S1-83
The Promethean Code
6:42 PM
05/03/3241
Planet Earth - Low orbit
Music
none
"Stealing from Rasputin. You are entering a world you do not understand." Eris warned over the radio.
"Oh, don't worry about her, Guardians. She's still mad about what Mark did to her ship. We need cloaking tech to slip past the Taken and the Warmind bunker's got the code we need."
Because traces of the Shadow remained within Michael, he was confined to the City, being unable to partake directly in the mission. The rest of his Fireteam, lead by Spyglass, was heading to the Cosmodrome.
Planet Earth - Old Russia
Forgotten Shore
Music
Metroid Prime - Tallon Overworld Depths
"{After all this time, how can we be sure Rasputin has the code?}"
"I already stole it once. Used my last copy making that stealth drive your Guardian blew up. Eh, it was getting old anyway."
"Sorry about that, Cayde." Mark-18 apologized.
After going up the hill, heading into the building, and descending down the flight of stairs inside, they arrived at the entrance. "{I haven't had much luck breaching Rasputin's security.}"
"You've got the same bypass frequency that got me inside."
"He will protect his domain."
Planet Earth - Old Russia
Bunker RAS-2
Once they arrived, the doors opened, and there were Taken rifts all over the place. "{More interdimensional goo. The Taken are here.}" Hayden-10's Ghost reported.
"What? Not possible. We sealed the complex after the Omnigul breach."
"{Cayde, look at this.}" "Establishing visual transmission." Spyglass allowed Cayde-6 and Eris to see what he was seeing.
"Oh, that does look bad. OK, so if you see 'em, uh... just shoot 'em. How did they even get in there?"
"The Taken are not bound by terrestrial constraints."
"Yeah, I'll bet they'll be constrained by terrestrial bullets."
By that point, they already entered the next sector and were killing off any Taken in sight.
Planet Earth - Old Russia
Seraphim Vault
Once the Taken were dead, Tanner-21 sent his Ghost to a nearby door. "{Cayde, your bypass codes aren't getting us through these doors.}"
"Omnigul's screams have already been silenced. There's nothing in there but bad memories."
"Rasputin will give only what you need. Nothing more."
"Don't worry. The good stuff is below you. Keep moving."
"If that's where the codes are, then that's where we'll go." Mark-18 stated, his weapons ready.
Planet Earth - Old Russia
Bunker WAR-4
More Taken to kill, and Sarah sent out her Ghost to scan a computer station in the area. "{Some kind of monitoring station.}"
"It's a surveillance port for the weapons test lab on the other side of the glass. There was an attempt to co-opt early Fallen technologies. Not tremendously successful by most reports."
"{I can't believe the Taken can track us so easily. Oryx really does hate us!}"
"Which is exactly why we're here. We need those cloaking codes."
Planet Earth - Old Russia
The Mine
(!) Darkness Zone (!)
In the next sector, Taken appeared, but Tanner-21 cleared out a significant portion of them with a Fist of Havoc, leaving the rest for Samus and Spyglass to clear out using Golden Guns.
With the Taken killed off, Samus had her Ghost scan a computer monitor nearby. "{This was the first station to come back online after the Collapse. Shortly after that, Rasputin regained control over the entire facility. But it all started here. Maybe Rasputin didn't wake himself?}"
"It would stand to reason that a Guardian made their way through here and ended up turning everything back on."
In the next room, Hayden-10's Ghost scanned another terminal. "{It took simultaneous retinal scans at each of these four stations to get beyond this point. The Log shows access was granted multiple times over the span of hundreds of years using the same pairs of eyes. Either the eyes belonged to early Guardians or something kept them preserved.}"
"I'd have to go with the first one, since it seems more reasonable."
Up ahead were more Taken, and Jack electrified them into nothingness with a Stormtrance, then sent his Ghost to scan a large piece of tech. "{Oryx views Rasputin as a threat. If we could gain control over his reach and wake all of the Warmind systems, we would see everything the Hive have hidden from us. No wonder they want Rasputin destroyed.}"
"We can't let that happen!"
