The pale light of morning crept gently through the cracked windows of the old penthouse. Above the smog and the noise, it felt like Zenithar was holding its breatht.
Liara sat at her workstation, fingers moving quickly through the tangle of Dominion files Garret had given her. Her brows were drawn tight in focus, but behind her, Raiga's slow, steady breathing filled the quiet room.
Then—
A low groan.
Liara froze, her head turning toward him.
Raiga twisted under the thin blanket, his body tense, fists clenched tight. A cold sweat darkened his brow, and his lips moved in silent words she couldn't hear.
Liara: "Not again..."
She crossed the room in two steps, kneeling beside him.
Liara: "Raiga... hey. Wake up."
But his breathing quickened. His body jerked violently against the cot as if wrestling something unseen.
Liara shook his shoulder harder.
Liara: "Raiga! Wake up!"
With a ragged gasp, Raiga snapped upright. His hand shot instinctively toward his side, reaching for a blade that wasn't there. His eyes darted around the room, wide, panicked.
Liara gently grabbed his wrist.
Liara: "It's okay..."
He dragged a shaky hand down his face, his breathing uneven.
Liara softened her voice, sitting close but giving him space.
Liara: "Same dream?"
Raiga swallowed hard. His voice barely rose above a whisper.
Raiga: "...Yeah. But this time... Too real."
Liara sat beside him in the silence, her hand still resting lightly on his wrist until the tension in his shoulders began to ease.
Liara: "Well... if you're done scaring me half to death, want to see what Garret sent over?"
Raiga let out a faint, humorless smirk.
Raiga: "Yeah. Show me."
Liara powered up a small data pad. A soft blue glow lit their faces as schematics and convoy routes flickered to life in the air.
Liara: "Dominion convoy. Heavy security. But Garret says it's cutting through District 6—less surveillance, easier to intercept."
Raiga leaned forward, studying the tactical map in silence.
Liara swiped to the next slide with a quick flick of her wrist.
Liara: "And this... top-tier prototype lead vehicle. No standard cargo. Guess what's inside."
Raiga: "Fragments."
Liara gave a satisfied nod.
Liara: "Exactly. And before you ask—I already started working on a plan."
Raiga raised an eyebrow at her, a faint flicker of amusement in his otherwise tired expression.
Raiga: "Moving fast, aren't you?"
Liara smirked, her confidence blooming in the glow of the hologram.
Liara: "One of us has to plan ahead. With better gear, this wouldn't even be a challenge. You still need upgrades for this mission, and that illegal mapper would've been perfect right about now... but don't worry. We'll make it work—just like we always do."
Raiga leaned back, his eyes drifting to the battered case near the cot. Without a word, he stood, dragged it over, and set it down on the table.
Raiga: "I know you want to keep this... but if this is really our way out, we might as well bet everything."
Liara tilted her head, frowning.
Liara: "Wait... that's what's in the case?"
Raiga opened it.
Stacks of credit chips caught the dim light like they were made of pure gold.
Liara's jaw fell open.
Liara: "RAIGA! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"
She nearly shrieked, pacing circles like she didn't know whether to faint or throw something at him.
Liara: "That's enough to buy half the district! Where did you even get this?!"
Raiga, as usual, remained unimpressed.
Raiga: "Payment. Barren. Said it was for services rendered."
Liara stared between the case and Raiga, her mind clearly running at lightspeed.
Raiga crossed his arms, a faint smirk playing at his lips.
Raiga: "So? Want to take a walk to the port? Bet you can find everything you need."
Liara's eyes lit up like a child on festival day.
Without hesitation, she launched herself at him, arms thrown around his neck.
They stumbled back onto the cot with a grunt, Raiga letting out a breathless laugh he couldn't quite hold back.
Liara: "You're finally serious about this!"
Raiga: "Yeah... seems like I am."
Liara pulled back, beaming.
Liara: "Then what the hell are we waiting for?! Let's go spend all your dirty money before you change your mind!"
Raiga sat up, running a hand through his hair with a resigned sigh.
Raiga: "Try to leave me enough for a meal or two, will you?"
Liara was already halfway to the door.
Liara: "Not a chance!"
⸻
The docks stretched out under a blazing orange sky. The sharp scent of salt air mixed with frying spices and the sweet bite of candied syrups. For once, Zenithar didn't feel like a prison. It felt... almost human.
Liara walked ahead, her head whipping side to side in excitement.
Liara: "Raiga! Look at these!"
She pressed her hands against the grimy display of a pastry vendor, her eyes wide like she'd discovered buried treasure.
Raiga stood just behind her, hands in his pockets.
Raiga: "Pass."
She stuck her tongue out at him, but didn't buy the pastries.
As they walked on, Liara swung her arms lightly at her sides.
Liara: "So... what's for dinner?"
Raiga: "Haven't thought about it."
Liara groaned loudly, throwing her head back in exasperation.
Liara: "Unbelievable! You're like a walking cautionary tale!"
Raiga smirked, just the faintest curve of his lips.
Raiga: "But still walking."
Liara turned on her heel and stomped ahead.
Liara: "One day, I swear, I'll shock you and buy every pastry in that shop! And you'll sit there and eat every last one with me!"
Raiga: "Sounds like torture..."
Liara glanced back, mock outrage painted across her face.
Liara: "You're a terrible person!"
And in that moment, under the glowing sky, with the sea breeze in their hair...
They weren't fugitives.
They weren't soldiers.
They weren't broken.
They were just... two people, daring to believe there might still be something beautiful ahead.
