"You're sure that's what he said?" Ikora asked as she rose a brow, quite intrigued with the information that titan Tri Saberlinx had brought back from Venus.
Tri nodded. "Yes. He said that the manner of our destruction had been chosen, and that nothing would survive its coming. Not even the other races of darkness would survive."
"And where exactly did he pick up this information." Zavala asked, sounding as if he doubted the information. Indeed, if it hadn't been for Tri's high standing in his eyes, Zavala wouldn't even be considering these threats from a dying mad man, and a Fallen as well.
Tri sighed, clearly not convinced of the evidence himself. "He says that he taped into the mind of the Vex, and discovered what they fear, that all their work is to prevent this…" He spun his hand, trying to come up with a word. "This coming destroyer."
Tri's ghost, Sparks, then appeared. "While the words of a dying Archon may not be completely trustworthy, when I scanned his data files and compared them with Vex transmissions, I did see some similarities. While I can't confirm all of what was said, I can say that there is something else out there that the Vex fear, something outside of the Darkness." Tri glanced at Sparks, silently thanking him for assisting.
Cayde chuckled at this. "Well. The mad alien actually was onto something. How about that."
Zavala and Ikora didn't share Cayde's humor however. Both were deep in thought, Zavala stroking his chin as he thought while Ikora stared at the table, hands clasped behind her back.
"Does anyone else know about this information titan?" Zavala glanced up at Tri, who shook his head.
"No sir. Only myself and my fireteam, but they know less than I do."
Zavala nodded. "Good. Keep it that way."
"We will continue to look into this. We will contact you if we hear anything", Ikora added. Being in charge of the Cities Hidden, a secret group of guardians charged with gathering information on their enemies, she would be the one to find out more. Tri nodded, and saluted the Vanguard before turning and walking out.
"This is most unsettling", Ikora said, rubbing her temple.
Cayde rose a brow at this. "So, you actually believe that this is a serious threat?"
Ikora glared at him. "This could be the greatest threat to the City, and you're not taking it seriously?" Cayde began to retaliate, but was cut off by Zavala.
"Until we know for sure, it's best if we just keep this quiet. No need to start a panic." Huffing, Ikora crossed her arms, but said nothing. Cayde however began stroking his chin, looking down at the table as he thought. "What if this was serious? And what if it had something to do with the transmissions he was going to share right before Tri arrived. Cayde cleared his throat, and gained the attention of both Zavala and Ikora.
"Actually, I might need to take this seriously. I've just received some stolen Fallen transmissions that might be related to the crazy Fallen's story."
Shepard sat on a table within the medical wing of the tower. To examine her closely, the robotic nurse, or more specifically, the frame, as Amber had called it, had asked her to remove her armor. So, here she sat, wearing only a sports bra and underwear, but she didn't care. Years of military experience had made sure she wouldn't be embarrassed by being seen with little or no clothing. Currently her mind was going over everything she had learned since she had arrived.
Shepard held in a groan as she was once again teleported. She was never a fan of teleporting, and this kind felt especially weird. Plus, it didn't help that her muscles felt like molten lead had been injected into them. When it finished, she had to shield her eyes for a second, the brightness being too much. Finally, her eyes cleared, then widened at what she saw.
"Welcome to the Last City." Amber said, glancing at her. They were on top of a tower, incredibly high, and stretched out below was a vast and bustling city. However, the most shocking and eye-opening thing was the moon sized sphere which hung over the city, casting a pale shadow on the city below. It was white, mostly, but had what looked like large jagged black scars along its underside. It seemed to be a machine, and yet didn't, rather hard to describe. Then Amber spoke again.
"And that, is the Traveler. Our savior, and our only hope." Shepard turned to glance at her, and noticed her helmet was off, allowing her to see her face and study it. Amber had a smooth face, not overly harsh or fierce. Her hair was cut short, just above the shoulders, similar to Shepard's. However, Amber's hair was dark brown, and was styled in spiked layers. Her eyes were startlingly blue, and almost seemed to glow. A pale white tattoo was just visible on her face. A vertical line underneath her right eye, and a horizontal line beneath the left, almost underlining it. She smiled at Shepard, showing a mischievous smirk.
"So, what do you think?" Shepard glanced back at the Traveler. "It's quite astonishing." She then frowned.
"So, I'm guessing you call it the Last City because it's just that?" She glanced back at Amber, who shrugged.
"Well, technically, this is the last major human city, but there are still a few scattered villages out there, but they're few and far between." Shepard nodded, and turned back to the Traveler. Despite its damaged look, Shepard could help but look at it with awe. It was truly awesome and beautiful. She then felt a hand on her shoulder. Glancing back, she saw Amber smirking at her again.
"Come on. I'll take you to the medical wing to get you checked up, then I'll introduce you to everyone."
