Tormented
Get Out
Here's the first of the double update! Took a lot longer than I thought lol (couldn't even play Destiny, especially when I have work on the side -w-;;). Anyway, the other half of the double update will be up soon, shouldn't be long!
Mantic65, flamingmence, zantilis - Thanks for understanding you guys! Really appreciate it!
Edited: 12/12/2021
"Do you think Angel is alright?"
Turning her attention away from the entrance, Aleeza's eyes settled upon her twin, only for her face to twist into concern when she saw Akiva leaning against the wall, his breaths heavy.
"He is capable of defending himself." She decided to say, approaching her brother, "You, however, need to sit down."
"Not until we completely secure this location and the Taken are cleared."
Aleeza couldn't help but frown, turning her eyes towards Rasputin's Core. And the Ward of Dawn protecting it.
"You are fighting against Taken while keeping up a Ward for a long period." She retorted, "Which I heard is considered insane by even Veteran Defenders."
"Well." Aleeza heard a tired chuckle from Akiva, "That makes me crazy then, right?"
She heard the humor in his words. She didn't find it funny.
"Akiva, you need to rest." Aleeza scolded, "You know what happens when a Guardian overworks themselves."
That garnered the proper reaction, at least, in her eyes, when Akiva paused, his gaze tilting towards the floor. After all, it is widely known, even amongst newborns, that using your light for an extended period of time is a risk. True, light can easily be rejuvenated through rest and food but, during combat, where enemies are constant and no sign of relief, their light can easily be drained. And their Ghosts may not be able to help them recover.
And, judging from the way the Ward of Dawn started to flicker, Akiva is starting to reach his limit.
"One more wave." Aleeza couldn't help but sigh at her brother's words, "one more wave and I will not only rest, but I will also take down the Ward temporarily so I can rest proper."
Narrowing her eyes, Aleeza couldn't help but scrutinize her twin's words but, nonetheless, sighed and said, "Fine."
This earned her a nod from Akiva and she was glad that he finally caved to her demand, considering that, in her eyes, he was doing the bulk of the work. And in good time, as Aleeza then heard the familiar screeching and screams of the Taken echoing down the corridor.
"Get ready."
Without waiting for a response from Akiva, Aleeza was already dashing forward, her eyes spotting the forming orb of Darknesss, and waited for the materialization of the Taken as she gathered her void light in her hands.
A tactical error.
She had expected Thralls, Psions, Acolytes. After all, those were the only ones she had seen spawn from the Orbs so far. As such, she was unprepared when it was a Taken Phalanx appeared to greet her, letting out a low gurgle before lifting it shield. And Aleeza felt the energy gathering around it.
Startled, Aleeza thrusted her void grenade upon it, and cursed it when it exploded harmlessly against its shield, particles of void light obscuring her vision. Scrambling to stop her momentum, Aleeza then gritted her teeth and prepared herself when she saw the glow upon the Phalanx's shield grow. And release.
That is when she heard a whoop and a holler echo in her ears.
A black and green shape slammed onto the tip of the Taken's shield before it leapt away, the momentum strong enough to send the Phalanx backwards, flailing, and the energy from its shield shifting upwards. Aleeza went tense as air rushed past just above her head, feeling the top of her helmet go warm from the proximity of the missed shot.
Shock still settling into her system, Aleeza turned her wide eyes towards her savior, a Titan, clad in black and green armor, the latter of which twirled a shotgun in his hands before he turned and called out, "Marcel! Let it rain!"
Three shots, shots that Aleeza recognized as ones from a Golden Gun, resounded through the air followed by three solar bullets flying past her, taking out two of the Orbs of Darkness and another unfortunate Taken Cabal. Then a Hunter clad in gold and brown armor rolled in, a side arm in his hands as he fired at any Taken in his proximity. His shots were soon followed by the Titan's shotgun.
Blinking past the shock as best she could, Aleeza slowly turned towards the entrance of the corridor, only to spot Akiva, the latter of which was leaning against the door frame, weapon lowered, and for some reason, he had removed his helmet. As expected, his long hair clung to his face and neck from sweat but, his jaw was hanging open, his golden eyes wide. It didn't take long for Aleeza to put together that the Hunter and the Titan were very unlikely sent aid from Ianos or Pluto.
This prompted her to turn her attention back towards the pair, only to come to a pause as they now stood together nearby, the room already cleared of Taken.
"What? How…"
"What?" The Hunter practically beamed at her, "Like what you see?"
