In the Tower of the Guardians, a newborn Hunter wandered slowly across the plaza, avoiding the various guardians going about their business. She had been reborn just a few days ago and had been awaiting a mission from the Speaker that was equal to her level of experience. With nothing to do over the days, she had spent them getting to know the various shopkeeps that stayed there, supplying the guardians with the equipment they required in order to do their job.
Her wandering was halted when she heard her name being called. Her head darted around until she caught sight of a bronze and dark grey Titan coming over to her. His helmet covered his face, preventing her from seeing what he looked like, but his voice signified he was either Awoken or human.
“You Elana?” He asked when he got to her, receiving a nod in response.
“Good. You've been given a mission. Fireteam Odium has gone missing and we have been ordered to look for them. You got a ship?”
Elana nodded once more. She didn't have one until she had arrived, being given an Arcadia Jumpship that once belonged to another guardian a few years back.
“Alright, go up into orbit and I'll meet you there. I've gotta grab some stuff before I head out.”
With that, the Titan briskly walked off towards the vaults. Elana, still confused about what was happening, brought her Ghost up and requested trip to orbit, one that the little machine happily accepted.
The consoles across the ship meant little to her, but they were reasonably simple to guess. Her Ghost gave her a hand in deciphering what each button did, preventing her from accidentely blowing the ship up.
After a few minutes of pushing buttons to find what each one did, a new voice came through the comms.
“This is Procor. Elana, you up here?”
The voice was the same of the Titan from the Tower. Quickly, she jumped onto the comms to respond, “Yes, I'm here. Are we heading out?” She asked.
“We're heading to Venus. Make sure you stick close to me, even in space. Your light isn't strong enough to resist the Vex as of yet.”
“Got it. Stick with you until we find Fireteam Odium.”
There was a brief moment of silence before Elana's Ghost spoke up, “Procor is attempting to link our ships together. You okay with that?”
“What would happen if I say yes?” She asked.
“Nothing bad, you would just give temporary control of your ship to Procor, allowing him to take you to Venus without you having the coordinates.”
“Oh, that's fine then. You can let him link us.”
The Ghost went invisible at that, allowing the two ships to connect. When Procor got the notification that the two vessels had been linked, he pushed forward and flew ahead of the Arcadia, giving Elana a view of his ship. It was an incredibly wide ship, patterned with white and red paint, as well as New Monarchy logos. The multiple engines on the back of it easily pushed the large ship along, the light they were generating painting the rear of the ship in an orange glow.
In an instant, the two ships entered Transit, the space around them becoming blue as they soared past asteroids and Earth's Moon to reach the distant planet.
“Uh, Procor? Why are we being asked to find a fireteam? What's so important about them that deserves a rescue party?” Elana questioned as they flew, watched the lights of the transit fly past them.
“Odium isn't just any fireteam. I have worked with them before multiple times to fight off the darkness when it rises. You may have heard of the recent SIVA outbreak, yes?” Procor responded.
“A little. Some sort of machine that the Fallen were using to become stronger. But a fireteam went into their stronghold and eliminated their leader. By any chance, were Odium part of that fireteam?”
“They were, as was I. Six of us went into there and after a hard-fought battle, Aksis fell. A member of Odium known as Exodus managed to break into a hidden vault afterwards and took an odd piece of SIVA technology with him. I would be quite interesting to see what became of it.”
“So Odium helped save the world, but aren't all the guardians doing that? I understand that they have helped the Vanguard, but I still can't get my head around why a two person rescue team is necessary.” Elana said, confusion written across her face.
“Not every guardian gets to do what Odium has done. While the fireteam wasn't completed until Kalis joined them, around six months ago, those three have done incredible things over their time as guardians. If they have been MIA for this long then something is up. It's not every day that a fireteam with that sort of power and bond just vanishes.”
The Hunter didn't give a response to that. Procor was certainly correct, and she could see that with just a few days of experience under her belt. If a fireteam could pull all of those triumphs off then they shouldn't have any sort of issues, yet here they were, going to Venus to try and find out where they went.
“We are leaving Transit now. Get your weapons ready and prepare to land. When we are grounded, as I said before, let me know if you see something, but stick close and don't wander. We have no idea what sort of stuff was left behind.”
“Got it. I'll wait for your word.” Elana replied, loading a fresh magazine into her Scout Rifle. It had been given to her by the Gunsmith as a gift for new guardians, something she gladly took.
Looking out of the viewport, she could see the many trees of Venus fly past. No matter how hard she thought, she couldn't think of a reason why something so beautiful could be so deadly.
