VAGABOND
Chapter 1: The Call
A/N: Foxtrot0220, does the title and premise seem familiar to you? It's about time I pay you back for the whole Lemon and Maple/Maple and Lemon ridiculousness from a few months back. ;)
There's some 'Halo' elements in here, but it's more just Sci-Fi than anything. I'm not the most knowledgeable about Halo canon, so there's bound to be inconsistencies (and bits where I've added extra information). Hopefully it doesn't detract too much from the main story.
The United Nations Space Command.
Like all children on Earth, Madoka had seen the United Nations Space Port before. One midsummer night many years ago, in the enchantingly calm twilight air, her mother and father had helped her climb up to the roof of their small city house. Their warm and steady hands supported Madoka as she looked past the towering skyscrapers and gazed out into the deep and dark depths of outer space. There, above the foul city smog of the planet she'd grown up in and loved, her parents pointed to the stars. In the black canvas of the night sky, most of them glimmered as faint white specks like distant city lights. A few were human colonies, and reflected a greenish tinge with the introduction of plant life. But one of the lights shone such an unusually bright silver that even without a telescope, it was easy to tell that it couldn't have been a star or a planet.
Madoka was instantly spellbound, unable to tear her gaze away. With the evening breeze at her back, she stretched out her arms and hands as if she could touch the distant lights. To mirror her awe, the stars sparkled like glittering fireflies on her face, shining on her eyes full of childish wonder and slightly parted lips.
"Madoka, what do you see?" Her mother had asked, smiling endearingly at Madoka's amazement.
"The future," A young Madoka had breathlessly whispered.
It was afterwards that she learned about the bright and silver UNSC space port, an incredible human feat the size of a large city, accomplished and finished over the span of a century. Over the years, Madoka grew up hearing the stories about the gigantic port, tales told of massive spaceships cruising through glittering futuristic skylines, impossibly vast and unexplored galaxies nearby, the largest intergalactic trading center and populace, and all the natural resources and clean air you could ever want. For eager ears, there were always whispers in the city of the great things people had seen and experienced, free from the dust of the dying planet of Earth where everyone else, including Madoka, was stuck. Afterwards, Madoka would lie in bed and stare at the ceiling for hours, imagining herself to be a Spartan pilot flying through the colorful voids of nebulas and over rocky terrains of foreign planets.
Madoka had spent many nights thereafter with her window propped open, despite the brisk evening chill, nestling her chin on crossed arms while she stared out into the night sky. She stayed awake long after her bedtime, unbeknownst to her parents, wishing upon countless shooting stars for the chance to one day reach that silver light and the ephemeral horizon of space. As the streaks of light darted across the sky, she would raise a finger and try to trace them until they disappeared beyond her view. As much as she dearly loved her home and family, the adventurous call inside of Madoka made her long to venture out into the vast abyss of space.
But as time quickly passed, she had grown up like all other children eventually must. She had forgotten the call of space and turned her mind to more important things at hand, like studying for school, making friends, and preparing for the everyday life ahead of her. Even the mandatory astronomy classes in school failed to interest her. The mundane days slipped away as elementary school passed into middle school, which soon became high school. Madoka traded the time spent dreaming while looking up into the night sky for hours dutifully and tirelessly poring over exam books. Her future didn't lie among the stars. It was just a childish dream. At least, that was what she had thought, until the war had broken out...
"We will be docking at UNSC gateway seven in five minutes! All passengers, report immediately to the departure gate at the security checkpoint! ODST units head to the main hangar for briefing! I repeat, we're landing in five minutes! Get your gear and get moving!"
As if the screeching intercom announcement wasn't enough to rouse her, Madoka awoke to the sound of knuckles rapping against the door to her cabin. Outside, she could hear the same sound and shouts echoing down the hallway as crew members frantically rushed to get the passengers off board as quickly as possible. She blinked at the low ceiling, quickly throwing aside her blanket and swinging her legs out from under her to sit up. Madoka took a moment to collect her thoughts, shaking her head to scatter her dreams and memories. The poor quality of light in the room made her wonder about the time. But out here in space, among the infinite sea of darkness and stars, there was hardly any concept of day and night anyways.
