All chatter had stopped. All the hustle and bustle of the market became as quiet as the nights in the EDZ, so quiet you could hear the bated breath of the Tower's denizens as a single ship came to a halt in the large hangar, a sleek black ship with gold highlights and thruster flames as blue as the sky in which they burn. A single ship, from the fireteam of six that had been sent out to defeat the central core of the Vex invasion of the Sol system. One Guardian's return, regardless of the raid's outcome, was an astounding defeat. The Vanguards watched as a single pillar of blue light materialized in front of them, a single grief-stricken Hunter falling to his knees amidst the silence…
-32 Hours Earlier-
"Alright Fireteam Sakagami, Operation Vindictus is a go. You're target is the Vex Overmind Sekia, the heart of the Vex scourge. Stay together, the Vex can alter reality inside the Vault, if you get separated it's likely you'll be erased from history altogether." The serious, concerned voice of the Titan Vanguard Zavala crackled within the minds of the six Guardians standing outside the large, intimidating gates of the Vault of Glass - A reality-bending structure built by the militaristic race of sentient robots known as the Vex on the Ishtar Sink region of Venus.
"Yeah yeah, we know old-timer." The light-hearted voice of the Warlock known as Rin Sakagami chimed in. "If you're so concerned about our safety, why aren't you out here fighting with us?"
"This mission calls for the best of the best, and I'm well past my prime. As much as I wish I could, this is the best I can do. You six can destroy the threat once and for all, I have faith in you." The soft buzz of the comms system died out, leaving only the six Guardians to converse with themselves. With a sigh, Rin turned to her fireteam; a rag tag group of two Warlocks, three Titans, and a single Hunter.
"Let's get in there, it doesn't pay to keep the Vanguard waiting." With a couple nods and a few grunts of agreement, six Guardians stepped through the large gateway.
Rin was a novice, hardly the 'best of the best', but she could handle an auto-rifle like a pro. Her choppy brown hair was kept short to avoid it getting caught on her sword as she pulled it free from her back, as well as to keep enemies from being able to grab it during a fight. Her attire consisted of a fairly regal-looking purple-and-gold robe covering deep blue, knee-high boots, a sleek purple bond wrapped around her upper arm signifying her study under the Warlock Vanguard Ikora Rey. The other prodigy of magic stood to Rin's left, an experimental Exo under Rin's care called Keiko-763. Exo are another breed of highly-intelligent sentient robot but, unlike the Vex, were created by the humans and brought to life by the Traveler's light to fight on their side. Keiko's weapon of choice was a modified shotgun that took the place of his left arm, his right being used to cast spells and throw grenades.
Also beside Rin at the front of the pack was her brother Kazuki. The only Hunter of the group, Kazuki was relied on as the main strategist and damage-dealer, using his scout-rifle to shatter Vex cores before they even knew he was there. His blondeh stubble was hidden behind a bandanna that matched the black-and-gold color scheme of the rest of his armor, a scrap of cloth wrapped around his wrist taking the place of a cloak as his memento of choice.
The three Titans were the 'jocks' of the group. Their hand cannons made quick work of the robots that ambushed them in the first room they entered, and their shields were a valuable asset to all those around them. Rin and Kazuki, however, had not made it a point to learn their names.
Unlike Rin, the others were veterans in the field, having fought alongside hundreds of other Guardians as well as the Iron Lord Saladin to put an end to the SIVA outbreak of the last year and to reclaim the City from Ghaul just a few short months prior.
"Hey, Rin!" Kazuki panted from ahead of the group. "Still think raiding is easy?" The fireteam had just been ambushed by a large squadron of Minotaurs and Hobgoblins inside of a large, cover-less chamber. The girl in question, despite casting a healing rift behind a tower barricade, required three resurrections by herself, and that's not counting the resurrections that the Titans needed on top of that. Clearly this strike was a mistake, but it was much too late to turn back now.
"Not in the slightest, but that doesn't mean we can quit. Ikora's counting on us to get this done, and maybe Cayde will finally take me seriously when we get home. I can't risk losing that."
"Calm your hormones, you can think about Cayde on the flight home. In the meantime, has anyone been able to contact Zavala?" The typically happy-go-lucky Gunslinger called back.
"Negative," a Titan replied, limping along with his Ghost, a small companion cube that floated along and provided Guardians with healing and revives, drifting slowly beside him. "Comms went out as soon as the Vault doors closed. My ghost can't get a bead on our location either, so it looks like we're stuck down here until we win."
But win they did not. Another ambush was waiting in the next room, and on top of countless Goblins and powerful Hydras, the robots manipulated the very terrain, swallowing one of the Titans whole as he focused to create a barricade for Rin to create a rift. As soon as the anomaly closed, the already weakened ghost's soft blue light went out and the little guy crashed to the ground: The first of our heroes had fallen victim to the Vault of Glass.
On and on the Guardians fought, and one by one they fell, until only three remained. Rin and Kazuki stood at the edge of yet another large and dark room, an empty chamber with floating sections of floor over a colorless pit of sure death. The two remaining ghosts powered down, their energy expended, within the packs of the two humans, as Keiko activated his head light, illuminating the seemingly infinite space for only a split second in blue light before the light turned red and Keiko raised his hand on the humans he fought alongside for 24 hours.
"Kazuki, look out!" Rin shouted, diving between her brother and her rogue creation to take the blast of void energy in his stead. In a flash of golden light the Hunter put an end to the Exo's short life, sending the two other shots of his Golden Gun deeper into the chamber, taking out the two Harpies at the feet of the oversized Goblin that had reprogrammed one of his only friends. In another flash of blue light, the last Guardian soared across the sky, planting the electrified pole directly into the servo of the Vex Overmind, the ensuing explosion sending him cascading into the pits below, weapon and pack flying away in opposite directions as Rin and Keiko faded into red light. It had been 15 years since Kazuki shed a tear, and on his knees before the entirety of the Tower's workforce he bawled his eyes out. The Vanguard leaders could only hold him close as he told his story.
The death of Crota didn't phase him.
The death of Oryx didn't please him.
The destruction of SIVA didn't bring him any joy.
The defeat of Ghaul and reclamation of the Traveler's sacred light didn't affect this man in any way.
But the death of this fireteam, of that Warlock, of his sister, this is what finally drove this war hero to the edge.
What finally pushed him off.