As the call disconnected and the hologram disappeared in front of him, Zion was left staring at the empty desk in front of him.

He sat there for minutes in absolute silence, his mind a total mess.

Finally, he leaned back in his chair.

"Fuck," he muttered, closing his eyes. "I feel sick."

After closing his eyes, the same memory kept repeating itself over and over. He even felt the exact same feeling from back then, as if he'd experienced it just a day ago.

The feeling from when he was held down by guards in a packed courtroom, completely powerless as his entire family was sentenced to death.

'I did it again,' he thought, nails digging into his palms. 'Another completely innocent person died because of me.'

It wasn't like when the Sovereignty fired at him regardless of whether others got hurt. No, this hit way deeper than that.

Someone was executed because of him. And it could've been prevented had he been more careful with the casual use of his unique weapons, or if he'd gotten rid of the evidence.

Zion let out a shaky breath and leaned forward, holding his head with both hands.

He tried to picture the kid again, from the moment he entered the Blue Mane warehouse to when he left it.

As he called up those memories, a frown appeared on his face.

"What was your name…?" he mumbled.

The answer just refused to come.

It hadn't been more than a month, yet he couldn't even remember the kid's name anymore.

Zion clenched his teeth and opened his eyes.

He stared at the desk, jaw tight, trying to force out the answer from his memories.

But nothing came.

"I'm sure I know it…" he muttered.

[Host,] Uriel's voice suddenly echoed through his head. [Stop trying to remember. Your mind is actively suppressing the memory as it's tied to a previous trauma.]

[It will only grow worse the longer you continue.]

Listening to Uriel, Zion took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly as he stopped forcing himself.

For a moment, he stayed completely still, letting the tension leave his body. The tight knot in his chest didn't disappear, but he managed to push it aside for now.

"Understood," he said quietly.

He lowered his hands, gaze settling back on the air in front of him. Dwelling on it any further wouldn't undo anything. And right now, there were still things he needed to do.

Zion opened his mouth but hesitated for a moment, another thought about his past popping up.

He shook his head lightly and started speaking.

"Uriel," Zion said, tone low. "Can you open the channel to the Mercenary Guild? I want to submit the report now."

[Affirmative, Host.]

A soft chime sounded as a holographic screen popped up above the desk. Lines of text began to form immediately, a report including all the information he'd gathered finished in moments.

Zion's eyes scanned the data emotionlessly.

Barely halfway through, he stopped.

The words all blurred together, lines of text completely losing their meaning. He frowned and scrolled back up, forcing himself to reread the section once again.

'Focus,' he told himself.

He straightened in his chair and continued from where he'd left off. This time, the words stayed clear, and it didn't take long before he reached the end of the document.

"This should do," he said, nodding slowly. "You can send it away now."

After much contemplation, he'd decided not to include the Verdant Sentinel information he'd received.

It simply seemed too dangerous to do so, as the Sovereignty could get their hands on it and reap rewards far greater than the Mercenary Guild.

[Affirmative,] Uriel replied calmly. [I'll update you immediately once we get a response.]

"Thanks," Zion mumbled, standing up from his chair.

He glanced around for a moment, unsure what to do next.

'Oh, Koru,' he thought, glancing through the window. 'He wanted to go outside, hm.'

Zion ran a hand through his hair and let out a quiet sigh. 'Not exactly something I wanted to do with how messy my thoughts are, but alright.'

Staying in his room didn't seem like it was helping either, and most of all, he'd promised Koru he would take him outside.

He turned and headed for the door, quickly making his way to the control room.

As he entered, he found the Sentinel still sitting in his chair, his eyes locked on a holographic screen.

"You were teaching him?" he tilted his head.

[Of course,] Uriel replied, voice soft. [He needed to learn some basic behavior expectations within populated areas.]

Zion paused for a moment, imagining the scene had Koru behaved like he always did.

His expression darkened just thinking about it.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

Koru immediately spun around upon hearing Zion's voice, a big grin on his face.

"Zion!" he said enthusiastically. "Do we go outside now?"

Zion nodded, though he couldn't bring himself to smile.

Koru jumped up from his chair, the hologram closing behind him. He hummed with his rough voice as he approached Zion.

"Stay close," Zion said simply, turning around. "And don't touch anything unless I tell you to."

Koru nodded eagerly. "I understand."

They walked through the corridor, reaching the large storage area where the ramp had already opened.

The sounds of distant spaceships, heavy machinery, and distant voices entered their ears immediately.

As they walked off the ramp, Zion took a slow breath, glancing beside him at Koru.

'I'll watch him carefully,' he thought. 'I don't know what people will do to him because he's a Verdant Sentinel.'

The last thing he wanted was for another person to die because of him, especially one as innocent as Koru.

'But if something happens… can I even protect him?'

The thought lingered in his head as they stepped forward together.

"Where are we going?" Koru asked, covering his ears to block out the loud noises.

Zion snapped out of his thoughts, glancing beside him.

"We'll be going to the Mercenary Guild on this planet," he said. "You need to be registered properly, after all."

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