Chapter 2: The Last City

Clea gripped onto her chair as the Pragmat Harrier exited the slip. This was only the first time she had ever been on a ship, at least as far as her memories were concerned, and the sudden lurch of dropping out of faster-than-light travel was more than enough to trigger her gag reflex.

Ash chuckled as Clea dry heaved; luckily, there was nothing in her stomach.

"You'll get used to it," Ash joked as he patted her on the back. The harrier dove into earth's atmosphere, but like all jumpship pilots, Cassie used her ghost to calculate an approach that avoided a bumpy re-entry.

Clea was stunned as she saw the forests below; the landscape of earth was a far cry from the tundras of Europa.

Soon enough, they arrived above a massive city, and Polari began to explain the area.

"This is the last city on earth, and that is the Traveler, who created all the ghosts like me! It's a guardian's job to defend the last city and all of humanity" Polari explained while motioning to the massive floating sphere over the last city.

Clea then noticed the large building overlooking the entire city, and she instantly knew it was important.

"That's the tower, where guardians live, train, and are sent on missions," Ash added.

Just then, Orion appeared and said, "let her ghost do the explaining; she's been waiting a long time to do this" before dissolving again.

Ash nodded and stayed silent, soon enough Cassie hailed the tower and said, "this is Harrier 2, requesting permission to land."

"Copy harrier, proceed to platform 3, clear to land," a female voice replied.

The harrier landed, and the six guardians disembarked without a second thought, but Clea remained in her seat.

"Um..it's time to get up," Polari reminded her.

Clea nodded and stood up, saying, "sorry, just a little…overwhelmed."

As she disembarked the ship, she saw Cassie was speaking to a woman who looked no older than 25, wearing a grey sleeveless top, mechanic pants, an orange handkerchief, and goggles around her neck. She had blond hair and green eyes.

Cassie then made a motion towards Clea, and the woman said, "been over a year since we had a new guardian; come here, I won't bite."

Clea walked forward as the woman held out her hand and said, "Amanda Holiday, nice to meet ya!"

The new guardian was unsure of how to respond but held out her hand, causing Amanda to chuckle as she shook her hand and said, "that's how we say nice to meet ya here!"

Once Cassie signed off on returning the ship, Clea followed the six guardians as they left the hanger and headed up a staircase as the Pragmat Harrier disappeared into the floor via a massive moving platform. All of the guardians besides Ash then took off their helmets, while he put his back on. Ash had only taken it off to be friendly to Clea, and because everyone on the ship had already seen his face, but he liked avoiding the stares he got around the tower.

Clea then took in the appearances of the fireteam. Cassie was similar looking to her, with light blue skin, but she had green eyes her yellow hair was styled very differently. Compared to Clea, who had medium-length hair that went down one side of her face, Cassie's hair was spiked up and covered her forehead and right eye.

The guardian in the trenchcoat was a human, like Ash, but she had white skin, grey eyes and brown hair that was cut very short.

The three bulky guardians were more varied than anyone else, one had a noticeable scar over his right eye, which was whited out, and a shaved head, and the other was a gruff woman with grayish-white hair that looked like she was in her mid to late thirties.

Finally, the guardian who had led the operation resembled a robot, with a red light within his mouth along with glowing red eyes and a metallic black skull with a pair of blunt metal horns on his head.

Before Clea could open her mouth, Polari spoke over internal coms with "he's an Exo, a human mind transferred into a robotic body. Many exos died long ago only to be revived as guardians. Most are very touchy about people pointing out they aren't flesh and blood"

"Good to know" Clea replied as they entered the main plaza of the tower. It was massive, with several guardians going about their mornings, along with several stalls hosting vendors. However, she had difficulty taking in the surroundings due to one key factor; the sun was rising.

The first rays of sunlight hit the tower, and she intuitively covered her eyes; it was so bright that she was nearly blinded. She held her arm in front of her as she staggered behind the guardians until they entered a hallway where the light was tolerable.

