Chapter 2: Fallen

The alien children were the ones screaming the most as they scattered. Handfulls dove into the buildings, burrowing into the rubble with impossible speed. Others ran for the adults and hid behind them, crying from terror. The adults themselves were obviously at a complete loss at what to do, the two-armed ones sprinting for outlying cover while the two slender adults tried to shield the little ones and the broad-shouldered one tried to shield them, rifle forward.

But he wasn't firing. Yet.

Polaris didn't help the situation. Upon making his abrupt greeting and realizing what exactly was surrounding them, he gave a little scream of alarm himself and phased back out of existence, yelling into her ear to take cover and or run. Preferably run.

But Aurora didn't move. She just stood there in the open, watching the frightened aliens in a curious haze. Her mind wasn't on the rifle pointed at her head, it more on the astounding thought that she had just stumbled onto an alien field trip. She just stood there for a second and let that thought roll around in her head- she could see it clearly. It would've been like her at a historical site learning about cavemen when a dinosaur walks out of the cave. The two thinner adults where the teachers/tour guides, the two two-armed ones where the assistants carrying the food maybe, and the bigger one with the weapon was the escort. How does she go about this?

So she just stood there awkwardly, watching the pack of aliens as they peered at her with double pairs of wide eyes around corners and over barriers. The adults started whispering among each other, the 'teachers' attempting to prod the escort alien forward a bit. He obviously didn't want to, but he did anyways, cautiously lowering his rifle to a low-ready position and keeping his lower hands on his knives.

He was tall, relatively clean-looking, with well-maintained armor with white colors and cloth. He wore a helm and mask with pipes leading to cannisters on his back, which apparently was a common feature among the adults. His voice was raspy, his head bobbing as his throat tried to tackle some of the stranger sounds of the English language.

"You are- Guaaardian, Yess?"

Aurora nodded, fear gone from her eyes and replaced with warry fascination. "Yes."

The Fallen looked semi-skeptical. She apparently didn't look much like a Guardian.

He gestured to the empty spot on her shoulder "Your… ghost?"

She nodded again, holding out her hand for Polaris to pop into, which the little thing very much refused to do.

"Come-on Polaris, it's ok. They need to know I'm a Guardian."

His voice echoed a little bit in her head as he spoke from phase. "Aurora! Those are Fallen, did you hear any of my stories about Twilight Gap or Six Fronts? Any of that? They'll kill me!"

Her voice became a bit stern as the Fallen in front of her fidgeted as she seemingly talked to the air. "Polaris. It'll be ok. Come out now."

So he did, with a little tinkle that drew gasps from the little Fallen hidden around them. The big one nodded satisfactorily and slung his rifle, dropping his lower hands from his shock blades. The two other adults sighed in relief and began gathering up the younger Fallen, who were staring in fearful fascination.

"Guarrrdian. I apologize for… the gun. Did not know… if you 'start shooting before talking'." He stood up straight and proudly tapped his chest. "I… am Vandal Akriis. Warrior of House Light."

Aurora, wrapped awkwardly in her blanket, gave him a small wave. "Hi! I'm uh… my name is Aurora. And my ghost is Polaris."

The Vandal tilted his head to the side, eyes blinking in a rotating sequence as he studied her. "Ow…awe… Aw-roar-augh?"

She giggled. She couldn't help herself. "Yeah, close enough. You can call me whatever you'd like though."

The Vandal nodded thoughtfully, looking her up and down with a squint. He pointed at her blanket. "Where… did you find that?"

She looked down at it and shrugged. "I don't know. My ghost got it from somewhere around here last night."

He nodded again and grabbed a corner, unraveling a bit to reveal the edge of a symbol that matched the one on his chest. An orb with two different crossed swords behind it. He glanced at the church to his right and 'hmphed'. Being a Fallen, it did sound more growlish than he probably intended but Aurora got the idea.

She was wearing a House Light banner as a blanket.

