Shaxx: You want a scholarship? Not with that KD ratio you aren't!
Each Star is a Point of Light-A Destiny/Mass Effect Fusion
- Thread starter MagicMan333
- Start date
- Location
- Puerto Rico
Yes, it's suppose to be Synthetic Intelligence. We had a similar issue with the designation.
- Location
- Ruralcratic Dominion of Nebraska, Dumbfuckistan
The rukus I caused half an hour ago in Iron Banner must have landed me a full-ride, then. I love it when I grab the Power Ammo for my rocket launcher and discover the other team is too dumb to scatter.
Nah, they'd just sign up for some up close and personal testing of the Collectors and their technology.
Book 3: Chapter 3: Taking Care of Business Pt. 2
MagicMan333
Post-apocalyptic Gonzo Journalist
- Location
- Washington
Chapter 3: Taking Care of Business Pt.2
Tali checked her omnitool, the algorithm she had installed onto it streaming numbers and symbols past the screen. It beeped twice and Tali closed the small maintenance hatch she'd had opened. She sighed to herself as she made her way to the next hatch. On the one hand she was thankful that she was starting out with relatively simple work, checking the Wall's power systems and making sure everything read green, on the other hand it wasn't long before she wanted something else to do.
She thought of the other Titans, the Phoenix Pillars. No, she thought, I like it down here. To their credit, Tali admitted to herself, most of them considered her with a distant apathy rather than outright malice considering her a passing anomaly that would graduate from training and drift out of their lives like the squires they'd had before. The main problem was a Titan by the name of Kristofor. He was small by Titan standards, being only slightly taller than Tali, but he'd made up for it by being a pain in the ass. Where the other Pillars largely paid her little attention, he had deigned to irritate her at every juncture of her initiation. Oh, he was subtle about it. A snide insinuation here, a back-handed compliment there. An overall lack of overt aggression that fed her anger rather than dilute it.
She did her best to banish her anger as she continued her diagnostics checks. She looked up and saw the sun dip further down into the mountains that surrounded the City. She felt a sense of relief. While she was told most graduated Titans worked with little rest until their Mandatory Hours were completed and sometimes beyond even that, squires only worked eight to ten hour shifts until they got used to round the clock work. By Tali's estimation she had only a half-an-hour left before she could go ahead and go…
Go where exactly? Tali put down her wrench and put a hand to her visor. Liara and Garrus were probably still working, Wrex was busy trying to find some kind of work suited for someone with his particular skill set, and she hadn't really talked to Shepard or Ashley since she became a Guardian.
Tali felt something in her chest sink. After today she didn't want to go back to the Tower alone.
"Is there anything wrong, Guardian?" The Ghost asked.
"I'm fine," Tali said.
"Really, kid. Cause you look like you're about to wring someone's neck."
Tali's eyes widened as she looked up at a catwalk above her to see Ashley Williams leaning on a handrail looking down at her.
"Ashley!" she said and she didn't care about the obvious joy that crept into her voice. The time they'd been separated had done nothing to dull the kinship she felt towards the woman who had taken her under her wing in the dark days after Garrus' and Liara's "deaths". "What are you doing here?"
"Squiring's always tough. Decided to see how you were weathering it."
"Oh," Tali said, wincing at the way her voice wilted under the question. "It's been okay."
Ashley sucked in a breath through her teeth. "That bad, huh?"
Tali crossed her arms. Ashley sighed before climbing on top of the handrail. Before Tali could say anything she jumped from the handrail. She plunged to the ground only to begin floating an inch above the ground. Her feet hit the ground with a quiet thump.
Now that she was on the ground, Tali could see that she was wearing a miniskirt over a pair of jeans that complimented the leather jacket she wore. On her right hip was her Titan Mark which she seemed to wear even when out of her armor.
"Hey," Ashley said, "they'll come around. And if they don't they're assholes." Tali smiled as she was pulled into a hug. Ashley's Ghost appeared over her shoulder and Tali had to suppress a flair of annoyance.
"Ash," it said, "it's almost five."
A look of panic crossed Ashley's face. "Shit. I better get going." She turned a smile towards Tali. "Don't want to miss the premiere."
Tali cocked her head to the side. "Premiere?"
Ashley looked at her like she'd started bleeding glitter. "The premiere." Tali simply stared back at her uncomprehending. Ashley's mouth twisted into a scowl. "Those shitheads didn't tell you about it."
"Tell me about what?"
Ashley threw her arms into the air. "One Punch Titan!" She started pacing back and forth, her hands flying about in the manner of a savant talking about their passion. From what Tali could infer from Ashley's rant was that Once Punch Titan was a long running "action-dramedy" about a Titan so strong they could kill any enemy with a single punch. Running at seventy-five seasons and sixteen movies, the show had become a mainstay in City culture in part because of the undying love given to it by the Titans themselves, who prided themselves on not missing a single episode.
"You have to see it," Ashley said after five minutes of breathless exposition. "It's like…a law among Titans."
Tali rubbed the back of her helmet. "The Pillars still want me to work for an hour."
"Doesn't matter," Ashley said with a shake of her head. "Those assholes have probably snuck off to catch it themselves. C'mon." She grabbed Tali's wrist and began to drag her along. Tali offered a token protest but Ashley's stubborn determination did more to mollify Tali's protests than any act of strength ever could.
"Where are we going?" Tali asked as they entered into a small supply crèche in the labyrinthine halls of the Wall.
"Titans keep small hidey holes full of contraband all through the Wall. You're probably going to have one of your own by the time you finish squiring. Just have to figure out…" Ashley looked at a small spot in the floor and kneeled down. She knocked on the floor and a hollow metal sound filled the air. Ashley smirked before sliding her fingers around the spot. Before Tali knew it, she lifted the floor up revealing a small hiding spot.
