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Chapter Text

The storm came unexpectedly, surprising Rhys the most. Normally he could feel a distinct buzz in the water before any storms actually hit, leaving him with enough time to get away, but this time he was just as startled as Vaughn was when the surface turned choppy with rough waves. Vaughn shivered as thunder dimly boomed over their heads and he looked down at the dead lobster in his hands, then to the small bundle of mussels wrapped in seaweed that Rhys carried. It wasn’t a great haul and it certainly wasn’t worth dying over.

Vaughn dipped down, tilting his body to go deeper and escape the storm, but stopped when he realized his companion was not doing the same. Rhys’s mismatched eyes were locked onto something in the distance, something that Vaughn’s weak eyes couldn’t see. With the light of the sun gone, they were left with only the dim glow of Rhys’s right arm and that did little to help the visibility. Vaughn could see the eridium flowing through the thin branching lines on his black arm, a unique sight that he had gotten used to in the years since Rhys had joined their colony, and he frowned. “Rhys, bro.” The clicking sounds of Vaughn’s tongue cut through the other man’s thoughts and Rhys jerked out of his reverie without tearing his gaze away. “What are you doing? We need to leave, now, before this storm gets bad.. This isn’t the time for a leisure swim.”

Rhys broke his thousand-yard stare and pushed the bundle into Vaughn’s arms, shaking his head. “Go on without me. There’s something I want to check out.” Vaughn’s eyes widened and Rhys continued before he could protest. “You know this won’t be my first storm. Trust me when I say I’ll be fine. Just head back to the colony, okay? I promise I won’t do anything stupid.”

“Are you insane?! This is stupid!” Vaughn’s angry clicks did nothing to deter the longer merman from swimming away towards whatever he saw in the distance.

Rhys waved his glowing hand over his shoulder absently, showing that he was listening but not interested in hearing it. Vaughn’s clicks faded away when he realized he wouldn’t win the fight, and he only lingered for a moment before another burst of thunder startled him into swimming deeper while Rhys neared the choppy surface, though he stayed low enough that the waves didn’t pull at him as he swam towards the dark shape that had caught his attention.

He approached the shape slowly, his mismatched eyes widening when he realized it was a ship. A huge ship. Bigger than any other he’d seen travel these waters before. They were too close to the volcanic reefs, too close to the cove used by fishermen as a resting site during long travels. The merman watched the boat lurch in the waves, its entirety lit up by a flash of lightning. He frowned when the metal hull groaned; they weren’t supposed to make that sound, right? He knew better than to get too close to it, so he stayed several yards below the pitching ship as he swam after it. Even with the storm clouds blocking out the evening sky, he could see the faint outlines of the ship.

The storm and its subsequent waves seemed to deter the humans very little, and that in itself was fascinating to Rhys. All of the ocean’s creatures—save for Rhys, apparently—feared the harsh storms and sought out shelter until it passed. The humans, though, didn’t appear to have even slowed down; Rhys struggled to keep up, even with the way that the waves rocked the ship violently.

Despite the dim glow of his arm and the enhanced vision from his eye, Rhys didn’t see the rocky ledge closing in on him until he smacked into it. He grunted as his forehead knocked against the rough surface and he petulantly rubbed his flesh palm against the site of a likely blossoming bruise. He had momentarily forgotten about the ship, focused on the slightly throbbing pain in his head, until he heard the most ear-splitting shriek that he had ever come across in his life. He flinched, shocked by the sound, and quickly looked for any signs of danger. That lasted only a couple of seconds until he found the source of the shriek.

The ship, in its haste, had scraped against a shallow but sharp outcropping of rock. As lightning lit up the sky and the ocean around him, he caught the briefest glance of metal peeled away from where it had once been connected, exposing the interior of the ship. He didn’t know much about human things, but he knew that boats with holes could not float. At all. Rhys swam up towards the massive hole, eager to grab a souvenir, when a coppery scent hit his nostrils and stopped him in his tracks. Someone was bleeding, and that meant the sharks would be coming soon to investigate. His heart sped up; he needed to leave, now, but then the ship groaned again. He looked up at it and heard the snap of the outcropping breaking underneath the weight of the ship.

Rhys couldn’t remember the last time he had swam so fast. And yet, the sharp metal on the outside of the hole still managed to snag his tail fin and rip the thin membrane. He cried out and stopped moving, allowing himself to sink down after the ship as he checked out the damage. It wasn’t too bad, nothing a dip in his special pool couldn’t fix, but it still hurt like hell. He whined pitifully to himself, upset knowing that Vaughn would fuss over him before inevitably saying “I told you not to do it” and he didn’t want to deal with that when he got back. Damn Vaughn for being right.

Rhys poked his bottom lip out in a pout that nobody could make fun of him for, then looked over to the wreckage. It was dark, but the waters were shallow enough that another streak of lightning lit up the destroyed ship. He saw only a couple of still bodies that slowly floated back towards the surface and he wondered how many were trapped inside the hull. He wasn’t particularly interested in finding out, but a desire to take something back for his collection made him swim closer. The ocean was lit up once more and he stopped when he saw a flash of movement on the deck.

One of the humans was pinned to the deck, his upper body slightly floating in the water while he struggled to free his lower half from an interesting contraption that Rhys could not name. He didn’t immediately go help, more concerned with being hunted by humans than saving one. Instead he hung back, watching the dim shape’s movements grow slower and slower. Then the human finally stopped trying and fell still, allowing Rhys the privacy to work.

His flesh arm could not budge the metal object on its own, but his right arm was able to haul the object up enough to pull the human free. The human was just as long as Rhys, but not as heavy. He wrapped his right arm around his waist and swam towards the surface. The storm was not over, and probably wouldn’t be for some time, but he knew humans needed air. The less time he was kept underwater, the better. So with that frame of mind, he hefted the human up so that his limp head lolled against his shoulder. Rhys breached the surface and struggled to keep the human’s head above the waves. More than once he failed, grunting softly to himself as harsh waves crashed into him.

A brief flash of lightning was all it took for Rhys to orient himself, the area being more than familiar. They were close to the cove, a place where he had often sneakily visited the resting humans, curious about them and wanting to see the treasures they always carried with them. He had many of them stored in his cave at home. Swimming against the waves was troublesome and he frowned with each rough wave that pushed his hair into his eyes or threatened to push him back underneath the water. His gills fluttered uselessly against his throat as he swam and he ducked down every couple of minutes to wet them, careful of the human in his arms.

Rhys didn’t put the human down as he swam over rocky outcroppings and uneven ledges, nearing the cove. The entrance was small, barely big enough for a rowboat width-wise, and the merman relaxed once they were safe from the waves. The cove itself was bigger than the narrow inlet that served as its entrance, stretching far in all directions. The ceiling was impossibly high, high enough that Rhys sometimes wondered how it didn’t touch the sun.

Rhys swam up to the beach and hauled the human onto the sandy surface with a grunt. His tail hurt and his head throbbed; he was ready to go home, maybe take a detour to his pool, but he needed to make sure the human was all right. He carefully pulled himself onto the beach and settled next to the still human, clawed fingers gingerly prodding at his clothes in curiosity. Now that the man was safe, Rhys took his time examining him. It was his first close encounter with a human and he wanted to savor it.

The first thing he noticed were the clamps on his face. He ran his fingers over the metal curiously and along the off-white edges of the mask. There was no space between the mask and the darker skin of his face, but he could tell that the mask was not actual flesh. Rhys drew his clawed fingers gently over the contours of the mask and then reached up to push back the wet hair from the man’s face. Strange. Did this human not have a proper face? He knew that humans were just like him and Vaughn in that regard. The only real differences he had been able to distinguish between humans and himself was their lack of tails, their ability to breathe outside of water, and the way they communicated.

He dropped his hands from the human’s face and looked down to his clothes. Rhys tugged at his blue coat and picked at the clasp of his vest. The fabrics were dark and heavy with water and the merman was surprised he had not weighed more than he did. He hooked a claw underneath the clasps of his vest and pulled to the right. The clasp fell open and he repeated the gesture with the rest. When the vest fell open, he scowled at the dingy off-white shirt underneath. He didn't think all humans covered up this much. While Rhys knew that the waters grew cold for a time, that certainly wasn't the case now. Even with the storm and it being so late, the air was pleasantly warm. Surely the human didn't feel cold under the harsh light of the sun. He shook his head, unwilling to try and comprehend the complexities of humans at the moment, and used his claw to pop the buttons off the shirt. With that open, he  managed to peel the worn yellow sweater up the human’s torso and bunch it up above his pecs.

Rhys took a second to appraise the various scars that littered the human’s muscled abdomen. He had his own scars, but his were not white or pink. They were purple, since each injury he received was subsequently repaired by the pool that had gifted him his arm and his eye, but nothing ever fully healed. He was left with small violet lines all over his body and tail, serving as reminders of awkward accidents and stupid mistakes. He frowned and shook the thoughts from his head as he placed both palms against the man’s chest gently, focusing on feeling for any signs of life.

It took several seconds for Rhys to feel a heartbeat. It was weak, much weaker than his own, and he furrowed his brow in concern. He didn’t know how to fix humans. For a moment he considered the possibility of using his pool, but the human didn’t seem to have any physical injuries and not to mention it would involve dragging him back down into the ocean, which Rhys doubted he would survive. Maybe he could bring some back?

Rhys removed his hands from the man’s body, unaware of how dire the situation was. He carefully wriggled his way off the shore and back into the water as the man’s heart slowed down more and more until it gave out completely. Rhys was taking a moment to enjoy the water gently sloshing across his gills when a flash of light from behind him lit up the entire cove. Turning around proved to be a bad idea since the light hurt his sensitive eyes, but despite the brightness he could distinguish the shape of the human he’d saved levitating high above the ground. He tried to watch through squinted eyes but was forced to look away when the light suddenly intensified before abruptly dying out. Rhys opened his eyes just in time to see the man crash back down onto the beach. He winced in sympathy at the harsh thump that he heard upon impact.

Rhys instinctively ducked down into the water when the human jerked upright, sucking in a deep breath and leaning over to the side to cough violently. He could hear the muffled gasps and wheezes from where he was hiding, but he swam further out so he could safely pop his head above water and watch the man again, who was struggling to get up. The human managed to get up on one knee and briefly put weight on his right foot before his face contorted and his leg gave out. He hissed out a sound that Rhys couldn’t hear clearly as he lowered himself to the ground again. After gingerly stretching out his leg, he pulled his pants leg up to his knee and winced at the sight. Where the skin was supposed to be tan like the rest of him, the flesh was already dark purple, the sign of a massive bruise.

The man made another indecipherable noise, this one more furious than pained, and he reached into the inner pocket of his jacket. He pulled out a small device, turned it over in his hands, then bristled and angrily threw it out into the water. Rhys heard the plop of impact near his head and he quickly dove down to catch it before it sank to the bottom and was lost forever. He didn’t think to move slowly so his tail wouldn’t splash noisily and cause any alarm; he was too focused on the pocket watch that he had caught in his hand. He held it gingerly in two cupped palms as if he was afraid of accidentally crushing it. Its arms no longer ticked but Rhys smiled happily anyway. It would make a great addition to his collection of human trinkets. He didn’t care if they worked; he loved them anyway. He wrapped the golden chain around his fingers to keep it anchored to his palm.

Carefully he peeked at the human again, this time without sticking his entire head above water. The man was still sitting on the beach but had removed his wet jacket. He had one arm propped on his bent knee with his bruised leg still out in front of him. Rhys could tell that his gaze was trained in his general direction, so he slowly sank back down into the water. With the human now awake, he supposed it was time to head home. Vaughn was most definitely worried about him since he had been gone so long during a storm and he didn’t want his friend’s heart to burst from all the anxiety.

Rhys reached the end of the inlet before he turned and glanced back into the darkness of the cove. The human could barely move; could he catch his own food? Most humans who took refuge in the cove carried sticks in their ships to make fires. This human had nothing to work with. Rhys closed his eyes for a moment. He knew that, without help, the man would likely die of hunger. He opened his eyes again and looked down at the watch he had resting in his flesh palm. Logically, he knew that he couldn’t just leave him there all alone with no help. Once he got some sleep and promised Vaughn he was okay, he’d go hunting for something to leave the human.

The storm was still raging overhead as he swam back towards the shallow trench that his colony called home. Their population was small and as much as he loved Vaughn and Yvette and as much as he appreciated Vaughn’s parents for helping him out when he was a child after the accident, he heard the rumors of bigger colonies scattered throughout the ocean and he wanted to know if they were real.

Vaughn was livid by the time he returned to the alcove in the rock that Rhys called home. Rhys had hoped on his way back that Vaughn would have just come to check on him after he got some sleep, but that unfortunately wasn’t the case. The smaller merman took one long look at the red mark on his forehead, scowled, and folded his arms. “What happened to you?”

Rhys gave him a weak smile and shrug and sank down to the floor of his alcove, trying to ignore the the dull pain of his torn tail fin. He was too tired to swim all the way to his pool; that was a trip for another day.

“You tore your fin too?! What the hell happened, Rhys?”

Rhys rolled his eyes at Vaughn’s scolding tone. “It’s  not a big deal,” he promised. “There was a ship and—”

“Did humans do this to you?!”

“—Gods, calm down. No, humans didn’t do this to me. I bumped my head on a rock and then the ship crashed. It sank and a piece of it cut my tail.” He gripped the broken watch tightly in his palm; Vaughn hated that he picked up human trinkets. His friend claimed that his obsession with humans as “unhealthy” and “dangerous.” Yvette, while more content to let him do his own thing, disapproved as well.

Vaughn was quiet for several seconds, staring at Rhys. “You watched a ship sink?” Rhys nodded. Vaughn didn’t respond for a couple of moments before quietly clicking, “Are they all dead?”

Rhys couldn’t look up at his friend. Instead he stared at the ground and brushed his thumb over the side of the watch. “No. Most of them died, but…I saved one. He’s in the cove. That’s where I’ve been.”

“Rhys!” he scolded. “Did he see you?” Vaughn’s clicks were sharp and tinged with anxiety. This was why he hated Rhys’s obsession; it made him do stupid things like risk revealing himself to humans just to save one. Vaughn didn't want to hear that they had all died but it was better than a human getting word back to the others and hunting them down.

“He didn't see me,” he promised with a frown. “He was unconscious the entire time. I left when he woke up.” He didn’t want to mention that he intended to go back. Vaughn was only worried about his safety, of course, but that didn’t mean Rhys was going to listen.

He slid his dark, clawed hand through his hair. “Listen, I’m tired. I’ll talk to you in the morning.” Vaughn faltered, but nodded and left his friend alone in the alcove. Rhys closed his eyes and settled into the kelp bed, trying to get some sleep. He had a long day ahead of him tomorrow.

Chapter Text

The trench was still dark when Rhys woke up from his fitful sleep. He flexed his tail slowly and winced when the torn webbing ached. The swim to the pool would be long and probably painful, but he knew he would feel better once it was done. He looked at the pocket watch that he had dropped in his sleep and placed in deeper in the alcove where a whole pile of human trinkets sat. He gave the pile a small smile before he swam out of the alcove and into the open trench.

He barely made it to the edge of the trench when he felt a hand curl around his bicep. Before he could respond he had been whipped around to face his other best friend. He clicked his tongue in a greeting. “Morning, Yvette.” He smiled a little at her, though she folded her arms and glared at him. “Uh, something wrong?”

“You saved a human. That’s what’s wrong.” Rhys’s smile faded and he rubbed the back of his neck but didn’t respond. “Where are you going?” Her tone was accusatory, as if she knew exactly what his plans were.

“My pool. I tore my fin yesterday.” His colony knew about the eridium pool since its effects weren’t the most discreet. They didn’t know where it was, and even his friends only had a vague notion of where the magical pool was found, but they knew of its existence. “Then I’m going hunting. Vaughn and I didn’t really get anything great yesterday.” Both of those statements were true and he hoped she just dropped it.

“Vaughn told me you left him in the cove. Do you plan on leaving him there?” Of course she wouldn’t just drop it. She was the responsible one who thought about the consequences. Vaughn just worried a lot, and Rhys made the bad decisions. “Or are you going to go see him again?”

“You act like we’ve actually met each other. Yvette, he doesn’t know I exist.” Rhys pursed his lips in thought. “Look, I just have to take care of this mess. Don’t tell Vaughn, please?” Her disapproving look gave him his answer. “I’ll bring you back the biggest lobster I can find. You won’t even have to share it with me. Just don’t tell him I went to see the human. Just say I went out hunting.”

Her resolve weakened at the mention of such a delicacy and she frowned at him. “Fine,” she clicked harshly. “I won’t tell him. But if you don’t come back, I’ll make sure Hugo does your death ceremony.” Rhys’s face screwed up at the threat and he nodded in agreement. He moved away from her but she caught him by his arm again and leaned in to brush her nose against his cheek affectionately. “Be careful, Rhys. Humans are dangerous. Don’t let your guard down.” Her clicks were soft and quiet now instead of the usual harshness.

Rhys nodded again. “I’ll be careful, I promise. I’ll be back soon.” She released his arm and he swam off without looking back at her.

By the time he made it out of the trench, sunlight was just starting to filter down towards the depths. The light barely reached him and he reveled in it for a few moments before he took a sharp right and swam away from his home. He angled his body slightly down, sending him on a gently sloped journey that led him farther and farther away from the trench. The light vanished entirely and he was left with only his left eye to guide him.

The seafolk were not made for the dark depths; he heard rumors of an evolved type of creature with mouths full of shark-like teeth, claws twice as long as theirs, eerie glowing eyes, and narrow, thin tails that allowed them to dodge any sort of attack.. The rumors were more of a myth than a possibility—parents used them to scare their children into behaving by threatening to send them to the darkness.

Rhys shook his head as a shiver traveled down his spine, attempting to clear his head. The stories had always put him on edge, especially since he traveled so far into the deep ocean on a semi-regular basis, but he had never seen any evidence of the monsters and that should have been enough to placate him. Still, swimming to his pool was always an unnerving experience. He always swam as fast as he could, always avoided unnecessary detours, and never touched the unfamiliar fish. Each hiss of the volcanic vents made him flinch and his gills fluttered nervously against his throat. Those stories were going to kill him one day and he’d be too far away from his pool to save himself. Then Hugo would perform his death ceremony and he couldn’t have that, so he knew he needed to focus on his objective and not think about what was possibly swimming in the darkness around him. Easy.

A vent off to his left let out a sudden squeal and his right hand flexed in unconscious preparation. The crystals that traveled along the ulna bone on the outside of his forearm glowed in the dark water but the glow soon died down once he realized that it had been a vent, not a threat. His taut muscles relaxed and he slid his flesh hand through his hair. He always felt so silly whenever his paranoia didn’t pay off, leaving him scared out of his mind for no reason. At least he was almost there.

He swam down to the black seabed and allowed his matching fingers to drag against the hard surface. The magma that flowed beneath the ground occasionally spewed out from the vents, solidifying into more of the rippling black rock and creating vast areas of lifelessness. Though his arm was much smoother than the ripples of the seabed, it was obvious that they were made of the same material. It had taken Vaughn several years to make the connection but Yvette recognized the similarities within a couple of weeks. The branching purple veins and crystals down the outside of his forearm did nothing to hide the fact that his arm was not natural.

Rhys stayed close to ground while he swam in the direction he had come to know by heart. As he drew closer to the cave, the flat seabed morphed into uneven, mountainous terrain. Some of the hills had multiple small holes in them and he was never sure what made them but he tended to steer far away from those. The gaps between the hills began to narrow and he twisted his body to the side in order to squeeze through the passageway. His chest tightened with the usual concern that he would get stuck, but as always, he wriggled far enough that the wall to his right gave way and he slipped into the small tunnel He had fit easily when he was a child, but now fully grown he struggled a little to make his way through the passageway.  

After a few minutes the tunnel gradually opened up to a larger cavern and he slowed to a stop when he saw the familiar violet glow of the whirlpool. He watched the bright eridium swirl in the pool and he glanced down to his injured fin. The throbbing had subsided as he swam but he didn’t want it to remain split. He pushed his hair away from his eyes once more and gradually lowered himself into the pool.

The first thing he felt was the warmth that blossomed up his tail as he sank into the pool up to his chest. When he released the edge of the pool and allowed the current to drag him in slow circles, he drifted deeper until he was completely submerged in the strange substance. His gills could not function in the eridium, but his chest never burned and he never felt the urge to panic. He always felt tranquil in his pool and this time was no different. The warmth consumed his entire body and for several moments he had full feeling in both of his arms, as if he had never lost his right arm.

Then, as quick as it had began, the warmth faded and Rhys floated to the top of the pool. He opened his eyes and his gills fluttered with relief once he was exposed to the water once more and slowly he hauled himself out of the pool. The dulled nerves of his right arm were back and he longingly flexed his black fingers and clenched his fist. He didn’t mind his replacement arm, but sometimes he mourned the loss of total sensation. Rhys glanced back at the pool, then down to the new purple line that marked where his fin had been torn. Another scar to add to the list.

His energy renewed, Rhys made his way through the tunnel once more and wriggled his way back to the dark open sea. Just as it was after each visit, his eyesight allowed him to see further in the darkness than before. He scanned the area for any signs of danger then swam back the way he had come from, though he had no intention of going home.

 It was a rather straightforward swim to the cove though he did linger in the open water as he hunted down a couple of fish. He chose ones he had seen humans catch before, not wanting to kill the human he had once saved by giving him poisonous fish. Rhys caught two fish that he knew were big enough to last the man for the night, and he kept them alive for the remainder of the journey.

It was nearly dark by the time he reached the cove and he could see the human sleeping on some abandoned fabric on the beach. Both of the fish wriggled desperately in his claws, but he was stronger than them and he kept them in his hold as he swam over towards the beach. He got as close as he could without accidentally beaching himself and looked down at the fish in his hands. Rhys faltered suddenly, frowning at the squirming fish and at the sleeping man. How was he supposed to leave them without the man getting suspicious?

Rhys backed away from the beach a few inches, uncertain of his next action. His head was just above the surface and the small waves lapped at the gills on his throat as he thought. A particularly strong wave hit him in the back of the head and an idea accompanied it. He beamed at his own brilliance and placed the fish far enough on the shore that they would not accidentally flop back into the water. He gave himself some space and hid under the surface of the water before he raised his tail above the surface and brought it back down, creating a wave that traveled far enough to douse the fish.

The man on the beach jerked awake just as Rhys sank down into the water again and he blindly groped for the gun that was usually strapped to his hip, only to stop when his fingers curled around the orange grip. Rhys watched from the opposite end of the cove as the man noticed the fish and dragged them further away from the shoreline. He stared blankly at them for several moments and Rhys wondered if he did not know how to prepare the fish, before he picked up a rock and smashed it down on the heads of the fish. The crunch echoed in the cove and Rhys winced, but the human seemed unfazed by the sound and the newly created mess.

Rhys watched him root around for a second rock, then scrape at the bloodstained rock with the new rock. It was the same way the seafolk created their tools, though they mainly used their claws for when dealing with food. Still, he watched with rapt attention as the man sharpened the rock and started scraping off the scales. The man worked with only a hint of clumsiness, though his mask showed no sign of frustration. He could see the way it shifted with his facial expressions and Rhys swam a little closer to marvel at his face a little bit better.

The human continued to work on the fish that Rhys had brought until he had them both skinned and washed. He hesitated after that, and got up from where he had been sitting to look around the beach. Rhys swam even closer to the beach to watch him curiously. The man finally pulled the pistol from his hip and Rhys immediately shrank back. He knew what a gun was; Vaughn’s parents taught him about the weapons of destruction when he was old enough to leave the trench. Humans were naturally to be feared, but guns were an actual sign of danger. Though he’d never seen a red gun before.

The man placed the fish on an old wooden plank, got up to his feet and walked away from it. He stopped halfway across the beach, raised his gun, and fired. Rhys ducked.

He heard the muffled gunshot from underwater despite having his hands clamped over his ears. He waited several long seconds before carefully poking his head back above the surface. The plank was on fire and the human had moved closer to it once more, but he was staring out towards the water. The human didn’t lift his gun, only stared, but Rhys submerged himself once again and swam out of the cove. He couldn’t get caught. Yvette and Vaughn would kill him if the human saw him.

But they couldn’t stop him from visiting him again. And again. And again.

Rhys spent countless hours over the next week watching the human from afar after bringing him food. Sometimes, when the man slept, he pulled himself onto the edge of the beach and admired his face up close. He always slipped back into the water whenever he twitched, but so far he had yet to be caught. He knew he was pushing his luck, but there was no way he could stop. The man was so close and Rhys could sit next to him to stare and admire him all he wanted.

He spent the time he wasn’t at the cove hunting for more lobsters as Yvette’s payment for not ratting him out and avoiding Vaughn out of guilt. He felt awful for lying to him, and by the sixth day he realized Vaughn probably knew what he was doing, regardless of Yvette’s testimony of his innocence, which made everything worse. Vaughn was basically his brother and he had spent a whole week lying to him. He needed to make up for it somehow. Maybe the humans had something that Vaughn could use.

After fulfilling his regular scavenging duties, Rhys scooped his collection of mussels out of his kelp pack and handed them to Yvette, who scowled at him as he grinned apologetically at her, and swam off. By the time he time he made it to the wreckage of the ship, it was late in the day and he was thankful that his eye had recently been rejuvenated. Rhys went through the hole in the hull first, doing his best to avoid looking at the bloated corpses that were trapped inside the ship where they had died. Some were missing bits and pieces, and he didn’t want to think about where they had gone. It had been quite a while since the wreck and his stomach churned at the sight of rotting, half-eaten corpses. No living creature deserved that fate. Not even humans.

He swam away from the grey bodies when the sight of them became too much and ducked through a pair of doors into a room underneath where he had found the human. When his sight adjusted to the dim room, he froze and his eyes widened. There were treasures everywhere. He leisurely swished his tail once and gingerly touched the box that bumped into his chest. He pushed it aside once he realized he couldn’t open it and swam further into the office. He picked at everything that floated and inspected the things that didn’t. Some things he recognized from his own collection, such as the blocky black device. This one seemed functional though, and he spent a couple of minutes playing with the knobs and watching the screen faintly light up. He released it once the screen faded out and wouldn’t turn back on, then continued his exploration.

While the desk was bolted to the floor, most of its contents were floating against the ceiling. He swam up and immediately a small object caught his eye. It was small enough that his palm encompassed it and it looked similar to the shape of his ear. For a moment he forgot about his goal to find Vaughn a gift and eagerly put the earpiece into his bag. The kelp leaves were sewn tightly together and he wasn’t afraid of losing it. His chest now thrumming with excitement, he continued his search for a gift that his friend would appreciate and that could possibly be used to convince him to forgive Rhys for lying.

His search seemed helpless, though. As much as Rhys found human treasures fascinating, Vaughn did not feel the same way. Rhys’s collection made him nervous, always afraid that something would go wrong and bring humans to kill them all. Rhys sifted through the entire office before he gave up and swam to a different part of the ship.

Below the deck he found a hallway of doors, but only three of them were open. The first two had nothing, but in the third he found a pair of glasses floating next to a mostly intact (but still disgusting) body. He grabbed them and quickly dashed out of the room to inspect the new object. He looked them over in his hands and carefully touched the curved glass with the pads of his fingers, then tugged experimentally on the band that was attached to the legs. He had no idea what it was for, but it seemed completely harmless. Maybe Vaughn could use the band to tie his favorite blade to his side while they hunted. Rhys put the pair of glasses into his pack and left the wreckage, frowning once he realized how dark it was. He had forgotten to get food for the human.

Rhys swam away from the wrecked ship and swiped a crab from the seabed before picking up speed and heading directly for the cove. Hopefully the human was still asleep and he could drop off the crab and go home. He was more interested in getting the present to Vaughn than he was interested in watching the human sleep for the seventh day in a row.

He kept low to the ground as he glided through the now painstakingly familiar waters. He stopped once he slipped through the entrance and poked his head over the water to check to see if the human was sleeping, but once his eyes adjusted to the dim cove he realized that the beach was empty. Panic surged in his chest and he dove back down to dart to the beach. He breached the surface once he reached the sand and looked around for the human he had cared for over the past week. Away from the water, he could make out his human’s clothes, haphazardly tossed into a pile. There was no man in sight.

Rhys’s heart thumped in his ears and he pulled himself a little further onto the sand to get a closer look, hoping for some sort of clue as to what happened to his human. His gills undulated against his throat in search of water but he didn’t slide back into the water. Where was his human?

There was a loud sound of splashing water to his right and he barely had the time to turn his head before he was knocked onto his back and a foot pressed down against his chest. Above him grinned his human, dripping wet and bare down to a thin pair of yellow shorts that clung to his thighs and groin.

Rhys’s gaze was brought back up to the man’s masked face by the sound of his voice, boisterous but rough from disuse, speaking in a language he couldn’t understand though Rhys could recognize the amusement in his tone. “Gotcha, kiddo.” His mismatched eyes, a feature that Rhys thought was unique to himself, traveled down to the black arm and the crystals that glowed with a familiar substance. “Well it looks like you’re just full of surprises, aren't you?” He laughed then, and Rhys felt his chest tighten for reasons other than fear.

His friends were going to kill him.

Chapter Text

Rhys watched the man with both eyes wide. The foot was still pressing down on his chest and he wriggled his tail experimentally, relieved when it moved without hinderance. At least he still had full control over that. He didn’t struggle though, momentarily playing the harmless card. It definitely wasn’t that he was still too stunned to do anything about his current situation.

The man folded his arms and stared down at Rhys. “You gonna say anything, kid?” Rhys blinked with a lack of comprehension and the human rolled his eyes. That meant he was frustrated, if the humans had the same body language that the seafolk did. He bent down and pulled the pack off of Rhys’s shoulder, ignoring the way the merman reached up for it in protest. The man looked over it with an expression of surprised interest, then stuck his hand inside and immediately hissed when something pinched his finger. He flung the crab to the side and went digging through the bag again, though this time he gave it a precursory inspection before sticking his hand in it.

He raised an eyebrow at the glasses that he pulled out, and Rhys couldn’t help but notice that his mask moved fluidly, like a face should. If it wasn’t for the discrepancy in color and the metal clasps, Rhys would have never assumed it was a mask. He knew that not all humans had masks, so was his human unique? Why did he wear the mask? What was underneath it? These were questions he wanted answers to.

His human’s eyes lit up when he pulled out the ear-shaped device Rhys had found earlier and he bent down so that his knee was on Rhys’s chest and he was hunched over him. Rhys was mesmerized by the sight of his chest, which was still dripping from lying in wait. How had he not noticed the hair on his chest before? His human brushed Rhys’s hair away from his ear before he fit the device into his ear. Rhys flinched and yelped when a small shock shot through his skull, but then he heard someone speaking to him.

“Hey, kiddo. Can you hear me?” Rhys looked up at his human and the man huffed irritably. “Crap. Stupid ECHOcomms are supposed to be waterproof.”

“I-I can hear you,” Rhys clicked, but the man shook his head.

“No, no. It’s a one way translator. You can understand what I’m saying but I can’t understand you. I speak, you listen.” He stood up and grinned down at Rhys. “Now then, my name’s Jack.” He pushed his own soaked hair back away from his forehead and Rhys’s head grew foggy at the sight. He didn’t think Jack was that handsome, and for a moment he was worried about his reaction to a simple sight when his vision fuzzed around the edges and his gills stuck to his throat before flapping desperately. As panic welled up in his throat, he rocked his hips once, twice, and then managed to lifted the bulk of his tail enough to slam it into Jack’s back. The human stumbled forward and once Rhys was free he hauled himself back into the water. He sank underneath the surface and the water rushed through his gills, causing them to flutter with relief. He sank down into the rough sand and let his body do its job. The fogginess in his brain began to fade and he relaxed as his lungs stopped burning.

He stayed like that until he felt better, then resurfaced and turned to face the beach. Jack was scowling at him and he still had sand clinging to part of his mask. “Y’know, if I hadn’t remembered that you couldn’t breathe, I would have shot you after that little stunt.” Rhys paled considerably and Jack ignored his fear as he waded back into the water until he reached Rhys.

Rhys didn’t think to swim away before Jack snatched his right arm out of the water. “Though this is interesting. I didn’t know eridium could fuse with a body like this.” He was marveling not at the rock, but at the small patterns of flowing eridium. His eyes had a strange glint to them that was completely unfamiliar to Rhys, but he instinctively felt nervous at the sight of it. “So is this really your arm? Can you move on your own?” His fingers trailed over the branches of eridium and then down to the crystals that grew on the outside of his forearm. Rhys had enough sense to jerk his arm out of Jack’s grasp before anything happened, clutching his own wrist protectively. That answered one question and Jack asked another. “Has it always been like that?”

Rhys thought back to the attack all those years ago and shuddered at the memory of smelling his own blood staining the water, of feeling all of the nerves in his shoulder light up with agony. Rhys could vividly remember sinking down to the rough sea floor next to his father’s tailless torso. Everything after that was fuzzy, but there were bits and pieces he could recall of scrambling into a small tunnel and tumbling into the whirlpool that he was too weak to fight against. When he woke up, he had a new arm and he could see out of his left eye for the first time in his life. He couldn’t recall what had attacked them, but he assumed it was a shark.

He shook his head mutely and Jack grunted.  “Where did you get the eridium?”

Rhys looked up at Jack and his face must have expressed his confusion because Jack motioned to his arm. “The purple stuff. Who gave it to you?”

The merman frowned and shook his head again. He couldn’t explain the complexities behind the pool, nor did he want to. The pool was his and his only. He wasn’t going to share any details about with a human, even if it was his human. Not that he could if he wanted to, since he was stuck with nodding or shaking his head as answers.

Jack made a frustrated noise. “Nobody gave it to you? So, what? You just found it?” When Rhys nodded, he narrowed his eyes. He didn’t say anything for several seconds and Rhys nervously sank down into the water under his intense gaze. His own eyes flickered up to the mask, his left eye doing most of the work as the cove dimmed substantially.

Eventually Jack sighed and moved back so he could sit in the sand. “All right, whatever.” He waved his hand dismissively and Rhys lifted his head once he recognized that Jack wasn’t angry. “So you got a name?”

Rhys clicked his name, but faltered at the arched brow Jack gave him in response. He made the sound slower and Jack frowned. “That really doesn’t help but let’s try this.” After Rhys repeated himself again, Jack clumsily tried to copy the sound. “Rrr…ee…sss?” Rhys brightened and Jack tried again. “Rhys.” The merman nodded eagerly, beaming. It certainly wasn’t perfect, but it worked. Jack whistled. “Man, your language sounds nothing like mine,” he chuckled. Rhys cocked his head and studied Jack curiously for a moment before he reached up and clumsily pulled the earpiece out. Jack frowned and moved to stop him. “What are you doing?” he asked,  reaching for the earpiece to put it back in. “What the hell, kiddo?” Rhys held it away from the man and started to mimic the sounds.

Though the syllables changed in pitch and were a little harsher than they were supposed to be, he managed to force out a coherent sentence: “Wahh…ttt… th…the… he…hell…” he said slowly. Jack stopped where he was halfway in the water and squinted at him. Then, he started to laugh. Rhys smiled a little, taking that as a good sign. He watched Jack’s shoulders tremble and the way his eyes scrunched up as he held his sides.

Eventually Jack stopped cackling and sighed quietly. “Come here, kiddo.” It wasn't until he held out his hand that Rhys handed over the earpiece, allowing Jack to put it back in his ear. “You’re weird. But I like you, Rhysie. And it’s nice to have someone to talk to after being stuck on this stupid island for days.” He looked down at the merman and watched the eridium iris glow in the darkness. “So you’re the one who has been leaving food?” Rhys nodded. “And you’re the one who brought me here in the first place?” Another nod. “...Was there anyone else left?” At that, the merman sank down into the water a little more and shook his head. Jack frowned and Rhys bowed his head. “Not your fault, kiddo,” he muttered, arms folded in front of his chest.

Rhys felt his own stomach rumble and he looked back towards the entrance. He needed to go home. He hated staying out really late, especially since he hadn’t eaten since that morning. He looked to Jack and motioned towards the entrance to the cove, then pushed away from him. He had no idea how to express that he needed to leave.

Jack nodded and grabbed the pouch he had swiped from the merman earlier, tossing it to him with all of the contents still inside. “Yeah, go ahead.” Rhys caught his bag and slipped the strap over his shoulder before he started towards the entrance. “Wait.” The merman stopped and looked over his shoulder. “Are you coming back tomorrow?” He smiled and nodded, then waved at Jack before he disappeared underneath the surface.

After spending some time catching his dinner, it was late when he finally made it back to the trench and everyone was asleep. Rhys couldn’t bring himself to go wake Vaughn up just for a present, so he swam to his home, placed his pack gingerly to the side, and settled in the kelp bed. After eating dinner and tossing the bones away, he pulled out his earpiece and looked it over in his hand. It looked so simple and small, but it could translate what Jack said to him. If Jack had one, could they talk to each other? He had so many questioned he wanted to ask Jack, both about himself and about humans. He could finally learn about them instead of just staring at their treasures.

He sat up suddenly and shifted over to his collection. He pulled out the watch he had taken that first evening and put it in his pouch; maybe Jack would tell him more about it tomorrow. He put the earpiece back in the pouch and made sure everything was secure. Satisfied, he settled back in his bed and tried to fall asleep.

It must have been his nerves that woke him up before morning the next day. He still felt exhausted and yearned to go back to sleep, but he knew he needed to get up soon. Vaughn would likely be going out for patrol soon and he needed to catch him before then so he could apologize as soon as possible. The quicker Vaughn forgave him, the faster he could go out and see Jack again. It seemed counter-intuitive to want to apologize to his friend and then go see the very reason his friend was upset, but Vaughn didn’t have to know that Jack now knew of his existence. Or, more accurately, confirmed his existence since he had been hiding in order to catch Rhys.

Vaughn didn’t have to know about that part, though.

Rhys grabbed his pouch and tossed it over his shoulder before swimming out of his alcove. It was still rather dark outside, but the light would soon reach the trench. He went looking for his friend near the lip of the trench, refraining from calling out his name. He found Vaughn readying himself for patrol and the bigger merman clicked his name. Vaughn jumped and spun around, scowling when he saw it was Rhys. That was honestly not the reaction Rhys had been expecting, and he suddenly felt awkward in front of his best friend. “Uh, hi,” he started. Vaughn folded his arms and Rhys scratched the back of his neck. “I’m…really sorry about being gone so much lately. And avoiding you. And getting Yvette to lie about where I was.” His gills fluttered against his throat nervously when Vaughn didn’t respond. “I’ve, uh, brought you something.” He pulled the pair of glasses out of his bag and held them out. “I thought maybe you could use the string to tie your knife to your side with your spear. I’m not sure about the rest of it, but it seems harmless.”

Vaughn looked at the outstretched peace offering and shook his head. “Bro, I know you like humans a lot. But you can’t go see him every day. You’re gonna get caught.” Rhys held his tongue. “You’re basically my brother, and my only brother at that.” He had four sisters and Rhys had been a wonderful break from the madness. “I don’t want this human hurting, or worse, killing you because you want to get close to him.” Vaughn took the gift sullenly and looked at the band that connected the arms of the glasses. “Thanks, though. I’ll see if they work.” As much as he hated humans inventions, this seemed useful, and Rhys smiled at the acceptance, even if it wasn’t the overwhelming positivity that he had expected. “I need to get going. Hugo will have my tail if I’m late. He’s been in a bad mood all week and I think he’s ready to lose it.” The short merman shook his head and gave Rhys a tiny smile. “See you tonight? We can eat dinner together.”

Rhys nodded. “Yeah, that sounds awesome. I’ll see you when the sun goes down. We can meet at my place.” It worked out since his was in the middle whereas their alcoves were designated to separate edges of the trench. “See if Yvette can join us. It’s been a long time since all three of us got together.” Vaughn clicked in agreement, and Rhys watched him leave. Without the sunlight, his green scales didn’t glimmer, and yet Rhys was still jealous of their color. Black was dull and he hated how pronounced the purple scars were, though reasonably he knew they would show up against any scale color. He shook himself from his thoughts and dove down towards the bottom of the trench, swimming along the floor until he knew he was a reasonable distance from Vaughn and he could head towards the surface. The last thing he needed right now was for his friend to see him swimming in the direction of the cove.

As always, he grabbed fish on the way to the cove. This time, though, he gathered eight fish (stuffing some in his bag) instead of the usual four. It took him a little longer than usual to maneuver his way through the rocky waters with his arms full of fish and the sun had warmed the water considerably by the time he swam up to the beach. He dropped the fish on the beach and Jack awoke to the sound of Rhys’s tail splashing in the shallow water. He was clothed now, and Rhys tried to ignore the niggle of disappointment at the sight. The seafolk had no concept of nudity, but it was a shame that Jack was hiding underneath all of those layers.

Jack mumbled a good morning, and Rhys reached into his pouch once he realized he couldn’t understand what he was saying. His human yawned and stretched his arms, then crawled towards the merman. “Here, let me do it so you don’t hurt yourself.” He wiped the excess water off the comm and once again pushed Rhys’s hair away from his ear so he could fit the comm inside. Again, Rhys winced at the shock, but looked at Jack expectantly. “Can you understand me, kitten?” The merman nodded. “Good.”

The man looked at the pile of fish. “Now, what’s all the fish for? Looks like you’re trying to start a family.” The poorly made joke was lost on him and Jack waved it off with a grunt. Rhys pushed the fish in his direction and Jack raised an eyebrow. “They’re for me? All of them?” Rhys started to nod, but then pulled the two from his bag closer to his person, leaving him with six. “I can’t eat all of these for breakfast, you know.” Rhys’s cheeks flushed pink, he shook his head and gesticulated vaguely, attempting to convey a message that Jack’s expression said he wasn’t getting. “Yeeaahh, that’s not working, kiddo.” Rhys knew that humans couldn’t eat old fish, even if it was just a couple of hours, and he wished he had thought about a human’s dietary limitations when he was hunting. It wasn’t a huge deal; Rhys could always eat them. “But nice effort.” The small praise was enough to visibly boost the merman’s mood and Jack sat near the edge of the water.

“So can you stay a while?” Rhys nodded. “Then what do you want to do?” Now the merman paused, considering both what his answer would be and how to convey it. After two minutes, Jack grew bored and made his own suggestion. “Want to hear about what the rest of the world is like?” He laughed when Rhys’s eyes grew comically wide and the merman bobbed his head in utter excitement. Why wouldn’t he want to hear about the world he couldn’t see? Sure, Jack had never traveled to the depths of the ocean (or at least he doubted he had) but Rhys could do that; hearing about a human’s perspective was more than he could have dreamed of. “All right, don’t pop a vessel, kiddo. Let’s see…what would be a good story to tell you?” The man tapped his chin thoughtfully with his fingers as Rhys virtually wriggled in the rough sand with anticipation. He couldn’t verbally complain about the way Jack seemed to drag on the mental selection process, but he did make several angry clicks that only resulted in smirks and chuckles.

Finally, after Rhys had to duck down and wet his gills, Jack relented. “Okay, okay. I’ll tell you a story of me being a badass.” He smirked and already the merman looked mesmerized. “So this was right after I got my ship and I had just taken off with my first crew. It had barely been a week when we came across this huge frickin’ thresher and it’s stupid babies. My first mate starts firing at it and so does the rest of the crew. I realize that pistols aren’t gonna do shit to it, so I take it upon myself to go find the biggest, baddest gun we have stored below deck. I found an awesome incendiary rocket launcher and…” A blank look had crossed Rhys’s face and Jack’s story came to a pause. “Do you even know what a rocket launcher is?” Rhys shook his head and Jack sat there for a moment to think of a way to describe it. “It shoots big fiery explosions,” he said. The merman still seemed lost, and he huffed. “You know how the volcanoes erupt sometimes and the hot liquid that burns everything?” Finally, he got a nod of understanding. “It’s a gun that shoots smaller eruptions like that.” Heterochromatic eyes widened at the sudden comprehension and Rhys’s claws dug into the sand anxiously. Jack took that as a sign to continue his story.

“Anyway, I carry it back up onto the deck and I can see they’ve picked off most of the tadpoles, but the big one is still alive and my crew’s getting tired. So, being the good captain that I am, I fired the rocket launcher and then BAM!” Jack moved his hands as he talked, gesturing animatedly throughout the story. Rhys sat halfway on the beach, his tail resting in the water, watching him with rapt attention and a hint of awe on his face. Jack grinned down at him. “I blasted a massive hole straight through the middle of the thresher! Blood goes everywhere, it shrieks so loudly it nearly made me go deaf, then goes crashing back down into the water. And then we were all safe to continue our journey. Pretty cool, huh?” Rhys nodded in agreement and pushed his hair back away from his face. “Want to hear another one?” Rhys once again nodded enthusiastically, only stopping once he had to dip his gills back in the water. “Want to hear about how I single-handedly took down an entire town of bandits?”

 The rest of Rhys’s day was spent listening to Jack’s tales of his badassery and all of the cool things he had done over the years. The merman hung on his every word, even when Jack had to stop and explain certain concepts to him. The sun had set long before by the time Jack had to stop, citing that his voice was too sore to continue his awesome tales. He asked Rhys for some food, and within minutes Rhys had brought him two fish.

“I’ll tell you more tomorrow,” the man promised as he took the fish and set them aside to prepare. “It’s getting late, so you should probably go back to wherever it is you go at night.” Jack popped his back with a grunt, then hauled himself up to his feet. “Later, kiddo.”

Rhys wanted to protest, wanted to stay longer, but then he fully processed Jack’s words. It’s getting late. He had completely forgotten about eating with Vaughn and Yvette. In a sudden flurry of panic, Rhys pushed himself off of the beach and back into the water, kicking his tail as hard as he could as he tried to swim as fast as his body could go. In his head he knew that he had probably already missed them, but maybe it wasn’t too late.

It was. By the time he reached his alcove, Yvette had left and Vaughn was picking at the bones of what was left. He looked up at Rhys as the bigger merman dashed over to him, clearly tired from racing all the way to the trench, and he shook his head.

“Vaughn, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how late it was.” Rhys’s tone was pleading. The way his friend looked, his face full of disappointment and hurt, made Rhys’s already aching chest burn with guilt. “I just got carried away while hunting, and I was far away and—”

“Stop.” Vaughn cut him off and Rhys immediately fell silent. “Just…stop.  We’re like brothers and you still keep lying to me.” He looked up at the taller merman and Rhys didn’t need an enhanced eye to see the betrayal in his expression and tears in his eyes. “Is he really worth it? Is this human really worth this?” Vaughn shook his head and  pushed himself off of the rock floor. Rhys reached out for his wrist, but Vaughn jerked his arm away. “Don’t.” He glanced up at Rhys. “And take that thing out of your ear before someone sees.” Rhys immediately reached up and pulled the ECHOcomm out of his ear, though Vaughn was already leaving.

He looked at the pile of treasures he had collected and ran his hand through his hair, a whine building up in his throat. Vaughn was right. Was Jack really worth losing the only family he had left?

As he sullenly tried to lie down and sleep, he did his best to ignore the part of him that said yes.

Chapter Text

Rhys didn’t have the courage in him to seek out his friends the next day. Instead, he was ready to go before sunlight even reached the trench, having given up on attempting to sleep more, and he took a few moments to look over his collection once more before he left his alcove. He cradled his bag close to his chest, the precious ECHOcomm tucked away inside. He still had the watch as well, even if that was more for his own comfort than anything, a reminder of what he had done. Though he supposed that wasn’t such a comfort anymore. Not with the way Vaughn had looked at him. Was he doing the right thing?

He didn’t want to have to pick between Jack and his friends, but deep down he knew it would likely come to that. For now, he wanted to only focus on the present, and the present included making sure his human had food to eat and someone to talk to. Hopefully, Jack had some stories to tell to let him forget his current troubles. Because if Jack was anything, it was distracting. He shook his head to clear his thoughts and swam towards the top of the trench. With practiced ease, he slipped away from the sleeping colony and disappeared in the approaching morning light.

Even though Rhys took his time making his way over to the cove, stopping to watch a crab attempt to catch a minnow, and even pausing to pick up an interestingly shaped rock, Jack was still asleep when he reached the beach. Rhys pulled himself onto the beach and laid out the fish he had brought. He pulled the ECHOcomm from his bag and tried to fit it into his ear, wincing despite bracing himself for the shock. With the translator settled in his ear, he dug through his bag again, taking out what he had brought from his collection. He laid out four items that he wanted to learn more about.

When he finished, he took a brief second to wet his gills and then pulled himself further onto the beach. Reaching Jack was always a struggle, but the man was adamant that Rhys no longer splashed him awake, so he had no other choice. The merman stretched himself out and grabbed Jack’s ankle, tugging on his foot gently. When Jack merely twitched, Rhys frowned and tugged harder. Jack grunted and kicked his arm in response, still asleep. Rhys’s frown turned into a scowl and he prodded the soft sole of Jack’s bare foot with an extended claw as he clicked impatiently.

Jack finally roused himself and jerked his foot away from Rhys’s sharp talons. “Watch the claws there, kiddo,” he grumbled, punctuating it with a yawn.

“It’s really early. Why are you here?” He sounded more irritated than happy, but Rhys wasn’t really concerned over that.

Jack sat up and grimaced as he ran a hand through his stiff, rough hair. Rhys pushed himself back towards the water and held out the fish to the man. “Thanks,” he grunted, taking them aside to prepare. Though before he could move away, Rhys was pushing more things in his direction. Jack turned to push them back, ready to tell him that he only wanted to eat the fish, when he realized what he was being shown.

The man picked up the two necklaces from the row and looked over the jewels in surprise. “Where did you get these? They weren’t on my ship.” Rhys stared at him and Jack rolled his eyes. “Right. Yes or no questions only.” He huffed. “Too bad. These are pretty valuable and I’d love to know where you got ‘em.”

He put them aside and grabbed the shield. He took one look at the logo on the side and laughed. “A Pirate shield? You don’t see many of these anymore, for good reason. Kind of hard to take advantage of close combat on the ocean.”

He turned it over. “Though this one seems to be pretty top-notch…” He attempted to pull off the back panel in order to see if its mechanisms were still functional, but he couldn’t open it up without tools. He dropped it next to the jewelry and Rhys reached out to inspect it as well, even though he had probably spent several hours looking it over already.

The last item was Jack’s pocket watch, and he raised an eyebrow at it. “Why do you have this?” he asked, suspicious. Rhys didn’t answer at first, distracted by the shield, and Jack snatched it from his hands.

“Why do you have this?” the man repeated sternly, pointing to the watch. Rhys shied away and gave him an awkward smile, though Jack didn’t look impressed.

Hesitantly, Rhys pointed out to the water and mimicked a throwing motion. He didn’t understand why Jack suddenly looked angry with him and he had no way to ask him about it. When Jack only folded his arms at the gesturing, he paused to think. How else could he explain why he had it? After a brief moment, he pulled the translator from his ear and held it out to Jack. His human took it skeptically, but fit it inside his ear.

Rhys waited a couple of seconds before he rushed out a response. “When I brought you here after your ship crashed, I got back in the water and then something happened where you started glowing and floating and then when you woke up you grabbed that and threw it into the water and…” he paused before quietly finishing, “…and I caught it to take home. It’s not like I did it simply to take your stuff,” he promised quickly.

“I thought you didn’t want it anymore. You see, I like human things. I collect them. That’s why I have all these things. I’ve collected them since Vaughn’s family took me in. Humans come here to sleep at night and I take what they leave behind.” Not that he always waited for them to leave.

He picked up the shield as an example. “I found this at another crash. I hit a button and it made a bright light and then it went away. I haven’t gotten it to do anything else, though.” His train of thought was momentarily derailed by the memory and Jack rolled his eyes, not bothering to say anything else as he crawled over to the merman and worked the ECHOcomm back into Rhys’s ear.

Rhys jumped, startled, when suddenly there was a sharp shock traveling through his ear canal. He dropped the shield and instinctively slapped his hand over the smarting ear, though he felt the familiar device against his palm.

Jack sat back and smirked at him, amused. “You ramble a lot. A simple explanation would have worked. But if you talk like that all the time, I’m glad you’re the one wearing the ECHOcomm and not me,” he taunted. Rhys frowned at that but didn’t try to say anything. Jack was undeterred and he grinned as he moved back over to his fish.

“So, you took my watch that doesn’t even work anymore, and apparently you take other broken tech too. What for? Just to stare at it?” Rhys nodded and Jack rolled his eyes again, harder this time. “That’s so boring. I don’t want to even think about all the dull, broken stuff you’ve picked up.” He returned to his fish and sliced the heads off with the sharpened rock that he had been using for days now.

Jack was silent for several minutes as he focused on descaling the fish, speaking again once he was ready to cut them up and place them on his makeshift spit.

“After you left last night, I started thinking.” Rhys watched him curiously from the water where he had submerged his gills. “I can’t be stuck on this beach forever. I need to move around and crap. And I’d like to catch my own food for once.”

He fired a shot to light up the spit and Rhys was too confused by his statement to duck down like he usually did. Jack didn’t seem to notice.

“But I have no ship of my own anymore, so I had to think of a plan. Here’s what I came up with: the summer fishing season should have just started and that means soon boats will be all over the place. I doubt anyone will let a stranger hitch a ride back to civilization out of the goodness of their hearts—” he snorted at the very thought, “—so I was thinkin’ you help me swipe one. These morons breed like crazy and so one or two dead ones won’t be that big of a deal. It shouldn’t be too hard to get one, yeah? Just a small wooden one to get us to the nearest town. Hell, you could probably knock one over and take it while they flail around in the water like an idiot,” he suggested with a quiet chuckle.

“So what do you think?”

Rhys took a couple of minutes to think over what Jack had said. It made sense that Jack would be antsy after being stuck on the beach for so long. It wasn’t that large and the rock walls blocked out most sunlight. And if Jack wanted to do his own hunting, then Rhys didn’t feel like it was right of him to stop him. And he didn’t say anything about leaving, so maybe he intended to stick around a while longer? He kept saying how much he liked talking to Rhys, so maybe he intended to stay nearby.

The merman removed the ECHOcomm before handing it over to Jack again. He watched Jack’s face for any sign of the usual shock as an affirmation that he could be understood.

“Are you gonna stay here with me, though?” Something indecipherable crossed Jack’s face but he nodded. “Promise?” Rhys pushed. His human said something Rhys couldn’t understand, but it sounded sincere and the merman perked up a little,; he had no reason to worry.

He motioned for Jack to come closer. When his human complied, Rhys leaned forward and affectionately brushed his nose against the synthetic skin of his mask. Jack tensed up as Rhys faintly nuzzled his cheek, pleased by the promise. He pulled away and Jack stared at him in shock and confusion.

“Give me a couple of days and I’ll bring you a boat. But I should start looking for fishing spots now.” He held his hand out for the ECHOcomm, which Jack hesitantly returned. Rhys beamed up at the human, collected his treasures back in his bag, and slipped into the water.

He left the cove with a smile on his face, trying to ignore the tight ball of anxiety in the pit of his stomach. Jack promised he wouldn’t leave, and Rhys trusted him. So why did he feel so anxious about getting him a boat? Jack wouldn’t lie to him. He shook his head with a frown as he glided just above the rocky ledges. He knew Jack liked him and wanted to stay with him. Getting him a boat did not mean that he was going to leave.

Rhys had almost reached the end of the ledges when a sudden force slammed him down onto the rough ledge. It was the one Jack’s ship had crashed into, if the sharp edges cutting into Rhys’s stomach were any indication. His head was nearly hanging off the edge and he tried to turn enough to see who was above him to no avail. The merman hissed and struggled underneath whoever was holding him down, rubbing his cheek raw against the edge of the rock.

A voice clicked in his ear, low and chiding. “Rhys, Rhys, Rhys. What have you done?”

His blood ran cold at the familiar voice and his struggles increased. “Get off of me, Hugo! I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

His tail flexed furiously and he tried to slam it against the other male without moving his stomach too much. The sharp rock was pressed precariously against his flesh and any drawn blood could attract sharks.

“I saw you leave this morning. You’ve been skirting your duties for days and Yvette has been strangely compliant with taking your place in the territory patrols.” He pressed Rhys’s caught rock arm further up his back, drawing a whine of pain from the thinner male.

His flesh arm hung over the edge and he tried to carefully grope around for a loose rock. “So I followed you all the way here. And I saw you in the cove. With a human.” Rhys’s eyes widened and his struggles began to fade as he realized what was happening.

“You touched him like you would family … or a mate. And I doubt you see him as family.” He could practically hear Hugo grinning above him. “What’s the council going to say when they hear that you, the ambitious outsider found in the Darkness, have revealed yourself to a human? You might not even get to say goodbye to your little friends.”

Rhys’s fingers had curled around a loose piece of rock underneath the ledge and he tugged at it as subtly as he dared. “Fuck you, Hugo. It’s your word against mine and everyone knows you already hate me. Why should they listen to you?”

The shard of stone broke off and he gripped it tight in his hand. The sharp edge of the ledge had lodged itself against the fat of his stomach and while he knew that any sudden movement would surely cause it to rip through him, he didn’t have a choice.

“Even the little hatchlings know you’re obsessed with humans. Is it really that hard to believe you’d approach one?”

Rhys grunted and hissed. “You need evidence, you meathead.” He shifted both of his arms at the same time to hide the movement of his flesh arm.

“You think I don’t have evidence? What about this?” He loosened his grip on Rhys to go through the bag and pull out the ECHOcomm. “I think this is pretty compelling evidence. And what about all those silly ‘treasures’ you keep in your alcove? Everything you’ve ever done lends to my favor for this.”

Rhys flexed his tail and curled his fin, testing his movement. It was just like when Jack held him down, kind of. But he could get out of this. This was why he and Vaughn wrestled when they were younger: so they could protect themselves.

“What do you get out of this, Hugo? They’ll never let a bottom dweller like you be on the council.” Hugo tightened his grip on Rhys’s arm, but the shift in weight on his back was beneficial. He tested the range of motion of his tail again—not enough room.

“Your father wouldn’t even make you the commander of the patrols.” He winced as Hugo tried to push his arm further up between his shoulders. “Face it. You’ll always be a nobody.” Another shift. Just a little more. “You’ll always be the runt.”

Hugo growled and slammed Rhys’s head against the rock that he was pinned to, releasing his arm in the process. Rhys took his chance and his tail, slimmer and longer than average, surged up through the water. It crashed into Hugo’s side and knocked him off balance. He rolled over, ignoring the searing pain from the gash that the rock tore through his stomach and the way his skull throbbed, and slammed the pointed side of the shard against Hugo’s skull as fast and as hard as he could.

The resounding crack echoed through the water and for a brief moment Rhys was thrown back to the night he watched Jack smash the heads of those fish with a rock. Hugo tensed up and blood started to spill from the injury, filtering around the sides of the shard. Rhys held it there and their eyes met, though while his face was blank with awe, Hugo’s twitched with flashes of pain. He stopped floating and they both sank down onto the ledge. Rhys released his grip on the rock but it stayed embedded in his skull, even as Hugo began to convulse. Hugo’s face twisted in anger and pain and Rhys remained silent as his body stopped jerking. Finally, his gills fell still.

Several seconds passed before the reality of the situation sunk in. Rhys whined quietly in panic and his flesh hand ran through his hair as his right arm hugged his aching stomach.

“What did I do?” he asked himself, his clicks wavering. He couldn’t leave him here. The right thing to do would be to take him back to the colony so his death ceremony could be performed, but that would mean having to explain what happened to him and why they were both so far outside of the colony’s borders. As (scarily) easy it had been to lie to Vaughn, he couldn’t lie to the whole colony, especially not the council. And what if Hugo told someone where he was going? They could point out the truth and then Rhys would be killed. What would happen to his friends, who knowingly kept his betrayal a secret?

And what would happen to Jack?

Rhys pried his ECHOcomm from Hugo’s hand and stuffed it back in his bag before he wrapped an arm around the bigger male’s waist and tried to drag him off the ledge. Each extra movement made his stomach burn and his head continued to pulse angrily. He whimpered when Hugo’s arm bumped the gash and dropped the body with a heavy thump. Moving his tail to stay afloat did nothing to ease the pain and he carefully moved around to grab Hugo by the end of his tail. He was incredibly thankful that he had visited the pool only a week prior, giving his arm enough strength to turn Hugo around and drag him off of the ledge. He let go of the body and allowed himself to sink down towards the shipwreck as well.

Once they were in the sand and Rhys didn’t have to focus so hard on keeping himself afloat, it was easy to tuck Hugo’s body down in the hollow hull with the abandoned crates. He wouldn’t float away and the bottom feeders would take care of his body long before anyone thought to search the wreckage for him. Rhys gave him one last look before he turned away and left. His stomach burned and he could see the red ribbons of blood drifting in the water as he swam. It hurt and he wanted to rest, but he couldn’t go back to the trench just yet. There would be too many questions about why he was hurt, where he had been all morning, and someone would probably ask if he had seen Hugo. So his first priority was making it to his pool and getting the gash taken care of; hopefully, the scar wouldn’t be too noticeable. But aside from that, since he was far away from any sort of seafolk, his biggest worry was attracting predators.

Even in broad daylight, he felt nervous swimming in the direction of the Darkness, especially with his injury. It slowed his pace and the blood loss forced him to take brief but frequent breaks. And once he lost the help of the sunlight, he felt almost completely defenseless. He couldn’t swim quickly and his movements were sluggish.; iIf something decided to prey on him, he wasn’t sure if he’d make it back to the trench alive.

He hoped with all of his heart that he was alone.

Rhys relaxed with a huge sense of relief once he slipped into the tunnel and allowed the pull of the water to guide his weak body to the whirlpool. The eridium was a sight for sore eyes and he sank down into it, pouch and all, with a trill of relief. He allowed the current to submerge his whole body and drag him slowly in circles. When he was forced to the surface, he felt leagues better than he had, despite the hard knot still in his gut. A quick glance down confirmed that he had a thin sliver of a purple line that stretched across his abdomen. Thankfully it wasn’t that noticeable and he hoped that he could keep it a secret for a while.

Having finally realized that he wore his bag in the pool, he quickly looked through to make sure he had everything and then tucked the bag underneath his arm. The merman wriggled his way up the tunnel and back out into the Darkness, pleased to see that his eye had been rejuvenated as well. He swam through the crack and back out into the open wasteland, only to feel something curl around his bicep.

Rhys whipped around and immediately lashed out with his right arm, the newly recharged crystals glowing bright violet as he outstretched his talons. Despite his speed, his talons connected with nothing and the creature raised its head once the immediate danger had passed. With the vision in his right eye once again replenished, he could see that he was looking at another male, this one with a gaunt, angular face and blond hair. Both of his eyes glowed brightly in the darkness and they were trained on his right arm. Rhys was too surprised by the sight of another merman to swing a second time, even though something felt off about him. Rhys kept his eyes trained on his face and arms, waiting for any sort of retaliating strike.

“Your arm. Where did you find enough eridium to make that?” He spoke in clicks, though they were rougher and sharper than what he normally heard.

Rhys raised an eyebrow. “How do you know what my arm is made of?”

“I can sense it. We all can.” The stranger looked almost hungry, and Rhys’s chest filled with unease. “Where did you find that much eridium?” he repeated.

Rhys started to slowly back away. “That’s not really any of your concern.”

The stranger looked wholly unimpressed by his sharp response, but he shook his head and grunted irritably. “Look, listen to me. You got something you want? Power? Knowledge? Companionship?” Rhys’s heart stopped for a moment and the stranger smirked.

“So I guess that answers that question. Well, if you want a wish, come back here and call for me. I’ll take you to see Her. The name’s August.”

He turned to leave but stopped when Rhys called out to him. “Wait. What do you mean ‘Her’?”

August grinned and exposed a row of needle-sharp teeth that raised the hairs on the back of Rhys’s neck. “The Witch of the Darkness. She grants wishes, but only once. So think carefully and come back soon.”

He swam off and Rhys felt cold when he saw the narrow, thin tail that swayed behind him instead of the finned tails of the seafolk.

The first half of his journey had taken most of the day, and it was late when he returned to the trench. He hesitated as he reached his own alcove, and he gave both ends of the trench a glance before turning and swimming towards Yvette’s alcove. Though Vaughn lived alone now that he was old enough, he couldn’t stand the quiet after spending so many years with his sisters, and he was rarely found in his own home.

Both Yvette and Vaughn were unsurprisingly still awake and they looked up when Rhys knocked his black fingers against the stone wall in a greeting. Both of them looked hesitant to say or doing anything and he brushed his hair back with flesh fingers.

“Hey, guys. Listen, I know I’ve been really distant lately and I’ve done some bad things.” He looked at Vaughn when he paused, his composure faltering as the seconds passed. “But this time I’ve done something really, really bad.”

Chapter Text

Rhys spent the rest of the night trying to tell his story without giving away too much about Jack. He told them of the fight, Hugo’s threats, and his death. He conveniently managed to leave out the accusation that Jack was his mate. Even after Vaughn insisted that he tell them what he and Jack discussed when they were together, he avoided the part about agreeing to get the man a boat from one of the other humans.

Yvette sat in eerie silence for the entirety of his retelling, leaving the interruptions and panicked questions to Vaughn. She didn’t say anything until Rhys had finished his story and calmed Vaughn down before he had a full-blown panic attack. Rhys was still gently patting his shoulder when she unfolded her arms from across her chest and rested them on the stone floor behind her.

“Rhys,” she began, glaring at their apprehensive faces, “this is definitely the dumbest thing you’ve ever done.”

Both Rhys and Vaughn scowled at her in exasperation. “We know that already!” Vaughn pointed out. “Out of all the stupid stuff he’s done, this is obviously the worst.”

“Thanks, bro,” Rhys muttered.

Vaughn ignored him. “We have to figure out how to fix this. As big of a jerk as Hugo was, we can’t let him go without a death ceremony. That’s not right.”

Rhys’s muscles tensed up. “We can’t do that! If we go get his body, they’ll realize that he was killed and they’ll figure out it was me!” he protested. Though, he did understand where Vaughn was coming from. Without death ceremonies, there would be no Guardians, and without Guardians, they would all die. He really didn’t want that on his conscience, but what else could they do?

“Can we perform one without the body?” he suggested meekly.

Yvette shook her head. “No, that’s not how that works and you know it. The body is necessary. And so is the presence of the colony.” She paused in thought and the males leaned in closer in anticipation. “Though, I suppose we could do a partial one.…It’s not great but it’s better than none at all. And he did try to kill you, so that could be a part of his punishment. I’ll talk to Meg and see if she can tell me what we would need for a partial ceremony.”

“Wait,” Vaughn interrupted. “You’re not going to ask her to perform it, are you? She’ll definitely tell the council about it and then it would all be for nothing.”

She glared at him. “If you’d let me finish , I would have said that I would perform it.” Rhys and Vaughn stared at her in silent surprise. “I trained with Meg for a couple of months when I was a kid, before I decided I didn’t want to do that anymore. So technically I’m allowed to do a death ceremony, and I’m sure a partial one would be within my skill level.

“Is there a vent near where you left him?” Rhys nodded. “Good. Vaughn and I will go there later and do the ceremony.” She ignored Vaughn’s look of horror.

“You need to stay far away from the colony and Hugo’s body. You’re horrible under pressure and if they question you about his death they’ll know the truth in minutes. You’ll need to find somewhere to hide until we’re done.…” Rhys visibly perked up and she frowned at him, sensing his unspoken suggestion, then pointed a finger at his chest.

“No, Rhys. Stay far away from your human and the cove. You don’t need to be anywhere near it.” He deflated and furrowed his brow in his trademark pout. “Do you understand how stupid it would be to go visit him right now? Hugo managed to follow you all the way there without you noticing. What if someone else does the same thing, but this time manages to make it back to the council? You’d be dead, Rhys. Do you understand that?”

He nodded silently and she closed her eyes for a moment. “I know you like him. But this is not the time for you to be risking your tail. Just wait until Vaughn and I finish the ceremony before you go see him again.“

Rhys nodded in understanding once more. “Thank you, Yvette. I know that I haven’t been a good friend lately but I promise I’ll make it up to you.” She scowled at him skeptically, but Rhys knew he would make things right. This wasn’t his first fuck-up, but it certainly was the biggest. He couldn’t just let that slide.

The long merman moved over to Vaughn and settled in front of his friend. “I’m sure you already know the truth about what I’ve been doing and I know you hate it, but is there anything else I can do to make you happy?” He couldn’t leave their relationship in shambles. He wanted both worlds—his friends and his human. Why did that have to be so difficult?

Vaughn’s shoulders deflated. “I just want you to be safe, Rhys. Humans are dangerous and I don’t want him to hurt you. Or for you to get yourself hurt. You’re my best friend, and my brother. I don’t want to have to live without you.” He quirked a faint smile. “Things certainly would be a lot more boring without you around.”

Rhys grinned. “What, you think life in the trench is boring?” he teased before bumping his shoulder. “It wouldn’t be so bad if you’d actually talk to Cassie instead of just pining after her. That’d give you something fun to do.” Vaughn whined and shoved him hard as Rhys cackled. Yvette rolled her eyes and shifted so her dark orange tail wouldn’t get caught underneath Rhys’s back.

“What are you so scared of?” he asked, barely rolling out of the way in time when Vaughn tried to punch his chest. “Afraid she’d want to have a nest full of girls and it’d be just like living with your sisters again?” Rhys sat up, and Vaughn’s surprisingly strong fist landed on his left bicep while he was distracted. Rhys winced despite his chuckles.

“Rhys, quit it! That’s awful and you know it!” Vaughn snapped. He scowled and folded his arms. “You keep suggesting that I mate with her and we’ve never even talked. Besides, she’s not even interested in me. She’s interested in you.” He set his jaw and leaned against the wall as Rhys stopped laughing and sat up.

“Wait. You think she likes me?” He blinked incredulously. “Is this because she’s always staring at me?”

Vaughn’s gaze fell to his tail. “It’s not just that. Everyone likes you more. Even when we were small and everyone was really concerned about my parents bringing you home, you were the better one. The more interesting one. And then we got older and you grew up to look like that and I look like this.” He gestured at himself and grunted in frustration. “Why wouldn’t she like you more?”

“Bro…you know she only stares because of my arm, right? She thinks it’s weird. A lot of people thinks it’s weird. Do you remember how the council wouldn’t even accept me as a member of the colony until I helped get rid of that giant squid, even though I’d been hunting and doing patrols for years?

“And about Cassie, I really don’t think she’s into me. I know her mom was really opposed to bringing me here, so maybe she said something to her and that’s why she stares, I don’t know. Even if she does like me, I’m definitely not interested in her.” He nudged him again, this time gentler. “You don’t have to be worried about that, I promise.”

“Listen, boys,” Yvette cut in as Vaughn started to relax a little, “I know you’re having a moment here, but it’s really late and I’m tired, so take it somewhere else.” She had never really enjoyed being a spectator to the affectionate moments they shared, so neither of them were surprised.

“Vaughn, I suggest you get some sleep too. We have a lot of work to do in the morning.” She shooed them both out of the alcove and Vaughn swam with Rhys towards the other end of the trench.

They were quiet for the majority of the swim, only speaking once they reached Rhys’s home. Vaughn spoke first as his friend slipped inside. “Hey.” Rhys stopped and turned to face him. “You’re okay, right?”

“Are you talking about what happened with Hugo? Because I don’t really think ‘okay’ is the appropriate term for how I’m feeling,” Rhys answered. “Relieved” was probably a better fit, but also inappropriate. After his brief breakdown with his friends, he realized how little he cared that he had killed someone and that concerned him.

Vaughn shook his head. “No, I mean in general. You’ve been spending a lot of time in the cove, so we don’t get to see you that much anymore. And a lot’s happened in the past couple of weeks, so I wanted to make sure you’re doing all right.”

Rhys nodded. “Yeah, I’m doing okay. A little sore from earlier, but I’m fine, really. And I’m sorry for avoiding you guys so much. It’s just…it’s so nice hearing the stories he tells. He’s been on all sorts of adventures and he’s done so many cool things.” He smiled dreamily at the memory of watching Jack wave his hands around and pantomime punching pirates in the face.

Vaughn smiled awkwardly. “Yeah, well…” He gave Rhys’s peaceful smile a concerned look. “Just don’t do anything impulsive like you usually do, okay? Try to think things through before you do anything. Goodnight, Rhys.”

Vaughn started to swim away before he stopped and turned back around. “And Rhys?” The brunet merman turned as well, watching his friend expectantly. “You…you aren’t going to leave us, right?”  

Something in Rhys’s chest tightened. “No, I’m not going to leave. I’m going to stay right here.” Vaughn seemed relieved and he gave Rhys a small wave before heading off to his own home for some rest before the sun rose. Rhys simply retreated back to the shadows and started to sift through his treasures absently, his thoughts already wandering off. If it came down to choosing between staying in the trench and going with Jack, he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to keep that promise.

Exhaustion set in his bones not long after Vaughn left, and Rhys ended up fast asleep next to his treasures, curled in on himself. When he woke, the trench was bright enough that it must have been midday. He sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes with his flesh hand to clear the grogginess from them. It took a couple of minutes for his brain to start working and he resumed going through his treasures. He picked up a piece of jewelry, a bracelet with deep blue gems set in gold, and stuffed it into his pouch alongside the necklaces. Jack had called them valuable, and Rhys assumed that he could leave one of the pieces behind once he took a boat, as an apology gift.

Once his pile was back in order, he slipped his pouch over his shoulder and left the alcove. He avoided the center of the trench where everyone was already waiting for breakfast to be distributed and instead raced straight towards the top of the trench. He cleared the lip and headed off in the direction of the kelp forest, which was where most of the humans fished early in the season. It was painted as a place of danger by the patrols, especially when they were talking to the hatchlings, and Rhys knew he would have to be very wary of getting his tail hooked. Which was easier said than done for him, considering his tail was abnormally long for a merman.

Despite needing to find an ideal spot before sundown, Rhys didn’t rush all the way to the kelp forest. He stopped to hunt and eat, taking a rest as he tore into a fish instead of swimming as he ate. He didn’t want to rush; getting a boat without being noticed was going to be difficult enough as it was and it would only be worse if he was tired by the time he reached the kelp forest. Not to mention he would have to find a place to hide it. He still wasn’t even sure how he was going to retrieve a boat. The trip was supposed to give him enough time to think of a plan.

He ended up barely managed to get half of that time to come up with something.

With the kelp forest still a good distance away, Rhys was shocked to see a small boat pass overhead and cast a shadow across his back. This was the farthest distance from the kelp forest that he had ever seen a boat, aside from Jack’s ship, and he swam up towards the surface to check it out. Few humans came out this far because of the steep mountains that poked out above the surface. Not many were willing to risk smashing into solid rock for the low chance of catching any decent fish.

He poked his head out from the water, half hidden behind a peak, and looked over at the metal rowboat. Two girls sat in it, one with a gun and the other rowing. They looked young and Rhys’s interest was caught by the white hat perched on the head of the girl who was rowing. Their foreign conversation echoed in his ears and he dug around in his bag for the ECHOcomm. After the shock, their words gained meaning.

The girl with the hat stopped rowing and stretched her arms. “I think we’re far enough out. By nightfall they should’ve given up looking for us. Hey, Sash, how much did we get?”

Sasha picked up a dark pouch and started pulling out metal coins. “We better be far enough. I’m not getting hanged over fifty caps.”

Suddenly she grinned and swiped a second bag from the floor of the boat. “Buuuttt, since we’re gonna be out here a while, I grabbed something while you were getting the money. Check this out.” She reached into the bag and pulled out a handful of brown, limp sticks.

“Oh, score! I knew those bastards were smuggling meat! What is this, cow? Whatever, as long as it’s not fish. I can’t believe you swiped some jerky. Now I don’t feel nearly as bad as I did.” The girl in the hat took one of the sticks and bit off a piece.

Sasha scoffed. “As if you felt bad at all.”

She shrugged. “You’re right. Felt like I should say it, though.” The other girl took another bite and took her time to chew before she spoke again. “Y’know, we should move soon. We’ve been here long enough and people are gonna start recognizing us. I’ve already ripped down three posters.”

Rhys quickly got lost in their conversation and he ducked back down into the water, dipping far enough down that he blended in with the shadows of the massive kelp plants. He swam over to the boat and settled underneath it. There was a hint of rocky ledge nearby and sharks didn’t come this far out, so it wouldn’t be so bad if he knocked them out of the boat. Or at least, he knew that stealing their boat wouldn’t leave them to die, and that was good enough for his conscience.

He gripped the seam of the metal plates with his talons and started to push upwards. With nothing to prop himself up on, it was nearly impossible to lift the boat out of the water so he could tip it over and he only succeeded in pushing the boat away. He dug his claws into the space around the bulkheads to keep it from drifting out of his reach, then scowled at the underside of the boat and nudged it closer to the ledge in hopes of using it as leverage. The faster he got them out of the boat, the faster he could leave.

A sharp pain shot up his spine and he yelped, immediately releasing the boat and darting away from his attacker. He turned around and frowned at the silver oar as he reached behind himself and rubbed the small of his back with a petulant scowl on his face. He carefully swam back over to the boat and tugged it again, staying on the opposite side this time. He gave the oar a wary glance, but ultimately moved all of his attention to the boat itself. He pulled it closer to the ledge and was almost there when pain blossomed across his stomach. He squeaked and his arms dropped from the boat to curl around his smarting midsection. The shade of the boat vanished from overhead and he looked up towards the surface, eyes widening when he realized that he had a gun pointed at his head.

