Minisode - In The End

[Tower, Last City, Earth]

The skies were an eternal grey, the stratus turning all to blacks and whites around the plaza, the atmosphere was bleak and drained of color, cold with the rain that filled the cracks between tiles, while streams fell from tent roofs. Yet, all eyes were on the lone Guardian in the middle of the large, open plaza, himself grey, while the vivid, crimson liquid remained as the lone tone of color among the endless smog of the Tower.

He had fallen to his knees, armor cracked or broken completely, while his helmet was long forgotten to the tomb he left behind. His hands stained with red, while some stained his knees and face slightly, yet no one could tell from his blank, shattered expression if rain poured down his face or tears that continued to fall in tempo with the rainfall.

"Move aside! Comin' through!" Cayde shoved his way carelessly through the small crowd, coming to stop before the Hunter knelt in defeat by his shadow. At first, Cayde didn't know what he was looking at, the scene wasn't properly clicking in his mind before his eyes finally did catch sight of the deep stains of red. "Oh no..."

The Hunter's head lifted, seeing the shadow moved in to face his own tear-stained eyes. Cayde knelt before him, hand on his shoulder while Artemis gasped, seeing his ghost appear, looking weak and with some damage to its shell. With a firm hand, Cayde looked right into the Hunter's eyes.

"Rookie... Zane... where's the rest?" He fought back his own gut-wrenching feeling, the mere sight of his Hunter was enough to paint the story, yet a part of him refused to acknowledge it, and he really wished to just have misheard Zane

"... I... I..." He couldn't choke out a word, fresh, boiling tears falling from his eyes. "...I couldn't... they... they..."

By now, others started to mumble among themselves, all while Cayde sat there, completely shook by the hollow feeling in his own metal chest, while Zane's head fell against his armor, crying out silently while hitting Cayde's chest weakly. All the Exo did was close his eyes, not once breaking his composure.


[Present Day]

*Fu-Thud*

I fell hard against the floorboards of my home, hearing someone stifle a laugh at my expense, my sister of course. I rolled over, not really feeling to great, not since Ceres left with the others, its been atleast two hours and nothing yet. While Dimitri looked at me with amusement at my fall, I still kept my eyes to the ceiling.

"You gonna get up?" Dimitri asked, but I didn't respond, so she shrugged and went back to listening to her music, all while I felt my eyes envision something... familiar

"Does it hurt? Does it frustrate you so much you can feel nothing but a mixture of emotions clouding your heart and mind?" Her hair flowed in the moonlight, the stars kindling with her eyes, all while her body burned with a soft, yet fierce glow that tore into the night, like a rising sun at twilight. "If so, hold onto that, let it remind you how far you've yet to go and have it be your guide through that dark."

"Through the dark?"

"We are birthed of light, not for the sake of power over power, but to resist that darkness, to let it fester inside us and threaten our light, but if we can only guide ourselves through that darkness, we can learn to harness it, and move beyond its reach and make that dark our own." Her smile, even at the end, it grew with so much light in the darkness. "If I'm gone, know my Light will always be by your side, let that be reason enough to live."

"..." Without a word, I got back on my feet again, I sighed heavily and put the Book of Sorrows down, moving with a focus for the door ahead of me, all while Dimitri raised an eyebrow at me

"Where are you going?" I held a frown, but I wasn't upset, nor was I angry, I just had a sense to move forward again, harder and faster than any day prior to now. With my hand throwing the door open, I turned to look at my confused little sister

"I'm going to finish what I started." Without a word, I ran down the hallway, narrowly avoiding Guardians along the way, while Rika appeared beside me, looking at me with worry. "I know."

"You're going after them?"

"Yes."

"But... can you go back there?" I did let a smile touch my lips

"With you, that's all I could ask for." Stopped just outside the complex, I slid into the open air, the warmth of the sunlight beaming down on us while I turned my head for the direction of the plaza

This feeling as I run, it was just like back then, the time I fought with Ceres and Morbin against Sepiks, this rush through my veins, a feeling of triumph building in my heart just pushed against my chest every time I took a step against the stone. But the dread, the guilt in my soul from losing them all, they... they died because... because I wasn't strong enough...

Taking a breath, I opened my eyes again, sliding down the railing that led down into the Hall of Guardians, the wind brushing through my hair as I stumbled down before the Vault Storages, hearing footsteps behind me while I worked on navigating my Vault.

