A.N. Well that was quick.
The Forerunner Facility:
Rhuun 'Sraomee ran for his very life. Shipmaster 'Mdama had abandoned them in this temple hours ago. The coward. He had only seven men left. They were the last of the survivors. Arvo had systematically been clearing the temple of 'Mdama's remaining forces. One of the men had told him Arvo was also searching for the Demon that had killed his brother, shortly before he died over the radio.
'Sraomee felt his hearts clench in rage and sadness as he thought of his twin. A life that had been cut short by one of the unclean. It was his duty to the gods to see the galaxy cleansed of the filth. The fact that some of his brothers had sided with the humans filled him with shame. They did not see how unworthy the humans truly were. He would continue his mission. All he had to do was escape the spectre of death that hunted him. For that is what who hunted him was. The Shadow of Sangheilios as his brothers had known him. He certainly wasn't a light.
They were desperately looking for a way out. They were in an unexplored part of the temple. They were attempting to lose Arvo, but the man was not the best the covenant had ever seen for no reason.
The hallways went on forever; the roof seemed to go on forever. They had to get out of the open.
A beam of light pierced the head of one of his brothers to his right. His brother was dead before he hit the ground. Arvo had found them!
He glanced around frantically and found a small hallway that went off to the right.
He signaled his men and bellowed, "There! To the right! Get out of the open!" All of his men activated their cloaks and scattered. He was bigger than most Sangheili and managed to get to the hallway first. He turned once he was safely in the entrance and gestured to his men to hurry. The last one was about to cross the threshold when another beam of light passed through the side of his head from the way they had come. It was strange watching as blood and brain matter seemed to spurt from nowhere. His comrade fell and blood started to pool from the wound. 'Sroamee had to leave him where he fell. He turned and ran, his men falling once more into step. These hallways were much narrower and there were many twists and turns. There would be no line of sight for Arvo to pick off more of his men.
He was certainly lost after half an hour of running down corridors. The humans had a saying about a cat and a mouse. 'Sroamee was definitely not used to being a "mouse". Apparently a small vermin of some kind and the cat as the hunter. He certainly was no cat right now. He was terrified. He would not show signs;, his men needed him to be brave.
He ran past a door and did a double take as he noticed the characters on it. 'Sroamee could read Forerunner and this clearly stated teleportation room.
He ground his feet to halt and called for his men to stop.
"Through here!" he ordered. One opened the door and another charged through. The man was obliterated by beams of light. 'Sroamee let out a battle roar and charged after his fallen brother with both of his Plasma Rifles firing. Two of the Forerunner's mechanical guardians exploded in a shower of sparks. The room was clear. He signaled his men to join him, the one who had opened the door stood last to enter. Just as he did, he fell over dead. A beam of light entering his eye. 'Sroamee glanced to where the shot had come from and quickly pulled his head back behind the safety of the doorway as a beam of light narrowly missed his snout.
He had seen the black clad warrior with hard edges and spikes all over his armor. The Shadow of Sanghelios had found him and his men. He slammed the door shut and shot the wall console to prevent the door from opening.
He ran over to the console that controlled the teleportation pad. He could read Forerunner, but not all of it. A bead of sweat trickled down his snout as he heard a hiss of an energy sword starting to burn through the door.
He finally saw what he was searching for in the upper right corner of the console. The Forerunner symbol for activate. A light began to glow over a massive pit as three concentric circles formed as a staircase and a yellow light opened at the top in the middle of the platform.
"Come!" he shouted as he strode forward and then gestured at the portal. "Go! Go, now!"
His remaining three men all jumped forward with no hesitation into the unknown. 'Sroamee pulled the demolition charge off his back and set it for thirty seconds and then he too jumped into the glowing portal.
Just Outside the Door:
Arvo was halfway through cutting the door open, when he heard the sound of an explosion, and suddenly Arvo found himself flying backwards and then blackness. He awakened to hear some colorful cursing.
"I can't believe it!" an earthly almost musical deep voice said. "They blew up my portal!"
Arvo struggled to open his eyes. He finally managed it and looked around for the source of the voice. He saw no one. The door was laying next to him, and Arvo sighed deeply. It had almost crushed him, but as he looked himself over, he found no signs of bodily harm. Maybe he had a concussion, but that would be the worst of it.
