Chapter 4: Paradis
"I caught it, Dad! I caught it!"
A young boy came sprinting up from the stream, water dripping from his sleeves, a huge grin plastered across his face. His drenched clothes clung to him, and his crimson hair stuck to his forehead as he held up a small, wriggling creature like a trophy.
"Oh, that quickly? Good job, Arbus," his father said from where he lounged against a tree nearby.
The man didn't move much, he just watched with a faint smile beneath a dark beard and mustache. His Raven black hair spilled over his shoulders, and his emerald eyes mirrored his son's. Despite the sun's heat, his skin was smooth, flawless—almost like he'd never worked a day in his life.
The boy, Arbus, slowly opened his hand to show his father the creature. It was a pixie, creatures that were very common on the planet of Tarok.
"Oh, a green one. How lucky," his father said, leaning forward slightly. "It's said that those who manage to capture a green pixie are blessed with boundless luck and great fortune."
The pixie resembled a Mornan, only green and far smaller, with cute wings on its back and a single eye. It looked bored, having already accepted defeat.
"Really? That's awesome!" Arbus said in delight.
"But what do I do with it now? It took me a while to catch it, but I don't really want to put it in a little cage or something," he added, looking stumped.
The man smiled, pleased by his son's reaction.
"You don't have to keep the pixie to receive its boons. Catching it is already enough. After that, we usually let them go," he said, gesturing for the pixie to take flight.
The creature fluttered its wings and rose into the air, but not before sticking its tongue out at Arbus in a final act of defiance.
Arbus wasn't exactly a fan of it leaving just like that, given the time and effort it had taken to catch it. Still, he was glad he didn't have to take away its freedom just to be lucky.
The man finally stood, brushing dust from his robes as he patted his son's head.
"I know you're a little sad. But you shouldn't worry about these things. Wasn't it more fun to chase it around than to just watch it sit in your hand?"
He looked toward the stream, then back at Arbus.
"Something I want you to keep in mind, son, is that sometimes the journey is more interesting than the end result. So make sure to enjoy it while it lasts."
The man then looked up at the sun and realized the day was coming to an end.
"That's enough for today. We should head back home now," he said to Arbus as he pulled two bracelets from his pocket.
He placed one on his arm and activated it. The device slowly turned his skin red, making him resemble a Red Mornan. Then he fastened the second bracelet around Arbus's wrist and turned it on, causing his son's skin to shift in the same way.
Arbus frowned at the bracelet.
"Dad, why do we always have to wear this? Is it really that bad for people to see our real skin?"
The man's expression turned somber, then serious.
"Listen to me, Arbus. No matter what happens, you must never take off your bracelet. I know you're not a fan of it, but sometimes you have to endure certain things for the greater good. No matter what happens, no one can know that we're human. If they ever found out... everything would change."
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Arbus sighed as he pulled his mind away from his memories.The days before that fateful day had been peaceful for him and his parents. Although, knowing what he knew now, he couldn't bring himself to wish for those times again.
"You're such a terrible liar, Dad," he murmured with a quiet chuckle, his thoughts drifting back to the pixie he had caught. The myths didn't seem so accurate after all, considering how his life had turned out.
"Are you talking to me?" came the voice of the knight across from him.
Arbus glanced over. At the moment, he was being escorted by this Vanguard team to meet the Sentinel of the solar system.
He wasn't entirely sure what the summons was about, but he hoped it would be something good, maybe a reward, or even advancement.
He had been a Sentry for far too long, despite always putting in the effort to complete his missions.
Not that they sent him on many. Most likely, the higher-ups wanted to keep him stuck on a quiet planet where nothing ever happened.
At least, not until today.
Tired of reminiscing, Arbus decided to distract himself.
He glanced around the ship he was being transported in, quietly marveling at the design. He had never been aboard a Vanguard ship before, at most, he'd been asked to clean the outside of one.
The main area was spacious and filled with high-tech gear, which wasn't surprising given how advanced Renegade technology was.
He counted eight doors in total. Four probably led to resting areas, one to a medical bay for emergencies, one to a kitchen and lounge, another to a weapons storage, along with whatever else they kept on hand, and the last, of course, to the cockpit, where the pilot was currently stationed.
"Nice ship," Arbus said to the knight sitting across from him.
The room was mostly empty, just the two of them, and the silent Vanguard resting farther away, watching his every move.