Shepard smiled softly, hoping that her sore muscles would be dealt with. "I'd like that."
Her mind still lingered on the Traveler. What exactly was it. How did it get here? Why was it damaged? Why had Amber called it their savior and last hope? She was pulled from her thoughts when she heard the metallic feet of the nurse frame returning, its thin, white and red metal build definitely making it live up to its name. It spoke in its robotic tone, quite a far cry from the voices of machines back home, such as EDI.
"Please come with me." Shepard nodded, and hopped off the bed, shivering slightly when her bare feet touched the cold floor. She glanced around the medical wing as she followed the frame. It was a simple white room, with medical beds, tables and equipment lining the walls and filling the room. Several machines that Shepard couldn't identify also filled the room. No one else was here, something which she found a little odd. Most medical wings had at least a few patients in them if not several. But, it just might be because she was in a testing room, and not an actual operation room.
"Please stand here." The frame stopped by a large circular device on the ceiling, which had several arms dangling down below it. It gestured to the space between the arms. Shepard nodded, then stepped inside of the arms.
"This machine will repair your damaged muscles," the frame said flatly. Shepard rose a brow, and looked up as the arms lowered. Now she could see that each one had a needle on the end. Before she could think farther on this, the arms stuck their needles into Shepard. One in each arm, one in each leg, one in her spine, one in her neck, and another right above her left hip. Surprisingly, there was no pain, just a cold prick as the needles slid into her skin. Moments later, she felt warmth spread over her as her sore muscles loosened instantly, and the slight tremble in her legs leaving. After a few moments, she was warm all over, and the arms retracted from her. She smirked, raising an arm and forming a fist before stretching her fingers. The pain was gone. She glanced at the frame before dipping her head in thanks. The frame returned the gesture.
"You will find a fresh pair of clothes lying on the table behind you. Your armor is also there, but I recommend picking up some new armor before you head back out Guardian." Shepard almost said something about not being a guardian, but held her tongue. It would be easier to not try and explain her predicament to the machine. Instead, she simple nodded and turned to the table behind her as the frame left the room. As the nurse had said, a pile of clothes was placed on the table behind her, along with a pair of black boots and her scuffed up armor. She lifted up the first article of clothing. A black tee shirt, nothing special. She pulled it on and was surprised that it fit her perfectly. They must have gotten her sizes from when they took all the measurements of her during their examination. A few minutes later, she exited the medical wing. Black shirt, black pants, and black boots, her armor held under an arm. She glanced around and spotted the only non-robot she had seen since she'd arrived.
Amber was leaning against a nearby wall, her knife in hand as she carved on a small metal cube. She was still wearing her armor, but she looked more casual due to the changes she'd made. She had removed her cloak and upper armor, revealing a white tank top she must have been wearing underneath it. The upper armor, or at least the cloth parts, had the sleeves tied around her waist so they wouldn't dangle. Her legs were still covered in her green armor, leaving her with a half casual, and half armored look. The knife she was using came from her thigh, where a sheathe was still attached and accessible. With her skin exposed, Shepard could make out several faint scars that crisscrossed her athletic build. She could also see a tattoo on her left arm. It resembled a skull, but had three eyes in the center of the face instead of two. The skull's mouth was open, as if it was screaming, and a knife was stuck through its temple, jabbing out the other side. Cracks on the skull around the blade gave the appearance that the skull had been stabbed. She also had a golden necklace on, with a pendant shaped like the sun dangling from it. She glanced up and smirked at Shepard, her blue eyes bright.
"All fixed up I hope?"
Shepard nodded at her. "Yep. They fixed up my muscles. I'm fully combat ready. The nurse even called me a guardian, though that's not accurate. I'm not a guardian. Not even sure what a guardian is exactly." Amber chuckled, sheathing her knife and lifting up the cube, which disappeared in a flash of light.
Standing up straight, she shrugged. "Well, we can deal with that later. Come on, I want to introduce you to my squad first." She turned and began jogging down the hall. Shepard quickly followed, thankful that she could do so without pain again. She followed Amber up a flight of stairs, then into a hallway which resembled an apartment or hotel. She stopped by one of the doors, which was marked with a strange symbol Shepard didn't recognize, three triangles placed side by side, with their lines overlapping. Along with this, below the symbol was the number C18, proving that this must be like some sort of apartment. Amber opened the door, and gestured Shepard inside. With a raised brow, she stepped in.
The room was full of … artifacts? Strange things, like cubes, skulls, pieces of metal, things like pottery, all of it was either placed on pedestals, mounted on the walls, behind glass, or with some of the items, floating in the air. Several objects glowed, and others still pulsed or shimmered with energy. A large lounging chair was placed by the window, an end table next to it with a data pad on it. A couch was in the middle, with a coffee table in front. A large table was placed by a wall and was covered with books. Actual books. Shepard hadn't seen one of those in ages. She glanced around the room, surprised by all of it, however, it was the books that intrigued her the most. She walked over to the table, and looked at the pages of a large open books. English, written English. However, whatever it was about, she couldn't place it.
