Skylines

Prev:	Dark Academia; Turophile; The Man Out of Time; Orientation
Next:	Declassification; Forensic Horology; The Paper Crane; Transfer of Power
Skylines
Game:	Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate
Reward(s):	3X Fated Ciphers ; AION Renewal Suit piece/Kepler weapon

Skylines is a side quest in The Edge of Fate expansion unlocked after completing the Quarantine story mission. In it, Orin asks The Guardian to look for Lodi after an argument.

Steps[edit]

"And my vanquisher will read that book, seeking the weapon, and they will come to understand me, where I have been and where I was going."The following is a verbatim transcription of an official document for archival reasons. As the original content is transcribed word-for-word, any possible discrepancies and/or errors are included.

Step 1[edit]

Orin needs your help finding Lodi before the Vex do.

Lodi found

"Guardian, I think I've made a mistake. Lodi and I were talking—now that conversation reeks of sulfur." —Orin, the Cleaved.

Orin: Guardian, I think I've made a mistake. Lodi and I… were talking. Now that conversation reeks of sulfur.
Ghost: That sounds… unpleasant.
Orin: I should have noticed it sooner, before the conversation spoiled into argument. But I didn't. I pushed him, and he stormed off into the hills. I tracked him to here and set a beacon to signal him, but he hasn’t responded. Find him.
Ghost: Send us his last known heading. We'll find him.

The Guardian heads into the Outer Wastes to find Lodi.

Ghost: Orin, what exactly were you two arguing about?
Orin: The past, what might be, and the cliff of what he is becoming. He prefers to look behind, instead of what is in front of him. He values service over freedom. I've already made that mistake for him.
Ghost: He's going through a lot. Maybe we can… approach him with a little more tact.
Orin: Probably. I've picked up some prickly communication habits from my last job.

Step 2[edit]

There is a faint bio-signature on the telescope. Maybe Lodi was here.

Telescope scanned

"OK… Guardian, I think she means that monument. And next to it, brass and sand must be the time-lost telescope." —Ghost

Ghost: Orin. We're here, but I don't see Lodi.
Orin: But his scent… lost in time, hanging on brass and polished sand.
Ghost: OK… Guardian, I think she means that monument. And next to it, brass and sand must be the time-lost telescope. If Lodi was here, maybe we can get a lead from those.

Step 3[edit]

Starting at the North Star, Outline the constellation Ursa Major.

Ursa Major drawn

"I see it! Give it a shot, Guardian." —Ghost

Lodi: Orin send you after me? It's… nice to see people get worried when you disappear. I'm not actually going anywhere. I needed to look up at the stars and clear my head, but then the Vex turned up.
Ghost: Anything we can help with?
Lodi: Talk this out with me: Orin keeps telling me that I can't go back home, that, if I join III, I'll lose myself. I don't know if I believe that—that who we are before doesn't matter. If it did, III could've picked anyway. But it was me.
Ghost: I understand. Sometimes, I feel that way about the Traveler. It has a purpose beyond me, but it chose me. And I chose the Guardian. The choice matters. That it was you, matters. Even Orin held on to pieces of herself as an Emissary.
Lodi: That's what the Drifter says. We all got North Stars. Speaking of, you can find the North Star from where you're standing. See it?

The Guardian reveals the North Star.

Lodi: That's the one—Polaris. You know my father taught me to fly an old duster as a boy. I was an aerial surveyor during—well… We often flew at night… stars were important. My old man, he used to tell me, "nations are built by service." Drilled that phrase. Now, I didn't want to kill anyone. But, I could help get a clear view of a target, make sure it was the enemy and help minimize collateral. Then my eyesight didn't hold, and I washed out. I thought I had my whole career planned out, and then… gone, in a haze. I flew longer than I should have, finding my way there and home again by the stars as much as my instruments. I remember being worried the stars'd never look the same from the ground. But… you orient yourself right, and there they are.

The Guardian draws out Ursa Major.

Lodi: Our crew used to joke that we were sighting targets for Orion's next hunt, guiding his arrows to the hearts of evil men. We thought we could make killing fair. I'm not that naive anymore, but as an Emissary… I could still put a finger on the scale. A check. Sometimes that’s all you can hope for in the world — to shift it just a bit in the right direction.
Ghost: That's what I like to think we do with the Light AND the Darkness. They're powerful, but it's who wields them that matters.

Step 4[edit]

Outline the constellation Orion, the Hunter.

Orion drawn

"I remember being worried the stars'd never look the same from the ground. But you orient yourself right, and there they are." —Lodi

Lodi: My will won't be my own if I choose to accept this new job. Orin's words. But I've always found my way, taking on something bigger than myself. Putting others before myself, because I'm able. That's what I trained for. That's my Polaris, and it's never led me wrong so far. I'll be able to fly a path home not in spite of what I serve, but because of it. If Orin can't see that, then maybe she needs the vacation. Orin can think of me what she wants. No soy monedita de oro; you can't please everyone. But I know what I stand for. I want to be my own messenger. Guardian. Mr. Ghost. I know Orin thinks I'm naive. I hope you don't. A messenger gets to choose how they deliver their message. There's power in that.

Step 5[edit]

Orin is calling back into the comms line for an update. Find a safe spot to speak.

Orin consulted

"That's what I like to think we do with the Light, and the Darkness. They're powerful, but its who wields them that matters." —Ghost

Orin: The position of Emissary is not a comfortable one. Hanging between, a mess of secondary colors caught in a minor key. The Nine need emissaries to understand humanity. Their subjective reality is fundamentally different different from yours. Lodi is trapped in the present participle. Becoming. Transforming. Beginning to hear the stretch of magnetic fields. Learning to bear the touch of the Nine like acclimating to lightning strikes. The Nine don't understand plain, mauve disgust. How we react to the changes they put an Emissary's body through. My choices and the pain they brought me are my own. I'm not Lodi. His pain, his choices, his changes: gerund again. He is wrestling with them. Have patience with him. Now and in future.