I do not own Destiny or any of its characters.
Hunting
Hunter glanced at Petra as they headed toward the base. She was furious, and seemed to be getting more and more angry by the minute. However, she was under control, at least for the moment, and she wanted the Barons' heads as much as he did, so he wouldn't say anything.
"Petra's out for blood," Spark said, talking exclusively through Hunter's radio, "but we're here for justice, aren't we?"
Hunter said nothing. Truthfully, it didn't matter to him whether it was for justice or for revenge. The Barons would die either way.
"What are the chances Spider's location was wrong?" Hunter asked as they reached a hill just shy of the Barons' hideout.
"I'd be more likely to believe that Spider is secretly a Hive creature and we just didn't notice," Petra said. "If Spider says they're here, they're here."
Just then, as they reached the top of the hill, the first of the Barons appeared before the base in a massive flash of Dark Ether. It was one who was hunched forward with some kind of machine on their back that looked like it might be a collection of strapped-together missile launchers, and holding a Shrapnel Launcher. Hunter snarled in rage instantly, drawing the Joker and Hawkmoon both and charging, slaughtering anything and everything in his way, all the while raining bullets on the Baron as well. The Baron fired at Hunter, but he easily evaded it, focusing his fire on the Baron. Bullets ripped into its chest, its legs, its arms. They bounced off of the thing on its back, but took entire chunks from its body anywhere they found flesh.
Finally, the thing shrieked in rage, in what Hunter was pretty sure was a female Fallen's voice, and slammed her hands into the ground. "Get away!"
Rockets burst out of the thing on her back, curving in the air to target Hunter, only for him to rapidly dodge and avoid them, escaping harm, only for the Baron to vanish in a flare of Dark Ether. Hunter clenched his guns tightly just as a Scorn leapt at him from the right, only for his arm to snap up, firing the Joker into it and hurling it away.
"They know we're coming," Spark said. "There's no time to lose."
"Agreed, Petra said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll get them."
Hunter nodded, reloading his pistols before walking swiftly into the base, Petra just behind him. Almost as soon as they arrived, Scorn began to swarm them, both opening fire rapidly, dropping any they could see. A Scorn leapt at Petra from behind as both were reloading, and Hunter tossed his Hawkmoon into the air, spinning around Petra and slashing the Scorn's throat with a knife before hurling it into another Scorn's head. Then, he opened fire with the Joker again just as Petra handed him the Hawkmoon, now fully reloaded with the fresh rounds he'd had in it when he tossed it. He opened fire with that as well, managing to stagger his reloads this time. Finally, the first room was clear and they headed through a door to the next room, finding a Baron with a Scorn Crossbow waiting.
"Go on, take out your ghost," the Baron urged. "I need target practice."
Fury flooded through Hunter. This was the Baron that killed Cayde's Ghost. He'd bet his life on it. It was the one that sealed Cayde's fate. He roared with rage, his helmet distorting it and making it sound even more demonic as both of his Hand Cannons began to fire rapidly. The Baron shouted in pain and surprise, recoiling from Hunter's assault, and then from Petra's as well, before returning fire, forcing them to separate but stopping neither from firing.
"Every shot I take adds soldiers to the Scorn army!" the Baron shouted over the gunfire.
Scorn began to swarm into the room, but Hunter ignored them almost completely, only shooting any that got in his way. Petra began to thin the crowd of Scorn in his stead, allowing him to continue charging the Baron, firing faster by the second, reloading his Hand Cannons faster than he ever had whenever one or the other ran dry. Then, a group of Scorn tackled Hunter, only for his Siva to form a knife for each, the knife growing into their throats in a split second, killing them and allowing Hunter to stand, only to see the Baron vanish in a flare of Dark Ether, like the one before it. Hunter shouted in rage, holstering the Hawkmoon before turning and hurling a fan of proximity mine knives into the last of the Scorn, the explosions killing them all.
"I'm getting the feeling we're being stalled," Petra said, reloading as she reached him, Hunter reloading as well.
"Then we need to hurry," Hunter said. "Even if we don't kill the Barons, as long as we get Uldren Sov, this won't have been a complete waste of time."
Petra nodded and they both began to run through the base. However, in the next section, they found a small army of Scorn and a Walker waiting. Hunter leapt into the air instantly, hurling another fan of proximity mine knives as well as both a Vortex Grenade and an Incendiary Grenade into the Scorn before focusing on his Light energy. He fired a Shadowshot into the Walker, then used a pulse of Light Energy to jump a second time, forming a Golden Gun. He fired the six shots he was capable of into it, and it collapsed, sparking and heating up for a moment before exploding. Then, as he landed, he started forward, joining Petra in shooting their way through the Scorn rapidly. Within a matter of minutes, they'd made it to the door and a line of Spider's Fallen appeared to finish up the Scorn in the area as they headed inside.
