Authors notes: I decided to write on a whim really. I had pssted here on earlier but took it down in order to rtethink the plot. I also thought the idea of having a strange man being stranded in a strange land to be interesting, and well that's how this story came to be. Not sure wheather or not I'll continue this story but hey I like feedback so tell me what you think.
(* * * * * * *)
Helljumper,Helljumper, where have you been?
Feet first into hell and back again!
UNSC-FORWARD UNTO DAWN
The frigate was a mess. Numerous explosions rocked the ships super structure. The vessel was in bad shape to begin with. Being cut in half by a slip-space portal did little to help the situation.
The frigates aft section began drifting sideways toward an unknown planetary force of gravity pulled the ship closer and closer. At the forward section a lone figure in green power armor, Sierra 117 the master chief. The master chief placed the grenade pistol at his hip, and gazed ahead of himself. The chief along with the Artificial Intelligence Cortana was the only living souls on the ghost ship. Together they survived two halo rings, the fall of High Charity, and the Ark. The Master Chief was a SPARTAN. He survived where others couldn't. He succeeded in situations deemed impossible.
"John," Cortana Summoned.
"Yes." The Spartan answered
"This is bad," The A.I continued.
The Spartan looked behind him. The explosions were less frequent now but still severe. He grimaced in agreement with Cortana's assessment.
"I Know"
"It gets worse" The A.I continued "The Oculus; that glowing blue hole in front of us, It's another portal."
"Like the Arc."
"Technically," Cortana paused "yes".
"Explain"
The Spartan wanted the A.I to elaborate on their situation. He already knew the ship was in an extreme state of disrepair. Worrying about the situation wouldn't solve the problem, and remaining ignorant about it would get him killed.
"You remember Voi? Yeah…it's just like that."
This meant that he was arriving headlong into the unknown.
"Let's hope this heap makes it in one piece; although…our chances are slim."
When I die please bury me deep!
Place an MA5 down by my feet!
John didn't waste time responding. A slim chance was better than none. The through slip space was not enjoyable. John had himself within the ships bulkheads. The explosions stopped but the ship still shook. Wrecked components and other debris floated in zero gravity. The Chief batted these object away in annoyance. The wreaked frigate exited slip space at a sideways angle. When the ship stopped its rapid vibration the Spartan eased himself from his braced position. John felt a gentle tug on his body… gravity John made his way through the forward section of the frigate wreckage. He braced himself as the ship continued to rotate. John came face to face with a planet. The pull of gravity became stronger. Both john and Cortana knew right away what was happening, they were heading into the planet's atmosphere. With a sigh the noncom acknowledged that his current situation could not be helped, he needed to form a plan. The Master Chief wasn't eager for a repeat of his crash landing on halo. He wasn't eager to jump overboard and land on his ass again either. An idea started forming in the Spartan's head ...what about a jump harness? John still had time… he hoped. Finding the jump harness wasn't easy, the darkness and floating debris sought to stymie him every step of the way, however after a tense period of searching he found what he was searching for. The AI of course curious about what john was planning.
"Have you done this before?"
"Once."
Don't cry for me, don't shed no tear!
Just pack my box with PT gear!
It was another one of the crazy ideas that came into being when there were in these situations. The big problem was timing. Having a reaction time of twenty milliseconds made you fast but that wasn't the only problem. Jump too early and you got roasted alive. Jump too late and you became and you fell to your death. John observed patiently as the ship continued to heed the pull of the planet's gravity. The Spartan head loud banging noise headed his way. The soldier looked over his shoulder to see a sizeable piece of random wreckage coming his way. The Spartan dodged the object just in time to avoid being hit. John pounded the back of his head when he realized that he had forgotten something. The heat encountered when going into reentry was extreme. His fascinating and sometimes ironic penitent for being lucky came into play; the ship finished rotating when the aft section of Forward unto Dawn faced planet side. Still as precaution he got behind the bulkhead doors and forced them shut.
'Cuz one early morning 'bout zero-five!
The ground will rumble, there'll be lightning in the sky!
"Chief, this is going to interesting. I hope you know what you're doing." Cortana spoke
The Spartan shrugged we would simply have to trust his instincts and hope for the best. John kept waiting until he felt a subtle tug at the back of his head. Something was telling him that he needed to jump out NOW. The Master Chief forced the doors to open again; he took a deep breath and jumped.
