– M A K A Y L A –

I woke before Alex did.

Wrapped in her warm embrace with the feel of her slow breathing against my skin. I carefully extracted myself from her arms. Slowly enough and silently that the heavy, whiskey induced sleep would be enough to keep her in dreams.

I watched her a moment longer. Some of her dark strands had come loose from the braid running behind and made her look young and entirely like a woman that didn't end lives and shift empires in her spare time.

I stood from the long white couch. Making sure that her breathing remained even and deep.

I slipped on the white t-shirt from the floor along with the cargo pants with one place in mind. I knew the interior of the station from memory. Imprinted in my memory from the hard ass head of security. I had to wonder if he made it out of Division 52's blood bound path for my father...

The glass doors slid open with a faint hiss and I walked the long white washed corridor with stars spilling out endlessly from the wide glass pane along the side. Many doors and hallways later I emerged out onto a wide expanse of sapphire blue water.

I walked the edge until I met the large outer glass window. If you dived under it would be like swimming in a sea of stars. Pure floating emptiness. I sat down at the edge and let my calves soak with warm water. I leant back on my arms and watched the slow rotation of the station bring the earth into view.

It still had a blue glow akin to the water at my feet despite our centuries of pollution and abuse. My father had spared no short stories in telling me of how our bloodline had funded the experimental algae weed that was modified to consume plastic particles and other synthetic pollutants centuries ago. Ironically they had to then modify a creature to consume the overgrown weed... But the results purified all ocean water.

One scar of many needing human intervention for something we had already caused.

I focused on the cobwebs of city networks. The lights that flashed by in quick orbit. Populations had always been tightly controlled and monitored in mega cities but I did wonder at the occasional blips of light I caught beyond the obvious sprawling cities.

Were people able to make a life for themselves without a governing force? Mega structures and mass food and water stores?

I chuckled quietly. 

Alex would tire of outer city life faster than you could snap a finger. Proximo's words flashed into my mind when I had stood over him. She is made for this. Then I had slashed a throwing knife across his hand... He would probably hold that one against me for some time. Alex would likely commend me rather than scold me.

The thought made me smile. I kicked my feet lightly watching it ripple outwards.

I couldn't shake the hole created. As much as I wished I couldn't care less about my monster of a father. I did care. I should be grateful I wasn't the one to pull that trigger. Alex didn't want that. She never wanted red on my hands. Even when I was forced to take a life all that time ago in the furthest Sector of the city. The criminal leader of the city did everything in her power to keep me from the dark she lives in.

I didn't hear a sound before the woman herself crouched beside me.

I flinched sharply and she laughed quietly. I didn't take my eyes from the water as she stayed crouched watching the ripples I made.

"How did you find me?" I murmured.

I caught one side of her mouth twitch upwards. "Seeing as most of this station is either storage or service space, there weren't many places you could go." She answered simply.

I turned to her and caught her burning golden eyes staring out at the planet beyond the glass. I wondered what filled her thoughts. She spoke before I could.

"I'm not taking you back to Merridian, Makayla." My shock was obvious. I stared at her waiting for more as she watched the light bounce off the oceans below. "Not right away at least. I need to take us away from this all for a time. I can only imagine what the Silver Sun will do when they announce I took your father's life." She stated factually before her eyes landed on me.

"I need you to get the time you need to process his death. And you won't have any peace in that city. I have the resources and funds to make us disappear for as long as you need–"

"Alex, that's insane. Listen to what you're saying. All of your people. People across Sectors 52 to 11 depend on much of what your network does for them–"

"I have people prepared to handle this. I am not the only reason Division 52 functions." She said emphasising her words.

"You know what I mean. What will they think if the leader that just shifted the power up and disappears? It won't strengthen your hold."

She smiled at that and dropped her hand into the waters below. I felt my brows draw together as a peace seemed to take over her face. A calmness despite the raging storm.

"My strength is with you. It has been since the moment you ran straight into my path. The moment you shoved me away from you in my own Sectors. The moment you shook apart my entire world and then the moment you kissed me back despite everything I am and everything I put you through." She finished in a voice barely louder than a whisper.

I submerged my hand in the water and took hers. It stilled.

"Running away from this won't do either of us justice. You would never turn your back on your Sectors because you felt overwhelmed. You would let it fuel you. I can only hope to do the same." I told her honestly as her eyes raised and held mine.

She didn't seem able to find the words. My response was not expected. As ever.

"The coordinates I put into that shuttle will be for outer Merridian. I'm sure it won't be too much to ask for a pick up from your people." I smirked and she half grinned shaking her head.

"I'm sure I can arrange that for us, Miss Xavier."

"I think I should stay well away from your second though... and your personal guard Kartuga." I added with a sheepish look. This only made Alex laugh loudly.

"What on earth have you done?" She demanded with a grin.

"Proximo wasn't exactly in agreement with me pursuing you onto that rooftop." She stilled as I said this.

"Better question. What did my second do?" She stated with lethal calm.

I raised my hands out the water and placed one on her shoulder. "Before you judge him, he had a point. I would only distract you in a dangerous situation and with so little time–"

"Makayla." She said in the same calm, watching me intently.

I rushed it. "He held a gun on me ordering me to stay and I may have flung a knife at his hand and made a run for it."