Then, to her surprise, the Hunter blew her a kiss, which was swiftly followed by the Titan letting out a groan before leaning over and shoved him. This only prompted a laugh from the Hunter.
"Excuse my partner." The Titan spoke and immediately, Aleeza recognized the synthetic tone. An Exo, "The name is Duke-16. The Hunter." He gestured with his head towards his partner, the latter of whom waved, 'Is Marcel." Somehow, she imagined him giving her a wink. How, she doesn't know but, considering that Duke gave him another shove, it must have been accurate.
"Aleeza Wahl." She said glanced back at her twin, the latter giving a half-hearted wave, "And that is my brother, Akiva." Aleeza turned her attention back towards the two Guardians, "We thank you for coming to our aid." She paused, hesitant but found her curiosity winning, "Although, I am curious as to how you were able to make it down here."
No sooner had the words left her lips when she immediately felt the warmth in the air fade, and Aleeza spotted the subtle way the Titan and the Hunter's grip went tight around their weapons. A chill slithered down Aleeza's back, prompting her to take a few steps back as she contemplated on summoning a weapon int other hands. That is when a dull 'thud' echoed behind her. She didn't have to look to know what had happened.
"Akiva!"
She turned and ran to her brother's side, the latter of which groaned as he rolled onto his side, face pale. Then, from the corner of her vision, Aleeza saw his Ward of Dawn flicker away and the silence that had settled in the air was then broken by the hum of Rasputin's core. She opted to ignore it as she leaned over and pressed a hand against her brother's shoulder.
"Akiva?"
When she gained no response, panic settled into her chest, and she found herself placing another hand onto Akiva's shoulder and shook.
"Akiva!"
"Will you stop that!"
Aleeza reeled as Lex's white and yellow shell materialized just in front of her face.
"He's light exhausted!" The Ghost continued to shout, "Waking him up is the last thing you want to do!"
Flinching, Aleeza could only bring herself to nod, in which Lex returned with one of his own, and then watched as he turned and started releasing streams of light that settled over her brother's form.
"Akiva's done." Aleeza's heart stopped, "Even if he wakes up, he is in no condition to fight." His optic turned towards her, "We need to get him to a safe place."
Aleeza stared, "What?" Her eyes glanced back at Rasputin's Core, "But we promised Sun and Gaia-"
"Hold on." Aleeza froze; she had momentarily forgotten about Duke and Marcel, "Sun? As in Sun, the late Leader of Clan Galaxy?"
Feeling her heart sink, Aleeza slowly turned her eyes towards the Hunter and Titan pair; she was momentarily relieved to see that they had lowered their guns. They won't shoot, at least, for now.
"Sun? Who's that?"
Marcel must be young, Aleeza thought, if he had never heard of Sun before. Then again, almost anyone who was resurrected after the Great Disaster heard little of Sun or the Clan.
Duke ignored their friend's question, "Are you saying that Sun, the infamous Leader of Galaxy is alive?"
Glancing back and forth between Akiva and the two Guardians, Aleeza pondered upon if she should break Sun's trust. But is she in the position to lie when she accidentally let it slip while as her brother is unconscious from overuse of his Light?
It took her only a moment to come to a decision.
"Yes."
She sensed Duke's stare darken, "Is that the secret your team has been hiding then?"
Aleeza couldn't help but blink.
She knew the Vanguard had found her and Fireteam Redacted suspicious as of late but, she had never considered that they would go as far as send other Guardians to follow them in their stead.
"Now why would you be hiding the survival of an infamous Guardian?" Duke's question made Aleeza's blood go cold; considering how quickly he broke down Redacted's 'secret', she wouldn't be surprised if he puts it together himself, "Now why would you…" There was a pause, a realization, and Aleeza prepared for it, "They are a Rogue? They no longer want to protect the City?"
It sounded bad when said aloud but, nonetheless, not the whole truth. At least, that is what Aleeza thought.
"That's not the reason why-"
"Hostiles! Incoming!" Marcel's voice interrupted her words and prompted Aleeza to look down the corridor. And spot the many black shapes of the Taken closing in.
Hearing Duke curse under his breath, Aleeza took the opportunity instead to position herself in front of Akiva's still form, summoning her void light into the palms of her hands.
"I will explain everything later!" She shouted as she thrusted her palm forward, dispelling a launching Taken Thrall, "But for now, help me protect my brother 'and' this core!"
There was a grunt, "And why should we?"
