Author notes:
This is my first story
It's based off freelancer II by Speestergirl96. I hope you like it

Chapter 1: Memory

9/15/20XX - 6:00
Colosseum: Maximum Security Spartan Prison: Location classified
Asset: Spartan 182
Name: Hermes XXXXXXX
Codename: Phoenix

I awake.
Somehow my body senses it's day time, even without a speck of sunlight for it to go by.
It's been months since I last saw the light of day, heck maybe it's been years, I don't know. The Colosseum is a large Spartan prison, built for the worst of the worst, Spartan "malfunctions" as they like to call us. It's 9 miles below ground and crawling with military police guarding the place. One way in, NO WAY OUT! and I've been stuck here for what seems like forever, and I'll be here for the rest of forever.
Here's how it works in the Colosseum, once a day they bring you food to your tiny cell which has barely enough room to sit down and for the next 8 hours you sit in quiet isolation, then they give you 2 hours of exercise in a small one man gym with 2 bottles of water. Then it's back to your cell. That's it. Everyday the same thing. I haven't seen another person in at least a year. That kinda isolation can have a pretty strong emotional effect on a kid barely over the age of 15. And all that time alone gives you a lot of time to think and remember.

It was about 2 years before they locked me up.
We were sent in to retrieve a UNSC data core stolen by the rebels. A simple mission get in grab the package, get out, and kill anyone who gets in the way. At least, that's what we were told.
We knew something wasn't right the moment we entered the enemy airspace.
Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!
Anti-Aircraft fire.
My partner Weasel began to yell over the Comms
"What the heck, captain I thought they didn't have anti-aircraft weapons strong enough to hit us at this altitude"

The captain-a boy a year older then me, codename Jaguar- replied angrily
"They weren't supposed to!"
He radioed command. " command we have a situation... Command, hello" Static. We had lost communication with command. Something was really wrong.
Suddenly an explosion to my right
One of the Falcons had failed to avoid a shot from the AA fire and was headed down.
"Dang it, there goes our UNSC backup. I guess it's just us boys". The captain yelled.

One of the younger girls
-Lamb- began to count down our ETA
"15… 10… 5,4,3,2". The captain began barking orders.
"Go, Go, Go" watch the..Ahhh"
He was hit, I dive behind cover, weasel close behind, and look back at Jaguar he had gotten up and behind cover as well.
"A mere flesh wound Phoenix, I'm fine".
Then we began to move up the beach under constant fire from turrets and rifles.
We were moving from cover to cover, it was a long process and we weren't getting far.

"Phoenix, Weasel give us cover fire and take out those turrets".
We did as we were ordered
Pretty soon three turret and ten men were disabled or dead and our men had reached the door.
Weasel and I quickly joined them.
I looked around and saw my team.
Me, weasel, jaguar, lamb, Turtle,and Chameleon...
"Captain, where's Tiger, where's James " Weasel had beat me to the punch. I was expecting the worst, the next words from the captain confirmed my worry.
"He.. he didn't make it,"
Lamb spoke up. "There was a grenade. It was gonna kill me, but James, he...he...She couldn't finish.
Jaguar tried to reassure her "He died a hero Lilly" there was a brief moment of silence. Then the captain continued
"we need to finish this mission so he doesn't die in vain" under his breath I heard him mutter. "Then I'm gonna have a word with the command".
Inside the base there was two locked doors that weasel had to open and a bunch of men that the rest of us had to deal with.
Chameleon was sent off to find the control room and figure out where this data core was hidden, while the rest of us went through the files in the data room.
30 minutes passed and Chameleon still hadn't returned.
"Phoenix, Weasel find out what's going on"
"Yes sir"
We looked at each other, both Afraid that chameleon had suffered a similar fate to tiger.
We shook off the thought and ran to the control room.
5 minutes later and we were there.
It's quiet and me and weasel creep into the room.
"Oh my gosh" weasel cried, shocked at the scene in front of us.
There was blood everywhere.
And in the middle of the carnage? Chameleon and three Rebels.
I tried to figure out what was going on
"What do you think happened here"
"It looks like they found her... But that can't be, nobody can see her when she's hiding". I could tell he was just as stumped as I was.
Then I noticed something
"Wait there's something in her hand, it's the data drive"
"We should get this to the captain" he suggested