This was very, very bad. He knew that he couldn’t outswim a bullet. He had no personal experience with weapons, but he had watched Jack shoot enough to know that he would never be able to dart out of the way. And they had already seen him, so he couldn’t just hide and pretend he was never there. Unsure of what else to do, he slowly swam upwards and breached the surface, though he flinched as the gun tracked his every movement. Carefully, he pulled the ECHOcomm from his ear and held it up to Sasha. She gave him a suspicious, disapproving look, but he pushed it closer to her and she eventually took it. She placed the gun down, much to his relief. He pointed to his ear, but the glare she gave him made him drop his hand as she worked the communicator into her ear.

“Now talk,” she said, and while he couldn’t understand her words, he managed to guess their meaning correctly.

“I…I’m sorry.…” he began clumsily. “I need a boat. My friend—” his words hitched and he cleared his throat, “needs a boat. His ship crashed and he’s stranded.” He reached down for his pouch and sank down nervously as Sasha reached for the gun, but continued to fish the jewelry out of his bag.

“I-I can give these in trade. I don’t know how much they’re worth to you, but it’s what I have.” He really wasn’t in a position to be bartering with the humans. Not when he was so keenly aware of the gun that Sasha had been holding. “If you want them, give me back my comm and we’ll trade.”

The jewels drew both of the women’s attention and they shared a glance before the girl in the hat leaned over to whisper to Sasha, as if he could understand what they were saying at all.

“Think we should just take the jewels and run? He’s got no idea what he’s holding,” the hat girl murmured, sparing glances over to the man in the water. “It’s not like he could stop us. He can’t even flip the boat.”

Sasha frowned slightly. “Normally I’d agree with you, but look at him.” She nodded at him and ignored the way he cocked his head. “He’s pretty pathetic. Let’s just help him out and then take the jewels. It’s not like we can just go back to town right now anyway.”

Sasha nudged the other woman. “Come on, Fi. At least we’ll have something to do. And if we get the jewelry, we can get a different boat that won’t be recognizable. It’ll buy us a couple more days until we can move on to the next town.”

Fiona rolled her eyes. “Ugh, fine. We’ll give him the boat. Hand over the ECHOcomm and let’s get this over with. I can’t believe we’re bartering with a mermaid,” she complained, sliding back into her seat.

Sasha ignored her sister and removed the communicator to give back to Rhys. He put it in and looked up at her expectantly.

“You’ve got a deal, fish boy,” His face brightened and she continued. “But you can’t just have the boat. Give us the jewels, take us to wherever your friend is, and we’ll let him use our boat to get to the nearest settlement. Does that work for you?”

He nodded and she took the pile of jewelry before she tossed a rope into the water. “We have no idea where we’re going, so you get to lead us.” She smirked when he nodded and took the rope without argument, then reclined back in the boat with her sister.

Rhys didn’t have a chance to sit down and think about his options. His original plan had consisted of taking the stolen boat close to the cove and hiding it until he could take it to Jack safely, especially since Yvette had made it very clear that it was unsafe to visit Jack at the moment. But now he had passengers that he couldn’t just abandon somewhere, and as he swam he closed his eyes and made a mental note to grovel for Yvette’s forgiveness when he was done.

The distance to the cove was farther than what Rhys had initially planned to travel, and by the time he led the boat through the inlet, he was exhausted. He gave the rope one last tug and allowed the momentum to carry the boat towards the shore as he swam forward. He pulled himself onto the beach and Jack stood up from where he had been reclining against the wall.

The man looked from the unfamiliar sisters to the merman and chuckled, shaking his head. “Kiddo, I thought we went over this. You were supposed to bring me an empty boat.”

He cocked an eyebrow at the sisters as they floated closer. “How did you even get an occupied boat all the way over here?” Despite the question being rhetorical, Rhys motioned to his bag and then to the women. He turned his head to wave them closer and Jack crouched down in front of him.

Rhys stiffened as Jack took his chin in hand and moved his head around. “Where did that purple mark come from?”

Rhys reached up and touched the skin of his left temple. There was a small circle that was colder than the rest of his flesh and he thought back to the day before. The eridium must have left a noticeable scar from where he’d hit the rock. In response, the merman gave a sheepish smile and raised a clenched fist, slowly mimicking the motions of a fight, though there hadn’t been any punching involved in his scuffle.

Jack whistled. “So the eridium can heal your skin too?” Rhys nodded and Jack smirked. “Didja win?”

This time, Rhys quirked a slight smile as he nodded, unsure of how to convey that he’d actually killed someone, which he assumed Jack would be more proud of. It turned out that Jack was pleased anyway, and Rhys preened when Jack patted his head, even if the motion was somewhat patronizing.

“Atta boy, Rhysie.”

The boat bumped into the shore and Sasha was the first one to step out. “Gross, is it your pet or something?” She helped her sister out of the boat, ignoring Fiona’s quiet swearing as her short heels sank into the wet sand.

They took a moment to get their bearings when Sasha finally recognized his face. She stopped mid-stride on her way over to them and stuck out an arm to stop her sister. “Wait. Aren’t you Handsome Jack? The vault hunter?”

He grinned, placing his hands on his hips in a heroic pose, and she narrowed her eyes. “You are! Okay, you know what? Deal’s off.” She started ushering Fiona back into the boat. “We could get way more money from just reporting his location. It’d probably even get them off our backs.”

Panic cinched in Rhys’s chest and both of the males rushed over to them, Rhys sliding back into the water as Jack dashed across the beach. Jack reached them first.

“Hey, not so fast.” Jack wrapped his hand around Sasha’s wrist and tugged her away from the boat. “You’re not going anywhere.” Sasha struggled futilely in his grip and FIona went to grab the gun her sister had brandished earlier.

Rhys had pulled himself onto the beach once more, desperately trying to communicate with the sisters in clicks, when Jack growled dangerously.

“Rhys, shut up,” he snapped, and the merman fell silent, slinking back into the water like a kicked puppy. But Jack wasn’t paying attention to him, his gaze was locked on Sasha. “What do you mean there’s a reward out for me? Who set it? The Crimson Lance?”

Sasha snorted as she continued to try and tug her wrist free. “Uh, no? Why would it be—ow!” He squeezed her wrist with a menacing snarl and then dropped it, allowing her to rub the aching flesh.

“We’re just gonna go.…” she said, sidling closer to the boat. Jack pulled his pistol from the holster on his thigh and both of the women froze in their spots, Fiona poised to grab the SMG from the bottom of the boat.

“You seem to be a little confused, ladies,” Jack began, the pistol pointed towards the sisters. “I said you’re not going anywhere. Not until I get some answers.”

Rhys was just as stunned as Fiona and Sasha, and he looked between the women and Jack. The dark, almost maniacal expression on Jack’s face had his blood running cold in his veins and his stomach twisting into tight knots. This wasn’t the Jack he knew, all cold fury and none of the charismatic charm that he was used to seeing.

“Stop, please,” he clicked hesitantly, but nobody paid him any attention.

Jack took a step closer to the sisters. “Now tell me who wants my hide and when this reward appeared.”

Fiona inched closer to the gun and he moved his aim from Sasha to her. “I wouldn’t do that if I was you, kiddo. So step away from the boat before you catch fire.” Fiona scowled, but did as she was told.

Rhys whined quietly, mostly to himself, and dipped his gills before climbing back onto the beach and pulling himself over towards Jack.

“Jack,” he clicked. He received no acknowledgement and he frowned. “Jack,” he tried again, with the same results. The merman scowled and pulled out his earpiece. Without it translating his own words, he thought back to the words he was taught during the time they spent together. “J-Jaah…Jaaack,” he rumbled, the word hoarse and rough but understandable. “S-stuh…stuhp.”

He reached up and tugged on the hem of the worn yellow sweater with his right hand. Was it smart to be tugging on the clothes of a man with a gun? Probably not, but Rhys had faith that Jack would not hurt him. His goal was to just keep the sisters safe, since he didn’t want them to be hurt.

FInally, Jack glanced down at him, watching the merman struggle through his words. “Uh…uh-lone.” He motioned to the girls with his left arm, communicator clutched tight in his fist, and shook his head.

“Pl…pluh-eeezzz.” His face screwed up when his vocal chords vibrated unpleasantly. He pushed the sensation away from his thoughts and finished his plea. “T-tuh…?” He tried to think of the sounds that he was looking for. “Tuh…tem…”

He swallowed and ignored the way the flaps of his gills suctioned to his neck from the strain on his voice and lungs. “N-nuh…nice.” Rhys gave his hip a gentle headbutt, rubbing his forehead against his pants. “Stoooopppp.…” he whined again.  

Jack silently looked between him and the women, his mask doing very little to give away what he was thinking. Rhys stared up at him with pleading eyes, fingers still curled in the hem of his sweater. Jack glared down at him, then rolled his eyes. He didn’t say anything, but shoved his gun into the holster with an irritated huff.

Rhys smiled up at him and released the edge of his sweater to put his ECHOcomm back in. He screwed up his face as the rough grains of wet sand that clung to the device rubbed his cheek and ear, but managed to get the device back in his ear without issue. Jack was already apologizing to the women.

“… guess I overreacted,” he muttered with an overdramatic roll of his eyes. Neither Fiona nor Sasha looked convinced by his half-assed apology, but the fact that he was no longer waving a gun around was good enough for Rhys. He crawled back into the water and took a few moments to breathe.

Jack was still wary of the sisters, and still talking, when Rhys’s head surfaced again. “What are you guys anyway, pirates? You sure as hell don’t look like fishermen.”

Fiona folded her arms, scowling. “What does that matter?”

Jack snorted. “Because if you’re freakin’ pirates, I’m going to shoot you regardless of what Rhysie says about you. I’m not taking a boat all the way to the nearest town with a pair of pirates.”

“Ugh. Sasha, can we just go?” Fiona asked, glancing to her sister. “We got the jewelry, so let’s just leave this asshole to sulk on his beach with his pet.”

Jack suddenly glared at Rhys and the merman sank down in the water up to his eyes guiltily. “Actually, no dice. Give it back,” he demanded, taking a step towards the women. “And stop calling him my pet.”

Sasha scoffed. “It’s not even yours. Why would we give it to you?” She put her hands on her hips in challenge, despite being nearly an entire foot shorter than Jack.

“Because, princess, you either give me the jewels or I take the boat and leave your asses here for the rest of forever.”

Rhys’s heart nearly stopped. Leave? No, no, no. He couldn’t just leave. He promised  he wouldn’t. A whine built up in his throat, loud enough to draw everyone’s attention.

“What’s wrong with him?” Fiona asked, glancing at Jack.

“How am I supposed to know? I can’t understand him.”

“But he’s your pet.”

“Stop saying that! He’s not my pet!”

“Oh? Then why is he doing all your dirty deeds? I doubt he already knew how steal a boat!”

Rhys let their arguing fade into the background of his thoughts as he swam over to the beached boat. None of them were paying him any attention, and he managed to haul his torso over the edge of the boat. The jewelry was sitting on the floor and he hooked the pile of treasure with his claws, dragging it over to him. He swiped every last necklace and bracelet and shoved them into his pouch.

As important as the treasure seemed to be to the humans, he didn’t feel like that would be enough to keep everyone at the cove, so he circled black fingers around one of the oars and pulled it out of the boat. He lost his balance when the metal oar came easier than he expected and he crashed back into the water with a loud splash.

He lost his grip on the oar and floundered underneath the surface until he righted himself in the shallows and broke the surface. All three of the humans were staring at him and he clutched the oar tight.

“Pumpkin, what are you doing?” Jack’s voice was hesitant but on edge. Rhys’s gills fluttered nervously as he slowly pushed himself away from the beach. Jack stiffened with realization and he snarled, but still managed to keep his voice calm. “Kiddo, don’t do this. Bring the oar back over here, okay?” Rhys didn’t stop or return to the shore. “Rhysie,” the vault hunter sing-songed in a sharp tone, “come back here. Now.”

Rhys shook his head. “S-s-sorry,” he mumbled quietly, then dove down into the deeper water of the cove and took the oar with him. He flinched as he heard Jack’s muffled roar of his name from the beach. He didn’t turn back and instead held the oar to his chest as he swam out of the cove.

He dove down to the wreckage of Jack’s old ship, found Jack’s office, and looked at the oar in his hands. He couldn’t let Jack leave. He had to find a way to make him stay, but he needed to buy some time first. Rhys bent the oar to the best of his ability, thrust it into the room, and darted off towards the colony. All he could hope for at the moment was that Vaughn and Yvette had done the ceremony and destroyed the evidence of his fight with Hugo.

Chapter Text

Though the sun hadn’t quite set when he made it home, the trench was oddly quiet. He didn’t pay it any heed, and instead went to curl up in his alcove. He needed to think of how he could keep Jack from leaving forever. Rhys knew his friends would never understand why he wanted a human to stay so badly, but that was fine. They didn’t always have to approve of his choices; he was an adult and could make his own decisions, even if they didn’t seem so smart. After they finished the death ceremony, they wouldn’t ever have to get involved in his problems again. They could forget all about Rhys seeing a human and go on with their lives.

Rhys barely managed to enter his alcove when something grabbed the end of his tail and yanked him back into the open water of the trench. Someone ripped his bag off of his shoulders and tossed it towards his alcove despite his protests. Two hands wrapped around his tail, keeping him from flexing it, while four more held his arms to his sides. He tried to struggle, to push them away, but his exhaustion had weakened him substantially. They wrapped a thick kelp rope around his body, trapping his arms to his sides at the elbows. He whimpered as they coiled another rope around his tail and hooked it to the cord behind him, bending his tail at an awkward angle to stop him from escaping.

He was manhandled away from his alcove and one hand gripped his hair painfully tight as they all sank towards the bottom of the trench. He wrenched his head around to try and see who was holding him, to no avail. “What’s going on? Why are you doing this to me?” he asked. He couldn’t even wiggle slightly.

“Silence, traitor,” a gruff voice snapped.

“Traitor? What are you—” His words were cut off by a grunt as he landed chest-down on the hard floor of the trench. He was picked up by the rope tying his tail to his torso and dragged towards the center. The entire colony was waiting for them. His cheeks burned with the humiliation of being carried like a misbehaving hatchling in front of the people he’d known for most of his life. He didn’t immediately see Vaughn’s parents in the crowd, and that was his only relief. He closed his eyes so he couldn’t see the faces anymore.

Rhys was unceremoniously dropped on the ground with the crowd surrounding him. He opened his eyes a moment later, and his whole body froze as he saw Hugo’s grey face only a foot away. He could only see half of it; the rest had been gnawed away by scavengers and hungry fish. His stomach churned at the sight of exposed bone and teeth with bits of flesh and muscle clinging to them. He whimpered and looked away, but cried out as his head was jerked back by his hair, forcing him to keep looking at what he’d done.

“That’s enough, Adam. Sit him up.”

There was a growl above him, the same voice that had snapped at him before, but the guard followed instructions and sat Rhys upright. He broke the bond holding his tail so Rhys could move it in front of him, but kept a spear pointed uncomfortably close to his throat. He could see Yvette and Vaughn similarly tied up across from him and he felt his heart sink. He hadn’t wanted this. He hadn’t wanted his friends to be dragged into this mess. Not like this. Now they were in danger of being killed and it was all his fault.

Rhys watched the crowd part and he swallowed hard as the head of the council approached him. Miriam looked much more menacing in the dim light of the dying sun and the cerulean glow of the lichen on the walls. It was very rare that anyone was out this late, and it was all because of him. He gave Miriam a shaky bow of his head as a show of respect, though he doubted anything he did could make up for what he had done.

Miriam stopped off to his side, standing near Hugo. Rhys was honestly surprised Lawrence wasn’t standing in her place. Sure, Miriam was the head of the council, but Lawrence was Hugo’s father. Shouldn’t he be the one to dole out the punishment to his son’s killer?

Rhys wondered why he was complaining. Miriam was the better choice, since she didn’t have as much of an emotional connection to the deceased. But as the head, was it important that she did it? This wasn’t a common occurrence—Rhys had never heard of someone fucking up this badly—and the fact that he had no idea what he was in for was frightening. Death was likely, but what would come  before that?

“Rhys.” Miriam’s voice snapped the merman out of his frantic thoughts. “Do you understand what’s happening here?” Her clicks were curt and quiet, but somehow they echoed through the trench.

The merman bit the inside of his cheek anxiously. Should he just admit it? They probably already realized he had done it, so there really wasn’t any point in professing his innocence. “I killed Hugo. But he attacked me—”

Miriam held up a hand and Rhys shut his mouth. “That’s not what I’m interested in hearing. After his death, what did you do?”

Rhys bowed his head. “I hid his body,” he mumbled.

“You did more than that. You deprived him of a proper ceremony.” She motioned to Vaughn and Yvette. “Elyse and Adam caught these two attempting to perform an unofficial ceremony without the presence of the colony.” She folded her arms and stared down at Rhys. “Yvette said you were the mastermind behind all of this.”

Rhys’s head shot up and he looked over at his friends. Vaughn was hunched forward, his tail tethered to a leash around his neck. At first glance, Rhys thought that Yvette was similarly bound, but a closer look told him that the rope tied around her tail wasn’t connected to anything. He couldn’t be angry at her for pushing all of the blame on him. He knew that taking responsibility would probably save both her and Vaughn from execution. It was better than letting his friends die with him.

“ Rhys. ” Again, the click of his name pulled him from his thoughts. “I’ll ask again, since you evidently weren’t listening. Now, it seems that some of us need a reminder about the ways of the seafolk. Rhys, tell everyone why these ceremonies are important. I know you’re from the Darkness, but you’ve lived here for a long time. Surely you can tell us the importance of the death ceremony.”

Rhys set his jaw at her condescending tone. There was still distrust towards him because of where he had been found, despite the fact that Vaughn’s parents had been allowed to keep him. He always tried to prove his worth to the colony, but now it seemed that he would never repair the damage. The tiny smirk on her otherwise emotionless face made his muscles tense and his blood boil. She was pleased to hear that he had finally fucked up.

Regardless of where they thought his loyalties lay, he knew the appropriate answer. He swallowed and moved his gaze from the head of the council to his tail. “Death ceremonies are an important conclusion to the lives of the seafolk. They are what make our existences worthwhile.” He spoke with the same confidence as one of the storytellers would. “Lowering the body into the vents,” he explained, “is how we feed and honor the Guardians. They feed on the body and the dead’s soul joins them in cultivating the world so the seafolk can survive.” He wondered if the humans had their own Guardians.

After a brief moment of hesitation, she nodded and accepted his response. She tapped her claws against her cheek, assessing him, and then moved a bit closer. He fought the urge to scoot away, but hunched his shoulders and tried to appear smaller. “That was,” she paused thoughtfully, “adequate.” He scowled but held his tongue.

Miriam stared down at him with undisguised disdain. The pure hatred in her eyes was enough to chill him to the very core. "The most disturbing part of all of this is your willingness to admit to not caring about what happens to the colony."

Rhys bristled. "I do care about the colony!" he argued. "I've always been loyal, even when you didn’t want me!" He had never willfully done something to harm the colony.

The woman curled her upper lip with a snarl. "You cannot say that you care about the fate of the colony, yet at the same time, dishonor the Guardians and invite famine upon us!" she snapped harshly. “You do not care about what happens to this colony and never have.”

He lifted his head and clenched his fist against his tail. “I didn’t think one sole death would be that bad,” he confessed. He didn’t mention that Yvette had brought it up in the first place, because this was his problem and his only.

“There aren’t several individual death ceremonies happening, it’s just one. I’ll admit, I was scared of what would happen if I came clean, and angry that he’d forced me to do that. Why should he get to join the Guardians when he was the one who attacked me?” He was bristling now, rising up from the ground slowly, and even the warning prod of a spear didn’t calm him down.

Miriam narrowed her eyes at the bristling merman, but did not get the chance to respond.

“Excuse me, please move.” The crowd parted after a few of them were jostled by a guard trying to muscle her way to the center of the crowd. Rhys turned his head and spotted Elyse come forward with a familiar object in hand. His spine went rigid when he saw the bent oar he had tossed away.

Nobody said anything as she approached their leader and held out the oar. Rhys caught the faint triumphant smile on her face as she spared him a brief glance, and he wondered how much she knew. She had always been Hugo’s partner during patrols, so he wasn’t surprised that she was angry with him now that he was dead. But that didn’t explain how she knew about him seeing Jack.

Miriam looked down at the girl and the oar she carried. “What is this, Elyse? I’m in the middle of something.”

Elyse bowed her head. “I apologize, but this afternoon I saw him interacting with a group of humans. He stole this from them and hid it near where I found his friends.” She looked so pleased with herself and he scowled at her.

But parts of her story didn’t add up. How did she know where to find him in the first place? Hugo didn’t have that much information before he followed him that day..

Then it clicked. “You were following me that day too.” Had they both been following him and she was just hidden somewhere else?

Her pleased demeanor fell away and her solid posture drooped forward. She laughed harshly and whipped her head around to face him.

“That’s funny. You think I would have just let you murder my friend. No, I saw you leave this morning. And then we found your friends. Adam and I were going to take them back, but I saw you with the boat. After that, I followed you to that cove. You spoke with them and got out of the water to be with them.” Her face contorted with disgust and she hissed, “I watched you nuzzle that man.” The shocked clicks that rose up from the crowd destroyed his previous bravado and he curled up again.  

She looked ready to snatch the spear from Adam and Rhys flinched as she moved towards the other guard, but a firm hand on her bicep stopped her. Elyse looked back at Miriam and lowered her outstretched arm. “My apologies,” she said quietly.

Miriam glanced between Elyse and Rhys, a cold, calculating fire burning in her eyes. “You lied to me, Rhys. You swore that you’ve always been loyal.” She looked at the oar in her hand. “But now I see that’s not the case. You know this cannot stand.”

He swallowed. “Is this it then? Are you going to kill me?” It came out quiet and shaky. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything else. Maybe Jack would find a way off the island on his own and he wouldn't die there.

The head of the council sneered at him, looming over the bound merman. “No. We’re not going to do that. Not here.” His expression shifted from fear to confusion before she continued. “You are not one of us.”

His chest tightened as cold realization set in before she could even finish. “Therefore, you do not get to die like one of us. On behalf of the council, I banish you from this colony.” She straightened her back as Rhys sat in numb silence. “Adam. Take him back where he came from. Bind him, and leave him there. Don’t stay too long.” They didn’t know what was hidden in the Darkness.

Vaughn’s sudden yell of protest was answered by a harsh prod to his side with a spear and Miriam looked over at him. “Leave his friends as they are until Adam returns. And keep them under watch for the rest of the night. I don’t want them slipping away.” She turned her back on the crowd and the guards, signaling everyone’s dismissal. The crowd was already starting to disperse and everyone avoided looking at Rhys.

Two of the guards held Rhys down on the ground as they tied a rope around his tail and tightened the bonds around his arms, wrenching them further behind his back. He thrashed and hissed but his struggles didn’t prevent them from half-dragging, half-carrying him away.

Rhys threw his head back and his wide eyes met Vaughn’s. He had so many things he wanted to say. He wanted to say he was sorry for the mean-spirited jokes, for getting him publicly humilated, for lying to him about Jack, and most of all, for being a horrible brother in general. But as the guards got ready to take him away, he couldn’t find his voice. After all, how many times could he say sorry before those words lost all meaning?

Vaughn looked up at his friend and Rhys realized that he had never seen him actually cry before now. "I hope the Guardians take care of you." The fear in his voice sent chills down Rhys's spine. Honestly, he wasn't so sure that they would.

He looked to Yvette, but she said nothing, not even meeting his gaze. He wasn’t sure what he expected her to say anyway. Maybe he wanted to hear her admonish him one more time for his stupid, and now public, infatuation with a human. He’d promised her when this all started that he’d be careful, and she had believed him. But then he’d ruined everything. How was she supposed to react to that?

The guards hauled him up, ready to swim out of the trench, and Vaughn dropped his gaze and shifted closer to Yvette’s side. Nobody else looked at Rhys as he was carried up towards the top of the trench.

As they cleared the lip, Adam hissed something about how heavy he was and gave the rope around his tail some slack, just enough that he could move a little on his own and they wouldn’t be supporting him fully. He flexed his tail experimentally and looked out towards the dark.

For a moment Rhys considered resisting, imagined fighting his way free and racing to Jack, but he pushed that thought away. He wouldn’t make it very far. Not with his arms bound and the rope dangerously loose behind him. No, it was easier to just swim with them and accept his fate. He even rejected the idea of just going limp and being uncooperative, understanding that there was no sense in prolonging the inevitable. Wordlessly, he followed his escort further away from the trench.

Regardless of his level of cooperation, it was a slow journey. Guards rarely traveled outside of the territory’s boundaries and they were all understandably reluctant to take his directions. The more ground they covered, the antsier the guards became with their unfamiliar surroundings.

Rhys, on the other hand, wasn’t disturbed by the glowing fish or whistling steam vents. He didn’t even jump at the low, booming cry of an unknown beast somewhere above them. Normally he was at least somewhat on edge, but he didn’t have the energy. He was exhausted and drained, ready to just collapse and let the sea do what it wanted with him.

There was no gentle descent into the Darkness like there was during the daytime. The moonlight didn’t penetrate the water like the sun did, and it was only the gradual slope and the shift from sand to stone beneath them that alerted them that they were in the right place. Rhys felt a faint prickle of unease on the back of his neck, but it quickly vanished. He decided not to dwell on it.

The guards didn’t want to spend more time than necessary in the Darkness, and Rhys grunted as he was unexpectedly shoved forward. With his arms still trapped behind his back and no way to catch himself, he landed hard and winced when his chin hit the ground. His teeth pinched the meat of his tongue and he wrinkled his nose at the taste of copper.

“Hope you don’t get too bored out here,” Adam sneered.

Rhys struggled to roll over and sit up. “Adam, you used to play with me and Vaughn. When did you start hating me?” While he wasn’t surprised that the council had been quick to banish him, he couldn’t wrap his head around the idea that everyone suddenly hated him.

“I’m doing what’s best for the colony. My personal feelings don’t matter.”

“Yeah, okay,” Rhys retorted, rolling his eyes. “I’m sure insulting me is just a part of your duty. Just leave, okay? I don’t want to deal with this.” He just wanted to go to sleep. It wasn’t like he could go anywhere, so the least he could do was get some rest.

His escort left with no further comments and Rhys shifted his arms, attempting to ease the aches that the bonds caused. It didn’t take him long to give up and he instead settled down on his side. It wasn’t comfortable in the slightest but he felt too drained to care. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on falling asleep, not on the unfamiliar and unsafe environment around him. Jack popped up into his thoughts and he pulled his tail closer to his chest. He hoped the three of them hadn’t killed each other. He hoped they would be able to find a way out of the cove even though he took their oar. He wished he could apologize for that.

“Hey.”

Rhys’s brow furrowed and he growled, eyes squeezed shut. Couldn’t he just have some peace? “Adam, I said go away. Go back to the colony and leave me alone.”

“What are you doing sleeping out here?”

It was the rough sound of the clicks that made Rhys’s eyes fly open and his spine stiffen. He sat himself up with great difficulty and looked up at man’s confused expression. Relief welled up in his chest. “August.”

He had forgotten all about their meeting in the chaotic events of the day, but now it all came rushing back to him. August had mentioned a witch that could grant a wish. He could get himself out of this mess.

“Yeah, that’s my name,” he deadpanned, looking rather uninterested in conversation, though his eyes did shift occasionally to his arm. “What are you doing sleeping out here?”

Rhys shook his head. “That’s a long story. Will you cut these binds? I’m ready to go see Her.”

That got his attention. The man tensed up and his eyes widened. The glow seemed to get brighter before dying down again. “Okay, come on.” He extended a sharp claw, which was longer than even the stone ones on his right hand, and sliced through the braided kelp rope with ease.

Rhys brought his arms around his front and rolled his shoulder to get the feeling back in his hand. “Thanks. So where are we go—whoa!” He was cut off by a surprisingly strong grip that pulled him up off the ground.

“No talking. Let’s go.” He released Rhys’s arm and darted off, allowing Rhys to follow on his own.

The merman rushed after him, surprised to find that his usual speed wasn’t enough to keep up. August dodged outcroppings and slipped through cracks with a certain amount of finesse that Rhys lacked. August paused to wait for him whenever he had trouble squeezing through the narrow cracks between hills, but his patience seemed to be wearing thin; he waited less and less time before moving on.

By the time August stopped entirely, Rhys was completely lost. He had no idea where they were in relation to his pool or even to where he had been found. He caught up to August a moment later and looked at the massive mountain that they had stopped in front of it.

“What are we doing here?” he asked. August shot him a narrow glare and Rhys shifted a foot away from him, right arm flexing subconsciously.

August glanced at the motion, but didn’t mention it. Instead, he swam forward and vanished into the side of the mountain.

Rhys’s jaw dropped open and he stared dumbly at where the man had disappeared, only to have him reappear and scowl.

“Come on, ” he clicked impatiently. When Rhys didn’t move, he growled and lunged for the merman, grabbing him before Rhys could jerk back.

Rhys was yanked forwards and he braced himself before he hit stone. Once he got closer, he realized that the shadows on black rock camouflaged an opening in the mountain. August didn’t stop pulling him once they were inside, and instead dragged him down a tunnel. Even with his enhanced eye Rhys couldn’t see anything besides darkness and he relied on August to lead him to wherever they were going.

August’s voice cut through the silence suddenly and Rhys jumped. “Be sure to word your request carefully so you actually get what you want,” he warned. “Don’t try and ask for too much, though, or you’ll get nothing. Understand?”

“Yeah, I think so,” Rhys answered hesitantly. August spoke in such a rushed, tense tone; what exactly was he getting himself into? Though it wasn’t like he had that many choices since he had been banished from the colony. He hoped his friends were okay.

Gradually, the tunnel began to brighten enough that Rhys could see what was around him. The tunnel had opened up to a larger area and his eyes widened at the sight of eridium veins branching along the cave walls like art. “This is—”

“Shut up. We’re almost there.” August turned left and led Rhys down a short corridor. It opened up into another cave and Rhys froze when he looked across it. While the eridium pool directly in front of him should have been the center of his focus, his eyes were locked onto the massive woman on the other side of the pool. She had one red eye, the other closed with a nasty scar over it, and bone-white hair. Her tail was shaped like August’s, but longer and thicker. She grinned at Rhys with needle sharp teeth and a shiver ran down his spine. She reminded him of the stories he used to hear as a hatchling.

“So you’re the one with the arm.” Her voice was rough in the same way that August’s was, but throatier.

He nodded silently.

“And you want a wish.”

Again, he nodded. She studied him silently with her one good eye and he felt the urge to cower under her gaze.

After what felt like ages, she spoke. “All right. I’ll give you a wish.” He perked up. “But, in return, I want you to tell me where you got enough eridium to make that arm of yours.”

Rhys furrowed his brow in confusion and looked down at the pool in front of him. While it had looked similar to his own at first glance, he noticed that the divot was almost empty, like the eridium had been drained. “It’s a pool. Like this one,” he explained slowly. “But it’s full. And I think it’s deeper.” This one didn’t look deep enough to hold his entire body.

Her eye gleamed in the violet glow of the liquid. “Take me to it,” she commanded suddenly.

He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, cracking an awkward grin. “Uh, I don’t know how to get to it from here. Can’t I just tell you where it is?” August hissed quietly from his side in warning, but the witch was already moving towards to him. Alarmed, Rhys moved backwards but she wrapped her clawed fingers around his neck before he could get too far. She brought him close and Rhys froze under her cold gaze. .

“Listen, boy. I don’t play games. If you want your wish, you do as I say. It’s as simple as that. When I say take me to this pool of yours, I mean it. Understand?” Rhys bobbed his head silently and she smirked. “Good.” With that, she released him.

His gills fluttered and he pushed himself away from her, gingerly touching the flaps of skin on his neck. “I still don’t know how to get there,” he said, and one look at her scowl caused him to rush out, “but if August takes me back to where he found me, I can find my way. I’ll take you, I promise.”

The witch looked at August and put her hands on her hips. “All right,” she conceded after a moment. “Let’s go. August, you get to lead the way.”

As displeased as the male looked, he led both the witch and Rhys out of the cave system and back in the direction he’d already come from. Rhys did his best to keep close to August, the witch a looming and unnerving presence behind him. Nobody said anything as they swam back to the flatlands of the Darkness. Rhys tried to glance behind him whenever they slipped through tight crevices to see how the witch got through, but each time he looked back she was already through and right behind him. He stopped looking after a while.

As ordered, August brought them back to the exact spot where he’d found Rhys. Rhys looked down at the severed bonds on the ground, but didn’t linger on them. Instead, he focused on gathering his bearings and setting off in the right direction.

He led them down his familiar path, past hissing vents and the mysterious holes in the hills, until they reached the passage between the hills that opened up into his tunnel. “It’s in here,” he said. “There’s a tunnel on the right side.” He went first and August followed soon after. The witch didn’t move, but by the time Rhys was next to his whirlpool, she was behind him.

“Whoa.” August gaped down at the pool and leaned in closer, only to jerk back at the witch’s hiss. He bowed his head and moved out of the way.

Rhys looked up at the witch. “Soooo…this is it. Can I get my wish now?”

She hummed thoughtfully, never looking away from the whirlpool. “Yes, I suppose you can. What do you want?”

The merman swallowed, heart in his throat. “I want to stay with Jack. My human.” That caught her attention. She glanced over at him and raised an eyebrow. Rhys continued. “See, he wants to leave and go back to traveling, but he can’t just leave. I don’t want to be without him.”  Especially now that he didn’t have his colony anymore. He had no reason to stay.

The witch was quiet. “Is that what you really want?” He nodded and she grinned, chuckling. “All right then, kid. Consider your wish granted.” The glow of her good eye shifted from red to purple and she suddenly dug her fingers into his hair and forced him headfirst into the whirlpool. He flailed and tried to stop her, but she held his head down until his thoughts grew fuzzy and he blacked out.

Chapter Text

The first thing Rhys felt was a sharp sting in his cheeks. He was struggling to regain consciousness when he was stung again, the force pushing his head to the side. He frowned and slowly tried to open his eyes, but the sun was bright and he immediately squinted, arm coming up to shield his eyes. The movement caused his entire body to protest and he groaned softly. He vaguely registered the sound of someone speaking to him and he dropped his arm over his eyes. He just wanted to sleep.

Someone grabbed his arm and moved it from his face, speaking again in a garbled language he didn’t understand. A shadow blocked the sunlight from reaching his eyelids and he finally cracked his eyes open to see Jack hovering above him.

Rhys couldn’t stifle his dopey grin, still a little disoriented. He clicked a lazy greeting and winced at the faint ache in his chest. He couldn’t feel his gills shifting and he gingerly reached up to his neck. His organic fingers slid over smooth, unbroken skin and Rhys tensed up in a sudden panic. Where were his gills? How was he supposed to survive without them?

Jack was speaking above him, but the merman could only understand his name. He started mimicking a strange motion, gesturing to his chest. Rhys stared at him with wide, panicked eyes and his hands clutching both sides of his neck where his gills were supposed to be.

The man glared down at the confused merman and vanished from his vision. Rhys couldn’t even wheeze out a whine as his lungs began to burn. He squeezed his eyes shut. He couldn’t even feel water touching his tail. Where was he? He could remember being at the pool with August…and the witch. His wish. Had it been granted? He remembered her shoving him down into the pool. How did he get all the way to Jack?

A sudden shock coursed through his ear and his back arched off the ground with a mute yelp. A voice boomed in his ear: “Breathe, you idiot!”

Rhys’s eyes darted over to Jack, gaze pleading. How was he supposed to breathe without his gills? Without water? Jack was glaring at him with a new emotion on his face, and the man glanced over his shoulder when someone else spoke. Rhys couldn’t hear them over the throbbing in his head. His vision was blurred and he trembled from the pain in his chest.

Jack once again appeared above him. “Rhysie, listen to me.” His voice was disoriented and muffled, but Rhys could make out some of the words. “I’m gonna do something to help you. Don’t…don’t make it weird, okay?” he told him. He glanced back to the side briefly before he looked down to Rhys. He pinched the merman’s nose shut and Rhys wriggled faintly with discontent. Jack ignored it and lowered his head until his mouth was sealed over Rhys’s.

The merman didn’t even get the chance to react before a puff of air filled his lungs. Jack pulled away and Rhys instinctively let out his breath. When Rhys glanced up, Jack was staring him down and his eyes narrowed when Rhys didn't suck in another breath.

“Hey, dummy. Stop thinking about it. You'll breathe just fine if you stop thinking about it.”

Rhys tried to ignore his thoughts, which was not easy, though it helped when Jack reached out and pulled his hands from his throat. He used his hold on Rhys’s hands to pull him into a sitting position and he swung his leg over so he was no longer crouched over Rhys’s lap. The merman’s gaze fell to his tail.

Or at least, where his tail should have been.

Instead of his long black tail, Rhys was staring at a pair of legs. They were pale like his arm, but they couldn't be his. He didn't have legs. He wasn't a human. This had to be a dream. Or a nightmare. Where was his tail? How did he get legs?

Was this what August had meant when he warned him to phrase his wish carefully?

A heavy hand on his shoulder made him jump and he looked up at Jack. The terrified whining noise faded away once Rhys realized it was coming from his own throat. Jack looked him up and down, then pulled off his coat and draped it over Rhys’s nude lap. “Can't go around with your dick hanging out,” he said with a grin, but he sighed when the concern on Rhys's face didn't go away. “I know you've got questions, but we’ll talk on the boat. If we don't leave soon it'll be dark before we reach an island.” He stood up and held out his hand.

Rhys stared at it, then reached up and took it. His rock hand clutched the coat tight as Jack carefully pulled him up to his feet. He wobbled on unsteady legs, eyes wide as he watched his ( his? ) feet, and an arm slipped around his waist.

“Hey, come on. Don't fall over now. Take it easy,” Jack consoled the trembling man. “We’re gonna take this one step at a time.” He snickered at his own pun. Rhys didn't laugh. “All right, kiddo. I want you to watch what I do and then copy me. Understand?” Rhys nodded. “Good. Let's do this.”

Jack slowly moved one leg forward and took a small step. Still clinging to the older man, Rhys hesitantly and shakily mimicked him. Jack took a second step and Rhys copied him again, this time a little more steady.

It was slow work, and Rhys nearly fell down when his foot slipped in a small hole and startled him, but Jack eventually walked him over to the boat. Fiona and Sasha stood near the boat, silently watching them, but Sasha helped him into the rowboat and the sisters climbed in while Jack pushed them into the water.

When Jack hopped in, Rhys saw two paddles lying in the middle of the boat; one was slightly bent at the center. Fiona picked up one and Jack grabbed the other, leaving Rhys to face Sasha. It was crowded, meant for three people and not four, and Rhys shifted as far back as he could until he felt Jack’s boots against his hips. He struggled to move his legs into a comfortable position that didn't take up a lot of room. Though he didn’t have any sort of comparison, they seemed to be rather long. He huffed and squirmed again, Jack’s coat still haphazardly thrown over his lap.

“Hey—Rhys, is it?—stop squirming,” Sasha said. She was pressed against Fiona’s seat, head resting against her sister’s back. She had her legs folded and he stared at her. It didn’t look particularly comfortable, but he didn’t seem to be having any luck trying to find his own position. Slowly, he attempted to fold his legs in the same way that she had hers, which he managed after a couple of attempts.

Satisfied that he was done wriggling, Sasha looked over his head and up to Jack. “What are we going to do with him when we reach the port? He has no clothes to wear and we can’t just leave him at the dock while we go find him some.”

Jack snorted a laugh above Rhys’s head. “I dunno, I think we could hide him in my coat. He’s thin enough.” He nudged a boot against Rhys’s spine and chuckled at his displeased sound. “It’ll be fine. I’ll take him directly to a hotel and put him in a room. Then we can go do our business.”

Rhys frowned and tilted his head back far enough that he could look up at Jack. “But I don’t want to be left by myself,” he complained.

Jack waved him off. “Kiddo, the fact that you have legs now doesn’t mean I can understand your weird language.” He cocked an eyebrow at the man who still stared up at him expectantly with mismatched eyes. “Don’t give me that look, Rhysie. Just settle in and take a nap. We’ll be a while.”

Rhys didn’t move his head from the man’s lap. He was still filled with questions that needed answers and he didn’t think he could go to sleep even if he wanted to; he’d never tried to sleep in sunlight before. It was bright, way too bright, and he still didn’t have the comforting embrace of cool water to settle into.

With a huff, he pulled the ECHOcomm from his ear and held it up to Jack. When the man didn’t notice (or ignored it) Rhys scowled and staggered up to his legs. He climbed into Jack’s lap despite the protests and curses and shoved it into his ear. Jack hissed and knocked Rhys back down into the hull of the boat. He landed halfway in Sasha’s lap and both her and Fiona shouted at them.  Sasha pushed him out of her lap and tossed the coat back at him, which he accepted and curled around his waist as Jack glowered down at him.

“I have questions,” Rhys said, undisturbed by his glare. Jack snorted and muttered under his breath. “Just listen to me and then you can give answers.” They would have to trade the ECHOcomm back and forth until Rhys was done. “Where did you get the translator and the paddle? They were in the trench when I left. And how did I get to the cove with you? How long was I gone?” He was momentarily quiet as he tried to think of which questions Jack could actually answer; he doubted that the man could tell him where his tail went.

For the moment he was coming up blank, and he held out his hand for the device. “That’s all for now.”

Jack stopped rowing long enough to pull it out and hand it over to Rhys, who nestled it back into his ear.

“First of all,” Jack began, “never do that again. If you knock me out of this boat, we’re going to have some problems. Understand?” Rhys nodded. “Good. Okay, I guess now it’s story time. Two days ago, after you took off with the paddle, we tried to find a way to leave without it. We couldn’t even get out of the cove with one friggin’ paddle so we had to sit on our asses all night. But yesterday morning, after we got some fish for breakfast, we had a visitor.”

He raised an eyebrow at the young man at his feet when Rhys visibly tensed up. “A friend of yours, I’m guessing? Insanely ripped, and he looked a lot smaller than you. He was really bummed out about something. Anyway, he tossed the paddle onto the beach and held out your pouch thing. I tried to get him to take the comm so I could ask him where the hell you were but he hissed at me and left. We were going to leave yesterday but it took some time to straighten out the paddle and we wanted to get going in the morning, not late afternoon.”

Sasha snorted and Jack shot her a glare, but she didn’t say anything when Rhys looked back at her, merely folding her arms and leaning back against her sister.

Undeterred, Jack wrapped up his story. “Then we found you washed up on the beach this morning. And now we’re here. Got any other questions?”

Rhys mutely shook his head and shifted so he could rest his chin on the lip of the boat. The gentle rocking wasn’t so bad and he draped the coat over his shoulder to use as a blanket as he stared out across the ocean. He watched the glittering surface and slipped his right arm over the edge to drag his claws through the water. Already he missed the sensation of water against his skin. He felt uncomfortably dry and the rough fabric of Jack’s coat was not helping anything. He hoped his future clothes wouldn’t be as uncomfortable.

Nothing stirred in the gentle waves of the ocean. Rhys knew it was silly to expect to see Vaughn’s head appear, but he couldn’t help the slight sensation of disappointment in his chest. Even after all of the awful things he’d done, Vaughn still felt obligated to give his belongings to Jack. He knew what Rhys wanted, even if he hadn’t said it. He wished he could thank him for everything.

As time wore on, the hot sun and quiet waves lulled Rhys into a light, dreamless sleep.

When Rhys opened his eyes again, the sky had turned orange and they were no longer in the open ocean. The girls were gone and Jack was tethering the boat to a piece of floating wood next to a row of reddish and grey structures. Rhys grunted out Jack’s name and Jack turned back to face him. He pointed to the structures and made a questioning sound.

Jack glanced to them. “Oh, those are buildings. They may be houses, buildings where people live, but it’s hard to tell. Everything looks like shit. They can’t even afford metal that doesn’t rust.” Rhys pointed to the wood. “It’s a dock. It’s just a walkway for people who live on the water to use.” He climbed out of the boat and bent down in front of Rhys with his hand outstretched. “Come on, kitten. We need to get going so I can catch up to the girls.”

He helped Rhys out of the boat, fixed the coat so his right arm and his midsection were hidden, and slipped an arm around his waist to help him stagger across the docks. The boards were old and splinters prodded the soft soles of Rhys’s feet painfully, but Jack kept him from falling over whenever he jerked. There were few people wandering the docks and Rhys tried not to catch anyone’s eye, focusing on his bare feet and the path in front of him.

They walked until the docks transitioned to rough ground, where Rhys stopped at the familiar texture of volcanic rock against his feet, momentarily thrown back to the Darkness. Jack stumbled and nearly pulled him down to the ground. He huffed. “Kiddo, you have to keep moving if you want to get anywhere. You can’t just stop walking. I’m not going to carry you.”

Rhys slowly nodded, snapping out of his daze, and they resumed walking. The land paths were less obvious and Jack grumbled about getting lost until they finally stopped outside a tall building. He let go of Rhys, opened the door, and then pulled him inside.

“Stand here,” he ordered, then walked to the woman separated from them. “I want a room with two beds.”

She glanced back at Rhys, who only pulled the coat tighter around his shoulders, and then to Jack. “Seventy-five credits a night,” she said.

“Fine. But I’ll have to pay you tonight.” She scowled at him and he responded by pointing at Rhys. “Look, I just need a place to store him while I get some credits. Keep him as collateral if you want.”

“If you don’t pay up front, it’s ninety a night,” she warned.

Rhys couldn’t see Jack’s face in the dim light, but heard him growl out “Fine,” before she disappeared through an archway. She soon returned and handed something to Jack. After accepting it, he walked over to Rhys and grabbed his waist, roughly tugging him towards the stairs. Rhys stumbled after him and whined at the rough treatment, but Jack just pulled him up to the next floor.

Their room wasn’t fair from the stairs and Jack opened the door before urging Rhys inside. He switched on the lights and focused on the younger man. “All right, listen. You get to hang out in here while I go look for somewhere to exchange the jewelry for credits. Do not leave this room. At all. Do you understand me? Just sit on the bed or go to sleep. I’m taking the key with me.”

He turned to leave and Rhys’s arm slipped out of the coat to grab onto his sweater. “J-Jaaack,” he whined, his voice rough. “D-don’t go.” He didn’t want to be alone in the room. How long would he be gone? Why couldn’t they wait for Sasha or Fiona to stay with him? “Please.”

Jack looked down at his hand and pried his fingers free from his sweater. “Just stay here. I’ll be back soon. Take a nap or something.” He stepped out of the room, shut the door and locked it. Rhys whined as his footsteps faded away. He waited a minute, faintly hoping he’d come back, but he didn’t.

Rhys shuffled away from the door and sat on the bed, digging his toes into the carpet. He shrugged off the coat and dropped it on the floor as he surveyed his new body. His legs were long and thin, covered in a sparse layer of hair that had him wrinkling his nose at the touch. He leaned forward and picked up one of his feet, brushing his organic fingers over the sole. The skin was soft but dirty from the walk. His fingers trailed up from the sole to his toes and gingerly touched the short claws. They weren’t as long as the claws on his fingers, but still sharp enough that the pinprick was a little painful.

He sat up and his eyes finally fell to his midsection, which he hadn’t looked at once since waking up on the beach. It was odd to see his cock not hidden in a sheath, not to mention skin-colored and free of scales. He reached down and touched the soft skin and involuntarily shivered. This amount of sensitivity was definitely new. Sensations used to be dull and barely noticeable, but that certainly wasn’t the case now.

Rhys drew his hand back and looked around the room as if he would see someone standing in the corner, which was, unsurprisingly, not the case. He shifted on the bed until his back was against the cool wall with his legs stretched out across the mattress, though his feet hung over the edge. With a quiet sigh, he reached down to touch himself again, fingers gently wrapping around the shaft. When he moved his hand, starting out slow, he shivered again. The last time he could remember having this much sensation in his dick was during his rut when he hit maturity, and that had been so long ago.

Rhys’s breath hitched as his cock started to thicken in his hand and for moment the unfamiliarity of it all almost made him pull away. This was all new, but when else would he get this chance? He was alone now and he wasn’t sure when that would happen again.

So he didn’t pull away. Instead, he gradually tightened his grip and started to slide his hand along the length. He didn’t get far before the friction caused him to stop again, and he looked at both his hand and his erection. He didn’t have the same slick membrane that he previously had, and he took a few seconds to look around for a solution, though he didn’t actually get off the bed.

With nothing immediately jumping out at him, he looked at his palm and brought it up to his mouth, dragging his tongue across the skin. His breath was warm against his hand and he was momentarily distracted by the salty tang of his skin that he had never noticed before, and he licked at his fingers until he realized what he was doing and pulled his hand away.

He looked down and slowly wrapped his slick hand around the beginnings of his erection, right hand digging into the mattress. This felt ridiculous and there was a part of him that feared someone would come in at any moment and see him with his hand on his dick. He closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall, trying to bring up the memories of his rut all those years ago as he stroked himself.

The first thing he could recall was the unbearable burning in his blood. He could remember the sensation of being too hot and being unable to do anything about it. His features twisted at the uncomfortable memory and pushed it aside, then dug deeper.

Repressed memories were harder to dig up, but his body relaxed when he found the fantasies that had plagued his three-day-long nightmare. His breath hitched and his hand worked a little faster as he remembered the faceless males with colorful tails who held him down against the cool kelp bed and rolled their long cocks against his. He remembered the falsified hums he had once sworn he heard in his ears, praising him for being so good for them. (He never told anyone about that.)

Rhys stifled a groan in his throat at the warmth that curled in his gut. His breathing stuttered and his eyes opened as his fingers passed over the red tip of his cock, catching pearly fluid and smearing it across the throbbing flesh. He tightened his fingers and mewled when the crook of his finger pressed against the thick vein.

His eyes closed again and he knocked his head against the wall, the metal warm from his skin. The dreams came back and he felt phantom hands touching him, brushing against his cheeks and touching his cock. They purred at him and he tried to imagine what someone else would feel like pressed against him, driving him insane with touches.

The heat in his gut tightened into a knot and he could feel how close he was. He focused more on his imagination and the sensations, rather than the way his hand moved. He wanted his faceless lovers back.

Another unrecognizable man showed up and pinned him to the bed, grinning down at him. He whined quietly, aching to actually feel the large hands against his chest and cock. He slid his hand down to the base of his cock and sucked in a deep breath when one of his nails brushed his frenulum. The sudden rush of pleasure was enough to send him over the edge. His body tensed up as he came, staining his thighs and hand with his release.

The afterglow was short and he felt drained and sticky. He grimaced and slowly slipped off the bed, making at a face at the mess he’d made all over himself. The idea of clean-up was new to him as well, and he looked around the room for something to wipe himself off with. Something other than Jack’s coat at his feet.

He wandered around the room, looking for anything to use, but the room was rather barren and he was starting to lose hope until he realized that the door across from him wasn’t locked. With his clean hand, he turned the knob and stepped into the newly discovered room.

The first thing to draw his attention was a white object in the middle of the room. It was hollowed out and reminded him of Sasha and Fiona’s boat, but it was strangely smooth and cool to the touch. He looked it over curiously and eventually grabbed one of the two handles and turned it slowly. Water suddenly spurted from the spout and he jumped back, but his fear was quickly replaced with interest and he stuck his hand under the water. His hand lingered there for a moment, but the water went from frigid cold to scalding hot in under a minute and he pulled his hand away with a pained hiss.

He shook out his hand until it stopped stinging and watched the steam waft up from the stream of water. He frowned, thinking, and turned the other knob as well. The steam slowly faded away and he carefully stuck his fingers back under the stream. It was much cooler and he slowly got up to slip into the basin. His legs barely fit, but he wasn’t cramped. His heel knocked the plug into the drain and he watched the water fill the basin with undisguised fascination.

The water soon was up to his chest and he sat up long enough to turn off the water before he sank back down again. He used his claws to delicately scrape away any grime he could see, wishing he could roll in the sand at the bottom of the ocean like he used to.

He shook his head to get rid of the thought and mumbled, “Skin’s easier to clean anyway.” He didn’t quite believe it, but it was better to tell himself that than to mourn the losses of his previous routines. This was all a part of his wish; this was what he wanted. He didn’t really have the right to feel bad about it.

Once he was clean, he couldn’t bring himself to leave the bath. He maneuvered his legs until they were submerged and dipped his head into the water. It wasn’t salty, but it was water and that was good enough for him. He stayed underneath the surface until his lungs ached and he was forced to breach, but only allowed himself enough time to breathe before he ducked back down. He kept up the rhythm even as he slipped deep into his own thoughts and left reality.

He had no idea how long he stayed in the bath, though the water had long since cooled by the time he was pulled from his daze by the sound of a muffled voice. He opened his eyes and saw Jack’s slightly blurred figure above him. He sat up slowly and rubbed his eyes with his left hand, his right coming up to push his hair out of his face. He felt better, the loss of his friends and family not as strong as it had been.

Jack stared down at him. “Who turned on the bath for you, kiddo? You could have drowned in here.” He didn’t offer a hand to help Rhys up, but he did hold out a towel for him as he got out on his own.

Rhys hummed, but didn’t bother to respond as he accepted the towel and dried himself off. He rubbed it through his hair, hissing when it tugged at the dry strands. Jack used to complain about saltwater damaging his hair; was that going to happen to him too?

He caught sight of his reflection and he dropped the towel on the floor as made his way over to the mirror, still a little unsteady on his legs. His eyes fell to the thin lines on both sides of his neck and he turned his head to run his fingers over them. His gills were completely gone, replaced by lines of eridium. It still felt alien not to have his gills, but it was something he supposed he would have to adjust to. Tearing his gaze away from his neck, he pushed his hair back from his face and played with the locks experimentally. It would get really annoying really fast if he didn't get something to keep his hair out of his face soon.

Jack appeared in the background of the mirror, now holding a box. “I got ya something, kitten.”

Intrigued, Rhys stepped forward and took the box from Jack, placing it on the bed. Jack talked as he pulled up the lid. "You seemed pretty upset when I left you here this afternoon, so I got you some clothes so you can come with me tomorrow while I work on getting a new ship." The first thing he saw in the box was a sleek black cloth was that smooth to the touch. Rhys carefully pulled it out and laid it on the bed. "That's a cloak to cover you right arm. Your weird crystals would tear any sleeves but we're going to be here a while and you don't need to be walking around with it showing." His cryptic words made Rhys raise an eyebrow, but he didn't question it as he continued going through the clothes.

The shirt he pulled out had buttons like Jack's white shirt, but wasn't nearly as long and was dark red in color. "They didn't have a lot of clothes that would fit your tall skinny ass so I had to make do with what they had," Jack explained, as if Rhys actually cared about what colors he was wearing. His only concern was for softness, and so far he was pleased. He placed the shirt on top of the cloak and took out the pants, plain and brown. They were rougher in texture than his shirt, but not uncomfortably so.

He must have been taking too long for Jack’s liking, because the man pulled out a pair of underwear and nearly shoved it against his chest. “Here. These are for you to wear. You’ll get more tomorrow, but put those on for now. And there’s a pair of shoes and socks in there too. The shoes are pretty light so they shouldn’t be too hard for you to walk in. We’ll get up early so you can test them out.”

Rhys put down the pants and took the underwear, glancing over to Jack before he sat down and pulled them up his legs. He didn’t like the way they clung to his thighs and hips, and Jack smirked at his displeased expression. “You’ll get used to them,” he promised. “Don’t look so pissy.”

Jack suddenly grinned  and snapped his fingers before fishing something out of his pocket. “And I got something else.” Rhys’s expression shifted from discomfort to curiosity and Jack opened his hand to show off a brand new ECHOcomm. “I got a new one for myself, so you can stop whining all the time. You get to keep my old one.”

That was something Rhys hadn’t been expecting. He blinked, surprised, and watched Jack fit it into his ear. “You bought one just so you could talk to me?” he asked.

Now it was Jack’s turn to look surprised, but he quickly waved it off. “It’s not that big of a deal. Now you don’t have to shove yours in my ear anymore and we don’t have to take turns. And if you need the girls for some reason, I can tell them.”

Rhys nodded. Right, that made sense. It was practical to have someone else who was capable of communicating with him. “Well, thanks for the clothes, Jack.” They really were nice and he appreciated that he would be able to go outside with him in the morning.

“No problem, kiddo. I’m going to get a bath and head to bed. You should get some sleep too. We have a lot to do tomorrow.” He walked away from the bed that Rhys had claimed and shut the bathroom door behind him.

Rhys pulled out the shoes and socks from the box, looked them over, and replaced them, along with the rest of his clothes. He placed the box on the floor next to Jack’s coat and climbed into the bed, pulling back the blankets before settling into the mattress. It was a lot softer than his kelp bed back in the trench, but it was almost too soft. The ache in his chest that he had tried to ignore all afternoon worsened and he fell asleep wondering if his wish was worth all of this.

Chapter Text

The next morning he was woken up by Jack poking him in the back. Rhys hissed halfheartedly and buried his face back into the pillow, stretched out on his stomach. Jack chuckled above him, but continued to poke him even as Rhys whined a complaint.

“Get up, kitten. We have a lot to do today and you need to try on your clothes.” Jack’s untranslated words meant nothing to him and he groaned before swatting Jack’s arm away with his right hand.

A jolt of electricity shot through his ear and he let out a yelp, more out of surprise than pain. He sat up and gave Jack his best glare, though it came out looking more like a pout.

“Rise and shine, Rhysie,” Jack said, louder than before. “We got shit to do. Get your ass out of bed.”

He walked away from Rhys and the younger man huffed, but tried to climb out of bed. His legs had gotten tangled in the blankets some time during the night and his struggles only made them tighter. He tried to pull them off, but was too close to the edge and tumbled off with a startled noise.

When Jack poked his head out from the bathroom, the blankets had released Rhys’s legs and the man was simply sitting flustered on the floor. “Floor’s not better than the bed. Get up and put on your clothes.” He disappeared again and Rhys stood up.

He bent down and picked up the box of clothes he’d been given and started to pull out the pieces. He figured out the pants rather quickly, sitting down and sliding them up his legs (though they ended up backwards the first time). The shirt came next and he sat with it in his lap for a long time, trying to figure out how to get it on if he could only use one arm.

He jumped when he heard a sigh and looked up as Jack approached him, fully dressed and with the new comm in his ear. “Come ‘ere.” He pulled Rhys up to his feet and grabbed the shirt. “Stick your arms out. Both of them.”

Rhys did as he was told and Jack slipped his left arm into the sleeve. Once he maneuvered his right arm through the hole, he straightened out the shirt and buttoned it up for him. He gave him a quick pat on the chest when he finished.

Jack motioned to the bed. “Sit down so you can try on your shoes. I’ll show you how to put on your socks.”

Rhys sat down and Jack knelt on the ground, pulling out the second box. He pulled out a pair of silly looking socks, blue with yellow stars, and took hold of his leg. “Don’t you dare kick me,” he warned.

Rhys tilted his head quizzically, but realized what he meant when his hand brushed the sole of his foot. He jerked his leg at the strange sensation and Jack growled. “Stop squirming.” He grabbed Rhys’s ankle and pulled it back so he could put the sock on. Rhys managed to stay still long enough for him to get both socks on his feet.

The man grabbed the shoes, brown like his pants and without laces. It was easier to slip the shoes on than it was to put the socks on. Rhys marveled at how different his feet felt with then on.

“Stand up, walk around for a minute.”

Rhys got up and took a few experimental steps. “They feel nice,” he commented. “They don’t make my feet feel heavy and the socks are soft.”  

Jack snorted. “Glad they’re soft,” he mumbled before clearing his throat and saying, “Give me the cloak.” He didn’t look Rhys in the eye as he dropped it over the man’s head and shifted it around until it was settled correctly. It covered his right side entirely, but left his other arm free to use.

“There. Now nobody will be able to see your arm.”

Rhys looked down at the cloak with a soft frown. “But I like my arm. Why do I have to hide it?”

“Because I said so.” Rhys scowled at him and Jack glared back. “Don’t give me that look. You have no idea how much those crystals would be worth to the bunch of pirates on this island. If they see you, there’s no guarantee that they won’t try to kill you. And they have guns. Powerful ones. Powerful enough to blow your head into a million mushy bits so they can cut your arm off your dead body and sell it.”

Jack’s story left Rhys considerably paler than he had been, the blood completely gone from his face and his eyes wide as saucers. They both stayed frozen for a long time, before Jack broke their shared gaze and slapped Rhys hard on the shoulder.

“All right, let’s get going. We’re meeting the girls for breakfast.” He opened the door and paused when Rhys didn’t move. “Come on, kiddo. We need to go.”

Despite Jack’s words, Rhys remained frozen in place, heart pounding with anxiety. Jack huffed and grabbed his exposed wrist, tugging him out the door and ignoring his soft whine. He didn’t want to be near any humans, not even Sasha and Fiona. Contrary to his desires from yesterday, he now wanted to stay in the room with the door locked and hide in his bed. He hated guns and he liked being alive. Were humans really that scary? He thought all the rumors that circulated around the colony were just that—rumors. Now he wasn’t so sure.

Rhys was a lot more self-conscious than yesterday. Jack eventually released his arm and he used his left hand to keep the cloak pulled tight. Every fleeting look from a stranger had his heart drumming against his ribs. He whined nervously as Jack led him into a rather packed restaurant. The older man scanned the room before he caught sight of the sisters and tugged Rhys over to the booth. He at least had the decency to let Rhys press himself against the wall while Jack collapsed onto the other side of the bench and threw his arms over the back.

Fiona raised an eyebrow at Rhys. “Is he okay?” she asked. “And what’s with the outfit?”

Jack spared him a brief glance. “He’s fine. Just a little wound up. And it’s for his arm. That’s not something that we need to be broadcasting.” He clapped his hands together and Rhys nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound. “Now, what’s for breakfast?”

A menu and two visits from a waitress later and everyone had something to eat, none of which looked familiar to Rhys. Jack had ordered for him, saying something about ‘pancakes’ and how much he’d love them, and now he stared down at a plate of strange circles. He carefully reached up and poked one with a short claw. It was soft and his claw went right through it with no resistance. He leaned forward, sniffed it, ignoring Jack’s snickering, and wrinkled his nose at the sickly sweet smell.

Sasha watched his face morph from confusion to slight disgust. “Rhys, have you ever eaten anything that wasn’t meat?”

He finally looked away from the plate and shook his head. She looked down at her plate and then grabbed his, switching them out. “There. That’s meat. It’s cooked, but it shouldn’t taste too different.”

“T-tanks,” he answered, and she shot Jack a raised eyebrow.

“Ignore him, he can’t make ‘th’ sounds,” he explained around a mouthful of…something. Rhys wasn’t sure he wanted to know what it was. “Trust me, I tried to teach him.”

“Oh. Well, you’re welcome,” she said, and picked up a fork to eat the food she’d traded with him.

He looked at his own fork and slowly grabbed it, shifting it in his hand until it was comfortable. “I don’t like only using my normal arm,” he mumbled sullenly. If Jack heard, he didn’t react. He stabbed the mystery meat with the prongs and brought the whole thing to his mouth. He bit it and pulled off a chunk with his teeth, which were thankfully still a little sharp, to taste it. The flavor was faint and it wasn’t something he recognized. He picked at it, wondering what it came from. He wanted to ask, but Jack was not paying him any attention and the girls didn’t have comms, as far as he knew.

Still, it looked better than whatever Jack had ordered for him and he ate it slowly, using the fork as more of a handle than anything else. He was the last one to finish, but his stomach rumbled; Rhys was used to eating a lot of food and one piece of meat wasn’t going to satisfy him.

Jack looked at him from the corner of his eye and got up from the table.

Fiona frowned. “Hey, where are you going?” she asked, but he didn't answer and walked over to the waiter’s station.

Rhys gripped his cloak tight and watched the newly exposed room warily. The crowd had thinned out quite a bit, but there were still more people than he wanted to think about.

“He keeps doing this,” Sasha huffed. “I’m getting really sick of him just leaving without telling anyone. What if he tries to do that to us whenever he gets his ship?”

Fiona watched the older man’s back as he discussed something with the waiter. “Well, we just won’t let him. Come on, Sash. We know how to get the upper hand. He may be crazy, but we’re definitely smarter than him.”

Sasha laughed and rested her elbows on the table. “Yeah, I guess so. Though I hope he doesn’t take too long. We need to get off this island as soon as possible.” Fiona made a noise of agreement, but didn’t respond as Jack came back with a cone topped off with an off-white substance.

He held it out to Rhys, grinning in the same manner that he had when he ordered the dreadful pancakes. “Here, eat this.” Rhys pouted at him, skeptical, and Jack responded by moving it closer to his face, as if planning to shove it into his nose. “Eat it. You should like it.”

Rhys gave him a dubious look, but begrudgingly accepted the cone once he realized that Jack probably wasn’t going to leave him alone until he tried it. He inspected the food slowly, even going so far as to sniff it before Jack urged him to eat it. He opened his mouth and took a bite.

It was freezing. His teeth actually ached and he scrunched up his face in discomfort. He shot Jack a glare when the man cackled, and was half tempted to throw it at him. The taste, however, wasn’t bad and he didn’t want to waste it. It wasn’t overly sweet, and it even tasted a bit like fish. He took another, smaller, bite and this time he was prepared for the temperature, though his teeth still hurt.

“It’s…good,” he said, and Jack grinned down at him, amused. “What is it?”  

“It’s ice cream. Fish ice cream.”

Fiona folded her arms and raised an eyebrow at him. “Where did you get the money for ice cream?”

Jack waved her off. “That’s not important. I just wanted to see if he’d eat it.”  He grabbed Rhys’s arm and pulled him out of the booth. “But we need to get going. Do you want to take it with you?”

Rhys scrambled out of the booth, careful not to let go of the cone. He nodded slowly and Jack picked up a napkin, took the cone from him, wrapped the napkin around it, and handed it back. “There, now let’s go.”

He released Rhys and started towards the door of the restaurant. Sasha and Fiona shared annoyed looks, but ultimately followed him. Rhys was close on their heels, unwilling to be left behind.

Jack walked outside and Rhys shifted around Sasha until he was close to the vault hunter's side, still anxious about his surroundings. The amount of people they passed decreased the further they got from the docks and Rhys started to relax. He found himself looking up at the mountain that loomed over them in the center of the island. It wasn't massive, but the sides were steep and barren. It wasn't much different than the ones he saw underwater and he looked away from it. He took small bites of his melting ice cream while they walked.

They walked along the shore and Rhys was calmed by the gentle whoosh of water rushing over sand and pebbles. The pebbles crunched under his shoes and he dragged one of his feet to watch them scatter. Having feet was still strange, but it wasn't all bad.

"Jack?" he asked. The man made a noise of acknowledgement. "Where are we going, exactly?"

Jack glanced behind him at the younger man. "To meet with someone about getting a ship. We're not going anywhere in that dingy rowboat and I'm not staying here any longer than I have to. So we're going to get a ship."

"Where are we going to go when we leave here?"

"Not sure yet, pumpkin. I heard some rumors about a vault before the wreck, so if I can find more maps, we'll probably head that way."

"What's a vault?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Do you have to ask so many questions? I'm not going to stand here and explain what a vault is." He took longer (and quicker, since Rhys had freakishly long legs) strides until he was a good ways ahead of Rhys.

Rhys glowered at the back of his head. What happened to the Jack he knew at the cove, who was always happy to hear himself talk? Where was the man who liked to tell his stories of adventure and badassery?

Fine, whatever. Rhys didn’t want to talk to him anyways.

There was no more conversation between him and Jack for the rest of the walk, which was thankfully short, and Rhys only vaguely listened in on what Sasha and Fiona were talking about. The group walked up to the large building that was right on the water. The walls were much shinier than the ones on the other side of the island, not covered in rust.

Jack strode up to the door and knocked hard. It opened a few seconds later and Rhys looked down at the short man who had opened it. “Are you the shipwright?” Jack asked.

“That’s me! Name’s Scooter.” He sounded very cheerful and it was a welcome relief from Jack’s recent dour behavior. He didn’t even look that scary.

“Need repairs or somethin’?”

“No repairs. We’re looking to get a ship, and hopefully in a few days.”

Scooter whistled. “That’s a tall order, but come in and we’ll see what I got.” He let the four of them in and Rhys stood off to the side, holding the empty cone and trying to get rid of the stickiness on his hand. He was only halfway listening to Jack talk about what kind of ship he wanted, not really interested in the conversation.

“Man, that’s a lot of features,” Scooter commented once Jack had finished reciting his list of desires. “But what yer asking for sounds a lot like one of them Hyperion ships, and I think I got a blueprint of one somewhere ‘round here. If I got the materials, then we can have one digistructed for you in a day or two.”

Rhys glanced up at that. They would be leaving soon…but where would they go?  Did people just sail aimlessly until they decided on a destination?

“I don’t think a Hyperion ship is a good idea, Jack,” Fiona advised. She didn’t cower when he turned around and glowered down at her.

“Oh?” he sneered. “And why is that? Don’t like the idea of being on a ship that’s made for killing pirates like you?”

Fiona glared at him. “Because the Hyperion family is who set that bounty on you. And it’s stupid to use one of their ships.”

Everything seemed to freeze at once. Jack went rigid and Sasha placed a hand on her sister’s shoulder to pull her back if the need arose. Even Rhys paused, surprised by the anger and the mention of Hyperion. Where had he heard that name before?

Regardless, Jack’s mounting fury set off alarms inside of the former merman and he backed away. Jack was already grumpy; Rhys didn’t want to see him angry. Scooter had already left, disappearing once Jack started taunting Fiona. Rhys decided to go in that direction, towards the front of the shop that opened out onto the water. He settled in a corner near the water, pleased that the waves drowned out any sound of Jack’s rage.

He licked the ice cream residue off his hand and wiped his wet hand on his cloak. It was warm outside, but the cloak was breathable, allowing him to stay cool. He still wasn’t overly fond of it.

“Hi there.”

Rhys nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden voice, and he looked up at the woman who had approached him. She was blonde with a scarred and bandaged face, but she smiled cheerfully. Like Scooter, she didn’t seem threatening at all, even with the scar. She also wasn’t carrying a gun, which made him less afraid. He lifted his good hand and gave her a small, albeit nervous, wave.

She glanced over to the group on the other end of the shop, watching Jack and Fiona argue. “Those your friends?”

He nodded when she looked back at him.

“You don’t talk much, do you?” He shrugged. “Mind if I sit here with you? I’m on my break.”

After a brief moment of consideration, he shifted over to give her room, and she sat down, legs hanging over the edge. If she worked here, it wasn’t his place to tell her no.

“Name’s Janey. What’s yours?”

“R-Rhys,” he said softly. His voice was still rough sounding, but she didn’t seem to notice.

“Well, Rhys, what are you and your friends here for?”

He tried to think of the word for ‘ship,’ but he was drawing a blank. Instead, he gave her a helpless shrug of his shoulders. “I can’t speak your language,” he clicked hesitantly. He imagined that humans had different languages, so he didn’t think it would be a big deal.

Instead of acting confused, her eyes lit up and her whole body perked up. “I’ve heard that before! That’s how the mermaids sound.” His eyes grew wide as she glanced down at his legs. “But you don’t look like one.”

He opened his mouth, then closed it again and pointed at his comm. It wasn’t very specific, but she nodded and got up from her spot. She left him briefly, and Rhys had lost sight of Jack and the girls by the time she returned with a comm in her ear.

She plopped back down next to him and he spoke first. “How do you know about the seafolk? Nobody’s supposed to know.”

Janey gave him a quizzical look. “Pretty much everyone knows about mermaids. Though some people don’t believe in them ‘cause they’ve never seen one.”

Her casual tone was a stark contrast to the way he was falling apart on the inside. His whole world had come crashing down in a matter of seconds.

“Why don’t humans go after them, then?” he asked, though he was almost afraid to know the answer.

“I dunno. Probably because they’ve never done anything to us. And you guys live pretty deep, yeah?” He nodded. “See, it’s hard for us to go that far down. We’re perfectly fine above the water, but not below it. Make sense?” Again, he nodded.

“So, Rhys, if you’re a mermaid, how’d you get legs?”

He bit the inside of his cheek. “I’m not entirely sure.” He wasn’t totally lying to her. “It just kind of happened.”

She gave him a skeptical look and he quickly rushed to another topic. “Have you ever seen a mermaid before?”

She didn’t force the topic again. “Yeah, I’ve seen a few. Knew one, too. I did a lot of traveling before Scooter hired me and I saw some swimming around once. Most of them disappeared when I got close, but there was one girl who wasn’t scared of me. She came and saw me a lot while I was living on Torgue. That’s where I learned to understand some of the clicks.”

Rhys was struck by the similarities between the mystery mermaid and himself. He thought about how he had never been afraid of humans, and how that had led him to Jack.

“What made you leave?”

Janey shrugged casually, but her cheerful expression faded. “She got killed. I’m not sure what got her, but one of the others brought me her belongings. The beach seemed really empty after that. I couldn’t bring myself to stay. I got on a ship that stopped here, and Scooter heard about my crafting skills. He hired me and I’ve been here ever since.”

Rhys could see how the memories pained her. “I’m sure that the Guard—”

“Rhys.”

The young man stopped and looked up at Jack, who stood over both him and Janey. He gave the woman a calculating look, but said nothing to her. “Come on, cupcake. It’s time to go.”

Rhys nodded and stood up, barely getting out a goodbye before Jack grabbed his arm and tugged him away. Rhys stumbled after him and glared at the back of his head. “What gives, Jack? I was talking to someone.” Because it wasn’t like Jack was fun to talk to anymore.

“We’re done here. Our ship should be ready for us in two days, and then we’ll be heading to Hyperion. We’ll make a stop at Tediore, which is about halfway between here and there. Tomorrow we’re gathering up supplies and we need to sit down and talk about who needs what.”

“Oh,” Rhys responded quietly. He walked behind Jack in silence for a few moments, his wrist still caught in Jack’s tight grip. “What’s Hyperion?”

Jack actually growled at him. Rhys tensed up and his right arm moved underneath his cloak in preparation to free his wrist if things went badly.

However, Jack forced out an answer between gritted teeth. “It’s an island. Like this one, but much bigger.”

Rhys took that tidbit of information and stored it away in his head, then decided to test his luck. “Why are you so angry about Hyperion? How did an island put a bounty on you?” Jack had once told him about cashing in the ships of dead pirates for bounty reward money, but that didn’t explain why Jack had a bounty on him. “Why is there a bounty on you? You said only pirates get bounties.”

Jack whipped around so fast that Rhys almost ran into him. His eyes were burning with rage and Rhys felt the hair on the back of his neck rise. A mantra of threatthreatthreat repeated in his brain, but deep down he trusted Jack not to hurt him. Though Jack was the same height as him, in that moment Rhys felt infinitely smaller than him.

“Shut. Up. I don’t want to hear another word out of you until we get back to the hotel. No more questions, no more comments. Got it?”  

When he opened his mouth to apologize, Jack responded by taking out his own comm and shoving it into his pocket before Rhys could even make a sound.

“Now come on,” he said as he released the merman’s aching wrist and stalked off. Apparently he expected Rhys to follow. Which he did, though this time he kept his distance.

Jack led him all the way back to the room in silence, only speaking when Rhys shuffled in through the door and shut it.

“You can stay here while I work on a list of what we’ll need. I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” he said. Evidently, his earlier offer of allowing Rhys to join him when he left the room had expired.

Rhys wriggled out of his cloak and sank down on the bed, shoulders slouched while he sulked. He stared down at the lines of eridium on the inside of his arm and flexed his fingers. It felt odd just to let his arm hang at his side all day instead of using it.

He glanced up when Jack groaned. “Don’t look so mopey. It’s kind of pathetic.”

Rhys frowned at him, but he was already on his way back out the door. It shut behind him and Rhys folded his arms in irritation.

Jack was a jerk. Although Jack had been nice to him last night, all day he had been mean and rude. It was completely different from how he had been in the cove and it made Rhys’s chest ache. He liked that Jack more than this new one.

He felt a question creeping into his thoughts and he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to push it away. Of course he did the right thing. It wasn’t even like he could have gone back to the colony anyway. Though, a part of him said he should have wished for the colony to accept him again.

He sighed and leaned back against the wall. The room was too quiet. Rhys considered getting in the bathtub again, but he wanted to feel the current wash over him. He couldn’t get that feeling in a bathtub. He looked over at his cloak next to him and then got up from the bed. He pulled the cloak over his head and slipped his shoes back on. He couldn’t just stay in the room by himself all night.

The door opened easily; Jack hadn’t locked it behind him this time. Rhys closed it behind him carefully, wary of how much noise he was making, and kept his head down as he walked through the hotel and out the door. The air had cooled considerably since that morning and the sky was streaked with pinks and oranges. He smiled as the wind blew his hair back. It was nicer to be outside than it was to be inside.

Rhys walked away from the hotel and in the direction of Scooter’s shop. The beach was not far, and he walked out to where the pebbles met sand, the waves not quite reaching his feet. He watched them for a moment, the ache in his chest growing stronger until he pulled the cloak over his head.

He set to work stripping off his clothes, almost tearing his shirt in the process. He clumsily pulled off his socks, and soon he was bare and darting towards the water. His feet sank into the wet sand and he stumbled when a wave crashed into his knees, but he kept going until the water was up to his chest. He relaxed almost immediately; this was still where he was meant to be, tail or no tail.

After taking in a deep breath, he dove underneath the surface. He swam down towards the floor, fighting the tide that tried to drag him back to the shore. Once he settled near the seafloor, he looked down at his legs, assessing them. He knew that humans could swim, but he also knew nothing could ever compare to his tail. He kicked his legs experimentally and was surprised at how easily he moved.