After going through multiple consecutive doors, more Taken appeared in the last room. "EMBRACE THE VOID! WELCOME TO OBLIVION!" Mark-18 blew up all the Taken with a Nova Bomb, clearing the area for Spyglass and his Ghost to extract the codes.
Planet Earth - Old Russia
The Mine
Music
none
"Alright, see what you can pull out of Rasputin. Hmm, there's a joke there somewhere."
"{These cryptosystems follow no logic I understand. I'm not sure it can be modified to work on a Guardian.}"
"Where do you think Bladedancers got their cloaking ability?"
"Not sure." Sarah remarked.
"If the Counsel are satisfied, we can finally end this." Eris transmitted. "Return to the Moon. Steal Crota's soul."
7:39 PM
05/03/3231
Planet Earth - The last City
Tower Plaza
Music
Destiny - The Tower
As Michael returned to the Tower after visiting his friends, who were very happy to see him after all these centuries, he decided to see about the traces of Taken energy coursing through his Light.
Just then, he heard a voice in his head.
Music
O' Death | Jen Titus
"⍙⊑⟒⍀⟒... ⏃⋔ ⟟? ⍙⊑⏃⏁ ⊑⏃⌿⌿⟒⋏⟒⎅ ⏁⍜ ⋔⟒?"
"Who are you?!"
The voice was silent for a while, then it spoke again. "⍜⊑, ⟟ ⌇⟒⟒. ⏁⊑⟒ g⟟⍀⌰... ⌇⊑⟒ ⎅⟟⌇⌇⍜⌰⎐⟒⎅ ⋔⊬ c⍜⋏⏁⍀⍜⌰ ⍜⎐⟒⍀ ⊬⍜⎍. ⊑⋔⋔..."
"Answer me! Who are you?!"
"⟟ ⍙⍜⎍⌰⎅'⎐⟒ ⏃⌇⌇⎍⋔⟒⎅ ⏁⊑⟒⊬ ⏁⍜⌰⎅ ⊬⍜⎍ ⏃⏚⍜⎍⏁ ⋔⟒ ⏃⌰⍀⟒⏃⎅⊬."
"You're... the Shadow?"
"⏃⏁ ⏁⊑⟒ ⌇⟒⍀⎐⟟c⟒ ⍜⎎ ⍜⍀⊬⌖; ⋔⊬ k⟟⋏g. ⏁⊑⟒ ⋏⏃⋔⟒ ⟟⌇ ⎅⟒⏃⏁⊑. ⍙⊑⊬... ⍙⊑⊬ c⏃⋏'⏁ ⟟...?"
"Why can't you take over again? You have the Traveler's protective aura to thank for that."
"C⎍⍀⌇⟒⌇! ⏚⎍⏁ ⋏⍜ ⋔⏃⏁⏁⟒⍀. ⍜⍀⊬⌖ ⍙⟟⌰⌰ c⍜⋔⟒ ⎎⍜⍀ ⏁⊑⟒ ⏁⏃k⟒⋏ g⟒⋏⟒⍀⏃⌰. ⋔⟒."
"Sorry to break it to ya, but the City is protected by Guardians, Pilots, and Titans."
"⏚⌰⏃⌇⏁! ⊑⋔⋔... ⌇⍜ ⏁⊑⏃⏁'⌇ ⟟⏁ ⏁⊑⟒⋏, ⊑⎍⊑? ⊬⍜⎍'⍀⟒ ⟊⎍⌇⏁ g⍜⋏⋏⏃ ⌇⏁⏃⊬ ⊑⟒⍀⟒ ⎎⍜⍀ ⏁⊑⟒ ⍀⟒⌇⏁ ⍜⎎ ⟒⏁⟒⍀⋏⟟⏁⊬?"
"No. I will soon be rid of you."
