Over the next few days, the hall becomes busy with activity. Guardians come in and out, reporting on their mission before leaving after picking up another.
The Warlock Vanguard, Ikora, stands off to the side, conversing with three guardians, gathering what information she can from them. Once finished, they turn around and leave. Sighing, she shakes her head and turns around to the table again.
"So many missions, yet not enough guardians to take them." One can hear the exhaustion leaking through her voice. In the end, she sighs once again.
That is number five, thinks Cayde to himself. He has been counting how many times the warlock has sighed in the last hour. You cannot blame him for counting; no one else would.
Either way, the Exo is not surprised; it has been pack with guardians coming in dropping mission reports. He offers with a smile, "If you need someone to run a few missions for you, I know someone."
Having picked up a tablet in the past few seconds, Ikora looks up from it. With a shake of her head, she says, "Thank you, but no. If I want the mission to end in a huge explosion, I know who to ask for. These missions require a bit more," she pauses for a moment, trying to find the right word, "Finesse."
"You know, that wounds me!" The hunter says in a hurt tone, feigning a pained expression. This action earns him an unimpressed look from the female warlock.
Since he was not going to get a chuckle, he coughs and clears his throat. Shrugging off his expression, he suggests, "If you're overwhelmed with missions, then why not take a few guardians off their rest periods? What about that one warlock from a few days ago? She wanted another mission. Now, what was her name."
Cayde hums a little tune while tapping his chin, giving off the appearance that he is thinking hard on what that warlock's name. Truthfully, he knows her name. He is just humming to annoy Zavala; it gets on his nerves. The Titan dislikes humming, says it is an unnecessary distraction. And since Cayde is stuck in the tower all day, the Exo must find a way to entertain himself.
Out of the corner of his optics, the Exo can see Zavala giving him a look. He stops and continues with the conversation as if he were not just humming to get on the man's nerve. "Is it Nick? Nack? Noe?"
"It's Nax," says the warlock. By doing so, she ends Zavala's torment, slightly shaking her head with a small smile. "She is still on rest period and won't be back for a few more days."
Cayde shrugs his shoulders unimpressed, "So? If there is a mission that needs to get done yet no one around to take it, I pull someone off their rest period because someone, I do not want to say who," he glances at the Titan, "insists on having me stay in the tower full-time."
Scrolling through her tablet for available warlocks, Ikora sighs for the sixth time. Looking up at the fireteam member with a stern expression upon her dark complexion, she states, "If I take Nax off her rest period, she will expect shorter rest periods all the time. She has a terrible habit of jumping from one mission to another. That sort of pattern is something I am not going to allow any more. Learning to take a break will not kill her; a lesson she needs to learn now."
Seeing the warlock's determination, the Exo tosses his hands up in surrender, knowing there is no way to win or convince her otherwise. "Alright, you wing. But, if you need someone to run a few runs, I have a handful of hunters lying around lazily. I'm fairly sure they're itching to get back out on the field."
Ikora gives a smile at the offer, "Thank you. If I need anyone, I'll let you know."
Nodding his head in satisfaction, Cayde lets out a dramatic, loud yawn, stretching to ease his joins. He informs his fellow Vanguards as he walks out of the hall, "Well, that's my good deed for the day. If you need me, do not find me, okay?"
Entering the courtyard, Cayde notices how empty it is; the sun hangs low over the horizon. Strays of gold and red paint the sky. The Exo stands there, watching vendors packing up. Seeing Banshee, the Exo strolls over, deciding now would be a good time to chat with the man. Most days, all the merchants are gone for the day once Cayde leaves work, so why not take the time to talk with one today.
"Hey, Banshee. How are sales today? Sell a lot of goods?"
The fellow Exo merchant looks up from a box he is packing away. "Cayde." The man straightens his posture, looking the hunter in the optics, "Sales were fine today. Your hunters, though." He let the last comment trail off.
"Yeah, they're a rowdy bunch," chuckles Cayde. He offers, "If they ever get out of hand, here's a trick: toss an engram as far from you as possible. They'll chase after it, giving you time to flee."
Remembering something, the Vanguard asks, "Before I forget, can you look at something for a fellow Exo?"
"What is it?" asks Banshee. He is busy as it is, but looking would not hurt.
Reaching into his inventory, Cayde lays a gun on the table. The gun is old and rusted. It is easy to recognize as a pistol from before their Golden Age. "One of my Hunters found this on their mission. I was wondering if it is repairable to use, or should I put it on display?