She reached down into the hole and pulled up a small vid-screen. It was small and square and Tali suspected it was obsolete, even by the standards of the City.
"Shit," Ashley said, "this one must have been abandoned a while back. Bruce it still work?"
Ashley's Ghost scanned the vid-screen.
"Yeah, but we're probably going to need to climb to the top of the Wall to get a signal. Hope you don't mind 480p."
A look of resigned disappointment reigned in Ashley's eyes. "It'll have to do."
Before long Ashley and Tali climbed to the top of the Wall. Tali leaned on a handrail and took in the City at night, a sight that still took her breath away even after weeks of living in the Tower. She heard a bit of cursing behind her and an "a-ha!" before she felt Ashley tap her on the shoulder.
"Got it ready just in time. We probably missed the pre-show but I'll explain it to you as we go."
Tali noticed the steam coming from Ashley's mouth as she spoke and felt a pang of worry.
"Aren't you cold?"
Ashley waved her off. "Bruce."
In a flash of light, Bruce transmatted two large pillows and a blanket into Ashley's arms. She dropped both pillows on to the ground before taking a seat on one. She patted her hand on the pillow next to her.
Tali hesitated for a moment but, spurred on by the amount of effort Ashley had spared on her behalf, took a seat, curling her legs beneath her and placing her hands in her lap. Tali squeaked as Ashley wrapped them both up in the blanket.
"Ash!" Tali cried, feeling a blush cross her face.
"Shush," Ash said, "your suit's warm."
Tali opened her mouth to protest before finding that it was pleasantly warm under the blanket. In a moment, she found herself leaning against Ashley's side. As the theme song played over extravagant scenes of action and drama, Tali could hear Ashley whispering under her breath.
"Are you singing along?" Tali asked in disbelief.
Ashley blushed and Tali knew it had nothing to do with the cold. "Shut up."
They glared at each other for a few moments before they both collapsed into laughter.
Codex: Guardian Culture
The various human and awoken cultures that have come to call the City their home have had a noticeable effect on the Guardians themselves. The Titans are one of the more noticeable examples, having taken inspiration from warrior cultures across Earth's history. Warrior societies ranging from European Knights to Indian Kshatriyas form the foundation of multiple Titan Orders, informing their personal traditions from rules surrounding honor dueling to items worn on a Titan's person.
An important aspect of Titan culture, often ignored by those who focus on their battlefield behavior, is the Titan's own contributions to the City's artistic scene. Titan's, no strangers to working with their hands, have included some of the City's finest artists and artisans in their ranks ranging from the Crimson Cross Titan Order, known City-wide for their sculpture, to Yumiko Red-Blade, who created ninety-eight paintings in traditional Japanese style before being slain at Twilight Gap.
Warlock's often wrap themselves in the trappings of spiritual and academic traditions of mankind's past. Priesthoods ranging from the Orange Catholic clergy to the Delphian Oracles help non-Guardian clergy in tending to the spiritual needs of the City's people as Academic Warlocks based in the City's many universities prove critical to the education of the City's citizens.
Warlock culture, both academic and spiritual, is often based around rediscovering or interpreting scraps of pre-Golden Age art and literature making them a crucial part of the humanity's cultural rediscovery following the Collapse. Along with reclamation, Warlocks also contribute to the City's current identity by creating original work, often through writing.
Hunters, denoting their individualistic nature, tend to have cultural ties boiled down between apprenticeship lines, with apprentices taking on the cultural trappings of their masters and passing them on when the time comes to train their own apprentices. Hunter culture as a whole tends to be based around shared interest, with gambling dens and bars being the main avenue for Hunters to meet up and socialize with others of their kind.
Hunters, as in many things, contribute to the City through action. This action tends to be immediately capitalized through a lively and complex storytelling tradition that has become a cornerstone of the larger Hunter community. A Hunter's reputation is in part decided by the stories they have told and it is not uncommon for two Hunters operating in the wild to decide status by telling stories over a campfire.
*****
Oh, boy I had trouble with this one. I had to do some close examination of Tali's whole storyline this book to decide what I wanted to do here with some ideas being pushed up, combined with others, and sometimes cast into the void. I can't say I'm super satisfied with this but I do think its something that'll be really good once I do the second draft for this book. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it and to our American readers I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.
Tali checked her omnitool, the algorithm she had installed onto it streaming numbers and symbols past the screen. It beeped twice and Tali closed the small maintenance hatch she'd had opened. She sighed to herself as she made her way to the next hatch. On the one hand she was thankful that she was starting out with relatively simple work, checking the Wall's power systems and making sure everything read green, on the other hand it wasn't long before she wanted something else to do.
She thought of the other Titans, the Phoenix Pillars. No, she thought, I like it down here. To their credit, Tali admitted to herself, most of them considered her with a distant apathy rather than outright malice considering her a passing anomaly that would graduate from training and drift out of their lives like the squires they'd had before. The main problem was a Titan by the name of Kristofor. He was small by Titan standards, being only slightly taller than Tali, but he'd made up for it by being a pain in the ass. Where the other Pillars largely paid her little attention, he had deigned to irritate her at every juncture of her initiation. Oh, he was subtle about it. A snide insinuation here, a back-handed compliment there. An overall lack of overt aggression that fed her anger rather than dilute it.
She did her best to banish her anger as she continued her diagnostics checks. She looked up and saw the sun dip further down into the mountains that surrounded the City. She felt a sense of relief. While she was told most graduated Titans worked with little rest until their Mandatory Hours were completed and sometimes beyond even that, squires only worked eight to ten hour shifts until they got used to round the clock work. By Tali's estimation she had only a half-an-hour left before she could go ahead and go…
Go where exactly? Tali put down her wrench and put a hand to her visor. Liara and Garrus were probably still working, Wrex was busy trying to find some kind of work suited for someone with his particular skill set, and she hadn't really talked to Shepard or Ashley since she became a Guardian.