She blinked. Then raised an eyebrow. "You were aiming for his hand and disarmed him?"

I blanked a little. "That's what you're taking from this?" I asked exasperated.

"Well, it's impressive. I didn't teach you how to use a blade–"

"No, no I need you to call off your second and give him a sincere apology not compliment me for almost taking off your second's fingers."

She snickered and I swatter her arm.

"I will speak with him. When I tell him you are the singular reason your father didn't put a fusion round through my head he will see reason." She deadpanned.

"I was thinking more along the lines of sorry... but I suppose you know the language he speaks in." I mused shaking my head and dropping my hand from her shoulder.

She winked and bent in to kiss my temple.

"When would you like to leave?"

"Soon." I said simply, feeling her shock. "It won't be long before they send ships after us and there is no where to run on this station." I told her factually.

She nodded at this, casting her eyes back to the planet below. "I will speak with Proximo and arrange our extraction in Sector 52. If they are expecting us I want it to be in a Sector they have the least jurisdiction and the most hate in."

I snorted. "You're not wrong there, Scorpion. I barely lasted an hour."

"The Silver Sun don't have the leader of Division 52 hopelessly in love with them though. I don't think their chances are quite the same." She said with irony in her voice.

I smiled despite my emptiness. She was already warming my core with her presence alone. I loved her ability to do that to me.

"That's true. I have her totally at my mercy... Some would argue I'm calling the shots of the Division now." I smirked expecting instant retribution at the claim. But instead she merely turned to me and raised an eyebrow.

"It's yours if you wanted it. My greatest achievement was getting to keep you." She said honestly.

"If Merridian was mine to give, I'd give it to you, Alex. All my titles, my life of luxury–hell you can even have my pencil skirts–"

She didn't let me finish, she threw me straight into the water.

I laughed loudly when my head emerged and she jumped in only to drag me under. I grinned at her under the aqua blue water. She took hold of my face and pressed her forehead to mine in a move that felt so naturally comforting even with no air to my lungs.

I brought my hands forward to hold her neck and drew my lips to hers kissing her deeply as bubbles flooded past our lips and we held each other suspended. For now Merridian was distant and didn't exist. Consequences could wait. I only wanted the woman in front of me. Wanted to stay suspended without simple needs like air.

But at some point we would have to surface. Life was never so easy as floating.

– P R O X I M O –

"I need you to do something for me." Her calm voice spoke softly, it let me know the next words were not meant for the deceased Emperor's daughter.

"Say the word." I stated, striding towards a holo desk and flicking a finger at the techie to depart swiftly. He almost threw himself from the seat and melted from view.

"I need your sister to hack that Imperial shuttle and manipulate the coordinates." I froze as I considered this.

"Where is it heading?" I responded carefully.

"Off continent. I need you to take us off the grid. Cloak all signal outputs and run it like the shuttle has malfunctioned. Whatever your sister wants... add it to the list." She muttered as I dragged a glove over my shaven skull.

"How long exactly do you plan to be away from Merridian?" I got out through measured breaths. More like how long do you plan to leave the throne of the Underworld unattended–leave an empire leaderless in the midst of a raging fire–

"Proximo." She said in a firm voice. "I need you to do this and not question me. I trust you with my life and now I'm trusting you to look over things while I'm away. Can I do that?" She asked with heavy implication. As if the question even needed answering.

"You already know what my answer is. The question is how long our new adversaries will take to seize this–" 

"Our base of Ops is now functional, correct?" She interrupted me.

"Almost at full functionality, yes."

"Then keep the turrets on a spin until I return. If I need to come back with a vengeance into my city our adversaries will not need a reminder of who leads Division 52." She murmured in lethal quiet.

I grunted a half chuckle despite the fact that she was leaving our empire to face the chaos of Merridian without a time limit.

"I hope it will not come to that. The rebels are already claiming you were responsible for Hades' demise."

The line froze before I practically heard her roll her eyes. "That moron plays with too much Imperial and Underworld fire. Whatever end he met it can't have been soon enough."

"His use expired when he reported the mole. The double cross after that was predictable." I agreed, swivelling the chair to find some eyes watch me curiously from their holo screens. When my eyes met theirs they quickly found more useful things to be doing.

"That's not important anymore." She said curtly. "When you have successfully overridden the shuttle acquire a modest apartment in the outer Sector of whatever city you can find. Clean our currency bars and sweep any virtual trail–"

"It's almost like I have never made you disappear before." I mused, laced with amusement as she paused and chuckled.

"Perhaps I'm tired of mistakes being made lately."

I scoffed. "Not when I am in a room."

"This is accurate. Still. You know procedure. Ensure your sister follows it."

"She should have it done in 24 hours. I will upload coordinates when it is done." I responded flatly.

"Thank you, Proximo. It goes without saying that I would be 5 feet under without you." She drawled.

"You would be mounted upon a wall without me."

"Sounds dangerously specific." She noted.

"Previous Underworld leaders also had creativity–shame there was a collective lack of intelligence."

"Let's not inflate your ego too much."

I grinned and flicked a dagger between my scarred hand.

"I will contact you soon, Scorpion."

"Eagerly awaited." 

The line went dead.

I sat up from the chair and pointed a finger at a techie that had been continuously glancing my way in anxiety. His flinch sent his glasses lower.

"Get me a craft ready now and have my sister put in it."