Walking out into the middle of the courtyard, a lone Guardian with chin-length, dandelion hair and emerald green eyes stepped out into the light, greeted with a beautiful view from along the wall of the Last City, the hundreds-of-thousands of buildings and transports moving through the sky and streets unseen. The symbol of humanity was gone, replaced instead by the sight of hundreds of ships, belonging to several different factions, awaiting patiently for the call to action, defending Earth as a whole.
The courtyard of the 'Tower' was lively. When the newly arrived Guardian looked around, there wasn't a vendor nor space left undisturbed by another Guardian. Many gathered around a large, twisting tree with crimson leaves, it's branches adorned by hundreds of decorative cards. A Hunter knelt beneath it, Light resonating from the ironwood tree's bark, embroiling itself to the Guardian's armour in gold. The others shimmered silver as they applauded the woman's growth in rank among her peers.
Some visited the Vanguard Commander himself; even at this critical juncture in time, Zavala remained stern, conversing with Fireteams to lead strikes all across the system, humanity's enemies would never stay still for long, even at the end. The Guardian turned her head right, spotting a bunch of Lightbearers circled around each other, manifesting their Light into instruments. One was a DJ, another with a bass guitar, one played the trumpet backed by two others, sparks and multicoloured refractions coming off their bodies, it was enough to draw a giggle from her.
She went for a walk, up to the railing set at the middle of the courtyard looking over the sheer drop of the Tower, for a moment, her eyes drifted left, to the vacant remnants of the old Tower, it had suffered catastrophic damage during the Red War, even now, it would still take years to rebuild, and that pang of homesickness lingered in her chest to this very day. Dismissing this with a shake of her head, she eyed one of the more notable Cryptarchs at work, hearing a Titan holler with a triumphant laugh, holding up a new pair of gauntlets that glimmered like the Exotic engram they came from.
"Yes, finally! Hahaha, I got them!" He cheered as the Warlock next to him sighed dramatically.
"Thank the Traveler, if I have to go back into that dusty crypt again, I swear, I'll ring your second life out of ya," Clearly, not everyone was thrilled about long-winded expeditions.
Another Titan then lazily gestured to their own unseen ear, "Y'know he's going to, right? His helmet got damaged, messed up his audio receivers, he can't hear us,"
The female Guardian scanned past Banshee's workstation, himself tinkering in silence with another rifle as he gestured for a Hunter to grab a Fallen Wire Rifle on a rack, the Guardian handing it over to the Vandal branded with House Light's cloak, the Eliksni warrior looking down the scope as it adjusted its weight in all four hands as the Guardian from before pointed to something, the Vandal clearly listening as it took in the advice, carefully readjusting the scope.
Continuing her walk past the vaults, several Guardians clustered around the terminals, discussing their 'God Rolls' and other strategies, a collection of voices were overpowered by a single string of laugher from within Shaxx's Crucible wing, the large and loud man nowhere to be seen, his duties to the Vanguard's recent efforts in combatting the Witness' forces attempting to chokehold humanity's defences.
The Hunter drawing all eyes and ears wore nearly all blacks, a hint of a camo pattern across their Crucible-made armour as she paced without her helmet, allowing for long, snow-white hair to blow in the wind, her ocean-blue eyes wide with wonder and glee with a face that even the Guardian silently on her stroll could admit she was pretty.
"See that? That's why half of ya come crawlin' back here to complain instead of improvin'!" Her personality was the exact opposite. "How about, and just spit ballin' here, you actually apply yourselves before you whine about, 'this weapon's too powerful' or 'he or she is clearly cheating'! Shaxx might be MIA for the time being, but don't think for a damn second you're gonna pull the wool over my eyes, got that!?" Smirking, she hopped onto the railing, dangling between life and death as she twirled a knife in one hand, wearing a sweetly sinister smile. "Now then... who's bettin' or playin'?"
"You never change, Dimitri," The female Guardian raised her voice, quickly drawing the silverette's attention with a smirk and wave.
"Yo, C! What can I say, anger builds character in these Blueberries, am I right!?" Dimitri laughed as a few muttered bitterly to themselves. "Aw, don't be shy, I may not be much of a debater, but if you wanna whine and moan, I'm more than happy to try - see ya around, C! And if you see Zane, tell him to stay out of my damn booze collection before I put an arrow up his nose!" She waved without taking her eyes off the Guardians before her.
The Guardian, 'C', waved and rolled her eyes, continuing on her stroll. "S-sure thing...!" She quickly called back.
The Hanger bay remained as active as always, even throughout the long nights. Once C reached the bottom of the stairs, she eyed a notice board on the wall to her right, keeping track of the number of accidents at the Tower recently, so far, One day, or, until it turned to Zero right before her eyes. Sighing in defeat, she just made a b-line for her next destination, a handful of Eliksni engineers working alongside humans to handle repairs to a few Jumpships loaded in the bay.