Tali felt something in her chest sink. After today she didn't want to go back to the Tower alone.
"Is there anything wrong, Guardian?" The Ghost asked.
"I'm fine," Tali said.
"Really, kid. Cause you look like you're about to wring someone's neck."
Tali's eyes widened as she looked up at a catwalk above her to see Ashley Williams leaning on a handrail looking down at her.
"Ashley!" she said and she didn't care about the obvious joy that crept into her voice. The time they'd been separated had done nothing to dull the kinship she felt towards the woman who had taken her under her wing in the dark days after Garrus' and Liara's "deaths". "What are you doing here?"
"Squiring's always tough. Decided to see how you were weathering it."
"Oh," Tali said, wincing at the way her voice wilted under the question. "It's been okay."
Ashley sucked in a breath through her teeth. "That bad, huh?"
Tali crossed her arms. Ashley sighed before climbing on top of the handrail. Before Tali could say anything she jumped from the handrail. She plunged to the ground only to begin floating an inch above the ground. Her feet hit the ground with a quiet thump.
Now that she was on the ground, Tali could see that she was wearing a miniskirt over a pair of jeans that complimented the leather jacket she wore. On her right hip was her Titan Mark which she seemed to wear even when out of her armor.
"Hey," Ashley said, "they'll come around. And if they don't they're assholes." Tali smiled as she was pulled into a hug. Ashley's Ghost appeared over her shoulder and Tali had to suppress a flair of annoyance.
"Ash," it said, "it's almost five."
A look of panic crossed Ashley's face. "Shit. I better get going." She turned a smile towards Tali. "Don't want to miss the premiere."
Tali cocked her head to the side. "Premiere?"
Ashley looked at her like she'd started bleeding glitter. "The premiere." Tali simply stared back at her uncomprehending. Ashley's mouth twisted into a scowl. "Those shitheads didn't tell you about it."
"Tell me about what?"
Ashley threw her arms into the air. "One Punch Titan!" She started pacing back and forth, her hands flying about in the manner of a savant talking about their passion. From what Tali could infer from Ashley's rant was that Once Punch Titan was a long running "action-dramedy" about a Titan so strong they could kill any enemy with a single punch. Running at seventy-five seasons and sixteen movies, the show had become a mainstay in City culture in part because of the undying love given to it by the Titans themselves, who prided themselves on not missing a single episode.
"You have to see it," Ashley said after five minutes of breathless exposition. "It's like…a law among Titans."
Tali rubbed the back of her helmet. "The Pillars still want me to work for an hour."
"Doesn't matter," Ashley said with a shake of her head. "Those assholes have probably snuck off to catch it themselves. C'mon." She grabbed Tali's wrist and began to drag her along. Tali offered a token protest but Ashley's stubborn determination did more to mollify Tali's protests than any act of strength ever could.
"Where are we going?" Tali asked as they entered into a small supply crèche in the labyrinthine halls of the Wall.
"Titans keep small hidey holes full of contraband all through the Wall. You're probably going to have one of your own by the time you finish squiring. Just have to figure out…" Ashley looked at a small spot in the floor and kneeled down. She knocked on the floor and a hollow metal sound filled the air. Ashley smirked before sliding her fingers around the spot. Before Tali knew it, she lifted the floor up revealing a small hiding spot.
She reached down into the hole and pulled up a small vid-screen. It was small and square and Tali suspected it was obsolete, even by the standards of the City.
"Shit," Ashley said, "this one must have been abandoned a while back. Bruce it still work?"
Ashley's Ghost scanned the vid-screen.
"Yeah, but we're probably going to need to climb to the top of the Wall to get a signal. Hope you don't mind 480p."
A look of resigned disappointment reigned in Ashley's eyes. "It'll have to do."
Before long Ashley and Tali climbed to the top of the Wall. Tali leaned on a handrail and took in the City at night, a sight that still took her breath away even after weeks of living in the Tower. She heard a bit of cursing behind her and an "a-ha!" before she felt Ashley tap her on the shoulder.
"Got it ready just in time. We probably missed the pre-show but I'll explain it to you as we go."
Tali noticed the steam coming from Ashley's mouth as she spoke and felt a pang of worry.
"Aren't you cold?"
Ashley waved her off. "Bruce."
In a flash of light, Bruce transmatted two large pillows and a blanket into Ashley's arms. She dropped both pillows on to the ground before taking a seat on one. She patted her hand on the pillow next to her.
Tali hesitated for a moment but, spurred on by the amount of effort Ashley had spared on her behalf, took a seat, curling her legs beneath her and placing her hands in her lap. Tali squeaked as Ashley wrapped them both up in the blanket.
"Ash!" Tali cried, feeling a blush cross her face.
"Shush," Ash said, "your suit's warm."
Tali opened her mouth to protest before finding that it was pleasantly warm under the blanket. In a moment, she found herself leaning against Ashley's side. As the theme song played over extravagant scenes of action and drama, Tali could hear Ashley whispering under her breath.
"Are you singing along?" Tali asked in disbelief.
Ashley blushed and Tali knew it had nothing to do with the cold. "Shut up."
They glared at each other for a few moments before they both collapsed into laughter.
Codex: Guardian Culture
The various human and awoken cultures that have come to call the City their home have had a noticeable effect on the Guardians themselves. The Titans are one of the more noticeable examples, having taken inspiration from warrior cultures across Earth's history. Warrior societies ranging from European Knights to Indian Kshatriyas form the foundation of multiple Titan Orders, informing their personal traditions from rules surrounding honor dueling to items worn on a Titan's person.
An important aspect of Titan culture, often ignored by those who focus on their battlefield behavior, is the Titan's own contributions to the City's artistic scene. Titan's, no strangers to working with their hands, have included some of the City's finest artists and artisans in their ranks ranging from the Crimson Cross Titan Order, known City-wide for their sculpture, to Yumiko Red-Blade, who created ninety-eight paintings in traditional Japanese style before being slain at Twilight Gap.
