A/N: Enjoy the damn chapter. AT A COST. Throw stones and pay with reviews, or suffer the consequences (Testicular Torsion).
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[A week Later]
The high noon's harsh lights filtered through the Vanguard war room, shading it a golden hue. Ikorra stood at the holo-table with her arms crossed, as she listened intently to a report recited by Eris Morn.
"What's the status of the City's Cosmodrome reclamation now?" Ikorra raised a brow.
"It's risen to 30% over the week. Without the Devils to stop us, our patrolling squads are claiming more ground every single day." Eris's lips pressed into a line, "But there is a bigger problem."
Cayde tilted his head in confusion, "That would be?"
Eris frowned as the holo-table projected a new map of rising enemy forces. "The more ground we reclaim, the more enemies we fight. From our limited understanding, what we've gathered is that these enemies, shouldn't be here. We've never seen anything like this."
The small holoprojector on the central table flickered with captured images—Vex patrols warping into Cosmodrome territory, Hive emergence points forming like tumors across the forgotten lands, and even traces of Cabal squads nestled in the outskirts.
"Vex, Cabal and even Hive. Cosmodrome's getting too volatile. " Ikorra said plainly.
Eris nodded, "The Cabal's presence is a direct answer to Rasputin's attacks on Mars and Mercury. But as for the others. Their presence is our own fault. With the House of Devils no longer controlling Devil's Lair and the Steppes, new enemy factions are rearing their head."
Zavala looked up, eyes narrowing slightly. "You mean to say the Devils were cleaning these up before?"
"Yes. We believe that for the sake of maintaining control over their territory, House of Devils was undoubtedly thinning down enemy numbers." Eris spoke up.
Cayde sat up, a single metallic finger raised. "Wait, wait. Are you saying—" He glanced toward Zavala. "We accidentally turned the Devils into the bouncers of the Cosmodrome?"
"So, without the Devils, the gigs only up to us huh." Cayde rubbed his chin.
Ikora gave him a sharp look, but she didn't disagree. "In their own way, yes. With their numbers and Sepiks around, they served as a wall. Now? That wall's broken."
Zavala agreed, "They're getting bold. We've pressed the Devils back—but that's left a vacuum. Now every vermin in the system wants a piece of the Cosmodrome."
Zavala turned from the terminal, his face like stone as he continued, "What about Rasputin? He's still running?"
"Still operational," Ikora confirmed. "He's aggressively defending zones around the Terrestrial Complex and Skywatch, but he doesn't prioritize Vex incursions. He's fighting what he deems the most immediate threats—and for him, that's Cabal. Hive, sometimes. Vex… less so."
Cayde sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Great. The Tyrant's not interested in small fries."
"We've reclaimed territory," Ikorra said carefully. "But we're spread thin. Even with the City's relays restored, we simply can't cover this much ground without creating holes."
Zavala's eyes glanced over the holo-map showing increased Hive activity. His eyes flickered with unease, a twitch jolted across his chest, almost as if his heart had sunk into his stomach.
He moved back toward the table and brought up the tactical map
He gestured at several red-lit zones pulsing with enemy activity. "The Hive numbers...they are increasing faster than anticipated." Zavala's eyes widened as he muttered, "It's as if something is organizing them. "
Ikorra paused and looked closer at the map. Then she spoke, her voice sharper now. "It looks to be, some sort of surge in activity. But...if the Hive are really this active. It must mean they're being pushed to perform."
"Great, so we think someone's pulling their strings again." Cayde clasped his hands and rested his chin, "As far as I know, there's only one damn place where we'll get any answers."
A quiet hush followed his words. No one wanted to say it—but they all knew it.
"Infiltrating the Moon is no light task," Zavala said finally. "It's a tomb of horrors. If we send our teams, we risk losing them. Especially the New Lights. We're already asking too much of them."
"Well…" Cayde looked up, that playful glint back in his eye. "There is one guy crazy enough to pull it off."
Ikorra turned toward him knowingly but she kept silent.
He snapped his fingers. "Come on, you know who I'm talking about."
Zavala frowned slightly. "You think he'd take the mission?"
Cayde shrugged. "I think he's stubborn enough to try."
