Selena
24 June, 2616
City of Adros, Adros Memorial Hospital
1000 hours
Kyle sat back in a dark corner of the operating room away from the white light shining down on his now completely fixed patient. He was proud despite himself. The Captain sat back, staring at the ceiling, unbelievably exhausted and ready to sleep again. Then something moved on his motion tracker. It was close, too close.
I'll sleep when I'm dead.
He stood up quickly, gripping the handle of his shoulder knife with his left hand. Drawing it slowly from his sheath, he crouched down and treaded softly across the room, listening intently through his helmet's audio receptors. It must have been sitting still for some time. I would have noticed it moving long before it got this close. His eyes glanced down at the lower left hand corner of his helmet. The motion tracker read ten meters. Far too close. Swapping his knife from his left hand to his right, he skulked through the flickering lights of the hall outside the operating room. He kept turning and padding softly across the floor until the red blip on his radar was directly north of him. Then, it vanished.
Unlikely, he thought. He went forward three more meters, then heard an all too familiar sound. A low rumbling resonated down the hall. It sounded like words, but not quite; half formed and alien, as if they didn't belong to the mouth that made them.
Years ago, that sound may have unnerved him slightly. But now, the rasping alien voice only lit a fire in his heart as he remembered how he had lost so much to this abomination.
Come out and fight, parasite.
The Spartan lurched forward, skidding across the polished white floor as a shriek rang in his ears. Undeterred by the surprise assault, Ninety-six spun around on his hands and toes once while he slid across the floor to face what had attacked him, his shields humming faintly in his ear as they recharged partially from the hit.
In the flickering light of the hospital hallway stood a man, horribly deformed. His head was snapped back at a sharp angle, leaning to its right as if his neck had been nearly broken in half. Its mouth was wide open, an expression of uncontrollable fear frozen on the rest of its face. All that showed were the whites of his eyes, completely bloodshot so that it looked like the eyeballs themselves had been cut at a thousand different angles. The man's body was covered with sickly green, fleshy growths that protruded from his shredded clothing. He leaned to the right slightly, a combination of the mutilated muscles underneath his skin making it difficult to balance and the sharp, blade like bone that had grown from his left forearm stretching downward by four feet while he held it by his side.
As Kyle looked over the man's features, his eyes finally came to rest on what he was looking for; a quivering, fleshy, football shaped sack of pus that clung to the man's left collarbone and chest: the Flood infection form, carrier of the Flood parasite's mutagenic supercell.
Without hesitation the Spartan threw his knife at the Flood parasite, it's foot and a half long blade spinning end over end towards the now charging Flood soldier. The blade sank deep into the infection form's fragile back, spraying a combination of mucus colored pus and blood into the air and splattering over the walls, floor, and ceiling. The monstrosity fell with a loud thud, echoing down the hall. It's mouth still emanated a low rumbling noise, from pain, anger, or some other thing, Kyle couldn't discern what or why it did. The Flood, as he was taught, could feel no pain unless it had developed sufficient biomass to form a Gravemind. Without it, the Flood could not think or feel. So long as there was no Gravemind though, he could care less at the moment.
"You goddamn Hell spawn," he spat at the Floodified human as he reached down and yanked his knife free from it.
Sticky pus and blood dripped from it, forming thin strings that clung momentarily to the Flood body as he pulled it away. As he stared down at it, its bone-blade arm began to move again, trying to make a feeble attempt to cut the Spartan down while still on its back. Kyle promptly stomped down hard on the Flood's left arm, crushing its entire forearm beneath his armored boot. He lifted his foot back up again, then stomped three times on the Flood's chest. He continued for several more seconds until his foot stomped on nothing but a floor thinly covered by a sickly green and flesh colored pulp.
Kyle looked down again at the man's lifeless face, almost daring it to attempt to get up again. Satisfied that he had mutilated the corpse beyond the Flood's use, he wiped his blade off on his right thigh plate, smearing a fresh coat of blood and pus across the blue paint.
Beep.
He glanced down at his radar, then looked up, seeing the faint silhouette of a woman nervously walking down the hall towards him. Stupid girl, you should have stayed in the room, he thought.
"I just woke up and I heard this, this...noise," she spoke uneasily, her eyes trying to adjust to the flickering light.
"The anesthetic only lasted an hour," he said dismissively.
"I allowed you to sleep the extra ninety minutes to regain your strength from the operation. It wasn't nearly as invasive as I was expecting it to be," Kyle noted. He knew that wouldn't matter to her much though, she would just be glad to be alive.
"I appreciate the...WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!?" she yelled, pointing at the pulverized body still lying beside his feet. The Spartan looked down at it, sighing audibly. Gesturing with his hand to follow, he said:
"Something that should have never seen the light of day. Come on, I assume you can walk and talk at the same time, Miss Ackerson?"
He turned his attention away from her while she tentatively stepped around the crumpled heap of flesh, trying not to stare. Looking up at the ceiling he found that there was a gaping hole in it, revealing the inside of a ventilation shaft. Kyle walked down the hall briskly, predicting where the shaft would lead. Soon he found himself facing a pitch black doorway left completely open with its double steel doors knocked violently off their hinges and lying haphazardly across the floor. They were completely wracked with dents and long uneven gashes.
Well well, what do we have here? He took a step across the threshold before Selena's voice stopped him.
"So, um, sir, who exactly are you?" she asked.
"I'm a Spartan ma'am," he responded simply, his thoughts now completely on the pitch black room he stood in front of. Kyle turned around to give his full attention to the woman behind him. If he humored her for a brief time by answering her questions, perhaps she would be somewhat satisfied and let him continue his investigation in silence.
"That's not really a name," Selena said, "that's a job title." She crossed her arms and looked at him expectantly.
"Yes. I am aware," he said flatly. She frowned and rolled her eyes. He sighed.
"You may simply refer to me as Spartan, Ninety-six, or Captain, if that satisfies your need for a name for me ma'am."
"That's great, but it's still not a name," she retorted.
"Spartans don't have names ma'am. We have numbers and rank," he replied patiently. It wasn't exactly a lie, but it wasn't the truth either.
"That's a load of bullshit. I've seen Spartan IVs on the news, and they've all had names," she tapped her fingers against one of her crossed arms impatiently.
At this point the Spartan turned around and walked into the room, feeling the wall on the right side of the doorway for a light switch. He half expected it to not work, but was pleased when he slid his fingers across it and flipped it that the lights blazed to life.