Warlock's often wrap themselves in the trappings of spiritual and academic traditions of mankind's past. Priesthoods ranging from the Orange Catholic clergy to the Delphian Oracles help non-Guardian clergy in tending to the spiritual needs of the City's people as Academic Warlocks based in the City's many universities prove critical to the education of the City's citizens.
Warlock culture, both academic and spiritual, is often based around rediscovering or interpreting scraps of pre-Golden Age art and literature making them a crucial part of the humanity's cultural rediscovery following the Collapse. Along with reclamation, Warlocks also contribute to the City's current identity by creating original work, often through writing.
Hunters, denoting their individualistic nature, tend to have cultural ties boiled down between apprenticeship lines, with apprentices taking on the cultural trappings of their masters and passing them on when the time comes to train their own apprentices. Hunter culture as a whole tends to be based around shared interest, with gambling dens and bars being the main avenue for Hunters to meet up and socialize with others of their kind.
Hunters, as in many things, contribute to the City through action. This action tends to be immediately capitalized through a lively and complex storytelling tradition that has become a cornerstone of the larger Hunter community. A Hunter's reputation is in part decided by the stories they have told and it is not uncommon for two Hunters operating in the wild to decide status by telling stories over a campfire.
*****
Oh, boy I had trouble with this one. I had to do some close examination of Tali's whole storyline this book to decide what I wanted to do here with some ideas being pushed up, combined with others, and sometimes cast into the void. I can't say I'm super satisfied with this but I do think its something that'll be really good once I do the second draft for this book. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it and to our American readers I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.
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- Location
- Gladstone, OR
It was super cute, so that was a nice thing to see.
- Location
- Puerto Rico
Nice and short. Just please don't go with Tali developing a girl crush with Ash. Can't they just be friends?
Liked the codex on Earth culture and how Guardians influence it.
Liked the codex on Earth culture and how Guardians influence it.
Wolfund
{Verified Historian}
- Location
- France
time seem short for us but it have been already more than a few weeks since tali was here, probably as long than the duration of the whole ME1 game, so it's not that weird x)
- Location
- Home
He should be she.
Should be singing along unless there have been some interesting changes to the entertainment industry.
But yeah it's a nice little slice of life post. I do enjoy the thought of having Saitama just one shoting oryx.
In other words, he who has the tallest tale wins. Why does this not surprise me.
Man it's all about the Cloak. I still haven't found one that fits me scene the Tower fell. The "A cloak called home" with the "Iron Wolf" shader is OK, but it still dosen't feal like "me" you know?In other words, he who has the tallest tale wins. Why does this not surprise me.
ooooh, more fuel for my little Ash/Tali Dinghy!
- Location
- Virgina, USA
In other words, he who has the tallest tale wins. Why does this not surprise me.
No need for this story to have more than the most distant and tenuous of relationships to anything that might be considered true after all why let a thing like honesty get in the way of a good story.
Besides the great slice of life bit, and revealing that past the Saint-14 worship Ashley is a colossal nerd, I quite enjoyed the Codex entry. The idea of each Guardian branch having an influence in City culture beyond the usual tales of heroism is pretty interesting, and I am interested to see how Tali, Garrus and Liara will contribute. If my prediction about Tali being a closet ballet fan pans out, I wouldn't be surprised if she finds a way to recreate various Quarrian recitals in her spare time.
Of course, I think this will lead to Tali's personal Exotic armor will be a modified set of Dunemarchers. And the flavor text?
Nobody really jokes about Titans preforming in ballet. Mainly because those Titans can kick like a mule with rocket boots.
Still, someone at Bungie should cut this man a check for fleshing out the City Lore. Also, why hasn't anyone made a TVtropes page for this yet?!
Of course, I think this will lead to Tali's personal Exotic armor will be a modified set of Dunemarchers. And the flavor text?
Nobody really jokes about Titans preforming in ballet. Mainly because those Titans can kick like a mule with rocket boots.
Still, someone at Bungie should cut this man a check for fleshing out the City Lore. Also, why hasn't anyone made a TVtropes page for this yet?!
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Jane Dough
(She/Her)
- Location
- Occupied Cascadia
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I'm looking foreward to the moment Tali realizes she doesn't need her suit anymore.
Which will be the happiest moment of her new life. More so than when she reached the point that every Vex Collective runs away screaming the moment they see her and learning from Osiris that the other purpose to the Vault of Glass and the Infinite Forrest was to find the correct simulation future that doesn't involve them being punched to scrap by Tali.
- Location
- Spain
... I had a bizarre vision of Tali going full on shoeless hippy... only it's combined with the typical Machinist tendencies leaving me with some sort of Technohippy? And then I remembered Titan and shotgun things and it's just the weirdest composite character.
- Location
- Puerto Rico
Maybe Tali can tinker with a Sparrow. I mean, it's a hover bike that can support immense weight without the need of an eezo core. She'd love to see how that works.
Book 3: Chapter 4: One of These Nights
MagicMan333
Post-apocalyptic Gonzo Journalist
- Location
- Washington
Chapter 4: One of These Nights
Oh it's one of those nights in the City
Where the moon hangs low and full
The streets are lined with good, bad kids running free
Trying to figure out how to live outside of Tower rule
- The Beat Psychologists, Living in the Shadow of the Streetlamps, 99 City
"Vanguard's going to be pissed that you're bypassing Mandatory Rest Time," Samuel-8 said as he stared into his coffee like an ancient priest trying to tell the future.
A wry smile passed across Shepard's face which struck a dissonant cord when contrasted with Samuel's stony musings.
"Nothing in the rules saying I can't go see a friend."
