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Chapter Text

  He found her first, of course, being the good Hunter he is. Gun out and steps wary, Cayde-6 makes his way towards the stranger.

"Didn't really think you'd get away that easy?"

The gold haired woman freezes at the sound of his voice, slowly turning to face him. Ace is lowered and stowed before he realizes it.

"Cayde?" She whispers his name, face full of shock and--

"INTRUDER!"

Then a sound Cayde knows well from the Crucible.

"SHAXX, NO!"

Cayde lunges towards the woman and, strangely, she moves to put herself between him and the other Guardian.
A spark of Light, then a flood of Void energy; a shield appears on the woman's arm, just in time, as the flaming hammer slams against it.

Then the weird thing happens. As the hammer falls, the shield vanishes. In one swift, smooth movement that can only be called practiced, she catches the hammer. Spinning it upward, the Solar energy shifting, she changes it into another form Cayde knows well...but different.

A Golden Bow is drawn, then fired at Shaxx's feet, exploding on contact with the ground. Guardians that have followed the yells and feelings of Light, are blasted off their feet, along with the Crucible Vanguard.

"CAYDE, MOVE."

The words, full of authority, are followed by the smell of ozone.

"Oh, no," Cayde thinks, bracing himself for a resurrection.

"NO!"

The woman in front of him thrusts out both hands and creates a bubble, one that Zavala favors. And just in time, too, as all the Guardians take Ikora's yell as an order to fire. The Light level swells as Supers are summoned and thrown at the intruder...and Cayde.

He opens his eyes when no pain comes and all he sees is the woman, arms shaking slightly with the strain of maintaining the Sentinal Bubble. The sounds are somehow muted and it seems like it's just the two of them. Then Cayde hears a whisper from the woman, voice somehow familiar,

"I hate fighting fellow lightbearers. Why are they attacking one of their own?"

"I don't think it's me they're aiming at, Temi."

Surprised, she opens her mouth to respond, when the force of the Supers push her back, right into him. Reflex takes over and his hand is on her hip instantly. Looking up into his blue eyes, she slowly moves one arm until her fingers hover right over his heart.

"Beating so strongly."

Another strong barrage of Supers force her to refocus on maintaining the shield.

"Enough of this," she mutters, bringing her arms in then thrusting them out.
Cayde sees, for a split second, gold, blue, and purple power swirling beneath her skin.
A shout, then Arc lightning surges out from the edges of the Void sustained by the woman. With the bubble as the epicenter, a shockwave of electricity barrels outward, knocking down every Guardian in its wake. As the dust clears and Void is released, only two are left standing.

Clap, clap, clap

The sound of armoured hands ring around the large hall. Cayde and the woman look around for the source. She spots him first and hisses slightly.

"Of all that survived, of course it was you, with your 'strategic retreats'," the woman says, taking a rather sassy stance, arms folded.

"And I see you've returned from another hunt," says Lord Saladin, gesturing at the woman's empty hands.

A tense moment where Cayde can feel Arc building, then-

They run towards each other, laughing, catching Cayde off guard. Saladin picks the woman up in a massive hug, swinging her around. She tightens her arms and buries her face into the furs on his armor. They stay like that for several moments before separating.

"It is good to know you are alive, Lady Artemis. But where are Lady Hecate, and Lord Ares?"

At this question, Artemis stills, head bowed, and responds in a quiet voice, "They...didn't make it...exactly."

Saladin bows his head, solemnly. "It is always difficult to lose friends. What of Apollo?" Saladin looks over Artemis' shoulder. "I'm surprised he's kept quiet for so long."

No response, and from where Cayde stands, he can see a tear run down Tem--Artemis' cheek.

Saladin puts a gentle hand on the crying woman's shoulder. "He was a good Ghost; an excellent match for you."

A sudden tremor runs down Artemis' whole body and she staggers. Cayde is at her side before he realizes, hand on her hip to steady her.

"Get away from her, Cayde, Saladin."

Zavala's finally awoken, Ikora shortly behind him.

Instinctively, Cayde puts himself between Tem--Artemis and the angry warlock.

"Ikora, wait-"

"Enough, Cayde. She attacked us--"

"You attacked her! She was only defending herself...and me." The last part is more to himself.

Ikora opens her mouth to argue more, but a new voice interrupts.

"Do what you want to her later, I don't care, but now I need to prepare for a revive." An livid-looking Ghost in a purple and gold shell had appeared, and is now scanning her charge.

Cayde immediately turns back to Artemis, just in time to catch her as she faints.

"Temi!" He gently lowers her limp body to the ground, emotions running wild.

"Help her, please," he begs Ikora, looking up at the warlock.

She studies his Exo face, searching for something, then kneels next to him, apparently finding it. Her Ghost appears and scans Artemis, then flies backwards from feedback.

"Ophiuchus! What did you find?"

Cayde tunes out the technical babble, gently moving Artemis so her head is in his lap. He brushes the gold hair off her face, tracing the thin scars on her cheekbone.
"What's going on, Temi?"

Chapter Text

"What's going on?!" The cold Martian wind whips at his clothes, howling with an almost animalistic quality. Cayde stumbles, newly forming ice tearing at his semi-new Exo body. He pauses, studying the damage. It's not too bad, but Temi, or Dr Huntson, hated seeing him injured.
Howls split the air, and he barely has time to look up before dark figures overwhelm him. As they tear at his form, his only concern is her. He needs to find her, he has to tell her...

CRASH! The window shatters, allowing cold, fierce snow to enter the lab. Pieces fly everywhere; a woman with gold hair being front and center. Wincing, she attempts to brush the glass from the side of her face when a beeping console claims attention.
"No..."
A growl has her frozen in fear; dark figures rush through the broken window. She tries to run, to fight towards the only person she wants to find. She needs to find him, has to tell him...


Voices seem to echo, filtering in from far away. Her body feels distant as well, like a dream. It's been taking her longer and longer to regain physical function after revival.

'I wonder why? Is it the Light trying to find its place, its Chosen? Does it realize that they, my fireteam, have gone where it cannot follow? Will this remnant of my friends leave me too?'

"Lady Artemis is legend; had I realized who she was, I never would have-"

"It doesn't matter now, Ikora!"

Cayde's voice cuts through the static of her mind, making it easier to start settling back into her body. His presence always steadied her; the times they spent together flowing through her mind. When they first met, showing him the Exo body, completing his new heart, the psych evaluation they both hated, the transference prep, the testing of his new form; so many memories, all happening such a long time ago.

Artemis remembers waking, furious, covered in her own dried blood. She had tried to attack Apollo, but he calmed her down, quickly explaining what had happened. Memories flood back into her mind; terrible, scarring memories. She pushes them back, but one slips through. A broken Exo form, one she had worked so hard to design, heart she had built for him damaged and still. This was the memory she would summon in future battles, to fuel her Light and her fury. The minions of Darkness would learn to cower at the sight of her golden armour, to run at her Golden Bow. The Warlords who would dare attack her would quickly learn what she could do with the Traveler's Light. She had lost her family, her home, her life, but most of all, she had lost him; lost the chance to tell him...until now.
____________________

Cayde-6, after carrying her to the infirmary, stayed by Artemis' side, refusing to leave until she awoke.

He had asked Sundance so many times about Artemis' status that she had stopped answering his questions.

"Why don't you ask her Ghost?" Sundance suggests, slightly annoyed.

Cayde perks up, but a sneering voice comes before he can open his mouth.

"I'm not her Ghost." The gold filigree glints in the light as the speaker appears. "I didn't choose her; I just got stuck with her after an idiotic mistake."

Cayde opens his mouth to ask, but the Ghost disappears with,

"Ask her yourself when she wakes up."


Artemis opens her eyes slowly, fingers tingling, as they always did after using so much Light. The bed she lay in is soft and warm, but something is missing.

"Cayde?" Her mouth is dry, but she still calls out to him.

"No, I told him to get some rest. You've been...unconscious for almost four days."

She looks over to the side, to where a black woman in robes stand solemnly.

Artemis tenses, eyes narrow. "You're not going to attack me again, are you? Because that would be a mistake."

The woman shakes her head. "I apologize for that; I was unaware who you were, Lady Artemis."

"You know my name, but yours...," she trails off, trying to remember.

"Ikora Rey, Warlock Vanguard."

The warlock bows her head in greeting, then asks, "Are you aware that your Light level is three times stronger than usual?"

'Right into it; she's definitely a warlock.' Artemis smiles faintly, remembering another warlock from long ago; Hecate was always asking questions.

"Yes, I do know that."

"How did that happen? Is it because you were one of the first revived?"

A scoff from the corner, purple Ghost floating closer. "A stupid mistake from an idiot, actually."

"Would you have rather had the ritual succeed?" Artemis responds sharply, sitting up. "Do you know what would have happened if--"

"I don't particularly care what you think might have happened. What you did was a foolish move, though I'm not sure why I expected anything else from you."

The Ghost's eye is slowly turning red as she gets closer to Artemis' face.

"Believe it or not, Circe, I am no fool!" Artemis spits out, fists clenched.

"Really? Because only a fool would destroy the crystal instead of killing the witch!"

"I thought it would release the Light energy, which it did. How should I have known it was too late?" Artemis' voice breaks at the last word, tears gathering.

"If you had told me what you were planning, we wouldn't be having this conversation and I wouldn't be stuck with the galaxy's most idiotic "Hunter"."

Circe's words silence Artemis, and Ikora steps forward, mouth open for a million questions.

"It's your fault they're dead; your fireteam, my Chosen One. And I will never forgive you for it."

With this, the purple-shelled Ghost disappears, leaving the room stricken with a painful silence.


"It appears that the subject of your...added Light is...ah..sensitive. We can discuss it at a later time."

Ikora smiles gently, showing sympathy for the previous conversation.

Artemis blinks the tears out of her eyes, and quietly thanks the Warlock. She stifles a yawn, exhaustion seeping back into her bones.

"I need rest; it has been a while since I last used Light in combat, especially as much as I did," Artemis sighs, settling back onto the pillows.

"Yes, I'll leave you to it," Ikora bows slightly then heads to the door. Right before exiting, she pauses.

"I suppose you need a way to contact me, seeing as Circe is...," she trails off.

"Being a total bitch?" Artemis suggests.

Ikora laughs quietly. "That works." She pulls a small tablet out of a pouch, handing it to the Hunter. "I'm sure you know how this works."

Artemis takes it, quickly examining the device. "Yes, I've used these before. I can contact you on this?"

"One moment," Ikora says, summoning her Ghost. "Ophiuchus, could you...?

The Ghost obliges, scanning the correct program onto the tablet. He nods to Artemis then vanishes.

"Thank you, I appreci--"

A flurry of matter, then a different Ghost transmats into the room. Ikora recognizes her before she notices Artemis is awake.

"Sundance? If he's not still sleeping, I'll--"

"He is, he is," the Ghost assures. "But he wouldn't unless I promised to check up on--oh, you're awake!"

Artemis smiles at Cayde's Ghost, a good fit for the Exo.

"Does he sleep well? Do you know if he reaches deep sleep? Can he dream? If so, can he remem--"

"Whoa, slow down! I can only answer so many questions. And why do you even want to know?" Sundance floats closer, shell spinning.

Artemis blushes slightly and mutters, "I just want to make sure the frame is still functioning correctly."

"Frame? Are you talking about his Exo body? Why would that interest you?"

Artemis considers getting into the topic, but dismisses it; she is too tired to dig up more of the past just yet.

"Later, yes? I need rest, or there will be consequences; ones that no one will like."

On that somewhat sinister note, Artemis turns onto her side, back to the others and pretends to snore.

Ikora laughs. "Alright, we get the hint. Sundance, why don't you leave your contact information as well?"

Artemis faintly hears her do so, as her tired body and mind begin to take her elsewhere.

'Please not there,' she thinks before releasing her will to the exhaustion. 'Not right now, not with the excess Light in my system.'

But Artemis' mind rarely listens to pleading; opting to revisit the darkest parts of her past instead. And the worst so far occurred on the moon.

Chapter Text

Yells and gunfire greet her as she enters a lucid dream. No matter what she does, how many times she tries, the outcome is always the same. 

An explosion knocks Artemis back, and her gun drops from her hands, falling out of view. 'Oh, Light.'' Not even bothering to find it, she instead summons her Bow.

Blasting apart the waves of Thrall swarming her, she fires again and again, but they keep on coming. Switching to her Arc Sword doesn't do much better.

"Apollo! I need you!" Thrall tear at her armour and she punches, kicks, anything to get space. "Apollo!" 

Part of her knows that her Ghost won't answer, but she doesn't care; Artemis needs him; she can't do this without him.

Artemis fights to higher ground, leaving bodies in her wake, but more follow at her heels. It's an endless stream of bones and flesh and howls. No end in sight. She just keeps running, calling out Apollo's name. 

The Thrall overwhelm her and as they tear away the Light within, her mind is wrenched from the dream. 

"Apollo!" Artemis is on her feet, flaming knife in hand, slashing at the emptiness around her. "Apo-llo. Apollo..." Tears stream down her cheeks, clouding her vision, and she drops to her knees.

Blinking to regain enough sight, she grabs for the tablet Ikora left. With tears dripping onto the screen, she selects the newest entry. And then waits, tears still falling.

A beat, then,

"Artemis? Where--oh, dear," Sundance's voice says.

Tears still cloud Artemis' sight, and all she can choke out is, "Cayde."

Sundance understands immediately and acts, transmatting them both to the Hunter's apartment. 

Artemis collapses onto the couch and vaguely hears Sundance say,
"Stay here; I'll get him."

The dream replays in Artemis' head, and she swears she can feel the Thrall tear at her skin. Her Ghost's name sticks in her throat as she remembers how he vanished all those years ago. She sobs harder.

"Temi? What--oh, sweetie." Cayde gently picks her up, cradling her in his arms. "Nightmares suck, don't they?" 

Artemis can feel him walking then pushing a door open with his foot.

"Sundance, can you turn the lamp on?"

Artemis can now see a strip of light from where she's buried her face in Cayde's shoulder. He goes to set her on the bed, but Artemis refuses to let him go.

"Tem, you gotta let go."

"No," Artemis mutters stubbornly. "Never."

"Temi, I just mean from 'round my shoulders." Cayde rubs her back soothingly. 

He gently coerces the sobbing woman to show him her face, then to relax her arms. Bit by bit, the tears slow. Cayde helps her sit on the edge of the bed, then uses the tissues Sundance brought to wipe the remainder of Artemis' sorrow off her face.

"Hey, it's ok, Temi; you're ok. I'm here; I'm not goin' anywhere." Cayde brushes the gold hair off her face, searching the blue eyes. "You wanna talk about it, or..." 

Artemis shakes her head, lips trembling, eyes filling with more tears.

"No talkin' about nightmares, got it." 

They opt for sitting in silence; Cayde kneeling in front of Artemis, his hands covering hers, as they rest in her lap. Minutes pass and the dream fades from the present. As the adrenaline and panic flow out of her body, the exhaustion returns. 

"You must be tired, if that yawn is anythin' to go by." 

He stands, and Artemis grasps his hands tightly.

Cayde smiles gently. "I'm not goin' anywhere, 'cept back to bed. You're welcome to join me, or just lay there, if you're too mad at sleep right now."

Artemis rubs her eyes, nods, and lays down on his bed. Cayde pauses in his shuffling to the other side, watching for a moment, as she arranges her hair on the pillow. 

"Cayde?" 

Her soft voice triggers emotions, but no memories. He tries so hard to remember her, anything of their supposed past together, but nothing surfaces. He'll have a talk with Sundance in the morning, well, later that day.

"Are you ok?"

"Heh, you're asking if I'm ok, after you just lost like two liters of water from crying?" He wants to say, but seeing the fragile look in her eyes, decides not to. 

"Yeah, Temi; I'm ok," he says, sliding back into bed, laying on his side to face Artemis. 

They lay for a few minutes, just looking at each other, enjoying the company. 

When Sundance comes to check up on them half an hour later, Cayde has his arms around Artemis, who lays peacefully in his embrace. She snaps a quiet picture for Ikora, turns off the light and slips out of the room.

Chapter Text

The sun shines through the blinds, right in Cayde's eyes. He groans, moving to turn over, but is stopped by a cool figure next to him. For a moment, Cayde is confused, wracking his brains for the memory of last night. It comes back quickly as Artemis sighs peacefully and snuggles closer for warmth. She's kinda cold for having been under blankets for hours.

He wants nothing more than to cuddle with Artemis until the sun burns out, but he has Vanguard duties to perform. Cayde considers letting Artemis sleep longer, and just leave a note, but he remembers how panicky she got last night. That's a no; shouldn't leave her on her own. He could take her with; give her a tour of the Tower...

Cayde slides out from under the blankets to get ready, trying not to wake--

"Morning," Artemis says, groggily. She stretches and rubs her swollen red eyes.

"Hey, Temi, how'd you sleep?"

Artemis mutters something, stifling a yawn.

"Didn't catch that; yawn got in the way."

"I said, 'lying down'," she repeated, smiling at the grin Cayde flashes her.

He ruffles her hair, messing it up even further. "Smart-aleck; gonna run me out of a job."

She just blinks sleepily up at him.

Cayde laughs. "I gotta do boring Vanguard things; wanna tag along?"

Artemis nods, and tries to stand without freeing her legs from the blankets first. Cayde lunges across the bed, but she trips and falls flat on her face. 

"Uh, you good, Tem?"

"I am the epitome of grace," Cayde hears her say, words muffled by the fabric.

He guffaws, reaching down to help untangle her. After she's able to stand, he gathers clothes for the day. He glances over to her, still in the med bay pjs. 

"I got some clothes that might fit ya, if you wanna try 'em."

Artemis looks down at her shirt, brow furrowed. She stays like that for several seconds, just blinking.

"Still tryin' to wake up, huh?"

