Reincarnated Into Destiny Universe - Volume 1 Chapter 9 Fireteam Formation

Isaac made his report to Ikora and left her fairly impressed. She had commented that it wasn’t too far off, from the most commonly accepted explanation of Void Energy. She then told Isaac to continue improving his understanding of his energies and return to her when he had decided to take the next step along the Warlock path. She also gave him his first set of Warlock armor and her recommendations for his fireteam and then wished him luck.

“Thanks, Ikora. I’ll see you around.”

Isaac looked over the list of recommendations and decided to try and contact some of them.

“Well, there’s only five of them so hopefully it won’t take too long. Hold on…how exactly am I supposed to contact these people anyway, unless I randomly run into them?”

“Just tell me which one you want to speak with and I’ll contact them via their ghosts. This close to the Traveler, I can connect with any other ghost so long as they are in or around the Last City.” Polter explained.

“Nice! That’s a handy trick. Now let’s see…how about this Human Hunter, Daniel? Let’s start with him.”

“Alright, give me just a second…Hello, is this the Warlock guy Ikora told me about?”

“Uhhh…yep, that’s me. Did she happen to mention any specifics about my class or my fireteam?”

“Yeah, she said that you were trying to learn all three classes and that you wanted to start a fireteam. I asked her if anyone could learn all three classes and she said yes. So it would seem that we should be pretty compatible, given that we are both going for the same thing. Do you wanna meet up somewhere? I’m in the city right now, eating some Pizza.”

‘Sweet! They have Pizza!’_”I’ll be here in the hangar around noon. Whaddya say we meet up there, once I’ve had time to track down a third member.”

“Sure thing, I’ll see you there at noon.”

“See you there.”

Isaac then looked at the fourth name on the list. It was the only Titan. “Let’s see about this Exo guy, Koren.”

Polter made contact with Koren’s ghost and patched him through. “Hi, there, Koren. I’m Isaac. I’m trying to put together a fireteam. Did Ikora mention me to you, by any chance?”

“Hmmm…Isaac? Yeah, she did mention you. Something about trying to learn all three classes and what not, right?”

“Yep, that’s the plan. I have a Hunter,  named Daniel, that’s going to be meeting me at the hangar at noon. Since we’re all still pretty new at this, it would be best to have one of each class, until we can become initiated into each class and increase our skill in using them. If you want to meet up with us, we could do some quick introductions, discuss how we plan to move forward with our training, and then head out for some training. Whaddya say?”

“Well, I don’t know if training all three classes is something I’m dead set on but I’m willing to try it and it would be nice to be on a fireteam. Can I join you for now and if I change my mind later you find someone to replace me?”

“Certainly, it’s not like we’re forcing you after all. So we’ll see you at noon in the hangar?”

“Sure, why not? I’ll be there.”

“Excellent! I’ll see you there.”

“Well, that went well enough. Since I’ve got maybe two hours before our meet up, I’ll get in some Kinetic Energy Meditation.”

Isaac first told Daniel about Koren and then went back to his room and tried to attune himself more thoroughly to Kinetic Energy. Nearly, two hours later he left his room and made his way to the hangar. As he arrived at the hangar, he realized that an Exo in Titan armor was already there. He had a metal frame that was black with bright blue accents and short silver spikes covering his mostly bare head and the lights illuminating his eyes were white light.

“Hi there. You must be Koren?”

“Ah, yes. Isaac, I presume? It’s good to meet you.”

“Same here. So are you a Defender Titan?”

“That’s correct. All Titans start off in the Defender Subclass, until they’ve reached a certain level. Or at least that’s the way it would normally work. Apparently, they are making some exceptions to accommodate this new phenomenon of choosing multiple classes.”

“I see. Well, given that you decided to join have you given any thought to what Class you’ll take up next?”

“Hmmm…I really think I’d like to pick up the Warlock Class but as a Titan I’m sorely lacking in the mobility department, what with my heavier armor and all. So I think the Hunter class would be most beneficial at the moment.”