"Shepard…"
Shepard pushed her leg against the side of the table, held her arms out, and flamboyantly examined her torso and legs. "Not wearing my cloak. Got my hoodie on. Are those…? No. No. Wait. Those are my jeans." Her arms dropped back to her side as a mischievous glint shone from her eyes. "No harm. No foul."
"And your gun?" Garrus asked completely unable to keep the amusement off of his mandibles.
"Cayde still owes me money."
Samuel rolled his eyes. "Kinders. Think you're all so damn smart these days. Suppose there's nothing I can do to get rid of you."
Shepard shook her head like a small child being smart with a parent. Samuel sighed before standing up from his chair.
"You're paying for food," he said grabbing his jacket.
Shepard rolled her eyes before pulling out a small stack of paper bills. Peeling some off of the stack she placed it on the table top. Then, after muttering the word "tip" to herself over and over while drumming on the table top with her fingers, placed two small glimmer cubes on the table.
The two of them walked out of the coffee shop into the cold autumn night. As they stood on the sidewalk, Garrus saw the breath streaming from Shepard's mouth.
"Getting chilly, Shepard?" he asked.
She pulled the collar of her hoodie up a bit higher but it did nothing to hide the grin on her face. "Garrus, I'm from Old Canada. I'm more worried about you, Mr. 'Born on a Desert-Planet'."
"Hey," Garrus said, "I'll have you know Palaven got real cold at night. Besides, I'm in a semi-sophisticated environment suit. Not in a…" He waved at Shepard's clothes. "Whatever those are."
"Oh. Okay," Shepard said holding her hands up. "Semi-sophisticated? Sorry we couldn't keep that fancy armor you Citadel folks have. I imagine you hate clothing that doesn't wipe your butt for you."
Garrus broke down into laughter while Shepard held her fists over her head in victory. As he recovered from his laughing fit, Garrus found himself surprised by how easily he and Shepard had fallen into banter. While he had respected Shepard's skill and experience on the road to the City, he had never been as close to her as Tali had been.
Now? Now they joked like they shared membership in a special club. Garrus looked down at his armor. He supposed they did.
"Seriously, Shepard," he said. "Why are you here?"
A look came over Shepard's eyes and Garrus could tell that she was looking at something far away and long past. "Got to look after my chicks, Vakarian."
"Got to look after my chicks."
-----
Samuel rolled his eyes before as he put the cigarillo in his mouth. "So, I hope you've learned your lesson."
The awoken woman winced as she heard a large crash behind her. "That gravity works differently in terrestrial environments."
Samuel glared at her. "And?"
"That pamphlets are illegal?"
Samuel grabbed his handcuffs.
"When they're attached to rocks. Got it."
Garrus rubbed his forehead. "We understand that you've only been on Earth for three days, Ms. Qidev. But it never occurred to you how dangerous this would be?"
"Well, when the Crows did reconnaissance on Mars …"
"Mars is a smaller planet, Ms. Qidev," Samuel said, obviously at the end of his patience, "I'm going to let you off with some community service fixing this…" He pointed at the severely damaged taco truck behind her. The owner, a rather large human with a face covered I black facial hair and wearing a striped shirt and an apron, kneeled before it with tears in his eyes. "Fine gentleman's place of business. But you better get real acquainted with life planetside real quick. Because if I see your name on a police report…"
Qidev looked downwards, tear-filled shame plastered across her features. "Yes, sir."
"Good, now I advise you go talk to Mr. Flores over there and start arranging your community service." Samuel shook his head as the young girl heeded his commands. He massaged a space above his mouth, roughly where a humans temples would be, and grumbled.
"I swear by the Light," he said quietly to Garrus, "these Reefborn are going to be the death of me."
Garrus gave him a look.
"And then I'll come back and they'll keep being a pain in the ass."
"Having a fun time boys," Shepard called out to them, laying on the roof of the car.
"Most interesting thing that's happened all day," Garrus said, ignoring the glare Samuel shot him.
"Interesting isn't always a good thing."
"You sound like Zavala," Shepard said hopping off the car roof.
"And thank the Traveler he's the one who has to deal with you kinder. If it'd been me I would have gone crazy like Schrödinger did."
"Who?" Garrus asked.
"Old Guardian," Shepard said, "Second Warlock to be declared Vanguard Commander. Snapped two years in and built a huge maze of death traps between his office and the rest of the Tower."
Garrus' mouth dropped open. "What happened to him?"
"They coaxed him out with frozen yogurt and sushi before giving him an 'extended leave of absence' that just happened to last the rest of his term. Last I heard, he was marching with Holborn's Host out on Mars."
Samuel nodded sagely. "That was an interesting couple of months. I remember when we tried shooting a rocket launcher into his…"
A distant noise rang through the air. Almost imperceptibly quiet in the midst of the ever-present buzzing of city life. Garrus was unsure that he heard it at all until Shepard and Samuel both perked their heads up.
"That was…" Shepard said.
"A gunshot," Samuel said with a grimace.
Garrus put a hand on his sidearm. "I think it came from over there." He pointed at a group of warehouses. Barely perceptible in the distance.
Samuel nodded before his Ghost appeared in his hand. "This is Hunter-Officer Samuel-8 reporting in. Shots fired in the Los Angeles District. Believe it might be a Code Herakles. Do not send back up until further investigation."
"Code Herakles?" Garrus asked shooting a look at Shepard.
Shepard pulled Last Word out of its holster and began to load it. "Means Guardian behaving badly. You hear anything weird about that shot?" Garrus shook his head and Shepard continued. "It was a handcannon round. You can tell by the noise it makes."
Garrus stared at Shepard, the pieces sliding together into a coherent whole. "And only Guardians use handcannons because everyone else risks breaking their hands firing them."
"Exactly," Shepard said as Last Word's chamber closed with a clack. She looked at Samuel, who himself had a hand on his own pistol. "So?"