"What? Oh, yeah. It's been a while since I've gotten such good quality sleep." Artemis runs her fingers through her hair, trying to tame it.

"I'd offer you a comb, but...," he gestures at his hairless metal head.

"Right. It's fine; this works fairly well." She finishes detangling her gold hair, and stretches again. "What clothes do you have?"

It takes some effort, and digging, but they manage to scrounge up an outfit that fits her. A loose pair of pants, some boots, a long-sleeved shirt, and a warm hat. Artemis initially refuses the hat, but Cayde says,

"It's cold out there, and I can't find my spare cape."

As they make a quick breakfast, Artemis playfully chides him for only having two capes. He defends himself honorably, he thinks, as they walk out the door, Sundance drifting behind. She refused to take sides, but hinted heavily that she agrees with Artemis.

They walk in companionable silence, admiring the changing leaves, and the brisk autumn air. Many people recognize Cayde as they walk pass, but none stop to chat like usual.

"It's because of me," Artemis says quietly. "I'm different than the other Chosen and they can sense it."

Cayde opens his mouth to disagree, but he glances at her and stops in his tracks.
She continues walking another few paces until noticing. Looking back, eyebrow raised in a silent question, she stops too.

"Your eyes, Temi," is all Cayde can say.

Her eyes, while blue the previous night, are now a swirling mix of purple, blue, and gold. Constantly changing their pattern, they both draw and repel a person's gaze. Eerie and unworldly, they throw Cayde temporarily off his rhythm.

"Are they changing colors? Patterns? Swirling like a vortex?" Artemis asks, sighing.

Cayde can only nod.

"Yeah, they do that. It's annoying. I don't want to get into the reason behind it right now." She continues walking, then stops.
"Aren't you going to be late?"

Cayde starts and quickly catches up. He purposely falls in step next to her, not any further than before. 'Just because her eyes are a bit weird right now, doesn't mean she's any different,'' he reminds himself.

They continue their short walk to the transmat zone, and Sundance does the rest. As they appear in the courtyard of the Tower, all the other Guardians pause. Silence falls and tensions rise. Cayde subconsciously moves in front of Artemis, blocking her from view.

"Keep movin'; you got things to do," he says to the watching Guardians.

Slowly they continue about their business, but most still throw glances towards the newcomers.

"Just ignore them," Cayde tells Artemis. "They just don't wanna face ya in the Crucible."

He's about to point out the different stalls when she asks,

"What's that?"

"Huh?"

"What's the Crucible?"

He stares for a second, mouth open, disbelief etched into his face plates. "What's the--"

So he explains. When he mentions it's Guardian vs Guardian, her nose scrunches in dislike. And she straight up huffs when he says who's in charge. He tries to ask about that reaction, but she just waves a hand.

"He knows what he did."

Cayde drops it for now, opting to pointing out the various vendors in the Tower.

"That's Tess; she runs Eververse. Next to her is the Postmaster. Over there, by the vaults, those are the vaults, is Master Rahool; he decrypts engrams. Up there is the Bounty guy; I can never remember his name. And my favorite, Banshee-44, gunsmith for the Tower." Cayde leans to whisper in Artemis' ear. "He takes custom orders."

"You didn't," Artemis replies.

"Oh, yes, I did." Cayde wiggles his eyebrow plates as best as he can.

Artemis laughs.

He shows her the way to the Hall of Guardians, where the Vanguards are set up. Eris is not in her usual spot when they walk down, but he still tells Artemis who's stuff it is. Halfway through explaining, he realizes she's not paying attention.

"Temi? What're you lookin' at, and why are you glarin'?" 

He follows her gaze, which rests upon the Crucible himself: Lord Shaxx.

As if hearing his thoughts, Shaxx looks over to where they stand. Expression concealed by his helmet, he is almost impossible to read. Artemis puts herself in front of Cayde, fists clenched.

A tense moment, then,

"Lord Shaxx."

Shaxx bows his head in acknowledgment, replying, "I had a hard time believing it was really you, Lady Artemis. You seem so different than the warrior the Warlords all feared."

"You feared me, Shaxx?" Artemis curls her lip in a cruel smile.

"I have no reason to do so now; your warrior days are obviously over."

"Why do you assume that?" Artemis squares her shoulders. "Just because I chose to use defence and not offence?"

They are warily closing the space between them, and Cayde can feel a fight coming.

"How about you guys take this tension to the Crucible, huh?" Cayde suggests. "Save the Tower some repairs."

"I don't like fighting fellow Light-bearers, Cayde." Artemis doesn't take her eyes off Shaxx.

"You certainly have changed, then, as I recall you enjoying it," Shaxx says, chuckling softly. "So I am correct in assuming you are no danger to me."

Artemis' jaw clenches and from where Cayde stands he can feel heat beginning to build around her. The colors of her eyes swirl even faster and begin to spread into the veins around them.

"Uh, Tem-"

He's cut off by Artemis saying,
"Send an attack Cayde's way again, Warlord and we'll see if that fear truly is gone."

Artemis is within arm's reach of Shaxx now and isn't backing down.

"If you recall, I aim for Ghosts."

Shaxx is silent for a few moments and Cayde wonders what is going on beneath that helmet.

"You would be foolish to attack a Guardian here, Mi'lady."

"Perhaps, but not as foolish as you mocking my abilities, Warlord. I am far more dangerous now than I ever was during the battle between Lords."

Another tense moment, and Cayde can feel, no, see the anger bubbling beneath the surface of Artemis' mind. He can see the colors still spreading, now across the back of her neck. 

"Perhaps we should take this to the Crucible, Lady Artemis, as there is much hostility between us."

"I said, I don't like--"

"Tem, it might best for you to get those emotions out," Cayde cuts in. "And while I have your attention, it normal for your skin to have like--colors underneath it?"

Artemis freezes, eyes wide with sudden panic. "No..." She pushes up a sleeve to study her forearm. No color, just normal skin. "Good, still time." 

No longer talking to either of them, Artemis begins muttering what sounds like calculations under her breath.

"Uh, you want me to get Ikora? She could help...," Cayde trails off, seeing the woman in question approaching.

"What is taking you so long, Cayde? Ah, I see Artemis is here with you." Ikora pauses, brow furrowed. "What is she doing?"

Cayde just shrugs.

"Her eyes, Cayde!"

"Yeah, she said they do that sometimes; didn't explain why, though."

Ikora calls Artemis' name, but she pays it no mind. Instead the woman continues flicking her fingers in the air, muttering.

After a few minutes of trying and failing to gain Artemis' attention, Ikora turns to Cayde for assistance.

"Can you...?"

Cayde shrugs, and calls out, "Temi! Mars to Temi!" 

'Mars? What?' He logs this tidbit away for another time.

"Huh? What?" Artemis finally responds, hands freezing mid-flick.

"What are you doing?" Ikora asks.
Artemis frowns. "I don't have time to explain why I don't have time to explain. I just need transport to these coordinates." 

She rattles off a set of coordinates to Ikora, who summons her Ghost to show them. They put it in the middle of--

"The desert? What do you--"

"No time!" Artemis cuts her off. "I need to go there now."

"Ok, good enough for me," Cayde says. "Let's go."

Artemis give him a gentle smile. "I need to go alone, Cayde. Almost alone, at least."
She sighs, then calls out, "Circe!"

Nothing.

Artemis tries again, but to no avail. She rolls her eyes then says reluctantly,

"You were right, I was wrong."

A beat, then...

A purple-shelled Ghost appears in front of the gold-haired woman.

"About what in particular?" The Ghost asks, snootily. "The energy build-up or the Hive ritual?"

Artemis purses her lips and responds sharply, "We really don't have time for this, Circe."

"I don't see how this is a 'we' problem."

"You're in the general vicinity, Circe, it's a 'we' problem."

Ikora begins to ask what is going on, but is quieted by both Chosen and Ghost. 

"No time!"

Artemis turns to Cayde. "Where's a ship I can use?"

He quickly tells her where his personal ship is, omitting the name for some reason. She nods in thanks, squeezes his hand once, then Circe transmats them both away.

"I had better get answers from those two when they get back," Ikora mutters, angrily, turning back towards her station.

'I just want them to come back,' Cayde thinks, wistfully.

Ikora pauses in her strides, and calls over her shoulder, "Don't you have work to do, Cayde?"

Chapter Text

It feels like days before Sundance gets the notification that his ship has returned. He immediately puts down the paperwork that he's currently working on and moves to leave when Ikora clears her throat.

"Cayde."

He freezes. "Yeah?"

"You're not leaving before you finish that, are you?"

He winces. Last time she caught him leaving before finishing...

"No?"

"I didn't think so."

Cayde slumps, and walks back towards his map...and the paperwork. 

"I'm sure Holliday will have someone escort Lady Artemis back to your quarters." Ikora says, not looking up from her scrolls.

Cayde dares to glance at her. "Why not here?"

Ikora laughs quietly. "And distract you even further?"

Cayde grumbles, lifting the paper to block Ikora from view. He scans down the boring technical talk, wishing for a way out.

"Cayde?" Sundance appears, voice tight.

"What's up, Sundance?"

"Um, Holliday wants us down in the hanger; there's a problem with-"

She doesn't get to finish her sentence; Cayde's already gone.

"I'm sorry Cayde, but I've been through the flight records; there's nothing."

"There has to be, Amanda; she can't have just vanished!"

It's been almost two months since Artemis vanished and Cayde's been through the records with a fine-toothed comb a dozen times.

"I talked with Ikora and scans showed a Light-based explosion at the coordinates Artemis gave. She survived, if Circe revived her."

Cayde pauses, then turns to where Sundance is floating. 

"She would revive her, right?"

"Yeah, it itches if you don't revive your Guardian, or whatever Artemis is to Circe."

"Yeah, yeah, so she definitely got to the desert, and did whatever that explosion was--"

"Ikora believes it was excess Light energy that her body couldn't contain," Sundance tells him.

Cayde just waves her off and continues to vocalize his thoughts,

"Artemis must've transmatted or somethin' on the flight back. If I could just find the record..."

It's another few days before he spots it; a tiny file in the deleted folder. It contains a transmat code, and a set of coordinates, which was 10,000 feet in the sky.

"She transmatted into midair?!" Cayde started pacing, running his hands over his horn. "Did she have a parachute? No, there wasn't one in my... She couldn't have seriously... Sundance, pack your bags, we're goin' on a trip."

After avoiding Zavala, and ignoring Ikora's warning words, Cayde boards his ship, and sets course to part of a forested area near the Last City. 

Sundance had researched the forest; Pre-Collapse, it was called the Amazon. Most Guardians ended up avoiding the area of the coordinates, for a reason she couldn't find. What she did find was a warning to stay away...from one Andal Brask. Sundance decided against bring that up to Cayde, given their history. 

It takes a few hours before the coordinates are within scanning reach, which show several villages gathered closely in the forest. How they've survived the Fallen, Cayde couldn't figure out. They circle once more then descend, landing in a clearing near the largest village. Sundance shivers upon landing, and says,

"That was weird."

"What was?"

"No idea. Let's hope we don't find out."

Walking to the village, steps wary, hand on Ace, Cayde enters and is greeted by normal civilian life. They had obviously detected his ship, but seem unconcerned by his presence. Several children stop and wave then return to their game. Adults move about unbothered, although some glance at his clothes and weapons. Cayde can hear some whisper, 'Guardian'. 

An old woman approaches him not long after entering. She bows slightly, and says, "Welcome, Guardian. May I ask what your business is here?"

Cayde is taken aback by the calm behavior, by the old-looking buildings with very little sign of damage, and the slight disdain in the whispers of 'Guardian'.

Sundance materializes, shaking her shell at the frozen Cayde, and answers the woman, "We're looking for someone who may be in the area."

Cayde shakes his head slightly and adds, "She's not in trouble...well, not much," he chuckles. "She's a friend of mine and it's been a while since I've seen her." 

"She's sick, too, and needs medical help." Sundance cuts in.

The woman thinks at their words then says, "I believe you need to speak with Champion. They are better suited to assist you."

The old woman leads him to a pavillion in the middle of the village to wait for this Champion.

"Hey, Sundance, can you scan the other villages from here? Or do you need the ship?"

"Why do you want me to scan the others? And I'd need the ship; they're too far for just me."

"I'm curious if they're like this one, chill and undamaged. And see if there's any trace of Fallen 'round." 

Sundance nods and vanishes in a flurry of matter.

"I wanna know how they've survived for so long." Cayde mutters to himself, pacing.

A dark figure quietly drops onto the roof of the building behind the Exo, and crouches in the shadows, watching.

Sundance finally returns after 10 minutes of Cayde's pacing and horn-rubbing. He swiftly turns to face her and opens his mouth to ask, but she cuts him off.

"You need to see what I found." 
With that, she transmats them both back to the ship.

The dark figure stands and moves into the light, watching as the ship turns northeast. Armor glints in the setting sun, a knife sending off golden light to shine on the building.

Chapter Text

"Whoa...that's...I mean, how...?" Cayde can do nothing more than gape at the sight before him.

Dozens of Fallen skiffs, burned, broken, all vacant and destroyed, are all around him. There's not a living creature in sight. And from Sundance's scans, no Fallen have ever scavenged here.

"How...?" Cayde asks again.

"A powerful weapon, as near as I can figure." Sundance floats around, scanning random bits of wreakage.
"Whatever took these down; it explains why there hasn't been Fallen in the villages." 

"Is that a Ketch?" Cayde cranes his neck to get a better look. "How'd someone even take that down? We've gotta talk to this Champion person. Whoever they are, we could really use that kind of fire power."

They transmat back to the ship and are headed back to the main village when Sundance detects another building. 

"It wasn't there a second ago; should we check it out?" 

Cayde's already steering towards it before she can finish her question.

He starts to land in a clearing half a mile from the building when Sundance shouts, 
"No! Pull up!"

Years of fighting have honed Cayde's reflexes, but he's barely able to avoid the wave.

"What was that?!" Cayde opts to circle above the field until Sundance tells him otherwise.

"Looked like a localized EMP directed at the clearing."

"Someone activate it?"

Sundance whirls her shell then replies, "No, it's automated. Really advanced tech, too." She starts muttering to herself. "Looks like someone built it from scratch, from loose pieces of tech. Probably from the Fallen ships..."

"Can you deactivate it, so we can, you know, land?" Cayde gestures at where the pulse came from. "I like flyin', and circles, but I'm gettin' kinda bored."

"What? Oh, lemme see."

They circle the clearing a few more times before Sundance growls in frustration. She whirls her shell, and exclaims,
"Oh, come on! There's no way that has so much security!"

"I could just shoot it," Cayde offers.

Sundance scoffs. "You might have too. That thing is infuriating. Every time I think I'm through, there's another Traveler-forsaken level of security!" 

She flits through the cockpit and Cayde has to duck a few times. 

"Whoever wrote that program, I either want to shoot them, well, for you to shoot them, or get lessons from them. I'll make up my mind after I get throu- What the Darkness!"

Cayde quickly looks at her, reflexively reaching for Ace. "What?!"

"It deactivated itself." She grumbles a few more swear words. "It's safe to land now, I guess."

Cayde shakes his head at his Ghost, with-holding a chuckle that would get him in trouble, and lands the ship.

They disembark, and Cayde immediately takes in his surroundings, on edge, looking for more possible traps. He really doesn't want to be revived today, at least, no more than he has to. 

He spots a few on the way to the building, disassembling them fairly easily. A couple more catch his trained Hunter eye, and one Sundance catches. She deactivates it with a flourish, glad to accomplish something.

Cayde takes another step, and red liquid squirts everywhere. He just stands there, dripping, while Sundance practically screams with frustration. Daring to open his eyes, Cayde checks out the liquid, as his Ghost is cursing again.

"Is this...hot sauce?" Cayde studies the stuff closer, and sure enough, it's hot sauce.

"But I deactivated the trap! How come...oh."

Cayde pauses before asking, "Oh?"

Sundance sighs, saying, "There was a sort of fail safe, an added feature, I guess. If you deactivate this trap, it sets off the, hot sauce, you said?" She scans him and nods.

"Lemme clean you up, then we can continue."

They climb the tree-covered hill, not finding any more traps. They cross a small stream and enter a large clearing.

The building looks old; covered in ivy and moss, door barely visible. The large mossy yard in front is littered with various metal parts, some taken apart, others burned and melted.

"I'm guessin' some of these are Fallen tech, from the looks of 'em." Cayde pokes a nearby piece with Ace. "You think this is Champion's place?"

They look at each other then move down the worn path towards the door.

Chapter Text

Pushing open the door, surprised it was unlocked, Cayde enters. Lights flicker on, showing a medium sized room, completely empty. 

"What? Sundance, you seein' this?"

She flits around his head, scanning the walls, then with a thunk, slams into something. She skitters back and slams into something else. Curses flow like a stream of matter from his Ghost and Cayde can't hold back his laughter anymore. 

He's slid to his knees, holding his stomach before the laughter fades. Sundance joined in after a few moments, and had almost fallen out of the air a few times, which just set them off again.

"So, I guess there's a cloakin' field over this room, or somethin'." Cayde chuckles, gesturing at the points Sundance ran into.

"Looks like it, or rather doesn't, I guess." Sundance scans again, now knowing what to look for. She finds the generator and shuts it off.

Now Cayde can see that the room is a makeshift workshop of sorts. Tables and shelves are covered in more scraps and half built devices; screens line one of the walls, showing programs and camera feeds.

He moves over to the screens, studying the feeds. They show different angles of what seems to be the different villages, the surrounding forests, and the airspace above both.

"So, you think this Champion knows we're here?" Sundance asks her Exo Chosen.

The door slams shut and the lights flicker out.

"Imma go with yes."

There's several tense moments in the silence, in complete darkness, until...

Another door opens across the way, letting in enough light that Cayde is able to make his way towards it.