“Here we go, hope you're ready.” Procor called out, their ships slowing down above a clearing.
“I'm good, let's do this.”
The teleport to the ground was far faster than Elana was expecting, and she was only just able to catch herself before she fell to the ground. When she was standing fully, she took a look around. Masses of Vex corpses lay scattered across the clearing, some of them with gaping wounds that looked like they came from a sword. Oddly enough, the wounds had melted the metal around them, leading her to assume some sort of guardian ability caused it.
“They were here for sure, though they had no issues bringing these things down.” Procor commented, stepping forward slowly to move towards the cave on the other side of the torn metal.
“How can you tell?” Elana asked, taking her position behind Procor, her head on a swivel to look at the destruction caused by just three guardians.
“When a guardian begins to panic, they tend to expend more light in an attempt to end the fight quickly. These Vex have been killed with precision, and the atmospheric light is normal. Not all that much light was used during this fight, meaning that they had a pretty easy time.”
The Titan drew his Vanguard-issue auto-rifle up at the cave entrance, “Make sure you stay behind me, this looks like a trap.”
Elana gave a nod and raised her weapon alongside the Titan's, searching for movement. Slowly but surely, they pushed into the darkness, their Ghosts lighting up the walls to give them an idea of where they needed to go. After a few minutes of silent walking, they entered a large room, and the sight awed the new Hunter.
Piles upon piles of Vex bodies lay scattered across the room. Not a single square foot was devoid of broken metal. Up on the walls, the shells of larger Vex bodies sat broken upon their platforms, sparking on occasion.
“Well then, they had some fun in here,” Procor commented, looking over the cold metal covering the room.
“They did all this on their own?” Elana asked, her mind reeling as she tried to comprehend the firepower necessary to pull such an immense slaughter off.
“And they likely could have done more. Don't underestimate a guardian fireteam, Elana. If they work together, nothing can stop them.”
“Then what about you? Don't you have a fireteam?” The Hunter asked, looking over at the bronze plated guardian.
“I prefer to work alone. Normally if I need a fireteam, I join up with another temporarily.”
“But didn't you just sa-”
“Elana. Please. We are here on a mission, not to have a chat. We can speak more later, for now we need to focus on the task at hand.”
“Oh, right. Sorry.” She apologised, looking away from the Titan.
“Don't worry about it. We were all just as questioning when we started out. You just need to remember that you are a part of the Vanguard. If there is something more important, you should focus on that.”
The duo continued to sweep the room, looking for clues as to the disappearance of the veteran fireteam. As they searched, Elana began to feel something. It was almost like something was trying to pull her somewhere.
“Procor, do feel that?” She asked, stopping to look in the direction of the pulling.
“Feel what? Is something wrong?” He asked, turning to look in the direction she was staring.
“I-I think there is something in that hole over there,” She said, pointing towards a large crack in the wall.
“Alright, we'll check it out. Even if it's nothing, we can at least scratch that area off the list.”
Still retaining the slow walk across the sea of metal, they reached the hole in the wall, Procor turning to face his Ghost.
“You read anything?” He asked.
“There is a huge source of light within there, more than I have seen for a while. This is probably what was giving Elana that feeling and I wouldn't be surprised if Odium could also feel it.”
“Good job, both of you. I think we found out where they went.” Procor said, aiming through the hole in case something was waiting on the other side, “Let's get in there. Ghost, get ready for a res, we may need one.”
The two Ghosts disappeared in small clouds of light, leaving the two guardians to push into the hole. On the other side, a shining portal was immediately visible, the light radiating off of it was almost unbearable for the newly reborn Hunter.
“You okay?” Procor asked her, seeing her begin to struggle.
“I think so, I've just never felt something like this before.” She mumbled, “It's not a bad feeling, but it's so overwhelming.”
“Ah, you are experiencing an Overcharge. Don't worry, it's a good thing. Your body has reached its limit for light storage, so it's trying to overflow the excess light into your abilities in the hopes of getting rid of it. This portal seems to be generating enough light to keep a guardian in Overcharge for hours, maybe even days.”
“So I'm not in any danger?” She asked, looking up at him.
“Not from the portal, no. Don't worry, you'll get used to it after a little while, just try to not let it get to your head. Overcharging too much will end up behaving like a drug. I've seen too many guardians fall into light withdrawals because of the Overcharges they force themselves into.”
“I'll... try, though trying to forget about this energy isn't easy. How are you able to stand it?”
“I have been a guardian for over three years, these things are normal for me. Plus, my armour is storing a lot of it for use in combat later on.”
