From Dusk to Dust (Destiny Fan Fiction)

23-Storm of the Century

Darkness.

Normally weightless, but at the moment, the Darkness felt like it weighed down on the fireteam's shoulders. Sulfur, blood, and a strong smell of different metals hung in the hot air. The silence almost reminded the team of a cliché horror movie. Something was bound to pop up any second.

But nothing ever did.

All three guardians carefully walked through Tenebrous Tunnels below the city of Freehold on Mars. The ghosts lit up the way like little bobbing flashlights. The power had been cut, tunnels evacuated, and everything stood in the place it was left. Trains had their doors opened as they sat right in the middle of the tracks. The ventilation system didn't work, so the heat down there was almost unsettling. Bodies sprawled out in a few places among the walkways, their blood dripping down into the train track.

Tanis stepped over the bodies and continued the walk, but couldn't help but to cringe internally. His mind flashed back to a meadow with thousands of dead bodies, some of whom he had known once. Then, like a switch, he was back in reality staring down a branch of three tunnels ahead. He put his hand up and examined it, flexing his fingers to make sure he was really there.

"Are you okay, Tanis?" Dinklebot questioned, noticing his hesitation. He got closer to his helmet to examine his guardian to know what he was feeling. Confusion. Slight anger. Confliction. His analysis halted once Tanis put his hand up to brush the subject off.

"I am fine." Tanis glanced over at his teammates. He pointed his gun ahead of him. "Which way?"

"Split up," Malachi suggested without thinking. Macey turned to look at him and shook herself to show she was against it. He shrugged. "What? Should we waste time and check all three as a team? Sometimes you have to improvise."

Alaura sighed to herself and shut her eyes tight. As stupid as it was, he was right. Those two weren't trained for long missions. Condensing time is exactly what needed to happen. Tanis could handle himself. Malachi? Well...he would be against it if one of them joined him down a tunnel. He was still healing from his wound, but was stubborn enough to come along. No amount of bickering could've stopped that. "Stay on comms. If we haven't found anything within five minutes, we head back here. Got it?"

"Are you implying that I'm right?" Malachi smirked slightly underneath his helmet. He glimpsed over at Alaura, who didn't reply and walked right into the tunnel to the left. He scoffed and looked over at Tanis, who was half-laughing to himself. "She's stubborn as all hell. Stay safe, buddy." Malachi grabbed his hand cannon and walked into the tunnel in the middle.

This team is starting to feel more like family everyday. Family...yeah. That's the word I'm looking for. Tanis thought to himself for a short second, the word sticking to his mind for some reason. He stepped into the tunnel to the right and walked for a good minute. Dinklebot worried about his guardian and looked at him, accidentally shining the light at Tanis. Tanis put his hand up to block it, and Dinklebot quickly turned away to face down the tunnel as he started talking, "Stop. Take in the environment."

Tanis glanced around in confusion and bluntly declared, "It's a dark tunnel, Dinklebot."

"Eyes only see what they want to see. The Darkness blinds you. Close your eyes. Listen to the sounds around you. Focus on the Light The Traveler has given you. It will guide you. It is, only then, when you find what you are looking for."

As ridiculous as it seemed, Tanis complied and listened to the environment around him. He focused on The Traveler's Light, slowly at first. Soon, all he could see was Light behind his closed eyelids. There were clinking sounds, then silence. It picked up again, echoing against the walls in the tunnel. There were blurry figures at the end, causing Tanis to break focus and open his eyes. "Guys, it's this way," he spoke up over comms. "Dinklebot, you're the best! If you teach me how to do that better, I could probably map out everything ahead of me. Right?"