Upon entering, he sees...another empty room. 

"Really? Oh, come on." Cayde rolls his eyes. "Anticlimactic much?"

He's about to ask Sundance to scan for the cloaking generator when he hears a familiar, annoyed voice.

"Would you stop being so dramatic? It's gotten really old."

The cloaking fades, with a humble sitting room appearing, when the Ghost appears from another doorway. Her purple shell glints as she flies past them both without a word.

"I seem to remember the cloaking being your idea, you know." A woman follows, in the process of removing forest green armour. "So you're not going to help me with this, then?" She gestures at the chest plate, then shakes her head.

"Whatever." Artemis finally looks at Cayde. "What took you so long?"

"Te-Temi? You look...different."

Artemis' hair is longer and shinier. Her eyes are a sharp green, and many freckles dot her cheeks. The shadows beneath her eyes are a lighter lilac. 

She laughs gently at the look on his face as he studies her appearance. Continuing to remove the pieces of green armour, placing each onto a rack nearby, she hums a tune. 

"You look happier. Did somethin' happen?"

Artemis, working on a strap, glances up at the Exo. Her expression softens and she smiles softly.

"Other than finding out my best friend is alive? We had the Festival last week; that always cheers me up."

"Festival? With the villages?" Cayde moves to assist with a particularly stubborn strap.

"Yeah, each village has singing and dancing; it's our way of celebrating another year surviving. Or at least it used to be. Now I guess, it's just tradition, from the journey to Earth."

The chest plate is placed on the shelf, next to a helmet, worn and a bit dirty. Artemis stretches some and unzips the black jumpsuit she wore under the armor to the waist. Underneath is a fitted black shirt, made of a material Cayde doesn't recognize. 

"Ah, that's better. It gets a bit stuffy, if I wear this too long."

"I can understand that. First thing I do after finishin' up a day is change outta my armour." Cayde taps his leather jerkin.

"So...why didn't you come back after the explody thing?"

'Ah, we're finally getting to that,' Artemis thinks. She pauses before answering, figuring out how best to word it, and picks at some dried mud on the helmet. "I made a promise to someone long ago; I intend to keep it, no matter what." 

She nods slightly, seemingly satisfied with her answer. Cayde, however, is not. 

"What does that even mean?!" Cayde doesn't mean to shout, but his frustration of the past two months, all the searching and worrying, burst out of him.

Instead of yelling back or getting angry, Artemis simply holds out her arms. Cayde resists at first, but gives in; he shuffles into her embrace. If he was still in a human body, he would have started crying.

Artemis gently rubs the Exo's back, holding him until he relaxes. 

"I'm sorry I put you through that. I'm a bit reluctant to have outsid-...er, others come here, to my villages."

Cayde pulls back. "I'm sorry, too. I didn't mean to...I'm just frustrated from all the searchin' and when I finally find you..." He gestures around at nothing in particular then sets his head back on her shoulder.

"I lost you once before, and I guess I'm afraid to do it again."

His voice is slightly muffled, but Artemis understands. She remembers how she felt, when she found him, back on Mars...

Chapter Text

Apollo told her later what happened; it was all a blur to her. Emotions flooded her as her heart started to beat again after 12 years. She had never felt so much fury in all her years. It overwhelmed all other things: pain, logic, even fear, which was prevalent given the way she had died. Artemis didn't know where she was, or even who she was. All she knew...

A voice spoke, but she lashed out before the words sunk in. The strange device dodged the first few times, but her strength was returning. Had she always felt this strong? This..alive? She faked right, then went left and connected. The anger in her mind had solidified into something more...something real. The device's metal shell didn't stand a chance against the heat of her fist.

"Ouch!" The thing yelled. 

Artemis paused. A flicker of concern, but the anger quickly overcame it and she continued her attack.

The device kept trying to explain that he was a Ghost from the Traveler's last sacrifice, but Artemis honestly didn't care.

She was starting to remember and it only made her anger grow. All the pain and suffering she had gone through, all the stinging actions, every verbal blow; she was remembering all of it. And if what the Ghost device was saying was true...then everyone she knew was gone. Her parents were already gone, and she had lost Elsie before her death, so really the only one left to care about-

"Cayde."

Artemis moved to the console so fast she nearly slammed into it. It was dusty and damaged, but she remembered the secondary power source. It had only been, what had the Ghost said? Twelve years since she had- But Artemis wasn't going to think about that yet. She could think of nothing but finding him.

The Ghost asked her several questions but she just swiped at him again. 

The computer was painfully slow, but finally... Coordinates received, Artemis headed out.

"Wait! It's dangerous out there!" 

The Ghost quickly followed her, after trying, and failing, to convince her to stay put. 

The snow covered rocks were slippery at times, but Artemis didn't have any problem keeping her balance. She'd have to do a physical on herself later, because she definitely remembered her body as different.

Time was meaningless. Artemis walked miles, and it meant nothing. She had to find him, and anything to get in her way...

The aliens who attacked half a mile from the signal stood no chance. Their weapons glanced off the aura surrounding her. She glowed in the twilight air, fire flowing around her. Artemis didn't even have to touch them; the heat from her skin alone... She would definitely have to do a physical later.

The Ghost, after an initial warning, was silent during the attack. He floated above the scene, in awe or shock. A part of him began to fear the one he chose. 'She didn't even hesitate to kill them...'

He was surprised that the form was still there after all this time. It was half buried in snow and sand, broken and still. The metal glinted in the rising moonlight and the Ghost saw the care behind the craftsmanship. Whoever designed and built this- 

His Chosen stilled upon seeing the Exo form. She's motionless for several minutes, just staring at the broken form. 

He hesitates to tell Artemis what exactly happened afterwards, but gives her the basics. He says seeing Cayde broke down the barriers; the emotions she had subdued upon rising had overwhelmed her and her body just couldn't take the stress. 

"Dying is a hellish experience, especially the way you did. And the fact that you can remember it..." Apollo whirls his shell slowly. "I'm sorry I couldn't make you forget. The trip here was...difficult."

Artemis remembers offering comfort to her Ghost, but a part of her resented him. She could have avoided so much pain if she could just forget. Why can't she just forget?

"I'm forgetting something." Artemis breaks away from Cayde, shaking away the memory. 

"What?"

"I was going to check on something after taking my armor off..." Artemis paces for a minute, then-

"Oh!" She takes off through another door and down a few staircases; Cayde following after a moment.

The concrete walls are damp and cracked, lights dim. His eyes adjust as they reach a solid metal door bolted shut. Artemis punches a code in and the door clicks open. 

Cayde recognizes the smell of ether before he sees the figure in the dark room.

Chapter Text

"We can either do this the easy way, or the hard way." 

Artemis paces around the shackled Eliskni. She pauses, cringing slightly. "Ugh, that was so cliche," she mutters.

The Fallen clicks out something in its own tongue. Cayde understands enough Eliksni to know that it wasn't nice.

Artemis just sighs. "We could do without the cursing, you know."

More Eliksni and Artemis frowns. 

"Of course. But it can either be slow and painful, or quick and painless. Your choice."

"Wait, what? You can understand--?" Cayde corrects himself. " 'Course you can. What's the plan?"

Artemis squares her shoulders and stares down the Fallen. "I'm going to torture them until they tell me what I want to know."

Cayde splutters, clearly not expecting that answer. "What!? You can't do that! I mean, I like Fallen as much as the next Guardian, a bit less, but you can't--"

"I will if I have to." Artemis moves forward slightly. "And judging by the look in their eyes, I'm gonna have to. Why they must always be stubborn and take the hard path, I have no idea." 

"Wait, you've done this before?" The shock in Cayde's voice is palpable.

"How else do you think I've been able to fight off Fallen? I don't just predict it, you know."

Artemis turns back to the shackled creature. "Date and time of the attacks, and coordinates for the landings."

The Eliksni spits and snarls something.

"How can you say that? You've never even met my mother."

Cayde gapes at Artemis' nonchalance for the whole situation. He can't understand how the woman he knew could possibly torture or even hurt another creature. His memories of her are resurfacing, albeit slowly, and he definitely remembers a softer character.

He gently pulls her aside and asks in a whisper,
"You're not actually gonna hurt 'em, are ya?"

Artemis looks him straight in the eyes, green to blue. "Yes, I am."

Halfway back to the Eliksni, she turns and continues,

"You don't have to stay and watch this, if you aren't comfort--" 

"Of course I'm not comfortable with this!" Cayde throws his arms up. "Killin' 'em is one thing, but torture?"

Cayde starts pacing, rubbing his horn.

"That's not-- I mean-- Fallen are our enemies and all, but--"

He turns to face her, but she looks away, waving him off.

"I don't have time to discuss this with you, Cayde. Nor time to listen to you scolding me for something I've done for centuries."

"Centuries!? For centur- Traveler's Shadow, Artemis! This isn't what Guardians do!"

The temperature in the room rises as Artemis stiffens. Her face becomes hard and dangerous. The Eliksni jerks away from the heat, hissing, fear in its tone.

"I am not a Guardian." 

The calm, quiet tone makes Cayde reach for Ace reflexively, all instincts bracing for an attack. He shakes them off, saying,

"Maybe not, but the woman I'm remembering would never have--"

"That woman is dead." Artemis cuts him off smoothly. "She died on Mars over 400 years ago."

Cayde staggers back, as though her last words were a blow. Anger solidifies in his chest and his glare turns cold.

"I thought you were my Temi; I guess I was wrong." 

With that, Cayde-6 leaves the room.

A flurry of emotions cross Artemis' face before she wipes it clear of anything. She still has a job to do.

Sundance suddenly darts back through the door. 

"He's confused by the new memories; trying to reconcile the old you for the one now. Just give him time."

Cayde yells for her. Sundance whirls her shell a moment then follows her Chosen out the door and back home.

It's been weeks since Cayde returned to the Tower, and his mood hasn't improved. Zavala attempts to talk with him, pulling the Exo aside a few days after he returns. 

"Ikora informed me of your...unsanctioned trip. And of what occurred." Zavala shifts his weight. "I understand that a changed character in friends is always difficult to-" 

The Titan pauses, noticing the blank look in Cayde's eyes. He usually sees the look when Ikora reads her reports. Zavala considers continuing, but decides against it. He claps Cayde on the back and returns to his side of the large table. He might try again, if his duties as Commander allow it.

Ikora has yet to stop her attempts to cheer Cayde up. She and Sundance have taken turns pulling small pranks on the Exo, to no avail. The most recent one: tacking the ends of his cape to the chair so he takes it for a walk, Ikora thinks, was her funniest yet. Cayde, however thought otherwise.

"He didn't even laugh." Sundance hovers close to Ikora. "He should have laughed."

After untacking his cape, Cayde simply returns to his paperwork. Now Ikora is truly concerned. Cayde hates paperwork and would never willingly return to it.

"I believe it's time for more drastic measures," Ikora mutters to Sundance.

She's about to respond when familiar voices grow near. The presence of the two remaining Irons gives her an idea.

"What's his problem?" Efrideet asks Ikora, nodding to Cayde. She places her helmet upon the table, then runs her hand through her hair.

"He's having a difficult time coming to terms with the differences Lady Artemis has shown."

"What changes? She's still a bitch in my book."

Cayde's head whips up. "Don't call her that!"

"I can call her whatever I want, Exo."

"Temi isn't-- she's never been--" Cayde stops himself. 

"What do you know about her?"

Efrideet laughs, cracking her knuckles. "Oh, the stories I could tell you." 

Ikora pushes aside papers, looking for a tablet. "I have the written legends somewhere-"

Efrideet waves the tablet aside. "Yeah, yeah, those are all that and everything, but they don't say anything about the beginning. "

"The beginning? You mean, when she was rezzed for the first time?" 

Cayde leans forward slightly, gloves on the table. Zavala pauses slightly in writing a report, glancing towards the Iron Lady.

"It starts with four Ghosts, and their decision to leave Earth."

Chapter Text

The trip was rough, to put it lightly. Stowing aboard a Fallen ship seemed like a good idea...at first. But a few days into it... The Fallen were better at detecting them than they had originally believed and Apollo would bear the damage proving it.

"Finally; we're here."

They decide, after discussion, to go separate ways to search for their Chosen. A clever Ghost, who was designated leader by the others, decided on a meeting area.

"So if, when, you find your Chosen..."

They search and search. Cities, villages, ruins, even makeshift camps of survivors.

The first to find their other half was the leader. They found the Exo in the wreakage of a ship, wearing a flight suit. The survivors in the area would take the name sewn on the back and christen them their Champion. The Exo takes to the role like they were born for it.

The last to be found was a teenager. He had died protecting his family, but was found all alone, with nothing but a necklace. He would research it later, finding the meaning ironic, as he had died with the ankh around his neck.

The third to be found was a young woman. She was rezzed near an encampment of Fallen. She had almost died again, but a glowing warrior had intervened. The heat coming off the woman was almost unbearable. The arrogance was just annoying. The two would butt heads often, neither taking the high road.

Having found their Chosen, albeit years after arriving on Mars, the Ghosts finally meet again. One by one, they arrive at the coordinates picked years ago.

Champion had guarded Martian survivors since resurrection and became a rally point of others. They and their Ghost, Ion, came across an angry woman, tearing apart a Fallen stronghold. Her skill was sloppy, but her fire was strong. Champion could see the honor burn brightly in the woman, past the pain and anger. Strangely, the woman, upon seeing the Exo, crumpled and began to sob.

"Renner, you're alive! I can't believe-- why are you looking at me like that?" 

The joy fell from her face as quickly as it had appeared. She spotted the floating Ghost next to the Exo, identical to her own.

"No..." She slowly stood. "You don't remember me, do you?"

"Were you a pilot, too?" The Exo's voice echoed slightly in the open area.

"I-, no, I was a Doctor; ExoScience at Clovis Bray." The woman approached, offering a hand to shake.

"Artem-, no, I'm not her anymore. Serrena?" She muttered to herself. "No--well, maybe." Looking up at the white face of the Exo, she asks,

"What do you think, Renn?"

"Champion."

"What?"

"My name is Champion." The Exo took the proffered hand and shook it.

"What? Oh, right, your call sign. I guess you were resurrected in your flight suit." She paused, expression darkening. "You died."

A Ghost appeared, and hovered close to the woman's face. He murmured comforting words until the tears cleared from her eyes.

The two Chosen and their Ghosts protected the Martian survivors, gathering them to the coordinates. On a scouting mission, Serrena found the third Chosen. They disliked each other almost instantly. Constantly getting into fights, mainly verbal, they only united to defend.

The dangers of Mars only grew and the Chosen decided, along with the civilian elders, to attempt a seemingly impossible journey: to travel to Earth. The shell of the Traveler, according to scans, was intact and void of darkness. 

"It's our safest bet," Champion voiced.

"Yeah, and all we have to do is find a ship, repair said ship, break atmosphere, fight past all the Fallen blockades, and reach Earth. Sounds totally doable!" 

Serrena scoffed at the woman. "Cham never said it'd be easy, Frigid."

The teen at the campfire, amid re-wrapping an injury to his upper arm, coughed, which sounded almost like a laugh.

"What did you call me?"

The two woman started towards each other, grasping sheathed knives, and Champion simply raised a hand. They both backed down, albeit grudgingly.

"What did I say about mean names, Hunter?"

The gold-haired woman rolled her eyes at the Exo. "Come on, Cham; fits her personality, don't it?"

The teen laughed again, disguising it as another cough. The other woman heard and glared in his direction. Immediately, Hunter jumped the fire in the center and tackled the woman, knife in hand.

"Enough!" The Exo's mechanical voice rang out but the two continued.

The humans, who had backed away from the fighting Chosen, murmured in the background. The teen merely egged them on.

"Come on! Kick her! Yeah! Bite her, Sere!"

"No!" Champion attempting to separate the two, scolded the young man. "Don't encourage her!"

After another minute or so of the scuffling, Champion lost patience. Igniting their sparking Light, they grabbed the neck of the nearest woman. Lifting while shocking their body, the Exo spun then threw them as hard as they could. The Chosen, still sparking from Champion's lightning, flew through the air and out of sight. After repeating the process with the other, in the opposite direction, Champion deactivated the Light.

The Chosen's Ghosts appeared, and began to head in their direction when Champion called them back.

"No healing. Let them suffer the consequences."

With that, the meeting continued.

The treacherous journey to the shipyard was long, but along the way, the Chosen learned more of their abilities. Hunter favored the burning Light, while Frigid, or Dee, preferred the cold Lightning.

"It kinda fits your personalities, you know! Cause, Dee is cool and distant, while Sere is...well, you're a hothead."

Dee, or Efrideet, as she calls herself, simply scoffed and walked away. Hunter just chuckled and mussed the teen's hair.

"Which do you like best, Nubi?"

"Hey! D'you know how long it took me to do that?!" The teen attempted to smooth his hair, a half grin on his face. "Like three whole seconds! And why'd ya call me 'Newbie, huh? Cause I'm the youngest?"

"Nah, it's short for the name you chose: Anubis. It's Ancient...Egyptian, right?"

Nubi nodded, then pulled a dusty book from his bag. He opened to a page, and showed it to the woman who sat next to him. She read about the god and then chuckled.

"Egyptian god of funerals, huh? Why'd you chose that one?"

"Thought it'd be ironic since I didn't get a funeral."

They sat in silence for several moments, mourning their pasts.

"So," Hunter said, breaking the stillness, "Did your Ghost chose her name yet?"

"I'm still thinking about it, actually." The black-shelled Ghost appeared. She darted around Nubi's head to look at the book. 

"I kinda want to match Anubis', but can't decide which--"

They're interrupted by the return of Champion, with a fresh batch of survivors. They had detected a camp nearby and decided to extend an invitation for them to join the others.

"I guess they agreed," Nubi said. "Cool, more people to talk--Sere, you ok?"