Elana was about to speak up once more, when a sound she didn't recognise roared from the other side of the room, away from the portal.
“Ah shit, Elana! Get back through that hole, now!” Procor called out, raising his weapon towards the sound. She tried to turn and leave, but a white shimmering barrier blocked the gap off, preventing her exit.
“I can't! The hole is being covered by something.” She responded, striking the barrier with her knife in the hopes of breaking it.
“God fucking damnit, alright, get behind me again. No matter what happens, don't move until I say so!”
Elana wasted no time in moving behind her teammate, watching with fearful eyes as a huge Vex machine moved towards them. As soon as he recognised the being, Procor opened fire, his Auto-rifle laying round after round into the metal chassis of the Vex monster.
But no matter how many shots he fired, the machine didn't slow. It didn't even flinch as it endured the hail of bullets.
As it got just a few feet from them, it came to a stop, the clicking of Procor's gun sounding out his lack of ammo within its magazine.
“Begone.” The monster called out to them, “Begone from this sacred place. Enough of our comrades have died already, and no more shall fall.”
“Where are the three guardians that came here before?” Procor asked the machine, unfased by the alien being able to speak perfect English.
“They are gone. And you shall follow.”
“Fuck you, what did you do to them?” The Titan shouted, loading a new magazine into his weapon.
“I purged them from this realm. A fitting end for a team of murderers.”
“Motherfucker!” Taking aim he pulled the trigger on his gun and unloaded his weapon once more upon the towering Vex machine.
“I see you are the same as your allies. Farewell.”
Before he could react, the duo felt a huge wave of energy smash into them. The force of it was enough to push them back towards the portal, but Procor was just able to stop them both from being thrown into the shining surface of the structure.
“Ghost! The ships!” He called out, readying for another wave.
The Ghost gave no response, though Procor could feel his light reserves drain slightly as his Ghost pulled the two vessels through the portal.
“Alright, Elana, this is gonna be rough, just hold on!” He said, turning slightly to look at the Hunter.
She gave a feeble nod and took hold of the guardian's shoulder, trying to prepare herself for the next wave of energy. When it finally came, she felt very little of it. The Titan's bulky armour absorbed the blow, but it wasn't enough to prevent the knockback that followed. With a final cry, Elana was knocked into the portal, Procor shortly following as his strength waned against the unstoppable force of the Vex machine.
- - -
Their fall was short, but it still managed to knock the wind out them both. As their vision became clearer, they were able to make out the general area that they had landed in. Buildings surrounded them in a disorderly fashion, each of them seemingly made of plaster, brick and straw. But that wasn't the oddest thing they saw as they looked around. There, only around twenty feet from them, was a small, colourful horse. It was staring at them with unnaturally large eyes.
Procor was quick to stand at the sight of the new alien, turning to help Elana up, “You okay?” He asked her as he pulled up from the ground.
“Yeah, where are we?” She asked, looking around. When her eyes focused on the horse, she froze up, backing up behind Procor.
“No idea, but I don't want to take any chances.” He commented, readying a Ward.
Cautiously, he raised his weapon and took aim at the horse, speaking up in the hopes of finding out where they were, “Friend or Foe?” He shouted, clearly being understood by the animal.
“Well, uh. I don't really want to fight...” The horse replied, being yet another thing that shouldn't be able to speak English, but did anyway.
“So, friend?” Procor called out once more. He honestly wasn't a fan of killing animals, but if it was a threat to him, or worse, to Elana, he wouldn't hesitate to end it.
“Sure! I'm always happy to make friends! Even if they aren't ponies,” The horse said, happily. It began to trot over to the guardians with a smile on its face, “After all, Princess Twilight always says-”
He was cut off by a movement from the Titan. Seeing this alien coming closer to the guardians, he had moved his hands in preparation for Sunbreaking, shifting his light from Void to Solar.
“I would suggest keeping your distance, horse. I won't allow anything else to harm this Newborn, even if I have to die protecting her.”
The animal stopped at that, a look of shock across its face, “I-I had no intentions of harming either of you. I'm sorry you thought that way, I can move along if you would like.”
“If you have no reason to harm us, then help us.” Procor said, his light almost boiling, pushing to be released by him, “First of all, where are we?”
“You are in a little town known as Ponyville,” The animal said, a small smile returning to it as it proudly spoke the name of its home.
“I meant the planet.”
“Oh, I see.” The horse said, apparently surprised by the question, “Our planet has a couple of names that ponies call it, but I tend to go with Equis.”
“Never heard of it.” The Titan sighed, more towards the Hunter still hiding behind him.
“If I may ask, are you two known as 'guardians'?”