Her face went pale and Polaris re-entered phase in a guilty panic. Akriis, hand still on the corner of the blanket, studied her, eyes blinking in a clockwise pattern. He quietly let the corner go and held out his two top hands.

Aurora almost tripped herself to get the banner off and hand it to him, apologizing so fast that Polaris doubted the Vandal caught anything of what she said. When she handed it to him he turned and barked at one of the two-armed aliens, who skittered over to put it back up at the proper place. Akriis turned back to her and looked her up and down again, shivering in her thin spinmetal jumpsuit. It was getting easier for him to speak English, she noticed. The practice must be helping him remember.

"Why does the Lightbearer carry no weaponss? No armor?"

Polaris cautiously re-appeared. "She is newly-Risen. About two weeks ago. We've been traveling south trying to get to our own kind. We didn't mean to trespass."

A quick shake of the head. "No trespass. We of House Light are allies to Lightbearers. Both of us serve the Great Machine." The Vandal shook his head, gesturing the other two-armed Fallen forward. "It is middle of the cold time. How have you survived these days without covering?"

Aurora shrugged off-handedly. "I haven't. I think I've been freezing to death almost every night, but the daytimes haven't been too bad." Akriis looked a little unsettled as he took a folded piece of cloth from the smaller Fallen and handed it to her. "I… see. Take this. It will keep your Ether warm until we make it back to camp."

"Oh! Uh… thank you." She unraveled it and immediately put it on- it was an ill-fitting cloak, made for a creature more stunted than her own tall, graceful form, but it was another layer, so Aurora was grateful.

Akriis nodded and turned to the two fully-armed adults, speaking to them in the Fallen's own guttural language. Immediately they began herding the little ones into the center of the destroyed plaza, helped along by the two-armed Fallen.

Akriis, however, didn't move. "You said you came from the north? How far?"

Aurora shrugged. Polaris, still sort of hiding behind his Guardian, had a more accurate answer. "We've traveled maybe 150 miles from the north. Pretty much in a straight line too. My Guardian has been amazing!"

The Eliksni growled and barked at the other Fallen, spurring them to corral the pups faster. "A House Dusk baron holds his court in that territory. He hates all those of the Great Machine, thinks us traitors. If you escaped his territory without obtaining pursuit by his patrols, I worry that he rallies his forces. No one escapes the patrols of House Dusk. SHANJA! Irksẻes ichra chol! Krẻea!"

Immediately the other four adults started herding the suddenly sober small ones along the main road out of the ruined town, the two-armed ones leading, the smaller adults in the middle, with Akriis and Aurora taking up the rear.

She honestly didn't realize she hadn't asked to tag along until a good ten minutes into the little caravan's trip.

/

The Awoken found the walk rather pleasant. The sun was making pretty sparkles on the surrounding blanket of snow, she had warm clothes on her back, and the pemmican from the night before was still sitting comfortably in her middle. And, being both the curious type and one of those people who feel the need to make conversation in quiet moments, she decided to grill the stoic Vandal next to her as they walked. Where to start though?

"Akriis?"

He grunted.

"Why do those Fallen in front only have two arms?"

The vandal took a careful sniff at the wind before answering. "They are called Dregs by my people. Stunts, low-born. Weaklings. Their lower arms are docked at a young age to ensure they know their place."

Aurora was horrifyingly fascinated. "You cut your children's arms off?"

Akriis sighed, smelly light blue mist coming out of his rebreather at the extra huff. "The Fallen do, yes. Us Eliksni do not. House Light seeks to follow the old ways of our ancestors. Before we became the honorless pirates other Eliksni are known for."

"Then why do those two miss arms?"

"Because they are refugees. Fleeing from their own Houses to join House Light. House Light was started by Mithrax-Kell not too long ago. We are not one of the original Houses of old. Only seeking to follow in their footsteps. Only a few younger Eliksni are true House Light. The rest of us- House Light is second chance."

