S1-201
The Crow and the Cryptoliths
11:46 AM
02/11/3274
The Tangled Shore
Spider's Safehouse
Music
Destiny 2 - Tangled Shore
After having just teamed up with the Spider again, Michael and his team decided to see their newest… 'ally'.
SCANNING…
NEW ENTRIES
1: The Crow
Spider's Enforcer
"Alright… 'Crow'. What've you got for us?" Michael questioned, opening a comm link for Spyglass to listen in.
Clearing his throat, the Crow proceeded to explain his plan. "The Reef's sky has holes in it… and the whole system's in chaos. Of course, Xivu Arath decided now was the right time to corrupt herself an army. We call them 'Wrathborn'. Most of them are Eliksni like Spider. Others… well. Spider wants the lines of Glimmer open, Hive god or not. Asked me to help you deal with Xivu Arath's High Celebrant. Apparently, the Guardians of the Frontier are old friends of mine. But… I don't remember you." The Lightbearer then held out a strange device in one hand. "I found some Hive artifacts gathering dust in Spider's trove and fashioned them into a lure. Wrathborn go crazy for them. When they take the bait… I wish there were some other way, but her magic's driven them mad. Hunting them down is the only way to weaken Xivu Arath's grip on the Shore. Like Spider says, 'Violence is the only language the Hive understand.'." As he said this, he placed the device on a nearby table. "For now, we can start small, work our way up her command chain. When we reach the High Celebrant, we'll take it down; stop Xivu Arath from corrupting anyone else. Don't take this the wrong way, but it's… nice to be working with other Lightbearers."
Taking the device, Michael nodded to the new Lightbearer. "It'll be more than just 'nice' if the Lightbearers you're working with… happen to be Pilots."
The Crow looked confused. "What's that? Some sort of elite label?"
"You'll see." Cayde chuckled.
Turning to leave, Michael got on the comm. "You get that, Spyglass?"
"Every word." Spyglass responded. "The new Lightbearer under the Spider's 'employ' is not Uldren Sov. I advise you not to hold any hostilities against him."
Michael sighed, but complied anyway. "Understood."
"Stand by for Titanfall." Soon after Spyglass said that, a small tremor was felt.
The Spider's voice echoed down the hall. "Another Titanfall? Which one is it this time?! Oh, a Ronin, eh?"
Before Michael could respond, a voice was heard in his head. "[Ronin Auto-Titan online. Hello, Michael.]"
"RD! Finally back in the field, huh?" Michael chuckled as his team came back outside.
The Tangled Shore
Thieves' Landing
"[I was in that 'semi-existent limbo' for a few years. I'm anxious to be back in action.]" The Ronin turned to the ace Pilot, opening up his cockpit for him to embark. "[So… wanna put some Wrathborn on the chopping block?]"
"You know it." Michael replied as the controls were transferred to him.
"[Alright then. The sword is yours, Pilot.]"
Looking up at the tracker, Michael saw that his objective had been marked. "Let's do this."
Making his way to the other side of the sector, Michael and his team saw another Cryptolith, like the one Samus disintegrated back in the Hive fortress deep in Earth's moon. "[Transmat storage transfer complete. The Lure is in your hands, Cayde.]"
The Cryptolith Lure appeared in Cayde's hands. "Here goes nothing." He stuck it into the roots of the Cryptolith, causing something to happen.
As the Cryptolith partially descended into the ground, what looked like circles of Hive magic appeared, dropping off… Fallen?
The Crow's voice was heard on the comms. "The Lure's soulfire brings the Wrathborn to us."
"{You put soulfire in these things?}" Rocco wondered. "{How?}"
"Trade secrets. Maybe one day, I'll teach you." The Crow transmitted.
"[Target marked.]" RD-1539 had marked the large Servitor on the HUD, labelling it as a priority target.
Michael unloaded with the Leadwall, dealing significant damage to the Servitor's main optic. With a swipe of the Ronin Broadsword, he sliced through a portion of the corrupted Fallen, giving his team some breathing room.
"Focus your fire!" Michael called out, and the team proceeded to do so.
Once the Servitor had taken a tremendous amount of damage, it vanished, followed by the remaining corrupted Fallen running away.
"{It's running from the Cryptolith! What should we do?}" Glint asked.
"It'll return at full strength if we don't finish the job." The Crow warned. "Chase it down."
Behind the Fallen was a trail of that same green energy. Michael disembarked. "RD, secure the area. I have a feeling that Wrathborn is headed into a confined space, where you won't be able to follow."
"[Guard-Mode activated. Weapons energized. Good luck.]" The Ronin went to guard the area as Eagle-Eye 9-1 pressed on towards their target.
"Alright. Let's-" Michael was interrupted by a sudden groan. "Death, are you OK?"
The Shadow seemed unwell for some reason. "Ugh… I feel… sick. I think I know… what nausea feels like." For a paracausal skeleton, the Taken King looked about ready to throw up.
Michael got on the comms. "Spyglass, send down a Widow and get the Shadow out of here. I think the Cryptolith's doing something to him."
"Acknowledged. Widow en route."
The Shadow put an arm around his own torso, as if he had an aching stomach… or a stomach at all. "I don't need a…" He tried to open a rift into the Ascendant Realm, but only a few black cinders appeared in the air, fizzling out shortly after. "OK… Maybe I could use a taxi."
"{Sterile neutrino levels are fluctuating on and off the charts.}" Rocco stated, watching as the Shadow's bones sporadically faded between solid and semi-transparent. "{He's destabilizing.}"
Soon enough, as Michael and his team proceeded on foot, a Widow descended near the Cryptolith, extracting a weakened Shadow from the Tangled Shore.
