The creature threw me back against the crumbling wall. I break through it, landing in a heap on the other side “Get up! Get up! Get up!” my ghost is yelling. I barely hear it through the ringing. My head is on fire. I can’t feel my arm. I look up to see a mechanical fist fly towards me. I roll out of the way, it's fist missing by a hair. I get a good look at the creature and realize that it is in fact fallen. It was grossly mangled, parts of machine and flesh intermingled. One of its eyes ripped apart, and two others, robotic optics. It brings up it's lower right arm as it shifts into some kind of rifle. I roll again behind a large stone as it hails red arc down upon me. My ghost flies in close to me, blinking through the bullets. “Supernova, I need my gun.” she materializes it in my lap, a SUROS PDX-45. I turn and aim out from behind the stone. Two of the three bullets collide with the metal mess on its head, ricocheting off. This seems to only serve to enrage the damn thing. It rushes forward, completely shattering the rock into rubble. I get flung back with the remnants of the stone and glide down backward to land safely. I ready my rifle again, this time hitting all three bullets into one of its mechanical eyes. Gore, wires, and sparks bursting forth., I can hardly stomach the scream it makes, but I take my chance. I run forwards and jump, leaving a scatter grenade at the feet of the fallen machine hybrid. The void shards rush up to meet it, blowing open its chest. But I already know that it will take more than one grenade. It spins on its foot, its machine rifle outstretched, ready to take its shot, but it would never get the chance, fear lit its eyes, and its face as three huge spheres of void came to meet it. The only thing that was left of it was a smoldering purple creator. Carnage and molten metal littered the ground. I did not stay for long, the echoes of the fight had surely reached the ears of more fallen. Though I did make sure to leave a few void based presents hidden around for them to find. ------------------------------------------------ It had been about two and a half or so months since I had arrived in South Korea. Nova had prompted me to move inland, to try and find other guardians, to get to safety. She had told me we had arrived in a country that had once been named Mongolia. I had died of exhaustion multiple times on the way here, even though Nova had told me to rest many times. Between the hours of walking, the evading and the sparring with the fallen forces. It had just taken its toll. We discovered an old weapons stash where I had equipped myself with what I could. An old SUROS PRI-44 pulse rifle. As well as an Outlander MK.38 shotgun, and a Marquise RS/1 rocket launcher. While we wandered, Nova told me of my place as a guardian. She claimed that I was closest to what she called a warlock. It was the way I channeled the light. When I, of course, asked what in hell’s name is “the light” she told me of what it could do. How it had given me powers I was unaware of. How it had terraformed my solar system. How it had brought me back from the dead, time and time again. I began to fiddle with what I could do. I taught myself how to create a grenade of void shards. How to glide steadily through the air. And most impressive of all I must say, was the bomb of void energy I was able to summon after an unfortunate run in with a poor mouse. “Holy shit” I mutter to myself, a small purple glowing skeleton in the middle of a crater. “Well!” says Nova. “I guess that's something you can do!” Traveling with Nova was not unpleasant, I simply wish she would talk a little less. Unless she is cowering, terrified of some enemy force, she is talking my ears off. The tower this, and the traveler that. I eventually snapped at her, to which I immediately regret as she had fallen completely silent. I hated all the chatter, but the quiet was worse now. “I-I’m sorry Nova. I didn’t mean it.” She, of course, forgave me. After I let her ride around on my helmet. ------------------------------------------------- I hugged the wall closely, as to avoid being detected by the fallen that had spread across the yard. Keeping to the shadows I made my way around the building. The moon hung overhead the building I was skirting, making the shadows nearly impenetrable. Thought that would not help me should the fallen hear me. I make it to a doorway that I quickly push inside. Nova appears before me, shedding a little light, but I quickly tell her to keep her flashlight off. We sit in silence for a moment before I