A/N: This story is written by AscalonBlade and I, with him usually writing the first draft for chapters and both of us editing and rewriting later on. We also have a friend that reads through 'em for quality. First chapter's a little short but action-packed. Enjoy.
"Good guns, Spartan! All stations brace for cast off." Captain Keyes ordered, the Halcyon-class Light Cruiser freeing itself from its moorings as it began its ascent. Six slowly climbed down the ladder of the Onager, watching as the vessel steadily gained altitude. Blankets of exhaust spewed out of the sequence thrusters, lathering the hull with layers of smoke. The Covenant CCS-class battlecruiser he previously shot was speeding toward the surface, the flight systems completely destroyed. Just as the ship plummeted into the ground, spilling out gusts of billowing dirt and debris, the Pillar of Autumn fired its starboard engine, disappearing into the clouds as the thrusters were discarded.
"This is the Pillar of Autumn. We are away. And the package is with us." Keyes announced over the comm channel, before it went silent.
Six remained still on the deck, gazing up toward the storm filled sky. Lightning streaked across the upper atmosphere, thick clouds twisting and churning violently, completely filling his vision. He had done it, he had completed his mission. The A.I. and all of Doctor Halsey's data was safe and away from enemy hands.
But at what cost…
Glancing back, he caught sight of Noble Four, Emile, slumped against a railing with two dead Zealots at his feet. His kukri was embedded in the neck of the closest Elite. Striding toward his fallen comrade, the Spartan knelt down and retrieved the man's blade, placing it back in its sheath before taking his dog tags. Six simply stared at the fellow Spartan, two scorch marks embedded in his armor's upper torso, his last words echoing in his mind.
"I'm ready! How 'bout you?"
Promptly standing up, Six left the drydock, moving through the building at a leisurely pace. The rusted metal walls were charred black, dozens of fallen Covenant littered throughout the structure. Eventually, he came to a halt on a nearby hilltop, toward the end of the drydock. The surrounding area was filled with dust from the crash, but off in the distance he could see the unmistakable signs of battle. Flashes of light, the thundering of explosives, and the resonating of gunfire, all indications of conflict, all beckoning him to follow. And follow he would, because as a long as he was still standing, he would do everything he could to end the threat of the Covenant.
His heavy metal boots crunched the gravel and violet shards dispersed across the earth, and the Spartan halted momentarily. If he was going to die, he was going to die fighting, and take as many of those bastards he could with him. Taking one last look behind him, Six only had one thought cross his mind.
See you in hell soon, Spartans.
"Kill the demon!" A sangheili roared as Six shot a single EMP grenade from his grenade launcher, disabling the shields and following up with a quick headshot from his DMR to silence the Elite Officer. The armor piercing round rang out, puncturing the alien's helm before entering his skull. Bits of brain matter splattered outward onto the ground, his corpse soon following. With their leader now dead, the neighboring group of Grunts went into a frenzy, running off in all directions.
Several hours have already passed and during that time, the Covenant have sent wave upon wave of their forces to eradicate the remaining human resistance. Already having fought them for the majority of the day, Six was starting to feel the fatigue catching up with him. His movements felt strained, his body heavy. He had to keep moving lest he succumb to exhaustion and without his armor, he would have by now.
Switching out for his assault rifle as he sprinted to the panicking group of unggoy, he wiped out the Grunts with some short controlled bursts. While reloading his weapon, he heard the distinctive sounds of banshees soaring above him and dove for cover in a nearby ruin as they performed a strafing run.
Once inside, Six rolled to the right as a Spec Ops Elite stabbed its energy sword into the spot where he was previously. The concrete flooring melted under the immense heat of the shaped plasma, the alien's form materializing into view. Training kicking in, Six tripped the sangheili warrior with a leg sweep, successfully bringing the alien to the ground next to him as he pressed his magnum to its head before firing.
Sweat trickled down the Spartan's face inside his helmet as the injuries he's sustained throughout the day became more and more apparent. Every part of his body burned, his limbs screaming in protest as he slowly stood. Steadying himself, he heard the banshees circling around for another bombardment. Knowing this building wouldn't protect him, he ran outside with his grenade launcher in hand and fired an EMP grenade to knock the vehicles out of the sky. His shield indicator flashed red as his armor began taking hits, the plasma bolts searing into his armor before he hit his mark.
