Alina found an old garden center of some sort near the cache site. It was two stories high, and almost resembled a square doughnut with wild flowers growing in a center courtyard. She found that the walls provided her a buffer from most outside noises and the flowers brought her a calm that she hadn't felt since she was risen. She meditated yesterday while receiving instruction on the light and how it powered her. She could feel it as Ghost had described it. Now she was on the roof looking down at the garden... it wasn't bringing her peace at the moment.

"So what, just jump to the other side? Just like that? I should make it?"

"No no no! Focus! I told you yesterday, jump, and while you are in the air jump again. It will work, and If it doesnt I'll heal you up likety-split."

"That would hurt quite a bit, there is a lot of stonework down there."

"Focus! You dont want to go down there you want to go over there! If all you think about is the garden that's where you'll end up. Close your eyes and do that breathing thing you did yesterday. When you calm down give it a try."

Alina closed her eyes and began breathing: in through the nose, out through the mouth. With each exhale she imagined herself sinking into something warm and soft. She lost track of time and her surroundings, after a while her heartbeat slowed and she was verging on the edge of sleep. Her eyes snapped open, she stood up from the half crouch she had assumed, and focused on the other side of the roof she jumped- a split second later she jumped again, her mind completely clear of doubt or thought. She had caught air, but she didn't shoot up like she had expected, it was more of a glide to the other side. She lost some height, but managed to grab on to the balcony on the second level just below.

"Oof"

She climbed over the rail and caught her breath before looking up at Ghost and giving a two-thumbs-up cheer.

Ghost nodded in cool approval, but his fins twirled wildly with excitement.

"Good job! Now jump from there to here! Dont wait for the second jump, do it immediately and you will gain some altitude before the glide!"

Alina grabbed the rail and brought herself up to balance on it. After the first jump the hight no longer bothered her and she immediately jumped as instructed. This time she landed perfectly beside Ghost as he circled her and gave congratulations. She beamed under his praise but the moment didn't last long.

Ghost gasped and fell to the ground, at the same time Alina felt like she was punched in the stomach. She too gasped for breath as she fell forward and caught herself with one hand. If she had anything in her stomach she would have thrown it up.

"Gua-rdian" he managed.

Alina couldn't speak or stand yet but crawled over and scooped her Ghost up. She was dizzy but his eye was dimmed and his fins drooped like they were too heavy to lift.

"Guardian, something is wrong. I'm sorry but something is terribly, horribly wrong."

"Dont Panic, dont panic." Alina gasped as she sat up and waited for the feeling to pass. "You mentioned earlier that you can contact others very far away, can you do that now? Someone can come help us."

"No I, I cant contact anyone! I cant even channel the light to you in any meaningful way, I- wait a minute... the cache! It has a beacon we need to set off before we take the ship to alert the city of our arrival and to request a resupply! Someone should come!"

Alina gently held Ghost to her chest as she stood up on shaky legs. Carefully, and like an old woman, she hobbled down both sets of stairs before exiting and walking towards the Cache.

"It's only about a mile or two away, but when you set it off, Fallen might be attracted to it... I dont know if others are experiencing this but... Guardian, they might not come."

"Someone will come Ghost, and if they be Fallen, well, we will stay a good distance away and observe."

It was dark when they found the cache in an old warehouse. A ship was covered in a tarp, it had a pointed tip with two large, cylindrical engines on either side. They found a Sparrow too, and after some coaching from Ghost she got the hang of driving it, even if she never brought it to full speed. She was ravenous by this point. Now without the light's power she began to realize it had been suppressing some of life's more unpleasant feelings and desires... like the desire of sleep. Besides basic survival supplies in a back pack, Alina found about two weeks worth of rations. After packing all she could onto the Sparrow she sat down to eat. There was a cot here as well, and since it was getting dark, they decided to stay the night and move the beacon away from the ship before activating it in the morning. Alina didn't know how to fly it and Ghost said he couldn't in his current state.

She felt much better the next Morning, but still a shadow of her former self. They brought the beacon out to an open field and activated it. They sped away to some sort of factory nearby and climed up to the roof. From there, with the help of some binoculars from the pack, she observed from afar. Eventually she sat back for lunch and placed Ghost on her lap.

"So you think something happened to the Traveler itself?" Alina inquired between bites. "Please explain your theory."

