Editor's Note: This is my first fanfiction story ever so i would like some constructive criticism and would also like to know in the reviews if you guys want more ^^ thanks

Act 1

UNSC Joint Operations/ODST insertion over planet Algolis/Mission Objective: Protect and evacuate all citizens/Secondary Mission Objective: Aid UNSC forces

Hell, that's what it was like falling 30,000 ft. from above in a pod, that was burning from re-entry from a planet's orbit. All around the pod, covenant AA plasma rounds were wildly exploding near Kevin. His squad was spread out all around him in a loose formation. His feed to his whole squad was a bit patchy, but everything seemed ok and as long as his pod's brakes worked, he would live. The brakes were one of the most important things to an ODST, because if they failed he would literally be "digging his own grave" a saying that most ODST operators used... and feared. It was getting really hot in the pod, but in about ten seconds his chute would activate slowing his descent. The fighting was getting intense already because most of the Marine squads had been wiped out or pulled back. His squad's mission was to protect and evacuate all citizens first, then they were to assist any marines left in the front lines. The ship they had just recently ejected out of, was the UNSC Frigate Commoner's Cutlass which was now engaging Covenant cruisers over the planet.

"Delta Team, this is Delta Leader, prepare for impact in ten minutes... over and out" said the team leader

It was time to gear up, or in Kevin's case, brace for impact. As Kevin strapped in and checked his gear, a crackling voice came over the General COM, "This is Sierra 15, we could sure use some help right now!" he yelled, "our position's been overrun and we can't hold out much longer against the covenant, we have 27 wounded and 21 KIA, to any forces left, retreat to fallback point omega-zulu, I repeat, retreat to fallback point omega-zulu! Sierra 15 out!"

So UNSC forces were already pulling back to the second-line defense, a bad fight this one was going to be, as they'd already lost the planet. Suddenly, a screen popped into his pod's user interface, it told him what he'd been waiting for... impact in 5...4...3...2...1...

With a loud bang, a plasma grenade exploded right outside the hangar where Sergeant Ghost's engineering squad was demolishing data caches. Their orders were to eliminate all data and charts pointing or leading to the discovery of Earth, the Cole Protocol had been enacted. As his team finished up, the front hangar door blew apart sending ragged shrapnel everywhere. While the smoke cleared Covenant forces began closing in on the team, as the company-sized covenant force opened fire upon them, they had already finished their job and were trying to leave. As they were running one of the newbies got shot in the leg with a needler leaving a trail of crimson-red blood leaking all over the floor. Ghost and a medic ran back to assist their squad mate. The elites were running after them as they fled firing wild plasma rounds all around them and at them, burning through the light-armor. While carrying their teammate, they both shot one-handedly with their MA5B assault rifles, killing two elites in the process. When they reached the next hangar, they found their last objective, the Prototype-Power suit. It was a suit of pure destruction; it could take on two good sized battalions of covenant forces and an entire aerial assault; but that was also why it needed to be destroyed, because if it was captured, the covenant could unlock dangerous secrets and use the suit against the UNSC. His squad comprised only of 12 men, including himself, so if the covenant caught them, they'd be trapped and killed. Any hope of surviving the mission was all gone now, with a loud boom four hunters ran inside the hangar with heavily reinforced titanium shields that nothing could penetrate, not even a bazooka or an energy sword. But these hunters weren't as tough if you shot them in the back core, a weakness that only required one bullet round. Seeing the monstrosities, his team opened up fire while tossing a couple of frags, killing one hunter and injuring another. But the hunters also opened fire upon the unshielded men, sending one engineer flying toward a wall while another ate the ground. All around Ghost, his men were fighting for their lives while he just stood there, not breathing or hearing, but stunned by the chaos. All this chaos brought a painful memory back to ghost, a memory that would plague his mind for the remainder of his life.

