Chapter 6
It's been about two months since me and my mother arrived here, and other than taking the time to explore the city some more. Nothing much has happened since I was attacked. Yar has not made another appearance since the night we arrived and nothing else has happened, though I know I am much more careful each time I leave the apartment so as to not be caught off guard like I was before.
Over time I have grown a bit restless as I spend night after night trying to think of some solution to stop what is coming. We were slowly draining our reserve of money now that Moruun isn't able to help, and most of the menial jobs that I was able to do were taken by the large unggoy population. Anything more than hard labor wasn't something I was exactly qualified for… excluding becoming a Covenant warrior.
With time slowly ticking away around me, I became frustrated. I couldn't think of anything that I could do that would be worthwhile in stopping the coming disaster. I have spent a lot of time trying to think of a plan, from trying to become a pirate to smuggle technology to the UNSC in order to even the odds, to flying a phantom over the dreadnaught and setting off an antimatter charge over the golden city to kill the prophets… but in the end, each plan was shot down for one reason or another.
Angry with my lack of progress, I decided to at least try and see what exactly I am trying to fight.
Even though I've seen the ships and the destruction they can cause, the Covenant itself was still just a fuzzy memory in the back of my mind. From what I could remember, the Covenant was this all encompassing evil filled with blindly following religious zealots, and not the civilization of individual people each trying to live their lives as best they can that I can see in front of me.
Even living here in the Covenant's Holy City, the military wasn't an all encompassing part of everyday life. Sure, ships ranging from phantoms to corvettes would sometimes be flying from one spot to another in the city, but the Covenant troopers would only be seen rarely in the lower districts.
As I aimlessly walk, I hear the unmistakable sound of a large crowd nearby. I could easily hear a lot of voices overlapping and footsteps all moving in the same area. Deciding to see what was going on, I followed the sounds.
Eventually after casually walking inbetween buildings for some time, I end up stumbling upon one of the main walkways that lead toward the center of the city. Looking up, I see the looming form of the forerunner dreadnought far in the distance.
Seeing a large crowd making their way toward the ship, I decide to ask someone. Looking around until I found a single unggoy close to me, I walked over and wiggle his methane tank a little to gain his attention. His beady eyes look up to me in confusion, and a bit of fear.
"Hey, where is everyone going?"
The grunt wriggles away from me, before turning and continuing on his way a bit faster than before.
Angry at the little guy ignoring my question, I decide to just follow the crowd to their destination. Starting at a steady pace, I begin my journey toward the Golden City.
(\(*v*)/)
It turns out the dreadnaught was surprisingly easy to access.
Well… not directly accessible, but I found out that anyone could very easily get close to it. Because the Forerunner ship was the centerpiece of the Covenant's entire religion, the area directly surrounding the ship was absolutely littered with prayer centers and devout worshippers.
Following the crowd, I ended up being led to an absolutely massive coliseum-like space directly beneath the dreadnaught. Every race from sangheili to San'Shyuum were spread out in a massive circle around an open space down below which appeared to be mostly empty. The only thing I could see in the area worthy of note was a massive platform directly in the center of the space.
Surprisingly enough, the crowd seemed rather peaceful with no arguments or fights breaking out as you would normally see. Everyone seemed excited for something.
And I still don't know what I'm even doing here.
Thankfully if I stretched my legs out to their full length, I could easily see over all but the tallest jiralhanae. The slope leading down makes it rather easy to get a clear view. The area somewhat reminded me of a sports stadium.
Confused as to why a crowd this large would be gathering to look on an empty platform in a gigantic hole in the ground, I decided to try and ask what was going on again.
Glancing around, I tried to find someone that would finally answer my question as to what was happening. Every unggoy and Kig-yar that I met along the way rudely ignored me or insulted me for following a crowd without knowing why.
They aren't exactly wrong.
Glancing around, I spotted a lone San-Shyuum who was hovering in the crowd high enough to get a view but low enough to be considered part of the group.
He would know what's going on… but isn't it bad form to talk to someone of a higher caste than you normally?
Looking around the prophet, I see that no one directly around the floating being was even paying attention to him other than one sangheili honor guard.
They are religious leaders, right? Maybe if I phrase my question as if it is a matter of faith, he will answer me.
Making my mind up, I decide to at the very least try. Carefully, I start making my way through the massive crowd. Pushing my way around stacks of unggoy standing on each other's shoulders, I feel something violently push me towards the prophet, causing me to tumble into his immediate area. In order to keep my balance, I reflexively grab hold of the prophet's chair causing it to shake a little bit before leveling back out.
