The Greatest Journey
CHAPTER ONE: REVELATIONS
"Linda, what's going on?", John standing behind her not knowing what was going on in her mind. She was always quiet she talked with her eyes and sniper rifle. He noticed something was eating her since the destruction of the Ark, at the end of the war Blue team were on Earth constantly doing training to keep their minds active and their bodies active. Outside was the dusty ground of what was left of Mombasa a light wind sweeping dust off the Earth covering the ground like a misty blanket.
"I was just thinking about something from the past, I was thinking of what happened all the way from Reach, Halo and the Ark." She was in her Zen state deep thinking and meditation apart from being an amazing marksman she had an exceptional memory, she always surprised John something he never got use to.
"Those terminals on the Ark they talked about the Forerunners, talked about their struggle against the Flood. One thing has always stayed with me that was on that terminal". John walked up and placed his hand on her shoulder, an expression that spoke volumes between Spartans.
"What is it? You can tell me" John with his voice calm trying and hoping for an answer. Linda turned and looked John in the eye, "We should talk to Halsey, she may want to hear this too. It may be important" with that said Linda walked out of the small dining area and left John with his thoughts.
'She seemed different, it must be big to be keeping her quiet, well quieter than usual' he thought. Leaving the room he walked through a maze of corridors, Marines stammering and looking at all his medals across his chest, Spartans had become something of legend to people in the UNSC. It always amused John 'They're just medals' he thought, the base that they were in was rather empty Lord Hood gave the Spartans some time to relax and live a little.
After coming to a close John came to a large set of double doors, he put his face up to a biometric scanner and the doors opened, inside was a large room complete with a gym, comfortable chairs, food fit for Generals, a large TV and beds that put even the best hotels to shame. A familiar voice caught Johns ear, Kelly he recognised it as walking to the back of the large room he heard another voice that was unmistakeable the deep growling voice with the hint of cockiness that was Fred, the only person known to John who killed a Hunter with a knife.
"Ah fuck it, I don't know how to do this" Kelly threw the burnt meal into the trash, with Fred looking too amused at her failure. "I told you not to put it in for 40 minutes didn't I?" A smile dominating his face. "Look I admit at least I tried, hard to think we won impossible battles and I can't cook" she replied her nerves calming. "Cooking a meal has different preferences than that of battle" Kelly and Fred turned around to see John with his normal emotionless face looking toward them.
"Master Chief" she noted her voice sharpening as her and Fred saluted him. "I didn't see you come in sir". John waited a full second to reply "At ease, I don't want to be Master Chief for a while now"
his voice calm and sentimental. He walked over, picked up an Orange and sat on the nearest chair. Kelly and Fred followed and sat across to him. He started to eat the Orange, "Why do you do that?" Fred asked. "Do what" John replied, "Eat an Orange without peeling it". John just shrugged and kept eating the fruit.
"I'm actually here to talk about Linda sh-" John got cut off by Kelly laughing. "So, you finally come clean on how ya feel about her. It's OK we'll keep quiet". John mulled this over he always felt something different for Linda but he couldn't place it, so he put it in the back of his mind. For now at least. "She was telling me about the terminals, the ones on the Ark, she wants to talk to Halsey about it all, I want you two to come with me and see what she has to say" having finished the Orange John stood up and walked out of the room with Kelly and Fred behind him.
After getting to Halsey's office the entered and seen Dr. Halsey and Linda sitting down talking Halsey having that thinking face on the Spartans always were familiar with. "Sit" Halsey told John, Kelly and Fred. Having sat down without a word Halsey began to speak, "Talking with Linda and having considerable research done by my team and Cortana we have come to think differently about the Forerunners and what happened to them, we think that some of them may be still alive somewhere, be that in our galaxy or the next. We even think the precursors could be still out their".
Silence filled the room for a few minutes until Kelly spoke.
"What makes you think that? Weren't the Forerunners wiped out? And this precursor race are a complete myth we have no evidence they even existed. And why was Linda interested in this?" Kelly finished. Linda replied "We could even follow in their footsteps", "What?" Fred clearly confused. Linda explained "The Forerunners had that on the terminal, and the only 'Their' to the Forerunners we these precursors maybe with Halo we were wrong, dead wrong".
"They were a threat, we done the right thing destroying the Ark" John interjected his voice stern. "I know we did, but...Doctor, please explain" Linda not wanting to twist her mind around this kept quiet and Halsey spoke up, "The Halo array may not have been Forerunner, it may have been precursor" the only reply she expected she got, "Impossible" Kelly replied. "Is it? Cortana only gotten information on the Forerunners or information on the Forerunners is all she could find, I think that this 'Great Journey' may have had some truth to it after all, although I admit I don't know how much of it is the truth but those terminals certainly shed light on a lot of things".
A five minute walk back to the barracks were silent, it seemed everything that was said in that room was played in the Spartans minds. "Well, that was different. You think what was said back there was true" the team turned to Fred and they all shrugged. Not wanting to think about it any longer they got changed and headed for the armoury, The Spartans had their own space, their Mjolnir in their own places. John's battered and dented after intense ground combat mainly the damage was done by
plasma, brute shot shells and the occasional needle. Kelly's had mainly remained unscathed, probably because of how fast she is, she out ran Banshees and Choppers when she had too. Linda's
consisted of optical upgrades and highly advance camouflage mesh that imitated any surface it touched. Fred had the most worn out of the group, he was the most reckless when it come to engagements, the whole of the breast plate was black and charred from energy swords and plasma burns.
They had to do self armour maintenance, Kelly spoke, "As much as I love my second skin I hate having to do this".