Madoka listened to the sound of passengers scrambling to get ready in the rooms adjacent to hers. She had already packed her belongings in a small rucksack which she kept close at hand, nervously fiddling with the straps. As the shouts outside grew louder, Madoka stood up and stretched, nervous but eager to get out of the small room and off of the transport spaceship into the galaxies beyond.
"We've got three minutes until docking! If you're not at the gate by then, you'll be stuck on the flight back to Earth! Let's go everyone!"
Outside of her cabin's small window, Madoka could catch a glimpse of the towering steel spire and large spinning rings of lights surrounding it that made up part of the UNSC security gateway to the colonies beyond. Before, Madoka had only seen pictures of it in books. But now looking at it up close, she couldn't suppress a shudder.
A week ago, she had been smuggled onto this transport spaceship during the night by her mother, with strict instructions not to talk to anyone until she was safe. Barely awake at the time, a bewildered Madoka hadn't understood what her mother was talking about. But as the days passed, everything soon became horrifyingly clear. Madoka could only catch glimpses of the news here and there from the old television in her cabin, but the day she left Earth, there had been an alien invasion by a fearsome group called the 'Covenant'.
The war that had once seemed so far away with Harvest and the Fall of Reach was now hitting home. Only people with V.I.P. clearance were allowed to evacuate Earth in the initial stages of the invasion. Madoka certainly wasn't one of them. If she was found out, there was no telling what they'd do to her. All Madoka could do now was hope that her family had safely escaped as well.
"One minute! This is the last warning!"
Heeding the advice of the intercom, Madoka threw on her hooded jacket. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone, running her fingers over the smooth exterior. It was an archaic device, especially now when everyone else used the commonplace holographic tablets. But it had been a gift from her school-friend Sayaka for a birthday years ago, along with a cute phone strap. Madoka had kept it ever since then. Before, it was somewhat of an inconvenience. Now, it was a blessing, since none of the current technology could track her whereabouts like they could with satellite data from the current holographic tablets. She was essentially off the radar.
Madoka turned on her phone and replayed the last message she had received over a week ago from her mother, listening intently to her instructions and finding some small comfort at the soothing voice:
"Madoka, once you arrive at the space port, make your way into the Apollo District. There, you'll find a young woman by the name of 'Tomoe Mami'. She's somewhat of an old friend and probably the only one in the entire Sol system that'll help you. Please, stay safe at all costs. I love you."
"I love you too, mom..." Madoka whispered back to her phone, knowing that her mother could be anywhere at this point. Blinking away a lonely tear, she pocketed the device as the ground shuddered to a halt underneath her feet. The spaceship had finally reached its destination and docked. As the frantic rapping sounds intensified at various doors nearby, Madoka shouldered her backpack and, out of habit, gave one last look into the small round mirror above her sink, gazing at her reflection. Her face was a bit grimy and her hair was pitifully messy after days of sleeping in a cramped and dusty bed with barely enough water to shower. Frowning, Madoka ran a hand through her hair, trying to mat it down into something that looked a little better and made her look less like someone running away from home...
It was too bad that she hadn't thought to dye her hair into a color less eye-catching than bright pink. Normally, she would have tied her hair into twin pigtails, but now she let it limply fall and brush against her shoulders. Combing it wasn't working. Reluctantly giving up with a sigh, Madoka settled upon pulling up the hood of her jacket instead, bowing her head low to avoid notice as she left the room. The dimly-lit corridor outside was a scrambling mess of passengers and crew members trying to help people with their luggage, culminating in a loud commotion. Taking advantage of the ensuing confusion, Madoka silently slipped through the gaps in the crowd, darting around and following the signs that pointed the way down to the UNSC space port checkpoint.
