When I first came to this world, I never expected that I would have to be doing homework, and yet I found myself in the Cryptarch's archives pondering over engrams. I was researching the Hive along with Ghost.

After the mission with the Sword of Crota, my hand felt normal again when we arrived to give our mission briefing. Although I ran through the details with Zavala and Rahool, I did not let them know about my hand.

I don't know why I didn't tell them, but it felt like it was something that would worry them and I never did like having people worry about me. It's a terrible trait but spending so much time with my dad after my mom passed away probably made me think like that.

Regardless of it, I didn't feel any lingering effects of the darkness after a while, but I couldn't hide the truth from Ghost.

Once we got back to our room, he was the first to speak up about it. "Hana? Is there something on your mind you want to talk about? You've been awfully quiet ever since we got back from the Moon."

"Wh-what're you talking about, Ghost? I've been perfectly… chatty. See, we're chatting right now." I said, fumbling my armor off of my body even though I could easily transmat it off by now.

"Yes, but you are definitely forcing yourself to be chatty, Hana. Come on, seriously. What's on your mind? Was it the injuries you got from the princes?"

"Definitely wasn't that." I said, wincing as I held my shoulder. Although the pain was long gone, the memory of it was still there.

"Well then, what is it?"

"I'm telling you it's nothing, Ghost."

"It's something."

"Nothing."

"Hana."

"Ghost."

We stared at each other for a moment before I sighed. "Can I take a shower first?"

"Of course."

I hopped into the shower and sighed. Letting the water wash the exhaustion away for the day, I slumped down in the tub. "My hand… felt hungry. Where I gripped the sword, it felt like it was lingering with darkness."

Ghost hovered around in the restroom for a moment in silence. He then spoke up. "Does it still feel like that?"

"No." I simply replied.

"Hmm…" Ghost didn't say anything. Instead, I saw a bright light bleeding through the shower curtains.

I poked my head around the curtains to see what Ghost was doing. "Uh, you okay there?"

"Yes, I am doing quite alright. I'm just accessing the Cryptarch's archive right now to see if there's anything about that kind of feeling."

"I see… Wait, the archive?"

"Yes. It's a giant collection of information compiled by the Cryptarchs."

"So a library?"

"Yes."

Ghost stopped shining and flew over to me. "I didn't get much from that search, but there are a few informational engrams that we can't access from their cloud database. We'll have to go in person."

I nodded. "So we're going to the library?"

"Yes, we're going to the library. Finish showering and we'll head on out. Also, I put in an order with Banshee to get you equipped with new weapons."

"That's great. I feel really bad considering we just got those weapons." I said, going back to my shower. "I wonder what set of weapons I'll get this time."

"One can only hope they'll serve you well, Hana." Ghost said.

Once I finished my shower, I put on JC's hand me down clothes and headed off to the archives.

And that's where I found myself now. I must have already read and listened to hundreds of engrams by now. There were no windows, but I could definitely tell it was already late into the night.

No one else was around at this point. But Ghost and I were still here. "Anything interesting, Ghost?"

"Not yet, Hana. It seems our knowledge about the Hive is scarce. Not many have had the time to sit down and study their ways."

I sighed and leaned back into my chair. I gripped my hand again and pondered for a moment before Ghost flew over to me.

Here is what I was able to learn from the research I've done. Apparently the Hive have been in our solar system since even before we were here. They've been hiding out on the Moon and haven't appeared until long after humanity made colonies on the Moon.

"Hana, I found something interesting. Not about your hand, but something pretty jarring."

"What do you have, Ghost?"

"Listen to this. From an old Warlock, Osiris."

Ghost played a recording. "Every end crawls from the same pit, rising from the schism to swallow matter, Light, and life. It will not be stopped, but here it can be slowed…. The Shrines of Oryx must be destroyed."

Needless to say, Ghost and I were assigned back to the Moon the following day.

On the way to the Moon, I looked over my new weapons that I was given by Banshee. Another scout rifle and another shotgun. Quite honestly, they were the same as my previous weapons. "Hey Ghost, did Banshee just give me the same weapons?"

