Golden Age technology never ceased to amaze Tanis. He caught the doctor performing the end of the surgery and watched from there. Alaura floated above an operating table, allowing the doctor to move her effortlessly. The tools she used on Alaura were small, and had functions Tanis couldn't even name.

When the operation came to a close, the boys helped put Alaura onto a bed, where she now lay. A purple, weightless, shimmering field formed above her; a hologram display popped up next to the bed, showing her vitals. The doctor stepped out to take a breath and wash up, leaving the boys to sit there, waiting patiently in the warm colored room for a few minutes. They chatted, laughed, and made jokes about different things to lighten the mood.

"Do you ever wonder why we're here?" Tanis changed the light conversation to a more realistic one. What Echo said about memory wipes the other day stuck with him, burying into his mind. What were his teammates hiding, and why wouldn't they tell him? A sense of isolation and near abandonment settled in his system. Those feelings felt so familiar, but he couldn't place his finger on what it meant, and that only frustrated him more.

Malachi glanced over at Alaura to see if she had moved. Nada. Jarvis rested on the side table, staring at his guardian, lost in thought. Macey rested in his lap with her eye closed, silently listening to their conversation. Dinklebot hung on Tanis' shoulder, without a doubt whispering things to him in his mind. The question bounced off the walls of Malachi's mind as he mulled it over. Why are we here?

After everything the fireteam had gone through, he still wasn't sure. It all brought up more questions and no answers. Were they the chosen ones? Were there more people that could wield the Light? Were they destined to bring balance to the force? The last one made Malachi's mouth twitch up into a smile. Nonetheless, were they supposed to end The Darkness once and for all? Or did The Traveler send them to the future based on false hope?

He finally decided to reply, "To be honest, Tanis, I have no clue. All I know is that I could've killed you two when we first met, but something nagged me not to. That's how we ended up here."

Tanis pondered it for a moment. The galaxy was so vast and full of potential knowledge! His knowledge was miniscule compared to what's out there. He yearned to find it all, but something tethered him with his team. Dinklebot explained it was the Light and The Traveler's will. It sounded plausible, but was his potential truly destined to be wasted here, battling at the end of humanity with people that held back a huge secret from him? "Do you think we're making real a difference?"

"Yes. That's what Alaura's been adamant about. You thought the same thing once."

"I didn't ask about our opinions. What about you?" Tanis pointed out.

"I used to think that the whole world could burn, and I wouldn't give a damn." He ran his tongue over his lips and stared blankly in front of him. He mindlessly played with his throwing knife, running his fingers over the smooth back edge. "Your guys' passion and drive to save humanity rubbed off on me. Some don't deserve to be saved, but that shouldn't condemn all of them. I think we're making a difference, even if it is a small one," he replied, not fully believing those words as they left his mouth.

If Tanis could smile, now was the time he wanted to the most. He'd seen Malachi at his worst, and watching him change overtime into this person was incredibly inspiring. "I'll tell Alaura that when she wakes up."

Malachi groaned, throwing his head back, "She'll never let me hear the end of it."

Tanis patted his shoulder and stood up. "I'm going to talk to the doctor before she leaves." Letting someone with so much information about Golden Age technology leave without speaking to them was a wasted opportunity. He hurriedly walked out of the room, his circuits sparking off in excitement.

As he sat there in silence, Malachi put the throwing knife away and his mind wandered. Humanity did nothing for him except for take, take, and take. Even if the fireteam was making a dent of a difference, he simply didn't care as much as he should. It discouraged him, until his mind came up with a separate point.

All that mattered to him now was his team. They were his drive to keep fighting. They would do anything in their power to stop the extinction event; someone had to keep them alive. If he told Tanis that instead, he feared the Warlock would've seen him as a selfish man latching onto the only hope left at a happy life.

Deep down, that's what he was. He fought with himself to keep up that exterior of hope and change, despite his shortcomings.

These two people, one fighting for justice and the other for knowledge, were Malachi's new dream. Not that he'd admit that out loud, of course. When his life flashed before his eyes and he saw the fireteam at the bar, that was it. That's what he wanted so desperately. People to love and have a good time with. Maybe it could be like that.

One day.

His mind flipped a switch when he subconsciously glanced over at the sleeping Titan. Saving Alaura allowed Malachi to feel some closure. The guilt he felt for not being able to save his sister twisted his heart to the point where he couldn't feel any emotions other than anger and agony. Now, he could breathe without that weight on his chest. A piece of him felt at peace. Maybe I've even made Macey proud...wherever she may be.