"Got Stoneborn on standby. Let's go."
-----
The only light seen in the dark labyrinth of warehouses and storage depots that surrounded them were the light of their Ghosts lighting their way.
"Don't know what these idiots think they're doing," Shepard said in a hushed whisper, "but Vangaurd's going to have their asses when we catch 'em."
Garrus laughed in an awkward halting manner, trying and failing to banish the sense of anxiety in his chest. "Compared to what I've seen in the Tower…"
"What those idiots do to each other in their own space is one thing," Samuel said, the orange glow from his cigarillo contrasting with the blue glow of the Ghosts, "but any Guardian caught doing something dangerous this close to a residential area…"
"Gets the hammer," Shepard finished.
Garrus blinked. "So is that a real hammer or…"
"Oh," Shepard said with a mischievous grin, "you'll see by the end of the night."
Ahead of them, the three Ghosts stopped before turning to stare at a large warehouse door.
"This is where the sound came from," Garrus' Ghost said.
"If we're right," Shepard's Ghost, Anderson, said.
"Don't look at me," Fred, Samuel's Ghost said, "I thought you two could handle well enough on your own."
"That's cause you're the laziest machine in the Light's resplendent universe, Fred," Samuel said, snatching him in his hand.
"Aww," Fred whined, "you know I'm no good at numbers, Mr. 8."
Samuel rolled his eyes and mumbled, "The Travler gave up the last of its life energy to make hundreds of thousands of Ghosts and I get the one who can't count up to ten because he doesn't have fingers."
Fred sniffed. "Sorry, Mr. 8."
Samuel let his Ghost go before shaking his head. "Can you at least load me up a blueprint so we don't wall in the front door?"
-----
The door slid open silently as the three Hunters crept into a small kitchen near the back of the building. Samuel nodded towards the door leading to the main section of the building. Garrus took a space on one side of the door while Samuel took a space on the other side. Shepard stood in front of the door, prepared to draw Last Word. Samuel nodded and the air was filled with the sound of splintering wood and twisting metal.
"City Police!" Samuel yelled at the top of his lungs only to be met with silence.
The room was draped in inky blackness but Garrus could tell that there was no movement. In a moment, the whole world seemed to have become frozen in the shadowy confines of the warehouse.
"Fred," Samuel said as he holstered his gun, "get the lights."
As the lights turned on and the room was bathed in the yellowish glow of slightly worn lights, mountains upon mountains of crates surrounded them from every wall, broken up by the occasional forklift and shelf. In the middle of the floor stood a single opened crate lined with numerous gouges and scratches in the sides.
But all of these waned in importance to the Titan lying on the floor with a single large hole in the back of his helmet.
Codex: City Law Enforcement
The modern City Police Service traces its descent from small enclaves of peacekeepers that functioned as a mix citizen militia and police force during the Faction Wars that preceded the Founding of the City. The militia and lawkeeping apparatus of these groups were split and formalized into the City Militia and the Police Service during the transition from relatively independent settlements to a single united polity that occurred in the wake of the Founding.
A hundred-thousand strong, the City Police Service proves to be a critical institution for the day-to-day running of the city, as evidenced by the 100 precincts dotted throughout the City's districts with most being housed in residential, industrial, and business districts.
While the City by and large enjoys a good reputation among the larger populace of the City, it has had its fair share of scandals and corruption investigations. The largest of which occurred in the aftermath of the Concordant Coup of 315 City with the discovery that high ranking officials had either been in on the attempted coup or had been bribed to look the other way. These allegations forced no less than 213 exile sentences, including Chief of Police Alex Ryan.
Guardian involvement in policework is as varied as their involvement in the military and academia. Any Guardian shown to have talent in anything from peacekeeping to investigation tend to be assigned police work through the Mandatory Hour system and it is not uncommon to see Guardians spending time in police station breakrooms throughout the City.
****
Count this as a chapter I am not satisfied with. But its been two weeks, I'm sick of looking at it, and we gotta keep moving. Its a bit on the short side but that's cause its a bridging chapter between the beginning of this book and the larger plot that culminates in Chapter 1. Overall, this is a chapter that's getting heavy revisions when its time to write the second draft.
Oh it's one of those nights in the City
Where the moon hangs low and full
The streets are lined with good, bad kids running free
Trying to figure out how to live outside of Tower rule
- The Beat Psychologists, Living in the Shadow of the Streetlamps, 99 City
"Vanguard's going to be pissed that you're bypassing Mandatory Rest Time," Samuel-8 said as he stared into his coffee like an ancient priest trying to tell the future.
A wry smile passed across Shepard's face which struck a dissonant cord when contrasted with Samuel's stony musings.
"Nothing in the rules saying I can't go see a friend."
"Shepard…"
Shepard pushed her leg against the side of the table, held her arms out, and flamboyantly examined her torso and legs. "Not wearing my cloak. Got my hoodie on. Are those…? No. No. Wait. Those are my jeans." Her arms dropped back to her side as a mischievous glint shone from her eyes. "No harm. No foul."
"And your gun?" Garrus asked completely unable to keep the amusement off of his mandibles.
"Cayde still owes me money."
Samuel rolled his eyes. "Kinders. Think you're all so damn smart these days. Suppose there's nothing I can do to get rid of you."
Shepard shook her head like a small child being smart with a parent. Samuel sighed before standing up from his chair.
"You're paying for food," he said grabbing his jacket.
Shepard rolled her eyes before pulling out a small stack of paper bills. Peeling some off of the stack she placed it on the table top. Then, after muttering the word "tip" to herself over and over while drumming on the table top with her fingers, placed two small glimmer cubes on the table.
The two of them walked out of the coffee shop into the cold autumn night. As they stood on the sidewalk, Garrus saw the breath streaming from Shepard's mouth.
"Getting chilly, Shepard?" he asked.
