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Chronicle 002: Remembering the Dead

Location: The Tower, Last City, Earth

-Nine months before the passing of Lady Rose-

"Cayde, you wanted to see me?" a tall human woman clad in violet Hunter's armor said as she made her way into the Vanguard hall. Her eyes were a deep green, and her hair was shoulder length and black as the night sky. Her skin was pale from lack of exposure to the sun, an indication that she rarely wore anything but her armor, and her face was delicate and dainty in appearance, save for a single two inch horizontal scar along her right cheek.

Hearing the woman's voice, Cayde looked up from the map of Venus he had been studying, his mechanical face seeming to smile slightly. "Rose! Good to have you back."

"Apparently I wasn't gone long enough, you're still cooped up here with the Vanguard." Rose teased as she approached the Exo. "And here I was hoping they'd realize just how much they needed you out in the field with me being gone."

Cayde shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "One day I'll be able to get back out there. But I didn't call you here for small talk, there's been a development."

"A development?" Rose repeated, raising a brow at him.

"Just this morning fireteam Alpha brought in a newly risen guardian, a Hunter to be specific." Cayde explained.

"And your point is...?" Rose asked, "New guardians are arriving almost every week."

Cayde smirked, "Yeah well that's about the stance I'd have on it too normally. But according to fireteam Alpha's report they found this one defending a group of refugees from a group of fallen."

"Cayde, I'm failing to see your point here. We all have to deal with the dangers outside of the wall every day. As far as I'm concerned killing a few fallen is just standard business." Rose replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Again, you have a valid point, and normally I'd agree with it." Cayde said, his expression growing a bit more serious. "But this group of fallen had an archon with them, along with seven dregs, six vandals, and two captains."

At that Rose remained silent, her expression turning to one of surprise as she continued to listen.

"Apparently this guy took on all of them with a set of combat knives some of the refugees had. By the time fireteam Alpha stumbled upon their position, all of the dregs, vandals, and captains were dead and he had taken up the arc blades of one of the vandals to take on the Archon." Cayde paused there, waiting to see what Rose had to say.

"So what happened?" Rose asked at last, "I'm assuming fireteam Alpha had to step in, right?"

Cayde laughed heartily at that and shook his head. "Heh, before fireteam Alpha could get a clear shot this guy managed to wound the archon's leg joint by sliding under it and then managed to stab one of the arc blades right through the base of its neck."

Rose's jaw had gone slack. She didn't think she'd ever heard of a newly risen guardian killing an archon before. After a few moments of silence she finally said, "So he's got guts."

"Or he's dumb and lucky." Cayde retorted, "That's actually why I called you here. Regardless of the case, I want you to personally train him. When it comes to Blade Dancer's you're practically a legend, and we could use more like you. This guy has potential, his light is strong."

Rose seemed a bit taken back by Cayde's request, she had never really trained anyone before. Still, it was flattering that he thought she was the best person for the job. "Why not? Not like I've had anything more interesting to do lately. You can only do so many scouting missions before you start to feel like a zombie." she said at last, "Where is he?"

At her question, Cayde pointed off towards a door on the right side of the hall. "He's in there. Poor guy is probably wondering why we've had him in a debriefing room alone for almost an hour now." He said with a chuckle, turning around and beginning to walk back to the table he had been at before. "I'll leave you to it then, good luck."

Rose chuckled and shook her head. He really was never going to change, even with him being a member of the Vanguard now. Her attention then turned to the room Cayde had pointed to and she made her way over to it. Reaching up with her right hand, she hit the access switch and the door in front of her slid open, and she made her way into the debriefing room.

As she walked in, the Hunter looked up at her from his chair, but didn't say anything for the moment. He was human and his skin was a light tan, his hair the same shade of black as Rose's, but his eyes were a deep shade of gold. His clothing was dirty and tattered from the battle he had been in earlier. It looked like he had borrowed whatever he could from the refugees when he had stumbled across their group.

Rose let the door close behind her and pulled a chair away from the table to slide it a bit closer to where he was before taking a seat and breaking the silence. "I heard what you did for those refugees out there. That's very impressive for a newly risen Guardian."