"Chief we've got debris at six o'clock!" Cortana warned.
The Spartan forced his body to rotate, grabbed the grenade pistol at his hip and fired an explosive charge at the incoming debris. John discarded the weapon and grabbed a large beam of titanium alloy before it him through the visor of his helmet. More debris was incoming as the Spartan rolled his eyes; his life was always interesting.
"Look out!" The AI warned
The Spartan huffed with irritation.
"I see it!"
Don't you worry, don't come undone!
It's just my ghost on a PT run!
The noncom took the slab of metal in his hands and used it the bat away another piece incoming debris. This action caused john to rotate 180 degrees he was facing the ground once more. The ground was starting to enlarge, but john decided to wait a little longer. After thirty seconds he pulled the release and allowed the parasail to deploy. The landscape they landed on was a collection of rock and ash; it was another little slice of hell.
"Cortana," John asked is the ship's NAV beacon still active?
"Yes it is." Cortana acknowledged
"Alright, take me there."
The Beacon's signal activated a waypoint on his HUD. The waypoint originated to his left. A distance of seven kilometers wouldn't be problem. The Spartan made his way to the ship without any sign of discomfort. It took him half an hour because of the obstacles provided by the landscape, but he made it.
The frigate had obviously seen better days. The wreck was caught within the enclosure of a jagged crevice. The soldier could only speculate what caused the explosions. At this point it was irrelevant. The first task was to scavenge the wreck for anything john and Cortana could use or salvage. To their pleasant surprise, the ships armory was intact. The hanger was empty, not surprising since everything including the vehicles drifted into space. Some parts of the UNSC FOREWARD UNTO DAWN were inaccessible; this was attributed to the debris scattered throughout the wreck. John spent the next 72 hours clearing out junk salvaging gear, resting when needed. After four and a half hours of sleep, he would start working again. Food wouldn't be problem. There were enough field rations to last almost indefinitely. Dining for one didn't require much.
On the fourth day Cortana advised that they head out so they could at least get some bearings on their current location. John had some concerns about this, but he couldn't think of any better ideas. The Spartan found a duffel bag belonging to someone named Wallace. Corporal Wallace's contained the usual, clothing, grooming utensils, along with contraband. Said contents included cigarettes, a flask of whisky and pornographic magazines. The magazines were cast aside cast aside along with the other objects. After emptying the duffel bag, the Chief went about the task of gathering equipment.
John paid a visit to the armory. At first john considered taking an assault rifle. There were a lot of reasons to consider it. The weapon was robust and reliable; you could fire the weapon as long as you had ammo for it. The weapon also wouldn't jam if you remembered to periodically maintain it. The down side was that the assault rifle was lacking in the way of subtlety. The Spartan inspected a BR-55 battle rifle, he would be doing reconnaissance and the battle rifle would work rather well. The scope attachment would ensure accuracy at longer ranges. Firing a large 9.5 mm rifle round was an added bonus. The battle rifle fire the large rounds in twelve three round burst for each magazine, which not only meant it was accurate but also had a fast rate of fire.
John then selected a M7/s SMG. The submachine gun was a compact weapon that was lightweight and easy to conceal. This particular model had a silencer attached along with a red dot reflex site attached to it. The case less rounds that the submachine gun fired would ensure that the Spartan could slip in and out of close quarters combat situations with little trace of his presence Both of the weapons were also equipped with an auto zoom feature that smart linked to his helmets HUD.
The Master Chief started tapping magazines of ammo together in order keep his munitions organized. The combined total ordinance included fifth teen clips for the battle rife and twenty for the smg. He also packed a combat knife and a machete along with seven frag grenades and a one-kilogram brick of plastic explosives. John attached the knife to his left shoulder and set the machete behind his hips. And before he forgot he grabbed a tracking beacon, for his equipment as precaution against theft and in occasions where he decided to stash it away.
When the Spartan exited the wrecked frigate as he finished packing other supplies such as a tac-pad, medical equipment, a small toolkit for his armor, and food. He didn't pack much in clothing for the simple fact that he didn't need it as much as everything else. With his battle rifle at the ready john headed out.
