Wow, you know I never thought this story would get so much traffic. You guys make staying up way too late writing worth it. Thanks agian to Qrow for being an awesome Beta!
DROH
Entry Log 52 - 00:22:05
The click of metal and plastic being set down and picked up is the first thing heard as the video turns on, finding Cayde in one of the shipyard's many side landings. He is sitting at a table and cleaning his prized gun, a few feet away from him Amanda and Winter are chatting as the blond works on the engine of a ship. The Ace of Spades is in pieces, the Exo having taken it apart with care and now running a cleaning cloth through every inch of it. A quick shift of the camera to the large, yawning landing doors show that it's early morning, the sky painted in a stark almost blood red and orange that melts and eats at the dark blue of night.
The hanger is mostly vacant save the three of them and the few Frames working around the area. The warlock and the mechanic are chatting just out of mic range but it still picks up the giggle from the awoken as they glance at Cayde who ignores them. He uses a stick to shove the cloth into the barrel of gun, muttering to himself. "I'm not worried… I just needed a change of scenery."
"You're worried," Sundance states easily, the AI's voice so close to the mic it's almost too loud. Cayde looked at the screen and scowls half heartedly at his partner but says nothing and goes back to work.
A full five minutes pass on the time clock in near silence, only the chatter of the two girls behind him and Cayde's movements as he cleans his gun being heard. Then, all at once, the calm that had covered the area shatters as the door to the hospital wing on the far end of the hanger opens on sticky hinges and several sets of feet make there way out. The Exo stops reaching for another piece of his weapon and instead cocks his head and stands, joining both women who are already at the railing to get a better look.
There's a cluster of them, six medics are making their way to the landing zone, two pairs armed with stretchers, all of them talking in a quiet, hurried voice. The camera zooms out to get a better picture of the scene and Cayde looks to Winter and Amanda who both wear worried or curious faces.
"Someone coming in must be hurt," Winter states quietly, her blue brows furrowing at the thought. Cayde gave a small nod of agreement, and guessing by how many doctors were there, it was more than one person.
Not a moment later the boom of engines fills the air as six ships come into view heading towards the docking bay. All three of the onlookers tense, knowing those ships well enough as the vessels belonging to the raid team that had left over a week ago. Three of the ship's break off from the formation, flying out of view as they go to make a loop around the tower to wait and dock, as only so many can do so at a time. Cayde relaxes slightly at first, seeing his rookie's ship among those to wait, meaning she wasn't one of the injured.
That is until it becomes clear that the three remaining ships are holding all six members. WInter let's out a startled gasp as Z appears first, nearly carrying his teammate Haar over one shoulder. The titan exo is sparking, his left arm pulled from its socket and hanging by wires. His armor appears cut to hell, deep slices across it only kept from met skin due to the thickness of the armor. Winter is already moving towards them, the two men part of her Fireteam, but the doctors beat her to them, a pair of them taking Haar from Z who then winces and grabs at a wound in his side.
Cayde says something under his breath, and just as he's about to move the screen picks up the second pair to appear. It's Corvan and in his arms is Skylar. Cayde only stares for about two seconds, just long enough for Amanda to start saying something and then the hunter Blink Steps across the open space to the landing pad in seconds. He beats the doctors, two more of them busy helping Noble who is nearly carring Will, his trench coat in pieces. The camera focuses on the Exo though, who moves in front of the two other hunters quickly.
The fireteam leader still has his helmet on, but Skylar doesn't and her eyes stare up at the ceiling unfocused and nearly glassy. Her face is contorted in pain and even her limbs are stiff, hands gripping onto her fellow hunter's armor so hard they would have bled without gloves. She's breathing heavily and it sounds like she is trying to scream but can't keep the air in long enough to do so.
Cayde takes it all in quickly and then, ignoring Corvan, reaches out and touches her face to try and get her attention. "Skylar? Rookie, come on say something." His near orders go unanswered and Skylar doesn't even shift her unseeing eyes from their spot on the rafters. "Sky?" he tries again but Covan gives a shake of his head to stop him.
"She hasn't said anything for a while Cayde, not since she stopped screaming."
Cayde's words get caught in his throat at that, his eyes flashed down, Sundance's video feed doing the same, to where blood is slipping out from her abdomen, the armor shredded and gruesome. Something black was oozing out from the area as well, and Cayde's hand slips away suddenly limp with shock. His eyes trace the black substance that seems to creep like fog out of unseen wounds and then disappear into the air.
Just like Eris Morn's eyes.
The Exo nearly stumbled when the remaining doctors come over, one bumping into him, stretcher in hand. Corvan said nothing more to his commander and simply moves to set his teammate on the stretcher, one of the doctors having to help him tear Skylar's fingers away. Once he is free Corvan reaches into an ammo pouch and pulls something out. He sets Sterling onto the stretcher next to his partner, the Ghost unmoving and his green eye flickering like a faulty bulb.
