[url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/246624086/0/0]Table of Contents[/url] Saul and Yekaterina jumped out of the alley, taking up stances by Daedalus and shooting at the fortress. The three of them let loose rapid volleys of bullets. Derik couldn’t see what was happening, but only a few seconds passed before the gunfire stopped. Daedalus lowered his weapon. “That’s enough,” the old Warlord said, putting a hand on Yekaterina’s shoulder and prompting her and Saul to relax, “Let’s go.” Daedalus returned Derik’s rifle then lumbered out into the road. Derik hurried after him, finally getting to see the entrance to the fortress. He couldn’t see any of the defenders’ bodies, but knew they were lying in front of the door. “Only three,” Daedalus recounted, “There’ll be plenty more inside.” A chill ran up Derik’s spine. The real battle awaited them inside the fortress. He was glad to have Daedalus leading the way. It seemed odd, though, having Daedalus on the frontlines. He had never thought the old Warlord would be the type to spearhead a fight, considering his lack of charisma and disliking of conflict. “Um, Daedalus…” Derik muttered, giving in to his curiosity and trying to find the right words, “I’m definitely not complainin’, but why’re you up at the front?” Daedalus looked over his shoulder, meeting Derik’s eyes with his reflective visor, “What? Doesn’t seem like my style, right?” “I didn’t-“ Derik began, but the Warlord cut him off. “‘Cause I’m good at this stuff,” Daedalus answered, turning back to the castle ahead of them, “That’s all there is to it.” “Oh…” Derik nodded, “How’d you get good at this?” Daedalus let out a long, pensive sigh before answering, “Can’t always avoid a fight. So the only way to survive is to win every fight.” “Huh,” Yekaterina thought aloud, “Those sound like some wise words.” “Thanks,” Daedalus rumbled, a little pride seeping through the usual monotone of his voice, “Thought that line up a few months ago. Been waitin’ for a good chance to use it.” “Oh…” Yekaterina replied awkwardly, letting the conversation drop. They drew nearer to the gates of Fairmont, passing the last house without any further incident. Derik glanced to the side and saw the rest of their army filtering out of the neighboring street to meet them. They seemed to be much more on edge than those that were with Daedalus. Derik couldn’t blame them, they had been the victims of the Fairmont welcoming party. Derik knew getting shot at was not a pleasant experience. Something moved in front of the castle gates, mere meters away. Catching sight of it out of the corner of his eye, Derik did a double take and gasped as he saw the figure of an armored man rising from the ground. A single gunshot split the air, and the armored man collapsed before he could act. Derik turned to Daedalus, who was already slipping his revolver back into its holster. The Warlord had drawn and fired with incredible speed. “Uh…” Derik mumbled, “Good shot…” Daedalus only grunted in response. “So, um…” Saul ventured, stepping forward, “We should-“ “Hey hey!” Daedalus cut in, and Saul collided with the Warlord’s arm, “Hold on.” “What?” Saul inquired, starting to bounce on his toes anxiously. Derik looked down and saw that Daedalus’ hand was still gripping the handle of his hand cannon tightly. “Never know if someone’s playin’ dead,” Daedalus warned, “Gotta go up there an’ make sure they are.” “Oh…” Derik nodded, “So we should, um-“ “No,” Daedalus corrected, “Less people is better. Chanely, Meat-…uh…Del-“ “Derik,” Derik amended, silently cursing the popularity of his humiliating nickname. “Right, you two stay,” Daedalus ordered, “Avery likes you.” Derik was happy to hear that Avery might be concerned about his well-being. But his face flushed at the thought of Avery liking him, and he had to quickly stifle the rash conclusions that began popping into his head. “Uh, you,” Daedalus mumbled, pointing at Yekaterina, “Come with me. E’eryone else stay here.” “What?” Yekaterina objected, “Why me?!” “Relax,” Daedalus soothed, putting a hand to his chest plate, “You stand behind me. If I get shot, you get the honor of avenging me.” “Honor?!” Yekaterina guffawed, becoming hysterical, “I’d rather let someone else get the honor!” “Hey, I know it’s no honor,” Daedalus chided, “You stand behind me an-” “An’ what’s with the favoritism towards these two, huh?!” Yekaterina interjected, her face starting to go red, “Huh?! Pickin’ me ‘cause I’m not your friend?!” “I’m not friends with any o’ you,” Daedalus refuted, sounding more bored than irritated, “But I’m not gonna risk pissin’ off Avery over this. Small package, lot o’ fury.” Saul’s hand shot to his mouth to stifle a laugh. “No more debate,” Daedalus finished, holding up his forefinger, “I’ll be at risk o’ gettin’ killed, but you’ll be fine as long as you’ve got the brains to aim an’ flex this little finger.” Yekaterina held up one of her own fingers in response, glaring daggers. “That’s the spirit,” Daedalus grunted. “Wait, Daedalus,” Derik queried, “You’re gonna let ‘em shoot you?” The Warlord snorted, “Hell no! But if I do get killed, feel free to pretend my old age finally caught up to me an’ I died of a panic attack. C’mon, lady.” Daedalus pivoted and marched up towards Fairmont’s gates. Yekaterina didn’t follow at first, but someone shoved her from behind, making her stumble forward. She reluctantly fell in behind the Warlord. They reached the large doors without incident, and Daedalus stood over the bodies of the fortress’ defenders. He said something to Yekaterina, too quiet for Derik to hear meters away, then kneeled over a corpse. Drawing his pistol, the Warlord wasted no time in putting a bullet through his victim’s throat. Daedalus repeated this process, moving to each corpse until all three had bleeding wounds in their necks. Having finished his grim business, he holstered his weapon and hollered for all to hear, “Come on up!” When Derik and the others joined the pair, Daedalus was examining the three carcasses. Derik studied their faces, but none looked familiar. Daedalus removed his helmet and scratched at his gray beard. After a minute, Daedalus glanced up in Derik’s direction and inquired, “Recognize any of ‘em?” Derik was about to reply, but nearly jumped out of his own skin when Avery’s voice cut in right beside him with sharp articulation. “Oliver, Hannah and Caden,” the Exo listed as Derik whirled to find her standing at his side. Daedalus grimaced, looking very disturbed, “All three of ‘em?” “I know,” Avery pondered, “It’s wrong.” “What’s wrong?” Saul questioned, squeezing between Derik and another man. “Natalia’s best men fightin’ out here instead of inside,” Daedalus answered, “Even an idiot’d know they’d die.” “Natalia’s been making horrible moves,” Avery disclosed, “She’s throwing away her followers.” “Still one left, right?” Daedalus recalled. “Hayden Yegorov,” Avery affirmed, “Her bodyguard. I don’t know how dangerous he is.” They were quiet for a moment. “Well,” Daedalus deduced, looking at the fortress’ gates, “There could be at least a dozen men in there. Maybe they’re…” The old Warlord trailed off, leaving the thought unspoken, so Avery continued, “These three were an early-warning system. Anyone inside will know we-” “Uh, Avery…” Daedalus advised, pointing at the doors, “There’s a note…” “What?” Avery snapped, spinning. She took hurried steps to the gates. Everyone else crowded behind her, pushing each other around to get a view of the sheet of paper taped to the steel door. Derik managed to stay right behind Avery, where he could see over her head. From there he read the message, written in pen with large letters that filled the page: WE SURRENDER PLEASE COME IN