[b]Hello there, fellow forum member. Welcome to the first part of a new episodic story that I am creating. Please enjoy and leave feedback as it always helps[/b] [b][u]Episode I:[/b][i]New Mission[/i][/u] Alexander woke up with a start. His body ached and he felt like he had just been through a brawl with a Cabal Colossus. Sitting up, he ran his hands through his short, black hair and noticed that his clothes were missing. "What the hell..." he sighed as he rubbed his bloodshot eyes. He didn't remember throwing his clothes off when he went to bed. Actually, he didn't remember much of his previous night at all, which unsettled him a bit. But what unsettled him even more was the sheets next to him shuffling from the movement beneath them. Startled, Alexander turned to see a beautiful Awoken woman shift in her sleep. He nearly jumped out of the room and into the apartment corridor, but he regained his composure. [i]"Who the--"[/i] He shook his head to make sure this was real, and after realizing that there really was a naked woman in his apartment that he had no recollection of bringing over--he began pacing the room, trying to make sense of everything. He stopped after a moment, and looked at the woman with bewilderment. As he studied her, he realized that she really was beautiful, and in that moment, he clicked everything together. "Oh, -blam!-..." *** See, there had been a celebration for the death of some Taken Champion on Earth, one that had become a dangerous annoyance until a lucky fireteam took it out. It's death was reason enough to celebrate, and so a party was thrown in the Tower bar. Alexander Blisk, the type person to always be in the mood for a good drink, attended this party, and there he might have had a few more glasses than recommended. He built up the courage, and drunkenly asked a nearby Hunter if she wanted to dance. She did challenge his approach at first, but it seemed his charm was just too irresistible. So, to his surprise, they [i]did[/i] dance. They also got to know one another a little bit more with each becoming more fond of the other. And not long after the party had started, it seemed that they had found their way back to his apartment and well...further celebrated. All in the name of Vanquishing the Darkness, right? *** As Alexander remembered his previous night, the woman began to stir and rouse from her sleep. She awoke and sat up on the bed, the sheets clinging to her body poorly. "Hey there, Hot Shot." she said, rather enticingly. Alexander, slightly embarrassed, quickly grabbed his clothes strewn on the floor and put them on, "Uh, hi....you sleep well?" "Mhm, thanks to you." she replied with a smirk. "Hehe, well what can I say?" Alexander chuckled as he finished getting dressed, "Gotta please the ladies if you want to go places, right? Speaking of going places, I need to be at some Vanguard meeting at eight, do you happen to know what time it is?" In a sudden flash that made both Guardians jump, Alexander's Ghost appeared next to him, "Sir," it spoke properly like it was a butler for a Pre-Golden Age billionaire, "It is currently 8:17 and you are going late for your meeting." "Shit." Alexander cursed. "Um, Vanessa, right?" he asked the Awoken woman. "Listen, I got to go," he said as he pulled on his Hunter armor and cloak, "but um, I will call you later." Vanessa chuckled and blew a kiss at Alexander, who nearly tripped as he walked out of the apartment. "Damn, that girl is strange isn't she, Alfred?" He asked his Ghost, who was aptly named after a Pre-Golden Age butler. "Indeed, Sir, though quite the catch if I must admit." Alfred chirped. "Haha, yeah..." Alexander laughed, "oh and can you bring up those files on our guests, Al. I'll need to see what I'm working with," *** Zavala drummed his fingers on the rectangular table impatiently as he, Ikora, Cayde and a group of Guardians waited for Alexander's arrival. "I swear, Cayde," he spoke lowly, "my belief in your Hunter is wearing quite thin." "Indeed," Ikora nodded "Ahh, Blisk? Don't sweat it, Zavala" The Exo waved off, "I got faith in the kid. He's got more time in the field than this lot in front of us--more life too, no offense--and although his punctuality is lacking, he's a damn good shot. Just give him some time to improve." "We've already given him twenty minutes." The Titan mentor grumbled. Just as Zavala finished that thought, Alexander came bursting through the doors of the room. "Hey everyone," He said cheerily, "sorry I'm late." "Where were you, Blisk?" Zavala demanded icily. "Attending personal affairs, Sir." Alexander replied, "I do have a life outside of wasting aliens, but I assume only Cayde knows what that's like, no offense to any of you guys." he added, gesturing to the four other Guardians at the table. One of the Guardians, a bulky Titan, stood angrily, "How dare you arrive late and then greet us with insults! I'll have your---" "Oh, -blam!