"Perhaps you shouldn't assume that I'm one of your Spartan IVs ma'am," the Captain stated as he slowly studied the room. Spilled vials and blood were splattered across the floor and walls along with broken glass and ruined equipment. A large bulkhead door stood ajar at the far end of the room. It showed no signs of being forced open. Strange, he thought.
The Captain looked over the tables lining the walls and the island that dominated the center of the room, looking for anything that might give him more insight into the events that had transpired here. There was nothing but a large disheveled mess of more surgical equipment and notes written on plain pieces of paper. Their words were beyond understanding after being covered with spilled chemicals, smearing whatever was written on them.
"Alright," Selena said, trying to regain his attention. Kyle turned his head halfway towards her with his back still to her.
"What do you mean, "one of my Spartan IVs?" I thought all Spartans were IVs," she said, confused.
"Then you've been deceived like so many others who believe the defectors," Kyle said plainly.
"Defectors? What? But...but...What the Hell are you talking about?! I'm a citizen of the United Earth Government! I abide by the UNSC's laws, and last I checked, the Spartan IVs are UNSC soldiers. So whatever the fuck you're talking about you'd better explain fast or-" She stopped abruptly as he closed the distance between him and her in a single second. His gold visor was only an inch away from her face. Selena's eyes widened.
"Don't you ever, under any circumstance, use that language to speak to me, civilian," he said coldly, the slightest hint of anger in his voice. He took a step back and crossed his arms, looking down on her.
"I'm a Spartan II. I serve the UNSC under ONI's Section Three. The Spartans you've seen; all the UNSC troops you think you've seen are all, in actuality, rebels. Defectors. Insurrectionists. They've turned their back on the UNSC and everything it stood for and are lying to you and everyone else who lives in their territories," the Spartan finished pointedly, annoyed at her ignorance.
"That...that makes no sense," she whispered to herself, rubbing her head with the palms of her hands.
"Why would they lie to us? What would they gain?"
"Your loyalty, resources, support; everything they needed all by deceiving you and every other innocent person they can. They need some way to fund their military and recruit more soldiers Miss Ackerson."
"I..." she thought back to every soldier she had seen, remembering the news reports of dozens of worlds being attacked relentlessly. And now she was being told that she had been supporting the wrong side? It was too much to take in all at once.
She hated the war. The whole idea of senseless killing being somehow justified by some greater purpose sickened her almost as much as seeing the casualty reports. Selena did her best not to think about any of it. Being in the middle of a war zone now however put her in a position she never wanted to be in. Most of all, it forced her to accept the reality of it all. She couldn't shut it out and hide from it anymore, and it scared her half to death knowing it. A shiver ran through her body.
"What do we do now then?" she finally asked.
"We?" the Spartan asked, "there is no we. You will do exactly as I say, stay close to me, and live long enough to get off world," he said in a commanding voice.
"Alright, fine," Selena said indignantly.
"What will you do, then?"
"Protect you with my life, carry out my mission," Kyle answered, as if it should have been obvious to her.
He turned to examine the bulkhead door. Now why would a civilian hospital need a room like this? he pondered.
"I still don't understand why you would go to the lengths you did to keep me alive; not that I'm complaining," she admitted.
"Why I did should be obvious to you," Kyle pushed open the partially open bulkhead door and took a step inside, turning back to Selena.
"All you need to know now is that I'm here to get you out of this pile of rubble." He turned away again and examined his surroundings.
The room had no lights functioning so he relied on his helmets night vision to see. His eyes rested on a single glass incubation unit about four feet tall and three feet wide that was tightly sealed into a wall slot, perfectly cylindrical and filled with translucent fluid. With augmented eyes, he thought he saw something disturbingly familiar within it.
Frowning, he turned on his helmet's spot lamps. Brilliant beams of light shone from either side of his helmet toward the incubation wall unit. His fists clenched tightly as soon as the light revealed his worst suspicion.
Selena looked at him, then towards where the rays of revealing light shone upon. She tried her best not to let the repulsion and fear on her face show as she stared at the large, fleshy green, misshapen football creature inside the glass cylinder. It floated there lifelessly, it's six skinny spider-like legs spread out underneath it peacefully. Two longer tendrils stretched out past its legs, ending with dark skin colored barbs that looked like oversized capillaries.
"What...what is that thing?" she gulped, breathing slowly to calm herself.
"A parasite," Kyle answered her through gritted teeth. He walked towards the wall unit, resting his hands on the computer console connected to the unit. His fingers flew across the touch screen interface as he spoke.
"It's called 'The Flood.'"
"What do you know about it?" Selena walked towards the glass tube, peering in at the Flood parasite. It twitched slightly as if it had been dreaming.
"It latches onto its victims and uses them as puppets," he said as he typed away on the interface.
"In order for the parasite to replicate it uses the host body's calcium contained within its cells and creates more infection forms...the thing," he spat, disgusted, "that you're looking at right now." Selena took a step back nervously.
"So, the thing that you killed in the hallway outside was-"
"Yes. A person infected and converted by the Flood." He cursed under his breath as the console beeped angrily at him.
Absently he reached into one of the pouches on his belt and produced a small device that resembled a flash drive. He spun around in the palm of his hand as he flipped a switch on it. Two small steel spikes slid out smoothly from within the device and he stabbed it into the interface, causing electricity to surge through it. The computer flashed brightly: Security override accepted. Encryption protocols removed. Redacted files on this database are now available to you ONI agent. Download in progress...
Selena walked over to the Spartan and tried to peer over his shoulder, which was a bit difficult since he stood a full three feet taller than her.
"How does it change people to be so...monstrous?"
"The Flood mutagenic supercell works quickly to convert its chosen host to a living weapon," Kyle explained as if he had spent his entire life studying the organism's genetics and physiology.
"The Flood is ravenously hungry and violent by nature, and therefore modifies its stolen body to defend itself and hunt for more food for its fellow Flood parasites. The shapes that the infection form changes a body to can differ depending on the condition of the host chosen, as well as the species of it. Sentient hosts are selected exclusively."
"Only sentient?" she asked, piecing together the facts in her mind. The Spartan nodded, still staring down at the console. Electricity crackled occasionally along its surface as everything on its hard drive was downloaded and stored on the memory unit.
