Way away

The airlock is a jumbled mess of station debris and dust. Last time any of us were in here was Callie when she was helping the Deadrig Dolls.

And that whole mess when she lost a daughter.

"He-help m-eee. Please...a-a-nyb-body"

"Kat?! I hear you honey! We're outside!" I screech.

"fitee-n g-guys...be careful..."

"Did you all catch that?" I say over mic to the girls behind me and they radio back green.

"I know this is my op, but I'm honestly kind of scared of you right now. You're the lead here." Luna says before I stand up straight and look over my shoulder.

"These three are your responsibility. Leave me to my own devices." I say coldly and I can hear everybody's heartrate spike.

Remember, Kyl. They're not like us.

I am aware.

The airlock slides open and there's at least thirty-seven bodies everywhere, all with a knife in the head or throat.

"I'm kinda jealous." I subconciously mutter to myself and I hear the girls behind me step back.

Off in the distance down the hall I see a Xeno in light gear and my vision turns red. Despite the heavyness of the Morozov arms and legs I wear, I'm down the hall in three strides and a flying boot catches him square in the side of the head before the coda whips out to finish the job before he hits the ground.

I look to my left and see at least ten more goons caught off guard.

Their rifles come up, and time slows. My body feels a thousand times heavier than before when I kick off the wall ahead of me and slowly pull a grenade to huck into the pile.

The latch pops off with a thousand ton click, my arm sluggishly swings forwards to release the grenade and I fly between the turnstiles backwards.

I hit the ground with an agonizing thud of slowly creeping in pain and I see the air distort with the shock wave and light slowly growing around the corner. Guns, ammo, grenades, and body parts fly out from behind the corner when something sinister smiles within.

"I'm...in a vent...That was really pretty!"

Time returns to normal and I roll back onto my feet and a lone heavy hobbles around the corner screaming as his arm is missing.

Don't overdo it, Kyl.

R: Kat is on your left, small vent straight ahead. Move in to secure.

L: I know you're one of the founding members, but shut the fuck up, this is my op.

R: I'll talk to Callie about that.

K: Good. I kinda understand why Moira did what she did.

I grab a pink flare and lob it into the vent as I sprint down the hallway with my Karna drawn and mow down three guys responding to the explosion and screaming.

"Y-you're not gonna...get me?!"

"Ma'am, I think it's best she runs ahead. You don't want her picking you up right now."

In a whoosh I fly past the bodies as fast as my legs will carry me, Coda functioning as a mortality broom in my left hand, Karna carving a path through all in front of me.

I am death, speed, and violence. Every bit of the station without gravity gives me a place to spread my Tevarin wings.

Tevarin...wings? DAD!

I whip around and open fire on every goon proudly wearing red lights all over their armor and I'm reloading two weapons with one hand. Drop the Coda mag, slam in a new one before gravity catches it, twist the wrist with the Karna and slam in new mags with a sleight of hand. Another vent on my left and I slide in on my ass to see a pile of feathers sitting on top of a mountain of bodies and bleeding everywhere.

"Dad! Jorg! Are you okay!" I shriek like a little girl and his head slowly and weakly raises up.

"My...my child...I love you an-and Calli-ope. Look after each o--ther." He says weakly as I run over with a pen in hand then jam it into his leg.

He doesn't move.

He don't wake up.

Dad...doesn't wake up.

Dad doesn't wake up.

He doesn't...

Kyl we have to-

SHUT UP! SHUT UP SHUT UP! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!

I am on my knees and screaming for my life.

His life.

"Moi-ra is that...you? Moir-a?"

Callie. The original recipe.

"It's me." My voice devoid of all tone.

"Are...are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"I have...Athen-na with me. She's..incapped..."

"Copy that. What's your twenty?"

"Im-print r-room..."

A grenade rolls into the vent and in a spin it's kicked back out then I hear the thud. Some screaming but not enough. I toss a red flare at the entrance and it rolls out to idiots laughing.

