Chapter 44: Arrival

-Five Years Later-

It was five years after everything had happened with the Ten Commandments, and currently the Seven Deadly Sins were still trying to find them, but before they could Zavala had told them to investigate something very strange that was occurring at the Mars moon of Phobos.

"Wonder what's going on over there…" Snake mused as he and Alex along with the rest of the team flew to Phobos.

"Whatever it is, we need to figure it out, soon." Cortona chimed in.

[Agreed. Who knows what's going on. The last thing we need is for a full scale assault on the City by them.] Skolas commented.

"No argument here." Vulcan piped up.

"Same." Came both Gon and Harlequin.

"... I've got a bad feeling about this guys." Ana told them as they dived to Phobos's surface.

Once they reached a decent landing zone, they made their way to the base. As they approached a ledge, they froze when a Harvester rose up, though it didn't seem to see them as it turned and flew off elsewhere.

"Okay, that was a little odd." Cortona commented.

"Yeah…" Alex nodded slowly. As the team rounded another corner, the base came into view right as an explosion occurred somewhere within it.

"Zavala, something's happening at the base here. It looks like something's destroying it. We've got a visual on the Cabal evacuating with extreme prejudice." Ana reported.

"What could possibly be doing this?" The Titan Vanguard wondered.

"The screams of the souls long dead are filling and scratching at the edges of my mind! They're trying to tell me of what is a front at this very moment!" Eris started to rave.

"Uh… What?" Harlequin asked as he made Chastiefol turn into its spear mode.

"Let's just keep moving into the base." Cortona sighed as they walked toward the entrance. Along the way, Skolas had Jarred scan a Cabal corpse.

"Cabal. Skyburners Legion… Hm. Odd. There aren't any other Guardians on Phobos. How were they put down if that's the case?" He wondered.

Oslo, Harlequin's Ghost, then scanned the area. "I'm picking up very odd energy signatures. Neutrino scatter to be exact." He reported, which caused the Eliksni in the group to go rigid.

"Okay, that doesn't sound good." Alex noted warily. "Okay, proceed into the base, but stay cautious. I get the feeling we're gonna meet the source of that real soon." He told everyone.

[I haven't seen neutrino scatter in this large a quantity in a long time, not since…] Skolas started to say as they entered the base and saw it was covered in galaxy colored goop.

"The Whirlwind." Harlequin finished with a shiver.

"Something we need to know?" Vulcan asked as Alex had Snake scan a Cabal corpse that was covered in the goop.

"Skolas and myself may know what's causing this." The Sloth Sin replied. That was when a white glowing orb appeared in front of them before it dashed away.

"What the hell was that?" Zavala asked.

"Fingertips on the surface of my mind…!" Eris said, sounding strained.

"Yes… Thank you for your input, Eris." The bald Awoken deadpanned.

The group then followed the orb until it reached a small group of legionaries, and then it blasted them with odd energy before they all disappeared into thin air.

"Uh… What just happened?" Cayde asked.

[By the Great Machine, it can't be!] Skolas gasped.

"No… Not again…" Harlequins whispered in fear.

"Come on guys, pull yourselves together! The source is this way!" Vulcan told them as he and Alex led them forward. As they did they reached a set of blast doors.

"I hear whispers, they tell me of something… A place, a name…" Eris said as the doors opened and the Seven entered. "HE IS HERE!" She yelled in horror. Before anyone could ask what she was talking about, a visage of a Hive appeared.

{LIGHT! Give your will… To ME!] It beckoned, confirming the fears of Skolas and Harlequin.

[ORYX IS HERE!] Skolas yelled in horror as several swirls of dark energy appeared and deposited warped versions of their enemies. One of them was a large Knight that spat fire at them, prompting them to scatter.

"Wait, you mean Crota's father?! What's he doing here?!" Ana questioned as she started shooting her Telesto at the hostiles.

"I think I know why he's here! He's pissed at me for killing Crota!" Alex exclaimed as he shot at a Psion only for it to split in two. "Fucking hell, they're like bacteria!" He growled.

"Cruel Sun!" Vulcan yelled as he hurled his signature attack at a group of Phalanxes, causing them to explode and set the Knight on fire. "If Oryx wants vengeance for Crota, then we need to be careful!" He exclaimed as he used Rhitta to slice a smaller Knight in half.

