Act IV - Sorrow and Acceptance
Chapter 1 - Technical Difficulties
'Evil so dark it despises other evil', not many things in the universe come to mind when you really break down the severity of those words. The Fallen are remnants of what they were, pirates warring with each other and the Last City. The Cabal, ruthless in their militaristic practices and imposing force. The Hive, masses of gnarled creatures spawned from darkness, a plague sworn by the Sword Logic.
The Vex, machines of time unknown, a world unknown, their constructs bend time and space, their strongholds house dangerous, reality manipulating simulations, their single-minded goal to bring forth their creations into reality, to become all that exists. If anything, they embody this meaning more so than anything in this world.
And the worst of the Vex has yet to come...
[Ishtar Commons, Ishtar Sink, Venus]
*Bratatatatatatatata!*
The heavy machine-gun fire lit the mossy ruins of Venus in a fierce, orange glow, sharpening shadows and flashing scared, frantic shadows that ran from the source, the bullets puncturing metal and concrete while shells littered the ground.
"Get the hell out of here, now, Lyra." The gruff, violet Warlock ordered the purple and silver ghost, shoving his hand against it to move to father from where the orange flashes ceased, followed by a sickening slice and crunch of bone, no even a scream emanated from the defender. "He didn't last long, but thank you."
"I can't just leave! You'll be killed!" The ghost, Lyra, argued back, even while the Warlock threw a CLG toward a few Fallen fuel lines, the sudden trail of fire expanding across the two buildings' walls, dividing them and whatever the singular, crimson eye belonged to, its sharp, brass claws retracting from the embers
"We don't have time to argue right now, Lyra, if you don't return to the Vanguard they won't have time to prepare for what's to come, now go!" He retaliated, grabbing her shell and lobbing it far into the night sky, the acidic rain slowly smothering the hiss of flames while the Warlock sighed. "Good luck, my friend."
The Warlock swung round, spraying the submachine gun across the mucky earth, his hand bending sideways, the muzzle of his gun caught in a brass figure's vice-like grip, a single twist breaking the weapon apart with ease. Not one to give in, the Warlock pushed himself far enough away with a single jump, grabbing his sidearm and unloading the entire clip against the stranger, the kinetic rounds simple scratched the armor, the figure merely reached for its own weapon, slowly pulling it from its back.
"Heh, don't know what you are, but for what it's worth you're really good a killing, atleast I'm going out on my own terms." The Warlock ridiculed the entity, a brass rifle held within cold, lifeless fingertips, the eye flickering through the scope. All while the Warlock held his right hand, revealing the pin around his ring finger. "Tick... Tick... Tick... Boom."
[The Nexus, Ishtar Sink, Venus]
"estúpidos robots que viajan en el tiempo!" A Hunter threw himself behind cover, the massive arc blasts shaking the foundations of the Nexus so much that rocks fell from the ceiling through cracks in the Vex plates housing the electrical grid connecting the whole Nexus together. "Always showing up when you don't need them!"
"Shoot! Slide! Repeat! How hard is that to understand!?" The familiar female Hunter decked out in tiger-striped silver and purple Rouge 4.5 armor. Dimitri drew her bow again, the arrow piercing the eye of her eighth Harpy, with another arrowhead, her bolt punctured a Vex energy cube, the resulting explosion shattering several more up the small flight of stairs near the entrance to the Nexus
"It follows whoever runs first, unless you want to be target practice you are welcomed to try, Idiota." The semi-Spanish speaking Hunter, Sparrow, replied bitterly, the two pinned within the tunnel, to their left, an open gap between them and the next tunnel, to their right, another open space with only a pillar for protection
~Dimitri, the left!~ Instinctively, the Anomaly pivoted her left foot and drew another arrow, watching the iron head sever the head of a Goblin while raising her handgun to blow the mind core to slag
"Let's see..." Dimitri edged her head around the stone, gasping sharply as an arc blast pelted her across her mask, her body slamming against the wall with a short spasm, while out of anger, slamming her fist into the ground. "Son of... bugger; He's pinned us until more reinforcements arrive."
"Great, what is it you suggest we do? I cannot move in while we are being watched." Sparrow shook his head, detesting their current problem
"I know-I know, give me a second to think here!" Dimitri scowled, looking quickly while arc blasts shook the foundations behind them, but she managed to see Sekrion, Nexus Mind still chipping away at the structural support for the tunnel they hid behind, sooner or later they'd be defenseless
"Come on, Boss, what are you planning?" Dimitri muttered anxiously. And if by some miracle, she gained a response
"Sorry, you guys! I've taken care of the Vex, you ready to go home!?" Her voice called from above, the sharp drop from the crystal mine revealed the Titan in shining red, white and black armor. Her right hand rose high into the light of the Nexus, embers kindling in her palm. "There's only one way to go, you two ready!?"