"Well, this has never happened before. Even in a dark zone, (a place where we cannot normally raise our Guardians,) but we can still channel enough light to give you the basics of Void, Solar, or Arc. Oh how I wish I could have seen which power you would have discovered first!"

Alina realised her Ghost, who was usually so enthusiastic and chipper was really depressed. After all, all this time he had searched for her with the intention of accomplishing greatness, only to be stripped of all his power and future potential. She chewed a granola bar thoughtfully at that.

"Galileo."

"What was that?" The ghost asked, his dower mood taking a slightly concerned tone at the random word.

"I think you and I were ment to make some amazing discoveries, and achieve great things... I dont know where I got that word... or rather name from..."

"Galileo: an ancient astronomer amongst other things, accredited with major early scientific discoveries of his time. It's a name that bore great weight. Are you sure?"

"And quite a name to live up to." Alina added thoughtfully between bites of her rations. She swallowed and set him down on the ground before her. Standing up, she smoothed her makeshift robes and went into another deep bow before him.

"Galileo, I am your Guardian Alina. I am honored to finally meet you formally. Let us still aspire to do great things, no matter the challenges we face."

Galileo's eye brightened and he managed to float a little while his fins slowly spun around him. With effort, he bowed slightly back.

"I will aid you in any endeavor you chase. My great knowledge passed to me by thousands of years worth of Ghosts is at your disposal. But please, my friends call me Leo."

Alina giggled and scooped him back up.

"Alright Leo, I'm going to get used to this meditation thing. Could you keep an eye out for me?"

"Yes mam!"

Hours passed. Eventually Alina stopped meditating and they talked about some of the notable Guardians who should be at the Tower.

"-and Zavala is the leader of the Vanguard. Got all that?"

"You went rather quickly, but I think so. Does that make him the ruler of the city?"

"Officially no. But if he wanted something done you can bet it would get done."

"Tell me more about these factions... Dead Orbit and the like."

"Not much to say really. Their intentions change every mortal generation but... Oh! Something is coming!"

She grabbed him and ducked down behind an old AC unit. Peeking out, Alina watched as a long, rounded ship broke out from the cloud cover. It hovered near the beacon and several, four armed creatures hopped out. One was much larger, and had an enormous horned helmet upon his head. They fanned out and searched the sight cautiously.

"Fallen. Red Devils from the look of it. Let's get out of here, normally this would be nothing, but in our state its hopeless."

She began to move before something else caught her eye.

"Look!"

A second ship burst through the clouds: smoke billowing behind two, massive engines mounted on a cockpit for a single passenger. The whole design looked horribly inefficient, but she didn't complain when a rocket split off from it's belly and slammed into the Fallen ship. Fire and shrapnel burst in every direction and the aliens were caught in it. Several were crushed, and the few survivors hid behind cover.

The ship was losing altitude, and struggled to slow it's decent before crashing further down the field. A figure kicked off the hatch and fell out behind the craft.

"Guardian! The Captain has an energy shield protecting him but it's been weakened from the blast. Our new friend needs covering fire!"

Reaching behind her for the rifle that had been found strapped to the sparrow, Alina brought the scope to her eye. Despite never wielding such a weapon before she found the movement natural and let out an exhale before taking the shot.

BANG!

The shield went down, causing the Captain to stumble and the other aliens to cower.

BANG!

The Captain dropped. His head popped like a balloon and some sort of wisping smoke escaped the wound. The remaining few began bolting but didn't make it far. Their "friend" was on the move.

Even from here she could tell he was massive. Armor adorned every bit of him and his head was crested by a singular, large bristling fin that gave him an even larger appearance. He brought out a shotgun and went to work.

It was brutal.

Seeing the threat passed, Alina had stopped shooting. This guy had no such moral conundrums as he destroyed the fleeing beings with brutal efficiency. As the last of them went down he took a moment to examine his work. Eventually his gaze turned up towards Alina. He waved.

"Is that a Guardian?"

"Or a Warlord... no wait, I recognize his Ghost's signature. This one is powerful, best proceed carefully."

She waved back and gathered her pack. Below, they met up at the entrance of the factory. Her mind churned for some sort of proper greeting but the stranger spoke first.

"Are you the one who activated the beacon? Travelers light look at you, you're but a child!"

Turning around without waiting for a reply from the shocked Awoken, the Titan took off his helmet to reveal a mechanical face and held up an equally hurting ghost.

