Light
Chapter 14
Just remembered that the Fallen race is called the Eliksni, though they are never referred to it by any other than Variks.
"60 miles..." Natsu huffed as he continued to hike north, the snow doing nothing to cool his irritated mood. He had been hiking for nearly four days, and according to Specter, he had only covered about 60 miles. "60 miles of hiking, and three nights of sleeping in the dirt. I'm going to kill him." Natsu swore as Specter floated next to him. "I'm going to kill them both. Gonna throw them from the top of the Tower, and sleep to the sweet melody of their screams. Bet Zavala would promote me. What rank am I anyway?" He turned to the Ghost. The being of Light turned to him beofre humming slightly.
"From what I can tell, you have not recieved your basic rank from the Vanguard, seeing as you never technically graduated from the training program. I feel it would be best to qualify you as a special asset."
Natsu groaned. "You're telling me after everything I've done, and the fact that I've learned how to use the styles of all three guardian classes, I STILL don't have a rank? I'm calling bullshit when we get back. After I've killed Cayde though. Yeah... He dies first..." Natsu began to chuckle to himself as the two continued on in silence. They hiked through the ruined ouskirts of cities, and dense forests, and slept under the stars. Natsu had to admit that if it weren't for the time constraint, he would enjoy this outing. He felt at home in the wild, his chest thrumming in satisfaction of a time before the Vanguard, and even a time before Fairy Tail. He rubbed his chest slowly, feeling the heat running through him in a way that he now associated with Igneel. It had taken him several days to grow used to the fact that he had found his father, but now he only felt joy whenever that surge of warmth poured through him, letting him know that Igneel was standing with him, fighting with him, and most importantly, living with him. He lie back against an overturned tree and stared up at the moon as sleep slowly claimed him.
Natsu was awoken to the sound of shrieking in the distance. Without even thinking, he shot to his feet with his weapon drawn and aimed towards the sound. He turned his gaze to the left as Specter came in to his vision.
"Life forms detected 300 meters to the north. How should we proceed?"
"With caution obviously. I know that there hasn't been a human here for over a century. That means that whatever made that noise is not human. Must be Fallen. I want to see what they're doing that makes that sort of noise..."
Natsu crept through the brush for what felt like hours as he silently made his way towards the shrieking. After a few minutes, Natsu came across a dried river bank. He climbed up the river bank and peered over to come to a strange sight. There were six fallen, three Dregs, a Vandal with no armour, and a Captain, and the dregs were each holding one of the Vandal's arms as the Captain paced around. The largest of the Fallen was letting out gutteral grunts and clicks as the Dregs forced the Vandal in to a kneeling position. Natsu watched as the Captain drew it's sabers and walked up to the Vandal, placing a saber under it's bottom left arm. With a quick yank upwards, the Vandal had lost it's arm, the loud wail carried across the surrounding area. Natsu flinched as the creature continued to scream, it's wails changing in pitch and clicking frantically, no doubt calling for aid. The Fallen around it seemed unconcerned as the Captain moved it's saber to the bottom right arm, another quick movement and the creature's other arm had come off. Natsu felt his blood chill as the easily recognized laughter of the Fallen echoed from the other five at the suffering they were inflicting upon the Vandal.
"It is a dishonor ceremony..." Specter spoke lowly so as to not draw attention. Natsu turned to the Ghost and motioned for it to continue. "When a member of the Fallen performs admirably, it is given a promotion. All Fallen started as Dregs, and earned their way up, all the way to Kell. Once they have earned their honor and rank as a Dreg, they are allowed to grow in their bottom two arms, having needed to keept them cut in order to show their status as the weakest. Once their arms grow out, they are Vandals, and once those Vandals achieve a certain status amongst their house, they are made Captains. That's usually where it stops, considering the jump from Captain to Archon or Kell has never been witnessed, so the actual perameters are unknown. It is theorized that a Kell and an Archon achieve their rank at the same time, implying that they must work together to take down the previous holders, but again, it is unknown. What we are seeing here is almost unheard of. To be demoted like this, that Vandal must have done something severe. My translation module is not finely tuned for the Fallen tongue, and so I can not gain enough information from their conversation to assist you. What shall we do?"
Natsu was about to respond when another wail rang out across the clearing. He turned his attention back to the Vandal, only to feel a bit of shock as it seemed like the Vandal was staring directly at him as it wailed. It must not have been a cry of alarm or warning, as the other Fallen had kept to laughing as the Captain threw the two arms to the two Dregs that weren't holding the Vandal down, the small Hyena like creatures waving the limbs around as they laughed. The wails continued as the Vandal stared at Natsu, it's glowing white eyes frantic as it struggled in the grip of the two Dregs still holding it down. The Captain seemed to have had enough, slowly walking behind the Vandal and raising both of it's blades high in to the air, intent on bifrucating the Fallen. A loud crack rang out as the Captain's head exploded, a stream of light pouring from it's neck as the two free arms clutched to the wound before the creature slumped over dead. The cry of alarm sounded out across the four Dregs, but two were immediately killed as Natsu leapt in to action with his scout rifle. The final two Dregs shared a look with each other before turning around and running the opposite direction of Natsu in an attempt to flee. Natsu scoffed as he brought his rifle up, quickly sighting the first Dreg. Two shots rang out in quick succession as the first Dreg droped to the ground and slid for several feet on it's face before stopping, dead. The second Dreg let out a startled cry as it continued to try and make it for the tree line at the edge of the clearing, only making it by the first layer of trees before two rounds tore through it's back, forcing it to collide with a tree violently, not that the Dreg was alive to feel it anymore. Natsu kept his rifle drawn as he slowly walked towards the Vandal, who hadn't moved since Natsu had killed the Captain. Natsu looked at the creature as he slowly circled it, noting how the Vandal's gaze followed him, but the creature otherwise didn't move. Deciding to take a chance, Natsu decided to try to communicate with the Vandal.
