New Kid on the Block
(Special note: Astrid was created by Daydreamer B.A)
Nightstalker Celeste Etain was perched on a rocky outcropping outside of the primary patrol paths on Mars. She had been tasked with gathering intel on a Cabal Firebase that had been discovered in the area. It was now approaching three hours that she had been watching the overgrown space turtles moving supplies from one part of the base to another in a way that made little sense to her, and she was growing antsy. Sitting in place this long felt unnatural.
Peering through her binoculars, she watched as the sun glint off the blue and yellow armor of the Siege Dancers as they went about their work. A large Centurion, probably a Valus, was directing fortifications on the western edge of the base. Two Interceptors driven by Psions left the base intermittently, doing patrol sweeps. The path they took was predictable, and never put them in position to cause her any concern.
A Harvester swooped in and dropped off another contingent of Cabal. The first batch of troops dropped down and held position beneath the armed transport. The second group then tossed crates and equipment down to them. Celeste tried to make out any markings on whatever was being dropped off, cut could not from where she lay. Once the last crate was down, the Cabal on the ground began moving it all to a position just out of view. Curious, Celeste decided to find a better vantage point to see what the newcomers were up to.
Crawling back slowly out of view, Celeste drew out a smoke bomb and threw it at her feet to activate her camouflage. She then sprinted from the rock to the next one over. She climbed it quickly, going prone once she reached the top. The camouflage would have given her more time, but she did not want to take any chances. Once in position, she set her sniper rifle on the ground next to her and pulled out her binoculars.
She still could not quite make out what was on the crates that had been delivered. Grumbling in annoyance, she crawled forward to the edge of the rock, risking the increase in visibility to try to get a better view. She strained to look, when suddenly the edge of the rock crumbled beneath her elbow. A small piece broke free and rolled down to the ground.
Please don't see that, Celeste thought over and over again as the rock came to a stop.
A Psion popped its head up and looked right at her. Instinctively, she grabbed her sniper rifle and brought it to bear, snapping off a shot that found its mark. The Psion's dropped to the ground, missing most of its head. The shot might have been silent, but the corpse would be noticed any time. Celeste scrambled from position and prepared to beat a hasty retreat. She had taken one step when the alarm sounded.
"Thrall spit," the Hunter cursed as micro-rockets began exploding around her.
She slipped the sniper rifle to her back and pulled the hand cannon from the holster on her thigh. Running, she thrust her arm back and fired a few rounds blindly, smiling in satisfaction when she heard one of her pursuers cry out in pain. Just then, her Ghost Whisper sounded in her ear.
"Incoming call from Cayde-6."
"Busy," she snapped. "Ignore!"
"Ignoring," Whisper replied. "Now another call coming in again from Cayde-6, this time utilizing Vanguard override authorization codes."
"Celeste!" The voice of the Hunter Vanguard sounded over her comms, taking a force jovial tone. "How's it goin'?"
"I'm a little busy trying not to die here, Cayde," Celeste retorted, turning to empty her hand cannon into the Cabal behind her, then reloaded. "Can this wait?"
"Oh, I'm sure you'll be fine, and I'll be quick. I need you to get back to the Tower, pronto. I've got a... well, a special assignment that you are uniquely equipped to deal with."
"What are you on about, Cayde?"
"You'll see, you'll see. Just... make it quick, okay? See you soon." Cayde closed the connection as soon as the words were out of his mouth.
"Why do I think I'd rather stay here with the Cabal?" Celeste asked rhetorically.
"Because you do not want to see what Cayde has in store for you?" Whisper asked obliviously.
"You think?" the Hunter spat, taking aim and shooting an advancing Phalanx in the shoulder as he adjusted his shield. "Get my sparrow so we can get out of here."
The sparrow materialized behind Celeste. She drew on the Void to created a grenade, which she threw toward the advancing Cabal. The Voidwall grenade exploded, sending streaks of purple Light in two directions, momentarily cutting the Cabal off. Taking full advantage of the moment, Celeste hopped on her sparrow and hit the throttle. Once she felt like she was a safe distance away, she had Whisper call out for the ship and left Mars behind for now.
…
She was still picking little pieces of shrapnel out of her armor when they arrived at the Tower. One of the pieces had nicked her arm, but the cut was shallow and barely bleeding. She bandaged it up, then guided the ship toward the top of the Tower. Whisper took over the ship and Celeste transmatted down to the plaza.
An odd mix of elation and dread swirled through her system as she made her way toward the Hall of Guardians. It could be an interesting mission. Maybe something top secret, the way Cayde called her in. Something did not feel quite right about the situation though. Cayde noticed her the moment she stepped into the room.
"Celeste, there you are! So good of you to respond to the call so quickly."
"Well, it sounded urgent when you called," she replied.
"Yes, yes, so it was. Look I've got a situation that I need you to take care of," the Vanguard said in a conspiratorial tone. "It will be a lot easier if I show you. Follow me."
Celeste fell in behind Cayde as they quickly made their way back up to the plaza, then headed in the direction of Guardian housing. She furrowed her brows in puzzlement, wondering where he could be leading her. Cayde was uncharacteristically quiet through the elevator ride down to the habitat area. As they exited the elevator, a large crash could be heard coming from one of the rooms.
"What was that?" Celeste asked, concerned that someone was under attack.
"That is what I brought you down here for," was Cayde's cryptic reply.
The two Hunters strode down the hallway, anxiety building in Celeste. Finally Cayde came to a stop in front of one of the rooms. He hesitated, looking like he wanted to say something, but stopped himself. After a few moments, he opened the door.
Inside the room was chaos. Furniture was knocked about, some pieces shattered. Knickknacks were scattered all over the floor. A frazzled looking woman sat on the floor, back pressed against the separating this room from the next. Just then, a small shape went hurtling across the opening, laughing giddily.
