Desperation

The room exploded into chaos. Gramps pulled away from the businessman, demanding to know what was going on. The man just watched us, a grim fascination on his face.

"Why the hell did you pull a gun, Ravager?" Gramps asked, his voice shaking with rage.

"I won't let you die," Ravager replied, his voice strained. "Not without doing everything I can."

Gramps' gaze softened. He placed a hand on Ravager's shoulder. "This isn't how we do things," he said, his voice low and serious.

Ravager turned to look at him, desperation etched into his face. "I can't just do nothing..." he whispered, a single tear falling down his cheek.

The businessman cleared his throat, breaking the tense silence. "Maybe I can help," he said, a knowing smile playing on his lips.

We followed him back to the facility, allowing the medical team to check Gramps. All the while, something felt off. Ravager and I exchanged a glance, our shared history enough to communicate our suspicions. This was a trap.

Without wasting a moment, I hurried back to the medical room, my heart pounding. As I flung the door open, Gramps and the doctor jumped in surprise. I brandished my pistol, pointing it at the startled doctor. "Time's up, doc. We gotta go."

Gramps rose to his feet, winking at the shocked doctor. "You have a terrible bedside manner anyway," he quipped, before following me out of the room.

As security forces started to descend on the facility, Ravager and I sprang into action. We split up, hoping to confuse the patrols that were swiftly closing in. Gunfire erupted in the distance as I managed to get Gramps back to the Nomad.

Just as we reached the safety of our ship, I received a distress call from Ravager. He was in a gunfight and needed extraction. Without a second thought, I kicked the Nomad into gear, steering her towards the towering building Ravager had taken refuge on.

Security forces were starting to mobilize, their ships ready to give chase. But we were a well-oiled machine, a team of five years. I could see Ravager at the top of the building, trading shots with security forces. As the Nomad hovered at the edge of the rooftop, he sprinted towards us, his gun still spitting fire.

"Jump!" I yelled, my heart hammering in my chest. With a final, desperate leap, Ravager made it onto the ship, just as we pulled away from the building.

Ravager ran up to the cockpit, panting heavily. "I got the medicine!" he cried out, a glimmer of hope in his voice.

But as he pulled his hand from his pocket, the hope faded from his face. The vial, once full of the precious medicine we had risked so much for, was shattered, the contents spilled and lost. His triumphant grin faltered, replaced by a look of utter devastation. We were back to square one, only now we were fugitives on a world renowned for its stringent law enforcement.

The silence that followed was stifling. As Ravager sank to the floor, a shadow of the defiant man he had been only moments before, the reality of our situation hit us like a punch to the gut. We had lost our chance at a cure, and now, we had to flee from a world that would stop at nothing to capture us. Gramps' health was hanging in the balance, and the future we had envisioned — a future of prosperity and freedom — felt more elusive than ever.

As I steered the Nomad into the Odesian sky, a shroud of despair hung heavy in the ship. The twinkling city lights below faded into the distance, replaced by the vast, unforgiving emptiness of space. The future looked bleak, uncertainty filled the ship as the stark reality of our situation settled in, leaving us with the echoing question - What next?