Whipping back around to see who pushed me, I see the menacing sight of Yar's mouth pulled into a bone chilling smile. She points up with one of her talons before spinning around and leaving.
Looking up, I could see the prophet staring down at me from his perch up high. The expression on his face was completely unreadable as he looked down at me with an eyebrow raised.
Looking back down to my hand, I realized I was still holding onto a small protrusion on the seat. The loud chatter of the crowd around us grew eerily quiet as everyone turned their gaze to the unfolding situation.
I am so dead.
Whipping my hand back to my body as fast as I possibly could, I take a few steps back towards the crowd. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to… I was pushed and-"
"Holy one, do you wish for this filth to be removed? I will gladly do so." The deep voice of the elite filled the quietness around me.
The prophet holds up his three fingered hand, waving off the honor guard. "No." Leaning over to more closely examine me, he looks me up and down. "You must really doubt your combat skills if you do not think you could protect me from a single Kig yar."
The sangheili nevertheless steps closer to me, his sword in hand, but not activated. Looking up to the hovering San'Shyuum, he waves a hand in my direction. "Holy one, you have only recently been appointed to the high council. Perhaps this Kig yar was sent to assassinate you? You shouldn't be so dismissive of the threats you now face."
Snorting, the prophet shakes his head. "I think not." Turning back to me, he waves me closer. "Tell me child, are you faithful to the Path?"
Hesitantly, I take a step closer to the prophet, who uses a small screen attached to his chair to lower himself down a bit. Out of the corner of my eye I can see the honor guard hatefully glaring at me, causing me to become even more nervous.
Knowing full well I had no other choice but to answer to the affirmative, I look up to the prophet and nod. "Yes." I could see the sangheili tense in the silence after my words, and I immediately corrected myself so I wouldn't cause offense. "Your holiness."
The prophet nods, aware of my misstep but not drawing it any attention. "And why are you here, my child?"
"I… umm… well, I don't know." I start, mentally slapping myself for sounding so stupid. I could see the prophet carefully analyzing my words, as if judging each one carefully for any hidden meanings.
"You don't know why you are here, or you came to find out?" The prophet asks sagely, somehow capturing my exact reason for being here.
Nervously, I shift my weight a bit before explaining. "I left the Kig yar sector this morning, trying to clear my head, when I came across a massive crowd filing towards… here." I gesture to the crowd, which has not returned to what they were doing now that the spectacle was over. I idly note that I can't see Yar anywhere. "I tried asking a few people what was happening, but most of them ignored me."
Humming deeply, the prophet nods. "Ah, I see. You must be new to the Holy City, no?"
Embarrassed, I nod my head.
The San'Shyuum perks up at this. "Well then, you are in for quite a treat!" He gestures to the open area directly below the center of the dreadnaught. "This is a celebration of faith, my child. The greatest warriors in our great union of species will be brought before the eyes of the gods themselves to be tasked with the continuation of our holy journey!" The prophet preaches, causing the crowd around us to begin cheering.
Looking back down to the field, I could see a few prophets floating over the column-like platform, preparing… something. It appeared to be a large metallic shield with three blank holes forming an upside down triangle. It did not look like it was made by the Covenant, causing me to believe it was made from Forerunner hands.
Carefully, they float the strange device into place on the platform before gently backing away, bowing dramatically as they do so. A small eruption of blue causes the shield-like artifact to float lazily in the air from a gravity lift placed below it.
After a moment, they place three more gravity lifts around the ridge of the pedestal, aimed carefully toward the shield-relic to make the artifact slowly spin and bob around in the air for everyone to see.
What is that?
Thankfully, due to the prophet next to me, I didn't need to wait very long for an answer.
"The Holy Oracle has been brought down from the focus of our worship to bear witness to those who would be named, zealot!"
The moment he said those words, three phantom drop ships flew overhead in a spectacular display. Spiraling around the crater-like coliseum, making their way closer and closer to the far wall of the open field. I thought they might collide with the crowd a few times, but they never do.
Feeling a slight nudge on my shoulder, I look up to the prophet who is smiling down on me from above. He leans his long neck down toward me and begins to speak quietly.
"Between you and me though? That oracle has been silent for decades. The only reason the council demanded the Oracle be used for this demonstration was to quell some growing unrest among the masses."