"Chief," Cortana spoke "let's head east I've got a good feeling about that direction."
With an inward shrug the Master Chief went east like his companion advised. A hunch was better than nothing. After chasing the sunrise for an hour the Spartan found something that almost made him laugh. A Mongoose ATV fully intact and waiting for him to claim it.
"Things are looking up", The AI quipped "lucky us."
John inspected the vehicle for irregularities; everything seemed to be in place and fully functional. The Spartan straddled the ATV's seat and attempted to start the engine. Hopefully the fall from orbit didn't shake anything loose. To his good fortune the mongoose started without complaint.
The Spartan continued traveling eastward. The landscape changed from jagged rock canyons to dunes of rough gray ashen sand. The ash kicked up into a noticeable dust trail due to the speed of the vehicle. The Spartan noticed a silhouette on the horizon, he wondered if it could be a building or some other structure of some kind. As the distance closed, the image became clearer, it was indeed a building. The Master Chief brought his vehicle to a skidding halt. The building in question was a small wooden shack, judging from the cracked wood and rough shape of the door; the Spartan speculated that this dwelling had been exposed to the elements for a long period of time. John eased his way to the door; he didn't want complications if they could be avoided. Whoever lived here, would probably not take kindly to visitors early in the day. The soldier cautiously knocked on the door, no answer. He knocked again, nothing.
All right how about this!
The chief gave the locked door a hard kick; the door gave little resistance as it split in half form the force of the blow. The Spartan brought his submachine gun forward and scanned the interior. Dust and darkness permeated the domicile. The Master Chief activated his helmet lights; an old table grabbed his attention. A collection of random objects littered the table. Papers were sprawled over the left side of the table along with calligraphy brush and dried out ink well. The papers were either crumpled up or left half written with tear marks on them. One of the documents was complete. John held it up in order to study it in more detail. The letters were unlike the English he was used to amongst the UNSC. In this case however it was more similar to classical Chinese. This meant that he couldn't make heads or tails of what was being written.
"We should take these documents with us." Cortana spoke.
"Why?" the Spartan asked.
"With enough study I can translate the language. Besides if I can make sense of Forerunner data and a Covenant battle net, I can certainly translate these documents."
"Fine," The Soldier answered.
The Chief didn't particularly enjoy Cortana's tendency to make chiding remarks, but so far she hadn't let him down. In the center of the table was a small metallic yellow object filmed over with dust. The mysterious object was some kind of ornamentation shaped a small twin pronged fireball. John surmised someone had left place and purposely discarded on the table. For a moment it made him wonder if the previous occupant was in a hurry.
NO
If this person had the time to write and draft so many documents, then whoever it was left this mess here in order to send a message. He also suspected that the person who was here before him was female. The purpose of that message was lost to him. There was a small closed box at the right side. John pried the box open; it contained currency. The coinage was various values; the large gold coins were obviously the most valuable. The Chief tipped forward to account for the total amount. It wasn't exactly a small fortune but it was still substantial.
John left the table for the moment, in order to thoroughly search the house. The Spartan found a clothes cabinet within the bedroom. He found a black hooded cloak within the cabinet as he opened it. It wasn't exactly a ghillie suit but it would help disguise his profile. John noted the flame motif on the clasp the people here were obviously fascinated with fire.
The Master Chief exited the shack after gathering the collection of half written documents and the box of money. The Spartan straddled the ATV and started the vehicle. The noncom continued eastward, by now it was high noon and he had arrived at the coastline. The sounds of seagulls echoed overhead; John looked over to his left and saw a small port along the shore. Regardless of their technological level the soldier could at least confirm that these people were civilized; He and Cortana could at least extract some assistance from the people here. One thing that stood out for him was the fact that the inhabitants of this planet were human. This naturally led to a hundred avenues of speculation before the Spartan banished these thoughts from his mind. He had to remain focused and aware of his new surroundings.