"More than likely. He forgets most things, but he never forgets a weapon or the Guardian who handles them. He must have made these specifically to keep you in your comfort zone."

Holstering my weapons, I smiled as I put on my helmet. Once we arrived, I readied my scout rifle. "There is a Shrine here, but it's further in the Hellmouth than anywhere we've been. We should try to destroy it before it's too late." Ghost said.

Heading off in the direction of where I killed the Swarm Princes, Ghost and I readied for an arduous fight.

Just like last time, there was Hive here and using my rifle, I picked them off from a safe distance. Crawling further into the Hellmouth, Ghost chimed up. "Picking up Fallen activity. Heavier than normal… Something's got them worked up. I'll stay on it."

"Please do. Last thing I need right now is a surprise attack from another Fallen." I said, feeling my neck before we headed on.

When we got to the chamber where I fought the princes, I noticed something off about the place. "Hey, Ghost. Wasn't there a large door here before?"

"You're right… Who opened it? It was sealed up by Hive runes, said to be uncrackable." Ghost said.

"Well, it was cracked by someone. Or something…" Strangely enough, there was a lot of dust all around us, signs of Hive being killed.

I passed through the gate and went further down. "If I translated these Fallen comms correctly, one of their Barons is here. They don't crawl out of their Skiffs too often…" Ghost said.

I had a sly smile on my face. "Sounds like an opportunity…"

Finding ourselves in a large room with pillars, Fallen Dregs and Shanks turned to us and began to shoot. Carefully placing my shots, I took them down until I noticed a much larger Fallen member standing ready to attack.

Frigoris, Exiled Baron. Thank you, Ghost. Hiding behind cover as the Baron began to shoot at me, I threw out some solar grenades, hoping to find an opening. He staggered back and began to shoot blindly in a fit of rage.

Oh, how I enjoyed his thriving. Jumping high into the air, I slammed my shotgun onto his shoulder and pulled the trigger twice.

Using my cloak to wipe off my visor, I looked at the slumped over Baron, dead as a doornail. "Got 'im! That's one less Baron to worry about." Ghost said in triumph.

"And one less Fallen out of my way." I said with malice. "Come on, let's find this shrine."

We proceeded onward and got to a set of tunnels. They were spacious enough for me to fit through, but they did feel a bit claustrophobic. "These tunnels go on for miles…. We'll never explore them all." Ghost said.

"I don't really feel too keen on exploring this place any more than you do, Ghost. Besides, what I really want is-" I stopped when I heard a roar.

It was loud and it echoed for a lingering time, making my skin crawl and feel a chin run down my spine. "What the hell was that?" I asked.

"I don't know, Hana. I do not want to stick around and find out what they're keeping down there…" Ghost said.

Ghost and I headed further into the Hellmouth and something I saw made me question what to do next.

I saw Fallen and Hive fighting against each other. "Hmm… Yeah, I don't want any part of that."

Ignoring both factions, I carefully made my way across the room and tried not to make any noise. I didn't want an entire room to swarm me and fight.

But something happened. Something that honestly made me question my luck and quite frankly made me question if this was honestly the sort of game that tried to take itself seriously or was just a random shit post of a meme.

I sneezed. And in that moment, two things ran across my mind. The first was 'how did I sneeze when the inside of my helmet is nice and filtered. Quite literally airtight.' The second thing was myself cursing my intrusive thoughts for the ridiculousness of the situation because I said my first thought out loud.

"HOW DID I SNEEZE INSIDE MY HELMET?" The Hive and Fallen both stopped trying to kill each other and turned at me. They all had scowls on their faces and looks of sheer ferocity.

And yet I could still see that all of them were thinking the same thing I was thinking. It was Ghost who said the thought out loud. "Really, Hana?"

I sighed. "Really."

Now, I'd love to say that it was a battle of epic proportions. I was zipping around, shooting my guns, and using my light to singlehandedly take down an oppressive force with just my wit and strength. But then again, my dad taught me never to lie.

I ran. I'm glad I was an active kid so I didn't get winded easily, but it might have been the Light causing me to have this much stamina. That, or I was just really not looking to fight such a large crowd.

