The speaker sat patiently as he watched the assembly hall fill up around him, children of every age taking a seat in the bleachers and chairs around him, talking amongst their peers as they waited for the assembly to begin. He could feel their boredom as they filed into the room. Many had been here for this speech before. It had started as part of an outreach program the Vanguard came up with. They would send a team of Guardians to teach the Children for a week, about the Traveler and the Guardians; Their abilities, adventures, and enemies, how they the Children were the reason they fought, it was meant to inspire but in years gone by this assembly would be skipped for how pressed the Vanguard were for all available Guardians to be on the front lines. Not to mention that many of the stories told merely scared the children at the idea of what lay outside the immediate gaze of the Traveler above. Things can change, things will change. No things have changed.
The room had filled as he sat there at the far end of the large auditorium. Many of the older and younger children looking around wondering what was going on. While well known to the Guardians and those that dealt with them, the Speaker was a mysterious figure to the general public at large. Many had never seen him, heard of him maybe. But never seen what he looks like. The room quieted as his Ghost decided to make its appearance from 'within him' as the ghost liked to say. For the first time, and hopefully not the last time this week, he was the start of their whispers, not of fear, no...Out of curiosity.
"Thank you children for attending today's assembly," An official, probably one of the teachers, began. "As you know this week is the start of the Annual Traveler Memorial. Which at the end of this week will be celebrated by the schools with a mass dance." Many of the students immediately began to 'tune out' as the Vanguard put it, they had been here before and didn't want to listen to it all again. The Teacher seemed to sense this as he spoke again, not that he was handling it correctly. "Now I know that many of you have done this before but we the staff ask that you still give your undivided attention and take heed what you're told this week." Much of the groaning or signs of compliant became more subtle. It was time for him to take control. After all this was his wish to teach this time. The Teacher was about to speak again before the Speaker put his hand on the teacher's shoulder. The teacher paused to look at him. He was a somewhat aged Awoken. His skin starting to appear more of a ashen gray color then the vibrant purple or light blue of those younger.
"I'll take it from here thank you." He told the man. His voice though still sounding whispered conveyed his message of 'just get out of my way and let me handle it'. The Teacher slowly nodded before leaving the small platform they had erected for him to teach from. The Speaker looked out at the many faces of the children assembled before and around him, as he walked off the platform and down the rows of seats till he stood in the center of the auditorium. "Children" He called out to the room, "Please come and gather around, this is not a time for notes and study." His voice carried a gentleness that still held an undercurrent of authority. The Children made quick work of moving the chairs and many other obstacles out of the way, many sitting in small groups amongst their friends and cohorts. His face plate prevented the young ones from seeing his smile as he gazed out at them. They had left him a good Ten feet of space to walk in a circle, and a bit of space to walk amongst them as well. His Ghost which had floated amongst the room as the children settled in returned to his side.
"The room is ready Speaker" It said in its slightly mechanical voice.
"Thank you my friend get ready." He told it as it floated toward the ceiling. He looked out around the room and began to walk the narrow paths in between the different little groups and masses of bodies, feeling much like his Ghost must in the air as he seemingly glided through the room.
"As some of you have no doubt found out I am the one known as the Speaker. Till the Traveler truly awakens and finds its voice I am the one who speaks for it. " He began as he looked at a group of children and continued to circulate around the room, his voice just loud enough to be heard as it floated around the room. Yet soft enough that the children had to actually listen to hear him. "Some of you are curious. Many of you have been through the performances of my Guardians in the past and told of the terror of the Darkness and the Traveler but there is so much more to it. In truth we are the Traveler" His words caused many of the children to whisper excitedly amongst themselves at the idea. He gave them a moment's time to enjoy the idea before continuing, "You've been told how we have been at constant war with its enemies, who have pushed us back to this City. Many of you have heard whispers from elder peers that we are losing" he paused as they all seemed to lean in to hear him, "They do not lie", this caused the whispering to start again as he continued. "For so long we have been at a loss against the Forces of the Darkness as they ravage the outside worlds and resources and attacked us constantly. But we are prevailing and have struck many hard blows against the Darkness." they all quieted as they looked up to him again from where they sat on the floor. We have Crushed the Darkness at its heart in the Black Garden, Killed the God Son Crota with his own Blade, Brought Skolas to justice and united the Reefborn with the Last City, and pierced through the time veil in the Vault of Glass." His voice carried as he spoke, the mirth he felt for his guardians at their achievement's becoming apparent of the faces of the children around him. He paused in his walk as he found himself back in the center of the room.
The stared hard at the children around him and not one of them had a single air of boredom about them, many were simply curious. While others remained rapt with attention following him as he walked, their attention his to command. "Many of you sitting here might be now wondering why I'm telling you this, and while true that it has nothing to really pertain to what is taught to you, I promise this just as important." he assured him they a few looked around. For we are the Light. We are the gift the Traveler brought to us all those many centuries ago" He proclaimed to the room in a flourish as he once more stood in the center of them. The room was quiet for a short time as the children quietly murmured to themselves and one another. He looked around the room about to gain their attention and begin the supposed 'lesson' he was here to teach, when he spied a hand raised amongst the crowd. He looked toward the raised had before he spoke in a subtly beckoning voice, "Yes young one, what is it you wish to ask?"
The young girl stood up from her spot before she spoke, she was awoken probably Earthborn given her darker skin tone. "Hi my name is Alexa," she said as her voice came out like a clear bell across the small distance from where he stood.
"Hello Alexa, tell me what question do you have" he asked. His eyes taking in her appearance. she was older than most of the other children suggesting she was maybe soon to be 'Evaluated' by the Vanguard on her Light capabilities. A process that was conducted when a person was around eighteen to twenty years of age, and if they had enough of the Travelers light in them they were given the option to join the Guardians ranks and be tested for their Class and Type.
"Well every time we get this class the Guardian's that come tell us how the Traveler is this like Miracle worker and gifted them with their abilities and how it saved us from the Darkness." She told him her voice which at first waiver became stronger as she continued, "But they dont tells us how it came to us or why it's where it is now". The end of her statement was met with a collective murmur from the rest of the students gathered. Those that did not wish to speak shifted their body's so that their complete focus was from Alexa to himself.
"It is a fair question, the answer to it though not so much" He told her his voice taking on a more somber tone. "In truth we don't know where or how the Traveler came to us only that we saw it amongst our first steps amongst the stars". He said as he looked toward his Ghost as it floated above him. A silent command from which it started to project images of the Traveler itself. Then it quickly changed to show the solar system.
"When it first arrived we did not know what it was or what it would do, yet we still aloud it into our life. When it did arrival to our world we called it The Traveler, and its arrival changed us forever." The projections became three dimensional showing two different worlds as there biomes changed from the harsh environments they once supported, to beautiful cities and lush jungles. "Great cities were built on Mars and Venus. Mercury became a garden world. Human lifespan tripled. It was a time of miracles. We stared out at the galaxy and knew that it was our destiny to walk in the light of other stars. But the Traveler had an enemy: a Darkness, which had hunted it for eons across the black gulfs of space. Centuries after our Golden Age began, this Darkness found us," The Projection once again showed the whole solar system only to also show a dark gas like wave as it swept into the system consuming planet after planet, "and that was the end of everything.
But it was also a beginning. More importantly it is the beginning of where our tale starts. The tale of the Guardian's that would begin our step back into the Light once more"
