Wherever she ends up, Taylor Hebert always seems to throw a wrench in things. Why would being resurrected and wielding the Light be any different? Or: in which Taylor ends up becoming the Queen's left hand and the Vanguard has no idea how to handle it. A Post-GM Destiny AU.
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Prologue
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I am so sorry about not posting things recently. Especially Reach, because I really want to do more of that (and for creating a new story again, gahhhhh! I feel like Ryuugi). But there was Iron Banner 6v6, which was exactly what I was waiting for from Destiny 2, which made me play through the whole campaign for it, and then I got @mazotori to start playing the original and… I caught the Destiny bug again.
Let's just say that it's probably my biggest hobby next to fanfiction reading/writing and programming. Over 600h logged on D1 and 80h so far for D2. And then a plot bunny bit me.
Taylor as a Guardian has been done before. But it's mostly been in the Worm universe, and doesn't really get to explore the Destiny elements. Over two years ago I posted in an ideas thread for a Destiny/Worm fic, and that's been percolating in my mind ever since.
The Taken Queen [SB|FFN] is probably one of the best Destiny fics out there, but it's extremely niche. You have to know a lot of the background lore and do a lot of Grimoire diving to really grasp just how deep it is. I'm big on Destiny lore. On the different factions and species, on the ontological and paracausal powers that exist in it. The Eliksni who chased the thing that gave them success, the Hive who dove into the Deep to save themselves, the Awoken, caught between Light and Dark, unable to exist without both. I love it.
And maybe this'll get some of you interested as well.
This (like all of my crossovers) assumes no knowledge of Destiny, but it still helps if you do.
Paradoxical
"I remember everything about the day I was born. I still bear the scars.
"The Awoken are my family now."
- Mara Sov
Present Day
October, 2631
If only he'd paid more attention the first time he saw her. Noticed her. But he hadn't, he'd been too focused on the sudden appearance of the Vandals on either side of the unprotected Awoken woman (their Queen, apparently) armed with spears that crackled with Arc lightning.
It wasn't until later, in the cockpit of the beaten Arcadia-class jumpship (he really needed to get something better now that he had enough glimmer) that his Ghost turned to him and asked, "Did you notice the woman standing on the side of the room?"
He frowned, glancing at the small, white floating star-shape. "What woman?"
"On the side of the room, when we were meeting the Queen," the Ghost responded. He —the Ghost had made it quite clear that he was male, with 'how easy it is to change voices, I mean really'— turned to look at his Guardian. "I would never have noticed her if I hadn't decided to go over the memory again for a better look at those Fallen. I think they were once a part of the House of Wolves. That was their colors they were wearing."
"Play it back for me?"
The Ghost's optic blinked on, a small blue hologram projecting onto the instrumentation of the jumpship. The view jumped around, largely focused on the Guardian's own in-video self, but there was a moment where it moved over to the wall of the room and then back, and he thought he saw something on one of the platforms at the edge.
"Did you see it?" the Ghost asked.
"Can you stop it at the right moment?"
"Can I—" his Ghost turned and gave him a flat look, the hologram winking away. "I don't think I need to dignify that with a response."
How the little things managed to be so expressive with only the effective equivalent of a single eyebrow he'd never know, but they made it work to scary degrees.
The Ghost turned away, and the blue-tinted hologram reappeared. It went through the same motions as before, except this time it paused on the wall, and now he could see the already-dark figure shrouded in shade.
Long, dark curly hair, and a lightweight armor of muted dark grays and black panels. She stood there uncaring, her back against wall, nothing covering her face other than loose fabric around her neck, but still so shadowed it was impossible to make out distinct features or even her skin color.
He would have sworn she was a Hunter, hand cannon strapped to her thigh and all, if not for the singular fact that no self-respecting Hunter would be caught dead without their cloak, or even just a hood.
The other two things that stood out were the symbols onto her chest and shoulder plates. The Queen's crown, in grey and darker grey rather than its normal purple and gold, was on the upper left of her chest plate, and a… beetle? of some sort, was on her shoulder.
"Strange. I wonder what she was there for…" the Ghost mused.
