Redacted
I am EXO/PHX Unit XI-9
The other half of the update today!
Hope you enjoy! :D
Also, before I forget. I have gotten a few reviews where I appreciate the 'criticism', however, I do not appreciate how disrespectful they are. I know text is hard to 'read' but if I find a mocking tone at all 'and' you're reviewing it as a guest and not an actual account, then I am going to take it as an insult.
Edited: 10/16/2022
CW: Racial Slurs, Death
"You're a mutt?"
The echoes of the word leaving the lips of her previous clan members rang in her mind and Hush flinched, but she ducked, easily feeling the grip of the man leave her shoulders. However, as she attempted to run, Hush felt the back of her cloak go taut, prompting to look back. Only to look into blue eyes of her kidnapper.
"Well, well." She heard him click his tongue, "And here I thought I had taken just another normal Exotic." Hush then saw him smile before he looked over his shoulder and shouted, "Boys! Looks like we are going to make our quota after all!"
Seeing the man reach out with his other hand, Hush's eyes grew wide before she raised a hand of her own and swatted it away. She then saw the man's eyes narrow.
"You want to play rough, Mutt? Then let's play rough."
It was then his hand move quickly, too quickly for Hush to react and she felt a hand grab her by the arm. Then, she felt a tug, prompting her to follow to avoid pain. And then a palm stuck against her cheek. It stung and Hush felt her head snap to the side from the blow. Followed by a crack and then, darkness.
"That's enough!" She can see the rage in her father's eyes as he grabbed the wrist of the man before her, halting his arm in the air and preventing another strike, "Have I not told you before that she is not as sturdy as us!?"
"Then why in the Traveler did we decide to let her stay!?" The man snarled as he tore his arm from her father's grip, "She is weak! Barely able to keep up with the caravan! And let us not forget that she has the blood of those 'humans' flowing in her!"
"Do you think I do not know that!? I curse those humans the day they killed my wife! My child!"
"Then why in the world did you take in a 'mutt'?!"
"Because she has done nothing to us!" She watched the man reel from her father's words, "How can I abandon a child in the arms of her dead parents just because she carries the blood of those 'colorless' people?! Despite what the others of our clan say, she is innocent! Until the day she dirties her hands of Awoken blood, our people, 'her' people, then she is considered 'one of us', understand?!"
The man scoffed at her father's words, but he turned and left, prompting her father's eyes to soften and turn towards her.
"Hush, are you alright?"
She blinked, feeling tears running down her face as she watched her father held out a hand, signaling for her to raise her arm, and then flinch as he gently took the broken appendage into his hands. Watching him work on the awkward angle of her arm, she looked up at him when she heard him speak.
"Do not mind them, Hush. They do not understand there are innocents amongst the guilty." He looked up and smiled gently at her, "But remember this, despite what others say, you will always be a part of this clan, and you will always be my daughter."
"Are you an idiot or did you forget that mutts are fragile as fuck?! You just lost our glimmer ticket!"
"How am I supposed to fucking know that she can't take a simply slap to the face!?"
Hush took in a stuttering gasp as she felt her heartbeat wildly in her chest, the familiar lavender form of her star the first thing she saw as she opened her eyes. Hearing Crystalline release a hush, Hush pushed herself unsteadily into a seated position, turned, and understood her star's gesture; the wide-eyed looks of the captives were staring back at her. Raising a finger to her lips, Hush then paused when she heard the bickering of the men go silent. She didn't have to look back to feel their eyes upon her.
"A Guardian?" She heard her kidnapper snarl and Hush took it as a sign to break her cover.
Ignoring the silent protest through their bond, Hush concentrated her light into her hands and snapped them outwards. Wisps of violet popped into her vision and the buzz of the Ward of Dawn is a relief in her ears.
A resounding bang pulled her out of her reverie and made her jump.
Looking up, she saw her kidnapper shove the other man, just in time to see a smoking revolver in the latter's hand.
"What in the fuck are you doing?" The kidnapper snapped, "Do you want us to lose our potential glimmer count?"
"She's a fucking Guardian." The other man retorted, "If we let her live, our whole operation is down. Do you want us to be in prison or do you want to be a free man?"
Hush watched as her kidnapper pulled his lips back into a snarl before he turned around; that is when she spotted the third of their number. He had just returned from a patrol she guessed, judging from the rifle in his hands. And long enough to have missed everything from the way his eyes were wide as saucers at the presence of her Ward.
"You," Her kidnapper jabbed a finger at the third man, prompting him to snap his eyes towards him, "Help me gather the rest while 'he' takes care of this Guardian."
Hearing the whispers of the frightened behind her, Hush took in a breath, her fingers flexing as she concentrated more of her light into her hands.
She reeled at his touch, taking steps back as her yellow eyes stared fearfully into his gold; she can see the surprise in his eyes even when he blinked, and then, his gaze softened.
