A/N: This story is to the Halo Challenge given out by Spartan Ninja. Enjoy! Also I don't own Halo.

Aboard the Pillar of Autumn, Jacob Keyes and John-117 were discussing the current situation. "Commander, I strongly advise you to not go and retrieve the fragment. I'll retrieve it." said the armored Spartan-II.

"Negitive, Master Chief. Halsey was quite clear that only Noble- Six and myself am to handle the piece of Cortana. Now go to Cryo and get preped for the freezer. I want all non-essential personal in cryo for a jump as soon as we leave the system." Keyes said, fingering his grandfathers pipe.

"But sir..." the Master Chief started to object. But Keyes interupted.

"That was an order, not a request!" he said. John gave a sigh of irration and gave Keyes a quick salute before marching back.

"Attention, Commander. Incoming transmission from Noble-Four." radioed Lt. Dominque, the ship's communtication officer.

"What is it, Lieutenant?" Keyes responded.

"I'm patch it through." Dominque said, before doing so.

"Noble to Keyes: pad is clear." came the voice of Emile-A239.

"On my way." said Keyes. He climbed aboard closest Pelican and departed.

Back at the Mass Cannon outpost, Chris-B312 (Noble-6), finished killing the last of the Covenat in the area, a Unggoy Major. He wiped the alien's blue blood from his combat knife as Emile radioed him from the cannon's control's. "Six, Time for you to leave. Get the Package to the pad... and get your ass off this planet. I've got your back." Emile told his teammate.

Chris's eyes locked on an incoming Pelican. Soon it was close enought to read the call sign, Echo-419, painted on it's side. "This is Keyes, on hot approach to Platform Delta. Ready to take possession of the Package, Noble." issued forth from both of the Spartan-III's comm's. Noble-6 reached the platform just in time to meet Keye's Pelican. Keyes walked out and took possession of the Cortana Fragment. "Good to see you, Spartan. Halsey assured me I could count on you." he said.

"Not just me, sir..." Chris said, the faces of Carter, Kat, Jun, Jordge, and Emile flashing through his mind.

"They'll be remembered." Keyes told him, putting a helping hand on the armored shoulder. Keyes was just about to walk back onto the Pelican when a massive shadow engulfed the entire complex. Both Spartans and the captain of the Pillar of Autumn looked up in time to see a Covenant CCS-class Battlecruiser break through the blood red clouds and advance toward the Autumn. "Cruiser, adjusting heading for the Autumn! Noble Four, I need fire on that criser or we're not getting out of here! Do you copy?" Keyes radioed Emile.

"You'll have your window, sir." Emile said, turning the mass driver onto the massive cruiser.

Keyes then turned to his ship. "Bridge, this is the Captain. We have the Package. Returning to the Autumn, over." he to his crew.

"Copy that." replied a Marine on the command deck.

Chris was about to board the ride that would get him off that planet, when a Phantom appeared fromm below the complex. Chris lifted his DMR and fired on the hostile craft. The Unggoy manning one of the side cannons fired on him, forcing him to hide behind the Pelican. The escort Pelican turned to fire on the Phantom, but the Phatom opened fire first with it's main cannon. The other Pelican went down in a firery wreak. Spartan-B312 saw his chance and switched to his rocket launcher. He fired both tubes and quickly reloaded. But the next two were not needed. One rocket flew straight into the crew comparment and exploded, killing all inside, showering all outside in a rainbow shower of blood and guts. The other slammed into the nose of the Phantom killing the pilot. As quickly as it started, the battle was over. The Phantom followed the buring wreak of its last victim down the cliff face. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" shouted Emile. He quickly got out of the controls and ran over to the railing. "Here. I got something for you. I've got a feeling that your going to need it more than me." he said, tearing off his kukri, and threw it at Chris. he caught it with a deft movement of his hand and attached it to his armor.

"Well done, Spartan." said Keyes, before securing him and the Package in the Pelican. Chris boarded the Pelican and was quickly flying toward the Autumn. As he looked out the open hatch, he saw Emile nail the battlecruiser in the charging energy beam. The beam destabilized and destroyed the engines, causing the ship to crash into the plain below. After a few more secounds the Pelican had landed in the bay.

As Keyes showed Chris were Cryo was, he got a message from Lt. Dominque. "Sir, we got an encrypted message from Sword Base. It says it's from 4UNT13_D0T, and it's huge. A couple of terrabytes at least." she said.

Chris tapped on Keyes shoulder. He leaned close to the Spartan. "I know what it is. It's the Noble Team AI, Auntie Dot." Chris told the captain.

The captain nodded. "I'll allow it." he told the towering marine. "Lieutenant, it's an AI. Download it and have it meet me in my quarters." he keyed the Bridge. Suddenly the whole ship shuddered as the ship blasted into orbit. Everything floated for a brief moment before setteling back down. "Get setteled and then hop into the frezzer. We're going to jump once the ship is clear of the system." Keyes ordered the Spartan-III.

"Aye, sir." said one of the last remaing members of the heroic Noble Team.