"I am a timeless chorus; a sweet unity of purpose."
→Excerpt by Gravemind←
Human calendar year 2560:
[Enough! Faze! And get to the day in question! I did not ask you to tell me your thoughts on the day of shame!]
With a snort and eyes focus, Faze looked up into his admiral's eyes and said:
{you asked me to tell my story right? Well, this is where it started! So... are you going to let me share or not?... Admiral…}
[...]
Human calendar year 2552, date: November 2
As the artificial sun rose in the background, Faze looked at his unit as they began their training, running drills and honing their skills in duels and live-fire practice.
On the floor and with an energy sword by his face, Ykan looked up at Faze, with grumbled thoughts as Faze said:
{you have improved Ykan, but your mistake is fighting like a brute! Remember we are not them! Yes being aggressive matters, but if you let it consume you like it does them, then you will only end up right where you are again! On the floor and at the mercy of your enemy!
Remember our swordplay is like a dance, a rhythmic rhyme of slashes, where we can cover for each other in a group mele, where the brute way of fighting is equal to giving up on their brother to their right to kill the enemy…}
Molding over his major words, Ykan got off the floor and asked a question he had been pondering for a while now:
[major… you always tell me that I'm talented with the sword, but on all your past subordinates how do I rank… truthfully?]
{Ykan…what an arrogant question… sigh, you're making a mistake in comparing yourself to others, but since you asked, you're around the top ten or so…. }
[arrogant? How I'm I…]
{Yes, Ykan, arrogance… you reek of it… Yes, you are strong but you lack refinement…. don't mistake your talent for something more… or you will die in regret!}
[regret] mumbled Ykan under his breath.
{yes, regret…you see, great talent is like our energy sword, beautiful and deadly… but the more it shines the more it stands out to both friends and foes, and the more poisonous it can become…}
[what do you mean... Major?]
{hmm…. About a year or so ago, my top student was so talented he beat me in a duel after about a week. Ha! exciting right?}
[major…]
{hush! I'm talking… in any case, I'm not upset he beat me or the others, nor was I jealous of his talent…in fact, it brought me great sadness.}
[sadness?]
{yes sadness, you see, I was unable to tame that arrogance that his talent brought him, and thus I felt like I failed him…}
[...]
{Because I was unable to teach him properly, he left my unit to chase after glory and honor in our war against the humans… I tried to warn him, I tried to teach him, but he refused to listen, hungry and ambitious…he…}
Before Faze could finish, the screens in the training hall lit up as the prophet of truth flashed his holy robes and his holy golden halo…
[my followers.. It brings with me great sadness and regret to inform you, that our great prophet of regret has been murdered! By the humans! By the demon!]
With the word demon and an audience gasping at the news, Ykan screamed:
[the demon! The prophet! What of the honor guards? How could they….]
Hearing such disrespect to the honor guards, Faze quickly slapped Ykan to the ground and said:
{what did I just finish telling you about your arrogant talk? Ykan! The honor guard is the best of us! Do not put to question their skills, nor their honor! Understood!}
[yes! Major! I didn't mean…]
{I know… but as I said, be careful with your words!} replied Faze as the prophet truth continued to talk in the background:
[though his death is painful, rejoice my followers! For the great journey is near! We have found the location of the key, that will open the way! Soon it will be in our grasp, then we will feel the rushing winds of halo!… but for now a moment of silence for our fallen brethren…]
As the silence ended and the screen turned to black, Ykan looked at the swaying back of his major and asked:
[sir, what happened to him… your student… where is he now?]
With a pause and a slight head turn, Faze said:
{dead… he died chasing his ambition…}
[oh!... umm… my apologies…]
{don't… he was a warrior and was given a warrior end… an honorable end…]
[then can I ask… who or how?] replied Ykan with deep interest.
{he died at the hands of a demon… on a planet the humans called Reach!}
[demons! Them again!]
With a head nod, Faze replied:
{It was a fine battle, worthy of respect... For a human…}
[sir!]
{what? Should I not honor our enemies with the respect they deserve? Go look at the archives for yourself, and you will understand… the strength of our adversary… hopefully after seeing that you will think twice about chasing after ambition, or it may have the opposite effect on you… but remember whichever one you choose, it's the one that survives at the end that wins…}
As the major left the training hall, he was caught by surprise by a colleague… a brute.
[did you hear the news... Faze?] said the brute with a grin
Annoyed that the brute stopped him for a talk, but out of respect, Faze replied:
{who hasn't… the prophet of regret is dead….}
[no, "major" faze…. Not that…] replied the brute with an even bigger grin.
{what then?} replied FAze clearly annoyed
[mahhaha! Oh! How I love that it is I who gets to tell you this!]
{oh! Spill it out already!}
[oh! Patience now Faze I was just getting to it] replied the brute as he noticed Faze about to walk away.
[the Jiralhanae are to replace the "elites" as the prophet honor guards!] yelled the brute as he cleared his throat with a laugh. As everyone in the training hall overheard and turned to look at him and the major.
Abruptly Stopping, the major turned around with a tight fist and was about to accuse the brute of lying, but then thought:
{why, would he lie? What would he gain from it?}
And right as Faze was about to make a retort, a message came in from the higher-ups to join an emergency meeting!
