Disclaimer: I don't own any thing related to Halo. Hope you like this...
(PS I'm R1-Wash's twin :P If you want an explanation look at RecoverOne-Washington's profile)
Heavy boot falls echo in the hallway. You glance up. Silence fills the room, everyone else turning to stare. Some one on a treadmill trips over their own feet, and yet no one laughs. You all were too focused on the newcomer.
Your leader, Sarah Palmer, half turns to look at the newcomer. Her helmet is off; you can see the expression of awe crossing her features.
The newcomer turns their head slightly to look at her as they pass. They are about two heads taller than Palmer. You think, how in hell can someone be so tall?
A rumor is spreading like wildfire through the Spartans IVs; supposedly the newcomer is the one and only Master Chief, Spartan 117.
You let out a strangled gasp. The war hero is here, on the Infinity.
His armor is slightly beaten up; you see a plasma burn on the right side of his chest plate.
The Spartan II approaches the largest armor-removing machine. Holy crap, you think, I'm going to see the Master Chief without his armor on, in person.
You've seen the newspapers boasting of the Spartan IIs; the Chief alone had at least 4 Purple Hearts. He was the reason you volunteered for the Spartan IV program. But you didn't expect this, ever in your life. Last you had known, the leader of the Spartan II's had been MIA.
Everyone's eyes follow the Chief as he moves gracefully in his heavy armor. It weighs half a ton, you remember.
Chief easily moves up the platform, the engineers giving him a wide berth. No one wanted to accidentally get on the Spartan II's bad side; he could punch a skull in with his bare, unarmored hands.
He spread-eagles, and the machine attaches itself to his armor. His arm armor releases first, falling to the ground with a clang. The chest armor is next, a loud, solid thump ringing out as it hits the platform.
Soon, all his armor lays scattered on the ground. His helmet is still sealed on his head, and the Chief reaches up and unseals it.
You realize you've been holding your breath; you force yourself to breath before you pass out.
The Spartan II slowly pulls the helmet off. You see a tired face, with deep shadows. He looks exhausted.
You feel disappointed for some reason. This isn't how you imagined the Chief; he was supposed to be an invincible war hero.
Then you realize that although the Chief had Spartan II augmentations, he was still human. Somehow, that elates you.
The Chief is peeling off his under armor. A collective gasp sounds from around you. So many scars cover his body. You wonder how he got them.
You narrow your eyes. Some of the scars are too precise, most of them, actually. Then you realize that those were the results of the augmentations.
You attempt to imagine how he lived through that. It looked like torture.
You now understand why Halsey was given the death sentence for what she did in the Spartan II program.
You also have a new reason to admire the Chief. He was a tough son of a bitch; that was for sure.
You now wonder how old the Chief is. Although his exhaustion makes him look older than his real age, he looks to be in his forties.
You frown. That would mean that the Chief was in his teens when the Spartan IIs were put into action.
Your eyes widen. You think, that was another reason Halsey was investigated, wasn't it? And the Spartan IIs were trained for about a decade and a half before their augmentations. So they started when they were about six.
Six year olds in boot camp? That seemed wrong.
Anger burns through you. No child should have to go through boot camp at such a young age.
The Chief is now dressed in civilian clothes. The clothes don't hide the evidence of the augmentations, and you wonder how ONI is going to react to the presence of the Spartan II.
His eyes travel over the ranks of Spartan IVs. You feel the need to stand at attention, and everyone else seems to feel the same way, even though he was only a Master Chief Petty Officer.
He is lead away, almost like a criminal. You watch until the door closes behind him, and then whispers erupt around you.
You realize that the Chief could probably hear what was being said. Spartan IIs were said to be able to hear things 20 km. away. So you don't say anything.
Palmer yells at you Spartan IVs. You resume what you had been doing before the Spartan II had shown up. But the Chief lingers in the back of you thoughts.
You have so many questions you want to ask him, but you don't know if he'd answer, or if he'd just kill you.
You decide to just watch the Chief from the distance whenever you could. He was a role model, what all of you Spartan IVs wanted to be, but knew you would never be.