S1-188
Nightmare Hunt - Anguish
2:17 PM
11/23/3273
Earth's moon - Ocean of Storms
Sanctuary
Music
Destiny 2 - Necropolis
After paying the Shadow a visit, Michael returned to the moon. Eris turned to the Pilot upon his arrival. "In the depths of the Hellmouth, my very soul was shattered into pieces. It was all I could do to try and pick them up again. But some pieces, as you can see, required replacing. I must call upon one of them now; an ancient Talisman imbued with the magic of the Hive. Without it, the true power of the Nightmare Essence could not be harnessed. Through their union, we take our first step toward unearthing the secrets of the Pyramid. But it is only a step. Further Essences require further Hive magic, neither of which I possess. Acquire both, and our path to the Pyramid should present itself."
Nodding in confirmation, Michael mobilized.
2:21 PM
11/23/3273
Earth's moon - Ocean of Storms
Temple of Crota
Once Michael reached the rendezvous point with Spyglass and Cayde, Eris was on the comms. "Blind devotion is a dangerous thing, but when it came to Crota, Omnigul knew no other way. She raised for him an army of Hive and tore apart throngs of Guardians. Omnigul left much suffering in her wake. Suffering the Pyramid now uses against us. It expects us to fall to that which we have conquered. Not today."
"OK. I'm the ace Pilot, Spyglass is the Vice Admiral, and Cayde is the Field Commander. Who's calling the shots?"
"The obvious choice would be Spyglass, Michael." Cayde stated. "Alright, Vice Admiral. What's our plan of attack?"
Spyglass looked over the area, recognizing the threats in the area and calculating a course of action. "That platform on the right side will provide us a higher vantage point. We will strike from there. Michael, we will make use of your Shadowshot. Tether them into clusters, then eliminate them with your Satchels. Cayde, you will do the same."
Michael and Cayde snuck up onto the higher platform, hiding behind the small walls on its edge. "Satchels ready?" Michael whispered. Cayde procured his two remote-detonation explosives and nodded to him. "Let's do this."
Acting upon Spyglass's plan, Michael stepped out from behind cover and fired off two Void anchors. The Hive and Nightmares were tethered and pulled into compact groups, enabling the two to deftly toss their sacks of explosives, then trigger their detonators in unison.
"Now THAT'S what I call 'flawless execution'!" Cayde was impressed at the efficiency.
With the screech of the Nightmare of Omnigul from the depths of the Hive fortress, the barrier that denied entry dissipated, shortly followed by Spyglass rushing in with an Arc Staff. Michael and Cayde could hear the pained roars of the Hive for a few seconds before Spyglass walked back out in the silence. "Area secure. Let us proceed."
The two hopped down and followed the Vice Admiral into the Temple of Crota. The first Hive Seeder in sight had been left in a state of disrepair, and the chamber it sat within had already begun to crumble. Hive and Nightmare Hive stood in the way... and paid the price for it as Michael gunned them down with his Spitfire. While 80 rounds tore apart the demons of the dark, Spyglass and Cayde followed behind the IMC ace, with the Vice Admiral's Hemlok held in a standby posture and the Field Commander's V-47 Flatline resting the end of its Threat Scope on the Sim-Exo's right shoulder.
Heading down, the trio found their way to the larger Hive Seeder, which had tipped over since the last time they were there. More Hive and Nightmares littered the area.
As Cayde landed an explosive knife in the face of one Acolyte, killing it and damaging another that was nearby, Michael rushed for the wounded Hive, staggering it with his left elbow to the face before finishing it off with a Spectre-hydraulic punch amplified by Arc Light.
With the area clear, the trio made their way further into the fortress, passing the phantoms of dead Guardians.
Earth's moon - Ocean of Storms
The World's Grave
Finding themselves back in the Hive's ransacked library, Michael and Spyglass stood by and watched as Cayde made short work of the opposition with his Golden Gun, getting a shot back for each kill. "Exemplary shots, Cayde." Michael commended, looking over the Sim-Exo's handiwork.
"What can I say? IMC training tends to pay off." Cayde paused for a moment. "Well, that and the... modifications."