"Can you understand me?" Natsu only recieved a low growl as well as several audible clicks. Natsu turned to Specter, the Ghost focusing it's gaze on the Vandal before turning to Natsu.
"It basically said yes. I am not educated enough to tell you what EXACTLY it said, but it did give an affirmative." Natsu nodded before speaking again.
"Stay still." The creature gave several more clicks before facing the ground. Taking it as an affirmative, Natsu began to search the two Dregs and Captain that he had killed, coming across several small brown containers. He held them up to Specter, who quickly analyzed them before speaking again.
"They are called ether seeds. They act as the main food source for the Fallen, but their relation to the item seems much higher than it sounds. It is used as currency, medicine, and even a steroid of sorts to encourage growth. It seems to be what is used to accelerate the growth of arms on the Vandals, and it is a key component to the bodies of what few Archon and Kell we have examined. It's that white material that seems to steam from their body. Not their blood, but almost like their energy..." Natsu nodded as he took in the information. He walked back over to the kneeling Vandal, the creature meeting it's gaze once again. Natsu held up the containers, the Vandal instantly snapping it's attention to them. Natsu grinned before he motioned to the containers in his palm.
"Ether seeds. Say it in my tongue, and you can have them. Understand?"
The creature began to growl and click before Specter confirmed that the Vandal understood. The sat in the clearing for nearly twenty minutes as the Vandal attempted to pronounce the words. Natsu was about to give up when the Vandal spoke again.
"Eeeeether... Sheeeedssss..." Natsu almost jumped for joy when he got the creature to speak. He settled instead for tossing all of the containers to the Vandal, who proceeded to crack them open and inhale the wisps of light coming from them. It stood to it's feet quickly before staring at Natsu. The two had an uneasy silence before the creature dropped to it's knee and bowed before Natsu, catching the guardian off balance slightly. Natsu stood confused before the kneeling Fallen before turning to Specter.
"What the hell is going on?" Natsu whispered to the Ghost. It whirred silently in thought for several seconds before looking to the man.
"I haven't the faintest clue."
Natsu wanted to throw the Ghost, something he hadn't done in quite some time, but settled for sighing loudly. He looked to the Vandal, who stared at him from it's kneeling position. Natsu decided to voice his confusion. "Why are you kneeling?" The response he recieved was a series of low growls and clicks, and what also sounded like harsh sighs from the creature. Natsu turned to the Ghost in confusion, the floating creature turning to him, it's eye narrowed in surprise.
"I can't get what it said perfect, but it has vowed to serve you for having saved it's life. Some kind of honor pact from what I can understand. You saved it and gave it the ether seeds, which in their customs means you have seen it as honorable enough to be a Vandal. Because you promoted it, even without realizing what you were doing, you have now claimed leadership over it. I suppose it makes sense in a way. You killed the one who demoted it, and exhiled it from what I can tell, and stepped in to save it, then took up the mantle of it's leader and promoted it. I guess it owes you or something like that..."
Natsu slapped a hand against his helmet as he took in what had happened. In less then ten minutes, his day had gone from sleeping peacefully, to having a Fallen follower declaring him as it's leader. He motioned the Vandal to stand, which the creature did quickly, several clicks coming from it before a drawn out sigh. Natsu didn't even bother trying to have Specter translate for him, instead opting to speak to the Vandal instead. "You don't need to follow me. You don't need to serve me. You are free to do whatever the hell it is that your kind does. Go do it." The Vandal cocked it's head slightly before a growl came out from it as well as several more clicks and a sigh. Specter turned to Natsu before speaking again.
"It says that it's purpose is to serve."
"Of course it is..." Natsu sighed before moving over to the dead Captain. He pried the swords from the corpse's hands before tossing them in front of the Vandal. The figure looked to the in confusion before looking back up to Natsu. "Use them. Can't have you walking around unarmed..." The Vandal flinched and Natsu realized his blunder as he stared at the now sealed stumps where the Vandal's bottom two arms once were. "Bad choice of words. Still, you need a weapon of some kind, and I'm not going to have you using those dinky little shock pistols, and you sure as shit ain't using any of my guns." The Vandal stared at him before picking up the swords. It walked over to the Captain and pulled the two scabbards off of it's body and strapped them to itself. It slid the swords in to their sheaths before turning to Natsu and grunting. Natsu nodded to the Vandal before turning and walking back to the camp that he had set up, deciding that he was going to take a day to try and figure out just how he was going to explain any of this to the Vanguard.
Night had fallen quickly on the camp, and Natsu had yet to make any progress in how he was going to explain the Vandal to his technical bosses. The Vandal and Specter seemed to have taken to talking with eachother, the Ghost claiming it to being vital to expanding it's vocabulary on the Fallen language. Natsu shrugged as the two alien beings conversed in a language that Natsu couldn't even fathom, and he spoke ancient draconic. The conversation continued long in to the night as Natsu looked to the Vandal, the creature having taken to making animated motions as it spoke to Specter, the Ghost chirping and whirring in excitement before responding. Natsu would have loved to participate in the conversation, but acting as a third wheel or demanding his Ghost to translate back and forth between them just seemed tedious. Natsu's head snapped up as he had a realization.
He was trained as a void warlock!
He felt excited as he remembered that fact. That meant that he was able to make a mental bond with other living creatures and gain information, much like Ikora had done to him when he first arrived at the Tower. He shot to his feet, the Vandal and Ghost both stopping their conversation to stare at him in surprise.