The merchant picks up the gun, flipping it over as he studies it. Giving out a whistle, he says, "This is before the Golden Age." He tries to force the barrel out, "It'll take a long time to get this working correctly."
"Well, as you know, I have plenty of time," says the Exo Vanguard.
Nodding his head, the gunsmith hands the pistol back. "Give it a try. If you need any supplies, I will cut you a deal."
Gingerly accepting the gun, Cayde tucks it away in one of his many pockets. "Thanks! See you around."
Banshee nods his head, "Yes, see you around." The man turns around to finish packing up his merchandise for the day. After all, tomorrow starts anew.
###
Metal hitting metal echoes with the smell of oil and grease as the exo enters the large hanger. For one Exo, when it hits his sensors, it is soothing, comfort. There is a memory he cannot recall, but it is there, the smells and sounds part of that memory.
"I should talk to Amanda about adding some upgrades to my ship. Maybe some cannons," says Cayde to himself as he walks toward a workspace.
All around, ships glide in, landing on one of the many moveable ports. It is a must need as there is not enough space for vessels to dock outside. Either way, this very hanger is his sanctuary, an escape from the mundane.
Taking the stairs at a casual pace, he stops the hallway. Someone is intruding in his sacred space, something that does not happen.
The person can be mistaken as a civilian with the worn-out sneakers, jeans, and a hunter green hoodie. However, Cayde has seen her before; Nax, the Warlock Ikora, refused to pull off her rest period. The fact there is a Warlock in this area of the tower is rare. Typically, Hunters and Titans spend time together here.
Deciding not to say anything, he watches as the Awoken woman hovers over the mechanic's workbench, inspecting the tools laying out. Her eyes take in the detail of each tools intimately, yet not once touching them. When she goes to pick up a wrench, a voice catches her off guard.
"You know," calls out Cayde, "Amanda will kill you if she finds out you were messing with her babies."
The warlock looks up to find the Hunter Vanguard leaning against the stair's railing, arms folded over his chest. Seeing him causes her to straighten up, tugging at the bottom of her hoodie nervously, "I wasn't going to touch them. I just saw what she has and what I don't."
Taking a step back from the bench, she feels like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar. However, that thought vanishes as another replaces it: Why was the Vanguard here? Did someone complain about her being down here? Nax was not bothering anyone. With a puzzled look, the Awoken asks, "Why would you think I'm messing with her stuff? Did someone say I was?"
"What?" He is confused for a second, but Cayde figures that the girl thinks he is here due to someone complaining about her appearance in the hanger. "No. No one reported you. I just wanted to warn you about touching Amanda's tools. She gets pretty mean when someone messes with them." He pushes off the railing and climbs the rest of the way up.
The blue-tinted skinned woman watches the more experienced guardian walk past her, heading toward the other stairs. Feeling braver, she places her hands on her hips, "How do you, pray, would know that?"
Stopping, the Exo turns to find the warlock standing in a more confident stance. Smiling, he stat, "Let's just say I learned from experience." If he could wink, he would have added one.
The rest of the tension leaves her shoulders, causing the body to relax. Grinning, she starts with a much warmer voice, "Let me guess; she threw something at you?"
As he chuckles, Cayde's orange light goes on and off, "No, but she did hit me in the back of the head with something. Rubbing his head shifts his hood a bit. "She still refuses to tell me what it was."
Another chuckle before a sudden thought crosses his memory, "Anyway, what are you doing down here?"
As soon as he asks, Nax's defenses go up. Her posture stiffens up, the tension returning to her shoulders. "Am I not supposed to be here?"
"No! I did not mean that way! I'm just asking because it's a bit odd to see a…." He trails off, not wanting to say it is due to her being a Warlock. It is rude. Yet, he remembers saying something like this last time to Ikora.
Watching the Exo shift uncomfortably, Nax decides to end his suffering. "It's because I'm a Warlock?"
Cayde's blue optics widen in surprise. He tries to see a hint of anger from her, but there is nothing. The warlock just stands there waiting for him to confirm or deny it. Shaking his head, he replies, "What? No," the word no being dragged out.
The ocean blue-haired woman looks at him, and her lips turned down just enough to look of disbelief. Seeing this, Cayde sighs in defeat, the orange light flickering as he lowers his hands. "Okay, well I thought you know, Hunters have the wilds, Titans their walls, and well, Warlocks, "
"Warlocks have the libraries, I know," interrupts Nax. She nods her head, a sign he should continue.
"Yeah. So, you know, birds of the same feathers fly together kind of thing."