Did it matter? It looked like she belonged there, at the least.
Later, he really wished he'd given it more thought, but at the time, his focus was rather absorbed by the fact that he now had to go find a Gate Lord. Normal Vex Minotaurs were problems enough on their own, twelve feet of angry metal death-robots and all, but scaled up by three or four times?
He was not looking forward to this mission, even if it was necessary.
Let's just say that it's probably my biggest hobby next to fanfiction reading/writing and programming. Over 600h logged on D1 and 80h so far for D2. And then a plot bunny bit me.
Taylor as a Guardian has been done before. But it's mostly been in the Worm universe, and doesn't really get to explore the Destiny elements. Over two years ago I posted in an ideas thread for a Destiny/Worm fic, and that's been percolating in my mind ever since.
The Taken Queen [SB|FFN] is probably one of the best Destiny fics out there, but it's extremely niche. You have to know a lot of the background lore and do a lot of Grimoire diving to really grasp just how deep it is. I'm big on Destiny lore. On the different factions and species, on the ontological and paracausal powers that exist in it. The Eliksni who chased the thing that gave them success, the Hive who dove into the Deep to save themselves, the Awoken, caught between Light and Dark, unable to exist without both. I love it.
And maybe this'll get some of you interested as well.
This (like all of my crossovers) assumes no knowledge of Destiny, but it still helps if you do.
Paradoxical
"I remember everything about the day I was born. I still bear the scars.
"The Awoken are my family now."
- Mara Sov
Present Day
October, 2631
If only he'd paid more attention the first time he saw her. Noticed her. But he hadn't, he'd been too focused on the sudden appearance of the Vandals on either side of the unprotected Awoken woman (their Queen, apparently) armed with spears that crackled with Arc lightning.
It wasn't until later, in the cockpit of the beaten Arcadia-class jumpship (he really needed to get something better now that he had enough glimmer) that his Ghost turned to him and asked, "Did you notice the woman standing on the side of the room?"
He frowned, glancing at the small, white floating star-shape. "What woman?"
"On the side of the room, when we were meeting the Queen," the Ghost responded. He —the Ghost had made it quite clear that he was male, with 'how easy it is to change voices, I mean really'— turned to look at his Guardian. "I would never have noticed her if I hadn't decided to go over the memory again for a better look at those Fallen. I think they were once a part of the House of Wolves. That was their colors they were wearing."
"Play it back for me?"
The Ghost's optic blinked on, a small blue hologram projecting onto the instrumentation of the jumpship. The view jumped around, largely focused on the Guardian's own in-video self, but there was a moment where it moved over to the wall of the room and then back, and he thought he saw something on one of the platforms at the edge.
"Did you see it?" the Ghost asked.
"Can you stop it at the right moment?"
"Can I—" his Ghost turned and gave him a flat look, the hologram winking away. "I don't think I need to dignify that with a response."
How the little things managed to be so expressive with only the effective equivalent of a single eyebrow he'd never know, but they made it work to scary degrees.
The Ghost turned away, and the blue-tinted hologram reappeared. It went through the same motions as before, except this time it paused on the wall, and now he could see the already-dark figure shrouded in shade.
Long, dark curly hair, and a lightweight armor of muted dark grays and black panels. She stood there uncaring, her back against wall, nothing covering her face other than loose fabric around her neck, but still so shadowed it was impossible to make out distinct features or even her skin color.
He would have sworn she was a Hunter, hand cannon strapped to her thigh and all, if not for the singular fact that no self-respecting Hunter would be caught dead without their cloak, or even just a hood.
The other two things that stood out were the symbols onto her chest and shoulder plates. The Queen's crown, in grey and darker grey rather than its normal purple and gold, was on the upper left of her chest plate, and a… beetle? of some sort, was on her shoulder.
"Strange. I wonder what she was there for…" the Ghost mused.
Did it matter? It looked like she belonged there, at the least.
Later, he really wished he'd given it more thought, but at the time, his focus was rather absorbed by the fact that he now had to go find a Gate Lord. Normal Vex Minotaurs were problems enough on their own, twelve feet of angry metal death-robots and all, but scaled up by three or four times?
