If you missed the last chapter, you can find it [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/218329072/0/0]here[/url], or if you need to find a previous chapter, you can find them all in the [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/218618986?sort=0&page=0]Table of Contents[/url]. Enjoy the story and if you like it, a bump would be greatly appreciated! If you have any questions or corrections, comment or message me anytime, I welcome any and all feedback. *** The Moon whispers now, if you lend an ear to listen. Through the fissures and crevices of its embattled surface, the quiet wails and sighs of the ancient Hive hiss warnings to those who dare land here: [i]This is ours. Enter at your own peril.[/i] Nearer to the Hellmouth, though, their presence isn’t as silent. The brutish red Knights of the Hidden Swarm pound the lunar surface on their patrols, Acolytes scouting ahead as the Wizards hold their Thralls in check, leashing them like dogs before they’re turned loose on any who approach. Those who manage to break their defenses find far worse down below. Though the Hive presence is scarcer the further from the Hellmouth you travel, the stronger the hold of the House of Exile becomes – a lose-lose scenario unless you’re hunting either species. But we need cover, not battle, and between the two, the House of Talons doesn’t communicate with the Hive as they do with the Exiles. Our choice decided for us, we watch through the view screen as the Volition slips through the shadows toward the ugly, gaping maw of the Hellmouth. “Hive to the left of us, Fallen to the right,” Ia snidely remarks, “Good job, Djido. I'm sure Seren will be thrilled about the delay." “No point complaining now,” Nas replies. “And much easier to deal with the Swarm than the Exiles.” Solis quietly pats my shoulder, growling at Ia. “Oh, what?” Ia snaps at Solis. Solis bristles, but doesn’t respond as Ia sets the Volition down behind a jutting rock by the ruins of a First Light rover. Nas reengages the ship’s cloak before joining the rest of us as we dematerialize – … – outside, helmets closing around our faces. Ghost floats out to join us, gazing around at the sound as he begins cataloging our surroundings. Solis’ hair bristles and Nas peers toward the Hellmouth, perplexed. “Can you hear that?” Ia follows Nas’ gaze as Solis scans the area, on edge, gazing intently at the techno-gothic architecture jutting out from the lunar surface. “I don’t hear anything –“ Ia starts, but Kenedi interrupts her. “I hear it, too.” Solis starts whining, holding her ears, and I finally hear what they’re listening to – the sound of a thousand asphyxiated shrieks, an atonal, gasping rattle: the Deathsinger’s Dirge. “That’s a Deathsinger,” Ghost says quietly. “It’s too loud to just be one,” Ia replies, finally hearing it, too. “I thought the Deathsinger here died with Crota?” Nas responds. “Perhaps a new one's come,” I answer seriously. “The sound is emanating from below,” Ghost calmly replies, indicating the glowing green maw of the Hellmouth. “We need to hurry then. Djido, where’s the case?” I look to Solis, who’s still holding her ears. “Solis, the case.” She hands it over, still whimpering. I scratch her ear, trying to calm her down. “C’mon, Djido, we don’t have time!” Ia barks sharply, pulling out her hand cannon nervously. “Just open the damn thing and make sure it’s not bugged.” I set the case down, opening it slowly as Nas and Kenedi arm up, anxiously gazing around as the Deathsinger’s Dirge seems to grow louder. As the lid falls back, I gaze at the prize the Fallen had brought me, what they were willing to pay for a universal vault key, what they told me was the treasure of their species: a strange, geometric artifact, with a mysterious red symbol etched upon its surface. I pull it out, holding it in my hands as the others look over curiously. “What the hell is that?” Ia asks, agitated. “Did we just go through all of this for a piece of junk?” Solis, however, looks reverent. Ignoring the Deathsinger’s distant shrieks, she walks slowly forward to kneel next to the object. “What is this?” I ask her. “You said we’d be getting something to help the fight against the Wolves.” “[i]Is very powerful against Wolves,[/i]” Solis croaks, holding out her hands. I lay the artifact in her hands, and she treasures it gently like a newborn. “[i]And very powerful to Wolves. Lucky Talons don’t fully trust Wolves.[/i]” “What is it?” Ia asks again. “[i]Ancient treasure. To build and destroy. To kill and create.[/i]” She looks seriously at me, using her eyes to convey what her limited words cannot. “[i]Old Lords call it SIVA.[/i]” “Great, we spent our resources and blew cover for a magic trinket. Seren’s gonna love this.” “She can decide for herself when we take it to her,” Nas responds. “Djido, anything else in there?” I start to check, but there’s a nagging twinge in the back of my mind. I look to Solis. “Why would they even trade it to us, though? Why even offer it?” “[i]Maybe Talons want us to use against Wolves.[/i]” “To use us as proxies. But if it’s this powerful wouldn’t they fear us using it against them?” Solis starts to reply, then jerks her head to the side suddenly, sniffing the air, on edge. “[i]Hive coming.[/i]” Shrieks and howls from over the ridge confirm her suspicion. Ia, Nas and Kenedi ready their weapons, aiming toward the sound as Solis draws her blade. My hand cannon’s out of its holster and aiming beside them without a thought – the sounds of the Hive draw closer as I tuck the SIVA artifact beneath my cloak. Suddenly, a Thrall’s hand claws its way out of the cracks around us, joined by another, and another – “Ambush!” Ia cries, opening fire on the Thralls. We join her, emptying our clips at the first wave of Hive. As I pop fresh rounds into my hand cannon, I see the second wave of the Swarm charge over the ridge, blood-red Hive Knights swinging their swords menacingly as Thralls scream and Acolytes fire down upon us. We draw closer into a tight circle, covering each others’ back as the Hive assault keeps coming. Bullets and energy beams bellow angrily in the narrow passage, the Hive cutting us off as they push us further back toward the Hellmouth. “We’re surrounded!” Ghost shouts as I pop in more fresh rounds, firing at a Thrall shrieking his kamikaze path toward me. “Call down the ship, Ia!” Nas calls out. “Too much interference!” she shouts back. “Can’t get a clear bead on us without risking bringing the Hive in, too!” She unloads her entire clip at a Knight charging toward her – at the last moment, she finally brings it down, but its momentum keeps traveling toward her – she dives out of the way as the Knight’s body soars over the edge and down into the Hellmouth. Thralls are on her in an instant. “Ia!” Nas screams, firing at more Hive as he struggles to get to her. “Ghost!” I direct, and it responds unbidden, opening fire on the Thralls to free Ia. She spares half a second to look at me, and I can almost read gratitude before she turns to shoot a pair of Acolytes trying to circle behind us. I look up the ridge and see fresh reinforcements charging down, the screams of the Hive growing deafening. I look around, seeking an exit – the only one I find is the abyss behind us. I take out two more Acolytes as I resign myself to our options. “They’re gonna overrun us!” I yell to Ia. “We need to bail!” “WHERE?!” she cries, firing on more Hive. “Down there!” I respond as she looks back. She looks pissed, but steels herself and calls to the others. “Retreat! Down into the Hellmouth!” The others follow, each of us running back to the bridge as we fire over our shoulders at the pursuing Hive. Ia leading the way, we sprint down the Bridge, toward the yawning void – the Deathsinger’s Dirge grows louder as we each throw ourselves off the Bridge, down deeper into the lair of the Hive, taking a leap of faith into the dark below.