"It will take days to replace it," the voice sounded dejected. "I must get started;, the Reclaimer's friend will want to aid him."
Finally he saw where the voice was originating from. A glowing green metal ball was floating off to his right, looking at the damaged room he had been trying to get into.
The green ball finally noticed that he was awake. "Ah! Finally you have awakened. You must be Arvo!" the Oracle stated, almost giddy, "I am Maker's Voice, the monitor of this installation. We have much to discuss."
He eyed the monitor suspiciously. He had heard stories from his cousin the Arbiter about the treachery of Guilty Spark.
"What do you want, Monitor?" He asked with hostility. He practically spat out the last word. The monitor seemed surprised and floated backwards from the amount of venom he had heard. Then it shook from side to side. "Clearly you are different from your fellows," it stated, "the Reclaimer was not exaggerating."
"Who is this Reclaimer you speak of?" he asked, his temper cooling, "and how does he know of me?"
"The Human," the monitor stated. Arvo tensed and withdrew his energy sword.
"Where is he?!" he demanded.
"Relax," the Monitor attempted to placate him, which was surprising. Guilty Spark was not very understanding. "He was badly injured, I sent him somewhere to recover," he stated soothingly, and then as an afterthought he stated, "It will be getting back that will be the hardest."
What was this Monitor talking about? Arvo wondered. If he had hurt his friend, he would pay dearly.
The Monitor, unaware of Arvo's thoughts, stated cordially, "Follow me please, my automations have much to fix before you can go after him. I sent him off in such a hurry and am afraid he is lacking the necessary knowledge to get back."
Arvo sheathed his word. He would follow, for now.
Val Royeaux:
Sergio slowly approached the White Spire. Home of Orlais' Circle of Magi and the main base of operations for the Templar Order.
He was exhausted. It had taken him a week of non-stop riding in order to reach the Templars headquarters. Finally, with his goal so near, his exhaustion disappeared entirely in the form of a new burst of purpose.
He approached the gates of the magnificent wall that surrounded the Spire to keep almost everyone out, and the rest in.
As he approached one of the templar gate guards raised his hand. "Halt!" he commanded, "What business do you have here?"
Sergio dismounted, and drew himself to his full height. The Templar who had spoken shrunk under Sergio's gaze. His beard had grown out and his hair was unkempt and long from the lack of attention he had been able to give it on his journey. He imagined he looked intimidating.
"I am Knight-Lieutenant Sergio of the Circle in Antiva," he stated as loudly as he could. "I request an audience with the Knight-Vigilant."
The man chuckled. "And I'm Andraste," he stated mockingly, then turned serious once more. "Where is your uniform then? You are no Templar. Now, begone!"
Sergio's eyes narrowed in anger. He was tired, he would not suffer fools. He smote the ignorant Templar. The Templar cried out and those closest to him staggered.
"You dare?!" he cried pathetically from the ground. Sergio's battle axe was off his back in a few seconds. He strode forward and let the blade rest against the fallen Templar's throat.
"I asked nicely," he told the man. "I believe that proved I am in fact a Templar. Now, open the gates," as an afterthought he pulled a smile that was all teeth and stated, "Please."
Shouting interrupt the scene. The voice of a woman rang out on the other side of the gate. "What is going on here?" the voice demanded. It sounded familiar. The gates opened and a young woman strode out.
"Knight-Captain!" the man on the ground stuttered as he stood. Sergio felt a smile grace his face. Evangeline.
She looked at him carefully. "Sergio?" she asked hesitantly. Sergio smiled. The girl was like a sister to him. They had both squired under the same Knight-Corporal together as newly ordained initiates. "By the Maker! You look terrible."
"I am tired and could use a good grooming," he stated, "but first I must speak with the Knight-Commander." She surprised him and hugged him. The other Templars looked upon the display questioningly. They were not used to seeing a soft side to their Knight-Captain. She turned around and glared at them all. They cleared their throats and looked away awkwardly.
"The Knight-Commander was summoned by the Lord Seeker. Apparently, a Seeker returned badly wounded and near death. He was babbling about a metal monster," she informed him.
Sergio felt his eyes widen. "I would speak with them both," he stated, "I might have useful information."
"Come," she stated, "I will escort you."
A.N. So not any Hawke stuff,, but we see Arvo! woo!