The second planetary nexus

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York nodded a little... He waded into the river quietly, making sure to look away from Kylara as she headed off to bathe herself; it's been a while since he had to do something like this, but, privacy was something that his race valued as well in these situations. It didn't take him very long to shed the clothes he had on, carefully though; they were a little worn out, but, still usable... Afterwards, he looked at the water for a moment before he decided to dive under; he found it was the quickest way to adjust to the temperature difference the water usually had. Surprisingly enough, it wasn't too cold, and, despite his previously injured side stinging a little, upon further examination, there was just some scar tissue to worry about. As he started to thoroughly clean himself off, he let out a small sigh... It was uncertain when the last time he had done something like this was, but, it was strangely relaxing for such a simple action... Maybe it reminded him of home? He used to love swimming back then, when life was simple; he hadn't ever had the time like this to reflect anymore before he ended up here... So, was it really such a bad thing? Minus the whole time travel thing, and, the Overzealous scientist that had settled himself on this place. After a while, he climbed out, deciding to wash off his clothes; it was only natural... The dirt and grime that had collected from sitting in that cell gave off a rather unpleasant feeling as he had them on, wringing the water out of them multiple times until he was finally certain they were clean, putting them on without bothering to scan them. It felt a little unneccesary, and, well in general, the water didn't look tainted in any manner; if they were indeed on a shield world like he had suspected, it was more or less impossible for the water to be. Was he starting to drop his guard? Maybe, but, here they weren't under constant threat by an ruthless enemy, not yet anyways.

Just incase there was a threat sooner or later, he decided to practice with his sword a little... He was tempted to try and practice using his powers, but... Perhaps he should save that for when they get to a safer place; even one stray explosion, or even a flash of colored light may draw some unwanted attention from potential persuers. As he began to punch the air, closing his eyes as he tried to envision he was in a holographic training room, fighting digital enemies of sorts, attempting disarms, and other techniques he had developed over his years on the battlefield. As he did so, he began to think... Was it possible for history to repeat itself? Why did this Mark guy want to experiment on his subjects this badly? Was it just... Some sick interest? Or something more? What drove him? His race had been driven by desperation to produce the chemical concoctions that had been both a boon, and a burden to the Hybrids, awakening powers within them that were quickly rushed to the battlefield to combat an seemingly unstoppable enemy. However, Mark was not driven by such needs, was he? It was curious what made a person like him "tick" really, but... He had to admit, it was impressive that someone like Kylara was born from amidst all of that experimenting. She was an amazing being indeed, a different sort of hybrid; a genetic combination of the Avian species and the Humans, producing some sort of power, much like his own... Yet, different; and, he was positive there might have been more like her. Though... Was she, like him, destined to fight some grueling battle? An expendable force used to stave off the inevitable? Or... Was she just Mark's plaything, like he had been back there, in that maze... It pained him to think about it, but, that might just be it; Mark sees the things that intrigue him as his own personal toys to play with and mess around with...

After a while, York snapped back to reality when one of his swings suddenly ended up going a bit lopsided as he was completely losing touch with reality in his thoughts, the slight pain coming from the sudden muscle strain caused him to stop... He wished he had his trusy light rifle; but, the weapon had been confiscated in that lab, and... He only really had time to grab his sword during that blur that was his and Kylara's escape; it had been laying around in some armory like place he passed. Probably because it was just a regular old sword with strange symbols carved in it's blade when it wasn't used to channel his power, a sturdy one at that, but, nothing more... As he headed back towards their old cave, the distinct smell of food cooking reached his nostrils, and at that, his stomach rumbled ever so slightly; sure, he might not be entirely human, but, he too needed food, that much was obvious. When Kylara spoke suddenly, almost as if she had heard his thoughts, he smiled a little as he responded "Yeah... Sure does... I guess I'm what you'd call starving." he said, chuckling a little. It was still a bit strange to get reaccustomed to eating food on the go like this, but, he wasn't objecting of course; it always tasted better than having nutrients pumped straight into the bloodstream. As he begun to zone out a little, Kylara asked if he was okay, thankfully snapping him out of his train of thought quickly. "I'm okay... How about you? Has the poison's effects gone away?" He asked, looking concerned; it was a bit rare to have a case like this back home... Actually; this would be the first case to take care of in years, which didn't exactly ease the worries he had about Kylara's wellbeing after that little incident with Mark... Though, deep down, he felt that perhaps there was more to it than just that...
 
Kylara nodded. "I'm fine." the two words came out colder and harsher than she had meant them to. She finished her portion of the food, and lay down, not wanting to talk anymore. His words, coming out in a stutter had reminded her of her earlier resolve. Now they were out of that place, they wouldn't be friends. They were allies, no more. She shoved what feelings of friendship were there away, and started to build up her walls again. She didn't fall asleep for a few hours, but let thoughts roll through her mind...If the flood made it through, they will destroy everything....we have to stop it....such were her thoughts, and she rolled through other scenarios.
Finally, when she fell asleep, she dreamed.

