All that can be heard is the rumble of the engines of the ship, as we move through the exosphere of the planet. My eyes roam around the interior of the craft, trying to match it to one I might've seen in-game, but I'm unable to come up with anything. "It's like if a Corpus ship and an Orokin ship had a baby, and then they forgot what color was," I think. "I guess it's a Tenno dropship, but I don't remember any even being mentioned in the game. What a trip." My eyes wander over to the Loki who's sat ramrod straight in one of the chairs against the wall of the ship. They don't move or make any indication that they've noticed me, but a part of me feels a... pressure, as I stare at them. I avert my gaze, and instead look at Ko-lee, who's stood next to one of the few windows on the ship. I make my way over to look out the tiny porthole alongside her, watching the horizon of the Earth shrink as we rise into space.

"Are you okay?" I ask, standing off to her left. There's a momentary pause as she breaks eye contact with the planet, before turning to look at me with a conflicted expression. "Please, Antimony. Not right now," she says, her voice quiet. "Okay," I say, but a part of me hesitates. "It's just... I just want you to know that I didn't know that this would happen. When I woke up this morning there was a priest who said that the Unum reques-" but Ko-lee's firm tone stops me. "Antimony," she says, her eyes boring a hole into my soul. The momentum from the explanation threatens to pry my lips open, but I just give her a nod, before quickly stepping away. I cross the small space and sit in a seat next to the Loki. Other than the hum of the engines, there is silence, and it lasts for an entire 60 seconds before I decide to fill it.

"So...", I say, looking at the Loki. They turn their head slightly, but don't respond. "So, is the silent treatment standard or..." I follow up. They turn their head back, breaking what I am charitably thinking of as eye contact, saying nothing. I sigh, leaning my head back against the wall of the ship. After about 30 seconds of no thoughts, I say the first thing that comes to mind. "Thank you. For rescuing me. Even if you won't actually tell me why." The voice of the Lotus echoes out from beside me. "I rescued you because of what I felt. A few months ago, there was an... energy, in the void. A surge of sorts. And when you encountered that warframe in Cetus, the orange and white one-"

"The Ember?" I interrupt. Loki turns to "look" at me. "Sorry," I say, feeling my face grow red from the embarrassment. I lay my head against the wall of the ship and close my eyes, trying to focus my effort on keeping my mouth shut. There is a momentary pause before the Lotus continues. "We will speak about the wealth of information you seem to have. But yes, the Ember. When you encountered it, I felt that same energy. Since that point, we have been keeping tabs on you." I can feel my head spinning from the adrenaline crash, but her words spark a connection that cause my eyes to open. "Oh wait," I say, turning to look at the Loki, "you were the one in my room, weren't you?" "Correct," says the Lotus. "This warframe, designation Loki, has the ability to turn invisible. I considered it the most effective choice in keeping tabs on you while you were located within the Unum."

I feel the weights on my eyelids pulling them back closed. "Makes sense, makes sense. I'm not a huge fan of being spied on, but you and Rhino saved my life, so it's all sort of a wash in the end. So, thanks again," I say. There's silence for about ten seconds, before I hear the Lotus speak. "You know the designation for the other frame as well." I nod my head against the wall of the ship, my eyes still closed. Suddenly, I hear the sound of metal on metal, and my eyes fling open, only to see the Loki standing up and making their way into the center of the ship. I straighten my back and lock my gaze onto the Loki. "Are you planning on finishing the job for the Unum?" I ask, my voice flat. "If they want to kill me, there's not really anything I can do about it. I'm in space, without protection, facing a living weapon. Might as well die with dignity," I think, as I glare at the warframe.

"I have questions," says the Lotus. "Questions that I'd like answered. And it is hard to get answers from a corpse." "Well," I say slowly, "I'd like to not be a corpse. So it seems like our interests currently align." I see Ko-lee shift behind the frame, her head moving between it and me. "Then you will tell us everything you know," says the Lotus, taking a step towards me. Instinctively I shirk away, before I realize that I have nowhere to go, as I'm sat in a chair attached to the wall of the ship. I force myself to relax, and take a deep breath before responding. "I am willing to talk, to a point. I can't just tell you everything I know, but I promise I'm not trying to hold information back. It's... I don't know if there is a term for this in Origin, but it's what I'd call an infohazard. Basically, it's information that is in some way dangerous or harmful to know."