Dimitri grinned under her helmet, her own hands shimmering with Void. "Yeah... alright then."
"Let us try once more, Camaradas." Sparrow agreed, his own mystical Void Light tingling across his body
"Okay, like what Morbin explained..." Ceres closed her eyes, bowing her head to focus her mind on only her Light, feeling the warmth she did time-and-time again, that radiant light of the sun in the palm of her hand, snaking through her arm and to her heart, beating just like it to the rest of her body. Her Light was more than mere power, it had the ability to augment and flow with change, her own mind the very catalyst for these concepts to take form
Opening her eyes, her body crackled with golden embers, yet the drain on her body was minimal, while the indomitable strength she always felt using her Hammers of Sol remained, burning fiercely among the caves and Nexus' contrasting glow.
Below her, a burst of purple light burned through the darkness with a mystical glow. Dimitri and Sparrow conjured the same glow, their bodies aglow like when using their Supers, yet this time, no sharp bows were formed, only a powerful, resonating light.
"Now!" The three yelled. Dimitri ran out the right, while Sparrow ran left between two tunnels, firing off several warning shots against Sekrion's shield, drawing the glowing, golden eye toward him, the silver turrets lined with him while he gathered more Void Light between his hands, powerful, earth-shaking bolts striking his body, yet doing little to phase him, like his Void body was absorbing the blows with ease while his hands focused on the unstable mass between his fingers
"That's it... focus on me, máquina tonta." Sparrow spat in a native tongue, summoning all the Light he could muster to hold out against the quaking blows, he was a Solar Hunter, and the Void was a new concept to him entirely, yet he kept his hands raised, keeping the attention of Sekrion on himself only, even while his feet dug into the ground to brace the force applied
Dimitri was next to move up the length of the center spire, climbing high to overseeing the defensive Sparrow, the Nexus Mind still focused on the one that drew its attention, for a smart mind, it was too logical for its own good, even while the air began to send tingles down Dimitri's spine.
She didn't react, merely drawing her Nightstalker Bow, breathing in slowly through her nose, holding the arrow back for a second, exhaling, the arrow flew behind Sekrion, ensnaring the Mind in the grasp of Void, followed with another to the overhang of where they once hid, the same result holding the Mind in-place for the flash of sunlight to Dimitri's left.
"It's all on you now, Boss!" Dimitri called out, still shimmering with that of the Void
The Titan's feet pressed to the thin outcrop of the wall nearest the ceiling, her hammer aglow with a stronger, ferocious flame. Pushing down, Ceres threw her first hammer, the connection to the eye breaking into several large shards of metal that ruptured the air around Sekrion, consuming the Mind in a torrent of flames, making the machine sound off irritably.
Still airborne, another hammer was spun through the air, breaching the hull of the chassis with ease, the molten backlash pushing the Mind back to the center of the Nexus, right above her. With a third hammer conjured, Ceres came flying against the Mind, the machine still gaining the ability to raise its spine and slam against the Shadowshot anchors, but with a spin of her hammer, she sunk the sharp end into the top of the Mind, riding the spins and attempts in throwing her off with whiplash.
"Hyyyyyaaah!" Ceres pushed her feet against the pointed head of Sekrion, pulling back with enough force to tear her hammer through the back of Sekrion, backflipping over two arc blasts that tickled against her back. Upon rotating completely, her hammer sailed from her fingers, slamming straight into the eye again, caving in the robotics and mind core with ease, the last shards of her hammer riddling the Ultra Hydra with irreparable gashes
*Fa-Thud*
Ceres slid across the ground, hiding behind the stairs from the large detonation that followed after the Mind's destruction, pieces and parts sailing over her head while Dimitri hid behind the pillar and Sparrow simply held up his Defender bubble for a while longer.
~Great Work!~ Ghost praised Ceres, while the body of Sekrion revealed some shiny blue engrams
"Okay, think this whole 'Light Augmentation' is pretty good, I barely felt any shockwaves while aiming." Dimitri clapped giddily at the engrams, reluctantly throwing one to Sparrow. "Oi, Español, take it."