Hunter was glaring at a particular Martian, a woman with long blonde hair and sharp features. As she approached the area where the Chosen sat, Nubi felt Hunter's temperature rise.

"Uh, Sere?" 

A second of stillness in which the woman looked over to them, then Hunter dashed towards the woman. 

"You!" Hunter bellows at her.

"Hunter! Stand down!"

Champion had seen her charge. They pulled the raging Chosen back, struggling to move her from the survivor.

"You don't attack civillians!" Champion grunted from the attempt of holding Hunter back.

The woman smirked, sweeping her hair back. "Well, well, seems the little girl finally found her courage."

"Shut it or I'll shut it for you, Reesh!" Hunter struggled in Champion's grasp, spitting the reply.

"Oh, I'd love to see that, Huntson. What are you going to do? Cry at me?"

Hunter's skin began to steam and Champion winced at the heat. Nubi sprang up to help, but the Exo told him to stay back.

"Get Dee; I may need her strength."

Reesh simply smirked again at Hunter's attempts to reach her. The gold-haired woman growled and thrashed, trying to break free from the metal grasp of the Exo.

"Yes, there's a good unit; keep the 'vicious' little girl away from me." 

Hunter stilled. 

"What did you just call them?" Her voice was a mere whisper.

Efrideet, who had arrived in time to see Hunter still, sighed. She crossed her arms and just glared at the pair. 

"I thought Nubi said there was an emergency. Hothead getting angry hardly constitutes as one, with how often that happens."

She studied the quiet woman in Champion's grasp. Upon seeing something, she took several steps back.

"I'd let her go, if I were you, Cham. Unless you wanna be revived today."

"What?" Nubi looked Hunter over as well, then stumbled back, eyes wide. "Yeah, that's a good idea."

"Why are you all so afraid of her?" Reesh scoffed. "She's nothing but weak, pathetic, Exo-lover, who couldn't even stand up for herself. Like she's actually something danger-- why is she glowing?"

Champion, instead of letting go and scrambling back, held Hunter tighter in an embrace. They ducked their head by the woman's ear and began to speak.

Slowly, bit by bit, the glow faded and the heat dissipated. Quiet sobs were heard past the Exo's shoulder where Hunter's face was now tucked.

"Can I let you go now?" Champion asked.

Hunter slowly released her grip on the Exo and faced Reesh.

"I'm not afraid of you." Hunter squared her shoulders, standing tall. "You can't hurt me anymore. You nasty, cruel, horrible woman, who will end up dying alone because no could possibly love a monster like you. And yes," Artemis cut her off, "I've always thought this of you, only now I've found the courage to say it."

Slowly walking toward her past abuser, the gold-haired Chosen pushed past all the mental blocks, having found the strength to finally stand up for herself.

"I am worth so much more than what you made me feel like. And I didn't deserve any of your treatment."

Now in front of Reesh, Hunter lowered her face to look directly into the woman's pale eyes. 

"Your harsh words mean nothing to me, and will cause no more damage. But," Hunter's eyes glowed gold for a split second, "Call them anything but Champion again, using a respectful tone, and I will turn you into a pile of ash."

Reesh looked arrogant for the beginning of the exchange, but it quickly turned to fear. The woman standing in front of her was nothing like the one she remembered.

"You really are dangerous, I guess." Reesh muttered, then scoffed. "Or maybe it's just bravado that will fail the second things really get hard."

Artemis, who had been turning away, whipped around, fist flying. A sharp noise then Reesh was on the ground. 

She wiped the blood off her lip and spat,
"No wonder he left; with you being so emotional."

The mere mention of her Exo ignited the fury inside Artemis' heart and the anger exploded outward in a raging inferno.

Luckily, Champion saw this coming and was able to surreptitiously clear the area of onlookers. At the last second, they dove in front of the blonde woman, and summoned a small bubble around them both. The power of the fire Light emitting from their friend almost caused the shield to fail, but the Exo's inner strength surpassed it.

Chapter Text

After Hunter had exhausted her Light, and the ash had settled, civilians slowly returned to the scene. There had been very little in the area, except now nothing but a burned crater remained, with patches of the Martian sand turned to glass. A small area that was protected by Champion's purple Light remained untouched by flames. The Exo now knelt, holding the shaking figure of their friend.

They all would have remained as such for however long, but a sensor began to beep; a device Hunter had rigged that would warn of nearing Fallen. Now a large ship approached the encampment. They were not yet within weapons range but would soon be firing upon the people.

Champion stood, lifting Hunter to her feet as well. 

"We need to act quickly." 

The Exo gestured to the other Chosen, who had been with the civilians on the outskirts of the crater. Efrideet and Anubis came closer as Hunter and Champion did the same.

"Any ideas?"

"We could form a human slingshot and shoot 'em out of the sky!" 

Champion chuckled at Nubi's enthusiasm. "Let's call that plan 'B'. Dee? Hunter?"

Albeit exhausted, Hunter turned to study the rapidly approaching ship. She muttered quick calculations then cursed quietly.

"Well?"

"They're too far for my bow, if I could even summon it right now," Hunter said, as she leaned against Champion's frame.

"Wouldn't have that problem if you could just keep your cool," Efrideet muttered under her breath. "But I guess that's too hard for a hothead like you."

"If I weren't so drained, I'd deck you so hard, you'd break atmosphere."

"Ooh, good one, Sere!" Anubis laughed, a high-five offered, then lowered at a look from Champion. "Sorry, Cham."

"Really, you two? We have enough problems as it is. Can we please come up with a plan?"

A few moments of silence passed, then,

"Anubis might have the right idea."

He gaped at Efrideet, eyebrows raised high, mouth ajar.

"Continue," Champion said.

"We don't have weapons that will reach that far, but we do have something else." Efrideet clenched a fist, sparks flying.

Anubis cackled, quickly doing the same, and touched her's with his. He jumped with excitement as the lightning flowed between the two Chosen. It began building until Efrideet ended the flow.

"That should work, if you work together," Hunter said. "Who are you planning on throwing, though?"

"Ooh, ooh, me! Me!" Anubis bounced up and down, lightning still crackling.

"Shut it off for now, ok?" Champion told him and he obeyed.

"How about we use those explosives we found a few weeks ago, strap them to a certain blonde bitch I know of and--" 

"No, Hunter."

"But Cham--"

"No."

Hunter huffed, and pushed away from the Exo. She instead chose to lean on Anubis, who draped an arm around her shoulders.

"It should be me," Champion said.

Anubis' protest was quickly stopped by a raised metal hand. 

"My reasoning is that I have the most experience fighting Fallen. If the ship does not explode on impact, I will have to fight to the engine room." 

The Exo looked around at the others. "Any objections to this?"

The Chosen and their Ghosts all said no, albeit grudgingly on Anubis' part.

"Very well; let's do this."

The civilians were told of the plan and the spot to throw from was picked. Efrideet and Anubis summoned the lightning, and used their combined strength to pick Champion up. The years of fighting had built muscles, in addition to the strength given by the Light. 

With Hunter's calculations, their aim was true. Halfway to the Fallen ship, Champion summoned the lightning as well. The ship's shields stood no chance. The civilians cheered as the ship crashed to the ground.

"Ooh, it's gonna take a bit for Cham to get outta that," Anubis said, grinning.

Chapter Text

"I bet you're getting tired of me coming down here. I've definitely put Ion to sleep with my chattering."

Artemis lowers herself in front of the still form of an Exo sealed in a stasis chamber. She glances at the dark eye of the Ghost laying on a table next to it, giving it a weak smile.

"Yeah, I should leave the jokes to Nubi, huh?"

The Exo remains still.

"Right."

Artemis sits, crosslegged, in the quiet for many minutes, lost in her thoughts.

"I know I tell you this everytime, but I really need your advice, especially now. I told you, about Cayde, him being alive again. And being an Exo, he somewhat remembers me. His Ghost told me that he's remembering more, too."

Sighing, the gold-haired woman runs a shaking hand across her face.

"He hates me." Her voice breaks and tears fill her eyes.

"And I know what you'd say: 'No, he doesn't, no one who knows you could hate you.' Well, that's not entirely true, is it? Frigid hates me. I'm pretty sure Shaxx hates me." A pause, then more quietly. "I hate me."

Glancing at the dark eyes of the broken Exo, Artemis quickly adds,

"Yeah, yeah, I shouldn't hate me, but I do, Cham. Especially after what happened to you. What I did...or rather didn't do. How could I not hate myself? I'm the reason you're..."

Voice failing her, the woman stops fighting the tears. Her sobs echo around the stone room.

"And I've done horrible things, too, to so many people. And yes, Fallen are people, despite what you may think."

"I know, I know. It was neccessary, is still necessary, to do some of those things, but... I hate it. Every bit. I know more about Eliskni anatomy than pretty much everyone. And I hate it. I can't get those images out of my head. The smell of the blood and the ether. Sometimes, if it gets really quiet, it's like I can still hear the screams...echoing..."

She laughs bitterly.

"No wonder Cayde hates me, after what I've done. I'm not the same person he knew, not even a bit."

She gestures up at the still form. "You can agree with that, though your memories of me are a bit vague."

Artemis rubs the tears off her face, sniffing.

"I wish you were still here, Cham. I can't do this alone. Ok, yeah, I can. But I don't want to."

She cries quietly, letting the tears fall freely, staring up at the broken form. The room is silent and the Exo still.

"I miss you so much," Artemis chokes out. "I wish I wasn't such a bloody coward, and yeah, I am. I just can't go there, not after what happened. And the thing on that Moon just made it worse."

Fresh tears begin falling as memories threaten to surface.

"Right, right, don't think about that. No reason to trigger a flashback or anything."

Artemis laughs weakly. "It's not like I have you here to comfort me, to hold me. Traveler, I miss your hugs, even if they were metal ones."

"You remember that song, the sad one?"

Laughing, Artemis continues,
"Real specific, I know. Lemme see if I remember. 'Ollo had most of the back-ups."

After thinking for a few seconds, Artemis begins to softly sing.

"I'd climb every mountain
And swim every ocean
Just to be with you
And fix what I've broken
Oh, 'cause I need you to see
That you are the reason..."

Voice cracking, she stops, wiping away more tears. 

"I think that was the chorus. I could sing that song for the rest of time, and it couldn't convey how I feel. I can't possibly forgive myself after what happened to you."

"I know you asked me to, but I just can't, Cham."

Artemis is about to continue speaking when the intercom flickers to life.

"Stop whining to the dead Exo, and get your butt up here!"

"Circe." Artemis growls, springing up to respond. After pressing the button, she spits out, 

"What the hell do you want?!"

"One of your old devices keeps beeping and it's driving me crazy."

Artemis clenches her jaw, taking a deep breath. "Then turn it off."

"Love to," the Ghost says. "Little problem: it has one of those bio-lock things you love using. So get up here and shut the thing off before I transmat something heavy over it."

The intercom shuts off, leaving Artemis no time to reply. She pinches the bridge of her nose, controlling her breathing.

Glancing at the Exo, she mutters,

"Wish me luck, Cham. Or rather wish Circe luck at dodging."

Chapter Text

After Efrideet finishes her story, the room is quiet. Ikora looks up from her notes, waiting for more. Cayde, on the other hand, is less than impressed.

"Nice story; doesn't tell me what kinda person Tem--" He clenches his jaw. "--Artemis is.

Efrideet just laughs. "What kind of person? Hothead? Oh, Traveler, the stories I could tell you..."

"Ok, then tell me."

They look at each other from across the table for a beat, then two.

"Wait, really?" Efrideet asks. "You honestly want me to tell you what kind of--"

She rubs her face, chuckling. "Well, they say the best people to ask is someone who doesn't like the person. Ok, what do you want to know?"

Cayde rubs his horn. "I dunno, anything."

"Anything, huh? Ok, she's insanely easy to piss off. Like seriously, you look at her the wrong way and she'll start a fight." Efrideet shakes her head.

"Oh, and speaking of starting fights, guess what she did when she got bored?"

Efrideet doesn't wait for Cayde's answer.

"She starts bar fights. It's crazy; Hothead loves fighting. Did you know that she was always the first on the battlefield?"

Ikora opens her mouth, probably to spout some lore.

"And she was always the last to leave, too. Looking for Ghosts, I think. She liked poking at 'em, learning how they worked."

At this, the Iron Lady scoffs, glaring at nothing. "She always did like sticking her nose where it didn't belong. "

"You really expect me to believe all this? Bar fights, Ghost experiments?" Cayde looks doubtful.

"Hey, I had to spend years with that woman. You know how many scars Hothead gave me?"

"Well, I bet you deserved 'em," Cayde shoots back.

"Hardly....well, ok, maybe a few. But it wasn't just me that she's attacked. Ask Shaxx if you don't believe me."

She gestures at the Warlord busy officiating Crucible matches.

"There's a reason why I call her Hothead, you know. The woman was always angry or near there. That wouldn't normally be a problem, but her Light is tied into her emotions."

Ikora mutters something like 'fascinating' under her breath and begins her note taking again.

"She favors Solar, even before we really knew what it was. Whenever she got angry..." Efrideet shakes her head slowly.

"What happens?" Cayde asks.

"Destruction. Lots of fiery destruction."

Reminiscing, Efrideet stares off into the forest beyond the Wall. She shivers, rubbing her left shoulder like it pains her.

"We quickly learned her tells, what would happened before she exploded. Anubis figured out most of them. Let me see if I remember..."

Cayde's mind is reeling. He can't imagine Artemis losing her cool, not at all. And purposely starting fights? Not even a little. And the thing with Ghosts...Artemis was always curious about how things worked but experimenting...?

"Were any of the Ghosts alive?" Cayde asks, tearing Efrideet out of her revere.

"What?"

"The Ghosts that she tinkered with, were any of 'em alive?"

The other Hunter thinks for a second then,

"No, I don't think so. She only used Warlord ones, which were killed during battle, so..."

Nodding, Cayde relaxes slightly. Maybe his Temi is still in there, after all...

"Anyway, her tells are..." Efrideet trails off, grin crossing her face. "Eyes up Guardians, Hothead incoming."

The words barely leave her mouth before a knife hits the table directly in front of her.

"Lady Artemis! That is not--" 

"Shut up," Artemis growls at Ikora, not taking her eyes off the Iron Lady.

"Your memory must be going, old crone, 'cause I specifically remember telling you to never use this frequency again." 

Artemis raises a small radio, then tucks it into a pocket.

"You lost that right when you abandoned us."

"Got you here, didn't it?" Efrideet replys.

She jerks the knife from the table. "Oh, I'm keeping this, by the way."

Artemis clenches her jaw. "No, you're not."

Snapping her fingers twice, the knife flies out of Efrideet's hand. Artemis catches it easily and returns it to a sheath.

"You and your stupid bio-tech!"

Artemis just smirks, then stalks closer, placing her clenched fists on the table. Ikora and Efrideet stand to her right, with Zavala at the other end of the table. Cayde is gaping at her from the left. She pays none but Efrideet any attention, aside from snapping at Ikora earlier.

"I will give you one chance to hand over that radio, Frigid."

Efrideet laughs. "Or what? Huh? What are you going to do? Burn me?"

"Don't tempt me," Artemis spits back.

Efrideet folds her arms, smirking.

"Shaxx told me about your encounter with the Guardians. How you reacted to actually using the Light. Overwhelmed you, huh? You never really could fight well without it, unlike me. So what exactly are you gonna do?"

Artemis' expression hardens at her words. Clenching her jaw, she growls back,

"Do not underestimate the lengths I will go to to defend my people--"

"Defend your people?" Efrideet laughs. "Don't talk about defending your people, you filthy hypocrite."

Cayde opens his mouth to interject, but Artemis beats him to the punch.

"You're seriously calling me a hypocrite? Says the woman who jumped ship the second it landed!"

The two women had circled the table and were now almost face to face.

"I was sick of being near an arrogant Hothead like you!"

"You didn't even help unpack!"

"You kept bossing me around!"

"We'd lost Nubi on the way here and needed your help, but no! Protecting people was too dull a work for such a grand explorer like you."

Efrideet flings her arms up in the air, laughing almost psychoticly. "Oh, you're really gonna lecture me about protecting people? After the stunts you've pulled?"

Artemis growls again, hand on her knife.

"I've done nothing but protect people! All these years! All these centuries!" 

Cayde notices a hitch in her voice, one that she always got before tears came. He automatically starts to move around the table to her, but a look from Ikora stops him.

"And I've done it alone, for the most part."

A beat, then Efrideet spits venomously,
"And just who's fault is that?"

Artemis staggers back as though slapped.

"Don't you dare--"

"I heard the stories. I know enough to piece together what happened. That stupid fake-out move your Ghost came up with--"

Artemis draws her knife, cutting in with, 

"You leave 'Ollo out of this!"

Efrideet just waves her hand. "Whatever. You had the skill to fix the damage. Don't bother denying it; the amount of times I saw you fix up the Exo survivors. But no, you were too much of a coward to--"

Cayde cuts in with an indignant, 'Hey!', but both women just wave him aside.

"You're the reason Champion is dead."

The room is silent after Efrideet's words. Artemis is pale and still, her eyes glossy.

"What do you want me to do?" She asks the Iron Lady, voice quiet. "Apologize? Admit their death was my fault? As though Cham had no choice in the matter? They knew the risks, and continued to--"

"Oh, you know full well you could've talked them out of it. Cham always listened to your advice."

"They wouldn't have had to put themselves in so much danger if there had been another Chosen defending, too. But no, you had leave before we'd even made camp. Had your stuff all packed before we even broke atmosphere."

Efrideet scoffs. "You left too, ya know, to fight with the Irons."

"That was not the same and we both know it. When I wasn't running missions, I was always back in S'ram."

Artemis waves Efrideet's response aside, saying,

"All this is irrelevant. I didn't come here to argue with you. I'll take the radio and hopefully never see you again."

