Destiny: The Legendary Hunter

[Writers-Ablood]

Uzoma flicked a coin between his fingers. "So we are all hearing the same thing, right? Big weird ritual going on, that might damage the Traveller itself. Plus, you want a Gate Lord's key, crack it open, walk into this place, break what should not be there and then walk out?"

Void nodded once. "That's the gist of it."

Uzoma muttered something under his breath, dragged a chair and propped himself down, "Right. Of course."

Isidel leaned her forearms on the chair's crown, "And you know this how?"

Void held her gaze. "I cannot disclose my source."

Uzoma squinted at him with a half smile. "That means the source is either very good or not trustworthy at all."

"Let's just say it's a bit of both," Void said. "Look, like I said, there's simply no way for me to prove it to you, and I know it's hard to believe this. But I do need you to trust me."

Alemyr exhaled through his nose, calm. "Ghostsword, your reputation precedes you. We've heard great things about your contributions in the war. But still, what you're asking us to do is a wild goose chase with no end. Besides, why does the City not know?"

"They cannot do anything with it," Void shrugged. "Broadcasting all this would only spread fear. That won't help at all."

Taeko-3 tapped a finger on the table, metal on glass. "Alright, relax, let's just do some calculations."

She raised her palm, and her ghost appeared, projecting a small hologram above the table.

"From Stoic's database, a Vex Gate Lord can open a portal into the Vex's frozen timestream. A place so far disconnected from our space-time that there's no other way to access it."

"The Gatelord appears for only seconds at each location, installing Vex gateways and guarding the entrance to their realms. In fact, the only time Stoic encountered one was during the largest Vex surge in the system."

Isidel cut in, "Bastard was only there for five seconds. That's all it took to unleash a vex legion and connect its gateways."

"In simpler words." Alemyr cleared his throat, "Even if we knew where a gate lord was. Capturing it would be nigh impossible. The moment you threaten it. It will disappear."

"But."

Alemyr added. "We can help you if you find one. Crack his frame, strip his cypher, turn his key into something you can use. Not just once, but indefinitely."

Gallida looked around the circle, reading faces. "Seems like that's the consensus, Ghostsword. Guess we couldn't solve your issue after all."

Void rolled the thought once and let it settle. "That's fine, I'll take that split. I hunt, you help break it down.."

Isidel gave a small nod. "That is best."

The Stoic had been quiet, hands folded, eyes on Void as the discussion went on. He lifted his head just enough to show that he'd been paying attention.

Void straightened. "And for the work, I will sponsor all the Glimmer and Tools. All of it."

Uzoma's smile sharpened. "Now you are speaking my language."

Isidel's mouth twitched. "Payment does make focus easier."

Void smiled, then looked to the Stoic. "There is one more thing."

The Stoic tilted his head.

"You, you worked on the City's spatial network, didn't you?"

For a fraction of a second, the Stoic's eyes widened. He had never thought something that old would come to light, especially by someone as young as Void.

"I've got a job related to that. It's for you exclusively. I also can't tell you anything beforehand." Void said.

Void gestured a coin with his finger, "What I can promise is that you won't regret. Your cut will be big enough not to worry about glimmer, ever."

Gallida's brows went up. Uzoma let a low whistle slip. Taeko-3 laughed softly into her palm. Isidel looked faintly amused, which for a Titan was the same as surprise.

The Stoic looked around the room, then his eyes shifted up, as if in thought. Eventually, he shrugged. Whatever it was, it probably wasn't a bigger challenge than finding a gate lord.

"I suppose I'll take that as a yes." Void crossed his arms, "You'll be working on something special."

"A Golden Age blueprint for subspace tech. If we build it, it changes how everyone moves, buys, stores, and shares. Since yours were one of the cleanest hands on the City's protocol, I think you'd be the right man for the job."

The Stoic watched him with keen eyes, almost as if inquisitive.

Void hummed in thought, "You don't have to be that worried. I've already got Marcus Ren and my own specialist on the team. I am planning to get Wen Jie, but she's hard to find."

