A/N: I have significantly revised Chapters 1-40 and am in the process of re-uploading them. At the time this chapter goes up, Chapters 1-5 have been re-uploaded. I've spent an enormous amount of time on background reference checking and revisions, so if you wouldn't mind leaving a review, I would greatly appreciate it.

Chapter 41: Vault of Glass

Whisper spent the next few days laying low while Alice and Vistrek had to accept all of the congratulations and backslapping from leadership on behalf of the fireteam. And word was getting around among the other guardians about Fireteam Guardian, though it was still more rumor than anything.

She returned to the Spicy Ramen shop to try to make amends with the proprietor and found it was a good spot for picking up rumors, though sometimes they were downright bizarre and clearly wrong. In one perturbing example, Whisper stared at her ramen trying not to listen to a particularly excitable young hunter describing to his friend all of the exploits of the fireteam as those of "The Guardian."

But by and large, things settled back down for the next few weeks. She started to get more comfortable with the fireteam, learn more about the City, and spent some time wandering the woods of the EDZ just coming to grips with the reality of her new life. But as time went by, she started to get restless, like an itch she couldn't quite scratch. The Exo Stranger's warnings about things to come, and the Speaker's reference to the mysterious Vault of Glass… it all felt like an ominous weight on her shoulders, a constant nagging feeling that she was missing something.

…

Two guardians stood relaxed, but hands on weapons, within the Black Garden, its doors forced open with its central Axis Minds defeated. Combat frames marched dutifully forming a perimeter while others assembled barriers between the bizarre Vex architecture.

"This place is creepy enough as it is. Did Shaxx really have to set up shop at an ancient Vex temple all the way up here? My ghost says this place is just buzzing with anomalous messages calling out to each other. Can't imagine what it was like when it was still alive," said the hunter, boots kicking at a pile of leaves, tossing them into the wind. "Why do you think Shaxx wanted to set up a Crucible arena here of all places?"

The titan shrugged. "He likes to have us fight in creepy places, thinks it toughens us up. Plus," she added, jerking a finger over her shoulder at the temple, "word is that there are still Vex Minds living inside there that haven't come back out. They might come back at some point. And it's handy to have some of the most lethal guardians in the nastiest spots, teach them the lay of the land dealing with Vex stuff. I think we're the backup plan if the Vex decide to start growing more trouble in the Garden."

The hunter looked up at the titan, arching his eyebrow, though the effect was lost behind his helmet. "Any given match there's twelve of us, tops. The Vex recommit to gardening Darkness, or whatever it is they do, who says we've got enough guns to stop 'em?"

The titan gestured a heavy gauntlet to encompass the mind-bending expanse around them. "Stop 'em?" She asked. "Pretty sure our deaths are just meant to be the early warning system."

"Comforting. Now get ready, I don't want you to embarrass me in front of Lord Shaxx. Again."

"I'm going, I'm going."

…

Whisper spent the next several weeks learning everything she could about the Vault of Glass. Unfortunately, the Vanguard's records being what they were, that amounted to little. Of what she could find, she was reasonably confident that the Vault had been found once before by a fireteam of guardians consisting of a titan named Kabr the Legionless, a Warlock named Praedyth, and a hunter named Pahanin. Of the three, only Pahanin had returned, and he was changed by the experience. Despite the fame of his exploits, he spoke little of what happened and became more and more eccentric, at least if his writings were anything to go by.

She'd even sat down and read the entirety of The Pahanin Errata, an increasingly unhinged collection of drabbles, quips, satire, travel guides, life advice, and lengthy commentary on the virtues of cephalopods.

There wasn't much to be gleaned there. To be fair, some of it was the normal sort of weird for guardians. For example, like a lot of other hunters, he was determined to look better than warlocks. And like many, he was nervous about warlocks' ability to vaporize people. There were descriptions of his thoughts on guardian classes, like how it titans made useful friends, and you could get a titan to help if you told them only a madman would do it, or get a warlock to help if you told them it was too were even some conversations between him and other guardians like Wei Ning.