Cayde releases a breath he didn't know he was holding and relaxes. Tensions were high, but he knew what Efrideet had said about Artemis' supposed temper couldn't be true.

"No."

"What did you say?" Artemis' voice is almost too quiet for Cayde to hear.

"You'll have to pry this radio from my dead hands."

Laughing, Artemis cracks her knuckles. "Oh, this'll be easy."

"You do realize where we are, right?" 

Efrideet gestures around the large room, at the Vanguard, listening intently to the conversation. 

"I'm an Iron Lady, a legend. You really think you'd be able to take me down here? Or at all? You can't use the Light without problems, remember?"

Smirking, Artemis opens her mouth to reply, when Circe's voice chirps from a radio.

"Not only that, but she can't even access her's."

"Really? I thought it was strange that you had to change Shaxx's hammer into your bow instead of just summoning it yourself," Efrideet says. "Guess all this threatening was really just a bluff. You never could fight well without the Light."

Efrideet draws closer to Artemis, steps deliberate. "I ask again: what are you going to do? Hmm?"

Artemis glances around the room, at Ikora, Zavala, and finally, Cayde. Her expression hardens and she looks away. A tall, armoured figure, lingering in the archway, catches her attention.

Looking back at the female Hunter before her, she says,

"Let's take this to the Crucible."

Chapter Text

Shaxx stands before his monitors in the Tower, studying the two women in front of him carefully. Cayde paces behind him and Ikora grips a tablet, waiting.

"Now, I would say I'd like a clean game, but knowing you two...," he trails off, shaking his helmeted head.

"Now, the first to five kills wins. The rules--"

Efrideet scoffs at the word.

"The rules are as follows: Weapons and Light allowed. No targeting Ghosts. No exceptions--"

"Yeah, Hothead," Efrideet spits at the other woman.

"I've nothing against your Ghost, Frigid. You're the bitch, not her." Artemis pauses. "Though I think we can both agree Circe can definitely be shot at."

At that, both women laugh. Shaxx merely shakes his head again.

"Anyway," he continues. "I don't believe you'll need a time limit, so whenever you're both ready--"

"Wait," Cayde cuts in, having noticed something. "Tem, aren't you gonna wear armour? Efrideet has hers."

He's right, as the Iron Lady has full combat gear while Artemis is wearing a simple sleeveless tunic and pants. 

"And what about weapons? She has a rifle, and all I see is a knife on you. If you're gonna challenge someone to a fight--"

"Stay out of this, Cayde; I know what I'm doing." 

Ikora looks up from her notes, and adds,

"Did you let Circe know about this?"

Efrideet turns to face Artemis. "Yeah, where is she? She's gonna hate it if she misses seeing you get beat up."

Artemis smirks, cocking her head. "She'll live. And what makes you think I need a Ghost to fight?"

Scoffing again, the Iron Lady gestures to Shaxx, like 'can you believe this?', then looks at Artemis.

"Well, she's gonna have to revive you, ya know. So where is she?"

"S'ram," was Artemis' simple response.

Cayde throws his hands up in the air, totally ready to scold Artemis into next century, but Shaxx speaks up.

"If Lady Artemis says she doesn't need a Ghost to fight, then you should believe her."

"That's that, then. You ready to lose, Frigid?"

Cayde turns away from the gold-haired woman, fuming at the arrogance. The stories Efrideet had told him and the lore he'd read started making more sense.

"Will you at least be wearing armor, Lady Artemis?" Ikora asks.

"What makes you think I'm not?" Artemis' smirk is back.

"You and your stupid bio-tech! You finished the anti-energy weave, didn't you?!"

Efrideet storms away then whips back around. Brushing her hair off her face, she calmly puts her helmet back on.

"Let's do this."

In the forested arena, the two Chosen are transmatted to opposite sides and the game begins.

Gripping her rifle, Efrideet stalks towards the center, eyes scanning the trees.

"Where are you, ya little..." she mutters.

Cayde watches the monitors carefully, aware that things can happen in a split second in the Crucible. A map of the area is on another screen with only Efrideet's signal showing.

"Why can we not see Lady Artemis' location, Shaxx?" Ikora asks.

Cayde barely listens to his response, as the camera angle changes.

It now shows Efrideet circling the center of the forest, waiting for Artemis to show herself.

"I'm waiting for these supposed Light-free skills you have, Hothead!" 

"Why is she giving away her position?" Cayde asks aloud.

Shaxx, now standing next to him, replies,

"She's thinks she's safe."

"Well, she does have full armour plus a gun and Temi only has a knife."

Shaxx merely shakes his head, chuckling. "Serrena has taken down far more powerful with far less." 

"Serrena?" Cayde raises his Exo equivalent of an eyebrow. "What happened to Lady Artemis?"

Shaxx tilts his head and Cayde can only guess what his expression is.

"Ah, yes, a slip of the tongue."

The Warlord turns towards the screen and Cayde takes it as the conversation being over.

He returns his attention to the screens as well, wondering what Artemis is planning.

Efrideet continues pacing, helmet turning this way and that, gun at the ready.

A squeal of feedback through the radio makes the Iron Lady jerk backwards, right into a tree. There's a tiny click that Cayde barely picks up; one he recognizes from a trip wire trigger. Efrideet must have heard it as well, because she lunges forward into a roll. A tense second, then nothing.

"Really?!"

Efrideet fires her gun around, branches are sheared off from the force.

"Come out and face me!"

"You don't need to shout."

The air shimmers behind Efrideet and Artemis appears. The second Efrideet moves to fire, Artemis is gone, invisible once more.

"You're going to have to be faster than that, darling."

Artemis' voice seems to come from behind Efrideet again and she tears at the air with a knife.

"Up here."

A rapid gun blast tears into the branch where the voice came from, but again, nothing.

Efrideet almost screams with frustration. She tears her helmet off, and flings it aside. 

"You...you..." she seems almost too angry for words. "Should have known. Can't ever fight without your tech."

"I can."

The camera pans to show Artemis, up in the tree Efrideet shot at, Golden Bow at the ready. She fires.

"Point, Lady Artemis," Shaxx says.

Cayde shakes his head slowly, impressed at the skill.

"They named the Class 'Hunter', after her, for a reason." Shaxx says, nudging Cayde. "The stories I could tell you..."

Efrideet is fuming upon rez. She sprints to the center, activating her Arc staff the second she reaches it. 

"Where are you?!"

No answer.

"Show yourself!"

Cayde sees a shimmer move behind Efrideet a split second before Artemis appears. 

Not even reacting to the Arc energy crackling around Efrideet, she kicks her to the ground. Before the Iron lady can react, Artemis has her in a headlock. 

"Stop yelling." 

Snap.

Efrideet falls.

"Point, Lady Artemis."

Ikora says it this time, awe in her voice. She starts muttering something, probably trying to figure out Artemis' cloaking method.

This time, Efrideet stays in the rez area, making Artemis come to her. It takes a few minutes until Cayde spots the shimmer. Efrideet sees it too, and starts shooting. Artemis must have dodged behind a tree, because the Iron Lady curses. 

"Can't face me directly, huh?" Efrideet laughs. "You never were that great at hand to hand."

A few seconds of silence pass, then the camera changes. It shows Artemis drop the cloak, still behind the tree. She's tapping at her left wrist, smirk obvious. 

Another squeal of the radio, then music starts blasting. 

"I am invincible, unbreakable
Unstoppable, unshakeable
They knock me down, I get up again
I am the champion
You're gonna know my name
You can't hurt me now
I can't feel the pain
I was made for this, yeah, I was born to win
I am the champion."

Cayde's never heard the song before, but Shaxx starts laughing. 

"Really? Arrogant, much?" Efrideet is not amused. She throws her gun aside, growling. "Hand-to-hand, no tricks, nothing extra."

Artemis peeks around the tree, still smirking. She shrugs. "Won't change the result, but alright."

Efrideet charges, and they begin. At first, Artemis just dodges blows, laughing. The music is still playing and Cayde notices Artemis mouthing the words, no, she's singing along. Her voice never wavers as she moves. 

A few minutes pass as Efrideet tries and fails to land a hit, then, as the chorus begins again, Artemis fights back. In less then five seconds, she lands eleven hits. The last kick knocks Efrideet down and then...

Snap.

"Point, Lady Artemis." Sundance twirls her shell, amusement in her tone.

In the seconds between death and rez, Artemis just sings along with the music.

"When they write my story
They're gonna say that I did it for the glory
But don't think that I did it for the fame, yeah
I did it for the love of the game, yeah
And this is my chance I'm taking
All them old records I'm breaking
All you people watching on the TV
You go ahead and put your bets on me, ay"

At the last lines, she looks up at the nearest camera and winks. Cayde looks away, flustered. Shaxx just laughs.

Efrideet comes in swinging, not bothering with a gun or Light. Cayde sees the glint of a knife, as it swings toward the turned back of Artemis. Without even looking, she blocks it with her arm, and kicks out. Efrideet ducks and keeps swinging. Artemis just laughs at her efforts.

"Oh, darling, you're adorable. Look at you, raging like a Titan. Where's the finesse?"

Dodging another swing, Artemis goes into a backflip, twisting to continue flipping. Then she jumps against the nearest tree and uses the inertia to power a punch. 

Efrideet, still distracted by all the flips, doesn't block in time. Fist collides with helmet and Iron Lady goes down.

Artemis flicks her hand, scowling. "Talk about a hard head."

Thinking her opponent is still dazed, she takes a moment to inspect her knuckles. The second her attention goes elsewhere, Efrideet moves, tackling her. The women scuffle, trying to gain the upper hand. Seconds tick by as they roll, then...

Snap.

"Point, Lady Artemis," a soft voice says behind Cayde, making him jump.

Zavala had finally torn himself away from paperwork to watch. Cayde debates asking him what he thought, but decided against it. 'He's probably just watching for threat assessment.'

"Enough!" Efrideet is back. "No more hand-to-hand." 

Artemis sits on a low tree branch , swinging her feet in the air. "Still think I'm lacking in that department?"

Efrideet just grumbles. "Weapons, no Light, and no decking."

Artemis springs out of the tree into a perfect salute, yelling, "Sir, yes, sir!"

The Iron Lady just cocks her gun and points it at the other woman. Cayde can imagine the smirk on her face as she pulls the trigger.

Artemis doesn't even flinch as the bullet tears toward her. The impact moves her back a bit, but her expression doesn't change. 

"Armor held up?"

The gold-haired woman just smirks.

Growling, Efrideet changes the stream from single to multiple. She fires, but Artemis had moved. Knife in hand, she weaves through the bullets, deflecting multiple with the blade. Cayde sees a few hit her, but the invisible armor holds.

Efrideet continues to fire as Artemis approaches her. She seems to gain confidence as the bullets hit home more often.

'How long can her armor hold up against that?' 

Just as Artemis reaches Efrideet, a spot on her abdomen fails. Cayde waits for the pained yell, but there's nothing; not even a gasp.

Efrideet is just as surprised at her lack of response, as she doesn't notice the knife until it's thrust under her chest plate. Gasping at the pain, she jerks back. Artemis' grip on the knife loosens, so it's wrenched out of her hand.

The Iron Lady rips her helmet off, and collapses to her knees, pressing around the knife. 

"I guess it's a tie." 

"No."

Artemis' face is empty, and her eyes cold as she leans toward Efrideet. Not breaking eye contact, she grips the handle of her knife and slowly pulls.

Cayde is thrown by the change in her behavior. It's like looking at a different person.

"You should have stayed with your people." Artemis whispers, as the knife falls to the ground.

With nothing stemming the flow of blood, Efrideet quickly joins it.

"Point, Temi."

Chapter Text

The Vanguard are all standing by Shaxx's station when Artemis is transmatted back.

"Where's Lady Efrideet?" Ikora asks.

Artemis grimaces, then replies, "Her Ghost and I both agreed it'd be best if she were transported back to Winter's Peak before rezzing. She's gonna be rather...furious isn't exactly the right word."

"Yeah," Cayde says, "She'd probably kill you."

Artemis just stares at him for a moment then turns to Shaxx. "He was watching, right?"

After Shaxx's affirmative response, she continues, "Frigid tried and failed five times. What makes you think she'd succeed a sixth?"

Cayde opens his mouth to respond, but his eyes catch the way Artemis is holding herself, blocking a certain area from view.

"Infirmary, now."

Shaxx stiffens slightly at Cayde's tone, and Artemis just glares at him. She walks toward him slowly, every move careful. Now inches away, she says in a quiet voice,

"What did you say?"

"You heard me." Cayde crosses his arms, not flinching from her gaze.

"I am not a Guardian, and therefore not under your command. You have no authority to give me orders. If you'd like me to consider what you said, I suggest you rephrase it."

They stand, glaring, for several moments, before Cayde replies with,

"Fine. Just take care of yourself, ok?"

He hears Shaxx sigh and vaguely sees him shake his head.

"TT," is all Artemis says, glowering at the Exo in front of her. "Did you not hear a word of what I said?"

"What? All I said was to take care of yourself. What's wrong with that?"

Artemis scoffs, pinching the bridge of her nose. "It's how you say it, not-"

She sighs, pressing her stomach a bit harder. "I don't have the patience to hash this out right now. I'll be in the hanger; I want to get Holliday's opinion on something."

Cayde moves to block her path, but Shaxx speaks up,

"Perhaps you should visit the Infirmary first?"

Artemis freezes and looks at him, but Cayde can't read her expression. After a moment of thought, she replies to the Titan,

"I know how much blood I can lose before it becomes a problem. I have time."

Shaxx moves in a way that suggests he wants to say more, but he simply nods.

As Artemis walks up the stairs to the Courtyard, she can hear Cayde explode at Shaxx for letting her go. A small smile appears before disappearing, sadness taking over instead.

Holliday is sitting in her usual spot giving instructions to a frame. As Artemis approaches, the frame starts glitching. Amanda slides off her box and thumps her fist against it's chest.

"Huh, that usually does it."

Artemis surreptitiously scans the frame, searching for the malfunctioning program. She spots it and quickly patches the glitch. As she stands there, tapping at her left forearm, the mechanic notices her.

"Um, are you ok?"

It takes a second for Artemis to realize that she's talking to her. Glancing up, she replies,

"Yeah, just finishing up, and...done."

A few final taps, then the frame powers down.

Holliday curses, grabbing a tablet. Artemis waves her hand, saying,

"Give it a second; it's just rebooting to allow the patch to take effect."

"Patch, what pat- wait, that's what you were doing? Where's your tech?"

After pausing a moment, debating whether or not to show her, Artemis decloaks the device. It's a piece of Golden Age tech that puts the tablets to shame.

Amanda stands, mouth open, taking in every millimeter of the tech.

"Where'd you get that?"

"Built it, back in the before, I mean, pre-rez. It runs on sophisticated nanotech I developed. It's attuned to my unique bio-sign, and reacts to micro implants in my right fingers."

"Whoa, that's...we have nothing like that now. Wait, you built that?"

Artemis smiles at the awestruck look in Holliday's eyes. She remembers another tech-inclined person who often had that same look. Anubis loved it when she explained how Golden Age tech worked.

"But how can you see the projections while its cloaked? Do you have occular implants?"

"Sort of; I had a bad reaction to direct implants, so I designed this:"

Tapping her right temple twice, then moving her hand across her eyes, the visor projection appears.

"I take it you can cloak that, too?"

After Artemis' affirmative reply, Holliday continues asking questions about how it interacts, its power source, programming, etc. Artemis answers her questions gladly, happy to have someone to talk tech with again.

After a few minutes of that, she remembers her reason for being there. But before Artemis can ask, a group of three Guardians draw her attention.

They are all female, and Warlock class, Artemis guesses. And the way they hold themselves reminds her of another group of Chosen. Following their gaze, she sees an Exo lifting boxes.

The Exo's form is mismatched and obviously old. Artemis' trained eye sees many flaws, not only in the original frame, but also caused by the attachment process of the new parts. Her mind begins analyzing then drawing up plans to repair the problems.

Shaking her head slightly, Artemis focuses instead on some of the words being thrown the Exo's way.

"Such an eyesore."

"It shouldn't be working in a public area."

"Pathetic little frame."

Artemis can feel her temperature rise and reflexively rubs the small sun tattoo on her right forearm. It's hot to the touch.

Holliday notices where Artemis' gaze has gone. She sighs, rubbing her face.

"They do that fairly often. I've tried to tell 'em off, but there's only so much I can do. I'm just a civilian. I tried tellin' Ikora, but I think the messages got lost."

"I won't allow that to continue."

Artemis begins to walk towards them, when Holliday stops her.

"I know technically you're a Guardian too, but a Kinder, as they say, like you probably won't be able to deal with them."

Artemis now smiles darkly, eyes taking on a soft golden glow. "Oh, I'm no Guardian. And they will be no match for me."

They don't notice Artemis' approach, her steps light. She takes calming breaths to delay the fire within.  'How should I do this?'

"Stand down, Guardians!"

The shout echoes slightly in the hanger. Every person there freezes. The three Warlocks turn toward the gold-haired woman.

"Excuse me?"

Artemis steps closer to the middle woman, who had spoken. Her robes are intricately detailed, and the armour is shiny.

"I said to stand down."

The Exo shakes her head slightly, as if to warn Artemis. The middle Warlock laughs, haughty and cold. After a moment, the other two join in.

Artemis just crosses her arms and waits for the laughter to stop.

"Well, well, girls, look at this."

The Warlock sneers at Artemis, taking in her lack of visible armour.

"A Kinder who thinks she can play in the big leagues."

Amused by the women's tone, Artemis just smiles. "You've mistaken me for another, I'm afraid. Now, I suggest that you not only apologize to my friend, but desist with the bullying."

She leans towards the three women, letting the soft glow back into her eyes. "Got it?"

The Exo starts a bit when Artemis calls her a friend, but keeps a submissive posture.