He was not looking forward to this mission, even if it was necessary.
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Vebyast
Nascent Transhuman
...There's no way that's Khepri. Or even a post-GM Taylor. Right?
Weaver
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Zachary glanced over at the woman who walked at his side, still struggling to come to terms it.
"Mars. Eighty-four North, thirty-two East. Meridian Bay," Uldren had grit out.
"Our Weaver shall join you," the Queen spoke, looking down at him. "To protect our investment."
The tall dark-haired woman at the side of room moved, standing up straight, and then stepped forward into the light, and he barely managed to contain his surprise.
She was human.
Not Awoken. Human. In the Reef.
No brightly-colored glowing eyes or odd shifting patterns of light or blue-to-purple skin tone.
Human. Caucasian. Dark green eyes and near-black hair. Tall, only an inch shorter than himself and he was fairly tall.
And yet she'd still turned and bowed her head to the white-haired woman standing regally on the raised dais before them, something seeming to pass between the two momentarily, between green and pale blue-glowing irides, before it was gone. "By your leave, my Lady."
A human in the Reef who followed the Queen.
He'd never heard of someone like that.
"He's worried."
Zachary almost stumbled at her words. He hadn't expected her to even try to talk. "What?"
The woman looked at him. "The Prince. He is worried what you might mean for the Reef. What antagonizing the Vex might bring. An end to a period of precarious stability and peace."
The strange Exo's words came to him. "A side should always be taken, Little Light. Even if it's the wrong side."
"Why is a human in the Reef?" he found himself asking.
She looked at him, one eyebrow raised, and he couldn't help but be reminded of the Queen's own imperious looks only minutes ago.
"Because I never left," she answered cryptically.
That was such a Warlock answer. Answers that told you everything and nothing all at once.
…He was definitely going to need Rigel's help decoding that one.
"We're going into an active war zone," he noted. Are you ready for that?
She just nodded, and then glanced at him as they arrived at the jumpship hangers. "Oh, don't worry about me. I've killed many, many Cabal before."
Oh. Good. At least one of them had, then.
He'd never even been to Mars.
"Don't worry! We can do this!" a feminine voice stated confidently.
Zachary blinked. A Ghost.
A Ghost had suddenly appeared from behind the fabric wrapped around Weaver's neck, floating out and around her head. And yet she was like no Ghost he'd ever seen, all black metal and sharp shifting edges.
"You're a Guardian!"
The woman gave him a Look. "Risen," she corrected.
What?
Zachary's Ghost made a sound like he was clearing his throat (really, why did he do things like that?) and spoke up. "Ah. 'Risen' is what Guardians were called before the Vanguard," he explained helpfully.
The Look turned to the Ghost. "Aaand you're not part of the Vanguard. …Right."
"It's been a while since I've seen another Ghost!" Weaver's Ghost said, drifting forward and then around Zachary's. "You're rather… plain, though," she noted, looking over the blank white shell.
Zachary's Ghost drifted back towards him, and he got the distinct impression it would be blushing. "W-well, you know! We've been so busy! What with the Fallen. And the Hive. And the Vex. And…" he blinked, turning to Zachary. "You do get into a lot of trouble, Guardian."
"Kali…" the woman warned, and the black Ghost floated back towards her.
"Sorry, Sorry," the Ghost apologized.
"...So who's ready to go fight some Cabal?"
"Mars. Eighty-four North, thirty-two East. Meridian Bay," Uldren had grit out.
"Our Weaver shall join you," the Queen spoke, looking down at him. "To protect our investment."
The tall dark-haired woman at the side of room moved, standing up straight, and then stepped forward into the light, and he barely managed to contain his surprise.
She was human.
Not Awoken. Human. In the Reef.
No brightly-colored glowing eyes or odd shifting patterns of light or blue-to-purple skin tone.
Human. Caucasian. Dark green eyes and near-black hair. Tall, only an inch shorter than himself and he was fairly tall.
And yet she'd still turned and bowed her head to the white-haired woman standing regally on the raised dais before them, something seeming to pass between the two momentarily, between green and pale blue-glowing irides, before it was gone. "By your leave, my Lady."
