Enjoy! He stood at the wall, or what was left of it. A huge, gaping, fissure that ripped apart the metal. The snow fell lightly over the area, almost serene as pockets began to form on the twisted metal. His cape, a pelt from an unknown enemy embroidered with gold and bronze. His armor worn, but the wolves and iron tree polished and gleaming. He breathed heavily, a haze of white escaping his helmet. A breeze had snuck onto the lands gently caressing the man’s armor. Wolves appeared from the drifts growling, teeth ground sharp and eyes glowing red. The man narrowed his eyes as figures emerged from the shadows of the wall. From the body of twisted metal emerged an abomination of not quite flesh but far from machine. Lord Saladin, raised his hand above his head. a fiery light materialized an axe of epic proportions. It fell only a short distance to land in his hand but the weight caused him to sink into the snow. A blazing inferno engulfed the axe’s blade. Each step melted snow as Saladin brought the axe to bare. The wolves howled as he charged, not a word uttered, at Fallen Splicers. Burning flesh and boiling metal flew back into the Plaguelands. Lord Saladin swung his axe at each of the enemies before him. They disintegrated as the flames devoured them. The first wave was small and as Lord Saladin stood over the last scout he watched as the smoldering creature attempt to get back up. He brought down his axe and a spire of flames erupted into the air. When the harsh fire dissipated scorched earth was all that remained. “Saladin,” Shiro echoed over the coms, “The Fallen have begun to attack Felwinter’s peak.” “Contact the Vanguard,” Saladin replied, “Tell them I need Ophelia, Alexander, and Raven.” He looked down once more as smoke rose from the ash and snow fluttered from the sky. “This could be very bad.” *** Raven ripped off her cloak and threw it to the ground. She trembled at the sight of the metal pyramids that had formed in clusters. Oliver and Luka had floated over and were scanning the new formations. They looked at each other puzzled. “I have no idea what this is,” they said in unison. Shots rang out, metallic cracks, as Raven emptied her clip into the metal. The pyramids sat unscathed by the onslaught. “Destroy it,” Raven managed to get out. “Come on, just leave it,” Alexander said placing a hand on Raven’s shoulder. She flinched and moved away. “The Psion Flayers are already at the top of the Dust Palace,” Oliver started. “We can catch them and whatever they are doing if we hurry.” “Whatever that was,” Raven said. “It wasn’t human.” Raven felt a lurch in her stomach. Her trembling brought her to her knees. Her throat burned as she swallowed. Once again, she felt Alexander’s hand on her back. Something in her mind snapped. She clenched her fist and slammed the metal floor. What the hell, she bellowed in her head. *** A harsh wind scathed the top of the Dust Palace. Red sand created streaks across the platform and Cabal patrolled the area. Raven deliberately burst into the open. Bewildered creatures turned to face her. She rolled her eyes as she leapt toward the first. She drew her knife and plunged it deep in the creature’s neck. An explosion of purple blood filled the air. She instinctually turned drawing Thorn. Three quick cracks dropped the nearest Legionary. Alexander stopped in doorway as he watched the fluid motions before him. He stood back as a Centurion jumped at Raven lobbing explosive slugs from its weapon. Her glare pierced her helmet as she took aim with her Thorn. Nine quick cracks echoed and before the alien hit the ground it exploded violently into a mess of purple and green ooze. “The control panel at the top of there,” Luka started. “Let me activate it.” Raven climbed the steps and released Luka onto the electronics. There was a loud hum as the machine roared to life. “I can force the Flayers out into the open but you will have to work quickly, I won’t be able to hold them for long.” Pillars of light emerged from three distinct locations along the far side. “I’ll take the closer of the three!” Alexander exclaimed over the coms. “Do what you want,” Raven spat back. She bit the side of her cheek. Sorry, she wanted to say but couldn’t find the words. Shaking free of the distraction, she hurried around toward the front steps. From the pillars of light emerged large Psions. The Flayers