"The Flood uses the knowledge of its host to improve its odds of survival, coupled with its unnatural strength and primal instincts. The memories of the host are lost and the knowledge is withheld and used. But..." Kyle trailed off as the computer shut down on its own. He yanked his memory unit free, leaving two perfect holes in the touch screen interface that spread cracks all across its surface like a spider web. Then he slid it into a slot on his left forearm that Selena had not noticed before when she had looked at him the previous day. There was a small computer screen on his arm that had been dark and lifeless up until now.
Now it flashed to life with an orange glow as it ripped the information from the memory unit and downloaded it into his armor. He tapped the computer on his forearm a few times during the process, then pulled out the device from the slot after a minute and slid it back in his belt. Selena thought about asking what he had just done, but wanted to know what he was going to say before he had paused.
"But what?" she urged him on.
"But," he sighed loudly, "if the Flood obtains sufficient biomass, it becomes something far more formidable."
Selena tried to think of something more terrible than a monstrous parasite that could turn everyone she knew and loved into an abomination, that knew everything they had known and multiplied at an alarming rate. She couldn't even begin to think of how it could be worse.
"I...what happens?" she asked, curiosity overcoming trepidation.
"If the Flood multiplies enough and gains enough hosts for food, they begin to develop true intelligence and form an omniscient, fully sentient mind," Kyle turned toward her and said in a very low voice, "We call it The Gravemind. Every memory of everything that has ever been consumed by the Flood, from the past and from the present, is stored in the Gravemind's mind. It truly knows everything. It remembers everything. If it were to create enough Flood soldiers, if it were to manifest itself fully within every mind of the Flood parasites, we would all perish."
Selena couldn't control herself anymore. She fell to her knees, trembling. She had been looking at that, that thing floating so peacefully in that fluid, staring at it like it was some sort of zoo animal when it could so easily kill every single human being on the planet and steal their memory. And if there was a Gravemind like the Spartan had said they could form...
"We're all going to die, aren't we?" she choked back a sob, shaking uncontrollably.
Kyle looked down at her, not sure of how to handle this new development. He had never had to deal with a person cracking under pressure in his fourteen years of military service. Yet as he stared down at this complete stranger falling apart, a brief feeling of sympathy washed over him. It felt alien but at the same time, old. Like it had always been there, but was just forgotten. Before he realized it he had knelt down silently beside Selena and put his right hand tenderly on her left shoulder.
"Hey," he whispered. She stopped trembling slowly, and looked at him. Her dark emerald eyes were red and watery all around their edges. They held a look of deep, utter hopelessness and despair.
"Wha-what?" she asked half-heartedly in between sobs.
"You're going to live," he said as comforting as he could, patting her shoulder gently.
"How do you know that? How can you be so certain with all those, those, things out there?" Another tear ran down the side of her face, its watery trail shimmering in the light from the Spartan's spot lamps.
"Because it's what I was trained to do. It's my duty, ma'am." Kyle put his right arm around her shoulders and with his left he took her hand and brought her steadily to her feet. Selena stood uneasily and fell to the side, leaning against the Spartan's chest. It felt very unnatural and awkward to him. He fought the urge to shrug her off and let her lean against him. If it makes her feel better, let her stay like that. Anything that makes it easier for me to get her off world.
Suddenly she pulled away and started wiping away tears furiously, embarrassed.
"I um, sorry," she stammered looking down at her feet.
"No need for apologies ma'am," Kyle said calmly, regaining his professional indifference.
"Thank you," Selena looked up at him, her breathing finally steadied.
"You're still not safe yet ma'am," he pointed out.
"I'm safer than I was without you...Captain." She turned around again, muttering something under her breath. Kyle didn't pay it much mind as he returned to studying the incubation unit further, but it sounded like she had said: "A rank still isn't a proper name for you."
As he considered the statement absent mindedly, he discovered that the one Flood infection form was not the only specimen being kept, and was certainly not the first one to be in stasis in this room. He found two more tubes that had each been hidden from sight individually by a retractable alloy covering that were stationed right next to the one he had first seen. The second had a perfectly identical Flood parasite, while the other was empty. Upon closer examination of the stasis tube, he found that there were no signs of it being forced open.
What kind of psychotic bastard would willing open this thing? He thought to himself, though he already knew the answer. If someone was willing to keep not one, but three Flood parasites locked up for study in a civilian hospital on a completely populated human world, the person behind the project was either completely ignorant or insane. Maybe both.
Taking one last look at the creatures floating serenely in their stasis inducing liquid, he pulled his Magnum off his right thigh and shot both once each. The sound of the bullets impacting reverberated off the walls and down the halls, followed by the wet sound of the rounds passing through the suspended Flood parasites. Glass shattered noisily and came crashing to the ground, the stasis tube liquid washing the pieces across the floor and around the Spartan's feet.
Casually, Kyle slipped the magazine out from the grip of his weapon and slid in two replacement rounds from one of his belt pouches while he looked back at Selena. She stared at him, then at the dead Flood lying splattered on the floor and across the incubation unit, her mouth slightly open. She didn't know how to react to his nonchalant show of violence, but thought better of questioning it.
"So, Captain, what was it that you got off that console?" she asked, forcing herself not to look at the disgusting mess that now covered the better part of the floor where they stood.
"How do you know I took anything from the incubation console?" he asked back, challenging her observation.
"I might not know everything about what equipment the military uses, but I'm damn sure you wouldn't just stab a computer for fun," Selena shot back aggravatedly. To her surprise, the Spartan chuckled softly.
"Good. You're a smart one ma'am," Kyle praised her. Selena didn't know whether she should be offended by that or not, but it sounded like a genuine enough compliment.
"So what did you find?" she pressed.
"A lot of useless, encrypted garbage that will take some time to sift through, but obviously, it's research data on our enemy." Kyle slapped his Magnum back against the magnetic seal on his thigh and motioned for her to follow him out of the room.
"If it's useless how do you know it's research data?"
"As long as it stays encrypted it's useless, Miss Ackerson," he answered, "and the fact that it was in a room that was equipped for research and possible development infers strongly that any data would pertain to research and observational notes."
"Oh...right..." Selena scolded herself for asking such a stupid question, "So, where are we going now?" she asked quickly to change the subject.
"Secondary objective: city communications array east of this location," the Captain said as if reading off directions on a map.
"But that's miles away and-" she cut herself off, realizing what he was about to do, "Oh no, I am not being carried around like a rag doll again," she stated angrily.