Malachi hesitantly reached through the purple field of shimmering dust. His hand moved regularly, as if the dust wasn't there. He set his hand gently on top of Alaura's warm hand, rubbing his thumb in circles on the back of it.

Jarvis watched him, his eye flickering back and forth between him and his guardian, but remained silent. Macey thought to herself, yet her thoughts spilled over into Malachi's mind on accident. She might not be able to fight again.

Worry formed in a tight knot in his stomach, for he knew his ghost might be right. If Alaura couldn't fight again, her recovery wouldn't be possible. She'd disobey and make her injuries worse. There was no stopping her from her mission. Malachi knew that much. He'd be forced to watch her run herself into the ground.

Malachi flinched away from the thought and leaned back in his chair. He rested his hand on the armrest, and set his head on top of his hand. He hummed to himself, much like his sister used to in order to calm him down.

The Hunter waited there for hours, drifting in and out of slumber. Tanis IV had made a mad dash for the library to get his hands on anything that was still in tact. Malachi kept tabs on him via comms every time he woke up. Alaura hadn't moved an inch, so he lazily sighed, moving his thumb on her hand until he succumbed to sleep.

Alaura groaned, shaking Malachi out of his slumber. He jerked his hand from hers and sat up, startling Macey in the process. The little ghost floated upwards, searching frantically around the room for enemies until she comprehended the situation. Malachi rubbed his eyes tiredly. He waited for Alaura to open her red eyes before speaking, "Hey, you're awake." Macey, tell Dinklebot that they need to come back now.

She glanced around and blinked many times, trying to get an understanding on where she was. Her mind clouded over, causing her to furrow her eyebrows as the burning pain settled in. "Y-yeah..."

"I'm gla-" Malachi caught himself and quickly corrected his statement, "We're glad you're okay."

"That's the understatement of the year. I'm ecstatic that you're alive!" Jarvis exclaimed joyfully, rising up from the table to snuggle up against Alaura's shoulder. His black shell twirled a few times and his eye focused on his guardian.

One side of Alaura's lips twitched upwards. Her hoarse voice disappeared when she cleared her throat. "You guys aren't going to get rid of me that easily." Her smile immediately fell as she thought back to what had happened. "Did you evacuate everyone? What happened?"

"We evacuated as many as we could."

"Are you guys okay? Did something happen after I...?" she trailed off, staring at nothing in particular. Her eyes focused on the purple shimmering dust floating above her, and she subconsciously reached up to touch it weakly, only to ghost right through it.

"You almost died, and here you are worrying about us." Malachi laughed bitterly and sighed. "We're fine. We need to focus on your recovery."

"Without you two, I have no team. Of course I worry."

Her words made him smile softly, "I can assure you, we are fine."

Alaura nodded a bit and attempted to sit up. Malachi put a hand on her shoulder, gently urging her to lay back down. She grimaced from the pain soaring up her back and complied. "Please tell me you made the Vex that did this suffer."

What was he supposed to do? Tell her the truth? Would that make her feel any better? Malachi stopped himself, for he found it easier to lie, "Screamed all the way down to hell."

Minutes passed before Tanis IV arrived in a rather giddy mood, with Dinklebot following close behind. Malachi nodded towards him, knowing he was the happiest Exo on the planet, albeit the only one. "What did the doctor say, Tanis?"

Tanis sat in a chair on the other side of Alaura. He greeted her as warmly, even though bitterness bottled up inside of him. "She said the pain won't go away for a while. She pieced bits of your ribcage back together. Your spine had been fractured. The only thing that'll hurt you the most are the third degree burns you've got on your torso."

"At least there's some good news," Alaura sighed contently.

Malachi sat up straighter, eyes widening a bit in awe. "If we were back home, you would've been paralyzed, or dead. I guess Golden Age technology pays off."

Back home. What was it like back home? Another unanswered question, given to him by Tanis' lack of memory. He pushed passed the stirring anger and explained, "She also recommends not pushing yourself."

"As if that's possible," Malachi grumbled lowly. Alaura glanced over at him, not to glare, but to try to see what he was thinking. He knew her too well if he came to that conclusion so quickly. Malachi turned his attention to Tanis and changed the subject, "What did you find out at the library?"

Tanis almost jumped out of his chair in excitement, but quickly decided to tone it down. If they want to know more, they'll ask. "Golden Age technology schematics, how they utilize the Light to give them power, that kind of thing. I went on a hunt for books about Exos, but hardly found anything." Tanis watched as the other two guardians side-glanced at each other in silence. They're definitely hiding something from me.