Alemyr tilted his head. "You're calling on some big names. Looks like this will be quite the project."

"A network that answers only to us," Void replied. "Not to a Foundry or a Faction, or the City. Storage no one can skim. Doors that open for who we say, when we say. We seed it, we set the rules. I'd say it's the biggest project in the system."

"Ambition is cheap," Uzoma chimed in, "Enforcement is not. But seeing as you're already getting the big names involved, you're on the right track."

Void looked back at the Stoic, "I will also pay in more than glimmer. Hardware. schematics and materials. You'll get everything you need."

The Stoic's eyes warmed by a fraction, he glanced at Gallida, at Uzoma, at Taeko-3, at Isidel, and at Alemyr. No one shook their head.

"We've all worked at this lab for decades," Gallida said, laying the line. "Campus-9 stands. The work is shared. The records are shared."

"I get you," Void said. "Your team stays yours. Bring them as your core if you want. I am not here to steal you from them."

Uzoma tapped the table, "This sounds like a second job on top of the first. But hey, as long as you're paying."

The Stoic reached across the table with an outstretched hand.

Void's lips curled into a smile, and he shook it. "I'll send over the workshop coordinates to Gallida. While I know you guys do most of your work here. If it comes down to it. We might do the job at our workshop site."

"That's fine, we were bound to need to stretch our legs anyway." Alemyr shrugged.

Gallida clapped her hands once, crisp. "Then we are done for today. Uzoma, Isidel, Alemyr, Taeko, brief in an hour. Stoic, take ten and then go write the list this madman will have to buy for us to start working on a solution to crack a gatelord's encryption."

The Stoic's mouth tilted. It might have been approval, but Void could swear he saw a smug shift in his face, as if to say, 'Expect a long list'

"Do hesitate before you ask." Void cleared his throat.

"Relax, I am sure it won't be a lot, I think...." Gallida said, turning back to Void as the team began to peel off toward their stations.

"Yeah..." Void sighed. He waved to the others, already half turned.

Gallida walked him back the way they had come. Past the ringed conflux, toward the door that was not a door until it chose to be. At the threshold, the subspace pressed against his chest and then let go.

Void disappeared.

-

Outside, Campus-9 was still in ruins. The gate behind him closed as if it had never been there.

Void called his jumpship to the horizon and waited for transmat.

"Next step?" Obsidian chirped.

"Find a gate lord," Void answered. "Or find someone who knows where one might be hiding."

"Someone knowledgeable about Vex", Obsidian said. "I mean.... we do have him."

"Him?" Void asked as Obsidian project the image of a blue awoken warlock.

"Asher Mir."

Obsidian was already calculating the best way to proceed. "Ikorra can definitely connect us to him. I think she's among the few who have his contact."

"That so? Hit her up and ask for his location. I'm sure if we call him up, he'll refuse to meet." Void shook his head.

"Already on it. Sent a request for info on Asher Mir." Obsidian chuckled.

"Good."

Void's wrist blinked, his eyes shifted up, and he saw his ship hovering above him in the sky. The next second, his figure scattered into glimmer, and the jumpship's thrusters flared to life, shooting towards orbit.

=

A/N: HOPE you enjoyed the chapter! Sorry for the delay, got swamped by work!

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Archmage Hero of the Academy

 

[Writers-Ablood]

[High Orbit, Between Worlds]

Void's jumpship cruised steadily into orbit and accelerated. The thrusters flared and stars stretched into thin lines across the horizon, as if someone had dragged a brush through wet paint.

Void had barely settled into the calm when his wrist buzzed.

Obsidian flicked a small icon into the corner of Void's visor.

[INCOMING CALL: IKORRA REY]

Void stared at it a beat, then accepted.

Her voice cut through the silence.

"What are you up to?" Ikorra asked, "And why did I just get a request from you for Asher Mir?"

Void exhaled through his nose and leaned back in the pilot's chair. "Because I need him," he replied.

Ikorra didn't bite. "That's not the answer I'm looking for."

