn't. She didn't deserve that."

Awareness spread across Errol's face. He took a small step back, tilting his head slightly.

"I see now. That's right…something very similar happened…wasn't it around- four years ago?"

Torn felt rage broil to the surface. He gnashed his teeth and glowered at Errol, who as feigning deep thought.

"It was your brother, right, Torn? Or should I say…Max?"

He was out of the Guards' grasp in seconds; the smile was wiped from Errol's face as Torn tackled him, screaming. His fist connected against Errol's jaw with a satisfying crack. He followed with another punch, then another. The Guards swallowed him up in their arms just before he could pull a fourth. Torn fought them desperately, hatred in his eyes, but they were too strong. Errol was furious. He rolled to his feet, wiping the blood from under his nose. He drew his pistol and fired at the struggling figure. Torn screamed; the Guards let him fall from their grasp to the cave floor. A pool of crimson suddenly appeared from beneath the wound in his leg. Torn looked up at the Captain, fire in his eyes. Errol fingered the rising bruises on his cheeks angrily.

"I was right," he spat, "You still can't bring yourself to believe he's dead."

"What about you?!" Torn shouted, his breathing ragged, "What about your brother, Errol?! You're telling me you just forgot about him, after everything he did; after he sacrificed himself to save all of us?!!"

The subtlest hint of regret flashed across the Commander's eyes. But his rage soon masked it. He walked up to Torn lying on the ground and drove his boot into his former comrade's stomach. Torn gasped and curled into a ball, cringing.

"Phoenix has been dead for five years. I've accepted that- but you…you're still too pathetically wrapped in misery to let anything happen. Do you realize that half the city thinks you're dead, too? That you've died just like all the rest have? They seem to think you were some kind of martyr." Errol snorted, watching in secret delight as Torn struggled through the pain on the ground.

"…Everything I did…Everything…was for him," Torn rasped.

"Oh, how touching," Errol snarled, "You wasted half your life taking care of the little brat. I should commend you for putting up with him."

Torn felt the rage completely taking over him. He tried to move to his feet, but he couldn't find the strength. His leg had gone numb with pain and the blood was still pooling around him. Torn forced himself to look back up at Errol, at a man who had once been his friend; a comrade he fought beside on the battlefield.

"How can you say things like that?! Mik cared about you; you took him to the stadium, gave him rides on the racers," the ex-Guard shook his head in desperation, as if he was aware of all the evil for the first time. "Tess loved you for God's sake! And I trusted you with her…What the hell has happened to you, Errol?!!"

The Commander glared at him. "Do you really think any of that matters now? I don't care about that brat, and I'm sorry to know that you still do. You're pathetic; a disgrace to the Guard and this city."

Errol snatched Torn's collar up in his fists and dragged him to an upright position on the floor. He cried out in pain, watching as a small trail of blood followed them. His wound stung with unbearable pain; he could feel the bullet pulling at the nerves in his leg. Errol stood over him, casting a long shadow. He pulled his pistol from the holster on his hip and looked disgustedly down at the bloodied Torn.

"I should have killed you long ago. But this is so much more fitting." He slid a round into place and leveled the weapon at his former friend. "Since you're so worried- I'll take good care of Tess."

"Go to hell!" Torn growled.

Errol smiled a wicked grin. "Good-bye…Max."

Torn could feel a strange emotion settle over him; his vision was blurring and darkness was beginning to creep in. But he stared at Errol, right in his eyes, a look of grim determination across his face.

A gunshot sounded.

Torn jumped at the noise, feeling a painful burning in his shoulder. The blackness closed in tighter around him and he slid back to the floor, barely aware of the fact the bullet had missed. He could hear strange sounds; boots scraped across the cave floor, followed by shouting and more gunfire. Torn fought to see through the closing darkness but it was no use. A person was looming over him, and he barely let out a smile before his world went black.

*******

"Come on, Luv. Gimmie your hand!"

Keria stretched as far as she could, her boots scraping up the side of the stone wall. She finally snatched Bill's rough hand in hers and he pulled her up in one swift movement. The little boy watched on curiously as Keira clamped her fellow mechanic in a crushing hug. Bill smiled, and returned the gesture, slapping her on the back.

"I thought you'd be in Kras City 'til tomorrow," Keria said as they pulled away.

"I got a frantic call from Ashelin saying you an' Torn were in trouble, so I came back," Bill shook his head, "So much for a night at the bar…"

Keria hit him on the arm playfully, and he laughed.

"Well, I'm so sorry for pulling you away from your alcohol," she teased.

Bill stooped down to pick up the boy, who looked happy to see him as well. The three of them continued to walk up through the remaining stretch of tunnels, their footsteps echoing as they did. Keria was still squeezing water out of her hair as she asked,

"What happened to the KG troops?"

"Ashelin, Hector and I took care of 'em," Bill answered with a light laugh.

"What about Torn?"

Bill cast her a sideways glance as they traveled. He sighed and did not reply. Keria frowned, feeling distant pangs of fear beginning to creep up on her. They soon came to a larger area of the cave, which branched off into several sections. Ashelin suddenly came running into view, looking frightened.

"I need help," she said.

Keria pressed her way on ahead of Bill then gasped sharply, clapping a hand to her mouth. Several Krimzon Guards lay sprawled across the floor; Torn was lying on the ground, his eyes shut. There was blood soaking through his uniform in several places. Hector was already working on him, a strange expression of fear and sadness across his face. Bill swore softly.

"Don't let the kid see!" Ashelin demanded, her voice weak from hidden tears, "Give him to Keira."

Bill quickly passed the child to her, and Keira took him in her arms, covering his eyes with her hand. She watched in grim awe as Bill knelt down beside Hector .

"Is he going to be okay?"

"Get out of here, Keira! Head for our transport at the end of that junction!"

"But…Ashelin-"

"Just GO!!" she screamed.

Keria turned on her heels swiftly, sprinting down the tunnel as Ashelin had instructed. She held the little boy close to her and wiped away worried tears, trying to blot out the harried shouts at the end of the corridor.