There was a definite language barrier that inhibited the ability to communicate. Cortana stated that she wanted john to mingle, so that she could analyze the language in more detail. Although the Spartan don't have the mental capacity of an AI, he still able to pickup bits and pieces. However since Cortana was a being of pure intellect, she much more efficient at disseminating the language. By the end of the third day, Cortana was able to begin writing out a translation program. Conveniently this place's vernacular was a near perfect match to mandarin. After seeing hundreds examples of the written language she able to confirm her suspicions, this was going to be easier than she thought. However it was obvious that her companion was annoyed by how the local populace like to stare at him. And meant people were going to talk. In Spartans mind Mingling may have helped him familiarize his mind with the language, But His presence was already starting rumors. It would just be a matter of time before the said rummors caught the attention of some important.
Cortana was insistent that John learned the language as well. After a week he was able to read and speak the language some degree of fluency. After an aggravating month of learning basic information, he learned that he'd crashed in a crescent shaped land mass known as the Fire Nation. John also became aware that his current location was a town named Nan'an. When Cortana's translation program became proficient enough to enact normal conversation went about buying multiple maps. With a pen he had taken from the ships wreckage, The Spartan started marking important locations in English. The maps He purchased were three atlas's one of the Fire Nation, one of the Earth Kingdom, and Third one of The World. He unfolded a map of the Fire Nation that he had recently labeled in English. The Master Chief could read the local language well enough now but he still preferred using English. The Spartan studied the map closely in order to discern his next course of action. The Imperial City was a day's travel north of this location by ferry. And said ferry was due to leave at noon. John checked the horizon; he didn't have time to waste if he was going to the Imperial City he would have to leave now.
The soldier paid no attention to the leery and curious looks he'd been receiving since he got here. John was so used to people staring at him that it didn't faze him. However that didn't mean that the Spartan took a liking to it either. And to be honest a seven foot tall behemoth wearing a black cloak and durring the middle of the day was kind of suspicious. The Spartan boarded the ferry as the dock's wooden floorboards creaked under his immense weight, and in all he weighed over half a ton with kit and power armor. The Spartan paid the fee and moved to a secluded portion of the ferry with the ATV set next to him. John stood upright with his arms crossed. Some of the ferry's crew and passengers were wary of the tall-cloaked stranger who traveled with them, but he stayed to himself and didn't cause trouble. The sun was setting when Cortana maid an inquiry.
"So, Chief what do think of this place?"
"I haven't made a decision yet. We don't have enough information to really know either way."
The AI shrugged inwardly. Her companion was right. They had very little information on their current location right now, which was why the duo agreed to head towards the Imperial City. From the Fire Nation's capitol there gather a lot more information. Information was the most potent weapon on the battlefield and the more of it they had the better they would be able to adapt and survive in this new environment. John set his rucksack by his side and put the battle rifle at arms reach while he sat down and drifted of to sleep.
When Morning arrived the Spartan was already up. John stood by the ATV as the ferry was finally approaching the shoreline. The NONCOM checked the map of the Fire Nation that he had in front of him. From what he could gather the frigate UNSC FORWARD ONTO DAWN had crashed on an island. It was vexing that this ferry wouldn't be taking him directly to the capitol. By UNSC standards the transportation available to him on this backwater world was inefficient; then again he was from a space faring civilization. The most advanced technology available on this world involved steam engines, which were primitive in comparison to slip space travel. A steam driven water wheel propelled the ferry. John watched the shoreline become more visible as the mid morning sun began shining on his shoulders. The soldier remained impassive in expression as the day passed on.
When he arrived in the imperial city, John made a series of inquiries about a library. When he got there he expanded his research to subjects he considered relevant. His research into history was disappointing. form what he could gleen from the available information pertaining to the last century, it was all propagated. He kept searching until he found a book that was at least decades old. It was covered in dust and looked as if it might fall apart. But it contained the information that he wanted. Interestingly enough this book seemed like someone's personal journal. Reading the vernacular language was still difficult, but from what John was able to discern this was written at least one hundred years ago. It was apparent that the author's political views were not popular. The author protested the actions of a past monarch named Sozin. Apparently he had committed the genocide of an entire culture. It was something that had to deal with a person known as the avatar. This information led the Spartan to look into what the avatar was. Aside from all the mystical nonsense, apparently the avatar could bend all four elements. The Spartan's eyes narrowed beneath the visor of his helmet. He didn't know what bending was so he decided to look it up.