“While it’s certainly a good idea to try and acquire some mobility based abilities, I’m not sure that studying under the Hunter path will help you with that. It’s true that Hunters have excellent mobility but it’s not because of their abilities it’s specifically because they’re lightly armored. So unless you change armor types those abilities most likely will not have the same effect. However, if it’s greater mobility that you’re looking for, then I might have something to help with that. It’s a movement technique that’s still not complete but has been really effective so far. I’ll show it to you whenever we start training.”

“Hmmm…a movement technique? That doesn’t sound like something that would increase my mobility but I guess I’ll reserve judgment until I’ve tried it.”

Isaac and Koren heard hastened footsteps coming from the stairs at the hangar’s entrance. Soon, a dark skinned Human, with white spiked up pointy hair and blue eyes, came running down the stairs wearing a Hunter’s cloak.

“What’s up guys? You must be Isaac and Koren? Nice to meet you! I’m Daniel.” Daniel greeted them enthusiastically.

“That’s right, I’m Isaac and this is Koren.” Isaac said as he offered his hand to the approaching Daniel.

After making their introductions, Isaac continued. “Koren and I were just discussing how to proceed with our training. Specifically, in terms of which class to pick up next. Which one do you think you’ll pick up next?”

“Ummm…probably the Titan class. I met a Titan earlier who showed me this cool jump ability that boosts them forward really fast. I wanna become a speed demon, the fastest Guardian that ever lived. If I can learn an ability like that with my light armor, it could greatly increase my speed.”

‘Man, this guy is really hyperactive. He just said three long sentences in two seconds. I mean I’m no slouch but this guy…’_”That’s interesting, it seems you both want to learn movement abilities from your second classes but jump abilities and the like are pretty simple…wait a minute what level are you guys, in terms of affinity?” Isaac asked, remembering that his training had been unique.

“Ummm…I haven’t had my initiation, yet.” Daniel responded.

“Same here.” Koren added.

‘Come to think of it, if altering jump abilities is so simple and creating new abilities isn’t that much harder and mostly determined by your affinity, then why do these classes even exist in the first place?…Now that I think about it, all Guardians lose their memories upon their initial resurrection. They seem to retain some of their personalities but, without any of their previous experiences to guide them, it would seem that their intuition and inspiration are affected and it isn’t until they are well into their class training that they’ve acc.u.mulated enough life experience to begin to create their own ideas about their environment. They have preferences, sure, but that’s different than questioning the validity of the only form of order and authority in your life or drawing from your experience to improve something with modifications.

‘So, when a Guardian is newly awakened, they probably readily fall in step with the established power structure and, by the time they’ve redeveloped a sense of their individual self, they’re already pretty deep into the routine. I guess there’s also the fact that the combination of Hunter, Titan, and Warlock in a fireteam just kind of works. So, philosophical differences aside, it’s totally understandable why the Iron Lords and their allies would’ve establish these classes, after their defeat of the Warlords.

‘Holy Amnesiac Ass Clowns! That’s right, since I remember everything from my past life that would naturally include things like knowing the difference between Kinetic and Potential Energy and other Physics information, as well as what kind of abilities are already in use. For these guys who don’t have a clue, it naturally wouldn’t be that easy.’

“Ummm…Isaac? You okay there, buddy?” Daniel asked.

“Hmm…oh yeah, sorry. I was just thinking. So, since you guys are still in need of some levels, myself included, why don’t we go hunt down some enemies and do some patrols, while we work on our teamwork and improve our individual skills?” Isaac responded.

“Sick, let’s do it.” Daniel replied.

“I’m ready to go when you are.” Stated Koren.

“Nice! Then let’s get this show on the road everyone to your sh.i.p.s and follow me.”

The newly formed fireteam entered their respective sh.i.p.s and followed Isaac towards Old Russia. Upon arrival, they disembarked at the Mothyards and began clearing out Fallen. After reaching the Divide, Daniel and Koren had received their initiation and some spare Light Charge to boot, so they headed towards the Rocket Yard.

“Hey, didn’t you guys want to increase your mobility?”

“Yep, sure would be nice. I certainly can’t become a speed demon like this.”

