Chapter 1: The Broadcast.
Nyx was haggling with Darvo at the Strata Relay. "Come on, Nyx. I know you have more Credits than you let on."
"Darvo, why do you pretend to help us then charge us ridiculous prices for useless crap?"
"If it is just 'useless crap' then why do you wish to buy it?"
"It looked nice…I wanted to buy it as a gift."
"Oh, yes, I've seen the way you look at Volt." Darvo laughed. Nyx made a noise that was not dissimilar to a growl and stormed out. She was walking past the elevators and Oberon and Nekros were walking around the corner talking about their favourite weapons. She pushed between them and stormed on. She bumped into Volt on her next turn. She stopped.
"Sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going. Sorry, I'm sorry. Sorry." Volt wasn't wearing his helmet. He had pale skin, short, messy, black hair and dazzling blue eyes. Nyx was infatuated. Volt chuckled.
"Don't worry about it." He walked on. Nyx stood on the spot for a few seconds. She took a deep breath and the shuddered as she released it.
"Stupid woman. Nyx, control yourself." She to herself hissed quietly. She was still standing there when Darvo walked past. "Hi, Darvo." She said glumly.
"Can't talk – in a rush." Darvo replied and went to a door that required a key card to open. All Tenno and loyal associates had the key card but the Relay was also a hub for civilian activity. Nyx went to talk to Saryn. Saryn knew all about Nyx's thing with Volt, Nyx had confessed after Saryn told Nyx about her obsession with Ash.
Nyx knocked gently on Saryn's door. Saryn pressed a button and the doors slide open with a quiet hiss. Nyx walked in. All Tenno had identical rooms. They had a high-tech, large bed hugging the wall directly opposite to the door, a sink with a few plates and cups etc. They also had a mannequin for their Warframe and weapons when they weren't using them, but Saryn didn't use the mannequin. Her Warframe was a corner of the room and her weapons propped up on the wall beside it. Nyx took her helmet off as soon as she entered and let her shoulder-length, green hair roll down. Nyx had sea-green eyes and a petite face. "What's up, Nyx?" Saryn asked, her short, dirty-blonde, scruffy hair matching her bundled-up Warframe in the corner.
"I bumped into Volt." Nyx replied.
"Oooohhh." Saryn replied with a grin. "How was it?"
"I can't control myself, I feel like I'll just jump him next time I see him without his helmet."
"Well, why not? Grab him while he is young. Maybe he likes you but won't say in case you don't like him. Go ask him." Nyx nodded her head. "Now." Nyx looked up, Saryn was smiling at her. "Off you trot, bye! Have fun! Try not to…Leak everywhere."
"Harder than it sounds." Nyx replied with a new-found smile. She went out in search of Volt. When she found him he was play a card game with Rhino, Vauban and Limbo. Volt was sitting facing away from her, and Rhino was facing Volt. Limbo sat at the side of the round table. Rhino noticed Nyx first.
"Don't tell me a girl wants to play too?" He said before guffawing. "I'm just messin' wit' y'all." Volt turned around. Nyx noticed he wasn't wearing his Warframe. He was wearing knee-length cargo short and a sleeveless top.
"You can join in after this game if you want."
"No, thanks, I'll pass."
"Alright, suit yourself."
"Actually, Volt, if it's OK with you I'd like to talk to you for a minute – privately." It felt weird for Nyx to call him, 'Volt' while he was out of his Warframe, because technically it was his Warframe that was called Volt, but she didn't know his real name.
"Yeah, sure." He turned back around to his group, "Fold." He put his cards down.
"You do realise, all of this money is mine?" Limbo said to the other 2 players as Volt and Nyx walked out. Rhino and Vauban sighed, they had played 8 different card games before this one and Limbo had won all of them. Limbo had made 2 million Credits and 20 Neural Sensors from playing.
"Ok." Volt said when they were outside. "What did you want to tell me?" Nyx thought this was weird, she hadn't said she was going to tell him anything, she said 'talk to'.