"I agree, this strange ability is... insightful," Sparrow replied calmly, with Ceres sitting down before the Nexus, now without a Mind to govern it, but somehow it was connected to the Vault of Glass and the Citadel, its what connected them all. "Are you alright, boss?"
Dimitri grumbled at that. "Kiss ass... but yeah, you good?"
Ceres jumped a little, getting up after a short rest. "Of course, just thinking about how this literally connects every Vex on Venus, wonder if we could ever control it someday?"
"Please, don't. The last thing I need is to have a very uncomfortable conversation with Taka as to why I lost you in a Vex teleportation loop." That made Ceres snap her head around to Dimitri, who crossed her arms. "I'm serious, mess with Vex tech and you're bound to regret it."
"Er, forget I said anything." Ceres held her hand up with a sigh, just then, their coms went off
~One tendril of the Vex surge has been severed. But their presence still grows in other dark places, far out of our reach. We must continue to understand their power and haunt the realms where they gather~ Ikora commended them. ~Good work today, Guardians~
"I appreciate your aid, ceres y anomalías." Sparrow thanked them both, with Ceres humming softly with pride, while Dimitri put a hand on her hip
"Whatever you say, 'Español'." Once again, Dimitri taunted him with his own language, knowing fully what the word meant, but the way she said it was more-or-less an insult
"Well, shall we go?" Ceres recommended, the two stopping themselves before they could start bickering again, with a begrudged nod, the two followed their leader out of the Nexus, every-now-and-then shoving each other behind her back
"Foreign Twat." Dimitri slurred, her arms behind her head
"Vaca inglesa." Sparrow counted
"Tosser." Dimitri backhanded his insult again
"Bruja." Again, they continued behind Ceres, the Sunbreaker, slowly turning up the volume of her headphones within her helmet, with Ghost bobbing beside her
"You know they'll be at this until we leave, right?"
"I know, that's why they'll either tire themselves out or run out of insults." Ceres shrugged, humming the song she played while leading them through the narrow tunnels under the Ishtar Academy
"Can't you just hit them with your hammer?"
"I'm their leader, not their taxi."
[Tower, Last City, Earth]
[Ceres' POV]
With another issue involving the Vex taken care of, I spent the rest of my afternoon wandering the Tower until Taka came back from a mission on the Moon, I went from helping Amanda with my Jumpship to seeing what new weapons Banshee had in-stock, to just chatting with Ghost in the main plaza, which was bustling with Guardians talking, laughing and prepping for missions ahead.
Some Warlocks were chatting about new information uncovered about the Fallen with a Hidden member, while Hunters were sitting in a circle, playing cards while basking in the sunlight, Titans were admiring each other's new equipment or modifications too. It was another day at work, and I was resting my arms over the railing, feeling the soft breeze against my skin.
"H-Hello, excuse me?" I blinked out of my daydream, turning around to see a Hunter before me, his armor was quite ragged and looked to be made of nothing more than basic metals and matterweave, a new Guardian. "Sorry to bother you, I-I was told that if I needed some fieldwork advice I was to find, 'Ceres'?"
"That's me," I smiled kindly to the nervous boy, looking around eighteen when he was brought back, he had onyx eyes with curly, lightish-brown hair. I offered him a hand, seeing him hesitate. "Nice to meet you; You must be new, right?"
"Y-yes," He quickly shook my hand, letting go a moment later, while motioning to his ghost. "I'm Jay, and this here is, Jarvis."
"Good to see you," Jarvis bowed, with Ghost hovering over to him. "How's life treating you, Ghost?"
"The same, always getting shot at and murderous robots." Ghost replied nonchalantly, meanwhile, I focused on the new Hunter before me
"So, what do you want to know? And don't be afraid to ask anything, honest." I motioned with a hand, and after looking uncertainly toward Jarvis, he sighed and spoke up
"I wanted to know... what kind of Vex are there?" He fiddled with his hands at this. "I've been working on Venus, so the House of Winter has been a little problematic, but its the Vex I've only encountered once, and I wanted to know the best methods of handling them?"
"Well, that's easy. The Vex have weapons that deal mostly in precision aim or splash damage, while Hobgoblins stick on high ledges and in the back, Goblins are the ground troops. If you shoot the head off a Vex they enter a 'berserk' state, and Hobs have the ability to defend themselves by expelling heat if damaged."