"Hi, Sally," Cayde said, waving to the woman who cut him an evil glare and then, with a speed that shocked Celeste, sprung to her feet and sprinted past the two Guardians. Cayde sighed. "She isn't the first one to do that this week."
Suddenly, the small form burst back into view and headed right for the two Hunters with a shout.
"Cayde!"
If Cayde-6 were organic, he would have had the breath knocked out of him by the pint-sized bundle of energy that slammed into him. Amazingly, charging full speed into the metallic form of the Exo seemed to have no detrimental effect on the creature that caused the collision. Celeste got her first look at the source of the destruction in the room and was amazed to see a girl who could not have been more than twelve years old.
"Hey there, Wild Child," the Hunter Vanguard said with a trace of affection. "I brought someone I want you to meet. This is Celeste."
Cayde gestured to Celeste and the young girl looked at her skeptically from behind dirty-blonde hair that had fallen in her face.
"Celeste, this is Astrid," the Vanguard continued. "You and she have something in common."
Realization suddenly dawned in Celeste's eyes. She looked at the scene around her and back at the little girl. Just then, a Ghost floated into view, taking position slightly above and behind Astrid's shoulder.
"She's a Guardian," Celeste stated.
"Well, not quite," responded Cayde, bringing an annoyed look from the girl.
"Too young," Celeste said quietly.
"Exactly," Cayde confirmed. "She's Chosen, but too young to be a Guardian. Just like you were. She was dropped off at the Tower a couple weeks ago. A team of Guardians had found her while on patrol with no clue how long she'd been surviving on her own. Given your history, I thought you might be just the person to help her out. Plus, every indication is that she is going to be a Titan and, given your closeness with Claney, you are familiar with their idiosyncrasies."
"What did you just call me?" Astrid snapped, glaring at the Vanguard and putting her hands on her hips.
"What? Nothing. Anyway," turning back to Celeste, "do you think you're up for the job?"
"Of course, absolutely," Celeste replied.
"Great," Cayde said and slapped her on the back, the relief in his voice obvious. "I'll, uh, see you around. Oh, one more thing. Don't let her touch your maps."
With that, the Hunter Vanguard disappeared through the door. Celeste and Astrid stood still for a moment, sizing each other up. One a Guardian who had been revived as a child, tall and lean with red hair hanging in a jumbled mess, the other a small child recently brought back to a world she did not yet understand. Astrid broke the silence.
"So, you were like me?" the young girl asked.
"Yes, I was," Celeste told her. "I was about your age when I was brought back too. A Titan found me and brought me to the Tower; kept me safe. I grew up here, watching as everyone else that was resurrected went out to fight while I just stayed here studying and training, knowing that one day it would be me."
The bravado and craziness that Astrid had been displaying disappeared for a moment, and Celeste caught a glimpse of the scared child beneath the surface. She gave a sad smile and held out her hand, which Astrid took.
"Hey, it's okay," she said, then noticed the scars that covered the girls hands. Concern filled her voice. "What happened here?"
"I don't want to talk about it," Astrid said, pulling her hand away from the Hunter and then hiding them behind her back.
"Okay. If you don't want to talk about it now, I won't push you." Celeste paused for a moment, then bent down to Astrid's level, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Hey, if you're going to be hanging around this Tower, you need to know all the best places. I can show you all the hide-y holes and secrets this place has to offer."
"How do you know them if they're secret?" Astrid asked, teal eyes flashing a challenge.
"Because I'm clever," Celeste replied with a grin. "I've spent more time in this Tower than ninety-nine percent of the people here. I probably know it better than anyone save the Speaker. Follow me."
With a grin, the Hunter turned and darted out of the room. Astrid stood still for a few seconds, thrown off by the unexpected turn of events. Celeste popped back into view, an impish grin still plastered on her face.
"You coming or not?"
…
Celeste and Astrid stared at the Traveler as it hung in the darkening sky. They'd spent hours exploring the Tower, Celeste showing her every place she used to go as a kid to get away from the adults or to practice her skills in secret. Several spots had been a challenge for her to get into now that she had grown, but that had only make Astrid laugh as she struggled to wriggle through. Now they were back in the main plaza, seated on top of Eververse.
"Do you like being a Guardian?" Astrid asked, deliberately keeping her eyes away from the Hunter.
"I love it," Celeste answered honestly. "There are difficult moments, to be sure, but I wouldn't trade it for the world."
"I think I'll like it too. I wish I didn't have to wait."
Celeste laughed.
"I've been there too, kiddo," she said, then froze. "What did I just say?"
"What did you just say?" Astrid asked at the same time.
"By the Traveler, I'm turning into Claney," Celeste said with a groan, falling backward to stare at the sky. "That simply won't do. We need to do something fun. Now. Got any ideas?"
"Well," Astrid said, thinking, "Cayde is usually alone in the Vanguard room right now and there was a lot of that smelly weed in that abandoned garden you showed me earlier."
"I like the way you think," Celeste said with a smile.
…
AN:
It's been a while since I've updated this. That's because these are just based on moments of inspiration, rather than specific stories I want to tell for the most part. I have another one I'm working on as well that should be coming soon.
So, this one came about after I requested some assistance with some extra Guardians for a Crucible related chapter of my main story "A Not So Simple Patrol". Daydreamer B.A offered up a Guardian she had created that didn't quite fit what I was looking for. However, another idea came to mind and this is the result. Hope you enjoyed it.
Daydreamer B.A – Thanks for the review on Broken. I feel like that entry here really got overlooked, which is a shame. It's short, but I really like the way it turned out. Yes, the Awoken are not the most welcoming of folk. Hope you like what I did here.