Honour and Retribution
HALO fan fiction by Warrior-Silverbolt
Chapter 2: Mark Darius
Location: Planet Andarius, edge of the former outer colonies.
Time: 0:10:00
Fal, Norru, and about a dozen Unggoy rode to the surface in one of "the Bloodied Hand"'s few Phantom drop ships. The usual pre-combat procedures were carried out; checking ammunition levels, the condition of the weapons, etc…
Fal carried a carbine, and his hand decorated sword. This weapon had seen many a battle through his family, and it seemed as though it brought the bearer luck in dire circumstances.
As they deployed, Fal and Norru took in the battlefield; corpses of the combatants littered the ground around the complex. There were Human, Jiralhanae, and even Yanme'e bodies. They must have been press-ganged into the Jiralhanae's service, thought Fal. Everyone knew the way that Jiralhanae recruited, If you don't want to be eaten right away, you join up. If you fail later on, you still may end up being the main course.
Not far to the north of their position, Fal could see three lone humans holding out against at least ten Jiralhanae. Humans are good fighters when in a tight spot, Fal noted.
He ordered the Unggoy to begin their assault on the Jiralhanae.
"But what of the Humans, Shipmaster?" said one.
"We shall fight by their side. For now we have a common enemy. We'll deal with them later! Attack!" Fal roared.
As Fal ran by Norru's side, he watched as his friend slowly disappeared from sight.
I'd like to see the Jiralhanae's faces when a Hunter materialises before them, Fal thought darkly.
Within minutes battle was joined, and Fal's energy sword had claimed two Jiralhanae.
Just as the Brutes began to realise the new foe, something massive ploughed right through them like they were pins to a bowling ball. Norru de-cloaked and fired multiple rounds into the shocked Jiralhanae.
In the meantime, the grunts were having a real problem with a pair of beserking Brutes, as they only had plasma pistols and the odd needler. Suddenly two shots rang out from behind them and the Brutes flipped head over heels. Apart from the dead Jiralhanae, the only injuries were a couple of squashed grunts when a Brute landed on them. The remaining Unggoy turned to see a Human soldier hefting a sniper rifle.
Despite themselves, they turned back and rejoined the fighting.
The sniper, a Marine known as Mark Darius, call sign "Bugbear", smiled and was sighting his next shot, when he heard an animalistic roar. He turned to see a Jiralhanae rearing up and preparing to tear him limb from limb.
He brought his rifle to bear, but the monster was too close, even with the sniper rifle.
The Brute simply grabbed the long barrel of the weapon and tore it from Mark's grasp and flung it away. On his back now, with the giant Jiralhanae standing over him, Mark closed his eyes and waited for the end.
It didn't come.
He dared to open a single eye and did a double take. The Jiralhanae was still standing, but it was examining a pair of glowing blades protruding from its chest. Slowly it realised it should be dead, and toppled forward.
What Darius saw almost made him reach for his sidearm. Just behind where the Brute had stood, was one of the largest Elites that Darius had ever seen. It nodded at him, took a brief moment to retrieve it's sword from the Jiralhanae's corpse, and left him to rejoin the fight.
I'll be damned! He thought. He got up, and went to inspect his sniper rifle. The Brute had mangled it pretty badly, even though it only had a hold of the rifle for mere seconds. He grabbed a nearby assault rifle, and raced back into the action.
Moments later he found himself fighting alongside the tall Sangheili, and both of them accounting for what the other couldn't. He held suppressive fire, while the Elite cut down any foolhardy Brute that got too close.
For the second time that day he did a double take when he noticed a truly massive shadow to his left; it was a Hunter. You've gotta be friggin JOKING! He thought. This is unreal!
The rest of the battle was short lived, as the surviving Unggoy and Marines rallied to where their leaders were standing, although they were reluctant to do so, as they still considered each other a threat.
In total, there were five Marines including Mark, and only two of the dozen Unggoy left. Mark turned to the Elite and asked, "Why did you and your forces intervene? You could have watched us die and then have dealt with the Brutes on your own."
"I saw that we shared a common enemy. I believe that you would say; the enemy of my enemy is my friend?" replied Fal. Darius seemed to take this well.
"Well, thank you. I'm Mark Darius, head of this party," said Darius.
"My name is Fal Ra'tum. And this is Quel Norru Hossa, My second in command" said Fal, indicating the Hunter at his side.
"Hang on a sec, I thought Hunters were body guards or heavy defence and that" Mark questioned.
"Lets just say that Norru is… Special" Fal replied with a smile.