The knight had already taken off his mask. He was a Red Mornan with green hair, his features youthful despite already being In his late twenties.
"It is, isn't it? That's what I said too. I'm the reason we picked this ship," the knight replied, his voice bright with excitement. That caught Arbus off guard, given the situation and his background.
"I'm Bridge. What's your—no wait, I guess I already know your name from the files. Arbus Kaele—"
"Arbus. Just Arbus. That's my name. Don't add the last part," Arbus said, cutting him off.
"Oh, umm yeah sure, my bad," Bridge said apologetically. An awkward silence settled over the room again.
Bridge shifted his weight, then spoke again, his voice a little lower this time. "So... How did you do it?. Kill Ronan I mean."
Arbus didn't respond immediately. He was wondering if there was any need to tell him.
Bridge scratched the back of his neck. "It's not like I'm doubting you or anything like that, but, umm... how do I put it. I would've thought that feat would be a bit too impossible for you. Heck, it's impossible even for a Knight like me."
"It wasn't really as impressive as you're probably imagining. He made a couple of mistakes that I took advantage of," Arbus said, figuring there was no point in hiding anything.
"Ronin arrived in front of our base after he'd already massacred the rest of the planet and the other Renegade stations."
"We didn't even get a single emergency call or realize we were under attack until it was our turn. Which didn't make sense, considering how much he liked playing with his victims," Arbus said, a hint of disgust in his voice. Yome took note of it from across the room.
"When he finally attacked, it was far too late for us to get any help."
"I'm not exactly sure what it was, but some kind of tech he had on him was dampening our communications. That made it easier to understand how he wiped out the planet so silently."
"He didn't attack at first. He just watched us. He was being cautious, probably thinking the main base might have a hidden Sentinel or something waiting to ambush him," Arbus said.
"It gave us a little bit of time, which we used to come up with a few plans."
"Most of them didn't amount to much, but our best one was something Vanguard Tick thought of. He decided to disguise himself as the commander of the base, hoping to use Ronin's nature against him. When the slaughter started, Ronan made sure to torture him more than the others. He wanted him to watch his soldiers die in vain."
"In a moment when Ronan let his guard down, Commander Mitz tried to kill him with a single strike. Ronan only dodged it by sheer luck."
"That was how I figured out that his ability wasn't passive. And that it wasn't exactly what it seemed to be."
"After he was done killing everyone else, he noticed that I was still alive. I had slowed down my regeneration to make it look like I was near death. He was surprised to see a human Renegade, something he found amusing. Since I was the last toy, and an interesting one at that, he decided not to break me too fast. That gave me my chance," Arbus said.
"Wait, time out. Regeneration? Is that a power the Tarokians have or something? I thought you guys only had mountain smashing strength and incredible physical stats. I've never heard of that. Or do you have a shard?" Bridge asked, cutting in out of curiosity despite wanting to know what happened next.
Arbus's mood grew a bit somber "No, it's an inherited ability from my father, who's a reincarnator. That should be obvious since I'm half human. And no, I didn't really inherit most of those incredible physical capabilities from my mother's side. Only a little bit, at most," he replied.
Bridge blinked, caught off guard. "You guys can inherit abilities from your Reincarnator parents? That's insane. I wonder why the Renegades haven't seen more half humans with abilities running around," he said, clearly intrigued.
"The Renegades have. We're just not high enough in rank to ask questions about it," Yome said flatly from across the room, finally removing her mask.
Her flowing blue hair stood out against her red skin, and her bright orange eyes caught the dim light from the small window to the side.
Arbus stared at her in silence for a moment, struck by how much she resembled his childhood friend Arora.
Memories he'd rather keep buried rushed back, and his expression darkened, mirroring how he'd looked after the massacre.
"Anyways, that's enough of that. Bridge, stop conversing with our 'guest' about matters we're probably not allowed to ask about. And you, Sentry, stay quiet. Don't talk so casually to those who rank above you," she said, her voice firm.
"Sorry, Yome—I mean, Vanguard Yome," Bridge said, giving Arbus an apologetic look. He was already used to his leader's personality.
A knock sounded from the cockpit, where Caster sat, a few minutes later.
"Seems like we've arrived," Yome said, glancing out the small window to the side.
Arbus followed her gaze. There it was—the biggest moon in the solar system, as large as four planets in one. It was called Paradis, home to the current Sentinel of this solar system.