Amber walked up beside her, chuckling. "Be sure not to touch anything. Crystal doesn't like her things being touched." Shepard turned to her.
"Crystal? Is that a squad mate of yours?" Amber nodded. Casting another glance around the room, Shepard commented. "A bit of a collector I see."
Amber nodded again. "Yeah. One among a long list of strange things she does." She turned to another door, and went to open it before stopping and turning back to Shepard. "So, just as a warning. Try not to do anything normal, she'll think you're weird. Also, try to use big words. She'll gripe if you act simple." Shepard rose a brow, confused by the odd requests. Clearly Amber was just insulting Crystal, for whatever reason. A smirk tugged at Amber's lips, proving Shepard's point.
Making a half nodded, she turned to the walk through the door next to Amber, sarcasm dripping from her voice. "Riiiight. I'll be sure to do that." She turned and faced the next room, and thought that maybe Amber was right about her comments.
If the last room was strange, then this one was downright bizarre. The room was arranged like a bedroom, study room, and a laboratory had a strange love child. The room was filled with even more shelves and items along the walls. More books as well, however these were stranger, and had a withered look to them. Some even had glowing covers. Computer like machines sat on a table by the wall, along with more books. In the far corner was a wide, rounded bed covered in elaborate sheets. Something resembling an ancient Indian dream catcher hung on the wall behind the bed. Feathers rimmed it and a bird skull was in its center. In fact, Shepard could see several bird things in the room. Bird skulls and feathers were everywhere, not in a creepy way, but still enough to be noticeable. In the center of the room was a large table that had what looked like a robot lying on it. The robot was made from brass colored metal. It had a large fan shaped head with a single eye placed inside a pointed narrow face. No other facial features. A container full of shimmering white fluid sat next to its torso, as if it went with the machine. It also appeared to have what looked to be bullet holes in its chest. On the far wall was a large L shaped desk, with the large side against the wall and the short end sticking out from the wall. This only left a small opening to get behind the desk. The wall above the desk was covered in dozens of drawings that Shepard couldn't identify. Everything from strange creatures and humanoids to machines and vehicles. A couple others were objects that she couldn't place. It was then that Shepard noticed someone was in the room.
Behind the desk sat a female, though she clearly wasn't human, at least not a normal one. For starters, her skin was colored an off-purple shade, and seemed to shimmer with incredibly faint tendrils of light that moved gently across her skins by her hairline. Her hair was pale blue, and also seemed to shine slightly. On her forehead was a glowing orange tattoo that ran down her nose line. A second line ran across from eyebrow to eyebrow, forming a rough cross shape. A small triangle topped the line, completing the tattoo. Her eyes however where the most noticeable. They were yellow, and shown like small lights, causing her pupils to stand out from her eyes. The woman was dressed in what seemed to be a long, purple and white cloak, and a ring of teal feathers lined her collar. A bird skull necklace, decorated with white and yellow, feathers hung from her neck. Her hands had gloves on them that left her fingers exposed, showing that her hands were colored the same as her face. A ring of more teal feathers went around her arms just above the elbow. On her left arm was a band that shown with blue, holographic energy. A blue energy pyramid stuck out from the band, making it quite noticeable. What the heck was the band for? She looked like something of a mad scientist mixed with a cultist. Glancing up from a small book she was writing in, she suddenly gave a short gasp of surprise, her eyes widening upon seeing that people where in here with her. She sat up, scanning Shepard with her glowing eyes before smiling softly and speaking in a calm and soothing voice.
"Well hello." She chuckled. "I apologize, I didn't realize that you were here." She then turned and noticed Amber.
"Amber. What do you need? And who is this?" She gestured to Shepard. Amber slid up beside Shepard.
"This," she placed a hand on Shepard's shoulder, "is Jane Shepard. Found her in the wastes outside the Cosmodrome. Apparently, she's new around her and knows nothing about what's going on. I think she might have amnesia." The woman, who she assumed was Crystal, rose a brow, and glanced back at Shepard.
"Really? Well, she must have tons of questions then." She stood, and stepped around her desk. Her cloak was long, going past her knees, and ended in points that went along its edge. He boots matched the outfit, purple and white with a ring of teal feathers on her ankles. She extended her hand towards Shepard, and smiled.
"My names Crystal, and I'd be more than happy to answer any questions you may have."
"So, Awoken are basically humans who were changed by spending too much time in deep space?" Crystal, chuckled, nodding.
