Timelines Crossed

Dax’s fists fell limply to his sides as he stared at his former friend.

Reid’s voice echoed through the night, hollow and metallic. “Surprised? I would be too if I were you. I see you still clinging to the Knights Dax, just as I thought. They’ve made you soft.”

“Reid, what… what happened to you?” Dax’s voice was strained, his gaze fixed on the metallic side of Reid’s face. “I thought you—”

“Thought I was dead?” Reid sneered, his robotic eye flickering with a dark, cold light. “You left me, Dax. You went on, loyal to the order, while I was left in pieces, discarded. The Knights don’t care about us—They never did. All they did was lie to their pawns and then abandon them when the time came.”

“Reid… this isn’t you,” Dax said, his voice carrying both anger and desperation. “Whatever the Aequitas told you, it’s a lie. You don’t have to do this!”

“Don’t act like you know me anymore, Dax. That loyalty of yours? It’s weak, just like the Knights.” Without warning, Reid lunged forward, his mechanical arm flashing as it swung toward Dax with brutal force.

Dax barely managed to block, the impact sending a jolt through his entire body. Reid didn’t relent; his strikes were swift, each blow calculated to drive Dax into a corner.

“Is this what they did to you?” Dax growled, struggling to counter Reid’s onslaught. “Turned you into some ruthless pawn?”

“They saved me. They told me the truth. They gave me strength. I don’t need anyone to tell me who I am anymore.”

“What are you talking about, Reid?! What truth?!” Dax raised his fists to block another blow, his anger growing, but he knew he couldn’t keep up for long. Reid’s physical enhancements had given him an edge, and every strike seemed to push Dax further back.

“The knights were the ones that killed my parents that night, Dax. They were the reason I wound up in that orphanage. And then they had the nerve to take me in!”

Dax froze upon that revelation, his movements halted even though he still kept up his defensive stance. The next blow however was even more violent as it crashed against his gauntlets, sending a ripple through his arms.

“Gah!”

Meanwhile, Rhea’s attention was divided, her gaze darting between Dax’s fight with Reid and the squad’s dwindling position. The Aequitas followers, though fewer now, were relentless. Jessie was moving faster than ever, dodging and countering, but he was tiring, his strikes becoming less precise. Talia’s arrows flew, each one finding its mark, but she too was showing signs of exhaustion, her breathing labored.

Reid struck out at Dax again, this time landing a solid blow to Dax’s side. Dax grunted, stumbling backward, barely keeping his balance as he tried to recover.

“Face it, Dax. You were always weaker than me.”

Rhea’s heart twisted, realizing they were trapped between the need to protect the child and the threat Reid posed to Dax and the rest of the squad. She couldn’t let this continue.

She knew what her priority was. Despite the orders issued to her. Despite her meticulous nature. She knew who she had to save.

“Squad, we’re pulling back!” Rhea shouted, her voice carrying over the clash of battle. “We have the girl. That’s the priority. Mira, we need immediate extraction!”

Jessie spun around, eyes widening as he looked from Dax to Rhea. “What? We’re just leaving?”

“Now!” Rhea snapped, deflecting an incoming blow with a fierce swing. “We’re overpowered. I’m not risking any of you.”

Mira’s voice crackled urgently over the comms. “Already there! Strider’s on approach! Hang on!”

As Squad GX began to pull back toward their extraction point, Reid’s gaze darkened. He wouldn’t let them go so easily.

“Get back here, Dax. This isn’t over.”

Just as Reid was about to strike, a deafening roar split the air. The Strider, in a daring maneuver, came barreling down from behind a building, slamming into Reid with enough force to throw him back. The impact would have been enough to knock the wind out of anyone, but it merely sent him skidding across the ground, seemingly unharmed.

The Strider’s hatch had already opened, and Mira’s voice came from within, thick with adrenaline.

“Get in, now! I might’ve dented the Strider a little, but we’re not sticking around to check!”

Rhea didn’t waste a second, guiding the trembling girl onboard, with Jessie and Talia close behind. Dax was the last to climb in, casting one last look at Reid, who was already rising to his feet, his face twisted in fury as he watched them escape.

“This isn’t over, old friend. Your precious knights can’t protect anyone forever.”

Dax’s expression was grim as the hatch sealed shut, the Strider lifting off and carrying them away from the battlefield. Inside, the squad was silent, each of them processing the events, the revelation, and the haunting bitterness in Reid’s words.

Mira’s voice broke the silence. “I know I scratched up the Strider a bit, but… everyone okay?”

Rhea glanced around, meeting each teammate’s gaze before nodding at Mira. “We’re okay. Let’s get this girl somewhere safe.”

As the Strider flew through the night, Dax leaned back, his mind a whirl of emotions, questions, and the image of the friend he’d thought he’d lost—now an enemy, twisted by the Aequitas and his own betrayal.

“So uh… was that really your friend?” Jessie asked, all eyes turning to him. Some glared, others looked in disapproval. Despite the question lacking the needed delicacy, nobody could deny they were intrigued to hear the answer.

“No mistake. His face… or at least half of it. I wouldn’t mistake it.” Dax clenched his fist, as he removed his gauntlet.

“You’re bleeding!” Mira cried, seeing the wound beneath Dax’s cracked chrono gauntlet.

Tidus hovered closer, scanning the injury. “Fractured knuckles detected. Minor swelling. You’ll live, but I suggest avoiding further punches unless you prefer a permanent reminder.”

“Reid was strong…” The brawny knight winced, remembering the blows he was dealt.

“I told you he packed a mean punch. What even was that arm he had?”

“I’m guessing an implant? It looked powerful…” Talia scratched her chin, thoughtful.

“Looked like a prosthetic arm to me from the feed I got. Prosthetics are way more modifiable than simple gauntlets…” Mira explained, as she helped patch up Dax’s hand.

“It’s okay…” at one corner of the Strider Rhea patted the little girl’s back, who sniffled quietly. Suddenly the whole team realized, and turned towards the two of them. Slowly, their faces softened at the sight.

“Hey, we at least saved her, didn’t we?” Mira grinned.

“You’re… right.” Talia nodded.

◔

When the squad finally reached Time Tower and began the walk down its polished hallways, the sight of them drew glances from other knights and personnel passing by. Conversations softened into murmurs, heads turned, and a few even paused. The torn, bruised, and blood-streaked appearances of each team member left little doubt of the intensity of their mission. But beside them walked the little girl, clinging to Rhea’s hand—a visible symbol of their success.

The sight was a powerful statement: Squad GX had endured the fight and brought back their mission’s prize, but not without scars of their own.

“It’s all gonna be okay now,” Rhea assured the girl gently, her voice soft and reassuring as she guided her toward a resting area.