"We once looked to the Moon and saw hope. Now we see only the power of the Darkness." - Grimoire of the Moon
When Jade entered the Hall of Guardians, Cayde and Ikora were the only two in the Vanguard room. Cayde noticed her questioning look.
"Yeah, Zavala took Eris and her pet rock to see the Speaker. Also…" He lowered his voice. "I'm not really meant to be tellin' you this, but a Guardian was sent to the Moon earlier this mornin'...so we'll see if he digs anything up."
"Did you come here for a reason, Jade?"
Cayde turned back to his map, but Jade was pretty sure he was planning to listen in. "...Um, yes, actually... Yesterday during the mission, Fyr and I were attacked by Thrall and when one came after me...it was like I lit it on fire, but I didn't even touch it."
Ikora nodded solemnly. "I believe I understand… You are a Sunsinger."
"Yeah, that was what Delta said, but I just- what does that even mean?"
Ikora studied her for a moment before speaking. "...The Sunsinger's song is one felt in the head, the heart, and the soul. When it falls upon your allies, your wings are their wings. Your Light, their Light."
"So you're saying that I can lend power to other Guardians?"
"That is merely one facet of a Sunsinger's power. Sunsingers are able to manipulate the sun's energy in many ways. Solar grenades and flame shields are but a few others. The highest tier of Sunsingers is the Fireborn. If you manage to harness this ability, you will be able to summon your Light from beyond the grave, thereby restoring yourself to life."
"…This- this is a lot to take in…"
Ikora nodded sympathetically. "The path of a Warlock is not an easy path to tread. However, it is often through our greatest struggles that we realize our true strength... To become a Sunsinger, you must not wait for answers to come to you, but seek them out on your own."
"Dontcha just love cryptic advice?" Cayde muttered, "Must be a Warlock thing."
Ikora turned to face the Hunter, regarding him with an unimpressed expression. "What was that, Cayde?"
He looked up. "Uh, nothin'. I was just sayin' you give good...advice."
"That's what I thought." Ikora turned back to face Jade. "Feel free to come to me with any further questions. I may not be a Sunsinger myself, but I have instructed many that were."
Jade nodded. "In the meantime, use your missions to hone your abilities, and you may become Fireborn yet."
Jade nodded again. "Thank you."
Ikora nodded back before returning her attention to the tomes in front of her. Taking the dismissal for what it was, Jade began the walk back through the Hall of Guardians. When she came to the end, she looked up in surprise. Standing in front of her was none other than Eris Morn, the only Guardian to return from the moon. She still clutched her orb close, like she was afraid someone might take it.
"Guardian," she said.
"Hello… Eris," said Jade a bit warily. As much as she wanted to give Eris a chance, she still wasn't completely sure about her. "Where's Commander Zavala? I thought you went to see the Speaker?"
Eris nodded. "Yes, we met with the Speaker. Zavala is still there now… And where were you coming from?"
"I was just speaking to Ikora."
Eris nodded again. "Ikora understands. She's the only one who understands. Without her, I'd be alone."
Jade's curiosity was piqued. "What do you mean?" she asked.
"Zavala does not trust me. He thinks I've turned against the Guardians. Joined the Hive. As if!"
"What about Cayde?"
Eris scoffed. "Cayde. I knew him before. He's just as ridiculous as he was back then."
"So Ikora's the only one who trusts you?"
"She listens. She believes me. She has invited me to join her Hidden. To be among them… It is an honor."
"Do you think the Guardian they sent will find anything?"
"For his sake, I pray he does not."
Jade nodded. "I have to go."
Eris nodded back. "Spread the word, Guardian: if you aren't hunting Crota, you're just killing time until he gets here."
Jade met Fyr in the dining hall for lunch. As soon as he sat down, he started talking, heedless of the food that was in his mouth.
"So guess what."
Jade sighed. "What?"
"You gotta guess."
"I'm not going to guess."
"Damn. You were right," Fyr told Spark.
"I told you she wouldn't want to guess," Spark replied, "No one likes guessing."
Fyr sighed. "I know… Anyway, last night I found out that Kay and Rogue are also on our level!"
"Really?"
"Yeah! Kay's right next to you in 3F and Rogue's the last one on the floor in 3G!"
"Huh… Wait a second. If they were here before us, why aren't they in our rooms?"
Fyr shrugged. "I guess they like being at the end. Or maybe they want a barrier between them and Bazzle… I wonder if he snores?"
"Did you find out anything about who's in 3B and 3C?"
"Huh? Nah. Why?"
"I don't know. It's just...I asked Bazzle about it our first day here and his response was weird."
"Weird? What kinda weird? Like 'he killed them and he doesn't want us to know about it' weird or 'he's actually crazy and has imaginary friends' weird?"
Jade shook her head. "It was just weird. I could try asking again… Is he around today?"
Fyr shook his head. "Nope. He left earlier with Kay and Rogue… Wish I could go..."
Jade ignored that. "I guess I'll ask him tomorrow, then."
But as it turned out, fate had other plans in mind. She had just left her room and was on her way to breakfast when Delta stopped her.
"I'm sorry, Jade," she said regretfully, "It doesn't look like we'll make it to the dining hall… You've been summoned by the Vanguard."
Jade raised an eyebrow and changed her course. "Do you know why?"
"...They didn't say."
"Well, I guess everyone likes surprises…"
She entered the Vanguard room and her eyebrows shot up. Fyr was there. I didn't think we were both summoned… As she moved further into the room, she noticed that Eris was also present. "Um...what is this about?"
"I'm afraid we have some bad news," said Zavala, "...The Guardian we sent to the Moon hasn't returned yet. We checked in and it appears that his signal has gone dark... Torelli would be my first choice for this mission, but he and the others left on a Cosmodrome patrol..."
