So I have been playing a game called Horizon Zero Dawn…IT IS FREAKING AWESOME!

(awkward cough) Excuse me, that was a bit much. Anyway, I browsed in the Horizon category and saw that there aren't that many fics of it. Yet. It's still kind of new, as far as I am aware, so I guess it really would just be a matter of time before it fills in and more character tags are added.

I actually have a few fave characters, besides Aloy, but I have yet to find a story with either two of my faves. Teb and Nil. I know it will only be a matter of time before other tags are added, Aloy made a lot of friends, but a lot of the characters aren't listed. I also find stories of Aloy being paired with Varl (no prob, I think they're great together) or Erend (he's not really my type, sorry), and a couple with Avad (Sun-Queen!).

Well, I think that Nil needs a bit of love. And he's one of those characters that your choice decides whether he lives or dies. If you have no clue what I mean, then go play the game. You will not be disappointed. Also, I think he and Aloy would have a bit of bonding going on when they work together.

I can rant all day, but I'm not going to. Let's get on with the new story! ^^ And hope I can finish it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Horizon Zero Dawn. I own a legally bought copy of it to play at my leisure. That's it.

Here the Chapter Starts

The first time she saw him, he was but a stranger in Nora Lands. An outsider surrounded by corpses, looking over them as though admiring the work. His work. He did not seem to care for his trespassing, mocking it if anything, then gave her a proposal. She had only accepted out of curiosity and because bandits were not needed in Nora Lands while the Nora still recovers from the killers attack.

As she traveled down the road upon the back of her Strider, he was there. More bodies around him, not saying a word as he watched her look over them for anything valuable. He wasn't in for the loot, she noticed. While there was no telling how many shards were on each corpse before she arrived, she just had a feeling that he didn't touch it. His kills, but he allows her to take the prize.

So what does he consider his own prize?

She found out as they took down the bandit camp. The alarm sounded, calling more out. She freed the captives, bringing more to fight with her, with him.

But Nil? He flowed through the battlefield, his arrows flying to skulls. He smiled as they killed the bandits, his eyes gleaming in the light with an unfamiliar emotion.

It was their talk afterwards that she realized what kind of man he is. A killer. An 'honest' killer, he basically called himself. Though he did not strike her as dangerous. His logic was somewhat sound, making it seem like he cared enough.

Kill a tribesman and there will be retribution. Kill a boar and someone complains about wasted meat. No one cares when bandits are killed.

Aloy realized then that he has a bloodlust, but he is not consumed by it. He controls it. He does not strike out at innocent people in a frenzy. He hunts the dangerous people that will fight him in return, people that would harm others. He is a hunter of a different caliber.

'For sport' he says. He and his late partner apparently had an agreement that should have told her enough. 'Only enjoy the killing as much as the challenge.'

After seeing the way he moves, the way he battles, she couldn't help but wonder. Where is the challenge for him? The bandits are weak to him and to her. They fall easy.

She tried asking him who he was exactly. He answered without telling anything. Some of his words made little sense, but it said everything. So long as there are bandits for him to hunt, though, she was not going to concern herself with him.

That was only the first time.

She met him time and time again, bandit camp after bandit camp. They would pair up, taking down as many bandits as possible. Then he would leave the camp, but not stray too far so that they could speak. Her questions were answered more and more with him. She started to figure out that he probably did not do well in crowds. He can handle one or two people around him, but a crowd is different. When outcasts or exiles start move into the camps, he vanishes.

Often, she would find corpses somewhere on the roads. Sometimes, he was with those bodies. He travels and he kills. He was no lost soul, but a man that believes his only purpose is to kill. He was not seeking death, but the thrill of it. He sought the line between life and death, pushing others over the edge and wondering if anyone would dare push him, too.

He once asked her when there were no more bandits to kill.

Well more accurately, he asked that they try to push each other over that edge. A duel to the death. Yet she didn't care to, and told him such. She believes that he still has a purpose, and he definitely does not have a death wish.

He didn't look that disappointed. Mainly, he looked heartbroken. Shattered. As though he didn't plan for that outcome at all.

She almost wanted to smack him with her spear, to instigate the fight he so obviously wanted. She held back, though. She didn't want to kill him, and she still had too many things to do to risk a chance of him killing her. If they were to fight, it truly would be to the death. Even if it looks like she wins, if she tried to leave him alive, she had no doubt he would keep fighting. Keep pushing. Keep shooting.