"It's taking a lot for me to say this. It's getting in the way of my free time, work and sleep, and I can't hold it in any longer. I am in love with you." Volt stared at her in disbelief for a few moments. He folded his arms and looked about for a few seconds. He unravelled his arms and turned his head around making sure no one was in ear shot.
"I am in love with you too."
"You are? Nyx asked.
"Yes I am, and I think guys know, or at least suspect. So…Prepare for teasing." Nyx smiled and wrapped her arms and around Volt's torso. Then an alarm sounded.
Lotus' voice rang out, "Tenno! This is an emergency Alert; please make your way to the control room immediately." This pre-recorded message was replayed constantly for 3 minutes until Ordis shut it off.
"Good you are all here." Said a voice once they had all arrived. It was the same voice as the Alert but this one was a live hologram. "We received an encoded message about 5 minutes from a Grineer broadcasting station in Phobos." Darvo can fill you in.
"That's what Nyx said." Rhino whispered in Volt's ear.
"Thank you Lotus." Darvo began. "After decoding the message I have come to a few conclusions: First this is not a Grineer sending the message, they are far too clever. Second you are going to be sent on a mission that will require your utmost attention. Third…I'm making even more money from finding you useful things."
"Wait, you fully decoded a message in 5 minutes?" Limbo asked.
"Well, uh, I say encoded. It was sent backwards. I guess they didn't have a lot of time to prepare but needed to fool the Grineer. My sources say the Grineer haven't even noticed a message being sent so I think we have a few days. Now to play the message…Uh, just for the record I have not listened to it yet, I know it is perfectly decoded because I compared what I now have to what was originally sent – they used a very clever method of encryption where the message scrambles itself on sending and after a period of time unscrambles and then encrypts itself while going from one place to another so-"
"Darvo play the bloody message."
"Sorry Lotus." He played it. It was a video.
"Tenno my name is Kerrack-Gruag, but if we become better acquainted I may allow you to call me 'Kerra'. But for now I need your help. I am a Grineer and I am lucky to have gotten half of my genes from Leekter, he is my biological father. I'll explain it all in due course. The Grineer have plans to destroy The Gas City and I know what they are. I have hated the Space Dogs for years but now they've driven me over the edge. I need to help you, help me so I can help you help the people of Jupiter. I'll explain everything. The first step is me helping you – to get me out, so I can help you and so on. I will contact you at exactly 04:00, I will only have about 5 minutes so you need to be able to record anything important, which will be everything." Grineer voices and footsteps came through the recording, Kerrack-Gruag gasped. "Shit, they're coming." The video holo-screen closed.
"It's a trap. Obviously" Chroma said.
"Still new to this?" Loki asked. "There are no traps, just bullets and explosions and the sound of tearing flesh as my Atterax strips skin from bone."
"We can't risk any civilian damages, it claims the attack on Gas City will affect the people of Jupiter. We have to help it." Limbo said.
After a long argument everyone except Limbo, Volt and Nyx had gone to their rooms to occupy themselves, Lotus asked them not to sleep so they all had a chance to hear and ask questions to the broadcaster. "What are the plans now?" Limbo said with a grin before winking.
"We're going to raid the kitchen." Volt said. Limbo laughed.
"I hope that isn't a euphemism." Limbo walked over to the room where he had been playing cards to find Rhino and Vauban sitting beside each other on the sofa watching GalactNews. "Oh, excuse me. I'll give you some privacy."
"Oi! Dickhead! Get your ass back here we got a game to finish." Vauban called out. Limbo sat down and they finished their game. Volt was leaning on the wall watching them and Nyx was standing beside him holding his hand. Loki walked in.
"Wow. When did this happen?" He asked Volt
"When did what happen?"
"This." Loki said as he gestured to Volt and Nyx.
"Oh, about a minute before the Alert."
"Nice. Congratulations." Loki said with a smile on his face.
"Calm down, Loki, it's not like we're getting married." Limbo turned to face them.
