Destiny, Episode I: A Warlock Rises

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Next Episode: Episode II, A Hunter Rises

The Cosmodrome, Old Russia, Earth
Day 000

Koga awoke with a gasp, his lungs burning painfully as he struggled to fill them with air. As his breathing echoed around him, he suddenly realized that his head was trapped in a helmet, and began to panic. He tried to fumble for a release to strip it off, but his arms wouldn't respond; in fact, none of his body would, save for his darting eyes and panting mouth. A heartbeat later, it felt like his entire body was being pricked by a thousand thousand needles, as if his entire circulation had been cut off and was only just now returning to normal.

It was at that moment that Koga remembered that he had died. Not how, not why, not when, and not even where, but the fact stood. He was too stunned to feel the pain anymore, which faded away like a leaf on the wind. He had died; he could remember the suffocating darkness fill his vision as his consciousness had bled away. But here he was, impossibly alive.

Before he could think to ask how he had been resurrected, a male synthetic voice chirped cheerfully, "it worked; you're alive!" Koga glanced up instinctively to see a strange object floating inches above his head. It was a strange angular shape composed of jutting white pyramids capped with gold surrounding a black sphere core, a blue "eye" the shape of its body staring down at him. As it spoke, it twisted and turned about its axis, every part of it but the core moving independently.

"What are you?" Koga stammered as he slowly got to his feet. The painful sensation had faded, but twinges came and went. "Where am I? How am I alive?" Koga blinked to clear his blurred vision, and the sight of rusted cars appeared before him, a massive brown wall towering back and forth across the horizon.

"I'm a Ghost." The thing replied, matter-of-factly. "Actually, now I'm your Ghost. You can worry about my name later." It paused, scanning Koga up and down with its eye. "You are in the Cosmodrome, and you have been dead for a very, very long time. You're going to see things you won't understand. I brought you back because you are needed."

"What could you possibly need with an old scienti-" Koga's confused retort ended halfway when the sound of a roar echoed from the distance. A shiver ran down his spine; it was not an earthly sound. The Ghost peeked over Koga's shoulder, and must have not liked what it saw, because it immediately turned back to the massive wall behind it, then to Koga.

"It's not safe out here. I promise, I'll give you answers, but I have to get you to the City." It spoke in a concerned, almost frantic voice, which wasn't helping Koga's mood much. The Ghost backed up for a second, then lunged forward without warning at the man.

Throwing his arms up to protect himself, Koga braced for a sudden impact, but the Ghost vanished into blue light before it could touch him. A second later, a voice spoke clearly into Koga's ear. "Don't worry, I'm still with you-go for the Wall, there's an entrance ahead!"

Another moan called out behind Koga, this time much louder and much closer. It was all the motivation the man needed. Without hesitation, he took off running down the hill he had started on, the low evening sun on his back.

- - - - - - -

The Wall looked not much better inside than it did outside. Rust and decay made the entire place a dirty brown, and as Koga began to move across an old walkway, it creaked disconcertingly. As he kept moving, it got darker and darker, until it became pitch black. A sharp sound from above made Koga get into a crouch. With a whoosh, the Ghost reappeared, and a heartbeat later it began to project a cone of light in the direction the Guardian was headed.

"There's Fallen right above us!" It hissed. When a few seconds had passed, Koga began to move again, but as he climbed the stairs to another walkway, something scuttled up a pipe behind a wall. The man jumped back, raising his hands instinctively.

"That wasn't above us." He whispered. The Ghost beeped in approval. Again, Koga waited for any sound-nothing. Taking a deep breath, he started forward again. As he turned the corner, the hallway opened into a massive dark chasm that seemed to go on for forever both ways.

The Ghost began to float away without warning. "Fallen thrive in the dark. We won't. We need more light." It was a simple explanation, but before Koga could do anything, it was too far out. Unlike earlier, the Ghost had expanded itself, its pieces hovering around it as its flew. It projected a soft blue light as the thing moved-and in that dim light, Koga could see things scuttling on massive pipes. Dozens of them, all now starting to move.

There was a series of loud clangs, and massive floodlights on the ceiling began to snap to life, revealing the chamber proper. Ghost came hurrying back as two red drones floated up, beady mechanical eyes staring at Koga before floating away. The things scuttling on the pipes dispersed before they fired streaks of blue light lazily in his direction.