The deeper they walked inland, the more the air thickened—oil smoke, rusted steel, and the burnt tang of malfunctioning circuitry.
They stopped in front of a half-collapsed building, squeezed between two towering industrial silos.
The flickering neon sign overhead buzzed weakly:
"Konn's Tactical Solutions"
—though anyone with half a brain just called it Konn's Pit.
Liara bounced on her toes, her excitement barely contained.
Liara: "God, this place still exists? I'm pretty sure last time the ceiling almost killed me!"
Raiga, arms crossed, gave the place his usual deadpan look.
Raiga: "It's not the ceiling you should be worried about."
He pushed open the door.
Inside, it was somehow worse than memory. The place stank of ozone and burned circuits. Rusted Dominion rifles hung from cracked display walls, mismatched armor stacked carelessly in corners.
But the real goods? Those were hidden below.
A tall, rail-thin man emerged from the shadows. His cybernetic eye glowed weakly, flickering with every blink.
Konn: "Well, well... if it ain't the Shadow himself, blessing my trash heap."
Raiga went straight to business.
Raiga: "Take the mapper."
Konn let out a low chuckle.
Konn: "Straight to the kill shot. That's what I like about you, Shadow—no dancing around it."
He pressed a panel under the counter. A groaning metal hatch creaked open behind him, leading down into the real heart of Konn's empire.
Liara was already gone—disappearing into the upper shelves like a storm, grabbing every shiny object she could lay her hands on.
Liara: "RAIGA! LOOK! Are these Next-Tech frequency scramblers? And, oh my God... Is that an actual neural dampener?!"
Raiga sighed under his breath, shoulders heavy as he started down the stairs.
Raiga: "We're gonna be broke again... I can already feel it."
Down below, things changed. Cold. Sterile. Locked cases and clean racks of highly illegal, cutting-edge tech.
Konn opened a secure crate and pulled out a sleek, matte-black device the size of a small tablet.
Konn: "Here it is. Pathfinder Mapper. Real-time environmental scans, adaptive cloaking integration, interference shielding—military prototype. And completely off-record."
Raiga crossed his arms, unimpressed.
Raiga: "Save the sales pitch. Just tell me the price."
Konn flashed a sharp grin.
Konn: "For you? Double, of course."
Raiga didn't even flinch. His eyes stayed cold, his tone flat.
Raiga: "Funny. Wonder how well you'll negotiate with a broken jaw from a hospital bed."
Konn raised his hands with a ragged laugh.
Konn: "Alright, alright! Regular price, you killjoy. Always so charming, Shadow."
Transaction done, Raiga turned toward the stairs—just in time to hear an unbalanced crash.
Liara stumbled down into the vault, arms overflowing with equipment—harnesses, cables, gadgets stacked almost comically above her head.
Liara: "Okay! Totally done! And before you say anything—yes, it's a perfectly reasonable amount of stuff!"
Raiga just stared at her, unimpressed.
Raiga: "Oh god... I knew it."
Liara flashed her brightest, most innocent smile.
Konn looked between them, mouth half open as he took in the sheer volume of expensive, highly illegal gear.
Konn: "You two got the creds for all that?"
Without a word, Raiga reached inside his jacket and dropped a thick stack of credit chips onto the counter with a solid thunk.
Konn's cyber-eye actually short-circuited for a second, flickering in disbelief.
Liara skipped toward the exit, laughing like a kid on a holiday.
Liara: "You said, whatever we need!"
Raiga sighed, gathering the last of their things, his voice low under his breath as he followed her out.
Raiga: "One day... one damn day, I'll learn."
Konn stood there behind his counter, still staring at the credits like he'd just seen a ghost.
Konn: "Damn. Should've charged double..."
As they stepped back onto the quieter streets beyond the port, the weight of their purchases hung from Raiga's shoulders, but for once, it didn't feel heavy.
Then—
His wrist comm vibrated.
The display flickered: Barren – Incoming Call.
Raiga exhaled through his nose, his jaw tightening before he even answered.
Raiga: "...Yeah?"
Barren's deep, gravel-edged voice rolled through the line like a slow threat wrapped in silk.
Barren: "Shadow. My office. Now."
Raiga glanced toward Liara, his fingers tightening around the strap of the bag.
Raiga: "Not a good time."
There was a pause. Then Barren's voice dropped lower, colder.
Barren: "You don't tell me when it's a good time. I tell you. I'll expect you within the hour."
The call cut off before Raiga could respond.
Liara caught the tension in his eyes immediately, her hands planting firmly on her hips, tilting her head in that mock-scolding way she did when she didn't want him slipping back into that dark place.
Liara: "Hey. Hey! Don't you dare put that look back on your face."
Raiga looked away, his voice low.
Raiga: "It's nothing. Just—forget it."
Liara skipped ahead of him, walking backward, flashing that crooked, defiant smile.
Liara: "No brooding allowed. Not today! Besides, you've already survived my shopping spree—whatever Barren wants can't possibly be worse than that."
She winked, throwing her arms wide toward the chaos of equipment they'd hauled back.
Liara: "Go deal with your grumpy crime lord. I've got more than enough here to keep me busy."
Raiga gave her a long, unreadable look... and then, despite everything, the corner of his mouth lifted just slightly.
Raiga: "...Don't blow up the penthouse."
Liara spun on her heel with a dramatic salute.
Liara: "No promises!"
As Raiga disappeared into the distance, her voice echoed after him, bright and teasing—
Liara: "And if he starts lecturing you, just imagine him naked!"