I woke up to the hum of the normal engines activating, and the slip space engines turning off.
"What's the time, Marko?"
"It is 16:24 this sectors time, and it is 10:40 in the last sector we were in." Marko said as his Hologram appeared on my desk.
He looked like a 19th century Australian explorer, hat and all. He even had an Australian accent.
He was also a smart AI too, cost a pretty penny, but was worth it.
"Turn off the gravity, will ya?" I asked
"Yes sir."
I floated out of my bed, and then launched myself off the wall of my room.
Marko opened the door, preventing me from crashing into it, what I did crash into was Max, my companion (we are just friends!) and co-owner of the ship.
"Watch it!" She said as she pushed me away
"Sorry." I said as I lightly bumped into a wall.
She had long blond hair with dark brow streaks in it; her hair was wavy kind of like small rolls in the water.
"Yeah, right, flown into my chest fifty or so times, and every time it's an accident!" She said sarcastically.
"Well, it is!" I responded defensively.
"No time for chit chat." Marko said, clapping his hands. "The asteroid field is messing with the scanners; you will have to fly this thing." He said as he disappeared again.
"Sometimes I wish I could just kick him in the-"
"Ah ah ah" Marko said, cutting Max off.
"I hear everything you say. And that was quite the rued comment." He finished
Max mumbled something under her breath about strangling, and I went to the front of the ship. Bouncing off of wall after wall, it was always fun. As I slid myself into the chair, I looked through the 10 inch EMP hardened glass, and saw no asteroid field, only a gas giant and a HUUUUUUGGGGGEEEE ring.
I couldn't believe it.
I had just found the last Halo
"M-M-Max?" I stuttered.
"WHAT?" She yelled.
"C-Come H-here."
I heard her bump around the short hall, then I heard a gasp as she came into the room.
"no way…." She said, holding onto my chair.
"Marko, turn the gravity on." I whispered.
"With pleasure." The gravity came back, and Max hit the floor. "Now would you please tell me what's going on here? I thought it was an asteroid field, but a Halo? This deep in UNSC space? That simply Cannot be true! This is right by Jupiter, for gods sakes! This weapon so close to Earth…."
His holographic eyes widened in horror.
"It would most certainly destroy almost all of Earths colony's if activated." He said, sheer terror in his voice. "We must warn the closest UNSC Base!"
After a few seconds, his face showed confusion.
"I-I cannot get a signal out, it seems the Halo is preventing that."
I started thinking rationally. How could something so large be hiding from the UNSC? Especially this close to Mother Earth!
"Its been inside the planet." I said with awe.
"That is IMPOSSIBLE , Simply mad!" Marko yelled
"I agree with Marko, Kent." Max said, crossing her arms over her chest. "The gravity would of ripped it apart."
"Then how else?" I yelled. "That's the only way it could of hid-"
The ship shuddered.
"Marko, Report!"
"We are being magnetically pulled towards the position of the ring." Marko said, turning his emotion systems off, making his voice icy cold.
"Put us in reverse, then!" Max yelled, and started maneuvering the engines.
"I have already tried, put there is an odd interference; we aren't EMP'd, but the engines refuse to respond, it's as if they've grown a mind of their own." He disappeared for a moment, right as the power of the ship flickered, died, then came back. I could feel G's being put onto the ship.
"In fact, they have just started assisting the hijacker." Marko said as he reappeared with a stutter. "Entering gravitational field… Now!"
The engines went in full reverse, and we hit the rings ground with a soft Thud.
"Most of the ships important systems are down. I am running on emergency systems." Marko's voice said "If you are going to leave, please take me with you." Then he died out completely, and the ship went dark.
I activated the hydraulics for the blast shields, and saw that the Hard-As-Steel glass was completely gone. Not even a little chip of it left.
"Holy cow." Max said, apparently thinking the same as I am.
I just shook my head, and then I heard a voice in my head
"Leave the ship, it is useless."
"Common, Max, we should see what's going on outside." She nodded, and went to the "Armory" while I went to get Marko's chip.
After I had slotted the chip in a chip protecting case, I met Max in the hall, near the ramp, which was still up.
"One standard, UNSC Light Marine armor, one MA5K, with four extra mags." She handed me the armor and the rifle. "Also, two M6D's and a grenade."
She put one M6 in the back of her pants, and after I got the armor on, she gave me the other. I quickly holstered it, then I gave her Marko's Chip case. She took it, and then put it in her bra.
"Safest spot I got." She said, smiling smugly.
I just rolled my eyes, and then pulled the manual release for the ramp.
A bright light greeted us.
"Hello, I am Deventious Plug-1402, Monitor of Instillation 06, and you are the first human craft to land safely on this ring." Said a flouting sphere.
The light was coming from its "Eye"
"Turn it down a bit, will ya?" Max said, more of a demand then a question.
"Certainty." Deventious said, and the light faded to a faint glow.
I asked my question now "What do you mean by "First human craft to land safely?"
Deventious said nothing, but just looked towards the distance.
I walked down the ramp and into a soft meadow, then looked towards where Deventious was looking, and almost gasped.
Far of in the mountains, there was a crashed Frigate, covered in snow.
"That is what I meant."
END OF CHAPTER ONE