When she left, she didn't think she would see Nil again. Wasn't sure if he would want to see her after denying him something he thought so important.

Then the night before the battle at Meridian, she saw him. At first, she wasn't sure if the figure was who she thought it was when she overheard a couple guards talking about the man standing by the creek. Then he made a comment back at them, letting them know that he hears them and is enjoying their fear of him. As soon as she heard that voice, she knew.

It surprised her that he came to Meridian, came to her aid, at the eve of a world-changing battle. She felt a strange sort of warmth at that. Seeing the others surprised her, made her feel more at ease, and brought a smile to her face. Teb. Talanah. Varl. Petra. Sona. Erend. Everyone. But it was him that she seemed happiest to see there.

The battle was fierce. People dying as machines crumbled to the ground, multiple arrows or even a spear piercing their metal hide. Once she was taking down the Deathbringer then HADES, too much blood was spilt. Too many innocents.

Yet there was still a celebration, to both mourn their lost and celebrate their victory. Avad's idea.

She looked over the crowd, searching for him. Not to her surprise, he was nowhere in the crowd. Suspecting that he would be closer to the edge of the city, she managed to slip from the festivities. Some tried to stop her, but they were soon distracted by another, giving her opening after opening to leave.

For the exception of the palace courtyard and fields down below, the city was empty. She did not have to stray far before spotting him, standing on a crumbling wall and looking over everything.

"Not a fan of crowds," she said in greeting.

"Never really was," he replied, turning to her with his usual smirk. "The fingers start to itch when I get surrounded like that. I don't think killing survivors would be a good omen for the party. Though it would liven things up."

"Only for you," the redhead scoffed playfully, jumping up onto the wall near him, keeping a respectable distance between their forms. "So…where do you plan on going from here?"

"Well," he sighed with a shrug. "I'm sure there are plenty of rogue Shadow Carja out there to hunt. Maybe a few Eclipse survivors. And bandits. There are always bandits."

"Didn't we clear the camps already?"

"Well, yes. But bandits are not just around here. The world is a big place, my fellow huntress, filled with many more people than you see here. It took you weeks, months, to see this much. But I assure you, there is so much more that you have not even dreamed of seeing." He fully turned to her, holding out his hand. "Join me?"

"I would like to," she answered, but shook her head. "But there is something I have to do first. I don't know how long it will take me, or how far. When I am done with that, I plan on returning to the Sacred Lands, maybe learn what I can about the Old Ones. Visit Rost again."

"Who is that?" he asked, his hand lowering.

"The man that raised me," she answered with a sad smile. "He died saving my life at the Proving. Taught me everything I needed to know in order to survive."

"Judging from how well you can handle yourself," he chuckled lightly. "He did a good job teaching you. I don't think I've ever seen anyone move on a battlefield like you do."

"You're one to talk," she shot back. "I figured you for a soldier after that first camp. You never really told me what you were before. Or what kind of war crimes you committed."

"I was much more than a common soldier. I'm sure you've noticed that even Sun-King Avad keeps giving me those uneasy stares."

"I have," she answered with a small nod.

"A man that makes a king nervous," Nil chuckled, jerking his head towards the lit area in the distance. "Anyone would enjoy such an honor. Even your Oseram friend - what is his name, Erend? – has been trying to keep an eye on me. I spent two years at Sunstone Rock, you would think they could breathe."

"I still don't understand why you make them so nervous," Aloy pointed out with a narrow gaze.

"More like my family," he clarified. "We have a bit of a history that scares others. It goes back generations. I find that life is so much easier without those stares, though, which is why I travel. Well, that and so that I may hunt in peace."

She let out a light laugh, figuring it would come back to his hunting. "I don't suppose I could convince you to stick around for a while?" she asked softly, gazing out upon the night. She spotted a Stormbird flying far in the distance, close enough to be seen but still a few miles away. Her eyes watched it soar in the wind, almost blending into the night sky if not for the glowing blue of its eyes.

"I might stay in the area," he answered with a shrug. "I will need to stock up on certain items before leaving. Maybe track down some fresh meat that thinks the time after war is the best time to move in."

"Who even thinks something like that?" she inquired curiously.