"You must be new, else you wouldn't try to threaten us," one of the other Warlocks spits.

"Oh, darling," Artemis purrs at her, "it was merely a warning." Her left fist clenches. "Believe me when I say, you'll know if I'm threatening you."

"Jarla here has the highest score in the Crucible since Ikora herself! You have no hope in facing her!"

Jarla, the Warlock with fancy robes, smirks. "These two aren't bad themselves. And they're right; you'd be dead the second you made a move."

Artemis pauses, constructing her expression into one of worry and fear. Her mind has already analyzed their fighting styles, possible weapons, favored Light subclass, and who'd move first. They are obviously a fireteam and will fight as one. But they've never faced an opponent such as Artemis.

"Just drop it."

A quiet voice says from Artemis' left. The Exo glances at her, no hope in her eyes.

"It's not worth getting killed over, even if you'd come back."

Fury rages inside Artemis' body, barely contained. The air around her had begun to shimmer, while the tattoo glows a bright gold.

"You are always worth it. Every injury, every death, every revive," Artemis mutters to the Exo.

"And anyone who says otherwise..." She turns to glare at the Warlocks.

"You call yourselves Guardians...."

A harsh laugh.

"There's another word; I think it'd fit better."

Artemis moves to put herself in front of the Exo, face set and shoulders squared.

"Stand down, Warlords."

The Warlocks and the onlookers start muttering, startled.

"How dare you cal-"

"Silence." Artemis hisses at her, eyes glowing. "I'll give you one more chance: step off or get knocked down."

"A stupid, little Kinder like you has no hope-"

The glowing knife suddenly embedded in the women's chest cuts her off. She falls to the ground, a look of shock on her face. The other two Warlocks stare for moment, trying to process.

Artemis had thrown it so fast, she appeared to not even move. She puts on a show of inspecting her nails, then snaps her fingers, another knife appearing. The fiery Light drips off the blade, sizzling upon impact with the floor.

"Who's next?"

The following events happen so quickly that many onlookers have a hard time explaining it to anyone. Some say the strange woman sends off a fiery blast, incinerating a Warlock. Others think she uses the knife to deflect a small Nova bomb towards the second woman.

A certain Hunter, while secretly watching the security tapes, saw this happened:

Artemis idly twirls the burning knife, waiting for...She blocks the bullet, sending it flying into the sender. Absorbing the Solar Light, she quickly calculates possible actions. There are too many people about for her SolarFlare, not enough control for her Bow. If she could only summon her Sword...

Then Artemis remembers another form Solar Light can take. She'd seen Andal use it many times.

'Perfect.'

The Golden Gun spins in her hand, bullet clicking into the chamber, ready to fire the second her target is chosen.

The gathering Void Light quickly dissipates as its wielder is incinerated. The last Warlock standing, Jarla, is gaping at Artemis.

"You-you."

She seems too angry for proper words. Then the Warlock summons her own Light.

'Thank the Traveler; it's Solar.' Although she doesn't show it, summoning two knives and the gun has drained Artemis' Light supply. If she had too, the other Light is fully charged, but she dislikes using it. And it would cause feedback, which--

The force from the appearance of Dawnblade makes Artemis stagger back slightly. She springs forward, beginning a move she hasn't used in centuries.

As the blade is swung towards its enemy, Artemis raises her arms to meet it. She opens her mind to the Light surrounding the sword and welcomes the heat. The fire swarms her form, but leaves no mark. Trapping the blade between her hands, she draws in the Solar Light and the sword vanishes.

Having done what she intended, Artemis quickly flips away.

The Warlock falls, but catches herself. Fury in her eyes, she attempts to summon the Blade again. Nothing. She tries another subclass. Again, nothing.

"What did you do!?"

Artemis smirks.

"Ask your Ghost."

Said Ghost appears to scan its charge, then Artemis moves; the Light she took gathering into a familiar form. Her Golden Bow is drawn and aimed...but not at the Warlock.

"I said that you'd know when I was threatening you, Warlord." 

She releases the arrow.

The crowd gasps, and the Warlock looks on in horror. The flaming arrow, as if in slow motion, flies towards the unprotected Ghost.

Just before the impact, Artemis snaps her fingers and the arrow turns into smoke.

The Warlock stands, shaking; all she can do is stare at her now ash-covered Ghost.

"This is your final warning. Continue acting as the Warlords of old and I will annihilate you, just like I did them."

With that, Artemis turns and gently leads the quaking Exo out of the Hanger.

Chapter Text

"WHAT?! Get Lady Artemis here...NOW."

Stopping just before the last steps, Artemis clears her throat.

Ikora looks up from her station, anger clear on her face. Zavala walks to stand next to the Warlock. The Exo Hunter ignores all of this and continues with his paperwork.

"Make it snappish, would ya? I was in the middle of something."

Zavala crosses his arms and asks, "Did you attack three Warlocks ten minutes ago?"

Artemis replies with, "Yeah, I did. If that's all..."

She turns to leave--

"We're not done," Ikora says. "I assume there was a reason."

"Most of what I do has a reason, darling." Artemis smiles humorlessly.

Zavala clenches his jaw. "And it was...?"

Artemis looks at him, smile dropping. "Their actions reminded me of a certain group of Chosen I used to know...ones I helped destroy."

"Really?" Ikora picks up a tablet. Before she can read the report on it, Artemis interrupts.

"Lemme guess: those three told you that I was the one abusing the civilian. When they tried to stop me, I attacked them. 'Bout right?"

Ikora opens then closes her mouth. Glancing down at the words, she replies, "How did you-- you can read upside down?"

"Not the point," Artemis says. "They were being terrible to that girl. I gave them plenty of chances to stop-"

"And when they didn't, you thought the next step was to attack them?" Zavala's voice is tight with suppressed anger.

"Well, seeing as they weren't gonna stop..." Artemis crosses her arms.

"You should have reported it," Ikora almost growls.

"Wouldn't have done any good. Holliday's already tried that; multiple times, too."

Ikora checks her tablet again. "I've received no such reports."

"Hmm, interesting. It'd take a pretty clever person to intercept such a message. It's almost as if someone didn't want the Vanguard to know about the bullying problem."

"If you're implying that my Warlocks would do such a thing--"

"That's exactly what I'm implying," Artemis snaps, clearly losing patience.

Zavala opens his mouth to speak, but Artemis continues.

"You should be ashamed this problem has gone this long unnoticed. Are you really so busy you don't even see what your "Guardians" are doing?"

"Hey!" Cayde speaks up. "I'd like to see you try doin' a Vanguard's job and still keep an eye on everything."

Artemis glances at him, face expressionless. "What makes you think I haven't?"

"Well, seein' as you're busy in S'ram..."

"I've always known the goings-on in this City, even before it was one," Artemis snaps back.

"Irrelevant," Zavala cuts in. "You had no authority to act as you did. And you will receive the proper punishment for those actions."

The gold haired woman stills. She slowly turns to look at the Titan, expression amused.

"You, punish me?" Artemis' expression turns dark and the air around her shimmers. "I was old before you were rezzed, boy."

The smirk returns as she squares her shoulders. "And as for authority; I'm an Iron, incase you've forgotten. Irons came before the Vanguard. So, in a way," she steps forward until she's inches away from Zavala.

"I outrank you."

They stand, face to face, not breaking eye contact, one amused and the other angry.

Continuing, Artemis says, "Unless, of course, you'd like me to tell Saladin that he answers to you."

Zavala flinches slightly, finally looking away.

"Didn't think so. If you've got a problem with my behavior, take it up with my superior."

Ikora smirks, thinking she sees a new angle. "I'll contact Lord Saladin, then. He'll be in charge of your punishment."

Artemis just laughs. "Alright, let him know what I did. I guarantee he won't give a damn about a punishment. In fact, he'll probably commend my actions."

She leans towards the Warlock, saying, "It's you guys he'll be scolding. And what makes you think Saladin's my superior?"

Ikora is about to respond when Artemis waves it aside. "We got off topic. There's a problem and the Vanguard needs to handle it."

"Stop this behavior. Too many gave their lives to destroy the Warlords for them to return. I will not allow that sacrifice to be in vain. Fix it, or I will. Got it?"

Without waiting for their answer, Artemis leaves the Hall.

The Traveler hangs above the Last City like a protective mantle. Sprawled in the valley below are buildings; ships are in motion above, and the bustle of life gives the illusion of safety. A lone figure stands at the railing of the Courtyard, viewing the resulting effort of many. She remembers coming to this valley, centuries before, no civilization in sight. How far they've come, and yet...

"Hey! Hey, blondie!"

Artemis turns towards the voice, scowl on her face. "Hair's not blonde; it's Auburn-ish gold. There's a difference."

"Whatever," the Warlock says.

Stepping forward, hand on her weapon, she continues,

"You're the Kinder who attacked Jarla and her fireteam."

"Kinder? Why does everyone keep calling me that?" Artemis asks no one in particular. "I know Kinder used to be the German word for child, but I don't understand--"

"It's short for Kinder-Guardian, as in new Guardian?" The Warlock scoffs. "So, you're the one?"

Artemis shrugs, cocky smirk back on her face. "Why? Wanna congratulate me?"

The Warlock scoffs, pulling out her sidearm. "Try again."

"Ah, vengeance; an old friend. You think you'll be able to inact it, huh? Against me?"

Artemis looks up at the Traveler, saying to it, "Isn't she just adorable?"

"Look, kid. I'm tired, hungry, in pain, and already annoyed. You really don't wanna piss me off right now." She claps her hands together, smiling at the woman.

"So how 'bout you put that away, turn 'round, and go about your business?"

The Warlock growls. "How about I shoot you off this Tower?!"

"Oh, darling, you're adorable." Artemis smiles wearily. "I'll give you another chance to back--"

Bang!

The bullet flies towards her, only to be stopped by a transparent Light barrier emanating from Artemis' raised hand. It falls to the ground with a soft chink. Before the surprise wears off, Artemis thrusts the energy towards the Warlock. It sends her flying, crashing down onto the hard concrete. The woman springs up and charges, weapon aimed again.

Sighing deeply, the ancient warrior surveys her opponent. 'She's not gonna stop until I show her what she's dealing with, is she?'

Sighing again, Artemis delves into her friend's Light. Void energy encases her fist as she strikes. The blow deals massive damage and the Warlock falls, death almost instantaneous.

"Told ya you didn't wanna fight me," Artemis says to the fallen Guardian.

Her senses tingle, and reflex kicks in. Without turning, Artemis catches the man sneaking up behind her by the throat. She sends a minor Arc pulse through her arm, and it deactivates his Void cloaking.

Artemis looks at the shocked Hunter, and hisses, "Run."

Upon release, he bolts.

Shaking her head, Artemis returns her attention to the Warlock, to--

Pain in the back of her shoulder; the little sneak had thrown a knife. Growling, she yanks it out and hurls it towards the owner. A sharp yelp tells her it found its mark.

In the same movement, as her arm goes down, she pulls another knife out of her boot. Flipping it, Artemis then drives it into the Warlock behind her.

The newly revived Chosen had attempted to attack her but instead staggers back, blade yanked out of her stomach.

Artemis flings off the blood and quickly returns the knife to her boot.

A sudden wave of Void energy gives her a split second to react. Constructing a partial bubble between her and the Hunter, Artemis is able to block the purple arrow before it strikes.

Dropping her left hand, she rotates her body to the left, still sustaining the barrier with her right.

A sharp pain cuts across her left arm, near the elbow. The Warlock had shot her just as Artemis had turned. The Void barrier falls as she looks at the blood now dripping down her arm. Fury rages inside her, temperature rocketing.

She barely recognizes the Titan yelling "Stand Down!" as the Golden Gun once again appears.

The barrel is millimeters from the Warlock's forehead, finger tightening on the trigger, when,

"Serrena!" Shaxx yells again.

Artemis stills. Her breathing steadies and the golden glow fades from her skin and eyes. The Solar energy is absorbed and arm dropped before she realizes what had happened.

Shaking her head slightly, Artemis yells for crowd to hear, upon recognizing its presence. 

"Listen up!"

The chattering Guardians fall silent.

"If anyone else wants to fight, tell Shaxx, and we'll take it to the Crucible! Otherwise, shove the hell off!"

With a wave of his hand, Shaxx dismisses the crowd.

Artemis stands there, arms crossed, avoiding his gaze. She's tempted to glance at him, to read his body language to see what he's thinking, but suppresses the urge. She knows what will happen if she looks at her old friend right now.

"Serrena." Shaxx's voice is closer now, and a bit softer.

"Your arm's bleeding."

"Well, no shit, Sher-" Artemis clenches her jaw, taking a deep breath. "I'm aware of that, Warlord."

Shaxx slowly steps a bit closer and, out of the corner of her eye, Artemis sees his arm go out to touch her. He pauses, then retracts it.

"There's blood on your tunic, as well."

"Yeah, I was stabbed in the back by someone I should've been able to depend on," Artemis snaps, finally turning to face him.

"But you know all about doing that, don't you?" She hisses at the Titan, putting anger on her face.

Artemis pretends to not notice the slight flinch at her words, nor the concerned tilt of his helmet. Instead, she squares her shoulders as best she can and leaves him standing in the Courtyard, all alone.

Chapter Text

"Thanks for staying late to help with this, Arty."

Elsie Bray stretches slightly, then refocuses on the blueprint in front of them. Artemis merely nods, attention on part of the page. A few minutes pass in silence, then,

"Alright, what's bothering you?"

Elsie folds her arms and glares at the woman next to her.

Artemis starts, then splutters,

"What? Nothing! I'm fine! What makes you think there's anything wrong?"

"Mmm-hmm," is all Elsie says, eyebrows raised.

A beat.

"It's Cayde--"

"I knew it!" Elsie cuts in. "You miss him!"

"I--no--I mean--that's none of your--"

Artemis sighs. She leans forward, rubbing her face.

"It's not Cayde, but his-- what's the word, obsession? no, infatuation-- with his client, the scientist he's protecting."

Artemis is rocking slightly, leg tapping the ground. When Elsie says nothing, she continues,

"I'm worried about him; she turning him into someone he's not, not anymore. I worked so hard to help him and-"

She sighs, tapping increasing. Elsie gently sets a hand on Artemis' knee, and says,

"It hard to see someone undo all your work, or claim it for their own."

"No, I'm not worried about her claiming the Exo form, it's--"

Another sigh.

"You know you can tell me anything, Arty."

"I can't though, Els, not about this; you'll want to do something and I can't use our friendship like that."

"Ok, now you definitely have to tell me."

Artemis sets her head down on the table with a soft thunk. Elsie rubs her back soothingly, giving her friend time to gather her thoughts.

"Promise me you won't do anything?"

Artemis' voice is muffled, but Elsie understands. A pause, then,

"Is she doing something she isn't supposed to, Arty? 'Cause it's ok to tell; it's not tattling."

"Not really, I guess, nothing that can be proved. It's probably just my imagination or something...," Artemis trails off.

"No, don't do that; don't second-guess yourself."

Elsie grips Artemis' shoulder, lifting her up and looking her in the eyes.

"You are smart and see things most don't. If you think something's going on, then it most likely is. Now tell me."

So Artemis does. She tells her best friend about the attack on Dr. Reesh where Cayde got hurt, her nasty comments about taking something valuable from her, and of Reesh's ordering Cayde to no longer use his nickname of 'Temi'.

"She makes me so mad, Els; she treats him like he's nothing. She either calls him 'Unit', or 'Guard'. And I'm pretty sure she got him hurt on purpose."

"Oh, Arty, I'm so sorry. All of this must be so hard."

Elsie then grips Artemis' shoulder again, looking her directly in her green eyes. 

"But if you don't want me to get involved, then you need to stand up for yourself."

"I don't want to cause trouble; it's fine, I can just deal with it, and hope he doesn't get hurt again."

"No, don't do this; you always do this. Come on, Arty. If she's hurting you-"

"It's not worth it!" Artemis exclaims, then mutters, "I'm not worth it."

"Why do you always do that? Put yourself down like you're worth nothing? Cause it's not true, at all."

Artemis opens her mouth to interrupt, but Elsie continues,

"You always tell people they have worth just because they're alive. Why don't you ever tell yourself that?"

Artemis mutters something and Elsie laughs bitterly.

"Not true, huh? What if I got Cayde in here right now and told him that you think you're worthless? Know what he'd say?"

"Can I get back to protecting Lenni now?" Artemis says in a good imitation of Cayde's voice, pre-Exo.

Elsie sighs, studying her best friend, a woman she's known since childhood. She gently asks, "You really think he'd say that, Hearts?"

Artemis smiles slightly at the nickname. "After all these years, you still remember that?"

"Of course! Ana and I thought it was a good fit for you, after I had explained to her that I actually said 'Arts', not 'Hearts'."

"How is it a good fit?" Artemis asks, disbelievingly.

"You see people with your heart, Artemis; you always have. Please try to see yourself like that, too."

Elsie then embraces Artemis in a warm, gentle hug.

By the time all this is said, both women have tears in their eyes. Neither had noticed the soft knock on the open door nor the tall Exo frame hovering just out of sight.

Cayde wakes with a start, sun shining in through the window. He blinks several times before realizing there's no tears to clear. Sighing, he slumps back onto his mattress, rubbing the horn on his head.

"Another dream?" Sundance asks.

"Yeah. These memories are gettin' more and more vivid. It's like I'm relivin' 'em."

A beat, then,

"Should you tell Artemis about them?"

Cayde sighs again, throwing an arm over his face.

"I dunno, probably."

"So does that mean you're going to talk to her?" Sundance asks tentatively.

Cayde lifts his arm just enough to glare at his Ghost.

"I know what you're try'na do and it ain't gonna work."

"She's still in the City, you know. I can contact her if you want."

"And do what? I don't know her anymore and what she did durin' that Crucible match and after just proves it."

