Chapter 3: Settling In
Isaac's new ship meandered through low hanging clouds, soaring past thunderstorms and rainfall. The massive body of the Traveler only occasionally visible in the distance. Nearly an hour after their departure, Isaac and Polter, upon descent, break through a cluster of clouds and are greeted by the magnificent site of the Traveler hovering over mankind's one true refuge, The Last City. Isaac unwittingly catches his breath for several seconds upon witnessing the full splendor of the Traveler's majesty. The super massive sphere, of unknown construction, projects a distinct aura of hope and serenity. Despite being battered and broken and despite Isaac already knowing what to expect, he couldn't help but be awed by the sight before him. Isaac continued to take in the familiar sights, being absolutely thrilled by the prospect of being able to fully explore this beautiful adventure soaked world.
The ship slowly approached the Transmating Bay and Polter set Isaac down, with a coalescing of scattered light particles. Isaac looked around at the Tower, feeling a mixture of nostalgia and awe. He slowly progressed to left towards the Speaker's Observatory, while taking in the sights. Guardians running around in all varieties and colors of gear, some of which he had seen before while others were unfamiliar.
He entered a circular room, with a full view of the Traveler, where the opposite wall would have been. In the center was a strange circular device embedded in the floor. Above this device, a gyroscopic type device spun its concentric circles around a holographic projection of the Traveler.
A man, dressed in white robes and wearing a white full face mask, walked down the stairs from an elevated platform from the left of the doorway.
"It's a beautiful site is it not?" The Speaker asks.
"It absolutely is! It's magnificent!" Isaac responds.
"Are you a newly arisen Guardian? Most of the others, once they get going, don't find a lot of time to come here."
"Yes. Polter here resurrected me in the Cosmodrome less than three hours ago. It wasn't easy getting out."
"Well, that's an unfortunate location for you to have arisen. It is fortunate, however, that you made it back. That accomplishment in itself shows you have promise. But, of course, where are my manners? I am the Speaker. My position here in the tower is as a type of soft leader of the Guardians. I speak for the Traveler and I, along with the rest of the Consensus, make decisions about the Last City's future as a collective. That being said, you should seek out Ikora Ray, Commander Zavala, and Cayde-6, in the command room, they will help you get settled into your new life here at the Tower."
"Thank you, for your guidance, Speaker. I'll do that right away. I'm Isaac, by the way. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Isaac turned back towards the Transmat Bay and, upon arrival, entered into the central stairway leading down to the command room. As the room came into view, Isaac could see Ikora standing on the elevated side of the room speaking with a fellow Warlock. Zavala and Cayde were standing next to each other pouring over some official looking documents. Isaac decided that Zavala, being the Vanguard Commander, should be the one he approached first.
Isaac approached the two Vanguard Representatives and introduced himself...Or at least he would have if Polter hadn't had plans of his own.
"Hello, Commander Zavala, Cayde Six, I hate to disturb you but I've come to introduce you to my newly arisen Guardian." Polter hovered over Zavala's head. "Isaac, this is Commander Zavala..." He then moved over Cayde's head. "...and this is Cayde-6."
"Nice! Fresh meat! You've gotta carry all my stuff for a week before you can become an official Guardian." Says Cayde.
"Isaac, don't pay any attention to Cayde. There's something wrong with his head…" Zavala responds.
"Hey, now, I resemble that remark." Cayde interjects.
"...Anyways, it's always a good day in the Tower when we're welcoming new Guardians. You'll find everything you need here. Your ghost should be familiar with the Tower's layout. If you go to Banshee-44, he can give you a full load out of gear to get you ready for action." Zavala grabs a palm sized token off of the table and hands it to me.
"Give him this in order to receive your gear. Then go see Amanda Holliday. She's the tower's shipwright and she'll make sure your ship stays in top condition. Of course, if you end up needing excessive repairs done on a regular basis we may be forced to charge you. If you find any encrypted engrams, you can see Master Rahool, our resident Cryptarch. Once you've gotten situated, come see me again and we'll talk about the three Guardian classes and your training."
"That sounds wonderful! I'll go take a look around then. Thanks, Commander. Cayde stay sharp." Isaac says, as he places his index finger on his forehead and then flicks it towards Cayde.
"Haha, like I've got much choice. See ya 'round kiddo!"
Isaac heads towards Banshee-44's workshop, with Polter in tow. Upon arrival at Banshee's window, Isaac can see that a small line has formed there. 'Looks like I'll need to wait for these three, before I can get my stuff.' Isaac waits his turn and then addresses Banshee. "Hi, there Banshee. I'm Isaac, a newly arisen Guardian. Commander Zavala said to give you this, in exchange for some gear items."