“Yes, I’m certain that extra mobility would allow me to be a more effective teammate.”

“Alright then, since this place is clear for now let me teach you both my Light Assisted Movement Path or Lamp technique. Are you guys familiar with Kinetic Energy and Potential Energy?”

“Umm…Cayde never mentioned anything about that. He only taught us Solar and Arc Energy. Now that you mention it, however, it seems familiar to hear it. Almost like, I should know what it is but can’t recall it for some reason.” Daniel commented.

“The same here, Isaac. Hearing you say it, makes it feel like something is trying to jog my memory but yet nothing comes to mind.” Koren agreed.

‘I see. So, it’s like that. Interesting.’_”Alright, well, it’s pretty simple actually. Kinetic Energy is simply energy, of any type, that is actively accomplishing a task. Potential Energy is, likewise, energy that is not accomplishing anything. You can think of it as reserve energy waiting to be used.

“I wasn’t even sure if something like a fundamental or pure Kinetic Energy existed, until I conducted a few meditation experiments. After managing to identity the energy used to power our jumping abilities, I was able to attune myself to it, much like the other energies.

“Of course, these meditations aren’t as effective as the others, since they lack the assistance of the meditation chambers and you have to generate the Kinetic Energy yourself. That being said, once you’ve gotten the hang of performing your jumps, try to apply the same type of force to your arms and legs while moving. If done in the right place, at the right time, and with the right amount of power, it will not only enhance your movement speed but also allow you to punch, kick, and swing a sword with greater force.

“Also, I’m not entirely certain that what I’ve discovered is actually a Pure Kinetic Energy but it kind of seems like it at the moment and if I’m wrong, I can always rename later. Any questions?”

“Wow! Now that sounds awesome! Did you really discover it all by yourself?” Daniel exclaimed.

“I did and it is awesome but, like I said, you need to at least wait until you’re familiar with the force generated by your jump abilities, before you try applying it to other parts of your body.”

“I have to thank you, Isaac. This is exactly the kind of mobility increase that I’ve been looking for. After hearing the details of your movement technique, it’s clear to me that this will be immensely useful the more I familiarize myself with it.”

“Not a problem. Alright, now that that’s out of the way let’s get those levels up.”

The fireteam of three spent the entire rest of the day clearing the Cosmodrome of Fallen and Hive. They even went outside the Cosmodrome to fool around with a Fallen Stronghold against the better judgment of their ghosts. Before they could really even come within shooting range, they were forced to transmat it out of there, since they were clearly in over their heads. By the end of the day, Daniel and Koren were both level six. Isaac had let them do most of the work, since he was already five levels ahead of them, so he only gained three levels putting him at Affinity Level eight. After their reckless encounter with the Fallen, they went back to the Tower for some well deserved sleep.

“Well, I don’t know about you two but I had a lot of fun today.” Isaac commented.

“Oh yeah, let’s do it again tomorrow!” Daniel exclaimed, clearly not showing the same fatigue as the other two.

“It would be nice to go again tomorrow but given that you two have only just received your initiation. I feel it would be much more pertinent to spend tomorrow trying to improve your skill, with your newfound abilities or perhaps increasing your attunement.”

“I agree with, Isaac. Today was indeed an exciting experience but spending a day to reflect on what we’ve learned will be most prudent. Especially, when you consider that the both of us are still not nearly as proficient with the LAMP technique as Isaac. If we really want to integrate this into our fighting style, we need more practice more before engaging in actual combat.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. Well, then I guess I’ll see you guys the day after then?” Daniel asked.

“Sure thing, Daniel. Let’s meet here again, first thing in the morning.”

“Sweet! I’ll see you then.”

“Good night, Isaac, Daniel. I’ll see you when the time comes.”

“Have a good night, you two.”

The three of them left the hangar and made their way to their respective rooms to cash in their Z ch.i.p.s.

The next morning Isaac awoke feeling refreshed and ready to face the day. Yesterday was a foundational moment towards fully establishing himself in this new world and he was ready to build on that foundation.