A human in the Reef who followed the Queen.
He'd never heard of someone like that.
"He's worried."
Zachary almost stumbled at her words. He hadn't expected her to even try to talk. "What?"
The woman looked at him. "The Prince. He is worried what you might mean for the Reef. What antagonizing the Vex might bring. An end to a period of precarious stability and peace."
The strange Exo's words came to him. "A side should always be taken, Little Light. Even if it's the wrong side."
"Why is a human in the Reef?" he found himself asking.
She looked at him, one eyebrow raised, and he couldn't help but be reminded of the Queen's own imperious looks only minutes ago.
"Because I never left," she answered cryptically.
That was such a Warlock answer. Answers that told you everything and nothing all at once.
…He was definitely going to need Rigel's help decoding that one.
"We're going into an active war zone," he noted. Are you ready for that?
She just nodded, and then glanced at him as they arrived at the jumpship hangers. "Oh, don't worry about me. I've killed many, many Cabal before."
Oh. Good. At least one of them had, then.
He'd never even been to Mars.
"Don't worry! We can do this!" a feminine voice stated confidently.
Zachary blinked. A Ghost.
A Ghost had suddenly appeared from behind the fabric wrapped around Weaver's neck, floating out and around her head. And yet she was like no Ghost he'd ever seen, all black metal and sharp shifting edges.
"You're a Guardian!"
The woman gave him a Look. "Risen," she corrected.
What?
Zachary's Ghost made a sound like he was clearing his throat (really, why did he do things like that?) and spoke up. "Ah. 'Risen' is what Guardians were called before the Vanguard," he explained helpfully.
The Look turned to the Ghost. "Aaand you're not part of the Vanguard. …Right."
"It's been a while since I've seen another Ghost!" Weaver's Ghost said, drifting forward and then around Zachary's. "You're rather… plain, though," she noted, looking over the blank white shell.
Zachary's Ghost drifted back towards him, and he got the distinct impression it would be blushing. "W-well, you know! We've been so busy! What with the Fallen. And the Hive. And the Vex. And…" he blinked, turning to Zachary. "You do get into a lot of trouble, Guardian."
"Kali…" the woman warned, and the black Ghost floated back towards her.
"Sorry, Sorry," the Ghost apologized.
"...So who's ready to go fight some Cabal?"
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StatelessGem
Bane of the Iron Lords
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I am a huge Destiny fan. All of the Collectors' Editions and everything. I've enjoyed Bungie games ever since playing Halo: Reach, despite the (numerous) flaws they seem to have, at least Y1/Y2. Nothing else is quite like them.
- Location
- Canada
Wow, her ghost really found a live one huh?
*da-dum-tish*
*da-dum-tish*
- Location
- United States
I wish I could play Destiny, but I'm broke and get SUPER motion sick.
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Watch the cutscenes, read the Grimoire as you go? (that's all of it on a single page by the way, just keep scrolling down)
That's basically the game, minus the gameplay. Hell, it's more than the game, since you can't even access the Grimoire in-game.
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Twei
I have a face!
- Location
- the land where they write things
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Woooooo ensou doing the thing
I fully support any and all writings, popular or otherwise
also, it's InterestingTM that Taylor is called Weaver, not... well, Taylor. It could be a name earned or chosen somehow, of course, but the other option is that it's the name Taylor remembers, which... well, implies things. I'm not sure what it implies, but it definitely implies something.
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- Location
- Madison, AL
*stares with a blank, neutral expression*
In case you don't know about this one already.
Do you play League of Legends or Warframe?
. . . Rage.
In case you don't know about this one already.
Do you play League of Legends or Warframe?
. . . Rage.
- Location
- Metru Nui
A new fic from Ensou? Watched on principle.
As much as I wish this was a transposition or finely honed blade update, I'm really interested to see how you play this as the Queen and the Stranger were my favourite characters from D1, and I'm annoyed they seem so far to just have been dropped by the wayside. With your track record this is bound to be good. I'm eagerly anticipating the next one!