The honor guard grunts at the words, finally turning from me to look down on the field. "It must be a great honor for those warriors down there nonetheless. Normally the celebration is only under the grace of the dreadnaught above."
Blinking at their words, I look back down to the field. The aircraft have made it to their destination, and are letting their passengers disembark.
One by one, sangheili warriors all wearing the iconic gold combat harness of a zealot march out of the phantom's gravity lift and take a formation.
The sight of nearly forty zealots making a full circle around the massive circular field around where the Oracle was resting on was fascinating. The sheer precision of each of their steps, staying in perfect synchronization was a sight to behold.
Cheering erupted from the entire crowd around me as a single prophet descended from the dreadnaught from some unknown exit. Carefully, the lone San'Shyuum made his way toward the sangheili below. Upon his arrival, the gold clad sangheili all turn as one toward the Oracle, and kneel.
The entire crowd went quiet at their motion. The booming cheers making way for soft whispers as they observed the prophet slowly hover down to a single sangheili in the circle, stopping in front of him for a few moments before turning toward the crowd. The whispers seem to get even quieter as everyone waited for… something.
"What's happening?" I decide to quietly whisper, looking up to the San'Shyuum.
Surprisingly enough, it was the honor guard that answered. "They will be declaring their faith before the gods themselves. The philologist, keeper of the Oracle is going to go around to take their oath to the gods." The sangheili seemed lost in his thoughts as he looked toward the scene.
"Remembering your time down there, are you? It is quite the honor." The prophet responded, mirth tinged his voice.
The honor guard grunts as his only response, his attention never leaving the field below.
Floating around the circle, the lone San'Shyuum in the field begins to speak, his meek and frail voice reverberating from the ship above us.
"Let all be witness to the great warriors who kneel before the divine presence of our gods' greatest gift."
The San'Shyuum gestures to the dreadnaught looming overhead before continuing.
"They are the leaders who will guide our holy union on the Great Journey. The warriors before you have shown honor, courage, and a zealous dedication to our Path unmatched among their peers. They will be the ones who will guide us along our march to glorious salvation."
The crowd erupts into a mass of cheers yet again at the words, before the prophet lifts up a bony arm to silence them.
"Their vows shall be heard by both the gods themselves, and their devout… but before their oaths are taken, let us pray."
The entire crowd grows deathly silent as the soft words of the prophet ring through the air.
"None shall walk our path,
None deserve its mystery,
We own the right to pass,
That right is carved in history,
A gift bestowed by aeons,
A future gifted from the past,
The signs are there for all to see,
The Journey waits for us alone."
With his prayer said, the prophet floats lazily toward one of the kneeling sangheili, and begins to take his oath, the words sounding clearly through the air from both the prophet and the soon-to-be zealot.
Watching in silent awe as the philologist slowly made his circle, the entire crowd appeared completely enraptured by the scene unfolding before them. Under the focus of their religion, knelt down below one of their god's creations were the greatest warriors that the Covenant can field. Their devotion to the Great Journey was on clear display for all to see.
Even though I wasn't exactly the biggest fan of the Covenant's religion, I couldn't help but be swept away in all the excitement. This scene was something I definitely would never forget.
Suddenly, I got that feeling again… the odd feeling of being watched.
Knowing Yar was nearby, I decided to scan the crowd, but every single person was focused intently on the scene below. No one was paying me any mind as I examined the spaces in between each person, trying to find out exactly why I had this feeling.
Spotting no one, I look up to the prophet, who seems to be examining his fingernails. I thought it was rather odd, that only moments ago, he was excitedly preaching about the event, but now that it was here… he couldn't seem to care less.
Looking back down to the coliseum, I could see that the Philologist was almost done, having carefully gone around the circle of zealots. His soft voice sounded through the air around me. The feeling remained however, and I couldn't for the life of me find out why.
Until I decided to look up to the Oracle.
The empty circles that once were dormant now were glowing with a soft blue as the shield-like device floated in the air. Unlike before however, it was not spinning or bobbing around like it was before. No, now it was completely still.
And it is looking right at me.
I don't know how I knew that it was, as the artifact was nearly a half mile away, but the feeling I had just moments prior returned in full force. For a moment in time, the Oracle stared me down, freezing me in place.
I felt like I was caught by a dragon in its lair. The being before me truly felt like a god that was staring me down, one that can kill me easily with no more than just a thought.