"That was not my immediate plan, regardless of your feelings ma'am," he said objectively.
"Oh, well terrific," Selena said sarcastically as she followed him down the hall, taking a left at the end of the corridor. She carefully picked her way around broken bits of the ceiling that had fallen in their path.
"Priorities have changed given the variables now present in the current situation."
"And may I ask what those variables are?"
"You," he said flatly as he rounded another corner. At the very end of the hall, dim sunlight shined through a set of double doors that had collapsed inward. The Spartan frowned; he knew that he shouldn't go back and use the entrance he had used when coming into the hospital in case of an ambush waiting, but he still did not like not knowing what was beyond this new set of doors.
"So I'm a variable, huh?" she asked, offended.
"You and the condition you were in, yes," Kyle said, stopping to face her.
"I'm a person, not a variable," Selena spat. The Spartan tilted his head to the right as if he were puzzled.
"No offense was intended ma'am. It's merely a fact."
"Yeah well, most people don't like being referred to as variables. That's about the same thing as being called an object, or a bur-"
"You are a burden," he cut her off. He said it in such an emotionless tone, she didn't know whether it was an insult or not. Instinctively, her anger answered for her.
"I'm a goddamned burden? Then why are you bringing me along, huh? Why even bother saving my ass in the first place?" Kyle just stared at her, his body language as neutral as his tone had been.
"Well? Go on, answer," she snapped impatiently. The Captain just turned away and walked the last few paces towards the exit.
"Goddammit don't walk away from me! Answer!" Selena couldn't keep herself from screaming any longer.
"I already told you," he said back slightly louder than he normally spoke, a minute agitation present in his voice.
"I'm tired of your bullshit 'duty' and your fucking-"
"I told you not to speak to me like that, civilian." His fists were clenched at his sides as he came towards her, his voice barely masking his growing anger.
"I didn't, I-" Selena stared wide eyed and choked back a scream as the Spartan closed the distance between them in seconds. She closed her eyes and ducked down, putting her hands over her head and bracing for the worst. What happened next however, surprised her as much as the Spartan's sudden outburst.
"You deserved to be saved," Kyle said in low voice. When Selena looked up, she saw him looking down at her. His hands were no longer fists and he was holding his right hand out for her to take.
"I- I what?" she asked, confused.
"You deserved it," he replied patiently, still holding out his hand. Selena looked at it, then looked up at his visor. It shimmered dimly from the light behind him, catching her reflection.
"But, but...You were just angry, and now you're suddenly okay? What the-?" Before she could say anymore he took her left hand in his right gently and lifted her up from her crouched position, being slightly forceful as he did so.
"There's no time for arguments." Kyle led her outside, her hand still in his. Selena felt like her hand was being held by an oversized iron clamp. It certainly looked like that, seeing as his hand was easily twice the size of her own.
"I wasn't arguing, I-"
"You were questioning my motives for saving your life. Again." He let go of her hand once they were outside, turning to look at her again.
"I deserved it?"
"Yes."
"Why?" Selena stared up into his visor, her eyes running over it's surface searching for the slightest hint of the pair of eyes underneath.
"You have a lot to live for," Ninety-six said sympathetically enough, but somehow it still sounded half-hearted and indifferent.
"And what would 'a lot' be?" she pressed, hoping to get more emotion out of him.
"Family, friends, a career." Ninety-six still sounded half-hearted, but now his voice contained a small hint of sadness.
"So do you then, in that case." She put her hand on his left shoulder plate, using the most comforting voice she could and giving him an equally comforting smile. He shook his head, taking her arm in his right hand and bringing it off his shoulder.
"Oh come on, you have to have someone out there that cares about you, right?" Kyle stared at her, unresponsive.
"Well, don't you?" After a long moment of silence, he bowed his head and slowly shook it. Then he turned away and began to walk down the street. Selena stared at him, deeply troubled. As strange as he is, he's still human, she thought.
Ninety-six was very strange alright; no real name, super strength, being able to tower over her at over eight feet tall, and most of all, his uncanningly emotionless way of talking. Only now did she actually glimpse part of what was underneath that cold indifference.
As she went to follow him, she thought of ways to get him to talk and perhaps make him open up a bit about his past at the very least. She had never been very good at that when her friends had come to her for advice, but this was different. He'd saved her life after all, and despite her agitating him, he had promised (in a way) that he would see to her safe departure.
Selena quickly caught up to the Spartan who had kept a slow leisurely pace. He turned his head every now and then, studying the surroundings and paying little attention to her. After half an hour of silent walking, she decided to attempt to learn more about him.
"So..." she began, somewhat nervous, "Ninety-six, huh? What's that for?" When he didn't answer immediately, she added "You know, what does it mean?"
"It's the number I was given," he said plainly.
"I got that, but why were you given it?"
"It's my recruitment number." Kyle slid his Magnum off his thigh and rubbed it's dull chrome casing with the palm of his left hand in an attempt to polish off the dirt.
"Recruitment number?" Selena asked, trying to gain his full attention.
"Yes." Kyle held up his Magnum to eye level and studied it in the dim sunlight. The scrapes and scratches that riddled the sidearm caught the pale light, making it look like the sidearm was riddled with black scars while the rest of the casing gleamed with a silvery glow. A single yellow stripe near the exit to the firing chamber ran down vertically. The paint was faded and entire sections had been scraped off, leaving silvery patches that interrupted the simple design.
"Were there others?" Selena continued to inquire, watching him put the oversized pistol back onto his thigh.
"Yes."
"How many more were there?" The Spartan didn't answer for several seconds as if his mind were somewhere else, which was highly possible considering she had no idea what went on inside that helmet he wore.
"One-hundred and fifty," he finally said, "including me, in the beginning."
"Are they still around?" Again, he took several moments to answer.
"Yes."
"Well, that's good," she said as cheerfully as she could.
"How many are there now? I mean, I know some of them might have, you know, passed on, but-"
"One," he cut her off.
"Oh...I'm...I'm sorry," Selena said quietly, bowing her head low.
"Soldiers die. They served their purpose," Kyle stopped at the edge of a crosswalk and knelt down to examine a charred body. From the uniform that still clung to it in tatters, he knew it had been a Marine. He felt around the neck of the body for its dogtags, but found none. Disappointed, he sighed and went to examine the equipment that was still intact on the soldier's body.
"But some of them had to have been your friends though," she said, ignoring his cold statement as best as she could.
