Forging a Hero Chapter 1: Conquest, a halo fanfic

Forging a Hero

Written By: Andrew Faulkner, AKA, Spartan-938

This is the short follow-up to my previous big project, The Final Fight of In Amber Clad. The following is what Sasha was doing up until the events of Union. Hopefully this fic and the ones that follow will be much better than In Amber Clad, and will seem like a truly awesome thing to read. Another reason for doing this, as I was unsatisfied with that short Epilogue on what Sasha did during the time she left the Halo. This fiction, and Union, will be more about the Elite's than my fics normally are. Also, If you did not know, Sasha is the woman in the first preview for Union, the one in strange Elite like armor.

\\ The Story so far…

Three marines that were part of the crew on the ship, In Amber Clad, banded together with the marine forces on Delta Halo. While attempting to form a parameter in some areas near the Library, the Flood attacked and began to decimate Human and Covenant forces. Lance, and ODST, Mark, a marine, and Sasha, another marine, tried to hold off the flood for extraction. Meanwhile, Covenant forces trying to also form a perimeter and to squander flood reinforcements for the Arbiter, came into heavy resistance. In the end, the Elite's commander, and two of his prized subordinates, met up with the humans, while captured, and formed a truce, with a common goal. Stop the flood. The Elite commander, Syren, and Lance went off to In Amber Clad in an attempt to take it back from the flood.

However, while on board the flood managed to take control, causing Lance and Syren to fall back to the main deck. Near the sealed bulkhead, and mutated flood monster, a Juggernaut, came after them, Syren, sacrificing him self to plant a Plasma grenade on the beast, bought enough time for Lance to get inside the control room and take brief command. However, realizing that In Amber Clad was going to become a vessel for the flood, and they lacked the manpower and equipment to hold off the flood, Lance ordered the pilots to make a jump into In Amber Clad. When the ship came into High Charity the massive damage it had taken, and some strange anomaly that had caused the ship to gain a ridiculous amount of weight, the ship veered off course and towards a tower on the wall of High Charity.

Lance spotted three transponder signals, John-117, Miranda Keyes, and Avery Johnson down below. The ship was hailed, by UNSC smart A.I Cortana, but Lance told them not to respond as they're mission was over. Lance died content with the fact he had unleashed the flood onto the Covenant, a blow that would much later allow the Master Chief, John-117, to take down the Covenant, and end the war once and for all. While this was occurring, the four man group of the two elite's and marines tried to hold off the flood and find transport. They came across a Covenant encampment that had been abandoned and decided to wait there, at the site of a disabled Phantom. As they tried to fix it, the flood began to overwhelm them, though most of the infection had gone off to High Charity. A Human Combat Form came up and was going to kill one of the Elite's with a shotgun, the elite had been in arguments with Mark, and while Mark despised working with the Elite's, moved quickly to take the blast from the shotgun. The form was killed and the group watched as Mark slowly died. Mark gave Sasha a hunk of glass he'd taken from the ruins of their old homeworld, and told the Elite to take care of her. He died starring at the brilliant light from the beacon Halo had fired. The Phantom's radio soon received a transmission from a Covenant Separatist ship, the Forever Restless. The acting captain of the Forever Restless informed them they would be jumping near Earth, at Pluto. Sasha left the Phantom to be with Marks body. She decided she'd take him with him, to either bury him, or launch his body into space using an Orbital Insertion Pod. She begins to wonder what she will be doing, in the following time…:\

Sasha sat in a corner on the Phantom. A few Elite's starred at her a little. She would not let go of Marks body, which lay across her lap. She held him up by the back of his head. She had taken his tags and put them in her vest pouch. She had lost him, and also Lance. The Forever Restless hailed the Phantom as it approached.

"Hail brothers. I see you inbound. The Shipmaster wishes to speak to you when you board. We may not be heading to Earth as planned."

Zeibra walked up to the radio.

"Why? What has happened?"

"The flood has consumed High Charity and they have gained control of numerous ships. The Brutes are also breaking through our ranks, heading for Earth. The Arbiter is confirmed to still be on the Sacred...on the Ring."

"By the gods…"

"A human ship acted as transport for the flood. Also, a Gravemind was onboard."

The Elite's all were stunned. A flood compound mind, the living embodiment, a full Gravemind, was in High Charity. It was making a hive; it was preparing an assault.

"But some good has come. The Arbiter has slain Tarturus, and has deactivated the rings. The Demon however is unaccounted for, neither on High Charity or anywhere else. From what the Battle-Net is saying he hid on the Dreadnought. His A.I is rumored to still be onboard High Charity."