She pulled the collar of her hoodie up a bit higher but it did nothing to hide the grin on her face. "Garrus, I'm from Old Canada. I'm more worried about you, Mr. 'Born on a Desert-Planet'."
"Hey," Garrus said, "I'll have you know Palaven got real cold at night. Besides, I'm in a semi-sophisticated environment suit. Not in a…" He waved at Shepard's clothes. "Whatever those are."
"Oh. Okay," Shepard said holding her hands up. "Semi-sophisticated? Sorry we couldn't keep that fancy armor you Citadel folks have. I imagine you hate clothing that doesn't wipe your butt for you."
Garrus broke down into laughter while Shepard held her fists over her head in victory. As he recovered from his laughing fit, Garrus found himself surprised by how easily he and Shepard had fallen into banter. While he had respected Shepard's skill and experience on the road to the City, he had never been as close to her as Tali had been.
Now? Now they joked like they shared membership in a special club. Garrus looked down at his armor. He supposed they did.
"Seriously, Shepard," he said. "Why are you here?"
A look came over Shepard's eyes and Garrus could tell that she was looking at something far away and long past. "Got to look after my chicks, Vakarian."
"Got to look after my chicks."
-----
Samuel rolled his eyes before as he put the cigarillo in his mouth. "So, I hope you've learned your lesson."
The awoken woman winced as she heard a large crash behind her. "That gravity works differently in terrestrial environments."
Samuel glared at her. "And?"
"That pamphlets are illegal?"
Samuel grabbed his handcuffs.
"When they're attached to rocks. Got it."
Garrus rubbed his forehead. "We understand that you've only been on Earth for three days, Ms. Qidev. But it never occurred to you how dangerous this would be?"
"Well, when the Crows did reconnaissance on Mars …"
"Mars is a smaller planet, Ms. Qidev," Samuel said, obviously at the end of his patience, "I'm going to let you off with some community service fixing this…" He pointed at the severely damaged taco truck behind her. The owner, a rather large human with a face covered I black facial hair and wearing a striped shirt and an apron, kneeled before it with tears in his eyes. "Fine gentleman's place of business. But you better get real acquainted with life planetside real quick. Because if I see your name on a police report…"
Qidev looked downwards, tear-filled shame plastered across her features. "Yes, sir."
"Good, now I advise you go talk to Mr. Flores over there and start arranging your community service." Samuel shook his head as the young girl heeded his commands. He massaged a space above his mouth, roughly where a humans temples would be, and grumbled.
"I swear by the Light," he said quietly to Garrus, "these Reefborn are going to be the death of me."
Garrus gave him a look.
"And then I'll come back and they'll keep being a pain in the ass."
"Having a fun time boys," Shepard called out to them, laying on the roof of the car.
"Most interesting thing that's happened all day," Garrus said, ignoring the glare Samuel shot him.
"Interesting isn't always a good thing."
"You sound like Zavala," Shepard said hopping off the car roof.
"And thank the Traveler he's the one who has to deal with you kinder. If it'd been me I would have gone crazy like Schrödinger did."
"Who?" Garrus asked.
"Old Guardian," Shepard said, "Second Warlock to be declared Vanguard Commander. Snapped two years in and built a huge maze of death traps between his office and the rest of the Tower."
Garrus' mouth dropped open. "What happened to him?"
"They coaxed him out with frozen yogurt and sushi before giving him an 'extended leave of absence' that just happened to last the rest of his term. Last I heard, he was marching with Holborn's Host out on Mars."
Samuel nodded sagely. "That was an interesting couple of months. I remember when we tried shooting a rocket launcher into his…"
A distant noise rang through the air. Almost imperceptibly quiet in the midst of the ever-present buzzing of city life. Garrus was unsure that he heard it at all until Shepard and Samuel both perked their heads up.
"That was…" Shepard said.
"A gunshot," Samuel said with a grimace.
Garrus put a hand on his sidearm. "I think it came from over there." He pointed at a group of warehouses. Barely perceptible in the distance.
Samuel nodded before his Ghost appeared in his hand. "This is Hunter-Officer Samuel-8 reporting in. Shots fired in the Los Angeles District. Believe it might be a Code Herakles. Do not send back up until further investigation."
"Code Herakles?" Garrus asked shooting a look at Shepard.
Shepard pulled Last Word out of its holster and began to load it. "Means Guardian behaving badly. You hear anything weird about that shot?" Garrus shook his head and Shepard continued. "It was a handcannon round. You can tell by the noise it makes."
Garrus stared at Shepard, the pieces sliding together into a coherent whole. "And only Guardians use handcannons because everyone else risks breaking their hands firing them."
"Exactly," Shepard said as Last Word's chamber closed with a clack. She looked at Samuel, who himself had a hand on his own pistol. "So?"
"Got Stoneborn on standby. Let's go."
-----
The only light seen in the dark labyrinth of warehouses and storage depots that surrounded them were the light of their Ghosts lighting their way.
"Don't know what these idiots think they're doing," Shepard said in a hushed whisper, "but Vangaurd's going to have their asses when we catch 'em."
Garrus laughed in an awkward halting manner, trying and failing to banish the sense of anxiety in his chest. "Compared to what I've seen in the Tower…"
"What those idiots do to each other in their own space is one thing," Samuel said, the orange glow from his cigarillo contrasting with the blue glow of the Ghosts, "but any Guardian caught doing something dangerous this close to a residential area…"
"Gets the hammer," Shepard finished.
Garrus blinked. "So is that a real hammer or…"
"Oh," Shepard said with a mischievous grin, "you'll see by the end of the night."
Ahead of them, the three Ghosts stopped before turning to stare at a large warehouse door.
"This is where the sound came from," Garrus' Ghost said.
"If we're right," Shepard's Ghost, Anderson, said.
"Don't look at me," Fred, Samuel's Ghost said, "I thought you two could handle well enough on your own."