"Well, that's close enough." Crystal was quite intrigued by this human, this Jane Shepard. Like most humans, she was inquisitive, strong willed and not afraid to speak her mind. However, at the same time, she was soft spoken, and humble enough to accept advice. This trait alone made her better than many, including the other human in here. But, that's an unfair judgment. Amber may be a pain, but she meant well, and she was a skilled fighter, so she couldn't complain. Honestly, despite their differences, Crystal viewed Amber as a sister. An annoying one, but a sister none the less. Hopefully, Shepard here will be easier to work with, if she sticks around to work with them.
They were sitting in Crystal's living room, her in her lounge chair, and Shepard and Amber sitting on the couch. While they could have stayed in her study, Crystal felt that a more comfortable atmosphere would be better for a questioning session.
Shepard nodded, then asked another question. "So, what exactly are Guardians? Amber says bother you and herself are ones, and those Frames keep calling me one, but I still don't know what they are."
Crystal thought for a moment before speaking. "Guardians are champions of the Traveler. We wield the Light that it produces as a weapon, and use it against the forces of Darkness. We are protectors of the City and its interests. That's a rough summery." She watched as Shepard mulled these things over in her mind. It truly was strange, to encounter an adult that knew nothing about the City and its interests. While it wasn't the first time, in the past it was because someone had been living in the wilds, completely cut off, and thus had to be taught even basic things. Shepard however knew basic human functions, but seemed to almost be disconnected from what was happening. Not that she lived in a different world, but that she used to, and only just now entered the real world. Very strange indeed.
Shepard glanced back up again, speaking softly. "Is this Darkness the thing that killed everyone?"
Crystal nodded. "Yes. Several hundreds of years ago, humanity was at its Golden Age. The Traveler brought prosperity and longevity. Our technology soared, and we grew. However, this didn't last. The Traveler's enemy, the Darkness, arrived with its armies and destroyed the Golden Age in an event known as the Collapse. However, the Darkness was pushed back, but not without severely damaging the Traveler. On the verge of death, the Traveler went into hibernation, to preserve itself. With its last breath, it gifted us the ghosts to find warriors to wield the Travelers light as a weapon against the armies of Darkness."
Shepard nodded, glancing down again. "I want to help." She looked back up. "I want to fight."
Crystal rose a brow and glanced at Amber, who simply shrugged. She thought a moment, before sighing.
"I'm not sure on the specifics behind someone becoming a Guardian outside of a Ghost choosing you, but I'm sure we could get the Vanguards approval."
Shepard's mind raced with all the information that had been dropped on her. Humanities near extinction, the threat of this Darkness, and the possibility of getting to fight once again, it was all somewhat surreal. However, she couldn't hide a smile when Crystal said that they'd try to see if she could become a guardian.
Crystal rose a hand to calm her upon seeing her smirk. "Don't get your hopes up. I said we'd ask. Honestly, I'm not sure at all if they can accept you."
Amber scoffed. "Why wouldn't they. She's willing, and a pretty good fighter. Took down a shiv and a Dreg in close quarters all on her own. Not terrible for a rookie."
Crystal nodded in agreement. "True. But still, we need to ask them."
"Tri should do it."
Crystal nodded. "He should probably meet her first. Get his opinion."
Shepard frowned. "Whose Tri, and why should he ask?
However, before Crystal could answer her, the door opened, causing all three women to turn and face the door and Shepard's eyes to widen at what came in.
A robot was walking into the room, but not one of those frames Shepard had seen earlier. Unlike the frames, this robot had a much fuller, human like design to it, though she couldn't tell if that was from its body, or the bulky armor it wore. The armor was thick and angular, with a broad chest pieces and thick shoulder pads. It was a metallic navy blue in color, with golden accents that stood out from the blue metal. Glowing yellow lights shone out from under several pieces of the armor, giving it a powered and advanced look. A short piece of cloth hung from its belt, dangling down from its right side. It was black with a strange blue emblem on it. A sheet of chain mail hung down from under the cloth, extending farther then the cloth and ending in several long strips of chain. A large knife was attached above the cloth. She could see a rifle of some kind attached to its back, an assault rifle from the looks of it. However, its head stood out the most. Unlike the frames, which had long and narrow, box like heads that didn't look human at all, this one's head was shaped exactly like a human's head. The head was green, with orange stripes running from the top of the head down to the glowing green eyes. A horn like protrusion jutted out from its forehead, and seemed to be collapsible. The mouth however was bizarre. Instead of lips, two plates extended from the top and bottom, meeting at the middle. Two strips of metal ran down from the angular cheeks and converged at the large chin. The design meant that from the side, she could see clear through the mouth to the other side.
The machine stopped upon entering the room, its eyes stopping on Shepard for a second before turning and glancing between Amber and Crystal. A small piece of metal above its right eye rose, most likely a simulated eyebrow, as it turned back to Shepard. It then spoke, its voice sounding almost human except for a metallic flange that followed its sentences. Masculine sounding as well, meaning it, or he, was probably a male, at least personality wise. Shepard also noticed that lights in his mouth glowed orange when he spoke.