"That's what you're saying now." He quipped before turning back to his game. Loki lay down on the sofa. "Haha! I win, again. That's another 50,000 Credits and a…What's this? An Alloy Plate? Are you serious? A single Alloy Plate? No matter, it's still more than what you've won. Again?" Volt walked over to the table, he turned to Nyx as Loki sat beside Rhino.
"Want to join?" Volt asked Nyx.
"Sure." Nyx sat down between Loki and Volt and opposite to Limbo. Limbo eyed her suspiciously.
"No magic." He said.
"Fine." She said.
"Ok, who wants to lose what this time?" They each bet 500,000 Credits. Volt bet a Soma rifle and Limbo bet a Carrier on top of the credits. The game was intense. This was the 10th different card game they had played that evening. The game went on for a long time. When it was 03:46 everyone on the table was sighing and groaning – everyone except Limbo.
Lotus' voice called out at 03:50 giving everyone fair warning of the communication between the Tenno and the Grineer girl being called, 'The Broadcaster'. By the time all of the Tenno arrived the receiver beeped and Ordis' voice came through. "Incoming message from an unknown location."
"What do you mean 'unknown' we know it is from Phobos."
"This message is from a different terminal, somewhere in…Deep space apparently. Oh, maybe it's Grineer intelligence. Wouldn't that be fun?"
"Just play it!" The Lotus was impatient at her best.
The holo-screen popped up, and 'The Broadcaster' appeared.
"Glad to see you picked up, and that you are all here. I am Kerra. I am at Illiad on Phobos. They decoded my message and have me prison. I'm up next for execution. I have been labelled as a traitor, Dr. Tengus and Vay Hek managed to stop the Queens executing Leekter and my Kela de Thaym for giving me life. I will mark an access point on the holo-map. Enter from there, there is a near-by access tube that you can jump down to enter the facility. I will mark my location on your area-holo-map once you get there. Open the doors and find my cell. If a Grineer sees you it will activate the Exterminate Code and my cell will start filling with either toxins harvested from an Infested Ancient of I will be exposed to the Infestation itself. With instant contact of the toxins I will become unconscious, within minutes my vital organs will start failing, if they expose me to the Infestation…Well let's just say I won't be so friendly. Now, any questions? Only ask the important ones, I'll explain the rest later."
"How are you messaging us?" Nekros asked.
"Wrist communicator. Next."
"How can we trust you?" Mirage asked.
"You can't. Any more questions?"
"Yeah, how did you get our-" Mesa was interrupted.
"I'm sorry, that's all I have time for." The holo-screen disappeared. There was silence.
"I need top-warriors." Lotus said at last. "Loki, Ash, Nyx and….Who else?" She thought for a moment. "Chroma. You leave immediately. Ordis, ready the Cephalons." The 4 chosen Tenno rushed to their rooms, picked up their gear and went to their Cephalon. The 4 Cephalons flew off and the rest of the Tenno sauntered back to their rooms.
The 4 Tenno landed, equipped with bows and throwing knives. They saw the access shoot Kerra was talking about and jumped down. Loki went down first while invisible and scouted the area. He sniped 2 Grineer Lancers with the Paris and then threw 2 Kunai into the side of the shoot – the agreed upon signal for the others to come down. One by one Chroma, Ah and Nyx jumped down.
They moved slowly, sniping or choking Grineer Marines as they went along. "We should split up but stay together." Chroma said.
"Ah, yes, why didn't you just say so? Makes perfect sense, it's not at all vague, or impossible." Loki said.
"No, I mean go in to teams and clear room a bit more easily. The 2 teams go different ways but always keep each other in sight."
"That might work actually. We need 1 Inviso on each team." After a short, and quiet, discussion, Nyx went with Ash making Team 1 and Chroma with Loki making Team 2.