Koga hurried to where Ghost was waiting, a large screen gate impeding progress. On the other side, Koga could see a worn-looking rifle leaning against some debris. "Grab that rifle!" The Ghost announced, somewhat unnecessarily. Koga didn't need any more explanation as the gate opened automatically. Ghost vanished again, back into the armor, while Koga hurriedly snagged the weapon. It was a familiar-looking thing, painted a military matte black, and a red holographic sight affixed to its top. It was heavier than Koga liked, but it was in good condition. As he hefted it, a crosshair automatically projected itself against the display. 

"I hope you know how to use that thing." Ghost noted, concerned. "I've got ammo stored, just toss the magazine when you're done with it and I'll materialize a new one in your hand." Koga gripped the rifle tight and nodded, though he filed a question of "how" away in his mind. Holding it to his shoulder, the Guardian began to move through the corridors, once again cramped conditions.

Koga breathed tensely as he moved-he was being hunted, and he was easy prey. He had never done this sort of thing before-hopefully he was a quick learner. A flash of red drew Koga's attention to the corner of his helmet. "What was that?"

"What was-oh." The Ghost stammered. "It's a motion tracker, and it's just picked something up ahead of us." Koga gritted his teeth, and raised the sight to his eye. The only way out was through. With a crash, part of the ceiling swung open, and down dropped three creatures.

They were short, not quite as tall as Koga, with a regular number of arms and legs. What set them apart was the mask they wore, some kind of breathing apparatus with a tube going into their chest armor, and four blue eyes apiece staring at him, rage burning in each. They lifted some cruel-looking pistol at Koga, but he gave them no time to fire. The Guardian held down the trigger, and the rifle bucked with automatic death, riddling the aliens. Once all three were on the ground, Koga pressed the release on his rifle without hesitation, which slid uselessly to the floor before dematerializing. A new one fizzled into existence in Koga's open hand, and he slapped it in before pulling back the charging bolt.

"You're a natural!" The Ghost quipped, happily. Koga was surprised: it did feel like he was, but he couldn't remember firing a gun in his life.

"I shouldn't know how to do this." He muttered, confused.

"Oh, that? Your armor feeds tactical information into your subconscious. Things like weapon handling are going to feel like you've always been doing it." The Ghost spoke as if it was a minor detail, but to Koga it was just another mystery he would need to solve later. As he approached the dead aliens, Ghost piped in again. "Dregs, of House Devils. They're the lowest rung of the Fallen ladder, but they're as deadly as a Captain when in numbers." Koga stared down at one of the Dregs, and grimaced at his handiwork. There was no going back now.

Turning his attention back to his escape, Koga pressed forward, but was met with surprisingly little resistance. As he turned a corner, something lunged at him. Without thinking, Koga thrust his right hand at it, and there was an audible smack as a wave of energy hit the Dreg in the face. It crumpled where it hit the ground, dead. "What?" Koga shouted, shocked. "How did I do that?"

"You're a Warlock; projecting energy is what you do best." The Ghost couldn't sound happier.

"What is a Warlock?" Koga pressed. "Some answers cannot wait!"

"It's a type of Guardian, which is what you are." The Ghost answered quickly. "You can use the Traveler's Light as a weapon, and right now you're going to need it, because more Fallen are coming!" Sure enough, the tracker shine red, and down dropped more Dregs, along with a bigger one with four arms instead of two. It held a longer rifle, and shouted in a guttural, inhuman voice. Koga met its roar with his rifle, and didn't even stop to examine his opponents as he moved for the exit of the chamber.

"They're throwing Vandals at you now-you're a real threat to them." The Ghost noted, worried. "We have to hurry, before more come." Koga simply nodded as he sprinted across another walkway over a gaping chasm. At the other end sat a curious alien container. "A loot cache!" The Ghost chirped. "Check for anything inside."

"Is now really the best time?" Koga retorted, more alien calls echoing from behind.

"There might be gear stored as data inside. I can equip you with it automatically." It was answer enough, and Koga pressed what he hoped was the release. Sure enough, the thing swung open to reveal small blue cubes which vanished away with a hiss. "Got it-looks like a fusion rifle was in here." The Ghost announced.