"Zane, Goddammit, wait!" A hand pulled me away from the keyboard to see the frantic expression of Dimitri scowling at me. "You can't be serious! You... you're going back!?"

"I am." I confirmed, seeing the pain strike her face like an iron

"After everything that happened, why now?" Dimitri then pulled at my shirt, pulling me down to her eye-level. "Why!?"

"I let Summer, Eve, Marco, Echo and Shadis die down in that Vault! I. Let. Them. Die, Dimi... how can I be okay knowing it could happen again?" I know it wasn't me, I was following an order but does that really make it okay? What would have happened in I stayed?

"It wasn't-" It was my turn to enforce my own feelings back, grabbing her own collar, I pulled her forehead against mine, knowing this was the only way to make her listen clearly. I wasn't myself, but every word was me, just without the kindness in my voice

"I can't rid that from my head; If I was stronger they wouldn't have had to die for my sake," I rebound, seeing her eyes widen a little. And with a heavy breath, I let her go, seeing her stumble back while I felt the breeze against my jacket blow. "But now, I have something I can't lose again, I've wallowed in sorrow for so long that if you weren't here for me, I wouldn't still be here, you know that, Dimi."

"Zane..." She was scared to lose me, I felt the same for her, but... I'm also afraid to lose so many kind, honest people to the Vault of Glass. Ceres... she was right, and it's time I proved it to her, to everyone again that I'm not at fault, and that I won't run away again. "You know, asking me to come along would have been simpler than you getting all worked up."

"*Sigh* Yeah, I know. Rika?" I asked, and in a slow transition, my clothing was eroded by metal from my boots, up. My padded shins had small prongs sticking out from the metal, with jumpsuit-like pants to replace my jeans, the design continued to my chest, adding armor for my chest while padding my stomach and sides tightly, a tarnished, blood-stained white scarf coiling around my neck

My arms were like my legs, armored with small prongs on the corners of the pauldron, last was the helmet to cover my smirk, the visor making me appear like a Fallen in black and light blue armor. Along my back was a thick, wooly wolf pelt, the sharp hooks holding it against my shoulders. Last, something almost alien sunk into my right hand, my fingers hesitating to hold the heavy contraption that formed from nothing again, after so many months of neglect, the weapon took shape again in the light.

"No way... is that!"

"The Handcannon Rising Sun used..."

"How does the Worst One have it?"

White metal coiled around a black frame gracefully like metallic wind, sharp thorns of gold dotted the black interior of the barrel, the hammer, and butt of the handle sharp and deadly, yet ever-so-graceful. My arm raised it to my eyes again, a feeling of familiarity rekindling in the palm of my hand.

"Now then, are you going to stand and gawk, or are we going to pull off an Ex Machina?" I asked her with a small hint of humor. Yet by the time I looked back at her, I saw the arrow pointed right at my nose, her hood already over her helmet's visor. "Please don't let the string go."

"Don't tempt me. Still, this is just as much my fight as it is yours, they took Summer from both of us, she was like a mom to us, to alot of Guardians who didn't understand their purpose in this world, I'd be more insulted if you didn't ask me to come with," Dimitri answered sorrowfully, gripping her bow tightly. "Before we go, I have someone else we might need."

"By all means, I'll go get our Jumpships ready!" With a wave, Dimitri ran off toward the Vanguard hallway

"Be back in a flash!" Without any delay, Dimitri shoved past the nosy spectators, all looking at me like always, but that didn't matter, right now, for both my Fireteams, I'm going to put this behind me, even if just a bit, even if I feel every second beating and tearing me apart, I need to do this, I had to take action

"Ready to shine one more time...?" I looked to the Handcannon, feeling nothing but a warm sensation like a person's hand, like Ceres' hand on mine. "...Lumina..."

To Be Continued...


Boom, it's Rose! And yes, I know you don't get the original Rose/Lumina until D2 but who said I can't flip the table? But yes, this is the original Thorn purified into Lumina, might make that a short chapter in the future. Hope you enjoyed why Zane, Cayde, and Dimitri came to the VOG in the previous chapter, and seeya in the next chapter tomorrow!

Next Chapter: Prologue to Acceptance

With Zane and Cayde here to rescue the injured and guilt-ridden Guardians from the Vault, the group must make their escape, so long as they can get past a relic from the past. But can Zane finally gain the closure he needs? And what of the guilt festering in Ceres? Will she go through the pain Zane's felt for so long?