There was red everywhere. This is what she imagined the flood would look like. She flew the circumference of the earth in the blink of an eye. It was everywhere, devouring everything in sight. She dove down to where she knew her beloved would be, as he always was, even in her nightmares. She immediately wished she hadn't. Malik was staring at her, red flood covering the back of his scull, controlling him. His look was pained. "HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME? THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT, KY. ALL. YOUR. FAULT." the rest of the flock repeated these same words. She went back to Malik, and tried to pry the parasite from the back of his scull. She succeeded, to an extent. She gained her beloved back, or so it seemed. But when they started to fight back he hung back. He visibly shook, and his eyes looked pained. He took a knife out of his boot and held it out to Kylara. "Please, Ky. If you ever loved me, end it. Please." Ky recoiled at the breaking in his voice. The parasite had never left him. Only the visible portion. It was still living inside his beautiful cranium. She had to do it. She took the knife gingerly. She looked into Malik's eyes and pleaded for him to forgive her. But her beloved was gone, replaced with the cold look of the flood. Sobbing, Ky plunged the knife into his chest and twisted it upward, killing him quickly. She screamed.
​
"MALIK!!" Ky woke with the scream of his name tearing through her throat. She immediately squelched the sobs that so often tried to escape her whenever she dreamed of him...She ignored all the looks that York gave her, and even his words. She got up, and left the cave needing air.

She walked for about half an hour, unaware of her surroundings. She needed to clear her head of Malik, to try and move on...but that was easier said than done. ​
 
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York was about to say something, anything, but, Kylara's tone warned him otherwise; perhaps she needed some space considering that she had already lain down? With that in mind, he started to brood once more; a bit of a habbit he had built up during the times where he had nothing better to do, usually on guard duty, or, just on his own... When he wasn't in battle, nor had anything he immediately needed to take care of at the moment. He thought back on his anger he had felt back when Mark had strapped him to that table. If he had been reckless, he might have been able to take everyone in the room on there, with the power he had left, but, it would have killed Kylara, if things had played out differently, she might not even be here right now, and, who knows who he'd be at that point. At that moment, he recalled a story told amongst other hybrids like him, about the days when the "awakened" hybrids were unable to explore their full potentials before everything went to hell, and an alternate, more self destructive "cure" for the Flood's infection had been developed and used... Sacrificing some of the human population, in order to stop the accursed parasite in it's tracks, only for the Forerunners to finish the Flood's job, under false pretenses, due to the lack of awareness they had of the parasite's existence at the time.

During the days when the Hybrids that had been "awakened" by a side effect of the "true" cure fo rthe flood infection were exploring their potentials, it was rumored that a pair of "awakened ones" had once unlocked much more of their potential than most others would have... By using their powers in a different way than that was encouraged; they concentrated all that hate they had in them directly into their powers, using raw instincts to guide their very actions. While they were an extremely effective pair of fighters, liberating many infected Human and Hybrid worlds alike, their power came at a cost; the more they relied on using their powers this way, the more they began to lose themselves each time they used them... Eventually, when they were tasked with destroying a world which contained a gravemind, the "brains" behind the flood's movements, it was able to control them, not by tapping through their bodies... But, by attacking them through their minds. When the group finally succumbed to the Gravemind's mental influence, they were said to have gone wild with power, tearing through any and all opposition to the Flood under the gravemind's control.

It seemed like all hope would be lost then, until an unlikely group of "awakened" soldiers had managed to defeat them... And the practice of the abilities the pair had utilized was banned, with the knowledge of the major weakness using such powers would produce. However, since the Humans have been de-evolved, and the Hybrids had joined the ranks of Forerunner soldiers trying to take back the worlds that the flood had gained control of, the use of such abilities weren't uncommon for Hybrids with a troubled past; like those from his world... The power to channel their rage into their actions, causing them to abandon the "humanity" they once had allowed for a weakness within their teams, a mental weakness that had yet to be seen to be exploited again, at least to the degree the pair, nicknamed the "Twin Storms", had been by a Gravemind... There were cases where people claimed they had heard the Gravemind conversing with them during missions to worlds with one present... But, what if the incident with the Twin Storms happened again? York frowned a little, he hadn't ever lost his cool before, but, at the same time, what would happen if he finally did? Maybe it wouldn't effect him as much as long as the flood never reached them here, but, in the case that it did... He'd rather not think about it.

Snapping back to reality when he heard Kylara's cry, a look of worry crossed his face, replacing the concentrated expression he had on, as she headed out, he didn't move to follow her just yet... However, after a few minutes crawled by, he suddenly recalled those creatures that had attacked them earlier; it might be for the best to make sure the incident didn't repeat itself, but, this time with worse outcomes. With that in mind, he quickly, but, quietly, rushed out after her, taking a break every now and then, not really to rest, but, to make sure he was on the right track; Kylara had walked, so, she had left subtle footprints in her wake for the most part. He gradually slowed down as he heard footsteps in front of him, not sure if he should proceed too much further... It was still sort of obvious that Kylara needed some space, but, at the same time, he desperately wanted to ask she was alright, though, he really had no idea why he suddenly felt this concerned for her safety... Even for someone like him, it was a bit... Out of the ordinary to say the least.
 
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