"I have an idea. Come over here to me!" He all but ordered the Vandal to move, the creature seeming to groan lowly before walking over to kneel in front of him. Natsu placed a hand on the Vandal's head before speaking lowly. "This may hurt. Hurt me when it happened to me anyway..." The Vandal didn't have a moment to speak before Natsu channeled his light to his hand, converting it to void energy as he did so. He felt his light penetrating the Fallen skull as Natsu searched for the connection he felt when the Warlocks had done it to him. It felt like he was searching for hours through the creature's mind, when in reality it was less than ten seconds, before Natsu felt something inside the Vandal reach out and connect with his light. He felt immense joy as the connection secured itself, allowing Natsu to begin transferring information between the two of them. He felt a strain on him as he allowed certain information through while still holding back certain things, namely his own Darkness as well as the Collective Mind. He traded information with the Fallen, learning it's language nearly instantly as well as allowing his knowledge of language tranferring over to it. The connection lasted less than a minute, but when Natsu pulled his hand away, he felt as if he had been sprinting for nearly a week straight. His head felt fuzzy as it processed and categorized the information he had taken in. His body felt suddenly weak, he would later learn that he had nearly completely drained his power in the melding of minds that had taken place with the creature. Dredgen had once told him that to link minds with a human was simple, but costly. He could only imagine what would've happened if another guardian had tried it. It probably would have drained them completely and let their empty husks fall to the wild. He slumped back against the tree that he had slept against the previous night. He looked over to the Vandal, noting that it wasn't moving aside from the small movements of breathing. He let his head rest against the tree as he stared in to the morning sky. It wasn't even noon, and Natsu felt like he couldn't even keep his eyes open. His lids shut as the realm of dreams consumed him.
He dreamt of fire engulfing his home. He watched the creatures of Darkness consume his people. Homes were pulled apart as the void of Darkness sucked people from the safety of their shelters. He watched from his ship as it slowly ascended to the stars, anger flooding his veins.
How had this happened?
The great provider had shown itself, allowing his people to thrive under it's protective light. It had revealed great technological wonders to them, the ability to terraform and inhabit planets. It showed answers to their greatest dilemmas, and enabled them to explore the universe at their leisure. The tribes all came together in a great time of peace, no one trying to claim the top position any more. It wasn't needed. The houses all came together in the name of expanding. Under the protection of the great provider, anything was possible.
Then it left.
That should have been warning enough. They assumed nothing of it though, their technology had progressed to a point that they felt nothing could possibly hope to match. They were the most advanced of any of the species they had come across by centuries. When the provider left, they were under the assumption that it left because they no longer needed it's protection.
They were wrong.
It had ended just hours after it started. They had lost contact with their outermost colonies. The alarms were raised and ships were sent to investigate. They lost contact with them minutes later, the ships having been halted just halfway across the system. He walked outside to see it in the sky.
Darkness.
It stretched inky black tendrils across the sky as it engulfed the planet. Strange creatures with skin stretched over their bones ran screaming from the tendrils, only to begin consuming any who stood in their paths. He watched as the creatures were turned to dust under the might of his peoples' weapons, but there was only so much anyone could do to fight the infinite. Evacutaion sirens rang across the cities. Ships were loaded, and his people began to flee. Their pilots, all based off of the provider itself, screamed in their own language in warnings. The ones in charge of translating for them couldn't speak fast enough. He watched out the window as entire ships were devoured by the Darkness, the only light being the fires that erupted from them moments before being fully engulfed. He felt his ship lurch as it punched in to subspace transport, the consequences of doing so from the surface of the planet being ignored. He hoped that the ship's engines and thrusters had extinguished life quickly, before that Darkness could devour them. He felt his stomach turn as he heard the others speak.
They began to curse the provider.
The cursed it's very name, many calling for it to be struck from their history and records. Didn't they understand that the worst thing to do was ignore history? Didn't they realize that doing so would cut away a part of themselves, damning them as they realized that they could easily remove their own history. Many claimed it to be for the best, that nobody was to remember where they come from, lest they attempt to try and rely on the provider once more. Fighting broke out soon after that. Greed led his people to killing one another in the name of superstition, many claiming that they were chosen as they slaughtered families and claimed more power. History was deleted from records, and soon forgotten as the generations came and went. Yet he survived. He told young ones stories of their former home, of the greatness and glory that they had achieved. Those young ones in turn grew up, and slaughtered in the name of power and greatness as the followed after the trail of the provider. He felt his shame burn as he stared at the blood of his people on his hands. An old legend came to his mind as he stared at his four arms, each soaked with blood and dishonor as he raised the shock pistol to his temple, inhaling the scent of his failures before pulling the trigger.
'According to the House Rain, the great machine would crown a mighty champion as Kell of Kells.'
Natsu flew to his feet violently, his breath coming out in shudders as he took in his surroundings. He looked around for the blood, the bodies, or even the ship itself. He was surprised to see a lush forest around him, the birds chirping as the wind lightly rustled the leaves. He shook his head as everything started coming back to him. He had bonded his mind to the Vandal's and exchanged information in the most efficient way possible. He remembered how tired he had been. He had shut his eyes and let sleep claim him.
So what the hell was that dream about?
He looked over to where he remembered the Vandal was sleeping, noting that the creature was leaning against a tree, staring at him with tired eyes. Natsu decided to try and speak first.
"Can you understand me now?" The silence that followed was slightly worrying for Natsu.
"Yes?" The Vandal sounded unsure at it's own voice. It perked up in surprise before looking over to Natsu. "I can speak with your tongue so fluently. This is impressive, yes?"
"Yes it is. What is your name?"
"Parsix. In your language, I am called Parsix."
"Ok then, Parsix, why were those other Fallen going to kill you?"
The Vandal flinched before responding. "To support another House is an insult. Skolas was weak in how he guided the Wolves. I pointed it out, and was accused of being a supporter of House Judgement. To support House Judgement, is death."
"Why?"