Unable to take my eyes off the Oracle, I hear my voice speak out for me. "Umm, mister prophet sir?" The prophet's authority seems so distant now, the blue lights from the Oracle overshadowing any fear I had of the San'Shyuum next to me. "The Oracle is awake."
I could hear the shuffling of cloth as the San'Shyuum looked up, before softly gasping. A heartbeat of silence filled the air before the prophet began yelling.
"The Oracle has awoken! The Oracle has awoken!"
It began as a soft murmur, as the crowd processed his words. One by one, two by two, everyone began to speak. Over the span of only a few seconds, the entire crowd of thousands were turning to each other confused.
"What does this mean?"
"Is it going to speak?"
"Why has it awoken?"
Unable to even think about what is happening, I continue my impromptu staring contest with the Oracle. Paralyzed, I felt like a deer caught in headlights, incapable of taking my eyes off of it for even a moment. The longer I sat there staring, the weaker I felt as my heart sped up in my chest.
Maybe it is looking at the prophet, or someone nearby. I am quite far away.
The philologist stops his task due to the commotion, and flies up to the Oracle. Bowing as deeply as he could, he begins to speak, his meek old voice coming down from above.
"Blessed Herald of the Journ-"
"I see you."
The resounding boom of the Oracle's voice caused the air to vibrate. Where as the Philologist's voice was meek and feeble, the Oracle's voice was filled with an unimaginable power and knowledge.
Letting out a terrified squeal, I feel my feathers unconsciously flatten themselves to my neck as I sink beneath the crowd, my legs folding themselves together to make myself smaller.
Why is it looking at me? What did I do to deserve this?! All of these prophets are going to think I'm some kind of-
"The Oracle has noticed my presence! I must go to it at once!" I heard the prophet near me say, before flying off over the crowd.
Looking up at my possible unintentional savior, I notice him gliding over the crowd, hyping up his moment of being the center of attention by making his way around the coliseum. The gathering seems to believe the prophet was, in fact, who the Oracle was talking about as they begin to prostrate themselves flat as he passes by.
Maybe it was just him… Why would the Oracle be looking at me anyway?
Feeling a bit foolish, I stretch my legs out a bit to peer back over the crowd, only to let out another chirp of fright.
It is still looking at me.
The unnamed prophet began to slowly make his way up to the pedestal, not even bothering to care that the Oracle was completely ignoring him. I notice the Philologist was not actually paying any attention to the San'Shyuum, as he tries to follow the actual gaze of the artifact.
I need to leave. Now!
Looking around for a quick exit, I found that I was still completely surrounded. The crowd around me was thick, but not thick enough for me to be unable to allow me to slip between them.
"You… Kig yar…" I heard the honor guard's voice call from behind me.
Turning to look toward the intricately armored sangheili, I found him looking back and forth from the Oracle to me. He seemed to be stunned, as his eyes grew huge.
"Why is the-"
Not bothering to even let him finish his thought, I spun around and began to slide my way around the crowd as fast as I possibly could. I didn't know what was happening, but all I know is I had to get away.
I hear the sound of the sangheili honor guard attempting to give chase to me, but due to his larger form and bulky armor, he was forced to push the crowd out of the way rather than slip between them.
"Hey! Stop!" I heard him call from behind me, but there was no way I was going to listen. What happened back there was not something I wanted to be a part of… something unexpected and extremely dangerous.
Dodging and weaving through people as fast as I could, I scrambled back onto one of the main roads leading away from the dreadnaught. The crowd began to thin as most of the people were already in the immediate area under the dreadnaught, leaving me with an open area to begin sprinting as fast as I possibly could. I idly note that this was not the road that led back to the Kig-yar districts, but I didn't care. I had to get away.
Through the rapid sounds of my feet impacting the metallic floor beneath me, I could still hear the sound of the Oracle's voice booming from behind me causing me to push my limits and run faster.
"I will be waiting for you."
(\(*v*)/)
What the hell was that?
Flattening myself against a wall in a random alleyway off the main thoroughfare, I attempt to catch my breath. The rapid rise and fall of my chest as I attempted to catch my breath shook me to my core. My heart was beating so fast, and I couldn't get nearly enough oxygen fast enough.
I don't remember that thing from the games! Where did it come from? Why was it looking at me?
Slumping down to the floor, it's last words were still very fresh on my mind.
It said it would be waiting for me… Why?
My breathing didn't slow down as I thought about it even though I was standing still. My mind seemed to be going a mile a minute and didn't seem to want to slow down.
