ERA DRAKKA [i]Validus[/i] [b]Syndicate HQ, Kennedy Warmind Bunker, Old Alaska - 5 hours remaining[/b] Sitting in a small cantine, Validus sipped from a cup of coffee. He didn't know where his Ashen friends were, but he was pretty sure that he had seen Fal talking to some Syndicate scientist. William could probably be found in some gym. Validus was surprised with how they handled the situation, but he knew that they still didn't really trust the Syndicate. Neither did Validus. Through a window, he could see the hangars and landing bays, were long colonnes of troops marching into large battleships, it was scary to see the almost endless line of Syndicate members -brothers, as they called themselves- load onto troop carriers. Witnessing the might of the Syndicate wasn't the real reason he was here. Validus was waiting for a man opposite of him, wearing a brown overcoat, to fall asleep. This had finally happened, to Validus' relief. It had taken multiple bottles of whiskey to get his drinking partner unconscious. Validus checked if the man was awake, and then quickly grabbed his security pass. He then innocently walked towards one of the small trains, and embarked on one which lead to Wing 13. Standing in front of the tall Wing 13 wall, Validus scanned his level 9 pass, was granted access and entered an airlock. The doors closed behind him, making the only light come from a red lamp, illuminating a large sign, which read: [i]CAUTION! POSSIBILTY OF PERMANENT PHYSICAL OR MENTAL DAMAGE STRICTLY FOLLOW SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS - USE PROTECTIVE WEAR (MARK III OR MARK IV-TYPE) - WEAPONS OR OTHER FLAMMABLE OBJECTS PROHIBITED PAST THIS POINT - DO NOT INTERRUPT ONGOING EXPERIMENTS (EXCEPTION: IF ANYTHING OUTSIDE OF THIS WING IS IN DANGER, USE OF EMERGENCY STOP IS ALLOWED) - VISITORS OR SUPERVISORS STAY BEHIND THE GLASS WALL WING 13 COORDINATION CENTER IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY TRAUMAS CAUSED HERE[/i] Validus had no other choice than to follow these extreme precautions, and stored his weapons in one of the provided racks. He then grabbed the most modern-looking suit, and exchanged it with his usual armor. The only way of seeing was through a glass visor, which was reinforced with lead, against possible radiation damage. The heavy steel boots were tiresome to walk with, and Validus already hated the suit. He opened the second airlock door, and after walking through a desinfection shower, he arrived in a clinically clean hallway, seemingly continuing forever. A heavy glass wall seperated the pathway from the various experimentation rooms. In the first couple of rooms, small experiments were running, testing new engines or experimental technology. These kind of experiments also happened at the Ashen Conflux, and Validus was a little bit dissapointed with this, as he had expected some Darkness-related tests. That's when he saw the next room. A Guardian, wearing an electrode-lit harness, was chained to a surgical chair, screaming in pain as electric shocks of high voltage were being unleashed upon him. Almost hypnotized, Validus stood there watching how the guy was mercilessly tortured. Suddenly, the Guardian went silent, and one of the scientists -torturers- shut down the power. Validus heard the monotone voice of the experiment leader coming through the small speaker in the ceiling. "Test subject twenty-four fainted. Check pulse" When the man who followed that order shook his head, the lead scientist continued, with a strong German accent: "Correction: test subject twenty-four died of high voltage. [i]Scheisse[/i]" He sighed. "Dr. Larssen, bring the voltage down. Dr. Rasulov, move electrode A2 from the left hemisphere to upper hippocampus. And, now that I think of it, remove electrode L9" As the two were following their orders, a third, unknown scientist asked: "Dr. Krantz, aren't we going a little bit too far? He shouldn't die during the tests..." "[i]Nein[/i]. He volunteered for this. If I hear one more complaint, Dr. Nguye, you will be removed, [i]verstanden[/i]? Now, are we all good?" The others nodded. "[i]Gut[/i]. Experiment will continue after Ghost ressurection. Attempt 53, research of the effects of high voltages on Guardian Light capabalities will start in ten... nine... eight..." Validus, petrified, silently watched while attempt 53 began. [i]Echo[/i] It was oddly silent in this part of Wing 13. Usually, there was always something going on in the experimental wing of the Syndicate. He looked up, and the sign above the small door told him that this was room number 589. Here, far from the safety of the airlock, the Syndicate's darkest experiments were held. Unlike the standard glass rooms, this one was made from a heavy titanium-steel alloy. Only a small window revealed what was going on inside. A small group of self-declared priests, wearing nothing but a bone-decorated robe, were standing in a circle, arms held up high. They were singing a Hive-origined song, which sounded like a random shrieks to the untrained ear. Echo however, could perfectly understand what they were saying. These priests were summoning Sadarth, the Dreaded. From what one of the summoners had told Echo before entering, Sadarth was an exiled Hive Prince, commanding a War Moon in a galaxy far, far away. By gaining his favor, they would have another powerful ally. At least, that's what Echo was told. A loud shriek disturbed Echo's thoughts. The room got filled with a greenish smoke, and Echo felt the wound in his leg increase a little bit in size. One of the summoners stood up, and was honoring Sadarth when he suddenly interrupted. What followed was a chaotic mess of screams and curses, and Echo already knew what was going on. He sighed and shut off the speakers. He didn't want to hear the poor souls dying. One of the summoners got out of the smoke, and pressed himself against the door. His wild gestures and muffled screams made clear that he wanted Echo to open the door. Echo sighed again, and shook his head. They knew the rules before they went in. If something goes wrong, the blast doors stay closed. It may seem harsh, but it was a necessary precaution, if you didn't want the whole base to be infested with Hive. The priest was now trying to break the little glass window, with no effect. Suddenly, the fear in his eyes changed to pain, and he fell down, only to be replaced by three glowing green eyes. The wound in Echo's leg hurted more than ever, an he decided that it was time to leave. He ordered the local AI to make room 589 ready for use again, and commenced the long walk towards the airlock. Suddenly, he noticed a large Titan standing in front of a glass room. Of course, Echo thought. Of course Validus had found a way in. And Echo already suspected whose fault it was. He grabbed his Titan friend by the shoulders, and pulled him to the airlock. The Titan first resisted, but then followed Echo. Once outside of Wing 13, Validus immediately pushed Echo against a wall. "What is this, Echo?" One simple question, but Echo had to think for a while before answering. "Well, it's Wing 13. If you don't know what's going on, it seems like we're just torturing people" Validus raised one eyebrow. "But we're not. Everyone in there are volunteers" Validus released the Warlock. "But... why?" Echo dusted off his robes. "Ever heard of Project Dawnblade? Probably not. Well, we succeeded into overcharging the Solar Light of Guardians, creating a whole new, stronger subclass. But the way we did it, was... unorthodox. The experiment you saw is similar. Do you need details?" Validus shook his head and walked away. "Do what you and your sick 'brothers' must, Echo, but I don't want anything to do with it" Echo grinned. "Oh, but you will, Titan friend. Sooner or later, you will" The smiling Exo walked towards one of the cantines, about to have a serious talk with someone. Validus could keep his access pass, Echo thought. He had earned it. TO BE CONTINUED [spoiler]More stories will be added onto the main page, which I will link here. https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/226647634?sort=0[/spoiler]