Very long chapter, you guys
The Beast Conquered
Aro moaned and shifted, "Where am I?"
"You're up! You're in the med bay. You're home."
"…Kain?" His eyes slowly opened and adjusted to the bright sunlight flowing into the pristine white room. He was home.
His Ghost flew in front of his face, "Who else would it be?"
Aro smiled softly, "No one." he said out loud, "I'm just glad you're alright."
"You're so sweet." a deep voice yawned.
He turned his head at the voice, only to see Daniel sitting in the couch next to the bed. He yawned again and stood, bringing one of the smaller chairs closer, "How are you?"
"I'm…fine, I guess." Aro sat up, "The others?"
"Everyone is fine. We all made it home and…" he paused, "Gluttony is dead. Do you remember that?"
"Yeah." Aro sank back down, "I remember that."
"Do you remember how you killed him?"
"I remember everything." Aro's mind flashed to Gluttony's last smile, "Absolutely everything."
"Where did you learn to do that?" Daniel asked, frowning, "That was a Radiant Nova Bomb and I know you're not at the level to be throwing around that kind of power."
Aro looked away and didn't speak for a long time. He barely remembers how he did it, "I was reacting purely on instinct. My mind...it was all over the place. One of the things that flashed through my mind was Sora's fighting in the Crucible."
Daniel's eyebrows raised, "That was a while ago."
"I knew it was possible. It was just the first time I had seen it personally."
Daniel sighed and his tone became low, "Did you feel anything different about yourself? Your Light specifically."
"Yes, a bit beforehand."
"What about after you killed Gluttony? What about now, Aro?"
"I sort of do feel different." He noticed Daniel's intense stare, "Is something wrong?"
Daniel looked at him for a little while longer before he let out a long breath. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and opened them again. His eyes were replaced with a pair of electric blue lights, filling up the entire eye socket. Arcs of lightning softly sprung out from them and the air crackled softly with static energy, all of it emanating from him.
"Radiant Light." Aro whispered, more to himself. The hair on his neck was standing on end.
"So you know what it's called." Daniel stated more than asked. His eyes returned to normal and Aro could feel the hairs on his neck start to fall back down. "May told me about it. Apparently, it's something a Guardian obtains after fighting against someone as strong or dark as Gluttony. In May and her team's case, it was fighting...Greed." Daniel spat out the name like it made him sick. His eyes started to glow again.
"Daniel-"
The glow disappeared and he shook his head, "Don't worry about it. Anyway, Katrina and her team have the same abilities as does mine and Aashir's."
"You were wondering if I had it too." Aro figured.
"Well...yes. Because Crona and Asura have it too."
The thought was surprising but at the same time, not. After what they went through…
Aro put out his hand and focused his Light. A small flame manifested, dancing around his palm. The world adopted a slight orange tinge to it.
"So you do have it." Daniel said. He raised and held his hand over the flame, watching it jump and bend to the motion of the air around it, "I've always liked your flames." He smiled, mesmerized by the light of it, "There's always something so soft and careful about it. Even when it's the raging firestorm it was on the Moon." He placed his hand over the flame and Aro relaxed, letting it snuff out, "I was worried I would never see it again."
Aro didn't respond, "You were gone, Aro." Daniel whispered, "Really gone. I watched him...eat you." He laughed softly, "Guess I don't have to wonder about how you felt when Gluttony ripped the Light out of me."
"You're here. I'm here. We're all home. That's all that matters right now." Aro said, his hand closing over Daniel's slightly shaking one.
Daniel tightened his grip, "Thank you. For coming back. And for saving me. All of us." He looked up at him with a small grin, "My hero."
Aro turned red and tried not to smile, "Don't do that."
"What? It's true. You saved my life. All of us. And probably the City."
A voice broke the quiet of the room, "That is very true."
Both turned at the sound of the voice. Daniel shot up from his chair, "Who are you?"
The Exo stranger had just appeared in the room as she usually did. She was perched atop one of the cabinets, her head almost touching the ceiling. She looked Daniel up and down before turning to Aro for an explanation. Aro sat up and grabbed his arm, "She's not a threat. It's alright."