"Oh. You included?

The Vandal whinced and only gave her a single nod.

Aurora could tell he didn't want to talk about it. "What about those other two?"

"They are two of my mates, Shanja and Pikriks."

"Oh! Soo… are all of these…"

"Pups, you humans call them."

"Pups… yours?"

The Vandal nodded proudly, watching a few of the bigger ones trapse along with the females, the littler one running around on all sixes. "Some."

"Wow. They're actually kinda cute! Can I hold one?"

This earned her very surprised look from the Eliksni next to her. "The younger one's limbs will soon tire. The Guardian may do as they please."

And to Aurora's delight, as the walk went on many of the braver pups wanted to be held. She was soon laughing along with an Eliksni pup on both legs, one on her shoulders, and a particularly small one in her arms. They were enraptured with her smooth skin, two eyes, hair, everything. To them she was as exotic and fascinating as a firetruck was to human toddlers.

And she was equally fascinated by them. She was amazed to see they already were proficient at using their second pair of arms to climb and hang on as she walked, chittering in their own language as they enjoyed the ride. She was also surprised to see that their skin was an interesting mix of both crustacean-like plates and tough reptilian-ish skin. The nostrils where forward-facing on the nose, and a second pair allowed the Eliksni similar heat-detection abilities to that of most snakes. All of this information Aurora logged into her head for her to think over later.

She could almost feel Polaris's 'yep, warlock' in the back of her consciousness.

The sun was at its apex when Aurora sighted smoke in the distance, and the Eliksni around her all perked up. Akriis himself seemed to give a heave of relief before moving to the front of the little band and barking some orders. The group picked up the pace a little, and the pups riding with Aurora sadly moved up to their mother's spot in the trail.

The Vandal moved back to his spot next to Aurora. "We're coming up on our encampment. We will first send the cubs in and await Captain Siriks' permission for you to enter. He will want to see you."

"Sounds good!"

The encampment itself was distinctly… alien. Bulbous and spikey seemed to be the overarching theme in the various round buildings/huts clustered together, all with various color schemes matched with white. Two small dropship-looking craft were moored just outside of the boundaries, both being tinkered on by Eliksni.

Aurora shivered involuntarily and pulled her cloak a bit tighter around herself as the pups, females, and dregs went ahead and entered the busy little place.

"Wow. That's… a lot smaller than what I thought it was going to be."

Ryksiis shrugged as he fiddled with his rifle. "What's the saying of the humans? More than meets the eyes? Most of the Kiess are little more than entrances to the bunkers below. Easier to keep warm."

"Huh." Now that she thought about it, she did see the entire group of children disappear into a hut that wouldn't possibly fit all of them. Her train of thought was interrupted by the approach of what looked like another vandal, this one' white cloth and markings accented by dark grey. And whoever he was, the Guardian's presence seemed to make him blatantly uncomfortable.

The two vandals conferred in hushed tones for a bit before they set off for the settlement, Akriis waving Aurora along to follow. The trio headed for the largest structure there, placed right smack dab in the center.

As they entered the hazy room Aurora could feel Polaris' apprehension grow. She mentally patted that little presence in her consciousness and immediately felt him brighten, both reminding themselves that they had a definite friend with them.

After just a short trip they entered the main room. It was circled in House Light banners, computer terminals placed haphazardly along the wall along with other assorted pieces of unidentifiable technology. In the center what looked like an alien captain's chair, decently comfy-looking, with computer screens on the armrests and more banners hanging from poles on the back.

But Aurora wasn't really looking at the chair. Floating ominously behind it was a positively humongous black orb with a single purple eye, mumbling with a deep voice as it oversaw a handful of mohawked dregs. Her brain started racing as she tried to figure out what it was. Was it a robot? Was it some sort of cyborg? What is it for? What does it do?