"NOT GOOD NOT GOOD NOT GOOD!" I ran further in, finding myself in a large room with an entrance that seemed to have large cables running into it from the ceilings. I quickly made my way there.

Off in the distance, I could see something ominous. It looked like a mass of swirling black with rings around it. "There's the Shrine! Find a way through!" Ghost said.

Ducking and weaving my way through bullets, I found another group of Hive up ahead. With the group chasing me from behind, I was pincered and had no choice but to fight. Readying my rifle, I began to cut my way through the horde as best as I could manage.

But something stopped me in my tracks. A large, and quite frankly hideous creature up ahead made a chilling roar. Similar to the one Ghost and I heard earlier. "What in the world is that?"

"Ogre! Hana, take cover!" Ghost said.

In a swift motion, I ducked behind a pillar. Although I didn't see the Ogre ready an attack, I could feel it shooting a barrage of void energy at me. It was similar to the Shrieker's attack, only more impactful and heavier. It was something I definitely did not want to experience more than once.

Thinking quickly, I tossed a grenade in the direction the attack was coming from. When I heard the explosion and the attack stop briefly, I immediately readied my rocket and launched it towards the Ogre.

I didn't wait for it to fall and die. I simply hopped for the best and began to run further into the fortress. The Ogre stumbled and reeled back in pain, no doubt trying to regain a footing to kill me, but I wasn't going to give it the chance.

I heard the Fallen and Hive begin to kill each other again and left it at that. Hopefully they wouldn't follow me into the Shrine.

"That was a bit too close for my liking…" I said.

"Yeah, but there is a silver lining to this."

"And what's that?"

"We made it."

I looked into the room. The Shrine was massive. A large sphere was at the center of it as the entire construct was surrounded by a miasma of darkness. It was something that I instantly knew we had to take out. "Let me out under the Shrine. I'll look for a weakness." Ghost said.

I took out Ghost and let him under the Shrine. "Are you sure? It feels like this thing is incredibly unstable."

"I'm sure, Hana. We have to take this out. Lets see what we've got."

Ghost began to shoot that laser from his eye. I guess he was figuring out the code of it. Hearing some Hive off in the distance, I readied my rifle. "It's tethered to a power far beyond the edge of the system…" Ghost said. "If I can just break the link…"

"Do you think it's going to be hard to do that, Ghost?" I asked.

"Not at all. Well, yes it's going to be hard, but I don't want to worry you."

"Well I do appreciate that, but I would like to be aware of everything, even if it is a bit scary."

"Alright. I'll admit it, then. I really hope we don't get sucked into some transdimensional vortex…"

"I shouldn't have asked."

Hive began to pour in. Acolytes and Thrall made their way towards me but were all brought down with relative ease. It seemed that I was getting more and more powerful. Or my bullets were doing more damage. Or… something. Honestly, I did not know but didn't really care at the moment. Just that I was having an easier time with these enemies.

But all confidence I had was drained as soon as I saw a Knight walk into the area. At least, it looked like a Knight. Only, it was immensely large.

Sardok, Eye of Oryx. It was glowing green and had a massive gun. He stood tall and dwarfed anything I've fought so far, except maybe Sepiks. "WHAT THE HELL?" I yelled out.

Ghost was busy with the Shrine, so I couldn't ask him for any way to take this thing down. I just had to rely on what I knew. I knew that anything can be taken down with enough damage, so I began to chip away at it with my rifle.

I dodged and ducked under its attacks, barely managing to get away from each blast. I was thankful that there were platforms around the Shrine for me to jump onto and evade this Knight, but even with all of that, I was still being kept on my toes.

I pulled out my rocket and hoped for the best. The blast caused Sardok to stagger and I took my chance. I leaped onto him from a high platform and shoved my shotgun into its neck.

Having a stable footing onto its shoulder, I pumped all of my shots into Sardok's neck. He tumbled back and seeing that he was beginning to turn to dust, I smiled knowing that I took him down.

But this wasn't over yet. "It's weakened! Destroy the Shrine, Hana!"

"Got it!"

Reloading my shotgun, I pointed it at the swirling orb and emptied the tube again. With a large bang and bright light, the Shrine was destroyed. The orb was gone and all that was left was the platforms and relay.