It was then that Rocco appeared. "{Hayden silenced Omnigul's screams twice. We'll do it a third time.}"
Music
Titanfall - OST 68
SCANNING...
NEW ENTRIES
1: Nightmare of Omnigul
Will of Crota
"Cayde! Your ordinance!" Michael called out.
Understanding the callout, Cayde pulled two Satchels off his belt, jumped onto the apparition, and stuck the explosives to his target's face and chest. "EAT THIS!" Cayde exclaimed, triggering the detonator. The explosives dealt considerable damage, staggering the Nightmare of Omnigul. "Spyglass! 7 o' clock!"
Spyglass turned to his left, staggering a Nightmare Acolyte with Disorienting Blow, followed by a Hemlok burst to finish it off.
The Nightmare of Omnigul suddenly went red, becoming invulnerable as Cayde readied his assault rifle. Hive reinforcements began to flood the chamber.
Downing a considerable amount of Hive, Cayde heard a click as his Flatline ran out of ammo. Before he could reach for his belt to grab a new magazine, a Thrall rushed the Sim-Exo, forcing him to pull out the Ace of Spades, landing the first shot to the shoulder to stagger the Thrall before immediately following up with a headshot, causing the Thrall to explode, killing two other Thralls that had just joined in. Cayde looked at his hand cannon in astonishment. "What did you guys do to-"
"Focus, Cayde!"
"Jeez..."
The Omnigul Nightmare's red hue faded away, leaving it exposed to weapon fire. "In the words of the Hand of Rasputin... EMBRACE THE VOID!" Michael glowed with Void Light, which focused in the palm of his right hand. "WELCOME TO OBLIVION!" The Nova Bomb did incredible damage, putting the Nightmare of Omnigul back on the defensive.
With a couple deftly tossed sacks of explosives, Cayde cleared out the Hive reinforcements as they entered the chamber, forcing the Omnigul Nightmare's red hue to vanish for the last time, leaving it open for one last maneuver. Michael aimed his left arm at it, launching a grappling hook straight at the Nightmare's neck, pulling himself up to its shoulders as he held the trigger of the Charge Rifle on the back of his belt. He stuffed the glowing end into the Omnigul Nightmare's mandibles, ending it with one gruesome finisher.
Music
Titanfall 2 - Uphold the Mission
Michael [Lethal Strike] Nightmare of Omnigul, Will of Crota (The Hidden Swarm)
With the Nightmare of Crota dead, Michael got on the comms. "Eris, the Nightmare of Omnigul is taken care of."
"{For now, anyway.}" Rocco added.
"Did you retrieve any further Essence?"
Looking back where the Nightmare of Omnigul once floated, Michael saw a ball of swirling yellow energy. "The Essence of Anguish... We did. This time unique to this Nightmare."
"I see. Then we will uncover its secrets together. Until then, the Hive await you inside the Scarlet Keep. Let me know what you find within." With that, Eris hung up.
Music
Destiny 2 - Necropolis
"Michael, that was BRUTAL!" Cayde exclaimed.
"Lethal Strike. Samus taught it to me. Along with Overblast and Kick Climb." With the deed done, Michael focused on his yin-yang link with the Shadow. "We got another Essence."
Without delay, an Ascendant rift opened nearby, with a Taken Goblin stepping out, still twitching. The corrupted Vex outstretched a hand, palm facing upward, as Michael handed it the Essence of Anguish. The Taken Goblin then shambled its way back to the open rift, returning to the Dreadnaught so that the Shadow could 'work his magic'.
"Spyglass, what's our next move?" Michael asked as the Taken rift closed behind him.
"As per Eris Morn's instructions, you are to enter the Scarlet Keep. I have already contacted Leo and Hayden-10. They are on their way to the rendezvous point: Sorrow's Harbor. Cayde, you are to search the Hellmouth with Petra for additional Nightmares. I will do the same down here. Move out."
Yes, sir.
This is not the first time a campaign goes through a Strike. However, unlike the Curse of Osiris and Warmind expansions, the Shadowkeep campaign required you to go through the actual Strike itself, not a lower level no-matchmaking version that's labeled as a story mission. But I'm not complaining. Bit of a minor twist, but it's alright with me.
Now we will see Hayden's new loadout.
See you next time.