Slouching against the wall, I curl up and grab my knees. Something about that forerunner robot terrified me in a deep primal way. It's attention seemed to come with some sort of unimaginable power attached to it, and I couldn't help but feeling like an ant about to be squashed.
Suddenly, I understood why the Covenant worshipped the forerunners. They may just have been a hyper advanced civilization of people, but the things they did… the things they created seemed too advanced to be considered mundane technology.
Artificial worlds… Galaxy destroying super weapons… artificial sentient life… The idea of even one of those was just too vast to comprehend.
I needed answers, and I was not getting any sitting here having a mental breakdown in the middle of an alleyway. The problem was, I don't think I could get any answers about that Oracle anywhere else either.
Other than talking to it… and I would rather try fighting the gravemind with my bare hands.
Poking my head back around the corner and looking back the way I came, I found the dreadnaught still looming over me. I have made it out of the golden city, but now I was forced to face a new problem.
In my panic to get away, I ran down a road I didn't recognize. There were several main roads leading to the dreadnaught, and while I thought I was running down one that I recognized, I am now finding that wasn't the case.
Taking a quick look around, I found that I didn't recognize a single sign. I've been exploring the city for a while now, but two short months was not nearly enough to know my way around fully.
I was hopelessly lost.
I need to get home and calm my nerves. I am not safe out here like this… I can barely focus. I need to get out of the city and to safety… but where do I go?
The good news is the city was circular, so if I use the dreadnaught as a reference point and made it to the normal distance from the ship that my house was, then run in a circle… I would eventually bump into the apartment.
The bad news is, the city is absolutely massive, and if I didn't find some other point of reference, I would be out during the night again… and that is something I very much want to avoid.
Finding no other option I continue my way down the main road, trying to cover some ground.
Despite trying to clear my thoughts, I couldn't help returning to what had just happened.
What exactly was that thing? Everyone kept saying it was an Oracle, but the only Oracle I know of is 343 Guilty Spark… not counting that one on Delta Halo… Maybe that was just another monitor AI with a different casing? One for the dreadnaught?
Going over everything I knew about the forerunners, I begin to make a list. They were a super advanced civilization that created technology far greater than I could ever dream of. They fought a war with a world eating parasite and only won by activating the halo array and wiping out all sentient life in the galaxy and reseeding it.
The Halos!
I can't believe I have forgotten about the Halo array! That was the tipping point for the war in the games, wasn't it? The centerpiece of the Covenant's entire religion? If the truth of what the rings' purpose was came out earlier, wouldn't that mean the Covenant dissolves sooner?
Driving the Covenant I could see in front of me into a bloody civil war didn't sit well to me. As of right now, they haven't done anything wrong. The Covenant as it stands is just a civilization with an incorrect religious belief. Sure, there were flaws… but war affects everyone, and I couldn't help but think about what would happen to Yabdab.
He was just a worker, trying to stay alive and live his life like everyone else. Why should I plunge his life into chaos by causing a civil war?
Slowing down to look around me, I found that I was on one of the massive overpasses overlooking one of the many unggoy districts. Looking down, my sharp eyesight could easily pick up hundreds of unggoy going about their day. Several appeared to be street merchants with others walking intently down the road uncaring of the world around them.
My eyes zero in on a small family, one parent with two smaller unggoy children following closely behind. One of the smaller grunts trips over and begins to cry, causing the other two to turn around and begin to comfort it.
Thinking back to how this entire city was infected by the flood due to the civil war that breaks out between the jiralhanae and the sangheili, I immediately thought of those two children below.
Humanity wasn't the only one that suffered when the war broke out. Sure, the Covenant glassed worlds and committed atrocities, but what about those families down there? When the flood came and turned this entire city into a parasitic biome of flood goop, who tried to save them? When the war was over, who tried to rebuild something for the ones who weren't strong enough to fight?
No one did.
Suddenly a realization filled me. None of these people are inherently evil. All that pain, death, and suffering was at the hands of a few greedy individuals who didn't care about the consequences of their actions.
My goal this entire time should never have been to end the Covenant and save humanity, but to save as many as I could human or otherwise.
Sadly, I still don't know how to do that. Uncovering the truth of the Halo array is a good start, but in order for me to even be listened to and not declared a heretic would require solid proof… Something I didn't have right now.
Giving the small unggoy family one last look, I turn and continue my run.