Slowing her approach, she felt a quiet, sad sensation wash over her whole body. Gently, her hand came to rest atop the decorative monument in Amanda Holliday's honour, the greatest shipwright in the Tower. 'If only I was faster', 'Maybe if I had realized sooner', those questions were the hardest to silence. No matter how many months pass, the feeling was still raw, C may've been a Guardian, but it didn't lessen the pain of loss.
Removing her hand, she eyed another telling piece of grief. Brushing her hand across an old, battle-worn cloak, its fabric burnt with bullet holes, the edges torn up by abuse, yet, its bold, red pattern stood out to this day, a testament to Amanda's care for the cloak. Before a word could leave C's lips, she jumped a little when a brown entity hopped onto the counter next to her, clucking lightly.
"Hey there, girl," C greeted softly, gently stroking the chicken's back as it moved closer. Once the proud chicken belonging to Cayde-6, the Colonel was now the Tower's resident Pigeon Lord, per Saint-14's ruling.
Hoking through the workstation drawers, C smiled when she found a small bag inside amongst the mess of tools and other miscellaneous items and gadgets. Grabbing a handful of seeds from the pouch, a specific brand per Cayde's instructions, she held her hand out for Colonel to peck away at happily as C continued to pet her back.
"Ah, I thought I recognized that face!" The distinct, Russian accent brought C's attention to the towering, almost intimidating visage of Saint-14. His armour batte-scarred, the purple highlights bold and striking as his helmet. "It has been too long, Ceres, how you been?"
"Hey, Saint, just taking it easy after another busy day, the usual," C, or Ceres, smiled back a little, allowing Colonel to finish off her meal. "Just thought I'd come check up on Colonel, since your pigeons tend to swipe all her food,"
The Titan laughed heartfully, "Hahaha, they can be quite greedy, yes! But they listen to their lord... sometimes, takes some firm words,"
Ceres snickered, rolling her eyes, "Oh, yes, I'm sure," But then, she felt his firm hand on her shoulder, even behind that helmet, his eyes practically dug into hers.
"Ceres, are you well? Have you been resting recently?" Saint could see through her instantly, he wasn't a stranger to overworked Guardians. "Perhaps you should take longer breaks, no?"
"Haah... wish it were that easy, but... I'm okay, really, just a long day," She admitted partially, feeling him shake her shoulder with a nod.
"Yes-yes, I'm sure it has been. But if you still feel worn down, I will know," He raised a finger, waving it at her as if to scold a child. "Guardians need rest as much as humanity needs, don't work yourself to death, my friend,"
"Pretty sure Ghost would chew me out if I did," Though, she felt a little better talking about it with Saint. "I've got somewhere to be, so I'll let you get back to organizing those Trials matches for the evening, but... thanks, Saint," She rubbed the back of her head awkwardly for being caught.
Saint made a dismissive noise. "Is no trouble, if you need time to speak, I will listen! I have plenty of stories to share that you'll like, trust me!" He offered, patting his chest.
"I'll have to take you up on that someday then; see you," Nodding in thanks, Ceres patted the Colonel on the head and went on her way.
Heading out from the passageway to the Bazaar, the orange sunlight hit Ceres' face whilst on her continued stroll through the tower. It was quieter here, a couple of people and Awoken sat down at the ramen shop to her right, discussing a lot of confusing, work-related things that flew right over her head.
Up on an elevated point of the wall, Ceres spotted Hawthorne leaning against the railing with her falcon, Louis, she spoke down with the Warlock Commander, Ikora. Clearly, whatever was said between them made Ikora smile, she didn't laugh often, if at all, so this was the only indicator Ceres had of the guiding woman for Warlocks. Hawthorne noticed Ceres walking by, giving her a curt wave, which was just a flick of her hand, even Louis flapped his wings for her. Ikora also provided a polite bow towards the female Guardian.
Ceres gave them both a wave, heading down a right path to a stairway leading into the wall itself, passing a few Guardians who jumped aside when she rounded a corner, but Ceres quickly apologized and hurried along. Once down in the Annex, Ceres was immediately greeted by a synthetic bark.
Perched on its rug as always, Ceres's expression lit up when Archie panted happily to see her. He was a mechanical dog with a white body and a mint-green coloration for his mouth and eyes on a black screen. He wagged his tail when she laughed and rubbed between his ears. "Who's a good boy? Yes, you are!" She cooed as he panted, barking at her playful tone. "You've been keeping Ada company?" He nodded. "And no one's been bothering you, not that you couldn't deal with them," He shook his head, earning more headpats. "Good boy,"
Looking over to a vending machine, Ceres spotted two of House Light attempting to get the machine working with little success. She and Archie shared a knowingly look, so the Guardian walked over and promptly smacked the side of the vending machine, causing it to rumble and eventually spit out two cans of soda, the pair of Eliksni chittering in surprise.
