The war was over. It was finally won. The humans had fought diligently for years and years and finally pulled out on top. First it was the covenant, then it was the flood, then it was the forerunners. It seemed there was no hope for humans, but they pulled through, just like they did for centuries. Though they wouldn't agree, everyone said it was because of two very special Spartans. They wore their Mark II suits loaded down with the latest military technology to rip apart any enemy in their path. Spartans 115 and 117. Their human names were Cryssi and John. They were equipped with AIs named Cortana and Milana. Both were sisters with the same type of programming given to them for a very special reason.
The war had taken a toll on them both. Both were exhausted, both weak from the lack of nutrition and constant sleep in the cryogenic tubes. Their bones felt brittle and all the really truly wanted was to take their armor off and take a shower. It had been over a decade before they had been off. It felt weird to them when they finally had them removed. It felt like they were going to fly away. Cryssi could remember looking over at John once his armor was off and was astonished by how skinny he had become over the years. The armor had hidden it well. She could remember the tingle of her skin as if it was singing in happiness to be able to breathe.
She stepped away from the mechanics and machines that took off her armor and started walking towards the showers. John stepped out next to her walking in step next to her. Cryssi looked up at him. It had been so long since she had seen him without his helmet that she had forgotten what he looked like. She couldn't say whether he was handsome or not because she wasn't allowed to. There was a time when she thought he was very handsome, but the military had pounded any type of desire out of her brain before she could do anything about it.
They moved their way into the showers and began to strip of their matching black shorts and tank top. Cortana's words haunted them. Were they really machines? Is that what they had become? Cryssi could remember happier times when training was fun. They laughed and goofed around, but no more.
Cryssi reached in and turned on the water feeling in run over her arm. The way the water made her skin feel made her just want to jump in it and hold it, but her training wouldn't let her. She had to fight the urge to do anything she wanted to do. She looked over to John who was getting ready to step into the water, but he stopped then looked over to Cryssi. Did she look as awful as he did? Dark circles seemed to spread half way down his cheeks, blood stains were all over his body from whenever he got hit from covenant, forerunner, and on occasion human weapons when his shields were down. His hair had grown a lot since the last time she had seen him. She could see his ribs and his backbone protruding out of his back. Was she just as bad off as him?
She looked down at her body and seen the same thing on her as she did on him. She sighed and stepped into the shower letting the water run down her body. She could feel the grime turn into mush as it cascaded down her body. She fought against her training and let a smile show. It soon left as she remembered everything they had been through together. She remembered waking up from a cryogenic sleep too quickly to be safe. She remembered how she felt sick, but her AI kept pumping in a medication to make it go away through the suits system along with adrenaline. It made her dizzy, so then came the medication for the dizziness.
Every time she started feeling weak due to hunger, the suit would pump in nutrients into her system. She only ate when she was on her way to another mission area along with John. They had been separated at one point and she thought John had died as he fell to Earth, but he didn't. She hated to admit it, but she was happy to see that her partner wasn't dead.
Happy.
A word that didn't exist in the Spartan vocabulary.
She smiled again at that thought. Maybe she wasn't a machine after all. She washed herself from head to toe until she felt clean, but it still wasn't enough for her. She finally turned off the water and stepped out. A towel that was hanging from a hook on the wall opposite the shower she was using. Above it was a little shelf illuminated by a light hidden behind glass with clothes waiting just for her. She looked over as she heard John's footsteps on the metal floors.
They dried next to each other then got dressed next to each other. John stepped next to her staring down at her. Cryssi faced him staring back. He was wearing a pair of gray sweat pants and a black t-shirt and Cryssi wore the same.
"Do you think we're machines, John?" Cryssi whispered. "Is that what has become of us?" There was a long pause between the two.
"I don't think so." Cryssi lowered her eyes.
"Prove it." John put his hand on her shoulder.
"I don't know how." As if on cue, their stomachs growled together. They both made their way to the mess hall to get their first official meal in years.
They could feel the eyes on them as they pushed their way through the line getting everything they wanted. Nothing really seemed too appealing to them, but everything just seemed to pile onto their trays. They turned away from the assembly line and paused for a moment. All eyes in the mess hall were on them. Cryssi wasn't sure if everyone knew who they were, or it was just the sight of them. The war had taken more than a toll on them both.
They found a place to sit away from everyone and sat across each other. They ate in silence without looking at anyone around them. Training took that away from them. Training took everything away from them. The military had taken the luxury of life away from them and turned them into the ultimate weapon. Machines. Anger surged through Cryssi's body. This couldn't be her life any longer. She had to get out of here. And quick.