This chapter might be on schedule! (hopefully)

Traxis' P.O.V

Umbra managed to sit up with a lot of tongue biting and wincing. "do you have any painkiller?" she asked. I grabbed a bottle from the pile, and poured her a glass. She cautiously sipped at the green liquid. "this shit tastes like motor oil" she stated bluntly.

"absinthe, tastes like shit but numbs just about anything" she stared the shot glass down and dumped it down her throat, promptly slamming the small glass onto the side table. "*hic* where were we again?" I gingerly picked up the glass and placed it down near me.

"what did you mean by compromised?" she nodded and took a deep breath. "when the brotherhood sent me on that mission, I suspected something was up, but I followed orders like a good little soldier. Getting in was easier than I ever thought It could be, the building was almost unprotected.

But I knew something was up, I crept through the halls being as thorough as usual. When I finally reached the information I found a little more than they expected I would. First, the information on the artefact, it is known as The Archive. The exact words were 'contains documents and knowledge from a hundred thousand worlds."

I raised an eyebrow "hmm?" she shrugged. "the other thing I found was what left me speechless. A letter, from the grandmaster. *sigh* addressed to the Templar grandmaster." I pinched the bridge of my nose. "what did it say?"

"it entailed selling out the brotherhood for part of the knowledge contained in the Archive." I stopped and turned to her "did it say where the Archive was?" she nodded. "it is located in a cave several miles from here."

I ran from the room and began packing, clothes, valuables, alchohol, anything that was necessary. "what are you doing?" I heard Umbra speak from the other room. "we have to leave, the brotherhood knows where I live" after jamming the contents of my safe into my bag, I pulled a beer can from the trash and grabbed some vials from my lab setup.

I emptied the bottles of iron oxide, aluminum powder, and gunpowder into the can. I then taped a flint onto the mouth of the can and strapped it to the window frame where I attached another flint. "what are you doing?" Umbra said while I attached a similar contraption to the door.

"giving anyone who comes here a nasty surprise." I held my hand out to her. " I can't stand, let alone walk" I grimaced. "sorry then" I slung my bag over a shoulder and picked her up in my arms… (yes like a princess). I walked out the open door and closed it slowly, making sure not to set off my little thermite trap.

I walked through the halls and down the stairs, once outside I went into the alley next to the apartment building. I set Umbra down on a trashcan and pulled a tarp off of my car. "is that yours?" the car in question was as shiny as the day I bought it.

"yes, taken from a mob boss, the windows are bullet-proof, the body is military grade steel, and the engine is from a fighter plane." I picked her up again and placed her in the passenger seat. I got in the driver's side and started it up. The engine roared and the car leaped onto the road.

Umbra looked terrified, her knuckles were white holding on to the seat and she was looking at me as if I were crazy. "how many drinks have you had?" I gritted my teeth while swerving through the streets. "too many, I am sure" we finally made it out of the tight roads and onto the highway.

As we were driving down the road I had a thought "now that we are kind of on the run, what is your real name? it can't be Umbra." I could hear her uncomfortable shuffling "Sarah" I smiled "pretty name, mine's Traxis." I could hear her sounding it out next to me.

After an hour of driving Sarah broke the silent tension. "where are we going anyway?" I chuckled, "it took you that long to ask? We are going to my old house, the Pyro family home." I gripped the wheel harder. "we need a safe house and somewhere that the brotherhood won't think to look, it checks both boxes."

With the tension gone, we were throwing questions back and forth, getting to know the person that they would fight with. After a while of this I heard snoring, a glance to the side showed me that Sarah was asleep.

A few hours later and I was pulling up to the gate. I put a key into the lock and the gate opened. I drove up the drive and parked in front of the garage. I nudged Sarah and she woke up. I walked around the car and opened the door. she put a hand on my shoulder and managed to stand up.

We made our way up the front steps and I used the large steel knocker on the door. after a few seconds I heard the rhythmic clicking of locks and then the door swung open to reveal an old man with grey hair and a cigar clamped between his teeth. He glanced at me, then at Sarah, noting our somewhat ragged exterior.

He picked the rolled tobacco out of his mouth and spoke in a gruff voice that matched his exterior. "figures the only time you would bring a girl home would be when you were forced to, take your old room. as for the lass, I hope you don't mind getting comfy with him." He jerked a thumb at me with a guffaw and let us in.

Downhill, but not a cliffhanger, not yet…