"I told them to replace it, but I guess that's no the case, sorry about that," Picking up the cans, she offered them to the pair. Clearly, they couldn't speak English so Ceres cleared her throat, watching their glowing eyes widen as she spoke their language slowly. "/Know some Eliksni... if machine breaks... punch works sometimes\,"
The Eliksni to her right spoke up in gravelly voice. "/Our thanks, Cereskel\,"
"/Anytime\," She smiled back, the two taking the offered drinks as she went down a corridor towards a hanger bay to peek her head around the first left-hand corner, already making out the large vat in the back of the room filled with an ever-moving, negative light, as if a blackhole was given a more viscous form, Taken energy.
Standing with their back against a railing, arms crossed with a charismatic smile towards a few Guardians gathered, was the Drifter. Ceres had mixed feelings about the Dark Age Lightbearer, but she knew his heart was in the right place, or, whatever he'd referred to it as. And like usual, he was spinning a tale to captivate an audience, given his extremely-long lifespan as a Lightbearer.
"-once you've gone and seen the things past the system, things here start to look a lot more like pleasant company; the Darkness gone and twisted countless worlds beyond recognition, you think these Pyramids are the scariest thing humanity's seen? You've got no idea what's been cooking out there, hell, some of that ugliness is right on our doorstep," Drifter warned, a few Guardians looking around, shuffling nervously. "Now-now, lets not start gettin' cold feet; yer here cause your ol' pal Drifter's got the goods to get you through the end of the world,"
He leaned forward, almost as if to pounce. "Unless you're too scared to plunge headfirst into hell to find out, heh."
"I'm starting to think Dimitri's the sane one running these games between the two of them..." Ceres muttered, quickly slipping away, but if she knew Drifter well, he probably already spotted her.
Sundown was close when Ceres found a place atop the wall, where no one would be coming by. She stared out at a view that she was familiar with, say for the lack of Traveler. It was her first real sight of the Last City years ago, now? The Witness had gone inside of it, a place they couldn't follow, yet. The city's skies were instead filled with the Ketches of House Light, the Imperial Cabal Carriers, and Awoken Galliots.
Her head fell to her lap, legs swaying over the edge of the Tower, her ghost was elsewhere, giving her time to sit alone with her thoughts.
Or, that was the plan.
"Knew I'd find you here," Her head perked up, looking over her shoulder to spot the Hunter that strolled up to her. His armour befitting the term of 'Hunter', his shoulders adorned with silvery fur, a dark bluebottle violet breastplate crossed with belts holding knives, grenades, and pouches filled with miscellaneous things. His legs armoured from the knees down with molten soles and plated thighs with the same, fiery glint.
Compared to her own red, black, and white armour that was befitting a knight. His features were a little sharp but friendly, ocean-blue eyes and short, snow-white hair that stuck out in every direction. "Hi, Zane," He only just appeared, and her façade couldn't hide how quiet her voice was.
Zane sighed, hands on his hips whilst looking down at the downtrodden Guardian. "Now, what have I said about overworking yourself? And without me too, I'm hurt, truly," Now he wagged a finger at her, plopping down beside her. "That's it, I'm not leaving your side, you clearly cannot be trusted to overwork and stress yourself out alone,"
"Is... this supposed to be comforting?" She quirked a smile at his strange remarks, causing his pout to fade into a small, winning grin.
"Is it working?" That had Ceres laugh, shoving his shoulder.
"You're such a dork... yes, yes, it's working, honestly, you're the only one that can make a bad thing sound completely stupid," Rolling her eyes, her expression shifted again, her head falling to rest on his shoulder, letting out a heavy, tired breath. "...today was a lot..."
"I can imagine, trying to keep the system intact long enough for Crow to knock the door down isn't as easy as we expected, but to be fair, nothing we do is expected to be easy," Zane answered, wrapping an arm around her waist, feeling Ceres press her side against his. "You've been carrying everyone's burdens since Riven's last wish,"
"How can I not?" She sat up, hands balled into fists in her lap. "Crow is alone in a place we can't reach, who knows what the Witness has done in there. The Pyramids keep warping above the city, and if not for the Coalition and Shaxx's Onslaught protocols we'd never get a moment's rest. Then there's the Vex, Hive, the Shadow Legion, I... I'm..."
