Chapter Text
Ever since he was but a hatchling, Vel ‘Toram knew that his destiny lay beyond the Refuge. Something had always been calling to him from beyond the edge of the Ussan system, a whisper of glory, shining like a freshly polished moonblade. And when the Journey’s Sustenance arrived in the system, reconnecting the Ussans to the rest of the galaxy, Vel understood the path laid before him.
Seven years had passed since then, and in that time he had learned about the Covenant’s expansion, its genocidal crusade against humanity, and how that war was built on the lies of the Hierarchs. He had also learned about the Arbiter, who uncovered those lies, revealed them, and forged the Swords of Sanghelios: warriors who fought not for Prophets, but for truth and honor.
Three years ago, after coming of age, Vel had eagerly joined up with them. His first assignment had taken him to ANVIL Station, a human facility dedicated to forging a new era of cooperation between Sangheili and Humanity.
Now, standing in one of the station’s research gardens, Vel looked out of one of the tall view ports at the stars beyond. The garden was one of his favorite places on the station, and not just for the view. The temperature and humidity were as close to perfectly comfortable as could be, and the gentle lighting a relaxing contrast to the bright white illumination on the rest of the station.
And at times such as these, when the botanists weren't hard at work, the only things Vel heard here were the gentle hum of the station’s life support systems and his own breathing. He especially needed a quiet place after last night’s chaos, when the humans were celebrating the new year of their calendar, bidding good riddance to what they called the “year of hell,” 2559. Vel had found humans interesting and savvy, but sometimes, deeply irritating -- especially when their celebrations turned into impromptu tests of the mess halls’ soundproofing.
The sound of footsteps broke Vel out of his reflective mood, and the Sangheili turned to see his human battle partner, Spartan-IV Daniel Nelson, casually stride in with that easygoing but alert gait of a professional who noticed everything while still being relatively relaxed. Daniel was a bit shorter than the average Spartan, with a heavily built jaw that had once caused Vel to wonder how the human was able to wear his helmet. “Heya, Vel. Figured I’d find you stargazing in here.”
Vel’s mandibles loosened a bit in amusement as Daniel came up next to him.
“How was your leave, Nelson?”
“It went great. It’s been a few since I got to see my folks. Mom said I looked more tired than usual. While I was there, I helped clean up the colony. The damage the damn Guardians caused while enforcing Cortana’s stupid laws… wasn't pretty. Thank goodness they all shut down.” He stood next to the Sangheili in silence for a bit before continuing. “Hey, you ever think of visiting your home? Going back to Refuge for a while?” he asked Vel.
Vel looked at Daniel, his head tilted to the side. “I have no reason to right now. My path, for right now, does not lead me back to Refuge. Also, when I left, I promised to tell my younger sister a story of honor amongst the stars, and I have none so far.”
“You helped bring that one Phantom pilot to his senses during the lockdown. You looked pretty heroic then.”
Vel looked downward. “That would not suffice. A bar brawl amongst my own, caused because a fellow Sangheili had been taken beyond sanity by eating emergency rations for too long? She would not find such a tale inspiring.”
Daniel nodded, pausing for a few moments. “Hey, don't downplay it too much. I'm pretty sure I would also have gone mad with cabin fever by now if the lockdown was still ongoing. And you did gain the respect of some of the elder vets.”
Vel made a soft rumbling noise, the Sangheili equivalent to a polite chuckle. “They have certainly been calling me ‘soft’ a lot less since then.”
“See?” Daniel chuckled. “Progress! You should at least mention it in your next message back home.”
“I was already planning on doing so, Nelson,” Vel rumbled again. “Now, knowing you, you probably picked up tomorrow's training schedule.”
Nelson nodded, his face turning a bit more serious. “Yep… morning’s gonna be a search and rescue drill on wargames deck B, and then we’ve got a briefing on Banished movements at 1500 hours.” He let out a sigh that Vel sympathized with - the universe wasn't going to let them rest easy.
As they turned to leave the garden, Vel’s gaze lingered on the stars outside. Somewhere out there, stories waited -- hopefully a grand one out there, he hoped, that was worth bringing back to his sister on Refuge. He was sure the time for one was coming soon.