With a loud hiss, the front door of the pod exploded open. As soon as it did Kevin looked out to see where he'd landed. He appeared to be in a forest, and his nav marker said that the city was only just to the outside of the forest. But his team seemed to be deeper in the forest than him. "Delta Team, this is delta leader, i'm reading everyone's bio signs and it shows all green, proceed to the rendezvous point where we'll regroup and replan out the situation, delta out" So, the mission was going smooth so far, no one had been killed in reentry or their pods hadn't crashed in the middle of a lake. Grabbing his gear which was a suppressed M9 sub-machine gun, suppressed nova pistol, emp grenade and a few frags, and last a BR55 Battle Rifle, Kevin started heading out to the rendezvous point marked on his HUD. Walking through the woods, he stepped over some dense foliage and hopped over dead trees. As he walked on though, he heard rustling in the bushes, with that he immediately pulled out his BR holding it and pointing it at the bush while advancing slowly. Reaching over, he pulled apart the bushes to reveal, kids, a bunch of little kids staring right at him. As he lowered his weapon, one of the older kids, a boy to be exact, walked over to Kevin cautiously and touching Kevin's armor he squealed in delight. Stifling a laughter, Kevin took off his helmet showing the kids he was human. His team's main objective was to evacuate ALL civilians, and that included kids, so he'd have to make these kids follow him no matter what. Looking at the kids, he explained that his name was Kevin, and that he was a soldier trying to evacuate the civilians on the planet. The older kid who had touched him earlier spoke up, "We were trying to find our parents during the evacuation, but we got separated and lost, so the safest place away from those monsters that I knew was this forest, I had to also look out and take care of my siblings." "Its ok now, i'm here to save you and your family, so if you could tell your brothers and sisters to follow me, I'll lead you to safety." said Kevin

"Ok, but where will we go?" asked the kid "We're going back to the city, but we have to meet up with my team first, and by the way, what's your name?" asked Kevin, in response the kid said, "My name is, shane."

(Sgt. Ghost's haunting memory) Playing back to that awful night, the night that would sear the name to Ghost's mind every day, ghost walked through the bloody scene of a recent battle. As he walked silently onward, he saw dozens of his men's bodies mangled and burned from plasma fire. He quickly looked away, but no matter where he looked there were grim scenes of blood or death. The ground was a river of flowing blood, crimson red in the moonlight. Finally, as ghost approached the fateful hill, he saw his other self kneeling over a bleeding marine woman. "Wha... what were we to you? What was I to yyou?" she said "What do you mean? You're a marine, a marine with a promising future ahead of you, your a... marine." Ghost said, "And you're a ghost aren't you? Feelings past right through you and every choice you made in battle so cold and unforgiving... pure soldier..." she said. With a gasp, the memory ends.

Coming back to reality, ghost notices he has been knocked to the ground. His Sgt's are screaming commands to each other as they exchange fire between covenant forces behind cover. With the fresh memory of the painful memory seared into his mind now, a new rage and courage flares into Ghost. Getting up he grabs his MA5B Assault Rifle and starts spraying wildly at the covenant. Surprisingly, he hit three grunts and killed the last hunter, and reloads just in time to kill the last elites. But as he returns for cover, one last grunt throws a plasma grenade right beside his sergeants. Eyes growing wider with each millisecond, Ghost yells at his sergeants to get out, just as he jumps on the nade, it goes off and the world goes black.

"Kevin, who the hell are those kids?" asks Charlie as he and the rest of Delta Team emerge from the jungle. "These kids were hiding out in the forest, I gave them quite a scare when my pod landed near their hiding spot." said Kevin "Nice to know you've made some new friends Kev." jokes the squad leader as everyone else laughs. "But all jokes aside, we got a city to save, marines. So lets map this thing out first. Charlie and Brent will go to the southern section of the city to find any remaining civvies and regroup to the rendezvous point. Kevin and Lilly will escort those kids to the rendezvous point and setup a perimeter. Ryan and me will check the other side of the city for any civvies. And Jun, you'll provide sniper support by getting to the city plaza and assisting anyone in this squad, Unsc personnel, or civvies. Let's move out marines! OOOHRAAAH!"