"You know her?" Daniel asked, never looking away.
"It's a long story."
"One I don't plan on sticking around for, so I'll make this quick." She looked at Aro again, "You and your team did better than I expected. I thought just making out alive was too much to ask but no. You went down there. You faced him and you not only walked out alive but alive and victorious. I don't think you understand how big of a deal that is."
"I have some idea."
"Do you? They know you're a threat now. They won't hold back as they did before. You still have to beat all seven, Aro. My species made it to six before we were destroyed. No one has ever gone farther."
Aro swallowed, "And the Gate?"
"Still inside you. Kill all seven and the last person who will be able to open it is you."
"That's never going to happen." Aro stated.
"Then unless you lose, you have nothing to worry about." She cocked her head to the side, "But there's something odd about you. It's like the Gate is there and not there at the same time. It's something I can't seem to put my finger on." She shook her head, "It's probably just me. Anyway a deal's a deal. You'll have my help in this fight."
"And Asura? You won't hunt hunt anymore?" Aro asked.
She remained silent for a long time before sighing, "No, I won't. Asura has proven himself more dominant than Wrath(A). For the time being at least. Wrath(A) has taken over his body multiple times. I believe the most recent was on the Moon. They seem to be for longer and longer periods of time. I won't try to kill him but I plan to keep a close eye."
Aro sighed, "That's fair." He looked up at her again, "If we're going to be working together, what do I call you? You never gave us a name beforehand."
"We never had names on my home planet. Some of the people who escaped with me picked a name but I never knew how to. Just a designation." Her tone was soft, as if she was unused to questions about herself.
"Do you want a name?"
She seemed to consider his question for a moment, "Diana. I've always liked Diana."
Aro could hear the happiness in her voice, "Diana it is then."
"Yes." She looked out the window, "Diana, it is." She looked back at them, "Like I said before, don't try to find me. I'll come to you when I need to."
"I remember." Aeo smiled, "Thank you Diana."
She nodded slowly before disappearing as quietly as she came, leaving Aro and Daniel alone once again.
"You going to explain that to me later." Daniel said.
"I know." Aro said, watching him walk back to his chair.
"Now that that's over and we have some free time, we should probably talk about us." Daniel dropped back into his chair, "What are we?"
"Well what hat do you want to be?"
"It's no secret I care about you. A great deal, Aro." Daniel looked down, "But this isn't really something I've ever done before. I've gotten close to plenty of people. They always tend to leave me. Before you left for the Moon, I thought you were going to join that group of people. Its why I was hesitant to start anything before."
"Funny thing is, I felt the same for a while." Aro's mind flashed to his talk with Katrina.
Daniel sighed, "But then when Gluttony...ate you, in addition to feeling angry and horrified, I felt shame."
Daniel moved the chair to line up with the cot, moving closer, "I don't want to die regretting what could have been. Even if it means another person I get too close to being ripped away from me. I'm willing to take that risk with you." He laced his fingers with Aro's once again, "If you'll have me."
Aro leaned over as far as the bed would let him and kissed him softly. He felt Daniel's rough hand come up and touched his face, bringing him closer. He pulled away first and just stared into Daniel's eyes. They seemed soft for the first time in a long time. Daniel kissed him again, much deeper this time.
"Daniel!"
He cursed and jumped away when one of the medics walked in. A slightly guilty look crossed his face, "Uh, yeah. Sorry." He looked back at Aro with a sheepish smile, "We were all told to leave and get some rest. I kinda snuck back in."
"All? Everyone else was here?"
"Of course. They were waiting for you to wake up but the Speaker...kicked us out."
"Daniel." The medic called again.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm coming." Daniel leaned down and kissed Aro again, "Get some rest. We'll continue this um…"conversation" when they let you out."
"Conversation?" Aro frowned, "We weren't just talking. What conver...oh."
Daniel's smug laugh could heard from down the hall. Aro spent the rest of his examination hot-faced and unable to look the grinning medic in the eye.
"Well, that's over with." Aro walked out of the med wing a few hours later, stretching his arms.
"What now?" Kain appeared next to his ear.
"We can go start checking up on the others. And then there's something I want to look for."