But then it got weirder. He found it amusing to think that if humanity was destroyed, cephalopods would take their place. He'd believed his black gloves made him uneatable at the game Go. He'd like the word "siphuncle." He insisted that you always look up whenever you enter a room, even if you get weird looks, to ensure you don't have your head bitten off.

Ultimately, there wasn't much help there. And it wasn't like she could just go talk to the man – the Vanguard's records were clear that he'd run afoul of someone called Dredgen Yor and both he and his ghost were long gone.

That had led her here, out to the middle of nowhere backtracking the last known trajectory of the hunter's ship. It was smack in the middle of Fallen territory which had prevented recovery, but she'd come alone and managed to avoid detection.

There's something up ahead.

"And I hope that's it – this is our last lead." Whisper crested a small rise and nodded in satisfaction as the pile of wreckage came into view. It had started life as an Odyssey-class jumpship with its telltale stubby wings. The ship had come down gently enough to stay partially intact, and those parts showed a gaudy neon-green and brown paint job and the faded name stenciled on the side: Ego and Squid.

"Alright Ghost, take a look at whatever's left of the ship's memory and let's see what we can find."

I've got something, half of a recorded conversation. The crackly voice of the long-dead hunter came to life once more as Ghost played the log.

Why "Ego and Quid"? Chiefly because puns annoy Kabr, and I enjoy annoying Kabr. You know, the pun is an underrated art form. Historically speaking – Oh. You mean, why squids? What's my "thing" with squids? Why, because cephalopods are the most perfect organisms ever to evolve in this solar system! Have you ever heard a cephalopod sneer dismissively at a clever pun? No, you have not! I rest my case!

Whisper sighed. He was even worse in person than in his writings, it seemed. "We already knew he was weird – is there anything else?"

I've found another audio file.

Pahanin spoke again, but his playful, sarcastic tone was absent. Instead, he spoke quietly in a tired, pained voice.

I'll give you my report, but this is the last time I'll ever speak of it. His… his name was Kabr. He wasn't my friend but I knew and respected him as a Guardian and a good man. He fought the Vex alone. This destroyed him. In the time before he vanished he said things that I think should be remembered. These are some of them:

"In the Vault time frays and a needle moves through it. The needle is the will of Atheon. I do not know the name of the shape that comes after the needle."

"No one can open the Vault alone. I opened the Vault. There was no on with me but I was not alone."

"You will meet the Templar in a place that is a time before or after stars. The stars will move around you and mark you and sing to you. They will decide if you are real."

"I drank of them. It tasted like the sea."

There was a pause in the recording, and then, That is all I can remember.

Whisper leaned against the battered old jumpship and considered this. It was incomprehensible, but it was the most sober of anything she'd read by him. Time frays? Atheon? Stars that decide if you're real? Templar? It didn't make any sense, but at least one thing seemed reasonably clear – "no one can open the Vault alone." She was going to need help.

There's one more thing in here – a set of coordinates for somewhere on Venus.

…

Whisper stood on the wall overlooking the City thinking about what she learned when the air shimmered and The Exo Stranger appeared suddenly. She wasted no time. "Have you started looking yet?"

"What?"

The Stranger looked over her shoulder, though there was nothing there. "There's no time. The Vex have damaged the timestream so badly I feel like I'm skipping between them. You need to find the Vault of Glass."

Whisper had no idea what to make of this. "I've started gathering information about it."

The Stranger frowned. "You're behind most of you. More thorough, though. You need to catch up. Ugh, coordinating this is a nightmare. Just get there as soon as you can. You won't have any chance if you don't get there in time. Everything that happens there happens all at once."

And with that she vanished as abruptly as she'd come.

…

The entrance to the legendary Vault of Glass was a rather unassuming metal circle within a larger metal circle nestled within gray stone. It hardly stood out from the consistently weird Vex architecture.

Whisper hiked up the stone stairs towards it, boots treading on overgrown grass, and she wasn't alone. The Vanguard wanted this dealt with now, in the lull after the destruction of the Black Heart of the Garden while the Vex were back on their metaphorical heels. And they weren't doing it with a half-measure, either. Assembling in the Venus heat were twelve guardians.

