Hey guys, I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving (aka Turkey Day or Danksgiving). I FINALLY finished this chapter (for such a short one it took a whole month. I blame school) and the next should be following soon. I’m just gonna let u guys read now. Enjoy! [b]Chapter Seventeen: Return[/b] The violet haze of the Reef drew closer as we rocketed through the vacuum of space. The drifting wreckage of splintered ships looked like an impossible barrier of blades from this distance, but I knew getting around a barrier like that would be better than the tight labyrinth that was the Asteroid Belt. “So they’re going to escort us to…well, wherever it is in that mess that their Queen is, so do as they say and don’t stray,” I warned Sierra and Drew, thinking back on my last visit. “For the thousandth time, Will,” Sierra groaned, “We know!” “Hehe, say and stray rhyme,” Drew chuckled. “Never mind…I see your reasoning,” Sierra sighed. Our ships shot into the debri field, the stars quickly disappearing from view. Sierra’s Phaeton lined up behind me, followed by Drew’s yellow and purple hunk of a ship that screamed for attention. Before I knew it, the comms came to life with a female voice. “Intruders bearing one-one-seven, you are trespassing into Awoken territory. State your business or be fired on by order of the Queen,” she demanded. I didn’t have to check to know there were at least two ships on our tails. “WILL! I HEAR A LADY TALKING!” Drew yelped, “I can’t see her and she’s using big words!” “For the love of-!” Sierra was probably throwing her hands up in the air in disbelief. “It’s okay Drew. Keep him on course Sally,” I told them calmly, then looked to Rush to signal him to turn on my microphone. “We have bounties requested by the Queen and wish to give them to her,” I explained to the Awoken. This time I didn’t have to wait as long for an answer. “Conform to my trajectory. Any deviation will be taken as an act of aggression,” the woman recited exactly as the pilot from my last visit had. Two Ceres Galliots painted in Reef colors formed up in front of us, and we fell in line smoothly as I had instructed the others earlier. I tried harder to memorize the path through the debri field this time, but I had no luck without any stars to reference and the ever-shifting rubble. We eventually reached the converted ship hull that housed the Queen’s throne and docked, again under the watch of our vehicular escort and of several guards on the platform. “No guns guys,” I reminded as our ships locked into the docks, then looked down at the Winter Captain tied up in a length of chain at my feet. As expected, it had tried making plenty of trouble on the ride here, but with my feet now planted firmly on its back from my seat, it wasn’t too much of a problem. Hopefully the Awoken wouldn’t shoot us on sight for being with a member of House Winter. “Keep our guest…presentable, Rush,” I added as an afterthought. “I love it when you talk like an evil mastermind,” Rush cackled. “Silence, my henchman,” I grinned. “I take it back, you’re annoying,” Rush grumbled. Our banter was cut short by transmat, materializing the three of us at the end of the docking platform with the chained up Winter Captain on his knees between Drew and I. Four of the guards moved forward instantly with weapons drawn, dragging the Captain up to his feet and untying him in a flash as if they had known we were bringing a prisoner the entire time. A fifth came up and took the now unused chain away. “Goodbye, jangly chain,” Drew whimpered. “It’s okay Drew, I’ll get you a new one,” Sally promised. “Shhh,” I hushed them gently as the four Awoken stepped up around us with the Fallen in tow and began walking away down the platform. We moved with them, not needing to be prodded, especially when not moving meant the angry Captain would bump into our backs. This time I didn’t worry myself over memorizing the maze of halls and guarded doors; instead Rush was recording the walk. I felt kind of bad about it, but the information may come in handy in the future. We finally stopped at one of the many identical doors of Fallen craft, taking our first true pause in the journey because one of our escorts had a hushed conversation with a guard at the door. After an awkward minute of shifting uncomfortably under the frequent glances of the talking guards, the Winter Captain finally got upset enough to growl. That earned him a gunpoint prod from the Awoken closest to him, but also spurred the conversation to end and the woman blocking the door to step aside. Without further delay, the door parted open and we entered the throne room, walking down the red isle towards the awaiting throne. A figure that was all too familiar to me waited on the steps to the throne, arms crossed impatiently as he glared down at us. I had done some research and was surprised to find out that he was Uldren Sov, the Awoken Prince, head of the Crow spy network and brother to the Queen. I mean, the “I’m better than you” attitude made sense with his stature, but the immature spite, not so much. “Look at you!” Uldren crooned sarcastically as we came to a halt at the bottom of the steps to the throne, "Aren't you just the most adorable band of clowns that wandered into our home!" This was going exactly as I anticipated…unfortunately. "You were right about this guy, Will," Sierra whispered. "They have clowns here?" Drew leaned in and whispered, "Is there gonna be a show? Why are we whispering?" "If we weren't surrounded by royalty and armed guards, I would slap you right now," Sierra muttered. Rush appeared by my side, clearly already a bit miffed by the mere presence of the sharp-tongued prince. “Oh look, the short one brought his squeaky ball again,” Uldren smirked. “I see you’re still suffering from that superiority disorder,” Rush countered offhandedly, “Probably because you realize that your sister is the one who got all the balls in the family.” I nudged Rush in a silent warning, but not before Uldren’s crooked smile turned into a grimace, but he didn’t respond, instead deciding to inspect each of us more carefully as we waited. One of his eyebrows raised noticeably as his eyes came over Drew. To my relief, movement behind the throne attracted all of our attention. We all turned to watch a Fallen crawl around either side of the throne and take up stances with spears held at ease. Sierra tensed and the Winter Captain growled, but neither made a move. After a moment of standing motionless, Drew, probably confused, said, “You guys see those Fallen too, right?” I put my hand up just in time to catch him by the chest, stopping his advance before the Awoken guards could do more than grab the handles of their sidearms. Sometimes it’s frustrating to know Drew won’t remember a thing you tell him. Moments later, after Drew had relaxed, the click of heels announced the presence of the Queen. She prowled around the throne with her regal air, stopping at the front for a moment to take us in. The Captain roared and tried moving forward, but the guards pushed him to his knees and held their gun barrels against his neck. The two Vandal royal guards had tightened their grips on their weapons, but now stared at the Captain unreadably. After things settled down, Mara Sov sat and took up a lounging position, putting her right foot up on the large seat and propping her head up on her left hand. “Dang Will,” Drew whispered, “You didn’t say she was hot.” Link to Ch16, Reunion: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/230679979/0/0 Link to Pt2: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/239126436/0/0 Link to ToC: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/212710816/0/0