As much as I wish this was a transposition or finely honed blade update, I'm really interested to see how you play this as the Queen and the Stranger were my favourite characters from D1, and I'm annoyed they seem so far to just have been dropped by the wayside. With your track record this is bound to be good. I'm eagerly anticipating the next one!
- Location
- Tel'aran'rhiod
Wonder what Taylor will do once Oryx roflstomps the Reef
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Nope! Destiny's about the only online thing I play with any regularity. I did quite a bit of Overwatch end of two years ago/beginning of last year, but that petered off.
Awh. Thank you! I know this is a bit more out there and experimental than my other fics, and a little weird with Taylor not being the PoV character, so I appreciate the faith.
Heh. Heheheh. grins.
You should really be asking what's going to happen with those poor Wolves.
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- Location
- Tel'aran'rhiod
I'm pretty curious as to wether a guardian could claim the tablets of ruin since they seem to revolve around taking(heh) things by force
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Toland seemed to think so, considering how upset he was about the Guardian(s) not taking up Oryx's mantle after killing him in the Raid.
Cabal
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
The Cabal were ugly. Seven feet tall, eight hundred pounds, and without their pressurized helmets they somehow reminded Zachary distinctly of rhinoceroses, despite not having a horn. They simply… did. The way they lumbered, their size and bulk, the tough leathery skin, the way they just soaked up bullets…
Having two people to fight them made things go much easier than his last mission. Fireteams did that. Rigel and Halley-7 would probably chew him out the next time he was in the Tower, but they hadn't been available for the past week, off doing something in the European Dead Zone.
Their loss.
So far, they'd gotten a link to their sparrows, found another Cabal base, killed a commander (and a few other squads), taken his terminal access key, and Zachary's Ghost was now diving into the Cabal systems to try and find out more about the giant Vex gate that was the way into the Black Garden.
"I doubt they know what it is, even if they've managed to get inside the Vex networks," Weaver said, standing off to the side where she and Kali watched his Ghost work.
He looked over at her in curiosity. "Why?"
"Because they only care about things that let them expand quickly. The Cabal aren't very patient or invested in research. They're a heavily industrialized warring species," she said. "Blow up planets for getting in their way, remember?"
"How do you know so much about them?"
She turned away and looked out at the giant ring Gate and the red, rocky expanse before them. "This was where Kali found me."
…Oh.
"I spent weeks fighting them while trying to find a workable ship to get away," she said, looking back at him.
"Well, you're right about them getting into the Vex networks," Zachary's Ghost said. "And that they have no idea what the Gate really is. But I did find out a way to wake that Gate Lord's eye again. All we need to do is charge it with a Vex spire connected to the Gate. Luckily, there's one pretty close by. Unfortunately, it's in the middle of a Cabal warbase."
Of course it was.
Zachary watched as Weaver reloaded her pulse rifle and chambered it, standing over the corpse of Primus Sha'aul, staring at it for a moment. And then she just turned and started walking towards him, clicking the safety on before putting the rifle over her shoulder onto her back. He could have sworn he'd seen it somewhere before, but couldn't think of where…
It had been a major trek through the Cabal defensive lines to the warbase, even if they made good time. They'd only just gotten to the spire when the Primus of the area showed up, apparently unwilling to let any more of his troops be killed.
A few fifty-caliber rounds to the head, some light suppressing fire from Weaver, and a single trusty RPG ended that fairly quickly.
"And it looks like we have a working eye!" Kali said, floating around at where the spherical object was embedded in the short Vex column, glowing red once more. "Oh, this is so exciting!"
"Speak for yourself," Zachary's own Ghost retorted. "I swear it's just one thing after another with you, Guardian," he said, looking at Zachary.
"Sorry," he returned, unrepentant. Not his fault the Vanguard kept making him follow up on the things he found. First the Fallen when he was resurrected to get that ship, then the Hive after that Wizard in the Cosmodrome, then the Vex when they followed that Exo's coordinates, and then the Cabal to be able to deal with the Vex following the Exo's information…
Dominoes. So many dominoes, lined up to fall.