"Come on, Cayde. Efrideet and the others deserved that and you know it."

Sundance whirls her shell in frustration.

"Just talk to her, ok?"

"No. Temi is gone-"

"Did you not hear a thing Efrideet was telling us?"

The Ghost dances around the room in anger, saying,

"Artemis may not be exactly the same as she was four hundred years ago, but she's still a good person-"

"A good person!? A good--what kind of person can torture Fallen without blinking an eye? And don't get me started on the stories from the Iron War."

"Those have been stretched and exaggerated so much, it's probably not even what happened."

Sundance rolls her eye as much as she can.

Cayde scoffs.

"Oh, yeah? I checked with Efrideet and--"

"Efrideet hates Artemis! She's not gonna tell the truth!"

"Nah, she's gonna tell it like it was; no fluffin' stuff to make her look better. And some of Artemis' nicknames, lemme tell ya..."

"You do realize it was a war, right? People do stuff that they normally wouldn't do. Even Shaxx did stuff he didn't like."

Sundance pauses.

"I think you should ask him about the stories instead."

"Yeah? Like he'd be any better. If you hadn't noticed, Artemis ain't too fond of him."

Cayde huffs and begins to get ready for the day.

"But he respects her, doesn't he? Despite whatever happened between those two."

"Yeah, what did happen?"

Pulling on a clean tunic, Cayde continues, "Imma ask him."

"Or you could ask Artemis," Sundance suggests, but Cayde pointedly ignores her.

"Please, just talk to her. At least just to tell her about the dreams."

His Ghost hovers close to his face.

"From what you've told me about her, she was really special to you. I'm sure that woman is still there, somewhere. Don't you owe it to her to look? To give her a chance?"

Cayde avoids looking at his Ghost, instead opting on fastening his cape. After several moments of silence, his shoulders slump and Sundance knows she's won this round.

"Ok. But it's gonna be somewhere public and you're gonna stay hidden the whole time."

"Cayde--"

"No, Sundance; I'm not takin' any chances," Cayde says, checking Ace, then stowing it.

"Fine. Where were you thinking of going?"

"I have some ideas..."

Chapter Text

Cayde finds himself dawdling with his duties; trepidation at seeing the woman he once knew mounting. The hours tick by faster than he would have liked and suddenly Ikora is telling him to take a break.

"Lemme just finish this real quick," Cayde finds himself saying.

Ikora raises an eyebrow, saying,

"Cayde, you hate paperwork. What's going on?"

Sundance answers before he can.

"He's going to talk with Artemis today."

"Oh? I believe she's in the Infirmary; her injuries were a bit worse than she let on."

"Injuries? As in plural?" Cayde asks quickly. His immediate instinct is to rush to Artemis' side, but he suppresses it.

"Is she ok? What happened? I thought Efrideet just shot her the one time."

"There was an...incident, after she spoke to us here. I believe she sustained a minor stab wound to her shoulder."

"Stab wound? What happened?"

Ikora shuffles some papers around, looking for one in particular.

"You'll have to speak with Shaxx for details; he was the one who handled it."

Cayde drops the reports he held onto the table, and heads towards the Titan.

He can hear him commenting on a match but can't focus on the words. 'A stab wound? On top of the damage from the bullet?' Cayde can't imagine the kind of pain she must be in.

"Ah, Cayde!" Shaxx says in greeting. "If you're here to place any bets..."

"No, no, I still remember last time I tried."

Shaxx nods once then, attention back on the match, yells,

"Look at them fall! I can't believe what I'm seeing!"

Turning back to Cayde, he says,

"Did you want something, Hunter? I don't have all day."

"What?"

Cayde refocuses his attention on the Titan in front of him.

"Oh, Ikora said you handled an incident yesterday. One where Tem- uh, Artemis got hurt?"

Shaxx is slow to respond, movements suddenly careful. Cayde can only wonder what's going on behind that helmet.

"Yes," he finally says, his normally loud voice is strangely muted.

"Two friends of Jarla and her team sought vengeance for their..., ah, defeat. Serrena acted patiently, for the most part, and well within allowed protocol."

"O...k..." Cayde has read Hunter reports with more details.

"But did she get hurt? Her Ghost, or whatever, isn't here to heal her."

Shaxx laughs humorlessly. "I doubt Circe would anyway."

He mutters something Cayde can't quite catch, though it didn't sound nice.

"The injuries inflicted were minor and easily dealt with, given Serrena's extensive medical knowledge."

"You know about that?" Cayde quirks an eyebrow plate.

Shaxx doesn't reply; blank surface of his helmet giving nothing away. How much does he know about Artemis?

"Right," Cayde shrugs his shoulders then continues,

"So she'd be in the Infirmary then?"

Expecting an affirmative answer, he automatically starts in that direction, when,

"No."

Cayde freezes in his tracks.

Slowly turning back to the Titan, anger rising, he says,

"What? Why not? She's hurt; why wouldn't she be in the Infirmary?"

Shaxx chuckles. "I thought you said you knew her."

Cayde opens his mouth to say yes, but given how she's changed since the last time they saw each other...

He'd remember details later. All he could feel at the time was anger. He thought she was his friend, his ally, and all this time she could have prevented...

"Why the hell didn't you tell me you know Clovis Bray?!"

His client, a Braytech scientist, had told him about Artemis' ties to the Bray family, which extended further than he realized. He'd come to confront her about it.

Cayde cursed more and kicked the cabinet next to him, a slight dent forming. Artemis flinched at his actions, slowly moving away from where he stood.

This whole thing could have been prevented. His debt was the reason for the "volunteering" for the Exo program. She could have talked with Clovis. Using that connection to help him hadn't even crossed her mind...

"I actually thought you cared about me. I even thought we were friends! Damn joke's on me!"

While yelling, he closed the gap Artemis was making, inadvertently backing her into a wall.

"I could have fixed things with Ace. Now, cause I'm a damn Exo, I can't even see him!"

Cayde slammed his fist into the wall next to the gold haired woman. She flinched so hard her back hit the wall, too. Her face was pale, and her green eyes glassy.

His face was inches from her's and Cayde doesn't even notice how much she's shaking.

"I'm glad Lenelle was kind enough to get me away from you before you ruined things further."

A small gasp escaped Artemis' lips and she had to lean against the wall for support.

Cayde looked at the woman he had trusted these past three years with disgust.

"I'm done with you. If we never see each other again, it won't be long enough."

With that, he turned and left the lab he'd come to know as a second home.

Anger still boiling inside, he barely noticed Maria walk past. He hardly registered her frantically radioing Renner to get there ASAP.

Even at the other end of the hall, his audio receivers were able to pick up Artemis' panicked breathing.

Cayde would realize later what he'd done. She had told him about her birth father; the years of abuse she and her mother had gone though. It was because of it, in part, that Artemis was so easily startled and reacted badly to loud, sudden noises. Renner had pulled him aside early on and warned him against hurting her. The Exo had told him Artemis' triggers, which he took to heart and tried his hardest to avoid.

He'd felt so much guilt and pain at the suffering his outburst had caused. He planned to apologize, but was afraid his mere presence would be a trigger. Even a letter wouldn't suffice; simply bringing the event up could have caused a panic attack.

So he stayed away.

A year later, while reviewing a file for his client, he discovered something that made him feel even worse...

"Cayde? Can you hear me?"

He feels a slight pressure on his shoulder, barely registering it. His mind is still partially on the Red planet.

"Give him a minute," Sundance says. "He'll snap out of it."

A white and orange helmet comes into focus as Cayde returns to the present.

"What?" He asks hazily. "What happened?"

"You froze for several minutes," Shaxx says. 

"Right, sorry. I was just...remembering...something. 

Cayde avoids looking at the Titan, as if he'd be able to see the memory.  The shame at his past actions builds, and he struggles to push it down. 

"Where were you? What'd you see? What happened?" Sundance flits in front of him, but he just waves her off. 

"Where's Artemis?" 

Cayde has to apologize; he's centuries overdue. He doesn't care if she's mad at him, or even what Artemis had done all these years. He has to tell her. 

Shaxx pauses, taking his hand off Cayde's shoulder.  

"The S'ramian sector of the City is having their Festival this week; I believe Serrena will be there." 

He then asks his Ghost to send the coordinates to Sundance. 

She's about to transmat, when Cayde asks, 

"Why do you call her that?" 

Shaxx had returned his attention to the Crucible matches. He tilts his helmet in Cayde's direction, saying, 

"It's the name she chose centuries ago."  

A pause, then he continues, 

"She believed it would dishonor the woman she was before by continuing to use her name. 'Let her rest; Traveler knows she deserves it,' Serrena used to say."  

His voice trails off, but Cayde catches a muttered, 

"I miss her." 

Feeling like it wasn't for him to hear, Cayde says his thanks, and Sundance transmats them.

Chapter Text

The streets are full of people, bright banners, and music. Cayde can't help but smile, best as he can.

He's on the lookout for gold hair; his height being helpful in maneuvering the crowd. Children stop and cheerfully greet him, which he reciprocates.

Cayde walks around for almost half an hour, taking in the colors and music. Sundance bobs around his head, pointing things out.

A group of young kids run past and around the Exo Hunter. One is saying,

"Hurry up! Champion's here this year!"

Cayde considers talking to the kid, but decides to just follow.

The children turn down a street and weave their way through a crowd gathered in an alcove.

The music here is different; people seem to be picking their favorites then singing along.

Cayde hangs near the back, listening to some kids discuss songs.

"I wanna do 'Into the Unknown'!"

"We did that last year, though."

"Yeah, but she wasn't here. You know she loves it!"

Another pipes up,

"Wasn't that the song from the Exodus? The one she played at lift-off?"

"That's what my mom said, yeah," the first kid answers.

"How about 'On & On'?"

The second child ponders aloud.

"Someone did that earlier."

The fourth kid opens her mouth to say something, when they all gasp at the clear voice now singing.

"Oh La-la-la-la Oh

Yeah I know it might be crazy

But did you hear the story?

I think I heard it vaguely

A girl and an Exo

Oh, tell me more, boy

Sounds like a fantasy

Oh, what could go so wrong

With a girl and an Exo."

All the children in the crowd make a beeline to the front; the adults making room, smiles on their faces.

Cayde cranes his neck to see the singer. She's wearing a flowing green sleeveless dress; gold hair loose on her shoulders, framing the smile on her face.

"You're from the perfect paradise

And I'm living on the darker side

Ooh, I've got a feeling

If you get to know me

Right from the start you caught my eye

And something inside me came to life

Ooh, I've got a feeling

If you get to know me."

Cayde laughs at the performance she's putting on. The song, playing in the background, has two singers: a boy and a girl. Artemis is singing both parts, moving back and forth, pretending to be them. The kids are giggling and some sing along.

"Someday

This could be, this could be ordinary

Someday

Could we be something extraordinary?

You and me side by side (yeah, yeah)

Out in the broad daylight

If they laugh, we'll say

We're gonna be someday

We're gonna be someday (Someday, someday)

We're gonna be someday

We're gonna be someday."

At the end of the song, Artemis makes to leave the "stage", but all the children quickly protest.

"Can you sing another?"

"Please, Champion?"

After some begging and giggles, Artemis obliges. She scrolls through the device next to a speaker, searching. Finding the song, she nods and starts the music.

"Yeah, eh yeah yeah

I can feel a phoenix inside of me,

As I march alone to a different beat,

Slowly slowing down my fear,

Yeah, yeah."

Some of the older adults clap upon recognition of the song.

Artemis' entire demeanor changes with this song. Before it was cheery and playful, now it's darker, full of pain and determination.

"I am ready for the road less traveled,

Suiting up for my crowning battle,

This test is my own cross to bare,

But I will get there

It's never easy to be Chosen,

Never easy to be called,

Standing on the front line when the bombs start to fall,

I can see the Heavens,

But I still hear the flames calling out my name.

I can see the writing on the wall,

I can't ignore this war,

At the end of it all,

Who am I living for?"

All the anger felt due to her actions fades from Cayde's mind as he listens to the lyrics.

Artemis has protected these people, and the ones in S'ram; keeping them safe for centuries. She's had to sacrifice so much: dying again and again, losing friends and her people, even parts of who she was.

The woman singing, green eyes now on the Exo, is different from the one he remembers, yes, but at the core, the same selfless person.

The song ends before Artemis breaks eye contact. She smiles at the kids gaping at her performance. Some of the adults wipe their eyes.

As they clap, Artemis bows and walks off the stage into the crowd. She makes her way to the edge, greeting people as she goes.

Cayde's heart beats faster as she approaches, and he fiddles with his cape. Part of his nerves are due to her singing. He remembered that she sang well, but never around people. She was always shy when he caught her singing along while she worked.

Artemis is several feet away when a young girl catches her attention.

"Sellena?! Is that you?!"

The young girl turns and giggles.

Artemis crouches slightly, arms out.

"Ready?"

Sellena runs towards Artemis, who picks her up and spins her around. Both are laughing.

Setting the girl back on her feet, Artemis says,

"My goodness, you must have grown a whole two feet since I last saw you."

Hand brushing the brown hair off her face, Sellena replies,

"I'm almost taller than you!"

Artemis laughs. She taps the top of the girl's head, which comes up to her elbow.

"You're definitely getting there, sweetie," a laugh, then, "Are you enjoying the Festival?"

Sellena starts chattering, telling the woman about the different activities she's done so far. Artemis crouches so she's closer to eye level, listening intently.

"And after we went there, I saw a crafting station set up and I made these!"

Sellena holds up two woven string bracelets with matching colors. Artemis makes a big show of inspecting them, and compliments the braiding. The colors are bright and Cayde thinks they match the little girl's personality well.

Giggling, Sellena says,

"One of them is for you, Serrena! I know you try to come every year and I wanted to make you something."

Artemis holds out her left wrist and Sellena carefully wraps the bigger bracelet around it. Then Artemis helps Sellena put her own on.

"Now you have something to remember me by!" Sellana says gleefully.

Holding her wrist to her heart, Artemis says, "I'll never take it off."

Sellena throws her arms around Artemis' neck in a big hug. The woman picks her up and squeezes the little girl tightly.

"Now," Artemis says, putting her down. "You'd best find your mother before she starts worrying. Those storm clouds are getting closer by the minute."

"Ok!"

Sellena runs off, waving vigorously.

"Bye, Serrena! Bye, Mister Hunter!"

Cayde opens his mouth to reply when Sundance gets an alert to return to the Tower immediately.

"Guess there's an emergency."

He pauses, glancing at the growing clouds above.

"Coming?"

Artemis nods, smiling and they transmat back.

Chapter Text

A.S.H. Personal Log:  Audio

"Day 2 since Cabal attack and Light loss. Many civilian and Guardian causualties. Extracting survivors and relaying to S'ram. Will continue report later."


A.S.H. Personal Log: Video

Civilians are running, headed towards a ship, explosions heard behind the camera. A woman's voice urging them on. As the people board, the camera turns 180°. A Sniper rifle is raised. Shots ring out. Cabal fall in the distance. Static.

Inside the ship. Mutters and groans from the injured. A man in a torn cape and leather tunic sits on the floor, pressing a rag to a nasty head cut. Gloved hands are seen as they set his broken leg. The man is reciting racing times, grinning occasionally. A small chuckle comes from the woman helping him. A massive nearby explosion rocks the ship. Static.


A.S.H. Personal Log: Audio

"Day 3. Still no response from Circe. Possible shutdown due to loss of Light. Continuing escort of survivors from City. Sierra damaged in last recon sweep. Downgraded to transport ship. Broadcasting signal to surviving Guardians bad idea. Cabal could track. End report."


A.S.H. Personal Log: Video

A shot of a City street; many buildings destroyed; debris scattered about. Several bodies lay around, partially buried; exposed parts covered in ash. A gold-haired woman in scavenged armor kneels in front of a particular building. Her face is turned away from the camera. In her hands is a slightly charred string bracelet. After a moment, the woman wraps the bracelet around her left wrist, a matching one beside it. She stands, walks towards the camera, then the screen cuts out.


A.S.H. Personal Log: Audio 

"Day 5. More causualties. Trying to keep a log of names/faces. Need to remember them. Scans showed another group of survivors. Was able to remotely activate S'ramian defense frames. Circe's still dark. Report more later."


A.S.H. Personal Log: Video

A roof shot of a street; a Cabal patrol approaching a small group of humans. Two with armor stand in front, weapons at the ready. Several are injured, including the Light-less Guardians. The Cabal raise weapons. A sword moves into camera view. Static. Cabal yells are heard. Camera comes back as the Guardians charge. A Cabal falls. Smoke covers the scene. More yells. Recording ends.

A.S.H. Personal Log: Audio 

"Day 9. Still no sign of Cayde since separation. Just focusing on survival and assisting others. End report."

A.S.H. Personal Log: Audio

"Day 13. Surviving city leaders found temporary safe haven in EDZ. Transporting civilians from S'ram to Farm. Frames working overtime to repair ships. Saladin sent short message, but nothing since. Circe's in low-power mode. Currently doing diagnostics on her and Ion." 

A pause, chattering heard in the silence. 

"Still no word from Cayde, and no one's seen him since before." 

Another pause.

"Deploying Tango once repairs finish. Once it scans the Cabal device, recovery plans can begin. End report."


Time passes. Days blend into each other as Artemis works to protect her people. She barely sleeps, opting to help the wounded and repair ships for transport instead. She never strays too far from S'ram, even after it's evacuated. The Cabal had followed the ships and began to attack. Its security systems were enough to hold them off for now, but resources were becoming scarce. 

As her people packed up to retreat, Artemis fought the growing feelings. "Push it down. Deal with it later," she thought. 

Artemis decides to stay behind; the Golden Age technology too important to leave unguarded. Besides, she might be able to find a way to recover the Traveler, hidden deep in the Archives.