I do my best to keep my voice steady, but I can feel the drip feed of adrenaline hitting my veins once again. I'm still coming down from the previous flood of hormone, and so I can feel my hands start to shake. "This information doesn't seem to be harming you though," says the Lotus, and a strangled sound slips past my lips. "Yea, well, the Protector of Cetus just tried to make me take a dirt nap, so I wouldn't say this information is harm free. Not... that that was her issue exactly. She was just mad that she couldn't future-tell her way around me. I guess I'm like a clump of sticks in the time stream or something. Everything gets messy around me and she... was trying to get rid of me." The danger of the situation hits me again, and I let out a shuddering breath.

"But like I said, I'll tell you what I can, when I can. I'm an open book. I'm... assuming you've worked with the Unum before?" I say. The Loki nods their head, once. "Okay, so, the Unum - to my understanding - can see potential futures. Like, I'd imagine it's probabilities, and she and her Quills take action to raise the probabilities of the best future, while lowering the probabilities of the bad ones. Something to do with Eternalism, I'd guess." Before I can continue, the Lotus asks, "how do you know that term?" I give a shrug, trying to look apologetic as I do. "Infohazard. Anyways, unlike the Unum, I don't see potential futures. I see the future. Singular. Broad strokes I know what will happen, and as long as that future isn't too wildly disrupted, it absolutely will come true. I'm like, her opposite."

"Go girl, give us nothing," I think, as I look at the expressionless warframe. "How far out can you see?" asks the Lotus after a moment. I respond with a shrug. "I don't know the timeline on some of these things, and yes, I see the irony in that. I have events, information in broad strokes, but I'm missing some of the minutia. I don't know exactly where we are in the timeline, but the more time passes, the more information I'm likely to have." Lotus is silent once more, before saying a single word. "Alright." The Loki takes a step, and sits back down next to me. I feel tension I didn't know I had release in my shoulders. "Jesus, it's like having a conversation with a sentient loaded gun. But at least we're all on the same side now. More so than I think I ever was with the Unum. It's sort of frying pan, fire here, but I'm navigating well enough. I really really wanted to do this on my own terms, but I'm 80% confident she's not gonna ice me," I think, very intentionally not looking at the warframe.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

There's a crackling sound, before a tinny voice echoes into the space. "Anyone not strapped in, now's the time to do it. We're just about out of atmo, and we're going to kick it into gear. We're gonna lose grav here briefly and I don't really want you floating around in there, you'll scuff up the paint." I look around at the scuffed, worn interior, before I catch Ko-lee doing the same. I give her an eyebrow quirk, and she just rolls her eyes, before strapping in next to me. About a minute after she does, the gravity of the ship begins to increase, pressing down on our chests. I regulate my breathing, and eventually, our momentum matches the ship's, and the gravity begins to fall off. Just as we start to float in our chairs, a high pitched whining sound rings out, and gravity is reinstated, adding in what we had just lost. "Like one of those roller coasters with a false drop," I think, trying to get comfortable in the seat.

I look over at Ko-lee, and find her pale. "You doing okay?" I ask, reaching out for her hand. She grabs it in her seat, breathing shallowly. "Yea, my stomach didn't like that," she says. "I didn't know you got motion sick," I say, my thumb rubbing the back of her hand. "I didn't either. Have you been in space before?" she asks, her head slowly turning to look at me. I shake my head. "No, but I've been on a roller coaster. They're not that different," I say. There's a moment while she just breathes, and slowly, color returns to her face. "You know," she says, "I wanted to be mad at you last night. No, I was mad at you. It was just so much to take in and... I just didn't want to believe anything you said. It was easier to think you were crazy, or an asshole, or both. It was easier to be mad at you."

There's a look in her eye I can't quite parse as she continues. "When I woke up, I was less mad, but I still felt... wrong, somehow. It was an odd feeling, and I was having lunch trying to sort that out when the warframe, the big brown one..." she trails off, and I pick up on the unspoken request. "Rhino," I provide, and she nods her head. "The Rhino showed up. I was told that you were in custody of the Tenno, that I was required to come with them and... well, I was worried. It was a lot of back and forth, emotionally." I give her an apologetic look. "Yea, I'm sorry. I... well, the whole situation with the Unum, it happened first thing in the morning for me. The jackass priest wouldn't even let me get breakfast or anything. I told Heya that I was getting pulled away, left a message with her for you, 'cause I thought I was just going to be gone for a few hours, you know? But then there was the conflict, and then Loki saved me, and they were gonna fly off without you, but I knew that if we left, there was a chance that I would never see you again. It's a big solar system, you know?"