"Right - You getting this, Jarvis?" He whispered to his ghost, the little shell nodding. "Sorry, continue." I smiled thoughtfully, he was just like me when I first started out, uncertain, but I was lucky to have people like Zane and Morbin, only fair I do the same for Jay here
"Minotaurs are the brutes, and Hydras can be the most difficult, utilizing a rotating shield and arc cannons, but all Vex have a weakness," I then pointed to my stomach. "The Mind Core, the Minotaur's is hidden behind a layer of armor and a Hydra's can sometimes be behind their eye, but if you take that down the Vex will fall without fail."
"Amazing! Thank you." He bowed his head rapidly. Feeling a little red, I raised my hand and patted his shoulder
"If you ever need anything ask for me, okay?" I offered, watching as his smile grew more confidently
A while later he left with his ghost, running off to find a new mission on Venus. Crazy how it's been only just over two months since I was first brought back into this world, how far I've come since mine, Zane's and Morbin's battle against the Black Garden and Chronos, Collective Incarnate. Zane... the first friend outside of Taka who had done so much for me, followed a novice and advised me through so much, despite how others saw him and little I knew about him.
Zane... Just thinking of him was nice - gah, what the hell am I saying? Shaking my head of those thoughts I sat back against the rail, going back to waiting for Taka to come back.
[Tower, Guardian Accommodation, Last City]
Another day was soon passing by, myself, sat with my feet propped up on a coffee table while reading through a hand-written book, and Taka, who was reading too, our ghosts have gone to have fun with other ghosts off duty, leaving me and her to relax, apparently the Hive were trying to wipe out an ether supply to the House of Exile, and she, along with her fireteam had to make sure both sides were left high and dry. If the Hive took out the Fallen, no-one would be left to stop them from claiming the Moon, a necessary evil the Fallen are.
Verse 1:1 — Predators
Predators and Menaces —
Carved to endure by Xi Ro —
Third surviving sister of the Osmium King's last brood —
A STORMJOY. A stormjoy is a living cloud. When it passes over our continent, it lowers its feeding tentacles. On each tentacle are the BAIT STARS. Although light makes you happy, you must avoid it. You will be eaten.
A stormjoy is a good way for an old person to choose death. Also, a daring knight can cut the bait stars from the tentacles. I have six!
FALLING. If you fall off the edge of the continent, you will die in the ocean! This is a special hazard when our father the Osmium King uses the engines.
HELIUM DRINKERS. The currents of the Fundament Ocean bring us near other continents. The Helium Court is near us now. They are of our species, but they are our enemies. Their knights raid us every day. Helium Drinkers have two legs, two arms, and three eyes, just like us. But they are bright/evil. I want to be a knight and fight them!
The Helium Drinker ambassador ate ten of my sisters as tribute. This is normal. However, I resent it.
"Whatcha reading, Ceres?" I craned my neck toward the left, buried in the crook of the L-shaped sofa was the curious glance of Taka, and I just tapped my index finger to the small journal
"Eris and Zane are the only two Guardians that can read Hive, far as I know, and he wanted me to review some of his translations from the Book of Sorrows' pages, it may not sound fun but some of the stuff in here is fascinating, even with only some of the pages gathered!" I elaborated. "Pieces of their history, their home planet, even this 'Sword Logic' of theirs."
"Sounds like something you'd do," Hmm? I turned my head again, brushing a lock from my vision. "Even off-duty you can't help but find some way of aiding others, it's quite admirable."
I just waved a hand, but the compliment did make me happy. "Of course I'd find a way to help a friend, Zane's really nice to me so I wouldn't just turn down his offer, he may not seem bright but how he can translate half of their language surprises me."
"Hmm... I'm sure," Taka nodded, still reading away. "You really do like the guy above all others."
Huh?
"Huh?" I echoed my thought, putting my book down to think with my lips pursed. "I mean, of course I... like him."
That smile. Like the cat that swallowed the Canary. "You mean like-like him?" Taka corrected, while I shrugged, but I heard her chuckle a little. "Did you even hear what I just said?"
"Uh, sure I did." She asked if I liked Zane, and I do, he's my best friend after all. "...let's see..."
Wait. She said 'like-like'. As in...
"Come on, Ceres, I know you like-like the guy," W-w-what!? My head snapped back to Taka, her hand lowering the book to flash me a cunning grin of her's, while I felt my chest tighten at her comment, my head spinning so fast it might just fly off. "See? It's written all over your face!"
"Nothing is written on my face!" I yelled back, throwing a pillow at her, yet unlike most Titans would, she just knocked it aside, still grinning at me while I grit my teeth angrily. "I don't like, Zane - No, I do - Gah, you know what I mean!"
