Redacted

Is That What You Call a Monster?

Edited

8/4/2024:

Sorry for the absence! I notified my AO3 but not here! For the month of June, I was visiting family hence the month long hiatus. And since I usually don't update on the first Sunday of the month but I was gone for a month, decided to give a small snipper to show that I am still alive C:

"Oh Vraldyks, why had you not contacted me earlier?"

Orion couldn't help but flinch at Angel's words, his voice resounding from Lex's core. It was apparent that he was truly and utterly upset, the sound of mourning and regret clear, and Orion wouldn't be surprised if the Hunter is already making his trip here.

But could he blame him?

Vraldyks – an infamous Baron within the enigmatic House of Kings – now leaned against the cave wall before them, his form haggard, armor broken, and – judging from the glazed look in his eyes – in desperate need of Ether. And a lot of it.

Orion and the others had made it to the camp not too long ago and he quickly counted the survivors: two captains, eight Vandals, numerous amounts of Dregs, and Vraldyks, a Baron. And most of them were in a bad state.

Many of the Dregs were doing fine. Only a handful were suffering from Ether starvation, and Orion wouldn't be surprised if it was because they hadn't received their share of Ether yet when the coup happened. The same could not be said for the Vandals, as most of them were incapacitated. So far, the two that had escorted them are the only ones who seemed to be 'alright'. The Captains were barely hanging on, spread out against the ground, and of course, Vraldyks, barely conscious and hardly able to let out a low growl of greeting at Angel.

In the end, it was one of their escorts – Tiphaxis, the female – who had to explain the situation to Angel, while the other Vandal – Darivion, a male – kept watching, his four eyes narrowed in both intrigue and wariness. Orion hardly can blame them; he and the others were in the presence of one of their Barons after all. Although, the Exo wonders just how many of the higher ranking Eliksni survived the massacre.

"This is pathetic. Can't we just kill them and leave?"

Feeling Trikxas' anger bubble to the surface, Orion mimicked his Ghost, feeling his starting to boil as he turned to the two Revenants.

Angel spoke first.

"How dare you threatened the lives of these survivors!" Orion snickered at the way the Warlock took a step back, "If I was there, I would have killed you for even inciting their deaths!"

Sending a mental tug to Trikxas to signal to start taking pictures, Orion's amusement was quickly quashed when the Warlock's shoulders squared out and he took a step forward.

"They are already dying as they are." The Warlock argued, gesturing a hand at the survivors – specifically at Vraldyks, "it is more of a mercy to end their lives now than to let them live in state of disarray."

In that moment, Orion decided he had had enough and with one swift step forward, brought his fist back and propelled it into the Warlock's abdomen. He resisted the urge to utilize his light and instead, used nothing but brute strength as his fist slammed into the Warlock. In turn, he heard the Warlock let out a pained wheeze and staggered back, curling in. Then, Orion turned to the Titan, optics narrowing as he spotted the Revenant in question flexing his hands, shoulders tense.

It is obvious that he wants to fight.

But Orion also noticed the subtle tilt of his head, the way he was scanning his surroundings.

Assessing.

Orion wouldn't be surprised if he is weighing the risks of retaliating for the Revenant Warlock. In the end, he saw the Titan take a subtle step back, head slightly dipped. He can feel the glare behind his helmet. Orion wouldn't be surprised that the Titan will try to give him a punch of his own once they return to the Revenant base. But for now, it was his victory and the Titan and Warlock are not going to kill the survivors. Not when the Eliksni pack is under his and the others care.

"To think that Tower Guardians would work with these monsters."

Quietly debating to himself it is a good idea to send the Revenants back first or to pummel them and then send them back, Orion then felt a light tap upon his shoulder, prompting him to glance over to Akiva. Half-expecting the Titan to have something to say, Orion then raised a brow instead while Akiva instead nodded his head in Vraldyks' general direction. Although confused, Orion then heard the colorful curses of Angel emitting from Lex's core, aimed towards the two Revenants, and decided to hell with the two Chosen and followed Akiva's line of sight.

That is when he spotted Varathis, lingering near Vraldyks' form as the former messed with the Ether cannisters around his waist. Orion looked on with wide eyes as the cannisters popped open.

"What is he…?" Furrowing his brows, Orion went to take a step forward, only to jerk back when Trikxas snapped into his path, stopping him, "Trikxas, what – "

"Just watch." He heard her whisper.

Raising a brow, Orion obeyed and settled his optics back onto Varathis.

The Dreg – either ignoring or ignorant of the attention he was now receiving – then started to work on the Ether cannisters around the Baron's waist. When Orion saw him popped them open and pulling out the empty cans, that he finally understood.

He was switching out the Ether with the Baron, more apparent now when Varathis pulled out his own mostly full Ether, pulled out Vraldyks' practically empty ones, and deposited his into the Baron's pack. He then dutifully locked them into place before depositing the empty cans into his own pack.

Orion's core warmed at this; Ether is a precious resource, literately life saving for the Eliksni. To give it away so easily, Varathis must respect the Baron greatly, especially since that whatever meager amount that Orion had given him won't be enough to get Vraldyks back onto his feet. But it was going to be enough to make him last until help gets here.

Is that what Akiva wanted to show him?

At the thought of the Titan, Orion then looked back at Akiva, only to come to pause as he sensed the latter being. He then noticed that Akiva was looking back at the two Revenants.

"Now is that who you call a monster?" Akiva asked and Orion couldn't help but be delighted when he saw the two Revenants flinch; it is obvious from what they had just witness, they could not give Akiva an answer.

That is when a heavy sigh emitting from Lex's core was enough for Orion to look back.

"Hope and I are closing in on your location." Angel's voice piped in, "I have Abraxos with me and plenty of Ether to help the survivors get back on their feet."

That is when Orion's thoughts wondered back to the start of this crazy ordeal and suddenly remember that he had heard Ianos point out Angel' s stay in the Hospital Wing. And judging from the frustrated tones that Ianos had, it was not a simple injury. How did the Hunter get discharged so early?

Or, he could have snuck out.

Orion suppressed a sound of frustration, his memories remembering all the instances that Scorpio, Gemini, and, Traveler, even Io, sneaking out when they were checked in. Must be a Hunter thing.

Despite the urge to tell Angel to sit down and rest, Orion turned his optics to the Eliksni and suppressed it. They need aid more than ever and with their current supplies, he and Akiva cannot give the proper help; not to mention that judging from the way their Revenant comrades were acting, the corrupted Chosen aren't willing to give a hand.

Thus, Orion simply said, "See you soon."

The click of the frequency cutting off echoed throughout the cave.

Letting out a sight at the thought of how they got here, Orion then went rigid when he heard Akiva ask, "So, who's going to contact Ianos or Pluto about this?"