"Amber, please tell me you're not trying to convince Crystal to experiment on another one."
Shepard blinked twice, caught off guard by the question. She turned and noticed Amber's face turning red and Crystal's face turning purple from embarrassment. Amber quickly jumped to her feet, shaking her head, and arms outstretched as she retaliating to the machines question.
"NO! NO! Traveler no! Nothing like that!" She glanced at Crystal, whose face was purple and contorted with embarrassment as she glanced back at Amber. Taking a breath, Amber calmed down before speaking again.
"No. This is a friend. Not…never mind. Anyway, we were just talking with her about becoming a guardian."
The robot turned glanced over Shepard, brow still raised, before it lowered, and he walked towards her.
"Well then, in that case, I suppose I should introduce myself." He walked forward, extending a hand.
"Tri Saberlinx. I'm the leader of this fireteam." Shepard stood, and shook his hand.
"Jane Shepard. I didn't realize that robots could be guardians."
Tri blinked at her, his eyes switching on and off to simulate the blink. He seemed put off by the comment. Shepard frowned, releasing her hand from the shake.
"Oh. Ahhh, I'm sorry if I've offended you." This introduction was not going well.
"She has amnesia Tri. I don't think she remembers Exos." Crystal said from behind, bailing her out. Shepard glanced back at Crystal. She had to tell them that she didn't have amnesia, just wasn't from around here. But how could she say that when she herself didn't even know what happened. It was all too much. Tri glanced at Crystal, then back at Shepard, nodding.
"Ok, that makes sense." He chuckled. "I apologize for that response, I've just never had someone call me a robot before." Shepard glanced him over.
"What are you then, if you don't mind me asking?" Tri chuckled, shaking his head.
"I don't mind at all. As Crystal said, I am an Exo. We are, you could say, combat androids, built during the Golden Age. For what reason and how, no one is certain. All Exos, including myself, have had our minds wiped several times, resulting in us having no memory of the Golden age, or even of why we were built. Most of us, at least the ones that are functioning, serve as guardians, but not all." Shepard nodded at him, fascinated by all of this. She glanced back up when Tri spoke again.
"Enough about me, I want to hear about you."
Liara shifted in her sleep, then let out a weak groan. What was happening? Where was she? She tried to move, but her muscles ached and wouldn't respond. Even her breathing was labored. She coughed, air finally filling her lungs again. Her eyes cracked open, and she saw light above her. She was inside somewhere, an old room from the looks of it. She closed her eyes again, trying to clear her foggy head. What had happened? She couldn't remember a thing. This wasn't like her. Something must be amiss. She focused on her muscles, trying to get a response Slowly, feeling returned. Strange. Her muscles were sore, as if she had been a fight and had lost horribly. That wasn't like her at all. She either won a fight, or didn't fight in the first place. She exhaled, then sat up, gritting her teeth through the pain. Once she had sat up, she placed a hand on her head, then opened her eyes, observing her surroundings.
A small room, full of metal crates and shelves, the shelves were stocked with strange boxes with unrecognizable labels. A storage room perhaps. It was old. Rust and cobwebs covered the walls, and she could smell mold and decay. The room was lit by only three flickering light fixtures, each one looking as if they might go out any second. She was sitting on a table, as if she was some prize to be observed. Had she been kidnapped? Unlikely. The only ones who would store a hostage in such a poorly kept room would be a Vorcha, and they'd rather eat you then take you alive. So then how had she gotten here? Her eyes fell upon a large doorway on the far side of the room. The door was closed, but she couldn't tell if it was locked. However, if it was, it looked weathered enough, so she'd have no problem breaking it open with her biotics. A gently as she could, she slid of the table.
However, upon touching the ground, pain shot up her legs, and they went out, resulting in her crumbling painfully to the ground. As she fell, one of her flailing legs kicked the table, causing it to noisily skid a few inches across the ground. She yelped in pain as her foot punished her for the kick. She clutched her leg close to her chest, her teeth gritted as she tried to ease the pain, cursing silently to herself. Her heart was raising from the pain, and her mind was still foggy with confusion. Something truly terrible must have happened. She prayed that her friends were ok. They were together on a mission, last, she could remember. Maybe they had… She suddenly froze, her heart stopping when she heard a noise.
The door opened with a creek, grinding against the floor before thudded against the wall noisily, rattling the metal. Liara held her breath, trying not to panic. Heavy footsteps came towards her, walking the distance before stopping a few feet in front of her. She heard a grunt, then some deep garbling that must be her captor's language. There was a pause, and she felt something give her shoulder a light shove. The garbling sounded again, it must be wanting her attention. Slowly, she lifted her head to view her captor.