She works, pouring over file after file. Surely stored somewhere; Elsie must have created something that could help...

Or maybe...the words start to swim...her eyes are drifting...thoughts blending together.

Artemis tries to remember the last time she slept, but the days had blended together. She can almost hear Cham saying,

"You got lost again, huh?" 

A faint Exo chuckle. "Come on, Hunter, you know your brain can only think so much before it needs a recharge."

Artemis turns away from the console. Glancing at the doorway, she almost expects to see the Exo leaning there. Nothing. 

"Huh, didn't think I'd been awake that long."

Turning back to reread the current file, she stifles a yawn.

A few lines down, Artemis starts. Jumping up, knife in hand, she stands ready. A few tense seconds where nothing happened. The knife clatters to the ground. 

"I could have sworn I felt..." she takes a deep breath. "Alright, then: breaktime."

Artemis goes to inspect the frames' work. She had assigned them to different tasks: ship repairs, scans, damage assessment, etc. She leaves the room, missing more than ever Apollo's weight on her shoulder.

Chapter Text

She ends up taking a nap. It isn't on purpose, but Artemis should know better than to lie down when absolutely exhausted. It isn't the first time she's fallen asleep under a ship during repairs.

Artemis remembers another time she'd done this, only that time she was woken by a confused Exo, not a frame...

"Who are you and what are you doing to my ship?"

The loud voice startled Artemis awake and she banged her head.

"Ow," Artemis muttered, sliding out.

She blinked at the bright lights shining down from the hanger ceiling. The person who woke her stood near the ship, arms folded, face in shadow.

"Well?"

After noting the mechanical undertone to the voice and the flight suit they were wearing, Artemis quickly ran through a mental list of the Exo pilots allowed access to this particular hanger, then the ones currently on active flights.

Standing, she said,

"You're a test pilot; Renner, I believe. I was simply reinforcing some of the fuel lines. I think that caused the-"

The Exo cut her off, "That only answers half of my question."

Artemis frowned slightly. She really hated being interrupted. The Exo's question would have been fully answered had they not done so.

"My name is Artemis Huntson."

She thought for a moment then held out a hand. People liked to shake hands when meeting someone new.

The Exo took it and shook. Artemis noted the pressure.

"Huntson, huh? As in Dr. Huntson? New transfer from Mars?"

"Temporary transfer. I'm just here to help Els- Dr. Bray with a few projects."

"You call her by her first name?"

Artemis was about to reply when her communicator beeped.

"I need to go. I'm sorry to have worried you about your ship. It should be flight-worthy again within the next 12 hours. Less if I have time later to help."

Artemis smiled at the bemused Exo and walked to the hanger exit.

Artemis shakes her head slightly, a sad smile on her face. After giving the frame for instructions, she decides to try and continue the nap, albeit somewhere more comfortable.

She's walking to the sleeping quarters, thinking how odd Renn must have found her then, and remembering some of their later encounters.

"What you wanna do is try and keep the stick level, 'cause the tiniest movement can-, uh what are you doing?"

Artemis looked up.

She'd been noting each key point Renner had said on her vambrace. Confused at the question, she just waited for clarification. None forthcoming, Artemis said,

"You said these things were important; you're supposed to write down important things so you don't forget....Right?"

Artemis frowned slightly, brows furrowed. "That's what Elsie always says, at least."

Renner's Exo eyebrow was raised as they said,

"Yeah, but you don't have a tablet."

Artemis blinked. She looked down at her left forearm. Clearly visible was the nano-vambrace and its generated projections. She blinked again, very confused.

"Are your occular systems functioning properly?"

Renner looked confused, too. They open their mouth then Artemis remembered.

"Oh! Its cloaked!"

Turning that feature off, she continued,

"I prefer it like that. People like to ask questions, usually while I'm working. It gets annoying. If they just see the tapping, they think it's a tick or stimming."

Renner nodded then said,

"Ah, gotcha. It doesn't look familiar. Is it a new BrayTech device? If you don't mind me asking."

"I'd like to answer questions later, after our lesson. I want to focus on learning how to fly right now."

Renner just nodded again, and continued.

It only took a few lessons before they were up in the air, Artemis at the main controls.

Renner had never known anyone else who had taken to quickly to flying. Their common love of soaring through the sky formed the start of a friendship. One that would last a lot longer than either thought...

Artemis' feet take her not to her room, but to Cham's. She stands in front of the door, the ache in her chest worse than before. She desperately wants to talk to them, even for a minute. The pain of losing them is almost worse than losing Cayde.

'No, don't think about him, either. Are you trying to hurt yourself?' 

A small, unbidden voice in the back of her mind thinks,

'Wouldn't be the first time, and you certainly deserve the pain...'

"Come on, Arty, I thought you stopped thinking like that years ago."

It takes Artemis a few moments to realize that Elsie's voice came from outside her mind. She turns and sees a very welcome sight leaning against a wall.

"Elsie!"

Artemis runs to hug her old friend and Elsie moves to close the gap.

They hold each other for several minutes, enjoying the company. When they break apart, Elsie gently runs a metal finger under one of Artemis' eyes.

"Been a while since they've been so deep. You haven't been sleeping, have you?"

Artemis' glance away gives her the answer.

"Arty-,"

Elsie starts but a raised hand from her friend stops her scolding.

"I know what you're going to say and I agree. But given the current circumstances, it can't really be helped."

Elsie scans Artemis' face, worry evident on her own despite the Exo form.

"It can and you know it."

Artemis sighs.

"I really don't want to argue, certainly not now."

Elsie thinks for a second, then nods.

"Ok, but you still need some sleep. Especially since you don't have the Light to aid your recovery."

Another sigh from the gold-haired woman. "You know about that, huh?"

"Of course I do, remember?"

Artemis waves her hand, "Right, right, the whole temporal loop thing. I suppose there's no point in asking what's going to happen?"

Elsie laughs. It's a good sound to hear again.

"Things change each time, and you've certainly made a difference."

Artemis remembers Elsie telling her how in many timelines she never made it off Earth's moon.

"It's all one can hope for."

Artemis sighs deeply, suppressing another yawn.

"We can talk later; now you need rest."

Without waiting for Artemis' reply, Elsie walks to her room, gently pulling her friend's along.

"Come on, we can both take a nap."

She holds up a metal hand, cutting off a protest.

"Yes, I know Exos don't technically need sleep, but it'll be good for me, too. And we both know you sleep better with someone next to you."

With that, she opens the door, Artemis in tow.

Chapter Text

The sharp wind howled as it whipped through the air. The tent shook, threatening to break free of its ties and join the flying leaves. The march had halted with the oncoming storm, much to the chagrin of the Irons. Some had attempted to sleep, but only two managed. A gold-haired woman was on her side, back to a large man's chest, both burrowed in a warm sleeping bag, oblivious to the wind.

"How, just how?" One Iron Chosen asked, dumbfounded.

A second Iron glanced back at the sleeping pair, asking, "To the sleeping in this racket or the physical contact?"

"Both," the first replied.

"Is it bad that I'm kinda jealous?" Asked a third Iron, a shivering woman, blanket pulled around her armor.

The others look at each other than both said, "Of?"

The woman blushed faintly. She muttered something not heard over the wind.

The first Iron, a man with short hair and long robes, asked,

"What? Are you perhaps interested in the new ally? You've heard the stories about the territory, right? How well-defended it is?"

The woman blushed deeper.

The second continued, tucking a stray curl back into their messy bun, hood pulled down.

"You always did like the strong ones, Jerrice. You know, you could always join them."

They gestured at the open ground by the two sleeping Chosen.

"No, no, I'm ok. And please don't tell her about my crush, please." Jerrice blushed even deeper, scooting slightly away.

"Wait, her? What's her name...Hunter? You like her?" The first Iron, Moe asked, face going pale.

He looked carefully at Hunter, wary eyes studying her face. "I can see the physical appeal, but personality wise-"

"Hey, she's really interesting!" Jarrice interceded.

"If by that you mean violent and unpredictable, then..."

"You forgot scary as hell," the other Iron, Kirn, said, pulling their hair tie out.

"Oh, definitely. I'd heard stories, but never really believed 'em," Moe said, having scooted over to sit behind Kirn. "But man, am I glad she's on our side."

"And how she joined us isn't something I'll ever forget."

"Why?," Jarrice asked, eyes wide. "What happened?"

Moe and Kirn shared a look, the former pausing in braiding the other's dark hair.

Lord Felwinter slammed his metal hand down on the long table, which effectively silenced the others.

"Enough with this meaningless chatter. The Warlords are amassing allies among the Chosen. We must do the same."

Lady Skorri paused in her writing and looked around at the others.

"Please let their names rhyme well, at least," she muttered.

Lord Gheleon, who sat near, chuckled. He stood, drawing eyes to him.

"I know of one. I believe her name is Efrideet. I have approached her before and she is a capable fighter, albeit an unconventional one."

Those around the table who knew of her tactics smirked at Lord Saladin, who ignored them, instead rising as well and said,

"I have already recruited Efrideet. She is currently on her way now."

"Good," Felwinter said. "Any other suggestions?"

The gathered Lords and Ladies took turns speaking, naming possible allies. They each promised to approach them; to try and convince them to join their plight.

"What of Champion?" Lady Jolder spoke up, and all quieted down, looking at her.

"Who is this you speak of, Lady Jolder?" Radagast asked.

"A powerful Chosen, who escorted survivors from Mars to Earth. They all settled near the Traveler, I believe."

Mutters broke out among the others, some naming Warlords known to be in that area.

"You don't want Champion," a voice piped up from the doorway. "You want the one known as Hunter."

All eyes turned to the door to the Chosen stepping into the room: Efrideet had arrived.

"Greetings, Lady Efrideet." Lord Radagast rose and bowed. "Please take a seat and explain more about this Hunter."

After Efrideet does so, she paused, then said,

"Hunter is the reason those Martians haven't been killed or their territory taken by Warlords. She works mainly in the background; making tech, tracking enemies, and sabotaging those who dare to get too close. But in a fight, she's in the center; and she's good. If you earn her respect, she will defend you, but if you break her trust..."

Efrideet laughed bitterly.

"Do not, I repeat, do not, get her angry. She will hurt you without hesitation if you piss her off. And Traveler help you if you hurt one of her people..."

The room echoed slightly with her last words. The Chosen exchanged looks with each other, while Radagast gazed out the window. The snow swirled in strange patterns; wind tossing the flakes to and fro.

"And what of Champion? Would he join the fight?"

Efrideet looked at Radagast and studied his face for a moment.

"No. They will not leave the area undefended."

"Would it not still be defended if this Hunter were in the area?" An olive-skinned woman asked, accent Greek.

Efrideet laughed.

 "Huh, Hunter in charge, that's an idea. Nah, she's more of a background, follower-type. I mean, she's good at defense, but without Cham-pion..."

"Well, that settles it; we shall recruit Hunter."

Radagast stood. "Lady Efrideet, would you-"

"No. That, that wouldn't end well, not with our history..."

Radagast paused, and searched the room for a suitable ambassador.

"Very well; Lady Hecate, Lord Ares? Will you approach Hunter?"

The woman from before and the massive, dark-skinned man next to her rose.

"We accept, Lord Radagast." The man's bass voice echoed in the stone room.

The meeting ended soon after and the Irons separated to gather allies. Lord Radagast called Efrideet to stay behind, as well as Hecate and Ares.

"Since you know much of Hunter and Champion, would you impart advice on approaching them?"

" Um, sure."

She looked at the others.

"Don't land in any of the villages; Hunter will see that as an attack and trigger traps. Don't go with weapons; she'll see that as an attack and snipe you from a distance."

Efrideet rolled her eyes, sighed, then continued.

"There's a clearing not far from their base; land there. Stay in the clearing; leaving will be viewed as an attack. Don't ask Hunter directly; ask to talk with Champion."

Ares and Hecate listened to her words without comment, although they glanced at each other every so often.

Efrideet paused, and counted things on her fingers.

"Yeah, I think I got everything. Wait, you need coordinates; don't want you landing in the wrong clearing."

After they received the coordinates, Hecate and Ares left to recruit the mysterious Hunter. They arrived in the area a few days later, having had to avoid Warlord territory, and land in the clearing.

Disembarking first, Ares studied the treeline, searching for any movement. After he called an all clear, Hecate joined him.

They stood for almost ten minutes, until,

"Name, association, and intention."

Ares immediately put himself in between Hecate and the voice, Light gathering. A gentle touch from Hecate relaxed him, but Ares remained alert.

"Ares and Hecate, Iron Lord and Lady, wishing to speak with Champion," Hecate called out.

A pause, then, "Why?"

Ares tried to zone in on the speaker, hidden in the thick jungle foliage, but the voice had moved.

  'Whoever is there has excellent camouflage skills', he thought. He had considered the voice to be automated, but dismissed it the second time they talked.

"We wish to recruit Hunter for the Irons before the Warlords do. We have heard of her skills."

"Have you now? Tell Frigi-Efrideet I say hello."

They both whipped around, battle stances at the ready, as the woman spoke from the ship behind them. She was tall, lean, and wearing forest green armor, which explained the camouflage skills.

Pushing off the landing strut she was leaning on, the woman removed her helmet. Hooking it to her belt, she ran her gloved fingers through her chin-length hair. The locks fell around her face, the reddish gold color shone in the afternoon sun.

"I do hate helmet hair," she muttered. "Well, wipe those stunned looks off your faces and relax, would ya?"

Hecate and Ares exchanged a long look, then followed the woman's suggestion.

" Are you Champion?" Ares asked in his deep voice.

The woman chuckled.

" No, I'm not nearly that amazing. You can call me Hunter."

Ares went to offer his hand, but Hecate stopped him with a nudge.

" How do you know Efrideet gave us this information?" Hecate narrowed her eyes slightly.

"Well, you knew to come here, without weapons, and what to do," a pause, then, "and only Efrideet would think I'd need Champion's permission to join you."

Hunter scoffed, and shifted her stance.

"She apparently equates following orders with losing your free will."

Waving a gloved hand, she dismissed the incredulity of the thought.

"I'll think about your offer and get back to you. Don't bother leaving a contact number; I know where to find you."

Hunter put on her helmet and started towards the trees. She reached them and looked back at the two still frozen in awe.

Chuckling, she shook her head then said,

"Get out of here before you kill the grass, yeah?"

With that, Hunter turned and disappeared into the jungle.

"But what should I do, Cham?"

The woman, Hunter, sat on a table in her workshop, looking at a figure by one of the windows.

"Whatever you think is best, of course."

The voice is a bit robotic, as it came from an Exo.

" Yeah, that really helps," Hunter huffed, sliding off the table, and started to pace.

"On the one hand, joining the Irons would help lessen Warlord numbers, which in turn would lessen attacks. I'm getting rather tired of repairing our ships and other defenses."

Hunter made a sharp turn in the pacing, frowning.

"But on the other hand that would leave you here to defend things by yourself."

She quickly looked up at the bemused Exo.

"Not that you can't handle things well by yourself; it's just easier and safer with two."

The Exo walked over and put their hands on the woman's shoulders, which ceased the pacing. They smiled as best they could and said,

"I think you're overthinking things again."

Hunter slumped into Champion's shirt-covered chest plates and muttered, "I don't want to leave you on your own."

Champion wrapped their arms around the woman and gently replied,

"I know you wouldn't abandon me, Serrena. Going to help others isn't doing that, ok?"

They drew back to look Hunter in the eyes, their white to her green. "Ok?"

Hunter nodded, blinking away tears.

"Yes, I understand. But I'll only be gone when the Irons need me on missions; otherwise I'll be here. I'm not going to abandon our people."

Champion squeezed Hunter's shoulder in gratitude and assurance. "I'll make sure they know, if any ask where you are."

The two Chosen embraced a bit longer than Champion asks, "How are planning on telling them?"

Hunter drew back, grin on her face.

"Uh oh, I know that look," Champion said, chuckling.

"Those Irons won't know what hit them."

A storm had hit the Peak, covering the stone buildings with thick snow. Those who used what was called Solar energy had cleared most away from living spaces and public areas. The Iron Lords and Ladies who were not on missions, whether to gather Intel or recruit members, moved about the grounds.

Radegast had been greeting new recruits for several days now, but no word had come from Hunter. He had spoken to both Hecate and Ares, and received their report of the encounter. Both had told him her words; the last few worrying him slightly. 'I know where to find you.' The location of the Iron Temple was not exactly a secret, but how had she known? What kind of contact did Hunter have with the Warlords surrounding her area? Had they already approached her?

Yells from the courtyard shook him from his thoughts and he ran to investigate. The Irons parted for him without a word, revealing, in the center of a group of armed Chosen, all pointed weapons at her...

A woman in Golden armor, sword and bow on her back, helmet clipped to her belt. She grinned at the battle-ready Chosen who surrounded her. Seeing Radagast, she gave an exaggerated bow, and said,

"Hello there."

" How did you get here without setting off alarms?"

"Right to it, then. I was just dropping by to give my answer." The woman laughed at the eye rolls sent her way. "Oh, come on, that was a little funny."

"Doing something unnecessarily dramatic and then drawing attention to it isn't funny."

"Oh, you're just jealous I stuck the landing. You never could get the timing right, huh, Frigid?"

Efrideet opened her mouth to retaliate, but Radagast stepped in with, "What do you mean by your words, Hunter?"

"Hm? Oh, like I said, just dropping by-"

"He means, oh, nevermind." Efrideet turned to Radagast and continued, "She literally dropped in, like from the sky."

"It scared me half to death!" A Lord said.

"I didn't even see or hear her ship!" A Lady mentioned.

"You used the stel-"

Hunter cut Efrideet off with pointed glare. "Doesn't matter how I got here, just that I'm here."

"And why is that?" Radagast asked.

Hunter grinned again and said, putting on the gold helmet, "I'm joining the Iron Lords."