"Gluttony's journal. Or Toland. I guess he wants to be called Toland again."
Aro looked at his Ghost, "You heard everything?"
"I looked through your memories while you slept. Do you want to tell the Vanguard?"
Aro thought it over, "I think it's better if I didn't. Not yet"
"Alright. So what first?"
Aro's face darkened, remembering the little spat between two of his clanmates on the Moon, "Let's find Aashir."
The Exo Warlock was in one of the computer rooms, his back to the open door. He was staring at a holographic image of the Moon that lit up the dark room.
"So you're awake." Aashir said without turning around.
"Yeah, I'm awake. And we need to talk."
"About?"
"Spare me the act, Aashir. I'm tired."
Aashir's head lowered slightly. He waited a long time before speaking, "I've apologized to Shino, Mira and May, though I doubt that changes anything."
"It doesn't but I'm curious." Aro crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame, "Marie. You said you knew her?"
"I was...sort of mentor to Marie, I guess you could say." He waved his hand through the air, rotating the Moon slightly. He still wouldn't turn to look at him, "Master Ikora asked me to tutor her specifically. Even she saw the potential in someone so young."
Aro waited patiently for him to continue, "Unfortunately, a lot of other people didn't agree. You've been to the City. You've seen how people like you treat people like me."
Aro frowned, "People like me? Humans, you mean?"
"Organics specifically." Aashir stood and walked around the table to the other side, "I've dealt with the prejudice all my life. The names, like "Vex" or "Vexos", the sense of superiority at being created by Human hands instead of being born. All of it. I've been alive for thirty years now so I'm used to it. Or I guess I should say "desensitized" to it."
He finally looked at Aro, "But her? She was new to it all. She had no idea why they would treat her so differently just because she was metal and wires rather than flesh and bone. I did the best I could to shield her from it, as did Mira and Shino but we can't do everything. My advice to her; prove them wrong." Aashir looked away, "That was the last thing I said to her before she died. Before she was...replaced. On her very first mission.
"She died a hero. But she lived her very short life being treated like a "thing" rather than a person by the very people she swore to protect. It makes me sick." Aashir's hand squeezed the edge of the machine.
This was the closest thing to emotion Aro had ever seen from Aashir, "I admit. I rarely ever noticed Exos were treated so unfairly."
Aashir waved a dismissive hand, "Ask any Exo. They can tell you stories."
"Even people like Cayde or Lakshimi-2?"
"Especially Cayde and Lakshimi. He's been around longer than me. And you weren't around to see the outcry Lakshimi's election caused. But like I said, I apologized. It was a trying situation and I let out things that shouldn't have been said. It won't happen again." his signature bluntness had returned.
"What do you think, Kain?"
"He seems genuine. I would like to know more though."
"He doesn't seem interested in talking about it."
"Alright." Aro turned to leave, "Just see that it doesn't. We're dealing with some exceptionally powerful enemies. The last thing we need is infighting."
"I understand."
"Is there anything else I need to know?" Aro asked.
Aashir turned to the hologram again, "I haven't been able to talk to my team since we got back. Josef and Aveline. Can you check in on them for me?"
"I can do that."
"Thank you." Aro left without another word.
Aashir's Ghost appeared next to his head, "You're getting better at this."
"At what?" Aashir asked, pretending not to already know.
"Letting people in. Actually feeling something."
"Well I'm not trying to." Aashir turned off the map, "I have no plans of making friends. This is a job. Nothing more."
"You have emotions for a reason. You're still letting the insults dictate who you are. You just have a metal body, Aashir. That doesn't mean you're a machine." His Ghost disappeared, "Aveline and Josef would've loved to hear your little speech though. They'd never let you hear the end of it."
"Just like you won't now?"
"Just like I won't now."
Despite himself, Aashir laughed softly. After a long time, it felt good to do so.
"So that really was Toland?" Sora leaned back in her chair, "And here I was hoping I had finally lost it."
Aro had sought out Katrina, Sora and Jessie, finding them lounging around the bar. As he had promised, he prepared to tell them everything only to hear that Mira had told them on the way back.
Katrina scratched her head, "This is weird."
