#favored!au

Mav had planned to take them all to see the sinkhole the following day but when he’d gotten up, Murk and Zero had been going through the whole house making notes of what needed replacing or general repairs. He’d left them to it, deciding in stead to spend some time in his folks’ room. Sitting on the divan in the corner of the room and just immersing himself in memories brought on by the very nearly faded scents of his parents. Then, his omnitool rang. A conference call with the Primarch and the doctor the man had found for him. Some time later, Mav staggered out of the room, heart racing.

There was a lowkey thumping echoing in the shuttle. Sativum’s foot was bouncing, heel striking the deck of the shuttle over and over and over.

“I swear to the Spirits if you don’t stop that, I’ma punch you.” Mav said out the corner of his mouth, head leaned against Murk’s shoulder.

“I’m not doing anything, Mavic.” The man said without looking up from his omnitool.

“You’re tappin’ your foot. You’ve been tappin’ your foot for twenty minutes straight and it’s gettin’ on my nerves.”

“Ah. Sorry.” He stopped. Mav leaned a little more comfortably against Murk.

Across the small walkway of the shuttle, Zero was picking at a string on his shirt, pulling it until it frayed and then pulling it some more. Palaven. He still didn’t know how he felt about Palaven. Would it be home now? Would it ever feel like home? The boy wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure if he wanted it to feel like home. That had been the castle, then the pyramid. Where he’d lived with his mate and then burned his body. Teacher had given him a tiny vial of Ulysses’ ashes made into a necklace. It was in his pocket, he wasn’t sure how he felt about that either. Or how his grandpa would feel about that. Zero wasn’t sure why he really cared.

Sativum spoke with Teacher first thing after dismissing Murk, letting the man know to contact his mate and that he’d personally do everything he could to see them reunited. Then, he sent a message to the ground units scouring the the pyramid- recon right now, but soon- and told them to look for Three, where she’d be and to get her out safely.

After that, he made his way to the Primarch’s room, knocking twice on the door. The man answered it before his fist could land a third time. “Speak softly,” He said. “They’re sleeping.”

Sativum looked over the man’s shoulder and spotted Cato and Velox wrapped around each other on the bed, the fluffy little dog sitting awake between them. “I need to speak to both of them, Sir. It’s important.”

“In what way?” The Primarch asked, letting him into his room.

“Velox and...Cato have the means to contact the people we missed extracting.” He began simply. “Teacher is missing his mate. She’s on assignment with a dear friend of Velox. Four’s left a girlfriend on the planet. Murk advised me she might be hiding of her own accord for her own safety. I can’t in good conscience leave them unaccounted for, never-mind the information they might carry of the Lord’s operations.”

The Primarch’s mandibles worked along his jaw. “Of course we’ll find them.” He said. “Of course.”

“Then may I speak with Cato and Velox, Sir?”

“Yes, yes.” 

Sativum studied his face a moment. He wasn’t sure what was going on in the Primarch’s mind, how he felt about all this. It weighed on his shoulders knowing his had to add to it.... “In the meantime, Sir, theses on the debriefs I’ve finished today. They’re.... not going to be easy to get through.”

The Primarch took the files from his hands, his mandibles hanging now. “I’m.... going to go over these with the Captain. I’ll leave you with... with the boys.”

“Yes Sir.”

There were maybe a dozen diode things connected to his chest and head and Mav was doing his utmost best no to squirm, sitting there naked while some stranger he couldn’t see touched him everywhere. Asking him questions about the recent broken bones showing up on his scans, the headaches mentioned in his file. He answered everything perfectly in control until the...damage to his face was mentioned. The doctor’s hands on his face to angle his head back. Machine’s beeped wildly as he haltingly detailed how they’d been removed. His turn done, his clothes handed back to him, Mav shook himself and practically tore through the curtain separating him from Murk and the others. 

“Murk?” He called, voice coming out panicked. “Murk?” Then a little higher. The noise in his own head was load and he put a hand to it, muttering to himself.

Two huge hands landed on his shoulders and still them. “Shh. You’re okay, Mavic. You’re okay. Just take a deep breath.”

“I need Murk. Take me to Murk, Crass, now. Fuck... Fuck...”

Zero sneaked back into the pyramid, a backpack full of items over his shoulder as he darted from spot to spot. No biotics, not this time, eezo stank. He’d texted Nine earlier and asked him to keep Ulysses busy for a surprise later and not to say anything. He hated lying like that but... If anyone could keep the Lord out of the basement while he did what he needed to do, it was Nine.