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Husky
The Red War had ended, but a new trouble had beset the Last Safe City. Titan Claney Beamard was starting to think the name was taking on an ironic tone at this point. He had been a Guardian long enough to see two major sieges from the Fallen, an assault by the Hive, the City fall to the Red Legion, and now a pneumonia-like illness that was tearing its way through the survivors as they struggled to rebuild their ruined lives. People had taken to calling the illness War Lung, and it had proven resistant to standard treatments. Most people attributed it to poor living conditions and reduced access to clean water, but there was some speculation that it might be some sort of biological agent that the Cabal had left behind. Either way, it was causing massive disruptions to rebuilding efforts.
The City had called for aid, and that was why Claney was here now, delivering supplies picked up from the Farm. To think, only a matter of months ago, the Farm was full of refugees and desperate for any supplies they could scavenge things from the City, and now they were the ones providing the assistance. One could almost laugh, if it wasn’t deadly serious.
Claney had not travelled alone on the supply run. Warlock Zillah Arvid had flown with him, but had disappeared as soon as they arrived at the Tower hangar. She had heard about Warlocks using their healing rifts to try to assist people suffering from War Lung and other maladies and had gone to offer her assistance, leaving Claney to handle the mundane task of assisting in offloading supplies and taking inventory. He would have to remember to thank her for that later. Once the task was completed, Claney waved goodbye to Shipwright Amanda Holliday, strode from the hangar, and took the lift down from the Tower to the City.
The sights of the City were not as depressing as they had been when he had been part of the assault force that attacked during the Cabal occupation, but it was still far from being what it had once been. Not that he had been in the City much. For a long time, Claney had been uncomfortable around people, particularly non-Guardians. Some of that had worn off in recent years, but there were still times it did not feel quite right.
“Elgan,” Claney reached out to his Ghost through their bond. “Where is this medical center that Zillah went to?”
“Here,” the Ghost replied, a white dot appearing on the radar that was projected onto Claney’s heads-up display, or HUD.
The target was quite a distance away. Doubting he would get public transportation to pick him up, the Titan summoned his sparrow and rode at low speed through the streets. That drew the eyes of nearly everyone he passed, leaving Claney feeling conspicuous and self-conscious.
Still, it was better than walking.
Eventually, he reached his destination and Elgan stored the sparrow. Claney removed his helmet and had the Ghost store that as well. A fully armored Titan could be quite an intimidating sight, no need scaring people who were already not feeling well.
He stepped in through the doors and was shocked by the number of people crowded into the waiting area. Every seat was full, and people stood in clumps or sat on the floor, packed in tightly. Every eye in the place turned toward him as he entered, and looks of disappointment flashed across several faces.
“I think they were hoping you were another Warlock,” Elgan said privately.
“Makes sense,” Claney replied. “Can’t really punch disease into submission or block it with a barricade.”
The Ghost trilled an affirmative. “Correct. So please refrain from punching anyone.”
“Why would I punch anyone?”
“How should I know what goes through your head?”
“Other than the fact that you’re in my mind?” the Titan asked.
“I still can’t read you mind. It’s too dark in here for that.”
Claney shook his head and strode to the front counter, being careful not to bump or step on anyone that was waiting. The weary receptionist looked up at him and gave him a withering look.
“Yes?” she asked in a flat voice.
“Hi, yeah, I was wondering if you could point me in the direction of the Warlocks that are here to assist with the healing?”
“Have your Ghost heal you, we’re full.”
“I’m not here for healing,” Claney replied. “A Warlock I work with came in today to help out. We travelled together to drop off supplies at the Tower. I needed to find her.”
The lady eyed him coldly for several seconds as if she were trying to decide if he was telling the truth. “Through these doors, take a left, you’ll find them in the large room in the back.”
“Thanks,” the red-haired man said and turned to walk through the doors.
“I better not hear that you even set a pinky toe in one of the healing circles,” the receptionist warned as he exited the room.
Claney followed her directions, strolling down the hallway, his heavy booted steps echoing off the stark white walls. He passed several rooms with people lying in beds, hooked up to various machines. It made him feel a bit uncomfortable. The last time he’d seen the inside of a hospital room, it had been when he had awoken to find that he had lost a leg. Not exactly a pleasant memory.
He found the correct door and turned to enter. Just before he could step through the threshold, he found himself having to duck as a large animal leaped directly at him. He barely had time to register that it was glowing and looked like it was drawn rather than solid before the creature disappeared. Inside the room, he could hear the sound of laughter and applause.