When the enemy aircraft came spiraling downward, Six evaded before they landed right on top of him. Once he was standing again, he immediately threw a grenade followed with one launched from his grenade launcher to destroy the vehicles and their occupants. Breathing more heavily than a Spartan usually would, he holstered his grenade launcher and equipped his DMR as he began looking for a better position to hold out. So far the worst of the Covenant forces he's had to face were wraiths, but his explosives made short work of them. Still, with the amount of ammunition he had, it wouldn't be long until he was down for the count.
Taking in his surroundings, Six spotted what seemed to be the entrance of a bunker on the side of a mountain he was near. While contemplating his next course of action, a plasma blast landed a few feet in front of him, drawing his attention momentarily. It was then that he realized a large platoon with heavy armor was right behind him and closing in fast. Wasting no time in making his decision, he made a break for the bunker, hoping that something inside would be able to help him.
The Spartan was now once again running for his life as plasma fire and fusion rounds flew past him. His shields were fully depleted and the deadly bolts of light were hitting his armor more and more frequently. The burns and wounds were slowing his progress substantially as he felt the pain spread all over his body. His vision darkened as the door became larger the faster he approached. When he finally reached the entrance Six slammed the door controls and it began to slowly open.
He turned around to suppress the enemy, only to have an Elite Field Marshall kick him to the ground. With the air suddenly gone from his lungs, Six was not prepared when the massive alien grabbed him with one arm and lifted him upward by the throat.
"You've fought well demon, but it is now over." The Elite then raised his other hand, holding an energy sword ready to strike.
Before he could finish him off, Six took his knife and rammed it into the sangheili's throat. The alien gurgled while spitting up purple blood, before falling lifelessly to the ground. With one deft motion, the Spartan lifted his dripping weapon and slipped into the bunker, forcing the entrance shut, and barring a pursuing Elite.
The metal barrier shook mutedly, the brunt force of an alien fist impacting it. The bunker was eerily silent, with even the ensuing plasmafire being on the edge of the Spartan's hearing. Slowly, he limped further down a hall into the facility while activating his helmet's nightvision. Panting heavily, he explored the complex, leaving a splattered blood trail in his wake of his hampered gait. After a few minutes, he discovered what seemed to be the main control room, the monitors and inputs dark with inactivity. There were no bodies, and the power seemed to be out everywhere in the structure. Taking a gradual seat at the controls, Six scanned it with his analytical gaze, searching for a way to jumpstart the power.
No signs of plasma damage… It seems like everything was turned off manually.
A few minutes later, he had managed allocate power to the control center, his surroundings humming to life. He took a few moments to search through the system's data for anything that might assist him in his current situation, or anything that he might have to erase in following Cole Protocol. What he discovered was data pertaining to some kind of artifact the research team here had unearthed. Briefly skimming through the files, he read that the team had received abnormal readings from the artifact, but other than that it seemed disabled or offline. He promptly copied the relevant files to a personal data module, and initiated the wipe of the entire database.
To his left, a door snapped open, and he had his magnum drawn in a millisecond. But what the door revealed was the artifact the files were addressing. A pillar, bathing its containing room with emerald light, with foreign markings etched into its metal. He shuffled towards it, getting a closer view.
Looks like it's online now, something must have activated it.
The ceiling lights began to flicker as the bunker shook abruptly, interrupting Six's thoughts.
Seems like they've breached the facility, I'll have to destroy this and anything else of importance before they get their hands on it.
Just as he was about to march away, the artifact intensified the vibrancy of its light, growing to an almost blinding flash, and emitted an ear piercing tone. Before he could react, he was suddenly elevated into the air, his massive frame silhouetted by the light, his helmet's speakers malfunctioning from the sheer volume of the noise. Electricity wrapped around his hulking armor, with gloomy ebony smoke enveloping his vision. Violent images began flooding into his mind at a incomprehensible rate and soon, everything faded to black.
A/N: Hope you liked reading the beginning to this passion project of ours. We love hearing feedback so make sure you review, and ensure criticism is constructive. Bye bye nao.