Aleeza let out a snarl of frustration, turning her attention towards Duke, "Because that core is 'Rasputin's lifeline." There was a choked sound from not too far away; she assumed it was Marcel's, "If the Taken get their hands on it, who know what will happen." She swung her hand forward, dispelling another Taken. Her expression then darkens, "And if 'anything' happens to my brother, it will not be 'pretty'."
A sound of displeasure can be heard from Duke but nonetheless, Aleeza watched as he turned his attention towards Marcel, the latter of which returned the look, then nodded, before turning around and stabbing his knife into the neck of an attacking Taken Vandal.
"Promise us that you will tell us everything after this is all over?"
Letting out a breath of relief, Aleeza nodded, which signaled to the Titan to aim, fire his weapon, and followed after the wooping Hunter. Taking this opportunity to dispel another taken enemy, Aleeza glanced down at Akiva, scanning his form, before she took a step forward and too, entered the fray.
Xxxxx
Despite being corrupted with Darkness, Carina cannot help but be confused at just how Sun is able to summon their hammers with ease, tossing them at any Taken that wanders too close, while she herself can hardly gather enough energy to perform a Fist of Havoc. In contrast to Sun, who was able to wield their hammer the entirety of their fight, Carina was barely able to perform two. She couldn't help but blame the thick blanket of Darkness that smothered her form.
As such, as she huffed, Carina decided to duck down behind the safety of cover, feeling it shake behind her as she holstered her primary weapon. And went for her rocket launcher.
{"Please do be careful with that."} Spears' voice was laced with worry, {"The last time you used it, you were just a 'tad' bit too close to an enemy."}
"I will be fine." Smiling as she felt the doubt through their bond followed by a sigh, Carina lifted herself into the air, turned, and aimed her rocket launcher at the first target in her sight: a clustered group of Taken Cabal. Squeezing the trigger, the Exo could help but laugh as the shell exploded, sending out shrapnel at any unfortunate Taken that had survived the initial blast. Then, she releases the trigger, blasts of fire erupted from the barrel of the weapon, spewing canisters which latched onto any surrounding Taken. They too exploded in a cacophony of explosions and screams.
Letting herself fall back to the floor with a heavy 'clunk', Carina then took the opportunity to press her hand against the front of the weapon, the pressure causing it to unattached itself from the back and revealing the empty chamber. She sighed at this.
"Only if this weapon can hold more than one cannister." Carina lamented before she held up a hand, a sign for Spears to materialize the familiar warhead into her grasp before she proceeded to shove it into the chamber and close it. Smiling as she heard it shut with a satisfying 'click', Carina then proceeded to ready herself with another lift.
That is when she heard a snarl to her left.
Startled, Carina twirled and then yelped as she leaned back in time to barely dodge a sword swipe, and her optics locked with the familiar three eyes of a Taken Knight. Before she could further react, the Taken Hive swung once more and this time, Carina felt the grip of her weapon leave her hands. Dread sank into the pit of her stomach as she heard metal screeching, multiple sounds falling to the floor, and she forced herself to look down.
There, her gaze settled upon broken pieces.
How the warhead didn't explode from the hit, Carina will never understand, but her shock soon turned into one of anger.
"Do you know how long it took me to get that weapon!?" She screeched, gathering arc light into her fists as she charged. It took little effort for her to duck another sword swing, take on large leap forward, and slammed her arc-enhanced punch into the Taken Knight's face, "Months!"
She then swung her other fist, sending the Taken Knight reeling before she brought her leg froward, and slammed her foot into its chest, completely sending it flying over the consoles, and making it land into a mass of Taken Acolytes. Feeling her Arc Light buzz around her arms, Carina took the opportunity to rush forward and jump with her fists clasped together in the air. She felt little resistance when she slammed her fists in the middle of the mass, the Taken Hive disintegrating into nothing.
"Who's next!?"
"That's enough."
Turning around, Carina's optic settled over Sun, the latter of which leaned against one of the many consoles they had been using as cover, "We have cleared the room." Their optics scanned their surroundings before they sighed, "For now."
Glancing around to only find truth in Sun's words, Carina took it was an opportunity to leap over the consoles, ducked behind it, and leaned her back against it. She then looked up at Sun.
"They're coming back, aren't they?" Carina groaned at the nod she received, "I know I said I wanted a challenge but this?" She raised her arms, extending them out to gesture towards the room, "Constant flow of enemies, hardly any time to rest, and not to mention the suffocating Darkness here." She huffed, "Ridiculous."
Sun's chuckling prompted her to turn her gaze back towards Sun; she narrowed her optics at them, "What's so funny?"