To summarize the subject of bending into the simplest terms; it was some sort of elemental telekinesis. If anything it seemed like something the soldier would have to take seriously. The Spartan's mind returned to the subject of the genocide he had just read about. The soldier's hands clenched at his sides. It was just like HARVEST, just like DRACO III, and it was just like REACH. It was just like the COVENANT. John made a decision; he would not be taking any assistance from the Fire Nation. He wasn't going to allow the technology and resources within the dead ship he had landed with to fall into their hands. That left the Earth Kingdom as his other option.
John had exited the library by the time the sunset. And while what he learned history him upset, the information he had gained was still invaluable. The Spartan had no intentions of being involved in the ongoing war that currently wracked this planet he would simply see if he was able to find assistance from the Earth Kingdom. And if not, he would simply wait at the frigate's wreckage and wait for an eventual evac from this backwater world that he was marooned on.
John took a couple of days to plan his trip to the Earth Kingdom. He decided against taking the ATV with him since it would only attract unwanted attention. And if he took the option of stowing away on a vessel then hiding it would only make things more complicated. John eventually narrowed his options down to a ship flagged for royalty the ornate prow seemed to signify the ship's significance. The soldier had observed the ship being loaded yesterday. It was likely that the vessel would be departing within the next day or so. John decided that he would be stowing on this very ship. Oddly enough The Spartan felt a sensation that prophetically told him that he was in for some interesting experiences. The Spartan shouldered the rucksack he was carrying beneath the cloak he was wearing over his armor, and quietly made his has inside the ship and made his way to cargo hold. It was likely that no one noticed his presence due to two factors. The first was special ops training. The second was that the ship was almost empty. When he entered the ship's cargo hold the Spartan moved to a secluded corner within the cargo hold behind some crates and relaxed and waited.
(* * * * * * *)
When John had woken up four hours later. He was aware that the ship was moving. He overheard various conversations amongst the crew. Apparently the ship was transporting someone who had the crew on edge. Apparently "Azula" was a name they all whispered in fear and anxiety. The Spartan was eventually able to get sight of her. Something struck as odd he didn't think that idle threats from a teenage girl would scare anyone. Apparently he was mistaken. Personally the soldier didn't much of Azula in his opinion, she was little more than a spoiled brat who was far too used to getting her own way.
Unlike the ship's crew The Master Chief still had a spine. And compared to what he experienced Azula was tame. These people couldn't comprehend war on the scale that he did. He had been fighting and killing for twenty-seven years. He had seen worlds burn, and with kind of experience you could safely say that there wasn't much that he feared. There was no doubt that the princess was talented and powerful but, in comparison to the special forces operative who had stowed away on the ship she was an amateur. The Spartan knew what war was in its truest form. There was nothing poetic or glorious about it. In the end it was gruesome, brutal and dirty. And as for intimidation, the Spartan would have been amused to see the princess try to back up her threats. However he had other business to attend to. He had to find a way back home. The problems of other people were of no interest to him.
The Spartan observed the crowd of in the deck from the empty crows nest as the princess was addressing them. Apparently she was sent to apprehend her brother and uncle. The Spartan shrugged what she was going to do was meaningless as long as she didn't involve him he wouldn't care. The Spartan waited until the princess had finished and threatening yet another member of the ships crew before he began making steps to exfiltrate ship once it had docked. The soldier took his time, there was no need to rush; no one was aware of his presence. John patiently made his way down from the crow's-nest. Just because the powered assault armor was heavy didn't mean he couldn't move quietly in it. The noncom moved patiently down through the ship, allowing various members of the ship's crew to move about their business without taking notice of him. When he had come to mid ship section the Spartan moved along the deck towards the port side railing. The noncom had his head on a constant swivel for anyone who was posted on sentry duty. The soldier closer to the railing and vaulted over it, he landed with a grunt. Sand particles jumped upward with the impact and the cloak he was wearing billowed outward as he hit the ground. John maintained battlefield awareness he had no intention of being engaged in a needless fight if it could be avoided. John moved up the stairs leading up the cliff. So far people had simply made note of his height and not his armor. The cloak he had taken from the shack earlier came down to his knees. And so far no one had seemed to notice. Then again you could often you looked at some one else's feet? The soldier continued his journey upward as if nothing happened. At the top of the cliff he saw a building that looked like a hostel. John weighed his options for a moment. He could stay here for a short while and gain bearings on his exact location and go from there. Besides he simply needed a plan of where to go. He needed to find someone with enough talent in the field of engineering. During that time John glared at the sky. And mentally asked himself what he was thinking. Even with modern facilities and equipment most would be more decided to scrap the FORWARD UNTO DAWN rather than repair and refit it. And the inhabitants here had only the barest grasp of science and engineering in comparison to where he came from. The paused and took a moment calm himself. He had seen the impossible happen before. Besides the people on this world might surprise him. John continued up the cliff side stairwell. He would have to make do as he went. On the bright side any information he might be able to gather would be beneficial to any rescue team that came to retrieve him. He walked into the hostel and waited till one of the staff acknowledged him. The person that addressed him was a woman in her early thirties. She walked forward and politely bowed; the noncom acknowledged with a nod of his shrouded head.