Ash and Chroma crawled through the vent and came out into a large open room, it was empty. Nyx and Loki went in the vent on the opposite and came up in a different room, after a moment of confusion the saw a glassless window allowing access from their room to Team 2's. The room wasn't entirely empty; there were large boxes that looked like mini-rooms. Loki went Invisible and jumped down, landing silently. He had a good look. He climbed quickly but silently back up. Loki whispered to Chroma. "Shit!"
"What?" Chroma asked.
"SHHH! Those are those kennels, filled with hundreds of Drahk cubs." Loki waved frantically for Ash to come over and told him what he saw. After Teleporting back to Nyx he told her what Loki had said and they all moved stealthily through the room. At the end of the room Nyx opened the door too quickly, being all too relieved to be out of that room, and walked right into a Grineer Bombard. He lifted his right arm up ready to slam it into the ground when an arrow pinned him to the wall. His body was then littered with throwing knives and he his muscles relaxed as he hung, dead, from the arrow.
They continued along and soon the levels changed. Team 1 was forced up a floor and Team 2 was stuck on the ground. They entered another room. Kerra was there. Chroma said to Loki "When she had said, '…find my cell.'" He didn't finish, he didn't need to. Loki knew what he was talking about. There was a big glass tube in the middle of the room. Kerra was floating in it, full conscious and thrashing about. She was had tubes sticking out of her. The cell was surrounded by Grineer marines. The room had 2 levels, Grineer marines were patrolling both. Through hand signals they knew there had to be a fight. Invisible, Loki disabled all of the alarms and had a look at the security panel, it required an access code, he would have hacked it but thought it might trigger and kill Kerra. He walked back to Chroma.
When all teams were in position, ready to fight, Loki fired an arrow at a Grineer Scorpion, and then ducked behind a metal column. The guards approached it, guns pointed. A loud whirring sound rung out, the Grineer stood up straight for a second and then immediately started firing on each other. Only about 20 Grineer were affected the others started to search for trouble. Ash threw a Smoke Bomb. Under its cover he killed 6 marines. The smoke dissipated. A Grineer Flame Blade Teleported to him and as it was about to strike stopped, he Teleported back to the Grineer and started slashing at them. Loki appeared, he started tearing into the Grineer, but they weren't dying. A Heavy Gunner painted him with bullets and he fell to the ground. He fizzled out and disappeared – it was a Decoy. In the Grineer's confusion the teams struck. Chroma slammed into the ground, the Grineer in front of him staggered, he breathed out and great plumes of fire engulfed the Grineer. The armour slipped off his Warframe and hovered in the air, with red energy swirling around it and wings made of fire. It sent out a pulse that knocked the near-by Grineer back and started spitting fire at the close ones. A Lancer shot at Chroma, with no armour the bullets ripped right through him. He fell to the ground. Loki ran to revive him. His Invisibility disappeared. He was exposed, the Grineer turned on him. Nyx jumped down and landed beside them. Nyx Absorbed. The bubble covered Loki and Chroma and absorbed all the bullets that the Grineer emptied into them. Ash was picking them off quickly with Bladestorm, but the Grineer numbers were too great. When Chroma was back up Nyx released the energy and annihilated the Grineer. The closer ones were incinerated. The blast was so powerful that Kerra's cell cracked. Vay Hek's voice boomed. "If you take her out without the proper Control Codes she'll die, and there's no sport in that." He said laughing as he flew from, his hiding spot. Security walked in, the Tenno had the advantage because they were ready. The back-up was torn apart, but 1 remained. With a series of knives in one arm and the other pinned to a wall it fell to its knees. Nyx Mind Controlled it and it told her the Code. She shouted it out and Loki punched it into the console. The cell hissed and started to open. After a few seconds the cell was completely open. And steam filled the room. "NOOO! She is our weapon! Hand her back to us or we will kill all five of you!" Ash scattered a number of Shurikens in Vay Hek's general direction. They took him by surprise. The Tenno escaped the old fashioned way – they turned and ran.
Back at the Strata Relay Kerra stood facing Darvo, Lotus and the Tenno. "Thank you. I am forever grateful. Now, on to Jupiter."