Vistrek and Alice were there, of course, along with Fireteam Family, consisting of Reed-7, Aisha, and Shayura. Twelve guardians against the complete unknown.

Whisper and Reed nodded to each other and started forwards. They'd gone over everything they'd learned from Pahanin, and the first step was easy enough - there were three platforms that needed to be charged with an incredible amount of power. Only the Vex had that kind of power readily available… unless you had a source of paracausal power at hand. All they really needed to do was keep a guardian's ghost within range of each for long enough. And Pahanin's memory of Kabr's words was right – no one guardian could open it alone.

The Vex materialized in from every direction, sensing the intrusion. A fireteam defended each plate with the last as the roaming reserve, and the morning calm erupted into violence. As power poured in a spire began to rise from the ground on a platform opposite the entrance. Even more Vex poured out, including upgraded Minotaurs with reinforced frames.

The Vex were relentless, but no match for the sheer firepower of so many guardians. After only a few minutes the spire was fully raised and the surviving Vex fell back. The spire hummed with power, which erupted into a beam of light straight at the vault door. The doorway peeled back slowly, like a curtain being raised.

The entrance inside was in the shape of a triangle, opening to an overgrown, dim passageway downwards, where natural rock mingled seamlessly into Vex architecture. Whisper led the way cautiously, brushing past plants and ducking beneath hanging vines as they wound down, down, down until the path opened to a wide cavern. Impossibly, there was no bottom to the cavern, which fell away endlessly. Vex stone hung over the gap in a convoluted path through the dark.

Whisper pushed on, leaping in the power of the Light to continue downwards towards an enormous structure below them. As they neared it Whisper started to see things. They were glimpses, a flash in the corner of her eye, a movement in the dark. They got stronger, more… solid, somehow, as they got closer to the building.

The darkness seemed to be flowing towards the building. Whisper froze as an image snapped into clarity and she saw herself, clear as day. She was the same, only different. Her armor was different and she carried an auto rifle, but the look of surprise on her face was identical. Both Whispers turned to call out, but when she blinked, the other Whisper was gone.

The Exo Stranger's words came back to her, and she looked down at her hands. How many me's are here right now, in this vault? She shivered with a sinking feeling of dread.

Vistrek looked at another swirl of images sickly. "Is any of this real?"

"There!" Alice pointed sharply, and Whisper turned her gaze to what looked to be another fireteam of guardians, a titan, warlock, and hunter. "Pahanin!" shouted a voice, and Whisper looked back to her companions in confusion, while Vistrek stared at his machine gun. What is going on?

…

"I'm telling you, someone called out my name," insisted Pahanin, but Kabr just shrugged. "We're the first ones here – who would know your name?"

"This place is strange," added Praedyth quietly. "I saw them, too. They looked like guardians, but their armor was… different. More advanced. I… I think they're from the future."

Pahanin turned towards him. "Do you really think—" he cut off as Praedyth burst into laughter. Pahanin rolled his eyes and chucked a piece of candy at Praedyth's head that bounced off his helmet. Praedyth pocketed the candy.

"Focus, both of you," said Kabr grimly. "We're nearing the big chamber."

"Oh, don't be such a grouch," retorted Pahanin. "We're going to be famous! Tip of the spear and all that."

Kabr glanced at his pocket watch, noting the time before replying. "I'm not here for glory. What the City wants us to do – what we want to do – it doesn't make any damned sense. That phrase 'tip of the spear' sounds good in speeches, but you know what happens to spear tips? They break. But that's what it takes. If the choice is between you or the Wall? You break."

…

The makeshift path of extended stone ledges ended in a massive room, though enough stone jutted out at odd angles to make it impossible to see across from any one spot.

"Vex!" called out , and the fight was on. The Vex came out in force, with goblins, hobgoblins, and minotaurs teleporting in. They were tougher than anything Whisper had ever seen, and among them was something new – a goblin without its head and leaking a pulsing green somewhere between a liquid and a frequency.

finished one off before a minotaur's Void cannon blasted him into the green puddle. He held up his gloved hand, staring at the substance in puzzlement as it leaked between his fingers.