Aro laughed, "You're taking this very well."
"Not reacting how I'm supposed to. It's something I'm good at." Her usual smile fell, "So that thing you were talking about. The one you were afraid you wouldn't come back from…"
Aro nodded.
"I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was this big of a deal."
"We didn't know because we were never told." Jessie was leaning against the wall, "I don't think we were ever supposed to be told."
Aro sighed, "No. The fact you encountered them was an accident. You opening that door triggered some kind of an alarm. It drew them there."
Sora looked down, "So it was my fault."
Katrina put a hand on her arm, "None of us blame you."
"And without you, we wouldn't have found a way to defeat Gluttony." Aro reminded her.
"So he's dead?"
"Yeah. He is."
"So Gluttony was Toland and he was the one who attacked Daniel, Erek and Kayla in the Skywatch. Who are the others?" Jessie asked.
"Greed is Daniel's uncle, Vell Tarlowe and Wrath is Kabr. Lust is Dredgen Yor and we just recently confirmed that Sloth is Andal Brask."
Katrina's eyes widened at the name, "Captain Andal? Aro, are you sure?!"
"He took his helmet off and showed us his face."
Katrina fell back against her chair, "Shit. Does his sister or her husband know?"
"We're not sure we're going to tell them."
"That's her brother Aro! She deserves to know!"
"As well as Daniel's family." Jessie added.
"If too much word gets out, it could cause a mass panic. I already had to convince the Vanguard just to let me tell you." But Aro considered their words, "I remember the Commander and Crona talking about it before when his identity was just speculation. They might be told."
No one talked for sometime. Only the clink of glasses and hum of conversation and laughter filled the silence. It was his decision to tell them and invite them into the clan but he still felt guilty to be dropping so much down on them all at once.
Despite his efforts, a fearful tone entered his voice, "What do you think of me?"
"What do you mean?" Jessie asked, sitting down next to Sora.
"How do you feel about me? My role in…well, everything."
Katrina looked him over, reading him like an open book, "Nothing's changed. No matter what you've done, you're here now and you're trying to fix it."
Jessie nodded in agreement and Sora smiled softly.
"Thank you for saying that." Aro smiled back, "It means a lot. Really." He started to stand up, legs protesting after being in one place for so long, "So I guess this makes you part of the clan."
"I guess so." Katrina raised a drink to him, "Call us when you finally think up a name."
"Will do."
"And Aro?" Katrina called. He stopped and turned. "Things seem like they're going to get harder from here. Take care of yourself."
Aro felt another smile start to curl on his tired face, "Same to all of you. I'll see you tomorrow."
"This is it. Toland's old place that he shared with Vell." Kain said.
Aro stood outside the closed door. It was vacant. Apparently had been for some time. He wondered if the rooms of Eris, Eriana, Omar and Sai were the same. He wasn't sure he wanted to find out.
Taking a deep breath, he waved the door open. The dorm looked like all the others except empty. Toland's and Vell's belongings had been cleared out when they didn't return. Who would have taken them? Maybe Daniel's family. Toland said that they were the closest he had.
Aro stepped into the room, closing the door behind him as to not draw attention. The lights didn't come on until he found a switch. They must have shut down the auto control before they left. All in all, everything seemed normal. Disconcertingly so, as if two of the seven Heralds had never lived here. Like normal people.
Kain flew ahead and scanned the area, "Not really detecting anything."
"I doubt it's hidden where anyone could just find it." Aro opened both of the room doors. Only one bed had a mattress on it.
Kain floated into the bedroom, "I'm sensing something here." He stopped over a spot in the ground, scanning it for a slightly longer time, "Aro, this part is removable."
Aro dropped to one knee, feeling around for an edge he could hook his fingers into. When he couldn't find one, he resorted to telekinetically lifting the block out of the ground.
There was a small book in the opening. So dusty and worn, Aro was almost worried it'd disintegrate if he touched it. Aro didn't expect Toland's journal to be so…archaic.
Aro moved to one of the desks, turning on light and began on the first entry.
"This is ridiculous. I don't care what Ikora says, why would I need some stupid journal? I find it hard to believe I'll handle my emotions better just by writing it down. And where does she get off, telling me what to do?
