In one of his earliest memories, Jayde remembers being jolted awake as the sector shook violently around him. Vaelstrom had never been a quiet place, and that was twice as true for the lower sectors. Lightning storms constantly lit up the sky, while myst-turbines rattled like lungs on their last breath. All the little six-year-old boy could do was call for his mother's comfort.
It was not a common sight for one to see Lian Bixiao running, but little Jayde had been privy to the sight of his mother dashing to and fro ever since his meddling self had learned to crawl, and here she was, once again dashing through the sheet of cloth that separated their living space from the bedroom. Thankfully, she arrived to find her baby boy hiding under the covers and not to him having set fire to their nightstand. Again.
Her shoulders relaxed, her mouth twitching up with an indulgent smile as she sat herself down on their bed before wrapping her arms around the trembling form of her little jade dragon. “What’s wrong, Xiaobao?” She hoped she didn't sound amused. “Did the shaking scare you again?”
Though no verbal answer came from the frightened child, Lian could feel Jayde nodding against her chest. She’d adjusted how she sat, pulling the boy onto her lap. “I’ve told you, Xiaobao, you don’t need to be scared.” Her voice strained, and once again she hoped it didn’t show. “The building is sturdy.” That did little to comfort her son, or maybe she had failed to hide the fear in her voice, but Lian couldn’t dwell on that. She pushed the cover that Jayde had been hiding under away and gave him a tender smile, her tension relieving as he felt him relax in her arms. She couldn’t stop there. “Do you want me to tell you about the Hunters again, Jayde?”
As Jayde looked up and listened to his mother's suggestion, he felt his fear immediately get replaced by excitement. Lian could see the light in his eyes spark up again, thoughts of the earthquake forgotten as her son’s entire body nodded along in agreement of her suggestion.
Lian, for her part, sighed before beginning her retelling of the history of Hunters,
“Long ago, when the seas of Vaelstrom still swarmed with pirates and the sky wept storms of Myst, there lived a girl named Marin. She was small and sharp-eyed. Her island was one of many then, ruled by its own captain, lit by the flicker of stolen Myst. Marin’s people fished by day and hid by night, for the Mystborne prowled the surf, drawn to the fear that followed every thunderclap.
One night, when the storm lights burned violet and the pirates hid below deck, a creature came crawling from the tide. It was a Wraithborne. It devoured the courage of those who looked upon it. Marin, no older than fifteen, took her lantern and stepped outside anyway. She had nothing but her lantern and a shard of amber Myst she’d found in the belly of a dying fish.
The creature spoke in her father’s voice. “Child, stop fighting, and come join me.”
And Marin, shaking, sang. She sang of pirates, of loot and raids. She sang of freedom, of courage. And as she sang, she fought. She fought the Wraith from dusk till dawn, using every ounce of her will to survive the onslaught that it threw against her. Until at the end of her rope, she struck the lantern with her shard, and it blazed gold, a pure flame that neither wind nor wave could snuff out. In that light, the shadow recoiled, its many mouths hissing like wet ropes. Marin struck at the beast, swinging her lantern at it until the wraith finally faded to dust.
As dawn rose, her people found her standing on the cliffs, her lantern still burning. They named her the Sunscale, for the flame they saw still burning white and bright as the sun.
Word spread across the islands. Sailors, smugglers, even repentant raiders came to join Marin, to follow her. Her faction carried golden lanterns engraved with the serpent-and-sun emblem, lighting the docks before every voyage. They swore the Sunscale Oath and became Vaelstrom’s protectors. When storms raged, they stood on the breakwaters, singing the sea-songs that had been taught to them.
But Marin kn-”
Lian paused. She could feel her sons’ steady breathing and hear the soft snores that left him. “You could have let me finish the story, Xiaobao, my favorite part was coming up…” she admonished playfully. Then she slipped off the bed.
Placing little Jayde back under the covers before placing a gentle kiss on his temple. “Sweet dreams, Jayde.” With that, she turned around to head back to her work. She still had a few pieces she needed to finish before getting some sleep herself. Though her weathered eyes did linger on the clock as it displayed 1AM, she steeled herself and crossed the sheets to return to her workspace in their living room. The food wasn’t going to put itself on the table, and Jayde needed his tuition paid.
So, Lian grit her teeth and put her carboned fingers back to work.