"We severed their connection. The Shrine… It was communing with something out there, their God or King. Well, not anymore." Ghost said.

Sighing, I sat down to take some rest. "I'm guessing whatever that was, it's still out there?" I said with a somber tone.

"Yeah, but that will have to wait for another day. Lets head on ba-" Ghost was cut off by a distorted signal.

"What was that?" I asked.

"Incoming transmission on all channels." Ghost said.

I heard the transmission. It was an SOS from a Guardian. "Vanguard channels. This is Da'avi. I am currently inside the Hellmouth fighting towards the Summoning Pits. Ocean of Storms, on the Moon. I am requesting immediate assistance from any available Guardian that is hearing this. Repeat, this is Da'avi…"

Ghost and I looked at each other. I sighed and stood up. "Alright, get in touch with Da'avi, Ghost. I guess we're helping her out."

"On it. It seems like she's not too far off, but we are going to have to go through that horde you left on your way here." Ghost said.

"UGH!" I remembered something that my dad said. Never half ass anything you will regret doing later. Always full ass it to save time. I'm beginning to regret just running my way here.

But putting that aside, I started to make my way back out towards the signal. "This is Guardian Hanabi on the Vanguard, channel replying to the distress signal. Da'avi, do you hear me?" I said.

Ghost seemed surprised that I had articulated that well, but to be honest, I heard calls similar to that many times from watching my dad play games and just copied what I thought was best.

I shot through some more Hive and some scattered Fallen before I heard a reply. "This is Da'avi. Hanabi, I am currently under attack by some Hive near the Summoning Pits. Assistance will be greatly appreciated!"

"On it!" I made my way towards the gunfire and saw a Guardian with a long coat similar to Ikora. She must be a Warlock. Tossing out my grenades towards the Hive, I met up with Da'avi.

"Thank the Traveler, you're here. I was beginning to get overwhelmed." Da'avi said.

"No worries. We heard your signal and we're here to help." Ghost said.

"Thank you. I will brief you on everything after we can get some breathing room."

With that, Da'avi and I began to cull the Hive. Their numbers were massive, but with two Guardians having each other's back, it seemed that they were beginning to see the amount of Hive they would need to take us out was just not feasible.

After some time, Da'avi and I retreated back and finally got a chance to get ready ourselves. "Thank you for your assistance, Hanabi. I was beginning to believe I took on more than I could handle myself."

"It's okay, Da'avi. I was in the area and heard the request. What are we up against?" I asked.

Da'avi knelt beside me and looked around. "This is strictly Praxic Order business, but seeing as you're here to actually help out, I suppose there is no harm in letting you in onto the mission." Da'avi said.

Praxic Order? Before I could ask about that, Ikora's voice came over the comms. It must have been a recorded debriefing. "Something dark stirs in the depths of the Hellmouth; we can feel it. A Hive abomination bred for unthinkable evil. We must pierce the veil of their Summoning Pits, and destroy this creature before the Hive unleash it upon us all…"

The transmission was over and Da'avi got back up to her feet. "I've been scouring this place for the abomination. I feel we're near, but with the intense gathering of Hive, I had to fall back momentarily before I could go further. Do you have any idea why that might be?"

I looked away in a sense of guilt. "No clue, honestly. Ghost and I were just down here uh… exploring a shrine…"

Da'avi looked at me with what I could only assume was a face of accusation. "Right, well whatever you did seriously stirred up the Hive. Right now, the abomination is just a bit further down. If you're up for it, I could use your help to take it out."

I readied my scout rifle and stood up. "I'm right behind you, Da'avi."

Truth be told, I was not looking forward to whatever this 'abomination' was. Seriously, I could already feel the pounding in my heart grow louder and louder as we continued our way into the Hellmouth.

That aside, I was curious about who Da'avi was. Most Guardians who saw me immediately mentioned my height or how childish I sounded, but Da'avi accepted me right off the bat. It was something that I found a bit weird, if not warm.

Another loud roar echoed in the walls, the scream piercing me through my armor. I winced at it, but Da'avi continued on. Not wanting to be left behind, I went along with her before we entered a doorway into a large arena. What I saw made me shudder in fear.