{ughh! We'll finish this later... Brute! Men! I have an important meeting to attend continue as you are!!}
The midnight hours: elite outer zone
As the artificial sun began its descent into night, Faze and his team of young recruits, began loading into their phantom, even a pair of hunters, which did draw suspicion:
{move it! We're already running late!} commanded Faze, while Ykan asked:
[sir! Is what the brute said earlier true? Are the honor guards really being replaced?]
{...}
[sir?]
{yes… now settle down, we are on a mission!} replied Faze as he still couldn't believe it himself, even as he looked into the eyes of the young elites in front of him.
{sigh, look I will answer all your questions later, for now, save them!}
Seeing his team understand, Faze started to deliberate on the mission objectives when a human rocket slammed into the Phantom! Killing the grunt gunner instantly and spreading his blood all over the men inside!
With alarms ringing, Ykan yelled over the screaming grunts:
[what's going on? Who's attacking us!]
{that was a human weapon! But how?} question Faze as another rocket slammed into the back of the phantom! Destabilizing it and causing plasma flames to erupt through its halls!
As one of the pilots burned, he cried mayday, As the copilot yelled through the comms:
[get out Major! Jump! We're going down! You have to jump! I can't keep her steady!]
As the flames grew in intensity, Faze and his men bailed from the phantom jumping down onto the rooftops of the homes in the outer zone! But as they rolled to moderate safety, the phantom spun in a spiral as it crashed and landed into the neighboring homes! Blowing up! As the people screamed and the dust settled, Ykan stood up and overlooked the flames, as he asked:
[sir! That was a human weapon right? But how! Did humans invade High Charity?]
[sir! What about the civilians? Should we help?] asked another elite, while the grunts continued to run around in a panic.
{...}
But hearing but not replying, Faze continued to look into the flames, with a balled fist and thought to himself:
{the human here.. No…I can't believe they could, but after what happened with regret… is it possible?}
Seeing their major unresponsive and in deep thought, Ykan turned to a fellow elite, when suddenly the head of his fellow elite exploded in blood!
[sniper!] yelled Ykan as he ducked for cover!
But while he hid, Faze turned around just in time to see one of his subordinates die in slow motion, as he raised his own needle rifle! And through its sights, in pink and grey, Faze fired! Even as the jackal smiled at his kill, the pink needle found its mark! Through his head! And exploding inside!
With the threat dead, Faze yelled:
{Ykan do a head count quickly as we move into the builds!}
Once inside and the heads accounted for, Ykan noticed that the pair of hunters were not there, worried, and about to inform Faze when a grunt stumbled on his words as he screamed:
[human sniper! Has to be! Humans invade great cities! Human gun! I know... Has to be!]
{calm down, you foolish grunt!} command Faze as Ykan said:
[sir! The Mgalekgolos' aren't here!]
{hmm… it's fine Ykan, take a breath! The Mgalekgolos' can handle themselves, I'm sure they landed somewhere in the inner streets… } replied Faze with sternness, as another elite asked:
[sir, is what the grunt said earlier true? Was the sniper really a human?]
Knowing what his subordinates were truly worried about, Faze replied:
{I don't know… all I can say is that the thing I shot had the armor that humans wear, but it was too far for me to tell, even when looking down the sights of my needle rifle…}
{In any case, we have two missing team members, a down phantom, while stuck in the middle zones with an unknown amount of enemies… perfect… sounds like you guys will get your chance for glory after all!}
[But sir, what of our original mission?]
{what about it? Our mission was to report further into the zone…to have a "training" exercise with the brutes... and that is exactly what we're going to do… now... Move it!}
[umm…sir!]
{I know Ykan… I know what you want to say… I also find this entire situation suspicious, but that's all I have... So, until we have concrete proof, keep those treacherous thoughts to yourself…}
[yes…sir….]
{sigh} thought Faze to himself as he tried to comm link to command, only to hear static in return… and while that failed, his mind seemed to go back to that brute's ugly grin. But with a head shake, he put those dangerous thoughts behind him and pushed forward.
As Faze pushed into the streets of the city, Maddion received a notice through his commlink…
[The assassination of the major "Faze"has failed] said a disembodied voice of a Kig-Yar
[Hmph… it's fine… actually, it's better this way... I always wanted to kill that smug bastard with my own hands! Let him come! I have a surprise waiting for him!] replied Maddion with a grin as his gravity hammer hummed a sweet tune in the color of blue.
But drowned in the color of elite blood! For all around him were the scores of dead elite hierarchs he could fool with his influence within!
[but sir, didn't the higher-ups want to do this as discreetly as possible first? You know remove the "problem elites" for an easier takeover?]
Hearing the young brute words, that boarded on disrespect, Maddion slowly turned around and said in a sharp tone:
[I was and still am opposed to such plans… we are brute! And thus should handle this the brute way! Why should we use methods of the weaker races? Or do you disagree? Young one?]
Seeing his commander's sharp fangs through his smile, and his favorite hungering hammer held tightly in his grip, the young brute dared not refute and kneeled saying:
[you're right, Maddion... We are brutes and should act like it!]
With a snort of approval, Maddion let the young brute off, as he slammed his hammer down onto the corpse of an elite! And with its blood splashing everywhere, he said with great charisma!
[that great schism has begun my young brothers! Now! Major Faze... I do wonder which of us will live to see the end of it! Mahaha!] said Maddion to the scores of laughter of brutes!