Hi Author here, ALRIGHT! That's a lot of feedback here! Let's start small, Cogito, that's latin for 'I think' ironic considering it took me a good 2-3 hours to come up with that. Following that theme I'm naming the Guardian 'Custos' (literally just Latin for Guardian) since I realized that I can't just have everything/one referring to the Guardian as the Guardian. I just didn't want to do any of the cliché ghost names like Lux, lumos and all the other random words for light you can come up with (Yes I know I already used Sparks for Raz-22's ghost). With Anders and the Goblin, there is no deeper meaning in the Ves'x plans. The thing shut down without a higher ranking being to boss it around, only to reactivate when it entered a universe where there was higher ranking Vex around. As for the Spirit's size in reference to Ghaul's flagship, I figured it'd be a bit pathetic if the 'Dominus of the Red Legion' was flying around in something smaller than the spirit. I mean his rank's AT LEAST equivalent to a Sangheili Fleetmaster… and I don't think I've heard of any of those that don't have an assault carrier lying around for a flagship. As for the nano-machines… yes. Both times SIVA tried to kill Guardians it was being controlled by something, be it that Rasputin fragment or the Fallen. The tool is not evil, only the wielder, though Rasputin was in a bit of a weird place at the time. Besides, SIVA has far too much plot potential for me to just leave it rusting in the Plaguelands! Another thing, noting the AI issues. I going to have it so that while Destiny AI will not have a lifespan they are not immune to rampancy. I mean, look at Evil Failsafe! "I heard that." YEESH not now Evil Failsafe! Enough time alone or in bad conditions would break even the best Destiny AI, even Rasputin. I'm thinking it would be like good ole 343-Guilty Spark going nuts stuck on Installation 04. Lastly Cogito will NOT be needing to break into the SOF's systems… yet. When he was blasting the message at Calus he was doing it on every channel… and loud enough that a monkey with a tinfoil hat could pick it up. Everyone on the Spirit heard that. They might not have understood what half of it meant but they still got the message. SO now we have the first meetings…
Dialogue Chart
"Person speaking"
|Ghost Speaking|
"Alien speaking"
{AI Speaking}
Adding [ ] before any of these means the being in question is thinking
'Something being referred to with air quotations'
Anything else
Date Unknown
Location Nessus Unstable Centaur
Persons of interest
Serina: 2nd Gen Smart AI
Captain James Cutter: Cpt of the SoF
Jerome-092
Alice-130
Douglas-042
No POV
Silent. The bridge, no, the entire ship was utterly silent. Upon picking up the signal blasting from that fighter, Serina immediately reported it to the Captain who told her to connect them to it. The result being the entire ship hearing the brief negotiations between an 'Emperor Calus' and what said Emperor called a 'Light-bearer.' While the rest of the bridge began to panic afterwards, recalling the one from the fighter bargaining for the right to 'Deal with them personally' Serina began using the ship to conduct a deep scan on both the fighter and their general surroundings, in hopes they might be able to contact some UNSC forces in the area. However, she was met with nothing, nothing but unknown signals. Not ONE UNSC OR UEG transmission, IN SOL! THE HOME SYSTEM! As she began to panic alongside the rest of the crew, the results of the fighter scan came back. The onboard systems noted an issue with the ships' atomic makeup, but that was shelved in favor of the report on its sole occupant, its human occupant. As such she composed herself and reported this discovery.
Cutter's POV
{Captain, I've taken the liberty of scanning the surrounding area and have a few things to report.} Serina blurted out, interrupting the bridge crew's frenzied discussions on whether or not to contact or blast the unknown. ["Finally, we need more info on how to deal with this."] I thought to myself. "What have you found Serina." I ask politely. {First off, there is only a single occupant aboard that fight, a human occupant I might add.} The AI informed them. A wave of tension seemed to evaporate from the bridge crew with that, the thought of making contact with an unknown alien race was weighing heavily on them. "And.." I lead, knowing that won't be all. {There appear to be… no UNSC or UEG signals in the area…} She said hesitantly. That was bad. No human signals in the home system could mean only a few things, all very bad. "Serina are you saying…" I begin to stammer.
"INCOMING TRANSMISSION, IT'S FROM THE FIGHTER!" Shouts one of the bridge crew suddenly. "Put it through!" I order, we would have to deal with the potential fate of humanity later, not to mention the potential source of information hovering several thousand meters in front of us. {Patching us through, hmm their transmission signal is rather bizzare, unlike before, I wouldn't even be able to notice it if it wasn't being directed at us.} Serina murmured.
"Hello," Then the voice from the fighter blared through the bridge intercom. Taking a moment to recompose myself I respond. "Greetings, I am Captain James Cutter of the UNSC Spirit of Fire, might I know who I am speaking to?" There is a moment of silence on the other end before the unknown names itself, "My name is Custos and I am a Guardian of the Vanguard of the Last City." Guardian, Vanguard, Last City, all unknown terms, though the potential implications of 'The Last City' were massive. "Now, regardless of how nice it is to talk, I will be blunt and ask, are you human?" Custos asked. I see no reason not to reply, "Yes, we most certainly are. Though I must ask why it would not be obvious as well as why we are not receiving any UNSC signals despite being in the Sol System?" ["This is the moment of truth, whether or not this venture was worth it came down to Custos' response"] I think to myself. "I apologize, but I am unfamiliar with the terminology, what is the UNSC?" The supposed 'Guardian' asks in response. This puzzles the crew. It would be one thing to learn of the worst, to know that humanity had been all but annihilated and this Custos was one of the last survivors, but this? To not even now what the UNSC was in the first place? Something was wrong here. "Now, this is a rather forward request and I fully understand if you don't agree but I would like to dock my jump-ship with your vessel. You have travelled through a Vex Gateway, to our knowledge, without necessary protective measures. I have an AI on my person that could confirm if the Vex have formed any intrusions on your ship, be they digital or physical." The Light-bearer offered. ["Absolutely not'] Was my first thought. To allow an AI of unknown origin to tamper with the Spirit's systems was not something any sane Captain would allow. Just as I was about to order the ship shot down I was interrupted.
"Captain, I believe we should accept." Over the intercom came the voice of Jerome-092