"During the war for what you call 'The Reef', Skolas took control of House of Wolves, my... former... house, by killing our Kell. He in turn became Kell and led us to our slaughter. He was captured, and the Wolves were scattered to the winds. Ours was one of five Ketch under the Wolves' banner. Two were destroyed, three are left. Our Archon, Rosax, has taken command of the fleet. He has control of three Fallen Ketch. I spoke of how Skolas led the forces that we had spent decades growing and training to their doom, all for his pride. I spoke of how perhaps House Judgement wasn't the fools we made them to be, because they were still among the living. Rosax ordered my death. Had it not been for you heeding my calls for aid, I would be dead. For this, I vow to serve you. Just as House Judgement called that woman Queen, I call you my Kell..."
Natsu was at a loss for words. He had heard the rough translation from Specter, but to actually hear it from the Vandal, to hear the passion in it's deep and gravelly voice, was somewhat of a wake-up call for Natsu. He had read up on the Fallen, and while the Reef wars were still largely fresh and unknown to many outside of the active participants, Natsu had known who the obvious winner was when there was no Fallen army pounding down the walls. He had always figured that the Fallen had been wiped out after that. The way Zavala and Ikora spoke of the Fallen pointed to a greatly disorganized group of raiders and pirates. They spoke of them as bottom feeders and urchins of the alien variety. More clever than the Hive, but much easier to kill. Natsu had just taken these phrases at face value, having been a member of the military force opposing the Fallen. From what that dream had shown him though, Natsu just had to try and figure out if they had any merit.
"Hey, Parsix?"
"Yes?" The way the Vandal drew out the word seemed strange to Natsu, almost as if it knew what he was going to ask.
"Is there such a thing as the House Rain?" Natsu frowned when the Vandal across from him widened it's eyes. Natsu could see the glow of white from each of it's eyes before it responded.
"Where did you hear that name?"
"I... Had a dream... House Rain was mentioned at the end, and then I heard some kind of folk tale at the end. Why?"
"What was the tale you heard?" Parsix had suspiscion in his voice, and his eyes were narrowed. Natsu frowned before relaying what he remembered to the Vandal.
"According to the House Rain, the great machine would crown a mighty champion as Kell of Kells. What does that mean?"
The Vandal's response was to rear it's head back and let loose a mighty shriek and begin to laugh as if suddenly posessed. He jumped to his feet and began to dance, Natsu and Specter staring in confusion at the celbrating Vandal.
"It is a glorious day indeed, my Kell! To think that I would be the one to discover one so mighty! I had never imagined that the Kell of Kells would be a human, but surely stranger things have happened." The creature halted his dance as he stared at Natsu. "The House Rain was a House truly gifted by foresight. They were granted powers by the provider, great powers that allowed them to see the future that none of us could hope to predict. They are considered a myth, only believed in by the superstitious, just like our home planet. I am no fool though! I know that the House Rain was real. They were killed with our planet nearly five centuries ago, but they were always right. We saw the provider, I believe you call it the Traveler, as the Great Machine. It was told that it would pick a leader for us, and that leader would take the mantle of Kell of Kells. Legends began to emerge of what the Kell would look like. Many spoke that it would have a thousand arms, each one capable of crushing a planet in it's grasp. They spoke of how the Kell would see through the Darkness and kill the heart of the evil that killed our home. Many myths surround the Kell of Kells, but from what you have shown me, I know it is you. You were chosen by the provider, and your saving me has further proven it. I am to lead you to the Archon, where you will take command of the House of Wolves."
"Wait! How am I supposed to march on to a Fallen Ketch and meet no resistance? I'm strong, but that's suicide for me." Natsu was going to continue to speak, but Parsix raised his arms in the air and bellowed. Natsu raised an eyebrow and went silent as the Vandal yelled out.
"No, my Kell. They will not touch you if you challenge the Archon in the ways of old. Our history is lost to time, but the tradition remains as our rules. If you challenge him, then you will only fight him, and he will not be able to send anyone to fight you. To do so would be cowardly, and he would be stripped of his honor. He wouldn't risk it."
"Ok." Natsu felt like smacking himself as he agreed to the strange Vandal, but figured that wiping out an Archon would only help everyone at the Vanguard. He motioned to the Vandal. "How far away is the Ketch, and how long will it take us to get there?"
"It will take little more than a day to reach the Ketch, but only if we hurry. I can not guarantee how long the Ketch will be docked." The Vandal began to jog to the west, Natsu following him closely behind.
The sun wouldn't rise for two more hours, at least it wouldn't if Natsu's visor mounted clock was correct. Him and Parsix had jogged nearly forty miles to reach the coastline where the Ketch was docked. Natsu couldn't see to much, but the red lights adorning the edges of ship, Natsu had to estimate the vessel to be nearly a thousand meters long, and several hundred meters tall. It was shaped like an arrowhead, with a large cylindrical protrusion off of one side. The engine glowed a soft orange as the Ketch hovered gently over the shore line. Natsu spotted a ramp leading up to what looked like a loading deck, if the covered crates were anything to go by, and figured that would be the best mode of entrance. Motioning for Parsix to follow him, the two began to trek towards the entrance of the ship. Sneaking by the small sentry units, the quickly made their way on to the ship and in to the loading bay of the ship.
"Okay," Natsu turned to Parsix. "We're in the ship. Now how do I challenge the Archon? Where do I challenge him anyway?" Parsix looked to him silently for several seconds.
"I... Do not know..."
The sound of Natsu's gauntlet hitting his helmet echoed through the ship.
"Ok," Natsu clapped his hands together as Parsix began to look around the room they were in. "I say that we forget about the Archon. We aren't that far in to the ship, and the sun won't come up for at least another hour. Let's just-" Sirens began to ring out and the bay door that they had entered though slammed shut.
"No longer an option, my Kell..." Parsix began to dig through the crates in the bay, grunting in joy as it found some armour. It quickly strapped on the armour, throwing away the extra armour for the two arms he no longer had. Natsu pulled his scout rifle up and checked his ammo before chambering a round and standing next to Parsix.
