The gunfire rang in his ears. Sweat dripped from his brow. He sighted his weapon. He fired. Quicker. Faster. Become faster. That would be the only way to survive. Survival was something the small Awoken was unaccustomed to. Not since his first few days in the wilds, resurrected by that curious companion cube of his. Those days were hellish, a waking nightmare. He pushed the thoughts from his mind. He had to focus. Practice made perfect, after all. He lined up his shot, taking his time. Anyone watching his routine would have figured out long ago that he had been switching off between precision and speed. And Cayde had been watching for quite some time, unbeknownst to the Warlock. “You’re good, if you were shooting at a bunch of guys standing still.” Cayde appreciated that joke, but the Awoken hadn’t heard him speak at all. Cayde sighed, and pulled the ear protection off of his short companion. The Warlock swiveled his whole body, startled. “I said, you’re good, if you were – ah never mind, it doesn’t matter. Look, kid,” “There’s a good probability I’m several hundred years older than you.” Cayde cocked his head to the side at that comment. “Yeah, but you’re short. And you Awoken folk never look like you age anyways. I’ve never seen an Awoken grandma, have you?” Cayde picked up a hand cannon from the station in front of them, not waiting for an answer. “You can be the best damn shot this side of the Cosmodrome in here, but out there, it’s different. I know you’re nervous. I know you haven’t been outside the Wall since you first got here. And where you’re going, no one knows what they’ll see. You’re as prepared as you’re gonna be, kid. Go home, rest. I told you to say good-bye.” “I have nothing or anyone I need to say good-bye to.” The Awoken said as he placed his own hand cannon in its holster, firmly strapped under his robes. “By Oryx himself you could be best buddies with Eris. The only thing you’re missing is creepy.” Cayde stepped behind the short Awoken, placing a hand on his back. With a small amount of effort, he began to force the Awoken to walk with him. “I’m not good at the whole good mentor thing. I’m not even your mentor. I’m just telling you where to go shoot stuff and where to find the best loot. Hopefully. But you’re gonna be fine, kid. I’ve got two of the best Guardians around working with you. You’ll have ‘round the clock protection that’ll make a Cabal Imperial Guard regiment look like a bunch of frames with brooms. Speaking of,” They had been walking down a small hallway with low ceilings as Cayde spoke. About halfway down the hallway, they took a left turn that lead to a small recessed door. As they approached, it slid upwards with a slight hiss. As they crossed over the threshold, the room lit up, revealing a few monitors with symbols flashing across the screen. All the work stations were connected to a single, man sized block centered at the far end of the room. “Like I said, those two are some of the best. At killing things. But your work requires a little more smarts. So I had some of your buddies over at the Academy work on this side project.” Cayde pressed a key at the closest station, and the seamless block began to split apart. Out stepped a frame, similar in make to the ones the Awoken had seen Shaxx working with. Cayde chuckled, “You’ll never believe how I got it.” The frame stepped forward, out of the block that had contained it. Several wires it had been connected to fell to the floor with slight thuds. What struck the Awoken about this frame was the range of equipment it had on it. Scientific tools of every caliber, from a basic magnifying lens to a highly advanced graviometric analyzer could be found across it’s body, protected by armored plates. “What do you think?” “It’s…” “Yours. Everything you could possibly need for research and combat all wrapped into one.” Cayde extended his fist towards the Awoken. “Who’s the man?” Table of Contents Part 1: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/174413981/0/0 Part 2: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/174803590/0/0