"⊑⏃⏁⟒ ⏁⍜ ⏚⍀⟒⏃k ⟟⏁ ⏁⍜ ⊬⏃, ⏚⎍⏁ ⊬⍜⎍ ⏃⋏⎅ ⟟ ⏃⍀⟒ ⏁⍜⍜ ⟟⋏⏁⟒⍀⏁⍙⟟⋏⟒⎅ ⎎⍜⍀ ⟊⎍⌇⏁ ⍜⋏⟒ ⍜⎎ ⎍⌇ ⏁⍜ ⎅⟟⟒."
"So if you die, I die?"
"⋏⍜, ⟟⏁'⌇ ⏁⊑⟒ ⍜⏁⊑⟒⍀ ⍙⏃⊬ ⏃⍀⍜⎍⋏⎅. ⟟⎎ ⊬⍜⎍ ⎅⟟⟒, ⟟ ⎅⟟⟒. ⏃⌇ ⌰⍜⋏g ⏃⌇ ⊬⍜⎍'⍀⟒ ⌇⏁⟟⌰⌰ ⏃⌰⟟⎐⟒, ⟟ ⏃⋔ ⎅⟒⏃⏁⊑⌰⟒⌇⌇."
"Ghost, you hearing this?"
"{Every last word of it, and I'm translating it for you. Just as I suspected, the Shadow still lives.}"
"⌇⍜ ⍙⊑⏃⏁ ⏃⍀⟒ ⊬⍜⎍ ⌿⌰⏃⋏⋏⟟⋏g ⏁⍜ ⎅⍜?"
"Hmm... If one Mote of Light reduced you to small traces of weakened Taken energy, maybe a second Mote of Light will finish the job, burning you out of me."
Michael pulled out a Mote of Light and infused it into himself, but the Shadow still remained, unaffected. "⊬⍜⎍ ⎅⟟⎅⋏'⏁ ⊑⟒⏃⍀ ⏃ ⍙⍜⍀⎅ ⟟ ⌇⏃⟟⎅, ⎅⟟⎅ ⊬⍜⎍? ⟟ ⍜⋏⌰⊬ ⎅⟟⟒ ⍙⊑⟒⋏ ⊬⍜⎍ ⌿⟒⍀⋔⏃⋏⟒⋏⏁⌰⊬ ⎅⟟⟒. G⟒⏁ ⏁⊑⏃⏁ ⏁⊑⍀⍜⎍g⊑ ⊬⍜⎍⍀ ⊑⟒⏃⎅."
"That's gonna be easier than you think since you're in my head too."
"⏁⍀⎍⟒."
"I would really like to get back out there and be the IMC Pilot I am. You're in my way.
"⊑⟒⊑ ⊑⟒⊑... ⋏⍜ ⎅⟟c⟒, ⋔⟟c⊑⏃⟒⌰. ⏁⊑⟒ ⋔⍜⋔⟒⋏⏁ ⊬⍜⎍ ⟒⌖⟟⏁ ⏁⊑⟒ ⏁⍀⏃⎐⟒⌰⟒⍀'⌇ ⏃⎍⍀⏃, ⟟'⋔ ⏁⏃k⟟⋏g ⍜⎐⟒⍀ ⏃g⏃⟟⋏, ⏃⋏⎅ ⟟ ⍙⟟⌰⌰ ⊑⎍⋏⏁ ⎅⍜⍙⋏ ⟒⏃c⊑ ⏃⋏⎅ ⟒⎐⟒⍀⊬ ⌇⟟⋏g⌰⟒ G⎍⏃⍀⎅⟟⏃⋏ ⍜⎍⏁ ⏁⊑⟒⍀⟒."
"My Titans have Light-infused life support, so I'm willing to bet that it can keep you down."
"{Not only that, but you don't want us to have to burn you back down to traces to get Michael back, would you? We will do that. Make no mistake.}"
"⎍⋔... ⋏⍜. ⟟ ⎅⍜⋏'⏁ ⍙⏃⋏⋏⏃ g⍜ ⏁⊑⍀⍜⎍g⊑ ⏁⊑⏃⏁ ⏃g⏃⟟⋏."
The Shadow is awake, and it's talking to Michael and his Ghost...
See you next time.