Breathtaking
Cidrex/Drifter because I can
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It was chilly onboard the Derelict as Cidrex wandered, but he didn’t mind. If anything, it was a welcome change having been in bed with a known Solar Lightbearer. The Hunter was sure he’d no doubt lost a couple pounds from sweating alone, never mind the multiple rounds the two of them had gone for, so to wander the Derelict and feel the chill bite at his bones was more than welcome for him.
Drifter was almost unusually guarded, but when Cidrex recalled the visions the Nine had been forcing upon him it made sense as he carefully worked his way around tripmines and traps that littered the Derelict’s hallways. All he was wearing was one of Drifter’s dark green shirts and his own boxers, otherwise barefoot as he wandered idly. Cidrex hadn’t really been allowed to explore much and he knew that there was much more to the ship than most Guardians had been allowed to see. But even with his trusted status at Drifter’s side (and in his bed), he’d not been granted express permission to explore further than what was available. The only reason he was making such progress in his explorations now was because Drifter was still fast asleep, all his energy exhausted from railing the Hunter into the shitty camp bed mattress.
Cidrex hadn’t been paying all too much attention to where he’d been going, too busy idly thinking about Drifter’s paranoia and the lengths the guy had gone to in order to secure the safety of the rest of his ship. The narrow maintenance hallway he’d been climbing through opened up into a much larger room, something that looked like the cockpit of the whole ship or the command deck or whatever it was called - Cidrex didn’t care, the room was massive. There was no dust, or at least very little, and the freaky alien flora from the Haul hadn’t spread this far through the ship either. It wasn’t as cold as the rest of the ship too, Cidrex noticed as he wandered through and examined the consoles. They’d been used recently, which told him that Drifter still used this section of the ship at the very least.
Then he looked up and saw the massive circular window that gazed out into the void of space. He moved past the beeping consoles, ignoring the flickering lights of switches and the urge to push them, and pulled himself up to the ledge the window was embedded in. It was at least a metre wide, more than enough for a person to sit in, and that is where Cidrex made his home to watch the stars. The sight itself took his breath away, leaning back gently against the curve of the frame and resting on his side with one arm tucked under his head for comfort. Green eyes tracked stars and drew mental patterns between each one, watching dust clouds drift through the dark expanse before him. He guessed that the window itself wasn’t more than a few feet thick (he was no engineer or shipwright, he left that knowledge with Holliday), and as he pressed a hand to the window he breathed softly.
This sheet of glass was all that stood between him and the cold nothing of space. It was breathtaking.
Void Light pooled in his fingertips, almost in response to the sight of the universe on the other side of the window, and Cidrex traced little patterns along the glass idly. Often he had wondered what it would be like to just disappear into the backdrop of the universe, to be folded away into its quiet embrace and no longer worry about much else. He supposed those types of thoughts came with being a Void user. Regardless, it was peaceful if nothing else and almost lulled him back to some semblance of sleep.
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“Where is he?” Drifter grumbled. He’d woken to the absence of the strange warmth that was usual leeched to his side, sitting up to find Cidrex gone and a draft settling in to the little bunker. His Ghost didn’t answer and Drifter rolled his eyes, not knowing what else he should have expected. Cidrex’s Ghost wasn’t responding either to his pings, which was almost unusual given Sox’s protectiveness over his Guardian. The Lightbearer groaned and got up, shrugging on his duster and at least the pair of slippers he’d been given a while back, having the decency to pull a pair of boxers on and a tank top as well before he trudged out to find the Hunter.
Slippery bastard, he could be anywhere on the Derelict and without Drifter’s knowledge too - that in itself was enough to set off his paranoia, even with how much he’d begun to trust the guy. He’d hoped he would’ve heard some of his traps go off by now if Cidrex had wandered into somewhere he shouldn’t be, but then again he was a Hunter and Hunters were known for being able to get past near enough any deterrent put in their way.
Drifter shook his head a little as he started walking, soon sensing wisps of Void Light leaving the bunker in a particular direction. It lead away from the launch pads the Gambit teams would use, away from the makeshift living room area and kitchen, and it made Drifter’s skin buzz. Ever since the Nine had been giving him visions, he’d developed a keen sense on detecting the Light of certain Guardians. Cidrex sat at the top of that list and Drifter’s sense was keener on his Light than anyone else’s, able to pick up on the slightest hint of the Hunter’s Void in his vicinity. It was an alluring trail that lead him through the Derelict, the Lightbearer inwardly cursing at how easily the Hunter had bypassed his traps and security measures and equally finding himself impressed. Every so often the Drifter would catch hints of purple wisps in the corner of his vision, those alone confirming he was on the right trail in the very least.
He wasn’t happy to realise that the wisps were leading him deeper into the Derelict and towards the command deck, and when he entered sure enough he saw Cidrex lounging against the window. He went to call to him and then hesitated instead, noticing just how relaxed the Hunter looked up there. Cidrex could be jumpy sometimes, especially when he was by himself and lost in his thoughts. Instead, Drifter moved to a console and dimmed the lights down slowly. Cidrex shifted a little but didn’t roll over to see Drifter there, he could sense the mingle of the other’s Light and instead continued to gaze out upon the stars that drifted past them as the Derelict moved slowly to its next location.
A colourful dust and gas cloud wandered idly by the great window, the glow from the Derelict lighting it up and casting great arcs of blues and greens around the ship. Drifter watched the colours dance across Cidrex’s bared skin and for a moment wondered how many times he’d end up catching the Hunter up here. He surprised himself with the realization that he wouldn’t mind catching him up here so many times as long as he’d be treated to such a pretty sight. A soft, content sigh left the rogue Lightbearer as he kicked back in one of the chairs and watched the stars and clouds go by. He’d ask Cidrex later if he wanted any takeout when they arrived at the Tower, but for now he was surprisingly content to enjoy the sightseeing and the silence.
