[b][u]Chapter 2: The Sixth Coyote, a Lone Wolf[/u][/b] Artemis watched the skies of Old London with the eyes of an hawk. Watching, waiting patiently for her prey. She had positioned herself on top of one of the few buildings left standing in the region known as Memento. An old hostel, still charred from when the House of Devils burned London. She had been waiting for three days, and was prepared to wait more. She had intercepted a Fallen communications a week ago, and was able to partially understand them with her limited Eliksni. The House of Devils had returned to London for some reason. It was quite peaceful, really. The sound of the wildlife in the jungle overgrowth, coupled with the fact that only a few skiffs had appeared. Artemis felt right at home. A rather irritating noise broke her trance. She turned to see two Guardians stumbling through the underbrush of London streets, about a mile away. They looked like they were arguing, from what she could see with her superior eyes. She knew those two. _______________________________________ "I still don't think we should be asking her for help." Osiris tripped over an overturned brick. "I mean really, do you even know anything about her?" "No. But neither do you." Saladin pushed forward, thinking. Few people knew anything about Artemis. The Awoken Hunter who had shown up at the Tower centuries ago, only a short time after the Age of Darkness. Saladin remembered he showing up in a ship damaged beyond repair, with a Ghost belonging to a Titan who had gone MIA, according to the Ghost itself. The Speaker, after meeting with her, had said that she had the highest concentration of light then any Guardian he had ever seen, higher than Osiris. She refused proper training with the Vanguard, deciding to explore the Frontier as one of the Six Coyotes. She helped to expand the City's reach, chartering numerous Dead Zones. But the Six Coyotes faded away, one by one, either retiring or falling in battle, until only two remained. Tevis, who had retired, and Artemis, the only one to survive the Battle of Rusted Lands. She became a myth to Guardians new and old. Saladin had talked with her a few times, and was always saddened by her eyes. They spoke of loss. But now they needed her help. She was one of the first Nightstalkers, but she was also one of the last, and probably the most powerful overall. Saladin hoped she would listen to them. Osiris' chattering brought him out of his trance. "She's too dangerous Saladin, too unpredictable! And that's another thing! How do we know she's even here?" Saladin was about to either tell Osiris to shut up, say he didn't know, or throw a stone at him. He was saved from the decision when tendrils of void energy shot out, grabbing him and Osiris, holding them in place. Smoke began to fill the street. Osiris coughed, straining against the tether. "See what I mean?" he growled, and his hands sparked with electricity as he broke their bonds. Saladin rolled his eyes. "She can't be too far, let's pick up the pace." _______________________________________ As they approached Artemis, Saladin got slightly less certain about whether she would help them. Traps began to become more frequent, and smoke was constantly gathering at their feet. After the first few times, he figured out how to spot the traps, and was careful to avoid them. He knew they weren't Artemis' intended targets for the traps, they were just precaution. After a few minutes, he found her location, analyzing the patterns of the traps, which were tactfully placed around one specific building, but not in a way that made it obvious to those who weren't as observant. Saladin had been the City's strategist for years, he understood tactical patterns. He motioned to Osiris. "There. The top of that bulding." he pointed at the building, an old hostel, one of the only buildings still standing amongst the rubble. They began to scale it. When Saladin reached the top of the building he was immediately met with a bow of void light pointed at his chest. "Saladin, why are you interrupting my hunt?" Artemis stared at the titan with emerald eyes. Her Bog Wild Armor made it hard to see her in contrast to the jungle overgrwth, allowing near uninterrupted camouflage. Saladin was impressed, it had been a long time since someone had gotten the drop on him. "Hello Artemis, it has been a long time." Saladin kept his eyes on hers, trying to stay diplomatic. "We have come to ask you for your help." Artemis lowered her bow slightly, then raised it again when Osiris clambered over the wall. "Ugh, you."‎ she said with disgust "Likewise." the old Warlock grumbled. He had worked with Artemis on many occasions, always competing with her even though he was supposed to be the mentor. They were always opposing in their methods. Artemis turned away, her eyes searching the skies again. "So, what do you need my help with?" "Oryx. The Dreadnaught is approaching our solar system." Artemis' body language changed, Saladin could tell they had her attention. "Interesting... but that still doesn't answer my question." Artemis' eyes never left the sky. "We need to pass on a portion of our powers, give the newer generation of Guardians a fighting chance against him." Osiris was starting to become frustrated at her lack of attention. "What are you even doing here?" "After the Coyotes, I tried to lay low on earth. But that doesn't mean I have become disinterested in our enemies." She pulled an arrow of void energy out of thin air and began twirling it around her fingers in anticipation, staring at the sky the whole time. "I started intercepting communications between the Houses of Devils and Kings. The Devils' Ketch, Sepiks-Fel, has been making frequent visits to London, I don't know why to be exact." "So you're just watching them?" Saladin asked. "Keeping tabs?" "No. I'm here to stop their entire operation, today." Artemis voice was filled determined. Saladin was about to ask how when a supersonic boom cracked the sky. He and the others watched as a Fallen Ketch warped into existence, descending from orbit. Artemis' eyes flashed. She quickly raised her bow and fitted the arrow to the bowstring. She focused in on her target with pinpoint accuracy, and let it fly. The arrow soared, winging towards the Ketch's engine. It found its mark, a tiny exhaust panel, and the entire engine burst into flames. The Ketch descended at a steep angle. They watched as it passed over their heads, and crashed into the old Parliament building, detonating in a conflagration bright as a star. A flash came from the sky as two skiffs descended from the sky, firing shock blasts at the three. "Take them down!" Artemis shouted, notching another arrow to her bow. Saladin ignited his hammer, throwing it at one of the skiffs, destroying it's cannons and knocking it off course.‎ Artemis fired her arrow, and disabled the skiff completely, causing it to spiral downward. The other skiff escaped such a fate, and deployed it's troops on the roof. Artemis fired off two more arrows, suppressing a multitude of dregs and vandals. Osiris took over, lightning arcing off his hands and disintegrating them. Saladin charged the captain, swinging his hammer and smashing in the captains helm. Osiris looked at the skiff hovering above them, still firing it's shock cannons. "How annoying." he observed, then raised his hand, calling down a lightning bolt from above, exploding the skiff. The three stood still on the roof, a pile of smoking corpses at their feet. They turned to watch the burning parliament building in the distance, like nothing happened. "I'm pretty sure Ketch's are not that... flammable." Osiris watched the blazing Ketch burn. "They aren't. I stockpiled the Parliament with explosives." Artemis shrugged. "How were you so sure that it would crash there?" Saladin looked at her, impressed. "I didn't, I was saving those for a rainy day." Artemis sighed. "Fine, i'll help you. Now, where do we start?" ________________________________________ To be continued. Next Chapter: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/156538416/0/0 Table of Contents: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/114713352/0/0 (Introducing Artemis, my first non-canon character. Hope you guys like her!)