… And from the Traveler will be birthed a Child of Light, one whose sworn duty shall be to initiate the Balance. From the Balance will come equality, and through equality- order.
The scales of the Light and the Darkness refuse to be stilled for long- always, one will eventually outweigh the other. But from this Child of Light, this great equalizer who will bring the Balance upon us … there will come a new age in which neither the Light nor the Darkness may gain an advantage over the other.
Balance allows no bias in its judgement- its nature does not permit it. No quarter will be given … nor mercy.
- Lost text of an ancient Warlock prophecy
Clara blinked a few times, her glowing eyes winking on and off as she tried to process that bombshell of a reveal. "… This has to be the most dysfunctional family tree I've ever heard of-"
He saw the expression of utter shock on her face, and immediately held his hands up to stay her reaction. "Adopted son, I should say. I just- it's easy to forget that."
Talia nodded in agreement and turned to her. "My brother was taken in by my uncle when he was only a child. Our parents …" She paused. "It's complicated- but he raised my brother and I as his own children. Make no mistake- I may call him 'Uncle', but he was a father to both of us."
Clara looked back at Woods. His gaze was averted, seemingly trying to avoid their conversation. She felt a wave of sympathy for the Hunter- it was obvious that the topic was not a particularly pleasant one for him to think about.
"Woods? Are you alright?"
He seemed to come out of a trance as she spoke softly to him, his eye focusing on her as he regained his senses. "Yes, I- I'm fine." He looked back at Amelia and the Queen. "So, will you watch over her?"
Talia hesitated to answer. Her eyes were wary, almost reluctant to agree, though Clara couldn't discern quite why. "Uncle … I would ask that you think about this-"
"I've done my thinking," he answered her quietly. "The last time I came here- I expected it to be exactly that. You know where I stand. Please … just humor an old man, would you?"
The Awoken tensed up for a few seconds before finally allowing her body to relax. She swallowed hard. "I promise … she'll be protected and treated as one of our own."
Woods nodded gratefully. "Thank you." Then he turned to Clara, who still wasn't quite sure of what was happening.
"You're safe now. The people here, they'll take care of you." He paused, then reached forward and grabbed her arm in a respectful shake. "It was a privilege to have met you, Clara."
He spun around and began to walk out of the Queen's quarters. Clara lightly shook her head in bewilderment. "Wait- what? Where are you going?"
"To do what I should have done a long time ago."
She began to follow him, still in the dark as to what he was referring to. "You're not talking about … you don't mean trying to face the Stag yourself? Woods, there's too many- they'll kill you if you try-"
"I know."
Clara stopped in her tracks, and the Hunter rotated once more to look her in the eyes. "I'm not leaving to face the Stag. If it came down to the two of us, I don't- I don't think I could ever bring myself to kill him. I …" He trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.
She spoke with a tremble in her voice as she realized his true intent. "You're going to hand yourself over to them. You're going to let the Star kill you."
He bowed his head deeply, not bothering to deny it. When he raised his head up again, she saw a few stray tears sliding down his cheeks and into his beard.
"I am so glad people like you still exist, Clara," he muttered with a slight smile. "People who are willing to put themselves in harm's way for the good of others. I told you when we first met- you reminded me of myself when I was younger. I thank you for trying to save me."
Slowly, he raised his helmet up and placed it over his head before pulling the hood over it and concealing its maw within its shadow. "But things would have been easier for all of us if you'd just let me die."
Without another word, he turned one final time and exited back through the corridors towards the throne room.
Clara stood there at a loss for words, her heart racing as a feeling of helplessness grew inside her and threatened to overwhelm her. Beside her, Ghost materialized. "Clara, your vitals are spiking. I think you need to-"
She tore herself away from where her feet had seemingly turned to stone, and ran back to the Queen's quarters where Talia had sadly watched the Hunter's retreating back. "Please, don't let him do this-"
"His destiny is his own," the Queen answered numbly. "It's not my place to judge if he wants to end it."
"But why?" Clara argued, "Why does he want this?"
"You don't understand-" she tried to explain, but Clara cut her off.
"Then help me understand!"
Talia looked like she wanted to argue, but the Exo's face shone with genuine concern and care for her friend. Her jaw tightened for a moment, and then finally she relented.