"Ahhh, another one huh? Well, I can definitely set you up with something a bit more reliable than that ghost generated armor. Let's see, here." Banshee takes the coin, walks over to a rack of shelves, picks up a small box, and returns to the window.
"Here you are. This box contains everything that you'll need to get out there and start shining a light on the darkness. One helmet, one chest piece, one leg piece, one scout rifle and hand cannon, one shotgun and sniper rifle, and one rocket launcher and machine gun. Don't try and open it, it doesn't work like that. Whenever you get to your quarters your ghost will know how to retrieve the items from it. Is there anything else you need?"
"Not at the moment, Banshee. Thank you, for your assistance."
"No problem, Isaac. Stay safe, out there."
Isaac takes the head sized box and makes his way to the hangar. Amanda Holliday is working on his ship and sees him approaching. "Hey, is this your ship?"
"Yes, it is. Can you fix it. I know it's pretty busted up. I'm surprised the thing can even fly."
"Yeah, you and me both but don't you worry. I'll have her fixed up in no time...Well, maybe a little time...Alright, look your probably not going anywhere else today but I'll definitely have her ready by tomorrow. Come back then and I'll set you up with a sparrow."
"Sounds good, Amanda. I'll see you then. Thanks for your help."
Isaac leaves Amanda to her work and heads back to the Transmat Bay. "So Polter, do you know your way around this place like Zavala said?"
"Yes, I do. We can go find you a room whenever you're ready."
"Alright then, let's go there now."
Polter leads Isaac to a stairwell on the opposite side from the Transmat Bay. Isaac goes down two flights of stairs and then enters the Tower proper. He walks down a hallway, until he reaches an elevator. He takes the elevator down thirteen floors to the 185th floor.
The elevator opens up into a spacious hallway, with white walls and Guardian class symbols posted at regular intervals. The hallway is at least hundred meters long and the doors are approximately ten meters apart.
Isaac follows Polter through the hallway watching as he stops at each door and sends a beam of light into the locking interface, presumably to check its availability. About six doors down, Polter finally finds an available room and opens the door. Isaac walks in and takes in the sight of his new home. The rooms look to be exactly like the hallway mostly white, with some console type interfaces here and there.
"This is it, Isaac. Your new home. Anytime you're not out there fighting, you can return here and rest easy, safe under the Traveler's shadow."
'Ha, if he only knew.'_"Yes it's quite spacious. Much more so than I had anticipated. It could use some personality but that can wait until later. Polter, let's open that box...actually, wait a minute, I haven't even seen what I look like, yet. I've been covered in this armor the whole time. Polter, how do I get out of this stuff?"
"Follow me into this room. It's designed specifically, as a sort of miniature armory. Of course, it has a very limited space but it can hold approximately ten complete loadouts and then some." Polter explains, as Isaac steps into the room. There are several gun racks, armor mannequins, and equipment shelves placed against each wall.
"Now hold still for a moment." Polter aims a spinning conical beam of light at Isaac and slowly widens it, until it covers him head to toe. Isaac's armor quickly dematerialized and appears on a previously bare mannequin behind Polter, as he's left standing stark naked in his armory.
Isaac looks down and brings his arms and hands in front of his face to examine them. Pale blue skin with a strange shimmering film that seems to move effortlessly across the surface of his skin, while also seeming very much like a part of the skin itself. It's almost like a transient epidermis that has constantly shifting patterns, as if it flows with some sort of energy. His body isn't out of shape but it's far from peak condition. He doesn't have a whole lot of muscle and what muscle there is only has a moderate amount of definition.
"Nice! I'm an Awoken!"
"It would seems so...huh? Wait a minute, how do you know what an Awoken is? I never mentioned them to you."
"Polter, Polter, Polter, listen buddy. We're going to be together for a long time, okay. If we're going to work well as a team, you're going to have to learn to just let it go sometimes. You know, go with the flow. Are supposed to be my Ghost or my inquisitor? You ask too many questions. Just like with the Guardian's and the City's history, this isn't something that needs to be discussed, unless I specifically address the issue."
'What the hell is wrong with this freaking guy? First, he just happens to already know what an Awoken is and then he tells me I ask too many questions. "Just go with the flow," he says. Fucking asshole!'_"Fine, once again, have it your way. So how about we open this box now?"
"Hey, now you're talking! Lets see what I've got. Although, I guess Banshee already told me what I got didn't he? Oh well, open 'er up."
Polter hovers over the edge of the box, while utilizing the same conical beam of light as last time. He continues to manipulate the light, until weapons and armor pieces begin materializing on the mannequins and racks one after the other. The box now has disappeared completely, with its contents having been released. The armor set looks a lot like the ghost manufactured armor, which is to say a Titan's starting armor.