Now, though, at least, they had a chance to breathe. Everything had been prepared, eye charged and ready, and they weren't on any immediate time constraint, though the sooner the better, likely. Still, he was a bit tired from today. Not physically, thanks to the Light, but the amount of mental focus and awareness required from fighting was exhausting in its own way.
Better to face the Garden well-rested and prepared. And maybe wait until Rigel and Halley could join them. He had a feeling that a larger fireteam would be very useful for this sort of thing if they could.
"We should rest," Zachary suggested. "Prepare. So that we can be ready for anything."
Weaver nodded agreeably.
He still wasn't sure if she was a Hunter or a Warlock. She moved like the former, but used abilities like the latter. He'd seen her Drain a Cabal and shock a whole squad into static with chain-lightning, but also dissolve into smoke as she dodged.
And her Light…
He'd used a set of Fists of Havoc against a small platoon, pulses of Arc energy left behind that she'd eyed curiously, drawing in the sparks of Light that were all that remained of the Cabal afterwards, and then only minutes later she'd displayed her own trump card.
It was Solar, he knew that much. But it wasn't a form of Radiance (that he could tell) or the Hunters' Golden Guns. A veritable swarm of small embers had surrounded her, wrapping her like a blanket before flying off and attaching themselves to numerous Cabal, detonating moments later and rendering them all into nothing more than ash.
He'd almost laughed when he realized what they reminded him of.
Fireflies, like the ones that appeared at the Tower.
Fire. Flies.
One on its own might be only an inconvenience, but he wasn't afraid to admit that the number she'd called and used was… intimidating.
Still, he had other things to worry about now than how she used her Light.
"I'll be heading back to the City…"
"I'm to stay with you until the Heart is destroyed," she said bluntly. "I can't do that half-way across the solar system."
Fair enough.
"Alright…" he allowed. "Ghost?"
"Already on the way," the automaton told him, and sure enough Zachary could see his jumpship breaking through the cloud cover. "Let's go home."
The first warning that something was wrong was when the moment they dropped out of slipspace just outside of Earth's gravity well and he was immediately hailed over the comms.
"Guardian! Guardian!?"
"Kali?" his Ghost returned. "What's wrong?"
"I-I don't know!" the other Ghost responded, her voice taut, frayed. "It's Weaver! She was fine and then she just… just stopped! I can't get any response out of her! She's not moving or anything!"
This… could be bad.
"The City. It's the closest place we can get the help," Zachary said, thinking aloud.
"O-okay. Okay," she agreed.
"Follow our trajectory," Zachary's Ghost said.
"Tower, this is Guardian Zeta-Four-Nine-Alpha requesting immediate emergency medical attention for escorted Reef ship," Zachary called.
"Roger that. EMS notified and standing by," returned Amanda Holliday. "It's nice to hear your voice again. And did you say Reef?"
"Affirmative," the Guardian's Ghost answered for him.
"Well I'll be darned. Anyways, we're ready for you when you get here," she responded.
"Thirty seconds out."
"Copy that."
It was one of the longer thirty seconds he'd ever experienced, mostly because there was nothing he could do but sit there, the ship's autopilot handling the approach and landing for him. And he was quite sure the Queen wouldn't be happy if "her" Weaver somehow (truly) died when she was with him.
He did not want to accidentally start any wars. There was more than enough fighting already.
They came in hot, skipping the standard holding/landing pattern to buzz the Tower hangar and just materialize, Weaver appearing less than a second after on the stretcher manned by a pair of medical Warlocks only a meter away. They wasted no time in whisking her towards the medical facilities, and Zachary followed behind, feeling at least somewhat responsible.
She was pale, unmoving and absolutely still, and he could only barely see her breathing. Her eyes stared at the ceiling, open and glazed over. Looking at her for more than a few seconds felt unnatural, like seeing something that was just wrong.
…What the hell had happened to her?
And what could have possibly caused it?
Having two people to fight them made things go much easier than his last mission. Fireteams did that. Rigel and Halley-7 would probably chew him out the next time he was in the Tower, but they hadn't been available for the past week, off doing something in the European Dead Zone.
Their loss.