A sudden anger overtook her and she opened her mouth to give a retort, but before she could they were interrupted.

"HEY!"

Leo rolled out of Alina's hand and onto the floor, dragging himself towards him with a tired but angry glare.

"You will NOT address my Guardian in such a matter! I have not searched for her for the span of three hundred mortal lives just for some NINCOMPOOP to dismiss her after she saved your neck! Shame! Shame on you!"

Each cry of "shame" seemed to hit the Titan like a hammer and she noticed him deflate ever so slightly. Something Leo had told her the other day resonated in her mind:

'Titans highly value honor. Simply speaking a certain way can get you in good with them... or can get them to do what you want.'

"Honored Light... forgive me."

The Titan set his Ghost on his shoulder and bent down, gingerly scooping Leo up with both hands and offering him back to Alina.

"And I thank you Guardian. For helping me out there. I am... unaccustomed to fighting without my light."

So it was true then, she wasn't the only one affected.

"You are most welcome sir. Although I admit I was hoping for something of a rescue myself." She looked at his Ghost with concern.

A smile without mirth reached his synthetic mouth, and he clenched his fist.

"I wish I could do more. I am Karn-7. I have spent the last week and a half monitoring Cabal movements on Mars." As he talked he began reloading and checking his weapon with a casual and experienced eye. "The Empire has been shifting their forces around heavily lately and we wanted to know why. To late, I discovered the attack was against us. I lost my light on the way back to Earth and saw the Last City besieged: some monstrosity of a ship engulfing the Traveler. I didn't want to flee, but with their fleet I stood no chance in the air and took damage in my retreat. I know someone in this region, and was hoping this beacon was her. You have my humblest apologies for my initial treatment of you." And with that he took a stiff but formal salute.

"There is nothing to forgive Karn-7. I have only been alive a short time, but I have heard wonders of the Last City and her people and this news... pains me greatly. Any aid I can render is at your service."

She countered his salute with a graceful bow and Karn actually laughed.

"Oh honored light, you have taught her manners too. I never thought I would see such a sight... I just wish this was under better circumstances. Come! I would never leave a fellow Guardian alone in a new world so vulnerable, no matter my condition."

He shouldered his shotgun and gestured for her to lead the way. She showed him the speeder, the ship, and the supplies she had gathered and he nodded approvingly.

"A wise move finding this cache Guardian... I am sorry, I never caught your names."

"Oh! Right! I am Alina, this is Galileo. We have a better place to stay just a short trip from here. We should rest there before trying to find your friend."

Karn nodded. "Take the Sparrow back, I will follow in the ship... I'm familiar with the model... Place the beacon in here and leave it on while I go salvage some items from my old ship, all this metal and piping will dampen the signal and make it hard to pinpoint its exact location. My friend is the one responsible for the cache placements and will check on it it if she still lives."

An hour later of packing, Karn stopped her and presented Alina with three weapons. Each was similar in design and well maintained, despite their obvious age. A revolver, a shotgun, and a large machine gun bound by chain.

"These are the weapons of the Seven Seraphs of Russia, agents of the Warmind Rasputin. I have kept them for some time for just such an occasion. Take care of them, and may they serve you well."

"Thank you." Alina said as she picked up the hand cannon and inspected it. It was an elegant weapon, and felt comfortable in her hand. Looking at the bound machine gun she added: "What's the story behind that one?"

Karn was already busy checking out the new ship and merely glanced back.

"A necessity. It's jaws were too eager in times of peace. Shouldn't be an issue now, just be careful."

Not reassured by the statement, Alina cautiously equipped her new weapons, strapping the old ones to the Sparrow. The trip back to the garden dwelling was uneventful, and they had to spend the night removing the rusted out vehicles of the underground garage to make space for the ship. Even without his light, Karn had impressive strength, but both collapsed in exhaustion afterwards.

"This building is an excellent spot to lie low for a few days." Karn commented. "Not too big to attract attention, far enough from the city to be overlooked by scavengers, and we can see much from the roof. I reccomend using this space for a while until I can get word from any allies."

"Alright." Alina gasped. How long should we wait for your friend? Just in case... you know..."

A short growl came from the Titan as he stood up and stretched.

"As long as we have supplies for Warlock. Let us get some sleep. For the first time in our lives, we will need it for what is to come."