Kyle placed a frag grenade he had retrieved on the back of his armor's magnetic belt, next to a large mesh bag that rested below the small of his back. Rummaging through what remained of the Marine's armor, he found two full magazines of standardized Magnum rounds. They weren't as powerful as the rounds issued for Spartan usage but they would fit perfectly into the sidearm regardless. Finally he gingerly scooped up an MA5 customised assault rifle, complete with a holographic targeting sight, heavy barrel, and four clips of forty-five shredder rounds that could reduce an unarmored man to a fleshy pulp. He examined it carefully, squeezing the trigger a few times to make sure the weapon clicked.
Grateful for the second weapon, he pushed one of the magazines into the butt of the rifle and slid it over the top of his shoulder and onto his back. The rifle clicked loudly as the magnetic seal on his back held it firmly in place immediately.
"Captain?"
"Ma'am?" he got up to turn toward her as he stored away the rifle magazines in his right chest pouch.
"You don't expect me to believe that none of the other Spartans were your friends?" Selena crossed her arms and looked at him expectantly.
"They weren't my friends," Kyle said.
"Well that's-"
"They were my family," he interjected, looking back down the street away from her and turning away. Selena fell silent, looking at the Spartan as he stood solemnly against the dust filled horizon, his back to her but his head turned to look at her over his left shoulder.
"I've...never heard someone say something like that before."
Kyle maintained a somber silence and turned his head away again, looking towards the skyline. Then Selena felt her stomach churn and growl.
"Ugh, that's embarrassing," she muttered. Kyle on the other hand seemed to think the exact opposite.
"How long was it since you last ate ma'am?" he asked with a doctor-like sense of concern.
"Um...well I remembered eating breakfast just before going to work, and that was before-"
"Come on, we're wasting time," he grabbed her arm suddenly and pulled her along the blacktop, taking long, swift strides as he spoke.
"Hey! Slow down! Where are we even going?" Selena yelled.
"Somewhere with supplies," Kyle responded. As he said this he looked back at the motion sensor in his HUD. The edges of his radar seemed to bleed all around its circumference, creeping slowly onto their position.
And somewhere where you won't die, he thought to himself as he pulled her urgently along.
Kyle led her to an apartment complex situated next to a large store outlet about seven miles away from the hospital. They had been forced to deviate somewhat from his desired course to get to the city's communications array, but with the overwhelming Flood presence that had seemingly materialized out of thin air he had compromised willingly for the moment. A hungry survivor wasn't going to help any either.
The pair climbed the stairs of the apartment complex's exterior rapidly until they were about five floors up from the ground. Kyle then led her down the brick walkway that overhung above several other identical walkways until he came to an open door. It's dark green paint had been chipped away by years of abuse and was long overdue for a new coating. The Spartan practically threw Selena inside then quickly shut the door as silently as its creaking hinges would allow, then locked the knob, deadbolt, and extra chain lock that had been added by a previous occupant. He knew fully well that it would do little to stop a Flood infected human from getting in, but it was better than doing nothing.
"Nice place you found here," Selena huffed indignantly, sitting on top of the room's single bed.
"You could have at least found us a place that wasn't twenty years out of date. This apartment doesn't even have electronic locks."
Ignoring her, Kyle walked into the kitchen and raided the refrigerator. All the power had been cut but the refrigerator had trapped in most of the cold and the food inside had been well preserved.
"Come here," he ordered, crouching down with his right arm hanging on top of the fridge door as he peered inside.
"What is it now?" she asked perturbed, walking over.
"Get something to eat while you can," Kyle said, standing up and walking away from the open refrigeration unit, "You may not get another meal as fresh as this again."
Selena stood gawking at the refrigerator then rushed toward it, yanking out a bag full of green grapes, two plastic packages of cheddar cheese and sliced turkey, and a large liter bottle of water. And finally as if it weren't enough, an oversized piece of what was left of a chocolate cake on a porcelain plate covered in thin plastic wrap. She laid out all of her findings neatly on the barren wooden table situated right next to the kitchen and walked over to the sink to wash her hands.
Kyle stood in the corner of the dining room with his arms crossed and watched, amused. A Marine wouldn't take the time to clean their hands just to eat in a situation like this. He shook his head and leaned up against the wall, staring at the floor and thinking. After several minutes he closed his eyes and drank in the silence that was occasionally interrupted by the sound of Selena unwrapping a piece of cheese or turkey. When he looked up again he saw that she had found a whole loaf of bread and had made herself three sandwiches.
Selena ate the first hurriedly, barely pausing to drink down some of the water from the liter bottle. She ate the second a bit slower, looking around the room and studying everything. When she got to the last sandwich she lifted it up halfway to her mouth, then stopped. She looked at Kyle who was still leaning against the corner and was half concealed in the shadows that stretched across the room.
"Hey..." Selena said quietly to get his attention. Kyle tilted his head up slightly to look at her.
"You can have this one. There's plenty of stuff here and I've got no right to be greedy about it." Selena held out the sandwich for him to walk over and take it, but Kyle shook his head.
"Oh come on, even you have to eat too," she said coaxingly.
"That's generous of you ma'am, but no. I have my own food." Kyle pulled out a small vial of translucent blue liquid from a pouch on his belt and held it out for her to see.
"What's that?"
"Liquid supplement for all nutritional requirements. It's everything a human needs, and only that; it creates no waste material and doesn't require me to remove my helmet to consume." As Kyle said that he opened the plastic vial, revealing a small needle. He opened a small circular port in his right forearm's armor plating and inserted the needle inside it. The liquid drained within a second then he pulled it out just as quickly, recapping the needle tipped vial and hiding it away once again in his belt.
"That can't be as good as real food," Selena said.
"It's better in all nutritional aspects than any-"
"That's not what I meant at all," Selena interjected. Kyle tilted his head to the left slightly, staring.
"Don't look at me like that, you know very well what I meant," she said accusingly.
"No, I don't."
"What?" she stared at him incredulously. His only response was to return her stare with his own blank visage.
"Well...real food is just...better," Selena told him hesitantly as she searched for the best way to explain her reasoning.
"Go on." Kyle pulled up a chair and sat across from her at the table, resting his elbows on the top of it and clasping his hands in front of his faceplate.
"It's, it's um...well all food has a taste and it well...it's fulfilling. Satisfying."