A large, brutish alien stood over her. At first, she mistook it for a turian, but then dismissed that. This thing was far too bulky for a turian. It wore a form fitting suit that covered its entire body from head to toe. Strips of cloth were wrapped around its feet, hands, lower legs, and lower arms. Metal plates covered its knees, elbows and chest. The elbow guards had two metal blades jutting out backwards from the elbow guards, so that they lay against the arm when it was straightened. Similar blades were attached to the knee guards. A small knife was attached to the right side of the chest plate, and a sword was fastened to its belt. Large shoulder pads jutted out from its shoulders, greatly increasing its profile. Small rounded pieces of metal jutted out from below its arms, almost like caps, attaching to its chest plate. What were those doing there? Its face was covered in a wide helmet, with four glowing blue eye pieces staring out from under a heavy brow. Small tubes attached to the side of the face, running down under its right arm before attaching to a small tank Liara could just make out over his shoulder. A thin cape, which only covered its right shoulder blade, ran down its back, ending at knee level. It held a strange gun in its three fingered hands, the ends of four barrels glowing a faint orange. It glared down at her, gesturing towards her lazily with its gun as it continued to gripe at her in its language.
Whatever this thing was, it was unknown to Liara, and was most likely the thing that was holding her hostage. She glanced back down, avoiding its gaze and ignoring its words. Did she have her pistol? No. It was missing for some reason. However, this didn't mean she was defenseless. She gritted her teeth, preparing herself. Hopefully her sore muscles didn't stop her from using her biotics. Quickly, she sat up, and thrust her hand forward, throwing a biotic blast straight at the alien. The brute took a step back, flinching as if expecting an impact, but none came. Liara faltered, caught off guard by the lack of her biotics. The alien glanced at her, as if confused. She focused harder, staring at her hand for a moment before closing her eyes, and thrusting it forward again. However, once again, nothing happened. Liara, opened her eyes, and stared at her hands, confused beyond belief. What was going on? Hearing a cackling noise, she glanced up, and saw the alien stepping towards her, its shoulders shaking as it laughed at her. It then lunged forward, grabbing her wrist with its hand before twisting her wrist to the side. Liara screamed in pain, partial from the twist, and partially from her already sore body. Twisting her arm to the side before leaning forward, its face directly now directly in front of Liara's. She recoiled backwards. She could smell its foul odor, a mixture of filth, death, and a strange, reptilian smell. This perked her curiosity for a second before fear overtook her again as she saw it placed its weapon on its back, then drew the knife from the sheathe on its chest. It held the knife up to her throat, the blade suddenly glowing blue and crackling with electricity. The alien seemed to snarl at her, and Liara closed her eyes, hoping that her death would be quick.
Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of a blade slicing through flesh, and the feeling of liquid splattering onto her face. Her eyes snapped open with alarm and surprise. The alien had gone ridged, a blade similar to the knife in its hand jutting out from its throat. A white, gassy fluid was leaking from around the blade, and small bubble were forming around the blade as the alien tried to breathe. Liara tore herself out of the alien's grasp, tumbling backwards, her mouth gaping. Scooting herself away, she stared in shock and confusion at what was before her. The alien reached for the knife, gurgling as it tried to breath as blood filled its lungs. The blade was then yanked out, resulting in alien's body going limp before toppling sideways, dead. Behind it crouched another alien, this one even more frightening then the first.
It was smaller than the first, around the same size as Liara. It was also slimmer than the other one, with a more thin and athletic build compared to the first's large and bulky build. The armor was similar, in that it was a form fitting suit covered in metal plates, however, that's where the similarities ended. The most noticeable difference was that this alien had four arms instead of two. Its armor plates were also golden instead of red. Also, while the other's armor was in good condition other than a few scuffs, this one's armor was heavily damaged by scuffs, dents, and even scorch marks. There was even a large burnt gash running diagonally across the chest piece. A long cape flowed over its shoulders. It was faded gold in color, but this was barely visible do to the black scorch marks and tears. A sniper rifle looking weapon was slung over its back, and two swords hung from its belt. A large knife sheathe was attached to its lower back, the knife itself in the alien's hand, the blade glowing blue and crackling with electricity. However, the biggest, and most unsettling appearance was the alien's head and helmet. The helmet fit snuggly on the alien's head, and had an opening on the top, and through this opening, long blue hair stuck out like a mohawk before curving back and tumbling down to the back and right of the head, barely reaching its neck. A human skull, at least the front facial bone, was attached to the helmet, acting as a mask that gave the alien an eerie appearance that unnerved Liara. Glowing green eyes with lighter green pupils glared out of the eye holes, along with another pair staring out of a pair of holes drilled into the bone on either side of the eye holes. Below the skull, large, blade like teeth jutted out. Around it, the jaw bone and even the tendons were visible, attaching the jaw to the creature's head. Despite this, the jaw looked fully functional, and even seemed capable of forming facial expressions. The alien's lower arms were one the ground, holding it up, while the upper arms were held up in a defensive pose, white blood still dripping from the knife blade. It drilled Liara with its four eyes, as if studying her.
