Part 2: [url]https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/123787946[/url] [u][b]Part 3[/b][/u] Cruising at full throttle, Pahanin's sparrow was capable of achieving incredible speeds. He had even made a few special modifications himself to squeeze a bit more performance out of the vehicle. Still, it wasn't going to outrun a Cabal Harvester. "Where's that second ship at, Ghost?" Pahanin asked. "It's dropping in from low orbit now" the Ghost replied. "Wait, I'm not picking up a Cabal engine signature." "Then what is it?" asked 'Vice. "It's another guardian" said Pahanin as he killed the throttle and allowed the sparrow to glide to a halt. "Look" he continued and pointed into the sky. Sure enough, a Kestral class jump-ship, a model favored by Hunters for its speed and performance, could be seen descending from the upper atmosphere. "I wonder who it is" remarked 'Vice. "Lets go find out!" Pahanin replied cheerily before opening the throttle again and speeding off in the direction of the landing spacecraft. After a few moments, Ghost spoke up. "Pahanin, wait a minute, slow down" it said with a tone of caution in its voice. "Something about that other guardian feels weird, strange somehow." "Can you tell who the guardian is?" Pahanin asked, slowing the sparrow once again. "Yes, give me a second." Pahanin craned his neck, looking up at the descending drop-ship, trying to get a better look at it. After a few moments, Ghost chimed in again. "According to the hanger records from the tower, that ship belongs to Dredgen Yor" As the ship made its final approach and landed a ways off in a valley, Pahanin was able to get a solid look at it. It was Dredgen sure enough, the craft was a Spindle Demon, a very high performance variant of the Kestral, and one that had long been favored by the famous Hunter. "I wonder what he is doing out this far" Pahanin wondered aloud. "I'm sure he's not here to socialize" said 'Vice. "Yor has always been all business." "He never has had any sense of humor" agreed Pahanin, as his Ghost materialized beside him. "There's something wrong with him" the Ghost said, gazing off toward the ship in the distance. "Hey now," Pahanin countered. "I'll agree he's not very good company, but he's a good shot, and a solid guardian" "No, you don't understand" the Ghost insisted, swiveling toward Pahanin. "There is something WRONG with the guardian in that ship." The Ghost turned its attention back toward the ship. "Something is off with his light" the little machine continued "like it's been tainted or poisoned..." "What?" Pahanin asked before pulling a pair of binoculars from beneath his cloak. As he peered through the lenses toward the distant spacecraft, his jaw tightened. Pahanin knew how such corruption could pollute a guardian and poison their light. He had witnessed such effects within the Vault of Glass. He could never forget the horror Kabr suffered through as the Vex slowly assimilated him with their relentless, creeping presence. After a few moments of silence, it was 'Vice who spoke first "can you tell what sort of taint is afflicting Dredgen?" "No" the ghost responded. "Maybe he came to us because we saw what happened to Kabr, maybe he thinks we can help." "He should have gone to the Speaker, or the Vanguard" Pahanin replied, a hard edge to his voice. "If we were able to help then maybe Kabr would still be here." "Kabr made his decision" 'Vice spoke up. "What happened to him wasn't your fault." Pahanin gave no response, but stood motionless, staring through the binoculars toward the distant jump-ship. He didn't have to wait long. In the distance, a lone Hunter suddenly materialized beside the ship. The man stood rigid as a stone and cast a long shadow against the setting sun. Beneath black plates of armor, his grey survival suit was adorned with trophies and various pieces of hunting equipment. A simple cloak of grey and blue hung silently from his shoulders. On his hip rested his signature weapon, an angry tangle of long black thorns twisted into the rough shape of a hand cannon. "Well there he is" said Pahanin. "What should we do?" asked the Ghost. "I think the first order of business is to find out why he is here" suggested 'Vice. Pahanin nodded and keyed up his radio. "Hello Dredgen, this is Pahanin Errata. What brings you out this far?" Continuing to watch Dredgen, Pahanin saw through the binoculars as he activated his own radio. A moment later, the Hunter's hard voice came across the line. "I am here to find you, Errata" "No kidding" Pahanin replied "Well, what can I do for you?" "I have harnessed a new power" Dredgen spoke again, "one that will allow us to retake what is rightfully ours." Pahanin had seen the effects of harnessing powers of the darkness. There was strength there to be sure, but the price of wielding it was too terrible to imagine. "I have already made use of its ability" continued Dredgen, "no agent of the darkness can resist me now." "I have seen the results of harnessing such power before" Pahanin replied. "Yes I know all about your report of Kabr and how he fell to the Vex" Dredgen countered, "but I have become stronger than any other guardian. My record in the Crucible speaks for itself." "Yes, I hear you have gone on quite the rampage" Pahanin replied calmly. "You got that right" said Dredgen. "Pahanin!" His Ghost's voice suddenly chimed softly in his in the back of his mind, "I'm not picking up the light of a ghost anywhere down there." "How can that be?" Pahanin thought back. "I don't know" the ghost replied. "Many of us had to look for hundreds of years before we found our guardians. Some of us are still looking. We never leave our guardians." Pahanin considered why Dredgen's ghost was missing. It was extremely rare for a guardian to survive an encounter in which their ghost was lost. Any who did manage to survive such an encounter generally weren't able to remain alive for long. It also seemed equally unlikely that it would have abandoned him for some reason. Before Pahanin could think much about it, Dredgen spoke again "Its been a while since anyone saw you in the Crucible, Errata." "Well I have been busy out here" Pahanin replied, "and I wouldn't want to put an end to that winning streak of yours." "If I recall correctly" Pahanin continued, "last time we squared off in the ring 'Vice made a meal of you." 'Vice gave a soft chuckle, and Pahanin looked down at the massive gatling gun with a grin. "Things are different now" Dredgen replied coldly. Ghost's voice suddenly rang out in his mind again. "Pahanin, I have hacked into Dredgen's helmet feed. He has his radio direction finder on!" A radio direction finder was a common piece of technology, every hunter carried one. When activated, it was able to determine from which direction a radio signal was being transmitted. "He's hunting [b]US[/b]!" the ghost cried out in alarm. Shocked, Pahanin looked back through the binoculars at Dredgen Yor, to see the hunter looking right back at him -through the scope of a sniper rifle. An instant later, the end of the rifle barrel vanished in a bright muzzle flash as Dredgen pulled the trigger. Part 4: [url]https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/126442682[/url]