"Ah, my apologies." He said, "You may have gotten used to my presence but that doesn't mean you are used to making physical contact." He then cleared his throat, "This will make it a bit difficult, but we can manage."
She then watched him take a few steps back, ensuring plenty of space between him and her before she spotted familiars wisps of violet at his fingertips. Then, before she can even blink, a dome of void light appeared around them, engulfing the two in light that she recognizes as the Void. One that is she is attuned herself.
"As you understand, you are a Titan." She heard him explain as she reached out and carefully brushed a finger against the Ward's surface; it tingled against the touch, "More specifically a Defender and, as you know, the Ward of Dawn is their main skill. That includes you, Little One."
She turned her glowing eyes towards her fellow Titan, sensing more light gathering in his hands.
"Everyone believes that this is the limit to what a Defender can do with a Ward. However." It was then she watched him snap his hands outward and she jumped when the Ward around them expanded, stretching over most of the training field, "That is all a rumor, given to others by inexperienced Defenders thanks to their lack of confidence. And to add to the flame…" She then watched him enclose his fist and she saw the Ward flash and wisps of void light seemingly lashing out and stretch, as if trying to latch onto anything that strays too close outside, "You can make the Ward stronger, thicker to withstand more attacks. And finally, the ability to make it last longer, which is the most important trait."
His golden eyes turned back to her, "Ianos asked me to teach you how to properly control your Ward of Dawn. Would you like to learn?"
She then watched him hold out his hand, a gentle smile on his face, and prompting her to look him in the eyes. And she saw the sincerity. The friendliness that she saw in Ianos when he calmed her fears. However, will he be the same though? He is not an Awoken nor is he an Exo. The warnings of her father rang clearly in her mind.
Always be wary of humans.
She hesitated, glancing back and forth between his hand and face before she slowly reached out, and intertwined her fingers with his. That is when she felt the gentleness, the kindness in his hands, and the anxiety clouding her mind faded. Followed by curiosity.
For the first time, she had noticed the size of his hands, how large they were and when she lifted her eyes, she noticed the way he towered over her, even when crouched. Locking her eyes with his, she couldn't but squeeze as hard as she could, furrowing her brows as she tried with all her might in their intertwined hands. This only prompted a chuckle from the man.
"What would you like to learn first, Hush?"
With Akiva's lessons clear in her mind, Hush gathered the light into her hands, feeling them condense in her palms before she snapped her arms to the side. And released.
A cry of frustration can be heard as she felt the Ward around her expand, bursting outward until Hush can see it surround the prisoners behind her. She couldn't help the pride, feeling pleased at her work.
A loud single shot broke quickly broke the confidence.
Hush ducked down, hands clasping over her ears before turning her wide eyes towards the front of her Ward. There, she can see the void light ripple, a single bullet sliding off its surface and clattering to the ground.
One of the captors, the one who kidnapped her, placed a hand onto her ward, and Hush eyed the smoking gun in his other hand.
"Getting in the way of our operation, Guardian?" She heard him snarl, "You will pay the price." He then smiled, wicked and cruel, "You cannot hide there forever."
Keeping her eyes on him, Hush slowly turned towards the victims behind her, and spotted the wide looks in their gaze. Many were still filled with fear – to be expected since majority were children – but Hush also spotted hope. Confidence built within her chest.
The man maybe right but, Hush is determined to keep her Ward up as long as she could. After all, there is no doubt in her mind that Ianos and the others were looking for her.
As such, Hush stood and stared back defiantly, glaring at the man. And just as she had hoped, his confidence faltered, and she watched him take a step back, his hand slipping off from her ward. The surprise was then quickly replaced with fury and Hush heard him snarl, curse under his breath before he turned to the other two of his team. More than likely to come up with a plan. In other words, a chance to come up with one of her own.
That is what she thought, until another gunshot rang through the air.
Hush forced the reflex to duck away; if what Crystalline and the others say are true, she is a Guardian, Soldier of the Light. She will have to face her fears eventually.
Instead, she looked in time to see the three men were scrambling, guns now in their hands. But the instant she spotted a cloak of a figure leaping from the ceiling, Hush knew they reacted too slow.
One of the men yelped when the Hunter landed on top of him, and then proceeded to roll out of the way when another started shooting at him. And then promptly kicked him in the leg. As the second of the kidnappers released a yelp and fell to his knees, Hush then spotted the various shades of greens and browns, and the familiar pattern of the galaxy upon the Hunter's cloak. And her heart sang.
Io. One of Pluto's kids. He had found her.
Hush couldn't help but smile, watching as Io raised his hand cannon and used the brunt of it to hit the incapacitated man on the head. The latter crumpled to the floor. Then, just as she heard about Hunter's from Pluto, Io raised weapon and fired at the third man – the one who had kidnapped her – all done within a blink. Her kidnapper released a cry, a hand reaching to his shoulder as he fell back. Hush can see the crimson bleeding between his fingers.