The next most prominent memory Jayde held was one of repetition. Sometimes he’d be sat on the floor, coloring something on it. Other times he’d be sitting on what amounted to a couch, reading a book or trying to fix himself something for a snack or even dinner depending on the time. Then the front door to their home would open, and he’d drop everything, sometimes quite literally, to Lian's chagrin, to run over and greet his mother with the tightest hug he could muster.
She’d smell like ozone and smoke, and even back then he could almost feel how tired she was just by holding onto her. Not that she would ever tell him that. Instead, she would kick off her boots, shake out her damp hair and smile at him like the world wasn’t falling apart just outside the door she had shut behind her.
“You’re still up, Xiaobao?” She’d tease.
And he’d always reply the same way, “Can’t sleep with the whole sector shaking.” He’d grin at her before leading her through the narrow hall to their living room.
Lian would hum along, allowing her son to lead her into their cosy little part of the world, “Good thing Hunters don’t need sleep, huh?” She’d smile indulgently before breaking free from his grip and ruffling his hair. “Now, do you want me t-”
“WAKE UP!”
Jayde jolted awake. Sitting up rigid as a board, looking around in an attempt to get his bearings. The memories still lingered at the edge of his conscience, but he pushed them away and instead greeted more recent memories. His purpose. The mission. A voice followed this realization in his head.
“Jayde, I swear to the gods if you don’t wake the fuck up right the fuck now!”
What was her name again? Inja? Insha? Isha!
“I’m back, Isha, sorry for worrying ya!” Jayde replied, his mind brushing against the mental thread that connected them.
“Good boy, now get off your ass, and take the fucking shot!” came the harsh reply. Jayde considered the harshness unfair considering the circumstances. Uriel had to cover both their own mind and Kings to take on the Sovereign class while he and Isha were left far enough out of its reach to support them and not be affected by its abilities. How could he have known a Wraith class would ambush him as he lined up a shot?
Keeping his complaints in his mind, Jayde reached for his Zhou’Yin, thankful that the scissorblade had fallen at his side. Separating the gunblade from the mystblade, he rested it on a rock, feeling a tinge of satisfaction as the muzzle smoothly extended past the blade again, and began taking stock with his scope and promptly thanked his past self for not complaining.
Isha was in the air, locked in a fierce dogfight with the Wraith class that had ambushed him. Her daggers flying to and fro, moving to intercept any attacks made by the Wraith class while also slipping through the cracks to attack it in response.
Uriel, meanwhile, was a cyclone of blades as they battled against the Sovereign class on their lonesome. Their weapon constantly switching between forms to keep up with the beast, and part of Uriel's mask had been torn away.
To a layman, King probably looked the worst off of the bunch. He was isolated. Surrounded. Wrestling four Beast class Mystborne with his bare hands. It was true, the giant of a man’s blonde mane was tinged red with his own blood. But he showed no signs of slowing down. And considering how far he was from the Sovereign the chances of him falling under its influence were low. Good. They didn’t have the manpower to calm him down at the moment.
Uriel had probably shifted their protection to Isha then.
“I would appreciate some assistance, Jayde.” Uriel's flat voice rang in his head, and Jayde sighed.
“On it, give me an opening, 6 O’clock.”
Jayde brought his scope back over to Uriel and their battle with the Sovereign. To anyone else, the fight would have been too fast to intervene in. But Jayde knew his partner. They’d pulled off the same maneuver time after time. In simulations, sure. But they counted! So he breathed, counted Uriel's slashes and found his opening.
Jayde’s finger immediately squeezed the trigger.
Click. Click.
“Fucking damnit!” Jayde shouted to himself, reaching into his satchel to bring out a tube of Myst. His hand lingered over the lone obsidian myst vial before reaching past it to instead take out one of the amber vials. He swiftly inserted it into an explosive round and loaded his gun.
With a breath held, he once again counted each of Uriels’ slashes, ignoring the invasive shouts from Isha invading his mind again, ignoring Kings shouts of elation as he used one of the Beast class as a club to beat down one of its kin.
Then-
Bang.
A whistle.
Uriel jumped back, covering the exposed part of their face as the round met its mark on the Sovereign's neck. Not a moment later, their world was overcome with the white of a flame myst explosion, separating its head from its body and immediately burning its remains away with white hot flames.