Liara stared back at the alien with equal amounts of fear and curiosity. This was perplexing. On one hand, the alien had saved her life by killing the first, on the other hand, this one didn't seem very friendly toward her either. She snapped out of her thoughts when the alien crept forward, using its six limbs to lightly creep across the ground in a fluid motion. Like the first one, this alien also got right up in her face, allowing Liara to smell it. This one smelled different. It smelt dirty, but also burnt, like it had been standing near a fire for far too long. It also had the strange smell of dust, like when one enters an ancient desert tomb for the first time, something that Liara had done quite often. Liara scooted herself back some, and attempted to keep a neutral face, but failed. Fear was clearly visible on her face, and she was certain this thing could see it. The alien glanced over her one final time.
"What in Crota's name are you supposed to be?" Liara blinked, taken aback by what she just heard. The alien had just spoken to here. In English! Granted it had a soft, yet glutaral accent, but still English! Liara shook her head. She had to respond. Putting on her bravest face, she spoke with her usual authoritative tone, her fear leaving her as she regained her composer.
"My name is Liara T'soni, and I'm an Asari. Who might you be?" The alien frowned, and pulled its head back. Clearly, it too was surprised that the alien could speak. It then sat up, taking its hands off of the ground as it sat on its knees, then cleared its throat.
"My name is Mirvia, the Exiled. I'm a drifter in these parts." It leaned in close again.
"What business do you have in a Devil's camp, Laria Terson? Captured and experimented on? Maybe a concubine for their spook?" Liara held in a gasp, quite offended by the accusations by this alien.
"I most certainly am not." She quickly rose to her feet, or at least tried to. Her attempt only got her to her knees before her legs nearly buckled under her again, forcing her to drop to a kneel. The alien lept back in response, knife raised. Clearly this thing was as afraid of her as she was off it.
"Well then, what are you doing here. No one but the Devil's come her by chose." Liara placed a hand on her head, and shook it.
"I honestly can't remember. I simply woke up on that terrible behind me. I don't remember anything about how I got here." The alien stood, cackling at her.
"Well that's just unfortunate." It sheathed its knife, then strode over to the shelves, and began rummaging through them. "I myself am here to do a little raiding."
Liara glanced at the alien, then to the dead one. "Thanks for killing that thing." The alien stopped, and turned to look at her before returning to her searching.
"Don't. I killed him more to keep him from sounding an alarm than anything else. I don't like leaving any witnesses." It continued to rummage through the boxes, pulling out several small, glowing blue orbs, along with a couple other random metal pieces. All of these it stuffed into a small back that attached to its belt. It then turned toward Liara, drawing a sword as it stared at her. "Unfortunately, this means I can't leave you alive either." It began walking towards Liara, glaring into her eyes. Fear came over her face, and she began scooting backwards.
"Wait! I can help you! I'm quite skilled with technology!" The alien humphed, raising its sword.
"I don't care. I can't leave you ali…" The alien was interrupted by a distant explosion that shook the building they were in. The alien froze, clearly put off by the explosion. Shortly after, shouts of some alien language began echoing around them, and a siren began blaring in the distant.
"S***! Guardians!" The alien turned towards the door, sheathing its sword as it dropped to its knees. Liara was once again confused by what was happening. Everything was happening to fast for her clouded mind to comprehend. This was such an alien feeling to her, almost as alien as the creature before her. The alien then turned to face Liara, glaring at her.
"I'll kill you next time Laria. Consider yourself lucky." It then took off running down the hall, disappearing from site. Liara stared in confusion down the hall the alien had run down, wondering what would happen to here now.
"So, you want me to believe that not only are you not from around here, but that you're from an alternate reality where the Collapse never happened? Forgive me for sounding skeptical." Shepard sighed, rubbed her temple. When she and Tri had first started speaking, she simply shared with him her encounter with Amber, and the battle that followed. He was quite intrigued by the tale, and asked her many questions about her fighting abilities. Once they had covered that, he then asked her about her waking up in the wilderness, and that's when things got weird. Without much choice, she spilled the beans about her not being from around here, and that was being met with resistance.
"Look, I know it sounds weird, but I'm telling the truth. Where I come from, Earth is still intact, our society is flourishing, and alien species we know of aren't trying to kill us. In fact, they're our allies."
Tri sighed, rubbing his forehead. "That doesn't make any sense. How is that possible?"
Crystal placed a hand on Tri's shoulder, resulting in him turning and facing her. "Tri. Don't be so bullheaded. Have you considered the fact that maybe the Vex are involved?"
Tri rose a brow. "What do you mean?"
"I mean that perhaps there is a logical explanation for this. And that involves the Vex. We already know that they have the power to move through time and space at will, so who's to say that they can also move through realities, or that they can bring someone back."