Turning to look back into the dimly lit room, Claney saw a large healing rift on the ground. Inside the rift were numerous chairs, each one was occupied, with both children and adults smiling, looking around the room at other non-corporeal animals that were rushing around the space over their heads. On the far side of the room stood Zillah. The Awoken woman’s amber eyes were glowing faintly in the low light and were focused on him, one corner of her mouth turned upward in a smirk. Two other Warlocks were seated on a bench to his right, while to his left was a fourth Warlock. This one was standing, and appeared to be guiding the glowing creatures around the room.
Claney stepped in the room and leaned against the wall just to the right of the door, watching the show. Taking time to look at the creatures, they definitely looked like that had been drawn over the real world, and looked like they were made out of Light. The show carried on for several minutes, then the images blinked out of sight. The patients applauded and one of the Warlocks flipped a switch to bring the overhead lights back on, then the healing rift faded from existence. The people in the chairs stood and stretched before walking out of the room, smiles on all their faces.
“Nice job, Alured,” said one of the Warlocks on the bench. He was a young looking man with light brown skin and brown hair that was styled to spike upward.
“Thanks, Jay,” the Warlock named Alured said. “I’m not nearly as good as you, but I’m getting there.”
“Not nearly as good as me?” the brown-haired Warlock blinked in surprise. “I’m nothing special.”
“If you say so,” Alured shook his head. He reached up to pat the Warlock he’d called ‘Jay’ on the shoulder, then stepped past him, crossed the room, and dropped heavily onto the bench.
Zillah straightened and strode over to Claney. “Pretty incredible, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” the Titan agreed. “I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anything like those Light constructs.”
“Seems to be somewhat commonplace now,” Zillah said. “Since the Traveler woke, many Guardians are feeling more… freedom with the Light. There have been new manifestations of their power beyond the Vanguard’s regimented subclasses, as well as creating constructs like these, some of which are even solid enough to support a person’s weight in full armor.”
“I guess we just haven’t been around enough Guardians lately to have noticed,” Claney admitted. “Though, different powers aren’t exactly new. I remember a young Guardian I met during Twilight Gap who manifested an Arc rifle.”
“Seriously?” Zillah’s eyes widened. “Why haven’t you mentioned that before?”
“It never came up?” the Titan shrugged.
“Impossible Titans…” Zillah muttered under her breath. She shook her head and looked away, her eyes drifting to the human Warlock. She quickly turned her face back to Claney. “Oh, I almost forgot. Claney, this is Jayesh. Jayesh, Claney.”
The Titan stepped forward and held out his hand, which the Warlock shook after a brief hesitation and said, “Hello.”
“Jayesh?” Claney questioned, really looking at the Warlock for the first time. “I’ve heard that name before…”
“He’s the Guardian who claims to have been inside the Traveler during the Red War,” Elgan said, materializing suddenly. He zipped around Jayesh, looking at the man from every angle, which prompted Jayesh’s Ghost to appear as well.
“What do you think you’re doing?” the Ghost demanded. “Go buzz around your own Guardian.”
“Phoenix…” Jayesh warned.
“I’m just looking,” Elgan replied, rolling the Light in his core that made up his eye. “It’s not like I did something like… this.”
Elgan flashed a quick beam of Light at Jayesh. Phoenix’s shell jittered in agitation and he darted directly in front of the other Ghost.
“Do NOT do that again,” Phoenix nearly growled at Elgan. “I’ll have you know I’ve taken out bigger Ghosts than you, pal.”
“Don’t be so defensive. I was just… wait.” Elgan darted away from Phoenix, swooping around Claney’s back and then up, stopping just behind his ear and whispered, “There was something weird in that scan. Could they be telling the truth?”
“Of course we’re telling the truth,” Phoenix stated. “MY Guardian doesn’t lie.”
“No one is accusing anyone of lying,” Claney said, holding up a hand.
“Plenty of others have,” Phoenix replied defensively.
Jayesh’ head ducked, a light flush coming to his cheeks. This had been a very sensitive topic ever since the end of the Red War. Plenty of individuals and broadcasts had made many different claims about Jayesh, and it had very nearly cost him and his Ghost their life. He tried to change the subject.
“I’ve actually heard about you too,” the Warlock said to Claney. “You helped a member of my fireteam during the War. Do you know a Warlock named Kari?”
Claney blinked in surprise. “Yeah, I’ve known her for a long time. Not well, but every couple decades we seem to run into each other.”
