The ceiling light flickered, sputtered, and burned out.

Yseni stared at it as it did so.

It was ironic how the maintenance passageways of Limitless were now some of its most neglected parts. Once they served as the Ports arteries, carrying major utilities in conduits and wires. Now they stand as a long forgotten labyrinth, its last crews long gone after the Ceres Empire pulled the plug on Port operations an age ago. An ever-increasing string of failures and leaks had forced many of the utilities out and onto the surface, rendering the tunnels as just ill-frequented shortcuts and hiding places.

Yseni's back pressed against the cold, empty pipes as he sat there, his situation as heavy as the muggy, ill-ventilated air. He had been on his way home, his contract with Cerrit terminated. That job had been his lifeline—his primary means of sustenance. Now it was gone.

He wasn't surprised, frankly. It was the cost of having an identity that the Empire despised. He had begged and crawled and clawed his way through many such hardships, and he would do so again. Still, moments like these, when one loses their way, when that lamp burns out, still brought about a suffocating darkness.

He recalled his conversation with Cerrit. Someone had asked around about Yseni, and they knew he was working unlicensed. That was concerning. The worst case called for an immediate escape from Limitless. He had some escape plans in place, but his recent rush for the completion of his mech had eaten into his safety net and he would have to figure out a way to quickly obtain the funds.

He knew he would survive this—it was perhaps an arrogance, but he did truly believe that. But in this moment, the uncertainty had gotten to him.

Soft footfalls echoed through the shaft. Yseni turned and saw the figure of Daryll, who wordlessly walked over and slumped down beside him. She offered him a flask, and Yseni obliged, taking a sip and handing it back. The liquid burned as it went down.

"Rough day, huh?" Daryll finally broke the silence. She took a swig as well.

"Rough life." Yseni gave a bitter, dry chuckle. He stared back up at the broken ceiling light.

Yseni had almost forgotten about the two's deal with the day's ordeal. It stung him that he would miss such an opportunity, making a mech for an active Overburn pilot. He wondered if he should bring that up with her.

The two sat there in silence, Yseni with a lump in his throat, and Daryll perhaps being considerate by not speaking up. He couldn't tell. He hadn't been able to bring himself to look at her face.

"Daryll?" He finally coughed out, having come to a decision, though having second thoughts even as he said so.

"Hm?" She turned to him, and Yseni finally found it in himself to look at her face. She looked pallid, out of sorts.

Should he tell her? He wondered again. Worst case, she would be implicated just by association. If she came looking after him after he had left, it would make her life hell as well. It would be the right thing to tell her.

Yseni clenched his fist, and resolutely looked her in the eyes. "... I'm going to leave Limitless. I won't be able to make that mech for you."

"Wha...?" Daryll looked surprised.

"Someone found out I was unlicensed and asked around about me," Yseni continued. "It'll be dangerous for us both if I stay."

Daryll blinked, then buried her face into her hands and let out a long groan. She took a deep breath, a swig from her flask, and then turned to Yseni.

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"It was me." She declared, looking directly into his eyes. "I asked around."

Yseni tilted his head in confusion, struggling to process what she had just implied. Then his eyes widened. It was her. Daryll had lost him his job. He felt a hint of anger and resentment bubble up in him.

"I thought you found out already! Didn't know you had no clue!" She stood up and groaned. "Look, I know it probably doesn't mean much anymore, but I'm sorry. I was drunk, and I messed up, and I feel like utter crap and...." She sighed again. "I dunno, I'm sorry..."

He could see the remorse in her eyes. Yseni could only let out a bitter laugh. He clenched his fists tight and forcefully shoved his anger down. He had to think.

Fortunately, this meant that he likely didn't have to leave Limitless anymore. That didn't fix the issue with his living expenses, but that was easier to rectify. He likely wouldn't be able to indulge in mech building for a little while, and might even have to break down his own mech. Unless...

"... Is our deal still up?" He looked up at Daryll.

Daryll looked surprised. She brought a hand to her temples and paused, contemplating.

"Look," She knelt and looked him in the face. "I'll be honest, I didn't know what being unlicensed actually meant till yesterday, and it's more fucked up than I expected. I won't lie and say I'm not concerned about your past coming to haunt me or whatever."

His heart skipped a beat. It would have been great if he could work with her and follow his passion and he was more than a little disappointed hearing her waver. But he understood where she came from and couldn't blame her. Now that that was out of the window, he had to think up his exact next steps.

"But..." She continued, and Yseni's ears perked up. "This is Limitless. If you don't got a skeleton or two in the closet, then why the fuck are you here anyway, right? Anyway, I fucked up, not you. You don't get to ask if the deal is still up, I do. Will you work with me?"

Yseni sighed a sigh of relief. He stood up and walked over to the ceiling light. He reached out a hand and touched it. The light flickered to life again. Unseated, not burnt out.

He still harboured a bit of resentment for Daryll, but it couldn't be denied that she was giving him a chance to dream. Did he dare to do so?

"... I'd like that." He replied.

"Fuck yeah!" Daryll exclaimed and grabbed his hand. "Come on, I did something! You gotta see it!"

---

The workshop was rather unassuming. It was part of a complex within Versa's Solistice Belt, accessible through a back door in a narrow alleyway that was mostly concealed by stalls and hawkers. Inside, it took up the entire vertical space of the building, turning it into a large main chamber with a donut-like second floor, and topped with a retractable roof.

It had two dedicated mech hangars, an old but well-maintained fabricator, welders and material processors, a dedicated design workstation, cranes dangling from the roof...

"... It's perfect," Yseni couldn't help but mutter. His place didn't hold a candle to this. Hell, Cerrit's place didn't either. He refused the urge to pinch himself. If this were a dream, he'd rather keep dreaming.

"Really?" Daryll looked around. "I thought it was quite modest."

Yseni couldn't tear his gaze from the equipment. He wanted to try them all out, get a feel for everything. Was this really going to be the place he would be working at from now on? He couldn't believe it.

He spotted a set of tools on a particular workstation. They were intricate, made for detailed aesthetic work on a mech's surface. Work like that was bespoke and expensive, and not something Yseni had ever tried.

"Was this an ornamental shop? I didn't know Versa had one." Yseni asked. Decorating mechs to that extent was something only the upper crust of limitless might do. He would expect such shops at the Molis or Friet asteroids, not on the humble Versa.

"Dunno!" Daryll said from behind him. "Did some sweet talking and got the old owners to leave all of this behind for us, though. What do you say?"

Yseni broke into a laugh. "This place is amazing!"

He was about to grab a tool to get a closer look when Daryll stopped him.

"Your toys aren't running away anytime soon." She chuckled. "Come on, you still have the second floor to see."

The two went up and explored the second floor. It consisted primarily of a walkway that overlooked the shop floor, a storage building that had been cleared, and an area set apart for an accommodation. Each room had enough space to store his personal belongings ten times over.

He relayed that to Daryll and she agreed.

"So," She nudged him with an elbow. "You gonna move in?"

Yseni was taken aback. He turned to Daryll and her expression belayed that the offer was an earnest one.

Another laugh escaped his lips. "Won't say no to that." Yseni nodded.

Daryll gave him a hearty pat on his back and grinned.

Yseni's heart swirled with gratitude, his earlier resentment all but faded away. He turned to her, and with all honestly said, "...Thank you."

Daryll's grin widened. "Nah, I gotta thank you. Would have sucked if you said no to the deal."

"Hm?"

"I spent all my money on this thing."

Yseni's blinked. "... What?"

She just grinned. "I'm dead broke!"