"Hush!"
She watched as Io stood, rushing over to her Ward and pressed a hand against it.
"You alright?"
Flawless in his execution but he is kind, voice soft and filled with concern. Smiling at him, Hush nodded, and she could hear the breath of relief behind his helmet. But then she spotted movement from the corner of her eye. And remembered that Io is not much older than her. He is still inexperienced and young. As such, it had never occurred to him to look behind him. And Hush released a shout as the man that he had knocked down first, stumbled to his feet, and hefted a shotgun into his hands. And fired.
The sounds of shields breaking rang through the air followed by Io's gasp and he fell against her ward, leaning against it for support. Then another sound of a shotgun being fired. And this time, Io screamed.
Hush reacted. She reached through her Ward, grabbing Io by the front of his cloak and pulled. Falling back, Hush's heart skipped a beat when she heard another shotgun fire ring through the air, taking in a harsh breath as she waited for Io to scream once more. Instead, she felt light gather around her form, only realizing its intent when she landed upon her back, only to feel an inch of space between herself, the floor, and the Hunter. She didn't have to look up to know it is Crystalline's work.
Hearing Io groan on top of her, Hush went to push him off, only to remember the shots to his back, and promptly decided that pulling herself out from under the Hunter is a better decision. However, as she slid out from under Io, she saw her Ward ripple from the corner of her eyes, and she looked up. She could see that it as the man who had fired his weapon.
"You got lucky, mutt."
Her stomach twisting at his words, Hush decided to ignore it and instead turned her attention to Io. Concern settled in as she heard him wretch and gag, his twitching most likely from the pain. White fluids trickled from his wounds. Hush unwrapped some of the cloth around her shoulders and pressed them against Io's back.
"Just because they are human doesn't mean they all deserve death." Her father's words echoed in her ears, "If they are innocent and you have a chance to save them, do so."
"There is no need to do that." Hush jumped when a flash of light flickered above them, only to relax when she spotted a familiar star shaped form, colored with black and lined with white stripes; despite their words, she can see gratitude in the star's optic, "I will handle it from here."
Furrowing her brows together, Hush found herself glancing back and forth between Io's injury and his star before slowly lifting her hands and the cloth from the Hunter's back. She then watched as his star glided downwards and light glowed from their optic.
"Guardians are resilient, Hush." She heard Crystalline speak as Hush folded the clothes on her lap; despite them being covered in blood, it is only appropriate to return what she has borrowed. She will clean them later, "and it is the duty of us Ghosts to tend to their injuries."
Ghosts.
That's a word that is going to take Hush some time to get used to. She remembers seeing them, the fragments of the Traveler that her father would point out back when she lived with her clan. To her, they sparkled like the stars in the night. Not some spirit that is told in stories to keep children safe in their homes and not to wander into the dark.
"Where in the hell did you get that?" Hush looked back towards the smugglers, only to see her kidnapper is now standing, a hand over his injury, "I thought high powered shotguns like that are Guardian issued only."
She heard the man with the weapon snort, "How else did you think I got it? I scavenged it from a body. Plenty of 'Soldiers of Light' lying around on the other side of the Wall."
"And you can use it?"
"Heavily modified so I don't blow out a shoulder but powerful enough to do some damage to a Guardian at least."
As if to empathize the man's words, Hush heard Io groan, and she looked back at the Hunter. He is shivering now and from the subtle cursing of his Ghost, there is no doubt that some serious damage had taken place. Her father did warn her to ensure that no damage is done to the back. The spine is there after all.
"Is it powerful enough to break through that bubble?"
Her kidnapper's question brought a chill down upon Hush's shoulders and she looked up to see the man's eyes were narrowed, a frown upon his face.
"It better break through." He said, "After what we had to deal with today."
"Good enough." Her kidnapper said, "I say break it, kill that Hunter, and sell that mutt alongside the others."
"What makes you think we can control her?"
It was then Hush watched as her kidnapper nod towards her. Or more specifically, over her shoulder. She knew that he is pointing at Crystalline.
"Those Guardians can't come back without their little drones, right?" Hush heard Crystalline sputter at the insult, "Capture it and we can keep her under control."
Seeing the man with the shotgun's eyes widen at the idea, Hush couldn't suppress a whimper. She heard Crystalline hover close, practically hiding behind her neck.
A sinister smile appeared onto her kidnapper's face, "Come on, do it."
Preparing herself, Hush watched on as the man with the shotgun – although his face still filled with doubt – walked over to her Ward, pressed the barrel of his weapon against it, and his finger pressed against the trigger.
A bang resounded in the air.