The hunter met Rose's gaze and then shook his head. "I did what I had to. They couldn't have defended themselves against those creatures."

Rose smiled softly at his response. He had a strong resolve, a good trait for a Hunter to have. "The fallen are only one of the horrors that plagues our worlds these days. Even fully armed guardians can have trouble with them, yet you took down an entire squad and an archon with no armor and nothing but melee weapons. There are not many guardians still alive today who could accomplish such a thing even fully trained in the art of using their light."

"Is that why you're here?" the Hunter asked her, curiosity crossing his features. "That robot...man....thing said that I needed to be trained in the ways of being a Blade Dancer."

Rose laughed at his rather 'colorful' description of Cayde. She'd have to remember that for later. "That 'Robot man thing' is named Cayde-6, but we just call him Cayde around here, and he is what is known as an Exo. He's a guardian, just like you and me. But yes, Cayde has asked me to train you."

At her responses, the Hunter smiled. "I'll have to remember that then, I'd hate to offend him by referring to him as a robot."

"Offend Cayde? Nah, that guy isn't one to take offense to almost anything, trust me." Rose replied with another smile. "Do you have a name?"

The Hunter shook his head at her question. "Not one that I remember. My ghost just calls me 'Guardian'."

"Well everyone needs a name, we can't very well just go around calling you 'Guardian' all the time. That'd get confusing really quick." Rose said matter-of-factly before placing her right hand to her chin and thinking for a moment. After about a minute or so she snapped her fingers and met his gaze again. "How about Arah?"

The Hunter listened to her suggestion and thought about it for a moment, seeming to go over the name in his head a few times before a slow smile crossed his features. "I think Arah is a perfect name, I like it."

"Then Arah it is." Rose said, holding her armored hand out to him. "I'm Rose, and from this day forward I'll be your instructor in the ways of the Blade Dancer."

Arah took her hand and shook it firmly, his smile growing wider. "Nice to meet you Rose. When do we start?"

-Present Day-

Location: The Tower, Last City, Earth

"Arah?" Dax questioned his guardian as he observed him gazing out towards the Traveler while it hovered motionless in its place above the last city.

"Hmmm..?" Arah responded distractedly, turning his gold eyes to Dax as he seemed to snap out of his thoughts.

Dax hovered there for a moment, as if pondering how to word what he wanted to say. Human emotions were still somewhat of a mystery to him and he had a hard time distinguishing them at times. "Well...you seemed distracted by something. Despite all that's happened is everything alright?"

Arah chuckled softly to himself and let his gaze drift back out to the Traveler. This balcony in the tower center had been Rose's favorite place to stand and think about things. "Yeah, everything is fine. I was just remembering the day Rose became my teacher."

Dax hovered out in front of him, his glowing blue eye seeming to study Arah again for a moment. "I see... So you're beginning to process your grief then?"

Arah laughed heartily at that and smile over at Dax. "Nothing gets passed you, huh buddy?" he teased, his smile beginning to fade ever so slightly as he seemed to have a thought cross his mind. "Do you remember the day I named you?"

"Of course. It was a bit unorthodox to me, but looking back at it now I'm glad you did. You don't just look at me as another little spark of light. You look at me as your...friend." Dax replied.

Arah nodded, "Because you are my friend Dax. Do you remember what she said that day?"

-Blade Dancer training day 14-

Location: The Tower, Last City, Earth

Rose had just made her way out of the ship hangar, having made sure that Amanda had fueled up she and Arah's ships for their upcoming trip out into the wilds of Earth for his training, when she spotted Arah sitting by the overlook and talking to his ghost. She made her way over to the two of them, causing both to look over at her as she approached.

"So, you and your ghost about ready to head out?" she asked Arah, standing before the two of them and crossing her arms lightly.

"Dax." Arah replied to her.

Rose, looking confused, tilted her head at Arah and questioned him. "I'm sorry?"

"His name." Arah said, "It's Dax."

Rose cocked an eyebrow at Arah. "You named your ghost?"