"Yeah, well," she relaxes a little, the conversations not taking a turn for good. "I was pecked out of the library. Right now, I'm just killing time until they start clearing out." Turning towards him, she realizes the Exo is standing in the same position as before. "Okay, your turn. Why are you here? Shouldn't you be in the hall?"
Shrugging his shoulders, he replies, "I finished for the day early. Figured I'd come down here and work on one of my pride and joys." There is a tone of pride in his voice as his thumb jerk towards his heading.
Curious, the Awoken walks past Cayde. She takes the stairs and stops at the top. There, she finds a poorly beaten sparrow resting on a stand. The entire thing is sad.
The hunter joins her, "Well, what do you think?"
"This is your pride and joy? I'd hate to see the things you like." She says to him with a look of stun on her face. Nax is not sure if she should laugh or feel pity for the poor sparrow. "I mean, what in the traveler did you do to it?"
"What did I do to it? I did not do anything to it! I won it at a card game," defends Cayde.
"Why on earth would you want this?" asks Nax. She is still stunned by the condition of the sparrow. The bike is cover in dirt and rust so bad that you cannot make out what color it used to be. Then there are the many dents on one side that it is leaning to that side because the weight distribution unevenly causes it to be unbalanced.
"In my defense, it looks nothing like the picture."
Again, she asks, stunned once again, "You accepted an item from a picture?"
Sighing yet again, Cayde wonders if he's picked up Ikora's habit of sighing, "What can I say? I trusted this guardian a little too much. He swore it was brand new when he found it on Venus and purred like a kitten. I'll be lucky if it can make any noise."
Realizing what happened, Nax bursts out laughing. The great Vanguard got conned by one of her fellow guardians. It is too funny not to laugh. Her laughter echoes throughout the hanger catching the attention of work bots and guardians in the area. In between breathes, she says, "You...sir…were...conned!" She then continues to burst into a new round of laughter, holding her stomach.
Annoyed, Cayde tells the guardian, "You know, it's not that funny."
"By the Traveler, it is!" cries out Nax. Every time she thinks she is okay, one at the sparrow sends her into yet another laughter fit.
For five minutes, the Exo leans against the railing for support as Nax laughs uncontrollably. As the laughter starts to ease up, she starts breathing correctly. Seeing her blue eyes watery and a bit puffy, some redness, he asks, "Are you done?"
Straightening up, Nax exhales heavily, "Yeah, I'm good. Who the hell did you bet with?" Descending the stairs, she strolls over to the wrecked sparrow.
"One of my Hunters. I was doing well when this hunter offers his sparrow for the pot."
"Please don't tell me it was Red."
Red is a seasoned Hunter with a reputation as a conman. He would try to trick people into pawning off pieces of crap.
Seeing Cayde is not looking at her, Nax can confirm that the Exo got conned by Red. Stifling a giggle, she says, "It was him."
Tired of being the butt of Nax's jokes, Cayde asks even more annoyed, "How would you know it was Red?"
"Well, Red is known as a con artist. He's tried selling me his broken weapons and armors a few times." The woman examines the bike. She gives a long whistle, "Damn. I'm glad I don't buy anything from him."
"Alright," says Cayde as he joins her, "since you're the all-knowing warlock, what's wrong with this bike?" He waits for her to answer, knowing warlocks are insufficient when it comes to fixing anything. This is the perfect chance for him to redeem himself.
"Well, based on looks, the sparrow's fame needs to be replaced. The thrusters are shot, although, it will not matter because," Nax leans over and tries the starter, "Yep! The starter does not even work. There are a few metal fragments embedded in the sparrow that will need to be remove. Let us not forget the breaks that need replacing. These guys are worn down to nothing. But that is just a few things. If I were you, I'd scrap it for parts."
Looking up, she finds Cayde with a surprised look. His optics are wide, mouth hanging open a little bit, confusing Nax as her eyebrows knit together, "What's up with that look?"
"I'm just surprised."
She inquires, "Of?"
"I'm surprised that you know so much about Sparrows." The man turns toward a long row of Sparrows on the other landing that waits for Amanda to fix them. "All these Sparrows are owned by Warlocks, who asked Amanda to fix them. They would rather hole themselves up in a library than work on their bikes. Can't blame me for being surprised."
Nax looks at the rows of sparrows. She shakes her head, "Yeah. Well, hanging out here is better than a quiet library and getting glares from your fellow peers." The woman leans on the railing and sighs, "You blow up a lab one time, and they spread a rumor that you're a crazy Warlock."