"Nothing, nothing." Carina was shrugged off with a wave of a hand; although Sun walked over and took a seat next to her, "although, I am curious, young light." She gave the older Exo a bewildered look, "You say that you are just a few years old, correct?"
"If you just count on how long I've been resurrected, then yes, I am."
There was a hum from Sun before the latter crossed their arms, "Interesting."
Carina gave them another confused look, "What?"
"You hold potential." She reeled at Sun's blunt answer, "You already have mastered your Arc light, and from what I can discern, you are currently working in Void.
Carina won't admit it, but she felt her pride swell in response to Sun's words, "Well, I can't take all the credit. I had some pretty good teachers." She puffed out her chest as she boasted, "Although I did learn how to wield the Arc light on my own."
"And the Void?"
"Well, you know Akiva? The Human Titan on my team?" Carina ignored the sour look that Sun made, "he's the one who's been teaching me, although, he would claim that he is just giving me 'pointers', that humble sack of muscle."
She watched as Sun's yellow optics narrowed, "He does not try to claim credit?"
"No?" Carina couldn't help but blink, "Is there like bragging rights when training other Guardians?"
"In a way, yes." She gave Sun another blank look, "Back when I lived at the Tower, the more Guardians you train, the more of a notoriety you gain." Sun shook their head, "How else do you think that Neptune is widely known amongst the Warlocks? He practically taught all those who were born before the…" That is when Carina heard their voice fade, seeing a distant look settling into their optics. Although, it was quickly gone when they shook their head, focus returning to their gaze, "I am just a baffled that someone who is giving you 'tips' is not boasting aloud of his 'mentorship'."
Although curious, Carina decided to ignore their abnormal behavior, and simply laughed. In turn, she watched as Sun's face turned perplexed, sinking lower into their seat, grumbling.
"How long has it been since you last been to the Tower?" Carina grinned, "Or at least, left this bunker?"
She waited, listening to the silent buzzing of power in the room before moments later, she blinked.
"Wait a minute." Carina said, "Don't tell me you haven't left since you first found Rasputin?"
She gawked as Sun simply turned and gave her a blank stare.
"Hermit much?" This earned her a sigh from her fellow Exo, "I mean, come on, don't tell me you haven't been even a bit curious on what is happening 'outside'."
"I had told my clan mates to tell everyone back at the Tower that I was dead." Carina went quiet at their words, "and in order to further hide my survival, I have to stay hidden, stay 'inside'. And all was quiet." Carina then watched them roll their optics, "That is, until a 'Newborn' discovered Rasputin and now, Guardians are flooding in expecting an easy prize."
Carina blinked, "Wait, what?"
Sun gave her a narrowed look, "Why else do you think Guardians come here? To make initial contact with Rasputin and build an alliance with the Tower?" Sun scoffed, "No, most come here for just for Golden Age tech and data within. They hope that whatever they find here, will make them a 'hero' in the eyes of those back at the Tower."
That is when Carina saw their optics darken, a chill running down the length of her back, "And some were quite difficult to remove."
"Remove?" She repeated, "What do you mean by 'remove'?"
This earned her another blank stare from Sun and, instead of a response, they stood up, and walked around their cover. Carina followed their movement.
"Hey! I ask you a question-"
She found herself stopping abruptly when Sun held up a hand and that is when she noticed their hardened stare, their optics staring down one of the many doors to the room. The one that Sun themself had busted open. And where Carina heard the familiar sound of footsteps echoing through the Darkness.
At first, Carina thought of it as good news; despite their shape, Taken steps do not make a sound and that perhaps another Guardian have made their way into the Bunker. That is when she paused, her optics growing as she slowly turned her focus onto Sun.
It had dawned on her. Remove.
Whoever this new Guardian is, they will not be seen as help to Sun. They will be seen more as an intruder, more so if they are not an Exo. In other words, another Guardian death on Sun's hands.
Before she can cry out a warning, she then saw the Guardian step into the room. And her heart sank when she saw Angel's silver and white armor.
Shots fired through the air and Carina couldn't suppress a cry, a shout as bullets pelted their way across the floor and towards Angel's direction. That is when she saw a billow of violet, smoke wrapping itself around Angel as Carina watched him roll 'forward' and to her surprise, the bullets seem to phase 'through' him, leaving behind nothing. And unharmed.
"Angel!"
She leaped over the consoles and skidded to down onto her knees, hovering over Angel who was now laying on his back. Although unmarked, he laid still, as if moving will get him further shot.