And the man's head exploded into a viscera of blood and bone, the gore splattering onto the surface of her Ward as the shotgun clattered to the floor. Hearing the kidnapped scream behind her, Hush watched on with wide eyes as the body fell, falling onto its side, and her kidnapper fumbled, taking steps back.
That is when she saw him.
A figure clads in white stepped out from the shadows, and her kidnapper sputtered, his words incoherent as he walked back, placing distance between himself and the danger. In turn, her savior took slow and methodical steps, almost teasing in the approach before he came to a pause and looked down. Following his gaze, Hush saw the man that Io had knocked out previously, laying still upon the floor. She had forgotten about him.
The figure in white tilted his head, as if contemplating, then, lifted his hand revealing the rifle. And Hush watched him pull the trigger.
Screams once more echoed from the kidnapped as the man's head exploded, just like the previous, leaving more gore upon the floor.
"What in the fuck!?" Her kidnapper's shout prompted Hush to look towards him; she noticed his face had gotten pale, "I thought Guardians don't kill people! I thought the laws state – "
His words were cut off as the figure in white is suddenly upon him, grabbing him by the throat and easily lifting him from the floor. He choked and started kicking. It did little to deter the figure's grip.
"I am not a Guardian."
The statement is devoid of any emotion, of any care, before Hush watched him press the barrel of the scout's rifle under the man's jaw. This time though, she looked away, eyes wide as she heard the firearm go off. Followed by silence. And then the whimpering of the frightened behind her as footsteps approached.
"Hush?"
Familiarity rang in her mind, but Hush found her heart pound hard in her chest, fear taking hold. She closed her eyes and slowly turned.
"Little One."
Her eyes snapped open, recognition now fully settled, and her yellow eyes locked onto familiar white optics. The Exo's white clad form is painted red from the slaughter, his helmet tucked under his arm, but nonetheless, Hush recognizes him.
Many nights she had caught him wandering out, curious hands sometimes prompting him to stay. He would play with her quietly – a deal made to ensure her silence on his nightly trips – and his gentleness and kindness made him a friend in Hush's eyes quicky. He may look like Knight, but she knows it is not him.
Nonetheless, this did little to stop her from standing and rushed to the Exo's form, wrapping her arms around his waist in an embrace as she pressed her face into his abdomen.
"Thank the Traveler." Relief can be heard in Crystalline's voice, "Took you long enough. And here I thought your trips into the City were nothing."
"The trips are not nothing. They are patrols to ensure the safety – "
"To ensure the safety of those who are not human. We have heard it before."
Hush can feel the bewilderment, the confusion at Crystalline's teasing and as such, she unwrapped her arms from the Exo and lifted her hands to explain.
That is when she heard a click of a hand cannon behind her.
Eyes wide, Hush turned to see Io had turned to his side, using an arm as support while has aiming his weapon with the other. She placed herself between him and her friend.
"Hush." Io breathed out, "Get out of the way."
"Calm down." Crystalline said, "We can talk this out."
"Do you think I let these men live with no reason?" Io retorted, "I wanted to kill them too, for harming Hush, for kidnapping innocents and selling them for their own profit. But we needed information. And he just doomed other non-Light users to their fate."
There is a pause from Crystalline, and Hush couldn't help but stare, and wring her hands together. She could see the truth in his words.
"If I had not killed these men, they would have found a way to escape time in prison." Her Exo friend said, "They would have returned to their business at hand."
"You killed humans. Non-Light users who stood little chance against Guardians like us."
"The shots you haven taken to the back says otherwise."
Another beat of silence, and Hush could see Io's grip go tight around the grip of his weapon; his arm is trembling.
Confused and wanting answers, Hush looked towards the kidnapped, the victims. However, instead of gratitude, she saw that some of them were trembling, gripping onto each other as they stared on with wide eyes. Those were not looks of gratitude.
"There's a reason the Consensus decreed that Guardians do not take the lives of non-Light users." Hush heard Io say, "They already fear us enough as it is. Taking lives recklessly just makes it worse."
Frowning at his words, Hush raised a hand to her chest, contemplating on the Hunter's words. To her, it didn't make any sense. After all, the Guardians were their protectors. Why fear them so?
Once again, wanting answers, she looked back at her Exo friend, and saw only a blank stare upon his features. Then again, his expression never changes.
"I am not a Guardian."
He repeated his statement from before and yet, Hush felt Io's eyes shift.
"But those marks." The confusion, the puzzlement is obvious in his voice, "You are Shining Knight, aren't you? The newborn?"
Hush squeezed her eyes shut, biting against her lip; and here it is, where he reveals his secret.
"This body is Shining Knight's, but I am not Knight." The explanation did nothing to quell the bewildered stare, and, despite herself, Hush opened her eyes and looked up, curious; he had never spoken his name, "I am designated as Exo Phoenix Unit XI – 9. Greetings, brother-in-arms."