The three men shared a casual conversation for a while longer before Colonel Harrison got up to leave, Adam followed shortly after, ready to turn in for the night himself. Jericho stayed there, sitting on the edge of the soon-to-be battlefield smoking a cigarette.
Adam was ready to pack it in for the night and get some sleep but then saw Deccanus walking through the camp towards somewhere. Normally he would have left him to his own devices and left him alone but the expression on his face was resolved, determined. He looked like he was either about to kill someone or do something that required a lot of willpower. Adam was unsure what he was planning but he didn't want to let him make a mistake so, while keeping a good distance away, he followed Deccanus through the camp to see what he was doing.
After arriving at the exterior of one of the unused buildings Deccanus stopped in front of a man who was leaning against the wall near to the doorframe of the ruins of the building. The last person Adam expected Deccanus to go find. The Ranger.
"Can I help you?" The ranger said through his filtered microphone while his gasmask helmet remained firmly affixed to his head. It gave him a far more menacing appearance despite him just sitting on the ground leaning against the wall, ready to sleep.
"Ranger." Deccanus said with an extremely serious tone as he stood tall over him, his body posture stiff and unclear if he was planning to strike at him again. While Deccanus paused, seemingly preparing himself for whatever he was planning on doing, the ranger, subtly, placed his hand on his Sequoia which rested at his hip, ready to draw and shoot him if needed.
"I came to apologize." Deccanus said after a few moments of pure silence shocking both Adam and seemingly the ranger, judging by his body language.
"Come again?" The ranger asked, sounding confused even through his helmet's filter, his hand slowly retracting from the pistol.
"I said I came to apologize." Deccanus said, unabashedly a second time. "I erred in attacking you, chasing a dream that had long since died. My old life was over long before I met you, but it was not until recently I realized that I should not be holding onto old grudges. You… are not my enemy. And while you may wear the face of those I once despised, I do not blame you for what happened to the Legion. My journey of self discovery has been long and arduous and is far from over, but I cannot… bring myself to continue to hate… it is illogical." Deccanus said, losing a bit of steam at the end and sounding a bit more vulnerable. There was a tense silence that stuck in the air for a few moments before the Ranger slowly took off the helmet and revealed the blond man that was hidden within. Though Adam now noticed streaks of gray beginning to peak through the blond hair, wrinkles on his face, bags under his eyes. He was far older than he had first marked him to be.
The ranger put the helmet down on the ground next to him and stared into Deccanus' eyes with a skeptical and understanding gaze.
"We were both just fighting for our homes…" He said back, slowly. "It was war, it is easy to hate your enemy in war." He offered.
"But we are no longer at war, the war ended. Many years ago." Deccanus responded resolutely. The ranger nodded slowly.
"That it is." He said as he slowly rose to his feet. "Just as you have left the Legion, I too have left my home behind, seems like a lifetime ago…" He said as he looked off into the distance, possibly reminiscing about something. "What matters now is the men we are, not who we were." He took a step closer to Deccanus and offered him his hand. "To me you could be Legion, Khan, or Shi, it doesn't make a difference, what matters is that, in the here and now, you are not my enemy." Deccanus started at the hand offered to him for a few moments before he tentatively took it.
"I admit. I am still… uncomfortable with your presence…" Deccanus said, unsure.
"So am I." The ranger said back with a soft single chuckle. "But I am not about to let that stop me from doing what I think is best." He offered a small smile. Deccanus did not return the gesture but instead nodded slightly to him.
"I will do what I must do, to build this new home I am coming to terms with. I just… wanted to take the opportunity I had to apologize." Deccanus said softly. The ranger nodded.
"Apology accepted. Now, go get some sleep. We got plenty more work to do tomorrow." He said before he turned back around to sit back down in his spot and get some sleep. Deccanus watched as he sat back down, took a deep breath and then turned to leave himself, returning to the area near the APC where Rae was patrolling and where the rest of Adam's team was camping out.
As Deccanus walked away from the ranger Adam shot him one look before catching up with Deccanus himself now.
"I saw you go up to him. I think what you did shows a lot of courage, Deccanus. It's not easy to admit mistakes." He said with a soft understanding tone.
"I knew you were following, watching." Deccanus said back, without looking at Adam. "You are not stealthy. You should fix that." He said with a deadpan tone, but done in such a way that Adam, who was beginning to better understand Deccanus, could understand it was meant as a light teasing joke. Adam chuckled softly.
"I'll make sure to do better next time." He said with a soft smile.
"I just needed to… try to close that chapter of my life. It took near death for me to learn what mattered most to me. I am responsible for the actions but it is thanks to you and him that I found a new lease on life. I may still not have all my answers but I feel closer to figuring out how to live without my Legion than ever." Adam smiled and then patted him on the back encouragingly.
"And I'm glad to have you along for the ride, Deccanus."
"I am glad I am following you too, Adam." He said with a nod to Adam.
Back at the APC, the men split up to head to their own sleeping spots. Adam was lucky enough to have the entire back of the APC to himself but the metal floor was not the most comfortable. Luckily the bedroll from the Vault was quite cushy and made for a nice enough sleeping spot.
He could, of course, have returned to the Vault for the night to sleep. After all, it was not far away. But despite the fact he kept telling himself that the Vault's location was not the true strength, instead the Vault door was, he wanted to not spread the knowledge too carelessly. The location didn't need to be public knowledge. If he were to leave every night with his group people would get suspicious. Besides, if the attack were to come unexpectedly, he would do much better if he was here, at the camp, ready to fight them.
So, with a lot done that day he finally went to sleep. Ready to hit the ground running tomorrow.