Rhys swam around, testing out his new legs, until long after the sun had gone down. His eye allowed him to see just fine underwater, and the moon was bright enough overhead that he wasn’t worried about potential predators sneaking up on him. He hadn’t even seen a single human since leaving the hotel.

He broke the surface to breathe and pushed his hair back from his face. He was about to dive down again when he heard a faraway call of his name. The ECHOcomm picked up the faint sound and he glanced back towards the shore. He had wandered pretty far out, he realized.

He could make out the silhouette of a man a bit farther from the shore. His name was called again, louder this time, and Rhys stiffened when he recognized Jack’s voice. How had the man known to come looking for him? Had he really stayed out that late? He didn’t know how long it had been.

Rhys ducked down and swam back towards the shore, planting his feet in the sand the moment he could touch the bottom. He emerged from the water and came face-to-face with the furious human. Jack held Rhys’s cloak in one hand. His other was clenched into a fist.

“What the hell, Rhys?” he snapped. “You can’t pull this shit! I’ve been looking for you for over an hour! You shouldn’t even be out here.” He shoved the cloak into Rhys’s chest. “Get dressed. We’re going back to the hotel. I’m tired and ready to go to bed.”

Rhys bristled and his blood boiled like magma under his skin. He balled the cloak up tight and threw it at Jack. The man lurched forward when it smacked into his back and Rhys felt a sick sense of satisfaction curl in his stomach. Jack turned around once he regained his balance. Rhys straightened his spine and the crystals on his arm glowed in warning. He was not going to be intimidated again.

“I’m not a hatchling, Jack. I’m an adult. You can’t lock me in a room while you do shit and you can’t treat me like a baby. I’m thankful that you brought me here instead of leaving me in the cove but you do not control me. And you might be able to shut me up by taking out your comm but you can’t erase me. I lived in the ocean for years. For years I didn’t leave the water. Of course I’m going to want to come out here and swim instead of being trapped in a silent room where I’ll lose my fucking mind!” His yell echoed around them and he lowered his voice. His clicks were shaky, but that was lost in translation.

“I miss my friends, Jack. I can’t just forget about them. And when I’m left in a room all by myself, it doesn’t make me feel any better. I didn’t know when you were coming back. What else was I supposed to do?”

Rhys raised his arm to rub his stinging eyes and Jack didn’t say a word. The silence was painful, and he took a step to go grab his clothes, but stopped as he felt the weight of his cloak on his shoulder. When he opened his eyes, Jack was standing in front of him. His mask was no longer warped with anger and he wiped some sand off the cloak.

Jack picked up his underwear and pants off the ground and handed them over. “Just put these on, kitten. We’re going to stop for dinner before we head back to the room, okay? You’ve been out here for a while and I bet you’re hungry.”

Rhys nodded grudgingly and accepted the clothes. He waited for Jack to respond to what he said, but nothing came. He decided not to push it. He put on his pants as Jack gathered up his shirt, socks, and shoes to carry with him.

Jack tucked them under his arm and turned back to Rhys. “What do you want to eat?”

“Fish,” he answered, “but not cooked. Or at least, only a little bit cooked.”

“Ice cream afterwards?” Jack’s mouth quirked into the faintest hint of a smile when Rhys eagerly nodded again. “Ice cream afterwards, then.”

Chapter Text

Their stay on the island did not last much longer, but it was packed with activity.

Jack didn’t leave Rhys alone in the room again, taking him along when they went shopping for supplies. While Jack didn’t allow him to buy anything on his own, he did accept the merman’s input and bought ten ECHOcomms for communicative purposes and a bag reminiscent of his previous one, made from canvas instead of kelp.

He even bought Rhys a pistol, despite the younger man’s vocal disagreement over the subject. Though Sasha promised to teach him how to shoot once they got out on the ocean, Rhys didn’t feel any better. He refused to carry it once it was bought and kept a sharp eye out for Jack trying to stuff it into his new bag when he wasn’t looking. (He tried twice before he gave up.)

The day after that, Scooter had their ship ready. They spent all day and most of the night loading their supplies onto the ship and storing them under the deck. Rhys wasn’t exempt from the manual labor, and his cloak was draped over a post as he carried boxes onto the ship.

Janey helped occasionally with hauling supplies whenever she wasn’t busy, and Rhys talked to her as much as possible. They talked about the seafolk and about her travels around the world. Her stories weren’t quite as interesting as Jack’s, but they were still fun to hear. She told him about the different types of creatures she’d seen and he told her about the beasts that moaned loud and low, the ones he had only ever heard in the distance and had never seen.

She even listened to him talk about Jack’s moodiness, which he spoke of quietly during their lunch break.

Not once that day did she mention his arm, and he appreciated the lack of questions.

On the third day, Jack dragged Rhys out of bed before the sunrise and and down to the lobby of the hotel where they met the equally as sleepy sisters. Jack was the only one who seemed to be fully awake, and he led the pack across the island to Scooter’s shop while the others trudged behind him.

Both Scooter and Janey were waiting for them at the bottom of the gangwalk. Jack stepped off to the side to speak with Scooter and Fiona and Sasha walked onto the ship. Rhys paused to rub his eyes with his left hand; he wasn’t awake enough for this. His arms and legs ached from yesterday and he wanted to go back to bed.

“Rhys?”

He opened his eyes and gave Janey a small smile. “Hi. Do you always get here so early in the morning?” He couldn’t imagine doing this every day.

“Nah, but Scooter wanted me to help launch you guys’ ship,” she said. She held out a piece of paper to him.

The merman accepted it hesitantly and looked at the unfamiliar markings on it. “What’s this?”

“It’s my comm signal. Ask someone to program your ECHO for you.”

“But what’s it for? What’s a comm signal?”

“It means we can talk over long distances. You said you’re going to Tediore, yeah? There’s someone there I want you to say hi to for me.” She looked over to Jack and leaned in close with a small smile on her face. “And if you ever want to complain about Jack, I’m all ears.”

He wanted to laugh, but was still stunned by the new knowledge. “It’s not just a translator?”

She giggled. “No, it can do a lot more than that. It’s a shame you can’t stay longer. I’d show you what your comm can do. But you could ask one of the girls about it. I bet they’d be happy to help.”

She gave him a hug, only pulling away when Jack called for Rhys to get on the ship.

“Guess that’s your signal. See ya sometime, Rhys.”

He smiled at her and nodded in agreement. Jack called him again and Rhys started up the gangwalk to join the others.

“Come on, Rhysie,” Jack urged from where he leaned against the railing. “Get your butt in gear. We need to get going. The sun’s already up.”

“I’m coming,” he sighed, jogging the last few feet and moving out of the way so Jack could retract the walkway. He didn’t even have the energy to lean over the edge to watch the walkway rise and slide into the side of the ship.

Instead, he went over to where Sasha sat and near the bow and plopped down beside her. He held out the piece of paper to her. “Will you help me program this into my comm?” he asked.

She raised an eyebrow and took the paper from him. “Who gave you this?”

He couldn’t stop the smile that appeared on his face. “A friend.”

The next couple of hours were spent syncing up all of the comms that Jack had bought to each other so they didn't have to manually find each other’s signals when they needed to talk. Rhys appreciated Sasha’s help; he could see that she was tired and wanted to get some more sleep. Which was why, after she showed him how to work the device, he stopped asking questions and allowed her to leave to go take a nap.

Rhys put the scattered comms in his bag, got up from where he sat on the deck and wandered over to Jack, who was standing near the wheel. The former merman looked at the massive wheel and then to Jack. “This is what I found you under.”

Jack looked away from the ocean and over at Rhys. “What?”

“When I found you. After the wreck. You were trapped under this…thing. It looked a little different but yeah, this is what nearly killed you.”

Jack hummed. “Guess it's a good thing you're nosy.” He smirked at Rhys’s scowl. “What? Are you trying to say that you weren’t being nosy when you decided to follow my ship?”

“I was curious, ” he argued. “ It's still your fault you crashed. Did you not know about the ledges? And who goes that fast during a storm?”

Jack grunted and waved off his criticisms. “Gotta live and learn, Rhysie. Besides, risks are what this is for.” He reached into his coat and pulled out a familiar pocket watch, popping it open and holding it between his fingers with a grin.

Rhys blinked and watched the hands tick. “How did you get that? I thought it was broken.”

When he reached out to touch it, Jack abruptly closed it and stuffed it back in his jacket. “Well you see, kitten, eridium’s powerful stuff. It's a universal energy source. Just a bucket of the stuff is worth paying an army to protect it. I don't know where you found eridium, considering it has to be mined, or how you managed to get an arm made out of it, but whenever you dipped my watch in eridium, it started working again.”

Rhys listened intently, and clutched his volcanic wrist with his other hand at the mention of it. That explained Jack’s warning about being killed for his arm. At least he was safe when it was just the four of them on the ship, safe enough that his cloak was folded up in his room beneath the deck. Still, it was disheartening to know that he would never be entirely safe.

Jack snapped his fingers. “That reminds me. I got you something down in my room. Watch the water for me, will ya? Just for a moment while I go get it.”

His eyes widened and he opened his mouth to protest, but Jack was gone. Rhys swallowed hard and stood near the wheel nervously. There was nothing in sight and while he knew that they would see any mountains before hitting one, that didn't make him feel any less anxious.

Luckily, Jack returned soon and took his place back at the wheel. He held out the shield that Rhys had brought to Jack all that time ago.  It felt like ages since Jack had explained his treasures to him, though it really hadn't been that long.

“Here. This was in your bag when your little friend brought it to me. It's functional, too. Should save you from attacks, bullets, and rough impacts. It's pretty good for a Pirate shield, but we’ll get you a better one in Tediore.”

He studied Rhys for a second, then fastened the shield to one of his belt loops. “That should hold nicely. Shouldn't come off unless you yank it off. Don't yank it off,” he warned. Rhys nodded quickly in understanding, which seemed to satisfy Jack.

The human rested his forearms on the grooves of the wheel and watched the ocean in front of them. “We should be passing near the cove soon.” That caught Rhys’s attention. “We won’t be getting as close as I was when my other ship sank, but we should be able to see it.” He glanced over to Rhys briefly. “Wish I could get some of my stuff back. Had a lot of things in that office…” He stopped talking and something passed over his face. It looked almost like regret, though it was gone in an instant and Rhys wasn’t quite sure.

Whatever it was, Jack pushed it away and straightened up. “Speaking of, I think I can see that damned place now.”

Rhys whirled around, nearly tangling his own legs together, and stared at the gradually approaching cove. It looked different than when they were in the small rowboat; now it was smaller and the walls didn’t look that high anymore. For a moment he mourned the loss of its grandeur; for most of his life, it had been a place of wonder and human activity. Now it was just an empty beach surrounded by rocks. He could see why Jack had called it cramped.

He walked over to the side of the ship and leaned against the railing. The sun glistened on the rippled surface of the sea and he felt the familiar pang to go swimming. How long would it take them to get to Tediore? He wasn’t sure how long he could go without swimming before he went insane.

A short distance from the ship, a shadow moved beneath the surface. Rhys’s attention shifted from his thoughts to the water below and he leaned over the side a little. The waters were rather clear and while the sunlight created a glare that made it a bit difficult, Rhys recognized the shape of a tail.

His heart nearly stopped in his chest. Whoever it was had to be aware of the ship, and they weren’t as deep as they were supposed to be around humans. (Though that was a rule he never followed, either.) It was almost midday; was it a hunter collecting for dinner? If it was, then maybe…

A quick glance behind him showed that Jack wasn’t paying him any mind, and the merman slowly moved towards the back of the ship. He stopped when he was far enough that Jack couldn’t see him, yet not close enough that he could potentially get caught in the rudder. He quickly pulled off his shoes and socks, then wriggled out of his shirt. He knew on a conscious level that this was a horrible idea, but what was going to happen if he was wrong? He wasn’t a part of them anymore.

He tied a knot in the strap of his bag to keep it from being lost upon impact, and kept his shield attached to his pants. Rhys sucked in a breath and sat on the railing, throwing his legs over the heated metal and staring down at the wave churning against the sides. It didn’t look like a horrible fall and hopefully the shield would protect him from the worst of it.

“Rhys, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Rhys was nearly startled into slipping off the railing at the sound of Jack’s voice. He stared wide-eyed at the human, who had turned around from the wheel.

Jack didn’t move towards him, though his body was tensed and ready to run. “Rhys, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he repeated, a hard edge to his voice.

Rhys swallowed and flexed his fingers, the railing scalding his palm. “I’ll be right back, I promise.” He braced his feet against the painted metal wall. “I just need to do something.”

They both moved at the same time. Rhys pushed off from the railing and Jack rushed over to where he’d been, arm outstretched in hopes of grabbing him.

Rhys sank down into the water, the bright blue glow of his shield surrounding him for several seconds before flickering and disappearing. He opened his eyes and ducked down when the ship moved above his head. He spun around and tried to catch sight of the mermaid that he had seen.

But then he saw something heading deeper, possibly towards the trench. It was faint, even with his enhanced eye, but he could see it. He swam after it, painfully slow in comparison, until he caught a small glimpse of bright green scales in the distance.

He was yelling before he could consider the idea that it might not be who he was looking for: “Vaughn!” His clicks did not carry as far as they once had and his heart sank into his stomach when the scales vanished. Was he not loud enough?

He swam in the direction that the mermaid had disappeared in, ignoring the discomfort in his lungs, and tried again. “Vaughn!” He still didn’t see them, and he wondered if it was even him. Had they switched Vaughn’s schedule after his exile?

Just as he was considering swimming to the surface and finding his way back onto the ship, he heard a quiet voice. “Rhys?”

His head snapped up and he saw his brother and best friend approaching him cautiously. He grinned and nodded, though Vaughn didn’t return the enthusiasm. His eyes dragged over Rhys, and the man remembered his new body. “Look, it’s a long story but—”

“You’re not dead?” His voice was soft with disbelief. “Where is your tail?”

“No, I’m not dead. And I lost it. Listen, I don’t have gills anymore and I can’t stay down here long but I wanted to give you something.” He opened his bag and pulled out one of the ECHOcomms, shoving it through the water and over to Vaughn. “You put it in your ear. If you press that blue button on it, it can call any other comm that it’s connected to.”

Vaughn caught the comm, but gave Rhys a sad look. “I don’t know what any of that means.”

That threw Rhys through a loop. It seemed so simple and easy to him now, but Vaughn didn’t understand at all. “It means you can talk to me whenever you want.” His head was starting to throb. “I can’t stay. I’m sorry. I don’t have gills anymore.” He looked up at the distance between him and the surface. Could he make it? “I love you, Vaughn. I miss you. I want to talk to you again. Please, call me when you’re alone. I’ll explain what happened. Tell Yvette I miss her too.”

He started to swim towards the surface with his limbs starting to feel heavy and his vision fading. He wanted nothing more than to suck in a breath, though he knew that would only make things worse.

An arm wrapped around his waist and pulled him upwards. “I’m not going to let you die now, you jerk,” Vaughn’s clicks echoed in his head. “Not again.”

The second they breached the water, Rhys inhaled deeply and winced at his headache. “Thanks.” He gave him a small smile as he used his arms to tread water. “You’re the best bro in the world.”

Vaughn finally returned the smile, and looked up at the ship. “Is that your boat?”

“Yeah. Well, it’s Jack’s.” Vaughn gave him a long suffering look and Rhys sighed. “Again, long story. The short version is that I’m human now and he kept me from being stranded in the cove.

The short merman raised an eyebrow. “What does any of that mean?”

“I can’t explain right now. He’s already pissed that I jumped over to edge and—”

Green eyes grew massive. “You jumped?! From up there?!”

Rhys huffed. “ Yes, I did. You don’t have to scold me anymore, he does it enough for you and Yvette both.” He winced at how that sounded, but Vaughn didn’t seem hurt by it. “I need to get back, though.”

“Fine, but I want a full explanation on this later, you hear me? You had both me and Yvette mourning you and you’re not even dead.”

Rhys’s grinned sheepishly “Sorry. Honestly, a lot has happened this week.”

Vaughn grunted and shoved him. “Now go. I’m still on a short leash and they’ll come looking for me if I take too long. They don’t need to see me near a ship.” He looked down at the comm in his hand as Rhys started to swim away from him.

“Rhys?”

He stopped and turned around. “Yeah?”

“I’m glad you’re not dead.”

The man smiled faintly. “Thanks, bro. Call me later, okay? Remember, the blue button.” Vaughn nodded and disappeared under the water while Rhys swam over to the ship.

Jack had lowered a rope ladder over the edge for him to climb back up, but Rhys lingered at the bottom of it nervously. He could see the man waiting at the top and he wasn’t keen on being yelled at. Eventually, though, he made him way back onto the ship, avoiding Jack’s smoldering glare as he went to grab his clothes from where he’d left them.

He didn’t get far before Jack reached out and gripped his arm, effectively keeping him in place. Rhys still didn’t look at him.

“So, mind telling me what possessed you to jump over the side of the ship?” Jack’s voice was surprisingly cool, yet his tone was dark.

“I saw someone from the colony. Vaughn is one of the hunters for dinner, and this is around the time he goes hunting. I thought it was him and I wanted to give him one of the comms so we could talk.”

“One of the comms I bought?”

Rhys glared at the man and pulled his arm free. “So? You said they’re so people can talk to me if they need to, and I want him to talk to me. And what do we even need ten for, anyway? He’s my brother and I want to be able to talk to him.” He gathered his shirt and shoes in wet arms and held them close. “I should have asked first but I didn’t think you’d say yes.”

“Kind of the point of asking first, kid.”

Before Rhys could retort, Fiona walked up to them, hat askew on her head and clothes rumpled from sleep. “Why are we stopped? I didn’t hear us hit anything.”

Jack glanced over at Rhys, who was still frowning at him. “Giraffe legs here fell overboard. Thought he saw something in the water and leaned over too far.”

Fiona raised an eyebrow at Rhys and the man forced an awkward smile. “Nice one, Rhys,” she muttered, then turned and left them alone.

Jack scratched his chin near the clasp and nudged Rhys towards the steps. “Go dry off. Towels should be below deck.” His voice was quiet.

“Why did you lie to Fiona?”

Jack turned away from him and Rhys felt the wind pick up as the ship started to move again. “She thinks you’re not responsible enough to be here. She doesn’t need any more reasons to think you can’t handle yourself.”

He gave Rhys a brief glance when the mermaid pushed his hair back. “If you want something to keep your hair out of your face, I have gel in my room you can use. We’ll get you your own later.”

Rhys gave him a small nod and left to find his private room below the main deck. Jack had been rather lenient when they bought supplies; they each got two towels of their own and he had bought extra in case of emergencies. When he found the towels, he stripped out of his clothes and took his time drying off, thinking about what Jack had said.   

He changed and took his wet clothes up to the deck to lay out in the sun and he found a spot to sit near the bow of the ship to watch the waves.

It took them nearly a week to reach Tediore. Rhys didn’t jump off the side again and Jack didn’t hound him about giving away one of the comms anymore.

However, that didn’t mean the ship’s atmosphere wasn’t tense.

The whole week was spent with Jack trying to teach the basics of seamanship to everyone else. Sasha and Fiona had very little experience on larger boats and had to be taught how to properly navigate the ocean, how to steer the vessel, and how to do maintenance.

They still did better than Rhys, though. The former merman struggled with the machinery and navigation, jobs that ended up going to Sasha and Fiona, respectively. He refused to touch the helm, even for hypothetical emergencies, and did not like being high up, ruling out his potential as a scout. He was an abysmal cook (which Jack could understand since he ate everything raw anyway) and his cleaning skills were lackluster.

By the time they arrived at Tediore, Jack had Rhys doing small things around the ship, such as tying knots or moving things around in storage to change the weight distribution. Rhys could tell Jack was doing his best to give him something to do, but he hated how he still felt so useless. His responsibilities for years had merely included protecting the borders of the colony’s territory and hunting for food; now his duties were a lot more complex and he was still struggling to adapt.

After they finished docking, Rhys tried to disembark as quickly as possible, eager to get off the ship and back onto stable ground. He almost reached the gangway before Jack took a step in front of him and blocked off the exit.

Rhys frowned. “What? Are we not leaving yet?”

“You’re forgetting something, pumpkin.”

The man looked underneath his cloak to check on his shield. “I have my cloak, the shield, and my comm. What else do I need?”

Jack answered by pulling the pistol from behind his back and holding it out to Rhys. He ignored the man’s displeased groan. “Take it. Sasha didn’t get a chance to teach you how to use it this week, so you get to learn today.” He leaned forward and strapped the holster to his pants. “If you take it off, I’ll find out. And if I find out you took it off, then…” He trailed off but his steely gaze was enough of a warning. Rhys nodded mutely and Jack patted him on the shoulder.

“Now, Papa’s got things to do, so have fun with the girls.” He smiled at Rhys, then immediately left the three of them standing there on the deck.

“What a dick,” Fiona muttered, which had become her typical response to anything he did. “Listen, I’m going to go get us some rooms. This place looks pretty busy. I’ll meet up with you for dinner later, Sash.”

Sasha nodded. “Okay. See ya, Sis.” Fiona left and Sasha elbowed Rhys gently. “Come on, let’s go explore a bit. We’ll find somewhere secluded for target practice and then head to dinner if it’s late enough.”

That sounded like a good plan to him. He still didn’t think that Fiona liked him that much, so he was glad to walk with Sasha instead. He nodded and they walked down the gangway to the dock. Once they left the dock and the ground grew solid, Rhys had to pause for a moment and adjust to it.

Sasha gave him an odd look and his face flushed pink. “It’s weird being on land again,” he explained quickly. “We were on the ship for a long time.”

She grinned. “You’ll get used to it one of these days. You good now?”

He nodded and followed her towards the bustling village. It was a lot bigger than the small cluster of buildings that had made up the previous island and he felt slightly nervous to be around all of these strange people. It was so different than being on a ship with only the people he trusted.

“Have you ever been here before?” he asked her.

“Nope,” she answered easily. “Fi and I are from Vladof, a kingdom northeast of here. We’ve been making our way west for a year now, but the island was as far as we’d been before now.”

“Just you and Fiona? Where’s the rest of your family?”

She looked down at the ground as they walked. “Felix, the man who raised us, is dead. We never knew our actual parents.”

“Neither did I. Well, not really. They died when I was a hatchling. I was barely old enough to break crab shells on my own and I would have died if Vaughn’s parents hadn’t found me when they did. I don’t remember them much at all.”

Sasha watched him carefully and he didn’t look at her. “That…really sucks.”

Rhys cleared his throat. “So, why have you and Fiona being going west?”

Now, she smirked a little and straightened her back in pride. “We’ve been doing what we do best—cons.” At Rhys’s quizzical expression, she elaborated. “We didn’t have much money as kids. Before Felix found us, we were pickpockets who stole money from people. But when he found us, he showed us how to pull off actual scams like selling fake things to people. We sold a fake vault key once.”

A vault key? “Jack mentioned something about a vault one time, but he wouldn’t tell me what it was.” That was back when Jack was being a jerk and ornery. “What’s a vault?”

Her shocked expression quickly morphed to understanding. “I forget that vaults aren’t something you’d know about. But a vault is basically this thing that has treasure hidden inside. Sometimes it’s weapons, sometimes it’s riches. They’re found all over the galaxy, but nobody is completely sure where they came from.” She motioned to his hidden arm. “A lot of them have ties to what your arm is made of. Keys almost always need to be powered by eridium.”

Rhys glanced down at his cloak. “There’s another reason I have to wear this,” he sighed. SO his crystals had even more worth than Jack had let on. That was just great.

“I’m kind of surprised that he didn’t tell you about that. He’s an asshole and never explains anything completely, but I feel like he should have said something about your arm.”

“He did mention that eridium is a valuable energy source, which explained why he wants me to wear the cloak,” he told her, not liking her suspicious expression. Jack wasn’t hiding anything from him maliciously. Rhys had appreciated his lack of knowledge about vault keys up until this point; he didn’t want to be more paranoid than he already was.

She gave him a dubious look. “What’s with you and him, anyway? He’s a dick and he’s never done anything to prove otherwise. Why do you trust him so much?”

Rhys was silent. That was the golden question, was it not? Why did he trust Jack so much? Even when it was just them in the cove, Jack only ever talked about himself, about his accomplishments, and, occasionally, his struggles. It wasn’t like Jack had spilled all of his personal secrets.

But there were still sides of Jack that the sisters hadn’t seen. They hadn’t seen Jack when he helped Rhys get dressed, or how hard he tried to teach Rhys about the ship so he didn’t feel useless. He knew Jack wasn’t only the brash, possessive man that was quick to point a gun. He was more than that. He had his moments of kindness and patience where he was great to hang out with and talk to.

“I’m not sure,” came his answer. “I guess it’s because he was the first human I knew. I saved him from drowning during a storm and I brought him food in secret until he caught me. I guess I trust him because I’ve known him for a while.” Jack’s other faces were his and his alone. He liked to think that he was the only one who had seen them.

Sasha didn’t reply to his vague answer. He didn’t try to force conversation either, leaving them to walk through a bustling market in relative silence. There wasn’t much to look at; they only stopped once, and Sasha bought a bag full of glass bottles.

When they left the market, they walked down to the sandy beach and followed the shoreline until they came across a small area with lots of boulders and where the water didn’t quite reach.

“This is as good of a place as any to learn how to shoot,” she told him before moving to set up two of the bottles on a faraway rock. “I’m going to show you how it’s done first, and then you’ll try.”

Rhys shifted his weight nervously. He hadn’t listened to gunshots above water before and he wasn’t particularly interested in breaking that trend. “Do we really have to do this? Can’t we just tell Jack that we couldn’t find somewhere to practice? I really, really don’t like guns.”

She shot him an unimpressed look and pulled the pistol from the holster on his hip. “Nope. Even though I’m totally down for not doing what Jack says, you need to learn how to shoot. Fists aren’t helpful on the open ocean, unless your enemy is a gang of really stupid pirates that board your ship. So we’re doing this.”

He sighed and she settled into position, widening her stance and raising her arms. “We’ll start off with the basic posture, and when you get more comfortable I’ll show you how to shoot on the fly.” When she looked away to aim, he shifted his cloak and brought up his right arm to plug both of his ears.

It didn’t help much. The gunshot still echoed through his head and he flinched at the shattering of glass. She shot twice more, then turned around and frowned at the cowering man. “Were you paying any attention at all?”

Rhys cracked open one eye and looked up at her. “No,” he confessed. “I really don’t like guns.”

Sasha shook her head, sighing. “Okay, let’s try a different tactic. Come on, stand where I’m standing.” He took over her spot as she replaced the bottles on the rock, then positioned herself behind him. “Spread your legs, shoulder-width apart.” At his blank look, she rolled her eyes and knocked his feet into place with her own foot.

“Why do I have to stand like this?”

“You’ve never shot a gun before. Pistol kickback is small, but I don’t want you stumbling or even falling over.”

Rhys couldn’t even bring himself to be offended by her lack of faith in him. He nodded silently and she nudged his arms up. “How do I aim?”

“See that little bump on the end of the barrel right there? Line that up with the middle of the bottle you want to shoot. Go for the red one on the right.”

The former merman set his jaw and tried to steady his breathing. He didn’t want to do this. He wanted to go curl up in bed and hide. But Sasha was staring at him expectantly, he found himself pulling the trigger without any input from his brain.

As she had said, the kickback was weak, but when it was combined with the earsplitting sound, he was startled enough that he flinched and nearly dropped the weapon.

Sasha sighed next to him. “Well, at least you hit the bottle.”

He looked over to the rock and was surprised to see that he’d actually shot the neck off the bottle. “Whoa,” he breathed quietly to himself. That was not what he had expected to happen.

She took the gun from him and reloaded it before handing it back. “Again. And hold onto it tight this time.”

That went on for two hours, until they had run out of bottles. Rhys didn’t do as horribly as he had anticipated; Sasha had even complimented his aim at one point. Still, he was relieved when he was allowed to put the pistol back in its holster and put his cloak back on from where he’d tossed it aside.

The walk back to town was quicker than the walk away from it, since they were no longer scouting out the shore. Sasha led him straight back to town and called Fiona on her comm to find out where her sister was.

“You hungry?” she asked Rhys, looking up at him with one hand against her ear. She looked away once he nodded. “Okay, we’re heading to you. See you in a minute, Sis.”

The restaurant was positioned away from the town square, close to a sheer cliffside that had a wonderful view on the ocean, despite the fence that created a barricade along the edge. Rhys tried to go peer over the fence, but Sasha grabbed his left arm and pulled him into the building, which was more of a bar than a restaurant.

They found Fiona with relative ease and Sasha sat with her sister while Rhys sat in a chair across from them. He zoned out quickly, absently tearing up a napkin with his claws.

“Rhysie? You there, kitten?”

He nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of Jack’s disembodied voice. It took him a moment to realize it was coming from his comm and he pressed the button that Sasha had showed him. “Jack?” he asked quietly.

A static-y laugh sounded over the comm. “Glad to know you didn’t die. I heard you have a heart attack when I called you.  Where are you? Are you with the girls? I’ve got a surprise I want you all to see.”

He looked around the bar for some sort of sign. “Um, I’m not sure. We’re at a restaurant near a cliff. I don’t know the name of it. What is it?”

“That ruins the point of a surprise, now doesn’t it, pumpkin? I’ll be there soon. Don’t leave before I get there.”

“But Jack—” The call ended abruptly before Rhys could finish speaking and he frowned when he was listening to silence.

“What’d he want?”

Rhys glanced to Fiona, who watched him with a raised eyebrow. “He said he has a surprise for us and we wanted to know where we are.”

She rolled her eyes. “I don’t think I want to know what it is. Well, since he’s coming here, what do you want to eat, Rhys? He can pay for it when he shows up.”

“Fish,” he answered. She muttered something about not even needing to ask and got up to go order their food.

When Fiona returned with two colorful drinks, she barely had time to sit down in her chair before Jack was sauntering over to their table with a helmeted stranger trailing behind him.

Fiona looked the stranger over. “Who the hell is this?”

Jack rested his arm on Rhys’s shoulder, leaning on him despite the displeased huff. “That’s not really how you should talk to your new crewmate.” He moved away from Rhys and gestured to the man. “Everyone, this is Zer0…with a zero. He’s a vault hunter I’ve hired to work with us since four people can’t efficiently run a ship.”

They didn’t speak or wave, though a red smiley face did appear in front of their helmet.

Rhys’s eyes widened at the sight.  “How did you do that?”

Jack cut in before Zer0 could attempt an answer. “Welp, that’s all I wanted to say. I’ve got more work to do so I’m heading out. You guys can hang out with Zer0. And let me know when we have rooms booked.”

He turned to leave and Rhys grabbed onto his jacket, causing him to stop and glance down. “What?”

“Stay? Please?” Sasha was nice to talk to, but Fiona wasn’t and he didn’t want to be left with the faceless stranger.

Fiona chimed in. “Yeah, sit down, Jack.” She smirked. “You gotta pay for Rhys’s food, anyway. I’m not doing it.”

Jack pulled his jacket out of Rhys’s hand, but plopped down into the chair next to him. “Fine, I’ll stay, you big baby.” His words were mean, but they didn’t hold any real malice.

Zer0 hesitated until Jack gave them a pointed look. They grabbed a spare chair and sat down on Rhys’s right side in silence.

Rhys pulled his cloak tight, a reflex that had become automatic. He still remembered his earlier conversation with Sasha about vault keys and vault hunters; he didn’t want to show the stranger his arm in case they wanted the eridium.

Although, Zer0 didn’t look so scary. They were thin and tall like Rhys himself and didn’t have any guns. It was helmet that made Rhys wary; he didn’t like not being able to see their face.

Zer0 caught him sparing sneaky looks and another smiley face flashed in front of their helmet.

Rhys found himself smiling slightly in return. They seemed friendly enough. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad.

Chapter Text

The room was silent when Rhys woke up the next morning—a quick check confirmed that Jack’s bed was empty and his boots were gone. Frowning, he climbed out of his bed and peered out a window. It wasn’t that late in the morning, judging by how high the sun was; where did Jack have to go so early that he wouldn’t even wake him up to say goodbye?

He sighed and made his way to the bathroom for a morning bath. Jack’s wet towel was thrown over the side of the tub and he scowled at it before tossing it to the floor. What was he supposed to do all day on his own? Fiona was out with Sasha for the day and he didn’t imagine that they wanted him to tag along. Not like he wanted to tag along, anyway.

The water was warm when he sank down into the full tub. Jack liked to tease him about his long baths, though he still allowed him to soak as long as he pleased. Rhys closed his eyes and tried to focus on the water engulfing him and not the silence of the hotel room. It was not something he was used to, not anymore. Baths on the ship were usually quick, but even then Jack was usually nearby, talking or going through his own nightly routine. It was weird not to hear his muffled voice or annoying gargling. Without him, there was nothing to hide the lack of ambiance that he had grown up with.

Rhys climbed out of the bath before it had even cooled and drained the water in defeat. A bath wasn’t going to cut it this morning. He needed to go swimming in the ocean. He couldn’t stay in the empty hotel room all day.

He threw on his clothes, swiped on Jack’s gel to keep his hair out of his eyes, and attached his shield to his belt. When he put one hand on the door, he stopped and stared at the gun that sat on the table next to his bed. Rhys considered leaving it behind, but didn’t want to imagine what would happen if Jack came back and it was there while he was not. With a sigh, he grabbed it and strapped the holster to his belt as well. It wasn’t like he had to do anything with it. Might as well carry it and make Jack happy.

Once the door was securely locked behind him, he turned to leave, but stopped when he saw a familiar person heading in his direction from the other end of the hall.

Zer0 walked up to him, wearing the same suit and helmet as yesterday. This time, though, they had a SMG on their hip and an anxiety-inducingly large gun strapped to their back.

“Hello, Rhys.” Their stiff voice somehow managed to sound warm and friendly.

Rhys smiled at the vault hunter. “Hi, Zer0. Jack didn’t mention you were staying here too.” Jack had only promised that Zer0 wasn’t staying in their room with them and Rhys hadn’t pried any further.

“I am not. But Jack asked me to take you to practice shooting today.”

The merman’s smile faded and he visibly deflated. “No offense, Zer0, but I’m not doing that. Sasha took me yesterday and that was enough for me.” Why couldn’t Jack just leave him be? If he wanted him to know how to shoot that badly, then Jack could come teach him himself.

“I take it you do not like guns?” Their tone was not judgemental, which was a welcome relief from the others’ teasing and snickering.

He chuckled. “No, I don’t. I was taught to never trust guns growing up. That hasn’t changed much, even though I’m traveling with Jack now.” He wasn’t sure if it would ever change. “So I’m sorry that you came all the way over here, but I’m not doing target practice again. I’d appreciate if you just told Jack you couldn’t find me when you got here, or just tell him that we did fine.”

“I do not think he would believe me. He seemed very suspicious of you trying to get out of it. Now I see why.” Rhys groaned and Zer0 waited for him to stop before they continued. “But, his order was for me to teach you to defend yourself. That does not have to include guns.”

That caught Rhys’s attention. “…Okay, I’m listening.” Zer0 was right when they said that Jack probably wouldn’t believe them if they lied about Rhys, so any other option was good with him. “So what would we do instead?”

“Come with me and I will show you.”

Zer0 led Rhys out of the hotel, bypassing the center of town and sticking close to the bluffs. They didn’t say anything as they walked, but Rhys was already under the impression that Zer0 did not talk much so he didn’t mind.

The vault hunter eventually moved away from the cliffs and led Rhys further inland until they stopped in a small field with a large circle in the middle of it.

Rhys looked around at the dirt circle, noticing how the grass abruptly and uniformly ended. “What is this place?” It didn’t look like it was made naturally. He could see where the grass had been trimmed versus where it had not, and the circle looked nearly perfect.

“This is a training area. It is the only place on the island where violence is not a crime. While it is available for public use, it is mainly vault hunters who use it.” Zer0 pulled the large gun from their back and gingerly placed it on the ground near the side of the ring. “We are far enough away from the town that nobody should disturb us.” They turned back to Rhys and motioned to the merman. “Remove your cloak.”

Rhys grasped the cloak tight with one hand. “Uhh, no thanks. I think I want to keep it on.” Zer0 was a vault hunter; Jack may have been the one to hire them but that didn’t mean he had said anything about his arm. What if Zer0 wanted his crystals and tried to kill him for them? The long gun they carried still made him nervous despite it being on the ground several feet away.

“Jack mentioned your arm is unusual. You do not have to be concerned about it.”

Rhys frowned. “Did he say why it’s not normal?” The fact that it was weird didn’t bother him; it was the fact that it was made of eridium that worried him.

“No, but I can assure you that it is not that strange compared to other things I have seen.”

The merman looked down at his cloak and then back up to the vault hunter before he sighed. “Okay.” Jack wouldn’t hire someone he couldn’t trust, and he wouldn’t leave Rhys alone with someone he couldn’t trust, either. He supposed that he didn’t really have anything to worry about.

He slipped the cloak over his head and laid it down near Zer0’s weapon. He kept his eyes down on the ground and self-consciously brushed his fingers over the crystals.

There were several seconds of silence between them before Zer0 spoke again. “Rhys. Put your cloak back on.”

He lifted his head and scowled. “I just took it off! Why would I put it back on?”

“Rhys,” Zer0 said again, firmer. “Put it—”

“‘Sup, Zer0? Who’s this?”

The sudden new voice sent a sharp shiver down Rhys’s spine and he watched the ground grow dark under a huge shadow. He was frightened of turning around, but his instincts reminded him not to put his back to potential threats, and he forced himself to turn around slowly.

The man was massive in every sense of the word. He towered over Rhys, which was impressive in itself, and his muscles were big enough that Rhys was sure that the man could squish his head with one hand.

He looked down at Rhys (how many people could say that?) with an expression of curiosity. His eyes fell to the younger man’s arm and Rhys shifted it behind his back to the best of his ability.

Not that it helped—the stranger followed his movement. Rhys froze under the giant man’s stare. What chance did he have if he needed to get away? He knew that his arm was effective against other seafolk and sea creatures, but he had never punched a human before. Besides, this beast of a man looked like he could shrug off bullets, not to mention punches.

A hand grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him back, creating enough space for Zer0 to step between them.

“Brick,” their stilted voice said, “what are you doing out here?”

Brick, whose name fit perfectly considering his build, looked from Rhys to Zer0. “Mordecai mentioned you got hired by some guy. I didn’t see any of the ships leave this morning so I knew you’d be here. Who’s the pipsqueak?”

Rhys gaped at the two of them, not even offended by the nickname. Was Zer0 actually friends with this behemoth? That didn’t seem likely. And yet, they talked like they knew each other.

Zer0 presumably stared at Brick through the opaque visor of their helmet. “This is Rhys. He belongs to the crew that hired me. His captain asked me to train him before we set sail.”

Rhys snickered at the idea of calling Jack ‘captain,’ as if he would ever be anything more than just Jack. At least, not to Rhys.

“What’s up with his arm?”

The former merman’s smile faded and he warily stepped back a bit. What was he supposed to say about it? How was he supposed to avoid saying anything about the eridium, if Brick hadn’t already noticed?

Zer0 answered before Rhys could. “It is none of your concern, Brick.”

Brick ignored him and looked down at Rhys. “How strong is it?”

Rhys blinked. He didn’t really know how to answer that. How strong was his arm? “I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve ever used it to hurt something.”

He knew he could lift things and he had dragged Fiona and Sasha’s boat with it. He remembered trying to test it out when he was younger, squeezing things in both hands to see exactly what his right arm could do. But that was so long ago and he wasn’t sure if things had changed.

Brick looked over at Zer0. “What are you training him in?”

The vault hunter didn’t answer for a moment before he begrudgingly admitted, “Melee fighting, for now. He does not like guns.”

“Who doesn’t like guns?!” Brick’s surprised outburst made Rhys flinch, but the man quickly returned to his original idea. “Does he need a sparring partner?”

“Do you just want to get punched?” Zer0 countered.

“Pretty much, yeah.”

Zer0 made a noise that sounded a lot like a sigh and stepped out of the way, no longer creating a barrier between the behemoth and the former merman. “Brick, you do not get to retaliate. You asked for this.”

“That’s cool.” He thumped his chest as a grinned crossed his scarred face. “Hit me as hard as you can, pipsqueak.”

This man was strange. Rhys had no idea what he was supposed to do. A pleading glance to Zer0 gave him no answers. He looked up at Brick, who grinned down at him in excitement, and flexed his volcanic fingers. It looked like he wasn’t going to get a break until he punched Brick.

Rhys rolled his right shoulder and curled his hand into a tight fist. At least he couldn’t hurt himself. He took a deep breath and drew his arm back, careful not to funnel extra eridium into it, and swung as hard as he could.

Even with his arm’s dulled sensation, he felt the impact of his hand against Brick’s thick chest. What he hadn’t expected, however, was for the solid mass of the vault hunter’s body to give way. Brick stumbled backwards with a grunt and his own meaty hand came up to touch the place of impact.

“Damn, little man. I think you actually bruised something.”

“S-sorry,” Rhys apologized. He hadn’t actually thought he’d hurt him.

Brick shrugged off his apology. “Don’t worry about it. It was impressive.” As Rhys’s brow furrowed in confusion, Brick reached into his pocket and fished out a dark blue object, holding it out to the former merman. “Here. That’s a powerful punch you got there, but it can be improved.”

Rhys hesitantly accepted the gift and looked it over. “What is it?”

“Brass knuckles. Elemental brass knuckles. Once you turn them on and punch something, a whole bunch of electricity comes out and zaps your target.”

The former merman looked down at his hand and slipped his fingers into the holes. “How does it work?”

“Eridium and pressure. Clench your fist.”

Rhys did as he was told and was mesmerized by the way the metal glowed bright blue around his fingers.

“As long as it has a source of eridium, squeezing it will turn it on. The electricity comes out whenever you punch something.”

“Jack said punching isn’t that useful on the ocean.” It was a neat gift, but it didn’t sound useful.

Brick shrugged. “Then you don’t have to use it on the ship. You’re not on the ship forever. It’s yours, so you can use it how you want.”

He walked away from Rhys, leaving him to further inspect the weapon, and gently nudged Zer0’s shoulder. “Have fun on your new job. Bloodwing’s gonna miss you feeding her scraps.” He glanced back at Rhys. “Teach the little guy well and maybe he’ll turn into another you.”

The giant vault hunter left the makeshift arena and Zer0 waited until he was gone to say anything. “Brick is strange, but kind. He will not tell anyone about your arm.”

Rhys stopped admiring the gift and awkwardly dropped his gaze to the glowing crystals on his arm. “Good to know.” Was this going to be something he had to worry about for the rest of his life, or however long he stayed like this? He didn’t like the idea of fearing for his safety at every turn. He missed the relative serenity of the trench, of being part of a community.

“Would you like to train now?”

He nodded. “Yeah, that sounds good.” Maybe that would clear his head.

It was dark by the time they called it a day. Zer0 walked Rhys back to the hotel, stopping once for food on the way, and agreed to meet up again the next day. Zer0 had showed off their sniper rifle; Rhys was admittedly a bit curious about it. Zer0 had made it sound much more interesting than the guns that everyone else talked about.

He didn’t have the energy to go for a swim, so he drew up a bath. It felt better than his morning attempt, but it still wasn’t perfect. He was used to bathing in the gentle sway of the ship, and he wondered if it was the stillness that was throwing him off.

He ended the bath early, not taking nearly as long as he usually did to soak his skin and think about the ocean. Instead, he sat in front of the mirror in the bathroom to brush his hair and play with it, which was something he had never been able to do.

By the time he stepped out of the bathroom, Jack was just closing the door behind him. The older man glanced over to Rhys, eyes quickly roaming over his bare figure, and dropped a bag onto his bed.

“Hey there, kitten. Is there a reason you aren’t wearing clothes? Not that I’m complaining.” He gave Rhys a grin and the former merman tried to ignore how his face heated up.

“I just got out of the bath,” he answered, choosing not to mention his last comment.

Jack raised an eyebrow. “Yeah? That must have been a weird bath because there’s not a drop of water on you.”

Now his face turned pink. He hadn’t realized that it had been that long. “I was brushing my hair,” he confessed.

Jack started cackling and Rhys’s face turned even darker. “Are you serious? Your hair isn’t even that long! How did it take you so long to brush your hair?”

Rhys frowned. “Does that matter?” he shot back.

Jack’s laughter died down to snorts and snickers. “Oh come on, Rhysie. It’s just teasing.” When Rhys didn’t look amused, he shrugged. “Whatever. How was your training with Zer0?”

Rhys moved to his bed and picked up his clothes to put them on as Jack stripped out of his numerous layers. “It was good. I met one of their friends and he gave me a set of brass knuckles.”

“Why’d he do that?”

“Not sure. But he asked me to punch him and I did. He seemed pretty happy about it.”

Jack stopped with one arm in his sweater and turned to look at Rhys. “Wait, wait, wait. You punched him? With that?”

Rhys raised an eyebrow and lifted his right hand. “With my arm? What else?”

Jack’s confusion gave way to anger and he growled. “Rhys, what the hell? You can’t go around showing off your arm to whatever vault hunter crosses your path! I gave you that cloak for a reason, you idiot.”

The former merman frowned at Jack’s reaction and finished buttoning his shirt. “I didn’t willingly show it to him. I took it off to train with Zer0 and he came up behind me. And Zer0 said they know him and that he wouldn’t tell anyone. How many times do I have to tell you I’m not a hatchling? I can take care of myself.” He turned away from Jack and smoothed out the blankets on his bed, preparing to lie down.

A hand wrapped around his wrist and whipped him around despite his indignant squawk. He came face to face with Jack and they both scowled at each other.

“I don’t care if you’re not a hatchling. You’ve never been out of the ocean before you met me. You’ve never met another human before me. You trusted me, a strange man who wasn’t even of the same species as you, with your life. You brought Fiona and Sasha to the cove. You told Janey what you used to be within minutes of meeting her. You apparently allowed some random vault hunter to get up close and personal with your arm. You are the most trusting person I have ever met in my life, Rhys. Yes, you might be able to protect yourself from sea creatures, but you do not know enough about mankind to be this easygoing. Someone will inevitably take advantage of that.”

Jack released him and pointed to his right arm. “You know that arm is valuable. I don’t want to see pirates blow you to pieces for it. Keep it covered and stop telling everyone you meet about it. Be smart for once.”

Rhys rubbed his wrist absently, staring down at his feet. “I think I’m gonna go to bed.”

“…All right. Goodnight, Rhys.”   

“Night,” he mumbled back as he climbed into his bed. Jack locked himself in the bathroom and Rhys tried to curl up and go to sleep.

Jack was right and they both knew it. Rhys was too trusting of others. But even though he was aware of it, he didn't know how to turn it off. He wasn't raised to be wary of others, at least of people in the colony. They did attempt to teach him to fear humans, though that didn't work. He even trusted August enough to follow him to a mysterious witch.

He still hadn't fallen asleep by the time Jack turned off the lights and got into his own bed.

They laid there in silence until Jack broke it. “Would you like to join me tomorrow? I'm restocking our supplies for the trip to Hyperion.”

Rhys picked at the cloth of his blanket. “I promised Zer0 I'd meet them again. But maybe we could get dinner?” he suggested. He really hadn't seen Jack all that much in the past two days. It'd be nice to spend time with him.

“Yeah, sure. Dinner it is.”

They didn't say anything for the rest of the night and Rhys stared at the ceiling while Jack slept across the room.

Once again, the other bed was abandoned when Rhys woke up later that morning. He took a quick bath and got dressed, strapping the pistol to his leg with his usual inner debate. He left the room to meet Zer0 just outside the hotel, where the vault hunter waited near the doors.

He approached them and looked straight at their visor, where he assumed their eyes were. “I want you to teach me how to shoot.”

“You said you hate guns. Did you not enjoy the close combat from yesterday?”

“I do and I did. But it’s not enough. I need to know how to shoot.” Jack couldn’t protect him forever; he needed to learn how to be self-sufficient and not be so trusting. “And can we do it somewhere less public this time?” He didn’t want another repeat of yesterday.

“Very well,” they conceded. “Come on.”

Zer0 led him to a more secluded area than the arena, a cove much like the one Sasha had taken him to, and immediately set to work. Their first goal was to get him to stop flinching with every pull of the trigger, which took a while. They only moved on to actual training once Rhys could hold still despite the sounds.

When they finally stopped and left to go meet Jack for dinner, Rhys knew how to aim, how to respond to recoil, and, at Zer0’s insistence, how to hold an energy sword properly. “It does not hurt to be prepared,” they had said as they held it out to him.

Jack was already seated when they arrived. Rhys smiled at him as they approached the table, but Jack stared at Zer0.

“Are they eating too?” he asked. Rhys frowned at his hard tone.

“No,” Zer0 responded plainly. “I just walked Rhys over to make sure he did not get lost. Goodbye, Rhys. I will speak with you later.”

Jack’s eyes followed them until they disappeared and he pushed the chair across from him out with his foot. “Sit, kiddo.”

Rhys did as he was told. “That was rude, Jack.”

He grunted. “I hired them to be a vault hunter, not a buddy.”

“You didn’t hire any of us.”

Jack narrowed his eyes. “That’s not what I mean. I hired them as a professional, nothing else. My only concerns are that they are trustworthy and capable. I’m not interested in making friends with them. Or the girls, for that matter. They’re just collateral, I guess.”

Rhys rested his hand on his upturned palm, trying not to feel pleased by the implications of that statement. “When are we leaving?” Tediore was nice and all, but he wanted to be back on the ocean in the ship he had grown accustomed to.

“I actually wanted to talk to you about that. We were going to stay here a little longer, but plans have changed. We’re leaving tomorrow.”

The younger man blinked. “Oh. Why are we leaving so early?”

“Some little bitch knows about Hyperion’s reward and tried to capture me,” he said. “If one person knew about it, then I’m sure other people do too, and I’m not interested in bashing in a whole bunch of skulls. Tonight we’re going to pick up any extra supplies we may need and head out after we all get some sleep.”

“Wait, Jack. Did someone hurt you?” Rhys asked quietly, quite honestly shocked by his apathy.

He laughed. “What? Give me a little more credit than that, pumpkin. No, no. Nobody managed to lay a hand on me. Not this time.” He grinned. “Are you worried about me?”

Rhys sat back in his chair. “I don’t want you to die, if that’s what you mean.” That was all he planned to say on the subject. At least Jack wasn’t actually hurt.

Jack allowed it to drop. “I’ve already told the girls that we’re leaving early. I’ll let Zer0 know before we leave. Now that that’s out of the way, what do you want to eat?”

Dinner was a mostly quiet affair; both of them were more focused on eating than talking. The walk back to the hotel was similar and Jack went to get a bath first once they got back to the room.

Rhys put all of his extra clothes in his bag and made sure all of his belongings were accounted for so he would be ready to go in the morning. He left out clothes to change into after his bath and put everything else in the bag.

Jack soon left the bathroom and Rhys took his place. He bathed quickly and got dressed in front of the mirror as always, but stopped when he looked down at his brush. Jack’s teasing from the night before was still fresh on his mind and he ran the brush through his hair only once before he left the bathroom.

He sat down on the bed and tucked his brush into his bag before settling under the blankets, ready to go to bed.

“Rhys?”

The younger man rolled over to face Jack where he sat on the edge of his bed. “Yeah?”

“I haven’t really asked before, but how did you become human?”

Rhys’s breath stalled in his throat. It had been almost two weeks since he washed up in the cove and he had yet to talk about what happened that night. He wasn’t sure if he even wanted to talk about it. But Jack had a right to know, since now he was stuck with Rhys for the foreseeable future. Besides, the story would come out eventually, one way or another.

“The night I stole your paddle, I went back to the trench to go to sleep, but a few guards were waiting for me. They tied me up and dragged me to the center of the trench. Everyone from the colony was there. They had my friends tied up, too. It was my fault, though. I was the reason they got dragged into it.”

“What did you do?”

He pulled his pillow to his chest and squeezed it. “Someone followed me to the cove one day and saw me with you. He attacked me and I…ended up killing him. That’s where I got the purple mark on my head. He smashed my face against one of the ledges outside the cove.”

Jack whistled lowly. “You’ve never mentioned that you killed someone.”

Rhys shrugged. “I didn’t really want to talk about it. I wasn’t proud of it. But I tried to get my friends to help me perform a death ceremony on his body. They got caught.”

He picked at his pillow with his claws sullenly. This was not a conversation he wanted to have. It still stung to think about it. “I thought they were going to be killed. But the head of the Council came out and humiliated me in front of everyone. And then she told the guards to tie me up and take me to the Darkness where they found me as a hatchling and leave me there.”

“Wait,” Jack interrupted, “what did they expect to happen to you?”

“They expected me to starve to death, apparently. Or they expected something to kill me. I don’t think they cared one way or another.”

“Rhys, that sucks but none of this explains why you have legs now.”

Rhys sat up enough to scowl at Jack. “I’m getting there. After they left me in the Darkness, someone approached me. His name was August and he said he would take me to see the Witch and she would give me a wish in exchange for something.”

He gnawed on his bottom lip nervously. How was he supposed to tell him what he wished for without sounding pathetic? “I was told to state my wish carefully and clearly, because it might get twisted. But all I asked was to stay with you. My colony didn’t want me anymore, my presence was a danger to my friends. So I asked to stay with you. And that’s how I ended up here.”

He couldn’t look up at Jack, but he felt his eyes staring at him. He twisted a loose thread around his claw.

Jack was quiet for several moments before he asked, “What did you give her in exchange?”

“She wanted my eridium pool, which was what gave me my arm when I was a hatchling. She forced my head into the pool once I said my wish, and then I woke up on the beach with you.”

Once again they sat in silence. Rhys laid back down and pulled his blanket up to his face. Was Jack going to laugh at him for his wish, or chastise him for trusting a strange witch?

Jack did neither of those things. Instead, he absently scratched his face where mask met skin and said, “Well, that makes more sense than my theory. How are you doing with the whole being human business, anyway?”

He was quiet for a moment, trying to translate his feelings into words. “It’s…weird. Not a bad kind of weird, I don’t think. I think I’m still getting used to it?” He was reluctant to elaborate on what that meant. “It’s not bad, though. I’m kind of enjoying it.”

Jack nodded, watching the floorboards. “That’s good.” He paused. “Well, goodnight, Rhys.”

The lights shut off and Rhys nestled under his blankets. “Goodnight, Jack.”

Chapter Text

They set sail just after noon the next day, after Jack assessed Zer0’s skills and assigned them jobs aboard the ship. Rhys couldn’t help but notice that meant that he didn’t have any official responsibilities of his own, which, while a little disappointing, was understandable considering his difficulties beforehand. So instead of arguing, he settled near the bow of the ship and watched the water.

The most direct route to Hyperion was estimated to take two weeks, much to Jack’s annoyance. He was impatient and kept the ship going as fast as it could safely manage, even going so far as to tell everyone that there would be no detours to other islands. Although Fiona and Sasha grumbled quietly about it over dinner, nobody protested. Rhys understood why he wanted to get there as quickly as possible.

Which was why he was surprised when he felt the anchor drop and the ship slow to a stop just four days into their trip.

Rhys got up from his spot near the railing where he had been playing with the brass knuckles and wandered over to where Jack was securing the anchor’s chain, slipping the weaponry into his pocket. “Why are we stopped?”

Jack stepped back to survey his work, then waved a hand towards the left side of the boat. Rhys followed the movement and caught sight of a large black cloud that wasn’t all that far away. “There’s a storm coming. We can’t outrun it and I’m not going to sail through it, not after what happened last time. It doesn’t look too big, so hopefully it’ll be mild and quick and then we can continue on our way.”

He was wrong on both accounts.

Two hours into the storm, Rhys found himself curled up in a ball in the corner of his room, hidden under a blanket and with his fingers in his ears, barely mindful of his own claws. He had never really minded storms when he was living safely underwater, but above water everything seemed so loud and each forceful rock of the ship made his heart leap in his throat.

Rationally, he knew that the storm would not kill him. They weren’t in danger of sailing into anything, and Jack had promised him they would be fine. But he kept thinking about the shipwrecks he’d seen because of storms, of the wreck that had brought him Jack in the first place, and so each loud crack of thunder that accompanied the incessant drumming of rain caused him to flinch and attempt to bury his head further into his own legs while struggling to keep his breathing steady.

He didn’t hear the door open, the footsteps that drew closer, or the sliding of fabric against the wall. He did, however, feel the gentle hand that found his shoulder blades through the blanket.

At first he didn’t react, but a particularly deafening boom accompanied a harsh wave that slammed against the side of the ship, and he wheezed out a weak yell before trying to hide himself into the person next to him.

“You’ve never experienced a storm, have you?”

Rhys shook his head and made a sound of protest when his safety blanket was tugged on, but Jack only shifted it so it wasn’t covering his face anymore and then wrapped a broad arm around the younger man’s body. He tensed when one of Rhys’s hands came up to cling to him, claws carelessly digging into his skin, yet didn’t shove him away.

“It’s so loud…” he mumbled against Jack’s armpit. “What if we sink?”

“We aren’t gonna sink, kiddo. This ship is built tougher than what some stupid storm can dish out,” Jack promised in a gentle voice. “Are you okay?”

Rhys didn’t answer. He hadn’t even realized he was crying until his cheeks started to itch and the back of his hand came away wet. “How much longer? I want it to stop.”

“I think the worst of it is over, so it shouldn’t be too much longer now.”

His right hand dug harder into Jack’s chest, unconsciously leaving red marks on his skin despite the many layers. “Please don’t go. Not until it stops.”

“I’m not going anywhere, kitten. Promise.”

This time, he was right. Rhys eventually fell asleep, dry tear tracks on his face and his blanket still wrapped around his shoulders.

He woke up in his bed with an arm lazily thrown over his waist. When he rolled over, he found that he was nestled rather closely to Jack’s chest, and he scooted back a few inches. Jack had stripped out of almost all of his layers and Rhys winced at the dark red marks that he could plainly see through the thin t-shirt before giving his claws a half-hearted glare. Jack had only tried to help him and he ended up hurting him.

Dropping his hands, he looked around the room. He still felt exhausted, but the ship was silent and he carefully climbed out of the bed to go find the others, and maybe some bandages for Jack’s chest.

It was sunny when he climbed up onto the deck and he shielded his eyes with his arm until they adjusted to the harsh light.

He was still blinking away colorful spots when he heard Sasha exclaim, “There you are!”

When he could see again, the first thing he noticed was the damage. There was a large puddle of water where Fiona was standing and Zer0 was assessing some snapped cables. He didn’t see Sasha at first, and despite hearing her,  he nearly jumped out of his skin when a hand landed on his shoulder.

She stepped in front of him, unfazed by his surprise, and thrust a mop into his hands. “Go start mopping up the water with Fi. Where’s Jack? We’ve been cleaning up without him all morning. ”

“He’s asleep,” he answered, hoping his face wasn’t pink. “He stayed up with me during the storm so he didn’t get much sleep.”

She stared at him for a moment, then shook her head. “Whatever, I’m not going to ask. But when he wakes up, you get to tell him we have to stop somewhere.”

“What? Why are we stopping somewhere?” They were already delayed because of the storm; he didn’t want their trip to Hyperion hindered even more. It would upset Jack.

Sasha pointed to Zer0. “They said that the turret plates are damaged and that they won’t open. We can’t go a week and a half without turrets, especially if we’re taking Jack’s route. The map in his office says that we’re a little less than a day’s journey from Maliwan. We should stop there and get them fixed.”

“Like hell we’re stopping at Maliwan.”

Both Rhys and Sasha turned to see Jack climbing up the stairs to the deck, obviously still drowsy and with his clothes a little wrinkled. His hair wasn’t styled and it looked a lot softer than normal. Rhys wanted to touch it.

“Jack,” Sasha’s angry voice startled him from his staring, “we are not going to make it to Hyperion without turrets. It’s stupid. Actually, it’s more than stupid, because your path takes us directly past two islands that are filled with pirates.”

He glared down at her. “What are you doing looking at my map?”

“Waiting for you to wake up,” she snapped back. “Zero, Fi, and I have been working for two hours now to clean up the ship while you were napping with Rhys.”

Rhys’s face turned red and he quickly stepped between them when Jack started to bristle. He handed Sasha the mop, placed both hands gingerly on Jack’s chest, and carefully but quickly guided him away from Sasha.

“Jack,” he said quietly once they were alone. Jack wasn’t paying attention to him, glaring over his shoulder at Sasha, and Rhys pressed his hand against the scratches he knew were there until he hissed and turned his scowl to Rhys.

“ Jack, ” he tried again, this time more forcefully, “maybe they’re right. You had the turrets put on here for a reason and it might not be a good idea to travel without them. What if something happens? We need to be able to protect the ship.”

The man was quiet for several moments before he finally hissed through his teeth, “Fine. We’ll friggin’ stop for repairs.” He stepped away from Rhys and stalked off, presumably to go change their course.

Rhys returned to Sasha and took his mop back. “We’re going to Maliwan,” he informed her with a smile.

She raised an eyebrow at him. “Seriously? It was that easy for you to convince him?”

He shrugged and started over to where Fiona was still mopping, Sasha trailing behind him. “Yeah, I guess? I didn’t do anything special. I think he knows that we actually need to get repairs, so it wasn’t really that hard to convince him once he calmed down.”

She didn’t seem convinced, but allowed him to start mopping up the excess water.

It took a couple of hours to completely clean the deck, and they were finished by the time Jack finally returned to the wheel with new coordinates. Zer0 had temporarily rigged the broken cables so they wouldn’t cause any problems until they reached Maliwan and they and Fiona had went to take a break below deck.  

Jack still looked rather angry, so Rhys decided to leave him be for the time being, figuring that it would be best to let him calm down on his own before trying to talk to him. Instead, he joined Sasha at the ship’s railing and watched the water foam at the sides of the ship.

“After we get to Hyperion, where are you and Fiona going to go?” he asked, genuinely curious. Neither of them seemed happy in Jack’s crew and he couldn’t expect them to stay.

She shrugged. “Dunno yet. Hyperion is pretty harsh on con artists, so we probably won’t stay there. We’ll probably start traveling again, maybe set up shop somewhere, depending on how much Jack pays us for doing this. Which he better.” She rested her arm on the railing and glanced over at him. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

“What are you going to do after this? Are you just going to stay in Hyperion until you going to find a way to get back to normal?”

Rhys was quiet. He honestly hadn’t thought that far ahead. His current plan was only to stay with Jack until he couldn’t anymore. But how long would that last?

“I don’t know,” he answered finally. “I’m even sure how to reverse this. It’d be nice to figure out how to reverse it, but I’m okay with staying like this for a while longer.”

She stared at him from the corner of her eye. “Are you only saying that because you don’t want to say that you plan to stick with Jack?”

His eyes widened and his cheeks burned. “What? No, of course not.” He chuckled nervously. He swallowed hard and tried to brush off her disbelieving stare. “Why do you suggest that?”

Sasha rested her elbows on the railing and started counting on her fingers. “Because you cling to him like a lost puppy, you trust him more than any other sane person would, he fell asleep with you last night, and he listens to you even when he’s being irrational.” She smirked at his red face. “Do you want me to go on?”

“Uh, no. I’m good. You’ve made your point.” He ran his fingers through his hair and glanced over to Jack where he stood behind the wheel. “Is it really that obvious?”

She laughed. “Yes, it is. Well, to us, at least. I’m not sure if he’s noticed it at all.”

She pushed off of the railing and smiled at him. “Come on, come help me wash dishes and you can have extra during dinner. And I’ll stop talking about Jack.”

“Deal.”

Rhys didn’t get to speak with Jack for the rest of the trip. He appeared at dinner for only a couple of minutes to grab food before leaving again, not saying a word to anyone. He didn’t even look at Rhys, or meet him when they usually washed up for the night. Rhys had never realized how much time he spent with Jack until they weren’t talking at all. It made him feel horribly lonely and he went to bed that night hoping Jack would feel better the next day.

He woke up just as the ship was docking the next morning, and he stumbled out of bed to get dressed in order to meet up with everyone above deck. He pulled on his clothes, threw his cloak over his head, and swiped his bag from the floor before he hurried up to the deck.

There was nobody to be seen and he paused at the top of the stairs. The gangway was down already; had everyone left? He imagined that Jack was eager to get the repairs over with, but he didn’t think that he would be left alone on the ship.

“Hey, pumpkin.”

Rhys yelled in surprise and whirled around to face Jack.

The older man raised an eyebrow at his scared expression. “You all right there, Rhysie? Not gonna faint, are you?”

He shook his head once his heart stopped drumming in his chest. “No, I’m not. You just scared me. I thought everyone had left.”

“Everyone else left, but I had to go back to get something from my room. I went to stop by yours to see if you were awake, but you were already up here.” Jack nodded towards the gangwalk. “Come on, we’re gonna go find a mechanic so we can get out of here as soon as possible.”

Rhys followed Jack off the ship, lingering as Jack retracted the gangwalk, and walked with him into the rather busy town.

The docks led right into what Rhys assumed was the town square, considering how massive and crowded it was. The whole city looked huge; Rhys wasn’t sure where its boundaries were. With the masses of people cluttering up the walkways, he wasn’t even sure where they were going, relying solely on Jack holding his hand to keep him moving.

His ECHOcomm buzzed constantly with garbled conversations in frenzied attempts to translate them and he grimaced at the impending headache. Discreetly wriggling his right arm from underneath his cloak, he pulled it out and placed it in his bag for the time being since it was useless at the moment. Even though he still had to listen to the roar of hundreds of conversations, he was relieved that he wasn’t disoriented anymore.

When they finally managed to escape the town square and enter the market, he was disappointed to see that it wasn’t much better. Jack seemed to be doing fine navigating the streets, but Rhys bumped into people and tripped over the uneven stone path every few seconds.

His frustration mounted with each rough shove and stumble. Jack wasn’t slowing down and Rhys could hardly keep up, which wasn’t helping his mood at all. He tried to focus on the ground, deciding that the path was easier to maneuver if he could anticipate his steps, but his attention was quickly absorbed by a delicious smelling stall.

He stopped walking and moved closer to examine the fish. It was all fresh and the whole stall smelled like kelp and salt—it smelled like home.

His stomach rumbled, reminding him that he hadn’t eaten breakfast in his hurry to catch up with his friends, Rhys chewed on the inside of his lip before he reached out for one of the colorful fish that he remembered eating in the trench.

A thin stick struck his hand and he jerked it back with a pained hiss. The seller glared at him and snarled something in his direction before holding out his hand. It only took Rhys a moment to realize what he wanted: money.

“Jack, will you—” His voice trailed off when he looked over and realized that he was alone. When had he let go of Jack’s hand? He hadn’t even noticed; Jack hadn’t even noticed.

He yelped as he was roughly shouldered by another stranger, panic swelling up in his chest. While he knew he needed to find Jack, his first instinct was to find a space that was away from the crowd.

Rhys rushed away from the stall, the fish completely forgotten, and struggled through the mob of people in search of empty space. He managed to find solace in a small alley between two shops, where he leaned against a cool wall and tried to steady his breathing. Everything was fine. Jack would realize he was gone and come looking for him. He wasn’t too far away from the open market; surely it wouldn’t take long for Jack to find him. Until then, he just had to stay put.

He reached down to grab the gun attached to his thigh, only to come up empty. The blood drained from his face; he had left the pistol in his room on the ship. Along with his shield, which was sitting next to it.

“Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck, ” he hissed to himself in his own language as he slipped his bag off his shoulder and dug through it, hoping to find something, anything , that he could use to protect himself until Jack found him.

His hand curled around metal and he pulled out the brass knuckles with a relieved sigh. At least he had something to work with.

He slipped the bag back onto his shoulder and shifted his cloak out of the way to slide the weapon onto his right hand. It glowed when he squeezed his fist—good, it worked. He relaxed his hand and pressed his back against the wall. Now to wait.

“What do we have here?”

Rhys jerked his head towards a strange voice and paled at the sight of two large men. Their words meant nothing to him, but that didn’t make him less frightened.

The one closest to him motioned towards his exposed right arm with knife large enough to be mistaken for a sword. “What’s that all about?”

When Rhys didn’t respond, he growled. “What’s up with your arm, kid? Answer me.”

Again he was silent. He understood ‘arm,’ and he honestly didn’t want to know what the rest of the sentence was.

This time, the one behind him spoke up. “That looks an awful lot like eridium, Hanz.”

Hanz snorted and stepped closer, while Rhys took a step deeper into the alley way. “You think so, Franz? His whole arm looks fucked up. Could probably sell it for a pretty penny.” He grinned at Rhys and raised the knife.

Rhys simply gaped at the men. This wasn’t happening. He had thought Jack was just exaggerating about people wanting to kill him for his arm, or that he was stating the absolute worst case scenario.

Why did Jack have to be right all the time?

Hanz lunged for him, Franz waiting behind him. Rhys let out an involuntary yell and blindly lashed out with his right arm, the metal around his fingers glowing bright blue.

He heard the loud, static sizzling, the crunching of bone, and smelled the scorched flesh just before Hanz was flung backwards. Franz aimed to catch his companion in his arms, but the force shoved him backwards as well. He fell out the alley and onto his back on the path, Hanz’s blackened body landing on top of him. The impact snapped what skin was left of his neck and Hanz’s head rolled off his shoulders and down to the ground.

Rhys stared at the scene with wide eyes, his stomach churning with anxiety and disgust. With his heart drumming a rapid beat against his ribs, he ran out of the alley, keening as he tripped over the severed head. He shoved his way through the surrounding crowd until he slammed into someone’s chest. They grabbed both of his arms and he shrieked angrily, clicking curses and struggling until he was forced down to the ground. The brass knuckles sizzled in warning as he clenched his fist, but his wrists were pinned harmlessly to the stone.

“Rhys! Dammit, stop squirming! Rhys!”

He knew that voice. Rhys immediately stopped thrashing and opened his eyes, not realizing he had closed them in the first place. He took in the sight of blue and green surrounded by smooth white and his panic came to a screeching halt.

His vision blurred with hot tears and he allowed Jack to remove the weapon from his fingers before he grasped the front of Jack’s coat. “Jack Jack Jack Jack,” he whispered in a shaky voice until his breath ran out and he was left crying into his chest. His whole body quaked and he refused to move when Jack tried to pry his hands from his coat.

“Rhys…Rhysie, we need to go. Come on, you need to get up.”

Rhys only gripped him tighter.  

Jack sighed and pulled his own comm out of his ear before settling it into Rhys’s. The former merman whined at the shock, but otherwise didn’t respond.

“Kitten, you need to get up. We can’t just lay in the middle of the street like this.” He made a noise of protest, yet allowed Jack to sit up. “You have to let go of me, too.” Rhys didn’t move and Jack tried again. “If you let go of my coat, we can get away from all the people.”

That did the trick. Rhys’s claws released his coat and he allowed Jack to get up. Jack pulled him up to his feet and fixed his cloak so it was covering his right side again, then picked up his bag from the ground. He found the comm in his bag and frowned at it. “Why did you take it out? I tried calling you twice.”

Rhys slowly reached up and removed Jack’s, holding it out to him before replacing it with his own. “The crowds were too loud. It was trying to translate all of their conversations and it was giving me a headache.” He sniffed and tried to press into Jack’s chest, but was stopped by a hand on his chest.

“No cuddling right now. First let’s get you out of here.” He did, however, flip up Rhys’s hood and slide a secure arm around the younger man’s waist. He led Rhys away from the prying eyes of the townspeople, shooting death glares any anyone who looked like they wanted to say or do something. Nobody approached them.

Jack led Rhys into the first hotel he saw and paid for a single night, ignoring the receptionist’s weird look at the way he was still holding Rhys. He swiped the key from her with a frown and pulled Rhys into the room that was thankfully on the ground floor.

He released Rhys to shut the door and lock it securely, making sure it wouldn’t open before he focused back on the younger man, who had all but collapsed onto the single bed. Jack hadn’t thought to ask for a double.

“What happened, kiddo? Why did you let go of me?”

He rubbed his eyes with the back of his arm. “I didn’t mean to. I got distracted by some fish because I was hungry and I didn’t even realize that I had let go until I went to ask you for some money. Then I panicked and ran into an alley to hide until you could find me, but these two guys saw my arm when I moved my cloak. They came up behind me and blocked the exit. One of them had a knife. He lunged at me and…” Rhys looked down at his right hand. “I punched him.”

He closed his eyes, grateful that he didn’t have anything in his stomach. “I was wearing the brass knuckles I got from Zer0’s vault hunter friend when I did it.  It burned him and he fell into his friend. They both fell out out of the alley and the guy’s head came off. I ran out of there as fast as I could, and then I ran into you.” He pulled his legs onto the bed and fell onto his side. “I’m sorry for letting go of your hand.”

Jack stared down at the drained, exhausted man on the bed. “I’m not mad at you, kitten. I wish you hadn’t taken out your comm so we could have avoided the whole frying-a-guy-to-death-in-a-public-place situation, but I’m not mad. But you’ve made yourself pretty well known, so I don’t know how that’s going to work.” He quirked a small, amused smile as Rhys groaned and rolled onto his back. “But if you’re still hungry, I could run out and grab something for you and bring it back.”

“Don’t you need to go find a mechanic?”

“It can wait a couple of hours. I already paid for the full night anyway, so we’ve got time.”

Rhys sat up and tugged his cloak over his head, tossing it to the floor. “Okay. At the market, there was a stall with these really colorful fish. They had shiny scales and were maybe this big,” he said as he held up his hands. “I want two of them.”

Jack raised an eyebrow. “Who said you get to be picky?”

“I used to eat those at home in the trench. They were hard to catch so I didn’t get them a lot but they’re really good. You should try one, if you can cook it.”

“I’ll pass. But I’ll be back soon. Don’t leave the room and don’t punch anything.”

Rhys frowned. “Haha, very funny. It wasn’t fun, you know. I can still feel the vibrations in my arm. Is that normal?” Not that he thought Jack had ever punched someone’s head off, but he had definitely killed people.

“Eh, you’ll get used to it. Killing people loses its shock after a while.” Rhys shuddered and Jack gave his shoulder a gentle consoling pat. “See you later, pumpkin. Get some sleep or something.”

He nodded and watched Jack leave the room, listening to the lock fall into place before he sighed. He wasn’t sure if it was just the shock of killing someone, but he felt more tired than usual. A nap did sound like a good idea.

Once he stripped out of most of his clothes, he slipped underneath the blankets of the bed and hugged a pillow to his chest.

He fell asleep in seconds, not stirring even in the slightest until Jack returned and shook his shoulder.

“Time to get up, kid. I brought your fish.”

Rhys slowly cracked open his eyes and blearily looked up at Jack before pushing himself upright. He stretched out his arms, yawning, and ran a hand through his hair. “Did you get the colorful ones?”

Jack snorted and dropped a container on the table next to the bed, also tossing a satchel onto the desk. “Yeah, I did. You have expensive tastes, you know. I don’t even want to think how many of these you’ve eaten in your life.”

His comments were ignored in favor of the food. Rhys swiped the container from the nightstand and pried it open. His eyes lit up at the sight of the familiar fish, but Jack stopped him before he could grab one.

“How about you not eat on the bed? I’ve seen you eat and you’re not neat. Go sit at the desk over there.”

Despite rolling his eyes, Rhys got up without any complaints and took a seat at the desk to eat, nudging the bag out of the way. He tore into the first fish easily and started picking out the bones.

“Oh, and once you finish eating we can go look for a mechanic,” said the older man as he fell back onto the bed.

He glanced back at Jack. “I thought you said it wasn’t a good idea for me to leave the room?”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought. But while I was out, some guy from the police force approached me. All he said was that Maliwan has self-defense laws that excuse murder in certain circumstances. He didn’t ask any questions or say anything about you, but I don’t think it was a coincidence.”

Rhys pulled out another bone and dropped it into the growing pile. “So they know it was self defense?”

“I guess so. But that means you don’t have to stay in the room for the rest of the day, which is good. So when you get done, we’ll go. That also means you have to put your clothes back on.” Jack grinned over at Rhys, who was inspecting the fish for any more bones and not paying attention to him. “How come you always wore clothes when we shared a room before?”

Rhys shrugged his shoulders before he tore into the deboned fish. “None of the other hotels were hot. But I always sleep like this on the ship. It’s more comfortable,” he explained once he swallowed. “Why, is it weird for humans not to wear clothes to bed?”

“Nah, it’s not weird. I just think it’s funny.”

“So you’re the weird one.”

Jack cackled. “O-ho, who’s been teaching you how to be snarky?”

The younger man rolled his eyes and popped another piece of fish into his mouth. “I’ve always been like this. You just haven’t noticed.”

He received a grunt in response, then Jack changed the subject. “Hurry up so we can get out of here and find a mechanic before they close for the day.”

“Fine, fine,” Rhys mumbled before he focused on finishing his food. It didn’t take him long to eat both of the fish and he gathered the bones in a neat pile to dispose of later. He put his clothes back on, ignoring Jack’s teasing complaints, and carefully placed his cloak over his head.

“Where’s your gun, pumpkin? And your shield?”

Rhys smiled awkwardly at him and rubbed his neck. “I accidentally forgot them on the ship this morning. I was rushing so much that I didn't think to grab them.”

Jack raised an eyebrow, but otherwise his mask was emotionless. “Then I guess you’re lucky that you had the brass knuckles.” He hopped up to his feet. “Come on, let’s get going.”

The younger man nodded quietly and stood, tucking the container of cleaned fish bones under his arm to throw away outside of the room. He followed Jack into the hallway and tossed the container into the first trash can he saw. His own hand immediately shot out to grasp Jack’s, already anxious about going back outside.