"I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but our current guest's have us very busy at the moment."
"That's understandable," the Spartan answered "I don't plan on being here long any way."
The woman seemed to be grateful with John's answer. The soldier went to a stone table in the outer courtyard and asked if it would be too much trouble for some food to be brought to him. He didn't care what it was as long as the meal was edible. The meal that was brought before him was a small bowel of rice, some fish and assorted vegetables. He turned around to thank the woman who had served and then when no one else was around he took of his helmet. The seals deactivated with a snap hiss. John then set the helmet down to the side on the table. The Master Chief began to consider his options as he ate his meal. He was already across the ocean so he might as well check into his options here on the eastern continent. The Spartan wasn't entirely certain if the inhabitants of this planet could be of any help to him. The technology aboard the ship he crash-landed on was light years ahead of anything currently available here. Comparing a slip space drive to a steam engine was like comparing stone tools to ones made from tempered steel.
When John finished his meal he had placed his helmet back on his head. When began hearing a pair of feet hitting the ground. His first instinct was to engage the people behind as hostile vectors. However he controlled that urge by remaining calm the last thing he needed was a political incident. And as a soldier John had little patience for politics. The two strangers announced them selves with a statement made on behalf of someone else.
"The princess requests your presence."
"For what reason?" The Spartan demanded.
The Spartan's eye's narowed in vexation; It was only a matter time before would have happened. It would have been alot simpler if the people here had simply minded their on business. In a way it was only a mtter of time.
"She requested your presence, that is reason enough." The voice repeated sternly.
John's answer wasn't what anyone in Fire Nation would have expected.
"I don't take orders from civilians. Particularly not from stuck up children."
The Spartan heard the two strangers walk away. John wasn't afraid of fighting; in fact the battlefield was the one place he felt alive, however he also knew there was a time when and when not fight. And in regards to the current situation the noncom had decided to simply leave before it could escalate. Arguing with civilians never ended well. With that in mind John took a moment to check his map of the Earth Kingdom. He had been certain to make note of certain details such as where the Fire Nation colonies where located. The soldier was deep in thought as he considered his options. From what he could tell the Earth Kingdom seemed to be roughly the size of Asia back on earth. Which made for a lot of ground to cover on foot. It was at that moment that he regretted living the ATV behind in the Fire Nation. The vehicle may have attracted some more attention but at least it would have been faster then walking. He had no time to dwell on it though since a feminine voice interrupted his thoughts.
"So you're the one who just got here. I must say you are rather rude."
The Spartan's body tensed slightly, he didn't have time for this bull shit. All he wanted to do was see if there was anyone able to repair the ship so that he could get back to UNSC space. Somehow some otherworldly power dictated otherwise. John turned around to see a girl who seemed to be in her early to mid teens. When he saw the body armor she was wearing he shook his head with slow despondency, children did not belong on the battlefield.
From what Azula could observe the tall stranger in front of her looked as if he could definitely handle himself. Oddly enough he seemed to have an aura of quiet confidence exude from him. It seemed as if the cloaked man made no assumptions but believed he could do anything. Admittedly she was she was slightly impressed by it. There weren't people that she had seen around her with that characteristic. The cloaked colossus slowly turned around and seemed to look Azula over, as a warrior would inspect a potential ally or adversary. Oddly enough she saw him shake his head in what seemed to be in her opinion to be disappointment. This newcomer was interesting to say the least.
