A Fallen wire whizzed by Orri Khan's head as she ducked behind a concrete barrier, breathing heavily. The Devils hadn't attempted anything this massive since Twilight Gap, and, while this assault paled in comparison to that epic battle, she had never seen as many Fallen in one place as this.

The two other members of her Fireteam, two Titans, lay right beside her, breathing equally heavily. The assault had been going on for what felt like hours, and all three Guardians were nearing their limit.

One of the Titans yelled over the roar of the battle, "Khan! Big group of them over there! Is your Bomb ready?"

She nodded, blinking up into the air just above them, and throwing her Nova Bomb toward the group of Devils the Titan indicated. A successful hit, and at least twelve Fallen were vaporized, floating into the air as nothing more than Fallen-shaped purple mist. Twelve more filled the void, fresh and hungry for battle. Several skiffs dropped, dispensing additional Fallen and taking potshots at the Guardian's position before disappearing into the sky. Orri Khan began to feel that this may be where they died their final death.

However, as soon as the thought entered her mind, another skiff dropped, this one bearing colors she had never seen before on a skiff: black shell, red accents. The House insignia was painted along the side, as well. The skiff came to rest about ten meters behind them, and trained its guns up, sweeping over them to come to rest pointed towards the mob of Devils, where they began to fire, forcing them to take cover behind some rusted steel freight boxes. As the skiff was doing this, three Captains and about a dozen and a half Vandals, all armed with Shrapnel Launchers and Shock Blades, dropped from the skiff's hatches and...

...Charged the Devils.

The slaughter was immediate. The Devils were totally unprepared, and only the appearance of one of their Barons prevented the total collapse of the attack. The Devils attempted to rally around their leader as best they can, but these new Fallen kept the pressure on, rapid-firing their Shrapnel Launchers until Orri was sure they would overheat their weapons. The fighting continued for several intense minutes, the Captains strangely leading the onslaught instead of sending their Vandals forward in front of them, like most Captains of other houses did. These were peculiar Eliksni indeed.

Orri and her Fireteam were at a loss for words. Eventually they regained enough of their senses to try to assist these newcomers any way they could, using precision rifles to pick off powerful Devil targets, like Servitors and Reavers, eventually clearing the way for one of the Captains to get into a sword duel with the Devil Baron, which was quickly won by the former.

Despite the Devil's best efforts, their retreat was inevitable. The unknown House, despite the overwhelming odds, sustained only three casualties: two Vandals incapacitated, and one dead. The rest of the newcomers scrambled back into their skiff, leaving the Captain who fought the Baron alone with the Guardians. The Captain in question calmly walked towards the Fireteam, sheathing his blades and extinguishing his Shrapnel Launcher, despite staring down the barrels of three sniper rifles. He then put all four of his hands up and lowered his posture in a surrendering stance. Orri motioned her fellows to lower their weapons. Pleased with this reaction, the Captain unclipped something from his belt, and with his lower right arm thrust it forward, such that Orri could see that is was a Fallen data drive.

"Vyrta krakag zhun ki, zaviks nul drada Ki," the Captain said simply.

Before Orri could even ask, her Ghost was on it. "He wants you to take it. Says it's a gift from their Kell to the City."

Orri was rightly puzzled. "Since when do Fallen give gifts?"

The Captain recoiled slightly at her use of the word "Fallen", but nodded, and turned to join the rest of his crew aboard the skiff, which then disappeared into the Cosmodrome sky, leaving the Fireteam alone with the corpses of hundreds of Devils.

They stood in utter silence for a moment, until one of the Titans mustered the gumption to suggest that they "get this to the Vanguard as soon as possible."

"So, lemme see if I got this straight-You're fighting a ton of Devils, and all of a sudden this black and red skiff drops off two dozen more Fallen which then proceed to go to town on the Devils..." Cayde's voice was dripping with disbelief.

"Precisely."

"...And after the battle, one of the Captains hands you this thing?" Caybe was tossing the data drive between his hands like a juggling ball.

Orri's Ghost interrupted,"I've scanned the contents. Only one file. A video recording. No hidden programs or viruses."

Ikora Rey, who had been silent for most of the meeting, finally spoke up. "I say we play it, and give them the benefit of the doubt. They already saved these three from certain death, I see no reason not to trust them."

"Very well, Ikora. Playing file," the Ghost replied.

From the Ghost's eye projected a square view of a Fallen Captain wearing the same black and red getup as the ones that attacked the Devils. Speaking English in the same odd way that Variks of the Reef did, it introduced itself as Frei Vel'ryata, Kell of House Vega.

What was said next, nobody was expecting.

Frei went on to tell of the Eliksni's hatred for humanity, and her thoughts behind why. She told of her House, their code, and finally, the real statement that hit each and every listener like an old freight train: "I, as Kell of House Vega, formally declare House Vega a friend and ally of the City. We shall assist your efforts in Cosmodrome and across the Earth with the best of our ability. Assuming you watch this, you may have already seen what my House is capable of. We understand your trust is not freely given. But I and my House hope with all our hearts for peace. Perhaps through cooperation, we may reclaim our birthright within Light, and help you to reclaim your worlds. Please take my offer with serious consideration. Good-bye."

Again, the actions of this Fallen House had left the ones who witnessed it dumbstruck. It wasn't until Orri's Ghost spoke that the silence was broken.

"My apologies, my scan appears to have been incomplete. There was one other file. A set of coordinates. They appear to lead to an area in the American Dead Zone."

Zavala now spoke. "Guardian, I don't know what these Fallen want. But I do want you to head there, and see what those coordinates lead to. Perhaps they really do want an alliance with the City. But in any case, be prepared for anything. This very well might be a grand deception."