The Bear

Location: Earth – Over the Irish Sea

The jump ship's hull hummed softly as it cut through the clouds, leaving the broken coast of Belfast behind.

Below them, the sea stretched toward the horizon, cold and endless.

And beyond that horizon, the City.

Blake stood at the viewport, Laoch hovering near his shoulder.

The journey felt longer than the distance they were covering.

Out of the corner of his eye, Blake saw movement on the cliffs below.

A lone figure. A Ghost.

He banked the ship and descended.

They landed on a windswept plateau overlooking the sea. The figure stood near the edge, a journal braced against a rock. His Ghost floated patiently at his side.

He did not startle as Blake approached.

He was too focused on the Traveler.

The massive sphere hung far off over the water, luminous and distant, yet impossible to ignore. The man sketched it with careful strokes, capturing not just its form, but its presence.

Laoch drifted forward.

"Breathtaking, isn't it?"

The man exhaled a breath that tasted like salt and old smoke.

"I've seen it a hundred times," he said quietly,

"and it still stops me in my tracks."

He closed his journal and turned to face Blake. His eyes were kind, though worn by years of solitude.

"I've always been drawn to art... to creation in all its forms. In my past life, I think I was an artist." He gestured to the Traveler.

"But nothing compares to this."

He offered a hand.

"I think my name is Bear."

Blake studied him for a moment, then took it.

Bear glanced to his Ghost and gave a small nod.

"This is my Ghost, Cate."

The Ghost emitted a series of soft chirps and beeps, curious, warm, and impossibly complex.

Cate bobbed once in greeting.

Blake returned the handshake.

Two Guardians. Two Ghosts. Strangers until a moment ago, now bound by the same Light and the same destination.

They walked back to the ship together, the wind at their backs.

The Traveler waited somewhere beyond the horizon.

The City awaited, but the road would be safer with a friend.

This was the beginning of a new fireteam.

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