“Decades?” Jayesh asked, a strange, sinking feeling settling into his chest that he didn’t quite understand.
“Yeah. I first met her during the Battle of Six Fronts. We were both kinderguardians back then.”
“Right,” Jayesh nodded, more focused on his own thoughts than what was going on around him in the room now. Just what he needed, another reminder of that gulf that separated the two of them, the massive difference in their lives and experiences.
He looked at Claney. Titans tended to be large men and women, and the red-haired man was no exception. Kari’s former husband had been a Titan, a member of the Stoneborn Order named Rem. Jayesh had never met him, but he could imagine that he might have looked something like Claney.
Titans were the stalwart defenders of the Last City, its sword and shield to fight off the Darkness. They were seen as the brave warriors that kept the enemy at bay while people thought Hunters were just off in the woods somewhere and Warlocks had their nose stuck in a book. To many people they represented nobility and honor, like the knights of old.
And Jayesh had utterly failed at being one.
He had initially been training in the Titan discipline before the Traveler convinced him to switch to Warlock. Jayesh did not regret the decision, being a Warlock fit him like a glove. It was clearly his calling in life. And yet, he couldn’t feel a twinge of insecurity as he stood here. Then again, Jayesh mused, when did he not feel insecure.
“...ng to stay here?” Claney was saying when Jayesh finally snapped back into the moment.
“Yes,” Zillah replied. “I want to offer some assistance with a healing rift, and observe the Light constructs a little more.”
“Okay. I probably shouldn’t stick around though. The receptionist out front didn’t seem to thrilled with me coming back here. Might send hospital security to make sure I’m not stealing meds or something.”
Zillah laughed. “Well, I’ll walk you out and reassure her that you behaved yourself.”
“It was good to meet you,” Claney said to Jayesh.
“Uhm, yeah, you too,” Jayesh managed, then watched as Claney and Zillah left the room. The image of a Titan walking with a Warlock side-by-side like that bothered him for reasons he didn’t want to admit to himself. He turned to the other Warlocks in the room and asked, “Can you handle the next few sessions? I need to clear my head for a minute.”
The other Warlocks nodded and waved him on. Jayesh walked from the room, and headed for the hospital exit. He had to dodge a few outstretched hands and beg off from some pleading individuals, letting them know the next healing sessions would be beginning soon.
Without thinking about a destination, Jayesh wandered through the City streets. A smell on the breeze caught his attention. Someone nearby was cooking something that smelled delightful, and his stomach rumbled. When had he eaten last? He couldn’t remember, which meant it had probably been a while. Jayesh had developed a tendency to lose track of time while working in the sick ward. Jayesh followed the smell to a shop selling bread and soup.
“Is that chicken?” he asked the teenage girl behind the counter, pointing at the soup of the day.
“Uhm… Yes?” the girl replied, an uncertain tone to her voice.
That did not give Jayesh confidence. However, he gave into the hunger and ordered a meal and sat to eat. The first bite was instantly comforting. When he got back to the hospital, he told himself he would have to make sure the other Warlocks had eaten as well.
“Phoenix, show me what Titan armor the Tower vendors have available, please,” he requested as he ate.
“You do know you’re not a Titan anymore, right?” the Ghost asked. “Have you been working yourself so hard that you forgot that?”
“No, I remember,” Jayesh mumbled. No matter how long he lived, he would never forget the shame of having been the lowest scoring Titan recruit in history, failing so miserably that Zavala himself had called him defective and threatened to kick him out of the Tower.
“Then why do you want to see their armor?” Phoenix questioned.
“I just… I just do.”
“Fine,” the Ghost gave an approximation of a sign, and displayed the requested information.
Jayesh studied the different suits of armor that were available. Each piece was solid and radiated strength. Optimacy. Phoenix Strife. Shelter in Place. He tried to imagine himself in each piece, and struggled to do so.
Something he’d heard Cayde-6, the Hunter Vanguard, say to a Titan passed through his mind then, “I understand how they make them that big. I just don’t understand why.”
“Now would you like to tell me why you’re staring at armor that you can’t use?” Phoenix asked privately.
“I don’t know,” Jayesh sighed. “I guess I was just thinking about Kari.”
“That… makes no sense,” Phoenix replied, baffled.
“Not Kari,” Jayesh said, stressing the name. “Things about her. Like the fact that she used to be married to a Titan.”