were clad in cloaks and wielded personal shield. They barked in their native tongue as they materialized firearms. A slew of fiery slugs rained down. Alexander tackled the Flayer cloaked in purple. They wrestled each other, kicking and punching when they could. Alexander kicked the slug thrower from the Flayer but Lost Immobious in the process. Twisting and rolling, the Flayer finally roared and psionically forced Alexander off it. Leaping to its feet, the creature lifted into the air blasted a shockwave of energy toward the guardian. Focusing his light and placing his wrists together, Alexander ripped them apart, a void shield encasing him. The Ward of Dawn took the blast and shrouded him in a purple light. “Let me at ‘em,” Super Good Advice spoke up. Without a word, Alexander pulled the heavy weapon from the magnetic strip and checked ammo. Full. He charged from the Ward and fired. Super Good Advice was smooth, it didn’t take much to control the erratic recoil. But something seemed off. There was only supposed to be fifty-eight rounds in the clip but the number wasn’t going down. The hail fire of bullets tore into the creature. Blotches of purple blood leaked from the newly formed orifices. The Flayer hobbled a few more steps before it stopped. It collapsed to one knee as more bullets entered its body. “Take that you sonofabitch!” The weapon shouted. “That was for Pahanin!” Raven saw a flash of light out of the corner of her eye as Alexander summoned his Ward of Dawn. The Flayer cloaked in red emerged from the pillar of light before her. She rolled her eyes as a fire broiled in her gut. The whole scene before they reached the top of the Dust Palace was replaying over and over in her head. The fear burned her cheeks. Then there was that inexplicable feeling of him. The fact she enjoyed being around him, felt safe, even trusted him made her cringe. Raven shook it off as she clenched her knife. She could feel the imprint forming on her palm as she leapt at the Flayer. It had less than a second to react, not enough time. She plunged the blade deep into its back, shattering the personal shield. As Raven twisted, she felt the snap of bones and the wet tear of muscle. When the creature fell to its knees a snap echoed above her and a Cabal ship floated over the landing pad. “-blam!- that,” she said aloud. She drew her light into the form of a blazing gun. Golden fire encased her and an enormous hand cannon appeared. She pulled the trigger of light. A molten shot, focused into a small area, hit the Cabal ship just as the sides opened. The reinforcements clung to the ropes as the ship lurched in the air. Raven squeezed the trigger once more, with more force as the fire in her gut burned more. Another molten shot hit the ship piercing its armor. The ship flipped its nose into the air as the pilot disintegrated into ash. Raven squeezed the trigger one last time and the golden light tore into the armor of the ship. The front end melted off and the ship barreled backwards off the pad taking with it the Cabal reinforcements. The final Flayer took its stand at the landing pad. Cloaked in white-blue, Raven’s eyes widened. I want it, she thought. She drew and aimed Thorn at the creature’s body. She cracked off nine shots and charged the Flayer as she reloaded. With its personal shield broken, she tackled the creature. She wrestled it to the ground and quickly pinned it. Putting Thorn onto the Flayers head, she pulled the trigger. Green ooze began to pour from its head as the squirming slowed and eventually stopped. She grinned as she took the mantle from the Flayer. It was simple, much like a dog collar, all that was required was the press of a button. It opened allowing Raven to remove it. Alexander approached her slowly. She took down two Flayers, and a Cabal transport within minutes. He watched as she rose to her feet. She placed what looked like a dog collar around her neck. When she clicked it shut, a white-blue mantle formed. Arc energy woven into a brilliant, dazzling, cloak. It accented her armor perfectly, an exotic addition to her outfit. “It’s not New Monarchy,” Raven said, noticing Alexander. “But I think they’ll forgive me based on what we saw.” “I like it,” Alexander responded. “Me too,” Raven twirled a little, letting the momentum carry the arc fabric. It fluttered in the wind giving off a slight shimmer.