A sound thrummed so deep Whisper felt it in the stone more than heard it, followed by a pulse of energy, and _ was vaporized.

…

"Don't touch the green crap, got it!" shouted Pahanin over the roar of battle. Praedyth covered a ghost reviving their guardian as Kabr's fist pulverized a Vex hobgoblin. "That is the last of this wave… wait, what is that?"

…

Whisper paused as quick sounds echoed throughout the structure. She didn't have long to think about it as the sound repeated and a searingly bright light materialized in front of her. Thankfully her exo eyes weren't bothered by the glare and she blasted it to pieces, before the sound echoed yet again. Kabr's words from centuries past came back to her suddenly - The stars will move around you and mark you and sing to you. They will decide if you are real. "Spread out!" she shouted. "Kill the stars as fast as you can!"

…

"These things are teleporting in from everywhere," gasped Pahanin as he blasted another oracle. "We should have brought more than five guardians."

"Shut up and let me think," snarled Praedyth, who absently sent a pulse of void energy to destroy a goblin. The sounds chimed again as more oracles materialized, and the warlock looked up suddenly. "I've got it. The sounds, there's a pattern. The pitch indicates where it will appear!"

Blinding light flashed on multiple sides and Pahanin hissed as Solar fire burned through his armor. He blasted another two goblins, then heard Kabr's voice shout over the bedlam. "Fall back!"

Praedyth turned to run but stumbled as a hobgoblin slammed into him, clamping down on his prized pulse rifle. He shoved the weapon and Vex away, but by the time he turned back there was no sign of his fireteam. He picked a direction and ran.

…

Pahanin skid to a stop, wheezing for air, as the implacable Karb covered the rear. "I think we lost them," said the titan.

"What… the hell… is this place?" he wheezed, then straightened and caught his breath. "I could have sworn I saw a whole pack of Fallen back there in House of Wolves colors. Aren't they out on the Reef?"

"When we went into the Vault, maybe," said Kabr quietly. "But what matters now is that there's no sign of Praedyth."

The hunter swore under his breath. "We never should have come here with just a single fireteam."

"They're coming," Kabr said quietly. "You need to go, Pahanin. Find a way out. I'll hold them off."

Pahanin went.

…

The last of the Oracles went down and the Vex fell back, giving the three fireteams time to regroup. As they gathered, the darkness of the walls twisted and writhed with images. One caught Whisper's eye and she watched.

Pahanin had no idea how long it had been since he parted ways with Kabr, but he'd been fleeing from Vex and even stranger things for as long as he could remember now. It was as monotonous as it was terrifying, and he'd taken to speaking to himself as a way to fill the silence.

And then he wasn't alone. A doorway opened and Kabr stepped out… but it wasn't Kabr. Pahanin gasped as he saw his old companion. There were still tattered vestiges of his armor visible, but most of it had been replaced by shattered and repurposed Vex plating. His helmet was dominated by a single large red eye. He moved differently, jerking, almost robotic.

The titan stared at him, then spoke, his voice raspy and raw. "Pahanin. There is little time. There are things to say." The titan seemed to gather himself. "In the Vault time frays and a needle moves through it. The needle is the will of Atheon. I do not know the name of the shape that comes after the needle."

"Kabr, what happened? Have you seen Praedyth?"

Kabr continued. "No one can open the Vault alone. I opened the Vault. There was no one with me but I was not alone."

"What are you talking about?" pleaded Pahanin, but the titan continued in that same dead voice.

"You will meet the Templar in a place that is a time before or after stars. The stars will move around you and mark you and sing to you. They will decide if you are real. I drank of them. It tasted like the sea."

Pahanin gasped. "You drank that Vex crap?"

At last Kabr gave a reaction, a small, jerky nod. "I have destroyed myself to do this. They have taken my Ghost. They are in my blood and brain. But now there is hope. I have made a wound in the Vault. I have pierced it and let in the Light. Bathe in it, and be cleansed. Look to it, and understand: from my own Light and from the thinking flesh of the Vex I made a shield. The shield is your deliverance. It will break the unbreakable. It will change your fate. Bind yourself to the shield. Bind yourself to me. And if you abandon your purpose, let the Vault consume you, as it consumed me."