"You have seen his face! It was his hand that transformed the Cabal!" Eris said with a tremble in her voice.

"Guardians, this mission is scrubbed! Get out of there! NOW!" Zavala ordered them.

"Alright guys, let's move! Go go go!" Alex yelled as they retreated and started running out of the base. And more of the warped enemies kept popping up, and they just barely avoided being blasted off a ledge by a line of Phalanxes.

"Okay, I now have something to hate just as much as Ogres!" Alex growled as he shot a Phalanx in the foot to stagger it before shooting it in the head. He then took notice of a Cabal hologram projector that was displaying what looked like a Hive ship. "Snake? Got anything on this image?" He asked.

"According to The World's Grave, it's the Dreadnought, Oryx's flagship. I'll get this projector into our inventory." Snake replied as he took the device into his inventory.

[Oryx's flagship is here?! Everyone double time! We need to alert everyone else!] Skolas urged as he grabbed a Psion and threw it off the ledge.

"You heard the man! Move move move move move!" Harlequin yelled as they all ran away as fast as they could and called their ships. As they exited the interior, they saw just how badly the base was falling. Fires raged and there were bolts of dark energy coming from the sky. Everyone watched all this before a Harvester crashed and snapped them out of their stupor. They then saw their ships landing across the way.

"RUN AND GUN! DON'T STOP MOVING!" Ana yelled as they started running. Another Harvester came crashing right towards them as she said it, and just before the ship could crash on them, their ships managed to transmat them in so they could retreat, leaving Phobos at the mercy of the Hive God King.

(Later, on Phobos)

The fighting had ended. All the Cabal of Phobos had been Taken. As the twisted soldiers lingered about and twitched every so often, a visage of their King came to them for an inspection. As his gaze swept over them, they bowed without hesitation. Oryx leaned in to inspect a Psion briefly as it multiplied itself, causing him to nod in satisfaction. Just before it could dispel a new figure suddenly appeared in front of him, causing the soldiers to aim their guns at it. It was Zander-6. He took one look at Oryx before he kneeled.

"Lord Oryx." He spoke ignoring the weapons aimed at him.

[Who are you?] He questioned, his voice rumbling.

"Zander-6, the Commandment of Piety." He replied. Recognition shown in Oryx's three eyes before he gestured for his new Taken to stand down.

[Why have you come before me, Commandment of Piety?] Oryx asked.

"Myself and the remaining Commandments wish to offer you our aid. We know who killed your son, and we wish for him to suffer as well." He replied.

[In that case, I have a job for you.] Oryx nodded.

"What are we to do?" Zander asked.

[Bring me the son of the Dragon Sin. He took my son from me, so I shall take his.] He ordered, getting a nod in return.

"As you wish." He replied before transmatting to his ship to return to the Jikken base. Oryx's Echo then dissipated.

(Elsewhere, on the Dreadnought)

On a platform on the Dreadnought, a large Hive looked over the vastness of space as he stood still. He had brown chitin, what looked like royal robes and had two giant horns stretching from either side of his head. THe most notable thing was the pair of draconic wings on his back. In his hands was an ancient blade that had clearly been used over the eons of war he'd experienced.

This is Oryx, The Taken King and leader of the Hive.

His form shook as the memories of his Echo entered his mind. If he had flesh, he would've smirked at what he saw.

[Soon, Dragon Sin, you shall know the pain of loss.] He said to himself as his lieutenant walked up behind him.

[Their leaders belong to you. The rest await extermination.] He reported.

[No… Gather them. I will take them all.] The ancient Hive told him. His lieutenant bowed briefly before he walked away.

Soon, he would have his revenge…

Dragon Emperor0: *In my best Zavala voice* What the hell was that?! Ha! That gets me every time!

ThermalsniperN7: For some reason, that particular line sounds funny coming from him. Anyway, yeah. It's officially begun, and now Zander and probably Esta are gonna burn the bridge he has with Tristan before it's even built.

Dragon Emperor0: For all you Seven Deadly Sins fans, prepare for a few references in the next few chapters of season 2 of the show. Namely Meliodas vs Estarosa, Estarosa vs Escanor and lastly Escanor vs Assault Mode Meliodas.

ThermalsniperN7: Hell's gonna break loose. It really is. Anyway, see you guys next time!