Gradually, her emotions began to overwhelm her, sniffing and quickly rubbing the tears from her eyes. "I'm scared... because I don't know how we're going to beat that thing, the Witness can just raise a hand and tear Guardians and Ghosts apart like we're nothing," She threw a hand outward during her exclamation. "And if we fail... that's it, not just for humanity, everything will be wiped out, twisted into this... Final Shape,"
The whole time, Zane took it all in, listening to each and every complaint that no other Guardian would hear. After all, the Vanguard's living legend was a strong, courageous leader and warrior that's defeated unbelievable powers, what does she have to fear? The reality is... everything, she was reckless at times, clumsy, often doubts herself, and is terrified to lose even a single person, she was just human.
"Yeah, you're right," He agreed with a slight shrug. "I mean, this thing's an entire civilization smooshed together into one smokey-headed... thing that has a forehead the size of a runway," He didn't miss the slight hitch in her throat at his humorous jab. "...a lot of people died in the Great Disaster, Crota slewed so many like it was nothing, no one believed he could ever be killed, then... we did, in his Throne World too,"
Slowly, Ceres's head tilted to peek up at him between her bangs, watching his free hand gesture as he spoke, emphasizing his retelling.
"Then along came 'The Kell of Kells', to which he also was beaten to death, some prophet he was. And then the Taken King swept a storm across our system, twisting everything we knew about our enemies into something far worse... and again, he fell too. Aksis, Ghaul, Panoptes, Xol, Riven, Eramis, Savathûn, Calus, more recently, Xivu Arath... to extent, thank you Eris,"
Now, their eyes were levelled, her mouth ajar slightly whilst his formed a bright smile. "Each and every time we're up against machines and Gods that were considered impossible to overcome, even when our backs were against those walls, we still found a way, you found a way forward for us, its the only reason we're still here to face the Darkness itself. Maybe it does feel we're at the brink now more than ever, but we'll find a way," His voice lightened up. "After all, I'm part of the best Fireteam in the system, with the best leader to boot, so I'm not worried,"
"But..." Instead of allow her to finish, he lightly flicked her forehead. "Ngh!"
"Look at everything we've done," His arm waved to the skies, to every faction standing together. "Uniting the Eliksni under Misraaks, Caiatl and the Cabal, even the Awoken from way back, all of them are here to fight for each other now, something the Witness made a grave mistaken in letting happen. So we'll do what we do best, we'll kick some ass and save all of reality... then maybe steal my sister's totally-super-secret supply of alcohol and celebrate, the usual,"
Reaching over, he took her right hand in his left, "We've defied fate before, so let's do the same for everyone else, even newly Risen Guardians, together,"
He can say the oddest, and sometimes, dumbest things that would make Ceres's head spin, and yet, he said everything with confidence and a compelling voice, believing with utter certainty in her abilities as a leader and warrior. That hadn't changed, not since they first met when she could just barely defeat a Devil Archon.
Finding her smile again, she hung her head as her face felt hot from her own doom and gloom, but just the stream of compliments. "Ugh, why do I always get like this? I should be used to this..." But she was happy that was never the case.
"What can I say, I'm a great motivator," Zane grinned, puffing his chest out, or until she slapped it lightly.
"Stop being adorable," She huffed, raising her head properly this time. "T-thank you, I needed that... you're right, even if it does feel impossible, I'm not going to let that stop me, no matter what, there will be a tomorrow for everyone to choose their own destinies,"
"Amen to that," Offering his hand, Zane stated proudly. "'The lives of those we've lost are lost forever',"
Right, she knew this phrase, smiling with just as much pride in her voice, clasping his forearm tightly, Zane returning the gesture. "'But toyed with by fate we may be',"
"'We'll never take our eyes off tomorrow'." They concluded the creed pitch perfectly.
Then, taking her briefly by surprise, Zane moved his hand down into hers, splitting her fingers apart to interlock with his own. Her expression softened to a warm glow, almost like a flame, though that might've been the setting sun too, but he wasn't complaining about how radiant she appeared.
Moving as close as possible, Ceres placed her hand against his breastplate, leaning forward slightly to meet him halfway, feeling his right hand come to rest on her cheek, the roughness of his glove caressing her cheek before closing the gap between their lips, their eyes shut just as fast. Not a word was uttered, there was simply no need, everything that needed to be said they already knew. Instead, they tuned out the world, savouring the moment at sundown...
"And the two of us, let's both try to survive."
[End]
[Author's Notes]
Given the Final Shape is upon us in a month, I've had this little one-shot in mind for a bit. I've written about Destiny before but I'd be impossible for me to ever reach this point in that story now, well, it would take a considerable amount of time. So instead, I wrote this involving said characters as we follow 'The Guardian' or the Titan, Ceres, as she visits places in the Tower to reflect on everything that's happened up to this point, including some words of comfort and encouragement from an important member of her Fireteam.
I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support in any capacity; see you starside, Guardians.