The Spartan was annoyed by this development. Some people just couldn't leave well enough alone. The master chief tilted his head to the right for a moment as he considered the facts of his situation. First of all this was just a conversation, nothing serious had happened yet. And there was no need to jump to any conclusions. He wasn't going to murder a child, but if that girl started something then he would defend himself. John made an inquiry with a harsh rasp in his voice.
"What do you want?"
Azula smiled slightly the man was direct.
I'm curious to know why you're here. It seems rather convenient for you to arrive so soon."
"And," the Spartan drawled out.
"And, I find that suspicious."
The Spartan snorted, this was a waste of his time.
"What of it?" John asked.
The princess was quiet for moment the man in front of her of damningly hard to read. This was partly because she couldn't see his face and the stranger didn't move at all unless he chose to. It almost seemed impossible. No one had that much self-control. And oddly enough seemed as if the cloaked giant was waiting for something. If the tone of his voice was any clue it seemed that he found her presence annoying. Another part of her psyche seemed to tell her that he was just daring her to try something. It was at that point that the astute teenager made note of the shoes or boot's he was wearing. They seemed to have been crafted with curious craftsmanship, the Material that of footwear seemed to be some kind of pearlescent metal. Azula was definitely curious now. She wondered what the cloak was hiding. And who the person wearing it was.
John turned his head back to his belongings and made his way back to the table to finish pack and head out. When he moved to execute this action he heard Azula speak to him again.
"Don't turn your back to me."
"This conversation isn't worth my time."
After he said his peace the Spartan moved to leave the hostel and make his way further into the expanse of the earth kingdom. That was what he planed any way. Apparently the princess didn't get hint, she called after him again in some vain attempt to exert her authority.
"I didn't say you could leave."
" I would advise that you drop the ego...It's a sign of weakness."
The Master chief didn't say anything afterward and continued to ignore her. However when he managed to grab his bag something instinctual told him to move. The looked over his shoulder to see the princess performing the same technique that he had seen her do earlier that day. John waited for Azula to finish the movements and then sidestepped to the right at the point she decided to release the energy from her fingertips. In moments after evading the attack John moved forward at speed that didn't seem humanly possible. withen moments, he had the princess pinned against the ground before she could react. The Spartan had one hand firmly planted on Azula's collarbone and the other holding a combat knife inches from her eyes.
"You shouldn't start a fight that you can't finish." The Spartan warned tersely.
The expression on the girls face said it all. Azula's eyes winded when she finally realized what happened. It was impossible...There was no way that anyone could have bested her so easily. The Spartan took a moment too looks the princess in the eye. The Spartan's face seemed to be a golden mirror and all the princess could see was her reflection. After a tense moment the Spartan stood up and walked off. This time the Spartan was certain that Princess Azula had gotten the hint. The Spartan made a parting statement.
"You're naive, an atittiude like that will get you killed."
(* * * * * * *)
Author's notes: First of all unlike in some Fanfictions. John isn't just going to go out and blurt out who is. And he isn't going to Talk about his background or his training. That's classified information. And to be honest that seems very out of character for him to reveal the details of the SPARTAN program to those without clearance. And as for revealing his name he won't do that unless he grows to trust the people he's with.
One challenge will be writing down what the Master Chief is saying. The reason being because he's a man of few words. Also it's likely our favorite super soldier will difficulty dealing with civilians. Let's face the man has spent most of his life in the military. Social interaction isn't going to be one of his strong suits.
The Covenant: the Covenant is a conglomerate of alien races the play as one of the primary antagonist in the halo series. They have quite literally declared a holy war against humanity in the form of genocide. The conflict lasted for over 25 years. In the end this group dissolved because of internal conflicts that degenerated into civil war.
Harvest: Harvest was the first human colony to fall in the covenant war. The planet was glassed soon afterward. To explain, the covenant quite literally enacted a scorched earth campaign on the entire planet.
Draco III: was a tragedy, the entire civilian population was killed before UNSC forces could render assistance. The UNSC retaliated be exterminating covenant forces on the planet.
Reach: Reach was the was the military headquarters of the UNSC it fell the last year of the fighting.