Despite this, Carina couldn't help but grab him by the shoulders, lifting herself and him onto their feet.
"What the fuck was that!?" She beamed, practically shaking him, "That was amazing!"
"S-Shade step." Angel managed to stutter out, "S-stop. P-please. H-Headache."
"Sorry!"
Carina let go. And then jumped when Angel collapsed back onto the floor in a heap. She smiled sheepishly behind her helmet.
"I am going to guess that you haven't mastered Nightstalker yet?" This earned her a thumbs up from her friend, "Traveler. A simple dodge takes that much out of you."
"I need practice."
"What in the Traveler's name are you doing here!?"
Sun's shout resounded through the air, prompting Carina to take a defensive step in front of Angel and turned to face the older Exo. The first thing she spotted was the auto-rifle in their hands, the same one that they had used to fire at Angel, and the second, the spots of Solar Light that flickered around their form. Their orange optics glowed with rage.
"I thought I told you to protect Rasputin's Power Core." Sun snarled as they came to a pause just short of the two Guardians. Carina felt their optics passing over her shoulders and glaring, "What the fuck are you doing here?"
Hearing Angel gulp behind her, Carina decided to intervene, "Calm down and give him time to get a word in." She watched as Sun's optics snapped towards her and Carina suppressed a wince; she can easily feel the heat from where she is standing, "He must have a good reason in coming here."
"And I do!"
Carina glanced over her shoulder in time to see Angel stumble onto his feet and held out a hand. She reeled when she spotted Gaia's familiar gold and crimson shell materialize into view.
"Sun!"
Carina practically had to duck when Gaia barreled past her, the Ghost narrowly coming to a halt just short of Sun's face. In response, Sun blinked.
'Gaia?" They said, "What are doing with an organic?"
And not alone, is what mostly likely what they meant, Carina thought, but decided not to comment when Gaia answered, "I ran into some trouble on the way back. Hunter Angel not only ensured my safety on my way here, but also came to my rescue."
Blinking, Carina slowly turned and faced Angel, the latter of which shrugged.
"Akiva, Aleeza, and I got worried is all." He explained, "We just thought that one of us should keep an eye on Gaia in case, you know, they bump into any Taken on their way here."
Staring at Angel, Carina found a sly smile forming onto her face, "You were the one who brought up the idea, huh?"
Angel, in response to her words, twiddled his thumbs, "Well, the bunker is filled with enemies that we never faced before, and I thought, you know, since Gaia don't know these 'Taken' well, they might need protection." That is when Carina saw his gaze shift downward, and she could tell he was flustered, especially from the way he muttered bashfully under his breath; no doubt Hope is currently teasing him.
"You always did have a soft spot for others." Carina said.
"They needed help!" Angel practically shouted, "I-I just couldn't…"
He was flustered again, twiddling his fingers together which prompted a chuckle from Carina. That is when she heard whispers, soft words being spoken that caused Carina to turn her attention towards Sun and Gaia.
They were speaking to each other privately, judging from the way Sun held up their hand to the side, hiding their lips while as Gaia's shell shifted on occasion; how they were able to speak low as they can without Carina's sensitive sensors picking it up is a mystery to her. Nonetheless, it seemed to be a good sign, as the flames that flickered around Sun's body faded and she heard them let out a breath.
"Hunter." Carina didn't have to look back to see Angel go rigid, "You protected Gaia?"
"Yes." Despite his fear, Carina had to suppress a laugh as the Hunter squeaked, "I-I can-"
"Then, I thank you."
That cause Carina to snap her full attention onto Sun, jaw slack, optics wide. If the older Exo took note of this, they didn't show as they continued, "If it had not been for you, then Gaia making it here safely would have no been feasible."
"I-It's n-not – You're welcome." Angel managed to stutter out.
Watching Sun then hold out their hand, enabling Gaia to settle inside, Carina couldn't find words, unable to form words until the older Guardian had walked away. She then turned towards Angel.
"Did they just thank you?"
"I think so?" Angel's answer sounded more like a question, "I'm not hearing things, am I?"
Shaking her head, Carina glanced back at Sun, the latter of which had their back turned towards them, "Do you think that maybe that means…"
"If the two of you have time to stand around and chat, then you also have time to prep yourselves for the next wave of Taken."
Huffing at Sun's words, Carina found herself unable to help but mentally agree; gossip can be finished later.
"What's the plan?"
There was a brief pause from Sun, Carina watching as the older Exo tilted their head, and heard them let out a thoughtful hum.