"There was a message in there as well." Polter informs Isaac. Polter begins projecting a holographic image of Zavala in front of Isaac.
"Greetings, newly arisen Guardian. This is a brief overview of some of the critical information you'll need to adjust to life here in the Last City. It's not everything, however, and so I encourage you to seek out other Guardians and citizens. Get to know the people who you're fighting for and alongside, so as to further expand your understanding of our present condition. With that out of the way, both Guardians and other citizens of the City use a substance known as Glimmer as our primary currency. You can find Glimmer in various places throughout the system and your ghost can extract it from items and equipment that you deconstruct. Other secondary forms of currency, are motes of light and strange coins.
"As a Guardian, you will be tasked with many difficult and dangerous assignments. Before you are sent out into the field, however, you must pick a class that you wish to specialize in. There are three classes: Hunter, Titan, and Warlock. You may choose anyone you wish but you should know that Hunter is a class more suitable for those who enjoy the freedom of a high risk high reward lone wolf lifestyle. The Titan class is geared more towards those who desire to be an immovable barrier to protect others and face their problems head on. Finally, the Warlock class is best suited for those with a scholarly mindset. Those who seek to understand the deepest mysteries of the universe, as a path to overwhelming power. Whether or not that power is ever attained, of course, is entirely dependent on how much you learn.
"Now that you've received this message you should choose your desired weapons, don your armor, and report back to me, once you've had time to think clearly and carefully about which path you wish to walk down." As those last words were spoken the hologram flickered out.
"Alright, Polter, let's get me into my new armor so I can go choose my class." Polter transmats the newly acquired armor, from the mannequin onto Isaac.
Isaac notices that the helmet is no longer on the mannequin but it also isn't on his head. 'Come to think of it, I didn't have my helmet on when Polter transmated me into the Tower either but I certainly wasn't carrying it.'_"Say, Polter, do you happen to have some kind of inventory function or something."
"Ohh, you noticed that, huh? Well, yes, I can store about the same amount of matter as this room would hold in dematerialized engram form. As a ghost, I can dematerialize not only myself but also other things as well. Once an object has been transformed into the engram state of matter, I can dematerialize it and, because it exists as pure data, my inventory then functions a lot like uploading and downloading information."
"Hey, that's pretty cool and super useful. What about that helmet we picked up the Captain?"
"Here, I can just show it to you like this." Polter brought up another hologram, this time of the helmet derived from the white engram. It didn't look that much different than his first helmet outside of the four eye like lights shining on its front.
"What's the difference in this helmet and the one I just received? Is there some way to compare the quality of the two? Or are they both the same with only cosmetic differences?"
"Well, first of all, this one is of a slightly higher quality than the one I manufactured for you. Second, armor quality is determined by not only the materials used in its construction but also method of construction and whether or not it possesses light manipulation augments. These are basically devices, integrated into armor and weapons, that utilize the light to increase their performance. Third, the armor I manufactured for you was the most basic Titan class armor scraped together from materials in the immediate environment. Every Guardian starts off with basic Titan armor as it has the highest defense capabilities of all the basic armors. When a Guardian is first arisen, his or her safety and survival are a ghost's top priority, until they can get to the Tower. Fourth, the materials used in the construction of the Captain's helmet were of a slightly higher quality than yours and the construction method was also superior. As a ghost, I can influence objects into becoming engrams, by injecting data about your measurements and intentions for target into it. Thus when an engram is acquired it is slightly refashioned in order to fit the intended Guardian."
"Awesome! I can't wait to get out there and start acquiring new gear. That being said, I still need to pick my class and train. Better not get ahead of myself. Let's go, Polter."
Isaac heads back towards the command room, while dreaming of epic battles and even more epic loot.
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...Addendum: I want everyone to know, ahead of time, that this fanfic is not something that I plan on continuing for a long time. If this novel gets the same kind of attention my last one did, then I might take it as far as Crota but, depending on how the story turns out, probably not much further. My intention with this story, as with my last one, is to practice for my original work "Reincarnated as Mort Flesh." So as much as I may enjoy writing this now, at some point, I'm probably going to want to move on to my original work. That being said, I can always come back afterwards and pick this back up or even my recently completed "Reincarnated into Warframe Universe."
For those who may be wondering, my original work is set in an original world, with an original magic system. Only the Mort Flesh part is borrowed from TES.
Also, I plan to be just as hands off with this novel as my last one. Other than responding to direct questions about the story, I won't be responding to or liking comments nor will I write a self review. I want to get a true read on how much people enjoy my fanfic, without my interference.
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