"Fine. You lead the way. It was your home once anyway." Parsix nodded before drawing his blades and taking the lead. They both crept through the hallways, the only light begin the yellow strobes blinking in alarm. They checked every door they passed, finding each one locked. This continued for nearly fifteen minutes, finding either locked doors, or doors that led to other hallways which they were forced to follow. They eventually came upon a door that was large enough for Natsu to fit his ship through. It hissed loudly as the door opened before them, leading in to a large expanse of black. Natsu turned to Parsix, who merely shrugged before the two began to creep in to the room slowly. Natsu would have had Specter providing him light, but he didn't want to risk the Ghost. They crept slowly towards what they hoped was the center of the room when the lights all came on, momentarily causing Natsu to raise his hand up to shield his gaze. When he finally lowered his hand down, his blood ran cold.
There were nearly three dozan Fallen, most of which were Vandals and Captains, but what made Natsu most nervous was the six legged spider tank, and the huge creature leaning against it. It stood at nearly 20 feet tall, and was covered in a large red cloak. It's helmet was that of a Captain's, but three times larger. It stood with it's arms crossed as a deep growl rang through the room.
"Filthy exhile. Do you know no shame?"
Natsu stood in shocked silence as he listened to the Fallen leader speak. He could understand the creature! His mind was going a million miles an hour as he took in all of the information before realization struck him. He could understand the creature because he had taken the information from Parsix, much like the Fallen creature had taken the information of his language from him. 'It seems that I can't just take information... It must be exchanged...' His thoughts were interrupted when Parsix decided to speak.
"Shame? No, I feel pity. You and Skolas lead us to our death, and you expect us to be grateful? There is no honor for an empty house! Skolas would see us all dead if it brought him the head of a single human. Even going against the Servitor's words, you gave him your support and it cost us dearly! The Wolves were mighty, but now we are no more than a joke! I am not the one who should know shame, it is you Rosax!"
The roar that the Archon let loose shook the room. "You fool! They all bow before that horrendous machine and treat it like a god! They bow before the machine that chose them after abandoning us! They are inferior to us in every way! It is worth every single one of your meager lives to kill a single of their warriors!" The Fallen that were around the room seemed to want to let out a protest of any kind, but Natsu saw the fear in each of their postures. "And what is even worse, you brought that THING in here with you! I will take joy in executing you myself after dealing with this pest..."
"HOLD!"
The Fallen all turned in shock to stare at the guardian who had yelled out in their language. They all silently faced Natsu as he stepped in front of Parsix and pointed to the Archon. "I challenge you to single combat! On your honor as Eliksni and Archon you must accept my challenge. The winner will take control of the House of Wolves as Kell. What say you?"
The Archon raised his head back before barking out a deep laugh. "You dare to try and challenge me in the ways of old?! You are a bastard of the evil machine, and born without honor to any house, and you dare to challenge me. I, as Archon, do not see a need to accept your challenge. However," The Archon stepped away from the spider tank as it stood tall on it's legs, the turret mounted under the front section spinning up as the tank took a combat stance. "Defeat my prized walker, and I will give honest consideration to your challenge. Show me that you are capable of honor, and I will consider your challenge..." The Archon walked from the room, the Vandals and Captains leaving the room behind him. Natsu turned his attention back to the tank before turning back to Parsix.
"Stay hidden. And this had better be worth it..."
Natsu flew from behind his cover and scouted in his rifle to the tank's front leg before firing off a shot. He watched the round tear through the latch holding on a heavier plate to the leg. The plate fell uselessly to the ground, revealing the carbon tubing and hydraulic joints. The tanks turned itself slightly, the now weakened leg facing away from Natsu, before the barrel of the tank aimed at Natsu. He watched the machine brace itself as a small laser became visible, the red line pointing at Natsu's feet. He jumped to the air before activating his booster pack, the pack lifting him another twenty feet in to the air as the round slammed in to the ground beneath him. The shockwave caused his pack to sputter, throwing him harshly to the side. He slammed against a broken portion of a Skiff before sliding to the ground, his visor lighting up to inform him that his pack was no longer functional. He grunted before standing back up and facing the tank, which had braced itself once more, but instead of firing, several flaps on it's side opened and several Shanks poured out. The small floating turrets hovered towards him, but a ball of fire stuck to the one in the front before exploding violently, the fireball that it made consumed the other Shanks. Natsu lifted his rifle and fired off several more shots, but could only curse as none of them hit the latch holding the heavy plate over the leg. He ducked behind cover and reloaded his scout rifle as he prepared for the coming fight.
It had taken nearly an hour of Natsu battling the tank to get it where it was now. It was missing the plating over four of it's six legs, and the minigun mounted underneath it was broken with a well placed grenade. He had taken several hits as well, with his shield module being severely weakened to 15 percent, meaning that a direct hit would wipe him out, and a close call would disable his shield. He ducked his head down as another explosion rocked the wall just in front of his cover, he would have to find a way to end this quickly or he wouldn't make it to the Archon. Shaking himself out of his stupor, he channeled his light to the matrix on his wrist before leaping out of cover and drawing his bow in to existence before firing an arrow directly under the tank. The effect was instant as the tank was pulled to the ground, it's weakened legs no longer able to support it's massive weight. It slammed down with a metalic groan before the front head piec of the unit opened to reveal the sensitive components that controlled the unit. Natsu channeled as much light as he could to his arms as he harnessed his flames. A loud clank roared out before a flaming hammer slammed itself in to the tank's exposed weakness, punching in one side and out the other, the metal spider falling down uselessly before exploding in a large ball of flame and shrapnel. Natsu shielded his face before facing the flaming remains of the Fallen walker. There was a loud crackle before a voice rang over the intercom.
"Very good, Filth. You have earned enough of my attention to challenge me. I accept your challenge... Now," A door against a wall to Natsu's left opened up. "Come to speak with me in person. Do not take too long, as we are both so busy, what with you feeding off of that machine like a parasite, and me planning with how I'm going to kill that traitor who brought you here in the slowest possible manner..."