The horse's words instantly spiked Procor's attention, “What do you know about guardians?” He asked, keeping his light at bay for the time being.
“Well, we heard that there was a trio of being calling themselves 'guardians' that saved Manehattan from an attack.”
“Where are they now?” The guardian asked, slightly more hostile than he likely wanted.
“Uh, last I heard they went to the War Mages to get some reinforcements. Maybe if you hurry, you can reach the town before they leave.”
“Thanks,” He muttered. He was about to wander off when Elana turned and walked over to the animal.
“Elana! Keep away from it, you don't know what it might do!” He shouted, trying to grab at the Hunter.
“Procor, even if it did try something, we both know we could handle it. We need more information than that, and screaming at the poor thing won't get us anywhere.”
He didn't reply at that, letting her go and stepping back after a moment's hesitation. She could feel his light from even that distance, and she knew that if he let that go unbridled, it could end extremely badly for the animals. Turning back to the horse, she knelt down to be on eye level with the creature.
“Hey there, I'm sorry about Procor. We need to know exactly how to reach the town that the guardians are staying, and we need this information as quickly as you can give it.”
“Oh, um. Sure, I think I might be able to give you directions. Can you come over to my home? I should have a map you can use somewhere.”
“Of course. While you are searching, may I ask some questions about your kind? I would love to learn a little more about your world.”
“Of course,” The animal said with a smile, turning to walk away. The two guardians followed closely, Procor still resonating Solar light with every step.
“So what's your name?” The horse asked.
“I'm Elana, and the big guy behind me is Procor. What about you?”
The horse's smile grew a little wider as she replied, “Roseluck.”
- - -
“Kervis, we have an issue.”
Kervis turned to face his Ghost, his eyebrow raised, “What's up?” He asked.
“Two new guardian signatures, few hundred miles from here. The map I have points them inside a town known as 'Ponyville'.”
“Are you're sure it isn't Kalis and Exodus?” He asked, standing up.
“Positive. They are about a mile away on a hill, likely speaking with each other. These are new guardians.”
“Alert the other two, and bring the Vienna down. Chrome, you know these places better than I do. Are you able to join me?” He asked the pony near him.
He nodded, standing tall, “We may have to bring Stitch, though. I don't know how she would fare if she was left alone.”
“That's fine, the Vienna has enough space for both of you. Let's get moving, we don't know how these new guardians may react to the ponies.”
Without another word, the trio departed the building to teleport onboard the ship. The engines alone created enough noise to awake most of the town, drawing many of them out of their homes to watch the craft fly away from the town.
“Ghost, push us into Transit. We need to be there now.” Kervis said, sitting in the pilot chair and grasping the control sticks.
“Moving into Transit now, hang on.”
The ship lurched forward as the powerful engines rocketed it forward, bringing it into Transit speed almost instantly. The Transit lasted just a few seconds, the two ponies behind him barely being able to stay upright against the incredible forces the ship went through. When they dropped out of it, the town lay below them. No immediate damage could be seen from up there, much to Kervis' relief, but he still dropped the craft down to the surface, allowing himself to be teleported down onto the ground.
When him and the two ponies had been shifted to the ground, they began running into the town, ignoring the startled yelps from the passing ponies. As they ran, Kervis summoned his Sleeper, ready for combat should they need it.
“Lead us to them, Ghost.” He called out, receiving a waypoint in response. Following it lead them to a quaint little home, various flowers surrounding most of the walls.
“They are in there, but I should warn you, one of them is emitting huge amounts of Solar energy. They may be trying to threaten the pony, or ponies, that live here.”
“Alright, here we go. You two should stay out here until I say its safe to enter.” Kervis told the ponies behind him, walking up to the door.
With a swift punch, the door crashed open, splintering under the force of the Titan's light. He jogged in to find a Titan and a Hunter speaking with a cream and red pony. The bronze Titan had gone straight into Sunbreaking when he had heard the door cave in, his hammer burning with Solar light. But neither of them moved to harm one another. Instead, Kervis dropped the barrel of his weapon down at the ground in shock, the other Titan ending his super in the same manner.
“P-Procor?” Kervis asked, his mind almost coming to a halt at the realisation of who he nearly killed.
“Well, this is awkward isn't it, bud?” Procor asked, stepping forward.
“Why are you here? How are you here?” Kervis asked, shock prevalent in his voice.
“Kind of a long story. But I think we both have some explaining to do,” Procor said, slapping Kervis' shoulder plates in a light hearted manner.
“That we do...” Kervis muttered, taking a seat beside his old friend.