Her expression morphed to one of glee. "I never said Zane was involved, but you did." It was obvious who you were talking about! My cheeks burned more, all while Taka pressed the notion into my ears. "The prodigy among the Titans and the Vanguard as a whole, slayer of the Black Garden and who best the incarnate of the Vex. Ceres, a Guardian who has a crush on The Worst One, the Hunter some would shun and scorn for things not many know the truth of."
The more she rambled, the more this tightness in my chest twisted, while my head couldn't stop thinking about him… his appearance, his smile, laugh, those eye – gaaaaah! Stop it! I balled up my fist and quickly punched myself across the face, throwing me against the sofa again while I groaned into the fabric.
"Stooooop~!" I begged her, throwing my hand in her direction while glaring toward her with one eye through my hair. "Stupid-Stupid-Stupid."
"Ceres," Her hand grabbed mine, pulling me up like I weighed nothing, but I slumped with my head down. "Talk to me, why him? Of all the Guardians and people alike, those that are actually good people and others that just want to get into bed with you."
"Is there a rest-stop between here and your point?" I muttered, hearing her stifle a laugh
"I just want you to tell me why you like him? How does he make you feel, or do you admire how good he is, and how you want to be like him?" As always, I couldn't win against Taka, her experience in both being a Guardian and a person far exceeded my own, and... this feeling... It wasn't because of what people insinuated
"It's both," I answered softly, my hands in her own while she sat there in silence. "He's always been this... forsaken hero in my eyes, he could have given up or died countless times, yet he had people to guide and care for him, to remind him of what he was and who he wanted to be, just like what he's done for me, I could never have gotten where I am without him."
"But it's not just that, is it?" Taka insisted calmly, and I shook my head, feeling a smile form
"He always cared for my safety, gave me the assurance against all other odds. I learned so little about him, but I felt I never needed to, because I saw Zane for who he was, despite the weight of the world, how people would only wish harm on him, I've seen the kindness he brings, the joy and connections he's made with so many people, the Zane I know..." I looked to Taka, remembering him when he sang in the Last City, his friendships with Ana and Variks. "Is a hero, and... I..."
My hand tightened. I searched for a clear answer for a while now, only in recent weeks have I really felt this way, and the thoughts that crossed my mind always asked me if I was right? Was this too rushed? Did I simply admire him? Did... I deserve to feel this way?
"I...I like Zane, more than anything like a friend, but I don't know if I feel that way..." My answer seemed to shift a large weight from me, openly admitting it to someone I trusted felt right to me, to know that someone could understand how I was feeling, maybe even help me understand it more in time
Taka giggled sweetly, hugging me happily. "My little roommate's in love~!"
I blushed at that, pulling away to pat my cheeks. "I-I'm not sure about that, jeez, Taka!"
"Pfft, yeah, keep telling yourself that, Ceres." I hummed bemusedly at her untrusting answer, but atleast she wasn't going to go around telling everyone, that I could be happy for. Then I pushed a finger to her cheek, moving it up and down
"What about you? Anyone you like-like?" I shifted it to her angle, seeing her blink passively for a moment, then grin
"Tisk-Tisk, Ceres, my lips are sealed." I frowned, grabbing her wrists while she fought to hold me back. "Not gonna tell~!"
"If I have to spill my secrets, so do you!" I argued, the two of us at a standstill on the sofa. "I know you swing both ways, that much I've figured out."
"Mmmhmm." She nodded, pushing me back against the back of the sofa, cracking her fingers. "Well, that's true, but I don't see your point?"
"I will figure you out one of these days." I warned, picking up my book again, with Taka following suit
"Only when I die, Ceres, until then you do you, and I'll do me."
"Fine!" I huffed, seeing her roll her eyes humorously and I couldn't resist a smirk
"Fine."
To Be Continued...
[]-{Destiny: Beyond Darkness}-[]
Written by Silent Slender
[OP 2 - Resister]
A sweet start with a mixture of slice of life and action! But don't worry, depression won't start until the next chapter, because why not? FYI, Beyond Infinity started in July and Beyond Darkness starts within Mid-October. Hope you enjoyed the start of the new book! Seeya in the next chapter Guardians!
Next Chapter: Identity
When faced with millions just like you, how do you stand out above all others?
Author's Notes: That 'Light Augmentation' was an idea among several that will be seen through-out the books as idea me and a friend of mine suggested, this one is pretty simple and helps to expand on what Guardians can do with their Light beyond just supers like with the CLGs. But I think its best to show you and tell little than to just make a chapter dedicated to a bio of the abilities.