[b]This was an old contest entry but I didn't want to post it. Thought I could polish it up and post it for kicks. Hope you like it. The Red Butterfly[/b] Quiet steps, soft landfalls, a barely audible sigh to the wind. The sky was clear overhead, clouds sparse but this Guardian's mind was not looking to see the scene. Not with their thoughts farther than any cloud could reach. "Come now, Warlock." A small mechanical machine chirped ahead, the little ball of Light and metal bobbing up and down. The Warlock gave a nod of affirmation, hands tightening at their sides as their stride widened to catch up to their Ghost. Why were they out here again? Thinking back, they had gotten a little recon mission from Ikora, the woman finding a strange signal up along the outer area of the Cosmodrone. And what were they to do, being a knowledge hungry Warlock? Thank the Traveler they were there first or else any other Warlock would have argued for such a mission. "Any signal yet?" The Warlock asked after few minutes of silent trekking. The Ghost pointedly ignored them, opting to dart between the trees ahead. At least it was having fun, the worry of enemies hardly present this far out. It made the mystery all more interesting, the chase for knowledge enticing to the mind. The Warlock mused that this little mission had a view. The tall trees above them offered some sort of shade as a breeze gently passed through the trunks. If the Warlock wanted to stop and admire the view, they would clearly hear the lovely chirps of songbirds and the flutter of little wings against the rustling leaves. It was...peaceful. Calm, a sense of tranquility tucked away from the reaches of this battle torn world many had to live in. The Warlock liked this place immediately. "Over here! I got something!" Came the excited call from the underbrush ahead. The Guardian idly smiled behind the confines of their helmet, heart surging with affection for such a small spark of Light. "I'm coming." Was the response before gloved hands pushed away the underbrush to see that the Ghost was hovering over a small item against a tree trunk. "Oh." It was a white candle, small and hardly noticeable. It was a wonder their Ghost had found it. Bending down, they inspected the item closer. The wick was obviously used but it seemed like ages ago it was lit. The wax was melted in some parts, the wear and abuse nature had thrown at it present even after all this time out here. Where had it come from? Wanting to know, a small flame ignited on the tips of their fingers, the warmth familiar like the Light residing in the Guardian. The wick easily caught fire, the candle a sudden burning beacon. Enraptured, the Warlock failed to notice another candle not that far off in the distance but their Ghost had caught sight of the item. With a static buzz, it raced off like a hound in a hunt. The Warlock quickly snuffed the candle out, pocketed the find and eagerly raced after the machine. These candles were placed oddly, jumping from tree to tree. With each one, the Guardian always bent to pick up the small parcels. It seemed puzzling to them yet they continued on, racing under the darkening sky with unnoticed attention. It was fun if you were to ask them. A mind boggling enigma hidden deep away in the forest of time untouched by human and enemy hands. "Here too! Here! Oh." Surprised, the Warlock looked to their Ghost dart into a thick bush only to slowly back out. It seemed suddenly hesitant, it's optic eye blinking from the Guardian to the foliage. "Find anything?" A chill raced up their spine, finally taking notice of the night slowly taking over and the sounds of day had ebbed away to silence. Slightly creeped out, they moved the leaves away much to the discomfort of the Ghost. "I found the signal." Was the only answer before the Warlock broke through the bush and laid eyes upon what had sent them out here in the first place. "Oh." There was a small clearing, the trees circling around it like a barrier. Wildflowers sprang from the ground, petals curled up to sleep and let the night live on. It hit the Guardian at how beautiful this all was again, and how Ikora could find such a place with a weird signal. But then the Warlock saw it. A large boulder near the center of the clearing, the stone greyed and withered. And resting atop the old worn surface was a Ghost, eye flickering with the last remnants of Light left in it. The Warlock ran. "Guardian." The unknown Ghost spoke, tone near silent and fluttering weakly. The Guardian quickly scooped up the machine when they neared, fingers encasing the spark of Light as if to protect it from anything going to hurt it. "Where is your