"Amelia … tell the guards to prevent any access to the hangar until I say otherwise."
The Queen's guard nodded, and then held up her wrist as she exited the room. "Royal Guard, this is Paladin Amelia. The Queen has ordered an immediate cessation of landings or takeoffs, acknowledge …"
Once they were alone, Talia sighed heavily. "Tragedy seems to strike his life whenever fortune finds him. Death surrounds him, wreaking vengeance upon the ones he loves time and time again. His whole life has been dedicated to fighting the Darkness so that others wouldn't have to. An existence filled with war, sorrow, and loss … it's not a fate I would wish upon my worst enemy."
She seemed to notice the nearby ornate table, and gestured towards it as an invitation. Clara followed her lead, and the two of them sat down in chairs on opposite ends.
"So why does he insist on doing everything alone?" Clara whispered in hurt frustration. "He says meeting me was a privilege, but he rejects all of my attempts to talk with him, to help him. And then he tries to leave me behind- does he really care so little for me?"
"You've got it backwards," Talia replied, shaking her head. "It's because he cares about you that he tried to leave you behind."
"I … I don't follow."
"Every family he's ever known is taken from him. He doesn't want to get attached because … he's afraid to lose you too."
Every family …
Steeling herself for the ultimate question, Clara looked up at Talia with an unwavering stare. "What happened to the Guardians?"
For a moment, it didn't seem like the Queen would answer. She pursed her lips and inhaled sharply- but then the tension left her body, and she nodded in agreement.
"We Awoken … we lead very long lifespans naturally due to the direct exposure of both light and darkness when they originally clashed with our people in the Vestian web," she began. "All this happened centuries ago … and even now, it's hard to keep the screams out of my head. The day still haunts my darkest moments."
She took a deep breath to steady her nerves. "My brother was born before the Guardians fell out of favor with the City. I was no more than a child at the time- but even I understood what a monumental moment it was."
"Why?"
"I told you, our parents … it's complicated."
Clara crossed her arms. "I've seen and heard about a lot of shit over the past few days. Try me."
Talia's eyebrows shot up at Clara's lexicon, but it seemed to work. "Our parents were Guardians who were part of my Uncle's team … some of his closest friends. Who they were wasn't important so much as what they were."
"What do you mean?"
"My birth-mother was named Aria. She was a Warlock who had been at my Uncle's side from the beginning."
Clara nodded. "I know her- Woods told me about his team."
The Queen raised an eyebrow. "Did he? Consider yourself lucky, he never speaks of his history freely. You must have made quite the impression." She cleared her throat. "I was more of an accident than anything- a result of my mother, a bottle of spirits, and a night of inebriation. I never knew my father, though I heard he wasn't involved in anything to do with me aside from his initial … contribution."
Talia chuckled at the wording. "But that was alright- when I was very young my mother ended up marrying someone she chose to be with out of love rather than poor judgement. It wasn't until I was six that my brother was born- and with him came thousands of questions and very few answers."
Clara pinched her brow plates together. "What caused such a reaction?"
"Because both of my parents were women."
Clara had no real words for that other than to ask, "Who was the other?"
"Her true name wasn't often spoken- she kept it close to her heart like a guarded secret," Talia breathed. "But most everyone else referred to her by her chosen name … Scorch. It was she who gave birth to my brother."
"How did …?" asked Clara, her words trailing off.
"How did that happen?" Talia clarified with a smirk. "Initially, the rationalization was infidelity- but the truth was that my other mother had never been with a man before. After the Warlocks examined her and thought about her connection to an ancient prophecy … it was decided that the light itself had manifested within her and blessed my parents with another child."
"What prophecy?"
"The great Balance," Talia uttered. "It had been foretold long before that a Child of Light, an individual whose soul has been created by the Traveler itself, would bring about a massive event known only as the Balance. There are no details as to what the Balance is- only that it will bring equality to both the light and the dark."
"And Scorch was the one from the prophecy?" Clara pieced together. Talia nodded in confirmation.
"From the start, my brother was treated with reverence. Everyone was wondering what role he would play in my mother's destiny, whether he was a vital part of it- no one knew what to expect. For the most part, neither of my mothers cared- all they knew was that he was their son, and they loved him. They encouraged me and others to treat him as a regular child, trying to give him the experience of a normal life." She shook her head sadly.