hear it. A wet, gurgling breath. I turn my head sharply to the corner of the room. Something that had not noticed me enter. I raise my gun, and its head snaps around. Three cold green eyes spot through the darkness. Then another pair, and another, and another. I get up and sprint for the door, bursting through. I do not care if the fallen see me now, they had more things to worry about. And I was too terrified to do anything else but. The fallen turned and raised their guns. But stopped as the creatures behind me wailed. I quickly ran up and fell in line with a captain. I turned to look at her, and she, me. We nodded in agreement and turned back to the door. We could hear them scream, and we both knew what was to come. If we did not fight together, we would both die. The metal bent outwards as dozens of Thrall attempted to exit the complex. We took aim and fired. Blood, gore, and bile spilled. But they did not stop. Thrall pushing past their dead brothers and sisters. Pushing out against the vandals and dregs that rushed to meet them. After came the acolytes and the knights. We were quickly surrounded. But we would not give up. The captain and I spiraled around each other like dancers. Taking shots over and under shoulders. Jumping over, and around. Deflecting and protecting. Aggressing and attacking. Like two who had fought side by side their entire lives. ----------------------------------------------- I had finally pushed my way up. The Cosmodrome, Old Russia, Nova had told me “This place is frequented by many guardians!” said Nova. “We’re bound to meet someone here.” I hesitated, not sure if I was ready to finally meet another person. Thought that was not a problem. We walked for hours and did not run into a single soul, guardian or otherwise. The night took the sky quickly so I gathered up dead foliage. Grass, twigs, and the like. In a sheltered crop of buildings, so our fire would not be spotted easily, we built our camp for the night. Though I normally stay awake until the wee hours of the night, between the heat from the campfire, and Nova’s humming, I fall into an uneasy sleep. ----------------------------------------------- “What are you?” “What am I?” “Who are you? “Who am I?” “What right do you have to live?” “What right?” “Yes, what right?” “I don’t understand.” “You pretend to live. You pretend to breathe. You pretend you're human.” “I-I am…” “No! You are not!” “But I…” “You're not human! You have no soul! You have no right to call yourself alive!” “What is this?” “You have no right. You are a monster, an abomination!” “I don’t understand!” “You don’t deserve to die. To say you can die is to say you lived at all.” “This ink. It hurts. It burns.” “ABOMINATION!” “No.” “ABERRATION!” “No, please god no.” “BURN!” “No!” “BURN!” --------------------------------------------------- I awaken suddenly, a hand on my shoulder. “Shhh, the fallen are close.” “I… Who are you?” I stare at the stranger standing above me. Her most notable feature was an ink black cloak and hood that framed her. I realized that she held it over me too, shrouding us completely in the black, the fire having been stamped out. “Shhh.” she reiterates. I hear them close to us. The fallen trudging from just around the corner. The thinnest streaks of light just peeking over the horizon. A small amount of chattering, and then they move off, away from our camp. Pursuing some other lead. “I'm sorry for startling you.” She starts. “I found you about an hour ago, your ghost and I have been chatting. She told me you needed the rest, so I let you be.” “Thank you, but to be honest I wish you had woken me. My dream was… strange.” “Yeah, I’ve heard that exos' can have awful nightmares. Not to mention warlocks have strange dreams just in general.” “I…” I was struck silent for a moment. This was very odd, having just been in a life or death situation this woman seemed very… upbeat. “Look,” She started. “I’m not gonna bullshit you. Let me take you to the city, the tower.” I continue to stare at her. “I’m not sure if…” “Just… let me bring you. Your ghost already told me you're hesitant but, how can you make your decision that you don’t want to be there if you have never been there?” I ponder for a moment before she continues. “I mean, you don’t even have a ship. Come with me to the tower, stock up, pay a few dues, and then be on your way. What do you say?” I continue to look at her for a moment. She wasn't wrong, and I could use some supplies. A few chores to pay them off didn’t seem too bad. “Alright,” I say. “Let's go to the tower.” “Good.”