[url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/197415283?page=0&sort=0&showBanned=0&path=1]Catalogue of Art, Profiles, and Fics related to Fireteam Daybreak[/url] [b]Word count[/b]: 1,080 [b]Characters[/b]: Merric, Jynn [i]Part 1--- [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/211065569]Thanatonaut: The Deep Stone Crypt (Prologue)[/url] Part 2 --- [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/219825893]Thanatonaut: The Deep Stone Crypt (Memory 1)[/url] Part 3 --- [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/227373339?page=0&sort=0&showBanned=0&path=1]Thanatonaut: The Deep Stone Crypt (Memory 1.5)[/url] Part 4 --- (currently reading) Part 5 --- [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/229905165]Thanatonaut: The Deep Stone Crypt (Memory 2, part 1)[/url][/i] Part 6 --- [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/243496257?page=0&sort=0&showBanned=0&path=1]Thanatonaut: The Deep Stone Crypt (Sideshow 2)[/url] --- “So... how are you handling the news?” “I’m [i]not[/i],” he admitted under his breath as teeth clenched, lip twitched and eyes shut tight. One hand curled around his bicep as the other pressed thumb and index finger into the bridge of his nose and the corners of his Amber eyes and he exhaled with a groan. “[i]You don’t say[/i],” she replied with dreary sarcasm dripping thick in her words. The woman lowered her gaze as she crossed her arms and leaned against the wall with one shoulder and eyed him as he paced the room. “Your fiance decided on her own that she’s going to be the first lab rat for Nirvana, I thought you’d be shittin’ out rainbows and gumdrops and pissin’ glitter right about now.” Merric stopped and shot her a dirty look and a threatening growl (which she shrugged off), lifted both hands above his head and ran his fingers through short, dark brown hair, clawing at his scalp with a nervous twitch in his digits. Jynn shrugged, rolled her eyes and let out a soft sigh. “I know you’re freaked out, I mean[i] what are you doing about it[/i]?” she asked with reserved curiosity, not wanting to push too hard. He was always so collected, ready to weather the next storm, but this... It hurt to see him like this- apprehensive, insecure, defeated, none of which she knew him to be. Green eyes bore into the back of his head like laser-beams as he stood there silent and unmoving, likely lost in his own mind as he tried to think of what he could say that would make her stop and take his feelings into consideration. “Nothing.” Brow hardened and eyes widened in disbelief. “[i]Nothing!?[/i]” “Well what do you want me to say!?” he blurted out as he threw his hands down, turned and looked at her with pleading eyes. “What [i]should[/i] I say...? What [i]can[/i] I say!?” There was agony in his voice and a rasp that worsened the tighter his throat clenched. Lips drew thin and eyes looked past her as he recalled their conversation. “Tell her to let someone else take the risk.” “I tried that,” he said, agitated, “That’s actually the [i]problem[/i] I can’t get her to see past.” “What problem is that?” “Unethical procedures in the workplace,” he passively replied, noting her change of expression and body language the moment she realized what he was getting at. “You mean...” “I [i]know[/i] you remember Dr. Shirazi’s patients from her research on the Nanite swarms.” Jynn slipped a hand up over her right shoulder and dug her fingers into her collarbone. “Yeah... still got a scar from Splendor 2.6. Hurts when it gets cold y’know.” “Well... Freehold is a small settlement, and people like to talk. It wasn’t her project but she knew Dr. Shirazi, and she heard all about her failures. Clovis Bray is notorious for using civilian test subjects for their research, and she doesn’t want to be a part of that legacy.” Eyes hardened and she cast her gaze to his feet as she took in the realization, while simultaneously trying to fight it off. “So she’d rather risk giving up her life with you than letting someone else take the risk as they always have?” Merric leaned over his knees and leaned back into a chair with all his weight, slumped and drew in a deep breath before letting it out in a long, controlled sigh. “If she let this happen and something went wrong, she wouldn’t be able to live with herself... which is just as bad.” He placed a hand over his face and closed his eyelids for a few moments as he chuckled, then parted his index and middle finger and opened his eyes to narrow slits to look over at her. Jynn’s face had softened, unable to hide her sympathy. She knew Laila, just not as well as he did, but she did know her well enough to know that her dear friend was the most important person in her life, she just didn’t think Merric would have been second to her career. “But still... you would have helped her through the guilt... why would she choose her career over you?” “She’s not choosing her career,” he forced a grim smile and slouched more in his chair before kicking another chair from beside him under his outstretched legs and crossed his ankles. “She’s choosing what she feels would a better quality of life... if she doesn’t have to carry the guilt of a human life on her conscience for the rest of her life, we’ll both be happier in the long run.” Fingers drummed against her arm in frustration and she huffed through her nose in irritation. “But more importantly, she wants to set a better example that she hopes others will follow. Just because it isn’t public knowledge what goes on in the labs of Clovis Bray, doesn’t mean there isn’t blood on their hands.” The silence grew as an unspoken acceptance passed between them. Neither had to elaborate to know what it meant. Although she had weighed her own feelings when making her final decision, it ultimately had come down to the simple fact that she could save lives, and they couldn’t argue with that. “Damn it,” Jynn mumbled as she turned and began to pace the room herself, hands lowered to her hips. “But why her? Why not someone else?” “Because no one else would.” “But what if something does go wrong...?” she protested. “She’s one of the lead Scientists on Nirvana, no one knows her job like she does. How would they move forward without her?” Merric shook his head, grabbed his coat off the chair on the other side of him, dropped it over his head and crossed his arms. “She’s confident they won’t fail... and, as terrified as I am, I believe she knows what she’s doing. So.” “You’re doing nothing.” “Yeah.” “But it feels so [i]wrong[/i].” “Yeah, I know.” Hands balled into fists and she tucked them under her arms as she looked away, shrugged helplessly, and sighed. “Alright, just... let me know if you need anything... okay?” “Right now all I need is a goddamn nap,” he growled from under his jacket as he shifted again to get more comfortable. "Wake me up in half an hour, unless something comes up.” “Yeah... sure thing boss. Get it while you can.” [i]Twenty two hours to go. [/i]