Avgust Sokolov

*"For formality, I am Avgust; Lieutenant of the Vanguard; Titan and Defender of the City. It is odd that we gather in the house of our foe."*-Avgust introducing himself to Arxus, Orkrim, Breonn and Saturn, after arriving on Europa

Vanguard Major **Avgust Sokolov** is a long-serving Titan for the City, Mentor, Commander of Fireteam Argus and Vanguard representative of the Dvaturm Tower.

## History

### Golden Age/Collapse

Avgust Vladimirovich Sokolov was born in the capital of the Sahka Republic: Yakutsk in Siberia of the country of the Russian Federation to his two parents: Vladimir Nikolaevich Sokolov, and Alexandra Ivanovna Sokolova. Young Avgust grew up with a natural interest of the Siberian wilderness, as he became well known to organise expeditions with his closest friends to explore the wilderness. Despite the short summers and the long and brutal winters, Avgust grew quite accustomed to the conditions, and prepared plans for any trip he decided to take, regardless of initial concern from his parents. Eventually when he turned eighteen, Avgust was required to leave his established home and enter a mandatory Armed Forces service as a member of the Moscow Intelligence and Defence Administration (MIDA).

When Avgust first entered MIDA, he was presented with a series of tests and interviews organised and executed by MIDA's artificial intelligence: Muromets. As the AI tested Avgust, it found that the initiate not only had a natural ability to lead, formulate and execute orders and complete assigned tasks incredibly well. These qualities were never tested, given the nature of the times of the Golden Age, and the lack of any genuine threat to Moscow and the Russian state. Despite this, Avgust became a patrol officer for the capital, as he wandered the streets to provide his service and dispatch justice and order when necessary.

Years later when the Warminds of the colonies detected an unimaginable threat at the border of the Sol System, Avgust's role as an officer of MIDA was quickly re-purposed into not only the Russian Armed Forces, but eventually into a unified Traveler's Defence Force with the other major militaries of Earth. Relocated from Moscow to a Cosmodrome bordering the Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan, Avgust served as an Officer, and kept watch over a military outpost not far from the Cosmodrome. Eventually, the first of the forces of the Darkness arrived to lay claim to the Cosmodrome and exterminate the fleeing refugees.

Knowing his responsibility to defend the innocents, Avgust and those under his command waged war against the forces of the Darkness. They held a near impenetrable line in the Cosmodrome for nearly four days, keeping back their enemies from the Colony Ships that were being boarded and prepared for launch. However the line couldn't stand forever, as it eventually broke due to a lack of equipment and the deaths of many soldiers over the course of the four days.

In his last minutes, Avgust lost his ear in a fight against a soldier of the Darkness. Despite his efforts to stay alive and fight with his all, Avgust was eventually slain and left as a corpse in the Cosmodrome, for centuries to come.

### The City Age

Centuries passed, and Avgust was eventually discovered and revived by one of the Traveler's Ghosts. Acquainting himself with the Ghost, Avgust named it 'Svarog,' after the Slavic God of Blacksmithing, finding it appropriate given that he had been risen from the dead and re-purposed as any other tool. Urging the then-Titan to find a way out of the Cosmodrome, the pair eventually came across a Warlock who had been patrolling the spaceport. Agreeing to help them find a way back to the Last City, the Titan and Warlock journeyed to where the Warlock believed that there might still be a Jumpship left intact.

On their way to the location, the two were assaulted by members of a Fallen House: the House of Devils. Barely surviving their first encounter with the Devils, they quickly made their way to the hangar bay with a Jumpship left inside. As Svarog prepared its work on the vehicle, both Avgust and the Warlock worked together to clear out a group of Devils that had followed them to the hangar. As the Ghost finished its repairs, and Avgust was prepared for takeoff, the Warlock was killed by a Devil Baron that had challenged the two Guardians to a fight. Barely escaping in his Jumpship, Svarog prepared the way for Avgust to lead them to the Last City.

The two arrived unharmed to the City, as they were welcomed by a group of Guardians that had been watching the perimeter of the City's impressive wall. As Avgust landed, the lead watchman for the Wall insisted that Avgust make his way to the Tower. Being lead to the location, the Titan was brought before the Vanguard Council at the time, whose mentors for Titan's consisted of: Lord Saladin, Lord Shaxx and Lieutenant Zavala.