"Scum," he replied nonchalantly. "They think that border patrols will be less. Guards at the border gates are inexperienced enough for them to slip through. Things like that. After a war is always the best time for them to try and spread their infection. We wouldn't want that now, would we?"

"No, I suppose not," Aloy sighed, her shoulders heaving slightly. "There is no changing you, is there."

"I'm not exactly the type to just settle down and raise a family. I have to move. I have to hunt. There is no taming me."

"I know," she accepted with a sharp nod.

"I could still use a partner," he offered again with his sly grin dancing upon his lips.

"Not a Carja wedding, right?" she joked, earning a laugh from him.

"Not a Carja wedding," he replied. "But you already gave me your answer. Still, maybe when your things are done, the offer will still be available to you."

"Nil," the redhead sighed gently, looking back to him. "I don't think like you do. I don't feel the hunt like you do."

"Still in denial," he quipped.

"I don't enjoy taking another's life like you do," she informed sternly. "Those bandits were a threat, which is why I agreed to join you to bring them down. I have no problem fighting machines or hunting animals. People? I don't get that same feeling that I'm sure you do every time you kill. The people I killed where threats to everyone, which is why I killed them."

"You may not recognize it, but I do," he stated with a slight shrug. "The fight for survival against an enemy that isn't blinded by pure instinct, but sees everything and moves with its mind. You may not feel the thrill I do, or you're ignoring it, but I can see it in your eyes. You may hate the killing, but something in you takes pleasure. Perhaps it is the challenge you enjoy."

"Stop it," she warned lowly. "You've done this before, Nil. It didn't work then and it won't work now."

"Doesn't hurt to try again."

Reaching out, she shoved him by his shoulder. He chuckled at her playful attempt to push him off the wall. "You know, I wouldn't mind a duel with you," she informed.

"Oh? Now that this is done, you're willing for a duel to the death?" the man asked with a quirked brow.

"Not that, no. I already told you, I don't want to kill you. And I sure don't want you to kill me. But maybe just a duel to see who is stronger, to sharpen our skills."

"Could still end in death."

"Will you stop that already?"

"Something for you to think about. I know I would enjoy the challenge."

"Right," she sighed, exasperated and not sure what she would have expected if he said anything otherwise. "I better head back before people start searching for me."

He nodded, gazing back out past Meridian's walls. "Until we meet again, Aloy. I am actually looking forward to it once again."

"Same here, Nil."

Here is a line!

She found Elizabet Sobeck, still wearing the armor she wore when she saved the Alpha Primes. What a waste it was that her sacrifice was for nothing because of Ted Faros. Because of him, they will never truly know about the Old Ones. Even if she tried to show them, to teach them what she learned, they will fight her and stick to their own ways. Perhaps that is best.

Tucking the pendant into a safe place, Aloy laid the body of the woman she would have gladly – proudly! - called her mother. In a way, she is. Even though she is the product of a machine, she would not exist without this woman. She doubted anyone would. Knowing that much is enough for now. Maybe she could, one day, share what she learned little by little so that people would not be overwhelmed and fight against the knowledge.

The ride back seemed to not take as much time as it did to get there. The Strider cleared the distance without pause unless she stopped it for a night, then let it graze upon the grass to replenish its fuel. As she slept at night, tucked away between a couple rocks or in a cave, it watched for any hostile machines that dare come too close. She was thankful that most left her alone.

After HADES was defeated, the machines were not attacking on sight like they did during the Derangement. They watched, their lights yellow in warning, but did nothing unless they were attacked first. Even some of the larger machines, like the Thunderjaw, were not as aggressive as they once were. She found that out after passing between a pair, both watching her but neither attacking. They even ignored her overridden machines instead of trying to attack like they used to. She still made sure she had plenty of tearblast arrows in case one decided to attack.

It was a small blessing, one that made her travel a bit easier. So long as people did not get too close or attack first, the machines left them alone. Though no one was planning on jumping on the back of a Strider, Broadhead, or Charger like she does. She hardly even needs to override them anymore, though still does so that they fight less against their programming. That and, unless overridden, they didn't come to her when she whistled for them. If fact, they tended to leave as soon as she was off.

