Beams of sunlight sliced through the blinds, casting snted rays across the room as the sun climbed toward high noon, finally peering over the fissure's gray cliffs.

  The room was small but . Rare in the Uy, courtesy of Silco. While it didn't feel quite like home, g the memories of the past, it did give a sense of fort.

  A simple bed, a pact kit- essentially a studio apartment in Zaun. Gray walls, a metal door, a single light dangling from the ceiling. A pin mattress with an equally drab, brown b. Nothing fancy, but after six years in Stillwater, it was heaven.

  Orion groaned, shielding his eyes from the sunlight. He wasn't used to it anymore. It kind of hurt.

  More surprising, however, was the silent figure sitting beside him. Isha, watg him like a pet waiting for its owo wake up.

  They locked eyes before Orion mumbled, "It's only been a day… Don't you have work? In the mines?"

  "Nn nn." She shook her head.

  Without a word, she stood up and tossed a book onto his stomach.

  "Oof! What-?" Orion grunted and picked it up. Zaun Sign Language.

  Blinking, he peered at her with an arched brow. "You wao learn sign nguage?"

  Isha nodded and, before he could protest, snatched the book back, flipping to the first page and jabbing her fi an illustration. The 'Hello' hand sign. She demonstrated it in front of him, her expressioermined.

  "Look," Orion sighed, sitting up. "I'll learn it-"

  "Nn!" She made a happy sound, boung slightly but it quickly vanished when Orion said, "But you o go to work. No skipping, even if I'm here."

  Her face sched, brows furrowing in frustration.

  "Silco won't take care of you. And frankly, outside of barely reizing you, I don't know you." Orion's tone was blunt, watg her twitch at his words. "Do you sleep oreets?"

  When she nodded, Orion responded ungly. "You sleep here, then. I'll get you a mat or something- whatever you were sleeping on before."

  It really was like watg a dog or cat.

  Her head tilted and expression shifted. Eyes widehen turhoughtful. Finally, she looked back at him, as if processing his words, before abruptly standing.

  With growing amusement, Orion watched as she turhe pages to a new phrase.

  'Thank you,' she said with hand signs.

  Orion looked at the response below and attempted to sign it back.

  Isha giggled, shaking her head before demonstrating the proper way. 'You're wele.'

  "Psh- It was basically there!"

  Isha rolled her eyes, still giggling, befrabbing her miner's hat. Orion shot her an irritated look as she paused at the door, smiling as she waved.

  Then she was gone.

  Orion slumped back against the wall, flipping through the book.

  "I did it right…" he muttered, staring at the page.

  --------

  Without i, Isha returo work, though her absence hadn't gone unnoticed. Her boss was mad, scolding her intensely, but took pity on her a her off with just a warning.

  Back to the fissures. Mining. Hauling raw Chemtech materials. Just another day.

  Meanwhile on Orion's first day helping with some idle work. Sevika stood by as an Enforcer attempted to pry his way into a carriage transp a small Shimmer shipment.

  With a fsh of indigo light, the Enforcer colpsed. Orion grabbed the unscious body and unceremoniously tossed it into a nearby trash pile.

  Sevika- Silco's top enforcer, sp a cyberic arm from the warehouse i, her body lined with hidden vials of Shimmer for power-ups- exhaled through her nose, unimpressed.

  "Took you long enough to ditch those brats," she remarked dryly, signaling to the other thugs to tinue loading the carriage.

  Orion didn't respht away.

  Instead, he grabbed a trash bag and casually tossed it over the unscious Enforcer's head. "Didn't ditch them."

  Sevika's eyes narrowed, skeptical. Orion tinued.

  "Sild I made a deal. I help, but I won't target them."

  Sevika scoffed, rolling her eyes as she readjusted her cloak over her augmented arm. "Wow, how noble." Her tone dripped with sarcasm. "Too bad they won't feel the same ohey find out."

  "Yeah," Orion admitted, shrugging. "But they'll learn there's a new li to cross if they want to keep the peace... Vander's peace."

  Sevika snorted. "Vander's delusions, you mean."

  The exge ehere. The carriage departed, and Orion and Sevika moved on to the job site together.

  After a moment of silence, Sevika g him. "How many of these tagalongs do you need before you handle yourself?"

  Orion's eyes wahe bustling streets, the life that thrived in Zaun now. "Just a few. o refamiliarize myself with how things work."

  "Hmph." Sevika folded her arms. "Not much has ged."

  Orion arched a brow, his disagreement evident. "Really? Everything looks more lively. More smiles, more open exges of . I didn't see that too often before I got locked up."

  Sevika sighed, her gaze shifting to a group dug business exactly as Orion described. She hesitated before muttering, "The surface has ged. Not what lies beh. Not yet, anyway. It's still the Chembarons and Silco running everything. Vander just made it look pretty."

  Like a movie se, they passed a darker alley with someone beien, pleading for mercy.

  Both of their eyes followed the crime, but they kept moving.

  Orion's mind drifted to his own circumstances; a problem hidden from sight for six years.

  "I 't argue with you there." Orion admitted, and they kept walking.

  --------

  Vi and Ekko hovered over Powder, watg as she painted with intense focus. The vas before her wasn't just any piece—it was a new portrait of Orion.

  Ekko scowled, arms crossed, while Vi's expression twisted in disbelief.

  "So… you don't want to do anything?" Ekko asked, incredulous.

  "Nope." Powder's response was light, almost carefree. "Just want to keep talking, like old times!"

  Vi threw up her hands. "He's with Silco! Do you really think that's okay?!"

  Powder didn't even flinch, dipping her brush into a new shade. "Silever harmed him. He saved him—twice." She g them, smirking slightly. "Besides, I think we bring him bace he realizes how much harm Shimmer's causing. He was always a softy."

  Ekko's frown deepened. "You’re betting on that? That he hasn’t ged? Six years in Stillwater. He got caught because he left. No one’s fault but his."

  Powder shrugged. "He got caught saving us. Saving the Uy. That's all I o know."

  Vi huffed, running a hand through her hair. "I'd say let's kie seo him, but he's got that crazy magiow."

  Prinned knowingly, finally looking up from her painting.

  "Exactly why my way is right."