I take a deep breath before flashing her what I hope is a reassuring smile. "I wasn't sure what was happening, but I promised you I wouldn't leave you. And I'm not really a big fan of lying," I say, my smile turning cheeky. She gives me a smile back, her shoulder bumping into mine. "Well... thanks for that," she says, as she rests her head on my shoulder. We sit there in silence, enjoying the sensation of physical touch, before Ko-lee speaks up. "Do you know what they're planning to do with us?" she asks, her voice quiet so as to not reach the Loki, who by this point has moved away from us and towards the bay doors. "Not a clue," I murmur back. "But anything is better than getting killed." I feel Ko-lee's grip tighten for a moment, before relaxing.

"She was really trying to kill you?" asks Ko-lee, a touch of doubt in her voice. "Why would she do that?" I just sigh, my breath causing her head to move with the motion of my shoulders. "It's like I told the Lotus. I screw up her future predictions somehow. She didn't want to work with me, or around me. Trust me, I asked. She just... wanted to remove me. I was just a problem to be dealt with." I feel an inquisitive hum vibrate through Ko-lee. "I'm not saying I don't believe you. I doubt the Tenno would be involved if you were lying. It's just... it doesn't really line up with what I know about her," she says, a thoughtful lilt to her voice. "I get it," I say. "From her perspective, I mean. There is some... really bad stuff coming down the line. For everyone. Tenno, Grineer, Corpus, I really mean everyone. I mean, even the Unum doesn't really escape unscathed. So, like, if things don't go exactly the way she plans, then that bad stuff could become permanent. I can see how she might be willing to take some pretty drastic actions in service of her better future."

I pause as a thought occurs to me, before giving it a voice. "Besides, I'm not Ostron. I lived in Cetus for a bit, worked the mines as a skinner, but I wasn't really one of hers, you know? I doubt she was shedding tears over me. I was just some random lady, as far as she cared." Ko-lee snorts. "Yeah, that's what my dad thought too," she says. She's silent for a moment, before sighing. "I miss him." I lean over to kiss her on the top of her head. My lips linger on her forehead for a moment, before I speak. "Yea, he was a pretty cool guy. I... I like to think that he'd be proud of you." I feel Ko-lee shift, and I glance down to find her looking at me. "For what?" she says, and there's a hint of tension in her voice. "For surviving," I say simply. "It would've been so easy at so many points to fall apart, to give up. After Sharip, after the Conclave. You could've given up and lived on the stipend provided by Cetus. You could have said no when the Rhino approached you."

"I'll be honest, it's been rough so far. And I think it's going to get rougher. I can almost promise that, unfortunately. I wish I could tell you that from this point on it's going to be smooth sailing, but like I said, I don't like to lie." I look Ko-lee in the eyes, trying to impress upon her how I feel from just my gaze. "But I don't think you'll ever give up. I don't think you have it in you. That's... that's what I think he'd be proud of." I can see a shine in her eyes, just the barest hint of tears, but she looks away before they coalesce, staring out the porthole from our seat. "You barely knew him," I hear her murmur.

"I know," I say back. "I wish I had more time to get to know him. To tell him how wonderful I think his daughter is, and how much she means to me. How her focus, her drive is so inspiring to me, and how it makes me want to be a better person." I raise her hand to my lips, and kiss, before continuing. "I didn't get that chance though. It's not a fair universe." We're both silent for a moment, sitting in our respective chairs, both lost in thought. "I should tell you more about him," says Ko-lee. I nod my head, before resting it on the wall of the ship behind me, closing my eyes. "I'd like that." I let my mind drift as I feel the gentle rumble of the ship through it's frame. I can feel disparate, random thoughts and ideas flit though my mind, like wisps in a swamp, but I don't pay them any attention. "Just neurons, randomly firing," I think to myself.

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A crackle sound breaks the silence after some amount of hours. "60 seconds until dock. Get seated, or hold onto something," says the tinny voice. I crane my neck to try to see out of the tiny porthole window from my seated position, but all I can see is the endless black of what I know is space, but just looks like the night sky. Ko-lee let's go of my hand, and we both grip on to the grip bars next to our seats. There's a moment of turbulence, and I can feel the momentum of the ship changing for the first time in hours, until a loud KATHUNK, KATHUNK reverberates through the ship. I hear the various sounds that have been our companion for the last 4 or 6 hours wind down, leaving us in relative silence. Ko-lee and I both unbuckle and stand, and as we do, the door of the ship opens.