"I see." Kyle still looked at her with his hands clasped in front of him, listening intently.
"Haven't you ever eaten something before?"
Kyle thought back to his years on Reach and all the assignments he had been given. He had never thought much of it, but his last real meal had been just before his permanent stationing aboard Admiral Wolfe's ship; the ship he was still technically stationed on.
"I have, yes. It's been a long time, however," Kyle finally answered her. Selena furrowed her brow at his answer.
"How long?"
"Approximately five years ma'am," he replied as if giving a situational report to a commanding officer. The polite answer seemed to not matter to his inquirer as she only stared at him with wide eyes.
"Five years living off that, that, whatever it is?! That can't be healthy or safe."
"It is, I assure you," Kyle laid his arms down on the tabletop and continued, "eating is not a necessity for me."
Selena shook her head and put down her last sandwich. Pushing her chair away from the table she rose up and walked back into the kitchen and stopping midway, one of her hands rubbing her forehead and the other resting on her hip.
"Look, I...I'm gonna get myself cleaned up. Maybe see if there's any new clothes here first before I do. While I do that, why don't you just try some actual food? Okay?" Selena asked him innocently with a tinge of motherlike concern.
"Ma'am I said it wasn't-"
"Oh please just stop calling me ma'am for once, alright?" she snapped at him, spinning on her heel to face him.
"It's just a show of respect ma'am," he explained calmly.
"Respect? You barely know me, why would you respect me?" Selena asked impatiently, her hands on her hips. Before he could answer, she continued:
"Look, just cut it out, alright? I'm not old enough to be called ma'am. And ma'am was what I used to call my old friend's mom." The Spartan just looked at her, then nodded.
"Good. I'll be in the bedroom if you need to find me. Not that you really need me to tell you I suppose," she commented.
Kyle watched her walk away, then looked back down at the sandwich Selena had left. He considered eating it for a moment, but decided against it. Taking off his helmet for any reason at all made him feel uncomfortable. Instead he closed his eyes and waited in silence, hunching over slightly in his chair.
Forty minutes passed before Selena's voice abruptly woke him from his short rest.
"Um, Spartan?" she called out from inside the master bedroom. Instinctively Kyle rose up and hurriedly walked into the room, standing at attention. The bathroom door was halfway open and Selena stood about three feet from it in front of a wall mirror set above the room's sink. She was wrapped snuggly in a towel that just barely covered her abdomen and chest, her hair sticking to her bare back, darkened by water. When she saw the Captain standing right behind her in the mirror, she spun around so quickly the towel almost fell off of her.
"Don't do that!" Selena shrieked, grabbing at the top of the saturated cloth firmly and pressing it against her slender frame. Kyle tilted his head to the side, confused.
"I don't follow ma'am."
"You don't just...barge into a room when someone's not dressed," she said. She could feel her cheeks turning scarlet as she tried her best to cover as much of herself as possible.
"You called, I came. I don't see the problem," he responded, completely lost as to what she was going on about.
"You could have just said; 'Yeah, right here. What do ya need?' You know? Not just waltz in here and almost see my wet, naked ass trying to dry off."
"I've already seen you naked, ma'am."
"WHAT!?" Selena's face was flushed full sanguine now, eyes wide and mouth gaping.
"When, how, the- do you realize what-!"
"How else would I have operated on you?" Kyle crossed his arms and waited for her to calm down. She did, but only faintly.
"I'm a professional ma'am, so you need not worry. Besides, the formalities you're accustomed to don't exist in times of war, or in the UNSC Naval Armada as a whole. I've seen more than my fair share of-" he paused, cutting himself off to think of the right word. He couldn't though, so he decided to be as plain as he could.
"-nude female soldiers. There's not much difference between them and you." The Spartan hoped that would ease some of the embarrassment, or whatever it was plastered across her face.
"Oh gee, thanks. Because every woman just loves being told they look the same as every other girl." Kyle tilted his head to the side again, giving her a blank stare that was made even blanker by the expressionless face of his helmet.
Selena sighed and rolled her eyes:
"Yeah, of course you don't get it..."
"What is it you need ma'am?" he ignored her.
"A lot- for my home not to be blown to Hell, for my friends to be alive again, but you can't do anything about that could you?" she asked indignantly. Her attitude didn't phase Kyle in the slightest however.
"If I had been here your home would still be gone. There's no changing that Miss. But I would have gotten as many of you off-world as I could."
"Yeah well, it's...forget it. Right now I just need something small; this place doesn't have any clothes in my size so I wanted to see if you could do something about that."
Ninety-six nodded dutifully and walked around the room's king sized bed and towards the closet. He was still admittedly surprised that the whole place was in near perfect shape as he rummaged through the coat hangers and drawers within. Seconds later he came back with a dark leathery trench coat and white T-shirt, a faded pair of jeans and a pair of old work boots which presumably belonged to the now deceased owner of the apartment. When Kyle held them out for her to take, Selena just stared with a look of distaste.
"Um, well, not that I don't appreciate the thought but...this isn't exactly women's clothes. And it's definitely too big for me; I'm a size two. Not to mention that you're lacking...underclothes."
"There's no time to go searching for petty wants. Put them on. Now."
"So now you're going to order me like I'm one of your soldiers?" she retorted. Kyle turned around and put all that he had gathered on top of the bed, then turned back to face her. Without thinking he took the his sidearm from his thigh and absently flipped the safety off and on loudly.
"If you want to live you'll do as I say," he answered quietly. Then he noticed that she was staring down at the Magnum held by his side fearfully and put it back on its customary place.
"It's an impatient habit. I'm not going to harm you." Still the same, unbelieving stare. He sighed loudly, his helmet's filters making the exhalation sound even louder and more raspy than it really was. I guess I'll just wait outside then.
Closing the door behind himself, he walked back down the narrow hall of the apartment and back onto the balcony overlooking the street. His HUD's clock told him it was 1200 hours now, but he could still barely make out the rays of this system's star through the debris clouds hanging over the cityscape. We're wasting time here he thought to himself bitterly. The longer we stay sitting in one spot the easier it'll be for the Flood to track us. Kyle reached his right arm over his head and slipped his thumb and index finger into the snug trigger guard of his salvaged rifle, slinging it off from its seal on his back and dropping it down into his arms. The safety made a small, comforting click as he thumbed it down into its fully automatic firing mode.