Whatever.
I'll do as she asks. She can't keep me to this forever."
Aro almost laughed at how childish it seemed. How normal the man was. He flipped to the next entry.
"So as it turns out, she very well can keep this up forever. This is going to get very old very fast.
Anyway, experiments and training are coming along nicely. I've been dead 400 years, according to my Ghost. There's so much I've missed and I know it makes me sound like a giddy school girl but I can't wait to learn it all.
P.S: I'm going to need to form a team soon. I've made friends with this risen Awoken woman named Eris Morn. Now we just need a Titan.
Maybe that Human who keeps stealing glances at me when he thinks I'm not looking. I've seen him in the training areas sparring with the other Titans. I'd focus more on how he fights if I wasn't so distracted. Maybe if he kept his shirt on? Although I'll admit I much prefer it off. "
Aro laughed out loud this time. A risen Warlock befriending a risen Hunter and looking for a third to make their team. That was him and Asura, just last year. Master Rahool was right, they were alike in so many ways. Aro wasn't sure if that was a good thing yet.
He skimmed through the journal. Theories of the Hive and Darkness, how his training was coming, details on two weapons he had designed, when he and Vell eventually got together and his Rank VI trial and so on.
Aro reached the date he knew Toland had been exiled. It contained two short sentences.
"I messed up.
I messed up bad."
The rest after that was Toland's life in exile. His day to day thoughts. His continued experiments. The loss of his Ghost and where it was buried. And soon, his eventual return.
Aro's heart rate started to pick up as he quickly flipped to the end. The date was marked right before he and his team of six left for the Moon.
"I hate when Ikora is right. When everything had started, I didn't expect too much. I was excited, yes, but still.
I didn't to be such an idiot. I had so many good things and I gave it away for my own selfish desires. I had friends. A family. The love of my life. And I turned my back on them all. If they never forgive me, it'd be too soon.
I hope to come back. If not for myself, then for the promises I made. My promise to become Eriana's friend again. My promise to regain Ikora's trust. My promise to see the Suros' again. My promise to spend the rest of my life with Vell. That's what I'm scared of. That I won't be able to keep them.
I know it sounds childish and infantile but I enjoyed looking into the history of humanity. Especially pre-Golden Age, when they believed they were at the pinnacle of civilization. Younger men and women would play these digital games on ridiculously expensive equipment. Even now, I wouldn't be able to afford one out of pocket.
There was one game that resonated with me. It was so intricate and involved. It taught how the choices you made affected everyone and that you should never think of yourself alone. I had to learn that the hard way. It had a song. I'd sing it to Daniel or Maya whenever they were restless and they would calm down instantly. It wasn't until now that I realized how much it'd relate to my life and the life of all Guardians. Even Future Guardians like Danny and Maya. Maybe one day, they'll find this and have at least one fond memory of me. I don't deserve even that much but a man can hope, can't he?"
Aro turned the page. The lyrics were in the back cover
Shadows fall and hope has fled
Steel your heart, the dawn will come
The night is long and the path is dark
Look to the sky for one day soon
The dawn will come
The Shepherd's lost and his home is far
Keep to the stars, the dawn will come
The night is long and the path is dark
Look to the sky for one day soon
The dawn will come
Bare your blade and raise it high
Stand your ground, the dawn will come
The night is long and the path is dark
Look to the sky for one day soon
The dawn will come
Aro stared at the words, taking them in. Kain located the song and played it for him. As dark and as hard things would get, they always get better as long as someone is willing to fight and stay alive for it. Toland couldn't do it. Maybe him passing on his journal to Aro was his way of passing on the responsibility to him.
Aro felt tears welling in his eyes and he wiped them away before they could fall. Toland had been a normal man who made a mistake. Just like he had probably been 700 years ago. They weren't just similar, they were the same. Only Aro's mistake was on a much grander scale. But at least he'd get the chance to fix it. He's glad for that much.
Aro looked out the window to see it was getting dark. Daniel should be retiring to his room now. After some thought, he pocketed the journal. He stepped out the room and the dorm, giving the inside one last look before shutting off the light and locking the door behind him.