"We're making good time," Petra said. "We'll get him."
"Agreed," Hunter nodded, only for both to stop as a massive gate slammed shut in front of them and pulses of Dark Ether began to flash behind them. "Great."
They turned, finding Screebs scrambling toward them rapidly, only for each of them to shoot one, setting off a chain reaction that killed all of the Screebs. The next wave to arrive were Dreg equivalents, and one Scorn Captain, but between the two of them, they'd killed them all inside a minute. As the captain dropped with a knife in his head, the gate rose, Hunter striding through it instantly, Petra just behind him. The tunnel opened up into a massive cavern of rock with metal bridges spanning the chasm, but as they reached the last stretch of bridge, another Baron appeared, this one holding a gigantic Flame Cistern. As soon as he appeared, he swung his cistern over his shoulder and slammed it into the bridge in front of himself, sending out a wave of flames at Petra and Hunter.
Hunter grabbed Petra and spun, taking a large step to the side as they both became transparent, purple silhouettes, the flames passing through them harmlessly before they reformed beside the trail of flames. Both opened fire instantly, stalking toward the Baron as their bullets ripped into him. He roared, sending out another wave of flames just as the first faded. Petra dove to the side as Hunter leapt into the air, hurling a proximity mine dagger into the Baron's chest. It roared in pain, taking a step forward, only for Hunter to charge, firing the Joker rapidly, his free hand holding his melee knife, which began to shriek with Arc energy.
The Baron slammed his Cistern into the bridge, sending out a wave of flames, only for Hunter to charge straight through them, still firing. It snarled angrily before vanishing in a flash of Dark Ether, being replaced by the normal-size Scorn with Flame Cisterns. However, as soon as they appeared, Hunter put the last bullet in his gun into a Cistern, setting it off and killing them all. Then, he stepped out of the flames, his SIVA instantly repairing the damage to his body and armor.
"That was risky," Petra said. "That could have killed you."
"But it didn't," Hunter said.
"You fight. You kill," a raspy voice spoke from all around them suddenly. "It pleases me...pleases King Uldren. And you think you will defeat my Scorn, my siblings, and my father all at once? You think you will succeed where Cayde-6 failed!?"
Hunter narrowed his eyes, running further into the base, Petra just behind him.
"Kill a Fallen, I raise it as Scorn," the voice continued. "Kill a Scorn, I raise ten more!"
"And yet, you, like all the others, run away when you faced me," Hunter growled, sprinting up a set of stairs winding into the base, destroying floating machines that spun and unleashed streams of flame that had been set up to slow them down.
"I do not need Barons to slaughter you!" the Baron said. "My Scorn will be enough to end you!"
Hunter stopped as he reached a barrier, seeing a Baron, the one with the staff, on the other side, beside a Scorn Captain, he was pretty sure, both glowing. Then, as Petra caught up to Hunter, who had skipped a section of the stairs by using his Light energy to jump in the air twice, the barrier faded.
"Rise, my Scorn!" the Baron before them said. "Give this dead thing its final death!"
The Scorn Captain rose as both stopped glowing, Hunter noticing the Captain was a little bigger than the other Scorn Captains they'd passed so far, only for the Baron to vanish. The Captain turned, opening fire with its Shrapnel Launcher instantly, only for Petra and Hunter to scatter, both also opening fire. Other Scorn began to appear around the room, only for Hunter and Petra to kill them as they made their way around the room. A Scorn stepped out of cover to Hunter's right as his Hand Cannon ran dry, and he spun, SIVA forming a throwing Knife that he sent into its face before finishing his reload as he returned to facing the Captain apparently in charge. Then, he dove to the side as the Captain fired, the projectiles missing Hunter but killing a pair of lesser Scorn and a weaker Scorn Captain. Then, Hunter was firing again. He glanced past the Captain, seeing Petra take cover as over a dozen Scorn, along with two lesser Captains, closed in on her. He hurled an Incendiary Grenade into the group, the explosion clearing most of them and allowing Petra to step out and hurl her dagger into one of the Captains, killing the other Captain and the last two lesser Scorn as she moved to retrieve the knife.
Hunter returned his attention to the main Captain just in time to use his Void intangibility dodge to escape being blasted with the Shrapnel Launcher, then formed several Proximity Mine Daggers with his SIVA, hurling them into the Captain's chest before spinning and sprinting around the room. Several Lesser Scorn swarmed after him, but he stuck a laser tripwire mine to the wall, and a moment later, it blasted all of them. A second later, he stepped past Petra, who was in full retreat, in time to hurl a Vortex Grenade into the Scorn chasing her, killing almost half before firing with the Joker and hurling a fan of flaming knives, killing most of the Scorn the knives hit, his gun finishing whatever the knives didn't.