It was, as Madoka realized while hurrying along the winding hallways of the spaceship, her first time in space on a "planet" besides Earth. As she anxiously approached the departure gate, she watched as the large, stainless-steel ship doors slid open to reveal the United Nations Space Port. What she beheld completely took her breath away.
The space port looked just like a large metropolis, with skyscrapers rising high above the cityscape while small transport ships wound past buildings in organized traffic patterns. Larger cruisers circled overhead like birds of prey, while even larger flagships slowly rumbled through the artificial atmosphere like steel-plated whales. The spaceship Madoka was on had landed at the far end of the port, with dozens of other similar ships simultaneously landing on either side. In the distance, she could see several more landing strips with light-cruisers, frigate carriers, and cargo transports, some slowly gliding down to land while others rose up to take off from the shipyard like bees in a hive. For a moment, Madoka was young again, staring in awe at the distant yet bright silver light of the UNSC space port from Earth. Standing in place, she reached out one hand, gazing across the massive shipyard at all of the bustling activity that now seemed so close.
"This ain't a sightseeing tour, kid. Keep movin'."
Startled, Madoka jumped and hurried to step aside as an impossibly tall and heavily armored soldier with the faded letters 'ODST' painted across his shoulder impatiently brushed past, carrying what appeared to be a weapons crate. He looked like he knew where he was going, so she followed after him and the other disembarking passengers, trying to remain inconspicuous in the crowd. As Madoka stepped off the ramp and onto the solid station platform below, she gave one last glance back at the transport spaceship she'd been forced to call home for several days. She wouldn't miss it. Madoka took a deep breath and carried on.
The security checkpoint loomed ahead as other passengers congregated the area. Madoka held her breath as she neared the checkpoints at the other end of the shipyard, ignoring the sweat traveling down the nape of her neck. All she had to do was follow her mother's instructions, give her ID to the military police, and move on through just like the thousands of other passengers who did so every day. If everything went as planned, there was no need to worry.
Madoka drew her shoulders in the closer she got to the waiting line of security guards, falling into place and trying not to let anything show on her face to avoid the notice of other people. Two armored enforcers stepped forwards to greet Madoka once she reached the checkpoint. They were covered head to toe in black kevlar, with automatic rifles slung around their shoulders. Large visored helmets covered their eyes, rendering them faceless. One of them signaled for Madoka to step closer, and she obediently complied without hesitation. In a moment, the bright lights of the scanner were immediately shining in her face. Madoka tried not to squint or look away.
"Papers." With a gloved hand, one of the guards gestured for Madoka's ID.
Madoka's hands were shaking, yet she managed to produce them from her jacket pocket. The officer briefly scanned the papers, glancing up at Madoka's face to verify with the picture on the forms. It only took ten seconds, yet when the officer waved Madoka through, she couldn't help but let out a shuddering breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. She didn't let down her guard until she reached the steel walkway across the shipyard.
Madoka quickly walked away from the mass of other passengers, retreating into the first dark alleyway she could find to collect her thoughts, away from all the lights, noise, and anyone who might suspect that she didn't belong here. It had been nerve-wracking, but she had made it through undetected. Now, all she had to do was find this 'Tomoe Mami'. What happened after that was still up in the air.
The UNSC shipyard checkpoints all led to the center of the port towards the 'downtown' region. Like many big cities, there were a multitude of large hovering screens displayed on nearby buildings, all of them showing news of the Covenant attack on Earth as crowds gathered to watch. Gasps echoed all around the area.
"The Covenant invasion in New Mombasa-"
"...already, reports of ODST units being deployed to combat the new threat-"
"-News of the Jiralhanae landing in horrifying numbers..."
"-brutally murdered-"
"...massacred..."
Madoka swallowed and turned away when she caught a glimpse of explosions and screams followed by fire, ash, and rubble, trying not to think about the situation her family might be in right now. At the very least, the invasion was being contained to certain parts of Africa. Japan was a long ways away.