The door opened behind him and he turned his head to the left instinctively to see the source of the noise. It was Selena, dressed in the ill fitting men's clothes that her Spartan protector had found for her.
"So um...I swallowed my pride and um...sorry. I know it's a bit unrealistic to expect you to go out and find me something as small as gender specific clothes."
Ninety-six nodded silently and started walking down the length of the balcony, putting the butt of his rifle firmly into the bend of his shoulder. She followed him, frowning.
"Spartan, where are we going?" Selena tried to change the subject.
"City communications antennae."
"How far is that?"
"Approximation: 65-60 miles," he answered her flatly.
"Does that mean you're going to throw me over your shoulder again?" When he didn't answer right away, she added, "look, I get it. It's faster that way, I know." Kyle continued to walk in silence, looking at either side of the street and studying each building and pile of rubble thoughtfully.
"You don't like talking, do you?" The Spartan stiffened suddenly after Selena said this.
"What's wrong?"
Without warning Kyle grabbed her right arm firmly and pulled her close to his chest, scooping her off the ground and rushing towards a collapsed building, rifle swinging in his right hand as he ran with her.
"The Hell are you!?-"
"SHUT UP!" he yelled at her.
Kyle halted abruptly next to the pile of rubble that had once been a shopping district and dropped her next to it. He thrust his fist down into it and cleared a large hole in it with two long, sweeping horizontal motions. When he pulled it back out his left forearm was covered in chips of concrete dusting and a disgusting black liquid.
"Get in there. Now."
"Spartan what the Hell is going o- oh my god!" she shrieked as he wrapped his free arm around her waist and stuck her in the hole he had made.
"Shut up!" he hissed at her. Forcibly he pushed her head down and hurriedly covered her in more rubble, hiding her completely.
"Don't move. Don't even speak," Kyle ordered coldly.
"Just stop! Let me out of-" A far off shriek cut her protests off. It was something she had never heard before. Cold. Wet. Inhuman. Selena's eyes grew wide with fear.
A loud metallic sliding noise followed it, coming from right next to her. Selena had enough leverage to make a small hole in the mound she was buried in to see the Spartan pull back the charging handle on his MA5 rifle, light blue dots of light flaring to life along its exterior. His thumb flicked the safety off, followed by a low hum from his suit. Bright gold sparks spread across his armor, spreading to form a floating shield that enveloped his whole body as it quickly vanished from sight. Fourteen years of firearm's training took over, making the Captain sprint for the nearest cover provided by a fallen concrete pillar.
He slid into it, slamming his back against it and angling his upper body over it in an instinctive defensive position as all the HUD readouts flashed in front of his eyes in translucent blue. The rifle's barrel raised in front of his visor, training its sights on the completely deserted war torn streets before them. Several more low, ominous shrieks answered the first, making Kyle tighten his grip on the rifle. He grit his teeth and used his helmet's zoom optics to focus in on the terrain down range, scanning slowing from left to right with the MA5. The weapon's targeting reticle materialized in the center of his visor as he manually established the neural link to the standardized electronic suite.
Selena watched Kyle as he barely moved his arms from side to side. When he stopped, she let her eyes wander out towards the bleak cityscape. Her blood ran cold as she saw a dark form leap across the rooftops. The Captain followed it with his aim, waiting for it to get in range. It leapt again from the darkness, twenty meters closer now. It was fast, too fast. As it sailed through the air a bright flash erupted from the barrel of the Spartan's rifle, followed by the loud report of three rounds flying through the air. Carbon filled Selena's nostrils.
The creature fell ungracefully to the pavement with a hard thud. Smoke wisped out from the MA5's barrel as Kyle patiently watched the Flood's body. A low moan filled the air. It rose steadily from the ground, preparing to charge straight forward with outstretched tentacles. Another loud blast filled the city air. The Flood fell backwards again, violently. Pus and blood spilled out from the gaping holes that the shredder rounds punched into its mass. Ninety-six slid over the pillar top, leg's moving smoothly over it as he rushed forward.
Three more Flood forms leapt down from the structures lining the streets, arms outstretched in a primitive blood lust. Kyle squeezed the trigger again, the ammo counter in his helmet rapidly going down with each blast he put into the airborne monsters. They careened through the air and plopped down to the surface the same as the first. One rose up again, blood oozing out of it in snot-like strings. It moaned in its raspy, unintelligent voice angrily as it continued to try and land a blow. Kyle kept his pace, strafing in a clockwise circle around it as he laid a steady stream of fire into its chest. It fell in a heap, corpse falling to gorey pieces.
Spine chilling screams filled the atmosphere of the dead planet. The Spartan thumbed the release to his rifle's magazine, letting the empty alloy fall with a clatter. Shoving a new magazine in place, his HUD changed from 0/135 to 45/90. Not enough lead, he scowled, pulling back the charging handle again hastily. Glancing at his radar, it looked like blood was seeping into the circumference of the readout..
"Dammit," he muttered to himself. He spun on his heels, redirecting his aim at every degree. Flood combat forms waddled towards him from the darkness of the city alleys and leapt down from above like leopards hungry for a fresh kill.
Rotating in place he put three to four rounds in as many Flood as he could, the loud bursts of fire giving life to the enormous man made grave. One combat form closed the distance quickly, slashing wildly at Kyle. Raising his rifle up over his head, he caught the blow with the underside of the barrel housing, shoving it back and ramming his right elbow hard into the Flood parasite imbedded in the reanimated body's chest. It splattered across the Spartan's torso as it went reeling from the hit.
Quickly he loaded another new magazine- 45/45 the top right of his visor read. Swapping his rifle to his left hand, he drew his M6 and clicked the safety. He loosed a volley off to his left with the outstretched rifle and hammered the Magnum's trigger relentlessly to his right, charging down the street towards dozens more Flood. The space was filled with nearly five dozen moans and blood curdling screams as each one struck fell from the barrage.
With both weapon's empty Kyle drove his left shoulder into a mutilated human in front of him in a swift, ruthless bull charge. It sailed backward, hitting three more Flood soldiers behind it and knocking them against a ruined wall. Pale green stains covered it in a sickly fresh paint. Slapping his sidearm to his thigh Ninety-six jammed the last magazine into his rifle just before an assailant from behind hit him viciously with a mangled arm of tentacles. Kyle spun and let the blow slide past his right shoulder, letting the foe's momentum drive him too far forward.