"There is not much to do but clear out waves of Taken until they give in."
"E-Excuse me?" Carina couldn't help but gawk, "Give in? That could take 'days', 'weeks' even."
She watched as Sun turned and raised a brow at her, "And?"
Carina let out a frustrated breath, "We haven't exactly told the Vanguard the reason 'why' we headed here."
"What did you tell them?"
"That we were on patrol." Carian answered, "A 'simple' one."
This earned her a blank stare from Sun, and Carina couldn't help but shift uneasily on her feet. Her instincts were telling her to run.
"That is the weakest excuse I have ever heard. 'Especially' for a cause like this."
Carina couldn't help but go on the defensive, "It's not easy fooling the Vanguard you know. And how are we supposed to know that fighting these 'Taken' would take 'days'?"
"Common fucking sense!" Carina had to take a step back at Sun's shout, "These are enemies that we have 'never' faced before! How else are you supposed to learn of your enemies!?"
That is when Carina saw the way Sun shook their head, pain flashing through their optics before she spotted it; the sickly green.
"You spent too much time with organics." The older Exo lifted their optics and glared at her. And Angel. "They have messed with your head."
"What in the fucking kind of excuse is – Excuse me!" Carina found herself getting upset, angry; darkness or not, it was uncalled for, "I'm sorry that a 'newborn' like me can't come up with excuses for such an 'important' mission!" Although she knows fully well that it was Akiva who came up with the lie. But she wasn't going to tell Sun that.
"An important target? Fluctuations of enemy numbers? Not a simple 'patrol'!"
They have made good points. But Carina's stubbornness wasn't going to let them win so easily.
"At least we came up with an excuse to save your ass!" She retorted as she took a step forward, "My team and I risked lying to the Vanguard to come here! If they learned that we had lied to their faces, my team and I could be marked as 'Rogues' and hunted down!" She felt her light flare around her body; she ignored it, "Stop insulting my friends and at least pretend to be grateful, you broken piece of shit! I'm surprise that the Darkness hasn't eaten your ass yet with all these years down here alone!"
"Shut up!"
She saw the pain flash through their optics once more and at first, Carina couldn't help but feel guilty, bad about her words. But her frustrations, her anger rose to the surface, and she found herself saying, "Stay down here like a hermit any longer and the Darkness is going to fully consume you. And it's not going to be Rasputin they're going to go after first. It will be Gaia."
Carina hadn't been that close to Sun but, nonetheless, she felt an impact slam into her chest, and she felt her feet fly out from beneath her. As she landed, Carina felt her body throb, a dull ache but nothing crippling.
"Get out!" Sun's voice echoed through the room, "Get the fuck out! Grab your team and get out!"
"But-" Angel started.
Carina heard him yelp and she pushed herself up in time to see Angel barely leap back to dodge a row of bullets.
"Get out!"
Pushing herself onto her feet, Carina settled her optics back over Sun and she saw their optics squeezed shut, a hand to their head, and the way their body trembled, as if they were trying to retain composure. Or control.
Carina grabbed Angel by the shoulder, "Let's get out of here."
Giving Sun one last glance, Carina then let her grip go from Angel and hefted her weapon into her arms and walked out. She heard Angel's footsteps follow behind her.
"Is it okay to leave them like this?"
Carina wanted to say no, guilt settling heavily in her chest but then, she remembered her encounter with Sun back in the corridor, where the Darkness momentarily had taken control. She had barely survived that fight; Carina knows that even with Angel, she won't be able to survive it a second time. Hence why she believes Sun told the pair to leave. They knew that as well.
"After they shoved me across the room and yelled at us to leave?" Carina decided to say, "I think it's okay."
There was a moment of silence, Carina easily feeling Angel giving her a scrutinizing look upon her back. Then, he broke the silence.
"This isn't like you." Carina came to a halt, "You agreed to leave easily. That's not something you would do."
"Well." She tried to think, "They keep blaming organics, more specifically you and the others." She tried to keep going, "Come on, that Psycho can handle it themselves."
"But one of them again a whole army of Taken…?"
Carina couldn't help but pause and turn back, seeing Angel had glanced back towards the door that led to the Core room; he was wringing his hands together.
"They are the infamous Sun-7." Carina started, "Leader of the Clan, Galaxy, and a member of the Sunbreakers. I say they can take care of themselves."
With that she forced herself to turn and march forward as she finished, "And what do I care if that psycho dies?"
Despite her words, Carina felt her gut twist, guilt settling into her chest as she walked away.