"Wrong one, moron!" One outside laughs.

Everything went dark, but there's bodies everywhere and he's crucified to the wall with knives.

I need my sister.

L: We have Kat back at the Turtle, we're on our way!

M: Red flare down the hall. I want a safe and secure pickup. Now.

There's a hollowed silence in the halls. The normal metal creaking with rust, rocks falling from above, metal banging against each other, all silent.

L: Copy. On our way.

Map shows the elevators work, and down below is where the admin card room is.

As I step down the hallway I see my shadow ahead of me on the door, getting smaller as the lights behind get closer.

They step into the vent and that hallowed silence rings louder being broken by a single "oh no..."

I hit the button to call the car, and it opens to three light armored morons who raise their weapons at me, I raise my arms out to the sides.

"Here I am. It's three versus one." My voice gravely serious.

"MINERVA! NO!" Echoes from behind me.

They look at me, covered in blood and bits of their fallen comrades and shakily lower their weapons then drop them.

"Please no! NO!"

You ever ride an elevator with bodies? Like what morticians of old would do and they're great company. They don't talk much.

The car hits the bottom with a screech and a thunk, door opens and a short hallway with a right ahead. Two guys barely notice me before they're thinking about what caliber the Coda fires and a tingle runs up my spine.

Hairs stand on end in the undersuit and the door is locked from the inside.

R: Unlocked in two...one...go for it.

It slides open and I see a throne of scrap, steel, guns and armor.

"M-Moira! Run!" Callie calls from my left, holding an unconscious Athena.

I glance at her, and continue walking towards the throne of self-righteousness with long red hair and pale skin sitting on top.

"I was content with watching them all bleed out. Didn't need to add more fun to the affair."

"Of all the times Ravi tried to pin you down, and you're just another fucking Xeno." I say and point the P6 at her head.

"Moira no! It's okay!" Callie yells weakly, I look over my shoulder and she can't see where I am.

"Where is Ophelia, Stone?"

She laughs gently and gestures at the corner.

"Somewhere over there. I had her thrown over when we were done torturing her."

The blood boiling now runs ice cold and I feel the hand of death on my back.

Without a word more I walk over to the pile of armor and see slashes, stabs, gunshots, and plasma burns.

Lifesigns are gone.

She is gone. SHE IS GONE.

Think about this!

I walk back to Stone who has a large smirk on her face, then with a hand full of hair I rip her out of her seat kicking and screaming.

"Moira! NO!" Callie helplessly screams.

"Where's your arm? You should have this under control." I growl in a near whisper.

"She...she fucked up the code and it stopped working...when we got here..."

I look down at Stone who is wearing a big smile.

"The fleet won't let you leave here, you're trapped!" Stone flails around wildly and cackling.

"The fleet of Corsairs I brought with me that commandeered two of the Polarises and an Idris?"

She stops moving and arms go limp.

"Fuck."

I drag her by her hair over to Callie, who I jab a pen into and she slams one into Athena as soon as she can move.

"Take her. She's yours to do as you please." I say in a near-whisper.

I walk over to Ophelia's body and don't flinch as I hear a Salvo pistol fire behind me in a colossal bang. I kneel next to her then pick her up in a cradle. Gently, I walk to the throne and sit with her in my lap, remove her helmet, and look at her face.

The face I fell in love with. The brain that made me feel at peace with myself and the universe as a whole.

Gone forever.

In my arms, cold and lifeless.

"Moira, I'm so-" Callie says before I correct her.

"Kyl. My name is Kyl. Moira isn't home right now."

"Fuck...the diagnosis was right. There really is somebody else in there." She says before I erupt into anguish and screaming into the void that chooses not to hear my pain.

I don't remember what happened next, but this room is very soft and safe. The nice people come around to give me medicine that makes Moira sleep.

Ophelia. I never told you how I felt, my plans for us, to ask you to be my girl.

But we'll see you and dad again in a few days.

Love you.