Zavala sighed. "He's not even on Earth anymore. What has he been doing?"
"I guess it's time to find out." Ikorra turned to Eris, "You've been tracking the New Lights?"
Eris nodded once. "Yes. The Hidden have been observing them carefully."
"And?" Zavala asked.
"They've joined a faction—VENOM. Led by Void, though he calls himself Viper now. The base of operations is in the Tangled Shore."
That earned a stunned silence. Cayde was the first to break it.
"Why do all the interesting people move away?" Cayde groaned. "The Shore? Seriously? You're telling me the guy who ran from the City set up shop in the most pirate-ridden, unpatrolled corner of the Reef?"
Eris leaned forward. "There's more. The weapons the New Lights carry—Ghost scans reveal they were crafted in VENOM's workshop. No trace of our foundry blueprints or energy signatures."
Zavala raised his brows. "Fully independent? How?"
Eris gestured. "Repurposed technology. We do not know how. The Hidden cannot monitor him on the Shore. But the results he's made point towards him making deals with a technician. Someone advanced enough to make weapons from scratch."
Cayde chuckled, "You gotta respect the hustle. Where'd he even find such a guy."
Ikorra nodded. "If he's someone not even on our radar, the technician could be a rogue Fallen."
"Regardless of his current activities, infiltrating the moon is still dangerous." Zavala decided. "We'll send the mission briefing his way. Let him choose. "
Cayde leaned back with a grin. "Relax, he'll say yes. You know he can't resist playing the hero."
As the war room returned to silence, the image of the Cosmodrome pulsed softly on the holotable, but in the back of all their minds, a darker place called out.
The Moon waited.
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[Spider's Hideout]
Viper stood leaning against the curved wall of a vaulted corridor. His hood hung low.
The sound of ether tubes pulsing rhythmically filled the air.
Kaviss's ether pod stood quietly in the center of the room, its transparent casing glowing faintly with a soft orange hue. Inside, the heavily modified Fallen captain lay unconscious, still recovering from the brutal enhancements the Devil Splicers had forced on him.
Inside the healing pod, Kaviss stirred—his talons twitched, his eyes rolled faintly beneath closed lids—but the ether stream continued its slow, steady cycle.
Spider emerged from the shadows , his rotund frame draped in fine purple silk robe. He stepped beside Viper, one brow raised, and waved a clawed hand at the pod.
"Staring at him won't make it go any faster." he rasped.
Viper didn't turn. "You told me he'd recover."
"I did," Spider muttered, scratching under his chin, "but you might want to temper those expectations. Splicer tech messes with more than the body. It's like trying to unscramble eggs with a wrench. Recovery's taking longer than expected."
Viper lazily looked over at him, "Not like I've got anything else to chase. The Devils are scattered. House of Winter's not playing ball, and the Kings? They've pretty much gone dark."
Spider hummed, adjusting one of his rings. "Indeed, it's a pity."
"Used to be I could track every Devil baron in the Cosmodrome. Now I'm down to rumors and thirdhand sightings." He clicked his tongue, but then a chuckle crept up from his throat, "Still, I made out well, didn't I?"
"Is that why you're dressed like a 19th Century Noble?" Viper shook his head.
Spider let out a short wheezing laugh. "Please, this is ancient Egyptian silk from the 20th Century. Snatched it off a scavengers Ketch as he docked near the shore. Daft fool was using it as a tablecloth."
"Highway robbery, how exciting." Viper rolled his eyes.
Them his wrist buzzed.
Viper's expression sharpened. He tapped the message open. A burst of data flooded his HUD. The encryption melted away almost instantly, revealing the full content.
Viper's brows lowered. He scrolled further. He stared at the message floating in front of him, reading it twice.
Spider leaned over curiously. "Something good?"
Viper didn't answer right away. The weight of the message hung in his mind like a coiled wire.
"No. Just someone asking for a favor." he muttered finally.
Spider scoffed. "Boring."
He turned away from the pod and walked towards the door as he swiped his wrist to access his ship's transmat.
"What, not gonna watch him anymore? I coulda sworn he moved his finger." Spider chuckled as he turned towards the pod.
Viper waved a hand as he stepped out of the doorway, "Just keep me updated."
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