Arah nodded to his teacher and continued. "Well...yeah. It's like you said, everyone needs a name. If I just went around calling him 'Ghost' all the time it might get confusing with multiple guardians. So he and I have decided that his name is Dax."

Rose smiled softly at Arah's explanation before chuckling to herself and shaking her head, her green-eyed gaze turning out to the traveler while internally she marveled at Arah.

"Er...Rose?" Arah asked, feeling unsure of himself. "It wasn't wrong of me to name him, right?"

She looked back to him and shook her head, smile never fading. "No Arah. In fact, if there were more guardians like you this world might be a far better place. It's too easy to think of our ghosts as a mere tool, and I myself am guilty of that very thing. Instead we must remind ourselves of what they really are: a gift from the Traveler itself. They are our companions, a voice of reason, and often our only friend out in the wilderness of the worlds within our solar system."

Arah was taken aback by his teacher's praise, his right hand moving to rub the back of his head nervously. "Well...I dunno about the world being a better place and all, but Dax has been there with me since the beginning. I think it's only right that he has a name."

Rose smiled again and placed her right hand upon Arah's shoulder. "Never change that outlook Arah. It suits you. It suits all guardians." She gave his shoulder a firm squeeze before having her ghost materialize her helmet and then putting it over her head and locking it into place. It was time to get back to business. "Now suit up, we've got work to do!"

-Present Day-

Location: The Tower, Last City, Earth

"Yes, she said that more guardians should treat their ghosts like you treat me." Dax replied

"And she eventually went on to name her ghost Nadia too." Arah reminded him.

Dax was silent for a few moments, eventually finding the right words to say. "....Both of them are going to be missed around here."

Arah nodded in agreement at that. "Yeah buddy, they will be." Arah gave a great sigh at that, running his right hand through his black hair while he let the solemnness of the reality of the situation sink in once more. "Rose was part of what made me feel strong... Now without her here I almost feel...lost."

Dax moved to hover between Arah and his view of the traveler, the glowing blue eye seeming to bore into Arah's own gold eyes. "Arah, so long as you have her memory to guide you, you will never be lost." Dax told him, "And you have me too. It is my sole duty to aid you in whatever way I can. I won't let you get lost either."

Arah laughed at that, his smile returning. "I don't think you fully understand the sort of lost I was talking about Dax, but the sentiment is appreciated none the less. But you're right, as long as you and I are together I will never be lost."

Arah finally turned away from the Traveler and looked towards the upper levels of the tower that had been behind him, and the Vanguard Hall down the set of steps near the postmaster. He thought about that day that he and Dax had walked in on Rose and Cayde while they had been discussing the next step for Blade Dancers very heatedly...

-Blade Dancer Training Day 139-

Location: The Tower, Last City, Earth

Arah had been searching for Rose for around ten minutes or so when it occurred to him that she might be in the Vanguard Hall debriefing Cayde about his progress in his training so far. So he had decided to head that way only to hear the sounds of raised voices as he drew near. Curious, he got low and did his best to sneak his way towards the sounds of the voices until he could make them out. Sure enough he could hear Rose speaking, and the voice which followed was Cayde's.

"......you not see the possibilities Cayde?" Rose demanded as Arah got within clear earshot of the two of them. He wished he had heard the first bit but it couldn't be helped.

"It's not that I don't see the possibilities Rose!" Cayde asserted, "Messing with the way the Traveler's light works is dangerous. You could not only hurt yourself, but you could accidentally hurt others too!"

"Don't give me that bullshit Cayde! In case you haven't noticed after incidents like with Crota on the moon or the fallen at Twilight Gap we are in position to eventually be completely overrun by forces we just don't have the ability to stand up to! Guardians must take the initiative! We must be the ones to push ourselves past our current abilities because no one is going to do it for us!"

"Do you even hear what you're saying? You sound like the hive or one of their twisted Gods like Crota. 'More power, more power'.....what if we can't handle more power Rose? What if pushing yourself too far destroys your ghost?"

"Nadia." Rose corrected him. "Her name is Nadia."

