To Chase a Dream ⇾ Aloy

ten: a dangerous rescue mission and the idiot that needs rescuing

Warning! This chapter has blood and gore!

"What do we do?" Lorea usually does not panic that easily, but this came out of absolutely nowhere. No one likes sudden changes like these.

"While you two figure that out I'll join the fun." Nil smiles and stands up. "Be seeing you." Just like that the man is gone, lost in his desire. Whoever his partner is they both respect him greatly for dealing with the disturbing man.

A sigh comes from Aloy's lips. "Fine, let's go." She extends her hand to Lorea and in one impressive swoop yanks her upright.

The explorer is left alone as Aloy runs ahead, torn in doubt. She could just stay here, let everyone else take care of the bandits. As soon as everything is quiet she can go in and find Sparrow. While every fibre in her being is screaming to do just that, she sadly can't. He might be an adult, but a lot can happen in a fight and she can't let the man die. So she takes a deep breath, shakes out her limbs, grabs her axe handles a bit too tight and with a scream enters the camp.

All she can see is blood, sweat and the metal glint of weapons. Everything is overwhelmingly loud. She hesitates for a moment, but as a weapon swings her way she lifts her axe and blocks. The hit vibrates through her arm. She brings down her other axe on the woman's hand with a sickening crunch. The weapon is dropped and one slice later the woman is dead.

Lorea doesn't give herself the time to process the fact that just she killed a human being for the first time. Instead, she helps Aloy in taking down the next bandit. And the next. And the next. A trail of blood, death and misery follows behind them as they carve a way through the chaos towards the holding cells. The blood sticks to the explorer and she feels disgusted as she throws her axe into a person's chest. Less disgusted than slicing someone's throat open with the other one though.

The body drops and that's when she sees him. Sparrow, the one she came here for, fighting back to back with Nil. They're fluid as they fight together, finishing each other's moves with ease. No blind spots are around since they fill them all up. Their perfect cooperation doesn't sit right with her for some reason. He can't know the weird man who seems obsessed with killing.

He just can't, can he?

An emotion she can't identify stirs up inside of her. She ignores it and instead fires off a fire bomb at a group of bandits. The horrible smell of burning human flesh fills the air, but she doesn't register that right now. She rushes into the middle of the fight, hacking and slashing away at every single bandit that crosses her path. She feels their weapons mark her skin, her blood welling to the surface. It doesn't matter because they're just scratches. They're nothing compared to the unknown feeling inside of her.

As the last body drops the camp slowly turns back silent. Only the sounds of nature can be heard now. Lorea collapses to the grounds. Tired and disgustingly sticky of blood. It's even in her mouth in its full metallic glory.

A familiar blue coat crouches down before her. "Lorea, are you okay?"

With tears streaming a path through the grime on her face she shakes her head. She squeaks out a single, high pitched no before collapsing in his arms.

The other people around ignore them, except for two. Nil and Aloy awkwardly stand side by side, trying not to appear as uncomfortable as they are. She refuses to strike up a conversation, it would be disrespectful to Lorea's time of need. Whatever seems to be going on, it is as if a dam has been broken. The walls that kept everything in finally cracked and collapsed out of pure exhaustion.

It is then that the Braves finally arrive, heavily armed and ready to fight, but it's over. Outcasts walk around taking the bodies and moving them out of the camp. They don't speak a word, as is custom, but some nod at familiar faces. Those who were once respected among the Nora.