"That's cause you're the laziest machine in the Light's resplendent universe, Fred," Samuel said, snatching him in his hand.
"Aww," Fred whined, "you know I'm no good at numbers, Mr. 8."
Samuel rolled his eyes and mumbled, "The Travler gave up the last of its life energy to make hundreds of thousands of Ghosts and I get the one who can't count up to ten because he doesn't have fingers."
Fred sniffed. "Sorry, Mr. 8."
Samuel let his Ghost go before shaking his head. "Can you at least load me up a blueprint so we don't wall in the front door?"
-----
The door slid open silently as the three Hunters crept into a small kitchen near the back of the building. Samuel nodded towards the door leading to the main section of the building. Garrus took a space on one side of the door while Samuel took a space on the other side. Shepard stood in front of the door, prepared to draw Last Word. Samuel nodded and the air was filled with the sound of splintering wood and twisting metal.
"City Police!" Samuel yelled at the top of his lungs only to be met with silence.
The room was draped in inky blackness but Garrus could tell that there was no movement. In a moment, the whole world seemed to have become frozen in the shadowy confines of the warehouse.
"Fred," Samuel said as he holstered his gun, "get the lights."
As the lights turned on and the room was bathed in the yellowish glow of slightly worn lights, mountains upon mountains of crates surrounded them from every wall, broken up by the occasional forklift and shelf. In the middle of the floor stood a single opened crate lined with numerous gouges and scratches in the sides.
But all of these waned in importance to the Titan lying on the floor with a single large hole in the back of his helmet.
Codex: City Law Enforcement
The modern City Police Service traces its descent from small enclaves of peacekeepers that functioned as a mix citizen militia and police force during the Faction Wars that preceded the Founding of the City. The militia and lawkeeping apparatus of these groups were split and formalized into the City Militia and the Police Service during the transition from relatively independent settlements to a single united polity that occurred in the wake of the Founding.
A hundred-thousand strong, the City Police Service proves to be a critical institution for the day-to-day running of the city, as evidenced by the 100 precincts dotted throughout the City's districts with most being housed in residential, industrial, and business districts.
While the City by and large enjoys a good reputation among the larger populace of the City, it has had its fair share of scandals and corruption investigations. The largest of which occurred in the aftermath of the Concordant Coup of 315 City with the discovery that high ranking officials had either been in on the attempted coup or had been bribed to look the other way. These allegations forced no less than 213 exile sentences, including Chief of Police Alex Ryan.
Guardian involvement in policework is as varied as their involvement in the military and academia. Any Guardian shown to have talent in anything from peacekeeping to investigation tend to be assigned police work through the Mandatory Hour system and it is not uncommon to see Guardians spending time in police station breakrooms throughout the City.
****
Count this as a chapter I am not satisfied with. But its been two weeks, I'm sick of looking at it, and we gotta keep moving. Its a bit on the short side but that's cause its a bridging chapter between the beginning of this book and the larger plot that culminates in Chapter 1. Overall, this is a chapter that's getting heavy revisions when its time to write the second draft.
- Location
- USA
Oh shiz, potential Dredgen Yor right here.
Still, it's more of robot Sam Vimes, so no need to apologise there. Though I do wonder if Samuel-8 booby traps his house as well.
Plus, I have to chuckle at the tale of Schrödinger and the Tower Of Doom. I'm starting to wonder if Ikora and, to an extent Osiris, are the only Warlocks that haven't gone two fries short of a Happy Meal wacko.
Though speaking of Osiris and the recent DLC, will we see some elements show up in the future? Also, when will Xur make his appearance? Because this weekend's shipment just showed why you should not shoot your mouth off on Reddit.
Plus, I have to chuckle at the tale of Schrödinger and the Tower Of Doom. I'm starting to wonder if Ikora and, to an extent Osiris, are the only Warlocks that haven't gone two fries short of a Happy Meal wacko.
Though speaking of Osiris and the recent DLC, will we see some elements show up in the future? Also, when will Xur make his appearance? Because this weekend's shipment just showed why you should not shoot your mouth off on Reddit.
What happened was after the discovery that the new exotics trace rifle, Promethus Lens, was serious OP broken, Redditor JhonCensus said that if Xur were to sell it this weekend he would shave his head and glue his hair to his face as a new beard.
Well...
Well...
MagicMan333
Post-apocalyptic Gonzo Journalist
- Location
- Washington
I probably won't have a chance to grab Curse of Osiris til next month, Christmas being around the corner and all (although chances are I'll break down and watch a playthrough on Youtube by the time the month is out). Xur's a bit complicated cause he's such a "gamey" individual. He's less of a fully formed character and more of a living gameplay contrivance. Now, he's interesting as a piece of the mystery surrounding the Nine but he's a hard figure to incorporate into a different medium beyond references and cameos.
- Location
- Puerto Rico
I don't believe Palaven was ever described as a desert world. And semi-sophisticated I'm gonna assume it's just cheap armor since he is a fresh Guardian.
I do wonder how the City handled Awoken immigrants considering the Reef itself has its borders closed to them. And I wonder how that former Warlock Vanguard it doing on Mars?
A dead Titan. No Ghost in sight. And an open crate with gouges and scratches. My money is on a cloak Vandal.
I do wonder how the City handled Awoken immigrants considering the Reef itself has its borders closed to them. And I wonder how that former Warlock Vanguard it doing on Mars?
A dead Titan. No Ghost in sight. And an open crate with gouges and scratches. My money is on a cloak Vandal.
- Location
- Ruralcratic Dominion of Nebraska, Dumbfuckistan
The bit on Reef born is what made me think "O RLY" at Zavala when he cast his vote and used paranoia as his excuse. Excuse me, mister "Born to a foreign polity that has no loyalty to the city or it's people?" You may want to check thyself.