Chapter 5: Freehold (1/2) Osiris didn't want to admit it, but he was confused. That would have been funny in itself, but the fact that Osiris was confused about the reason he was confused was just downright hilarious to him. He shouldn't be confused at all. He knew the reason for his journey, he knew every opportunity he had, every option he could take. He had mentally mapped out every subway tunnel under Freehold, as well as the Vex network. He couldn't even get lost if his eyes had been pulled out of their sockets and he was spun around as fast as possible for three minutes, while drunk on whiskey. With his Ghost purposely giving him wrong directions. He was fully aware of every Vex Mind in the area, and each of their functions. He had memorized the patrol routes of each Cabal detachment, as well as every single ranking officer on the planet. He had even tapped into the signal of the Listening Outpost used by the Fallen House of Kings, and was intercepting every single transmission that went through. So why the bloody hell was he confused? Osiris went from feeling amused to feeling irritated. He was practically the opposite of confused, he knew everything he needed to know, and more. After a brief moment of anger, realization dawned in his head. He chuckled. "It's a double negative." he laughed wholeheartedly. "I am confused about being confused, therefore I am not confused, rather indecisive." The reason he was indecisive was because he had two courses of action he could take to accomplish his task. One was less dangerous (slightly), but the final product would be harder to achieve. The other was certainly more dangerous (and morally questionable), but the final product might have a greater impact as a whole. "What the hell, I'll try both." Osiris said aloud, then steered his ship, the Draught of Nectar, to the planets surface below. _______________________________________ "Niet." Rasputin said firmly in russian. "No?" Osiris raised his eyebrow. "Not even a little?" the Warlock was conversing with the AI Warmind at the cortex terminal in the Dust Palace. "Niet!" the Warmind was getting angrier. "‎Yesli duga zaryada vvodyat v yadre kritichnykh sistem budet peregruzhat' i vyklyucheniye, chto privodit k reaktivatsii neskol'kikh sistem letuchikh oruzhiya." Osiris was curious. "What kind of weapons?" Rasputin proceeded to give Osiris the Russian verbal equivalent of the middle finger. "Rude." Osiris rolled his eyes. "What if I purchase you a pair of ballet tickets?" "Chto delat', yesli ya reshu proverit' svoy orbital'nyy Defense Grid seychas?" Rasputin's tone became slightly more threatening. "Hey! Don't you go dropping a Warsat on my head." Osiris hit the side of the terminal. "Besides, this isn't your system, the owner is sleeping. And i'm guessing you don't want to wake him up." "Meynfreymov Karla nestabil'na. Yesli aktivirovan, on budet sozdavat' bol'she problem, kotoryye budut rassmatrivat'sya." "So you're letting him sleep so you can play with his toys?" Osiris cracked a smile. "Are you sure you don't want those ballet tickets?" "Blokirovka koordinaty na meste v pyati, chetyrekh, trekh, dvukh ..." Rasputin's tone was monotonous. "Fine, fine!" Osiris checked his pocket-watch. "I'm going to miss my train." he hurried inside, heading for the subway tunnels below. He had pushed a little too far, and if he appeared on the surface again, Rasputin would follow through on his threat. He needed to find another way off of Mars. _______________________________________ Osiris dropped down off the platform onto the train tracks. His Ghost lit up, acting as a flashlight. "So... that didn't go well, did it?" his Ghost asked. "No it did not. Rasputin is stubborn." Osiris said grimly. They walked for two minutes in silence. "Surely this plan could not go any better than Rasputin? Wouldn't the Vex react the same way?" Ghost asked again, trying to convince Osiris to turn around. Osiris chuckled. "If Rasputin and the Vex reacted remotely the same, they would have already simulated Rasputin and he would have already lost." Ghost was about to reply when a hollow and familiar noise echoed through the tunnel. They glanced at each other. "Vex" they said in unison. "Kill the lights Ghost, i'll do this in the dark." Osiris whispered, and Ghost disappeared. Osiris extended his hand, and his staff appeared. It was a relic that he had recovered from Egypt, the same kind of staff used by their magicians. He always hated how the meaning of 'magician' had went from being a powerful Sorcerer to an entertainer who pulled rabbits out of his hat. The noise of the approaching Vex brought his head out of the clouds. He sent ripples of arc energy through his staff and twirled it around. He forced it's rotation to end so that the staff was parallel to the ground. He waited patiently, staring into the dark tunnel. The noise drew closer. He heard the whine of their mechanical joints as they drew closer. He closed his eyes and focused on that sound. He counted twelve Goblins and two Minotaurs walking along the tracks. His eyes snapped open and he slammed his staff down onto the tracks. The arc energy was conducted into the metal beams and surged towards the advancing Vex. It surged up their limbs and popped their systems, disabling and destroying them entirely. His Ghost popped up. "Well, that was easier than I expected." Osiris nodded, then frowned. "Ghost, why are your lights getting brighter?" Osiris asked. "They aren't." Ghost was confused. Osiris turned around, shielding his eyes with his arm. His eyes widened. "Oh no." _______________________________________ To be continued. Part 2: http://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/162041675/0/0 ‎Table of Contents: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/114713352/0/0