[quote]Foreward: Hey there everybody! I'm Zanithos, the guy who wrote the [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/154179296/0/0]Future War Cult short story[/url] a while back. After much positive feedback, I promised I'd write a sequel, or at least another story of some part. I also claimed it would be up in anywhere from a few days to a week. I may have lied. I'm sorry. :( Anyway, after [i]waaay[/i] too much procrastination, and a [i]teensy[/i] bit of effort, here's part one of a new story. It focuses on a Dead Orbit hunter, who during an urgent mission, gets in a little bit over his head. Also, his name might seem a bit familiar to some of you. If it does, congratulations, you are officially awesome. If not, you're still awesome, so it's all good. :P Anyway, I hope you enjoy what I wrote so far, and feel free to leave a comment and give me some feedback. There's probably a few spelling and/or grammatical errors, as I wrote this in about an hour or so, but feel free to leave a comment and let me know if you like where things are going so far. I also plan on having a part two up soon enough, so prepare yourselves. It's gonna be a doozy. :P Enjoy! -Z[/quote] [b][u]Dead Orbit: Objects In Space[/u][/b] [i]"They say space is empty. Just a whole bunch of nothin'. Not true. There's all kinds of neat stuff just floatin' around out there, if you know where to look. Only sometimes, those things are better off not bein' found..."[/i] The silver phaeton drifted silently in the void, starlight glinting off its hull and reflecting into the nothingness that surrounded the craft. Inside, its owner was slouched in the pilot's chair, fast asleep. Out in the black, there wasn't much to worry about, at least as far as navigational hazards went. While it was generally not advised to sleep while in-flight, you could afford to be a little careless when the nearest obstacle was over a hundred million miles away. Suddenly, the communications console blinked to life, sounding off a jaunty tune as it lit up the cockpit. The hunter was startled awake by the sudden notification. This far out, you didn't get much in the way of messages. The hunter liked it that way. That's why when Dead Orbit came to him offering a position in deep-space asset requisitions, he agreed right away. Sure, he'd be away for months at a time, and surely he wouldn't see any other guardians on his journeys, but the sense of discovery, of finding things that were lost for centuries out in the void? He wouldn't trade it for the world. >Attention [Crichton, John]: Urgent message, direct from Arach Jalaal. Requires top priority! [2] Attachments: -Audio recording -Coordinates >Play now? John shifted in his pilot's chair, the artificial gravity causing the feaux-leather material to creak slightly under the weight of his athletic frame. He ran his hands through his short, brown hair, paying close attention to his spiked-up bangs. His dark blue eyes squinted at the console, the dim light reflecting of his tanned, rugged face. Now that he was vertical again, John focused on the notification. After a quick glance at the header, he pressed play, and the speakers in the cockpit crackled to life. "Greetings, Brother Crichton." Jalaal announced, cold and emotionless as ever, "I hope this message finds you well." John chuckled to himself. The Arachs were well-known for their uncaring, businesslike demeanors. To even include a greeting meant that this message would be different from the others, though how, exactly, he had yet to find out. The message continued: "Recently, Dead Orbit's deep-space assets have discovered an object that is seemingly in a sustained orbit around Neptune. After closer examination, it was found to be a golden-age vessel of enormous size, thought to be a research vessel of some sort. We have sent several requisition specialists to investigate, only for them to disappear, one by one. As the closest remaining asset, [i]you[/i] have been selected to investigate their disappearances, and secure the object for Dead Orbit, to further the future of mankind amongst the stars. Please, be swift. The disappearance of the other guardians has elevated this to a top-priority event. Soon, I will have to report their loss to the vanguard, and risk the vessel being claimed by the city instead. This I can not allow. Coordinates are attached. Make haste guardian, and good luck." As the message ended, John's ghost appeared, hovering silently beside him. Its black-and-silver casing shimmered in the light from the console, as its pieces rotated nervously. Tenuously, it spoke, its usually curious voice tinged with a hint of caution. "John, did he just say what I think he did? A golden age research vessel? This far out?" "Sure sounded like it Sparky," John replied, sarcastic as ever, "Then again, it's still a bit early. Five more minutes?" The ghost shifted its front sections, giving John look of mild disapproval that only a ghost could. "You've been asleep for fifteen hours and twenty-two minutes. That's more than enough rest for a human. Or anything else, as a matter of fact." John activated the navigator, and entered the attached coordinates. "Just messin' with ya Sparky," John chuckled, "You really should lighten up a little." With the coordinates locked, the translight engines hummed to life. The top and forwards portions of the cockpit flickered and faded away, displaying an external view of the stars outside. As the engines reached full charge, the stars slowly blurred forwards towards the front of the ship, until only a single point of light remained. John's ghost sighed. "This is going to be one of [i]those[/i] missions, isn't it." Suddenly, the translight engines kicked on. The point of light rushed towards the veiwscreen, and the space around phaeton jumped from a black void to a bluish-white swirl of shifting light. "Nah," John replyed, resting his hands under his head as he leaned back in his pilot's chair, "Not this one. It's just a search-and-rescue in uncharted space, in what happens to be an ancient, unexplored vessel that's older than the City itself. What could possibly go wrong?" "Ah", the ghost replied, turning to stare with its single eye at the NLS light outside, "I thought so."