Chapter 13: Crash Landing

"So you guys left without me?" Ash said over the phone, steaming as she sat in a bathroom stall talking to Orion.

"Probably for the best, hell if it wasn't for you we wouldn't have gotten caught by the fake Men in Blacks."

Ash's leg lights turned red, and she looked at Orion through the phone. "I didn't mean for that to happen, and I thought I was supposed to be part of the team! Now you're running around with some shapeshifting bitch who-"

"Not a bitch, just a shapeshifter," Luna said from the driver's seat, smiling innocently as she drove through the skies. 

"And what about Zephyr? He agreed to leave me?" Ash said, embarrassed that Luna had heard her. 

"Zephyr had his reservations too," Orion replied, glancing at Zephyr, who was examining the map laid out on the dashboard, plotting their course through the treacherous terrain of New New Mexico. "But we all agreed it was too risky. This isn't just about finding the Nexus anymore. It's about surviving long enough to do it. Luna's skills are... unique. We needed her for this."

Zephyr looked up, catching Orion's gaze in the rearview mirror. "Ash, we're not doing this to sideline you. This place, New New Mexico, it's unlike anything we've faced before. The Dust Devils were just the start. We've already encountered things I can barely explain. And Luna," he paused, nodding towards their new companion, "her abilities have saved our skins more times than I want to admit..."

Luna turned briefly to flash Ash a reassuring smile through the phone screen. "Hey, I'm just here to help. And honestly, without me, these guys would probably be lost in some dimensional pocket or arguing with a sentient cactus. You're still part of the team, Ash. We're just the away team right now."

Ash sighed, her frustration fading slightly. "Fine, but you better keep me updated. And Orion, if you get a scratch on you, I'm holding you personally responsible."

Orion rolled his eyes. "Who can hurt me Ash? I'm the genetic freak aren't I?" 

Ash turned red at the sentence and swiftly hung up the call, leaving the three to talk amongst themselves.

"If you two pull that shit again I'll report you immediately," Luna said seriously. It had been two days since they'd fought the dust devils, and she'd been moody since. 

The once easy-going and almost innocent girl had been replaced with a stickler for the rules, Orion wasn't even able to fidget with his gadgets without hearing something from her. 

"The nexus is that important to you huh?" Zephyr asked from the passenger seat. Surprisingly, he'd warmed up to her since she saved them. Orion just hoped it wouldn't interfere with their plans to ditch her the first chance they got. 

"It's... Personal," She said quietly as the radar began to beep. 

"Fuck," Luna whispered, tugging the steering wheel to the left as the car rattled and shook.

"What's wrong? Another attack?" Orion asked, throwing several objects out of the windows, minuscule cameras that had 360 vision, perfect for surveillance. 

"Nope, but it seems we reached the border!" She yelled as the car plummeted to the ground, Orion's cameras went offline as well, dropping along with the car. 

The hovercar plummeted without warning, shaking violently as alarms blared and lights flickered. Luna, usually composed, wrestled with the controls desperately trying to regain control.

Orion and Zephyr held on tight, bracing for impact as the ground rushed towards them. The car hit the ground with a jolt, skidding and rolling before finally coming to a stop, buried halfway in the sand.

In the aftermath, the only sound was the settling of the hovercar's damaged systems. Orion quickly checked on his friends, his voice laced with concern. "Is everyone alright?"

Zephyr groaned as he picked himself up. "I've had smoother rides, but I'll survive."

Luna, still in her seat, let out a sigh of relief. "We're alive. But the hovercar... it's not going anywhere."

They emerged from the wreck to assess the damage, realizing it was beyond repair. They were stranded, facing the daunting prospect of traversing the border into New New Mexico on foot.

Luna glanced at the wreck and then toward their destination. "The Dust Devils were just a warning. This barrier, though, it's the real challenge. It seems to block not only people but also technology. Our hovercar, your cameras... everything's useless now."

Orion kicked at the sand in frustration. "Just our luck. Stranded in the middle of nowhere, and who knows how far we have to walk through hostile territory."

Zephyr began gathering salvageable supplies, as practical as ever. "Then we better start moving. Standing here won't get us any closer to the Nexus."

"Zephyr didn't you hear her? No technology buddy, the mission's a bust," Orion said shrugging. 

"Seriously? You rely on your tech that much? I've never even seen you do anything technomancy like," Zephyr said, scoffing at Orion's words as the silver-haired boy just shrugged. 

"I do it more often than you think, never mind all that, what would you know about technomancers? Swinging those useless swords around like a toddler discovering Lego swords."

Zephyr suddenly got in Orion's face, causing Luna to look worried. 

"I'm getting sick of this shitty attitude, you're supposed to be godlike, so why are you so damn useless!"

Orion grabbed Zephyr's collar, throwing him toward Luna as she yelled.

"Prometheus chains," Zephyr said in the air, flipping over Luna as burning chains wrapped around her body. 

"Good improvising Zeph, didn't think you'd get the memo," Orion said with a smile as he yawned and grabbed his backpack of supplies. 

"What are you guys doing!" Luna yelled angrily, her body transforming over and over again as the chains tightened around her. 

"Uhh... Ditching you obviously? Get with the program Luna, it's pretty obvious we're not chaining you up for no reason." 

Luna looked shocked, but deep down she had expected it. The brief on Orion had been thorough, she knew him better than he knew himself.

"So you're leaving me here to die?" She asked defeatedly. 

Orion stopped in his tracks, looking back at Luna whose struggles against the chains were becoming more frantic. Zephyr, a few steps ahead, also paused, waiting to see Orion's decision.

"We're not abandoning you," Orion spoke gently, his tone now empathetic, devoid of the previous sternness. "You have a choice here. You can keep fighting against those chains, or you can choose to let go of your watchdog role and truly join us as a member of this team."

"You... You're kidding," She hissed, struggling against the chains harder. 

"Nope, we're pretty serious, we planned this before we even left. We're not artifact hoarders like your bosses, we just have one mission. Find that god damn Nexus and get my friend back."

Luna growled, loudly struggling as Orion shrugged and continued walking. 

"You won't leave me! Come on! Stop messing around guys!" Luna screamed as the chains burned into her skin.

They ignored her, walking forward nonchalantly. 

"It didn't have to be so brutal," Zephyr said once they couldn't hear Luna anymore.

Orion didn't answer for a while. "Zephyr, to be honest, I don't care how brutal it was... I would have slit her throat if you didn't have those chains."

"Seriously? That's dark dude..."

"When I found out they started calling themselves something else... I was so pissed off I wanted to murder everyone in that stupid facility. Those people... No, those devils, they all deserve to die Zephyr, and she's one of them... The TO, or should I say... Vanguard."