Zeibra took this all in. For the fleet to have learned so much about what had recently happened, then they had surly missed a lot. It was all so confusing. The rings, the lies. And Truth. The bastard. He was responsible for Syren's death; he was responsible for his mentors' death. He was responsible for the death of so many of his people.

"What of Mercy? What is part in this?"

"Unknown. He was not with Truth. Transmissions sent among the Brutes claim he met his demise at the hands of the flood."

Sasha could no longer bear the conversation and moved to the other side of the Phantom, where she could not hear them. She clutched her vest pocket, as she starred into Marks soulless eyes, which lay across from her. Could all this really be happening? Space zombies, alien allies? Earth in the Covenants hands…

No. She would not think of it. She got down on her stomach and began to do push-ups. She needed to be strong. She needed to be ready.

The Elite's in the Phantom looked at her in curiosity. She was beginning to sweat. She kept at it, counting every push-up in her head. Lev' knew what she was doing. Trying to train for the coming battles. He sighed. She would not be getting her revenge soon. While the Separatists were attempting to figure out a battle plan, it went without saying that the Flood was the priority. But Earth was the Prophets target. The Loyalists were heading there now, trying to reclaim Earth. But for what purpose? Could they have found something?

The Chieftain sat on his chair. The Covenant Loyalist vessel was still near the Sacred Ring. Tarturus was slain, but the Jiralhanae would not be slowed by his death. He starred down at his hammer. It was heavily modified from how it originally had been desghined. It was now capable of minor control of its gravity blasts. Ranging from forcing the targets near the hammer to be crushed under the pressure or to be sent flying into the air. It was truly a work of the Huragok's skill, and his own. He would not be rivaled in combat, even to his own soldiers.

The Hammer was a large mass. It was the same design as all his Minor Chieftains hammers, but with more Covenant-tech added on. Even a small Gravity Lift was added to the top that could be used to boost the hammers speed. Of course all these modifications took energy. But that problem was stemmed by the addition of small recharging power packs on the hammers lower parts, similar to the Sangheili's powerful recharging power shield. The chieftain wore the same kind of armor the other hammer-wielding chieftains had. Though his armor also contained modifications, including a shield generator that could recharge his shield, and every now and then boost the power to be invulnerable by placing invulnerability devices in small slots along the waist area. In theory, this made him a walking tank. But his armor and hammer had serious drawbacks. Without proper care or a cautious user, the hammer, and the armor could take the life of an uncareful user.

He stood and walked from his seat to the view screens and looked upon the detailed schematics of his ship. Everything was running well. The Slipspace drive could easily take them to Earth right away, but first, what of the Sangheili? They remained, trying to mop up the remaining Loyalists, and contain the Parasite; the dreaded plague of the Forerunners. A Brute Captain Ultra approached him and knelt down before him. "Chieftain, the Sangheili are effectively quarantining the space around the Sacred Ring, and High Charity. All ships are scattered, and foolish. They are trying to form coordinated attacks to no avail. It is recommended we leave for the Human-world."

"Tell me, who recommends this?" The Chieftain said with contempt. He glared down at the Captain.

"The pilots, and the strategists of the crew sir."

"Are you sure? If I were to ask the others on this bridge would they recommend it? Even if they would, would they admit to having told you of this?"

"What do you mean?"

"If you are merely speaking of your own mind that we should leave, you are out of place. If you are the spokesperson for my crew then I shall rethink my thoughts about remaining here and executing you for thinking you are able to sway me, because of your rank, which was given to you on another ship, before you were transferred here. Let me tell you something, I am in charge here and never think that one fool can change my mind. It's all part of a strategy and you're an expendable part of it."

"I…sorry, I was out of line."

"You'll live now, wretch. But soon you shall be in combat, there we shall see how brave you really are."

The Chieftain returned to his chair and sat.

"Take us into slipspace."

The crew on board the bridge growled and roared and the ship began to move. The Brute smiled, as his mind already began to calculate how he would attempt to aid the San 'Shyuum Prophet of Truth and become a decorated war hero.

Okay, uh, yeah there it is. Once again it's probably a slow beginning to you, the reader(s) but just know, I tried to make this as interesting as possible. Please, if you have not read In Amber Clad, don't go back and read it. Just take the summary for what it is. I.A.C was full of errors and the summary is all the details you need to know. Also, when Forging a Hero is complete, Tales of Union will finally be released.