Guardian?" The Warlock asked, eyes darting everywhere for the companion that was supposed to be with such a fragile machine. Did it even [i]have[/i] a Guardian? What would a Ghost be doing this far out? No one really lived out here did they? "Sleeping....." The Ghost murmured, voice cutting in and out. "Just...sleeeeeepingg....I trried to stop her.....shhe jjust needs sleep...." "Where? Do they need help? Where-" The Warlock wanted answers, but something on the stone caught their eye. A butterfly picture. Painted with a substance colored brown and dried and cracked. Blood. The Guardian instantly felt sick, eyes roving to even find bloody handprints smeared on the rock. There was more things sprawled on the surface, drawing and scripts of unintelligible writing. Where? Where was the other Guardian? "S-she's sleeeping...and I willll as well...." "Where is she?! Dammit, where is she?!!" "Sleeping...by the flowers she so llloved....thank you..for ffinding ussss....." And with that last sentence, the Ghost faded. The Warlock still held the tiny thing, turning around to figure out where the other Guardian was. "Flowers. It said flowers. But we're surrounded by them. Ghost! Search the area. Maybe we can save them. Go!" Frantic, near hysteric, the Warlock began to search for the missing person. The Ghost flew off, scanning the ground, anywhere it could to do as it was told. Tears gathered at the corners of the Warlock's eyes the longer they searched. The night sky was overhead, the cosmos lighting up the sky in brilliant stars but they didn't notice. Even in the dark, illuminated by the lights above, the Guardian searched. Because out here, surrounded by such beauty, hidden away from eyes, was a missing Guardian. And a Ghost desperately waiting for help for them. How long had it been doing that? Just how long had it been sending signals for someone to finally come looking? So long that it's Light flickered and withered away? "Found something!!!!" Head snapping up from a patch of flowers, the Warlock raced to the Ghost that was racing back and forth over an area by the edge of the clearing. The Warlock stared. A skeleton lay in the grass, flowers rising from around them and covering their body as if to protect them from the world. The body was laying on its back, helmet off, their black sockets staring up at the sky. Armor was still around body, fabric rotted by the ebb of time and a helmet lay farther away. But that's not what the Warlock was looking at. The Guardian had a bullet hole in its head, skull cracked where it had entered and in its left limp hand was a gun. The Ghost dropped out of their gloved hands, the dead spark bouncing off the ground before resting in the grass. "Oh by the Traveler..." Sick to their stomach, the Warlock dropped on their knees. No Light was left of the suicidal Guardian, but they could spot a Titan mark still attached to their hip. It hit the Warlock like a slap to the face as the puzzle pieces clicked together. The candles. The rock. A small Ghost trying to stay alive for their Guardian. The [i]gun.[/i] A Titan. A strong, supposed unbreakable Titan dragged themselves out here, to a place where no one would follow, leaving candles lit to mark their passage. A final parting ritual. And when they found the clearing, they had likely put their Ghost on the rock and killed themselves. The blood around the rock proved their theory. Of course their Ghost revived them. And the Guardian did it again. And the little Light did what it always did for their Guardian. They played the dance of death and despair and each time, the Titan drew on the rock with their blood with every failed attempt. But even reviving took away Light. And after so many times, the Titan dragged themselves to the edge of the clearing and finally ended their life, probably ignoring their Ghost's pleads to stop because of its flickering Light. And here it sat, weakly sending out signals for help when their Guardian began to become one with time but no one came. No one came for years. But it sat there, hope for their Guardian shining even until it had finally been snuffed out. The Warlock removed their helmet, throwing the armor somewhere before covering their face to wipe away the tears. A scream tore out of their throat, raw and loud as the tears fell faster. A gentle breeze blew through the clearing, the galaxy a witness to such a tragic find. The sounds of night continued on, leaves and the scents swirling around the Guardian in grieving. It was...peaceful. Calm, a sense of tranquility tucked away from the reaches of this battle torn world many had to live in. But the Warlock didn't like this place anymore.