The hunter tentatively placed his hand on Kabr's shoulder. "What shield? Kabr, what are you—"

Kabr sagged in on himself. "The message is not for you. Pass it on. The way out. That way," he said, pointing a finger. "Now it is done. If I speak again, I am not Kabr."

"Look out!" called Vistrek, and Whisper looked back to see more Vex blinking into existence. Her eye was immediately drawn to an enormous hydra, bigger even than an axis mind, that brimmed with power. Its Void cannons thundered, shaking the Vault itself.

The guardian returned fire, blasting with everything from small arms to rocket launchers, but when the smoke faded, the Vex was completely unharmed. More Vex poured in and the guardians scattered, seeking cover.

That was when she felt it – a source of Light nearby. Whisper hurled a void spike grenade that destroyed a pair of goblins and peaked out of cover. There! She leaped out, relying on speed to protect her, and charged out into the open. Fire immediately focused on her, and she slid the last few steps to grab the object, then blinked back behind cover.

It's a shield! Its core was a cross the color of brass, but the remainder was made of pure Light that glowed in the darkness of the Vault.

A guardian shrieked horribly, their body turning to liquid as an oracle stared down impassively. Kabr's words came back to her – bathe and be cleansed. She raced out to the flailing guardian and channeled her Light into the shield. The Light exploded outwards into a sphere around them, and the guardian gasped in relief as their body reformed.

The Hydra floated towards her, and she channeled her Light with all her might. The shield pulsed, sending out a raw blast of power that punctured the hydra's shield. "Take it down!" she shouted, and the guardians responded.

While ducked behind the protective shield, a quiet thought passed through her mind. Thank you, Kabr.

…

The hydra crashed to the floor, destroyed, and Whisper held up the shield. Its Light used up, it faded into dust and blew away.

The guardians regrouped and began to descend deeper into the Vault as Whisper explained what had happened. The Vault was shaped like a cave now, with pools of sulfuric water they carefully stepped around. Deeper and deeper it went, and the walls that appeared like stone rippled with images of strange times and places. Whisper called for a short break and as she pondered, she watched one of the images on the walls.

The image clears of dirt and dust as a hand wipesthelens clean. A figure holdstheghost up, looking intothelens. Harsh light from an unfamiliar sun backlightsthefour-armed creature, making it impossible to see its face. Its massive head turns, and a clicking and chittering voice can be heard speaking to something off-screen. Whilethenoisesthemselves are harsh,thetone and content seem almost gentle. A curious creature, not a violent or angry one.

Thelens refocuses beyondthecreature's head as it talks, and a startling landscape climbs tothehorizon. It's a paradise. Carefully tended lakes and rivers, water everywhere, windtheir way between fields of lush iridescent crops and into groves of starkly colored trees. Every inch oftheland seems engineered, brushed by a sculptor's hand for form and function both.

Thesky is a light pink, spotted with clouds and crowded with ships. Thick lanes of aerial traffic soar throughtheair, tightly managed and seemingly endless.

And beyond it all, abovetheclouds, hangs a perfect alabaster wobbles, shaking, flickering as iftheGhost is blinking. Andthefragment ends.

Whisper stared into the distance as the image faded. Was this the future? The past? Was any of it even real? This was the most bizarre thing she'd ever done, and they still had a long way to go.

Referenced Lore

Grimoire:

Pantheon

Ghost Fragment: Pantheon

The Vault of Glass

Mystery: The Vault of Glass

Relic: The Aegis

The Templar

Weapons:

Praedyth's Timepiece

Armor:

Squid Pro Quo

Dynamo Cloak

Monolith Bleed IV (arms)

Cloak of Hidden Agendas

Molniya Type O

Octopus Cloak

Snakeline 4.5

Ships:

Ego and Squid (D2)

Cuttlebone (D2)

Lore Books:

Aspect: Deontic

Quest Descriptions:

Talk to Cayde

Talk to Cayde-6

Complete the Path (Striker subclass)

Other:

The Pahanin Errata (artifact)

Kabr's Pocket Watch (artifact)