Returning to the situation at hand, Madoka glanced at a nearby map plastered on an information booth, trying to figure out where the Apollo District was located. Luckily, after spending several seconds trying to decipher the circuit-board-like picture, she realized that it was only a few blocks away. But while her mother had given her the name of the district, she hadn't given Madoka specific directions as to where to go from there. Madoka sighed, biting her lip when she realized that she'd have to ask around once she got there.
Madoka looked back towards the landing gate she had come from, filled with various travelers and military units. It was unlikely any of them would be able to help her, or that she could even trust any of them anyways. Most people would be busy looking out for themselves, after all. If Earth could be attacked, then so could this space port.
After a few seconds of thought, Madoka decided that her best bet was to wander around for a while. With her luck, this 'Tomoe Mami' contact would be looking for her as well, even if it wasn't likely. Making sure that her hood covered as much of her face as possible, Madoka took another deep breath and walked further into the maze of buildings and pulsing lights. More light cruisers soared overhead, making the street rumble slightly. With the attack on Earth, tensions were at an all-time high.
It didn't take long for Madoka to realize that the UNSC space port had many shady corners and alleyways. The further she walked, the more the lights around her seemed to dim. The griminess of the streets also seemed to increase with each passing block. Just like she had heard about, the main street was full of activity and various vendors trying to sell pedestrians various exotic items. Some of them called out to Madoka as she walked past with a polite smile, trying not to get caught in the hubbub. But what she didn't hear about was all the shady people that loitered around as well, shooting her curious looks. Madoka just scurried along, trying to avoid meeting their gazes. She wasn't sure how reliable and watchful the police officers of the space port were, and didn't wait around long enough to find out.
Fully aware that she had next to nothing, Madoka knew that if things with this mysterious helper didn't work out, she wasn't sure how safe she'd ever be out here. Luckily, she was wearing sneakers instead of the high-heels most of her peers liked to wear. They'd come in handy if she had to run, which seemed more and more likely the further she ventured into the space port.
"What are you looking for?"
Madoka jumped at the voice. She turned, noticing that a man wearing a thick cloak had called out to her. Judging by the predatory smile on his face, he didn't exactly seem like he was keen on helping her with directions, despite what he had said.
"I-I'm meeting someone." Madoka stuttered, trying to slink away.
"Oh, what a pity." The man slowly approached Madoka, looming large over her. Fear gripped Madoka's muscles as she remained rooted to the spot. She bit her lip, flinching when the man turned down to look at her.
"S-Sorry. I need to go." Madoka managed to stammer, very much aware that no one else nearby seemed to be interested with her predicament. When the man didn't say anything, she took off, striding away from him as fast as she could without completely bolting off.
As Madoka continued walking away, getting more and more lost with each step, she berated herself for not being able to take better care of herself. Not that she was a coward for running away then, but she also needed to know how to stand up for herself to get what she wanted. From what Madoka had heard about space, people were highly independent and didn't give in to fear. Like her mother had always taught her, she needed to learn how to also become independent and assert herself if she was going to get anywhere in life.
Madoka stopped walking when she realized she had made her way back onto the main street, in the middle of the Apollo District. Unlike the place she had just ran from, this area didn't seem so bad. The small shops and food vendors on either side of her seemed just as good of a place to start looking for help to find her mysterious helper as any. She'd probably have much better luck with the kinder store owners than random pedestrians anyways.
The UNSC Space Port was a long away from Earth, just as big and bright as Madoka had imagined it, back when she was young and full of wonder. There were many things to see, learn, and explore. But just like there were stars, space was also full of darkness. Danger from strangers and the recent Covenant attack, especially with the thought of her family on her mind, put a hint of apprehension in Madoka's steps. The sooner she found Tomoe Mami, the better. Deciding upon her course of action, Madoka took another deep breath, squared her shoulders, and made her way to the closest coffee shop, one with the faded words 'TIRO FINALE' painted over the door.