"Fusion rifle?" Koga asked, lowering his rifle for a second. In a flash, the assault rifle was replaced with a lightweight device with a glowing blue core.

"This one uses arc energy. Charge it to fire." The Ghost explained. "Come on, time to go; we're nearly outside!" Koga raised his new weapon, and forged ahead.

- - - - - - -

Koga hurried into what looked like some kind of service chamber, and immediately more Fallen rushed to meet him. As a Vandal charged forward, Koga lifted the fusion rifle and squeezed the trigger. The weapon whined as electricity arced at the muzzle before there was a meaty choom. Bolts of blue light hurried from the barrel and smacked into the alien, which was just as quickly consumed by the light and fizzled away, disintegrated. Koga smiled under his helmet despite himself-this was much more his style. The other aliens met the same fate, their shots dissipating uselessly against a thin shield that surrounded the Warlock.

When the room was clear, Koga spotted a doorway leading out, the hatch uselessly ajar. Hurriedly, he ran through it into an old air duct, a massive broken fan behind him and between him and the exit. Stepping through, Koga could see another fan spinning slowly, a bright light shining behind it. There was something poetic about the place, and the Warlock slowed his run to a walk as he moved cautiously through. Another turn, and he was outside.

The sky was dark, the stars shining through the clouds. It was night now, and the moon hung low over the horizon. More rusted buildings dotted the area, but Koga's eyes were drawn to the abandoned tanks sitting nearby, their guns aimed at the entrance he had stepped through. "What happened here?" Koga asked, quietly.

"No one knows." The Ghost replied. Before Koga could continue, there was a bang, and a red flare streaked upwards in the distance. A heartbeat later, a corner of the sky began to glow. Koga's head turned instinctively to see halos of energy converge on a single point, hanging above what looked like massive spaceships standing on launchpads. 

When they shrank to a dot, there was an explosion of purple light, and Koga blinked to shield his retinas. When he opened them again, the light had been replaced with a massive alien vessel, a shockwave expanding outward from its appearance. The grounded ships closest to it collapsed silently as the craft roared forward. A second later, the shockwave hit Koga, blowing dust and debris into the air and hitting him in the chest like a punch. Still, he stayed standing, watching as the ship roared forwards. There were more bangs, and suddenly dozens of smaller ships appeared near the bigger one, diving towards the Cosmodrome. 

"Fallen ships, this close to the surface?" The Ghost managed over the din. "We have to hurry, our window is almost closed!"

"Where am I going?" Koga shouted as he began to run towards a sign marked in Cyrillic.

"There is a hangar on the other side of the courtyard-go!" The Warlock nodded as he reached the sign. There was a small jump, which Koga easily managed as he landed softly, but the bigger concern were the two Fallen troop ships hanging just overhead. They were long, with a bulbous front and a thin fuselage. From that fuselage dropped a series of hooks, and Fallen began to clamber down them. Underneath what must have been the cockpit were two turrets, and both ships began to fire at Koga with blasts of blue light. The Warlock jumped to his left, behind a rusted truck, as the ground he had been standing on exploded. 

"Damn!" Koga hissed, readying his assault rifle. There was too many for him to take on using the fusion rifle-cells were too scarce for him to try. Leaning around the corner, he fired a burst at the first group. One of his shots caught a Vandal in the head, and it exploded into a vaporsous white mist as some gas escaped from of its suit.

Koga reloaded, slapping a new magazine in, before sprinting forward, hugging a building to his left before jutting into the courtyard. The remaining Fallen tried to match him, but the Warlock gunned them down as he moved for a distant cargo door. He hardly noticed the empty dam to his left, dropping off dozens of feet, until he nearly fell in it.

"Er, mind the gap." The Ghost chided.

"Duly noted." Koga muttered before continuing on. As he reached the door, two more red drones appeared, but they exploded uselessly as Koga riddled them. 

"Shanks. Nasty machines the Fallen use to clear out tunnels." The Ghost explained.

"They're rather fragile." Koga noted. "They must rely on numbers, I assume."

"We're lucky that was a smaller group." Ghost replied. "Come on-a ship is still inside that we can use." Koga reloaded again as he moved into the decaying building, his eyes scanning every corner-nothing. He glanced at the broken-down computers around him, and felt a pang of sorrow-any information on them was lost to history.