Dinklebot swooped in to save the conversation, "I hate to interrupt, but you three have a job to do. There are reports of Hive taking over the moon."

Macey cut in quickly, projecting the words on the wall, "If there's no one on the moon, why should we care?"

"Once they establish a base, they could hit the Last City on Earth. More importantly, there are mining systems on the moon that were abandoned some time ago. Installed there is an orbital defense grid to fend off meteorites in the moon's path. We can power it back up and use it against the Hive." Dinklebot looked around at the guardians and fellow ghosts. No one moved. "Reports say it isn't that many Hive, so it'll be an easy take out."

"Alaura needs to heal. We almost lost her. It can wait," Jarvis answered resolutely. There was no way he'd agree to this.

The Warlock looked at Alaura and piped up, "Malachi and I will go. We'll update you when we come back."

"No, we go as a team." Alaura sat up as much as she could and almost forced herself out of bed. Her body ached, and the skin on her chest burned as the shirt brushed up against it. She cringed, but still stood her ground.

Tanis tilted his head in confusion and waved his hands from side-to-side in a no way fashion. "You broke bones. You could've died!"

"But I'm not dead. I know the price we pay for war, and today we didn't have to pay. I'm thankful for that." Alaura didn't instinctively reach for Kai's dogtags that were around her neck. Instead, she glanced down at the ground, feeling a heavy weight of survivor's guilt in her heart. She lowered her voice, attempting to cover up the waver in it, "I'm not letting you two go alone."

"We'll only survey," Tanis offered, yearning to go to the moon. Imagine all that golden age technology just sitting up there, waiting to be used. It could lead to new information, or spring an idea to create something else! Alaura never answered, and stared at Tanis with a stern expression.

He deflated, leaning against the wall behind him in defeat. Something sparked within his mind, causing him to suddenly not want to argue anymore. A vague feeling of hatred for arguing spurred in his system, and he relentlessly questioned why. Tanis turned to Malachi, almost in surprise, "You aren't going to say anything? I'm surprised you haven't considering you're always the first to jump in."

The Hunter shrugged. He knew this was coming; there was no way to stop it. "I knew she wasn't going to back down. I'd be worried about her if she did." It was just who she was as a person. There were moments where she gave up, but if she had an opportunity to do something, especially to save lives, she would in a heartbeat. Malachi peered at A pointedly, "You're going to be behind us at all times."

Alaura nodded in agreement, contemplating his words. Either Malachi was actually starting to care, or she had imagined him saying that. It was a nice change of events, considering how much he practically despised them in the beginning. He had come a long way, and was in it for the long haul.

Tanis watched his friends get up and gather their things. Alaura got up slowly, stretching her limbs before making any major movements. Malachi waited on the sideline in case Alaura needed help. Tanis turned away and headed to the jumpships, which the ghosts went to retrieve.

A gnawing emotion tore its way through the Warlock's chest; he began to question his so called friends, and if he cared about them as much as he did before. Were they going to tell him their secret? Would he ever find out the truth? How could he call them friends if they wiped his memory?

The three guardians set on their way to the moon using hyperdrive. They sat back, relaxing, until they were jerked out of hyperspace. The ships stopped in front of what appeared to be an asteroid field upon first glance. When they focused in on the objects floating around, reality smacked them upside their heads.

They sat before a field of ship debris and mangled bodies. Body parts were frosted over and slowly spinning within the vacuum of space. Some shattered Hive ships intermingled within the regular debris, hanging within the space graveyard. The stars still twinkled brightly, putting on one last show for the souls that were lost. A heavy weight of emotions sparked off within the guardians. There were always casualties of war. They just didn't think they'd come across it out in space.

Malachi furrowed his brow and whispered, "What the hell...?"

"All of them are..." Tanis trailed off, not wanting to state the obvious.

Alaura closed her eyes for a brief moment, memories flooding her mind. She remembered back to when Tanis relentlessly questioned about what happened after she had turned Awoken. "You want to know what it looked like between the Light and the Dark, Tanis? This is only half of the picture," she stated bitterly, forcing the words out of her throat.

The other guardians stayed silent. The ghosts took over the controls and maneuvered the fireteam through the wreckage to get to the moon safely. 

AN: HA! I caught up now on the aesthetics according to their powers. Here's Alaura's Solar aesthetic, which is probably one of the worst I've done. I'll admit it. But I make way better ones now, so I'm cool with it.