"What? Are you saying that she's with the Vex?"
"No, but perhaps she accidentally encountered them, and they transported her here. Would explain her confusion and lack of memory on how she got here."
Shepard sat there, thinking. While she mostly had no idea what they were talking about, what little she could understand made some sense. At least they were starting to believe her.
Tri then nodded. "I guess. For now, we'll stick with that theory." He turned to Shepard, who raised her head to look at him. "However, I think it would be best if you didn't share this info with others. It's hard enough to understand, so let's not make it worse and try to explain it to others."
Shepard nodded. He was right. It would be best is she didn't mention it again, at least for the time being. Hopefully she'd be able to look more into it later, and maybe even find a way back. After she found her friends of course.
Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a soft beeping noise. She rose a brow, and glanced a Tri, the origin of the beeping. He stood up, placing a hand on the side of his head.
"Excuse me real fast." He walked out of the room, his place being taken by Amber.
"If it makes you feel any better. I believe you."
Shepard rose a brow. "Really? You."
Amber shrugged. "I mean, it is a little confusing, but honestly, that story of yours is to detailed to be fabricated. Plus, what do you gain by lying in such a way. If anything, it would have been smarter to just go along with what we were saying."
"That's true. But I'm not a fan of lying, and the truth would have revealed itself eventually anyway, so better to tell it now."
A thought then struck Shepard. "Hey Amber. You wouldn't happen to know if any, unidentified aliens have been found recently."
Amber frowned. "Not that I know of. Why do you ask?"
"Well, I wasn't alone when I was brought here. Two of my friends were with me, and both are one of those aliens that I spoke of earlier. One of the ones you wouldn't know about."
"Huh, so I'm guessing your worried about them and want to know if they're here as well."
Shepard nodded, glad that her point was easy to make out.
"Well, I'd be more than happy to look into it for you, if you want."
"That would mean a lot to me, thank you."
Tri then reentered the room, gaining everyone's attention.
"Alright Saber Squad. Vanguard has a mission for use. Cayde has picked ups some Fallen transmissions concerning an "item of interest." He wants us to check it out and, if possible, acquire this item for ourselves."
"Tri. If it's alright, I'd rather stay here. I have some more research I have to do." He nodded.
"That's fine Crystal, I was actually hoping you'd stay. Cayde wants you to study the signal directly for him." Crystal smirked at this. Amber then stood, speaking.
"Tri, what are we going to do with Shepard. If I were her, I wouldn't want to be stuck in a room with Crystal." This earned her a glare from the guardian in question, but she ignored her.
Tri turned and stared at Shepard for a moment, slightly unnerving her.
"She's coming with us."
Shepard was stunned, surprised by the comment. He wanted her to come with him? Why? It also seemed like Crystal had the same thought.
"Tri! I know we talked about seeing if she could become a Guardian, but you never asked the Vanguard, and I know Zavala wouldn't approve of…"
"I know what Zavala would think, but I want to see what Shepard can do myself. Plus, if I can get some combat footage of her, it would help in getting her approved." He then glanced back at Shepard. "If you want to come with us that is."
She thought about it, but only for a moment. She wasn't one to sit out of a fight if one was happening. Plus, for all she knew, this might be her only opportunity to get to go back out anytime soon, so the choice was obvious.
She smirked, nodding at him. "Of course. I would be honored to work with you."
Amber then cleared here thought. "Not to be "that guy", but she doesn't have any weapons nor adequate armor."
"Don't worry about that Amber, I've got it covered. Get your things, we move out in 10." Amber nodded before jogging out of the room, Crystal turned and went back into her study, and then Tri glanced at Shepard before turning to leave as well. Shepard glanced down at her hands, thinking to herself. Slowly, she lifted her right hand, then closed it into a fist, immediately, her omni-blade sprang to life, casting a faint orange glow onto the room. She couldn't stop a smirk from spreading across her face.
Authors Note: After reading some comments, talking with a friend, and thinking it over for a few days, I decided to rewrite the ending of this chapter. I apologize for the rushed feel of the original draft. I had quickly placed that ending down without much thought because I was getting a little tired of the talking, and wanted to get on to the combat, which will be happening next chapter. However, I have now reworked how Shepard and her crew will be interacting with the Destiny world, and this rewrite better portrays how this interaction will occur. The rewrite also fixes some other problems which I was facing, but I won't go into those. Anyway, I hope this rewrite eases the minds of you readers, and shows how I do listen to your comments and feedback. I also want to thank Leonard Church814 for the very in-depth analysis of non-Guardians becoming Guardians in Destiny Lore. I never knew any of that, and I wanted to thank you for being dedicated enough to share Grimoire information with me. Next chapter will have some action in it, I promise. Until then, ZOMAN signing out!