“Are we back on this again?” Phoenix asked, rolling his eye. He continued when Jayesh didn’t reply, “She was only married for a few years, out of around a century of being a Guardian.”
“It’s not that,” Jayesh said. “Not exactly. It’s who she was married too. The fact that he was a Titan.” He shook his head, “I don’t know. I’m just feeling inadequate right now.”
“That’s it, I’m telling Neko.”
“Don’t you dare!”
“Too late.” The Ghost actually sounded smug for a second before he switched back to chastising. “Someone needs to talk some sense into you, and clearly you won’t let it be me.”
“Oh, Light,” Jayesh groaned.
Jayesh finished his meal in silence, dropping his bowl off after he was finished. He stepped back out onto the street, intent on heading back to the hospital when he noticed a familiar figure approaching him. It was Kari, and she had a concerned look on her face.
“Jay?” she asked as she drew close. “Everything alright? Neko said that Phoenix told him that you needed me for something. I was worried you’d been working yourself to exhaustion again.”
There had been a Fallen attack on the City that had tried to take advantage of the vulnerable state that it was in following the War. Jayesh and Kari had both helped repel the attackers, but over the course of events, had managed to miscommunicate multiple times on multiple levels, and Jayesh had spent weeks avoiding her and nearly working himself to death afterward. They had smoothed things over and cleared the air, and Kari had made a very specific threat if he were to ever do something like that again.
“No, nothing like that,” he said. “I just… let’s say I was back in the ‘unworthy worm’ mindset and leave it at that.”
“He got jealous of a Titan’s big shoulders,” Phoenix added.
“What?” Kari blinked in confusion, looking between the two of them.
Jayesh let out a sound of exasperation. “I met an acquaintance of yours today, a Titan named Claney. It just made me think about some things is all.”
Kari looked at Jayesh then, noticed the dejected look in his eyes. Ever since they had cleared the air and made it clear that they had feelings for each other, Jayesh occasionally let things get to him. There was a strength in him that he refused to see, always picking out his own inadequacies and fears.
“Why did meeting Claney bother you? There’s never been anything between us.”
“It wasn’t him,” Jayesh sighed, “it was the idea of him. Or, someone like him. Someone like…”
“Like Rem,” she said. Jayesh nodded. “Oh, Jay…”
“I was just thinking about how you’d been married to a Titan, and how Titans are viewed in the City, and how I failed at that, meaning I don’t measure up…”
“Has anyone ever told you that you are infuriating sometimes?” Kari asked.
“Phoenix has a time or two,” he admitted.
“Well, it’s true. Jay, you were never meant to be a Titan. You are a healer, and a fantastic one at that. And you don’t have to be a Titan to be brave or strong, you’ve proven that over and over by doing things like climbing into the Traveler and facing down a Gate Lord single-handedly.
“And it’s not like Titans are all that great. Claney? When I first met him, he was a nice guy who could barely handle a weapon. Years later something had changed him and he was borderline suicidal. Rem knew him better than I did, said it had to do with the Great Disaster. Seemed like he was looking for a place to die, but kept coming through the other side. Proof you can’t buy stories that all the crazy ones come from Hunter or Warlock disciplines.
“Finally, you think Titans are highly revered by the civilians? When I was in the Tower just now, I heard a woman talking about how Titans said they would protect the City, but let the Cabal destroy it.”
“That’s cruel.”
“Agreed. Especially given the fact that the Stoneborn fought to their last Guardian trying to keep the Cabal out.” She paused, and when she started speaking again, her tone had changed. “Did I tell you Rem was Stoneborn? So, I would have lost him anyway.”
“I’m sorry,” Jayesh said, reaching out and placing a hand on her shoulder.
“It’s fine,” Kari offered a sad smile. “A few Guardians had to be restrained from going after her, caused quite a scene. Anyway, the point is, no one thinks they’re perfect.”
“I guess you’re right,” Jayesh conceded.
“Of course I am,” Kari said with a smile. “And Titan armor? You’d look ridiculous in it. You’re nowhere near husky enough.”
“Husky?” Jayesh asked with a little laugh.
“Well, that’s the nice way to say it,” she replied, her small smile becoming a full grin.
“Walk with me back to the hospital?” Jayesh asked.
“Of course. I’d hate for you to see sword in a shop window and think your Dawnblade wasn’t big enough or something,” Kari teased. When Jayesh blushed, she realized how that might have come across and burst out laughing.
Arm in arm, the two Warlocks wobbled down the street, their laughter making it difficult to walk straight.