She was back within the Sacred Lands weeks later when she spotted the corpses along the road, the familiar garments of bandits upon them. "Strange," she muttered. "I thought the braves would keep the bandits out." She huffed lightly, looking around and recognizing the arrows stuck in the bodies. "I guess these are Nil's. Wonder where he is."

Instead of activating her Focus to look for his tracks, she continued on her way. If Nil was going the same direction as her, then she would see more corpses. If not, then he is probably already gone. She passed one more group of dead when she paused and looked over the spare carcass among them. A Ravager, arrows piercing its metallic head and around the mounted weapon upon its back.

There was also blood staining the ground, leading away from the bodies. This time, she did activate her Focus, lighting up the path so that she could push the Strider as fast as possible without missing a bit of the trail. Path in sight, she kicked the equine machine into a full gallop. The trail led her to a fresh bandit camp, not quite set up but they were obviously planning on making it a site.

Bodies were scattered on the ground, blood mixing into the now falling rain. "Nil!" she cried out, waiting for an answer. "Nil!" Still no reply. Sliding off the machine's back, she muttered, "He's either dead, unconscious, or he actually moved on. I better look around."

Activating her Focus, she looked over the area. Small purple spots lit up, showing her where the dead bodies were located. There was no one alive left in the base. Quickly, she looked over the bodies, all wearing the same kind of garments instead of the familiar armor Nil always wore. "He's not here." She let out a small sigh of relief, then looked around for another blood trail to follow. "If he was bleeding when he got here, then he was definitely bleeding when he left."

Whistling loudly for her Strider to come to her, she found the new blood trail. The dark red was still fresh, but cold. He couldn't be that far ahead. Jumping onto her Strider, she urged it back into a gallop, following the new trail leading her into the forest. The trail led her to a nearby cave, her Focus picking up on a living person inside, though the person was unmoving.

She didn't even stop the Strider as she leapt from its back, scrambling to her feet after landing and running into the cave. It was dark, no fire and the sunlight blocked out by the heavy rain clouds. But she could still see him, his armor helping him stand out in the darkness.

"Nil," she gasped, kneeling by his form and gently rolling him onto his back. He groaned lightly, eyes blinking open before sliding close again. "Oh, no, you don't," she denied, pulling his armor off of him to inspect his wounds. "You don't get to die right now. Besides, you would hate to die in a cave bleeding to death. You want to die in a fight! Remember? So you better hold on!"

Here is a line!

Light danced upon stone walls as his eyes slid open, crackling filling in the silence. A mechanical neigh told him of a nearby machine, but one that wasn't bothering him. Groaning lightly, he turned to the fire in the middle of the cave he managed to stagger into. He didn't recall making a fire. So that left the question of who did.

"You're awake," someone noted, the voice gargled in his ears. Though it still sounded familiar.

"Briefly," he answered, his eyes closing to surround him in the dark again, but his body wasn't falling back into a slumber.

Steps approached before a small hand was on his forehead, the skin cool against his hot skin. "You have a small fever," they pointed out. "Probably because you were being stupid and fighting while bleeding out. All in the rain."

"Added to the challenge," he chuckled weakly.

"Think you can handle a small trip to better shelter?"

"Why?"

"Because, Nil, I don't feel like letting you die in a pathetic way," she (definitely a she) sighed in annoyance. "You would hate it, too."

So, someone that knows him. Small stature if the size of the hand is anything to go by, but the callous on the fingertips told stories of experience with a bow. A machine nearby. And obviously cares enough to not leave him for dead. Only one person came to mind when he added all that information.

"Well, if I am to be left in your tender mercy," he sighed lowly, voice trailing off. "Then I suppose I have no choice. Do I?"

The confirmation he needed. The familiar tone. "Not really." Spoken as though speaking without a care whether the other argues or not.

"Then I leave myself to your care, Aloy."

His body finally gave in, slipping him back into a sleep without his approval.

When he came to again, he was more coherent. And inside a hut, if the wooden structure around him was any indication. Tenderly, he pushed himself up, looking around the area briefly. He noticed his armor was laid out on a table, cleaned up from his and other blood. It also looked like it was stitched up with some parts replaced.

A stab of pain in his side caused him to lay his hand against an injury that is covered by bandages. Glancing down, he saw his torso, stomach, left arm, and right leg all had bandaging on them. The faint pink coloring on them told him that it was nearly time for a change, and that the changing happened often enough for the bandages to not completely bleed through. At least he has some pants on, though the leg part was torn off.