A large Ogre like creature was chained in the middle of the room. Four chains held it down in the center of the arena as it screamed in anger. Ghost chimed up. "At least it's chained up?"

As if on cue, the Ogre broke its chains and let out a loud roar, immediately eyeing us down. "Nice flag trigger, Ghost." I said.

It's name appeared as it began to attack us. 'Phogoth, the Untamed.' Da'avi and I split up, attacking it from two angles. She was using an auto rifle as she ascended above some platforms. "Go for its stomach, Hanabi. That's these abomination's weak point." She said.

"Isn't the weak point on Ogre's the eye?" I asked.

"Look more carefully, Hanabi. It pays to see more than what you can normally perceive."

Upon closer inspection of Phogoth, I could see it a bit more clearly. There on his midriff was a glowing white spot that he seemed to be protecting with his hand. Nodding at the new information, I began to make my way around the arena, trying to pick off scattered Hive and chipping away at Phogoth.

It began to roar in pain, thrashing around and quickly making ground towards me. "Oh, shoot!" Its steps were long and swift. Staring at me and shooting a beam of purple light, I ducked behind cover, doing my best to dispatch the Hive that were quickly beginning to swarm.

"Hanabi, keep the abomination distracted!" Da'avi commanded.

"Ain't too hard to do!" As my cover was being destroyed, I hurried over to another pillar, the abomination never relenting in its attack. I tried to keep my breathing paced, but the louder Phogoth's roars closed in, the more and more my will was beginning to wane.

"Da'avi! What's your plan for this thing?" Expecting to hear her voice, I waited for the sound of the warlock to come over the intercoms, but nothing came through.

"Da'avi?" Ghost said.

Phogoth was right on top of me. With a fierce stomp, the shockwave sent me flying and crashing into a pile of rubble. I struggled to scramble to my feet, getting an intense pressure of heat around my torso.

Phogoth was attacking me relentlessly. The Hive were swarming me, and there was no sign of Da'avi anywhere. "Gh-Ghost! Where's Da'avi?"

"I don't know, Hana! I can't find her on the radar!"

My heart sank. I was left alone with this abomination with no way out. I gritted my teeth and ran around the arena, trying to find any way out of this situation.

I tried to focus on just surviving, but something echoed in my head. 'It pays more to see what you can normally perceive.'

The arena had pillars, platforms, and an excavated look to it, but something struck me as pertinent. The ceilings still had a natural look to them. "Stalactites…"

I ducked and covered to a place where I had free reign to shoot at the ceiling. Hopefully, Phogoth was just a mindless abomination that craved destruction and didn't have the critical thinking skills to notice what I was doing.

Once all the shots and stalactites were in place, I lured Phogoth to an open area in the arena. "Hey ugly! Try and catch me if you can!" I goaded Phogoth into pursuing me, but something told me that it was going to follow me regardless.

Once we were out on a clearway in the arena, I launched a grenade towards the ceiling. All of the stalactites fell down and began to pierce Phogoth. I jumped back and forth to avoid the falling stalactites until a large cloud of dust rose.

When it settled, I had my golden gun aimed at the staggered abomination. It was only the fourth time that I've used it, but the energy was beginning to feel familiar to me.

I ran full force towards the abomination, ignoring the incoming Hive that would soon surround me. Using the sniper like a spear, I shoved the barrel deep into Phogoth's midriff. Without hesitating, I pulled the trigger and was sent flying.

I steeled myself and used my knife to stab into the ground to slow my velocity, only barely managing to cling onto the ledge.

By the sounds of Phogoth screaming in agony and the Hive seemingly disappearing from the arena, it was safe to say that I managed to kill Phogoth.

"Gh-Ghost… C-can you transmat me? I'm falling!"

Ghost appeared outside and looked around. "I'm sorry, Hana but I can't! The ship is too far from here and we're too deep in the Hellmouth. The best I can do is…"

I gulped. I knew what Ghost meant. And I wanted to avoid that at all costs.

But the burning in my arms was getting to me. Before I realized that my grip had failed me, I was being hoisted in the air by none other than Da'avi. "Da'avi?" I said in an exasperated tone.