As Koga rounded one last corner, he passed through a doorway that revealed a large room. The ceiling was gone, revealing the sparkling night sky, and hanging from several tethers at a precarious angle was a large, delta-like ship. The moment he entered, three Fallen stood from where they had been hiding on the top of the vessel and jumped down, one of them much bigger than his comrades. It roared at him, before raising its heavy gun, fire licking from its muzzle.

Koga dived behind cover as the alien fired its weapon, shards of burning projectiles smacking into the wall behind the Guardian. "Captain!" Ghost barked. "I managed to get you some grenades-use it on him!" Koga nodded, and dashed out of cover to face his foe. On instinct, Koga curled his hand near his chest, and with a woosh a grenade materialized in his grasp. He flung it like a disc, the weapon exploding in purple light as it left his hand. The Captain saw the grenade, and before it could hit, it teleported a meter away in a flash of blue light. Its lieutenants weren't so lucky, and they were blown back by the explosion.

Koga raised his rifle again, and fired at the Captain, but the bullets disintegrated uselessly against a blue shield. Roaring in something near a battle fury, Koga charged forward, his shield taking hit after hit from the Captain's gun. Just before slamming into the alien, the Captain used its other two hands to pull out two blue jolting swords and swung at Koga, but the Guardian slid under them as he brought out the fusion rifle. The alien had time to shout in its tongue before it burned away in the arc.

Getting to his feet, Koga panted as he caught his breath. His motion tracker was clear, finally. "Well done!" The Ghost stated proudly.

"Thank you." Koga managed between gasps. The adrenaline kick that had motivated his charge flooded away, but after a second his lungs stopped burning. With a flash, Ghost was back out, floating up to the blue-and yellow ship. It was thin, with a pointed nose drawing back to a wide pair of "wings," each with its own engine. The ship was in disrepair, but there was something about it that made Koga smile. It was a survivor, a relic from a forgotten era, just like him.

"It's been here a while." Ghost muttered as it examined the ship. "Hasn't made a jump in centuries. We're lucky the Fallen haven't completely picked it clean."

"Will it fly?" He called, holstering his weapon. The Ghost turned to look at him.

"I can make it work." It said, confidently, before vanishing. The ship suddenly hummed, and the engines spooled up with a roar. Dust began to blow as the craft returned to life. The cords holding it in place snapped loudly, and the vessel righted itself, waiting for Koga like it had always been his.

"Okay, it's not going to break orbit, but it might just get us to the City!" Ghost shouted over the radio. 

A low roar from the left snapped the Warlock back to reality, and from a crack in the wall crouched a massive Fallen creature wearing a helmet dotted with red eyes. As it clambered down, Koga took a step back, then felt a gust.

When his eyesight returned, he was sitting in a cockpit, a joystick and throttle in his hands. Ghost hang over his shoulder, staring at him. "We can come back for them later!" Koga nodded, and let his instincts go to work. Ineffectual rifle fire bounced against the hull as the jumpship. Once it was clear, Koga slammed the throttle forward, and it shot ahead like an arrow.

He never noticed the woman standing on the roof, her cloak rippling in the breeze.

- - - - - - -

Stormclouds buffeted the ship as Koga pushed the ship forward. He could see the mountains he passed over loom like sleeping giants, waiting to live anew. "What do I call you?" Koga asked as he kept the ship moving straight.

"I remember someone called me Kita once." Ghost replied, simply.

"It sounds familiar." Koga admitted. "My name is Koga. I wish I could remember more, but that is all I can recollect." Kita beeped before responding.

"It's good to meet you, Koga." The Guardian smiled. 

"Likewise, Kita." He gripped the stick tightly as he dove into another cloudbank. Lightning crashed, the rumble and the endless rain of the tempest blocked by the hull. Suddenly, sunlight peeked through the cracks of the clouds ahead. "Hold on!" He shouted as he aimed the ship right for the edge of the storm. There was one last roll of thunder, and then they were through.

Koga stared at the massive white ball that hung over a metropolis, walls circling the entire City. Despite all that had been taken from him by time and death, he felt the same awe he had experienced when he had first seen the bringer of the Golden Age: the Traveler.

Koga was home.