Then she saw who had just sat down in the chair. It was a massive Eliksni, easily twelve feet tall, his helmet's angled frill adding yet another two feet to his height. Three of his four eyes glittered as he stared at her, Aurora noticing the right rear eye was sutured shut from an old wound. His top pair of his hands were interlocked in thoughtful concentration- all while his bottom pair lingered threateningly near the hilts of a pair of massive cutlasses.

Silence descended on the room as the dozens of fallen finally noticed their visitor. Akriis and the other Vandal both bowed their heads and respectfully crossed their top fists, stepping to either side of Aurora.

The Awoken suddenly felt VERY out of place.

The Captain slowly gestured to Akriis and spoke a single word in a voice so raspy and deep it hurt Aurora's throat to hear it. The Vandal nodded and started giving his report, hands moving animatedly as he described (what Aurora assumed) was his encounter with her. All the while the Captain's gaze constantly fell from her to Akriis, impossible to decipher. Finally Akriis finished and the Captain said a short sentence, gesturing one of his lower arms at the Guardian. Every Eliksni's eyes fell on her.

"Captain Siriks wishes to see your ghost, in order to prove your claim as a Lightbearer."

Polaris gave a little squeak of terror in Aurora's mind. She immediately started sending soothing thoughts his way as she nodded in understanding. Then, with a hint of hesitation not missed by the keen eyes of Siriks, she held out her hand. "Come on out Polaris. Just for a little bit little guy."

So, with a frightened tinkle of Light, Polaris popped into her palm and stared at the Captain, his eye a terrified dot in his central core. The Captain leaned forward a bit to get a closer look. Then, with a satisfied nod, he sat back and addressed Akriis again. Polaris took the chance to enter the safety of phase again.

"The Captain wishes to know your plans."

Aurora blinked. "Wow. That's up front. Uh…" Siriks' eyes narrowed a hair. Aurora gulped. "Don't translate that. I'm trying to get to the Last City. That's where more Guardians are, right?"

Akriis translated. The Captain didn't move for a bit, before saying something else, multiple sentences this time. The poor guy's raspy voice just seemed to get worse the longer he talked.

"The Captain wishes to inform you that his skiffs have been damaged in battle and will be unable to take you to the Great Machine. He offers the Guardian a choice. She may either weather the Cold Months here or be supplied by the Captain's generosity and set off on the road that she must take."

"So either hang out here for the winter or he will give me supplies and send me off?"

Akriis nodded. "Yesss."

"Uh… any catches?"

Akriis tilted his head. Aurora tried to clarify. "You know, like is there anything that I'd have to do for staying or for the supplies?"

Akriis translated. The Captain barked a laugh, catching Aurora completely off guard. His answer seemed to be in a bit more of an amused tone than what she was expecting. "Aktul, greaa u riksẻes kantra lurlll. Yansha exsiis keiss-traa. Vorrix trasik."

"If the Guardian wishes to leave us and travel through House Light territory, the supplies will be given freely, as ally to ally. But if the Guardian wishes to stay, their Keiss must be earned. Winter is long here."

Aurora nodded. Through their mental link, she asked her ghost his opinion. 'what're you thinking buddy?'

She could feel her ghost's apprehension. 'to be honest, the LAST thing I want to do is stay here. But also to be honest, I don't think it's a good idea to be taking a multi-continent hike in the middle of a Northern winter. These last two weeks have been more than rough. So I'd say stay. At least long enough for you to rest up a bit.'

'I like that idea. These aliens are really interesting too. It'd give me a chance to study them.'

'Guardian. You find EVERYTHING interesting.'

Aurora straightened up and looked the Captain in the eye. "If you approve, I'd like to stay the winter within your encampment. In return for housing, clothing, and food, I will do my best to help you as a Guardian should."

A quick translation later, and the Captain heaved himself out of his chair and stalked over to Aurora, giving her one more look before holding out one of his upper hands.

With a quick handshake, the deal was set. Aurora was now a temporary resident in a House Light encampment buried deep within the northern European mountains.