At the time of writing, It is currently the Summer Solstice, and I can think of no better way to celebrate our achievements as guardians than to extend my account of my time during the Red War. This chapter is dedicated then to all the guardians who fought and died their final deaths to retake the City from the Red Legion. ———————————————— [i]Wave after wave of Fallen kept pouring in to the main deck of the Vestian outpost. A few Awoken Corsairs has constructed makeshift barricades from some of the toppled vault computers and crates, forcing the raiders to come to them. Ashla had set up shop on one of the girders in the top portion of the outpost, picking off tracer shanks and fallen snipers one by one. I, as usual, was right in the middle of a group of fallen, blasting some and pummeling others. Turns out even without my Light I could still throw a good punch. “All clear over here.” I managed after I knocked a dreg. “Ashla, what’s your status?” “Multiple skiffs inbound to your position,” She replied. “Take cover.” I crouched and stuck out my forearm. Nothing happened. “Oh, right.” I realized. “No barricades.” One of the skiffs hovered right above my head, carrying a Spider Tank. “Son of a Gl-“ The tank dropped right on top of me. Luckily, there was a small space underneath the tank, so I survived with a minor concussion. “That’s gonna leave a mark.” I said, crawling out from under the tank. The Fallen were starting to push the Corsairs back using heavy fire from the Spider Tank. “Ashla, we need to take this thing out,” I shouted over the comms. “Aim for the legs, I have an idea.” “What’s your plan?” “I’m going in.” I dashed toward a nearby Captain and wrested his scorch cannon out of his hands. “I’ll take [b]that,[/b] thank you.” I quipped as I kicked him off the ledge and into the dark abyss of space. I then turned around and dashed toward the walker, which was just taking notice of me. Right before it could fire off a round, I leaped on top of one of its legs and made my way to the turret. I stuck the scorch cannon on top of the turret and pulled the trigger, blowing a hole in the walker. I hopped inside, and went to town on its circuits. “Alright, let’s see how this baby handles.” I said, taking control of the walker. I turned around and faced the waves of Fallen encroaching on the Corsair’s positions and fired. Boom. The group of Fallen were gone in an instant. “And now for the air support...” I said, turning to the the Fallen skiffs. Realizing that one of their walkers was compromised, they immediately turned to retreat, but not before I nailed one of them. “I love tanks.” I sighed. “Nice shooting out there.” Ashla said as I climbed out of the walker. “Thanks, this gun you gave me handles beautifully.” I replied, “you weren’t so bad either. I haven’t seen marksmanship like that in years.” I examined the aftermath of the skirmish. “Why would the Fallen attack an Awoken outpost?” Ashla wondered. “The Fallen survive by being opportunists.” I answered. “They evidently caught wind of the Red Legion’s fleet and seized the opportunity that arose from their assault on the City. No guardians in the reef, not much of a resistance.” “Something doesn’t feel right though.” She said. “The houses are broken. Winter has no kell. The Devils are mostly wiped out. And no one has heard from the house of Kings.” “These Fallen don’t bear any house colors I’ve seen before.” I observed. “My Eliksni is a little rusty, but I think that symbol means ‘dusk’.” When I finished, Echo suddenly flew out from the interior of the outpost and informed me that Commander Zavala was sending a transmission to all active guardian channels. “Put him through.” I said. “This is Vanguard Commander Zavala sending a message to any and all surviving guardians. The City has fallen. The Light, gone. We regroup on Titan, and prepare to mount a counterattack. Be brave.” “The attached coordinates are located in the New Pacific Archology, one of Titan’s colonies.” I said, turning to Ashla. “I have to go.” “Not without a ship,” She objected, “And you’re in no condition to fly.” “Alright then.” I relented, “Let’s go.”[/i] ———————————————————