"But the life of a Guardian is anything but normal … and it wasn't long before tragedy struck my family."
Clara leaned in, listening intently.
"The Red War brought extinction to our doorstep. The Cabal carried out a siege of the City, capturing the Traveler's power for their own and stealing the Guardians' light. Many believed it to be the end, that the Darkness had finally secured victory … never before had such a threat arisen to face humanity."
"What happened?"
"It's another story altogether," Talia explained, "but the long and short of it was that we prevailed. The Legends were at the forefront of our victory, leading the assault against Ghaul and his Red Legion- but it came at the cost of Scorch's life."
Silence filled the room, Talia's tone becoming heavy at the mention of her adoptive mother's death. "Her sacrifice saved us all- and we are forever in her debt. But before she died, she made my Uncle promise to help Aria raise my brother and me. He was named as our guardian, after all."
Clara was beginning to understand. "So your brother was only a baby when Woods stepped in to help raise the two of you …"
"Indeed. He and his wife, Ash, had nothing but love for the two of us, helping take care of us for my mother whenever they could. My brother didn't know any better the first time he called my Uncle 'father'- he'd heard some other children say it, and simply felt the description fit him perfectly. No one bothered to correct him.
"There were several years of peace afterwards. No large-scale invasions, no Hive gods seeking revenge … it much like the calm before the storm, in a way."
"What storm?"
Talia's gaze became stony. "My brother and I grew up together, so I feel confident in saying that I knew him best. One of the things that always troubled him was his origin- not where he came from, but why he came. He was overtaken by this obsession in his later years to find meaning in his life when I kept telling him it was all around him. Our family, our friends- none of it mattered to him as much as finding out the reason of his existence did. He began studying the Light, and then the Light's war with the Darkness, and then the Darkness itself … you can see where I'm going with this," Talia sighed.
"He found the power of the Darkness alluring," Clara guessed.
Talia nodded. "His reasoning was that his mother had fought for the Light, even saved it- but it had done nothing of the sort for her. He pictured the Darkness's chase of the Traveler like a fox spending a lifetime hunting a rabbit. Many times, the rabbit may escape death and prolong the inevitable- but its fate is just that. Sooner or later, he believed the Darkness would consume the Light … and it would be prudent to be on the winning side.
"Nothing substantial happened for awhile, but the thoughts persisted in his mind … and as time went on, something insidious began to grow in his heart. He fought with my Uncle on more than one occasion, trying to persuade him and other Guardians that punishment would be brought upon us all unless we actively worked to help the Darkness excel at a task it was already fated to complete.
"Finally, their refusal drove him over the edge. He made his move one night to assassinate the Vanguards of the Guardians … including my Uncle."
Talia looked down, her expression somber. "He did not succeed at killing any of them, permanently at least- their Ghosts remained active, and my Uncle managed to best him. But he saw at last what he'd been trying to avoid seeing for years- that my brother was a credible threat to both the Guardians and the City. Ultimately, his fate rested with Mathias."
"What did he do?"
Talia shrugged resignedly. "The only thing he could do, really- he exiled him from the City. Normally, such a traitor might have been put to death- but he cared too much for my brother to do such a thing, and his power was growing to the point of becoming uncontainable. Before he left, he vowed that he'd be back and would reveal just how blind we'd all been to the threat of the Darkness. Things were tense after that- my mother had a falling out with my Uncle and Aunt, and Mathias felt that he'd broken his promise to my other mother.
"Time went on, and my brother's act of treachery inspired dark thoughts in the minds of the City's citizens. The Guardians' purpose was questioned, as was their ability to defend us. Some began to wonder if he was right, if humanity would ever be free from the Darkness's grasp. As it turns out, that had been what my brother hoped for all along- and when the opportunity presented itself, the next stage of his plan came to fruition."
"And … what was that?" Clara whispered fearfully.
Talia's eyes shone with the telltale glistening of tears, but they burned with the memory that was forever etched in her mind.
"He returned."
Next chapter is a flashback chapter. If you want to know what to expect from it, its theme is 'Lockdown' from the Age of Extinction OST. Go ahead and give it a search on YouTube.
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Until the next time,
- Matteoarts