"You blew up a lab?" asks Cayde, surprised and amazement bleeding through in his voice. He can just imagine one of the lab's walls covered in black soot as papers rain down onto the floor. In the middle of the lab, he can see her face and clothes covered in ash with a look of confusion on her face. The entire image makes him laugh, so he turns away and covers his mouth as his shoulders shake with laughter. After a few minutes, he calms down. "I would pay glimmer to see a lab like that."
Nax looks in his direction, a smile on her face, "Let me know when you want to burn some glimmer."
Returning her attention to the beaten sparrow, she asks, "So, are you going to keep it?" The pitiful thing is sad to look up, may never entirely run correctly either.
"Yeah," sighs Cayde. He walks back to the bike. "A deal is a deal; I made my bed so I must lie in it. Well, that's what Zavala once told me when I made a mistake."
"That's a pretty big bed you've made. I think you should see if Amanda can scrap it for you," suggests the Awoken.
The Exo shakes his head, "Nah. It'll be a good project for me since I'm stuck in this tower. Might as well find something to kill time with." He walks heads toward the stairs where his toolbox sits next to it.
Nax watches as the Exo begins picking up and putting down tools, deciding which ones he will need for the project. Shrugging her shoulders, she tells him, "It's your time and glimmer."
Watching Amanda approach with a large canvas bag. She walks away, leaving Cayde to work on his project. The blonde looks up and smiles at the appearance of the warlock, "Hey Nax. I got those tools you asked for." She lifts the bag with a grunt and places it on her table.
Smiling brightly, Nax opens the bag and looks inside. It is like Christmas! "Oh, wow! Amanda, this is great! It's almost everything on my list!"
"Yeah, sorry I didn't get the last two. I don't have those parts sparing lying around."
"It's all right; they are harder to get. How much do I owe you," asks the woman as she starts pulling out her glimmer.
Amanda raises a hand to stop her, "I don't need anything."
"Are you sure? I mean, these tools are hard to find," asks the Awoken, surprised.
"I just have these guys lying around. But, if you want to repay me, let us say you owe me a favor," says the head mechanic with a grin.
"Ow! Damnit!" yells Cayde. The two women turn in time to watch him jerking his hand out of part of the sparrow. He continues to shake his hand as if he got shocked.
"Looks like someone needs your expertise. See you around!" She then calls out her ghost, "Beeze?" Once he appears, Nax asks him to take the tools, knowing it is too heavy for her to carry.
Beeze scans and dematerializes the bag into their inventory. He then looks at her, asking, "You still want to go to the library? It should be clear now."
"Yeah. Let us head over there before it gets too late." Nax heads toward the exit that would lead to the plaza, "I want to get a few books before I call it a night."
"See ya around, Nax!" calls out the blond-haired person to the Awoken. The warlock turns around and waves goodbye as she climbs the stairs.
Now that Nax is gone, Amanda focuses on the hunter who is working on his bike. She offers, "Need any help?"
"Nope. I just need to— "Another shock causes him to jerk his hand away and curse once more. "Ow! Damnit! What the hell is shocking me?"
The mechanic pushes the Exo aside, "Move. Let me see." She inspects the sparrow.
Standing up, Cayde looks around the area. He notices Nax is gone. He asks Amanda, "Where's the Warlock?"
Without looking up, Amanda answers the man's question. "Nax? She just headed out. Her ghost mentioned something about going to the library.."
Looking over the woman's shoulder, he states, "It was odd seeing her in this area. What did she want?"
Continuing to look to find the source of sparking, she answers, "Nax came by asking for some tools. Said something about working on a project."
"A project? Huh. I have to admit; she's a bit different than the other Warlocks."
"Yup." She makes the popping noise at the end of the 'P.' "She's the first warlock that knows her way around a wrench. She comes around now and then to help me out."
"So, you get her tools?"
Shaking her head, the mechanic states, "No. She said she was bored waiting for the library out, so Nax," she grunts a little pulling out a stray piece of metal, "comes here to work on her ship."
"Most of the time? How come I don't see her around when I come here?"
"I don't know. You are either busy or busy placing bets or working on this piece of junk. But she also keeps to herself. I am a bit surprised she was having a full conversation with you."
"Why is that? I'm a lovable guy."
Amanda shoots him a look that states, 'really?' "Yeah, well, you have a habit of not learning where people's boundaries are."
"Do I look like someone that doesn't respect boundaries?"
"Yes." Getting up, she wipes her hands on a red rag that is tuck in her pocket.
Cayde pulls a false hurt look, placing a hand on his chest. "Ouch! Amanda, you wound me with your words."
"You'll live," calls the woman. Standing straight, she heads back to her workshop. There is still a lot of work: all those Sparrows.