The once great cities that graced the Golden Age now lay in ruin after the Darkness arrived. Towers that once reached the heavens now crumbled on the gridlocked streets. Some of the old skyscrapers had been caught by others, leaning against the side of neighboring buildings. Over the years, their structure became weak, as if they could collapse onto the ground at any given second. In the stillness of the day, a Sparrow rides, the Guardian mounted fully aware that the buildings she speeds under could give in and crush her to her death. Evana-4 sped through the streets of old Chicago, her sparrow disturbing the peace and flinging debris into the air. She felt the ground rumble beneath her sparrow. Another great skyscraper had finally succumbed to the Darkness. After a few seconds, she could hear the crash in the distance as the old tower connected with the ground. With how dangerous the cities are, Evana was surprised the Fallen had managed to set up any sort of base here, though at a cost it seemed. As she rode onward to her destination, she had passed many Fallen corpses, their bodies crushed under the weight of concrete and metal from buildings constantly falling apart.
She didn’t understand how a place such as this would not have been leveled years ago. Humans of the Golden Age must have been persistent in defending their home. She wished other Guardians had such persistence. This was why she fought for the Future War Cult. She believed that the Earth was worth fighting for; she did not want the lives lost in the protection of this planet to be in vain. Even now, she was fighting for the FWC, tracking a high value target who is trying to set up shop in this desolate city.
“Not much further,” the electronic voice chimed, breaking the silence. The little spikey robot—a child of the Traveler—Echo, hovered beside Evana as she rode through the quiet streets. She remained quiet as well, allowing the soothing hum of the Sparrow’s booster to fill her ears. Sometimes, Evana’s silence made Echo feel ignored, but it was something he had learned to live with. At first, he’d always comment about Evana’s apparent lack of hearing but to no avail. He learned to just assume she cares enough to listen to him when he speaks, even when he receives no response. “Okay,” he started, “it’s just up ahead. In that old factory.”
Not long after entering the industrial side of the city, an old manufacturing building came into view. Evana tightened her grip on the boosters, the purple beam emitting from the back of the Sparrow growing wide as it pick up speed. As she neared the building, Evana launched herself off her sparrow and landed with a huff, catching herself before she could lose balance. Her ghost rolled its eye.
“Smooth,” he scoffed. “Who’re you trying to impress? The Fallen you’re about to kill?” Evana shot the little spiked orb an annoyed expression. “Do not mock me, Little Light.” She started to walk toward the entrance, her hand reaching for the scout rifle on her back. She stopped for a moment and looked back at her ghost. “It’s…harder than you think.” She couldn’t help the corner of her lip from curling, giving Echo a kindhearted grin. As much as that little thing annoyed her, she enjoys its company and appreciates its insistence of livening up the mood.
As she entered the factory she could see her radar light up with red dots. There was chatter coming from all around as various Fallen turned their attention to the Exo standing in their entryway. “Uhhh…maybe we should’ve taken a different door…”
Seeing the amount of Dregs and Vandals around her, she smiled, holding up the MIDA-Mult Tool and aiming down the sights. Tack, tack, tack. It didn’t take long for her to dispense the Fallen to her left and right. They were weak, practically cannon fodder for her real Target. The Reaver Vandal let out long screech before commanding its subordinates to attack.
“No, it’s fine,” Evana assured the ghost. “They won’t see what’s coming.” With that, she returned the scout rifle to her back and unleashed the light within her, materializing two long blades as her body began to surge with Arc energy. In a quick spin, she vanished. Cloaked in invisibility, Evana made her way behind her target and pierced its body with her blades. Before the other weaker Fallen could take notice of their newly deceased commander, Evana made quick work of them, jetting through the air in a streak of blue light, the sound of her blades cutting through the bodies of her enemies echoing through the factory.
After diminished the remainder of her light, Evana released the blades, watching them disintegrate before ever touching the ground. “Well, I think the Future War Cult will be a happy to know that we have one less Fallen hideout to worry about. I’ll inform Lakshmi-2—oh…”
Evana turned her attention to her ghost. “What is it?”
“It’s…it’s the Speaker. We’re being summoned to the Hall of Council. He’s gathered other Guardians. Do you want me to bring them up for you?” the ghost asked, prepared to emit a projection of other Guardians.
“No, we’ll meet them soon. Let’s not waste any time.”
"Heh, someone's an eager beaver." Echo began readying the ships teleport. Evana shot the ghost a look. "Echo, please." He tilted his body forward in a bow. "As you wish, m'lady."
--
After arriving at the Tower, Evana wasted no time in getting to the Hall of Council. If the Speaker had requested her, as well as others, it must be for something important. He does not call groups of Guardians often, if at all.
“Wait up!” her ghost called as it flew to her side. After catching up to her, Echo didn’t miss a beat. “Five other Fireteam members! Can you believe it?”
She almost couldn’t. What reason does the Speaker have in calling forth twice the number of Guardians typically gathered to carrying on a difficult task?
“Maybe…maybe you could make some friends?” the ghost suggested almost questioningly. Evana responded with a short huff. “You know I can’t afford to make friends, Echo,” she reminded him, her voice low as if she were ashamed.
An apologetic voice came from beside them. Evana, unsure if the voice was indirectly addressing her, turned her attention to a Warlock, a ghost, and a Titan just a few feet from where she stood. It became apparent the ghost belonged to the Warlock and that it had run into the Titan.
Echo let out an amused chuckle. “Eyes up, Little Light,” he snickered.