Parsix stood next to Natsu. "Please do not lose, my Kell. I do not wish to die on this day..."
"Relax. You said I'm this Kell of prophecy, right? I figure that means I have SOME kind of chance of survival..."
"Yes..." Parsix seemed hesitant before continuing. "But Skolas was also declaring himself as the Kell of Kells... And he is now held prison by the Nine, as they torture him constantly... Not to mention that they are likely-"
"Parsix." Natsu interrupted the rambling Vandal.
"Yes, my Kell?"
"Why is it that I seem to find out information from you AFTER it would be pertinent to know?!" Steam erupted off of him as the Vandal flinched and bowed quickly, the sound of his knee and fist hitting the ground echoing through the chamber.
"My deepest apologies, my Kell! I had though that you would not have accepted the challenge for Kell had you known the risks..."
"You're fuckin' right I wouldn't have!" Natsu ranted to the kneeling Eliksni before taking several deep breaths and pulling the Vandal to his feet. "But... We're here now, and I've already taken the job. I never have backed out of a job, and I've never failed one." The image of the Vex that had taken him from his home flashed across his mind. "Okay, well I've failed once, but I honestly thought I was going to die, so it didn't matter too much at the time. Anyway, I've almost never failed a job I've taken, so let's keep that 99 percent success rate from dropping lower. C'mon, let's move." They continued to walk down the hallway before they entered in to the Archon's chamber.
The Archon watched from his throne while the bastard of the machine and the outcast filth entered his chamber. The room was vast, with large red banners hanging from the cieling and sprawling to the floor. The mark of the Wolves, his mark, were all displayed proudly upon the banners. A massive servitor was docked in to the wall, rotating and staring at the intruders in the chamber. It regarded them with a narrowing lense before whirring loudly and screeching in alarm. The Archon rose from his seat quickly before leaping in front of the two challengers and standing tall.
"I am Rosax, Archon to the House of Wolves, and current commander of the Wolves' fleet. You stand before me as a challenger, your terms are that the victor of our match shall lead the House of Wolves, and the loser shall have his arms removed in dishonor. What say you to the terms?"
"I am Natsu Dragneel, son of the Fire Dragon King, and precursor to the throne. I am stolen by Darkness and revived by Light from the Traveler. I have seen the past of your people, and watched the results of your squabbles for power as your race dies. I have heard the call of House Rain, and am here to see the prophecy fulfilled. I accept your terms."
"Then let us duel with honor."
"Awfully kind of you, isn't it?"
"I aim to tear you limb from limb, but you challenged me in the ways of old, and in our tongue no less. You know our language, and claim to know our history, so there must be a modicrum of honor in you somewhere." With those words, Rosax slammed his arms down on Natsu, launching him backwards against a wall. He slammed in to it as his visor notified him that his shield module was completely destroyed. With that gone, Natsu wouldn't be able to take any hits. He stood quickly and jumped away as the Archon's massive foot slammed in to the position that he was previously. He sprinted away from the charging Archon as Rosax pulled a large cannon that was strapped to his back and shouldered it. Several flares of fire flew through the air towards the fleeing guardian.
Natsu saw several bursts of flame impact the walls around him, which only encouraged him to run faster. He ducked behind a pillar and caught his breath for a moment before a voice in his head broke his focus.
'Why are you hiding?'
'Igneel?'
'Yes, brat, now answer my question!' The voice of his father echoed through his head, causing him to flinch.
'He's shooting at me with a shoulder mounted cannon. My shields are bloown to hell, and I don't want to risk Specter for a revive.' The roar he recieved in response made him want to cower. He settled instead for flinching again and peeking to see where Rosax was, only to duck as another explosion of fire rocked the pillar he was leaning against. 'That shot will kill me easily...' He was shocked when his father merely scoffed.
'What are those shots made of?'
'Pain and explosions?'
'Focus stupid! Are they shooting projectiles at you, or just energy?'
'Energy, from what I can see...' Natsu couldn't see where this was going.
'And what is that energy made of? Don't say pain and explosions again or I will hit you so hard in here that you'll have bruises out there.'
Natsu gulped before looking at the rounds impacting the area around him. They would come in a blaze of fire and explode violently, showering him in sparks and embers. 'They're made of... fire...' Realization sturck him as his father chuckled.
'That's right. And what element can you eat?'
'Fire!'
'Well technically you could eat energy from whatever if you knew how to convert it- nevermind. Yes, fire.'
'Wait you said-'
'FOCUS!'
Natsu snapped his gaze forward as he took several deep breaths. His hands moved up to his helmet, the latches snapping loudly, though he couldn't hear it over the thrumming of his heart, as he pulled it off of his head. The tang of oiled metal flooded his senses before the overwhelming stink of the Archon hit him. He waved a hand in front of his face for a moment, "God does he eat garbage and shit sulfur?" he muttered to himself before taking a calming breath before jumping out of cover and standing in front of the Rosax, the Archon taking a moment to notice his removed helmet before commenting on it.
"You think I won't kill you if I can see your face? I will drink in your expression as I kill you slowly..." The Archon laughed as he shouldered his cannon and fired at Natsu, only to shriek in surprise as the human in front of him reared his head back and inhaled the round. The flames were quickly sucked in to the man's mouth until nothing was left of the shot.
Natsu wiped his mouth before a savage grin came over his face. He felt as if his energy had spiked suddenly, and couldn't contain his glee at the panicked expression on the Archon's face. Breaking in to a sprint, he fired himself like a bullet to the Eliksni Archon, who could only rear back and shout in alarm as the human impacted roughly against his chest. They both toppled to the ground, Natsu laughing as he straddled the Archon, who lifted two of his arms to protect his face while the other two moved to throw the guardian from him. Natsu dodged the punch aimed for him before igniting his fists and sending a punch to meet the fist that the Archon was sending his way in the middle. The two fists collided, but Natsu's being charged with fire and armoured, sent Natsu's fist through the Archon's hand. Rosax pulled his hand back and shrieked in pain and drew his arm back, only to notice that his hand was completely gone, only seared flesh and shattered bone remained. He roared loudly before sending another fist to the guradian only to scream when he recieved the same ending as before, the scent of burnt flesh invading the senses of both human and Eliksni as Natsu jumped away from the Archon and allowed him to stand back up.
