Prologue

If I can be whoever I want, why should I choose to be anybody?

In the final room of the Moon's Void hall, all was quiet. Beyond the door, the muffled sound of gunfire could be heard, but had since ceased, allowing a few moments of silence before the colossal doors slid open and four suits of armor entered the room. Their guns were raised as they proceeded cautiously forward in a defensive box formation, scanning their surroundings for potential threats.

With a few flicks of his hand, the armor in the front of the group motioned for a sweep of the room, and the others obeyed, breaking formation and spreading out to survey their respective sides of the chamber. They skirted around the Reservoir which sat in the middle of the room, a great pool of water that seemingly shone with the very life of the Operators that it housed.

The leader stayed back, his eyes on the door the squad had entered through to check for any stragglers that they might have missed on their way in. After a minute, static buzzed in his head and the voice of one of his comrades emerged through the tense silence.

"All clear on this side, Frost,"

"All clear here too," another voice said.

"Here too," said the last voice, and, after a pause, "Hey Mag, you want to hit the Relay after this and grab a drink or three?"

"Oh, I don't know, Loki," Mag replied. Her blush was almost visible behind her faceless helmet, "I was planning on training with a friend tonight, maybe some other time."

"Come on, this is the third time-"

"Enough flirting, you too," Frost cut them off, "You can make dates when we get back. Take five, everyone. Good work today."

As he turned around, he watched the squad lower their weapons and converge around the front of the Reservoir. The light that emanated from the pool reflected off of the armor that they wore. Momentarily, Frost joined them and knelt in front of the Reservoir. The other three sat nearby with their backs to each other for support, making idle conversation while they rested. Loki chattered excitedly about the battle they had just fought, obviously trying to impress Mag.

Frost closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Following the rediscovery of the Reservoir and its defense from the Sentient Hunhow and the Stalker a few years ago, it had received heavy traffic as Tenno rushed there to reclaim their Operators and increase their potential power. As a result, the Lotus ordered that the Void segment be cleared of hostiles daily to ensure the safety of the awoken Operators as they returned to their landing craft and Somatic Link chambers. The number of hopeful Tenno had died down after a few months, but the protection of the Reservoir was still a necessity to protect any Operators that still might be sleeping there, their Warframe armors yet to be reactivated by the Lotus's call.

Frost was jerked back from his reflection as he felt the ground rumble beneath him. The other three Tenno too jumped to their feet, eyes trained on the Reservoir. The water bubbled with life as six ornate pods slowly rose from the depths of the Reservoir, resembling a flower before bloom. Maybe a lotus flower, Frost mused, although he had never seen one before. It would explain the namesake of the Lotus, he reasoned, since she had been the guardian of the Reservoir for years before the first Warframe was brought out of stasis.

The pods began to open, blooming to reveal a seventh pod hidden inside. As it inched forward to the edge of the Reservoir, Frost recalled his own awakening. It had happened much like this; the pod would open, and as the Tenno Operator exited his or her Second Dream, his Warframe would deactivate until he touched it and focused his energy into it.

Then the realization struck him. Whose Operator is this? He turned to his squadmates, who were looking around at each other with equal confusion. It was apparent that this pod belonged to none of them; they had all previously recovered their Operator bodies, and the Reservoir would only eject an Operator when it sensed that their Warframe was nearby. So why was one coming out now? Even if this was the Operator of a new Warframe, the suit of armor would have to be woken from within its cryopod first, and then make the journey to the Reservoir to find its Operator.

Before Frost could come to a conclusion, the pod had opened and the Tenno, dressed in the standard black bodysuit, fell out and collided with the floor, unconscious. After a moment's hesitation, Frost approached the body cautiously and knelt down to examine him. There was no notable inconsistency between him and any other Operator that had come out of the Reservoir. And yet, this one was different. Not just because of the abnormal circumstances, but because of something else that Frost couldn't place his finger on. It was as if the body was radiating Warframe energy, dormant in its current state, but self-produced nonetheless.

Behind him, one of the squad members, Volt, spoke, "Frost? What should we do with him?" His rifle was pointed at the body, as if it would jump up and attack at any minute. Frost signaled him to relax with a wave of his hand and picked up the unconscious Operator with ease, slinging him over his shoulder.

"He is one of us," Frost said, "and we'll treat him as such. Come on, let's get to extraction."

Shouldering their weapons, the squad of Warframes walked out of the room, the mysterious Tenno in tow. As the door closed behind them, Loki's voice could be heard, "So, Mag, how's about those drinks?"

"Give it a rest, Loki!" Frost's yell echoed through the adorned halls of the Void.