(\(*v*)/)
I have spent most of the day in a constant state of motion since this morning. Unable to find food and water, my body began to inform me of something that my mind was in stubborn denial about.
I am exhausted.
I have been searching around the city for hours now and I haven't found a single thing I recognize.
I made it to the correct distance away from the golden city, and have long since started to try circling my way around. Slipping into alleyways and small streets, I continue to monitor my surroundings but I haven't spotted a single reference point I can use to guide myself home. Not to mention, it was bound to be dark soon. Anger filling me, I ball my hands into fists.
It's all that stupid Oracle's fault.
Those thoughts quickly die in my head. It wasn't the Oracle's fault I decided to run in the wrong direction.
Continuing my jogging pace, I continue to look for something to drink only to find nothing. All of the drinkable water on the station was carefully hoarded due to its rarity.
About to exit yet another alleyway, my begin to hear someone loudly talking nearby.
"Did you hear, boss? The Oracle spoke today!" A voice says around a nearby corner, gaining my attention.
Stopping my pace, I try and keep my labored breaths quiet as I begin to eavesdrop.
"Yeah, I was there. This crazy prophet thought it was talking to him." A scratchy voice says as I instantly recognize the tone. This person was a jackal.
"Really? Was it?" This person sounded like a grunt.
"No, the stupid prophet floated up and was completely ignored. It just kept staring off into the crowd." The jackal laughs, causing a small nervous chuckle to come from the grunt.
"Oh." The grunt seemed disappointed. "I was hoping that maybe it would say something about the great journey or something…"
"Yeah, I know. The Covenant's been around for what? Three millennia? The journey is never coming. We are stuck with what we got… Now go back to work."
"Yes, sir."
Surprised at the blatant show of religious doubt, I decided to look around the corner to see where I was.
Spread out in front of me was an extremely large pile of… garbage.
An absolutely massive pile of broken equipment and trash was just lying on the ground in a huge open area behind some extremely tall blue shield walls. It seemed to be loosely organized by what kind of equipment, but for the most part the place appeared to be a dump.
Examining one of the piles, I found most of it to be broken military equipment. Everything from smashed needle rifles to melted brute spikers and burnt plasma rifles littered the mound in front of me.
Looking up, I found floating platforms holding machines to lift and drop the garbage in specific areas that were hovering overhead, organizing the chaos in front of me. There also appeared to be a factory of some sort nearby that some of the machines were moving in and out of.
Deciding to get a closer look, I make my way out into the open and begin to walk around the perimeter. Most of the workers seemed to be leaving for the day as the lights above slowly got dimmer, but some were continuing to lift large loads of trash and float it toward the factory.
It takes me almost a full ten minutes just to make it to the first corner, and in that time it has gotten progressively darker outside. Realizing there was no way inside that wasn't from the factory itself, I decided it wasn't worth the effort to examine it, and turn to move on.
Unable to prevent the large yawn that escapes me, I begin to think less and less about getting home, and more about finding a safe place to sleep.
Glancing up, I realize the main lights that signify the day are off. The only light in the area were spotlights surrounding the garbage dump allowing the workers to continue.
The soft hum of the antigravity engines on the machinery inside the shield door has an effect on my exhausted mind. Feeling my eyes dropping, I realize I am falling asleep while walking.
I just need a quick nap. I can't keep going like this.
Looking around, I found a small alleyway with a few crates set up to where I could slip in between them and hide. Making my way over to the boxes, I examine my new spot for a moment to see if it is hidden enough.
Finding a small layer of dust over both of the crates, I realize they haven't been moved in a while.
Perfect.
Moving to slip between the crates, I was stopped when a familiar voice sounded out from the entrance of the alleyway.
"Sohm? Is that you?"
Timore?
Sure enough, the massive silhouette of a jiralhanae was standing in the alleyway. He appeared to be very concerned as his blood red eyes looked me up and down.
"Timore? What are you doing here?"
He raises one of his eyebrows before gesturing over his shoulder to the garbage dump behind him. "That's the Sacred Promissory. I'm here to collect some tech for a project I'm working on."
Oh... That makes sense.
He then turns and fixes me with an odd look. "What are you doing here Sohm? We are very far from the Kig Yar sector."
Feeling my entire form droop, I look toward the ground. "Something… happened this morning, and I got scared and ran." Looking back up hopefully to the brute, I take a step closer to him. "You wouldn't happen to know how to get home, would you?"