The Tangled Shore
Four-Horn Gulch
"Let's find this Wrathborn and end it." Michael ordered, hopping off his old custom Sparrow.
Following the trail of green energy, the team encountered three corrupted Fallen protecting an obstruction of Hive biomass. They cleared the path, entering the cave.
The Tangled Shore
Sjursrest
It looked like some ancient Awoken tomb… with a Cryptolith in the middle of the rocky chamber.
"Let's do this." Michael said as the Cryptolith Lure appeared in his hands, allowing the Pilot to deploy it. The Servitor appeared nearby, leaving itself vulnerable to Cayde's Charge Rifle.
Music
Destiny 2 - The Hangman
As the Servitor fell, a large Wrathborn and some smaller ones appeared from a circle of Hive magic.
SCANNING…
NEW ENTRIES
1: Savek
Betrayer for Xivu Arath
2: Wrathborn
The Wrathborn… was some sort of mutated Fallen… surrounded in an impenetrable aura barrier.
"My Scan Visor isn't giving me any promising information!" Samus called out as she attempted to scan the creature for a weakness. "We need to funnel some sort of esoteric energy into our weapons to get past that shield!"
Keeping the lesser Wrathborn at bay, Michael gave his helmet enough time to take energy readings. "The Servitors! Destroy the Servitors! They're giving off the same energy as that Wrathborn!"
Cayde took out one of the Servitors with his Charge Rifle, causing it to drop a pool of Hive energy. Michael focused his Light and jabbed a Well of Radiance into the energy.
"Take it down!" Cayde called out as he conjured a Golden Gun.
With two Charge Rifles and an MGL pelting away at Savek, along with Samus charging and firing Super Missiles, the group laid waste to what was once an Eliksni.
Cayde (X)-[Golden Gun] Savek, Betrayer for Xivu Arath (Wrathborn)
Music
none
The Crow was heard on the comms as the Wrathborn fell. "I… recognized that one. We'd crossed paths before."
"An omen, maybe. Old friends made enemies? Hm. Something like that." The Spider added.
"That reminds me of a saying I once heard." The Crow said as Michael approached the large corpse. "'The bones of what we become act more powerfully than the flesh you leave behind.'."
"Quaint." The Spider remarked.
Michael shrugged his shoulders. "Eh. At least it's not a haiku." He looked over the mutated remains. "Hm. Hive-like growths. And I've seen Fallen blood, so it looks like this one's an empty shell; nothing to bleed… except for soulfire. Xivu Arath has ravaged this one in both mind and body. Gonna need a more intensive analysis. I should let Spyglass know."
"{I just sent him a message with attached coordinates.}" Rocco stated, transmitting a few Pilot Sentries into the sector.
11:57 AM
02/11/3274
The Tangled Shore
Spider's Safehouse
Music
Destiny 2 - Tangled Shore
Returning to the Spider's den, Michael and co. regrouped with the Crow.
"Nice work." The Lightbearer said with a weak smile. "You picked that up quickly."
Michael solemnly nodded to him. "I'm sorry about your friend, Crow. You two must've been close… before Xivu Arath got to her."
"But that's only the beginning." The Crow added as his smile faded. "There are much more dangerous Wrathborn than that one." He then got out a white and gray hand cannon, its barrel adorned with carvings of feathers. "So let's get to work."
Michael eyed the pistol, then turned to his Ghost. "Rocco, let's give him a standard issue armament."
"{Got it.}"
"'Standard issue'?" The Crow asked, confused.
A factory issue R-301 Carbine was transmatted into Michael's hands. He then handed it to the Crow, who stared down at the weapon with interest.
"The R-301 is a fully automatic, carbine-length assault rifle, designed to fit a wide range of roles on the battlefield. It's standard issue for IMC forces and represents the long-standing pinnacle of small-arms design." Michael explained as the Crow examined the weapon.
"One weapon will be enough, thank you." The Crow said, handing the rifle back to Michael. "And as I said, let's get to work."
As Rocco transmatted the R-301 back to the IMC's armory, Michael led his team back out of the Spider's bunker, ready to hunt more Wrathborn.
The Tangled Shore
Thieves' Landing
RD-1539 continued to watch over the area around the Cryptolith. "[Well done, team. A good kill.]"
"Time to hunt another one." Michael remarked, planting down the Cryptolith Lure. As the Cryptolith reacted, he readied his Spitfire.
12:02 PM
02/11/3274
The Tangled Shore
Spider's Safehouse
As Michael and his team were hunting down another large Wrathborn, the Spider heard quick, faint beeping from the device to his right.
Interacting with the device, the large Eliksni found that he had received a message from the Taken King, and decided to call on his 'little bird'. "Crow!"
He could hear footsteps coming from the right as the Crow answered his call.
"What is it, Baron?" The Crow asked.
"I just received a message from the Shadow." The Spider said. "He says the High Celebrant found a way to enter his Dreadnaught somehow."
"So we strike now." The Lightbearer suggested. "Once we're through, we can deal a blow to Xivu Arath. Stop her from corrupting more people."
"No." The Baron snapped, holding up a finger. "Tomorrow morning. Frontier time. By then, the Legend should have enough heads on silver platters." He then leaned in over the Awoken. "We can't risk unfinished business. You know that." Leaning back on his chair, he waved his finger to the right. "Continue with your work, will you?"
The Crow nodded, returning to his station to monitor the Fireteam's progress.
I have tried to 'main' pistols in Destiny 2. The result? ... let's just say I wouldn't be here right now if I hadn't gone to rifles and SMGs.
Anyway, it seems like the Cryptoliths are having some negative effect on the Shadow. Around them, he's... not exactly feeling well.
See you next time, guys.