"So what do you want us to do?" Jade asked.
"Are they saying what I think they're saying?" said Fyr excitedly.
"Basically we need you two to head to the Moon and see what's what," said Cayde.
Fyr pumped his fist. "Hell yeah! When do we leave?"
"The sooner, the better," said Zavala, "Holliday has prepped your ships. They are waiting in the Hangar for you... Good luck, Guardians."
As she and Fyr left the room, Jade heard Eris scoff. "They will need more than luck if they are to succeed, Commander."
"We're approaching the Moon now," said Jade, "You ready?"
"I was born ready!" said Fyr, "Dude! We're gonna see the Moon!"
Jade brought her ship in to skim over the Moon's surface. "Transmat point coming up…"
"You know," said Spark thoughtfully, "I used to look up here at night and wonder what the Hive were doing, but the only activity I could ever pick up was hazy - like it was blocked...or buried."
"Spark," Delta chided, "I thought you were going to try being more positive."
"Will positivity help us if we get surrounded by the Hive?"
Delta sighed.
"We've reached the transmat zone," said Jade.
There was a flash of light and she found herself landing on the Moon's rocky grey surface. Fyr landed next to her. "Cool! Let's explore!"
"Fyr, this is a mission," said Jade, "We're here to pick up the trail of a missing Guardian. Focus."
"I tell him that all the time," said Spark, "Anyway, the Guardian's last known coordinates are up ahead."
"Marvelous," said Jade, "Come on."
The two Guardians hiked up a short hill. "That building there," said Delta, "On your left."
"The Guardian's last known report said he captured this old accelerator from an unknown Fallen house," said Spark.
"There's Fallen on the Moon too?" said Fyr, "Man, those guys are everywhere."
They entered the building and Jade blinked as her helmet adjusted itself so she could see. "Some of this equipment shows recent activity," said Spark.
"It must have been the Guardian's Ghost," said Delta.
"Is there somewhere, in particular, we should be looking?" Jade asked.
"There's a terminal at the back," Delta replied.
Jade nodded and turned to Fyr. "Why don't you watch the entrance while Delta and I go check out the terminal?"
Fyr shrugged. "Fine with me."
As Jade neared the terminal, Delta appeared by her side and began to hack. "Anything?"
"It looks like he was looking for the remains of an old colony base. It's not too far… He could still be there."
"Let's hope so..."
"Uhh Jade?" said Fyr, "The Fallen decided to crash our party!"
"Damnit!" Jade grabbed her fusion rifle and ran to the front. Fyr had drawn his hand cannon and was busy picking off Fallen. Jade took out a Captain and then called out to him. "Fyr! See if you can get the ones on that building over there."
Fyr nodded and holstered his hand cannon before retrieving his sniper rifle from his back. A few shots later, there were no Fallen left.
"Nice job," said Jade, impressed.
Fyr slung his sniper across his back again and dusted off his hands. "All in a day's work!"
"Hate to interrupt," said Spark, "But Delta and I linked your Sparrows. You can grab them now... The base we're looking for is on the other side of the ridge."
Jade nodded. "Thanks."
Soon, she and Fyr were zooming across the dusky lunar landscape, dodging groups of Fallen. They rounded a corner and Jade saw a raised cylindrical building some distance ahead. "Is that where we want to go?"
"Yes," said Delta, "That's where the Guardian was going."
The way into the building was somewhat roundabout, but they eventually made it inside. In the center of the room was another terminal that Spark hacked.
"It looks like the Guardian left notes behind… They're all about someplace that's not too far from here… The 'Temple of Crota.' ...Sounds like a death trap," he added as an afterthought.
"I'm all about death traps!" said Fyr, "Let's go kick the death trap's butt!"
Upon exiting the base, Jade noticed that their path was blocked by a group of Fallen. "Delta...what's the giant purple thing that looks like an eye?"
"That's a Servitor," said Delta, "The Fallen depend on them for their supply of ether."
"Let's kill it!" said Fyr.
Jade grabbed his arm. "Wait." She pointed. "It would be a lot easier to sneak around them to the pass."
"What? But I wanna fight them!"
"The sooner we find this Temple, the sooner we'll find out what happened to that Guardian."
Fyr considered that for a moment. "I guess that makes sense... Fine. Let's go."
They only had to sneak for a few yards before they were safely past the Fallen and entering the pass. "Nice!" said Fyr, "We made- oh! That is very cliff..."
Jade rolled her eyes and turned to see what he was looking at. "Holy- You're not wrong."
The side of the path suddenly dropped off to become an extremely vertical cliff. Only a few rusty metal barricades stood between them and emptiness.
"...Let's keep moving," said Jade. She had no intentions of falling. They clambered their way over a pile of rocks and continued down the path, which had become very narrow and dark.
"The ground here is hollowed out for miles..." said Spark, "Who knows what's happening under your feet…"
"Fyr?" said Jade.
"Yeah?"
"Does your Ghost have a mute button?"
"'Fraid not."
"...More's the pity."
They kept walking. Suddenly, the path opened up into a large stony clearing. Directly ahead of them loomed a pair of towering doors lit with a sickly pale light.
"...I think we found the Temple," said Jade in a small voice.
A/N: Looks like things are starting to get interesting for Jade and Fyr. I hope you guys are liking the sequel so far. How is Eris' characterization? How is the sequel living up to the first story?
Cf96: Very thank
Also, I don't remember if I said this yet but all credit goes to Bungie for the characters and storyline of Destiny, as well as any in-game dialogue that appears in my writing.
Next chapter will come out on Saturday!
- TheWolfParadox
P.S. I hope that those of you who play D2 had a fun time with Crimson Days. I know I did.