Thankfully, the crowds had thinned as the day wore on, though he still stayed close to Jack. Without people bumping into him every couple of seconds, Rhys had the chance to look around at the city. Like everywhere else he’d been, the buildings were made of metal, dull and painted to keep the sunlight from reflecting. The buildings were almost as crowded as the walkways had been; almost all of them were shoved together, maximizing as much space as they could.

Jack led him back towards the docks and Rhys relished the salty breeze that teased his hair. They passed through the market, whose stalls were mostly abandoned for the day with only a few sellers lingering. The rest of the path was open to the ocean, at least on that one side. Rhys stepped closer to the edge and looked down at the dark, foamy water crashing into the stone wall.

“Jack, how deep is it right here?” he asked curiously. “I can’t see the bottom.”

“Dunno. I didn’t build the town. But it’s probably about seven feet, considering how far we are from the actual shore. There’s probably a drop off just a little further out, otherwise the ships wouldn’t be able to come in.”

“Why is the path built in the water? Why not on land?”

“Maliwan grew too big too fast. Their city was originally on the island, but the population exploded and they ran out of room quickly, so they started building in the water. But they really should have anticipated that kind of growth, especially when they were spouting off all that shit about their ‘luxury dwellings.’” He scoffed and rolled his eyes. “How stupid did the founder have to be to not have a plan for city expansion? I can’t imagine how shitty this place looks after storms because this wall isn’t going to protect them from the waves. It’s amazing they haven’t all died yet.”

Jack’s tangent came to an end and he looked at Rhys’s confused face. “Just forget I said that.”  

Rhys blinked. “Okay?” He wasn’t really sure where Jack’s speech came from or its purpose since he didn’t understand most of it. It at least answered his initial question, so he didn’t push it.

They walked a bit further before Jack pointed to a solitary building at the end of the path. “Ha! Found one!” He grinned to himself. “Knew I’d do it.”

He pulled Rhys along behind him, picking up his pace as if it would save time. Rhys was caught off guard by the sudden change in pace and stumbled into his back once they stopped. Jack ignored him in favor of knocking on the closed door.

There was no answer for several moments and Jack growled under his breath, ready to slam his fist against the door again, when the large metal door abruptly swung open.

“Cuttin’ it a little close, aren’t ya? I was gettin’ ready to lock up for the day. What’cha need?”

Rhys at the mechanic with wide eyes. She was bigger than he was in every sense of the word, and louder, too. He was slightly afraid of her.

Jack, on the other hand, didn’t bat an eye. “Lucky us, then. Are you Ellie? We need some repairs for our ship.”

She stepped back and Jack moved forward, stopping when he realized Rhys wasn’t following and tugged him into the shop.

“Yep, that’s me. What kind of repairs you need?” She smiled at Rhys and he shuffled to the side so he was virtually hiding behind Jack.

“There was a storm that damaged our turrets. Not completely sure what the damage is, but I need those turrets up and running before we go anywhere.”

“Turrets, huh? You got one of them fancy Hyperion ships?”

Rhys watched the mask shift as Jack clenched his jaw. Even though he still wasn’t sure why Jack was so sensitive about Hyperion, he didn’t want him to get in trouble because of it.

Jack didn’t seem to think about that. “Yeah, I do. Is that a problem?” he asked in a dark tone.

Her smile turned into a frown and she folded her arms. “Nah, but it might be if you make it a problem.”

Rhys carefully placed his hand against the man’s back in an effort to keep him calm; he didn’t want to upset the lady who controlled when they could leave.

Jack relaxed, but Rhys could see he was struggling to do so. “Right. Can you do it?”

“Yeah, I can. I’ll check it in the morning. Shouldn’t be too hard to pick it out from the others. Just meet me here at noon and we’ll talk price.”

The older man forced out a terse ‘thank you’ and grabbed Rhys’s arm, dragging him from the shop.

“How long do you think it’ll take her to finish fixing the ship?” Rhys asked.

“Hopefully no more than a couple of days. We’ve wasted enough time already.”

The sun had almost set during the time they’d been inside, coating the city in a dim orange glow. The whole city seemed to transform under the glow and Rhys marveled at how everything seemed different. The streets were virtually empty, there were no conversations drowning out the ocean, and the previously dull buildings were lit up by brightly colored signs advertising restaurants and shops.

Both women and men, all dressed in red, exposing outfits, lingered outside of the lively buildings. The sight of them grew more common as the duo traveled back into the center of the city and Rhys couldn’t help but stare curiously. A man with short blond hair was leaning against a wall, and he smiled at Rhys when their eyes met, giving him a small wave.

“You hungry again, kiddo?”

Jack’s voice startled him out of his silent interaction with the stranger. “No, not really. Why?”

The man glanced between Rhys and the stranger, who had turned away from them. He narrowed his eyes, but didn’t comment. “I’m starving and I want a drink. Do you want to go to the hotel while I get something to eat?”

Despite the rather persuasive allure of another nap, Rhys shook his head. “No, I’ll stay with you. I don’t mind.” He liked hanging out with Jack. Even if he wasn’t eating, he could still talk to him.

Jack nodded and started walking again, now searching for somewhere to eat. He curled his fingers around Rhys’s thin wrist to guide him along, which was odd because he hadn’t held his hand since they left Ellie’s shop.

Rhys was soon led into a building with a large purple and red sign. Inside were a few tables and a bar. Most people were at the bar, talking amongst themselves. Jack led him over to a table and forcibly pushed him down into a seat. He ignored Rhys’s surprised and angry noises and simply said, “Sit here. Don’t go anywhere.”

The former merman huffed and glowered after Jack as the man sauntered off towards the bar. He did as he was told, however, and sat in his seat, picking at the seams of his cloak with his left hand in waiting.

“Hello there, cutie.”

He lifted his head and looked up at the speaker. Her bright red lips immediately caught his attention, though his gaze eventually shifted away from her mouth to the rest of her face. Her brown hair was done in ringlets and he was fascinated by the way they shifted and bounced. The seafolk didn’t have curly hair.

She smiled warmly at his entranced stare and reached up to tuck an errant strand of hair behind his ear, her fingers brushing against the purple scar on his temple. Her skin was soft and he found himself leaning into it. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

“R-Rhys,” he stammered out.

“What a cute name that is. Tell me, Rhys. Do you like what you see?” She bent forward in such a way that her cleavage was near his face and he swallowed hard. The seafolk had very lenient concepts of nudity, but he had been surrounded by fully clothed people for what felt like ages, and the sight of bare skin felt almost like a treat at this point.

His face flushed pink and he opened his mouth to try to formulate a response with the few words he knew when something very heavy slammed into the table.

Rhys immediately jumped back and the woman straightened up, both of them jerking their heads over to the side in surprise. His stomach twisted into a tight knot of something other than fear.

Both of Jack’s hands were pressed against the table, his right hand clutching the orange pistol he always kept at his side. His mask was warped with fury, his jaw set hard.

“Get away from him, you filthy, disgusting, stupid fucking whore!”

The entire bar was dead silent as Jack’s roar echoed off the walls. Although Rhys wasn’t sure what the last word was, Jack said it with enough malice and hatred that it made his heart thump in his chest. What was he so angry about?

The woman apparently didn’t move quickly enough for his taste; Jack raised the pistol and Rhys jumped up from his seat, along with most of the other patrons. He was less scared than he probably should have been, but he’d been around Jack long enough that he knew a gun would never be pointed at him.

Both of his hands came up to grip Jack’s forearm and he felt nostalgic for a time that felt so long ago. One hand slid down his sleeve to his hand, gingerly pulling the gun from his grip and as he murmured, “Calm, calm, calm,” which was a valuable word that Sasha had taught him.

He placed the gun in his pack and wrapped his fingers around his wrist. “Go? Go,” he affirmed without any input from Jack, who had yet to stop glaring at the woman.

Rhys gave her an apologetic smile and tugged Jack out of the bar. He looked around, hoping to see the familiar sight of their hotel, but he was grabbed and pushed into a wall before he could fully examine their surroundings. He blinked as his back hit metal, his breath stalling in his throat as Jack crowded in his space.

The man’s green and blue eyes were no longer filled with fury and they glistened under the florescent lighting of the signs. He silently stood in front of Rhys, the younger man boxed in by his arms and legs, for what felt like eternity.

“Jack…?” he hesitantly asked. “Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

While Rhys wasn’t sure what response he was expecting, it certainly wasn’t laughter. Jack started cackling and Rhys watched him in utter confusion.

It took a few seconds for his amusement to die down. When it did, he grinned at Rhys. “You…” He snickered again. “You have no idea what’s going on, do you?”

Rhys scowled. He would, if someone would tell him what was happening. “Jack, what—” The rest of his sentence was swallowed by a sudden kiss.

The former merman went rigid and was stock still, hyper aware of the warmth that radiated from Jack’s body and of the pressure of his lips, but unsure of how to react. Was this a human thing?

It felt like ages before Jack pulled away, grinning like normal. “You’re cute when you’re embarrassed. Why do you look so confused? Do fishpeople not kiss?”

“They aren’t fishpeople!” Rhys snapped. “And no, they don’t do… that. ”

His little outburst did nothing to sway Jack’s new positive mood. “But did you like it?”

Rhys’s hand came up to hide his mouth and he didn’t answer. He hoped the lights didn’t reveal how red his face was.

Jack smirked but didn’t prod him further. “Then what do your people do when you want to flirt?”

Rhys wracked his brain as he tried to find out what Jack meant, but came up blank. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

Jack groaned and rolled his eyes. “You’re killing me, babe.” Rhys frowned at the new endearment, though he was distracted by Jack grabbing his hand. “Come on, I’ll just show you what I mean.”

Now Jack was back to leading Rhys; he guided the younger man back to the hotel and into the room, being sure to lock the door once they were inside. When he turned around to face the room, Rhys was blocking his path.

“Jack, why you're acting weird? What was that thing you did?”

Jack grabbed Rhys’s cloak and pulled it off. “It’s called a kiss.”

“Yeah, you said that already. But that doesn’t explain anything.”

Jack took hold of both of his wrists and slowly pushed him backwards until Rhys was once again bracketed against a wall. “That woman in the bar was a whore. She tried to get you to pay her to have sex with you.”

Rhys frowned. She was pretty, but he wasn’t interested in mating with a stranger, for free or otherwise. “Why did that upset you?”

“Because,” Jack began, his thumb coming up to trace Rhys’s jaw, “I don’t like to share.”

Rhys’s breath caught in his throat and blood rushed up to his face, turning his ears and face red, but he didn’t say anything. The sheer possession in Jack’s voice was enough to make him dizzy.

“Do you know what I’m saying, Rhysie?”

The younger man shook his head mutely. No, not quite. He had his ideas, but he figured it was just wishful thinking that—

His thumb migrated from his jaw to “It means I want to fuck you.”

Rhys stared at Jack with wide, surprised eyes, the blood having drained from his face. Jack wanted to mate with him ? This had to be another one of those dreams that seemed to be happening more often than not lately. There was no way this was real.

The longer they stood there, however, the more Rhys realized that it wasn’t a dream and that it was, in fact, very real.

Jack was still staring at him expectantly, waiting for some type of response. He had withdrawn his hand and had stepped back a foot or so in anticipation of a rejection, but he was still waiting.

When he realized that he was supposed to respond, Rhys closed the small gap between them and buried his face in Jack’s neck. “Yes…” he exhaled quietly against his skin.

A hand curled around his hip. "Yes what, kitten?”

Rhys lifted his head and leaned back enough to meet Jack’s eyes. “I want to…have sex with you,” he said, using Jack’s words in case that was what humans said. “Can we kiss again?”

Jack grinned. “Close your eyes, Rhysie.” When Rhys obeyed, Jack gently pinned him to the wall once more. “Just do what I tell you to, okay? If you want me to stop, push me away. Got it?” At Rhys’s nod, Jack leaned in and captured his lips in their second kiss of the night.

Rhys found himself enjoying it much more than the first, now that he was prepared. They were pressed against each other and Rhys snaked his arms around Jack’s neck, anchoring himself to the other man as if afraid he'd disappear.

Jack slipped a thigh between Rhys’s legs and rocked it slowly, creating friction against his cock. He smirked against Rhys’s mouth when the younger man inhaled sharply, but downright growled when Rhys immediately moved faster, trying to get more than he was given.

The growl that rumbled in Jack’s throat made Rhys’s heart stutter in his chest. Large hands curled around the backs of his thighs and Rhys squeaked in surprise as he was hoisted up, his legs guided around Jack’s waist.

Rhys cinched his arms tighter around Jack’s neck as anxiety coiled in his chest at the sensation of weightlessness. When the wall disappeared from his back, he pulled back from the kiss and opened his eyes.

“Jack—?” He cut himself off with a yelp as he was dropped unceremoniously onto the bed. He didn't move his arms and Jack came down with him, catching himself with his hands so he didn’t collapse on top of Rhys.

When Rhys released his neck, Jack slid off the bed and stood up. He appraised the dazed younger man on the bed with an approving grin. Rhys was flushed from his cheeks down to his clavicle and his shirt had ridden up from him wriggling on the bed. His eyes were black with small rings of purple and brown, his expression lax with dazed arousal—a picture of perfection.

Jack stripped out of his coat, overshirt, sweater, and shirt in just over a minute and climbed back onto the bed, hovering over Rhys. He balanced himself on his knees, deftly popped each of the buttons on Rhys’s shirt, and slid it down narrow shoulders. Rhys sat up enough that Jack could slip it off without tearing it on the jagged crystals and only laid back down when Jack gently pressed a hand against his pale chest.

“You look absolutely delicious,” Jack purred as his hands went to the waist of the younger man’s pants. “Even more than I imagined.”

Rhys’s face flushed darker and he lifted his hips to allow the pants to slide down his legs. He dropped back down once the pants were to his thighs and slowly sat up. He was still wearing his underwear, though Jack’s expression did not seem to approve of that. But he had something to say before they went any further.

“Jack, this…this isn’t something I’ve done before. Ever. Not even with the other seafolk.” Mating had never really been something he was interested in, and he never had that many people vying for his affection anyway, despite what Vaughn thought.  “I don’t…” He bit the inside of his lip gingerly and worried the flesh between his teeth. “I don’t know what I’m doing,” he finally confessed, and immediately he shifted his gaze so he didn’t have to look Jack in the face. Again, he was the confused, inexperienced one and Jack was the confident, experienced one.

He hadn’t even realized that he was digging his claws into his own thighs until he felt Jack pulling his hands away from his stinging legs. Rhys looked up at the man in trepidation. He wanted this, even if he wasn’t sure what to do, and he didn’t want Jack to back out just because he wasn’t in the mood to teach Rhys.

“I already knew that, Rhysie. You’ve been stuck with me since this started, remember? I was already under the impression that you were a virgin before all this, too. Especially since you only ever talked about your friends after leaving your colony. You never mentioned lovers. Don’t worry, I’ll show you everything you need to know.”

Then his mouth morphed into a leer. “But I know you’re not entirely clueless about what’s about to happen. The ship’s walls aren’t as thick as you think.”

It took Rhys a couple of seconds before the meaning of Jack’s statement registered in his brain, but when it did, his eyes grew wide and he covered his face with his hands. He let out a whine, the sound drowned out by Jack’s cackling, and fell back on the bed.

“Oh come on, pumpkin. It’s not like I could hear everything, ” Jack retconned as he straddled Rhys’s hips, effectively pinning him down while he pried the hands away from his face. “Why are you so embarrassed? It’s not that big of a deal. Obviously I didn’t mind and your room is closer to mine than it is to anyone else’s. I’m the only one that ever heard you.”

Rhys relaxed a little at that, allowing his arms fall down to the mattress as he stared up at Jack. That was somewhat a relief, dulling the humiliation of the other crewmates possibly hearing him.

“You okay now?” the man asked. At his answering nod, Jack leaned down and gave him another kiss. “Let’s start over.”

He moved away from Rhys and stripped out of his pants, ignoring Rhys’s raised eyebrow when there was nothing underneath. He motioned for him to sit up. “Take it all off, Rhysie. I need to get something.”

Rhys did as he was told while Jack wandered over towards the desk, wriggling out of his underwear and tossing them off the bed. He watched Jack dig through the bag on top of the desk until he made a triumphant noise and returned to the bed.

He tossed a bottle onto the bed next to Rhys and climbed back over to the younger man. Rhys laid down, this time mirroring Jack’s movements as the man hovered over to him. He picked the bottle back up and popped it open, spreading a bit of gel on his palm. When he looked satisfied, he closed the lid and dropped it to the side once more.

“Let’s start over,” Jack repeated, reaching down and wrapping his hand around Rhys’s flaccid cock. He chuckled at the way the younger man’s breath hitched and he started stroking with slow but precise movements.

Rhys closed his eyes, the intensity of Jack’s gaze making him nervous. Jack’s hand felt so much better than his own, bigger and more experienced than the clumsy movements that he had adapted to over the past month. Even though Jack wasn’t privy to exactly what Rhys liked, it still felt better than his solitary sessions. Even the slick gel didn’t feel too bad, even if it was a little cold.

Jack’s voice brought him from his thoughts. “Your noises sound so much better up close,” he purred, making a point by pressing the calloused pad of his thumb against the underside of the head. It tore a choked moan from Rhys and clawed fingers dug into the bedsheets.

It wasn’t much longer before little noises were constantly spilling from Rhys as he bucked his hips, trying to compensate for Jack’s infuriatingly slow pace. It wasn’t helping much.

“Jack,” he huffed out, breath stuttering when the man swiped his thumb over the flushed tip, “please.”

“Please what?” the man asked, his face smug as he kept the same lazy pace.

Rhys opened his eyes and stared up at mismatched eyes. “Please…I need more. It’s too slow.”  

Jack hummed and abruptly pulled away from him entirely, causing Rhys to whine in protest and sit up. He was ignored as Jack swiped up the bottle he’d dropped and opened it once again. “Lay back down, cupcake,” he said casually. “And this time, spread your legs.”

Once again, Rhys did as he was told, albeit a little hesitantly. It felt odd to be in this position in front of Jack, like he was on display. He tilted his head to the side and watched Jack spread more gel across his fingers. He couldn’t see all of him from his current position on his back, but he felt the heated flesh of Jack’s erection brush against his calf as the man shifted and settled himself between Rhys’s legs.

Rhys was impatiently still up until the moment he felt a slick finger slide over his balls and press experimentally against his entrance. He jerked away instinctively and sat up. “What are you doing?” he asked, slightly on edge.

Jack wasn’t perturbed. “This is how humans have sex. I told you I’d take care of you. Just trust me, all right?”

The former merman considered his words for a moment, then laid back down. Jack’s finger returned and Rhys involuntarily tensed up as it circled the taut ring of muscle. As Jack cooed “relax, baby,” he tried to do just that and forced his muscles to relax. He winced at the slight burn of the digit breaching the muscle, but it wasn’t as painful as he thought it would be.

Jack leaned over him as he pressed deeper, distracting him from the foreign feeling by biting at the junction of his shoulder and throat. “Just relax, it’ll feel better soon,” he promised. He set a pace that was faster than it previously was, though it was less satisfying since Rhys was still adjusting to the sensation of something inside him.

Then his finger pressed against something and he moaned suddenly, the sound drawing Jack’s attention from his throat. There was undisguised interest in his eyes and he moved his finger to catch the spot again. Rhys cried out a second time, his cock twitching at the sudden burst of pleasure. The burning discomfort was gone and he rocked his hips backwards.

“There we go,” Jack purred. “Told you that it’d feel good. Think you can take another?”

Rhys nodded slowly and tried not to tense when a second slick finger was added, bringing back the burn but to a lesser degree. He stayed still in order to adjust again, but Jack crooked his fingers and his hips jerked. It hurt when he started scissoring his fingers, stretching the younger man in preparation, but by the time Jack added a third, Rhys was writhing and whining for release. Jack had ignored his cock the entire time, focusing only on stretching him, yet the full feeling and occasional brush against his prostate kept him hard as a rock.

“Jack…Jack…” Rhys whined, fingers grasping the rumpled bedsheets. His whole body throbbed with heat and he squirmed, feeling the tight coil in his stomach that he had become so used to. It was there, burning, but he couldn’t come like this.

“What is it?” Jack asked, his voice rough with lust as he fingered the younger man. “Do you need something?”

It took a few moments for Rhys to gather his thoughts enough to voice his desires. “I need more. It’s…it’s not enough.” He wanted to come, but he couldn’t reach that point like this. “I’m so close.”

Jack barked out a laugh and withdrew his fingers. “You’re greedy, aren’t you?” he teased, allowing Rhys to come away from the edge as he slicked up his own cock. He grasped one hip with messy fingers and slipped Rhys’s leg up around his waist. “Don’t tense up or you’ll hurt yourself.”

Rhys sucked in a deep breath as the blunt tip of his cock pressed against his stretched entrance, bigger than his fingers but not enough to be painful. He kept as still as possible as Jack slid in deeper until his hips were flush with Rhys’s ass.

“How’re you feeling, Rhysie?” he asked, voice strained with patience.

The burn was fading fast and Rhys shifted his hips experimentally. “I feel…full.” It certainly wasn’t a bad thing. “Will you move?”

Jack rolled his eyes despite his smile and pulled out almost entirely before thrusting back in.

The first thrust stole his breath and his claws shredded the sheets as his back arched. Jack didn’t give him a chance to calm down after that. He kept his pace even, rolling his hips and snapping them forward to drive himself back into Rhys. He leaned down and buried his face against the younger man’s neck.

Jack shifted his angle until he found the bundle of nerves he’d abused earlier, drawing out cries and gasps from the former merman. He used one forearm to prop himself up and slipped his free hand between them to curl around Rhys’s bobbing cock. He smiled and panted against his neck as his cries grew in louder in volume, punctuated by moaning and untranslatable clicks.

It didn’t take long before Rhys was coming, his orgasm crashing into him without warning. His body clenched around Jack and the man moaned, thrusting harder in response. As the aftershocks faded, Rhys’s right hand came up to grip at Jack’s shoulder blades, leaving pink raised lines on his skin as his grip slipped with each thrust. Jack hissed at the pain, but allowed him to claw at his back. When his flesh hand tangled in grey-streaked hair, Jack groaned and drove his hips forward.

Once the afterglow faded, it was almost too much for Rhys, and his moans faded into soft whines as Jack kept going. A hand slipped into his hair and he felt Jack’s warm breath against his ear. “Look at you, you take it so good. You’re so hot and tight, just for me.”

His heart stuttered in his chest as his claws dug harder into the man’s back. This—this was what he wanted. This was exactly what he used to dream of, aching for something he didn’t think he could have. He was literally living in a perfect fantasy.

Jack shuddered and his hips pressed hard against his ass as he came and he pressed a kiss to Rhys’s scarred temple. “You all right there, kitten?” he asked, hair hanging in front of his face from where Rhys had tangled his fingers and his skin flush with sweat and exertion. He propped himself up and a large hand moved to brush the bruise on his neck. He huffed a laugh. “Damn, I really did a number on your pretty throat.”

“I’m…all right,” Rhys answered slowly, admittedly still reeling with his own discovery. “Tired.” While it wasn’t a lie, he used it more as an excuse for his sudden subdued behavior.

The man chuckled and pulled his softening cock out of him with grunt. “Go on and go to sleep. I’ll clean up.”

Rhys nodded, but reached out and grabbed Jack’s wrist before he could fully leave the bed. Jack stopped and watched him with a raised eyebrow. “Kiss me. Please, before I fall asleep.”

Jack cracked an amused grin and obliged his request, leaning down and giving him a languid kiss. “Get some sleep, pumpkin,” he murmured once he pulled away, gently removing the hand from his wrist.  “I’ll be right back.”

Rhys didn’t want him to leave. He wanted to press close to Jack and fall asleep that way, but he passed out before Jack even reached the bathroom.

 When Rhys opened his eyes again, Jack was climbing out of the bed and there was soft yellow light filtering in through the window. It was peaceful, but he was still tired and he rolled onto his stomach to go back to sleep.

He didn't get that chance though, as Jack started laughing on the other side of the room. Rhys tried to ignore him, but soon he was being spoken to. “Rhysie, oh this is gold. Guess who called my comm eighteen times last night?”

The former merman lifted his head and pouted in Jack’s direction. “Who?” he asked blandly, not particularly interested in the answer. He wanted to sleep some more.

Jack waved his comm at him. “Fiona.” He was thoroughly amused by the news, though Rhys couldn't see what was so funny.

“Why did she call so much?”

Jack’s laughter faded away as he looked at the sleepy man in the bed. “Pumpkin, it's morning. We’ve been here all night. And we didn't tell anyone.”

That finally clicked with Rhys and he sat up. “You didn't tell anyone that you got a room?”

“Nope. Didn't think about it. I wonder where they stayed last night?” he mused, talking to himself and not Rhys.

Rhys felt his face heat up. He was going to have to explain where they were all night, but he wasn't sure he wanted to be honest. Sasha already looked at him weird and he didn't want Fiona to have another reason to dislike him. And would Zer0 be mad?

He jumped as something was thrown onto the bed and looked at the pile of clothes that landed next to him.

“Get dressed. We need to go talk to Ellie and get our ship so we can leave.” Jack disappeared into the bathroom with his satcand shut the door.

Rhys got up slowly and put on his clothes before moving over to the mirror to assess the state of his body and the wild mess of his hair. He didn't feel very sore, so that was nice. Maybe he could lie and say Jack drank too much? That might make Jack mad but he'd say anything if it meant he didn't have to tell them what they were actually doing. But what would he say about the bruises on his throat?

There was a knock on the door and he looked at the bathroom to see if Jack heard it. The knocking continued and Jack didn't emerge, so Rhys moved over to the door and opened it cautiously. Maybe it was one of the others?

The woman in the hallway was unfamiliar. He tilted his head in confusion and cracked the door open wider to get a better look. When she smiled at him, her face shadowed by the brim of her hat, his blood ran cold. She didn't look nice, not with the whip on her hip and especially not with the pistol—was that a blade attached to it?—on her thigh.

He tried closing the door, but she stuck out her arm and stopped him. She tilted her body forward and he shifted away from her, chills crawling up his spine.

“Hey, kid. Is Daddy home?”

Rhys furrowed his brow. She must have had the wrong room, but he didn’t know how to tell her that. “W-wrong,” he stammered out, hoping to at least get part of the message across.

The woman smirked at him. “No, I don’t think so.” She took a step towards him and he instinctively stepped back.

He didn't realize how far back he'd moved until she passed over the threshold and into the room before he even noticed. He was too afraid to even attempt to push her outside, so when she walked in he rushed over to the bathroom door and flung it open.

Jack swore and pressed the mask against his face as Rhys tumbled into the bathroom. “What the hell is your problem, Rhys?” he snapped, quickly trying to fasten the metal clasps.

The younger man hid behind his back, grabbing his waist and turning him to place the vault hunter between him and the door. “I'm sorry, I'm sorry! She scared me and walked in and I didn't know what to do!”

“What are you talking about?” he growled, snapping the last clasp close before trying to pry Rhys’s arms off his waist to shove him away.

“Hey there, handsome. Long time, no see.”

Jack froze and released both of Rhys’s arms to turn towards the doorway. “Nisha?”

Chapter Text

Her name was Nisha and she used to be a part of Jack’s former crew. Though Rhys couldn’t understand why she’d left in the first place; there was no awkward tension between them and they acted like old friends. It made him yearn for his own friends back in the trench.

She looked quite a bit younger than Jack, but Rhys didn’t get a chance to ask about her age, as both her and Jack seemed to forget about his presence. He had left the bathroom upon realizing that she was not a threat to either of them and spent his time fixing his hair and making sure they weren’t leaving anything behind.

Jack exited the bathroom fully dressed and threw an arm around Rhys’s shoulders while the latter was packing his hair gel back into his satchel, then forcibly turned him to face the woman.

“Nish, this is Rhys. I found him near Tediore.”

Rhys blinked. “Technically, I found you —”

“What the hell’s up with his voice? Those aren’t words.” Rhys closed his mouth when Nisha interrupted him.

Jack gave her the same answer he gave everyone else. “He can’t speak English. Well, he kind of can. I’ve taught him a few words here and there. Normally, though, we just use comms to understand him.”

She folded her arms in front of her chest. “So you picked up a strange kid who doesn’t speak your language and got on a ship with him? I understand that he’s your type, but Jackie, where’s your self of self-preservation? What if he wanted to kill you while you slept?”

Jackie? The name echoed in his thoughts as he came to his own defense. “I’m not a kid and I saved him. ” Jack would not be alive without him.

When she merely raised an eyebrow at him, he tried to focus on forming words, not clicks. “I’m not dan…ger…ous,” he drawled. He would never do anything to harm his new mate.

She tapped a fingernail against her cheek. “I have a hard time believing that because, you see, you’ve been in my town for two days now and there’s a dead man in the morgue. First one of the month, too. My deputies had to carry him there in pieces.”

He ducked his head in embarrassment while Jack whistled. “Damn, you got yourself a fancy legal job here, huh? Kind of cool that you get to boss a bunch of peons around. The legal part, not so much. How’d you know where to find us?”

Nisha laughed. “Jack, you have metal clasps holding a mask to your face that doesn’t even match your skintone and Legs here as a weird ass arm. Word came from one of my deputies that you were the one that caught him when he tried to run away and led him from the crime scene. Originally I was going to track you down for questioning yesterday, but we got all of the details we needed from the dead guy’s brother.”

Her frigid gaze cut to Rhys. “You’re welcome, by the way. We don’t actually have self-defense laws; any and all crimes are supposed to be punished by execution.” He paled considerably and stepped behind Jack as she continued. “But since you belong to Jack, I decided to pardon you. Didn’t see any reason in getting my deputies killed over some string bean-looking pet.”

Rhys frowned. What made everyone call him a pet? First Fiona and Sasha, now Nisha. He wasn’t Jack’s pet. They were mates.

But unlike before, Jack didn’t correct her. Instead, he simply agreed by saying, “Smart thinking. One body’s bad enough, right?” He jostled Rhys from behind him and patted him on the shoulder. “Come on, pumpkin. Put on your cloak and let’s get going. I’m so ready to get off this island.” He glanced at Nisha with a certain interest that made Rhys’s stomach churn and he quickly turned to put on his cloak. “Wanna come with? Take a break from being Sheriff for a bit.”

Grinning, she answered, “Lead the way, handsome.”

Rhys slipped his satchel onto his shoulder as Jack swiped his own bag from desk and followed him from the room. He grimaced as he stepped through the doorway, from both faint soreness and the disgust of dried sweat on his skin. With his hair coarser than usual, he felt more unclean than he had in all of his time as a human. Though he didn’t even bother to request a bath before they left the room; Jack was obviously not in the mood to wait around any longer.

“Call the girls and Zer0 and tell them to meet us at Ellie’s.”

He considered suggesting that Jack call Zer0 while he spoke to Sasha, but thought better of it and called them first, dreading the conversation with Fiona.

One sheepish apology was followed by another, this time embarrassed and vague, apology, then by being berated rather angrily, but he managed to inform all three of his crewmates of where to go. Zer0’s nice but confused questions made him feel the guiltiest.

After Fiona hung up on him, Rhys focused on his mate. “Jack, I’m hungry.” His statement went ignored in favor of his conversation with Nisha and Rhys scowled. “Jack!” he said louder. A small burst of glee warmed his chest when both of them shut up and looked at him, despite their displeased faces. “I’m hungry. Can we stop for food?”

“Maybe,” came Jack’s noncommittal answer. “Depends on how quickly we can get this shit done.”

He opened his mouth to protest, seeing as how that meant he might not get any food before they set sail, but their conversation had already resumed. Nisha walked on the opposite side of Jack and the late morning crowd instinctively moved out of her—and, subsequently, their—path. He looked around at the nervous but almost reverent expressions and wondered just who this woman was.

Jack seemed far from uncomfortable around her, however. They traded sharp insults with snickers and grins, teasing each other about the changes that had cropped up since their last encounter. She called out his gray streak and the telltale evidence of wrinkles around the edges of his mask; Rhys felt more offended than Jack appeared to be, though the older man defended his hair. Jack wisely went for her wardrobe instead of her appearance, which apparently had changed drastically; Rhys agreed that her hat looked stupid.

By the time they reached the garage, the others were already outside. Zer0 was having a discussion with Ellie while Fiona and Sasha watched the three of them approach. Fiona looked tired and ready to strangle someone. Rhys could only hope that it was Jack and not him. Sasha, however, shot him a suspicious look that had him quietly putting distance between himself and Jack as his face burned.

Thankfully, her focus shifted from him to Nisha without comment. “Nice hat. Who’re you?”

Nisha shot Jack a smug look as he rolled his eyes. “Thank you. Nice gun,” she replied with a nod towards the gun on her hip. “Name’s Nisha. Or Sheriff Kadam, if you’re bad.” Her wolfish grin was less concerning than Jack’s excited one. It almost made Rhys want to go stand next to Fiona.

“So you’re the sheriff?” Fiona asked, hands on her hips. “What are you doing with these two morons?”

“Watch it, kiddo. I’m still the captain here.”

“Bite me, jackass. You left us with nowhere to go last night and never answered your comm.”

Nisha smirked at Fiona’s direct insubordination. “Jack and I are old friends. We used to run a crew together. Jack wanted to chase another vault so he took Aurelia and Wilhelm while I hitched a ride here, where I stayed.”

“Who are Wilhelm and Aurelia?” Sasha interjected.

Something dark passed over Jack’s expression and Rhys felt his heart drop into his stomach. He knew those names from the dozens of stories he heard while lying halfway on a cool beach. He knew where they were, too.

Rhys dared to move closer to his side while Nisha waited curiously for his answer. He didn’t touch Jack or try to answer for him; it was not his place to answer her question, but he was there if he was needed.

Zer0 provided a break in the tension by walking up to Jack and ignoring the current conversation. “The damage is not serious. Some mechanisms were broken and knocked out of place. It should not take more than two hours to fix,” they informed him. “Ellie wishes to discuss payment with you inside.”

Jack left without another word, stalking off towards the garage.

Zer0 looked to Rhys, who suddenly felt way too close to Nisha. “Are you all right?”

“Yeah? Why do you ask?”

“There was news that someone of your description was attacked and that they were forced to defend themselves.”

Rhys rubbed the back of his neck. Right. The murder. “Yeah, I’m okay. I’m not so shaken up anymore and I feel a lot better than I did yesterday. You can thank your friend for me; those brass knuckles he gave me are really powerful.” Too powerful.

Sasha frowned. “Wait, Rhys, what happened?”

Rhys bit his lip and then rushed out, “Ikilledsomeoneyesterday.” He smiled weakly at her shocked stare. “That’s why we got a room. I was freaking out and Jack wanted to get me somewhere secluded so I could calm down, but I fell asleep. I didn’t know that he didn’t call. If I did, I would have done it.”

Nisha elbowed Fiona, though it was surprisingly gentle. “Hey, Hat-Girl. What’s he saying?”

“He killed someone and fell asleep after a panic attack.” She looked up at the woman. “Do you have a comm? If not, we have plenty on the ship.”

“No thanks, I probably won’t be sticking around for too much longer. I just wanted to catch up with Jack and make sure Legs didn’t kill anyone else.” Her tone was cold and unkind, causing a shiver to run down his spine as he thought about her earlier statement about executions.

He swallowed hard and chuckled nervously. “I’m gonna go see what’s taking Jack so long…” She did not act like she liked him at all and he wanted to get as far away from her as he could as quickly as possible.

He turned and quickly walked away from the group, stepping into the garage and shutting the door behind him. He looked around for Jack. When he spotted him across the garage, he walked around the perimeter and stood behind him until Ellie was finished talking.

After she left, he moved out from behind Jack and touched his arm gently.

Jack almost seemed startled, but quickly got himself under control. “What do you need, pumpkin?”

He quietly asked, “Can we go now? I want to leave.” Now was implied.

Jack rolled his eyes and ignored the evident desperation in his voice. “Trust me, kid. I want to leave, too. We still have to wait for her to finish repairs. But lucky you,” he continued as Rhys began to deflate, “we just finished discussing payment. So she’ll get to work and we can go get lunch, if you're still hungry.”

Rhys nodded silently and stuck close to Jack as they left the shop. He kept his head down as they approached the group outside, hoping that it would just be the two of them so they could enjoy their first day as mates.

That plan sank immediately when Jack asked, “Nish, wanna go get lunch?” Rhys’s heart dropped into his stomach. “You know where all the good food is.”

She glanced at the disheartened young man next to him. “Sure. Just us or are you bringing your pet along?”

Rhys bristled and as he was trying to think of a clever response, a warm hand came to rest against his lower back. “He’s not a pet. But yes, he’s coming with.”

She hummed thoughtfully. “I’m not sure he wants to come, Jackie. He looks pretty upset.”

Jack merely took a brief glance at Rhys’s frown. “Don’t worry about him. He always looks pissy when he’s hungry.”

“Do not,” he objected, though he was ignored as Jack started guiding him along the path and back towards town.

He turned his head and cast a pleading look to the rest of the crew; he didn’t want to be alone with them again. But Fiona and Zer0 were already in a conversation and Sasha’s sad but sympathetic smile gave him her answer.

So once again, he was left alone with them. It was easier with Jack between them, though he was more interested in talking to Nisha than Rhys. The town was quickly crowding as it got closer to noon and Rhys was forced to take out his comm before he developed a headache. It wasn’t like he needed it, anyway.

They found a restaurant rather quickly and despite the fact that they looked busy, there was a table immediately cleared for the three of them. Jack sat next to him instead of on Nisha’s side, and for a moment he was pleased that Jack wanted to be closer to him, but then he held up a menu to Rhys and started reading him what their options were.

Jack barely got halfway down the list before Rhys interrupted and said, “I want a crab. And ice cream.” He knew he could eat both of those relatively quickly.

Jack raised an eyebrow at him but didn’t say no and instead just finished looking over the menu for himself.

“So, Nish, why did you come looking for us this morning if you already had the full story about yesterday?”

“Can’t a girl miss her ex?”

“Sure, but you can’t.”

She chuckled. “It’s been almost two years since you went after that second vault. When I found out you were here and had a new crew member, I was curious. I wanted to see how you’ve been.”

“Did you show up to flaunt your new job?”

“Maybe a bit of that, too.”

He snorted with a grin on his face. “You’ve definitely succeeded. I’d forgotten how great it feels to have people move out of my way like that. And I’m glad Rhysie here got to meet the second biggest badass on the planet.” He slapped Rhys on the shoulder while Rhys stared blankly at Nisha.

“Second biggest? Do we need to go outside, Jack?”

“Oh come on, don’t threaten me in front of the kid. He looks up to me. Don’t you, cupcake?”

Rhys didn’t answer him fast enough, attention fixated on the woman across from him and her frigid stare. The younger man squawked in surprise when his cheek was suddenly pinched and he jerked away.

Jack cackled as Rhys covered the smarting skin with his hand and scowled. “What’s turned you into a sourpuss? Well, a bigger one than normal.” He leered at the former merman.  “Your ass hurt or somethin’?”

Rhys tried to maintain his unhappy expression even as his face turned pink. “No, it doesn’t. I’m fine, Jack. Just hungry and ready to get back on the ship.”

Jack squinted at him like he was trying to find the truth behind his behavior, but a waiter appeared to take their orders and he tore his attention from Rhys to order their food.

“How’s it feel to be Sheriff Kadam?” he asked once the waiter had left.

“Pretty damn good. I like being in charge.”

“You always have. But,” he began as he rested his arms on the table and leaned forward, “is enforcing rules really what you want to do? Sure, you might get to shoot someone every once in awhile, but you said this morning that the guy Rhys killed is the first death you’ve had this month. It’s already the twelfth.”

She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms, watching him with an unreadable expression. “What are you getting at, Jack?”

“Look, we’re on our way to Hyperion because they’ve put a reward on my head. There’s two pirate infested islands between here and there. Zer0 and myself are the only ones that I know I can trust to handle a firefight if one happens. It would be great to have the world’s best gunslinger on my side again.”

Rhys felt cold. He stared at Jack with wide eyes, but the man was focused on Nisha, not him. His chest was filled with a fearful panic and his claws dug into his thighs. This—this wasn’t happening. Couldn’t Jack tell that she didn’t like him? And she had a duty to fulfill; surely she wouldn’t—

“Sounds like you could really use the help.” Rhys stopped breathing. “All right, count me in, handsome. I’ll help you get to Hyperion with as few bullet holes as possible.”

When his eyes shifted from Jack to her, she was staring at him intensely. That only made him feel worse; she knew he was afraid and she still agreed.

And his friends used to call him an asshole.

“Great!” Jack’s jubilant reply showed no acknowledgement of the tension between them. “Go pack your stuff after lunch and meet me on the docks. We’ll get a comm set up for you and a room.”

“I’ll have to arrange for a replacement, so it might be a while before I can join you. Shouldn’t be too long, though.” She had yet to take her eyes off of Rhys. “It will be nice to be at sea again.”

Their food arrived soon after, but Rhys’s churning stomach had essentially killed his appetite. He glumly prodded his undercooked crab meat with a knife and watched his ice cream slowly melt.

It was going to be a long way to Hyperion.

After forcing himself to eat at least a portion of his food, Rhys walked with Jack back towards the docks. He was relieved to use the excuse of loud, busy streets to take out his comm, but he knew that he couldn’t avoid talking about it forever. But what was he supposed to say? He had no authority over Jack’s behavior and he was right about the gun thing. They could definitely use her.

And yet, upon boarding the ship, he followed Jack directly to the man’s office. Ellie was the only other occupant on board, and he knew that probably made him a bit braver than normal.

The office was rather barren; there was so much that had been lost when the first ship sunk and most of it had yet to be replaced. Jack stood next to a table with a digitized map on the surface. Its pale blue glow was mesmerizing to the former merman and though he had intended to surprise Jack, the man noticed him before he could say a word.

“What are you doing in here, kiddo?”

He jerked his attention back to the matter at hand and nervously shifted his weight. “I…want to talk to you.” He looked at the floor instead of Jack and rubbed his left arm with his right hand underneath his cloak. He wasn’t sure how to say it without upsetting Jack, but he had to try. “I’m not sure bringing Nisha with us is a good idea.”

“Why not?”

Rhys flinched at the edge in his voice. “She scares me,” he admitted. “And I don’t think she likes me much. Or even at all. I’m nervous about being stuck on the ship with her.”

“That’s stupid.”

His head snapped up in surprise and he gaped at Jack across the room, who looked completely unmoved by his plea. “Excuse me?”

“Kiddo, she’s not going to do anything to you. You’re just paranoid. I know she’s a little scary but too bad. We need her.”

“Can’t we find someone else?” he pleaded.

“Rhysie…”

“Maliwan is a big place. There has to be another vault hunter here somewhere —”

“Rhys!” Jack’s sharp bark silenced him. “Drop it. She’s coming with us, end of story.”

He clenched his jaw in frustration. They had other options and they both knew it; Jack just didn’t want them.

“Fine,” he grumbled before turning and stalking out of the office. He went down to his room and pulled off his cloak, then his shoes, and collapsed onto his bed. What was so special about her that Jack wanted her on their ship so badly?

He rolled onto his stomach and tucked his arm underneath his pillow. This wasn’t how he expected his first day of being mated to go. It was supposed to be a happy day where they avoided their duties and nestled away from the rest of the world together. But Jack was human and restless, so he would have to forgo that tradition. Still, he hadn’t thought it would feel so empty.

A hand gripped his shoulder and shook him. “Rhys. Rhys, get up.”

He opened his eyes to the sound of Sasha’s voice and lifted his head. His arm was asleep and he winced as he sat up. “Are we leaving?”

“We left hours ago. It’s almost sunset and I’m about to make dinner. Do you want some?”

He rubbed his eyes carefully with his right hand. “Yeah, I could eat a bit.” He hadn’t even realized that he’d fallen asleep. “Need any help?”

“If you could come chop some vegetables for me, that’d be great.”

He slid out of bed and tried to regain feeling in his arm as he followed her from the bedroom. Now that he was awake, he could hear the low hum of the engines running.

“Are you okay, Rhys?” She cast a glance over her shoulder at him.

He nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just…not a big fan of Nisha.”

“Yeah, I could see that. Why is she here, anyway?”

“Jack said that he wanted someone else who could hold their own in a gunfight since we’ll be going past some pirates on the way to Hyperion.” He was quiet for a second before he asked, “What’s an ex?”

Sasha stopped walking and faced him. She took in his drained, somber expression and pursed her lips. “It’s short for ex-girlfriend or ex-boyfriend. It means whoever said it used to be in a relationship with whoever they were talking about.”

“…Oh.” He wasn’t really surprised—despite antagonizing each other, they had seemed very close—but it was the answer he had hoped she wouldn’t give him. He shouldn’t have been upset that humans could have previous mates, and he wasn’t, though Jack’s affection towards Nisha made it difficult to let go.

They didn’t say anything else until they were in the safe privacy of the kitchen and he was handed a knife and fresh carrots. As he washed them off and prepared to chop them, Sasha hesitantly asked, “Rhys, did you sleep with him?”

His silence was a clear answer.

She sighed. “I figured as much when I saw the bruises on your neck. And don’t take this the wrong way, but why ? I know you trust him and that he’s relatively nice to you, but why him?”

“Can we not talk about this?” he snapped. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Fine,” she shot back. “I was just trying to help.”

He helped her prepare for dinner in silence and left once she started cooking. The hallway was quiet; everyone else must have been above deck. Though he briefly considered going to join them, he ended up returning to his room. When he opened the door, he froze.

Nisha looked up from his shield, which she had been inspecting, and got up from his bed. “Let’s have a chat.”

“I’d really rather not,” he responded, trying to back up so he could make a break for it.

She grabbed his arm, jerked him into the room, and shut the door all in a couple of seconds. She released him and he tumbled onto the bed. When he managed to get upright, she had her whip in her hand.

“If you move,” she warned, “I’ll wrap this around your throat.”

He decided to sit stock still on the bed.

“Good.” She didn’t put the whip away. “Now, I’m going to ask you some questions and I want you to answer me honestly. Understand?” He nodded mutely. “Who are you? Where are you from? Jack only says he found you near Tediore.”

“My name is Rhys. And I did live near Tediore. It didn’t have a name.”

“Last name? Family?”

“I…don’t have one. And my parents died when I was young. I lived with my friend Vaughn’s parents. They raised me and he was—is—like a brother to me.”

“How did you meet Jack?”

“He crashed his ship during a storm. I saved him and took him to a cove. He stayed there until I could get him a boat.”

“Why did he take you with him? Why didn’t he just leave you on your island?”

Rhys tried to come up with an explanation as to why he stayed with Jack. “My family found out I was giving resources to a stranger and kicked me out. I asked him to take me away from there. I wanted to see the world. Why are you asking me all this?”

“Shut up. I’m asking the questions, not you.” She motioned to his right arm with the whip. “What’s up with that?”

He tried to shift his body so she couldn’t see it. “I lost my arm when I was little, after my parents died. I fell into some eridium and it gave me a new arm and eye. I don’t know why or how.” Rhys looked up at her with the bravest expression he could manage. “Why do you not trust me around him? I’ve already said I’m not dangerous. He’s my mate and I would never do anything to hurt him.”

That gave her pause and she stared at him in silence. He squirmed uncomfortably on the bed and looked down at his lap, when he heard a yell above them and a gunshot.

Both of them looked up to the ceiling and she didn’t stop him from standing up. “Still have that weapon, kid?”

“Yeah.”

“Put on your shield and grab it and then go up to the deck.” Drawing her pistol, she left him alone to scramble for his shield and the brass knuckles in his bag.

Rhys heard Sasha run down the hall as he slipped the metal rings onto his fingers and clipped the shield to his pants. He hesitated when he saw his own pistol on the floor; he wasn’t sure if he could trust himself not to hit any of his own crew.

He didn’t have time to debate the pros and cons of it; the gunfire was increasing and he could hear Jack shouting, though whether it was at his own crew or the attackers was unclear. With one final check to make sure his shield was secure, he stumbled out of his room just as the hatch slammed shut and a masked intruder came down the stairs, looking at the open doors as if he was searching for something.

He didn’t notice Rhys at first, but he definitely noticed when the man ran up and punched him in the chest. He staggered back into the wall, swearing as he clutched his chest. “Ow, what the hell was that? Did you just shock me?”

Rhys looked at the weapon on his hand in confusion. There had only been a brief spark instead of the usual bolt of electricity. Experimentally, he squeezed his fist. They did absolutely nothing.

Pain blossomed in his jaw and he fell to the floor in surprise, shield flickering around him. The stranger straddled him and pulled a knife from his waist. “You shouldn’t have done that, kid.”

It felt awful not having a tail to fling his attacker off of him, but the man hadn’t thought to hold down his arms. Rhys blocked the knife from touching his throat with his right arm and caught the blade in the space between his crystals. He used them to wrench the blade from the pirate's hand and it went flying off down the hallway.

The pirate suddenly tried to hold down Rhys's arms, but was not mindful of where his hand was placed. Rhys pulled his left wrist hard enough to bring the pirate forward and lashed out with the brunt of his right arm. The man began to yell, but the sound was cut off by wet gurgling as the crystals dug into his throat.

After rolling them over, Rhys jerked his arm and tried to block out the sound of flesh and muscle ripping. Hot blood splashed his face and shirt and he scrambled away from the pirate as he fell limp. Nausea roiled in his stomach as he tried to scrub the blood from his face before he was sick.

He could only get rid of so much before his shirt was too dirtied to be of any use, and he ripped it off frantically. Splotches of red littered his torso from where it had soaked through the fabric, and he slowly crawled over to the knife. His hand quivered as he held it tight and he used the wall to stagger to his feet.

Three deaths since he had met Jack, two of them within a day of each other, and he felt worse with each one of them. Was this his life now?

His left arm moved to cover his mouth as bile rose in his throat, but he dropped it once he realized that it too was bloody. He groaned softly and leaned against the wall. It was officially the worst day he’d ever had.

The hatch opened and slammed again and the noise scared him enough that he yelped. His hold on the knife tightened but he was still trembling as he looked over at the hatch with wide eyes.

Relief flooded him at the sight of Jack, bloodstained but alive. When had the fighting stopped?

Jack looked between the body on the floor and the former merman, pale and shaky. “Kitten, what’d you do to him? He almost looks worse than the others.”

“The…the knuckles didn’t work. I punched him and they didn’t do anything. He pulled a knife on me but I managed to get him close enough to cut him with my arm. There was a lot of blood…” His eyes closed and he shuddered, sliding back down to the floor.

He heard the hatch again and then Fiona’s voice. “Holy shit. What happened here?”

“Rhysie had to get creative.”

A warm hand touched his face and Rhys let out a stuttered breath as he opened his eyes. Jack’s mask had been torn; he could see a hint of tan skin under the blood. His boisterous voice was unusually calming. “Come on, you look like you’re about to puke. Let’s get you cleaned up.”  

He helped Rhys stand up, grunting when the younger man allowed Jack to support most of his weight, and pulled the knife from his fingers only to let it drop to the floor. “Fiona, put that in my room. I want to look at it later,” he instructed as he walked Rhys to the washroom and sat him down on a chair. He knelt down and stripped the younger man out of his clothes until he was bare and could be moved into one of the basins.

“I saw that shitstain open the hatch,” he said as he turned on the water. The filtration machine in the hull below them started with a loud rumble and water soon flowed from the faucet. “I couldn’t get away to stop him. Last I’d heard about you was that you were asleep.” He grabbed soap and a rag and immediately took to wiping the blood from his face. “When you didn’t even come up to the deck after the fighting stopped, I thought maybe he had found you.”

Rhys watched the water level rise. “I was talking with Nisha when it started. I had to put on my shield and find the knuckles. When I walked out of my room, he had just come down the steps.” He slipped his hand underneath the faucet and stared at the water. “How long ago was that?”

“At least twenty minutes. We just finished them off and tossed a couple of them overboard before I came looking for you.” He grabbed Rhys’s chin and pulled his head forward, drawing a whine of protest. “Are you okay?”

He wriggled his head free and slouched in the basin, pouting. “Why does everyone keep asking me that? I feel sick. But I just killed someone, so that’s not surprising.”

Jack gave him a dubious look, but Rhys didn’t change his answer. Jack didn’t push it either and instead lifted the man’s stone arm to wipe down the crystals. “Guess you know yourself better than I do,” he muttered. Rhys hummed in agreement.

He didn’t remember getting to his room after that, or even falling asleep. Sasha had said it was ‘shock, probably,’ when he told her about it over breakfast the next morning. No longer nauseous, he managed to scarf down two bowls of Sasha’s weird oatmeal before helping Fiona with the dishes.

Nisha seemed less hostile when he saw her on the deck. She gave him a side-glance and a faint nod but didn’t do much else, which he was totally fine with.

Zer0 approached him to congratulate him on his improvisation with the pirate from the night before. He awkwardly accepted the praise, though the mere memory made his stomach twist into a knot.

He couldn’t find Jack for the rest of the day. Well, he did find him, but the door to his office was locked and knocking earned no response. He wanted to thank Jack for taking care of him, but it seemed like that would have to wait. Instead, he spent the day relaxing near the bow of the ship, enjoying the breeze on his face and the warm sunlight.

It was late afternoon before he actually saw Jack for the first time. While in his room inspecting his almost certainly ruined shirt from the night before, Zer0 appeared in his doorway.

“Jack wishes to speak with you. He is in his office,” they said before adding, “You look paler than usual. Is everything all right?”

Rhys put down his shirt and got up. “I’m good, Zer0, promise. It’s just been a long few days.” It was exhausting, really, how overwhelming everything was. He yawned as he walked up to Jack’s office and knocked like he had done earlier that day.

This time, the door opened. Jack’s mask had been repaired and he looked as well kept as always. Without a word, he stepped out of the way so Rhys could walk in and he could close the door.

As he wandered over to the map table, Rhys asked,“How’d you fix your mask?”

“I keep repair kits around in case something like last night happens. Synthetics are actually pretty easy to repair.” He switched off the table and waited for Rhys to pay attention to him. “Listen, we need to talk.”

“If it’s about last night, I’m sorry for acting funny. Sasha said I was probably in shock.”

“Not about that. About what happened before that.” His jaw was set and he had one hand on his waist. “Nisha told me about your ‘talk’ last night. About what you said.”

Rhys furrowed his brow and tried to think about what he’d said that could pose a problem, but Jack elaborated before he could think of anything. “I’m not your mate, Rhys.”

The former merman’s blood ran cold and he stiffened, eyes wide. “What?”

“I care about you and you’re cute but we aren’t mates. I don’t do relationships anymore. Wherever this idea came from, drop it.”

“I don’t understand,” came the bewildered protest. “We mated. That’s what sex is.”

“No, it isn’t. Not for humans. Sex is just sex.”

“But you said that I was meant for you.”

Jack folded his arms and looked at the table. “I was still upset about the whore. It was an in-the-moment thing.”

“You can’t just reject the fact that we’re mates!” Rhys argued. “That’s not how this works.”

“Too fucking bad!” he snapped back. “If you hadn’t hidden that bit of information from me, then we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

That made Rhys falter and the anger in his face fell away. “If you knew what it meant, you wouldn’t have had sex with me?”

“Drop the twenty questions and just leave, will you? That was all I wanted to say.”

When Jack tried to walk away, Rhys gripped his bicep and tried to stop him, saying “No, we’re not done here,” but Jack whipped around and the thinner man ended up pressed against the wall.

“We. Are. Not. Mates,” growled Jack. “We kissed, we fucked—end of story.”

Rhys hissed at the blurred shape in front his face and snaked his right arm between them, using the outside of it to shove Jack away. He didn’t care about the sound of ripping fabric or the thump of Jack landing on his ass. “You know what? Fine, whatever. I didn’t want to be stuck with you and your stupid mask for forever anyway.”

With a frustrated snarl, he turned and stormed out of the office, then nearly sprinted back to his room. The door had no lock so he put a chair in front of it.

He sat down on his bed and gripped the sheets in his claws, jaw clenched, as he tried to will away the tears. Jack wasn't worth it.

“I’m so fucking stupid,” he hissed to himself. He couldn’t believe everyone was right and he had been too blind to listen to them. And he had been so caught up in the excitement of being mated that he hadn’t considered that Jack wouldn’t know what any of that meant. He probably wanted to go back to Nisha, anyway. And now he was stuck on a boat with both of them for the foreseeable future.

His chest felt tight from tension and stifled sobs, so he lied down and curled up on his side. A secondary ache spread from his right shoulder and fanned out across his body, mingling with his hurting chest. He tried to relax and release the tension, but the ache only got worse. He shifted onto his back and tried to hold still; the ache turned to a dull pain. It spread to his skull and he squeezed his eyes shut as his head started to throb. The pain in his chest began to intensify into a burning sensation and he whimpered weakly.

He managed to shakily lift his left hand and call Sasha on his comm. “C-can you c-come here?” He groaned when a sharp bolt of agony shot from his skull down to his legs, and winced when speaking made him hurt worse. His hand fell away from the device in his ear before she could ask questions.

It felt like his chest was caving in. Each faint inhale burned and he jerked when the burn spread to his neck. His legs spasmed, the muscles tight and tense. His hiccuping sobs made it almost impossible to inhale and he was growing dizzy. His whole body was pulsating. It felt like someone was beating his brain with a rock inside of his skull.

“What’s happening to you?”

He trembled as itchy tears stained his cheeks. He couldn’t breathe anymore, not able to answer Sasha or even cry. His lungs screamed for air he couldn’t have and his throat throbbed in protest. The worst part was that he was utterly helpless.

“I don’t know what to do, I’m sorry. I’m going to go get Jack. I’ll be right back.”

He fell unconscious with blood rushing in his ears before she returned.

Chapter Text

“You’re gonna be okay, kiddo. We’re gonna fix this.”

“Are you even sure he’s going to wake up? What if you’re just wasting your time? Is he even worth it?”
“Shut. Up. Just get out of here before I force you.”  

“Jeez, you look like shit. Where have you been?”
“Don’t ask. I got a constructor tool. Help me move him.”

“This is all I could get. It better be enough. Alright, Rhysie. Time to open your eyes. Please.”

Every inch of his body was sore. The slightest twitch was painful and his head was pounding. His eyes ached and his limbs felt like bricks.

He inhaled slowly, only to cough when liquid suddenly rushed down his throat. The convulsions hurt but he coughed until his lungs were clear, then laid still again. As he cracked his eyes open, he became aware of the water against his skin and in his mouth. He held his breath for the time being.

His surroundings were too dark to make out anything at all, which was odd. Even in the Darkness his eye had been able to see a least a little bit. Where was he?

Rhys pushed himself upright with his hands. At least, he tried to. His right arm refused any and all commands to move. His left was fine, but his right arm was a dead weight. He couldn’t even see the faint glow of eridium.

As groggy panic began to settle in his chest; his throat fluttered and his cooperative hand raised to gingerly touch the flaps of skin that he’d thought he’d never feel again. He was grateful for them since he was apparently underwater, but why did he have them? They filtered water through his body naturally; it felt strange not to breathe anymore.

His legs twitched, though they felt much bulkier than usual, not to mention sore. To his horror, when he tried to move them again he felt the familiar but nearly forgotten sensation of lifting his tail. He reached down and ran his fingers over the smooth scales. He didn’t remember them being so cold before.

His fins flexed and rubbed against the coarse sand underneath him. The pieces began to fall into place and hurt flared in his chest. Did they really dump him into an unfamiliar ocean and abandon him there? He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched a fistful of sand. He wanted to know who convinced everyone else to throw him off the ship. His bet was on Nisha, but after what happened with Jack he wasn’t so confident.

He struggled to get his tail underneath his body—his stomach sinking at the realization that he didn’t know how to wield it anymore—but eventually he managed to get enough leverage to swim upwards. If he could find the surface maybe he could find where he was, or at least a way to get help. However, after the initial thrust of his tail, he only swam a couple of feet before he breached the surface of the water. The merman paused and blinked in surprise, then pushed his tail slightly to expose his shoulders and further confirm that he was, in fact, above water. He still couldn’t see anything, which was unnerving.

Confused, he sank back down to the sand and considered his options. Going to the surface would do him no good if he couldn’t see, but perhaps if he swam around a bit he’d find out where he was. It wasn’t the best plan, but it was all he had.

Rhys swam to his left, and this time he didn’t make it more than three feet before he slammed his head into an invisible wall. He grimaced and rubbed his sore forehead and nose, then curiously felt the smooth, cool wall. A more thorough investigation revealed that there were three more walls. The box was slightly bigger than him in any direction, and he felt claustrophobic as panic filled his chest. He was trapped in a box in utter darkness with only one functioning arm. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so vulnerable.

The merman banged his fist against one of the walls. The sound was muffled by the thickness of the wall and he frowned, thinking. He gritted his teeth and bent his tail against a wall before he pushed off and slammed his right shoulder into the opposite wall. He felt the impact of stone against the wall, and yet nothing happened. He was running out of options.

“Hey!” he yelled in his best human voice. “Someone help me!” His only answer was his own echo.

“Please, I’m stuck here!” Again, there was nothing.

Defeated, and with exhaustion filling his body, Rhys settled back in the sand. His stomach was knotted with hunger and he was still groggy. What was going to happen to him now? Would he die in the box or would someone come kill him? Someone had put him in the box on purpose, but why?

He rested his head in the sand, sniffling. He missed his friends, even if they did leave him behind. He missed Sasha and her weird cooking, he missed watching Zer0 snipe birds out of the air when they were bored, and he even missed Fiona when she had her good days and actually talked to him.

He missed Jack, too.

Most of all, though, he missed Vaughn and Yvette. He still felt awful thinking about what he did to them, dragging them into his mess with Hugo. He hated that Vaughn never called him after he gave him the comm, but he supposed he deserved it for all that he did to him over the years. Maybe, if he could get free, he could make it back to the trench and apologize. Again.

There was a bright flash and Rhys yelped, flinching and shielding his eyes from the harsh light. He uncovered them gradually to adjust to the light, but jerked upright when he saw a familiar thin figure in front of him.

“Zer0!” His relief was overwhelming, but he was still filled with questions. “Are we still on the ship? What is this box? What happened to me?”

The vault hunter didn’t answer and instead pointed to their ear, or at least where Rhys assumed their ear was. It took the merman a moment to realize that he didn’t have his comm in his ear. He gestured between his own ear and Zer0, hoping that he was properly conveying his request. There were so many questions he needed to ask.

When Zer0 turned and left, Rhys looked through the transparent wall of his prison. It looked similar to the engine room on Jack’s ship, except that this room was virtually empty, save for some crates. He couldn’t see the doorway, his field of view partially blocked by a stack of crates. The ship itself was quiet, as if everything was shut down.

At the same time, everything felt…off. He turned and tilted his head experimentally, then passed a hand in front of his eyes. He blinked and realized that he was only seeing out of his right eye. Rhys groaned to himself; so even his eye wasn’t working anymore. Great.  

Zer0 returned with a small device in their hand. They showed it to him and then tossed it over the rim of the tank and into the water.

Rhys grabbed it and fit it into his ear. He decided to ask the most pressing question first. “Where am I?”

“We are currently in the storage area of the ship. Many crates were removed to fit your tank.”

“What’s a tank? Is it this box?”

“Yes. We could not keep your scales and gills adequately wet and you were too big to fit into one of the basins. This was digistructed to hold you after your change.”

Rhys looked down at his tail. “What happened? How did I get like this again?” He’d never thought he would see this body ever again.

“Nothing has been confirmed yet. Though I believe Jack had a plan of some sort.”

His stomach twisted into a knot. Jack had been trying to help him? Suddenly he felt bad for assuming that Jack would have just abandoned him to die because of their fight. “I want to talk to him. Where is he?”

“He is not on the ship at the moment.”

His eyes snapped up to Zer0. “What do you mean? Is he coming back?” Why would he just leave the ship?

“Yes. Do not worry, he has left several times.”

“Several times? Zer0, how long has it been?”

The vault hunter paused before they answered, “This is the eighteenth day.”

He’d been unconscious for over two weeks; no wonder he felt hungry. “When do you think he will be back?”

“I imagine he will be back as soon as possible once he is informed that you are awake.”

Rhys’s face flushed and he quickly pushed that topic aside. “Can you bring me some fish? I’m starving. And kill them for me, please. I’m kind of handicapped at the moment,” he said with a deliberate shift of his unusable shoulder.

“I will ask Sasha to bring you some.” Zer0 disappeared behind the stack of crates, but their voice carried through the room. “I am pleased that you are alive, Rhys. We were worried.”

He smiled faintly. “Thanks, Zer0. I’m glad to hear that. And can you leave the light on for me?”

“Yes. Goodnight, Rhys.”

They left and suddenly he was alone again. Rhys rested at the bottom of his tank as he waited for someone to bring him food. For two weeks his friends had worried about whether he'd die or not, and even went through the trouble of giving him somewhere to stay so he wouldn’t dry out. It was nice to know they cared, though it made him feel guilty for doubting them in the first place. Rationally, he knew the only person who he should have worried about was Nisha. Jack even came up with a plan to help save him, and whatever it had been, Rhys was thankful.

He was on the verge of falling asleep again when something tapped on the wall of his tank. He jerked upright, startling Sasha, then gave her an apologetic smile. “Sorry. I almost fell asleep again.”

She hopped up onto a nearby crate and dropped three lifeless fish into the water. “I didn’t even think you were awake in the first place. Zer0 woke me up and said you were hungry. I didn’t believe them but they insisted I bring you some fish.”

Rhys grabbed one of the fish as it sank towards the bottom and clumsily tried to hold it with his functioning arm.

“I haven’t been awake long. I didn’t know where I was so I started yelling. I think they heard me and came in to check on me.” Unable to pull the fish apart with his hands, he anchored one half in his jaw and tugged on the other.

“Uh…do you need help there?” Sasha offered.

He let half of the fish fall from his jaws. “No, I think I got it.” Placing the fish on his tail, he began to pick out the bones. “So, Zer0 said it’s been over two weeks. Did Jack get everything sorted out with Hyperion?”

“We never made it to Hyperion.”

He looked up as he flicked a bone towards the corner of his tank. “Why not? It was only supposed to take two weeks to get from Tediore to Hyperion, and everyone said Maliwan wasn’t that far off course.”

“Both of those things are true. But a couple of days after you went into a coma and we realized you weren’t going to wake up on your own, he turned us around and returned to Maliwan. He spent a few days there looking for someone, didn’t find them, and so we started back towards Hyperion. Then he found out that an old Dahl ship was wrecked on an island, so we went there—you missed a badass firefight, by the way, and it was awesome —and he started trying to find something. He found it, but he hasn’t really talked to anyone so I don’t know what it was. Then, we were going to get back on track again but some mercenaries attacked. That was yesterday, technically.”

“Is everyone okay? Where’s Jack now? Zer0 said he’s gone.”

“Oh, yeah, we’re all fine. Fi’s arm was grazed but she’s okay. Jack took Nisha and they’re on the other ship interrogating the mercenaries, or what’s left of them.” She folded her arms and he was unnerved by her intense stare.

“You picked a real winner to fall in love with, you know. I’ve never seen someone so happy to blow a guy’s face off.” She paused. “Though Nisha comes in a close second.”

He chuckled awkwardly as his face warmed. “I don’t love him,” he objected. Her dubious expression made him focus on deboning the second half of his fish. “I don’t,” he insisted, though his voice was weak.

He scowled at a particularly stubborn bone that was buried a little deep in the meat. Besides, it wasn’t like his feelings on the subject mattered, even if he did love Jack.

“Hey, Rhys?” He glanced up at her and her hard expression was softer. “Is something wrong?”

Digging out the bone, he added it to the pile in silence.

“Trouble in paradise with the world’s biggest dick?”

That caused him to quirk a faint smile and chuckle quietly. “Kind of. But it’s not something I want to talk about right now.”

“Well, other than that, how are you doing?”

“I can’t see out of one eye and I can’t use my right arm, so I guess I’m doing great,” he responded sardonically to mask the discomfort in his voice.

He was ashamed of the fact that he missed his legs. He had spent his whole life as a part of the seafolk, but he missed the human legs he’d had for a handful of weeks.

She grinned. “At least you’re feeling good enough for your shitty attitude to come out,” she snarked in return before yawning.

“It’s, like, three am. I’m going back to bed. I’ll bring you some more fish when I wake up. It might be a bit late, since we don’t have any stocked. But I’ll set out the net and catch some.”

“Thanks, Sasha. I’ll see you then. Leave the lights on, please?”

She waved to him before walking out of the room and leaving him to finish his fish alone. He piled all of the remains in the far corner of his tank, then reclined on his back in the sand. He stared up at the surface of the water and pulled out the device in his ear since it was uncomfortable to wear after so long without it. After that, his eyes slipped closed. Two weeks of sleeping and he was still tired; he snorted quietly to himself and focused on relaxing his tense muscles.

Rhys eventually managed to doze off, but was interrupted by a loud thump that vibrated the water around him. He jerked awake with a startled yelp and an instinctual slap of his tail. He struggled to sit up with his one arm and flinched when something, quieter than the thump, tapped next to his head. Rhys looked over at the open room and his heart rate calmed almost immediately.

He scowled at the grinning man on the other side of his tank. Jack rapped his knuckles against the tank again. Rhys responded by grumpily trying to swat his hand through the wall, snapping, “Jack, cut it out! I’m awake now, you can stop.”

Jack pointed at his own ear and then to Rhys. The groggy merman mirrored the motion until it clicked and he looked around for his comm. He brushed the granules of sand from the device and worked it into his ear.

Jack’s voice rang in his ear almost immediately. “Hey, pumpkin. What’s with your pouty face? Aren’t ya happy to see me?”

Rhys narrowed his eyes at the cheery—and bloodstained—man. He was happy to see Jack, just a little bit, but he wasn’t going to admit it. “Why would I be? I was unconscious but I didn’t lose my memory. You were a jerk.” You are a jerk, he wanted to add, but refrained.

“Okay, yeah, but you should be grateful that I saved your pretty little ass—or tail, or whatever—and gave you this sweet tank.”

“I’m in a box with sand at the bottom, Jack,” he deadpanned. “I’ve lost sight in my left eye and movement in my right arm, not to mention I have my tail and gills back. What did you even do ?”

Jack motioned to his currently useless arm. “Look on the outside of your arm, you whiny bitch.”

Rhys scowled, but did as he was told. He used his left hand to move his arm around and he hesitated when he saw that his crystals were a very pale lavender, almost white, color.

“What is this?” he asked, glaring at Jack before accusing, “What did you do to me?”

“Shut it, princess and let me talk,” he shot back. “I didn’t do that. You did it to yourself.” He rolled his eyes at Rhys’s confused expression.

“Kid, think about it realllly hard. What did you give up to get your legs? You know what? Don’t hurt yourself and I’ll answer for you: you gave up your eridium supply. Y’know, the stuff you said gave you all your cool enhancements in the first place? The stuff that some freaky sea witch dunked you in to give you legs? How many times did you visit it in a month?”

“Two or three times, depending on how injured I got or what I was doing that month.” As the merman looked back at his arm and inspected the empty grooves carved into the stone closer, the answer answer hit him in the chest like a bullet and he lifted his gaze to the man.

“I…ran out of eridium.” It hadn’t been replenished since before his transformation and he had been using his arm a lot, not to mention all the eridium he imagined it took to maintain the magic.

“Good to know that you don’t need eridium for your brain to function.” Jack snickered at the answering glare. “ Anyway, I’m a freakin’ genius so when I figured that out, I went looking for some eridium. Man, that stuff is a bitch to find in liquid form. But I found some in an old Dahl ship. It wasn’t more than an ounce or so but looks like it was enough to wake you up.”

Rhys frowned at his unpowered arm. “So what happens now? If it’s so hard to find, what are we going to do?” He didn’t want to live in the tank forever.

“Don’t worry about that. Handsome Jack’s got a plan.” There was a pointed cough behind him, and when Jack twisted to glance at the source the merman barely stifled a hiss at the sight of Nisha, bloodstained and bored, sitting on a crate. He had no idea why she was down there, but he wanted her gone.

“Okay,” Jack amended, “ we have a plan.”

He rolled his eyes and grinned at Rhys again. “So, you get the easy role.”

Rhys finally dragged his attention from Nisha. “And what is that?” he questioned warily.

“You get to stay down here and swim around in your tank.”

His face fell and he moved to the wall, pressing one hand against the surface as he stared pleadingly. “No, please, don’t leave me down here! It’s dark and there’s no room for me to swim. I don’t want to be down here alone.”

Jack didn’t look moved by his pleas; instead, he looked rather displeased with him.

“Where are you going to go, Rhys?” he asked, and when the merman faltered, not having an answer, he continued. “This was the biggest tank I could digistruct that would fit on the ship. I tried to make it big enough that you wouldn’t be cramped. It’s not my fault you’re huge. So you’re just going to have to deal with it until we fix this, got it?”

Rhys nodded sullenly and pushed off the wall until his back pressed against the opposite side of the tank. “Do you have any more eridium right now?” He wanted to be able to at least see out of both eyes again, or even just use his arm.

“No, I don’t. I gave you all I could find to get you to wake up. But I’ll give you more when I find it.” Jack looked at Nisha. “Come on, Nish. We need to talk.”

She hopped off the crate and glanced at Rhys from the corner of her eye, leaving Jack behind. As the man started to follow her, Rhys protested. “Wait! Don’t go yet.”

Thankfully, that stopped him. He turned to Rhys, glanced between the empty doorway and him, and returned to the tank. “What is it?”

Rhys’s confidence suddenly vanished and he looked down at the sandy floor. “Did you mean it?” he asked meekly.

“Mean what?”

“What you said to me. Before this happened.”

There was silence, and then a sigh. “It’s late. I don’t want to talk about this.”

Rhys clenched his jaw. “Well I do,” he bit out, then said quieter, “I remember some of it. Bits and pieces.”

Jack huffed irritably. “Some of what , Rhys? Come on, I’m not in the mood for you to be vague.”

“I’m not sure. But I remember hearing you say things.” The memories came back to him when he tried to sleep. “I don’t think they were dreams because I could never see you or anyone else, but I heard them.”

He lifted his head and studied Jack’s face. The mask had blood specks on it, some dried and some newer, and the lines around his eyes looked more pronounced. He was unhappy, but not glaring.

“You were taking care of me. So was Sasha, but I mostly remember your voice.” Rhys frowned at himself. “I don’t know how I understood you, though…” Maybe it was a dream?

“We left your comm in at first. Thought you might wake up and freak out if nobody was around. But after a few days, we took it out.” He scratched some blood off of his throat. “Nobody else was going to do it. Sasha had duties to take care of sometimes, but Nisha could take over monitoring the navigation system for me. You needed someone to keep your gills and tail wet at all times. We could get your upper half into one of the washing basins but someone had to keep your fins from drying out,” he explained in a dismissive tone.

“Look, I’m ready to go to bed. We can talk about this later.” He put his back to Rhys and started to walk away once more.

The merman growled and smacked the side of his fist against the wall of his tank. It hurt, but it startled Jack enough that he whipped around.

“I heard you. I don’t know when it was or what you were doing, but I heard you asking me to wake up. It wasn’t as clear as when I hear you through my comm, but I know I didn’t hear you wrong.” He pulled his stinging hand to his chest and rubbed it to soothe the pain.

“I know you said we’re not mates. I know you said you don’t want relationships. But I care for you, Jack. And it’s okay if you care for me too. It hurts to know you don’t want to be my mate, but you don’t have to pretend to hate me.” He paused. “You don’t really, do you?” He knew the truth but he needed to hear Jack say it.

As the seconds dragged on with no response from Jack, Rhys’s stomach churned with anxiety. Why wouldn’t he say it? They were completely, utterly alone. What was stopping him?

Finally, finally, Jack sighed. “Don’t look at me like that. Can you even cry underwater?” He closed his eyes. “I don’t hate you, kitten. I never hated you. I was”—he grimaced—” worried about you when Sasha came to get me. You were already out when I arrived, and your gills were growing back. But we still are not going to be mates. If that’s what sex means to you, we’re not doing it again, understand?”

Relief flooded his system and Rhys nodded quickly. “I understand,” he agreed. It wasn’t ideal but he had managed to make Jack admit his feelings and that was a triumph in itself.

“Do you have anything else you want to drag out of me before I leave to go to bed?”

It was a rhetorical question, but Rhys still paused and gave it a few moments of thought. “Nope, I’m good.” He smiled a little. “Good night, Jack.”

Jack yawned. “Goodnight, kiddo. I’ll see you later. Don’t forget to wake up this time,” he quipped as he left, flipping the light switch after him before Rhys could protest. The door shut and Rhys once again reclined in the sand, trying to go back to sleep.

Later that day, long after Rhys had woken up and given up trying to exercise his tail, Sasha appeared with a bowl of raw fish that was already deboned and chopped into small bits. He thanked her and ate quickly, still starved from his prolonged fast.

“So did Jack come see you after he got back?” she asked him, sitting on the floor next to his tank.

He shoved another chunk into his mouth and swallowed. “Yeah. He brought Nisha too, but she left after a while. He caught me up to speed on what I missed while unconscious. He said you spent a lot of time taking care of me.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Did he say anything about anyone else?”

Rhys laughed. “Not really, but I know he took care of me too, so you don’t have to expose his secret. So where is he? He said he’d come back to see me once he got some sleep.”

At some point during his nap, the engine had started again and he knew they were moving, but Jack had said that Nisha could take over navigation.