Did that happen when the Ravager clawed him into the ground? Probably.

Twisting himself so that his feet were pressing down against the floor, he grabbed a nearby post and pulled himself up to a standing position. His body ached and protested, screaming at him to sit back down and rest. But he had to look around. He had to make sure that what happened before really did happen.

Slowly, he made his way to the door, leaning against the frame before pushing it open. Cold wind brushed against his bared skin, hair pricking. Most that he could see was white, snow covering the ground, gathering on top of tree limbs, and coating the grazer statues.

Galloping reach his ears, causing him to look towards a gate in time to see a Strider ride into the area, a familiar red-haired huntress on its back. Spotting him, she scowled as the machine slid to a stop on the white ground. "You shouldn't be up," she told him firmly.

"I just wanted to know where I am," he defended with a shrug of his uninjured shoulder.

"Get back inside," she huffed, marching up to him quickly and pushing against his stomach in order to get him back into the cabin. "I need to change your bandages and put new medicine on your injuries."

"Alright, alright," he agreed, taking steady steps back enough for her to have room to come in and close the door.

She led him back to the bed, digging fresh herbs from her pouch and grabbing clean bandages from a nearby shelf while watching him ease himself back onto the bed. "So, mind telling me what happened back there?" she asked, a bowl of water in one hand while taking the spot next to him to work on his torso first.

"The usual," he answered, watching her crush familiar berries and letting the juice mix into the water. "I tracked some bandits back into the Nora lands. Thought that I could meet up with you while I was hunting them. I was not expecting a group to have a pet Ravager. Or maybe it just picked up the sounds of battle and decided that it wanted some fun, too."

"Then you went on to the camp," she sighed, rolling her eyes. "Nil, I know you don't have a death wish. But that may as well have been you begging for one."

"I don't beg," he informed. "Besides, I had a hunt to finish. Can you believe they were still so weak that they couldn't bring me down despite how much damage that Ravager did? Kind of pathetic, actually. I think I was doing them a favor. But I still enjoyed it."

"You know you still almost died," she informed, the bloodied bandage removed from him and his injuries being gently cleaned out.

"And here I am with you nursing me back to health," he chuckled lightly. "Maybe I should get this close to death more often."

"I just know you would not rest easy if you died by bleeding out in a cave instead of by an arrow or someone's spear," she threw back, using a dry cloth to dab at the damp areas. The blood that came off onto the cloth were mere drops.

"How did you close my wounds like this?" he inquired curiously, looking over his injuries to see threads keeping the large gashes closed.

"One of the villagers, a friend of mine, named Teb," she explained. "He's a Stitcher and found out during the battles that he can also stitch wounds close. As soon as I got you here, I went and got him and asked him to do the same with you."

"Nice trick," he commented, poking at the area before Aloy pushed the hand away and placed a red paste over the wound.

"It should also help keep the scarring down a bit," Aloy added as she grabbed the nearby bandages and started to wrap them around his torso again. "Though I'm sure they would have been great ones, I wasn't going to risk you bleeding to death every time you moved."

"That bad?"

"Nil, you were unconscious when I found you. I followed a trail of blood that I could still see in the rain, with or without my Focus. It was just faster to use it."

The hunter hummed lowly in thought. "Well, you are right about one thing," he sighed. "I would have hated to die like that. I'd rather someone actually deliver a killing blow than my body simply give out."

"Glad to hear it," Aloy commented blandly. "At least I don't have to worry about you being mad that I saved your life."

"I am being nursed back to health by a beautiful young huntress with hair like spilt blood," he chuckled, smirking at her. "What do I have to be mad about?"

Here the Chapter Ends

So there we have it! Some moments between Nil and Aloy, kind of. I do have a plan here. Think of this chapter and the following few being more of a long prologue. I may end up making the next part a separate story. We'll see. Depends on how long I make this one.

I am trying to keep Nil his usual creepy self, but I don't know if I got it. He is actually kind of hard to write. I find Aloy easier to write because we basically get put into her shoes. Nil? All we have are a few interactions.

Let me know what you guys think! ^^ Okay? My first Horizon Fanfic. If this goes well enough, I may make others with different pairings.