- off, man. I don't give--" "Enough!" The Warlock next to the Titan shouted, "Both of you, acting like children. Let's just get this over with, okay? That means sit, Argus, and you too [i]Hunter.[/i]" The Titan known as Argus grumbled, then did as he was told, and Alexander did the same, sitting on the opposite side of the four Guardians.. "Alrighty, well, that was interesting." Cayde piped up, "Now let's get on with why you have all been summoned here this morning. Zavala, if you will:" The Titan Mentor nodded, "Six months ago, Warsat telemetry picked up a weak, unorthodox signal from the Terra Meridiani region on Mars. Now due to recent events concerning Oryx and his Taken, we have not been able to thoroughly pursue the data, until now." Zavala pressed a button on the console embedded within the table and a projection of the red planet shimmered into view. "Exactly one week ago, on March 15, we picked up the signal again. This time it was much stronger, and we were able to make something out of it. Ikora?" The calm Warlock mentor nodded, "The signal was scrambled and unreadable. My best team of analysts predicted that it could be Vex, but that was proven false when we found the source of the signal: A Cabal Land Tank. There was a pause for dramatic effect, and the Warlock who had spoken out earlier spoke again, though this time at a more pleasant volume, "Why would we pick up a signal from a Land Tank? The only way to intercept Cabal channels is to change the frequencies from an inner terminal, one that we don't have access to." Ikora shook her head, "I'm not sure. The only conclusion that I could come up with is that it is a missing Guardian that needs our help getting home. Now, I know that that sounds really optimistic, especially given your fireteam's recent losses, but I'm just stating possibilities." Alexander shook his head, "Could be bait." The other Guardians looked at the Hunter as if he had grown a third eye. "What?" he shrugged. "I'm just throwing that out there. 'Cause for all we know, your missing guys are dead, and the Cabal could have extracted information out of them using those little Psion -blam!-ers." "Language." Zavala interjected. Alex rolled his eyes "Yeah, whatever. Don't look at me like I'm crazy, I read your guys' files. Mhm, those two in the back," he pointed at the Guardians who had not spoken at all during the meeting, "are Kate and Dave--real generic names--but they don't talk much, clearly. Kate's your tech Warlock, and Dave is the munitions expert. Basically he knows guns; all the guns." "How did you--" Dave began, but quickly stopped. Alexander continued, "Argus-3, you and the other Exo Titan, Torr I believe, are the brutes; you do all the heavy lifting and specialize in CQC. And you, Abigail Jensen, are the new leader of this band of misfits after Torr and--" "Don't you dare say his name..." The Warlock spoke through clenched teeth. Her voice wavered as she spoke, on the verge of tears, "H-how did you know about us?" Alexander smirked, "Haha, it's my forte to know who I'm working with before I work with them." "But how did you acquire the classified files?" "Easy, I had my Ghost walk me through basic hacking. Seriously, we should get better cyber-security on that, it could be dangerous in the hands of the enemy." Argus made a growling sound, which was strange because he was an Exo, "And how do you fit into this 'band of misfits', as you called it." "Ole' Blisk will be your tracker." Cayde spoke up before Alexander could speak for himself. "Like I said before, he's got exceptional skills, and he's one of the best Hunters I know. Trust me, and trust him, he'll help you find your missing guys." "What, Cayde, that's not the mandate." Zavala scowled. "Yeah it is, this is a rescue mission isn't it?" Zavala sighed, and Ikora spoke commandingly, "Well, then, it seems you five have some things to figure out. Use the rest of today to prep for the mission, you leave first thing tomorrow morning. Good luck Guardians, may you find your missing allies and return them to the Light." [b]If you guys want to (or don't want to) see more of this, then leave feedback in the comments.[/b] Episode II: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/197525545/0/0