“In his office, like every other day. I have no idea where we’re going; he was already in there when I woke up and hasn’t left.” She stood up and climbed onto a crate as he held his bowl over the edge of the tank for her to take. “But I’ll let you know where we are when I find out. I bet it sucks to be stuck in a tank down here alone.”

“It does, and thanks,” he replied as he handed over the bowl and sank back down to the bottom. He still couldn’t use his arm, but he was adjusting.

“So tell me about this ‘badass fight’ of yours,” he requested with a grin.

He spent the next half hour listening to her version of the events of the day before, though she thankfully spared him some of the gorier details. After her story wound down, they talked until she had to leave to start dinner. When he was alone again, he resumed trying to swim around the cramped tank, but only succeeded in a lap before his tail slapped against one of the walls and he sank down with a pained sound.

Sasha came back after dinner with more fish, though this time she didn’t stay long. It was obvious that he was restless and barely engaged in their conversation. While it was mostly because he wasn’t able to exercise, it was partially because he was still waiting for Jack to come back so they could talk more. He didn’t have a clue what they would talk about but he waited nonetheless.

He fell asleep and woke up the next day before there was any news about Jack.

The next morning, Sasha brought him his breakfast and sat down in front of his tank to watch him. “So I figured out where we’re going.”

“And where is that?” he asked after eating his first piece.

“It’s some tiny island colony that Hyperion owns.”

“Why are we going there?”

She shrugged. “No idea. Nisha came to breakfast and told us to be ready when we finally reach it. She wouldn’t say anything else; she only took food for her and Jack and then left. She made it sound like we’re pretty close though, so hopefully we’ll be there soon. Maybe we’ll be there long enough to get some supplies.”

“Do you think you could convince Jack to let me swim in the ocean for a little while?” he asked hopefully.

Sasha snorted. “It’d be a million times easier if you tried to convince him yourself. He doesn’t listen to anyone but you and Nisha.”

Rhys decided to hold his tongue and not argue with her about that. He supposed Jack did listen to him. Sometimes, anyway. “Will you try and get him to come down here? I don’t want to call his comm in case he’s busy.” He didn’t want to call only to be ignored.

“I’ll ask if I see him. If not, I’ll probably see Nisha and ask her to ask him.”

He shook his head. “No, that’s okay. If you can’t find him, I’ll just wait. Don’t bother her.” He remembered her questioning Jack about whether his life was worth the effort or not, and he didn’t think she’d bother to tell Jack that Rhys wanted to see him.

“What about Fiona? Where’s she?”

“Helping Zer0. Apparently the filtration system is messing up and they asked her to help them fix it.” She leaned back on her hands. “She was worried about you too, after you fell unconscious. Sometimes she came by and asked if you were okay.”

That was unexpected news. “Then why does she hate me? Or, why does she act like she hates me?” Why was that a pattern in the people around him?

“I don’t think she ever hated you, specifically. But she hates Jack, a lot, and you love him. It’s like an enemy by association thing. Plus, you’re the one who dragged both of us into this, so there’s some resentment there.”  

He frowned and slouched against the far wall, his tail stretched out in front of him. “I did not,” he objected before amending, “I did, but you aren’t required to stay here. You could have left at any time, especially once we got to Tediore and Jack hired Zer0. He could have found another crew. He can’t keep you here forever.”

“Then who’s going to tell you not to follow Jack to your death?” she questioned with a soft laugh. “But seriously, Jack’s heading to the biggest, most influential island in the world and they want his head. It’s a horrible plan but I don’t think he’s going to be able to drag any of us down with him. If he doesn’t, then we get the reward and go find somewhere nice to live.”

Rhys felt his chest tighten. “Do you think they’re going to hurt him?”

He still had no idea why Jack was wanted (though he could probably guess) or what they wanted to do with him. He didn’t even know what the reward was, yet he knew what Sasha said was true. It was not a good idea to go to Hyperion but nobody had been able to change his mind.

“Doubt it,” she replied, which surprised him. “The poster said he’s wanted alive. Nobody’s getting anything if they bring in a dead body. They’ll probably throw him in jail or something.”  

That was somewhat soothing, though he was still unhappy with the idea that something was going to happen to Jack, and he nodded silently. “Hopefully I have my legs back by then.”

“Do you wish you were human all the time?”

He shrugged and drew circles in the sand with a finger. “I don’t know. Being human is so limiting when it comes to being in the water, but it feels weird to have my tail back. I keep waking up and breathing in because I’m not used to my gills anymore. And I miss being able to walk around on the deck. I hate it down here, and not just because of this stupid tank.”

“It’s not that stupid.”

Both Rhys and Sasha jumped at the new voice and Rhys immediately moved to press against the closer wall, trying to look over at the doorway. He didn’t have to strain for long, as Jack strode into the room and looked down at Sasha.

“Leave for a bit, kiddo. Go get some sleep or something.”

She glared at him, but got up and left the two of them alone in the cargo hold.

Jack watched her leave before he spoke again. “Y’know, you’re being really dramatic about the tank thing.”

Rhys rolled his eyes and pushed off the glass, returning to his previous position against the far wall. “It’s boring. And I need to move my tail more. It’s making me restless.” He didn’t like being trapped in small places. “Where were you? I thought you were going to come see me yesterday.”

“I was busy. Got some very interesting information from the pirates that attacked us and had to draw up a new route. We’ll be there really early in the morning, provided we don’t get ambushed by anymore pirates.”

The merman jumped at the opportunity to cut in when Jack stopped talking for a moment. “Can I go in the water while you’re at the island?” At the man’s confused look, he elaborated. “Sasha told me that you’re stopping at an island. While you’re on it, can you let me off the ship so I can swim? I don’t want to be stuck in the tank all the way to Hyperion.”

“No.” Rhys deflated at Jack’s swift rejection. “We aren’t going to be there long. It’ll be a quick stop. I’m taking everyone but Fiona; she’s going to stay on the ship with you. Don’t worry, you shouldn’t be stuck there for the entire journey. I promised I’d get you fixed, didn’t I?”

“Why everyone but Fiona?” They didn’t like each other but that seemed to be a rather unnecessary solution.

“She’s the only one who I don’t trust with a gun.”

Rhys furrowed his brow and tried to think of why that would be pertinent in any situation, but was  startled (again) by Jack tapping on the glass wall to get his attention. “Stop doing that!”

Jack smiled. “Don’t be such a sourpuss. I have to go get some things prepared for docking. Need anything before I leave? Not something you need from the island, but in general?”

“No, I’m okay. Sasha brought me dinner and was keeping me company,” he answered, emphasizing the fact that he had been in the middle of a conversation with her when Jack appeared.

That made no difference, judging by Jack’s expression. “Well then, I’m off. Go to bed, kiddo. When you wake up, I should have a surprise for you.” His grin made a shiver crawl down the merman’s spine and Jack left without saying anything else.

The lights cut out and Rhys lay down on his back to stare up at the darkness and listen to the hum of the engine. He must have been more tired than he thought; he was asleep not long after that.

“Heyyy, Rhysie, baby. It’s time to get up.”

Despite the voice and the annoying tapping on the glass, Rhys refused to open his eyes and instead halfway burrowed his face into the sand. He relaxed again, but there was a loud splash above him moments before something thumped next to his head. The merman flailed awake and shoved himself back hard enough that he knocked his head against the glass.

He clutched the back of his head with one arm and looked at the heavy, broken shield that was now inches from where he had been lying. He glowered at Jack while the man snickered. Rhys opened his mouth to snap at him, but stopped when he finally got a clear view of Jack’s appearance.

“Jack, are you okay?” he asked, worry in his voice. The man had blood dripping from his clothes and his mask; it even looked like he had some in his hair.

“Hm? Oh yeah, I’m grand, don’t worry about me.” He grinned at Rhys. “But I’ve got something for you.”

He stepped to the side and revealed a rather large metal container. It had no discernable features and Rhys shot the man a quizzical look. Jack didn’t wait for him to ask any questions before he pried the lid off of it.

Rhys’s eyes widened and he pressed himself to the wall of his tank as he stared at the container that was filled to the brim with eridium. “Where did you get all of that?” he exclaimed excitedly.

“Don’t worry about that, kiddo. Come on, swim to the top of your tank so I can help you out of there. I got a bucket down here to keep your gills wet.”

Jack climbed onto a crate as Rhys swam to the surface and pulled himself out of the tank as much as possible before Jack had to grab him and help him the rest of the way. Despite one slip-up, they somehow made it down without bashing their heads on the floor, though Jack did essentially drop Rhys on the floor once they were next to the barrel.

“Okay, so this is a pretty simple process. I’m going to take this syringe,” he said as he pulled an unused syringe from his internal jacket pocket, “and use it to inject eridium into your body.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s how I did it the first time, smarty-pants, and that worked so that’s what I’m doing now. Any other questions?” Rhys shook his head. “Good. Now, hold still. If you need some water just tap me on the leg.”

Rhys was actually more concerned about the needle than suffocating, so he watched with fearful eyes as Jack filled the syringe. “Are you really going to sit here and inject me until that entire barrel is empty?”

“What? Oh, princess, not a chance. I digistructed a smaller tank while you were sleeping and that’s where I’m dumping all of the leftover eridium before putting you in it. But first, I’m going to inject you enough to see if you get any better. Might have to try a bunch of different spots but I’ll figure it out eventually.”

Jack straddled the merman’s torso to keep him from squirming away and held him down as he readied the needle way too close to Rhys’s skin. He yelped when the first jab went into his left bicep and tried to thrash, but Jack’s weight stopped him from doing much. Another jab went into his chest and he gasped. A third sank into his shoulder just next to his right arm.

Rhys was released and proceeded to whine pitifully, trying to rub the sore spots on his body. He nudged Jack for some water and sighed as it rushed over his gills.

“How long are we going to sit here?”

“Dunno. We’ll see how long it takes.”

He sighed again and Jack maneuvered his head into his folded lap, where he lay until he almost fell asleep. Jack woke him up by gently slapping his cheek, and he retaliated by swatting at him with his arm.

His hand was stopped before it reached Jack’s face. “Bingo, kiddo. Told you it’d work.”

Rhys opened his eyes and realized that it was his right wrist that Jack had caught, and he pulled his arm free to stare at the eridium that had begun filling the crevices. He looked around the room and his eyesight had been fixed too.

“It worked! What do we need to do next?” he asked eagerly, looking up at Jack with bright eyes.

Jack shifted him out of his lap, then bent down and heaved the massive merman into his arms with a strained grunt. He placed him in a nearby tank that was much shallower than his other one, but longer.

“Just stay there, kitten. I’m going to run and get Nisha to help me with the eridium.” He put the bucket of water next to him. “Use this to wet your gills if you need to while I’m gone.”

At the merman’s answering nod, Jack left and Rhys splashed some water onto his throat before he nestled into the tank. He held his right hand up in front of his face and watched the lines fill out again. He moved his fingers and made a fist; everything seemed to be working just fine, which was great news.

He wasn’t alone long. Jack returned with the woman in tow and he narrowed his eyes at her as she passed him, though she ignored him. Together they lifted the barrel and moved it to where they could leverage it against the lip of the tank. Warm eridium washed over his tail and torso, and Rhys shivered at the almost forgotten feeling. The sensation of rejuvenation had been truly missed.

“Okay, Rhysie. Here comes your moment.” Jack’s large fingers carded through his hair. “Any last words?”

He tilted his head back to smile up at Jack. “Thank you.”

He wasn’t sure, but he thought Jack gave him the barest hint of a smile before he said, “Close your eyes and hope for the best.” He threaded his fingers in Rhys’s hair and pushed his head into the pool of eridium.

Chapter Text

Waking up was an ordeal. His limbs were sluggish and heavy, and the ground was soft and dipped underneath his weight. He was drowsy, warm, and not particularly interested in opening his eyes or getting up. Exhaling softly, he shifted slightly and pressed his face into the nice-smelling mound under his head.

Something touched his head and slipped through his hair. He furrowed his brow as it tugged at the tangled strands, and he pulled his head away, managing to escape and wriggle underneath a blanket. Someone was speaking above him but he wasn’t listening. Instead, he hummed and tried to go back to sleep.

That lasted all of three seconds before the blanket was ripped off him with enough force that he rolled off the bed. He crashed into the floor with a grunt and opened his eyes slowly. He winced at the lights but they were blocked by Jack’s head as he leaned over the man on the floor.

Rhys frowned at him and Jack dropped a comm onto his chest. He took the device and fit it into his ear, then let his head fall back to the floor.

“I don’t think that was necessary,” he commented.

Jack snorted. “I’ve been waiting around for three days for you to wake up, and the first thing you do is try to go back to sleep.” He prodded Rhys in the side with the toe of his boot and ignored him when Rhys tried to shove his foot away.

“Get up and get dressed. We’re almost to Hyperion. I have to gather some things before we dock so I’ll see you then.”

The younger man scowled at him as he turned and left, then pushed himself upright. A quick glance showed that his clothes were stacked on his desk, but he was more interested in his legs. He couldn’t help but grin as he touched his thigh and ran his left hand down over his knee. He stood up and took small steps over towards the desk, both to make sure he didn’t stumble and to watch his feet move.

The walk to the desk was too short and he tore his attention away from his legs to tug on his clothes. He gave his cloak a distasteful look and instead went to put on his shoes. He didn’t want to wear it unless absolutely necessary.

“Hey, kid.”

Rhys nearly jumped out of his skin when Nisha spoke, and he glanced up from his shoes to stare at her. “What do you want?” he asked warily. The last time they talked, it had resulted in Jack yelling at him. He didn’t want that to happen again.

She didn’t seem bothered by his tone and instead walked into the room and nudged the door closed behind her. When Rhys tensed, she pointedly put her pistol and whip on his desk.

“I’m impressed.”

“Impressed with what?”

“With how much Jack likes you.”

His face turned red and he quickly dropped his gaze back down to his shoes. “Jealous?”

Her laugh startled him nearly as much as her entrance, and his heart was still fluttering when she answered him. “Why would I be jealous? Because he’s my ex? There’s a reason we aren’t together anymore. I am not jealous of the fact that he likes you.”

Rhys sat up. “Why did you come in here, then? I know he likes me.”

“Because you have no idea what that means. Jack doesn’t just like people. I doubt he even liked me all that much. And he doesn’t do things for other people. But he’s willing to attack Hyperion soil for you. When I first saw you in his room and he introduced you, I thought you’d be someone else who either left him or that he abandoned.”

Rhys frowned at her and opened his mouth to protest, but she gave him a pointed look and kept talking. “He told me how you saved him and about your wish. You’ve got guts, kid. You’re good for him.”

“Then why did you tell him what I said? If I’m so good for him, then why’d you ruin it?” he questioned bitterly.

Nisha shook her head. “That’s not my story to tell, so you’ll have to ask him if you want to know.” She glanced at the door as someone walked down the hall. “Well, I suppose you’ll be finding out soon.”

She picked up her weapons and tipped the brim of her hat at him with a grin. “See ya, Rhys. I might catch up with you and Jack later, but I’ve got places to be. Have fun exploring the biggest island on the planet.”

He nodded and watched her leave before he got up and clipped his shield to his pants. He reached for the brass knuckles, but stopped and went looking for his pistol instead. He didn’t want to use up any more eridium than was absolutely necessary. His crystals looked completely filled like they were supposed to be, and so he hoped he had enough time to find more eridium.

After attaching the holster to his pants and placing his gun in it, he left his room and went up to the deck.

He squeezed his eyes shut at the blinding sunlight and blinked slowly until he adjusted. As his vision cleared, his eyes widened at the island in the distance. He rushed over to the front of the ship and tried to get a closer look at it. Nisha wasn’t wrong; it was bigger than any of the other islands that he’d seen so far, and it was covered in green, unlike the brown sand or black rocks of the others.

Sasha leaned on the railing next to him. “I’ve never seen Hyperion before. I’ve heard the stories about it, but I never expected it to be so…green. It’s beautiful.”

“What makes it green?”

“That’s grass, Rhys. It’s also what makes Hyperion so wealthy; they have the most farmland and control almost all of the vegetables produced and raise almost all of the animals that aren’t from the ocean,” she explained quietly.

Rhys stared out at the island, watching it grow closer. “Is that bad?”

“If you live in Hyperion? No. If you’re unlucky enough to have been born anywhere else in the world and aren’t ridiculously rich? Yeah.”

She was quiet for a moment. “I hear that there’s actually trees on the other side. A whole forest of them. I’ve only ever seen a few trees in my entire life.” She huffed. “Must be nice.”

He looked at her. “Why don’t you and Fiona move to Hyperion then?”

Sasha smiled ruefully at him. “Hyperion actually has criteria you have to meet and lots of fees you have to pay in order to move onto their land, and they’re really strict about who they let in. I’ll be surprised if they don’t search the whole ship for stowaways the moment we dock.”

“What do you have to do to meet the criteria?”

She shrugged. “I’ve never seen an application. I know that some rumors say you have be someone that will be a valuable asset to them to even be considered. I also heard that they seek out the geniuses from other islands and try to lure them into moving to Hyperion by waiving all of the fees. Did I mention that it’s really expensive?” she joked.

She nudged him with an elbow. “Want to come get something to eat with me and Fi? I bet Jack’s going to be arrested the moment we dock so we’ll have some time to ourselves.”

He shifted nervously. “No, I’m okay. Well, maybe. Do you really think he’s going to get arrested?” He didn’t know what that entailed for Hyperion, but Nisha said all arrests at Maliwan ended in execution. He prayed to the Guardians that Jack wouldn’t be executed.

“Probably. He’s wanted for a million credits and he went and raided a Hyperion colony. There’s no way he’s going to get off scot-free.”

Someone joined them at the railing on Sasha’s other side, and he recognized Fiona when she spoke. “Actually, I heard Nisha say it’s two million now. At least, it was when we got ambushed. It’s probably gone up since he attacked that colony.”

She leaned forward to glance over at Rhys. “Looks like it was worth it, though. You look a lot better.”

Rhys smiled at her. “Thanks. I feel a lot better.” It was strange to feel good again when he had been drained for so long. He should have replenished his arm ages ago, and maybe he should have tried harder to find some.

He looked back at the island, which was close enough that he could just barely see the people walking around. “I wish I didn’t have to wear my cloak. It would be nice to be able to walk around like I do on the ship.”

“You’re probably not the weirdest thing they’ve seen,” Fiona offered.

“Thanks,” he replied dryly, grinning. “I should go get it, though. We’ll be there soon.”

He pushed off the railing and went down to his room to slip his cloak over his head. He was situating it so the fabric didn’t catch on his crystals when he heard Jack call his name.

He wandered out of his room and down to Jack’s, where he realized that he had never actually seen Jack sleep. Said man was sitting at his desk with  a small array of miniature tools in front of him.

“Give me your comm for a second,” he ordered.

Rhys obeyed without question and watched Jack use the tools to remove a small panel and poke around in the interior. Rhys stood next to the desk, curiously trying to watch without blocking the man’s light, until Jack popped the panel back on and held it out to him.

When the device was back in his ear, Jack told him, “I lowered the translation sensitivity so it’s not trying to translate every conversation within forty feet of you. It should only pick up conversations that are close enough to be spoken directly to you or directly next to you. I’ll change it back when we’re done here.”

That meant no more headaches from just walking around. “Thank you, Jack,” Rhys said with a smile.

“Now you don’t have an excuse to take it out, so you better answer any calls from me unless you’re dead,” Jack warned him. “If you kill someone here, you probably won’t get as lucky as you did on Maliwan.”

Rhys nodded quickly and Jack got up from his desk.

“Make sure you have your gun and shield this time. The more protection you have the better. You can leave now. I’ll catch up with you when I finish up here.” He turned away from him and started going through a bag on his desk.

The younger man stood there and watched the way his back muscles moved under the layers of clothing before he left the room and returned to the upper deck. He still felt his stomach twist when he thought about the fact that they were no longer mates. He still wanted to blame Nisha for that, but he knew that the relationship had been built on false pretenses and therefore was not official. Not that that softened the ache at all.

It was Nisha who greeted the officers at the dock, flashing a charming smile at the men as she answered their questions. Rhys leaned over the railing to watch her curiously, though he shrank back when one of the officers looked at him.

A hand gripped his shoulder and turned him around so that he was facing Jack.

“Ready to go, kiddo?” he asked, despite the fact that he was already leading Rhys towards the gangwalk.

Rhys was walking with him willingly when a different hand wrapped around his wrist and tugged him away from Jack.

“Are you crazy?” Fiona barked, and he wasn’t sure if it was directed at him or Jack. “You can’t take him with you. There’s a bounty on you, and what if someone does something to him in order to get to you? And what if they decide to arrest him too?”

Jack glared at her. “I know what I’m doing and nothing’s going to happen to him. I’m just taking him to meet somebody, all right? And if I get arrested I’ll send him off to find Nisha or Zer0. They can watch over him until everything can be settled.”

Rhys carefully freed his hand from Fiona’s grip. “It’s okay, Fiona. I appreciate the concern but I’m going to go with him.” If this was the last chance he had to see him then he wanted to make it count. “I’ll call Sasha if anything happens.”

She didn’t fight him as he stepped away and returned to Jack’s side. He waved to Sasha, who was standing behind her, while he followed Jack down the gangwalk. Nisha was still talking to the officers and it occurred to Rhys that she may have been a distraction to get Jack off the ship without any problems.

Rhys was tense as they left the docks and got closer to the town, fearing that someone would come out and arrest Jack, who he clung to as they walked. But when they entered the street, nothing happened. Nobody came rushing to grab Jack, and nobody tried to alert the police that Jack was there. Some people did a double take whenever they glanced in their direction, but that was it.

“Do the people here not know about the reward?” Rhys questioned quietly.

Jack glanced over at him. “I’m sure they do, but they won’t dare touch me.”

Rhys frowned. “Why? Are they afraid of you?”

“You could say that,” he answered without elaborating. “But stick close to me; they don't know you like they know me.”

The town was larger than any of the others Rhys had seen, but nothing spectacular. It had the same stone paths and metallic buildings that Maliwan had, though these seemed to be in better shape. The streets were wide and, despite the amount of people, they weren't shouldering their way through a crowd. He was already liking Hyperion better than Maliwan in that regard.

The streets extended rather far, but he caught glimpses of the grass that Sasha had told him about through the gridded streets. He remembered patches of grass that he'd seen on the other islands, but those had been small isolated spots. Here, it looked like the whole town was surrounded by grass.

Jack’s grip on his wrist tightened and his attention was brought back to the street they walked down, where he noticed that more and more people were stopping to stare at them. Visibly nervous, Rhys stuck close to Jack’s side for security.

“How much longer?” he asked in a soft voice, unwilling to let the other humans hear his language.

“Not much. We have to get on the train first, and that’ll take us to Opportunity. It'll only take an hour or so.”

“What’s a train?”

“You'll find out soon enough.”

Jack was right; it wasn’t much longer before they turned a corner and Rhys saw a series of small, connected buildings stopped at a rather large platform that was packed with people. He stopped in his tracks but Jack forcibly tugged his wrist to keep him moving. People were exiting the containers and some of them parted for Jack as the man pulled Rhys to the platform and into the train.

He pushed Rhys into a seat next to a window and sat in the adjoining seat that was next to the aisle. People filled the interior of the train and Rhys looked around at them. The other seats were quickly occupied and the rest of the people resorted to standing in the aisle.

“Are all of these people going to the same place as us?”

Jack stretched his arm out and rested it on the back of Rhys’s seat. “Most of them, probably. It’s, what, one o’clock? Some of them are probably just finishing up with lunch. But some are going to other sides of the island. The train connects all of Hyperion’s cities, excluding the little farm communities littered around.”

The former merman nodded quietly and was mulling over the new information when the doors hissed shut and the train lurched forward suddenly. Startled, he gripped the edge of his seat tightly and shot Jack a glare when the man snickered. When he was nudged by an elbow, he turned his pout towards the window while Jack tried to get his amusement under control.

While at first the view was just buildings and pedestrians, Rhys was floored when the row of buildings ended and he was left staring out at fields of green grass. There were houses dotted across the landscape, and Rhys prodded Jack for his attention before pointing at a herd of animals in the distance.

“What are those?”

“Cows. They make milk and sometimes are killed for food, but they’re rare now so we don’t really do that anymore.”

He pointed to a group of white animals in the same area. “Those?”

“Sheep. Their wool is sheared and used to make blankets and clothes. Your clothes are wool, actually. Though your cloak is synthetic so you don’t overheat.”

Rhys looked away from the window and glanced at his clothes and Jack’s.

“Are your clothes wool?” he asked he reached out and touched the sleeve of his blue coat.

“No. But I do have wool clothes for the winter. They keep you warm even when wet so they’re good for vault hunters.”

He nodded again and returned his gaze to the window. The landscape was mostly flat with only the slightest hills on occasion, but everything was covered in grass.

“Jack, is grass soft?”

Jack shrugged in response. “Depends. Sometimes it is, but mainly it just leaves you feeling itchy.” He cast a glance at the reflection of the disappointed young man. “Though that may just be me. You might like it; it’s definitely better than wherever you used to sleep before all of this happened.”

“The seafolk carved indentations into the rock walls of a trench, and my colony has lived there for ages. I slept on a pile of kelp,” he explained with a small, reminiscing smile despite Jack’s blatant expression of disinterest. “So I bet that it is better. But the beds I’ve slept in are nice.”

“You think those are comfortable? Then you’ll love where we’ll be staying. If everything works out, that is.”

Rhys raised an eyebrow at Jack’s knowing grin, but when no further explanation was offered, he turned his attention back to the window and beyond.

The trip passed quickly as Rhys pointed out every unfamiliar object and asked for identification, while Jack humored his curiosity. When the plains changed into gigantic shiny buildings, Rhys’s questions faded into quiet sounds of astonishment as Jack voluntarily offered up descriptions of what each of the buildings were for, and told him just how tall the skyscrapers actually were, pride evident in his voice.

Eventually the train slowed to a stop and the doors slid open, allowing the crowd to disembark. Jack waited until the last possible moment to rise and pull Rhys out of his seat. They left the train, and those who were waiting to board gave the men a wide berth; their confused and slightly fearful expressions were not lost on Rhys. They were further emphasized by Jack quietly stating, “We’re going to have to hurry if we don’t want people stopping us.”

Jack released Rhys’s wrist as they walked away from the platform, but checked behind him every couple of minutes to make sure the former merman was still behind him and keeping up. The crowds were much bigger than the ones at Maliwan but their journey was aided by the fact that people began to recognize Jack and quickly moved out of his way. Jack spared nobody a second glance as he led Rhys down a path that he seemed to know intimately.

As they moved closer and closer to what Jack called “the heart of Opportunity,” their presence caused even more of a disturbance. While most people stopped and stared, occasionally whispering to each other, a few people actually bolted. Rhys himself was becoming concerned for their wellbeing; Jack had already said that they were racing against the police and Rhys didn’t want anyone coming out and taking Jack from him. They were going somewhere important, that much he could tell, and he hoped that the goal was to get the reward rescinded.

Jack slowed suddenly and Rhys did the same, coming to stand next to him. “Something wrong?”

The man grinned at him. “We’re here.”

When he gestured to the building in front of them, Rhys looked up at it. While the others sat the same uniform distance from the road, this one was set a little further back and had a large fountain in front of it encircled by blooming flowers. The building itself wasn’t steel like the others: a closer glance at one of the decorative pillars showed that it was made of some type of stone.

He didn’t get to inspect it long before Jack grabbed his wrist again and led him up to the massive wooden doors. They didn’t open when Jack turned the handle, but he pulled a silver key from his pocket and smirked when it slid into the lock easily.

“Those morons didn’t even change the locks,” he chuckled to himself as he unlocked the door and slipped the key back into his pocket, before he nudged Rhys to stand back and threw open both doors.

Rhys winced when they slammed into the walls, but Jack strolled into the building without any hesitation and the younger man followed him nervously, stopping a bit behind him. The inside, which was even nicer than the outside somehow, was covered in rich reds and the corners filled with potted plants. It was also virtually empty, save for a sole woman at a desk.

“Where are we?” After watching the terrified woman behind the desk fumble with a blocky ECHO device and whisper into it, he looked at Jack. “Are we supposed to be here?”

“Wait for it, kitten.”

“Wait for what—”

“JACK!”

Rhys’s eyes went wide as a voice nearly identical to Jack’s boomed through the lobby of the building, immediately following a ding. He was speechless as a man stormed over to them, wearing an expression of rage that Rhys had seen before. While his hair was different, his face looked similar to Jack’s mask, and for the first time Rhys felt like he had a clear idea of what was hidden underneath the mask.

The stranger approached Jack and time slowed down when he immediately swung and punched Jack in the jaw. Jack stumbled back in surprise and Rhys caught him, his left hand grasping the man’s bicep with his right pressing against his shoulder blades. When Jack righted himself, Rhys stepped to the side and watched Jack carefully, aiming to persuade him from shooting the stranger. But Jack didn’t whip out his pistol at the first chance; instead, he gingerly touched his jaw and chuckled.  

“Where are those manners that Grandmother beat into you?” he chided, which only made the other man bristle more. “I was gone for five years and the first thing you do is give me a terrible punch in the face. Didn’t you miss your big brother?” The amusement in his voice contrasted the other man’s seething fury.

“No,” he spat, trying to discreetly wipe his bloodied knuckles from where he’d scraped one of the clasps. “Why are you even here? Nobody wants you here.”

At that, Jack’s good-natured smile faded. “What are you talking about, Timothy? There’s two million credits being offered anyone who could bring me here alive .”

Timothy’s anger faltered slightly, marred by confusion. “What are you talking about?”

Jack growled. “Don’t act stupid now that I’m here. I’ve seen the posters and I’ve already been ambushed twice by pirates on the way here.”

Rhys gaped at the two of them; despite Jack’s mask, their expressions of distrust and annoyance were identical.

“Jack…?” he questioned hesitantly.

Timothy’s gaze snapped over to him and he sheepishly tried to hide behind Jack.

“Who is that?”

Jack reached behind himself and brushed his hand over Rhys’s covered arm. “This is Rhys. He’s a part of my crew.” The touch didn’t soothe the sting of those words.

“Why did you bring him with you?”

“Look, can we discuss this upstairs?”

Timothy scowled at him but led them towards the doors that he’d come from. He pressed a button and the doors slid open. The small box was disappointing and confusing, but Jack tugged Rhys inside of it before he could start asking questions.

The doors closed and Timothy pressed another button that caused the box to lurch like the train had. Timothy gave Rhys a strange look when the younger man gripped Jack’s arm hard at the sudden movement of the box, but gave Jack an even stranger look when he didn’t shove Rhys away.

The three of them rode in silence until the box stopped and Jack stepped out with Rhys following close behind. The room was fancy like the lobby, with plush chairs opposite a large wooden desk.

Timothy walked to the desk and leaned against it. “Jack, you look…” His eyes scanned the man over, lingering on his face. “Different.”

Jack sneered. “And you look like you haven’t left this building in five years.”

“If I haven’t, it’s your fault,” Tim snapped before he closed his eyes and tried to calm down, a skill Rhys didn’t think Jack possessed. Frowning, Tim motioned to the chairs. “Take a seat, both of you.” While they moved to the chairs, he sat behind his desk and scrubbed his face with one hand. “We have a lot to discuss.”

“Yeah, like you playing dumb about this bounty,” Jack cut in.

“I know of a bounty, Jack, but not the one you described to me. But first, do you happen to know anything about the thirty-four Hyperion employed eridium miners that were found murdered a couple of days ago?”

Jack folded his arms and slouched in his chair. “No.”

Timothy pursed his lips. “Really, because the couple of survivors that alerted me described a Hyperion style ship and a man bearing a striking resemblance to you .”

His mismatched eyes shifted to Rhys, who stiffened under the same intense gaze that Jack gave him. “Did you happen to have any part in it?”

Rhys tried to stammer out an answer, but Jack sat up and growled at his brother. “No, he didn’t. He wasn’t involved at all, so leave him out of this.”

Despite the suspicious look that passed over both of them, Timothy relented and focused back on Jack. “So why’d you do it? That was the first time you’ve set foot on Hyperion soil in five years and the first thing you do is slaughter over thirty of our— my —employees. Why?”

Jack kept his eyes on Tim. “I needed eridium and they wouldn’t give me some. So I took it.”

“What the hell do you need eridium for?”

“That doesn’t matter. It was a one time thing and it’s done now. So let’s drop it.”

“ Thirty-four people are dead, Jack! This isn’t something to just drop!”

“And hundreds have died from mining accidents!” Jack barked. “Thirty-four is barely a blip.”

Timothy grit his teeth. “A lot has changed in five years. Those numbers are from Grandmother’s reign, and what little effort you put into this before taking off. Tassiter and I—”

“Whoa whoa whoa,” Jack interrupted. “What’s that old bastard still doing here? He didn’t keel over after I left?”

“No, he has actually been a huge help since you abandoned everything and left me to scramble and pick up the pieces. He was kind enough to split the responsibilities with me so I wasn’t overwhelmed.”

Jack gripped the armrests of his chair. “Where is he? I want to talk to him.”

“He’s not here right now. He’s at an off-world conference for the time being.”

“When is he supposed to get back?”

Timothy shrugged. “No idea. It was supposed to be today but he called earlier and said that they weren’t done with negotiations. It should be soon, though.”

“Then I hope you haven’t filled up the other apartments with whores, because I’m not leaving until I talk to that asshole. I feel like he knows more about the bounty than you.”

Tim folded his arms on the desk. “We drew up a bounty together several weeks ago, but it didn’t have the details that you’re talking about. If you don’t have a poster I could look at, then we’ll just have to wait until he returns.”

There was a lull in the conversation as Jack muttered something under his breath, and Rhys took the chance to pipe up.

“Jack,” he began, using clicks to keep their conversation at least semi-private, “what are we even doing here? I thought we came here to get them to take away the bounty. And why didn’t you tell me that you had a brother?”

It hurt to realize that he knew basically nothing about Jack’s past, other than all of the cool things he had told Rhys about while he was trapped in the cove.

“Because he doesn’t like to talk about me.”

Rhys’s eyes widened and he looked at Timothy in surprise. He opened his mouth to ask how he could understand his language when the man merely turned his head to show off his own ECHOcomm.

“How do you think Meg told me that Jack was downstairs?”

Rhys’s face flushed and he looked down at his lap.

“Where did you get this kid, Jack? Did you start forcing children to be a part of your crew?”

“He’s not that young,” Jack argued, though the hesitation reminded Rhys that he had never actually told Jack his age. “Besides, he joined me of his own free will. I didn’t force him to do anything.”

“Are you sure? He looks like, what, eighteen? Hey kid,” Timothy said, causing Rhys to lift his head, “how old are you?”

He had no idea how humans measured age, and it took him a few moments to count. “Somewhere between twenty-five and twenty-seven summers,” he answered. The exact number was fuzzy because he didn’t live with his birth parents, but he had been rather young when he lost them so the number wasn’t too uncertain.

Timothy spared Jack a look that made Rhys worry that was the wrong answer. But instead of pressing the topic further, he asked, “So where did Jack pick you up?”

“A island near Tediore. It didn’t have a name,” he told him, giving the same answer he had given Nisha during her interrogation.

“Did Jack give you that outfit or are you just as awful with fashion as he is? And you can take off the cloak in here. There’s a coat rack by the elevator.”

Rhys clutched the edge of his cloak and pulled it tight. “No, I’m okay. And these were the only clothes we could get that fit me.” He liked his clothes and he didn’t care that the colors didn’t match.

“Back off, Tim. You’re not interviewing him for a job so just leave him alone,” Jack told his brother. “I think we’re done talking for now. Is there anyone in my old apartment?”

Timothy relented in his questioning and shook his head. “No, it is completely empty. Only the cleaners have touched it since you left.”

“Fantastic. Come on, Rhys,” he said as he stood up. Rhys did the same and Jack walked over to press the button that called the elevator. “If you’re hungry, we can go find somewhere to eat. I need to let Nisha know what’s going on anyway…”

He trailed off as the elevator arrived and the doors slid open. Inside was a young woman staring down at an ECHO device. When she looked up, she froze and returned Jack’s disbelieving stare. Nobody dared to speak until her soft voice shattered the silence.

“Dad?”  

“Hey, Angel.”

Chapter Text

When the initial shock passed, Rhys could easily see how Angel and Jack—and Tim, for that matter—were related.

Angel immediately turned to Tim. “What the fuck is here doing here? Why did you even let him in? Kick him out!”

Jack folded his arms and furrowed his brow. “Angel, quit it. And watch your tongue. I’m still your father.”

Her eyes blazed and she lunged at him before he could react, pounding his chest with her fists. When he grabbed her arms, she kicked him in the shin and barely missed her target due to Jack quickly moving his leg in the way.

“No father fucking abandons his daughter in the middle of the night and doesn’t even say goodbye,” she snapped while she struggled to break free as well as kick him.

Rhys stepped forward to separate them, but a hand clamped painfully down on his shoulder. He looked at Tim and bared his teeth at the sharp glare, though Tim only raised an eyebrow and kept a strong hold on his shoulder.

Not that it mattered; Angel managed to jerk her arms away and stumble back. “Fuck you!” she yelled.

“Angel, listen—”

“I was ten! Mom wasn’t even dead a year and I woke up to Uncle Tim telling me you were gone.” She stood tall despite the tears in her eyes. “You can’t just come back here and expect me to still respect you. You shouldn’t have even come back. You should have just died at sea like all of the other pirates if you wanted to be one so badly.”

“Angel.” The command was soft but stern and Timothy released Rhys to approach her. “That’s enough, baby,” he said as he wrapped an arm around her. He looked at Jack’s impassive face and gently moved her out of the path to the elevator.

“I think you should both go,” he told them, nodding his head towards the ceiling. Angel had her face hidden against his chest.

Jack walked past them without a word and Rhys scurried to join him in the elevator. The man pressed a button and the doors closed, cutting them off from the others as the elevator rose.

They stood in silence before Rhys said, “Jack—”

“Do. Not. Speak.”

Rhys frowned, but obeyed. The rest of the ride was silent.

The elevator eventually came to a halt and opened up to a large, lavish room. Rhys was briefly concerned by the fact that it was missing a wall and opened up to the street, but his eyes caught the gleam of the sun’s reflection and he realized that the wall was actually transparent. The space was sparsely furnished but the furniture that it did have looked exceptionally comfortable.

He rushed over to the wall first and pressed his face to the glass, only to immediately regret it when his stomach twisted at the fact that he couldn’t even see the ground. Pulling away, he turned to face Jack and frowned at the vacant area.

He wandered down the only hallway and stopped at the only door that was open. Jack’s back was to him and he was staring out of his own window.

Rhys swallowed hard. “Jack?”

“Go away, Rhys. I don’t want to hear it. Not from you.”

“Hear what?”

Jack growled. “About how much of an asshole I am for what I did.”

“That wasn’t what I was going to say,” Rhys countered, watching the back of his head.

“Then what did you come in here to talk about?” His voice was full of bitter snark.

Rhys sucked in a quiet breath and slowly stepped into the room. He pulled his cloak over his head and it barely made a sound as he dropped it onto the bed. Jack had always been there for him when he needed it—at least, when he wasn’t the one who caused it—and Rhys wanted to do the same. He stood behind Jack’s back; he was broader than Rhys, but they were basically the same height.

“I was going to ask if you wanted to go find food, but I think we should stay up here for a while.”

Jack snorted. “You’re really close for someone who agreed that we weren’t mates.” Despite his words, Jack didn’t force him away when Rhys rested his chin on his shoulder.

Rhys stared at their faint reflections in the glass. “I didn’t think this was considered sex,” he replied easily.

His smile faded slightly. “Do you want to talk about it?” Jack stiffened and he continued. “I can’t judge you, you know. I left my family too. I could have wished for the colony to take me back, and I knew that. But I chose you instead. I only got to say goodbye because of random chance.”

Jack frowned at the reflection of the man who had been constantly at his side for weeks. “Tell me honestly, Rhys. Do you think what I did was wrong?”

Rhys shrugged and tilted his head to rest against Jack’s. “I can’t say. I only know what I picked up from Angel and Tim, and I don’t think that’s the whole story.”

“Going off what you heard, then,” Jack pressed, “what do you think the story is?”

Boldly sliding his arms around Jack and keeping them loose in case he was pushing their boundaries, he answered, “I think you were working here and fell in love with the ocean. You wanted adventure but didn’t want to upset you daughter, so you left.”

Jack chuckled. “I knew you idolized me.”

“Do not.”

“Yeah, you do. You’re the only person besides myself who ever says anything good about me.”

“If that’s not the real answer, then what is?”

As he freed himself from Rhys’s hold, Jack shook his head. “I don’t want to tell that story right now.”

Rhys frowned but nodded and stepped away from Jack. “If you’re feeling better, want to go get lunch?”

“How did you ever manage to catch enough fish to feed yourself? How did we ever manage to feed you?” Jack teased.

He received an elbow to the side for the comment. “I could catch bigger fish than you could dream of. They live at the bottom of the ocean, farther down than your nets can reach. And I don’t actually eat that much, especially now that I get less exercise. I didn’t get breakfast this morning and not everyone can get by on half a meal a day, unlike you.”

Jack picked up the cloak from the bed and handed it to Rhys as they walked from the bedroom. “Sasha told me how much fish you ate when you were stuck in the tank. Eleven fish in three days? That’s a lot for someone who claimed they couldn’t exercise properly.”

“Thank you for the information, Jack,” he said loudly, shooting him a pointed look once he had the cloak on. “Are you going to keep making fun of me or actually take me to get food?”

Jack snickered and led Rhys back to the elevator. He hesitated at the doors, but eventually pressed the button. It wasn’t until they opened to an empty elevator that his muscles relaxed and he pulled Rhys in with him.

“I’m going to show you how rich people eat. None of Sasha’s weird food.”

Rhys raised an eyebrow. “But what if I like Sasha’s cooking?”

“Then you’re a liar or have bad taste.”

“Not everyone has the same taste in food, Jack.”

“That doesn’t make the fact that Sasha’s cooking is awful any less true.”

Rhys rolled his eyes and stepped off the elevator into the lobby. They walked out into the populated streets and he frowned at the amount of people walking around. It was more people than before, which was worrying to Rhys. He hadn’t liked being stared at when they arrived and he didn’t want to be stared at even more.

Jack noticed his discomfort and put Rhys on his right side, effectively using himself as a barrier. He gave Rhys a small grin as faint relief washed over Rhys’s face. “Don’t worry, pumpkin. Nobody’s going to bother you.”

“And what about you? Is anyone going to bother you?” he asked with only the slightest hint of concern peeking out in his voice.

“I’m already here, so there’s no reason to try anything. If they do, then they’ll get a bullet to the throat, okay? No need to worry about me.”

Despite the graphic nature of Jack’s words, it soothed some of Rhys’s fears as they walked down the street. There was still a buzz in his ear from nearby conversations attempting to filter through the ECHOcomm, but it wasn’t nearly enough to give him a headache.

“So where’s this rich people restuarant you were talking about?” he asked with a small smile.

“A few blocks down, in a hotel. If we get a table on the west side, we can get a good view of the fields and see the shore.”

“Sounds nice,” Rhys hummed. “But if your fancy food sucks, you’re taking me for ice cream.”

Jack laughed. “And what if I say no?”

“Then I’ll ask Sasha to bring me some of her ‘awful’ cooking for me to eat,” he answered with a smile. “And I’ll make sure that you’re next to me when I eat it.”

“Is that a threat, kitten?”

“Yes.”

Jack paused in his tracks, caught off guard by the chipper, blunt response. Rhys stopped a couple of paces ahead of him and turned to watch him with a curious head tilt.

With a growl, Jack resumed walking and caught up with him. “You cocky little shit. But fine, if you don’t like it, I’ll buy you ice cream.”

Rhys beamed and said, “Thank you,” to which Jack only grunted.

The hotel was literally on the edge of the city; there was a tall fence just across the street that marked the borders of Opportunity. Jack pulled him into the doors of the hotel and towards the elevator. The lobby of the hotel wasn’t nearly as luxurious as Jack’s building, but it wasn’t plain by any means. The building was tall and it took the elevator quite a while to take them to the restaurant, music playing over the speaker above them. When the doors opened, the couple was met with a long line of nicely dressed people. Rhys felt horrendously out of place, but Jack didn’t seem fazed.

Rhys moved to join the line, but Jack gripped his wrist and pulled him past them. Some people turned to glare at them and he ducked his head in embarrassment.

Jack dragged him up to the person standing in front of the line, who looked just as unamused as everyone else.

“I want a table,” he declared.

“Sir,” the man said, folding his arms, “there is a line. Go to the back of it.”

“ Jack Lawrence wants a table,” Jack pressed.

There was a series of quiet murmurs behind them and the man studied Jack’s mask intensely for a moment before it seemed to click. He quickly stammered out an apology and ushered them into the dining area. Like Jack’s apartment, the walls were glass, but from where he stood, Rhys could see both the cityscape and the rolling fields of farmland.

Jack pointed to an empty table before they could be led anywhere else and before long they were being seated. Rhys’s attention was glued to the view through the window, where he could see across the fields of grass all the way to the beach, until Jack snapped his fingers.

“I ordered for us. They’ll bring our drinks in a moment.”

“What’d you order?”

“If you’d been paying attention, you’d know.”

Rhys narrowed his eyes at Jack’s grin but changed the subject. “So. You have a family.”

“Yep.”

Rhys frowned. “And why didn’t you tell anyone?”

“Didn’t need to. Zer0 is just an employee and your con artist friends need to know as little about me as possible.”

“But what about me?” he pressed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Jack was quiet as he propped his head on his hand and looked out the window. “I didn’t know how,” came his answer. “It’s not like I talk about them much anyway, and as time wore on it was harder and harder to just casually mention I have family.”

Rhys took a few moments to process that before he nodded slowly. It made sense; the longer he waited to say something about them, the more it made it sound like he had been hiding them, and there was no winning in that situation. He really couldn’t fault Jack for it.

He moved on to his next question. “What did you do before you became a vault hunter?”

“What Tim does now. I sat in boring as hell meetings, made decisions about what our laborers should focus on, like weapons or resource mining, and a bunch of other dumb stuff. The city itself is run by a group of people chosen to make decisions from the company’s point of view.”

A waiter brought two glasses of water to the table, putting the conversation on pause as he asked Jack if they wanted anything else before scurrying off.

Rhys waited until they were alone to comment, “That kind of sounds like what the council did, or still does. They decide who does what job and what the colony needs to focus on for the season. Sometimes we only need a couple of hunters to gather food and more guards keeping predators out of the trench, and sometimes it’s the other way around.”

“Yeah? That’s…not what I expected. Who puts your council in charge?”

He shrugged. “The council choose their successors when they feel the time is right. Usually it’s one of their children, but sometimes they decide to go with someone outside of the family because they don’t think their offspring would do a good job. But they spend all of their lives on the council, up until they die.”

Jack let out a bitter chuckle. “Yeah, that does sound like the city council. Clinging to power until the very end.”

Rhys wiped his thumb through the condensation on his glass, frowning at the drops. His memories of the colony, of the place where he had been raised for nearly his entire life, feel distant and almost surreal. It hadn’t even been that long since he’d left. He remembered Vaughn and Yvette and he missed them, but he felt so far removed from the colony that it hardly felt real. What was worse was that he didn’t feel concerned.

Jack didn’t seem to notice his sudden melancholic state, distracted by the waiter arriving with their food. Rhys looked up as a plate was placed in front of him. On it was something that was distinct not-fish and he frowned at Jack.

“What is this?” he questioned warily. “I was expecting fish.”

“It’s pork. Just taste it, all right? It’s not bad.”

Rhys cut off a small piece and ate it, chewing slowly. Jack rolled his eyes at the dramatics and started eating his own food. The taste wasn’t awful; it was different than what Rhys was normally used to, but it wasn’t too bad. He cut off a bigger piece and ignored Jack’s pleased smirk.

By the time they finished with dinner, the sun cast a deep orange glow over the city as it lowered towards the horizon. The streets were thankfully less populated as everyone went home for the evening. The streetlamps were starting to turn on and Rhys could see the lights lit up each block.

“Are we going home now?” he asked, giving Jack a glance.

He shook his head. “Nah, not yet, kitten. I’m not ready to go back.” He nodded his head towards the corner. “Come on, it’ll be dark soon. Opportunity is amazing at night, but let’s get away from the business district and get to the more fun parts.”

The more they walked, the less they saw of the dreary gray buildings, which were replaced by smaller ones with bright, colorful signs. The colors were spectacular and mesmerizing, even if he couldn’t read the words. Some were more crowded than others, their noise levels spilling out onto the street. Rhys kept waiting for Jack to lead him to one of the buildings, but they just continued down the street.

“Are we going anywhere in particular?” he asked.

Jack shrugged. “Not really. Why, do you want to go somewhere?”

Rhys shook his head, his arm brushing Jack’s as they walked. “No, but walking’s kinda boring.”

Jack snorted a chuckle. “Really now?” He looked around the street and then grabbed Rhys’s wrist. “All right, I know where we can go.” He shook his head.

Rhys followed Jack down several turns, enough that he lost track of the way they had come from. Jack, however, walked with confident ease. The farther they went, the less people were around, until they were passing maybe one person every few minutes.

"Jack, where are we going? Do you even know where we are?"

He chuckled. "'course I do, pumpkin. I built this city. Well, not all of it, but a good bit. Besides, I grew up here. I know these streets like the back of my hand. And you'll find out when we get there. It's a surprise."

Rhys huffed but didn't push it, knowing he wouldn't get a real answer. Instead he just kept pace with Jack, walking by his side up until the moment they approached a large fence that signaled the city limits. Jack grabbed one of the thick bars of the fence and pulled it. It came off easily, much to Rhys's surprise.

When Jack turned sideways to slip through the crack, Rhys finally spoke up.

"Jack, where are we going?" He looked back at the city; there were no buildings beyond the fence, only grassy fields and a river. It was nice to look at but he didn't see a point in going in that direction. "It's going to be dark soon. Shouldn't we stay where the lights are?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Come on, you giant baby. It's a full moon tonight, so it's not like we'll be blind. If you're gonna be a scaredy-cat, I'll give you directions back to HQ.”

Rhys scowled at Jack’s grin and when Jack made it to the other side, Rhys slipped through the opening as well.

“What’s the point of a fence if the bars come off that easily?” he asked.

“I put that there years ago. It was for me and Tim-Tams when we were younger. We came out here and made this post so that it snaps it and out of place.”

Rhys thought that was a little bit too much effort to put into something so simple, but instead of voicing that opinion, he asked, “Why here? Why this particular post?”

“I’m about to show you, if you’ll stop asking questions for five minutes.” Jack walked off and Rhys rushed to catch up with him.

There were no smooth streets to walk on anymore. The earth was uneven and started to incline the longer they walked, but they didn’t have to go too far before Jack stopped at the edge of a hole and held out an arm to stop Rhys as well.

When he was sure Rhys wasn’t going to fall, he stepped back and motioned for Rhys to look down.

It wasn’t a hole. Below them was a pool of water that reflected the moonlight. It looked like it was nestled against the mountain with rock walls surrounding almost the entire thing. They weren’t too high up, but the height did look a little intimidating.

A small waterfall flowed from a crevice in the highest wall, splashing and foaming on the other still surface of the pool. Rhys was staring at the shining water when Jack started talking.

“This is the source of the river. There’s a spring in the mountain and it’s been flowing ever since this crater was made.”

“What made it?”

“Don’t know. It was something that happened when the first voyagers came to this planet decades ago. My grandmother wasn’t even born yet.”

Jack pulled off his coat and dropped it to the ground, then stripped off his layers until he was down to his boxers. He raised an eyebrow at Rhys’s blank expression. “Well?”

“Well what?”

“You coming or what?”

He rolled his eyes when Rhys showed no sign of comprehension. “ Swimming, pumpkin. I’m going swimming. Are you coming?”

Rhys looked down at the crater. The moon reflected off the dark surface but he knew that since the water came from the mountain, there wouldn’t be any predators in it. “Uh, sure.” He tugged his cloak over his head and shed off the rest of his outfit, not even bothering to leave on his underwear. Jack’s leering gaze, no matter how quickly he had looked away, was not lost on him.

Jack started to carefully make his way down the slope with Rhys following behind. It wasn’t as rough of a walk as Rhys had expected, and they made it down to the water without incident. He shuffled over to the edge and tried to look down into the pool when he heard the snicker a moment too late.

The water was cold and Rhys flailed until he was able to right himself and breach the surface. He scowled at Jack as he howled, bent over with his hands on his knees, and Rhys swam back over to him. Before Jack could even look up, Rhys grabbed his wrist and kicked off of the rock, pulling Jack into the chilled water with him.

They sank faster than Rhys anticipated and he didn’t have time to let go of Jack. His back landed on the algae covered rocks and he relinquished his hold on Jack, who swam back to the surface.

“Asshole,” was the first thing that was said to him when he emerged.

“You shoved me!” Rhys pointed out. “So I retaliated.”

“That didn’t give you the right to pull me in. What if I bashed this handsome face on a rock?”

Rhys rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t have let that happen. I caught you, didn’t I? You only would have bashed your handsome face into me. And you started it, so don’t complain.” 

Jack muttered a couple of insults in his direction, though he stopped when Rhys swiped his arm and splashed him. Jack ducked under the water and pulled a squawk from Rhys when he was yanked below the surface. Rhys struggled free and shoved him back, squinting at Jack's good-natured grin. Fine, two could play at that game.

The fighting lasted quite some time, and it was late by the time they returned to Hyperion’s headquarters. The lobby lights had dimmed to save energy and the new receptionist looked up from the book he was reading behind the desk. He looked up when they walked into the lobby and his eyes widened at Jack before he lifted his hand to his ear and said something into his comm.

As Jack started towards the elevator, the thin man came from behind the desk and approached him with a disarming smile. “It’s good to see you again, Jack, sir,” he said, positioned in just a way that he . “How long have you been back?”

Jack scowled at him. “It’s been half a day, Blake. Now move so I can go shower and go to bed.”

Blake didn’t move, but he looked at Rhys. “Who’s this?”

“Rhys. He’s a part of my crew,” Jack answer bluntly as he tried to step around Blake. His efforts were rebuffed and Jack snarled at him. “Blake, I swear if you don’t move I will shoot you in the—”

His threat was cut off by the sound of the elevator opening. A dark-haired man with a narrow face and beady eyes stepped out of the elevator, saying, “He doesn’t work for you anymore,” when he abruptly paused and looked up at him. “What is on your face?”

Jack narrowed his eyes. “Tassiter.” The name was filled with disdain and Jack folded his arms. “Tim said you were off-world for a conference.”

Tassiter nodded. “I was, but then he called and informed me that you had come to answer for the bounty that I set.” He kept his gaze locked on Jack, or rather, his mask.

“Well, I’m here now. What did you even want from me?”

“You took vital documents from Hyperion and I want them back.”

Jack tapped his fingers against his jaw. “I’m not sure I know what documents you’re talking about. Refresh my memory?”

He scowled at Jack and his hand clenched into a fist. “You know exactly what I’m referring to,” he hissed. “Those papers were Hyperion property and you stole them. I need them back.”

A wicked grin crossed Jack’s face. “Oh, I know what you’re so upset about. You want what Grandmother left for you in case me and tim got out of hand.” He laughed. “Sure took you long enough to realize they were gone. Why the sudden urgency? Tim-Tams said he’s given you plenty of power to wipe your grubby hands on and he seems to be holding up just fine. That decree is null until Tim actually does something ballsy for once in his life, so you don’t need it.”

“Yes, I do,” he argued. “Even if I can’t use them now, they will be vital in the future. Just tell me where they are and I’ll cancel the bounty so you can go on your way.”

“Fine. They’re at the bottom of the ocean,” Jack answered cheerfully.

“What?” Tassiter’s voice was icy and it made a shiver crawl down Rhys’s spine.

“Yep. My ship sank a couple of months back and took everything but me with it.So your precious papers have probably dissolved by now.” He looked extremely pleased by that fact.

Tassiter, however, was livid. “How could you be so irresponsible?” he snapped. “Why did you even steal them in the first place? Once you left, Hyperion’s hierarchy didn’t affect you at all.”

Jack shrugged. “I figured you’d try to take my place once I left and since you’d gotten on my nerves that day, I wanted to make sure everything went to Tim. Why are you so worked up, anyway? You can’t invoke them without good reason and Tim is handling himself pretty well. And why did it take five whole years for you to notice?”

Despite looking enraged enough that Rhys was concerned that the blood vessels in his face were going to burst, Tassiter managed to somewhat calmly say, “Timothy is planning to hand everything down to Angel within the year. He wants to give the position of  CEO to a child.”

“Wait, he’s retiring?” Jack asked, surprised. “Why Angel? She’s not even sixteen yet. And it’s not like he’s old. I’m sure as hell not old.”

“He dislikes this job and claims she’s expressed interest. But nobody is going to take a little girl seriously! Hyperion will lose all of its credibility.”

Jack frowned and was quiet as he thought about Tassiter’s statement. “If it’s just because she’s young, use Tim as the face of Hyperion. The board doesn’t have to know.”

“It’s not just her age. She may be related to your grandmother, but she’s your child, and since you relinquished everything and her mother was a civilian, she is no longer officially eligible for the position,” Tassiter explained.

“No, that can’t be right. That’s not fair to her. If she wants to do it and Tim thinks she’s qualified, then she should be allowed.” Jack hesitated for a moment before asking, “What if Tim made me CEO again?  Would she be eligible again?”

Tassiter was taken aback by the offer and he quickly shook his head. “No, no. That wouldn’t work. Besides, nobody would take you seriously.”

Jack bristled. “Why not? I was CEO for ten years and never had any problems.”

“Yes, but a lot has changed. Nobody is going to accept a homicidal pirate with an absurd synthetic face as their CEO.”

“Fuck you,” Jack growled. “I made Hyperion what is today. Like hell I would let people disrespect me. My mask doesn’t affect a goddamn thing.”

Tassiter rolled his eyes. “John, it’s ridiculous. If you walked into a meeting looking like, well, you, you wouldn’t get a word in before the board laughed you right out the door.”

Rhys had never seen Jack tremble with rage before. Tassiter’s patronizing tone wasn’t helping anything and Rhys bravely brushed his fingers over Jack’s white knuckles.

“Blake, take Rhys up to my apartment,” Jack ordered in a terrifying cool voice. “I’ll be up there in a moment. I need to talk to Tassiter alone.”

Blake did as he was told, ushering Rhys into the open elevator even as the blood left Tassiter’s thin face. Rhys shot Jack a worried look as the doors closed and he saw the briefest blur of movement before the doors shut and he and Blake were carried up to the apartment.

They didn’t talk during the ride, but once the doors opened, Blake showed him where the bathroom was and offered to send his clothes to be cleaned. He had refused, unwilling to take off his cloak, but thanked him regardless and then went to take his bath.

Hyperion had infinite hot water, or so it seemed. He soaked in the overly large bathtub for ages, after washing the sand and remnants of gel out of his hair.

Jack still wasn’t back by the time he was done, so he dried off with one of the excessively fluffy towels and went to test out the sofa he’d eyed earlier. It ended up being just as comfortable as he had assumed and he stretched out, pleased that it could accommodate his long legs, before he called Sasha’s comm.

When he didn’t immediately hear anything, he softly said, “Sasha?”

“Rhys? Thank God you’re not dead.” He chuckled awkwardly, but stopped when her voice went from relieved to angry. “Where have you been? Me and Fi went looking for you ages ago and we couldn’t reach your comm.”

He winced. “Sorry, I’ve had a pretty busy day. But everything’s fine. Jack’s not in jail and he’s in the process of getting the bounty sorted out. Do you guys have somewhere to stay for the night?”

“Yeah, Nisha found us and got us a hotel room for a couple of days. But she left and I have no idea where she went. So Jack didn’t get arrested? How did he swing that? ”

“It’s a long story. I’ll have to tell you some other time. I’m staying with Jack for the time being, so you don’t have to worry about me. How are you liking Hyperion?” The elevator doors opened and Jack immediately stormed down the hall towards the bathroom, muttering to himself. He had locked himself in the bathroom by the time Rhys sat up. “I think I need to go. Maybe we can meet up tomorrow for lunch?

“Sure.,” she answered, though her voice sounded concerned. “Call me in the morning and we’ll decide where to meet up. Goodnight, Rhys. Be careful.”

His comm went silent and he sat up on the couch, staring down the hallway. He could hear the shower running and he stayed seated, unsure of what was the best course of action. He didn’t want to go down to the bathroom and antagonize Jack if he was upset, but he also wanted to make sure Jack was okay.

He didn’t have to wait long to find out. The shower cut out and the apartment was silent before the door cracked open and Jack called, “Rhys, come here.”

Rhys got up from the couch and walked down the hall. He couldn’t see anything through the crack, but he knew Jack was on the other side. “Yeah?”

“Do you want to see what’s behind my mask?”

His breath caught in his throat. That wasn’t something he had ever expected to hear but he had craved an answer to the mystery ever since he first saw Jack.

“Yes,” he answered quietly. “Yes, I do.”

The door opened slowly and Jack hesitantly stepped from behind it into the doorway. He lifted his head and met Rhys’s eyes with his one functioning blue eye. The other, which was normally a bright green, was a milky white.

It wasn’t what he had expected. Jack had a gnarly gash across his cheek that had healed poorly but overshadowed by the huge blue curve that took up a good portion of his face. It went right over his left eye and barely missed his right one. The edges were rough and looked like he’d been burned.

Rhys frowned at him and reached up slowly. He avoided touching the scar at first, merely touching one of the clasps. “Does it hurt?”

“Nah, I don’t feel it much anymore. I don’t really have any sensation left there, actually.”

With that confirmation, Rhys moved his fingers to touch the blue line. He pulled away when Jack sucked in a breath. “What happened?”

“I opened a vault. It was me, Nisha, Wilhelm, and Aurelia. I grabbed an artifact without thinking and it exploded in my hands. This is the symbol that marks vaults. My best guess is that it wasn’t something for humans to touch.”

Rhys dropped his hands to grasp Jack’s, then led him out of the bathroom and to the bedroom. “Why are you so afraid of showing it?”

Jack laughed and Rhys furrowed his brow at the bitter sound. “Look at it, pumpkin. It’s not exactly pretty. Had to keep my reputation as the world’s handsomest pirate somehow.”

Rhys sat on the bed and urged Jack to sit next to him as he shifted to inspect it again. “I don’t think it’s that bad. It’s a little jarring, yeah, but it doesn’t make you ugly. I think you look just fine without your mask.”

His touches gradually became less inquisitive and more deliberate. His right hand slowly turned Jack’s face towards his, a claw ghosting across Jack’s scarred cheek. As Jack inhaled sharply, he leaned up and pressed a light kiss against his cheek. He knew what he was doing. He knew he was pushing things, and though he kept his movements slow, he didn’t stop.

Jack tensed. “Rhys, I told you—”

“Stop,” Rhys interrupted. “You told me that we couldn’t be mates, and we aren’t. I was wrong to assume that’s what we were; being mates is something we both have to agree on. If you don’t want to be my mate, you don’t have to be.” He would have to learn to be okay with that, but he wouldn’t force Jack into being mated.

He reached down and placed his hand over Jack’s. “I liked the first time. Can we do it again?”

Jack was quiet, and then said, “I don’t see why not.” He stood up. “Just give me a sec to put on my mask.”

Rhys grabbed his wrist before he could get far. “No mask,” he told him. “I want to see your true face… Is that okay?”

He nodded slowly. “Yeah, it’s okay,” he mumbled, climbing back on the bed and smothering Rhys’s happy smile with a kiss.

Chapter Text

The next morning, while Jack scrounged through the kitchen for ingredients, the elevator doors slid open. Though Rhys was sitting on a stool in only his underwear, Timothy breezed right past him and walked straight into the kitchen without acknowledging him.

Jack grinned at his disheveled brother. “Morning, Timmers.”

Timothy rubbed his eyes. “Care to explain why I woke up at eight am on a Sunday to three missed calls from you? Why the hell are you even awake right now? I didn't take vault hunters to be morning people.”

Jack hummed and pulled out a mixing bowl. “That just shows how little you know of life at sea. Gotta get up early and beat the sun most days. But take a seat, we need to talk.”

Despite the wary look he gave Jack, Timothy did as requested and sat on the stool Rhys had vacated in search of his cloak. “What do you want, Jack? Make it quick so I can go back to bed.”

“Yeesh, someone’s grouchy,” Jack commented as he dumped waffle mix into the bowl.

“Anyway,” he continued, “I have a favor to ask of you. Don’t say anything until I’ve finished, understand? Good. First, let’s have a proper introduction.”

Jack looked at Rhys, who awkwardly lingered couch with his cloak now draped over his mostly bare body. “Come here, kiddo.”

Rhys shuffled to the kitchen and Jack threw an arm around his shoulders.

“Rhys is a part of my crew, but he's special.” Rhys tried not to preen at the statement. “You see, I sank my ship a couple of months back and he's the one who saved my life. I'd be dead without him.”

Timothy gave Rhys a tired smile. “I'm not sure whether I should thank you or not. But I'm not letting you live here if that's his request."

“First of all, rude,” Jack commented. “Second, that's not what I'm asking. You'd know by now if you'd let me finish. Now, Rhysie isn't normal.” He removed his arm from Rhys’s shoulders and pulled the cloak off of him, ignoring the noise of protest. “His right arm needs eridium to function properly.”

When Jack gestured towards his arm, Rhys shifted anxiously. He felt uncomfortably exposed and he rubbed his right arm with his left hand absently.

Jack still wasn't done. “He's needed eridium all his life—I think—but now more than ever.” His face turned grave and Rhys could almost see the hesitation in it. “Rhys isn't human. He's a fish person.”

“I'm a part of the seafolk, I'm not a fish person,” Rhys interrupted, scowling at him.

He was ignored. “It's eridium that gave him his legs  and he'll lose them without it. So, here's my request: I need a monthly supply of eridium. Nothing too extreme, just like a barrel once a month. I’ll call you and let you know what mine I’m closest to around that time so you don’t have to scramble for resources. How does that sound?”

Rhys’s irritation faded into surprise at the declaration; that definitely wasn't something he was expecting to hear, though knowing that Jack intended to keep him around for a long time made his heart flutter.

When Timothy didn’t immediately respond, Rhys lifted his head and looked at him. Timothy’s eyes were locked on his arm, but there wasn’t any obvious shock in his expression.

Finally, he said, “This has to be a dream. What even is ‘the seafolk’?”

Rhys frowned and Jack explained, “He's a mermaid, Timmy. Or really, a merman.”

Timothy’s tired eyes shifted back to Jack. “Is that why you raided my mine and killed my men?”

“More or less,” Jack answered, going to back to stirring the contents of the bowl. “So what do you say? Come on, help your brother out.”

There was a long silence and Rhys shifted his weight nervously. He hadn’t anticipated Jack asking Timothy for eridium but he was anxious to hear the response; if he said yes, Rhys wouldn’t have to worry about not having his pool anymore. And he'd never have to go back into that stupid tank.

Timothy got up from his stool. “My answer is no.”

Jack froze and gently put the bowl on the counter before he turned to Timothy. “Excuse me?”

“Jack, you vanished and left me with an empire that I wasn't trained to run. I've been struggling with Hyperion for half a decade, all because of you. Plus, you murdered my employees and stole eridium, which was a pretty substantial blow to our supply. We don't have excess eridium to give you once a month. I can't spare it. I'm sorry.”

He ran a hand through unstyled hair. “I don't know of anyone else who would be willing to give you some, either.”

Rhys gave his arm a mournful look as Jack bristled at his side. He'd lose his legs again if they couldn't replenish his eridium. He'd lose Jack.

“I wish I could help you, but I can't.”

He started to leave, but abruptly stopped and looked back at them. “Wait. I think I know of something you can try.”

“What is it?” Jack questioned, his tone skeptical.

Unbothered by the death glare sent in his direction, Timothy said, “There's a vault that was spotted in the south last month. You're a vault hunter, and vaults contain eridium. Why don't you go for it?”

With a roll of his eyes, Jack said, “We don’t have a key, dumbass. We can’t get into the vault without it.”

“And you aren’t thinking outside of the box, dumbass, " he shot back, gesturing to Rhys. "Look at his arm! If he’s really so entwined with eridium, surely you’d be able to use him as a key.”

The brothers looked at Rhys and his face flushed. “Don’t ask me, I don’t know anything about vaults.”

“The ship that I have now is not durable enough for vault hunting. And my crew is made up of three non-vault hunters, me, and two vault hunters. That's not enough people,” Jack finally replied when he tore his gaze from Rhys. "I'm not going to open a vault unprepared. I did that once and it didn't go well."

Timothy raised his eyebrows, but didn't comment. “If it’ll get you out of my hair, I’ll let you borrow a bigger ship and some of our navy. Just don’t all of my soldiers die.”

“That’s very generous of you,” Jack observed with an arched eyebrow. “What do you want out of it?”

“Everything that isn’t eridium,” he answered without hesitation. “Weapons, money, and whatever else vaults have. That’s mine. You get to keep every last ounce of eridium. Deal?”

Jack glanced at Rhys, then nodded. “Deal.”

Timothy held out his hand and Jack gripped it tightly. They stared at each other for a long moment, and then parted without actually shaking the other's hand.

"I'm going to go try and contact Tassiter again. I'll need his approval for giving you a ship."

Jack rolled his eyes dramatically. "Timmy, you're the boss here. You don't need his approval for shit. Let him have his dick measuring contests with the other CEOs and just tell him when he comes back."

Despite his reluctant frown, Timothy nodded slowly. "I suppose you're right. When do you think you'll be ready to go?"

He shrugged. "Dunno. I'll have to draw up a route and make sure everyone's prepared. Do you know exactly where it is?"

"No, but I can find out. Give me a couple of hours to contact some people. I'll let you know what I hear."

"Alright. Thanks, Tim."

The subdued nature of Jack's response gave Timothy pause, but he left without another word. When he disappeared into the elevator and the doors shut, Jack turned back to the breakfast he'd been making.

Rhys watched him, unsure of what to say. They wanted to use him as a key... What did that even mean? What was going to happen if they got there and he couldn't actually help?

When he voiced his concerns to Jack, his only response was "We really don't have a choice, kitten. If Timothy can't provide a steady supply of eridium, we have to find it ourselves."

He frowned,  chewing anxiously on the flesh of his lip. "But you said your scar came from a vault. What if that happens again? I don't want you getting hurt for my sake."

Jack laughed, and that was not the reaction Rhys had been expecting. "Kiddo, the possibility of another artifact blowing up in my face is slim to none, especially if I don't touch anything. The only thing we have to worry about is the vault monster."

"The what ?"

"Yeah, vaults have monsters that guard what's inside of them. Me and my old crew took down the Sentinel by the skin of our teeth; Wilhelm was nearly torn in half."

"Then this is a horrible idea!" Rhys protested as the blood drained from his face. "What if something happens to Sasha or Fiona? They aren't prepared for this kind of thing. And what if something happens to you ?” His voice pitched and Jack cast a glance at him. "I don't want you to die. I want you to be safe and stay with me."

Jack sighed. "Like I said, we really don't have any other options. You need eridium and we have to get it somehow. This is honestly the best way. Besides, with the soldiers that Tim's sending with us, this should be pretty easy. When we're done, I'll even let you come inside and look at it."

Rhys was quiet, and then he processed that statement. "Wait, won't I be with you?"

"Nope."

He bristled. "Why not? The eridium is for me."

"Because you hate guns. You won't even carry one regularly and Zer0 said you flinch when you shoot. Vault hunting isn't your game, pumpkin. You'll be staying on the ship, or maybe even a nearby island if there is one."

Jack made several good points, but that didn't mean Rhys wasn't upset. Still, he sat down at the counter and waited for Jack to serve breakfast. He'd been assured that waffles tasted amazing when done right. (He wasn't really that impressed.)

After a couple of hours of lounging around where Jack showed Rhys the wonders of television, the elevator stopped. Timothy stepped out once the doors were open, looking way more put together than he had that morning.

"What's up, Tim-Tams?" Jack asked, stretched out across the couch with a beer in one hand while Rhys drank water in the nearby loveseat, his legs thrown over the armrest.

"I found your vault. It's located due west of some tiny fishing island and good distance southeast of Tediore. It was discovered by a group of fishermen but nobody has been able to get into it. One of our faster ships should be able to get you there in three weeks, straight shot."

Rhys sat up. Those directions were all too familiar. "Do you know anything else about where it's located?"

Timothy gave Rhys a strange look and said, "There's an uninhabited island nearby, or I think it's uninhabited. Nobody can safely reach the shore because of rocks. Why?"

Rhys's heart was drumming in his chest as he clambered up to his feet. "That's my home. I lived there, near the island. There's a trench where my colony lives. My friends are there." His excitement abruptly faded. "My friends are there…with the monster."

Jack hauled himself up and gave Rhys a somewhat consoling pat on his shoulder. "Relax, kiddo. I'm sure they're fine."

"If it's in the boundaries of the territory, they will have stumbled across it. What if they get hurt?" He frowned worriedly at the floor as a million different scenarios crossed his mind, and none of them were good. "I need call Vaughn."

He looked at Jack. "What's the reach on the comms? Could I call him from here?"

"Not with yours. When I changed the settings, I also lowered its range. Right now the range is restricted to Hyperion."

"Then give me yours. I'll give it back when I get him to answer."

Jack rolled his eyes, but handed the comm over to him without an argument. He shot Timothy a warning glare when he dared to look surprised.

"I want it back before dinner, kiddo."

"You'll get it back when I give it back," Rhys replied, and left the living room to the sound of Timothy's snorting laughter.

He retreated into the bedroom and sat on the bed, staring at the comm as he tried to remember what the frequency of the other comm was. He only knew Jack's and Sasha's off the top of his head, but there were only so many frequencies programmed into it anyway, so he started to systematically go through all of them.

It took three awkward calls to Zer0, Sasha, and Fiona until he found the right frequency. A mixture of excitement and trepidation churned in his stomach and his heart sank when nobody answered. He missed his friends. He wanted to talk to them just as much as he wanted to know that they were safe.

He called twice more before giving up and returning to the living room, which was now empty. The brothers were gone and having no idea when they'd return, Rhys decided to stretch out on the couch and turn on the television. It wasn't very interesting, but it was enough to keep his anxiety at bay.

He sat up when the elevator arrived some time later, though he was greeted with someone he hadn't expected to see ever again.

Angel looked surprised too. "Uh, hi. Who are you?" She cast a curious glance at his arm and he shifted his shoulder.

"My name is Rhys. I am a part of Jack's crew. You're Angel?"

She nodded. "Yep, that's me. Is my dad around?"

"No. He and Tim left."

"Oh."

She sounded so disappointed and he felt bad for her. It must have been really hard for her to just lose Jack like she did. "I can call when he comes back," he offered.

"No, it's…you don't have to do that," she assured. "I'll just come back later. Will you promise not to tell him I was here?"

"Why?" If she was looking for him, what was the point of keeping that a secret?

"Because I don't want him trying to avoid me."

Though he didn't believe Jack would do that, he nodded. "I promise."

He gestured towards the shaved half of her head with his left hand. "I like your hair."

She gave him a small smile. "Thanks. I did it myself," she said, then glanced at the clock. "When do you think my dad will be back?"

"I don't know the exact time, but you should come back around sunset. We'll probably be eating, but he'll be here."

Angel nodded. "Thanks again. I really appreciate it." She looked down at the floor and took a step back towards the elevator. "If I ruin your dinner, I apologize in advance."

"You won't ruin dinner," he assured her. When she merely gave him an uneasy smile, he repeated, "You won't ruin anything. I think Jack will be happy to talk to you."

Her expression was skeptical, but she didn't argue. "If you say so," she responded hesitantly. "Anyway, I should go. I'll be back later." When she entered the elevator, she gave him a small wave before the doors closed.

Rhys listened to the sounds of the elevator grow fainter before he settled back on the couch. Angel seemed nice, and he thought it'd would be interesting to actually talk to her, but she seemed shy and he didn't want to force a conversation out of her.

He had barely managed to get comfortable again when Jack's comm went off. He answered it, but didn't get a chance to say anything before Nisha was growling, "Come down here and tell this idiot to let me in before I blow his brains all over the walls."

He was silent, not knowing what to do or say.

"Jack, I will kick your ass if you don't—"

"Um, Jack's not here."

Her threat cut off and she was eerily quiet for several seconds. "Are you serious?"

"Y-yeah. I borrowed his comm and then he left. I don't know where he is."

She snarled in his ear. "Fine. Then you get to come down here and make them let me in."

"What can I do? I don't live here."

"All I need is for someone to come down here and vouch for me, so get your skinny ass down here."

The command was all he needed in order to jump into action. He threw on his clothes and cloak, pausing long enough to swap Jack's comm in his ear for his own and stuffing the device in his pocket. He rushed over to the elevator and impatiently bounced on his heels as he waited for it to reach him. By the time he made it down to the first floor, she was reaching for her gun.

"Nisha!" he yelled, getting her attention as well as Blake's. She had barely made it in the doorway before being stopped, and he hurried over to her. She glared at him and he gave her a sheepish smile in return.

"You're the kid from last night."  

Rhys nodded. "Yes. She works with Jack."

It was a simple statement, but it did the trick. Blake stepped out of the way, though she still managed to clip his shoulder roughly when she passed him.

"When did you take his comm? Because he just called me and told me to come here a half hour ago."

"I've had it for a while now. Did he tell you where he is?"

She punched the elevator button and he followed her inside once the doors opened. "Yeah. He said go to floor 89." The doors slid shut once she hit the corresponding button, and she leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, side-eyeing him.