Laughing, the brute nods. "I should hope so, though sadly I don't know where your home is. Think you might be able to find your way back from the gardens?" He says, his tone teasing.
Smiling, I nod. It wasn't the best news in the world since the gardens were quite a ways away from my apartment, but at the very least I had a reference point there and wouldn't be hopelessly lost.
"Good. Now, I came here for a reason." He turns back toward the shield door. "You don't mind waiting a few minutes do you?"
Shaking my head, just happy to have someone friendly nearby, I walk out of the alley way and sit down leaning against the wall of the nearby building.
Timore watches me for a few moments before becoming satisfied that I wasn't going to move. Casually he makes his way over to the massive shield door.
My sluggish brain questions how he will get in for a few seconds before the jiralhanae pulls out a strange triangular device. He places the technology as high as he could on the wall and presses a button, causing a small portion below the device to drop and allow him entry.
After the small opening was made, I saw him use his active camouflage module to make his way inside. After a few moments, the small wisps of his displaced outline disappeared from sight.
Watching the small opening, I begin to feel my eyes slowly close as my exhaustion finally catches up to me.
After a few minutes, my eyes begin to droop as the anxiety and stress of the day finally make way for relief. I had a friend nearby who would help me, and all I had to do was stay awake long enough to get home.
Easier said than done.
After fighting the sweet embrace of sleep for a few minutes, Timore reappeared outside of the barrier again, deactivating his device and walking over to me hefting a heavy bag full of… something.
Barely able to even lift my head up to greet him, I try and get to my feet. Idly aware that I was failing miserably.
"Sohm? Are you okay?"
His voice sounds muffled to me now, and I realize I am far more tired than I thought. Nonetheless I look up to him stubbornly. "I'm fine."
"I think not." His voice says, before he reaches down and picks me up, placing me on his shoulder. "Don't worry, my friend. You are safe now."
Raising my head up to protest, I open my mouth only for nothing to come out. He let out a deep grunt, shaking his head in exasperation. Ignoring my pathetic attempts to move, he started on our journey back to the hanging gardens.
Unable to stop the sweet embrace of unconsciousness from taking me, the last thing I saw was the red armored form of a sangheili honor guard staring at me as we departed.
—Authors Note—
There is a blooper scene past the AN. Feel free to read it.*
This was an extremely fun chapter to write. I am actually legitimately mad that Mendicant Bias isn't in the character tabs. I would have totally put him on there because this is absolutely NOT the last we have seen of him.
The reason this took so long to write was actually because I got about 5000 words into writing the next chapter, thinking it was chapter 6 but then realized she still needed to have a bit of a push to realize she isn't in Kansas anymore (or T'avo as it was)
Also, I don't know if my PMs are actually reaching you guys… maybe it is because I'm using the mobile app, or maybe ya'll are just ignoring me. Either way, I just thought I would mention that I'm trying to respond to most of you. :)
For the question as to which two were cannon and which were not, Bero 'Kusovai and Yar are cannon, while Timore and Yabdab aren't.
I will try my best to make any character that Sohm encounters an actual cannon character as best I can, even if they are just simple one time mentioned side characters. I don't think a story completely full of OCs is the best idea, and any OC I put in will either have plot relevance and be important enough to actually give a personality and backstory to, or will be a simple one time encounter.
Read, review, follow, and fav! Your reviews mean more to me then you might think.
—Blooper Scene—
This blooper scene is brought to you by my playlist on shuffle deciding to play the absolute perfect song for Mendicant Bias at the exact right moment while I was writing. This is the actual first draft of this scene, as the lyrics to the song started exactly when I started to write them. Enjoy!
Maybe it is looking at the prophet, or someone nearby. I am quite far away.
The philologist stops his task due to the commotion, and flies up to the Oracle. Bowing as deeply as he could, he begins to speak, his meek old voice coming down from above.
"Blessed Herald of the Journ-"
"In this farewell… there's no blood… there's no alibi…"
The entire crowd seemed stunned. The Oracle seemed to be mumbling to itself. The philologist seemed to be furiously recording what it said as if it was holy writ…
I suppose it is?
"'Cause I've drawn regret… from the truth… of a thousand lies…"
Wait, I recognize those words… is that-
The Oracle seems to lighten up, the three circles that make up its eyes shining as if they are miniature suns.
"So let mercy come, and wash away…"
Linkin Park?!?
"WHAAAAT I'VVVVE DOOOONEEEE"