"...Fine. What if it destroys Nadia? What if it cripples her ability to revive you if something goes wrong?" Cayde asked.

"And what if it doesn't? What if it only betters our ability to fend off the darkness? It's coming back Cayde! And we aren't prepared for it once again, and we aren't just talking about a collapse level event this time. No, this time it will be extinction! Is that what you want Cayde?" she demanded, both fists slamming down on the vanguard table.

Cayde was silent for a long while after Rose's question, the exo turned away from her and clasped his hands behind his back, his shoulders seeming to visibly sigh. "Fine Rose. I'll get the gunsmith to work on it. But if this backfires and civilians or other guardians get hurt it won't just be a slap on the wrist. It'll be exile because you're tampering with your own light. You know the speaker's view on such things."

Rose's stance seemed to relax at Cayde's answer and she brought both hands up into the proper position as she bowed respectfully to him. "Thank you Cayde. I understand the consequences and will accept them should they come." She said before walking over to his position and peering over at him, trying to get a view of his face.

"For both of our sakes, I hope your idea works." He said, turning his head to look at her. "Whether you a achieve becoming a 'Blademaster' or not, if it ever gets around to the others that I approved this it won't be pretty for me either."

Arah knew their conversation was coming to an end so he thought it best to get away while the getting was good. It was a conversation he knew he was never meant to hear, yet it left him with so many questions swirling through his head. What was a Blademaster? Why was Cayde so against Rose trying to become one? Why was it wrong to manipulate a guardian's light? Once he had made back to the tower center Dax popped up over his shoulder and immediately spoke up.

"It's rude to eavesdrop you know? Plus we may have just heard something that might get us in trouble too!" Dax said.

"Perhaps, but aren't you the least bit curious about it?"

"Not at all. Clearly that was between Rose and Cayde and is none of our business."

"Dax, don't be such a wet towel." Arah chided him. "Still, better not mention it for now I guess. Perhaps one day the opportunity with arise eh?"

"You're going to be the death of me one day." Dax retorted, not seeming amused.

-Present Day-

Location: The Tower, Last City, Earth

"Hey Dax?" Arah said as he once again snapped out of his thoughts, still looking towards the Vanguard Hall.

"What is it Arah?" Dax responded.

"I think the time has come to ask Cayde about the day we saw him and Rose arguing." Arah said.

"Arah! Are you nuts? You saw how he reacted to Rose talking about it. If we ask about it he may blow a gasket, no pun intended!"

"Never know if we don't try." Arah retorted before beginning to walk towards the Vanguard Hall, leaving Dax hovering by the overlook of the city for a few moments.

Dax hovered back and forth indecisively while he pondered if he should come along or not, eventually looking toward Arah and muttering to himself. "Ugh...I suppose if we're going to die, we should die together." Before catching up with Arah and transmatting into his armor systems.

"I knew you'd come around." Arah said with a chuckle.

"Just so you're aware, if we get exiled I blame you." Dax retorted.

"Fair enough buddy, fair enough." Arah said.

As the two of them descended the steps into the Vanguard Hall, Arah was pleased to see that Cayde was there and Ikora and Zavala seemed to have been called off on other business within the tower. Cayde was standing by the observation deck overlooking the mountains, hands clasped behind his back much as they had been the day he and Rose had been discussing the subject of becoming a Blademaster.

"So you came." Cayde said without turning around as Arah approached.

"You were expecting me?" Arah asked curiously.

At that, Cayde turned around and seemed to smile slightly. "Should I not have been?"

Arah smirked and shook his head. If there was one thing he had learned about Cayde since coming to the tower, it was that nothing really seemed to get past him. "I suppose I should just come right out with it then huh? Tell me what you and Rose knew about becoming a Blademaster."

Cayde crossed his arms and chuckled at that, "I thought you'd never ask."

Audio Log 002-

"I remember feeling resolute that day. No matter what I was going to pick up where Rose had left off, push myself past my limits, or die trying. If I was going to destroy the Vex one day, then I had to become like no other hunter before. Rose...if you're out there somewhere, still watching from the edge of oblivion... Thank you. Your sacrifice will not go unanswered."