"Thanks for the save," Petra said, shooting at the Captain in charge, Hunter doing the same once the last of that group of Scorn were dead.
"Anytime," Hunter said.
"Yes, yes, yes!" the Baron's voice cheered from where it was watching from behind a barrier blocking the door deeper into the base. "Killing is what you do! Killing is all you do!"
Hunter growled irritably, focusing his shots on the Captain's head. However, when he and Petra's guns ran dry at the same time, he charged, leaping off of the low platform they were on. He cleared a spray of shrapnel, then yanked his melee dagger from its sheath, driving it into the Captain's head, dragging it to its knees. Then, he ripped the knife out and slashed up through the side of its throat before stabbing down into the back of its head again, killing it. He reloaded instantly, then turned toward the Baron, leaving the knife embedded in the Scorn Captain's head.
"I do not fear the dead!" the Baron snarled. "I CONTROL death! And you...more use to me alive! Go. Pursue your vengeance. I claim your Fallen victims for my Scorn army!"
Then, he vanished in a flare of Dark Ether, the barrier fading. Hunter narrowed his eyes.
"Let's go and get Uldren," Hunter said, walking toward the door, which was at the end of a short tunnel."
"Wait," Petra said. "That door leaves the stronghold. This is the last room."
Hunter stopped, hands trembling with rage. "So he's gone. We were too slow."
"Yes," Petra nodded. "But this isn't over yet."
"Not by a long shot," Hunter growled.
Petra set her hand on his shoulder. "We'll get him. But Hunter, you need to be careful. You're losing yourself to your rage and vengeance. This isn't who you are. At the prison, you were so much like Cayde I might have actually thought you were his son. Would he want to see you like this? Trying to turn yourself into a monster just for the sake of revenge? Just for something you can accomplish just as easily, and more safely, as yourself?"
Hunter was silent for a long while before his Siva glowed bright red, shifting and rearranging itself until it had reformed as something based off of Cayde's armor. The sleeves were the same, the pants were a replica of Cayde's treasured "Lucky Pants" with enough detail to include the illegally modified holster, the cape was long, wide, and decorated with the same Ace of Spades emblem as the Hand Cannon Hunter fully intended to retrieve, and the torso armor became an Icarus Drifter Vest. He neglected to form a helmet, this time.
"Better," Petra smiled, nodding. "Now, let's go and kill Uldren Sov, shall we?"
Hunter nodded, smiling slightly, and followed her out of the stronghold and back toward Spider.
Hunter smirked as he sped along behind Petra. They were after the first individual Baron, currently targeting Yaviks, also known as the Rider. She was the leader of a pack of Pike-riding Scorn who were in charge of stealing equipment for the Scorn army. With Spider's help, they'd found her garage and stolen her personal Pike. After a very hectic attempt to recalibrate it to be of use to anyone except Yaviks, they took it for a joyride. Hunter was driving Yaviks' Pike while Petra drove one they'd stolen when they were attacked by the first group of Pike Scorn. As they were doing that, they were using a secure frequency Yaviks' gang was using to triangulate her location.
"We're here," Petra said, skidding to a stop outside a cave. "She's inside."
"Excellent," Hunter said. "I hate riding Pikes. They're too slow."
Petra snorted. "Cayde Junior to the end."
Hunter shrugged, smirking, and jumped over a metal wall blocking the entrance, Petra just behind him, both drawing their weapons as they headed inside. Unlike last time, Hunter drew his Galliard-42, Petra smiling slightly.
"What?" Hunter asked.
"Nothing," Petra said. "I'm just glad you're feeling more like you."
Hunter smiled, shaking his head. "And here I was thinking all you cared about right now was revenge."
"Not all," Petra said. "I've seen what happens when someone loses themselves to revenge. I doubt Cayde would be happy if I let that happen to you."
Hunter nodded. "Thank you."
They stepped out of the tunnel they were in just as Yaviks sped past on a Pike. Hunter rolled his eyes, sighing, and summoned Cayde's Sparrow. Petra climbed on first, taking the controls, and Hunter swapped his Galliard for the Joker, wrapping his free arm securely around Petra before she sped off. He glanced at her before turning his gaze back to the front as Scorn began to appear in the path before them.
"Don't slow down," Hunter said, firing a single shot into a container of fuel.
The container exploded and the Scorn scattered, allowing Petra to streak past unhindered.
"You've done this before, haven't you?" Petra asked.
"Once or twice," Hunter said. "Except that I'm usually driving, then. This is much easier."
Petra nodded. "You just worry about keeping us from being shot."
