Asking a guardian where they were reborn is a common introductory ice breaker. Some will recount a thrilling tale of opening their eyes in enemy territory and immediately running for their life, only to discover they are now granted many. Others get this glassy look in their eyes and inhale the drama of a poetry that will put you to sleep as they drone on about the beauty of their first memory.

Me? I took my first breath in this life coughing twigs. Having a 200 year old ponderosa pine living in your decaying rib cage will do that to you. My first coherent thought as a servant of The Traveller was the wonder if I had any lingering splinters in my newly revived lungs. I know, impressive right? Clearly marked for greatness. The oddly shaped, floating thing in front of me assured me that I did not, startling me more with the realization that he could hear my thoughts than anything else. He told me his name was Alta and that he was my ghost, a fitting term I suppose. Seemed to explain the floating, and the fact that he now haunts my every step and has done so for now for a long, long time.

The rebirth of a guardian is unsurprisingly disorienting. Something in your mind tells you that you lived before, only logical since you're clearly a full grown human with mature thought, and last I checked, pines didn't exactly give live birth. Yet you're not graced with any memory of that previous life. A gift or a curse from the Traveller? I've never been sure. Either way, I learned quickly not to think about it too much. The only reward I've ever been given for my efforts is a sympathetic look from Alta and a throbbing headache. There were really only a few things in this world I immediately knew were mine; the clothes on my back, the ghost hovering in front of me, and the necklace around my neck containing a picture and my name: Adira. Adira Solis.

Little did I know that that name would be had for both good and ill across the system. But really, isn't that the thrill of a new life? An unknown future filled with potential and laden with the possibility of a glorious destiny…

Yikes, I think that's enough poetry for one day.

…

You wanna know what true love is? True love is holding a long range sniper rifle for the first time. I picked mine up on the cold, snow swept tundra of central North America and from the moment my fingertips brushed against the frozen barrel and stroked its sight I knew this weapon meant the difference between life and death. The realization that I could remove any threats long before they ever saw me was exhilarating.

The rifle was old and certainly well used but holding it in my hands felt like a homecoming and soon it became the most comfortable thing I owned. Though the Fallen captain that dropped it had certainly been a pain in the ass, having hounded me relentlessly for the last three days, I silently thanked his departed spirit for such a windfall.

The journey had been long and arduous. It wasn't easy trekking through miles of a crumbled civilization in several feet of snow, having to scan every hollow shelter for Fallen dregs and vandals.

"I'm starting to wish you'd revived me in the spring," I chattered, glancing at the vessel of light above my shoulder with a small grin.

He twitched, his little pieces shifting in amusement. "Where would be the fun in that?" He blinked. "Though really I would count us lucky. The Fallen don't seem to take to the cold as well so we've come across far fewer than I expected."

I shivered, tugging my recently acquired fur cloak tighter around my shoulders as I scanned the glittering horizon. "Either that, or there's literally nothing out here worth their interest. It's practically a wasteland. I just hope this shanty town turned city you've been going on about is as great as you say."

Alta's light brightened. "Oh it is! Trust me. It may be new but some of the finest guardians around have gathered to build and defend it. I'm willing to bet that in the coming centuries it will be the crowning jewel of humanity."

"Considering there aren't very many of us left, I'd say that's not exactly hard to do." I snorted. "Anything more sophisticated than a lean-to looks impressive around here, but I guess I'll take your word for it."

We trudged on in companionable silence. That's how most of our time went really. In the first few weeks I'd been brimming with questions, but once those were answered and the bond between guardian and ghost was more or less solidified, not many words were needed. You could only talk about the blanket of white before you for so long.

We'd searched every pocket of broken civilization we could for any kind of transportation to lighten the journey but had yet to get lucky. At night we'd scramble together the crumbling bones of humanity's remains for a fire and huddle close, trying to ward off the cold and uncertainty. Those were tough times, but there was also a kind of beautiful simplicity to it. I would often find myself gazing upwards on a clear night, marveling at the great expanse of the galaxy laid before me and wondering what kind of worlds our Golden Age had mapped.

"How long were you out there looking for me?" I asked Alta one night.

He was silent for a moment, staring into the flames. "A long time," he hummed. "Centuries even." Then he paused, looking thoughtful, if a ghost can look thoughtful. "Earth wasn't even the only place I looked. At one point, I hitch-hiked a jump ship and combed over the Golden Age ruins on Mars and Venus. Fascinating places, but ultimately I realized they didn't have what I was looking for."

"Did you ever come across any other ghosts?"

"Oh yes, I'd run into a one or two every now and then," he said, a reminiscing tone in his voice. "Sometimes we'd stick together for a few days or a few weeks. But eventually we always went our separate ways, either having completed our mission or choosing to search elsewhere."

I watched as the red orange flames licked the wood. "Was it hard, watching as other ghosts found their guardians?"

Alta's pieces shifted as he pondered. "I won't lie and say it wasn't," he chirped after a pregnant pause. "But as I watched guardians rising across the system and the things they accomplished, it… gave me hope that my guardian was going to be just as amazing if I waited long enough." He looked at me as I smiled a little sheepishly and alighted on my shoulder, nestling into the warmth of my hood. "And you know… it was all worth it."