Cassie chuckled and said, "yup, she's an awoken alright.." as she saw Clea blinking rapidly.

"Is that what i am? An Awoken…what are Awoken?" Clea asked; switching to internal comms was becoming as easy as a single thought.

"That's a VERY long story; ill tell you later, we're here" Polari said as Clea followed the fireteam to a large set of double doors.

The exo-guardian held out his hand and said, "please wait here; they'll want a debriefing of the bases we cleared first; my ghost will send for you" in his deep and intimidating voice.

Clea froze and nodded repeatedly, completely caught off guard by the exo's voice.

The fireteam of six went into the room, which had a massive long table in the center leading to a wall made entirely of glass overlooking the city, with several people working on consoles around the upper tiers of the room.

Around the table were three guardians; the one on the left was a dark-skinned woman with a pinkish-purple robe and a glowing symbol on her arm. The symbol resembled two curved lines and two lines on the bottom resembling an upside-down v. Standing at the head of the table was a male awoken with bulky white and red armor with blue eyes and a bald head. Finally, on the right was an Exo with a blue and white head, a single horn, and a tattered cloak on his back. He was wearing a grey and brown jumpsuit with orange and red kneepads.

"Welcome back, fireteam cobalt; how did the mission go?" The awoken asked.

"All objects completed, the fallen bases were neutralized, and we have enough data for a map." The red-eyed exo said.

The guardian with the trenchcoat then stepped forward and said, "id live to give special mention to Ash," causing the younger guardian to flinch as he awaited the scolding he was expecting.

"I was down, he cloaked and grabbed my rocket launcher, clearing out the fallen who had surrounded my ghost, had he not intervened, I would have been killed immediately after I was revived, then, after I was revived, he received an emergency distress signal from of the scouting ghosts, he headed off without hesitation to help," the girl finished, causing the Exo to chuckle and say, "that's how a hunter should perform if your team can't keep up, keep moving"

The woman rolled her eyes and said, "Cayde, you're being a bad influence again; but Ash's actions in this particular case were how a guardian should preform, thinking on your feet and multitasking, why did a ghost send a distress signal?"

"Oh, come on, Ikora! Hunters are supposed to be independent!" The Exo, now identified as Cayde, argued.

Before they could argue further, the awoken said, "back on topic, Ash, what happened when you arrived at the ghost's position?"

Ash stepped forward and said, "commander Zavala, I found a fallen attacking an awoken female and managed to save her; as it turns out, one of the scouting ghosts had finally found their chosen." The young hunter's voice was still filled with nervousness.

All three of the veteran guardians gasped before Ikora said, "a new guardian, on Europa…where is she"

"Waiting outside, I'll call her in if you're ready," the red-eyed exo said.

Ikora nodded, and then his ghost sent the signal; Clea then entered as her ghost materialized, still clad in her simple white armor.

"Welcome, guardian, I am commander Zavala" the awoken greeted.

Clea nodded, still unsure of how to act.

Ikora then looked at Ash and his team and said, "well done, Ash, your actions saved not only a member of your team but a new guardian, Rand; you and your team are dismissed, good work, all of you. "

The red-eyed Exo, Rand-7, nodded and Fireteam Cobalt left one by one. Ash left last, giving Clea a pat on the back and saying, "you'll do great" before leaving.

After the doors shut behind Ash, there was an awkward silence before Ikora spoke again and said, "you must have a lot of questions..and you have probably had the roughest start of any guardian in centuries."

Clea nodded again, but still remained silent.

"Cayde, Ikora, and I are the vanguards, guardians who coordinate fireteams and act as mentors to new guardians," Zavala explained.

"So, which class of guardian are you, hunter, warlock, or titan?" Cayde questioned.

Polari then spoke up saying, "she never had the chance to demonstrate any abilities…but her signature matches that of a warlock."

Zavalla barely reacted while Cayde shook his head and said, "darn it, there goes my streak.."

Clea gave her ghost a confused look and asked, "wait, what does that mean exactly.."

