[i]Hello all! I just wanted to once again thank you for reading!!! This has been such an amazing experience for me. I remain stunned at how long this story has continued on. So of course, eventually we’d reach more recent destiny content. ⚠️ This story is going to hit the time around Shadowkeep soon, and that technically means Beyond Light content from me already (for those who don’t know, Variks was on Europa before Shadowkeep). ⚠️ So, with such a huge change coming, I’m taking a couple weeks off to make sure I have everything ready to go! I’m so excited to start this new content!!! Here’s the closing page before we move on to a brand new “chapter”![/i] Page 125      "I know what you're thinking." Wolf hurriedly follows Variks down a hall of the ship.      The old eliksni twitches his shoulders, as if trying to shake off the presence of an annoying shank.      "Listen to me!"      Halting with a sigh, Variks turns to his friend.      Wolf has clasped a clawed hand onto Variks's mechanical arm, and he doesn't let go even when he stops. "Variks, I know you care for the guardian—"      "Shadow," Variks corrects, tapping his staff a little harder than usual.      Wolf blinks. "[i]Shadow[/i],—"      "Who believes you are her friend," he reminds the vandal with a stern edge.      "I [i]am[/i] her friend," Wolf says, insistent. "But I am loyal to you, Variks. I was your friend first. And I am trying to warn you—"      Variks blinks all four eyes out of sync, patiently listening.      "I see the way you look at her. I know what's happened—"      Variks seems to shrink into himself, turning his face away from his friend, as if he were expecting a scathing comment to follow.      "I know what you're thinking. Please. Don't do it," Wolf adds, making it clear he has no intention to mock him.       Variks makes no attempt to argue, his expression becoming weary.      Wolf sighs inwardly, relieved that his friend must feel reservations about the decision as well.      "She is not one of us—" the vandal begins, then decides to re-word that as Variks's eyes harden.      "She is one of us in heart," he sighs, exasperated. "But she cannot represent us, not as our leader. As your mate, as your lover, a captain, a vandal, a dreg, she can be anything for all I care! Just [i]not[/i] a Kell."      "Queen Mara was once our Kell," Variks burbles wistfully, an all to familiar desperation creeping into his voice. He taps his staff against the floor plates. "If she could lead us, as mighty and just as she was, why can't Shadow, who is equally brave and loyal? She would have me to guide her."      Wolf's hand tightens on Variks's arm. "Yes, Variks, she was a good Kell, but for so few of us. The few who were willing to be so..." He pauses awkwardly, looking away. "[i]Close[/i]... with awoken. This is not the way for unification of the houses. She is our good friend, your mate, I respect her as such. But, Variks, we will never accomplish what we set out to do if you choose [i]her[/i] as our Kell."      The urgency in his usually careless tone makes Variks pause. He sighs in defeat. "You are right. I know this."      Uncharacteristically sympathetic, Wolf moves his hand to rest on Variks's in a comforting gesture. "You are troubled. I do not envy you the difficult choices you have had to make."      Variks's voice deepens with the strain of emotion. "Do you believe she was a mistake?"      Surprised by his sudden openness, Wolf stares at his friend for a long moment before answering.      "Do you love her?"      Variks hesitates, shifting. "...I do," he says, avoiding Wolf's gaze.      "Do you believe she loves you?"      "Yes."      "Then how could she be a mistake?"      A long, silent pause draws out between them. Variks's shoulders sink slightly in the faintest show of relief.      Wolf scowls impatiently. "You clearly do not [i]want[/i] her to be a mistake. You look for every reason under the Great Machine to keep her." He shakes his head and goes on without giving Variks a chance to respond. "Variks, I know you regret the prison. I know you have grown... impatient...to find someone to lead us. But please, do not forsake your own people."      Wolf's beseeching eyes bore into the last of Judgment. "You will find a Kell within [i]our[/i] ranks, not guardians or awoken," he says with a growl. "And you know she will support your decision. So... make it a wise one." With an ever so slightly threatening edge to his voice, he releases Variks's arm, and turns away from him.