"Pest!" The Archon screamed as he climbed to his feet and steadied himself out, the hands on his bottom two arms now uselessly tucked against his chest. The beast growled in pain before charging the guardian once more. Natsu managed to jump out of the way of the Archon as the creature stomped the ground that he was once standing on. Natsu delivered a flaming punch to Rosax's extending leg, hearing a wet crunching sound when the punch connected. The Archon wailed as he sunk to the ground, his leg now bent out at a strange angle. He turned his glowing gaze to the guardian in fury as Natsu slowly walked up to the Archon.
"Yield."
"I would never bear the shame as an Archon Priest to yield to a human, much less a leech of the machine."
Natsu stared coldly at the Archon before turning to where Parsix had hidden himself. Calling the Vandal over, Parsix quickly sprinted over to the guardian, but made sure to keep his distance from the furious Archon.
"Yes, my Kell?" They both ignored the Archon snorting in both pain and anger.
"Your swords..." The Vandal drew the blades before the presenting them to the human who was standing before the defeated Archon. Natsu held the blades in his hands as he tested the wieght, clicking his tongue in satisfaction.
"These blades that you use... Beautifully balanced... Strong too..."
"They're made to cut through the parasites that you humans are, no matter how thick the armour." The Archon spoke with a pained pride as he glared at Natsu, knowing his fate as the guardian walked forward and kicked the Archon in the chest, causing him to stumble on to his back. Natsu slowly stepped forward, climbing up the Archon's torso as he stood on his chest. Rosax raised his gaze to meet the human's stern glare.
"It's a shame that you didn't yield. You know how the challenge works though, 'refusal to yield results in death,' yes?"
The Archon roared one last time as he raised both of his arms to strike the guardian, but Natsu was quick to drive both of the blades in to the mask of the Archon, the sound of armour scratching against the blades as bone and flesh were torn echoed loudly through the chamber. Rosax's arms fell uselessly to his sides as the Archon was slain. Parsix reared his head back and shrieked before bowing. The doors to the chamber slid open and countles Eliksni poured in to remove the remains of the human, only to stop in shock at the human standing victorious over their dead Archon. Growls rang out as the creatures began to shuffle and reach for their weapons before Natsu drew the blades from the Archon's head and held them above his head.
"I will take ANY who dare to challenge me! I take my place as Kell of the House of Wolves, and any who oppose me shall be dishonored and fed to the Hive!" The fact that Natsu bellowed out the challenge in the Eliksni language caused many to pause. Slowly, the growls turned to murmurs before, one by one, they began to bow. Natsu watched the countless horde before him bend at the knee. He sighed as he walked over to the Servitor on the wall, the large sphere began to chirp and hum as it stared at the one who defeated the Archon. Natsu held out his hand out and rested his palm against the orb as Specter appeared alongside him. The Ghost stared at the Servitor before turning to Natsu.
"Trust me." The guardian spoke to his Ghost as he held out his free hand.
"Never doubted you." The Ghost rested inside of Natsu's palm as the man began to channel his light between the two, creating a circuit and linking the Ghost to the Servitor. The large machine bellowed out for several moments before it seemed to calm down and chirp lowly, it's lense focusing between Natsu and the Ghost. The link continued for several minutes before Natsu cut the link, allowing Sprecter to float from his hand before turning to the Servitor.
"You can understand?"
"Affirmative." The machine bellowed out.
"Assemble the fleet. Let them know of their new Kell. Let them know that I am human, and that I defeated their Archon with my bare hands..."
"Order recieved. Issued. Fleet assembling on our location. One hour."
Natsu turned and walked over to the throne that Rosax had been occupying when he first entered the chamber. Brushing the seat off, he sat down in it and looked to his kneeling Eliksni. "Remove this body from my chambers!" He barked out the order. Several Dregs were quick to jump up and begin to drag the body of Rosax from the room. The other looked to Natsu with unease, many refusing to meet his gaze as quiet growls and whines echoed throughout the chamber. "Be at ease for now. Return to your duties, and return to me when the other ships have arrived." The Fallen seemed quite eager to follow his order as all but Parsix sprung to their feet and fled the room. Natsu let his head fall back and rest against the back of the throne as he let his thoughts take over for a bit.
Natsu stood before the army of Fallen warriors in slight awe. There were upwards of a thousand of the warriors, and while most were Dregs, there were still around 200 Captains and almost double that in Vandals. They all stood before Natsu as the three Ketches created an ominous shadow for any watching. They gathered before the ship that Natsu was on and stared as they waited for Natsu to speak. Many scoffed and laughed as he emerged from the ship, but it was all silenced when the body of Rosax was brought out after him.
They all kneeled after that.
"I know that your house has suffered the most since the war. Your Kell was murdered, and a fool dared to take their place. Skolas let you die without honor to pacify his thirst for power, and Rosax was no better. To be a true leader, you must be willing to put forth the effort to save your people. What is an empire with nobody in it? I seek to lead all of you to peace, and we will do so away from this dying planet. Those who would support me, kneel. Those who feel they can not, stand."
While he was pleased to see a majority of the Dregs and Vandals continue to kneel, he frowned when more than half of the Captains stood uneasily. Natsu hopped from the ship and walked in to the crowd towards the standing Captains. The kneeling Eliksni around him began to growl and speak in low nervous tones as Natsu walked up to the first Captain he could.
"You do not wish for peace?"