‘So far, I’ve been doing mostly training but that, of course, is necessary and expected. However, I feel like it shouldn’t take longer than a month to reach level twenty and by that time I’ll be ready to take on the rest of the missions that I know need to be taken care of.

‘I really want to head to the moon right now and free that shard of the Traveler but I feel like the Hive are a bit more dangerous than the Fallen in this world. They are the direct beneficiaries of the darkness and might possibly be able to create areas, that I’ve yet to encounter, that can seal off our access to the Light.

‘I really don’t want to put my fireteam in that kind of danger just yet, so I can only hope that a month isn’t too long.’

Isaac finished up his morning routine and headed to the hangar. After transmating into his ship, he addressed Polter.

“Do you happen to know where the European Dead Zone is?”

“What the…how did…wait, let me guess…” Polter raised his voice an octave and adjusted it to be a bit whiny. “…stop asking so many questions, Polter. Just go with the flow, Polter. I didn’t ask you to implant it into my brain, Polter.”

“Hey, there you go! Now you’re gettin’ it! You know what? I think you and me are gonna be alright there, Polter.” Isaac said, half sarcastically.

Isaac and Polter arrived in the European Dead Zone continued flying over it at a slower speed.

“So, there should be a settlement out here somewhere and not too far beyond that there should be a massive shard of the Traveler that’s easily visible from that settlement. Do you think you can find one or the other for me?”

“Well, putting aside how you could possibly know something like that, yes, if we circle the European Dead Zone and widen our search each time it shouldn’t take too long. A couple of hours max.”

“Nice! Then let’s get ‘er done!”

Isaac and Polter managed to find the settlement and the shard, approximately forty five minutes later. Polter set Issac down just outside the settlement and they approached slowly, so as to not startle the residents.

Soon a young woman, wearing a poncho like cloak and having a circular pattern of dots forming a ring on her face, appeared and approached them.

“You there. Don’t come any further. State your business or leave.”

“My, my, a bit touchy aren’t we? Isn’t it only polite to introduce yourself to someone, before adopting a hostile attitude towards them?”

“My name is Suraya Hawthorne. Now state your name and business. Are you from the city?”

“Ahh, yes, I am from the city. My name is Isaac, I’m a Guardian, and I came here to introduce myself to your settlement. I hope that’s not too troublesome for you?”

“The city has never taken an interest in us before so why now? Why come here just to introduce yourself?”

“Ahh, but you misunderstand. I am from the city. I’m not here on behalf of the city. I came of my own accord and my business is strictly with that shard in the distance there. I merely decided to make myself known, since I plan on returning here to study the shard quite frequently. I knew you would see me coming and going so close to your home and would naturally be suspicious. So I thought I would extend you the courtesy of informing you of my intentions ahead of time so that you can rest easy.”

“…oh, I see…In that case, I apologize for my earlier behavior. Thank you, for thinking of us and letting us know ahead of time.”

“Not a problem. Well, I do have a busy day ahead of me so I’ll leave you be. Oh, actually, there is one more thing. If you know of any places near here that have Fallen or Hive occupying them, I’d be grateful if you could point them out. I’m a newly arisen Guardian and I still need more combat experience as well as supplies.”

“Ummm…yeah, I know of a few places but are you sure you want to go after them alone? It might be pretty dangerous, even for a Guardian.”

“Well, I suppose I’ll decide that once I’ve scouted their numbers and assets. If it’s too much for me, I can always come back with my fireteam.”

“I see. In that case, two clicks southwest, four clicks due north, and seven clicks northwest.”

“Thank you, that’s most helpful. Now then, I’ll be off. Bye now.”

“Bye.” Hawthorne watched Isaac leaving, wondering if perhaps there wasn’t something more going on with him. He seemed honest enough but still kind of fishy. ‘Well, whatever. No use worrying about it, I suppose. Worst case he leaves and doesn’t come back. Best case he manages to get rid of some of these damn Fallen for us. Either way, it’s a win for the settlement.’

Isaac left the settlement behind and made his way over to the Traveler’s long lost shard.