As it flew forward, helpless to stop its own course, Kyle drove his right fist through the creature's stomach, the armored hand bursting out through the spin and out the other side. The monster shrieked in his visor as it tried to impale him with a blood spattered blade of bone. The Captain gritted his teeth and headbutted it, making it reel from the force while he wrenched his arm out from the beast's innards, ripping a sickening swathe up diagonally through its upper body as he did. More blood and pus scattered across the ground and the Spartan's navy blue armor.
As it fell in two newly formed pieces Kyle unloaded what remained of his shredder rounds into the two dozen Flood still advancing. Weapon empty. Switch to secondary firearm, his HUD flashed in tiny blue letters.
"Really fucking helpful," he muttered sarcastically as he slammed the rifle against his back.
As it clanged and sealed magnetically he was already swapping the empty mag of his M6 for a new eight rounds. 8/24 the top right corner read as the rifle weapon icon minimized and slid underneath the Magnum. Firing all eight off in quick succession, he grabbed the handle of his shoulder knife with his left hand and ripped it out, using the momentum to slash across a combat form's face that had gotten too close. It kept the offensive, undeterred. A chrome pistol grip was there to follow up the greeting, smashing it down and crunching it's collarbone beneath it.
Kyle stabbed his knife to the right as it fell, running through another infection form and making the body shiver and fall limp. As quickly as he moved though, the Spartan couldn't stop the third attacker from landing a savage blow against his left shoulder. The power of it sent Kyle sliding back several feet, his shields humming agitatedly while the field around his armor lit up with a sparkling gold. He grunted and pulled the knife strapped to his collarbone with his empty left hand. Smacking his sidearm back to his side he leapt at the monster, fingers curling tightly around the Flood's upper arm as he jabbed it repeatedly in the chest with the combat knife. It lurched about each time he drove it into it, trying to break free as the life drained from it in streams of green and crimson. The beast fell at his feet, lifeless. Knife still in hand, he grabbed another mag from his belt and let the empty one fall to the weathered asphalt, the slide clicking back into place with a satisfying sound. He raised the pistol up and fired twice into another Flood, eager to take the place of its fallen comrade. It fell as well, sliding back several meters across the ground, leaving a messy trail behind it. Just as Kyle was about to fire again, the Flood began to turn tail.
"Come on!" he yelled at them, firing at the back of one of the retreating combat forms.
"Is that all you've got for me!?" he screamed angrily, still firing. The Flood fell forward and lurched once, life leaving it completely. Kyle scowled.
"There'll be more," he said bitterly to himself. "There's always more..."
Kyle looked down at his left hand, watching the steady drips of blood and vile green drop from the stained blade rhythmically. Absently he wiped the blade off on his thigh plate, turning it over on its other side to scrape off the rest of the gore. Lifting it back to his collarbone, he returned it back to its matte-black housing and walked over to one of the dead Flood forms. Slowly he bent over it with outstretched fingers and pulled his shoulder knife from its chest, wiping it off as well on the plating of his left forearm. With the less than perfect cleaning done, Ninety-six placed his emptied Magnum on his thigh, bending back down to pick up the empty mags that he had littered across the ground.
After he had stowed them all away, he looked around at the corpses that laid all around him. Once he had cared about the lives of the people that had been converted. Now all he felt when he looked at them was a hollowness that replaced all other thoughts. Nothing can be done but to put them down again. With that he solemnly turned to walk back down the street and uncover the precious cargo he had buried beneath the rubble.
Selena had watched the whole engagement, horrified beyond belief. It was one thing for the Spartan to tell her about the creatures that had taken over her home, but to see them alive, moving...real. It was a nightmare come to life. She didn't know how long the fighting had lasted, but it felt like an eternity to her. Waiting, hiding, watching helplessly. Hoping to god that the Spartan wasn't killed and that the monsters just down the road didn't find her and take her too.
Now the Spartan himself scared the living hell out of her as well. Seeing him fight first hand, how ferocious he was pitted against the Flood, he almost seemed just as monstrous. He ripped them apart, gunned down dozens of them without pause. They were people once, did he not feel any sympathy for them? Was he even human himself? Questions ran through her mind as Selena watched the Spartan slowly walk back to her, covered in more gore than when she had first met him. She closed her eyes and waited. Concrete and steel gently lifted itself away and was brushed aside, while she stayed in the safety of the darkness she had made by closing her eyes. Once everything had been cleared from her, there were several moments of silence.
"Ma'am, you can get up now," the Spartan's voice told her calmly. Selena's eyes snapped open, a fiery temper gripping her.
"Oh, can I?" she spat at him, standing up quickly to stare him in the visor.
"How gracious of you!" she yelled sarcastically.
"After all, it's not like I had a choice of being shoved into a pile of rubble, not being told what was going on and being completely covered in the shit!"
"Ma'am, I-"
"Then I watch helplessly, fearing my fucking life the entire time, completely defenseless as you tear apart goddamn monsters like an animal!"
"Miss I did that to protect you," he responded just as calmly as before.
"Protect me? Protect me!?" she cried, hysterical rage unhinging her.
"You're practically just like them, yet you claim to be on my side! You won't tell me your name, you barely act like a human being, act like a psychopath; are you a person, or are you just an empty suit!?"
The Spartan stared at her, watching her breathe heavily as she paused to wait for him to answer.
"What are you!?" she yelled again, fists clenched at her sides. Several long moments of silence passed as the Spartan stood staring at her blankly. Selena looked at his sides; his massive fists were clenched as well. She could hear him breathing through his helmet; it sounded completely enraged. Any moment he was going to hit her, she just knew it. She didn't care anymore though, she had nothing. Her friends and family were dead or lightyears away, her home was gone, her life gone. There was nothing left. Yet here this person was, dragging her along like a ragdoll, prolonging the inevitable.
To her surprise, his fists slowly unfurled at his sides. His breaths became raspy and haggard, then he fell completely silent.
"We can't waste anymore time," he said in an emotionless voice.
"I'm not going anywhere with you until- HEY!" The Spartan grabbed her arm firmly and pulled her to his side, making her walk alongside him, down the opposite direction of the road.
"It doesn't matter what I am anymore Miss Ackerson," he answered her.
The faintest hint of sadness found its way out of his words. It was the truth though; he felt nothing anymore. Not for his long dead friends, not for the soldiers that died alongside him, the enemies he'd killed. And most of all, he felt nothing for himself anymore.
You have no idea how right you are.