"This can't be, this is the data core but..." He was stumped.
The core was almost useless
Except for some info about the main plans for some weapons and vehicles. He continued
"This is nothing that a team of Spartan should be sent in for".
Lamb was working on getting the comms up and running, Weasel was off to the side absent-mindedly sharpening his knife, and Turtle was sitting down inspecting his equipment
We'd already lost two close team members and nobody was taking it well.
Then lamb shouted
"Commander they know we're here, they've locked me out" suddenly the wall to my right exploded and several rebels repelled in and began firing at us. We took cover and slowly picked them off.
But just before we could be at ease another Soldier dropped into the room.
This one was in Spartan armor and heavily equipped, backed up by several ODST traitors.
The worst part was we knew him. He was a old "friend". A guy by the name of Mustang.
The ODST wouldn't be a problem if it wasn't for him.
Weasel attempts a Granada throw but it's blasted out of the air by a riflemen in their group.
He starts to talk some smack.
"Nice try, but you'll have to do better than th.." He's cut off when Mustang elbows him in the face.
"shut up! Just go get the core".
The men dash at us, giving us little time to act.
Two pounce on Jag, a couple run at Weasel and Lamb, and three come at Turtle and I.
I easily kick one away and dodge the second. The third was after Turtle, who quickly fired his shotgun ripping the attacker's armor to shreds.
We both advance on the remains two, I jump and Turtle slides. The move confuses the ODST just long enough for us to take them down.
We look around.
Jag has cut his attackers down easily, and Weasel and Lamb seem to have defeated their attackers as well.
That left only Mustang.
Before we can engage him, the room fills with a blinding light. He must have thrown a flare.
I see movement and hear a quick squeal.
The light dies down and reveals the cause.
Mustang has moved to the other end of the room and Lamb is slumped down on her knees in facing us, while Mustang points a gun at her head. Her helmet is smashed and laying on the floor.
"You got a choice Jag, give me the core or watch as I shear your little sheep". He keeps a grim smile plastered on his stupid face.
"What do you want with this thing anyway?" Jag must be trying to by some time.
"If I told you, I'd have to kill you". His mouth curved into a creepy smile. "But I'm gonna have to kill you either way".
"I'll never give it to someone as sick as you. No matter what's on it"
Mustang smile quickly fades into anger
"You FOOL" he fires

his gun.
Lamb screams out in pain as the bullet enters and exits her left shoulder.
"GIVE IT TO ME OR ILL KILL HER"
I look at Jaguar, he knows what he has to do but I know he doesn't like it.
To my right I see Weasel.
Turtle is holding him back as he desperately tries to break free
His face is red.
His eyes the color of blood.
Jaguar continues to stall but it's not working
Mustang becomes more and more furious
"He shoots at Jag hitting him IN the arm. Jaguar drops the data core and it rolls in between them. Mustang dives but Jag is faster, he kicks the core out the hole in the wall.
Mustang jumps back up. Furious, he begins to fire his gun. He hits Jag in the knee and he falls, then he turns around to the helpless girl behind him. She tries to get up but can't. He aims and fires
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! Click,
Click
Lamb looks up and blood is covering the floor around her,
Weasel falls to the ground. His armor is torn to bits and blood is spilling out everywhere.
Mustang drops the pistol and grabs his rifle, determined to finish what he started.
As he once again aims toward lamb a blade pierces his chest.
Mustang turns, ripping the sword from Jags hands and charges. Mustang grabs Jaguar and runs him through he throws him to the floor and tries to cut his throat. As a last action before he dies Jag grabs Mustang's ankle and yanks him off the side of the building he tumbles off the edge.
Falling hundreds of feet to the ground.
Lamb looks to the broken body of her closest friend.
The one whom she loved.
she throws herself over his body and cries.
I walk over to her and kneel down. Weasel's knife is laying next to him. I retrieve it and Put it in lambs hand.
"Wha..."
"He would have wanted you to have it"
She begins to cry again, and wraps me in a hug.
Turtle walks over and tells us that he has contacted command and we should get ready to leave.
"Wait… I uh, need to do something"
A few minutes later I had gathered up Chameleon, Tiger and Jaguar's body's. Laid out in beside each other, I begin to light the body's of our fallen comrades. Lamb wouldn't let me burn Weasel. She told us that he had asked her to make sure he was buried back at base if something like this had ever happened.
We take brief moment of silence before heading over to the flare Turtle had dropped to signal our location for pick-up.
Nobody said anything h until we were back at the base.

Mission success they called it.
How could the mission have been a success, was that data core really worth the lives of 4 brave soldiers.
How could they send us in knowing that there wa... My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of opening gates.
"Spartan 182, how'd you like to get out of this here death camp" A man wearing an ONI uniform says.
"More than you can possibly imagine, Sir".

Author's Notes: I really like the characters I had to kill off - whoops - so i'm writing another story about them. I'll post it too if people want it, or maybe if they dont. I do what i want. Anyway that's the first chapter hope you liked it. Remember to check out speestergirl96's story freelancer II. We'll meet some of her characters next chapter!