"So you stayed with Jack last night?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah. We stayed in his old apartment."

"Did you ask him about why he doesn't do relationships anymore?"

"No," he admitted. "I didn't really find the right time. We were having a good night, and then we got here and Tassiter was here, and he said things about Jack's mask and—"

"Wait, he insulted Jack?"

"Yeah. It was…bad. He really didn't take it well."

He shifted his bare feet on the cool floor and watched the lights shimmer on the tile. "Were you two together when he got the scar?"

"Not yet. He hadn't worked up the balls to do anything but call me sexy a couple of times. I used to help him put the mask on, though. Before he figured out how to do it all on his own. We started dating not long after that. Why?"

"He showed me the scar last night, after everything with Tassiter. I think he was scared of what I'd say, but he trusted me enough to show me. And I want to take that as a good sign, but even after that he said he didn't want to be my mate, but then this morning he was talking about me staying with him after this is all over and—" He cut himself off as he looked over at her. "And I don't even know why I'm telling you this."

She laughed, and he wasn't sure if it was at him or his words. "Because I'm the only other person you know who's seen his dick. I'm the only other person who knows anything about how he thinks."

He huffed a bitter chuckle. "You're the only person who knows anything about how he thinks. I don't know shit." He sighed and leaned his head back. "I have no idea why he does anything. I didn't know he has a daughter, or that he had a wife. I know the stories he told me in the cove, but I don't think half of them are true."

"Probably not," she agreed.

"But I want to know about him. I want to know his family, his days before vault hunting, and what he was like growing up. But he won't tell me for some reason. I don't know how to get it out of him without upsetting him. I'm at at a loss."

"You can't just make him open up to you. He has to figure out his thoughts and feelings first, before he does he does anything," she told him. "You're just gonna have to let him work at his own pace, kid."

That was not an ideal plan, but since it wasn’t like he had any suggestions, he just stayed quiet.

The floor the elevator eventually stopped on was a large, open room with tables and chairs haphazardly shoved against the walls, save for one table located in the middle of the room. Timothy and Jack stood around it, staring down at a large holographic map that was almost identical to the one that Jack used in his office. There were various colored dots that marked certain spots, but Rhys couldn't decipher any sort of pattern.

"Hey, pumpkin. What are you doing here?" Jack asked, only briefly glancing up from the map. "Did you get in touch with your friends?"

"Nisha called your comm because that Blake guy wouldn’t let her in the building. I had to go ask him to let her in. And no, I didn't.” 

Jack rolled his eyes and held out his hand for the borrowed device, which Rhys handed over. “God, he’s so annoying. Sorry 'bout that, I had to borrow Timmy's to call you and forgot to mention it. Well, at least he listened.” 

“I was getting ready to just shoot him and get it over with,” Nisha added with a slight hint of regret.

Jack chuckled despite Timothy’s blatant disapproving scowl. “That would have been great. It’s a shame you didn’t.”

He straightened up. “Anyway, I called you here for a reason, so take a seat. Rhysie, if you’re going to stay, you can sit too.”

Once both of them dragged chairs over and sat down, he continued. “So Tim got word of a vault that’s appeared near the place Rhys used to live. So far nobody’s been able to open it, which isn’t surprising. But what is surprising is the signs of a large creature circling the vault.”

“Why is that surprising?” Rhys blurted out. “You said all vaults had monsters.”

“Yeah, on the inside . I’ve never heard of a vault where the vault monster was guarding the outside. Unless it’s already open, but I don’t see how that would be possible.” His gaze fell from Rhys back down to the map. “We’ve been trying to see if this creature is unique, which suggests vault monster, or just something that migrated from other areas. Not having much luck, though.”

Nisha leaned back in her chair. “This is fascinating and all, but I’m not staying for that.”

His head snapped up. “What?”

“I need to go back to Maliwan. I’ve been away too long already and I don’t want to find out that my jail is overflowing with criminals. Besides, I told you that I’m done vault hunting.”

“No, Nish, wait. Please, I need you for this,” he pleaded, rounding the table to stand in front of her. “We did this once, we can do it again. Tim already said he won’t go, so we’re down a gunman.”

Timothy rolled his eyes. “I’m lending you about eighty soldiers. One vault hunter surely can’t make a difference.”

“And that’s where you’re wrong, Timmy,” he grit out. “Your soldiers don’t know what vaults are like. They will be great firepower but vaults are special. Anything can go wrong in a vault if you don’t know what you’re doing.” His voice was strained and Timothy contemplated him for several moments, but did not comment.

Jack turned back to Nisha and gave her his best pleading expression. “Nisha, babe, please stay. The whole thing will take three weeks, four if you want to go back to Maliwan. I’m not dragging you back into vault hunting, I’m just asking the best shot on the planet to do me a favor.”

She stared at him impassively with her arms folded, and shifted her eyes between Rhys and Jack. “Fine,” she conceded after a long, drawn out silence, “I’ll stick around. I’d rather not hear that those sisters died because you didn’t have enough real vault hunters around.” She leaned forward and pointed a finger at him. “You get a month, and that’s it. And you’re paying me for my time. If there’s weapons, I want the best one.”

“Alright, we can do that,” he assured her, his grin almost too wide for his face. “You get first pick. The rest have to go to Tim, though, so you can only get one.”

Nisha rose from her chair. “I need to go call my deputies then. When you get the rest of the crew up here to talk plans, let me know.”

She left the room and Rhys looked up at Jack. "So when are we going?" The sooner the better; if they could get rid of the monster, then his friends would be safe.

"Not sure yet. Probably as soon as we get the ship stocked and the soldiers rounded up, but that shouldn't take long."

Timothy straightened his back and winced when his spine popped. "I can have everything ready for you in two days. Would you like a pilot? Otherwise I'll have someone show you how to steer a battleship."

Jack groaned. "Just give me a pilot, I don't want to have to deal with that."

He motioned for Rhys to stand. "Come on, kiddo. Let's get you back to my apartment. I've got things to discuss with Tim and you don't have to stick around for the crew meeting."

Rhys tried to dig his feet into the carpet when Jack guided him towards the elevator. "But I want to stay here with you. Your apartment is boring."

"That's why I showed you the TV," he responded in a quiet voice. "If you're really that bored, I can get a security guard to walk with you around the city."

He rolled his eyes at Rhys's pout. "You're going to be just as bored up here, trust me, so just go back down to my apartment and take a nap or something. I won't be gone long, and then we can go do something in the city, okay?"

Rhys frowned at him, but begrudgingly relented. "Okay, I'll go back to the apartment."

Jack grinned and led him into the elevator since Rhys didn't know where to go. "Alright, kitten," he said when the doors closed, "don't look so mopey. It's only a while longer while I prepare for the trip. The more you let me work, the quicker we can get back to the trench and get that pesky vault monster away from your friends. Then we can get a new crew and start looking for the next adventure, okay?"  

The promise made him smile a little. He wanted nothing more than to spend his days with Jack, and all he had to do was wait a little longer for him to plan the journey back to the trench. He could do that.

"Give me a kiss before you leave," he requested, reaching out and tugging Jack closer by the front of his vest.

Jack huffed a chuckle and abided the request, though the quick peck wasn't what Rhys had meant, judging from the soft growl he made. "Easy, kitten."

"You didn't mark me this time," Rhys pointed out, his right hand holding him close by keeping a tight grip on his coat. "Why not?"

"Because you kept kissing me and I couldn't get my mouth anywhere else," Jack answered, amused. "Besides, I don't need Timmy prodding at my personal life. He can stay in the dark for all I care."

The doors opened much too soon, and Rhys glared at the apartment like it had personally offended him. Jack merely laughed at his irritation and urged him into the apartment.

"Come on now, just sit tight for a while longer. If you're a good boy, I might buy you ice cream for dessert."

"'Might' isn't going to cut it," he retorted as he sat down on the couch. "I want ice cream."

"Only if you're good," Jack reminded him, then leaned down and gave Rhys another kiss to placate him for the time being. "I'll be back soon, I promise."

Jack ended up being gone for five more hours, which Rhys did not feel was soon.

Rhys hadn't been lying when he said the apartment was boring. The television grew dull after a while and eventually he turned it off. He tried to nap, but couldn't fall asleep. In the end, he walked around and explored the different rooms, snooping through drawers and cabinets like he did when he searched for treasures on ships. He didn't find anything on Jack's past, which was unfortunate, though he did find something interesting.

By the time Jack returned, Rhys was laying on his stomach on the living room floor, poking at the screen of an ECHO device. It was old and barely functional, but the simple rhythm game programmed into it seemed to entertain Rhys enough.

"What'cha playing, kitten?"

Rhys didn't bother to look up, not wanting to mess up his streak. "Dunno. All I know is that I have to hit the buttons at the right time."

"Where did you get the ECHO device?"

"Your old desk," he answered easily, only to growl when he missed a button and the game ended. He rolled onto his back and looked up at him. "Are you done for the day?"

Jack slid his vest and white shirt off, tossing them over the back of the couch, and rolled up the sleeves of his yellow sweater. "Yep. Are you hungry?"

"Starving."

Jack helped Rhys up to his feet and went to search for food in the kitchen. When that proved to be futile, he called Blake and told him to go pick up fish, some vegetables (ignoring Rhys's complaints), and ice cream and have them sent up to the apartment.

Blake ended up being surprisingly quick, and in a couple of hours Jack had dinner cooked for both of them with ice cream sitting in the freezer for when Rhys finished all of his plate.

True to his word, Rhys hadn't mentioned Angel's prior visit to Jack. As the sun set, however, he continuously glanced back towards the elevator in anticipation. After they finished eating and Rhys managed to convince Jack to get out the ice cream despite the carrots he refused to eat, he started to wonder if she had decided against showing up again.

It was late and Rhys was leaning heavily against Jack, nosing at his shoulder while the television played some old movie that Jack was somehow enjoying, when the elevator dinged unexpectedly.

Jack nudged Rhys away a bit roughly, startled by the sound, and they both looked over as the doors opened.

Angel looked more nervous than she had been earlier, but she took a small step into the apartment. "Hi, Dad. Can…can I come in?"

Jack was up from the couch in an instant and he moved to brighten the dim lights. "Of course, baby." He glanced back at Rhys on the couch and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Let's go to my room."

Angel followed Jack down the hallway and into the bedroom, and Rhys heard the lock turn. He sat there for a while, contemplating Jack's right to privacy, before he pushed all of that aside and crept down the hall.

Angel's strained, quiet voice spilled into the corridor. "Did I do something to make you leave? Is that it? I know it was kind of my fault that Mom died but—"

"No, Angel. You didn't kill her," Jack said sternly.

There was a pause, and then he sighed. "I just couldn't stand it, alright? I didn't like being CEO, and your mother was the only one who kept me from losing my mind. Tassiter was driving me insane with all of his nagging and I wanted to strangle every last member of the board any time they opened their mouths. When Timothy came back from the navy, I saw a chance to get away. I did consider taking you with me, but I knew I wasn't going to just go settle down somewhere else and I wasn't going to put you in danger. I didn't know how to tell you I was leaving, so I didn't."

"Five years, Dad. Five. And you didn't think to call me once? Not on Christmas or my birthday or anything?"

"…No, I didn't. I assumed you'd be upset if I called after just leaving."

She laughed harshly. "God, you're so stupid. I wish you had called, because I spent five years thinking it was both of my parents were gone because of me."

Her voice cracked and Rhys strained to hear Jack softly plead, "No, baby, don't cry."

"Don't touch me. Why did you even come back?"

"Timothy set a bounty to get in contact with me, but Tassiter upped it to get me to come back. Tim wanted me to know that he was handing Hyperion over to you."

"Really? Then what did Mr. Tassiter want you for?"

"Let's not talk about that old bastard, okay? Let's talk about something else," Jack suggested gently. "Tim told me you started going to public school a little while after I left."

Rhys stepped away from the door before he could listen for her answer. It felt weirdly invasive to listen to them talk about Angel's personal life, more than it did to hear them fight, which he already felt bad for doing. He didn't want to push his chances for getting caught either and he crept back to the living room and laid down on the couch to wait.

He must have drifted off, because he was woken up by voices as they came into the living room. He opened his eyes and sat up enough to see Angel move away when Jack leaned in to kiss her head, though she did give him a quick hug before she went into the elevator.

He didn't say anything as Jack came over to the couch and sat down in his previous spot, allowing Rhys to lay his head in his lap.

"Everything okay?" Rhys asked hesitantly, looking up at him. "How is she?"

"Everything's fine. She's fine," Jack answered absently as he watched the screen in disinterest.

Rhys rolled onto his side and stared at the floor without another word. Nisha had told him Jack needed to figure everything out on his own, but Rhys wasn't sure how much longer he could wait.

Chapter Text

Jack wasn’t in bed the next morning. He wasn’t in the bathroom either. Or the kitchen. The shower wasn’t wet and the stove wasn’t warm, so he must have been gone for some time.

Rhys called his comm, but there was no answer. The same thing happened with each frequency he tried and eventually he gave up trying to contact them.

Instead, he searched for breakfast. Everything was either cold or frozen, and cold fish was not really all that appealing. With no other options, he got dressed and took the elevator down to the first floor. He was hoping that he could ask Blake to get him something to eat, since Blake had brought some for Jack the night before.

Blake wasn’t at the front desk. Rhys recognized the woman who had been there the first day, though he didn’t know her name or anything. His nervous smile was met with a wary frown as he approached. Considering how Jack had callously burst in that day, he wasn’t really surprised that she was hesitant to speak to him.

She had no comm in either ear and he took a moment to try and get his words together. “Hello,” he said slowly. “Can you…uh…order fish?”

She stared at him, then picked up her ECHO device and typed out a message, only bothering to answer him once she’d sent it off.

“Look, I don’t know who you are. I don’t work for Jack and I don’t work for you. My job is not to run errands; it is to sit here and help Mr. Lawrence with any of his guests who arrive. I’m not going to go fetch food for you just because you asked.”

His face flushed pink and he stepped away from the desk. “Sorry,” he told her quickly. It wasn’t like he would have known any of that, but instead of trying to explain himself, he headed towards the front doors. Surely he could get food somewhere in the city.

He’d almost reached the door when his name was called, and he paused to look behind him. It was only Timothy and he smiled. “Hi.”  

“Does Jack know you’re down here?”

The smile vanished. “No. He won’t answer his comm. But I was just going to go walk around the city. I’m hungry and Blake brought us food last night, so I hoped he could do that today, too.”

“Blake didn’t show this morning, and I don’t think Jack would be happy to know you’re wandering around on your own.”

“Jack should answer my calls, then. He knows that I can’t cook by myself.”

“He isn’t accepting any calls right now. He got up early and holed up in one of the conference rooms with his crew, and I tried to call to see if he was going to be all day or not and got no answer.”

Timothy glanced at the doors, then placed a hand on Rhys’s shoulder blade. It felt a lot like Jack’s touch, though Tim was more forceful as he guided Rhys back to the elevator. “Come with me and I’ll get you something to eat.”

Rhys moved away once they were inside and leaned against a wall. If Jack had the rest of the crew with him, why hadn’t he invited Rhys? Sure, he wasn’t going to be a part of the fight but they were doing this for his sake; he should be there with them.

Neither of them said a word as the elevator went up, and Rhys didn’t think to ask where they were going until the doors opened up to a different apartment. It looked to be the same size, but everything was arranged differently and there was way more furniture. It felt a lot cozier than Jack’s apartment, and he assumed it was Tim’s.

“Come on, I should have some pre-made meals that we can just heat up.”

Rhys followed him to the kitchen, which had shiny black countertops instead of the white stone Jack’s kitchen had. Even though the layout was the same, it felt completely different.

“So, Rhys,” Timothy began as he searched for something to give him, “how’s life as a human?”

“It’s alright. Everything’s so different compared to what I’m used to. But I like the sun, and I’ve made friends.” They couldn't replace his old ones, but they were still his friends.

“How did you end up with Jack?” He pulled a container from the freezer. “I have some fish sticks. Would those work?”

“I’ve never had them, but I’ll try them.”

Rhys rested his elbow on the counter. “I saved him,” he said quietly as Timothy started preparing the oven. “He was drowning and I took him to a beach. I gave him food in secret, up until he caught me. Then he started to tell me stories. We spent a lot of time together. Then my colony found out and banished me. I received a wish from a woman outside of my colony and it turned me human.”

Tim didn’t press him to go into more detail, which was nice. “Well, thanks for saving him. He’s an asshole, but he’s my brother and Angel’s dad. I would hate to lose him. And despite everything, I think Angel would too.”

Rhys looked over at Tim, chewing on the inside of his cheek. Timothy probably knew what happened to Jack’s wife. If he could find out, maybe he would understand why Jack refused to be his mate. He knew the problem wasn’t entirely about Jack’s wife since he had dated Nisha, but he was running low on ideas and growing desperate for an answer.

Even though he felt awful going to Tim instead of hearing it from Jack, he didn’t have a choice. It wasn’t like Jack was going to tell him

“Tim, what happened to Jack’s wife?”

Timothy hesitated. “I don’t think you should hear it from me. Ask Jack.”

Rhys dragged his thumb over the black granite countertop, smudging the shiny surface. “He won’t tell me. I didn’t even know he had a daughter or a brother until we came here. He won’t talk about it at all.” He lifted his gaze back to Tim. “Please? I won’t say you told me.”

After a long moment, Timothy sighed. “Honestly, I don’t know the full story. I was in the navy at the time, and took a leave of absence when I heard that she had died to help Jack take care of Angel. I was told by Blake that she got sick and deteriorated too quickly for the doctor to confirm a diagnosis. By the time I got here, she had already been cremated and Jack had packed away all of her belongings. He didn’t talk about it with me, either.”

That really wasn’t all that helpful. Rhys couldn't see how her being ill would affect Jack’s thoughts on relationships…maybe she wasn't the reason after all.

He snapped out of his thoughts when Timothy cleared his throat, looking a bit uncomfortable. “So...uh...he’s never really been the type to discuss personal matters,” he said, refusing to look at Rhys, “and he punched me when I asked, but he’s not exactly subtle…” He paused to collect himself before attempting to continue. “What I’m trying to ask is...is he…are you…”

“Are you trying to ask if I’m having sex with Jack?”

Tim grimaced. “I really don’t want to think about who my brother is sleeping with; I was asking more about a relationship. Regardless of your answer, I wanted to know if I was crazy or not. It’s just that with the way he’s been acting, it was kind of obvious.”

Rhys gave him a small smile despite the ache in his chest. “No, we aren’t in a relationship. We are…sleeping with each other,” he said, gathering that that was another term for sex. Humans had a lot of them. “You aren’t completely wrong, but I don’t know about not crazy.”

Tim rolled his eyes. “Cute, real cute. Your humor’s just like his. Less crude, though.”

He stepped away when the oven beeped and slipped the fish sticks into the oven, turning the timer as Rhys pulled his cloak off and draped it over the other stool. Tim’s eyes followed the arc of Rhys’s arm when he stretched it out, but he didn’t say anything about it.

Rhys carefully rested his right arm on the counter, wary of scraping the surface. “So what made you think that we were together?”

“Hm?” Tim hummed, attention snapping back to Rhys’s face.

“You said Jack’s behavior wasn’t subtle. What was so obvious?”

Tim leaned his arms against the countertop. “Other than the fact that you’re staying in his room?” he asked with a small grin. “Do I really need to say anything else?”

When Rhys’s face flushed pink and he didn’t respond, Tim took pity on him and answered, “Honestly though, it’s the fact that he’s patient with you He allows you to talk back to him and he tolerates you asking things of him. Yesterday, you argued with him about going to back to the apartment. It may not have seemed like much, but he wouldn’t have let anyone else do that, not in a million years. Not to mention this whole eridium business. I don’t know much about vaults, but I do know that going after one is no small feat. The fact that he’s going after one for you is very telling.”

Tim tapped his fingers absently against his cheek. “I’m really surprised you both aren’t in a relationship. He doesn’t really act like he’s interested in a sex-only relationship..”

Rhys could feel the heat radiating from his face. He didn’t know how to respond to Timothy’s observations. Apparently everyone could see Jack’s feelings. Everyone except for Jack. Or maybe Jack did notice, but refused to acknowledge his own feelings, which was driving Rhys insane. What made him so undesirable as a mate? If he could pinpoint the reason, he could fix it.

“Well, that’s why I asked about his wife. I want to know why he won’t do anything other than have sex with me. He says he doesn’t do relationships anymore but won’t say why.”

Timothy hummed. “I wish I could help, but I really don’t know how to answer that for you. We were close once; as children, we were best friends. But that relationship died about twelve years ago, when he got too busy being CEO and I joined the navy. I haven’t actually sat down and talked to him since before his wife died; he started shutting me out after that.” Tim chuckled ruefully. “Hell, at this point, you probably know more about him than I do.”

Rhys frowned at that, doubtful of the claim, but chose not to reply. Instead he rested his chin on his upturned palm and allowed the conversation to fade off as they waited for the fish sticks to finish cooking.

Timothy made himself lunch as well, and they ate in relative silence. The fish sticks weren’t great, but they were edible and that was what mattered the most to him.

With still no word from Jack, Timothy took Rhys back down to Jack’s apartment once they’d finished eating. It was still empty, and Tim rested a large hand on Rhys’s shoulder blade when he slouched in disappointment.

“He’ll stop obsessing over his plans soon,” he soothed. “That single-mindedness has always been an issue of his, but he’ll snap out of it. When he gets back, I suggest talking to him about finding entertainment or getting some more freedoms.”

Rhys rolled his eyes. “I don’t need his permission to do anything. I’m not a child.”

“I know,” Timothy responded, “but I’m asking for my sake. I don’t need him causing chaos because you disappeared on him.” He smiled faintly, sympathetically. “Hand me your comm. I’ll program my frequency into it so if you get hungry again, all you have to do is call.”

Surprised by the gesture, Rhys did as he was requested and handed the communicator over to him. Tim programmed it quickly and returned it, speaking again when Rhys had it back in his ear.

“There. I’m usually working but if you need something and can’t reach Jack, call me.”

Rhys smiled and nodded. “I will. Thank you, Tim.” It was nice to have someone to help him out when Jack was busy. Timothy seemed really sweet, and it as weird to see someone who so closely resembled Jack to be so... different from Jack. But he did appreciate everything Timothy had done for him.

He made himself comfortable on the couch, his cloak haphazardly thrown over a chair as he stretched out, his legs occupying the full length of the couch. He had no desire to turn on the television and the ECHO device he’d played with the day before had died and wouldn’t turn on. With no other source of entertainment, he closed his eyes and let himself rest.

 He woke up shaking, but upon opening his eyes he saw Jack hovering over him and felt the hand on his shoulder. The man gave him a toothy grin, but Rhys scowled, then swatted his hand away and rolled over to face the couch cushions.

“What’re you so pissy about?”

Rhys shot him a pointed glare over his shoulder. “You left this morning. I even tried to call you. Three times.”

Jack groaned. “Kitten, I was busy. I had to have a meeting with the crew about what we need to do for the vault. I wasn’t ignoring you for the fun of it.”

He rolled Rhys onto his back and settled over him as Rhys folded his arms and scowled. “Why didn’t you take me? I’m a part of the crew too. Aren’t I?”

“Of course you are, pumpkin. But I got up really early and thought you’d like to keep sleeping. Besides, this was about the monster and hot to fight it, which you don’t have to worry about.

“I missed you a lot, though. I thought about coming to check on you when I had lunch, but I didn’t get the chance.” Jack gave him a wolfish grin. “But I’m here now, so let me make it up to you.”

The kiss Jack gave him was soft, at least until Jack tried to deepen it. Rhys gave in with no protest, mostly happy to have Jack back, when he heard Timothy’s voice in his head:

“He doesn’t really act like he’s only interested in sex.”

The kiss was soured in an instant and Rhys pushed Jack away. “We need to talk.”

Jack frowned and tried to lean back in. “Can’t it wait?”

Rhys held him at bay. “No, it can’t. Get off me.”

When Jack rolled his eyes and relented, Rhys sat up and ran his fingers through his hair. He had Jack’s full attention and could ask anything he wanted. There were several hard-hitting questions he could have brought up, but he chose one that he hoped he would at least get an answer for: “What happened to your wife?”

The slight irritation on Jack’s face darkened. “Rhys,” he growled slowly, “I told you I don’t want to talk about her. Drop it.”

Rhys frowned. “Why are you so adamant that your past stays secret? You didn’t tell me that you had any family, the only reason I even know about you wife was Angel, and on top of that, I’ve met Angel and you still won’t talk about her!”

He stopped for a breath and tried not to tremble, knowing he was working himself up, but Jack’s expression hadn’t changed and that was only making him feel worse. “What is your problem? Why is this such a big deal?”

Jack was silent and Rhys clenched his jaw tighter as tight wore on. He was on the verge of speaking again when Jack opened his mouth. “It’s my past, I’m not obligated to share it.”

It was ridiculous, the lengths Jack went to in order to not talk about his ast. Rhys felt like screaming. But instead, he swallowed around his anger and collected his words.

“I know you’re not ‘obligated’ to share your past. But you’ve kept everything from me. The longer we stay here and the more I talk to other people who were close to you, the more I realize I know nothing about you. Nothing. And all I’ve been trying to do is fix that, but you keep brushing me off. You’ll risk your life and fight a vault monster for my sake, but won’t even tell me about your family. Why? What makes me so different from someone like Nisha that makes you so reluctant to tell me anything?”

“...I don’t want to have this conversation right now.”

The impassiveness of his face was insufferable. Rhys took a deep breath. “Fine. Then consider it over.”

He couldn’t stand to be in the same room as him any longer, and he headed towards the elevator.

“Where are you going?”

Rhys’s gaze snapped up from the panel of buttons and he stared Jack down as he jabbed the ground floor button. As the doors closed, he smiled. “I don’t want to have that conversation right now.”

The doors slid shut just as Jack hopped up with a shout of protest. When the elevator lurched, Rhys leaned back against the wall and pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes. His breath shuddered and he struggled to steady it on the ride down. It didn’t help when his comm rang in his ear and he clenched his jaw, yanking it out and stuffing it into his pocket. He debated throwing it at the wall, but he’d need it if he wanted to call Sasha later. The elevator dinged in warning and he inhaled sharply, steeling himself, and headed directly for the front doors once the elevator doors opened.

Few people walked down the street, but the ones that did gave him strange glances. But he couldn’t blame them; he was barefoot and had left his cloak on the floor of the apartment, along with everything else he owned. He kept his back straight,  hoping that his perceived confidence would deter any opportunists.

The orange and pink sky above his head began to dim as night approached and he tried to stick to the well-lit paths as the streetlights flickered on. Even though he was technically hiding from Jack, he liked being able to see clearly.

Not that they helped much. After a while of aimless walking, he stepped directly into a pile of glass shards. He hissed and jerked his foot away, hopping over to lean against the streetlight. Bits of colored glass were lodged in his foot and he scowled at the rivulets of blood that slid over the dirty soles. One by one, he plucked out the shards and tossed back towards the pile until all that was left was the blood. He tested his weight on it; it still stung but he could at least walk on it.

He kept walking, though now he was limping instead, until his foot was throbbing and his legs ached too much to continue. He slid down against a wall with his legs stretched out in front of him, closing his eyes and leaning his head back. He had no idea where in the city he was and he didn’t care. As long as he was away from Jack, it didn’t matter where he was.

He had been walking with a blank mind for ages and now that he wasn’t trying to decide on the best path, he allowed his thoughts to drift back to Jack. It hurt knowing that even if Rhys was begging him, Jack preferred not to talk about himself unless it was a story about how cool he was. What made him so inadequate that he wasn’t even allowed to ask about his daughter?

A breeze blew past him and he shivered, drawing his uninjured leg up to his chest. It probably wasn’t smart to stay out all night long, but if his only other choice was to go back to Jack, he would rather sleep outside. Though he supposed that if it came down to it, he could call Sasha and ask to stay with her for the night. He pulled his comm from his pocket and looked it over, then put it in his ear. He would pick being teased by her and Fiona over trying to talk to Jack.

He frowned at the street and rested his chin on his knee. After everything that he had dealt with for the past week, he was starting to see everyone’s point when it came to Jack. He really was an asshole, there was no denying it. More than once Jack had given him reason to doubt that claim, but meant nothing. Rhys had seen a lot of different sides of Jack, like the one who took him swimming or the one that held him while it stormed, and yet he didn’t know if he could believe them anymore.

He missed the days when he could just listen to stories, when he could just watch Jack pantomime huge explosions or dying pirates with a genuine grin on his face. Now everything was confusing and upsetting. He wanted to go home.

There was really no telling how long he sat there, hugging one leg and feeling sorry for himself, before he heard footsteps and felt a boot poke his side. He swatted the stranger’s shin with his right hand, hitting them a bit harder than he meant to. When he heard a familiar voice swear, he jerked his head up and glared at Jack, who was touching his leg gingerly.

“I think you dented my shin.”

Rhys rolled his eyes and pushed himself up to his feet, wincing when he put his injured foot on the ground. He managed to take two steps before a hand grabbed his right wrist.

“Rhys, stop. Where are you even going?”

“Don’t know, don’t care. Anywhere but here.” He tried to tug his arm free but without being able to move quickly, he couldn’t budge. “Let go of me.”

“Pouting at me isn’t going to help anything. Just calm down, okay?”

He grit his teeth and took a step on his bad foot, far enough that he could yank his wrist free of Jack’s grip. “No.”

Jack huffed in aggravation, but paused when Rhys started to limp away from him. “What’s wrong with your leg?”

“I stepped on something—ow!” Jack grabbed him and he scraped the bottom of his foot on the concrete when he stumbled.

“Then you don’t need to be walking on it. Let’s go back to HQ and let me look at your foot.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you. Leave me alone.”

Jack growled. “Rhys…”

“Jack…” Rhys mocked. “Seriously, leave me alone. I’m not dealing with you right now.”

He managed to free his arm again and started to walk away. “Goodbye, Jack!”

“Listen to me!” Jack barked, and the edge to his voice made Rhys pause. When he realized Rhys was listening, Jack cleared his throat. “I’m here to talk, okay?”

That got his attention and Rhys turned around, folding his arms to keep from being grabbed again. “Then I’m listening.”

Jack ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t know why you want to know about my past so badly. I really don’t. But if it’s really so important, here it is: when me and Timothy were born, our mother left. Our father was a civilian and wasn’t approved by our grandmother, so he was executed. Me and Tim were basically raised by her and our tutors, who were all assholes. They decided I was going to be the heir to Hyperion, so I didn’t have a choice.

“I got married to Angel’s mother when I was twenty. Angel was born almost two years later. I didn’t like running Hyperion. I was trained for it, I was good at it, but I hated it. I hated Tassiter and I hated my grandmother and I hated every last frickin’ board member. But Angel’s mother kept me calm and I did my job, for both her and Angel.” He paused and Rhys watched him take a deep breath.

“I was off-world for a business meeting when Angel was ten. Her and her mother were out one day and someone tried to nab Angel. I don’t know why, but it was probably to get to me. She managed to get Angel away from them, but one of them jabbed her with a syringe. We never got a chance to figure out what was in it, but the doctor said it definitely had some run-off from our eridium mines in it. Regardless, she got sick. I summoned every doctor on the island, and I was trying to get in touch with other companies, but she died in a couple of days. I got back only a few hours before she passed.  

“I tried to keep working but it was driving me insane. I couldn’t take care of Angel by myself and Timothy kept pestering me about what happened to her mother once he was back, and one day I lost it. Some board member snarked at me because of something I did during a meeting and I shot him in the chest. Twice. I stormed out, packed a bag, grabbed a Hyperion ship and left. I didn’t say goodbye to Angel or Timothy or anyone.”

He looked up from the ground and met Rhys’s gaze. “Happy now? Is that what you wanted to hear?” His voice was taut and Rhys could see the tiny tremors of his shoulders as he stepped closer.

“I…I’m sorry, Jack.” He felt bad for asking for the whole story, but he couldn’t help the joy that came from the fact that Jack was actually talking. “I kept asking because I hoped I’d figure out why you hate the idea of a relationship… But I don’t know if that has anything to do with it,” he admitted.

Jack snorted and looked over at the wall, avoiding Rhys’s face again. “She died because of her connection to me. Angel almost did, too. Forgive me for being on edge about letting someone else be in that position.”

“What about Nisha?”

He chuckled bitterly and the sound wavered. “Are you kidding? Nisha could slaughter a whole island of bandits by herself if she wanted to. I never had any reason to be afraid for her safety. But you…” He sighed. “Kiddo, you’re a magnet for trouble. In the time I’ve known you, you’ve nearly died five times, and four of those were from malicious intent. You’ve got that arm and your shield but you refuse to wield a gun. The idea of putting you in more danger because of your association with me is more of a nightmare than anything.”

That was not the answer Rhys was expecting to hear. “So you won’t say you’re my mate because you’ll think I’ll die?”

“...Yeah.”

Rhys tried to stifle his smile. “Jack, a title isn’t going to stop anything. Everyone can see you have feelings for me. Tim asked me about us, and I think even Angel suspects something. Nisha knows, and Sasha sees it too. The only way to get around that would to be to get rid of me, and we both know I’d be in worse shape if that ever happened.”

He rubbed his flesh arm as another breeze rolled through and he wished he’d brought his cloak. “Can we go back? I’m kind of cold. And we can talk there instead.”

Jack nodded and helped him back to HQ, which was actually not as far as he had originally thought. It turned out that lots of turns made distances seem a lot longer than they actually were.

They didn’t talk much as Jack helped him to the bathroom and stripped him down for a bath. While Rhys sat in the tub as it filled, Jack picked the smaller pieces of glass out of his foot and cleaned it up.

“See what I mean?” he said as he wrapped a bandage around it. “A magnet for trouble.”

Rhys scoffed and rolled his eyes. “It was dark and I didn’t see it. It’s not like something mysteriously broke right before I stepped on it.”

Jack released him and sat back on the floor while Rhys soaked in the hot water. “So the world thinks I’m that obvious, huh?” he said after a while.

“You are that obvious,” came Rhys’s chipper reply. “But it’s okay. Now I know why you act like you’re not.”

“So does that mean you’re going to learn how to use a gun? To put an old man’s mind at ease?”

He hummed. “Maybe. I’ll think about it.”

"Asshole,” Jack grunted as he climbed to his feet. “We’ll finish talking after you’re down with your weird bath rituals.”

Rhys scowled at his back, but sank under the water without a reply. He closed his eyes and let himself relax, or tried to. He couldn’t hold back his grin and he ended up surfacing much earlier than normal to hide his face in his hands. An awful day turned out to have a good ending and he had never imagined a day when Jack actually opened up about himself. It wasn’t the nicest story, but it was hopefully just the beginning.

He ended up being too wound up to fully enjoy a long bath, and before long he was getting dressed and climbing onto the couch with Jack. The television was on, but Jack grabbed the remote and switched it off a moment later.

“So. You want me to talk more.”

“That’d be nice.”

Jack grunted. “What would you even want me to talk about?”

“Yourself? Just…you.” Rhs flushed when Jack raised an eyebrow at him. He never expected to get this far and he had to think of examples on the spot. “I don’t know, your favorite color or something.”

“I like yellow.”

The first thing that came to mind was Hugo’s tail, and Rhys grimaced as he pushed the thought away. He wasn’t going to think about him right now. “Favorite fish?”

“You.”

Rhys scowled at Jack’s grin and gave his arm a half-hearted whack as he leaned back and rested his legs across Jack’s lap. “I’m not a fish.”

“You were , though. Now you’re human.”

“I was never a fish,” he growled, though it did nothing to dissuade Jack’s amusement. “If you’re going to be a jerk, I’m not going to talk to you.”

Jack smirked and slipped out from under Rhys’s legs, climbing up his body and settling over him. Rhys looked towards the open living room but Jack gently forced his head to look up. “I thought you weren’t going to be grumpy anymore if I played nice?”

“You aren’t playing nice,” Rhys retorted. “I’m not a fish.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll stop calling you a fish,” he relented. “But are you done with the questions? Because I think of something better we could be doing.”

Rhys rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t help his smile. “I guess you’ve earned it…”

He looped his arms around Jack’s neck and pulled him down for a kiss. It was slow and languid, and Jack was trying to deepen it when the elevator doors opened.

Jack pulled away with a growl and lifted himself up to shoot a glare over his shoulder. “What do you want, Tim? Kinda in the middle of something here.” He gestured down to Rhys, who tried to hide against the couch cushions.

Timothy was shaking, his fists clenched so tight that his knuckles were white and his face was red. “You killed Tassiter, you fucking psychopath!”

Jack groaned and sat up. “That was nearly three days ago. How are you just now figuring it out?”

“I didn’t even know he came back from his conference! I’ve been trying to call him since you got here and the only reason I even know is because Blake called and asked if I’d seen him!”

“What’s the big deal?”

“‘What’s the big deal?’ You left him in his apartment. I repeat, you left a dead man just sitting in an apartment. That is beyond disgusting, Jack!”

Jack waved him off. “He was an asshole, Timmy. He didn’t deserve anything better than that. He was just as bad as Grandma.”

Timothy grit his teeth. “He was the only person who helped me run the damn company, and don’t you dare compare him to her. He never beat us, he never killed your cat.”

He snorted. “Yeah, because she killed it and I never got another one. I bet he would have done it too.”

Jack got up and stood in front of his brother. “Tassiter was a power-hungry jackass, Timmy. When I left, I took some papers that Grandma left in case either of us fucked up. He sent mercenaries after me to get them, and that’s what the bounty was for. He was going to use the papers to take the position away from Angel the moment you gave it to her and keep it for himself. You’re better off with him dead. If you need advice, talk to the board, that’s what they’re there for. If those idiots can’t help you, call me, okay? Does that make you feel better.”

Some of the vicious fury had faded, but there was no denying the frustration and anger that still boiled in Timothy. “There’s a dead body in this building, Jack. That’s disgusting. I saw it; it reeks in there. Someone has to clean it up.”

“You’re the boss, little bro. Pay someone to do it.” He smiled and patted Timothy’s shoulder. “Don’t say I never did anything for you.”

“I’m older than you,” Timothy deadpanned. “And that’s cruel. You made the mess, you clean it up.”

Jack’s smile fell. “No way. I’m not doing that.”

Timothy sucked in a breath and closed his eyes for a couple of seconds before he opened them and beamed back at him. “Do it or your whole trip is being called off. You are not leaving this island until it’s cleaned up, that I can guarantee you. I’ll call some people to help you out, but you’re doing most of the work.”

He turned and walked back to the elevator. “I suggest you hurry up, because it’s only going to get worse the longer you wait. Goodnight, Rhys.”

The doors shut and Jack turned back to Rhys helplessly. “What the hell was that? I’m being blackmailed into cleaning up a corpse.”

“He’s not wrong. It is gross, Jack. You couldn’t have left it outside?” Rhys made a face and stood up. “I’m going to bed. Get a bath when you come back.” He gave Jack a quick kiss and left him, retreating to the bedroom to try and get the image of Tassiter’s dead face out of his head. That was not what he wanted to be thinking about before he went to sleep.

Chapter Text

A week later, it was just Rhys and Jack on the early morning train ride out of Opportunity. With his satchel in his lap, Rhys stared out at the passing fields. Some were empty, the animals tucked away in whatever buildings they slept in. The usual greens and golds were washed out in the weak sunrise. It was disappointing. He wanted to see the vibrant colors before they left.

A weight rested on his shoulder and his cheek brushed against stiff, styled hair when he turned his head. Jack was lax next to him, his breathing even and deep. It was possibly the most relaxed Rhys had ever seen him.

He smiled softly and gave his head an affectionate nuzzle before he returned his gaze to the window. There was no way he was going to wake him up, not with the chaotic week he’d had.

Jack had run himself ragged, bouncing between last-minute planning for the journey, giving Timothy business advice to make up for the fact he’d strangled Tassiter, and groveling for Angel’s forgiveness.

Rhys winced. He could still hear her shouting for Jack just as the elevator arrived. She hadn’t cared that Rhys was nestled into Jack’s side, bored by the movie and seeking a different type of entertainment. No, she had immediately stomped over to the television and jabbed the power button so hard he was amazed it didn’t break.

Before Jack could ask what her problem was, she told him. “You’re leaving. Again. And you didn’t tell me. Again.”

Although Rhys had been ushered to the bedroom after that, the ensuing (one-sided) argument was clear as day. Timothy had, once again, been the one to tell her that Jack was leaving. She’d been under the assumption that Jack was going to stick around to teach her how to be a good CEO and, in her words, “be a fucking dad for once.”

Jack’s explanation that he had meant to tell her, just at a later date, proved to be unsatisfactory and she had called him three full minutes’ worth of insults, many of which were far beyond Rhys’s cultural comprehension.

She had stormed out after rejecting Jack’s feeble apology, which Rhys hadn’t been able to make out from his position near the door. When he heard the elevator doors close, he retreated to the bed and waited for Jack, only to end up falling asleep alone some time later.

He didn’t see much of Jack for the rest of the week, since he added CEO lessons to his already busy days. It was worrying for Rhys to watch him grow more exhausted each night while knowing there was really nothing he could do. One night, just before passing out while Rhys removed his mask, Jack expressed his regrets over his own parenting abilities.

“She’s a smart girl,” he had mumbled as Rhys undid the last clasp. “I’m glad Tim raised her. There’s no telling how much I would have messed her up if I’d stuck around.”

Rhys closed his eyes and sighed. He hoped that they’d reconciled before he and Jack left, beating the morning sun to the train station. If they did die at the vault, he didn’t want Jack to die thinking that his only daughter hated him.

The train came to a halt and Jack jerked awake when his head slipped off Rhys’ shoulder. Rhys watched him blink blearily before he grunted that they were at their stop. Jack got up and Rhys grabbed his bag for him, slinging his own satchel onto his left shoulder where it bumped against the pistol strapped to his hip; it was a gesture for Jack, but he wasn’t sure if Jack was even awake enough to notice that he wasn’t wearing his cloak. He’d left it folded up on the bed in Opportunity.

Rhys gripped Jack’s hand, taking the lead as they walked towards the piers that he could see in the distance. Though it probably wasn’t the best route, it was better than trusting a sleep-deprived Jack. Besides, he only hit a dead-end once.

The guessing game didn’t have to extend to finding their ship, much to his relief. He pulled Jack with him towards Zer0, who only carried their guns and a small bag.

Upon hearing Rhys call their name, Zer0 turned to face them. “Good morning, Rhys,” said their monotone voice. “Where is your cloak?”

“Why would I need it? We’ll be at sea for three weeks just getting to the trench, and Jack said we aren’t stopping anywhere until we return to Hyperion. It just took up valuable packing space.”

“Very well,” Zer0 conceded, not bothering to attempt to argue. Their mask slightly turned towards Jack. “Is the captain well enough for this journey?”

“He’s just sleep-deprived, don’t worry about him.” Rhys gestured to the ships. “Do you know which one is ours?”

“Yes. Follow me.”

Zer0 led Rhys, who dragged Jack after him, to the largest ship Rhys had ever seen in his life. He gaped up at it even as he walked up the gangwalk. It was easily twice the size of their old ship and the top deck was bustling with humans all dressed in the same outfits.

Rhys was still staring slack-jawed at all of the soldiers when Jack grunted something unintelligible and tugged on Rhys’s hand. They went below deck and Jack led him down a hall with crew quarters on both sides. Each side was filled with rows and rows of beds, each bed holding an identical set of blankets. The beds made Rhys nervous; he was used to sleeping in his own room or Jack’s, and he wasn’t keen on sleeping in the same room as all of the soldiers he didn’t know.

But Jack kept walking down the rest of the corridor until they reached a door at the end. The door opened up to a minimally furnished but comfortably sized bedroom.

Rhys put Jack’s bag on the floor and place his own satchel on the desk near the door. “Is this where we’re staying?”

Jack shed his coat and vest before flopping onto the bed with one arm thrown over his eyes. “What, you think I’m going to leave you to sleep with the soldiers? Nah, pumpkin. You’re staying right here with me.” Rhys’s shoulders slumped with relief. “But right now I’m taking a nap, so go explore or something.”

Despite the roll of his eyes, Rhys was smiling as he left the room. The soldiers filtered into the quarters to unpack their belongings and store them in containers attached to the walls. Most ignored him, caught up in their own conversations, but a few cast glances at him. He refused to acknowledge them, keeping his gaze locked on the walkway in front of him, and resisted the urge to run his left hand along the crystals.

There was no need to hide it anymore and he didn’t need to be embarrassed of it. He knew that, but it was hard not to feel self-conscious under all the stares. He hoped that they would get used to him in a few days and it would be treated as normally as it was on their old ship, even if it had only been the six of them before.

He stepped out onto the top deck again and squinted against the glare of the rising sun. His eyes adjusted just in time to see Sasha and Fiona walk onto the ship. His face immediately brightened at the sight of them; he hadn’t seen either of them since arriving at Hyperion.

Sasha was the first to spot him and she waved with her empty hand, the other carrying her bag. Fiona gave him a disinterested half wave, which was more than he had expected, before she took her sister’s bag and walked off.

“You’re not dead!” Sasha exclaimed with a grin as he approached her. “Thought maybe Jack killed you like that one guy.”

Rhys raised an eyebrow. “How did you know about that?” He decided not to comment on her remark, knowing that any type of ensuing argument would be fruitless. It was better just to focus on anything but Jack.

“He got called out of a meeting with us because he didn’t clean something up correctly, or something like that. We heard some stuff about a body and kind of pieced it together.” She nodded her head towards the opposite side of the deck, where it was mostly devoid of soldiers, and they headed in that direction.

“Soooo, former CEO of Hyperion, huh?” she commented hesitantly. “That must have been a shock to you.”

Rhys rubbed the back of his neck. “No, I didn’t know beforehand. I didn’t know he had a brother either.”

“He mentioned someone named Angel. Do you know who that is?”

Rhys hesitated as he leaned his arms on the railing. “I do, but I don’t know if he wants you to know.” He looked around uneasily at the nearby soldiers. None were actively paying them any attention, though he still didn’t want to expose any of Jack’s personal life to the strangers. He lowered his voice. “If we can get alone, I’ll tell you.” He trusted Sasha not to tell anyone, or at least not to bring it up with Jack.

The secrecy visibly piqued her interest and she surveyed the rest of the deck. “Well, Fi’s dropping our stuff off in our room right now, but we can go there later.”

He nodded and looked out over the waves. “So what did you do in Hyperion? See anything or interesting?” They hadn’t spoken since his call, which he felt bad about. He hadn’t meant to leave her alone in a foreign place, but he had been rather occupied up until Jack got busy, and by that point she was busy with Jack’s meetings.

She shrugged. “We didn’t do much. After you and Jack ditched us, me and Fi wandered around the port town a bit. After a while we got on the train to Opportunity and walked around there until Nisha found us and got us a hotel room. After that, we spent most of our time there; it had a pool on the roof and it was awesome. Fresh water is great, but filtered fresh water is the best thing ever. Leaving was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” Her tone was wistful and she propped her chin on her palm.

An amused smile played on his lips. “I’m sorry you had to leave your pool, but I’m glad Hyperion had at least some merit. Do you still hate it as much as before?”

She hummed in thought. “The people in Opportunity were pretty stuck-up. The receptionist almost had a stroke when Nisha walked us into the lobby and security checked our bags before we left, but it’s been a really long time since I’ve been able to swim in anything other than the ocean, and the room was amazing. So if the people could be replaced, it would be perfect.”

As much as he hated the fact that her and Fiona had been treated poorly, he wasn’t really surprised. Everything was so clean and serious in Opportunity. Sasha and Fiona didn’t really fit in with the colorless and drab outfits of the people he’d seen in the streets. He could see how that would make them be treated as outsiders.

Sasha nudged his side with an elbow. “How was it for you? Did you enjoy your first visit to the world’s biggest island?”

His thoughts flipped through the past four days. He thought about going swimming, about the dinner date, about seeing Jack’s unmasked face. But he also thought about the lonely hours spent in Jack’s apartment, the tiresome arguments, and watching Jack run himself ragged with guilt.

“It was okay. Had a lot of fun exploring, but that got boring after a while. I spent a lot of time with Jack’s brother.”

“Really?” she asked, incredulous. “What’s he like? Is he anything like Jack?”

He couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Tim is nothing like Jack.” At least, when comparing them on the surface. “He’s very kind and helpful. He’s the one who gave us the ship and the soldiers.” Mostly to pacify Jack, but also to help Rhys, which was nice of him.

“Rhys.”

He jumped at the mechanical voice that sounded from behind, and spun around to face Zer0.

“I apologize. I did not mean to startle you.” They motioned towards the stairs. “I encountered Nisha. She suggested that I help you brush up on your firearm skills.”

Rhys scowled petulantly while Sasha snickered at his side. “I’d rather not. Let’s do it later.”

“She strongly encouraged that we do this now while you are not…distracted by Jack.”

His frown deepened as Sasha’s snickering turned into full-blown laughter. “Fine,” he huffed out reluctantly. “Let’s go to the back deck. There’s less people.” There was no getting out of it, so he saw no reason to try. Hopefully it wouldn’t take too much time. He didn’t want to spend hours shooting guns.

Zer0 nodded and turned towards the back of the ship. Rhys gave Sasha a small, fleeting wave before he followed them. They didn’t say anything to each other as they walked. Soldiers parted for them, glancing at the odd pair with Zer0’s helmet and sniper rifle and Rhys’s exposed arm.

The rear deck of the ship was, thankfully, barren expect for a small group of soldiers, though they left once they saw the duo. Zer0 removed the rifle from their back, placed it on the deck, and drew their pistol from their hip. They held it out to Rhys, who begrudgingly accepted it. Rhys looked over the weapon in his hands, which felt so different from the one he’d been gifted what felt like ages ago. The gun was heavier, longer, and unpleasant, and the metal of the pistol was a garish, gleaming gold color with black and red stripes. He didn’t recognize it, and wondered if Zer0 had gotten it in Opportunity.

“Why are we doing this?” he inquired as his fingers flexed around the grip. “Do I really need this? I know how to shoot.”

“You rely, unwisely, on melee attacks. On water, that is inefficient. Ranged weapons are far more reliable. You should be able to do more than just shoot in a straight line.”

Rhys sighed again. “Alright, fine. What are we doing first?”

Zer0 moved over to a crate in the corner and used their energy sword to pry it open. Once the lid popped off, they reached in and pulled out a hard biscuit the size of their fist. It didn’t so much as crumble when they squeezed it. They held it up for Rhys to see. “We shall use these. They were found in the kitchen and do not appear to be edible. Nisha gave me permission to use them as targets.”

He raised an eyebrow.. “I’m supposed to shoot that? Where are you even going to put it? It won’t stay on the railing.”

“I intend to throw it.”

His eyes widened and he sputtered, “I can’t hit that!”

Zer0 was undeterred. “That is the crux of the lesson. You must learn to hit moving targets.” They tossed the biscuit a few feet into the air and caught it as it fell. “I will aim for no more than six feet above the railing. Train your pistol towards the anticipated spot and wait. But first, you should step back.”

Though doubtful, Rhys stepped back until his back was flush with a wall. He drew his pistol and aimed for a few feet above Zer0's head. "Ready." He sucked in a breath as Zer0's arm dipped down and tossed the biscuit into the air. The biscuit hit its apex and he pulled the trigger. The flinch was unavoidable and though he didn't see where the bullet went, the biscuit landed on the deck unscathed. Rhys frowned and Zer0 picked it up.

"Your aim is decent. But your timing is very wrong," Zer0 observed casually.

Rhys huffed. "It's not easy. How am I supposed to know when to shoot? It goes by too fast."

"Patience will be advantageous. For these lessons, it will be okay if you do not shoot on the first try. But soon you will have to learn to anticipate your enemy's movements." They dusted some dirt off the biscuit and readied themselves. "Again. Are you ready?"

He nodded begrudgingly. They tossed the biscuit once more. Although it went higher than before, he tried to anticipate it. He tried to follow the trajectory, only for it to fall to the ground before he could bring himself to shoot. He glared at the untouched biscuit. "Do we really have to do this?"

"Yes. It is wise for you to be a well-rounded marksman. It will make Jack feel better about your safety."

Jack. Rhys knew Jack was always worried about his ability to take care of himself. The pistol he wore was testament to that. And Zer0 did have a point—the more he knew about shooting, the better he could keep up with other humans. His claws would not protect him forever.

With a reluctant sigh, he flexed his fingers around the pistol's grip and widened his stance. "Fine. Let's try again."

For the third time, the biscuit was launched into the air. It followed roughly the same pattern as before, reaching a height of about seven feet above Zer0's head. Rhys pulled the trigger just as it began to fall. He resisted the flinch, and to his amazement, the biscuit exploded into a shower of crumbs that rained down on the deck and Zer0.

"I did it?!" He couldn't believe that he'd done it. He'd actually hit a moving target. A laughed bubbled up from his chest. "I didn't even flinch." Guns would never be his forte, but it was nice to think that he could properly wield one.

"Congratulations." Somehow, it sounded genuine in that monotone voice. "Shall we try again?"

Rhys nodded quickly. "Again," he agreed, though he was nervous. What if it was just a fluke?

Zer0 fetched another biscuit from the crate. It was slightly smaller than the first, barely bigger than their palm. They waited for Rhys's signal, then threw it.

It went way higher and way faster than Rhys initially expected. He struggled to follow it with the pistol, but eventually it reached a familiar height and he took the shot. There was no explosion, which was disappointing. He opened his mouth to apologize, only for Zer0 to pick it up and run their thumb along the edge of a large indentation on the side.

"It is not a perfect shot, a hit is good enough. A hit can slow your opponent down so you can try again." They tossed the damaged biscuit into the water. "For not expecting it, you did well." They grabbed a third biscuit. "Are you ready to try again? We will keep going until you destroy two more."

Rhys fixed his stance. "Let's get it over with." Hits or not, this wasn't what he wanted to do with his time. His ears were already ringing from the gunshots.

It took two tries to destroy the third biscuit. He missed the first shot, but hit it dead center on the second. The fourth and final biscuit proved to be the most difficult, however. By his third miss, he was getting frustrated, which made him less accurate. Zer0’s calm chastising wasn’t helping either.

"If I don't make this shot, we're done," he declared grumpily. Zer0 stared, or so Rhys assumed, from behind that blank helmet and Rhys reluctantly added, "We can try again later."

Zer0 nodded. "One final attempt. Whether you succeed or not, I will not force you to continue."

Some of the tension left Rhys's shoulders. At least Zer0 was amicable about it. Rhys knew it was important but he was too frustrated to keep doing it. They both readied up for the last time. Zer0 threw the biscuit into the air and Rhys raised the muzzle.

A shot rang out and the biscuit exploded. Rhys flinched at the sudden noise and nearly fumbled the weapon. That wasn't him.

"What are you two doing back here?" Jack's voice was rough with leftover sleep, but not angry. His clothes were slightly askew and his hair only barely held in place by gel. "I could hear you shooting in my sleep."

"Nisha suggested that Rhys brush up on his marksmanship, particularly moving targets. I was helping him."

Jack grunted, surveyed the mess of crumbs all over the deck, then looked to the gulls circling hungrily above them. "Where did the biscuits come from? I didn't have those ordered."

"Presumably, they were left behind by the previous crew. They are inedible. I thought they would make good, harmless targets for Rhys."

Rhys had almost forgotten how easily Zer0 spoke to Jack. Their tone was always monotone and casual, never betraying their emotions or feelings towards him. He wondered how they actually felt about Jack; surely they didn't hate him, but Jack, albeit never cruel, had never gone out of his way to be overly kind to them. Come to think of it, Rhys wasn't sure how Zer0 felt about anybody.

"You're dismissed, Zer0. Tell Nisha to start the engines. I'll finish up with Rhys here."

Zer0 left the two of them alone with the mess. Jack watched them leave before he turned to Rhys. "You okay, pumpkin? You were looking a little tense when I got here."

His cheeks felt hot, despite being shaded by the wheelhouse. "I'm not good at hitting moving targets. It's frustrating." He hated admitting it. Once, he had been a competent warrior. And now he struggled to comprehend the basics of human combat.

"It can be rough," Jack agreed. "It wasn't so easy for me when I had to learn, and I was younger than you are. But practice makes perfect."

Rhys frowned. "I don't want to practice anymore. Not today. I've had enough."

As much as he tried to stifle it, the whine in his voice was obvious enough to make Jack laugh. "Just once, Rhysie. I want to see how you do for real." He pointed up to the gulls still circling, reluctant to dive and disturb them. "Try to hit one of those."

"Why? Isn't that unnecessary? They aren't doing anything."

"The less gulls, the cleaner our deck will be. And trust me, you don't want to smell bird crap after it's been cooking in the sun." Rhys grimaced. Jack grinned, then pointed to the largest of the small flock. "Try to hit that one. Watch its pattern. You only get one shot, so make it count."

"You're not helping," he mumbled as he raised the pistol. He shifted his stance, only to stiffen when Jack slotted against him. Strong hands slid down Rhys's arms and steadied the pistol. Jack used his legs to mold Rhys into a firmer position.

"You keep missing because the recoil is getting to you. Battle doesn't allow for proper stance, but good form is just the first step."

It took everything in his power not to shudder as Jack's voice tickled his ear. "We have three weeks before battling the biggest monster of my life. I think we're a little past the first step."

Jack chuckled. "Easy, kitten. This isn't your final fight. Besides, vault monsters are massive. You shouldn't have to worry about it dodging gunshots." He stepped away, leaving Rhys to stand on his own. "Now, show me what you can do."

The simple command amplified the pressure on Rhys. He swallowed hard and focused on the target. The flock moved in a steady, even circle. The rhythm was more consistent than Zer0's throws had been. This should be easy. All he had to do was focus. He exhaled slowly, waited for the perfect moment, and fired.

The bird plummeted out of the sky and past the railing into the ocean. The fortunate ones scattered with a few alarmed squawks, disappearing in a matter of seconds. Stunned, Rhys lowered the pistol just as Jack whistled. "Pretty good, pumpkin," he said, and the praise made Rhys's heart flutter in his chest. "With some more practice, you should be a sharpshooter in no time."

Rhys laughed while he switched on the safety and replaced the pistol in its holster on his hip. "I don't think I'll ever be a sharpshooter," he said. "Not like Nisha or Zer0. Or even you." To be as good as any of them was an impossible dream. How could he ever hope to compete to people who had been doing it for years?

When he looked up, he didn't expect Jack to be so close. Mismatched eyes were lazily traveling over his face, lingering on his lips. The mischievous look in his gaze made Rhys's breath stall in his throat and his mouth dry out. A large hand caressed his hip. His position had relaxed after he put away the pistol. He took a small step backwards. The cool wall met his back. Jack leaned in closer, his mouth curled into a grin.

They weren't hidden away. Anyone could walk around the corner and see them. But he wasn't going to ask Jack to stop. He missed him. He missed the night they shared so early on, before Jack understood the implications of sex and before Rhys was head over heels for him. Everything had been so stressful since then, and he missed the simplicity that they had. Even the night they went swimming in Opportunity felt so long ago, when things were different. When Jack wasn't so tired or bogged down with guilt. Rhys wanted that again.

"Hey, Rhysie. You in there?" Jack looked amused with the half smirk on his face as he watched Rhys come back to the present moment. "What's so important that you're ignoring me to think about?"

"Nothing. Just..." He swallowed and smiled weakly. "Just thinking about how much I've missed you. How much I've missed this." He knotted a hand in Jack's overcoat to hold him close. His face felt hot, and not from the sun.

Jack didn't laugh at him. Instead, he smiled and tilted Rhys's chin up so their eyes would meet. "You don't have to miss me anymore. I'm right here." As Jack leaned in, all of the tension and frustration left his body. He felt boneless when their lips met. Jack kept a sturdy grip on Rhys's hip, though it was gradually shifting towards his ass. Rhys's hand held fast on his coat, tight enough that Jack had to step closer so that his leg was almost between Rhys's thighs. Rhys could feel the grin against his mouth but chose to ignore it in favor of savoring the kiss.

The groping became more forceful when Jack allowed Rhys's tongue in. He pulled Rhys's lanky body against his own and exhaled a laugh through his nose at the stifled moan. Rhys loosened his grip, but started pawing at Jack and trying to get under the ridiculous amount of layers he wore. When he finally undid enough buttons to slide his hands over Jack's stomach, he was so lost in the feeling that he hardly noticed how much his lungs hurt. Jack, however, had noticed. He broke the kiss with a deep inhale, only to laugh at the weak, displeased sound Rhys made.

"Breathe, pumpkin. I know you're horny for me but I'm not gonna let you pass out on me. That ruins the fun." Though he did lean down and nip at the hollow of Rhys's throat while Rhys tried to catch his breath and regain his train of thought. Which was hard to do with both of Jack's hands cupping his butt. He hooked one leg around the back of Jack's calf, using Jack and the wall to support his weight.

"If you're really wanting it, I think we could retire to the bedroom for a little bit. It'll be good to unwind a bit—"

"Captain?"

All of the suaveness vanished immediately, replaced by taut muscles and a dark scowl. He looked away from Rhys at the small group of soldiers who had interrupted and growled out a harsh, "What do you fucking want, Lieutenant Harrison?"

"You're wanted in the navigation room," replied the leader of the little group, a tall man who Rhys felt an instant distaste for.

Jack sighed, though it sounded more like a snarl. "Fine. I'll be there in a minute. Now scram."

Every one of them obliged and got lost in a matter of seconds. Jack finally relaxed again and gave Rhys's pout a remorseful smile. "Sorry, kitten. Looks like nobody can do their damn jobs without me." He pressed a quick, fleeting kiss to his lips. "If we have time though, how about we take a raincheck on that? Tonight after dinner we'll have some fun."

That didn't sound ideal. In fact, it was exactly what Rhys didn't want. But he knew Jack was an important member of the crew, so he nodded. "Okay. Tonight, then." He withdrew from the embrace and buttoned up all of Jack's clothes until he didn't look so disheveled. "I will see you after dinner." What was he supposed to do until then? That was hours away, and it wasn't like he could jump off the ship and swim.

Jack situated his coat and brushed his hand across Rhys's shoulders as he left. Rhys sighed once he was alone and rubbed the sore spots on his throat. He supposed he could just go hang out with Sasha, but there was a heat under his skin that he wanted to fade before he went looking for her; she'd spot it a mile away. So he packed up what was left of the biscuits back into the box, moved the box into the shade and went for a walk around the ship. Although his gait was a little off, nothing looked obviously out of the ordinary. It was almost like he didn't desperately miss the captain's touch.

**Eventually he found a vacant area near the bow and leaned against the railing to watch the waves roll past. The main deck was mostly deserted by now, almost everyone having retreated for the cool air of the lower decks. But the warmth was soothing, so he stayed in his spot and enjoyed the sunlight against his back.

The sounds of seabirds and whooshing waves lulled him into a daydream where he was with Jack and there was nobody to interrupt them over and over. Maybe Jack would open up more, and maybe he wouldn't worry so much about what other people were doing. He deserved some peace of mind for once in his life. Maybe after the vault was dealt with, he could convince Jack to take a private voyage together. It was nice to imagine what it would be like with just the two of them at sea.

Rhys was so far into his fantasy that he didn't register the presence of another person. At least, not until a hand slapped his ass so hard he nearly lost his balance. It hurt like hell, and he whipped around with a harsh swear, ready to yell at Jack for hitting him so hard, only to pause before he could exhale. It was not Jack behind him. He had not expected to see the man, Harrison, and one of the women from earlier. He backed away from them, but there was nowhere for him to go besides over the railing. It had gotten dark at some point, and there was nobody else around. The ache in his stomach told him it was probably dinner time. Or maybe it was fear.

"What's wrong, kitten? You didn't like that?" His mocking grin, for a sickening second, reminded him of Hugo's grin that fateful day when he attacked Rhys. He felt sick.

"I'm surprised the captain isn't that rough with you," said the woman to Rhys. "You would look good with that pretty face all busted up."

Harrison shook his head. "No, he looks like he'd break if someone got rough with him. Just look at him." He gestured towards Rhys, who tried not to flinch away. "But," he continued after some thought, "I bet they do get up to some pretty sick shit. All queers are pervs."

The woman laughed. "You make an excellent point, Harrison. So, what are you into then? What make you shack up with a psychopath like Jack?"

"Shut up," Rhys snapped. "He's not a bad person. You don't know what you're talking about."

She sneered at him and reached for a knife strapped to her hip.

Harrison held out a hand, stopping her. "Easy there, Myers. He's just a bit rude, that's all. Wild, almost." Myers lowered her hand, and so did he.

"You shouldn't be so rude to my commander, kitten," he scolded in a calm tone. "And you should answer her questions. What kind of sick kinks do you act out with the captain? Do you like being his bitch?"

Rhys gripped the railing tight. "I don't even understand what you're talking about. I'm not 'into' anything. And I like Jack because he's nice." There was so much more, but his thoughts were clouded by frustration.

Both Harrison and Myers laughed at him, before Harrison managed to say through his chuckles, "So you're stupid and a faggot? What a fucking catch you are."

Rhys glared at them. "Don't call me stupid."

"But fag is okay?" Harrison asked with a raised eyebrow. "Is that your kink? Are you gonna run back to your room and jerk off because I called you a fag?"

"I don't even know what that word means. Just leave me alone, okay? Find something actually worthwhile to do with your time." He scoffed and muttered, "What a couple of assholes," to himself. He released the railing and started to walk away. With his back to them, he didn't expect a hand to knot in his hair and yank him so hard he lost his footing. He immediately reached up to force the hand to let go, but both of his arms were grabbed and forced behind his back.

Harrison moved in close, sure that Rhys was confined enough that he couldn't move. "Don't ever speak to me or her like that again. You may be the captain's fucktoy but this is my ship. I have more power here than you can even dream of. Understand?"

"You have no idea what you're doing," Rhys hissed back. "Let me go right now and I won't tell Ja—"

He lost his breath when Harrison punched him in the stomach. He flinched and instinctively struggled, only for both the hand in his hair and Myers' grip on his arms to tighten. The muscles in his arms started to burn.

"You think that's a good bargain? Look around, you pathetic fucker. There's nobody here to rescue you." He lowered his voice once more. "You think there's anything stopping me from killing you right now and throwing your corpse overboard?”

As much as Rhys hated to admit, Harrison had a point. He was by himself, one against two, and unable to reach the only weapon at his side. He could, in fact, be killed right now and be disposed of, and what would happen after that? Jack wouldn't be able to find him in the ocean, not if he didn't know about what happened immediately. He'd just...disappear. And he didn't want that to happen. He hated how useless and defenseless he was in a fight.

He clenched his jaw until he felt his teeth grind together. His teeth poked at his bottom lip and he paused. He wasn't defenseless. How many times had Jack watched him shred food in awe? How many times had he been told as a hatchling that his teeth were too sharp to play-bite the others? He couldn't use his arms in his position, but if he tried hard enough, maybe he didn't need them.

"Well?" Harrison prodded, still scowling. "Do you have any last words?"

Rhys opened his mouth like he was going to speak, then turned his head and aimed for Harrison's arm. Immediately Harrison let go of his hair to move away, but Rhys moved faster. He sank his teeth deep into the flesh of Harrison's forearm. Hot blood gushed into his mouth; he tried not to swallow as he ripped a chunk of meat off his arm. With Harrison focused on his arm, Rhys slammed his head back into Myers' jaw. She stumbled back and loosened her hold on his arms, just enough that he could tug his right arm upwards. He heard her swearing and the tearing of her clothes. Something warm stained the back of his shirt when she released him.

Harrison was back on his feet and with a combat knife in his good hand. He looked pale but sneered, "You think a measly bite is going to save you?"

Rhys spat out the meat and blood onto the deck. "No, I know it won't," he said through crimson-stained teeth. "But do you think a knife is going to save you?"

With a grunt, Harrison lunged at him with the knife aiming for under his ribs. Rhys twisted his body and the serrated blade shallowly sliced his side. He inhaled sharply and threw a punch with his right hand directly into Harrison's nose. It crunched and crumbled against his hand and had enough momentum behind it to send him crashing to the deck.

There was the opportunity to run and he took it. He turned around and found himself the target of Myers swinging an identical knife with her other arm clutching her chest. The ripped shirt wasn't red before. He threw up his right arm to deflect the knife just before it sunk into his chest. The blade got stuck between the crystals and he grabbed her arm at the elbow. The grip of his hand was enough to shatter her arm. She collapsed in agony. This time, he made sure Harrison was still down before he took off running. If he could make it below deck, then he could make it to the captain's quarters and hide. There he could wait for Jack.

He was only a few feet away from the door when a gunshot sounded off behind him. He recoiled to the right; that was enough to only let the bullet graze his ear and cheek. By that point he had his hand on the door. He fumbled with it in his shaky state from the adrenaline rushing through him. But he made it inside before they could fire again.

Most everyone was still at dinner. Rhys stumbled through the barren barracks with eyes full of unshed tears and whimpering each time his hip bumped a bed or a chair. It felt like hours before his trembling hand found the doorknob to the captain's quarters. This time he got it open on the first try and he practically flung into the empty room. He threw his weight against the door long enough for his breathing to calm down, then locked it. All of the tension left his body at the click of the lock and he sank down to the floor. The adrenaline began to fade, and the pain began to settle in. His side burned and tickled as blood oozed down his hip, following the trail of Jack's hand from earlier that day. His cheek and ear were sore as well, but felt hotter than his side. Like he'd been singed.

He didn't bother to assess his injuries before he started crying. There was no loud sobbing, only soft sounds and sniffles. He didn't have the energy to sob. There were so many emotions to comprehend that he felt dizzy. He was relieved that he was safe and alive. He was relieved that he was able to fight them off. He was scared because it happened at all, and there had been a chance he wouldn't have survived. But most of all, he was frustrated with himself for not understanding why they tried to kill him. It had partly to do with his relationship with Jack, but why? What was wrong about him and Jack? The words they had called him—the comm's translator was unable to tell him what they meant, and that made him mad. He did feel stupid.

He sat there, panting and sniffling until the tears dried up and exhaustion started to weigh on him. His side was still bleeding, so he staggered up to his feet and shuffled to the private bathroom. He shimmied out of his clothes and stood in front of the mirror. The wound on his right side didn't look that deep, but it was messy. His hip was stained with dried rivulets of his own blood. His lips were red from Harrison's blood, and so were his teeth. The metallic taste in his mouth made him nauseous.

After starting the faucet, he sat down in the bathtub and rinsed out his mouth with cold water. Each time he spit, the pink hue faded more and more until he was only spitting water. The taste still lingered, but only faintly. When the plug was in place, he turned the water on full blast and laid back. It was cold enough to make him shiver but he didn't change the temperature. He closed his eyes and focused on the water as it filled up the empty space and surrounded him. The chill quickly reduced the stinging pain of his side to a dull throb.

In the deafening silence of the bathroom, it was hard not to think about the fight. He had killed before. Several times, in fact. And the only reason they didn't kill him was because he ran away. Why did he just stay and return the favor? It wouldn't have taken much; both of them had dropped to their knees. If he had just taken the knives, or even remembered the stupid gun that he kept forgetting about, he could have ended the matter once and for all.

He huffed, breath ghosting over the water, and broke the silence with a soft, "Maybe you are stupid." His own confession only served to frustrate him even more. The bath was no longer tranquil, so he climbed out, ignoring the dusty pink water splashing over the sides. He drained the tub, then dried himself off with a coarse towel.

**His side had finally stopped bleeding. It only took a quick search through Jack's bags to find bandages. Trying to get them on proved to be a different story. Since they weren't the sticky kind, he was forced to try and wrap them around his waist. Each time he reached the start of the second layer, the first would slip down his hip. It took eight do-overs for him to reach the layer, where he called it quits by slicing off the leftover bandage and tucking the end against his stomach.

With everything taken care of, he retreated to the bedroom and climbed into bed. Jack still wasn't back. It was getting late. Jack had promised him that after dinner they could spend time together. So even disregarding the incident, Jack should have already been back.

It took almost another hour for him to decide to go looking for Jack, but he didn't get the chance to throw the blankets off before the doorknob rattled vigorously.

Unanticipated fear clenched in his chest; what if it was Harrison or Myers? Rhys had no weapons on him or clothes to protect his skin. He considered blocking the door, only for that plan to fly out the window when the lock clicked and the door opened. Out of time, he ducked beneath the blankets and tried to hide.

"What the hell, why'd you...oh." Jack's annoyed voice faded as he walked further into the room. The door shut behind him. Rhys stayed where he was, wondering what Jack would do if he was asleep. He listened to shoes thump haphazardly into a small pile on the floor, Jack pop his neck with a groan, and the fade of soft footsteps into the bathroom. For a few seconds, everything was quiet. Rhys waited for the faucet to run. Instead, he heard an angry, "What the fuck?" and had the blankets suddenly ripped off the bed.

He was too startled to pretend to be asleep, not that Jack would have bought it anyway. Jack held the bloody and ripped shirt in front of his face. "What is this?" He finally noticed the cut on his face and the bandages around his waist. Rhys squirmed and had his protests ignored as Jack started pulling off the bandages. The shirt was forgotten on the floor when Jack finally reached the gash on his side. He stared at it silently until his gaze eventually moved up to Rhys's face and, in a low voice, he asked, "What happened?"

Rhys hadn't considered how Jack would react to the news. He hadn't considered what he would tell him. But with Jack's gaze burning into his soul, it all came spilling out. The insults, the attack, and how he'd run away like a coward. By the end of his retelling, he was near tears out of frustration. "I don't get it. What is it about seeing us that made them so angry? We didn't do anything to them. Why were they ready to kill me before we kissed?" He lifted his head for the first time. Jack's face was blank but stony, yet there was enough fury behind his eyes that almost made Rhys feel sorry for them. "I hate that I don't understand what I did wrong. What did I do, Jack?"

Jack gripped the sheets so tightly that his knuckles blanched. "I will tell you later. But first, we have some things to take care of. Put on some clothes and meet me on the main deck." With nothing else to say, he turned and left the room, his boots and coat abandoned.

Though he was still aching, curiosity got the best of Rhys. He found new, intact and unstained clothes, and carefully pulled on the shirt. Jack's voice sounded over the intercom system as Rhys fumbled with the buttons.

"Listen up, people! I want every single one of your sorry asses at the bow in minutes. I don't care what you're wearing or what you are doing. Anyone stupid enough to be late will be personally thrown overboard by yours truly. You now have four and a half minutes."

Outside of the captain's quarters, the ship filled with the thuds of soldiers rushing out of bed and heading up to the bow. Rhys listened to the stampede of boots on the stairs and tried to focus on getting the buttons done. No matter how many buttoned shirts he had, his claws kept it from being an easy task. More than once he'd sliced off a button on accident, so Jack usually did it for him.

By the time he gave up with only half of them done, there was a brief knock before Nisha opened the door. She lingered in the doorway, her brow furrowed and her mouth in a faint frown.

“Come on, kid. Jack’s waiting for you.”

Rhys followed her through the empty barracks, up the stairs, and past the anxious crowd of soldiers to the set of steps next to the navigation room that led up to the wheelhouse. Nisha positioned herself at the bottom of the staircase as Rhys headed up to the wheelhouse.

Rhys noticed the dim glow of Zer0’s helmet in the corner, and a beam of moonlight made the barrel of their sniper rifle glitter in their hands. They gave Rhys only a brief nod of acknowledgement, nothing more. Jack stood outside on a small balcony, his arms resting on the railing. Even slouching, his presence was intimidating, and Rhys could only imagine how the soldiers felt with him looming over them, expressionless.

Jack didn’t say anything when Rhys joined him. He didn’t even glance over, but a protective arm snaked around his waist. With hundred of eyes locked on to them, Rhys couldn’t bring himself to lean into the warmth of Jack’s side. It didn’t seem to matter to Jack.

Palpable tension rolled off the crowd in thick waves. The night air was cool and those who weren’t fully dressed were shivering and antsy. There had been no explanation given as to why Jack had demanded their presence on deck so late at night, especially with such a violent threat, though it could be considered mild.

When Jack finally cleared his throat, the silence grew heavier and the soldiers’ stress intensified. For most, if not all, of the soldiers, it was their first encounter with Jack’s wrath. Nobody knew what to expect from their captain. Honestly, neither did Rhys; all of the time spent together had not made Jack any more predictable.

“I know everyone is probably desperate to know what is going on. Earlier tonight, I was informed of two brave soldiers who were seriously wounded when they tried to stop a fight amongst their inferiors. They were cooperative with me and gave me any information that I asked for. I decided that it would be dealt with in the morning. However, a few minutes ago, I found out that I’d been lied to.” He paused. Nobody dared to let out a mere peep. Though his voice rang out clearly across the ship, it was not painful to Rhys’s ear despite their close proximity. The projection of his voice, instead of simply yelling, made it easier for Rhys to listen to what he was actually saying.

“I understand that most of you don’t know me that well. You would have no way of knowing how much I loathe liars. So normally, I would have been merciful.” Rhys poorly stifled a snort and his side received a gentle pinch in retaliation. “But these are not normal circumstances. I learned that these two idiots attempted to kill someone I care deeply about, and that I will not tolerate. This is non-negotiable.”

Rhys’s breath stalled in his throat. That was the most direct confession of affection that Rhys had ever heard from Jack, regardless if they were in private or otherwise. Jack gave no inclination to whom he meant, but Rhys’s surprised face probably gave it away. When Jack squeezed his hip, Rhys shifted his weight so his side brushed Jack’s. His waist was squeezed.

“Where are Lieutenant Harrison and Commander Myers? I want them to step forward.”

