After finishing breakfast, the two guardians dawned their armor and readied their weapons. They emerged in the small cave entrance and peered outside. The blizzard was gone and the sun was starting to break through the clouds. Everything was white. Fresh snow covered the land giving it an almost flawless appearance. Velox looked up and was awe struck at how large the mountains actually were. Jagged rocky peaks reached skyward and nearly disappeared in the scattered clouds above. The two set out at a moderate pace heading west and passed through the camp. The road they took was narrow and the snow made it somewhat treacherous. They skirted along the path, their footsteps muffled by the fresh snow. After twenty minutes the path sloped down and eventually led to a small valley between two mountains. There were trees here. Actual trees. The pines rose fifty feet above the ground and were shrouded in a thick layer of snow. “I thought all plant life was dead on Mars?” “Not all. In the remote places like this, there are still a few standing.” Azrix said. The two continued along the valley until Azrix turned right and headed towards the side of the mountain. As they got closer, the entrance grew larger. As they reached it, Velox gazed up at the black maw and felt a tingle down her spine. Gigantic icicles hung from the entrance and ran nearly all the way to the ground. They looked like prison bars. They slowly made their way towards the entrance, their ghosts keeping a wary eye on their surroundings. They stepped up to the entrance. “No going back. Are you ready?” Azrix asked. “Yeah. Lets get it over with.” They walked into the mouth of the cave and started their descent. Inside it was made of the same rock that dominated the cave they had stayed in the night before. A grey peppered granite by the looks of it. The entrance was large, nearly twenty feet wide and ten feet tall. As they continued down, Velox noticed the temperature was slowly rising. After ten minutes, the path narrowed and soon they were walking single file. Ahead, there was light. They were getting close. They emerge from a crack in the side of an enormous room. The far wall could not be seen and the ceiling was easily two hundred feet above them. There was also a large ball of light hovering at the top of the ceiling bright enough to illuminate the whole room. The most shocking part of the room was an abundance of plants. Everywhere they looked plants ranging from grass too fifty foot oak trees occupied almost every inch. Moisture hung thick in the air. It almost felt as if they were in the jungles of Venus. “This is where we found the conflux.” Azrix said pointing to a barren spot on the floor. “How…… why would…..” “I don’t know. Apparently the Vex have a green thumb. We need to locate another conflux deeper in the cave if we want to find the source of the signal.” They pushed forward past ferns and shrubs. There were no paths, so they continued in a general north direction. After another fifteen minutes of walking, they finally caught sight of the far wall. It was made of metal and had intricate carvings or maybe even circuits running along its face. A waterfall cascaded down from a passageway half way up. Velox couldn’t place it but something seemed off about the waterfall. She pushed it out of her mind and the two guardians continued towards a large cut in the wall next to the waterfall. As they got closer, they came upon a small creek that wound its way through the garden. Now she knew what was wrong with the waterfall. The water in the creek was flowing but looked as if it were in slow motion. Staring at it, she watched the water splash over a few stones but agonizingly slow. “What in the hell is this place?” she asked dipping her hand in the water and retrieving it. The water slowly dripped off her hand and looked as if it were floating in the air. “This is something I have only heard rumors about. A few years ago, a titan named Kabar took a team of guardians into a vex stronghold called the Vault of Glass. The few scraps of information that made it back out told of a place that existed outside of time. This might be something similar.” He said as he planted his boot in the creek causing water to shoot up in ultra slow motion. They followed the creek for five minutes and came to the base of the nearly non moving waterfall. A pool of crystal clear water was at its base and just to the left of it was the cut in wall. There was a staircase. They approached it cautiously when suddenly a bright white simmering wall appeared blocking the entrance. “They found us!” Nymph yelled. “Teleport signature fifty meters behind us. We need to find the power source for this barrier and cut it.” Azrix spun and trained his weapon on the thick stand of willow trees behind them. Inside a dark cloud was forming. “Velox have Gaia scan for that power source. We can’t hold this position long.” Gaia flew out and started scanning along the right side of the wall while Nymph scanned the left. A flash of purple void energy announced the arrival of the Vex. They stood weapons trained on the trees waiting for anything to step out and into their lines of sight. Suddenly a flicker of movement caught Velox’s attention and she turned left. A hail of rounds was headed right for her. She dove out of the way just in time. She lifted her rifle to where they rounds had come from but saw nothing. “Careful, this one is tricky. It teleports to one area, fires a ton of rounds, and then retreats out of sight.” Azrix said scanning the area. “Nymph we might need you to use a time freeze!” Nymph floated over and stood next to the two guardians. It was quiet, the only sound to be heard was the crashing of the waterfall to their left. Static crept up Azrix’s arm and he knew the enemy was moving. He looked to his right and saw a shimmer and the creature appeared. “Nymph!” Azrix yelled trying to draw down on the spot while side stepping. The enemy appeared for a mere second, fired a volley of rounds, and then disappeared back into the greenery. The rounds glanced off of Azrix’s shields. “It wasn’t effected by the freeze!” Nymph yelled. “It must be using a more advanced equation for time manipulation.” “Great any ideas?” Azrix said facing back towards the forest. “It appears that the Vex attacking us can teleport within firing distance and teleport almost immediately back to its point of origin. I would suggest that you split up it seems it can only teleport from one location.” “I will go to the point of origin. I can activate my camouflage and get there without being detected. Azrix try and hold it off. Once it teleports back, I will open up with everything I have.” “Worth a shot. Just don’t take your time. I’m not nearly as fast as you so my shields and armor will be taking the hits.” Just then Azrix shoved Velox out of the way and took six rounds to his chest. Hope you guys enjoyed chapter 5! Chapter 6 will be out next Friday. Leave a comment if you want me to message you when it is out. Please do not hold back with your criticism. I need to know if i am doing something wrong or leaving something out. I will adjust fire in the next chapters based on your guys input and try to make changes. Chapter Index is here: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/101226805/0/0