So far, they'd gotten a link to their sparrows, found another Cabal base, killed a commander (and a few other squads), taken his terminal access key, and Zachary's Ghost was now diving into the Cabal systems to try and find out more about the giant Vex gate that was the way into the Black Garden.
"I doubt they know what it is, even if they've managed to get inside the Vex networks," Weaver said, standing off to the side where she and Kali watched his Ghost work.
He looked over at her in curiosity. "Why?"
"Because they only care about things that let them expand quickly. The Cabal aren't very patient or invested in research. They're a heavily industrialized warring species," she said. "Blow up planets for getting in their way, remember?"
"How do you know so much about them?"
She turned away and looked out at the giant ring Gate and the red, rocky expanse before them. "This was where Kali found me."
…Oh.
"I spent weeks fighting them while trying to find a workable ship to get away," she said, looking back at him.
"Well, you're right about them getting into the Vex networks," Zachary's Ghost said. "And that they have no idea what the Gate really is. But I did find out a way to wake that Gate Lord's eye again. All we need to do is charge it with a Vex spire connected to the Gate. Luckily, there's one pretty close by. Unfortunately, it's in the middle of a Cabal warbase."
Of course it was.
Zachary watched as Weaver reloaded her pulse rifle and chambered it, standing over the corpse of Primus Sha'aul, staring at it for a moment. And then she just turned and started walking towards him, clicking the safety on before putting the rifle over her shoulder onto her back. He could have sworn he'd seen it somewhere before, but couldn't think of where…
It had been a major trek through the Cabal defensive lines to the warbase, even if they made good time. They'd only just gotten to the spire when the Primus of the area showed up, apparently unwilling to let any more of his troops be killed.
A few fifty-caliber rounds to the head, some light suppressing fire from Weaver, and a single trusty RPG ended that fairly quickly.
"And it looks like we have a working eye!" Kali said, floating around at where the spherical object was embedded in the short Vex column, glowing red once more. "Oh, this is so exciting!"
"Speak for yourself," Zachary's own Ghost retorted. "I swear it's just one thing after another with you, Guardian," he said, looking at Zachary.
"Sorry," he returned, unrepentant. Not his fault the Vanguard kept making him follow up on the things he found. First the Fallen when he was resurrected to get that ship, then the Hive after that Wizard in the Cosmodrome, then the Vex when they followed that Exo's coordinates, and then the Cabal to be able to deal with the Vex following the Exo's information…
Dominoes. So many dominoes, lined up to fall.
Now, though, at least, they had a chance to breathe. Everything had been prepared, eye charged and ready, and they weren't on any immediate time constraint, though the sooner the better, likely. Still, he was a bit tired from today. Not physically, thanks to the Light, but the amount of mental focus and awareness required from fighting was exhausting in its own way.
Better to face the Garden well-rested and prepared. And maybe wait until Rigel and Halley could join them. He had a feeling that a larger fireteam would be very useful for this sort of thing if they could.
"We should rest," Zachary suggested. "Prepare. So that we can be ready for anything."
Weaver nodded agreeably.
He still wasn't sure if she was a Hunter or a Warlock. She moved like the former, but used abilities like the latter. He'd seen her Drain a Cabal and shock a whole squad into static with chain-lightning, but also dissolve into smoke as she dodged.
And her Light…
He'd used a set of Fists of Havoc against a small platoon, pulses of Arc energy left behind that she'd eyed curiously, drawing in the sparks of Light that were all that remained of the Cabal afterwards, and then only minutes later she'd displayed her own trump card.
It was Solar, he knew that much. But it wasn't a form of Radiance (that he could tell) or the Hunters' Golden Guns. A veritable swarm of small embers had surrounded her, wrapping her like a blanket before flying off and attaching themselves to numerous Cabal, detonating moments later and rendering them all into nothing more than ash.
He'd almost laughed when he realized what they reminded him of.
Fireflies, like the ones that appeared at the Tower.
Fire. Flies.
One on its own might be only an inconvenience, but he wasn't afraid to admit that the number she'd called and used was… intimidating.
Still, he had other things to worry about now than how she used her Light.