The request was met with uneasy silence. The soldiers shared glances with each other. Jack, to his credit, waited patiently for someone to make a move. But as time worn on, it was clear that Myers and Harrison did not plan to give themselves up voluntarily.

Jack sighed heavily and unholstered his pistol. He brandished it before the crowd and said, “You have one minute to put those two where I can see them before I start shooting at random.”

Frantic murmurs rose up from the crowd. Rhys held his breath. He didn’t want Jack to start shooting innocent people. But there was a wild look in his eye, full of rage and a desire for vengeance. There was no coaxing him out of it.

“They’re over here!”

Every single head turned to the direction of the shout. The crowd shifted and started to push Myers and Harrison forward, through the rest of the crowd until they were standing below the balcony. The way their companions had just given them up like that reminded Rhys of his last day as a part of the seafolk. Humans weren’t so different after all.

Jack returned his pistol to its holster, though both Harrison and Myers did not look any more relaxed. Rhys took a good look at them; both were covered in bandages. Myers’ nose was swollen and covered with a large patch. Her arm was hung up in a sling while Harrison’s was wrapped up in gauze. They both looked exhausted and terrified. He felt no sympathy for them.

Jack’s glare was freezing. “You’re two of the highest ranked soldiers on this ship, and yet you both are so stupid. You lied straight to my face. You said that there was a tussle among privates and things had gotten out of hand. I believed you. I said I’d deal with it in the morning. But what do I find when I go back to my quarters? Rhys with a stab wound and a gash on his pretty face.”

Rhys gently elbowed him in the side. His sore cheeks flushed pink.

“It’s one thing to lie to me. It’s one thing to hurt someone I care about. It’s another thing to your own outdated bigotry out on someone who doesn’t understand the magnitude of what’s happening and who didn’t deserve it. And then you had the balls to tell some bullshit story about stopping a fight where you were heroes. Did you not think I’d find out what happened? Did you think I’d just shrug off the face that Rhys was shot at? How did you get this far in life? Huh?”

Harrison squirmed. “I—”

“Actually, forget it. I don’t want to hear it.”

He snarled angrily and his grip on Rhys’s waist tightened briefly. He breathed deliberately through his nose. “What do you want to do with them?”

Rhys looked over at him. “What?”

“They tried to kill you, not me. I’m giving you the option to choose their punishment. If you want, we can spare them. Or we could throw them in the brig and take them back to Hyperion to be judged by Tim. Or, my suggestion, is we kill them.”

Rhys frowned down at the duo. “How would I know that Tim will do anything about it? He doesn’t know me that well. It’s not like they hurt you.”

Jack chuckled softly. “Did you not find it odd that I have a kid when Tim isn’t even married? That’s not his style. I checked out his ECHO when we were there; he’s head over heels for his bodyguard right now. He always did have a type.”

So that was actually a viable option. Timothy would be a good ally if he decided to be merciful. Which is what he felt like was the right thing to do—but he couldn’t get the words out. He didn’t want to be merciful and give them a chance. His body still ached and anger still coiled in his stomach. If he had been any weaker, he wouldn’t even be standing there. What if they were released, and went on to hurt someone else? He couldn’t have that on his conscience.

“I won’t let them hurt anyone else ever again,” he declared, soft enough for Jack’s ears only. “This ends now.”

A wide, satisfied grin crossed Jack’s face. “I didn’t know you had it in you, kitten. Would you like to do the honors?”

Rhys shook his head. “No. I know you’re angry. You can do it. But I want to watch.”

Jack was practically shaking with excitement as he whipped out his pistol once more. Rhys watched the blood rush from their faces and how the moonlight reflected the terror in their eyes. Both of them frantically looked around for any possible escape, but soldiers blocked them on three sides, and Nisha on the fourth.

“Stand still,” Jack commanded. “I’d hate to shoot an innocent in the foot.” He checked the chamber for bullets and cocked it. It took four shots. Myers ducked for the first one, but the second nailed her in the top of the skull. The crowd shrank back at the explosion of blood, hair, brain, and bone. The unlucky ones ended up with chunks on their clothes. What was left of her crumpled to the ground into a heap.

Harrison tried to run. Jack put two bullets in his back: one in the spine and the other through his heart. He froze midstride and fell to the ground like a toppled statue. His body convulsed with a couple of aftershocks before it fell still. He didn’t even get to close his eyes.

Jack put the hot gun away and rubbed a hand down Rhys’s spine. His touch was gentler than anything the soldiers could imagine after that display.

“That was fun. Are you hungry? Sasha should still have some leftovers from dinner.” He slid an arm around Rhys’s shoulders and turned him away from the carnage. “You are dismissed,” he said to the silent figure in the corner.

Zer0 returned their sniper rifle to their back. A red smiley face glowed in the shadows as Rhys gave them a little wave goodbye.

At the bottom of the steps, Jack stopped to address Nisha. “Inform the privates to clean up the mess. Let the other soldiers know they’re free to leave.”

Nisha pushed off the wall. “Fine.” But instead of walking away, her eyes moved to Rhys. “Are you okay?”

The blunt question startled him. How much did she know outside of Jack’s vague speech? “Uh. I’m...okay.” He smiled weakly. “Just a bit sore now. I’ll feel better soon.”

She made a grunt of acknowledgement and left to shout at the soldiers without giving him a response. The moment of sincere care vanished in an instant and Rhys was left wondering what had just happened. Jack was unhelpful, merely pushing him forward without comment and guiding him below deck to the cafeteria.

Sasha was nowhere to be seen, but that didn’t stop Jack from going into the kitchen and rummaging around in storage. Rhys sat at one of the tables and watched. Jack was more comfortable in the kitchen that he would have assumed. He’d never seen Jack cook anything besides breakfast a couple of times in Opportunity. They had either gone out for dinner, or Tim brought Rhys food while Jack worked himself to the point of exhaustion. It was interesting to watch him stroll through the kitchen with different ingredients until he presented a plate of raw fish with some vegetables. He placed a fork down as an afterthought.

He sat next to Rhys while he ate. The empty cafeteria was uncomfortably quiet, even with the creaking of the hull. Jack watched the clock on the far wall while Rhys focused on his meal, only hesitating when he reached the vegetables. He prodded a bright orange carrot with the fork.

“You should eat them,” Jack said with only a brief glance. “You human body needs them. It’ll help you heal. We’ll go to the medbay when you’re done, just to make sure you won’t die in your sleep.” There was only a slight waver in the casual tone of his voice.

Rhys put down the fork. This would be his only chance to get answers. “Why did they do it? What’s wrong with me? Us?”

The question was initially met with silence. Then, Jack sighed and shifted his gaze to his distorted reflection in the metal surface of the table. “Listen. Humans are shitty. And some are shittier than others. Sometimes they hate other people for being different. And this —” he waved his hand between them irritably “—isn’t the norm. Well, it’s not as uncommon as it used to be, but we’re still not considered ‘normal.’”

“Why?”

Jack growled. “It’s complicated. Look, just finish eating so we can get you checked out. I’m exhausted and want to go to bed.”

Rhys frowned and picked the fork back up. Maybe Nisha would be able to answer his questions.

The medbay was just as empty as the cafeteria had been. Jack pointed at a chair for Rhys to sit in, then strode over to the left wall and banged his fist on it. The sound reverberated through the room for a couple of seconds, then faded away.

Rhys was on the verge of asking what that was far when the door opened and a man walked in. He wore a white mask over his mouth and a coat that had some mysterious red stains on it.

“What are you waking me up for?” he asked Jack. “I already patched up your soldiers.”

“Quit whining, Zed. This is your job.” Jack jabbed a thumb in Rhys’s direction. “Those idiots were lying about how they got hurt. They ambushed him a couple of hours ago. His ear was grazed by a bullet and he has a shallow stab wound on his side. I just want to make sure nothing vital was hit so he can go to sleep.”

Zed eyed Rhys with steely grey eyes, lingering on his right arm, then shook his head. “Should have brought him by earlier.”

“Had things to take care of first.”

He glanced in Jack’s direction but said nothing and approached Rhys. A rough hand pushed him onto his back. “Stay like that,” Zed instructed while he looked around the room. Eventually he grabbed a device off a shelf and switched it on. A blue light glowed from a narrow slit and Zed scanned it over Rhys. It made his skin tingle and he shuddered.

Zed looked at the device. “Says he should be good to go. No internal bleeding or anything of the sort. Looks like it’s just flesh wounds.”

“Good.” The relief in Jack’s voice was palpable. He didn’t even try to stifle it. “Come on, ki...ddo,” he said, hesitating. It wouldn’t be that simple.

Rhys hopped out of the chair and started towards Jack, only for his arm to be loosely grabbed. He turned around.

Zed studied him over the mask. “Did you do all that damage to those soldiers?” The way his gaze glanced at his arm suggested he knew the answer already.

With a brief glance towards Jack, Rhys nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

The corner of Zed’s eyes crinkled and he chuckled. “I’d like to talk to you later about that.”

Another hand grabbed Rhys’s other wrist. “Goodnight, Zed,” Jack said firmly. Zed released Rhys without saying anything else. Jack led him from the medbay and back towards to their cabin.

Chapter Text

Rhys was sore for several days. His bruised abdomen made it painful to sit up or bend over, and the cut on his side didn’t help either. But while those healed over the next week, there was a chip missing from the rim of his ear that would never fully recover. There was not much they could do besides bandage it, and he moved the ECHOcomm to his other ear. He made use of it, as the aches kept him in bed for the first day. Even after that, he mainly stayed in the captain’s quarters, with only occasional visits to the deck, until he was able to move normally again.

While he had never really gotten along with all of the soldiers before, their relationship was irrevocably strained because of what had transpired. Even if they had no intention of harming him, he felt that after seeing Jack execute two soldiers without hesitation for his sake, they didn’t want to risk even associating with him.

The feeling of power that came with the soldiers being afraid was, in some ways, exhilarating. He just didn’t dare tell Jack. He’d never live it down.

One warm afternoon, when Rhys was enjoying the sunny weather and his first day without the bandages on his ear, Jack called him to the navigation room. A cluster of soldiers chatting on the desk parted for him as he approached, and he passed through them with the smallest hint of a smile, which lingered on his lips even as he reached the navigation room and pushed open the door.

It was the first time he had ever been inside the room that Jack spent so much of his time in. When Rhys walked in, Jack was leaning over a large table with a holographic projection hovering above it. He straightened up and rolled his neck, popping it. Without looking away from his table, he said, “Come over here, kitten.”

Rhys watched a dot blink rhythmically in a collection of waving lines and different colors. It held his attention even as he walked over to Jack and felt a strong arm snake around his waist. “What’s going on? What’s this?” 

“Patience, Rhysie,” Jack replied with a chuckle, as if he had never been impatient in his life. “So, I’ve been thinking. After we visit this vault business, we have to give Tim back his crew, including his pilot. While we work on getting a new crew, because it’s clear so far that just the two of us can’t run a whole ship, you’ll need to take over some duties. Namely, navigation.” 

It was the first time Jack had spoken so optimistically about life after the vault. There was no qualification about if they survived or not, just when it was over. It was a nice change of pace. 

“Okay. How do I do that? I don’t know anything about navigating.”

Jack motioned to the projection. “We start here. This is our map. It’s topographical, which means it shows us how deep everything is.” He pointed to the flickering dot. “That’s the ship. It’s traveling at roughly the same pace as the actual ship. Each time it flickers, the radars are surveying both our position and our surroundings.” Moving on to the undulating lines just under the flickering dot, he says, “These are the surface waves. They tell us if we’re level, and can sometimes even warn us if there’s a big one coming.”  A cyan cluster appeared far below the waves. “A cluster like that indicates that there’s something in the water. In this case, probably a reef or something. It’s too far down for it to be concerning, so we won’t worry about it.”

Rhys watched the cluster blink out of sight as the ship kept moving. “So it shows you everything underwater?”

“Everything solid, yeah. It doesn’t count things like fish unless it’s huge. Why?”

“Did your old ship have one of these maps?” 

He hadn’t meant anything by it; it was just curiosity. But Jack went quiet and pulled his arm away from Rhys. “It did, but I wasn’t watching it. I had left to go help Wilhelm secure some cargo. By the time I got back to the wheelhouse, we were going down. I think that’s the only reason I survived. I wasn’t trapped below deck.” 

There was silence between them as Jack brushed his fingers through the lines of light, blurring them. “Did you ever see them? Before or after you found me?” 

Rhys hesitated. He didn’t know what answer Jack wanted to hear. “No. I’m sorry. I would have saved them if I had.” That wasn’t true; he had seen two bodies floating nearby as he freed Jack. There was no doubt that they were his friends, and Rhys wondered if there really was anything he could have done.

Jack shook his head. “It’s fine. Forget I even asked.” 

He scratched absently at the seam of his mask on his cheek and pressed a button on the table. The projection vanished and they were left with a map on the screen built into the table. “Let’s get back to work. We’re in clear water, so we’ll just use hypothetical situations for now.”

They spent the rest of the afternoon locked in the navigation room. Jack was a ruthless teacher; he walked Rhys through dozens of hypothetical scenarios, from ice fields to shallow waters to swarms of hostile creatures. Each scenario was followed by a quiz, then Rhys had to create a plan on his own on how to get through the obstacles. By sundown, he was so mentally exhausted that when Nisha came in and told them to go to dinner, his shoulders collapsed with relief. 

Jack brought up another scenario on the table. “We’re not done, Nish. Come back later.”

“Jack,” Rhys complained, “let’s take a break. I’m starving and my stomach hurts. Please?”

Despite his frown, Jack waved his hand and shut off the projection involving way more obstacles than Rhys ever wanted to think about. “Fine. Let’s go get dinner.” As he walked away, he ran his hands through his hair, tousled from trying to guide Rhys through so many complex situations and answering his many, many questions.

Rhys went to follow Jack out the door, only for Nisha to hold him back and close the door after Jack. He stared at her in confusion as she waited, listening, and then focused on him. “We need to talk, kid.”

“Is something wrong?”

She chuckled a little. “No, nothing’s wrong. That’s actually what I want to talk to you about.” Her amber gaze wouldn’t meet his face, instead focusing on the dim table. “Jack’s happy. Happier than he’s been in a really, really long time. And I think a large part of that is you.”

That was not what he expected from this conversation. His cheeks burned hot and he looked away from her. “Why do you say that?”

“Honestly? Jack’s learned a lot about mortality since he got his scar. And to hear him talk about making you his second mate after this vault business, to even hear him talk about the future, is a big change. I don’t want to say he has something to live for, because, let’s face it, the man is too vain to let the world kill him—”

Rhys snorted a laugh.

“—but, in a way, he now has a reason to be more optimistic. He wants to start a new crew with you. He’s taking steps to ensure you have a good standing on your ship. He’s not letting go of you any time soon.”

His heart was fluttering. “I… I think I knew that. Why are you telling me this?” 

When he lifted his gaze, she was staring right at him. “I see that you make him happy. I’ll be leaving for Maliwan after this vault business is done and I know that I’m leaving him in good hands.” She motioned to his right arm. The crystals glowed dimly in the low light of the navigation room. “Just be careful with that arm of yours. If word starts getting around that you’re carrying eridium, you’ll have more than just an occasional pirate to worry about.”

He nodded gravely. His arm was a liability, that he knew. They would need a ship with good defenses once they started to actively store eridium, but that would be for them to worry about once they got back to Hyperion. “I’ll be careful,” he promised her. “And I’ll take good care of Jack.”

“Good, because I’d hate to hurt that pretty little face of yours if you didn’t.” She laughed and gave his nervous expression a toothy grin. Moving to the side, she adjusted her hat and moved her bangs from her eyes. “I won’t threaten you anymore. Go ahead and get some dinner. You’ve earned it for putting up with Jack all day.”

The cafeteria was almost empty when Rhys finally arrived. Jack sat in front of a half-empty plate, looking rather tired. Fiona was not too far away, in front of the serving window where Sasha was wiping away crumbs and clearing dirty dishes. Upon noticing him, Sasha smiled and placed a plate of fish on the window. There were only a few carrots on the side; he could deal with that.

But when he took his plate and started towards Jack, Fiona grabbed his arm. “Rhys, sit down for a minute.” When Sasha cleared her throat, she begrudgingly added, “Please.”

He did as asked and sat next to her. Fiona never spoke to him, so if she was willing to talk, then he was going to listen.

She frowned. “We’re almost at the island. Are we really going to fight a vault monster?” 

“Most likely,” he confessed with a grim nod. “I never got Vaughn to answer the comm I gave him, but Jack says all signs point to it being a vault.” Her frown tightened into a scowl and he touched her shoulder. “Fiona, are you okay?”

She grit her teeth, then sighed. “I just really don’t want to get involved in this. I mean, fighting a vault monster? How are we supposed to accomplish that? We’re just people.”

He allowed his hand to slide from her shoulder. “You don’t have to do this, you know. That’s why we hired the soldiers. We could take you to Tediore, or let you stay on the island until it’s over.”

"But I'm here. I've made it this far. Nisha has been a… good friend since she's been aboard and I don't want to just ditch her. So as much as I don't want to do this, I will." She looked over and pointed a finger at him. "Once this is over, though, if I live, I want to be dropped off at the nearest populated island. I think I'm done with the sea life." 

His laugh was involuntary. “I’m sure you’re not the only one. We’ll talk to Jack about it later.” He looked at Sasha. “What about you? Should we drop you off with Fiona?”

She shrugged and accepted a stack of plates from a soldier, who quickly scurried off. “I don’t know yet. I haven’t decided. It won't mean anything if we all die, so I'm going to see how that turns out first." She gave Fiona a mournful smile. "I don't know if I'm going with Fi yet. But we've been together for as long as I can remember. It'll be hard splitting up, if we do." 

Rhys was quiet. As much as he wanted to say he knew how they felt, he didn’t. Not really. Although his decision to leave the colony had been more or less forced upon him, it was not difficult. He had not fought to stay with Vaughn and Yvette. He had not wished that the colony would take him back. As much as he missed his friends, he had not been torn on his decision between them and Jack.

But he could see that neither girl seemed particularly convinced that parting ways was the best idea. “Sasha… it’s okay if you want to leave. You don’t have to stay here with me and Jack. It’s your decision, but whatever that may be, it’s okay.” He did not think Fiona would be pleased if he implied she needed Sasha, so instead he said, “Family is important. You don’t have to leave it behind.” 

Sasha relaxed, if only slightly. “You’re right. I still have time to think about it.” She nodded towards his plate and began to fill up a sink. “Hurry up and eat so you can come help me with these dishes.”

There was no time for Rhys to worry about the future over the next two weeks. Every day he was pulled into some kind of training, either learning how to navigate with Jack, or combat training initiated by Nisha or Zer0. Though it didn’t take a genius to figure out they were working on Jack’s orders, neither Rhys nor Jack ever brought up where he’d been after he returned to their room late at night. 

But a week into constantly training every day was exhausting, both mentally and physically. Each morning, he struggled to wake up on time and be productive. His reflexes were suffering and his answers to Jack’s merciless quizzes were no longer mostly correct. He was barely scraping by, and every night he collapsed into a deep sleep without so much as a goodnight to Jack.

So it was both a surprise and a relief when he woke up on his own one morning, fully rested and in an empty bed. Jack’s jacket was missing from its spot on the desk where he threw it haphazardly every evening and there was only one set of shoes by the door. Although it wasn’t exactly unusual for Jack to wake up early, typically he came back shortly to wake Rhys up.

Rhys took his time getting ready. His stomach growled loudly in the empty bathroom and he frowned as he brushed his hair. Normally he wasn’t so hungry when he woke up. Just how late was it?

He had his answer when he made his way up to the top deck. The blazing sun forced him to squint and shield his eyes with his arm. Even the air was already humid and sweltering. It had to be close to midday. How had Jack let him sleep so late? 

When he finally found Jack in the wheelhouse, Jack didn’t even glance up from the map he was poring over, merely saying, “Hey, pumpkin.’

“What time is it?”

Jack straightened up his back and pulled the pocket watch from his breast pocket. “Almost one in the afternoon. Hm, I guess I missed lunch.”

“It’s already past lunch?” It wasn’t even necessarily that he’d missed lunch, but that he’d slept over half the day away. “Why did you let me sleep all day?”

Ever so nonchalant, Jack shrugged his shoulders. “You’ve been so exhausted from all of your training that I thought you deserved a day off. I let you sleep in. Although you did sleep way longer than I thought you would.” 

So it was Jack who had instructed them to train him. "I thought we were past the point of teaching me how to shoot. I can use a gun, Jack."

"You can, but you miss way too much. You do okay if your target doesn't move, but that's not how the world works. Our fights take place on the ocean. Your brass knuckles are useless nine times out of ten. You need a long range weapon. And we don't know what kind of monster the vault will have, so we all need to be prepared. Sometimes you can't just run up and punch it."

Rhys frowned, saying nothing else. The seafolk didn't have long range weaponry; he had never learned how to use anything but close combat weapons until Jack put a gun in his hands for the first time. Jack was right about them fighting on open waters, he supposed. Unfortunately. 

Jack strode over to him and slid an arm around his shoulders. "And after the vault, we'll be losing both Nisha and Zer0. I need them to pass on as much information to you as they can before that happens. I want you to be prepared. You will probably never be the best shot on the planet, but I want you to be able to hold your own." He spoke softly, leaning in close to Rhys's ear. 

It took all of his willpower not to melt into that strong chest pressed against his shoulder. Rhys exhaled through his nose and turned his head to place a kiss on his lips. It felt like ages since they had this chance to be alone, without exhaustion weighing down his limbs. But he couldn't enjoy it fully, his mind preoccupied. So even though Jack leaned in to the kiss, Rhys pulled away. 

"I will learn how to shoot properly," he promised. "But I can't keep up this pace. Can we shorten the hours or something? When the time comes, I won't be ready if it stays like this. I can hardly think straight most days now."

That seemed to appeal to reason, because Jack nodded. "Alright. I'll talk to Nisha and Zer0, get them to back off a little. Now come on, I bet you're starving. I think Sasha has some snacks stowed away in the kitchen."

Eager to get off the subject of guns, Rhys laughed. "I don't think those are for sharing, Jack," he said, but he was already being led towards the door. 

"It's my ship. Everything on it belongs to me. Relax, it's not like we're gonna eat all of it."

Despite his doubts of Jack's sincerity, Rhys allowed Jack to lead him down to the kitchen. They found Sasha's stash after a brief search, and Rhys guiltily grabbed two pieces of candy while Jack snatched a small bag of pretzels. They ate in silence, save for Rhys admonishing Jack when he tried to go for seconds.

As Rhys finished stuffing the evidence of their crime deep in the trash, he stood up and turned to find Jack watching him. Or rather, Jack watching part of him. "What are you looking at?"

Lazily, Jack's eyes flicked back up to his face. "Your ass looks pretty good when it's not covered in a cloak."

"It took you three weeks to notice that?" Rhys quipped as he dusted off his hands.

Jack snorted and rose. His shoes thumped against the floor in time with Rhys's heart in his chest. He stepped close, and Rhys could smell the salt on his lips. "I feel like I've been neglecting you because of all of your training."

It was true that they hadn't spent much personal time together, aside from their lessons. Rhys swallowed. "You've been busy. So have I." 

Jack grunted deep in his throat. "Well, today is your day off. Do you want to go back to our room? I think you might feel a bit refreshed after a good fuck."

"Jack," Rhys replied with a chuckle that in no way sounded strained, "do you really think you have to justify it? I would say yes regardless."

The answering grin was toothy and wolfish and an arm snakes around his waist. "I know, but—"

"Rhys," interrupts Sasha's voice through the ECHOcomm in Rhys's ear, "come up to the deck. We're here." 

The prospect of going back to their room was immediately forgotten. Rhys pulled out of the hold with nothing more than a mumbled, distracted apology, and started towards the door. Jack must have gotten a similar call, as he was hot on Rhys's heels without a single gripe.

The scene that greeted Rhys as he burst onto the deck through the doors looked precisely as it had when he left. The rippling surface of the ocean was a deep blue color and rather bland to look at. He could see the distorted shape of the volcanic reefs below the surface if he looked over the railing. In the distance was the cove, far enough away that even a storm wouldn't send them careening into the jagged rocks. 

It did not feel as he thought it would.

He thought it would feel like coming home. But when the initial excitement faded, he was left feeling rather… apathetic. From atop the ship, it looked like the rest of the oceans had as they traveled all over the planet. There was nothing unique about the spot where he was raised. And without a colony to go back to, what was the point? 

Jack rested a broad hand on his shoulders. "Do you think your friends are nearby?" 

The sun was high in the sky, but not quite directly above them. "If the schedules have not changed, then Yvette's patrol should be approaching the reef shortly. Hopefully the ship scares the rest of them off."

"Will it not scare her away?"

Rhys shook his head. "Nothing scares Yvette." He stepped over to the railing and looked down at the waters lapping at the hull. "Let me go down there by myself. I know where the patrols go and I can talk to her if she gets close enough."

Jack nodded. "Alright. Keep your comm on you, and your shield. I'll be right here. Do you need a knife to take with you?"

"The seafolk are fast. I don't think a knife would do me much good," Rhys answered honestly as he pulled his shirt over his head. He kicked off his shoes as well, but left his pants and the shield hooked to his belt loop on. When he turned to Jack, Rhys leaned in and pressed a kiss to the clasp on his chin. "I'll be back soon." 

"Be careful down there," Jack told him gravely. "Don't overexert yourself. Don't go too deep. Always make sure you have enough time to make it to the surface." His frown was unconvinced even as Rhys nodded in agreement, but he said nothing as Rhys climbed over the railing and jumped. He squeezed his eyes shut and instinctively drew his legs in close, which helped the sting as he collided with the surface of the ocean. His shield beeped loudly at him, depleted, and he unfurled himself in the depths of the water.

How long had it been since he swam in the ocean? Salt stung his eyes and the pressure bearing down on his head and lungs made him ache as he swam back towards the surface. He could feel the current pulling on his limbs. His body felt weightless, and his flailing limbs were useless. By the time he managed to breach his head, he was gasping for air. He kicked and paddled to stay afloat until he felt the vibration of his shield refilling. Spinning around, it took far too long for Rhys to regain his bearings.

But he set off towards the reef once he figured out where it was. His speed was a fraction of what it had been before his transformation, and his stamina fared little better. It seemed like every few feet he was forced to stop and rest, sucking in lungfuls of air and careful not to inhale any seawater. Many times he looked back at the ship, wondering if it was too late to turn back and get them to take him closer, but he knew they couldn't risk parking the ship any closer to the reef, so he continued.

Eventually, he made it to the reef. He breathed in deep, then dove beneath the surface. At least his eyesight was as good as ever. In the distance, he saw the brilliant orange gleam of scales, and he called out towards it. "Yvette!" 

She turned towards him. With a flick of her tail, she was right in front of him. His head reeled; had she always been that quick? Had he once been that fast? But he shook those thoughts off and beamed at her. "Yvette, I'm happy to see you." 

Yvette frowned at him. Without saying anything, she circled him slowly with smooth, almost lazy pumps of her tail. She scrutinized his gill-less neck, his legs, and the fabric that covered them. His own grin morphed into a sheepish smile as she stopped in front of him and announced, "You look weird."

"That's all you want to say to me? No, 'oh, Rhys, it's been so long, how have you been?'" 

"Nope."

Even the sheepish smile faded and his mouth curled into a pout. "Why are you mad at me?"

She cocked her head in consideration of her answer, but instead asked, "Does that thing belong to you?" with a nod towards the ship behind him. "It scared away the rest of the patrol."

"It's Jack's." He paused. "Well, it's his brother's. We borrowed it to come back."

"Why?"

The disgruntled tone caught him off guard. He had anticipated at least a small amount of enthusiasm at his return. But when he went to explain himself, he realized that he couldn't. She didn't know what a vault was, or a vault monster. She didn't even know what eridium was. "It's hard to describe. Have any of the patrols seen a monster near the Darkness?"

Her eyes cut away from him, and after all that time, he remembered that expression; she was hiding something from him. He wanted to ask about it, and instead felt a twinge in his lungs. "Hold on." 

After a quick breath, he returned. Her frown had deepened. "There's someone you should talk to." 

"Will anyone from the colony even talk to me?" he asked dubiously.

"He's not from the colony. Can you come any deeper than this? He doesn't like the surface." 

Rhys shook his head. "I can't. This is as deep as I can go like this. But you can bring him here at dusk if you like. If he knows something, then I need to speak to him."

"You alright there, cupcake?" Jack's voice sounded warbled under the water.

"Yes, I'm fine. I'll be back soon," Rhys promised. At Yvette's bewildered expression, he turned his head and pointed at the ECHOcomm lodged in his ear. Her ever-present frown turned into a scowl.

"Can you make it back by yourself? I can come get you."

Glancing back at the long swim behind him, Rhys nodded once. "That would be helpful. I'm almost done here. Goodbye, Jack." He swam up for a breath, then returned. 

For a moment, they floated in silence. Then, Yvette asked, "Is that your human?"

"Yes. We've been traveling together since my exile." Her gaze left him again, focused on the reef underneath them, and her grip on her own arm tightened. "Yvette, what's wrong?" 

She set her jaw and he saw a glint of sharp teeth peek from between her lips. "You picked him over us. You gave up everything—your family, your tail, your gills, everything—for a stupid human. You could have stayed and helped Vaughn with his future hatchlings. We could have risen through the patrol ranks together. Now you have no tail, and can't go any deeper than the shallow reef. Was it worth it? Can you honestly tell me that you are happy outside of the sea?"

"I am happy with Jack." The certainty in his sudden answer surprised them both. A flash of hurt crossed her face, and he added, "I miss you and Vaughn. I miss being able to swim like I used to. But I am happy with Jack. The colony was not the place for me. We all heard Miriam say that I didn't belong there. I think, sooner or later, she would have found a way to make me leave." He reached out, only to retract his hand as she jerked away from his reach. "I am sorry," he said softly. "I miss you both. But I like where I am now. Can you accept that?" 

"...I should get back to the patrol before they come looking for me," she informed him. Her eyes refused to look at him, even as he nodded. "Return to this spot at nightfall. I will bring the outsider who can answer your questions, and Vaughn." 

Rhys frowned when she put her back to him. "Okay. Thank you," he tried to say, but she was already swimming away, and in an instant, she was gone.

Surfacing, Rhys saw Jack rowing towards him. He kept his head above water until the boat was close enough that their combined strength could haul him into the rowboat. Exhaustion weighed heavy in his limbs and he stared up at the pale blue sky as Jack began to row them back to the ship.

"Find out any info?"

"There's something going on. She wouldn't tell me, but there's an outsider who can. She will bring him back here tonight."

"So all we can do is wait?" Jack asked, his voice on the verge of a whine, unsurprisingly.

Rhys nodded and closed his eyes. "All we can do is wait," he confirmed, and felt the corners of his mouth twitch when Jack groaned loudly and dramatically. 

With their destination reached, the ship had come to a standstill. Firearm practice was forbidden by Jack, per Rhys’s request, to avoid spooking their contacts within the colony. That left little for the soldiers to do besides chores, and even those were completed within a few hours. The sun was scorching, yet the refreshing water was off limits; Rhys didn’t trust the soldiers not to get into trouble or seek out the colony. 

Boredom quickly set in. The few decks of playing cards became prized possessions. The bunks were full of people either chatting or relaxing. Nisha was showing Fiona how to reload a gun in the heat of battle. Sasha had disappeared, though Rhys assumed she was taking a break from dinner prep. 

The only one who was still working was Jack, who had holed himself up in the navigation room to pore over the map and his plans for the vault. Although Rhys wanted nothing more than to spend time with him, he didn’t dare try to interrupt his work. Instead, he wandered the main deck. Sweat tickled his spine and he pushed his damp hair away from his face, only for it to fall back in his eyes. He would have to ask Jack for a blade to cut it off if it was going to keep getting in the way.

He wasn’t sure what he thought of the whole vault situation. His colony was in danger, but was it worth putting everyone he knew, his friends and Jack, in harm’s way? Jack seemed unusually cautious, even with the soldiers at his disposal. Rhys thought about the burn that covered half of Jack’s face and left him blind in one eye. What would happen this time? How could he protect his families—both his old and new? He was just one man, and one terrible with a gun at that. 

The back of the ship, where just a week ago Jack had pinned him to the wall, was desolate. The afternoon sun was hidden by the wheelhouse, creating a cool, shadowed area. Rhys rested his arms on the still warm railing. He tapped his fingers against the metal and stared down at the crystals lining his arm. Once, they had been a bright, shimmering violet color. Now they were pale, almost lavender, with a white ombré near the tips. He would need more eridium if he wanted to keep his legs and stay with Jack. Timothy had already said he couldn’t help them. Their only option was finding the vault. Either they failed and died, or they succeeded and Rhys got to continue to be with the man he loved. 

At the sound of approaching footsteps, Rhys turned around and found himself looking at the tired lines of Jack’s mask. Strong arms slid around his waist and Rhys pressed his face into Jack’s shoulder. He smelled like salt with a hint of gunpowder and soap. Jack held him tight and Rhys gripped the back of his coat, smiling. He would personally fight the vault monster to keep Jack forever. 

Eventually his hold faltered, though Jack refused to let go. Only then did concern set in, and Rhys asked, “Are you okay, Jack?”

Jack sighed against his ear. “Yeah. Just… thinking about the vault. The last one.” 

Rhys lifted his head and frowned. “This one will be nothing like the last one,” he vowed. 

“How do you know?” It wasn’t a playful question. “Rhys, you’ve never been in a vault.”

His answer came in the form of a kiss pressed to the clasp on his chin. “Because I won’t let it happen. And as long as you don’t touch any more artifacts, you should be okay.” Rhys smiled slightly and ran a hand through Jack’s hair. “Come on, it’s time to meet with Vaughn and Yvette.” He pulled away from the embrace, however reluctantly, and led Jack towards the rowboats. 

It was just the two of them. Jack rowed and Rhys navigated him to the rendezvous point, which was hard to do above the surface. They were marginally early, and Rhys took the time to sternly tell Jack not to be rude to his friends. “They were my family and always good to me,” he explained. “Let’s not upset them. If you’re in doubt, don’t say anything.” All he wanted was for Jack to make a good impression, to make up for the fact that Rhys had left the colony for him. 

As the sun cast an orange hue across the ocean, Rhys’s heart fluttered in his chest. In his excitement—or anxiety—he leaned too close to the edge and Jack had to pull him away.

“Don’t flip the boat, pumpkin,” he warned. “It’ll be hell to…” His voice trailed off, his attention stolen by something behind Rhys. 

Two heads poked out of the water. Yvette looked mostly the same. Vaughn, however, had grown out his hair. For the first time, Rhys was surprised to notice that they looked human with only their heads showing. Some part of him had expected to look… different, somehow. 

Jack shifted closer towards them, only for Vaughn to shirk away from the stranger. Yvette remained still and stared at him with dark eyes. Rhys knew she was taking in every little detail about him. If only he could know what her opinion was of what she saw.

“Sup?” Jack was the first to speak. The flippant greeting made Rhys shoot him a look of mild annoyance, though he quickly turned his attention back to his former family. 

“I’m so glad you guys could make it. This is Jack. He’s the man I saved. I’ve been traveling with him since my exile.” He placed a hand on Jack’s knee, comforting them both. “He’s my— He’s like my mate,” he said after some hesitation. He couldn’t look at Jack when he said it, knowing it would be translated. 

His foot bounced with anxious energy, a rhythmic thump against the hull. His friends said nothing at first and merely exchanged a look that no echocomm could interpret. He swallowed. At one point in his life, a time that felt like ages ago, he would have been able to read their expressions and know just what they were thinking about. But now their shared looks were so alien to him that he might as well have been a stranger himself. And it stung. 

“Come on, guys,” he said with a nervous laugh. “Say something. Please? I brought him here because I wanted you to meet him.”

Yvette’s eyes darted between the two of them. “So this is who you left us for?”

“Well, kind of. I mean, the council did exile me, soooo…” He didn’t like where this was going. 

“That was your own fault. You saved him in the first place and kept visiting. I still can’t believe you abandoned us like that, for a human. And you’re mated with him?”

“No, not quite,” he assured quickly. Though was it for her or Jack’s sake? “But we’ve been over this, Yvette. I made a choice to help him. I couldn’t just leave him to die.”

“You could have,” she retorted coldly. 

Jack tensed up under Rhys’s hand. Rhys gave his knee a placating squeeze and glanced back at him with an unspoken request. Jack nodded in silent agreement, scowling. 

“Would you guys like me to come in the water? Alone?” Rhys suggested. “We can talk there, like before.” Away from Jack, and like old times. 

“Yeah….” Vaughn finally said, albeit slowly. “We have someone to show you anyway and he doesn’t like the surface.”

Rhys climbed over the edge of the boat and slid into the water. The salt stung his still sensitive ear. He shivered as he sank down, but soon forgot about the chill. Below his friends was a familiar face, yet one he had never seen fully. August looked just as surprised to see Rhys. 

“It’s you,” Rhys said in disbelief. 

“It’s you, ” August snarled. The hostility caught Rhys off guard, but even that didn’t prepare him for August lunging at him. Flailing his legs was no match for August’s powerful tail, and before he could even draw his knife, Rhys was pinned down on the reef. Sharp, unyielding stone pressed against his spine, threatening to slice him open. The pressure on his lungs and in his ears was crushing. It took all his willpower not to gasp. August had his arms locked in place with a terrifying amount of strength for a skinny body. He kicked wildly, trying to find something to push away, only for August to wrap his dark tail around Rhys’s legs. 

“You’ll pay for what you did to my mother!” August snapped. He snarled and dread filled Rhys’s veins at the sight of hundreds of needle-thin, razor-sharp teeth. Countless stories from his childhood had not prepared him for reality. 

“I didn’t do anything to your mother,” he swore. “I don’t even know who she is.” He lifted his head and tried to see over August’s shoulder. Where were Vaughn and Yvette?

August hissed and let go of his left arm to push Rhys’s face into the reef. “Do you think I’m an idiot? She saved you from starvation and granted your request. And you turned her into a monster.”

“The Witch… is your mother?” It was hard to wrap his head around it all when his body was screaming for air. 

His vision was going dark. His lungs burned and he opened his mouth, but the tang of salt on his tongue kept him from inhaling. He pushed August’s chest but his flesh arm wasn’t strong enough to make a difference. 

“Rhys?” 

Jack’s voice crackled in his ear. 

“Rhys, what’s going on? It’s too dark and I can’t see you. Answer me, baby.”

Rhys whimpered softly. “I need help, Jack.” 

Jack didn’t respond. For a nauseating moment he wondered if this was the way he died, drowned by one of his own kind for a crime he didn’t know he committed. He didn’t have the energy to fight anymore. He breathed in. The rush of water in his lungs made him cough and sucked in more water. He gagged weakly. As his energy waned, the panic began to fade. The muscles in his throat relaxed and he swallowed. His nose stung and his chest felt like it was going to burst. 

There was a piercing shriek above him. The grip on his arm and legs vanished abruptly and was replaced by a firm but gentle arm hooked around his waist. His vision was too blurry to make out anything, not that he would have been able to respond. 

He didn’t remember the swim to the boat. Everything was black and painful, until suddenly he inhaled sweet, crisp air. His lungs ached. He hacked and coughed until he threw up, sobbing. Jack laid him on his stomach, across his lap. Rhys threw up again with a hoarse scream and dug his claws into Jack’s calf, desperately clinging to him. 

It still hurt to breathe but Rhys didn’t have the strength to cough anymore. He slid off Jack’s lap and sat down on the bottom of the boat, tucked into a ball. He didn’t look up when Jack hugged him, or when he heard the water breaking. Jack’s comforting hold left him and he felt the rowboat rock dangerously. 

“Get away from us.” The harsh command reminded Rhys of how Jack had spoken to the soldiers on the night of the attack. “You would have let him die.” 

“I don’t understand you,” Vaughn clicked. “Let me talk to him. Please.”

“Go. Away. Before I shoot all three of you.” There was a brief silence, until Rhys heard the sound of metal against wet leather. The safety switch clicked and he untangled his heavy limbs to grab Jack’s leg. 

“Take me home,” he rasped with a weak cough. “Please…”

Nobody got shot. Jack put down the pistol and gingerly slid his fingers through Rhys’s wet hair. Then he let go, and picked up the oars. Jack jerked his arm and slapped the water with one of the oars. Rhys heard a second, louder splash, and nothing else from Vaughn.

It was slow rowing back to the ship. The sound of water sloshing water was not soothing. His stomach churned with the gentle swaying of the rowboat. He rested his cheek against the cool metal of Jack’s seat, his eyes closed. Every inch of his body ached. His breathing was ragged and wet, just like the rest of him. He didn’t even try to stand when Jack tried to lift him up. After a couple of attempts, Jack huffed and let go. 

“Nisha, I need you to drop whatever you’re doing. Get Zer0 and come to the main deck. I need you to lower the ropes for the rowboat and help me get Rhys onboard. I’ll explain it later. Call me back when you’re ready.” 

A warm hand slid down Rhys’s sore back. “We’re almost there, Rhysie. We’ll get you cleaned up and in bed so you can rest.” His voice was gentle in a way Rhys hadn’t heard in a long time. “Do you want to eat anything?”

The thought of putting anything in his stomach made him queasy and he shook his head. “I just want to go to bed.” 

“Alright, pumpkin. Let’s just get you in dry clothes and go to bed then.” 

He stood up and whistled. “Nish! Down here!”

Nisha lowered the ropes for them and Jack secured the boat in place. Rhys kept his head down as the boat was raised from the water, only looking up when they reached the deck. 

“Why are you wet?” Nisha asked Jack with a raised eyebrow. She didn’t pay any attention to Rhys until Jack helped him up to his feet, practically carrying him. “Why can’t he walk on his own feet?”

“You and I will talk later,” he told her, sliding Rhys’s arm around his shoulders for support. “I’ll give you the rundown of what happened. Right now he’s going to bed.” 

They took the short journey at Rhys’s pace. His limbs were still sluggish and he dragged his feet across the deck. The sun had set and the cool wind sent a chill through his tired body. Thankfully their cabin was not ungodly far, and even at their slow pace, it didn’t take that long to reach it. The barracks they had to pass through were empty; everyone was probably eating dinner in the cafeteria. 

Jack helped Rhys strip out of his wet clothes and checked him over for injuries. His back was scraped up from the rocks, and there was going to be a bruise under his eye across his cheek, but there wasn’t anything to really be concerned about. A fluffy towel was used to dry him off, and Jack picked out a pair of shorts for him to sleep in. Although it was still very early, Rhys had no objections to climbing into bed and under the covers. 

“Do you need me here?” 

Rhys shook his head. “No, it’s okay.” Jack had other things to do, he knew that. Besides, he wanted to be alone for a little while. There was a lot on his mind. He was still thinking about what August said about the Witch, and trying not to dwell on the fact that his friends hadn’t tried to help him. 

“Alright, kitten. Get some sleep. If you need me, call me. I’ll come check on you soon.” With that promise hanging in the air, Jack closed the door behind him as he left. 

Rhys pulled the blankets over his shoulders and rolled onto his side. He didn’t know how he was going to tell Jack that the vault monster wasn’t really a part of the vault, and that his wish to be a human had started it all. The Witch was a monster, the colony was in danger, and August lost possibly the only family he had. All because of Rhys, all because he wanted to stay with Jack. It was worth it to him, but he didn’t think everyone else felt the same way. 

Static popped in his ear and he winced. Did the ECHOcomm get too much water in it? 

“Rhys? Hello?”

Rhys froze. “Vaughn?” 

“Rhys! I’m so glad you answered. I need to talk to you.”

It would be so easy to hang up, take out the comm, and go to sleep. He wouldn’t have to listen to whatever Vaughn had to say. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Vaughn had been his friend since he was adopted by the colony. They were like brothers. He couldn’t just turn his back on all of that. But there was something he had to know first. 

“Vaughn… Why didn’t you and Yvette help me when August attacked?”

The answering silence made him nauseous. His fingertip wavered against the button that would shut off his comm, ending the call once and for all. Then, he heard Vaughn hesitantly reply, “Yvette stopped me. I’m sorry. She’s gotten much stronger since she joined the guard and I couldn’t pull away.”

Yvette. She’d sold him out to the council the last time they’d seen each other, what felt like years ago at the start of all of this, and he had assumed that it was done in her and Vaughn’s best interests, for their safety. But she would have let him die—and for what? What was the point of actively holding Vaughn back? He didn’t want to say it was revenge, but the thought lingered unpleasantly. 

“Rhys? Are you still there?”

“Yeah, sorry. That’s just… not what I wanted to hear. Did… did you call to apologize, or something else?” He didn’t want to talk about Yvette anymore.

“I know you’re looking for info about the monster. August was pretty badly injured by the human, so all I know is what he’s mentioned before. But I thought you might want to hear it.”

Rhys swallowed hard and sat up to watch the door, as if Jack would come bursting in at any second. “Tell me everything you know.”

“The monster is August’s mother. You know that, obviously. But he claims it wasn’t her fault. The dark-water seafolk feed on something they call eridium. It looks like your arm. He said she “found” some.” Vaughn didn’t know the specifics of the eridium pool that Rhys used to visit regularly, but he did know that Rhys had to “recharge” his arm. He was smart enough to put the pieces together. “He said she started “feeding” much more often. Then she started changing. He wouldn’t describe her. All he said was that she kept growing. Eventually he was forced to leave.”

So it was the pool that had caused this. His wish. Rhys closed his eyes. “Thank you for telling me. I’ll let Jack know she’s using eridium.” 

“Rhys, are you sure this guy is safe? I mean, he stabbed August without any hesitation.” 

“August was going to kill me. If I’d had the chance, I would have stabbed him first.”

“You shouldn’t say that,” Vaughn scolded. “You know we’re not supposed to hurt our own kind, even if August attacked first.”

Rhys’ stomach twisted. “I don’t think I’ve been one of you for a long time. Goodbye, Vaughn. Stay safe.” He switched off his comm with a soft sigh and sank back down in the bed. He stared at his knees under the blanket and lightly knocked them together. He had never dwelled on the relief he’d felt after he got his legs back just before they made it to Hyperion. But maybe he really did mean what he said: he didn’t truly belong with the seafolk. As much as he missed Vaughn, he wouldn’t give up his life for anything.  He liked being able to walk, run, and just move around on land. He could still swim, just not as well. There was no reason for him to miss his tail, and he didn’t. He liked being a human. It felt… right, somehow. Like it was how he was meant to be. 

He shook his head and climbed out of bed. He needed to find Jack and tell him what he had learned. There was no way of knowing when Jack would come back to their room and he couldn’t wait until morning. He pulled on a clean pair of pants, but forwent shoes and a shirt, if only to save some time.

With dinner over and not much else to occupy their time, most of the soldiers had already returned to the barracks. None of them spared him more than a brief glance, which he was fine with; after everything that had happened, he wasn’t too keen on making conversation. Right now he just needed to find Jack.

His first stop was the navigation room, where he expected to find Jack poring over his maps and strategies. But the lights were off and the door was locked. Rhys frowned. Dinner was over, so where else would he be?

Reluctant to call him in case he was busy, Rhys started walking around the ship. He started along the side, then looped around the front to head towards the rear. As he neared the back deck, there was initially no sign of Jack. But just before he rounded the corner, he heard his voice. 

“There’s something wrong with me.” 

Rhys stopped in his tracks and peered around the corner. Jack and Nisha were standing a few feet away near the railing. Jack was frowning at the ocean while Nisha casually cleaned her pistol.

“No, I don’t think so.” She was surprisingly dismissive.

“Aren’t you listening? I was shaking so much that I almost dropped the knife.”

She huffed. “He almost died, Jack.”

“And? He’s almost died lots of times. He racks up near-death experiences like arcade tickets.” 

“But this time was different. He didn’t come to you after the fact. You didn’t find him after he’d saved himself. You were there, you saw it, and were the only one who could have saved him.”

“I’ve saved people before. What are you getting at?” 

Nisha shoved her pistol back into the holster on her thigh, then grabbed the metal clasp on his chin and jerked him close. “I’m not going to spell it out for you, but listen to me. The longer you deny it, the more you hurt him, and yourself. So quit acting like a fool.”

She released him with a weak shove and walked away. Although Rhys tried to discreetly press himself against the wall, she bumped into his shoulder. She shot a look in his direction and gave him a slight nod of acknowledgement, but didn’t say anything or stop walking.

Rhys hesitated coming out of his hiding spot for almost a minute, just to give Jack enough time to think he’d been alone. He eventually rounded the corner and walked over to where Jack was leaning against the railing.

“Jack?” he ventured.

Jack jerked out of whatever he’d been thinking of looked over at Rhys. “What are you doing up? You’re supposed to be resting.”

“I know, but I got a call from Vaughn. He had some information to share about the vault monster.”

An indecipherable emotion flickered across his mask. “Are you sure you can trust him after what happened?”

Rhys tried not to flinch. “Yes. Even if it’s not completely true, you need to know. It may help.”

Once Jack gave him a halting nod to go, everything came spilling forth. Although Jack had known the truth about the origin of his humanity, Rhys told him more about the witch and his pool, eridium, what August had accused him of doing, and what that meant for the so-called vault monster. It wasn’t much, but by the end of it, Rhys was trembling. He didn’t really know why; he wasn’t expecting Jack to be angry about something so wildly out of his control. 

Jack didn’t say anything, not at first. He reached out and grabbed Rhys by the wrist. Rhys’s gaze flickered down to his hand, then back up to his face, which had turned grim. Jack’s grip tightened and he started to pull Rhys, saying, “We need to get moving right now.”

Rhys followed obediently, despite his confusion. “Why the urgency? You weren’t this worried before.”

“Because she’s not a vault monster. She’s feeding on eridium and if she finds the vault before we do, then we’ll lose the chance to collect it and she’ll get more powerful.” Jack tugged him across the deck to the wheelhouse, where he quickly unlocked the door and began readying the ship’s engines. The ship lurched with a loud groan and Jack swore under his breath, then swiped the intercom microphone off the counter.

Before he could use it, Nisha stormed into the wheelhouse. In the short time since she’d left Jack on the deck, she had lost her shirt and was holding her jacket closed with one hand. “What the fuck was that, Jack?” she snapped.

Jack ignored her and switched on the intercom system. In his best imitation of a calm man, he announced, “This is your captain speaking. I need the anchors lifted within the next three minutes. You’ll need five volunteers. I suggest working it out amongst yourselves before I come down there and pick five of you myself. That is all.” He slammed the microphone into place and fixed a steely glare on Nisha.

She remained unimpressed. “What are you doing? It’s the middle of the night. Where are we going?” 

“There’s been a change of plans. We need to find the vault monster as soon as possible. We can’t wait any longer.” 

“Great,” she said curtly. “So did you figure out a battle plan? Or are you going to charge in blindly and risk everyone’s lives?”

Jack scowled down at the papers strewn across the table. Rhys didn’t have to read them to know what they were: dozens of strategies and battle plans that Jack had spent weeks working on. “We’ll figure it out. It’ll take us several hours to reach the vault. I have some time.” 

Rhys glanced between them. “Jack, let me look at them. Maybe a different set of eyes will help.”

“No. I have it under control,” came the answer through gritted teeth. As Jack slid all the pages closer to him, he said, “Go get some rest, kiddo. Nish, you can go back to whatever you were doing. I’ve got this. I just need to think on it.” 

Although she didn’t look remotely convinced, Nisha let without commenting. Rhys watched her go, then turned to face Jack, but he was already going over the plans again, having forgotten that Rhys was even there. So, with a tight frown, he left. As he closed the doors behind him, he heard a heavy sigh barely audible over the scrunching of papers.

The door clicked shut and Rhys bristled. His fists clenched, he walked over to the bow and kicked the railing hard enough to make himself wince.

All he wanted was to help solve the problems that he was partially, if not completely, responsible for. Jack, as much as he probably wanted to be, was not capable of doing everything on his own. Nisha was right in that if they didn’t figure out a battle plan, a lot of people were going to die. He did not want that on his conscience. 

The tension left his muscles with a defeated sigh. Jack wasn’t going to let him get involved and that was final. There was no point in getting upset or trying to argue. So he let it go, or at least tried to ignore it, and instead returned to their room so he could rest. His chest still burned fiercely and he grimaced as he climbed into bed. He breathed slowly and shallowly in an attempt to mitigate the discomfort. 

It accomplished very little, and eventually he sat up with a grunt and slipped out of bed. Running one hand through his hair, he left the room. The upper deck was crowded with bored, mingling soldiers, so he chose to roam around in the cargo hold, just to occupy his mind and time. 

In the weeks since they’d set sail from Hyperion, he hadn’t really explored the ship much. Not that there was much in the cargo hold that was very interesting, but nevertheless. He roamed through the maze of crates and boxes of various supplies, from utensils to blankets to tools, as well as some mystery containers that were either sealed or unlabeled. 

As he neared the back of the cargo hold, he noticed a lone barrel tucked into the corner, almost fully concealed by some larger crates. His skin tingled as he stepped closer to the barrel, the sensation intensifying with each step. By the time he was close enough to touch it, his entire body was thrumming. There was no label, but his curiosity was piqued just like the rest of his body. With a deep breath, he slid his claws under the lid and pulled. The airtight seal was no match for his talons and with enough force, the lid flew up and clanged on the metal floor a few feet away. 

Rhys didn’t even notice. The familiar luminescent violet glow of eridium made his breath stall in his throat. Where had it come from? There had been none left after his previous transformation and Timothy had said that he had none to give them. But in the end, did it matter where it came from? He looked down at the crystals along his arm. The color was fading, leaving the crystals a pale alabaster, and needed to be replenished soon, or he would lose control of his arm and lose his legs not long after. As guilty as he felt about taking something that wasn’t his, there wasn’t much of a choice. So after glancing nervously around to make sure nobody in the empty room was watching him, he dipped his arm into the barrel. 

Comfortably, his arm was only submerged to the elbow. But, worried its effectiveness would be weakened without absorbing through his whole arm, Rhys shifted onto one foot and leaned his head and shoulder into the barrel. It was shallow enough that his head wasn't quite touching the surface. All he had to do was—

Any semblance of a thought was drowned out by a bone shaking roar, amplified by the echo chamber that was the barrel. His whole body jerked and he tried to pull himself free, but he didn't have much time to react before an equally powerful thud rocked the ship. Although he was unaware of the crates and boxes sliding around, he certainly noticed the barrel tipping. His head was engulfed in the viscous fluid as he lost his balance, and in his panic, he inhaled. Eridium rushed his lungs, thick and warm. His chest and throat tightened, but it did not burn like it did when he was drowning. It hurt worse when he banged the back of his skull against the rim as he tumbled out. 

His entire body was drenched as he laid there on the floor, gasping. With his shirt clinging to his skin and his hair dripping with violet fluid, he groaned and sat up. A quick check of his arm brought a wave of relief; it was fully charged. Most of the eridium had spilled, but it seemed as if it had been enough. 

He didn't get a moment to relax, however. The ship rocked again and he heard yelling from above. Climbing up to his feet, Rhys hurried unsteadily through the ship to the top deck. His whole chest was thrumming and his lungs crackled like each breath, like they were full of electricity. His heart drummed an anxious rhythm against his ribs. The lower decks were empty. Heavy, quick footsteps thundered overhead. The ship tilted and Rhys slammed his shoulder against the doorframe as he stumbled through the threshold. 

The glowing moon was stark against the cloudless inky sky. Rhys hugged the wall as several soldiers ran past him. When the ship pitched again, he slid over to the railing and grunted as the metal hit him in the gut. 

Although the water was just as dark as the sky, his recharged eye had enough light that he could see the ripples. The water grew darker all of a sudden, and after several seconds, returned to its original state. There was only the smallest hint of a ripple, but Rhys's skin went cold regardless. 

"Jack," he whispered hoarsely. He turned and took a step, but the ship rocked and his back hit the railing. "Jack," he tried again, louder. Rhys pushed off the railing and grabbed onto the door handle. "Jack!" Where was he? "There's something—" 

The sound of rushing water drowned out the rest of what he was going to say. A few drops landed on his already soaked head, and he slowly turned on his heel. The mass in front of him was black and rough with streaks of violet branching through the cracks. His eyes traveled up and up and up, until his head was craned as far back as it could go. 

One eye was a pale ivory, and the other a vivid purple. Its face was made of stone and covered in veins of eridium. It leaned down ever so slightly, and bared a mouth full of rigid black spikes in place of its teeth. The body blocked out the moonlight, and its arms and shoulders were lined with the same glowing crystals that trailed along his forearm. In the center of its chest was a massive crystal that alternated between a deep violet and a soft lavender, pulsating.

Rhys took a step back and spoke so quietly that he couldn't even hear his own words: "It's her." 

Chapter Text

Frigid drops of seawater splashed against Rhys’ cheeks. The monster’s body blacked out the pale moonlight, and she threw her head back and roared. Rhys braced himself against the door to counteract the vibrations that rocked the ship. A soldier ran past him on unsteady legs. The deck was bright—too bright—despite the lost moonlight. Rhys watched the soldier aim his rifle and take a shot. His eyes followed the flash of a bullet. It bounced off the obsidian of her shoulder. The leviathan did not flinch.

A large hand gripped his shoulder enough that it ached. Had the lines of his mask always been so vivid, so defined? 

Jack’s mouth was moving. Rhys tried to tune out the ringing so he could listen. “... go below deck and hide.”

“Hide?” Rhys echoed incredulously. “Why?”

“Because it’s not safe here!” Jack snapped. “The soldiers will take care of this. That’s what they’re here for. Go.”

Rhys pulled his shoulder free. Under the pops of gunfire, he said, “No. I will not hide.” 

“This is not the time to argue with me!” 

“I’m not arguing.” The ship rocked, and Rhys steadied Jack. Light reflected in blue and green eyes. “I’m not useless, Jack. I can help you.” 

Jack’s mouth curled into a tight frown. For a brief second, Rhys thought Jack would see reason. Then there was another ear-splitting roar, and when Rhys covered his ears, Jack opened the door and shoved him inside. Rhys stumbled backwards and the door slammed shut. Although he quickly regained his balance and ran over, the door did not budge. The knob would turn, but he couldn’t push it open, like something was blocking it.

“Open the fucking door!” He banged his fist against the steel until his flesh was bruised and throbbing. He huffed and pushed away from the door. The barracks were desolate; all of the soldiers were screaming, shooting. Probably dying. The leviathan was not going to fall to a bullet. Not one bullet, not a thousand. 

Rhys walked to the captain’s quarters. The ship rocked underneath his feet and he braced himself against the beds. Metal frames squealed. Even the hull itself creaked ominously. The ship was built for battle, not this. Sea monsters aren’t real. Never in his entire life had he seen anything like what had happened to the witch. His stomach churned. Was this his fault? If he had not given up his pool, would this have been avoided? August blamed him for her transformation. It was the eridium that caused it. His eridium. What he didn’t understand was why it had never changed him into… whatever she had become.

He knelt down in front of the crate with his belongings and started to dig through them, muttering, “Months of training, forcing me to shoot a gun, and for what? Nobody thinks to ask, ‘Rhys, how do we hurt a monster that looks like you?’” His mocking falsetto died off as he pulled out the set of brass knuckles. They were cold in his palm. He slid them onto his volcanic hand and marveled at how the slightest flex caused an arcing spark. It had never been so intense before. He twisted his arm and inspected the vibrant violet crystals that traveled up the back of his arm. The eridium pulsated in a steady rhythm. 

The door to the barracks flung open, and a soldier staggered inside. He clutched his chest and heaved wet, clicking breaths as he collapsed halfway onto a bed. Rhys grabbed the pistol from his bag and rushed over to the man. It was a grim sight: his uniform was dark and heavy, saturated with blood. His tight-fitting jacket was distorted around his collapsed chest. The fabric was torn, and a sharp white object protruded through a tear. The man cried when Rhys touched it; it was bone. He was young, barely older than Rhys himself. His face was quickly turning pale. “H…h…help…” he exhaled. His breath creaked.

“I’m so sorry,” Rhys whispered. “This is my fault.” How many more people were dead out there because of his carelessness? “I will fix this,” he promised, but those dark brown eyes were already glazed over. The clicking stopped. Rhys carefully closed the young man’s eyelids and lifted his legs onto the bed so he would not slide off. 

The door was still open. The deck was soaked from what must have been a wave. It was eerily empty. Rhys took one step through the threshold. A blur slammed into the deck just a few feet in front of him with a sickening crunch. Rhys flinched and a spark jumped from his fingers. When he relaxed, he made the mistake of looking at the mass, which was formerly a person. The corpse was horrifically mangled; blood and viscera oozed from the shredded uniform, and the body was squashed in the middle like a gruesome bow. Crushed in a powerful grip, like the young man. 

Rhys gingerly stepped around the body. The gunfire had quieted from a cacophony to a series of sporadic, echoing pops. Some soldiers had hidden behind corners out of the leviathan’s immediate sight. She had not moved since she breached the water, but several of her arm crystals were cracked and leaked eridium down her volcanic skin like rivulets of blood. 

Rapidfire shots rang out above him, and each bright flash hit another crystal, causing another leaking crack. Nisha’s triumphant laugh succeeded the shots. Rhys felt some relief, but his heart still raced. Where was Jack? 

The leviathan held yet another limp soldier in one hand and swung towards the ship with outstretched talons the size of a person. Rhys was paralyzed with the knowledge that if she took out a chunk of the ship, they would sink. This would be how they all died. In vain.

A deafening boom stung his eardrums. Her arm recoiled and she shrieked. There was a crater in the joint of her shoulder, with more chunks of rock crumbling in quick succession. By the time the echo of her shriek faded away, the entire arm sloughed off. The resulting wave lapped at the ship's railing. Eridium drooled from the exposed crevasses and mixed in the choppy waves, iridescent violet against black water. 

His hair was drenched and limp. The blood splatter on his mask was smeared across his cheek. He trembled with either exhaustion or rage, though he stiffened when Rhys darted in front of him. “What are you doing, Rhys?”

“This is my fault. I have to fix it.” Rhys raised his pistol and took a shot at her impenetrable visage. “Hey!”  Her eyes locked on him and she growled. It reverberated in his veins as if it was calling to the eridium inside of him. He ignored the deep-seated ache and raised his right arm to her, angled so the moonlight reflected off the crystals. “Do you want more eridium? Come and get it.” 

“Rhys!” Jack hisses. “Are you insane?” He tried to grab Rhys but the rocket launcher was too unwieldy and Rhys easily stepped out of his reach. 

The leviathan roared and the ache intensified. She tossed the dead soldier carelessly into the ocean and the waves rocked the ship as she moved closer. Her gigantic hand stretched out towards Rhys and he braced himself. Behind him, Jack reloaded the rocket launcher. “Do not shoot her!” Rhys commanded. Her talons were extended and her palm shielded Rhys from the moonlight. Jack grunted as the rocket finally locked into place. Rhys had to make a choice.

Her talons were dull on the sides. Nevertheless, he held on to her hand with his own volcanic hand. Jack was yelling but Rhys couldn’t hear anything over the ringing in his ears. The ache was so strong that he worried that his skin would split open so the eridium could follow the call. But he couldn’t let that paralyze him. Before she could close her hand and crush him, he straddled her wrist and started climbing up the length of her arm. He dug his fingers into the canyon-sized cracks and pulled himself up as quickly as he could. Most of the lower crystals were already damaged, so he shimmied upwards until he reached the bigger crystals that were still intact. She could not shake him off with only one arm, though she made a valiant effort that required him to press his body flat and hold on tightly. The eridium burned in his veins as he climbed closer to her chest. Even the frigid midnight wind could not cool him down. He grit his teeth until the echo faded and the pain subsided, albeit only briefly. His muscles burned. He used the butt of his pistol to hit the crystals until they cracked. 

Faint lines of eridium leaked from the cracks, but they did not trickle down the rough obsidian of her arm. Rhys watched in abject fascination as the eridium rolled up her arm towards her shoulder, following the canyon-like veins. The viscous fluid moved with what felt like purpose, tracing branching paths. Rhys tracked the bright fluid’s path until his eyes landed on the pulsating crystal implanted in the center of her chest. 

That was it. That was the key to all of this. He had to—

The leviathan jerked her arm suddenly. Rhys’s grip had weakened while he watched the eridium flow and he lost his hold. He tried to situate himself but his talons slipped just as she flung her arm again. 

Rhys had never fallen before, had never flown before. He sailed over the top of the ship and feet-first towards the ink-black ocean. It looked opaque with the light shining off of the choppy surface. He closed his eyes and held his breath in preparation for the worst. The eridium in his veins burned and the ringing began to dim and transform. As the salty spray splashed against his cheeks, Rhys heard a whisper echo in his head: Come back to us. 

He couldn't feel his toes. The ocean's embrace wasn't frigid. When he tried to kick his legs, he moved in one fluid motion. He could see for miles. It took a moment for him to realize that he wasn't holding his breath. Slowly, carefully, he reached up and touched the sides of his neck. The smooth, unbroken skin now fluttered as water filtered through gills. Although he did not dare look down, he flexed and felt the powerful muscles in his tail pulse. The thin webbing of his tailfin displaced the water even with the slightest movement. Dimly, he was aware that the ache had subsided a bit. 

This wasn't right. This wasn't good. How was he supposed to tell Jack that he had lost his legs again?

"Rhys, are you okay?" Jack's voice was garbled over the ECHOcomm. "Come on, Rhysie. Say something."

Far above him, there was a muted roar. Then the currents began to shift. The gigantic black mass that was the leviathan dropped lower and lower as she sank below the surface. They were separated by the ship's hull, which concerned Rhys more than his current state. If she charged him, she'd rip a hole right through the hull. 

"I'm fine. I need to get her away from the ship. I'm going deeper." He swam down, hoping that she would drop low enough not to damage the ship. It felt weird to use a tail again. Each powerful thrust sliced through the water with ease. He could move so much faster than he could with legs. For the time being, he could use that to his advantage. 

"Absolutely not. Get back up right now. I'll… ladder over… help you… up. Don't… stupid." The deeper Rhys dove, the more Jack's scolding cut out. The pressure in his ear intensified until he heard a sharp snap and part of the ECHOcomm slipped out of his ear. Rhys pulled the remaining half out and tossed it aside without a thought. He was officially on his own. The open ocean felt even more vast and empty than ever before. 

There were no reefs to twist through, no seagrass to hide in. Rhys swam down into the navy blue depths where the light did not reach. Yet, he could see every bubble, every tiny creature that was smaller than one of Jack’s freckles, as if the sun was shining just a few feet overhead. But he could not stop to marvel at this new world. He needed to keep moving.

She was slower, but not by much. Her roar reverberated through the water. It made his bones ache. Rhys swam as fast as he could and ignored the way his muscles burned and protested. He dove straight down towards the ocean floor. For the first time in his life, he could feel the pressure increasing around him. It felt strange and he resisted the urge to breathe in and fill his non-existent lungs. 

There was no sand beneath him, only uneven black stone from centuries of cooled lava. Although nothing looked overly familiar, he hoped he was close to the darkness. The leviathan was bigger than anything he had ever seen. He could only hope that her size made her clumsy. Rhys stuck out his arms and when his palms touched the rough stone, he pivoted. The scales of his tail scraped against the ocean floor as he forced himself to swim even faster. The heat of the eridium in his veins, initially cooled after his transformation, began to increase again. This time, the voice was back.

Turn.

He twisted his body to the left on instinct. The leviathan came crashing down in front of him with the full weight of her gigantic form. The boom was earsplitting and the stone floor crumbled into acrid dust. If he had not moved, he would have been pulverized at the bottom of the crater. Rhys felt chills tickling his spine and kept swimming. Even down in the darkness, he could see the hills and tall spires that he had twisted and wriggled through what felt like a lifetime ago. The crevices were tight. He could lose her in the hills. He hoped.

The spaces between stones had been troublesome even when he had the paths memorized. Now, after a year of being away, Rhys found that he did not have the dexterity and speed that he once possessed. Although the narrow crevices slowed the monster down, they also slowed Rhys down. His shirt, heavy with water and flowing around his waist, was distracting and disabling. He shredded it in a fit of frustration and continued to snake his way through crevices. Rough obsidian scraped at his stomach and left stinging pink lines like jellyfish tentacles. The salt in the water made them tingle. Behind him, the monster burst through thin spires with the grace of an explosion and roared. The peaks that were too thick, she swam up and over. She was intelligent enough to keep up with him and he had gained no ground. All of his muscles felt like they were melting under his skin. He could feel himself starting to slow. How long had it been since he swam this long and at this speed? But he could see the details of the mountainous terrain, the lifeless hills of forgotten eruptions. He just needed to get a little closer.

He pushed himself into another crack. The area on the other side was more open and he could see two spires a short distance away that were solidified rivulets. Bordering what looked like a cave entrance, they looked sturdy. Maybe they could buy him some time. He could hide there and regain his breath. The opening was small and he could probably just barely squeeze in.

The crack was narrower than he had expected. He was halfway to the other side and was wedged. Rhys hissed in panic and frustration. He did not have lungs to deflate, so he flexed his muscles and thrashed his tail. Although he didn't dare celebrate when he slipped forward a few inches, he made a small noise of relief. Just a little further and he would be safe. 

White hot agony ripped through his entire body. The leviathan had caught up to him and grabbed the end of his tail. As his momentum pulled him from her loose grasp, her talons shredded the scaled flesh and sliced through the thin membranes of his fins. He didn’t even have the breath to scream. The momentum from her touch combined with the adrenaline gave Rhys the strength to clamber through the crevice. His body floated down to the ocean floor and black blood tainted the water. As quickly as he could manage, Rhys dragged himself by the arms to the cave between the spires. His mangled tail burned with every bump, every little pebble that touched the exposed meat. The sensitive webbing was disturbed by the miniscule tremors in the water and he bit back whines of pain.

The cave was big enough that he could turn around in it. He pulled the last of his body through the entrance just as the monster landed on the ground hard enough that it quaked. The spires blocked the majority of the opening and she couldn't fit her hand through the gap. The leviathan roared and Rhys swallowed hard as she rammed the side of the mountain. Solid stone quivered and acrid particles dirtied the water. The spires held firm. She slammed into them again and, this time, the structures trembled. Rhys lowered himself to the ground and backed away slowly with his arms. Each minute twitch of his tail caused another explosion of pain. He could smell the tang of blood wafting through the water as it mixed with stone dust.

The leviathan attacked the spires again. He could hear the crunch and the thump of stone hitting the ground. How much had fallen, he couldn't tell. But it sounded heavy. How long would the barriers keep her out? There was another crunch and he closed his eyes. He could not hide here for long. 

Rhys clenched his jaw and moved his tail. The resulting shriek was muffled only by the crunch of more crumbling stone. He dropped his tail and stifled a sob. He could not swim. Without his fins, he could barely get any speed that wasn’t immediately canceled by his spasms of pain. The wall against his back was cold. The sensitive, wounded flesh bumped against the stone and the cry that left his mouth was pathetic. Nisha would have laughed at him. Jack too, maybe. 

His throat tightened. There was so much he would never get to say to Jack. He wanted to apologize for making him worry and wasting everyone's time. Months of training to get Rhys ready to fight and he was going to die anyway. She would kill him and then go back to the ship to sink it. Maybe she'd even get the eridium that they were storing. If it was what caused her to look like this, Rhys didn't want to think about what would happen if she got even more of it. 

She threw her body against the spires and a crack appeared near the base, snaking its way upwards. Shards flaked off into the water. The cave around him shuddered under the force of another attack. Rhys flinched and felt a jolt go up his neck. He looked down at his hand and stared at the brass rings still stuck on his fingers. Another twitch had a small spark lighting up the surrounding water and his lips tingling. 

Making it out of here alive was not an option. Rhys knew that much. But if he could save even just the innocents on the ship, he would accept that. As long as Jack was safe. He hoped that Jack would forgive him one day for doing what needed to be done. He hoped, even if nobody called him a hero, that they understood. 

Slowly, mindful of his battered body, Rhys turned himself over onto his stomach and faced the cave entrance. He'd lost his gun when she tossed him, so all he had were his talons and the brass knuckles on his hand. He waited for the next attack, muscle taut in trepidation. But as a heartbeat passed, then another, and another, Rhys realized the rumbling had ceased. There was nothing he could see but darkness and he carefully crawled towards the entrance with his hands. The brass knuckles clinked against the stone floor with each slow movement.

Do not do this. 

There was the whisper again. The eridium in his veins chilled him. It felt like the words were flowing through the eridium. He shook it off and crawled closer to the entrance.

Stay here. You will be safe. Come back to us. Do not do this. Stay here. You will be safe. Come back to us. 

The mantra repeated itself as he crawled. He flexed his tail cautiously. The pain was sharp and bright. He grit his teeth and tried again, focusing on the movement over the pain. Either his plan would work or it wouldn't. Regardless, the pain wouldn't be an issue for much longer and he just needed to ignore it long enough to try. Rhys moved closer and closer to the entrance of the cave until he was just a couple of inches within the sanctuary's mouth. It was still dark outside, which was odd. He could see so clearly before; why was it dark now? 

It was then that he felt it. The way the eridium in his body screamed and overwhelmed the whisper in his head. The way it felt like someone was using a magnet to separate the eridium from his flesh. Then the light appeared. 

Her eye was bigger than his torso and so brilliant that it was blinding. She stared at him through the opening that was barely large enough for her to look through. Rhys stared back at her in awe. So close to her, he could see the swirling eridium that made up her eye. None of it was organic; everything from the pupil to the sclera was eridium of different depths and currents. The pupil was the darkest, with a purple so deep and tumultuous that it was almost black. The iris was vivid and flowed in a consistent circle while the sclera was the shallowest, with glacier-paced currents and no obvious patterns. She blinked briefly, plunging the cave back into darkness, before she opened her eye again. Rhys couldn't see his reflection in that pool of viscous fluid. His instincts screamed in protest. But a man marked for death has nothing to lose.

Rhys lunged with his talons aimed directly at her eye. He expected there to be skin, flesh, a barrier to tear— He did not know what to do when his arm sank deep into the pit that was her pupil. The eridium was warm. It pulsed around his arm in time with a heartbeat. Like it was alive. The crystals sliced through the iris, but the lighter circle mended itself in a blink and the flow continued unobstructed. Rhys yanked his arm back to no avail; the magnet that had called to him was inside of the monster. The eridium pulled his arm deeper until half of his bicep was ensnared. He thrashed his tail despite the pain and smacked his flesh hand against her face, pushing as hard as he could. 

"Let go of me!" he demanded. He was losing his leverage. Her eye had swallowed him to the shoulder. His neck bent awkwardly to keep his head out of the eridium. The leviathan was strangely unresponsive during the few seconds that he had attacked her, but when the top of his head broke through the surface of her eye, she stirred. The rest of his exposed body twisted and struggled as she rose from her prone position on the ground. A vibration echoed through her body and even though Rhys' ears were submerged in eridium, he knew it was a laugh.

Do not do this.

Eridium flowed into his gills. He did not breathe in or swallow like he did on the ship. But the way he could feel it humming as it entered his veins was similar. It flowed into his mouth and his tongue itched. It was thin, almost watery in his mouth. The deeper he went, however, the thicker the eridium became. Before long, it felt like sludge around him and it congealed at his gills so they couldn't open. His thrashing became more frantic as his chest burned in desperation. He clenched his jaw and pushed with what little leverage he could manage with his free arm that was quickly being consumed at the shoulder. His right arm was so deep and yet he could feel nothing solid, only pure eridium. In his panic, Rhys curled his right hand into a tight fist.

Do not do this.

The blast ejected him from the leviathan's eye with startling speed. His back collided with the slope of the mountain so hard that the obsidian caressed his skin where his body created a divot. His head swam and he took a few seconds to shake it off. Despite the impact, nothing hurt. He peeled himself from the indentation and assessed his body, only to be stunned by the sight of an intact webbed fin. Rhys twisted his right hand to look at the crystals and squinted. The crystals were blinding, just as her eye had been. They were so vibrant, with a glow so bright that it cast shadows across the ocean floor. He could feel every iota of power coursing through his body. The whispers were so loud and quick that he could not decipher them, but that was not his concern right now. With the confirmation that he was still alive and unhurt, Rhys looked at the leviathan.

Half her face had been destroyed by the electric blast. Eridium drooled from what remained of her eye socket and the upper half of her cheek was missing, along with a portion of her skull. But she still reeled from the explosion and roared with life and rage. She snarled in his direction with a mouth full of spiny teeth and violet spittle. With her eyes missing and her arm sheared off by Jack's rocket launcher, she was still alive. If this could be considered alive.

Rhys had to take his chance now before she recovered. His heart kicked against his ribs and his pulse blared in his ears. He coiled his reinvigorated muscles and beat his tail quickly. There was little distance to cover but he wanted to get as much speed as he could. 

Do not do this.

He waited until the last few meters before he started to form a fist. The light was bright blue and even the water immediately surrounding his hand began to boil. Sparks scattered through the illuminated depths and his left arm twitched. Rhys refused to close his eyes even as his muscles started to seize. His tail muscles convulsed, his speed faltering, but he could no longer open his fist even if he wanted to. The water around him boiled and his skin turned bright red from the heat. He kept his gaze locked on the pulsating crystal in the center of her chest. 

It shattered like a glass bottle. 

Come back, Rhys. 

Chapter Text

Rhys didn't want to get up. The smooth surface that he lay on was cool and soothed his stinging skin. It was quiet too, with only a faint, melodic hum that faded into the background of his mind. He curled himself tighter and the motion drew out a soft whimper of discomfort. Everything ached. His muscles twitched sporadically. He pressed his forehead to the smooth surface and squeezed his eyes shut tighter. After that battle, he deserved a rest. 