Hunter nodded and glanced back as a pair of Pikes sped after them, failing to gain, but opening fire inaccurately. Hunter aimed backward carefully and fired, hitting one of the drivers in the head. Its Pike flipped into the other Pike's way and the second Pike exploded against it, killing its driver as well. Hunter turned back to the front as they found another Scorn ambush, this time with two fuel tanks. He shot one, the explosion setting off the second, and this time all but a handful of Scorn were killed, but they were all left on fire anyway. Petra raced past again and Hunter smirked, reloading quickly.
"There's no challenge with this," Hunter said.
"Would you like to drive?" Petra asked.
"Nah," Hunter said. "I like it better this way."
Petra glanced back at him, one eyebrow raised. "Don't get too excited. You need to focus on your job."
Hunter shook his head. "I can multitask."
Just then, they sped into an open area, finding Yaviks waiting. She opened fire instantly, and Petra only barely avoided the shots. Yaviks began to swerve around almost at random as Hunter opened fire, making it nearly impossible for him to land a hit. However, ever couple of shots sparked against her Pike.
"Get a little closer," Hunter said.
"On it," Petra nodded, closing in.
Suddenly, the front of Yaviks' Pike began to unleash a stream of flames, that and the energy projectiles from her Pike's guns scattering around the area as she swerved and spun the Pike. Hunter swore, pushing Petra flat to the Sparrow and lying over the top of her, several energy projectiles grazing his back as they flew over them. Then, he snapped his arm up, firing just as Yaviks was passing a fuel tank and setting it off. The explosion didn't kill her, but it covered her legs and Pike in burning fuel at the same time as throwing her. However, a fire-suppression system activated, putting the fuel out just before one of Hunter's shots punched through Yaviks' shoulder. She shrieked in pain and swerved, speeding away, Petra following, now that Hunter didn't have her pressed against the Sparrow. More Scorn appeared to block their pursuit, including an Abomination, but Hunter shot three of the Scorn on one side and Petra shot past before the Abomination could even fire, the rest of the Scorn doing nothing but grazing the Sparrow and one shot doing the same to Hunter's shoulder. As they sped into the next open area, both shouted in surprise and ducked as a grenade flew over them from Yaviks' Pike. Petra began to pilot the Sparrow sideways around the area, keeping the nose of the Sparrow pointed at Yaviks as Yaviks did the same, a grenade launcher firing shot after shot from where it had been installed beside the flamethrower. Hunter fired at Yaviks, but she hunkered low, using the Pike's nose for cover.
"Annoying," Hunter growled, tucking the Joker under his arm and hurling a Vortex Grenade before reloading.
The grenade caught Yaviks, holding her steady as it crushed the Pike slowly, the metal warping and straining. Then, a fuel tank beside her burst open, showering her in fuel. A moment later, the thruster on the back of her Pike ignited it and she shrieked in pain, the fire-suppression system again extinguishing the brilliant blue flames, only for it to leave her much more horribly burned this time. Then, she sped toward the next tunnel, leaving more Scorn to delay them, almost double what there was last time, this time all firing fast enough that it was impossible to just leave. Petra began to speed around the area, Hunter shooting as quickly as he could, though at the speed she had to drive to keep them alive, in addition to dodging gunfire, it was hard for him to hit anything. Every few shots managed to find a Scorn, and not all were fatal hits.
"If you wreck this Sparrow, Cayde will definitely haunt you!" Hunter warned her as they skidded dangerously close to a raised, metal platform on one side, Hunter shooting a group of Scorn as they passed within feet of them, every shot killing one in the group. "We're clear!"
Petra shot into the tunnel just ahead of several grenades, narrowly escaping the blast as they chased Yaviks again. After a few seconds, they shot out of the tunnel and Hunter's arm snapped up on pure instinct, firing and hitting a hand grenade, hurling it into the air where it exploded harmlessly, having been unavoidable had he not shot it. Petra let out a surprised and impressed cheer while avoiding more grenades from Yaviks' Pike. Then, she shot forward, narrowly slipping past a grenade, then a jet of flames to pass Yaviks with inches to spare between them. As they passed, Hunter, having caught on to the idea instantly, drove a delayed-detonation proximity mine dagger into the nose of the Pike just before both vehicles sped away from each other. Then, as Yaviks was skidding past a fuel tank, she finally noticed the knife just in time for it to explode, setting off the fuel tank as well and blasting her apart.
"Nice!" Petra grinned. "One down."
That could have been worse," Hunter said. "Nice driving."
"Nice shooting," Petra countered.
Hunter smiled, Petra returning it, only for Hunter's to turn into a frown. "You know, I always hated myself for being an Exo."
"Why?" Petra asked.
"I..." he shook his head. "Ask me again after we kill Uldren."
Petra hesitated before nodding, turning back to the front. "Let's head back to Spider."
Hunter nodded, wrapping his arm around Petra again before she sped off.
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