Void glanced to Obsidian and raised his brow, but the Ghost rotated slowly, pretending he was not listening.

He sighed.

"You already know I was on Venus when that ether bomb went off. I'm just trying to make sense of what I saw. I was in the middle of the Vex and Fallen skirmish, and since I already know enough about the Eliksni, catching up on the Vex didn't seem like a bad idea."

"Besides. The Vex didn't react as I expected them to, and that rubbed me the wrong way." Void shrugged, "I figured it wouldn't hurt to consult an expert."

Ikorra paused.

"You were on Venus," she repeated, and it sounded like she was filing it away for later. "And you think Asher is the best person to talk to."

"Isn't he the only person to talk to?" Void replied. "Most people in the City hear 'Vex' and start praying or shooting. Asher actually understands what he's looking at."

"That may be true," Ikorra chuckled. "It's also true that the last time you met up with an aforementioned expert from the City, you stabbed him through the heart. "

Void's brow lifted. "Oh, please, you really think I'd do that to him?"

"No. No, I don't." Ikorra exhaled through her nose, "But people talk. Some of this talk naturally reached Asher's ears. Which is why, after your debacle with the City, he went and became a recluse."

Void gave a small chuckle, as she'd just said something funny. "Seclusion doesn't mean hidden, Ikorra. What did he even do that for?"

"Well, considering he and Toland were both present for the lunar missions with your team, he might've been under the impression that you'd search for him as well to...even the odds."

Silence.

Void pushed on anyway. "Really? That's the excuse? "

"I can't force him to think a certain way, Void. Fact is, Asher Mir isn't looking to meet anyone right now. Not even us."

"I didn't ask if he was looking to meet." Void pinched the bridge of his nose. "You've got a new system now. You've got eyes everywhere. Don't tell me you don't know where he is."

Ikorra didn't deny it. That was answer enough.

"All I'm asking for is a location," Void said. "I'll take care of the rest."

"You always say that," Ikorra replied.

Void's voice softened, just slightly. "Because I mean it."

Another pause. Longer.

Then Ikorra finally spoke again.

"He's on Io," she said. "Last I heard from him, he found something there. Strange Patterns. Vex structures that don't match what we've logged before. He went quiet and stayed quiet."

Void's visor flashed as coordinates dropped into his comms channel.

[COORDINATES RECEIVED]
[DESTINATION: IO]

Void sat forward again, hand resting on the edge of the console. "That's all I needed."

Ikorra's voice sharpened. "Now listen to me. Asher is not going to be happy you showed up. He is not stable in the way most Guardians are stable."

Void's lips curved. "None of us are."

"Void."

"I'm not telling you not to go," Ikorra said. "I'm telling you to go carefully. And if Asher Mir isn't willing, then don't push it. The City relies on his Vex knowledge a lot more than you'd think."

Void looked out at the stars. "I hear you," he said.

Ikorra didn't sound satisfied, but she didn't argue either. "Good."

The call cut.

Obsidian's eye brightened as the jumpship's systems adjusted.

"Route set," Obsidian said. "Io in line. Jump ready."

Void nodded once. "Do it."

The stars pulled inward. The ship's hull groaned softly as space folded, and it disappeared.

—

[House of Winter Court]

The Fallen stronghold reeked of ether and scorched metal. It was packed too tight, too loud, too tense. Dregs scurried along the edges of the chamber with their heads down, hauling crates and patched rifles like ants moving food through a nest that had been rattled.

Above them, banners of House Winter hung in tattered strips. Not proud. Torn. Stained. Still there, but only because no one had the time to take them down.

Draksis, Winter's Kell sat at the centre of it all, perched on a throne built from plated scrap and salvaged human steel. His lower arms were wrapped in thick bands of wire and armour straps. His upper hands were bare, claws stained dark where oil and blood had mixed.

A holo-table in front of him projected casualty numbers. Squad counts. Supply reserves. Ether stores.

Everything was in ruin.

A Captain stepped forward first, head lowered but not too low.

"Great Kell," the Captain rasped, "our forces are compromised."

