Destiny: Rise of The Warlock

A Hazardous Deal

Once a lifeless asteroid belt, The Asteroid Reef is now a faucet to a bathtub of power. Both leftover Light and Darkness sit stranded here, meaningless, formless, without a host. The remnants, however, mingled and intertwined with each other, lightly enveloping whatever strayed into the reef unprotected with a delicate touch. Those that embodied these remnants became Awoken, ascendant beings that only got a touch of the power of the Universe, beings that held a balance in their hearts and minds, and thought themselves beautiful beyond everyone else.

Max and Lilli flew into the Reef, unaware that 2 Crow ships were disguised among the rubble that later chased them down. "Intruder baring A-113, you are trespassing into the Realm of the Awoken and are marked for execution. State your business, or be destroyed in the name of Queen Mara Sov."

Max froze completely, cold sweat dripping from his face. Lilli could feel the tension and fear in the air, emanating from Max and, most of all, herself. She took a deep breath and said, "This is Lilliana Qu'lene, Bane of Wolves. My partner and I are seeking an audience with the Awoken."

A long period of silence followed. Max felt beads of fearful sweat drip down his face. "Conform to my trajectory," a Crow said, "Any deviation is an act of aggression." The Crows flew right beside Max and Lilli, guiding them to the Queen's palace, but they remained out of the Guardians' sight, ready to fire when necessary.

When Max and Lilli were escorted to the palace entrance, they were greeted by an Awoken male, his grey skin was comparable to a polished statue, his black hair was kept neat and tidy for all occasions, and his yellow eyes were like gold coins: beautiful from a distance, but held an unfathomable coldness when someone got too close. This Awoken ordered, "HALT!" to the Guardians.

Max froze, scared of this man before him. Lilli bowed slightly and said, "Prince Uldren, we request-"

Before she could finish, the Awoken Prince calmly said to Max, "Bow!"

Max was still frozen from fear.

"I said BOW!" Uldren kicked Max in the stomach, forcing him to recoil downwards, emitting a bow.

Max coughed, "Why?"

"Because I am the Prince, of course," Uldren said in a nasty, entitled voice, "And scum like you should always pay respects to your superiors."

"I serve the City, not you."

"And I see no reason to let you live, but here we are."

Lilli interrupted, still bowing, "Please Prince Uldren, we request the assistance of the Reef."

Uldren chuckled harshly, "I like it when people beg us for help or mercy. It means they are helpless!"

Lilli gritted her teeth, "What do you know of the Black Garden?"

"Nothing that you don't know, not like you need help."

"ULDREN!" another Awoken shouted, this one was female, had neon blue skin and eyes, and her braided pink hair was tied in a bun on her left side. "Let them pass! The Queen has granted their request for an audience!"

"And I'm here to make sure that they're not assassins."

"You were actively harassing them!"

"I'm in no mood to be lectured by commoners, least of all you, Petra Venj!"

"I am no ordinary commoner, I'm the Queen's Wrath! I have more authority than you, and I demand you to release the Guardians into my custody!"

The Prince scowled, "fine!" He tossed Max and Lilli over to Petra.

Petra thanked him and escorted Max and Lilli into the Queen's Chamber. It was mostly spacious, decorated with banners of magenta, white, and gold describing the Royal Sigil. The Awoken Throne sat in the center of the Chamber, with only a metal plank leading to the Throne as the only passage. Sitting on the adorned, regal throne was the Queen herself, Mara Sov, similar to Uldren, except she had dull blue skin, neon blue eyes, thick blond hair drawn in small spikes, and she wore regal clothing with a furry coat. "Apologies for my brother," she said in a dull, but powerful voice, "He can be quite harsh. Now, what is it you want?"

Lilli bowed before the Queen as soon as she approached the Throne, "Your majesty, we seek the Black Garden." Max learned his lesson from before and bowed as well.

Mara stared at the Guardians, "What for? Your Traveler is healthy."

Lilli nudged Max, "Tell her!"

Max, still bowing, declared, "Your majesty, we want to stop the Vex."

The Queen raised an eyebrow, "Why?"

"Because they're flooding Venus, and if we don't stop them-"

"Why not just let them? You Guardians have enough on your plate as it is." She paused, then asked, "Unless there's something else?"

Max gulped, "Your majesty...I had a vision."

Mara was intrigued, "A vision? Of what?"

Max froze in fear, Should I tell her? He took a deep breath and said, "Death and destruction. I saw the end of the world."

"And you think the Black Garden can help you?"

Max shuttered, "I don't know, but if this is a vision of the future, I want to know how to prevent it."

Mara shook her head, "I believed the same thing once, it cost my people's lives and my pride." She never left her throne, "I saw a vision of near extinction from the House of Wolves, so I showed them kindness, I gave them a home. They responded with murder, betrayal."

Max blinked, "So...don't repeat your mistake? We know the Fallen are vagabonds."

Mara shook her head again, "I'm saying that visions are dangerous. If you try to prevent them, you may end up causing them."

Lilli cleared her throat, "So are you going to help us or not!?"

"I can't..."

Lilli slumped.

"...not yet, anyway."

Lilli rose up, "What do you mean?"

"To access the Garden, you need to bring me a Vex Gate Lord's head."

Lilli laughed, "You're kidding!" The Queen never smiled or smirked at this. Lilli frowned, "Wait, you're serious!?" She flaired up, "My sister and I went on your quest of retribution against the Wolves, massacred the lot of them, captured and disgraced their 'Kell of Kells', and we burned every last remnant of their House into ashes! And now, just for calling you up on a favor, you ask us to do one more deadly task!?"

"SILENCE, LILLI! IF THAT IS YOUR REAL NAME!"

Lilli immediately shuttered back into a bow, frozen in fear of the Awoken Queen.

"AS I RECALL, I NEVER GAVE YOU GUARDIANS A FAVOR FOR DOING MY BIDDING!" Her voice then descended into a powerful hiss, "And even if I did, you would still need a Gate Lord's head to find the Garden."

Max nodded, "Ok, so we find a Gate Lord, rip off its head, bring it back here, and then you'll tell us how to enter the Black Garden?"

Mara nodded, "Yes. Now go, before my brother throws you out."

The Guardians arose and turned to leave; Petra escorted them out. Minutes later, Uldren stepped in. Mara stared at the Prince, "What do you want, sister?"

"Watch the Warlock, Crow Leader. I want to know who he really is."