"It is not that..." The Captain began in a nervous tone. "It is not even that you are a human. It is that many of us who stand swore oath to Skolas long before he took the mantle of Kell. His body was never given to us, meaning that he is alive. We swore to honor him and to follow him, and we can not simply break that honor because something better has come along. Many here believe in you and your words, but some of us are honor bound to serve Skolas as his Wolves." The Captain flinched when Natsu brought his hand to it's shoulder, but when it met Natsu's grin, it sighed in relief.
"It is okay. I knew that many wouldn't follow for one reason or another. Your strength will be missed, but I understand that a promise must be kept. I will allow you to maintain your honor, and will even aid you." The standing Fallen all looked at him questioningly before Natsu spoke. "I have three Ketch, but with so many of you leaving, I fear I wouldn't be able to take all three with me to the promise land so easily. I grant the followers of Skolas a Ketch, as a show of respect for those who wouldn't dare break their oath! I can't say I respect your Kell, but I will respect your devotion to him. Go now, and may your journey be met with reward."
The Fallen that were standing gave their thanks as they boarded the Ketch with offerings of weapons or collections of ether seeds. Natsu refused them all kindly, stating that their journey would be one which would require all of their resources. He stood with his new followers as the Wolves' Ketch broke away from the shore and shot in to orbit, it's cloaking mechanism turning on as the ship vanished in to the afternoon sun.
It was a good thing he didn't know their fate for following Skolas.
Natsu turned to the other Fallen, all watching him anxiously as he walked towards the ship. He stopped in seeing an odd group of Vandals standing in modified armour kneeling in front of him. He looked at them in confusion before Parsix spoke.
"They are called Splicers by your people. They modify themselves with technology to gain the upper hand in battle. They are our brightest engineers and builders, most are responsible for our ships and weapons, not to mention they create the Shanks and Servitors."
"Engineers huh?" Natsu pondered it. He would need engineers to build whatever gateway would take him home. He nodded in satisfaction as he pat Parsix on the shoulder and continued in to the ship. "Hey can I leave you in charge for a while? I need you to drop me off at these coordinates, and then I want you to take our ships and hide."
"Hide? Would you not show us to your military?"
"That... Would be a bad idea." Natsu shuddered as he tried to imagine how Zavala would react to seeing two Fallen Ketch flying towards the Traveler. "Besides, I just took leadership of your house. Even if it all seems smooth, I don't want to risk any tensions to rise between the Vanguard and us. Just take me to these coordinates," he gave Parsix the coordinates to an area just a few miles away from his pick up point. "And hide the ships behind the Moon. They rarely send scouting parties up that way, so you should be safe if you keep the cloaking up on the ships. I'm tuned to the same frequency as the Pilot Servitor, so when I need to issue an order, you'll get it and meet me where I tell you to meet me. Got it?"
"Of course, my Kell." Parsix seemed delighted as they walked on to the ship, most of the other Fallen gathered to their ships as they prepared to leave.
"So, Natsu... See anything strange going on your hike back?"
"No Cayde, I didn't. Why do you ask?" Natsu eyed Cayde suspiciously. The Exo had been staring at him constantly since he had picked him up from their rendevous point an hour earlier. He hadn't spoken a word to Natsu until just now, which made Natsu all the more suspicious.
"No reason. No reason. It's just we had several reports come in of three Fallen Ketch just a few dozen miles from your last reported check in. Figured you may have seen something..."
"Nope. Can't say I saw anything..." Natsu said in a bored tone to the Exo, who had gotten up to sit right next to him on the shuttle. The Exo pulled a knife from his sheath and began to toss the blade in his grip, the sharpened knife doing lazy flips with every toss.
"Wierd... Because I saw quite a bit... Kell." The blade was torn from the air as Natsu was thrown to the ground. Cayde sat perched on the guardian's back as he held his arms in place behind him. Natsu sturggled in the Exo's grasp before stilling as the man placed his blade against Natsu's neck. "Easy, Natsu. If I was going to kill you, I would've taken the shot the moment you were giving your little speech. You know, Zavala would have you executed if he saw your little heart to heart with the Fallen. So I'm gonna let you up, but first you gotta tell me, how and why?"
"You said a hunter uses every weapon at their disposal for victory. Mine is the knowledge I posess and the ability to exchange great quantities of information. I came in to it accidentally, but I'd be a fool to not take advantage of it. As to why, I need to get home, and you tell me just how many, of our like twenty mechanincs, would Zavala be willing to give me to build a trans-dimensional warp gate? That's tech that isn't easy to make, and even harder to allot resources to. Face it, I'm on my own as far as getting home goes."
Cayde let his arm go and helped him stand, Natsu stood and brushed himself off lightly before sitting back down. Cayde sat across from him as they both silently watched eachother.
"Does Zavala know?"
"Nope. Seemed to slip my mind in my last report, and I haven't started my next one yet."
"And Ikora?"
"She'd understand, but also no. Just you and me. And your army. Can't forget your army..."
"Can we keep it that way?"
"For now," There was a pregnant pause as the two stared at eachother. "Yes. I can keep them in the dark for now, but you should notify the Speaker. He will at least be happy to know that there isn't two Ketches that are going to try and breech the walls..."
"Yeah. I will..."
"So... you gonna tell Amanda?"
"I'm so not dealing with this right now!"
"Aww, don't be like that!"
So, I came down with something getting infected from a bad tooth. Had to go to the hospital for it. A week and three grand later, I'm better.
Brush your damn teeth daily.
Had to miss work, but I had four days of recovery that I used to type out new chapters. Typed up three. Just looked at them last night.
All terrible.
Never try to write while high on pain meds. They're all gone now, and it looks like I'll have to extend my deadline by a week or two more before Natsu returns home. Hopefully this makes up for it. It should be smooth sailing from here on out tough.
Leave a review and let me know how I'm doing. Seriously, reviews are like the only gratification us authors get, and it means a lot to know where we could improve and that people are enjoying it.
Temper