The three critical Guardians are moved quickly back to the hospital wing, doctors pushing through the small crowd that had gathered. Winter has taken to helping Z now and slowly Corvan and Cayde trail in behind them. The Exo's eyes glance over the hunter in front of him, noting just how dirty everyone is, all of them covered in the mess that is oil and space barnacles made from The Hive.
The ICU suddenly becomes a very busy place, Skylar is taken away to an operating room like the two Exos, and nurses start helping Z and Noble with their wounds. One comes over to Corvan, but the Hunter shakes his head. "Most of my injuries are small, ribs are bruised and I may have sprained my knee, but I'll be fine." He yanks off his helmet after speaking, letting the thing fall to the ground and rubbing his face, a bruise dotting his neck in a splash of purple and yellow.
Sundance' feed shifts to Cayde's form moments before the Exo's posture seems to stiffen and his hand clenches at his side as if the human's words meant more than they did. "Cayde…" she begins, but the AI's voice is suddenly drowned out but a muffled scream that rips apart the stale silence. It can only be placed as female and disturbingly agonizing. Everyone in the room winces but it doesn't freeze up the Exo like everyone else, instead it seems to jump start him. Corvan doesn't even have a free second to recover before he's suddenly slammed into the wall behind him, a metal and wire forearm pinned across his chest and shoulders. The focus of the scene blurs as the Ghost moves quickly, bringing the suddenly angry face of its partner into view. "Cayde!" the female voice snaps, other surprised exclamations and curses sounding from the others in the room.
The Vanguard leader ignores her, his metal jaw angled into a scowl. "You want to tell me," he began flatly, all of the normal easy going humor gone from his voice. "Why half of this team looks like they got put through a shredder while their leader doesn't need any medical attention?" His question is well deserved and Sundance still floats around the scene in a way that makes the camera stay focused, but is seen as fretting and unstable. Corvan stares at his commanding officer, clearly shocked before quickly darting his gaze away, a frown engraving into his face. He doesn't say anything, and that only appears to tick Cayde off more. "I asked you a question, Guardian."
When the hunter still remains stubbornly silent, it is Z that speaks up. "Things went well until we found ourselves face to face with Crota." Both Cayde and the camera feed turn to the other hunter. A nurse is still silently treating him, his chest armor having been stripped and stitches being sewn into his side. His face was grave, anger tightening his mouth and eyes. "Corvan made some choices that turned sour quickly once we figured out that the bastard could drain our Light."
"And those choices were?" Winter asks softly. She is standing near her teammate, leaning on a wall, her blue skin paler than normal.
Z shifts, looking from her, to Cayde, to Noble who had been silent the whole time, and then back to the two hunters again. He seems to be about to explain when Corvan finds his voice again.
"There were snipers everywhere, and we had to use a relic sword to hurt Crota, but the sword was in the middle of a hoard of thrawl on the bottom floor. There were also knights crawling around the top floor, guarding their prince." He swallows, throat working, hands twitching at his sides, but he doesn't try to fight his pinned position. "While everyone else took out the snipers and knight, Skylar, Noble and I went for the sword. Skylar was to use her Arc Blade to make a path for Noble and I to get the sword and go after Crota and then keep it clear so we could get out. It went fine at first… but then when he saw the sword he used some spell that siphoned off our Light...We still struck him down but… it wasn't until the sounds of his own screams faded that anyone started hearing-" he broke off when another muffled scream through the door tore the air, too perfectly timed.
A mechanical fist smashed into the side on Corvan's face before he could stay anything else, the arm pinning him pulling back enough for the hunter to fall onto his knees and catch himself before he hit the ground too hard. Z utters another curse behind them, and Cayde, all tensed up, glowers down at his charge. "You left her down there with a hand cannon and a knife and nothing else while you took your heroic stand? I haven't heard something that moronic in a very long time."
Corvan was shaking his head slightly, blood running down his lips and chin from where they'd split open. "There was no time, it all happened too fast and there was an opening. I did what I thought was best."
"What was best?" Cayde repeats flatly. "Best for you, or your fireteam?" Silence was the only answer Cayde got and the Exo took a step forward, only for the image to blur and then refocus right in front of him.
"That's enough Cayde," Sundance' voice sooths, being the voice of reason she always had to be for the cocky hunter. Cayde scowls at his partner, glancing behind her at Corvan before after a long moment, he sighs, shoulder slumping.
"You know, there's an old saying from the Golden age: 'The Captain goes down with the ship.' I like to think that's a pretty good description of what a Fireteam leader is supposed to do." The camera zooms back out, the Ghost having backed up now that her partner has calmed down. Cayde turns from Corvan and shakes his head. "If any of them don't make it, their blood is on your hands." He glances at Sundance for a moment and after a second the image begins to dim. The last thing heard on the mics is Cayde asking the others for a debriefing and another, quieter scream that breaks his command in half.
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