"I'll be heading back to the City…"
"I'm to stay with you until the Heart is destroyed," she said bluntly. "I can't do that half-way across the solar system."
Fair enough.
"Alright…" he allowed. "Ghost?"
"Already on the way," the automaton told him, and sure enough Zachary could see his jumpship breaking through the cloud cover. "Let's go home."
The first warning that something was wrong was when the moment they dropped out of slipspace just outside of Earth's gravity well and he was immediately hailed over the comms.
"Guardian! Guardian!?"
"Kali?" his Ghost returned. "What's wrong?"
"I-I don't know!" the other Ghost responded, her voice taut, frayed. "It's Weaver! She was fine and then she just… just stopped! I can't get any response out of her! She's not moving or anything!"
This… could be bad.
"The City. It's the closest place we can get the help," Zachary said, thinking aloud.
"O-okay. Okay," she agreed.
"Follow our trajectory," Zachary's Ghost said.
"Tower, this is Guardian Zeta-Four-Nine-Alpha requesting immediate emergency medical attention for escorted Reef ship," Zachary called.
"Roger that. EMS notified and standing by," returned Amanda Holliday. "It's nice to hear your voice again. And did you say Reef?"
"Affirmative," the Guardian's Ghost answered for him.
"Well I'll be darned. Anyways, we're ready for you when you get here," she responded.
"Thirty seconds out."
"Copy that."
It was one of the longer thirty seconds he'd ever experienced, mostly because there was nothing he could do but sit there, the ship's autopilot handling the approach and landing for him. And he was quite sure the Queen wouldn't be happy if "her" Weaver somehow (truly) died when she was with him.
He did not want to accidentally start any wars. There was more than enough fighting already.
They came in hot, skipping the standard holding/landing pattern to buzz the Tower hangar and just materialize, Weaver appearing less than a second after on the stretcher manned by a pair of medical Warlocks only a meter away. They wasted no time in whisking her towards the medical facilities, and Zachary followed behind, feeling at least somewhat responsible.
She was pale, unmoving and absolutely still, and he could only barely see her breathing. Her eyes stared at the ceiling, open and glazed over. Looking at her for more than a few seconds felt unnatural, like seeing something that was just wrong.
…What the hell had happened to her?
And what could have possibly caused it?
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- Location
- Tel'aran'rhiod
Probably something about the traveler
ensou
Magical G̶i̶r̶l̶ Servant Mordred-chan
- Location
- NEW YORK CITY!??
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Both, really. In-game abilities are determined by selected subclass, because, well, balance. But in reality it's all manipulation of the Light, and as long as it's Light you can use it, (without subclass stuff). The best example is probably Felwinter, a Warlock who used a Titan's airborne knee-charge against another Guardian (with Void Light, even), and is depicted wearing Hunter armor.
Supers are another thing, it doesn't really make sense that everybody's Solar weapon manifestation has to be a hammer if you're a Titan, a sword if you're a Warlock, or a handgun if you're a Hunter. I'm personally of the opinion that that's just how it works out for the player character. In reality, people are too unique for that, and how they wield the Light is affected by their own personality and experiences. Like say... a Titan manifesting a double-bladed ax or a shotgun, or a Warlock creating a claymore instead of a hand-and-a-half sword. There are things that are much more strict simply because there's not too many ways you can do it, like Nova Bombs, but why shouldn't Hunters be able to create a crossbow for Shadow Shot instead of a longbow if that's what matches them?
I also see usage of the Light as much more flexible. Weirder grenade types, odd variants on buff/debuffs, etc.
Before the Vanguard, Risen did their own thing, stumbling along and figuring out how to wield the Light to best match them, which they probably shared when they met with similar Guardians and learned how to optimize abilities, giving rise to the standardized Light forms. And Taylor has not had access to that, so she falls back to the things that are ingrained in her to such a degree she doesn't need her memories for them, such as gigantic swarms of impossible-to-avoid elements, or lots of movement and mobility to stay alive.
Edit: And we know that there are multiple "types" of a Elemental super, like how both Dawnblade and Sunsinger are canon in D2, and Arcstrider and Bladedancer are really pretty much the same thing, just channeled through different base weapons.
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