Ikora then smiled and said, "there are three types of guardians, hunters, who are mobile, stealthy, and work the best solo, Titans who focus on physical strength and defense; and warlocks like me, who are the best at shaping the light and using it for various spells."

"I have powers?…but .how do I use them…I don't…." Clea began to admit, only for Ikora to cut her off and say, "relax, you're not expected to know how to use your powers, It will be my job to train you, but there's someone you need to meet first."

"Follow me, I'm so excited to tell him I found you!" Polari said before motioning for Clea to follow.

The newly identified warlock gave an uncertain look to the three vanguards before following her ghost out of the room.

Clea followed her ghost back to the plaza, and up some stairs until they reached a massive circular room with two massive white pillars. Upon passing through them, Clea came to a room with four massive glowing orbs on tables and a library off to the left under a staircase. However, the most noticeable feature of the room was that it was open on one side with a breathtaking view of the Traveler. Two metal support pillars were positioned to have the Traveler perfectly in between them.

Clea stared at the white orb; the sheer size of it was mind-boggling.

"Do my eyes deceive me…" A soft voice said.

Clea turned to see someone coming down the stairs, his presence exuding a sense of calm and wisdom. The man was clad in long white robes with gloves and grey shoulder pads and had a black hood over his head that wrapped around his neck. The man's most noticeable feature however was an ornate white mask that hid his face.

"I found my guardian! I finally found her! She even gave me a name!" Polari exclaimed.

The man gave a small chuckle and replied, "i am truly happy for you, and does she have a name?"

Clea nodded and said, "yea, Clea…and who are you? Are you another member of the vanguard?"

The man shook his head and replied, "no, but they all come to me for advice and questions. Until it finds it voice, I am the one who speaks for the Traveler."

Clea nodded, still unsure how to act, but Polari spoke first with "the Speaker actually recommended that I helped on the scouting missions, like the one where I found you. He won't judge you for not knowing things, don't worry."

"What happened to the Traveler?" Clea asked, noticing that there were back patches on the Traveler, almost like scars.

The Speaker walked forward until he was side by side with Clea as he said "over fourteen hundred years ago, the Traveler's ancient enemy, the darkness attacked, ending humanity's golden age, and nearly driving us to extinction. However, in its dying moments, the Traveler defeated the darkness, and with it's last breath, created the ghosts, who went out to find worthy champions to wield the Traveler's light."

"How do I know I'm the right pick? What if my ghost…Polari chose wrong?" Clea questioned, being sure to use the name she had given her ghost.

The Speaker nodded and replied, "you are far from the first guardian who has asked that question, but I believe…Polari would not choose recklessly."

"Im still adjusting to having a name as well…but my light got brighter when I found you, and that only happens when a ghost finds their chosen…and I've been looking for a long, long time," Polari admitted.

"Your ghost has been looking for you for over a millennium, and of all the ghosts I've met, she is the last one who would choose recklessly," The Speaker assured Clea.

Polari then flew in front of them both and said, "many ghosts give up and simply use the next genetic sample they come across, but I refused to do that"

Clea gave a firm nod and replied, "Ok…what can I do?"

"Push back the forces of darkness, the vex, the fallen, the hive, and all others that threaten humanity. The vanguard will guide you, and I will always be here if you need counsel" The Speaker assured Clea before heading back to his library.

The newly minted guardian turned around and headed out, ready for her first steps as a warlock.

Author's note- thanks for the views

1. Did my best to describe the tower; I had to look up footage of Destiny 1 because I genuinely forgot what the tower looked like aside from the Vanguard room.

2. Given your ghost literally explains what your abilities and your class within a few minutes of walking up, it's clear they can tell what class of guardian they've revived.

Leave a review, I would appreciate the feedback. If you like to submit a guardian to appear in the story, Id am up for adding a few, requirements below

Name-

Species-

General appearance-

Class-

How long they've been a guardian-

Main three weapons(no exotics that weren't around in base destiny 1 and destiny 2)-