Impressed to train the young Titan, Lord Saladin invited Avgust to join him and Lord Shaxx to be strengthened by the Iron Banner. Informing Avgust that the training would be long and strenuous, Lord Saladin was glad to find that the young Titan was up to the challenge. As the Iron Banner commenced, Lord Saladin trained Avgust in the ways of combat and leadership, and eventually the old Iron Lord came to trust Avgust's methods and tactics. Impressed with the wide variety of combat styles the Titan was able to employ, and the tactical foresight that accompanied him, Lord Saladin took Avgust in as a trusted member of his Order.

Eventually, Avgust was stationed along the Twilight Gap at an important strategical outpost that Lord Saladin himself operated from. Joined by two of his fellow trainees: Pariah Vey and Yurami-3, Avgust prepared for what was rumoured to come next, a grand Fallen invasion.

### Battle of the Twilight Gap

Outfitted with specialised Titan Armour and Weapons, Avgust waited anxiously at the Twilight Gap for the incoming Fallen Strike. When the combined power of all the Fallen Houses finally struck, Avgust again stood his ground alongside Lord Saladin to keep the Fallen away from the City and the Traveler. As the Guardians stood their ground along the Twilight Gap, Avgust was eventually given orders to lead a small team of Guardians through the withering Fallen Offensive to break the Fallen attack.

Being bestowed with the legendary weapon Thunderlord, Avgust and his small team guided themselves through the mountain range. Breaking the Fallen attack, Avgust's efforts are recorded by many Guardians as: *a sound of thunder cracking through the valley.* After finishing this assigned task, Avgust returned to the Twilight Gap with his Fireteam. Commended by Lord Saladin, Avgust returned to the City with an invitation to become the Lieutenant for the Vanguard: a group of Elite Guardians. Avgust quickly accepted the invitation.

### Pre-Europa Incident

*tbe...*

Responsible for reestablishing connections with the City to old outposts around the Inner Sol System, Avgust was largely responsible for helping City Cryptarchs to understand Old Russian and to help discover Pre-Golden Age and Golden Age relics. Spending most of his time in Siberia, Avgust took part in mentoring newly revived Guardians to teach them how to survive in unfavourable environments.

This mentorship introduced him to Sara Oray, a young Titan and managed to help form a strong relationship between the two. Mapping out Old Moscow for a potential outpost for the City and the Vanguard, Avgust was informed about several Guardians who have gone missing on the Satellite of Europa, and was instructed by Commander Zavala to attempt to rescue the handful of Guardians.

### Europa Incident/House of Storms

*Main Article: Europa Incident*
After finally deploying to Europa, Avgust set in search for the missing Guardians on the desolate frozen satellite. Finding an unidentified Fallen House the Vanguard opened fire on the Fallen, killing several of the Fallen before being stopped by a few of the missing Guardians. Learning about the Fallen House of Storms inside the House of Flames bunker, Avgust made acquaintance with Arxus Essal, Orkrim Katesh and Breonn Karizak. Taking command of the small Fireteam, the Lieutenant lead the Fireteam against the Vex and the Fallen House of Storms before retreating to a relay facility. After an assault at the relay station, Avgust met Sauron-145 and boarded a railway towards the Frozen Swords.

After Orkrim was severely injured, Avgust met up with Scythe 6-2, Baryos Nitran and Chorrin Nitek. After being attacked by the local Cabal force of the Storm Juggernauts, Avgust and Fireteam Argus were forced under the surface where they met a horde of Hive. Loosing Sauron after the engagement with the Hive, the Lieutenant and the Fireteam fought back to the surface where they were confronted with a giant Hive Ogre. Deciding it to be necessary to take the fight back to the Storms, the Vanguard agreed to a temporary truce with a local Cabal force where the two would help to take down the Fallen force.

Once within the Swords, Avgust and his Fireteam were trapped by the Storm Archon: Rhall. Being assisted by the Fallen House of Flames, Avgust and Fireteam Argus fought of several Storm Fallen and Storm controlled Exos. Being severally injured by Rhall, Avgust was disabled temporarily before the Storm Archon was killed by the rest of the Fireteam. Healing aboard Scythe's Ketch, where he received a vision of the rising Hive God of Enxor. Avgust returned to the City to report the Vanguard about the events on Europa, along with a warning about the growing Hive threat of Enxor.

## Trivia

* Avgust Sokolov is the main character of user FireDrag1091.