Pax's revelations
Eery silence.. Pax breathed in deep and sighed, obviously unwilling to talk about it.
"Most of the stuff I'd be telling you you're already aware of. Only difference is, those memories you believe in.. they ain't yours. It was me who was born and raised on Rubi Ka, Borealis to be precise. My parents were killed in the crossfire as they tried to escape one of the many pointless skirmishes between clanners and Omni Tek forces - they missed one - me." Pax's expression went stern as she recalled that memory for a brief moment.
A young Opifex female kneeled next to a slain couple, screaming to someone up above in the skies. Rain came pouring down on Borealis.
"I still hate my dad for not coughing up the creds for using the cell structure scanner. But it got me thinking.. hard, honest work won't get you far here on Rubi Ka, that's why I have chosen to live my life on the fast lane, the not so legal work that you find in abundance here. I was a freelancer, and life was good.. in a way. Everyone needed something and I had the skills to get it for them - "Just name it and you get it" was my motto. That was, before I pilfered some delicate equipment off a high ranked Omni-Tek employee. Thought I could held it for ransom and toyed around with it to evaluate its value. I realized what it was. A device with all the access codes for the OT military strategic computer. It even let me link up to the orbital stations with them impressive 50 gigawatts laser cannons... pity while I gain access to it and targeted Ross' highrise just for the thrills I unfortunately alerted the security daemon as well and they put a trace on me. Needless to say they caught me in no time and after an express trial got sentenced to death. Thus the outfit I'm wearing. The sentence didn't scare me as I went numb while back then in Borealis, when everything was ripped apart in a Rubi-Kan second. All them scores I did afterwards I didn't do because of the credits, no. More or less a subconscious death wish - it seriously was just a question of time when something like this would happen."
Lush Hills
"Stop!" halled through the cave - Amelia who desperately waited for a chance to flee grabbed her opportunity and boltered recklessy through the cave towards the entrance where a lone Opifex was standing, gasping for air.
Fingahz stood, with every fiber in his body tensed over Pax's body. So highly concentrated that everything around him seemed to happen in slowmotion while the thoughts inside his head were spinning. He heard the gunshots from outsides, the explosions, how someone sprinted into the cave, the shout to stop it still echoed in his ears. The voice sounded familiar but at that very moment he couldn't tell whether it belonged to a friend or foe - didn't dare to break his focus on the spot where to penetrate the syringe. His hostage dashed away. Every step she made took half an eternity it seemed and conjured more questions up in him. Questions whether she really helped or just stalled him with her actions, all the babble about not being able to help her in her condition.
It was time for Fingahz to act. He breathed in deep and it was like the time around him stopped as the needle came shooting down. Point-blank into her heart.
Simultaneously in Pax subconciousness
"What's happening here?" Mandi shouted frightened as a swirling vortex appeared out of nowhere above them.
"I didn't summon it.. " Pax shrugged "but I can imagine where it leads to.."
"Where?"
"Salvation."