His eyes flew open. The monster. The explosion. The crystal. It all came flooding back to him so quickly that his stomach twisted into knots. As the vertigo faded, he looked around to survey his surroundings. 

It was brighter than he anticipated, though he wasn't really sure what he expected, or even where he was. He was in a massive cavern of sorts that looked like a larger version of the cavern where he had once gone to dip himself into the eridium pool, but instead of a pool, the bottom of the chamber was completely flat. Rhys noted with some concern that there was no obvious exit, only smooth walls. Turquoise lichen cast a soft glow over the cavern, though he did not need it. His eye was as bright as ever and he could see every particle in the water around him. The water was strange; it weighed on him like a blanket, caressing the burned skin with delicacy. He ran his left hand over the smooth surface he sat on. It felt like no stone that he had ever felt before. It was black and plain looking, but it hummed under his fingertips. When he placed his obsidian palm down on the surface, the humming intensified until he heard clicking voices echoing in his ears. One rose over the others. 

Welcome. 

The voice was familiar. Even as it spoke in sharp clicks, it was deep and gentle, but held a tone of authority. It sounded like the voice of a captain. It held no pain or weariness, as if the speaker had never known war. Bruised and battered, Rhys envied it. 

How are your wounds?

“Who are you?” Rhys quickly glanced down at his body without moving his head, reluctant to give the voice any sort of satisfaction without his own questions being answered. His skin was raw but he had no injuries that he could see. Unfortunately, he still had a tail. “Where am I?”

You are home, Rhys. 

“Why do you know my name? Who are you?” 

I understand that you have many questions.

Rhys bristled. “You're damn right I have questions. Tell me who the fuck you are.”

I do not have a name. The voice was tinged with displeasure. Where do you think you are?

“If I had an idea, why would I bother to ask you?” he snapped. Then, he paused. “...Am I dead?”

Not quite. It paused. Rhys, do you know what happened?

He tilted his head in confusion. “I killed a monster to protect my friends.”

Where did the monster come from?

Shame welled up in his chest and his talons scraped against the smooth stone. The stone remained unblemished. “I think I created her. I gave her access to my eridium pool. I… I don't know how she turned into that thing.”

Eridium is a life source for many. You know this. 

He looked down at the crystals on his arm. Although they were no longer blinding, they were brighter than he had ever seen. “Why am I here?” he asked quietly.

You opened the vault where we reside. Rhys straightened his back and looked around wildly without removing his hand from the floor. The explosion of Leviathan's crystal teleported you here, it continued without acknowledging his shock. When you arrived, you were badly injured. We needed to let you rest until you were ready.

Rhys swallowed hard. How long had he been here? Was Jack looking for him still? Did he already give up and leave? His tail flexed and he glared down at it. Even if Jack was still waiting for him, how would he explain this? 

He placed his palm flat to the floor and pushed with frustration, as if it would help him yell at the mysterious voice. “Did you do this to me? Why did you turn me back?”

The voice was quiet. Then, hesitantly inquired, Are you not grateful?

Grateful. “Grateful?” he echoed. “For taking away my legs? In what world would I be grateful for that?”

You would have died with those legs. 

“But you didn't give me a tail to save me,” Rhys snarled. “You didn't give me a tail for protection.” He had no idea where the source of the voice was. With one hand firmly planted on the floor, he sat up properly and looked around the empty cavern. “When I fell, I heard your voice. ‘Come back to us.’ Who is ‘us’? Come back to where?” He shifted his tail from underneath him and swam slowly across the cavern, right hand dragging across the floor. 

You do not remember. Not a question. A statement.

“Remember what?” Quietly, he muttered, “You're worse than Jack.”

If you do not remember us, why did you come here?

That gave Rhys pause. Did it think he came for them? “We were looking for the vault.”

For us?

“No. Yes. I mean, maybe?” He frowned at empty space. “You won't tell me who you are, so I can't say. But Jack says vaults have eridium.” He looked at the crystals lining his arm. “I guess you know why we'd want to find eridium.”

The voice was silent for a while. Rhys continued to swim around the cavern with one hand on the floor and looked for an exit. Except for him and the lichen, the cavern was completely devoid of life. He swam the perimeter and eventually settled back down near the center of the cavern. He sat with his tail stretched out in front of him and stared at it. There wasn't even a scratch where the witch had mutilated him. The webbing was fully healed as well. 

When Rhys was just about to move his hand from the floor, the voice spoke again. Why do you want to go back to the surface? Why do you not want to stay here with your kind?

“They are my kind now,” he protested. “The colony never really accepted me. At the first sign that something was wrong, they cast me out. Even the people I thought were my friends wanted nothing to do with me. They would have let me die at August's hands!  Sure, I interacted with humans. But even before that, I had to hide part of myself because they thought there was something wrong with me!” He glared at his volcanic arm. “That's why I want to go back.”

You do not belong with those who live in the Shallows. You belong with our colony. 

“Living with people is different from seafolk.. Jack cares about me. So do Nisha and Sasha. Even Fiona, a little bit. Most people I've met have been kind and helpful. They have all been friendly in ways I've never known. Even if your colony would accept me, I… I don't want to live my life without Jack. I love him. He…” He swallowed hard and reminded himself Jack was not present. “He is my mate. Or, I want him to be. I want to travel with him. I want to stand at his side and fight with him and protect him. I want to follow him for the rest of my life.” The weight of his tail felt even heavier as he stared blankly at it. “I can't do any of that as part of the seafolk.” 

Silence filled the cavern. Rhys signed and removed his hand from the floor. He swam upwards and started to search for an exit. The oddly smooth stone was everywhere and contained not a blemish. The cavern rose up into an arch. He followed the curvature of the stone up to the top, but it was the same as the rest of the cave. Disappointed, Rhys allowed himself to drift back down. “You said I was home earlier,” he said into the void. He floated gently down to the ground and stared up at the ceiling. “What did you mean by that?”

It does not matter anymore. I was mistaken. A pause. I will give you a gift before you leave. 

The lichen dimmed and Rhys sat up. The loss of bioluminescence obscured the dark, fuzzy shadow on the other side of the cavern. The shape reminded him of the seafolk, but the tail was something he had never seen before. It moved towards him without swimming, drifting closer. The tail became more and more clear as it approached and Rhys's eyes widened. Instead of a singular tail, the creature had ten billowing, narrow tentacles that comprised the lower half of its body. Its upper half was still shrouded in shadow, but Rhys could see the faint purple veins that tracked across skin the color of the walls. Its fingers were long and thin, with both hands having six fingers. 

He backed away slowly. “What kind of gift and why?”

The creature paused. I will give you back your humanity. 

His heart skipped a beat. “But I need eridium to turn back into a human. Will I need to keep searching for eridium forever?”

No. The world around Rhys began to dim as the creature moved closer. He did not crawl away this time. This gift will return you to humanity permanently. You will never lose your legs due to a lack of eridium. But you will never swim into the depths again. Narrow fingers brushed over the crystals along Rhys's forearm. They glowed brighter under its touch. I cannot grant you the power to wield this arm indefinitely. This gift was not mine to alter. However, you have been through a great deal. This eridium will last you many years before you must replenish it. The hands were rough as they traveled down Rhys's torso to his tail. The scales tingled where it touched. It slid its hands slowly over the surface of his tail, even running over the delicate webbing of his fins. Close your eyes.

“Why are you giving me this gift?” His clicks were quiet. They did not echo.

Those sandpaper-like hands released his tail and clasped him gently on both sides of his throat, each finger closing a gill. Your parents would have wanted you to be home. 

Rhys's heart lurched and his eyes flew open. His lips were parted to say something, to stop it so he could ask who his parents were, but his words were swallowed by the sight of a gaping violet maw. Every spot of its mouth and throat glowed bright with eridium. Thin fingers tightened over his gills and he reflexively struggled to get free so he could breathe. Fear gripped at his heart. He didn't know if this was a ruse and if it was going to kill him for denying the offer to join its colony. The hope fluttered in his stomach, afraid that he would lose the chance to see Jack again. 

The maw opened wider and wider until the head was split down the middle. It strangely had no teeth, and nothing inside besides eridium. It swirled in a whirlpool pattern down into its throat. The sight was both horrifying and mesmerizing. “Wh-what are you?” he wheezed.

I am called many things. You know me as a Guardian. 

It squeezed his throat and the cavern went black. 

It was cold. Rhys opened his eyes and they burned from the saltwater. He floated just a few meters below the ocean's surface. Soft light filtered through blue-green waves that gently pushed and tugged on him. He kicked—with legs!—and swam up. His lungs protested the lack of air. He didn't dare open his mouth yet. It was much slower work without his tail and he used his arms to move faster. The ache in his chest deepened. Almost there. He pushed his arms up towards the pale sky. His fingers breached.

The sun was warm on his face. He took a massive breath of air and it all came out in a relieved laugh. A sneeze caught him off guard and he made a face as saltwater trickled down from his nostrils. His hair was plastered across his forehead and he pushed it aside. With his vision cleared, he grinned. The ship was still anchored in the same spot, just far enough away that he didn't have to strain to see the deck. 

“Hey!” he shouted. His voice was hoarse. The word felt right on his tongue. “Jack!” He waved his left hand to get someone's attention with no success. A brief worry came over him that nobody would notice he was out here. Then, as he started to sink back into the water, the sunlight caught the gleam of his crystals and a bright rainbow of light split through the crystal. He stared at the beam as it danced across the glittering water. He couldn't tread water that well, so he allowed himself to sink up to his chin and angled his arm so the sun caught each of the crystals on his forearm.

Gentle waves lapped at his ears but he could still hear the shouts of the watchman. He wiped saltwater from his eyes with his flesh palm and floated there. The water was rather calm and he felt no fear of being dragged under by rogue currents. In the distance, a lifeboat was lowered into the water and it rowed towards him. He waved once, just to signal his position, but he was growing weary. Swimming with legs was so tiring. He was hungry and exhausted. His kicks slowed down and he jolted every time his face sank into the briny water. A mouthful was swallowed inadvertently and he coughed. The salty taste was potent and unpleasant. Joy warmed his chest. He was human. 

By the time the boat reached Rhys, he was barely able to keep himself afloat. It was Jack's powerful arms that helped him into the boat. He kicked weakly and “helped” by wriggling his way over the edge and collapsing into Jack's lap. His fingers were wrinkled and the skin was soft. He clung to the lapels of Jack's worn out coat and laughed until he hiccuped with his face half buried in Jack's chest. Jack squeezed him so tight that Rhys's spine popped pleasantly. Although the ECHOcomm had been destroyed by the ocean's pressure, he didn't need one to understand Jack whispering his name over and over. A large hand cradled the back of Rhys's head, thick fingers tangling in his frizzy, salt-dried hair. “I thought you were gone,” he murmured. His voice quivered.

“I'm here,” Rhys assured. His left arm hooked around Jack's neck. “I'm never leaving you. I promise.”

“You are in so much trouble when we get back to the ship, kitten,” Jack scolded, though he punctuated it with a chuckle. Rhys joined him and held onto his neck tighter.

It was a poor soldier who had the privilege of rowing the three of them back to the ship. Jack refused to let go of Rhys and Rhys was too tired to lift his head. He drifted in and out of sleep, warmed by the sun and soothed by the heartbeat in his ear. Jack petted his spine and tucked the top of Rhys's head under his chin. The clasp of his mask poked against Rhys's scalp, but he didn't care. He was home. 

When the rowboat was fastened to the ship and began to rise from the water, Rhys turned his head to look at the glistening sea. He didn't have the chance to thank the Guardian for what it had done for him. The comment about his parents still echoed in his head. He knew so little about them, other than the fact that they were on a journey when a pack of sharks attacked the three of them. With no colony nearby to protect them, Rhys lost his arm and his eye that day. His parents were killed. All he had left from that time was the memory of waking up in a pool of violet with eridium pouring from his mouth. 

For his entire life, he thought it had been pure luck that had brought him to the pool that saved his life. But now, having met one of the Guardians that protect the seafolk, he wondered if there was more to that day. 

The rowboat swayed when it reached the top of the pulley. The soldier got out first, nearly stumbling over the ledge in an effort to hurry away from the couple. Jack stood up slowly, carefully helping Rhys to his feet. Jack stepped out first and held onto Rhys as he carefully climbed out of the boat. Although the other soldiers kept their distance, his friends did not. 

“Rhys!” Sasha exclaimed. She burst from the crowd and threw her arms around him, so hard that he nearly fell back in the boat. It was Jack's splayed palm against his lower back that kept him steady on his feet. “I'm so glad you're okay! We were worried sick about you. I can't believe it just threw you like that.”

Rhys laughed a little. “I didn't expect it,” he confessed. Jack's fingers twitched against his back.

She stepped away and gave him a puzzled look. “What… happened to your clothes?”

His face burned bright red. Fiona started to laugh, but was abruptly shushed by Nisha. Jack draped his blue overcoat on Rhys's shoulders and Rhys wrapped it around his bare body. “It's a long story.”

“I'll say,” Nisha scoffed. “Kid, you've been gone for days.”

His blood ran cold. He glanced over at Jack, who merely shook his head. “We'll talk about it later,” he whispered. Jack faced the crowd. “Everyone, back to your stations. We still need to find the vault. Keep your eyes peeled. The vault monster could still be out there.”

“Jack.” Rhys didn't dare raise his voice so anyone else could hear him. “You don't need to worry about that anymore. It's over.”

Mismatched eyes stared at him in confusion, then gradually widened. “What happened down there?”

With one hand clutching the coat closed, Rhys took Jack's hand with the other. “Can we go to our room? There is so much I need to tell you.”

Jack didn't retract his orders even as they walked back to the barracks. “Let them keep busy and out of my way,” he replied when Rhys asked him about it. “Last thing I want is for them to get bored and start messing around. I've had enough of them over the past few days.”

When the door to the captain's quarters clicked shut behind them, Rhys stripped off the coat and collapsed onto the bed. Jack handed him a new ECHOcomm, which Rhys gratefully placed in his ear. Jack sat down next to his head and brushed away strands of mousy brown hair. Rhys moved his head to Jack's thigh. His pants were stiff from ocean spray and damp from helping Rhys splash his way out of the ocean. They smelled stale and like sweat. He rubbed his cheek against the coarse fabric. “How long was I gone?”

“Five days.”

“What happened after I was thrown?” 

Jack sighed. “You disappeared. The vault monster suddenly dove down into the water. We were talking and then the line went dead. We haven't seen it or you since.” His thumb swiped over a scrape on Rhys's forehead with a frown. “...I didn't stop looking for you. I watched the sonar and radar night and day. I kept trying to call you. I made Nisha try, too. Nobody could reach you.” As he wiped an eyelash from Rhys's cheek, Rhys felt his fingers trembling. “Yesterday, one of the soldiers asked when we were going to give up the search.”

Rhys reached up and covered Jack's hand with his own. Only then did the trembling stop. “Please tell me you didn't shoot them.”

“I didn't.” He paused, then added, “I broke his legs and kicked him over the railing.”

“Timothy will be upset with you. You're not supposed to kill his soldiers,” Rhys admonished lightly, unsurprised by the grunt he received in response. He rolled onto his back and stared up at Jack. “I'm sorry.”

“For what?”

“Worrying you.” He swallowed and licked his dry lips. “Arguing with you. Not listening. Putting myself in that position. I thought—” His breath hitched and he bit his bottom lip. “I thought I was going to die. I was in over my head.” Tears tickled his cheeks and the sob that came out made him quiver. “I thought I would never see you again.”

Jack pulled him in close, mindful of gangly limbs. “Tell me what happened down there. Why were you gone so long? How did you survive?”

Over the course of the next hour, Rhys recounted everything. He drank several glasses of water and Fiona brought some food that Rhys wolfed down so fast Jack had to take it away before he choked himself. He explained the transformation, leading the leviathan down into the depths, how he killed her. Jack remained silent the entire time, his grim frown tightening with every word of Rhys retelling his purposeful electrocution. Rhys told him about the vault and the Guardian's gift, though he omitted the mention of his parents and that he knew what the creature was.

“The next thing I knew, I was human and swimming up to the surface.” He reached for another roll and Jack didn't stop him. “And now I'm home. With you.”

“What was the vault like?” Jack asked quietly. 

“It was… boring,” Rhys confessed. “There wasn't treasure. There was no way in or out. All of the stone was smooth and flat. The only lights came from some algae on the walls. There was nothing there, even after the creature appeared. I didn't see any eridium either. It was just empty.” He shrugged. “I don't know what was in there to protect.” He ate the roll in three quick bites. Jack's expression was dark. “What's wrong? Are you upset that I didn't find any treasure?”

Jack shook his head. “No. That's just not what I expected the vault to be like.” He still seemed distracted, but Rhys did not press. If he was going to keep some secrets, Jack was allowed to have his own. If it was necessary, Jack would tell him when the time was right. 

Rhys scooted closer to him and stuck his right arm in Jack's line of view, showing off the vibrant crystals. “But at least I have this. It told me that I wouldn't need eridium for years.” He smiled at Jack, who did not look up at him. Rhys moved his arm out of the way and leaned forward so he could tilt his head and meet Jack's gaze. “You don't have to be concerned about what happened down there. What matters is that I am here and we are alive.” He placed a shallow kiss to the contours of Jack's lips. “And that I am with you until the day that we die. Together. As partners.”

Jack was silent for a minute. Rhys was patient. Then, Jack spoke. “This is the second time that I wasn't there to save you. You almost died. You would have died if you were not sent to the vault. I never would have found your body.”

Rhys frowned. “It was scary,” he agreed. “But this is not something you need to worry about. I survived. Isn't that what's important?” When there was no immediate response, he held on to Jack's wrists. “Is there something else?”

“It's been five days. I didn't stop looking for you, but I was starting to think…” He closed his mouth. The creases of his lips were more pronounced. Even under the mask, Rhys could see how heavy his eyes looked. “Nisha came up to me yesterday after I threw the guy overboard.”

He retracted his wrists from Rhys's grasp and turned away from Rhys, who sat down on the bed and waited. It was rare to hear Jack talk like this and he couldn't deny that his curiosity was piqued. He didn't dare push Jack any faster than he was willing to go, out of fear that it would end the conversation too soon. But as the silence dragged on, Rhys prompted, “What did she say?”

The answering sigh was heavy with defeat and exhaustion. Jack scrubbed his face with his hands. “I barely even remember what it was like when we dated. She remembers, though. She told me I'm doing it again.”

“Doing what again?”

“Fighting it.” He didn't need to see Rhys's confused expression before he continued. “She asked me… She asked me when was the last time I said thank you to you for everything that you've done. And she asked if I've ever told you how I feel.”

“Of course you've—” Rhys began, only to hesitate. Had Jack ever said ‘thank you’? “Well, you've at least—” When had they last talked about what Rhys meant to Jack? He could recall an argument and a stilted conversation from Hyperion. Other than Jack teaching him to navigate, when had they discussed their future? 

“We've never talked about it,” Jack confirmed, mercifully releasing Rhys from his awkward attempts to protest. “I told you once that I don't like people close to me. They get hurt. They die.”

Rhys remembered the story about Angel's mother and stayed quiet. 

“I have almost lost you so many times. You're constantly getting hurt and you keep doing stupid shit like climbing up the arm of a goddamn vault monster.” Rhys deflated and stared down at his lap. Jack continued, “But not once, despite how terrifying it is to see a gigantic monster throw you into the ocean and disappear, not once have I regretted bringing you with me on this journey. I do not regret the time we've spent together. And… and when I thought you might be gone for good this time… something in me broke.” There was an unfamiliar hitch in that usually confident voice. He buried his face in his hands. “I hate this,” he grumbled. “I hate talking like this.”

“Jack,” Rhys said gently, “it's okay.”

“No.” It was sharp and Rhys flinched. Softer, Jack said, “No. It needs to be done.” He dropped his hands from his face and angled himself back towards Rhys. “I didn't give myself enough time to think about what I was going to say. But I should have said all of this before you tried to sacrifice yourself.” The walls of the ship creaked quietly. Rhys could feel the ache of hope in his stomach. His heart thumped against his ribs. He was afraid to push for more, but he needed to know what Jack meant exactly. He was tired of the confusion and the uncertainty about his place in Jack’s life. “I love you. I want you here too. I don't care if Nisha leaves or if we don't have a crew anymore. I love you and I want to keep traveling with you until we both die.”

Jack had killed for his sake. He had spent days with little to no sleep on the off chance that Rhys would still be alive. But to hear him say I love you was more than Rhys had ever anticipated. With a beaming grin, he threw his arms around Jack so hard that Jack fell backwards onto the bed, pinned by Rhys's weight. “I love you too, Jack. So much,” he whispered.

Jack's surprised expression softened and he rubbed the space between Rhys's shoulders. “I know you're not a fish person anymore, but if you want to call me your mate or whatever, you can.” His tone was hesitant, but it was clear that he was doing his best.

Rhys rested his cheek on Jack's chest. “Thank you. But we don't have to be mates.” He shifted so that he was lying on top of Jack and entwined their legs together. “Knowing that you love me and want to keep traveling with me is enough. I really appreciate it, though.” He kissed the seam of the mask. The metal clasp was cool as it brushed his lip. “You should get some sleep. I don't want to know how much sleep you've had lately.”

“Not enough,“ Jack grumbled. “I couldn't have slept even if I wanted to.”

Rhys slid off Jack's torso and stood up. “I'm going to get some more water. I'll be back soon. I promise.” He dressed himself in fresh clothes and left their quarters. The barracks were empty; it was close to dinner and everyone was crowded into the mess hall. The crowd parted for Rhys, who ignored them as he walked into the kitchen to get fresh water. He grabbed a small package of dried jerky for a snack later, waved to Sasha as she doled out bowls of stew, and headed back to the room. 

Jack had fallen asleep in the same position that Rhys had left him in: his feet planted on the floor, his torso on the bed, and his head touching the wall. Smiling, Rhys reached over and gingerly removed the mask. He wasn't accustomed to removing the mask, but he made easy work of it. He placed it carefully on the desk nearby, hoisted Jack's legs onto the bed, and went to shower. Despite everything, he wasn't that tired. His heart was still pumping and his veins felt alive. 

Rhys scrubbed off the dried salt residue and checked himself over. The Guardian had healed the blistered, raw skin during the transformation. He didn't want to think about how much of a mess he would have been if he had returned to Jack without healing. He did, however, find a small scrape on his forehead and some sensitive scratches across his stomach from the rocks. It felt… strange to walk on feet. Before the last transformation, it still felt a little foreign to walk around even though it had been the better part of a year. Now, it was like he'd been born like this, but aware, somehow. In the privacy of his shower, he tested his weight on his feet by shifting, stretching, and twirling slowly. The elation was overwhelming. This was him. These legs belonged to him for the rest of time. There was no fear of losing them, no trepidation that everything would be lost if he used too much eridium. He was himself.

Chilled water ran down his face and mixed with tears that traced the shape of his smile. “Thank you,” he breathed. Rhys would never see the Guardian again. But that did not mean he would ever forget the blessing that he was given. He would savor the good and the bad of his new life.

The shower switched off and Rhys dried himself. He hated getting into the bed with damp skin, whereas Jack would still be half-soaked and trying to follow him into the bed. Rhys rolled his eyes at the memory as he rubbed at his hair. It had grown out so much since he was first transformed; it now hung in his eyes if he didn't push it back from his face. After he was dry, he dampened a clean cloth and took it to the bedroom. If Jack was not sleeping, he was not taking care of himself. His natural musk was nice, but he hadn't taken off his mask in days. Rhys carefully wiped away the dried sweat and grime, mindful of the half-fried nerves of his scar. Once he was done, he put the cloth back in the bathroom and crawled into bed. He slept soundly with his arms wrapped tightly around Jack's waist.

Everything was a blur for weeks. The day after Rhys's return involved a lot of explaining and a lot of repeating themselves about the vault. Even if Jack hadn't made the decision to call off the search, everyone knew the vault monster had died and the vault had not risen. They would have no way of going deep into the ocean to find it. The soldiers would return empty-handed. Jack broke the news to Timothy in a call. Rhys did not have to be standing next to Jack to hear that the conversation did not go well. They were to return Timothy's ship and crew as soon as possible before Timothy had Jack arrested.

Hyperion was not their first stop, or their second. Zer0 hopped off at Tediore. Rhys asked if they could stay, but they told him that a lack of a vault meant they had no reason to stay. “You were good,” they told him when his face fell. “You know how to kill. Remember that.” Before they pushed off, Zer0 handed Rhys a brand new set of brass knuckles. “Use them wisely.” Rhys didn't get the chance to ask where Zer0 got them before they had disappeared. He tucked them into his pocket every morning. 

Nisha was needed back at Maliwan. She'd left things with her deputies for too long for this vault nonsense and Maliwan would eventually fall apart without her. She was the one that Rhys didn't want to let go. He and Jack bickered the night Rhys had found out, though he eventually conceded to letting her go back to her life. Much to his embarrassment, Nisha had found out about his protests and laughed at him the next morning over breakfast. “I’m not dead, kid,” she reminded him, holding her coffee mug with both hands. “I'm just at home. If you need someone on your side during a fight, just give me a call.” She flashed a sharp grin at Jack, who grumbled and folded his arms. 

What Rhys hadn't expected, though, was that Fiona was leaving with her. “Why Maliwan?” he blurted out when Fiona said she would be getting off. The tips of her ears grew bright red and she balled up her fist. Rhys warily stepped back. Nisha walked past where they were leaning against the railing. Fiona's back stiffened and she cast a sideways glance at Nisha. Her mouth twitched into a small, twisted smile. Rhys relaxed. “Oh.” He did not argue for her to stay. As they disembarked at Maliwan, Rhys was allowed a hug from Nisha. (Jack snickered loudly.) He waved to Fiona and wished them luck. Fiona looked like she couldn't decide whether to blush or shoot him. She turned her back to him and gave him her middle finger instead. (Jack howled.)

Sasha was with them until Hyperion. She didn't want to talk about splitting up from Fiona. After they said their goodbyes, she had not mentioned Fiona once. Rhys was worried about his friend, but Jack told him to leave it alone. “She'll talk if she wants to,” he said flippantly. “If she doesn't want to talk, there's no point in asking.” 

So they talked about other things when they wanted to stave off the boredom of the ship: the future, the vault, and Sasha's favorite recipes. Jack wanted anything she would give them so meals wouldn't be so boring. Sasha thought he didn't deserve any of them, but Rhys talked her into giving him a couple of her soup recipes. “Just because you kept us from getting killed back there,” she told him. On clear nights, when the chores were done and the air was warm, they sat at the bow of the ship and stared up at the stars. They didn't say anything on those nights, except to point out an exceptionally bright star. 

On the morning that they docked at Hyperion, Sasha approached Rhys. They were out of the way of the soldiers that were desperately trying to pack their things and disembark. “Um, thanks,” she said to him.

“For what?”

“For being there after Fi left.” She shook her head. “I don't know what it's going to be like without her, but maybe this is for the best. I'm… happy for her.”

“It was nice, yeah,” Rhys agreed. He paused, then cleared his throat. “You've been a really good, uh, friend. If you need any help while you're at Hyperion, call me. Please. “ She nodded and he relaxed. “Thank you for everything, too. Please be careful here.” They both stood there awkwardly for a moment, then loosely hugged each other.

Jack came around the corner and grimaced at the sight. “You two look like you want to barf.” He held out a canvas bag. “Kitten, your stuff. Come on, everyone off. Tim is already demanding I come give an official report of what happened with the vault.” He rolled his eyes even as he said it. “Sasha, there's a place set up for you here in the port.” He passed her a set of keys. “It doesn't have to be permanent, but send Tim a letter before you move out.”

“Um, thanks, Jack,” she said hesitantly. She took the keys with two fingers, as if they were going to bite her. “Is there a catch?”

“No catch. It's old and could probably use a good cleaning. I haven't been there in about five years or something like that. Might as well put it to use.” He paid her confusion no mind and clasped Rhys by the shoulder. “Come on, kitten. We need to get going.”

With their conversation cut short, Rhys turned around briefly to give Sasha a final wave before he followed Jack off the ship. “That was nice of you. Thank you.”

Jack waved him off. “Like I said, it's old and empty. Hyperion can be rough if you don't already have somewhere to stay. This will hopefully keep her from turning to piracy. That's the last thing Hyperion needs a reputation for.” He hoisted his bag up his shoulder. “The train's gonna be here in a few minutes. We don't want to miss it.” 

They both quickened their pace and made it to the station just as the train pulled in. Jack found them a row of seats in a mostly empty train car, so he threw their bags into an open seat across from them. He collapsed into his seat with a dramatically loud sigh. Rhys sat by the window and peered out at the landscape. It had been months since he saw land like this. Maliwan was chaotic and interesting, but small and crowded. To see rolling fields was breathtaking, even for a second time. 

“We won't be here long, so enjoy the view while you can.” Jack had his feet propped up on the seat across from him and his eyes closed. “Once Timmy calms his tits, we’ll head out again.”

“Where are we going this time?” Rhys asked. The announcer warned passengers that they would be leaving in one minute. 

“Well, that's something to talk about, new navigator.” He cracked open one eye and flashed a grin at Rhys. “You're in charge now.”

Rhys flushed. “What? Jack, I'm not ready! I don't know where anything is! How am I supposed to decide where we go next?” 

Jack laughed at his panic. “I'm messing with you, Rhysie.” He raised his arm to defend himself when Rhys tried to whack him on the shoulder. “There's some places I've been eyeing. We haven't been to Jakobs yet. That place is interesting; lots of dense forests and brush. They export wood, mainly. Then there's Vladof. It's cold as shit there, though. I'm not sure if that's a good idea. We may have to wait for next year, otherwise the ice will be too thick.” 

“You're an asshole,” Rhys huffed. The train jolted forward and he leaned back in his seat. “Do we have a ship? A crew? How is this going to work?”

A large hand rested on his thigh. “I have a plan. Don't worry your pretty little head about it. Just relax and take in the sights. I'm gonna get some more shut-eye.”

Rhys placed his own hand over Jack's and brushed his fingers in absent patterns across the weathered skin of his hand. Jack snored quietly next to him and Rhys stared out the window, wondering what else there was for him to see in the world. He knew so little about the world that he was now a part of, even after the time he had spent with Jack. It would be fun to see everything else, as long as they did it together. 

Opportunity was no different despite months between their visits. The orange sun cast shadows over the wide city streets and glittered off pristine glass windows. Rhys thought back to Sasha as they walked from the train station towards Hyperion's headquarters. He hoped that she would be happy in the port. She had liked the luxuries of Opportunity, but he could imagine that it would be overwhelming after a while. But out there, close to the fields and in a smaller area, he hoped she could make a life for herself. 

Jack knew what was coming. Before they even walked through the doors, he handed Rhys their bags and reminded him what floor they were on. He took a deep breath and marched into the lobby with Rhys trailing behind. The receptionist saw them and her eyes widened. Rhys said nothing as she scrambled to call for Timothy. He took their bags up to Jack's apartment. It was dark and dusty; it seemed as though nobody had touched it since they left. He dropped their bags in the bedroom and switched on the lights. The dust made him sneeze and he rubbed his nose on his sleeve. Rhys had never dusted before. The most he'd ever done was sweep on the ship. But he could see the layer of dust on the furniture, so he found an old rag forgotten in the closet and wiped everything down so he wasn't sneezing. The apartment was large but mostly empty. It didn't take him long before he felt better and he laid down on the couch. 

His stomach growled. The sun had dipped down behind the tall buildings and the only lights left were artificial street lamps. How long it would take Jack to calm Tim down, he didn't know. He curled up on the couch and closed his eyes. The last several weeks had been non-stop for everyone as Nisha took over Zer0's role for arms training and Jack had resumed his navigation lessons. When they weren't training, Jack was busy in the map room. He wouldn't tell Rhys what he was doing, but Rhys felt like he was planning out how they would continue sailing. 

“Rhys.”

Rhys jerked awake with a gasp. He looked around the still empty apartment in disoriented panic until he realized the voice in his head was not a Guardian. His heart drummed in his chest and he swallowed to control his breathing. The new comm sounded much clearer than his old one. He reached up and tapped the button to answer. “Jack?” he replied after a moment. “Where are you? What time is it?”

“Tim just dismissed me. It's two in the morning. Did you find something to eat?”

Two in the morning. “No, I fell asleep. Have you eaten?”

“No. He's more cruel than a prison warden. Come on and meet me down in the lobby.” The call beeped to signal that Jack had hung up. Rhys sighed and climbed off the couch. The dream itself had vanished as he woke up, but the lingering anxiety still itched under his skin. His dreams were becoming more and more vivid. All of them took place in a vault, but the vaults always changed. Invisible voices would call his name as he clambered towards an exit that was constantly moving just out of reach. There were no monsters in these dreams, only vast empty vaults. He didn't know why they caused so much fear.

Jack was waiting for him in front of reception. He looked tired, but he still smiled at Rhys and waved him over. “Come on, there's an all-night spot not too far from here. I'm absolutely starving. we can sleep in late.” He slung an arm across Rhys's shoulders and they walked out into the night. Jack didn't offer up any news about what happened with Timothy so Rhys didn't ask. They walked in peaceful silence to the restaurant. “I haven't eaten here in ages,” he said with barely contained enthusiasm. “When I would work late, I used to come get something quick.”

The restaurant had a bright neon sign out front that advertised their late-night hours. Rhys followed Jack into the empty building and they found seats at a small two-person table. There was no menu (not that Rhys knew how to read anyway) and so Jack went up to the counter to order. He did not ask Rhys for his input and only came back after with two bowls of rice with gravy and meat. Rhys could not smell as well as he used to, but he leaned in and confirmed the smell of fish. 

“Thank you,” he chirped as he took the fork Jack offered him. He tried not to eat quickly, but he still finished before Jack. The bowl was scraped clean and he pushed it away from him. “So,” he said while Jack chewed, “what happened tonight? Is everything okay?”

“Timmy will get over it,” Jack replied. “He was mad that we came back empty-handed and then he heard about the casualties. I think it was more than he was expecting. We lost about six or seven people during that fight. I didn't tell him how Myers and Harrison died. I'm sure the word will get out eventually, but hopefully after we leave. I told him about the vault monster and that you killed her. I told him the vault was inaccessible and so we couldn't obtain anything that was inside of it.” He shrugged. “I pointed out we didn't have a key, only you, and that you were MIA.” He cleared his throat. “Missing in action,” he elaborated. Rhys gave an appreciative nod. “He's definitely not pleased. He tried to say that I didn't hold up my end of the deal so he won't give us eridium. I told him to shove it anyway.” He stabbed his rice with his fork. There was the beginning of a frown curling on his mouth. “Then he told me that Angel will take over his position in a couple of months, when she's seventeen. She doesn't want to talk to me.”

“I'm sorry, Jack.” He knew the pain of losing contact with loved ones. “Maybe she will come around one day.”

Jack shook his head. “It's fine.” His tone was convincing. Rhys knew him better than to believe it. “She'll have Tim. She's always had Tim.” He pushed his half-empty bowl away from him. “I think I'm full. Are you ready to head back?”

“You should eat more.” Rhys pushed the bowl back in front of Jack. “Eat and we'll go back to our room. There's no food in there right now. You need to finish this so you're not starving when we wake up.”

Jack stared at the bowl, then glanced up at Rhys. “And when did you get to be so bossy?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

“When I started caring about you. I just never get the chance to exercise it. Now eat. I'm ready to sleep.” He sat back and folded his arms, watching Jack and mimicking the raised eyebrow. It was only when Jack rolled his eyes but resumed eating that Rhys relaxed, satisfied. He did not ask any more questions while Jack ate. They paid, and started the short journey back to Hyperion headquarters. The air was cool and crisp. There was less wind than when they were out on open water, but the tall buildings loomed over them and it felt even colder. Rhys shivered and rubbed his exposed arms. Without a word, Jack took off his coat and draped it over Rhys's shoulders. 

They got back up to Jack's apartment and Jack went to shower first. Rhys gave him privacy; it had been ages since either of them had any real time alone to clean and wind down. He took the time to get undressed and fold his clothes for later. Sasha had shown him how to do that; Jack threw his clothes off like a tornado and left them where they fell until it was either time to wash or wear them. Rhys found it easier to find what he wanted to wear when things weren’t strewn all over, so he continued to fold them even after Jack had scoffed at the idea. 

Jack came out of the bathroom bare with his mask in hand. He scratched absently at the torn edges of his scar and put the mask on the nightstand. There were no mirrors in this bedroom. Rhys didn't have to ask to know why. He climbed into bed, still scratching. Rhys went into the bathroom and found an old bottle of lotion that they had used when they were last at Hyperion. He held it out to Jack, who seemed surprised. “Uh, thanks.” He took the bottle and squeezed a glob onto his palm. “You've been… attentive since you came back from the ocean.”

They hadn't talked about the fact that Jack woke up without his mask after that day. Rhys had worried that Jack would be upset at him for taking the mask off without permission, but Jack was gone by the time Rhys woke up and it was never mentioned. There were times on the ship where Rhys was the one to call an end to training for the day, typically when Jack looked ready to fall over. He had served Jack meals, made sure he was clean at the end of the day, and now brought him lotion when his scar was irritated.

“I'm trying to be more,” Rhys replied.

“More what? That doesn't make sense.”

Rhys frowned. His speech lessons were put on the backburner after Jack had to take over arms training, but Sasha helped when they had time to spare. “I want to be more, ” he repeated. He switched on the translator. “I want to be there for you. Not just helpless and always in trouble.” He sat next to Jack on the edge of the bed. “You've been kind to me ever since I became human,” he explained quietly. “You've protected me, taught me, and supported me.” He could still remember the thunderstorm where Jack comforted him for hours. “For a long time, I didn't know how you felt about me. After… after our misunderstanding,” he explained as they both winced at the memory of Rhys thinking they were mates, “I was worried of going too far. I didn't want to upset you again. And not knowing if I would stay human forever… I just couldn't do it. But now, I'm here and I know you love me. I want to be here for you like you’ve been here for me.”

Jack stared at him for a long time. It took everything Rhys had not to squirm uncomfortably. Then, after what felt like hours of silence, Jack moved. He slid his fingers into Rhys's hair and kissed him. It wasn't the kiss that surprised Rhys. It was the fervor behind it. Their past kisses had been either affectionate or sexual. This one felt like Jack wanted to melt together to be as close to Rhys as he physically could. It was rough and Rhys's lips tingled. But his heart was thumping and he fell into it. His own hands clutched Jack's cheeks, slick with lotion. His eyes fluttered closed and pressed closer to Jack. 

It did not go further than that. Jack pulled away and Rhys nearly tumbled into his lap. He made a noise of complaint, dizzy and hard, and Jack just smiled. “You're hilarious, cupcake.” He smirked and teased his fingers over Rhys's half-hard dick. “That's cute. Go shower so we can get some sleep.” The hand pulled back and Rhys glared at Jack, who sat back innocently and rubbed some more lotion on his chin where the clasp met his jaw. When Rhys didn't get up, Jack waved him off. “Go on or I'm turning out the light. I'm tired.”

“What was that?” Frustration laced his tone. “Are we really just going to sleep?” 

“It's called being horny, Rhysie. Welcome to humanity. Trust me, you're cute, all pouty and flustered. I’d love to pin you down and make you beg. But it's also four in the morning and all I want is to close my eyes and pass out. I'll make it up to you later.” He climbed under the blankets and got comfortable. 

Rhys was annoyed, but he didn't argue. The bathroom was much nicer than the one on the ship. The perfectly warm shower softened the heat in his stomach and he calmed down. He felt a bit guilty from his reaction; he had slept, but Jack had not. It wouldn't be fair to keep him awake any longer just because Rhys wanted to have sex. He didn't know the last time that they both had the energy for it. 

His erection had softened by the time he got out of the shower. After drying off, he switched off the lights and climbed into bed next to Jack. As Jack fell deep into sleep, Rhys stayed awake and stared out at the stars from the window. The ones he could see were all white, stark against inky blackness. Were there vaults in the stars? Did they appear in the oceans? The Guardian and its ten long tentacles flashed into his mind and he shivered. Did something like that live in all of the vaults? 

His arm caught on the sheets. He delicately freed himself without tearing the sheets and stared at the crystals in the dark under the covers. Even now, they glowed faintly. He had often stared at them after he became human for the last time. They were no longer the violet of eridium. The power was so abundant that it was nearly black, too thick to see the swirls. He could feel the difference. That was something he didn't know how to explain to Jack. He could actually feel the eridium in his body. He could feel the power that it brought, always warm right under his skin. There was a sense of anxiety cloying in his chest. The thought that he didn't even know what he was capable of was a dangerous one. He did not want to hurt anyone. What if he accidentally killed someone? 

Rhys had been too afraid to test himself on the ship. But as the morning sun brightened the room and Jack slept, he found that the energy beneath his skin was unbearable. He left behind a voice memo on his ECHOcomm that he was at the crater lake and that he was safe. Jack did not need to come for him unless it was necessary. Rhys dressed quickly but quietly and slipped out of the apartment without stirring Jack. 

The crater took him some time to find. His internal compass was useless outside of the water, if he even still had one. But when he caught sight of the edge of the city, it was easy to make his way from there. The crater was desolate with no sign of anyone. Rhys breathed a sigh of relief and slowly climbed down the steep, rocky slope to the shore area. There was some debris littering the pebbled beach, but nothing that Rhys could use as a makeshift target. He eventually set up in a small, half-hidden corner where the stone had been carved by humans. It was out of sight so he wouldn't scare anyone if they came by and he could do what he needed to do.

His targets were rocks to start. He was doubtful that rocks would help him understand his abilities, but it was all he had at the moment. The first experiment was testing the power of his arm alone. Without anything other than stones around, he focused on the gray stone wall that he stood next to. His first attempt was purposefully weak. He threw a half-hearted punch at the wall. The impact caused some dust to crumble from the wall, but no damage was done to himself or the wall. Satisfied that it didn't hurt, Rhys tried again. 

His second attempt was a harder punch that mimicked what he would throw during sparring. The thud was audible and the stone faltered against his knuckles. When he pulled his hand away, there was a noticeable indent. Rhys blinked and stared down at his unblemished fingers. His claws were speckled with gray dust and yet the obsidian was fine. He chewed on his lip and considered his next move. Knowing the full extent of his power was his goal for today. It would do no good to leave without trying everything he could think of. 

The third experiment would be the last. Rhys picked a different section of stone that wasn't already indented from his second attempt and reared his arm back. He couldn't remember the last time he tried to punch something with all of his strength. His fist clenched tight and he focused on the eridium in his veins. He could feel it pulsing. It was in both of his arms, in his legs, in his heart. The more he concentrated, the more it felt like he was suffocating. When he could no longer bear the heat under his skin, he struck.

The force of his swing had knocked a massive hole in the rock wall and compromised its structure. Rhys had removed his fist from the hole that resembled a vertical, smaller version of the crater that he stood in. When he removed his hand, the weight of the stone wall was too much and it crumbled into a heap of rubble. Rhys was knocked off his feet and he tumbled backwards with a surprised grunt. The shockwave had knocked loose several rocks that came tumbling down the side of the crater. Rhys covered his head and ribs with his arms. Rocks and boulders crashed down around him, but he was thankfully able to protect his head with his volcanic arm. 

Using stone had been a bad idea, he decided once the dust had settled. His left arm and his legs were bruised and sore as he pried himself out from the rockslide. But where the dull aches should be, he felt… power. It was still thrumming through his limbs and his veins. Rhys brushed some of the dust from his clothes and noticed the dark veins that were stark against his pale skin. The itch of eridium was still there, like the force of that hit hadn't released it. He checked the crystals lining his arm. The eridium pulsed in time with his heartbeat, fluctuating between vivid indigo and a deep purple. 

In his pocket, the brass knuckles were firm against his thigh. Rhys pulled them from his pocket and stared at them. This pair was untouched and brand new. He didn't know if they were any different from the old set that Brick had given him, but he had a feeling this would be the only way to release the urge. Mindful of how sensitive the electric charge could be, Rhys carefully slipped the brass knuckles onto his hand. They were a bit smaller and he had to push harder to get them over the curve of his talons, but he managed to get them on without injuring himself. He flexed his fingers and flinched at the sudden blue sparks that jumped from the knuckles. 

He stared at them in awe, then looked at the lake. It wasn't like there were fish in it…probably. Rhys crept over to the edge of the lake and knelt down. The water barely touched his knees and the fabric of his pants darkened. He scooted his legs back until they weren’t touching any of the water, then touched the palm of his hand to the surface. He concentrated on the heat again. The eridium burned brighter until he could almost hear it humming in his ears. He opened his eyes and looked at his reflection. Even with the ripples distorting the image, he could see that both of his eyes were indigo. He inhaled sharply and directed the energy into his hand, then curled his fingers into a fist. 

The flash was so bright and hot that he recoiled and shielded his eyes with his free arm. Electricity crackled even in the air and the hairs on the back of his neck stood stiff. He could taste ozone on his tongue. Rhys didn't dare uncover his eyes until the hairs on his arms laid back down and he couldn't feel his heartbeat in his throat. The lake looked no different than before, but when Rhys stood up, he noticed the black scorch marks on the wet pebbles mere inches from his legs. His crystals had returned to their deep purple color and no longer pulsated. The heat had dissipated with the electricity. 

His knees were shaking. Each step was staggered and climbing out of the crater was more of a chore than he expected. It took him several minutes to pick his path back up the slope until he was able to pull himself out. He headed back to Opportunity, aware that the sun was already high above his head. It was strange that Jack hadn't called him yet. He didn't try to call Jack in case he was still asleep and instead made his trek back to HQ. 

He ignored the few looks he received as he reentered the heart of Opportunity. He refused to wear his cloak anymore and he was sure that being covered in dust was not helping him blend in. But as long as nobody approached him, he would be fine. His walk back to HQ was uneventful and he thought everything was fine until he walked into the lobby.

“Where have you been?!”

The sudden roar made Rhys jump and he reflexively raised his arms defensively, his flesh arm protecting his chest and his volcanic arm ready to strike. His talons stopped just short of Jack's shoulder. It was just Jack. Rhys snatched his arm back and let them drop to his sides. “I was at the lake. I left you a note,” he explained quickly. “What's wrong?”

Jack's expression was dark and his eyes followed the way Rhys dropped his arms. “I woke up and you were gone. When I tried calling you, the line was dead. I tried several times and it just wouldn't go through. What were you doing?” 

Confusion crossed Rhys's face and he reached up to the comm in his ear. It felt strange and he pulled it out of his ear with a grimace. Part of the plastic had been lightly blackened and it wouldn't turn on. His eyes widened and he tried to close it up in his palm, but he wasn't fast enough. Jack seized him by the wrist and pried his fingers open. He stared at the mangled ECHOcomm with an unreadable expression. 

“Come upstairs. Now.” Jack's voice was low and Rhys did not protest as he was led (dragged) to the elevator and taken up to the apartment. The excruciatingly long ride was done in silence and Jack never let go of Rhys's wrist. Rhys kept his head down like a scolded child until they walked into the apartment and he caught his reflection in the glass window. He was covered in dust and dirt from his chest down. He had bruises on his flesh arm and a tear on the leg of his pants. Honestly, he looked like he'd been in some kind of a fight. 

Jack took the comm from Rhys and held it up in front of him like Rhys had never seen it before. “What happened?” Rhys didn't open his mouth. “Tell me.” 

That was the problem, wasn't it? Rhys didn't know how to explain. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to. Would it change everything? Would Jack consider him a danger to himself or to others? He didn't want to hide again. For the first time in a long time, he felt powerful. So Rhys casually dusted some of the dirt from his shirt. “I went to the lake to practice my combat. My gun got lost when the witch threw me and so all I had were my fists. I slipped and tumbled down into the crater.” There was a spare comm on the counter and he grabbed it. Jack must have found spares after the line went dead.

“What happened to the comm?” 

He shrugged and wedged the comm into his ear. “I fell. It must have shorted out.” He took the comm and brushed the black spots with his thumb. Thankfully, it came off. “See? It was just dust.” The cleaned comm dangled from his fingers as he presented, smiling.

Jack’s stare bored into his heart. Rhys refused to break from his gaze, hoping that Jack would give in and believe him. They held the stare until Jack suddenly curled his mouth into a snarl and snatched Rhys's volcanic wrist. He wrenched the arm and turned it over to expose the crystals. Rhys yelped and tried to pull himself free, but it was too late. Jack glared at the dark crystals and pushed Rhys's arm away. “You're a terrible liar,” he snapped. “What's wrong? Are you okay?”

Rhys stumbled back and rubbed his sore shoulder. “I'm okay,” he promised. “I think it's from the vault. I'm not hurt, I swear. I just don't know everything about why it's happening yet. I'm still looking into it.” He paused. “I did fall. That's why I'm dusty.” He sounded more confident and Jack narrowed his eyes, but said nothing. “I'm sorry. I just don't want you to worry.”

“Don't leave me to wake up by myself again, then.”

Rhys snorted. “Oh, like you do to me every day? I'll think about it.” He picked up the broken comm from the floor and tossed it onto the kitchen counter. “How are talks with Timothy going?” He sat on a stool, angling his left side towards Jack. 

“Not great. He's still pissed off. He won't stop talking about how this was such a “massive expense” and a “waste of resources,” and whatever. Sometimes vaults are just like that, but he's not having it.” He scratched his jawline. “We might have to just head out as crew for now.”

Rhys frowned. “Like with a crew of our own?”

“No, like as part of someone else's crew. We don't have a ship or a way to hire a crew.” 

That sounded awful. Rhys was too afraid to imagine what Jack would be like if he wasn't in charge. “What would we need to get our own ship and our own crew?”

Jack scoffed. “More than you have, cupcake. The goal was to trade the eridium to Timothy for a ship and crew. But we didn't get the eridium, so he says he's not giving us shit. I don't have enough money to buy a whole ship, much less hire a whole crew. We don't have that many options. Unless…” Jack inhaled. “Unless I come back to be CEO for a year until Angel is of age. If I take over for Tim, we'd get a ship and crew of our choice.”

Rhys felt his stomach drop. The slow, hesitant tone sounded defeated. “You aren't considering it, are you?” Jack said nothing and Rhys stood up. “Jack, I don't want to stay here for a whole year. I want to travel.”

“I already said we don't have any other options,” Jack growled. “Do you think I want to be back here at all? Do you think that I don't want to leave right now? But we can't. Angel needs the help, anyway. I don't want the Board to eat her alive.” He sighed. “I need to eat. Are you hungry?”

Always. "No, not right now. But you can go pick something up for us. I will get cleaned up and then we can hang out.” 

“Okay. Stay here. I mean it,” Jack warned. 

Rhys nodded obediently and Jack finally left. Rhys stood in the kitchen for ten minutes before he walked out the front door. He touched the comm in his ear as he headed to the elevator.

“What is it?” 

“It’s Rhys. I would like to speak with you in your office. I'm on my way. Please meet me there.”

“Rhys, I am really not in the mood to talk about this right now. Jack is going to have to make a decision.”

He clenched his jaw. “Just let me talk. I’m in the elevator. I'll be there soon.” He disconnected the call and stared at the mirror in the elevator. What the window reflection hadn't shown him was the tinge of purple to his brown iris. It did not glow like the right eye, but it was unmistakably eridium. 

Rhys breathed a sigh of relief when he reached Timothy's floor and found that he was allowed entry. Timothy sat at his desk, looking haggard. His fist propped up his head. He glared at Rhys but didn't bother to sit up. “What do you want? Did Jack send you to bargain with me? I told him what his options are.”

“Jack doesn't know I'm here. If he did, he would be furious.” Timothy’s eyebrow arched. Rhys turned over his arm and showed off the crystals. “That vault didn't open for Jack. It opened for me. I went inside.” Timothy suddenly sat up, but Rhys kept talking. “It changed me. We don't need your eridium anymore.” He lowered his arm. “But we need a crew to sail. You know Jack would be miserable as CEO. I know you’re upset that we didn't bring you back anything from the vault. But what if I told you that you could have some of our next vault?”

He surveyed Rhys carefully. “How do you plan to get into the other vaults?”

“The vault opened for me. I was connected to it through eridium. I can guarantee you that I could open another one.” Rhys dropped his arm. “Do we have a deal?”

Timothy stood slowly and approached Rhys. Rhys held his ground. Timothy outstretched his hand, and Rhys placed his wrist in his grip. As he rotated Rhys's wrist to examine the crystals, he casually asked, “Why should I believe you? What would stop you from telling me that the next vault was empty too?”

“I am not a liar. I won't let Jack lie to you either. If the legends I've been told are true, there's more wealth than two people could ever use. We would have no reason to hoard it.” Timothy touched the crystals cautiously, then released Rhys's wrist. “You are Jack's brother. You may not realize it, but he does care about you. I do not steal or deceive. I am not a pirate and neither is Jack. This vault was empty when I went inside. There was nothing for me to take. The only thing that happened there is that I was given more eridium.”

“I'll say,” Timothy commented and gestured to his arm. “That looks like the purest eridium that I have ever seen. If anything would get you into another vault without a proper vault key, it would be that arm of yours.” He turned away and returned to his desk, standing in front of it with his arms folded. “What are your terms?”

“We—”

“Not ‘we.’ Your terms. Jack is not a factor here.”

Rhys frowned. “I want a crew large enough to help run our ship. Jack will not stay here as CEO. He will be free to go, and may visit if he wants to. In return, we will give you a third of whatever we find in the next vault.”

“Half.”

“A third,” Rhys repeated. “But if we find a second vault, you can have a third of that as well.”

Timothy stared at him. Rhys lifted his chin and held the stare. They were both quiet, then Timothy unfolded his arms and stood up. “Fine. I didn't really want to deal with him for a year anyway. I'll have a contract drawn up.”

“A contract?” Rhys asked, confidence faltering slightly.

“You seem like a good kid, but I'll be honest with you, Rhys. I don't trust you or Jack. Jack does whatever he wants and I'm sure he's mentoring you to be the same. After this little fiasco, I want it in writing. Especially if you're going to offer two vaults. Sign it and you have a deal.” Rhys nodded. “Anything else that needs to be addressed?” At the shake of Rhys's head, Timothy waved him off. “You're free to leave.”

Rhys went back down to the apartment. Jack had not returned and he breathed a sigh of relief. He would have to find time to go up and sign the contract later. The less Jack knew, the better. He wanted to fix this mess and keep Jack happy, even if it meant some secrecy. He went to the bathroom and took a quick shower to clean the dirt from his hair and scrub off the dust from his skin. By the time the door opened and Jack came in with a bag of food, Rhys was cleaned and stretched out on the couch.

“Food's here,” Jack announced, though he was already tearing the bag open. He handed Rhys a paper container that held a thick sandwich and some fries. Rhys took it, though his conversation with Timothy had left him a bit uneasy and without much of an appetite. Still, he ate a couple of fries to ward off any comments. Jack didn't notice from his position at the kitchen counter, where he ate his own food. 

Rhys hadn't expected a contract to be a part of this. Without the ability to read, he had never needed to sign his name. He didn't even know what it would look like. But asking Jack to help meant telling him that he had gone behind his back and talked to Timothy. He hoped he could just sign it later and hope that Timothy would also keep his word. 

“Are you still not hungry?”

Rhys jolted back to himself and found Jack sitting next to him. He shook his head and put the container on the coffee table. “Not right now. I guess the eridium made me feel a little sick.” Jack rubbed between his shoulders and Rhys leaned into the comforting touch. “I'm sorry that I lied to you.” Again. 

“Why didn't you tell me what happened? If we're going to be partners, you can't keep secrets.”

“That goes for both of us,” Rhys pointed out. Then he shrugged. “I don't know. I just… I just worried that if I told you, you would try to make me hide again. And I feel good like this. I feel strong now. I don't want to hide anymore and I want to be my own person… Not just Jack's pet.” His expression soured at the end. He didn't like how he was an extension of Jack. He wanted to be equals. Even if that meant going behind him to talk to Timothy. It was fine if it was for both of their wellbeing. “I want to be more than that.”

“I get it,” Jack said, though Rhys couldn't imagine how he could understand living in someone's shadow. “I won't make you hide anymore,” he promised. “I think after taking down a vault monster on your own, you have earned the right to not have to hide all of the time. I'm still going to worry about you. I want you to be safe. Sometimes, humans can be even worse than monsters. That's something you need to remember.”

Rhys nodded. “I know. But thank you for understanding.” He smiled lightly and gave Jack's hand a squeeze. “I want us both to be happy. I want to travel with you across the world and see everything. I need to be able to take care of myself if we're going to do that, and part of that is not hiding me away. The other part of it is letting me help you.”

Jack opened his mouth, but stopped when there was a knock on the door. Rhys went cold. Jack moved to stand up, but Rhys leapt to his feet and chirped, “Let me get it!” He rushed over to the door and paled at the sight of the young woman. She held a thick folder out to him without saying anything. He took it from her and whispered a quick thanks as he tried to discreetly motion for her to leave. She paid his urgency no mind, but did thankfully leave at her own pace. Rhys clutched the folder close to his chest and stayed in the doorway, unsure of what to do. He wanted to hide it. He thought about trying to stuff it under his shirt. The folder was too wide to easily slip under the material and the square shape was obvious. 

“What are you still doing at the door, kiddo?” Jack's voice was right behind him. Rhys jumped and spun around, eyes wide, with the folder still clutched in his arm. Jack raised an eyebrow. “What's that?” When Rhys did not hand it over, Jack frowned. “What are you hiding now?”

What are you hiding now? The disappointment that laced those words made Rhys's stomach drop. Slowly, he relinquished his grasp on the folder and handed it over. “I… I talked to Tim,” he finally croaked out. His face burned hot with embarrassment. The confidence and determination he'd felt walking into Timothy's office felt like an ancient memory. 

“What? Why the hell would you do that?” Jack snatched the folder and opened it. “A contract?” His eyes skimmed the pages, his brow knitting tighter and tighter. “What the fuck is this, Rhys? What made you think this was a good idea?”

Rhys clenched his jaw. “I just want you to be happy!” he protested. “Sacrificing yourself for a year isn't worth it! Just because the only options you had didn't mean those were the only options we had. We are a team now, Jack. If I can help, I'm going to.” There was a pen attached to the folder and he yanked it away from Jack before he could be stopped. “Show me how to sign my name. I'm signing it.”

“Rhys, this is ridiculous. A third of two vaults? We barely found one vault. You're not signing this.”

“Let me help us, Jack. We can find more vaults and we can open them. I'm not worried about that.”

The surety of his voice made Jack put down the folder. “How do you know that we can find more? Why are you so sure?”

Rhys swallowed. “I have dreams now of the vault. But it's not the same vault. I think… I think I'm tethered to them. I can feel the vaults calling to me.” The confession was bitter on his tongue. This wasn't how he wanted to do this. “I think it's the eridium. Tim said it's the most pure eridium he's ever seen. But…” He couldn't lie to Jack anymore. It had barely been a couple of days and he was already falling apart. “I don't think it's just the eridium. The… thing that gave me my humanity. It wasn't doing it out of kindness.”

“Rhys, did you promise it something?”

He shook his head. “No, no. Just listen to me. It called itself a Guardian. I know what those are. They're stories that the seafolk tell. Legends, I guess. They're said to protect us, or used to protect us. The stories say they vanished a long, long time ago. And…” His breath hitched. “And… and this one. It mentioned my parents,” he whispered. 

He had told Jack how his earliest memory was waking up in a pool of eridium after his family had been attacked. They had died in the attack and he had been horribly wounded. His arm was severed and his eye was torn out. He limped into a cave and fell into the pool of eridium. He woke up with his arm and eye replaced with eridium and volcanic rock. Although Rhys had been completely alone, he had enough energy to swim until he was found by a patrol. They took him to the colony where he had grown up. 

Tears welled up in his eyes at the dim memories. “I don't remember them. But I think there's more to them that I don't know. I don't think I will ever know. But I don't think it was a miracle that the eridium saved me instead of turning me into a monster.” He shook his head again, harder. His chest was tight. The panic from gasping for air every morning was rising. It was so easy to tamp down in the moment. Thinking about it now, when he could remember them all at once and feel the ache, it was overwhelming. “I don't know more. I've been so confused since I got out of the vault about what it was saying to me, but the dreams are so vivid that I wake up and I think that being here is the actual dream. They keep calling me. I can't—” he hiccuped “--can't go a full year just standing here doing nothing. I'm scared that if I don't search for them, it will hurt.”

He inhaled sharply and scrubbed at his face with his hand. “I'm sorry I lied to you. I'm sorry I went behind your back. I'm just sorry, okay? I just knew you wouldn't be happy here.” He pushed past Jack and sat down on the couch. The panic was dissolving into misery and he dug his fingernails into his leg. “Be mad at me. I'm going to sign the deal.” He rubbed his nose and grimaced as his head throbbed.

There was a long silence that was only broken up by sniffs. Then, Jack sat down next to him on the couch. Rhys didn't look at him. “Let me read the contract first,” he said quietly. “If it's sound, I'll help you sign it.” He ran his fingers through Rhys's hair. “I knew there was something you weren't telling me. You really are a horrible liar. It didn't make sense why it gave you your humanity. This clears that up.” He said nothing more and he leaned in and kissed the curve of Rhys's head. “Do you need a nap?”

He mutely shook his head. Instead, he pulled his legs onto the couch and pressed himself against the corner. Jack got up long enough to grab the folder and returned to the couch. When Rhys laid his head down in his lap, Jack merely adjusted himself so he could read through the contract without elbowing Rhys in the face. The apartment was quiet despite the rustling papers. Rhys stared at the black TV mounted to the wall. He didn't know how to turn it on or even care to watch anything. He felt numb once the panic and embarrassment faded. Had he had any good sleep since he came back from the vault? Rhys had assumed it was from all of the training, but the more he thought about it, he wondered how he could be getting any rest if he woke up every morning with his heart trying to burst through his chest. 

Jack got up once to turn on a lamp. The bulb's hum was the only sound around. Rhys sat up eventually and ate his cold food without complaint. Jack had said nothing about the contract so far. If that was good or bad, Rhys had no idea. In the end, Rhys was falling asleep when Jack put the folder down on the coffee table. 

“Alright,” he began, nudging Rhys to sit up. “I gotta hand it to Timmy, whoever his contract guy is, he's solid. There are no loopholes for him or us, no outrageous demands, no flaws. I think that, if you still want to sign, it would be okay.”

Rhys perked up. “Really?”

“Yep. I dunno if all of this was what you negotiated, but he's been pretty fair. We get a mid-sized ship, an appropriately sized crew that he finances on loan, with permanent ownership being granted after delivery of one-third of the contents of two distinct vaults. I think two vaults is a bit much, but it's not crazy.”

“He wanted half of one,” Rhys mentioned. 

Jack surprised them both with a chuckle. “Not bad negotiating, kitten. Got him to agree to a little less.” He got up for the pen and handed it to Rhys. “Here, let's sign this and get it up to Timmy. Give me your hand.” Jack shifted and put his hand over Rhys's. “Don't squeeze the pen so tight.” Rhys adjusted his pressure and Jack molded his hand until he had the pen pinched between his thumb and forefinger. “Now, I'm gonna guide you. Just let it flow.” Together, Jack etched out Rhys in a flowing cursive script. When it was done, he let go of Rhys. “Let's take this to Tim and get it over with.”

“I'll take it,” Rhys offered. “It's my contract. I want to do it.” Jack acquiesced and handed over the documents. Rhys left the apartment alone and went up to Timothy's office. He was still there despite the late hour and had a single desk lamp illuminating such a small part of the expansive office. He had his head in hands and he only looked up when Rhys knocked on the door. The door lock clicked as Tim pressed a button on his desk and Rhys walked in.

Timothy straightened up. Rhys noticed that he looked exhausted and worn out. Unlike Jack, who hid his age behind a mask, Timothy didn't have that luxury. He looked like a man that needed to rest. He picked a pair of black framed glasses off the desk and put them on. “Did you sign it?”

“I did.” He placed the folder on the desk. 

“Did Jack read it?” Timothy pulled the folder close and flipped through it. 

“He did. He was there when it was delivered and he took it from me to read it. I needed his help to sign my name so he helped me do that, too.”

Timothy smiled sardonically. “He always had a knack for contracts. But I had no interest in getting anyone screwed over. I guess that, if he helped you sign it, he found it to his liking.” He confirmed the signature on the last page and closed the folder. “I'll have a crew rounded up and a ship selected for you in a few days. You can leave by the end of next week.” He adjusted his glasses. “You can leave now.”

Rhys nodded and turned to leave, but stopped. “Thank you, Tim. I hope you get the break you need soon. Tell Angel I said good luck.”

Timothy snorted and said nothing even as Rhys left the office. Through glass walls, Rhys saw his shoulders deflate and he put his head down on the desk. Rhys kept walking back to the elevator and went down to the apartment. 

It was late and Jack was in the shower. Rhys was already clean, so he laid down in the bed. Using his arm that morning had helped cool some of the restlessness in his veins and he was asleep before Jack even turned out the lights.

-

This vault was different. All of them had been unique, but this one wasn't like the others. The past vaults had been dim and glowed with only the soft luminescence of lichen. This vault was self-illuminated by deep cracks of eridium that lined the walls. There was no water to swim through and the exit was clearly marked behind him. He stopped on a cold, solid path that didn't feel like stone. His feet were bare and his pants were torn at the knees. There were several branching paths. The choice was not his own. 

The thumps of his heels on the walkway echoed. Everything echoed here. There were no whispers or voices in this vault. Only a faint hum that resonated with the breath in his lungs. The walls of the vault stretched high over him and curved into a perfect dome. The eridium in the walls brightened and dimmed with energy. No, it wasn't energy. It was life. 

Rhys didn’t know how long he walked. He kept a consistent pace, never stopping or quickening. The walkway came to an end and Rhys stared at the wall. It was empty save for a handprint with long fingers made out of clear, pure ice. Rhys placed his right palm on the ice. With his fingers flattened, the shapes matched perfectly. 

The sun was warm on his face. Rhys's eyes fluttered open and he groaned softly. He rolled onto his back and Jack grunted when Rhys squashed his shoulder. Rhys ignored the protest and stretched out his arms and legs, knuckles tapping against the wall. The loud yawn finally caused Jack to open one eye, though he quickly closed it and tried to go back to sleep. It was futile; Rhys leaned over and shook his shoulder until he was swatted away. Rhys grinned sleepily. “Wake up. Today's the day. We need to get going.”

Jack rolled over to get away. Rhys rolled his eyes and climbed out of bed, knowing he'd be back in a minute to try again. Their bags were already packed and ready to go. Rhys got dressed in the last outfit set out for himself, his old worn clothes while his new clothes were in the bags. When his shirt was straightened, he walked over to the edge of the bed and gave Jack's shoulder a rough shake. “Time to get up,” he said loudly. “I will leave you here.”

Jack finally pulled himself out of bed with a great amount of grumbling. Although he was slower, Jack did manage to get dressed and ready to go in a decent time. They left the apartment key at the receptionist desk. Rhys looked behind them as they walked out of the building and saw Angel standing off near the elevators. He hesitated, but she made no move to chase after them. He tried to wave discreetly and she only turned away from him. 

The train ride out of Opportunity was quiet. Jack was sipping on coffee he'd bought at the station and muttering about how disappointing it was. Rhys entertained his complaints with distracted platitudes as he watched the scenery. He was ready to get on the ship and get going. There were so many places they could go and he didn't even know where to start.

Timothy was at the docks. He looked more alert than that night in his office, but he too carried a large cup of coffee with the same cafe's logo. When he turned to face them, both brothers noticed the logo and shared an empathetic grimace. They had never looked so similar.

“Crew is getting set up now,” Timothy informed them. “They're not the most seasoned sailors but they show promise. It shouldn't be too hard to get them into shape.” He took a sip of coffee. “Don't kill them until they're yours. I'm not replacing any of them if you come back, even if you bring an entire vault.”

“‘Preciate you, Timmy,” Jack said with a raise of his cup. “We'll keep the good ones. I can't promise the rest of them.” They stood there and stared at each other. Rhys nudged Jack, but Jack didn't move for a hug. Instead, he walked past Timothy and merely patted him on the shoulder. 

Rhys glared at him from behind and went to follow, only for Timothy to grab his arm. He paused and looked back.

“Thank you for getting him to give me a break,” Timothy said. “It'll make it easier to transition to Angel when she's ready.”

“It was his idea.” Rhys beamed. “I told you that he cares about you. Thank you for everything. We'll keep our end of the deal.” Timothy let go and Rhys followed Jack up the gangwalk to the deck. It was a much smaller ship than the previous one, but it wasn't tiny. Their crew was fifteen sailors, no soldiers, who were preparing to ship off. Jack and Rhys found the main cabin easily enough; the sailors’ barracks were below the deck, but their cabin was near the wheelhouse. Rhys tossed their bags onto the floor next to the bed and started to investigate the room. The desk drawers were empty and everything was pristine. He wondered who had the ship first. 

“Where are we going first?” Rhys asked, bent over next to the wardrobe to check out how well it was attached to the floor.

“That's up to you,” Jack said, already lying down on the bed. His eyes were closed.

Rhys stood up. He had not mentioned the vault of his dreams to Jack yet, even though it was the same dream every night for days. But where was it? “What are my options?”

“Well, Jakobs is full of dense forests. Torgue is the biggest producer of gunpowder in the world and is also located on an island with an active volcano. Vladof is to the north. The ice is thick this time of year.” 

Vladof. The name caused his stomach to twist. “I think we need to go to Vladof.” Maybe the ice hand wasn't related, but he couldn't ignore it. “We can figure out what to do about the ice.”

Jack sat up. “Why?” 

“I… I feel it. There's something there. I just don't know exactly where.”

“Okay.” Jack cracked his neck. “We should be able to stop at some smaller islands and get good coats that will keep us warm. Hopefully we can get through the ice.” His question answered, he lied back down and threw his arm over his eyes. “Don't wake me until it's dinner time.”

Rhys rolled his eyes but left the cabin and went exploring through the ship. He mapped out the different rooms in his head, where the stairs were, and where he could hide snacks in the cafeteria. He went to the wheelhouse after he was done snooping. The setup was not too different than the one Jack trained him on, though the interface was simpler. Although he didn't know exactly where they were going, it was easy enough to preemptively set their course to go north. 

Soon after, Rhys got the notice that they were ready to leave. Rhys did not wake Jack and, with only a little bit of help, was able to get the ship away from the dock and out to sea. He didn't get to see Timothy before they left. It was no matter; he would see Timothy again one day. 

Being completely in charge was new. These sailors knew very little about their co-captains. All they knew is that they were being paid to listen to both of them and that the skinny one had an unnatural arm. They knew how to work a ship and Rhys had to intervene very little. As Jack asked, it wasn't until dinner that Rhys returned to the cabin and gave him a shake to wake him up. 

“Time to eat,” he said when Jack tried to swat him away. “It's already dark out. You need to get up.”

Jack cracked open an eye. “You shipped off without me?”

“You told me not to wake you up,” he pointed out. “It wasn't so bad. I set us up to head north and haven't had to do much else. This crew is very helpful.” He nudged Jack again. “Come on. I want to go eat and I'm not bringing you back food.” It was that warning that convinced Jack to haul himself off the bed. With a small smile, Rhys straightened out his coat for him and made sure he looked presentable. “First impression,” he chirped, entwining their fingers. He led Jack from the cabin down to the cafeteria, pointing out the different rooms that he had already investigated earlier that day. The extra sleep seemed to make Jack more alert and he (mostly) listened to Rhys tell him about the ship's layout.

Dinner was already underway when they arrived. Some of the sailors near the door went to stand up, but Rhys motioned for them to stay seated. They joined the other stragglers waiting to be served and took their plates to a mostly empty table. It was their first dinner onboard and Rhys had requested they have a nice dinner with fresh food before digging into rations. Dinner was a bright, flavorful roasted chicken with different kinds of vegetables, most of them Rhys had never encountered before. He was willing to try them, but he pointed each one out to Jack to learn the names: cauliflower, green peas, corn. Revitalized from his nap, Jack entertained the questions about the different foods. Somehow, he still ate slower than Rhys despite the frequent interruptions. 

The sailors that shared the table with them left a rather large gap between the co-captains and themselves; they tried not to eavesdrop on the odd conversation where a grown man was asking what corn was and where it came from. The masked one seemed calm and endeared by the other one, with one hand propping up his head as he explained the process of which cauliflower was harvested and that no, it wasn't a miniature tree even though it looked like one. 

“Before everyone goes to bed, you should introduce yourself,” Rhys suggested. “Most of them have met me at this point, but you didn't greet anyone before you went to sleep.”

“I feel like I can do that first thing in the morning. No sense in making everyone go on deck in the dark just for a meet-and-greet.” Rhys frowned in disagreement, but did not say anything to argue. “If they know you, then they'll figure out who I am soon enough. As long as they understand that they have to listen to you.”

“Why listen to only me?” Rhys pushed a piece of cauliflower into the leftover sauce from the chicken. He decided he didn't like cauliflower much.

“Not listen to only you, kitten. But I can prove my authority. You're… you.” Rhys raised an eyebrow at him and Jack elaborated, “Rhysie, you're young and handsome. Youth usually means that they're less likely to listen to you. I think that you could prove yourself in the right circumstances, but it shouldn't need to come to that.” He patted Rhys's hand placatingly. “It's not a bad thing. If they'll listen to you on their own, that's the best outcome.”

Rhys still wasn't sure he understood entirely, but he allowed the matter to drop. They would need to assign duties and stations in the morning anyway. Their path was still clear when Rhys had checked just before dinner and Timothy had ensured that the ship was equipped with an autopilot feature so they didn't have to monitor the wheel 24/7. Today was an easy day. Rhys hoped it wouldn't be the only one. Either way, he was happy to be back at sea. Even now, with a true sense of humanity, he belonged on the water. He couldn't imagine leaving this life, not as long as he had Jack. 

Dinner wound down and the sailors moved to the barracks. When they passed by the door, Rhys could see them all gathered around one table playing cards. Rhys was curious, but Jack pulled him along before he could stop and see what games they were playing. “Let's let them do their own thing for tonight,” Jack advised. “They need time to bond as a crew. We'll only make things uncomfortable.”

Rhys nodded and followed Jack across the quiet deck. The air was chilly and he shivered, pressing close to Jack. Jack wrapped an arm around his shoulders as they walked. It was so much quieter than on the bigger ship; a smaller crew meant that there weren't people constantly running around. This ship felt much more peaceful, which Rhys appreciated. The moonlight glittered on the lapping, gentle waves and he pulled away from Jack to look over the railing.

“Do you think you're going to miss it?” Jack asked from behind him.

“Miss what, exactly?”

“The ocean. Being a fi— part of the seafolk.”

Rhys stared down at the water. “No. I still miss Vaughn and Yvette, despite everything.” He scoffed at himself. “That doesn't mean I'm happy with them. I know I wasn't perfect, but I can't forgive them for betraying me. Either of them. And without them, I don't have anything to go back to.”

“You said the Guardian thing gave you a choice to join its colony. Why didn't you accept it?”

Rhys turned around and looked up at Jack. Jack was so close that he could feel the warmth. He slipped his arms gingerly around Jack's neck. “Because that's not my home. Regardless of everything that happened at the colony, regardless of what happened with my parents, it's not my home. My home is here, on this ship, with you.” He smiled. “I love you. I would have cut off my tail myself if it meant that I could stay with you forever.”

“That's kinda twisted, kitten.”

Rhys rolled his eyes at Jack's amused grin and untangled himself. “I don't know why I bother with you.” He turned to walk away and Jack looped his arms around Rhys's waist, nearly knocking him off balance. Jack ducked out of the way of flailing arms and Rhys steadied himself. “Let go of me.”

Jack was warm against his back. Rhys weakly walked forward and Jack held him fast. “Come on, Rhysie. I've missed you. Don't be like that.” He tightened his arms slightly. His finger pressed against Rhys's waistline.

“You're being ridiculous. Let go of me,” Rhys replied coolly, trying not to dignify this childishness with a smile.

“Make me.” His voice was low and hot against Rhys's ear. The air tickled the flesh on the back of his neck.

Jack was still asleep when Rhys slipped out of their bed and showered. His lower back ached pleasantly and he rolled out his shoulders. Water droplets rolled down the planes of his back and he wiped them away with his towel. He dressed in a new shirt that he'd bought earlier that week to replace some of the oldest clothes he'd been wearing for the course of the year. Even the click of the lock didn't wake Jack and Rhys exited. A few sailors milled around, but Rhys ignored them. He walked across the quiet deck to the bow of the ship and stared out over the dark water. The sun was still low on the horizon and the skies were dark, not yet touched by morning rays. The wind was chilly. Rhys resisted a shiver. 

He rested his arms against the cool metal railing. The wind blew and played with the loose waves of his hair that tickled the back of his neck. He looked down at the pulsating crystals on the back of his arm. The eridium swirls moved faster than they had been when they left Hyperion. Even if he didn't know exactly where the vault would be, Rhys had a feeling that he would have no trouble finding it. 

As the sun rose off to his right, he felt a hand slide up his spine to his shoulders. He leaned into Jack's side. “I love you, Jack.”

“I love you too, Rhys. Thank you.”

He looked over Jack and reached up to fix an errant lock of hair. “Why are you thanking me?”

“For reminding me that I can love someone and not be afraid of something happening.” He kissed Rhys on the side of his head against plush, wavy brown hair. Rhys wrapped an arm around Jack's waist and hugged him tight. The sun's warm rays glittered across the crystals on his arm and Rhys closed his eyes. There was no monster in the galaxy that could take this away from him.