Chapter Text
It's been years, and yet still there were evenings where the unnatural silence tickled Avin's nerves. He leaned back against his favored rock, setting his notes aside to stare out at the Dark Shard in the distance. It was hard to think sometimes, due to the often times oppressive feeling covering the place. Yet another thing not dulled by time.
He rubbed at his eyes, sighing in frustration as Leshya gave his own disgruntled chirp over being jostled mid-doze. Too many variables. Too many questions. Not enough focus. A slivered claw absently taps the knife at his side. Not an option, not today. Despite the Hunger, he knows Zak would never agree. Knows he would say that blade has been brought to bear too frequently as of late. Can almost taste the reluctance that's been there since that...mistake with the poison.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
( Breathe deep. Ignore the Hunger. Knowledge can be patient. You know you won't use the blade yourself, not when he sits beside you. )
Avin looks to the Hunter beside him, the sight dampening the internal strife. Zak-9 seemed just as lost in thought as Avin himself was. Though the Warlock couldn't feel any similar strife across their bond. Not that he expected there to be. The Forest, and the Shard, just had that pensive way about them.
Right. The Light-bond.
A peculiar structure of Light. One that Avin was almost reluctant to study. Not out of dislike, far from it. It was just...something he considered a gift. A comfort. A beacon and a grounding.
A soulmate, if he was feeling extra sentimental.
But while he may not study its presence, its structure, he can't help but follow its function. Light was a system. From Traveler to Ghost. From Ghost to Guardian, and back again. The Ghost acted like a valve, keeping the Guardian from being washed away, and facilitated the action of revival, be it of their own Guardian, or siphoning Light to another Ghost for theirs. Before dangerous missions or Crucible matches, Fireteams would often spend time synchronizing their Light for the goal of reducing Light-born friendly fire.
And still there were the bonds like those in question.
Avin couldn't ignore the function of his Light-bond with Zak, if only because it had almost become central to any combat they found themselves in. Keenly aware of each other's Light, knowing its feel as well as their own. There have even been times when they found themselves with the "wrong" Ghost.
Avin could feel Leshya's glare at his thought of Gheist being the better study partner.
Wait.
Review.
Perhaps that's the answer.
( Perhaps the answer is in the Light so similar to your own, yet still so different. )
He closed his eyes, letting his mind wander through years of patrols and near death. Only the focus was on his partner, rather than himself. The piercing arrow. The cold metal taste. Sharp fangs. The prowling beast. The piercing screech of the drawn bow.
He ignored the ache at his side.
Review the memories. Condense. Distill. Remember the ghost-sense. What makes a Hunter tick? A Nightstalker?
( What about just a second half? A lover? A best friend? You always get so hung up on the big picture. )
That's it. An idea.
"Give me your knife."
Avin doesn't remember turning to face Zak, but he must have, considering he could actually see the startled and confused exo in more than just the corner of his eye. He could taste the apprehension, the reluctance to pass the blade.
Ah. An unfortunate assumption.
"It's not, no. Don't worry. I'm not asking for that. I just...have an idea. Trust me, please."
The knife is passed, if slowly. Slivered claws eagerly tap at the new blade, as though knocking at a door and waiting for an answer. He called forth his Light, teasing at the blade with it. An idea, nothing more. But was this the right way to test it? Of course not.
The Light may be similar, but it was still wrong.
He murmured another quiet "Trust me" before he struck. There was a near inaudible
pop
as needle sharp claws just barely punctured the leather armor covering the Hunter's chest. With more delicacy than he ever showed his prey, Avin grabbed the Light and pulled. His own Light wouldn't do for this experiment, yet there was no easy way to walk Zak through the process.
Cutting out that middleman was the obvious step.
Avin was careful to not take too much, that now comforting Void coiled about his arm, wanting to make the jump back to Its proper wielder. He touched the memory of a battle's first drawn bow. He focused on that sense-memory and took no more Light than that.
He took the borrowed Light in one hand and the borrowed blade in the other and gently began the delicate task of combining the two. Once the Void began to take hold, he gave an insistent tug along the Light-bond, drawing Zak in to feel the in motion hypothesis.
He passed the Void-cloaked blade back to its owner, and felt a thrill as the Void resolved itself into a blade sharper than steel with barely a blink. He memorized the new
feeling
, thankful Leshya taking the notes he couldn't at present.
"Remember how this feels. It's only an idea, a test, but remember. This may be an option to you, rather than a bow. I can't know if I'm right...I'm not you, I'm not even a Hunter. But...you know my theories. I couldn't figure out me so..I took a chance and felt for you."
Avin can feel Zak's confusion plain as day, but can't help the excited grin at the feel of trust, and the sight of that blade slowly being spun around metallic fingers.
"Learn how it feels. See how it handles. Call it an experiment."