Da'avi didn't speak. Instead, she brought me towards the arena and tossed me onto the floor, a ball of void light emanating from her hand. Slowly approaching me, the only thing she said to me came with malice. "Want to tell me how that golden gun came about?"

Confused, I started to back up, but Da'avi was not relenting. "Wh-what do you mean? Da'avi?" I stammered out.

"Don't play dumb, Hanabi. A golden gun like that doesn't come about normally. Clearly, you're using some sort of unauthorized exotic."

"Wh-what're you on about, Da'avi?" I asked in fear. I didn't know what she was talking about.

"I think you know what I'm talking about, Hanabi. Ever since you first used that thing in the Cosmodrome, we of the Praxic Order have been very keen on finding out what you've been using to make it so robust."

"But what do you mean about an Exotic, Da'avi? I have no idea what that is!" I screamed out, the void light getting dangerously close to my face.

Ghost flew over to Da'avi, attempting to get in between us. "Da'avi, I can assure you that Hana has not gotten a single exotic piece of equipment. She was only revived-"

Da'avi cut off Ghost. "A little over a few days ago, I know. Trust us, we know everything about you so far, Hanabi. What we don't know is how you're conjuring such a large golden gun. By all accounts, it should be impossible."

Ghost got into Da'avi's face. "Well its not. Hana is a remarkable Guardian and she's conjuring that golden gun, ON HER OWN!" Ghost retorted. He was staring Da'avi down with no alarm to his own safety, And it made me feel special.

But Da'avi simply tilted her head. "No… That can't be right. Ghost, you and I both know that a Guardian's power can be enhanced with armor, weapons, and especially exotics."

"None of which Hanabi has, Da'avi." It was a clear and direct response that Ghost said. "Hanabi isn't against the Praxic Order. And we're not against the Vanguard."

Da'avi's void light subsided, her hand moved away from my face and she turned away. From behind her, a purple Ghost appeared behind her, zipping next to her face as she whispered something to it. "I know… Look, I know it looks bad but… Well how could I not think something?"

After a few moments, her ghost disappeared, and Da'avi turned back to us. Her demeanor was still cold and confident, but her voice said otherwise. "H-Hanabi. We of the Praxic Order have our eyes on y-you!"

"Um, what?" I asked.

"We'll find out why your golden gun is so strong! And I know you're pervading in the darkness! And when I find out, y-you'll regret it!" And without a further word, Da'avi disappeared in a stream of light.

I was thoroughly confused. "Um, Ghost. What the heck was that?"

Ghost zipped over to me and shook his body. "Praxic Order. They're a group of Warlocks who's goal is to keep dark artifacts out of the hands of other Guardians to prevent them from turning… bad."

"Bad? Like, going to the dark side, bad?"

"Yeah. Although it's a rare circumstance, it has happened before. Praxic Order are there to make sure that doesn't happen."

I sighed and stood back up. I dusted off my armor and looked around. "Well it seems to me that she's a bit of a nervous wreck when she gets it wrong, doesn't she?"

"Well, most Guardians think the Praxic Order are a bit overkill when it comes to the whole 'crusade against the darkness'. Funny story, actually. There was one time a Praxic Order member thought I was doing undercover reconnaissance for a sect of Fallen just outside of Old Australia. She was threatening me with divine and holy retribution via the Traveler's light, but we were able to clear up that misunderstanding."

I looked at Ghost with a skeptical look. "You're still on the run from him, aren't you?"

"I really hope we never run into that Warlock any time soon. Come on, Hana. We've had a long day. And I do think rest is in order for you."

"I second that, Ghost. I can't wait to get home and get some rest."

As if to ruin my expectations, Ghost chimed up with a transmission. "Urgent transmission incoming on all channels… From the Speaker!"

I groaned and listened on. "Nothing is more important now. We believe the Hive are engaged in a ritual that is draining the Traveler of its Light. Whatever power they wield must be understood… and destroyed."

Author's Note: Thank you very much for reading! Our first "Major" Obstacle has appeared, the Praxic Order! They will be prevalent throughout this first Arc, but more on them later. A like, comment, and favorite would be helpful and appreciated! Thank you!