The Kell's four eyes narrowed. "Explain."

"The Vex assault was heavier than expected," the Captain said. "They pressed into our ranks even as we withdrew. It was… relentless."

Another Captain moved beside him, voice sharper. "And the Strange Machine Spawn in the deadlock. The one with lightning."

A ripple ran through the chamber. Even Dregs paused to listen.

"He tore through both sides,"

Draksis inhaled slowly, ether lines along his neck flaring faintly. He stared at the projections until the numbers blurred into one dull truth.

Loss.

He spoke without raising his voice, but it carried anyway. "We rebuild."

The Captains exchanged glances. One of them started to speak again, but the Kell lifted a hand.

"I said we rebuild," he repeated. "No raids. No strikes. No glory runs to feed ego. We lay low until our numbers return."

A murmur spread. Frustration. Hunger. The House of Winter wasn't built to hide. They were built to take.

The Kell's patience snapped.

He slammed his upper hand down through a datapad resting on the edge of the holo-table. The device cracked with a sharp pop. Sparks jumped. The projection flickered, stuttered, then stabilised.

The sound silenced the room.

Winter's Kell leaned forward, claws digging into the metal edge. "Do any of you doubt me?"

No one answered.

Then a new figure stepped out from the line of Captains. Taller. Leaner. Armour darker, etched with marks that looked like they'd been burned in rather than painted.

Grayliks, Winter Baron.

He bowed, slow and controlled, then lifted his head. "Great Kell," he said. "We did not return empty-handed."

The Kell's gaze shifted to him, sharp with interest despite himself. "Speak."

Grayliks snapped his wrist, and a small projection flickered into the air. Not a battle map. Not a supply chart. Something stranger. A cryptogram module. Golden Age in design, but modified with Fallen hands. A layered tool meant to break locks that weren't meant to be broken.

"We secured this from the old archives beneath Ishtar," Grayliks said. "In the chaos. While the Vex were occupied."

The Kell's posture eased by a fraction. Ether lines dimmed. He stared at the projection like it was food.

"This," he said slowly, "is useful."

"It is," Grayliks agreed. "It will open doors. It will turn human secrets into Winter secrets."

The Kell nodded once. He almost looked pleased.

Almost.

Then Grayliks continued, voice dropping a touch. "But I must warn you. While we extracted the technology, I watched the Vex."

The Kell's eyes narrowed again. "You already said they were occupied."

"They were," Grayliks replied. "But not with us. Not with the Guardian. Not even with the stolen archive."

The room felt colder. The Dregs stopped moving again.

"They did not care that we took from them," Grayliks said. "They were moving too hastily. Too urgently. They were gathering. Building. Shifting units through the network like something had sounded an alarm."

Draksis let out a low scoff. "The Vex always move. That is what they do."

Grayliks didn't back down. "Not like this. This was not routine. It felt like… preparation."

Draksis leaned back in his throne and spread his hands. "Preparation for what?"

Grayliks hesitated, and that hesitation said enough. He didn't know. He only knew it was wrong.

Draksis's expression hardened. "You're spooked."

"I am cautious," Grayliks corrected.

But Grayliks immediately got waved off with a rough flick of Draksis's wrist. "Then be cautious quietly. We have losses. We have rebuilding to do. We do not waste thought on Vex."

Grayliks's jaw tightened. He bowed again, slower this time. "As you command."

He stepped back from the court. As he turned to leave, the Kell had already returned to the casualty projection, eyes burning with the sort of anger that only came from being forced to wait.

Grayliks walked out of the chamber, the air outside cooler, quieter, less crowded. A line of Captains waited in the corridor. They straightened when they saw him.

Grayliks didn't waste time.

"Watch the Vex," he told them. "I don't care what the Kell thinks. If they move like that again, I want to know first."

One Captain's mandibles twitched. "You think they're planning something."

Grayliks stared down the hall, as if he could see through walls and time if he tried hard enough. "I think they already started."

The Captains nodded, uneasy but obedient.

-



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