"Status report, you two!" Alyssia said as she easily dodged shots from a Banshee. She then used her craft's maneuverability to get behind it and blast it to hell.
"Haha; this is so much fun! We're mopping the floor with these ugly Bigfoots!" Amber laughed over the COMM.
"We're doing just fine Lys; just focus on planting that bomb and blowing them away!"
"Alright, but the Sangheili ship looks badly damaged. Us the grappling arms and attach to them and wrap far enough away so that you aren't caught in the resulting explosion."
"Understood; be careful and make sure you get back to us in one piece."
Alyssia turned off her COMM link then activated the Hammer's cammo. The small ship dissolved into the darkness of space as it flew straight for the Jiralhanae Super Carrier.
Onboard the Jiralhanae Super Carrier…..
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT JUST DISAPPEARED?" The Brute Chief yelled angrily at a Grunt operating the tracking radar.
"T-The smaller of the two unidentified crafts just dissolved into nothingness and disappeared from our scans! I-It's possible that it just jumped away!"
The chief slammed his fist into the scanner, breaking the device and scaring the Grunt even more. "IT WOULDN'T JUST JUMP AWAY WHEN THE OTHER SHIP IS STILL HERE! It must be jamming our signals somehow!"
Back Onboard the Shadow of Intent…
"The Hammer of Dawn has disappeared into thin air… You know what that means, Shipmaster." Thel said as he looked at Rtas.
"It means we need to get as far away as possible! Bring up the engines and get us moving!"
"Shipmaster the engines are too damaged; they won't activate! We're drifting Sir!" A Sangheili monitoring the Shadow of Intent's Engine System replied.
Suddenly, the Shadow of Intent began to shake. The Sangheili quickly grabbed onto whatever they could in order to keep from falling. After a few moments the shaking stopped.
"W-What in Sanghelios was that?" Rtas grumbled as he got up after falling out of his chair.
"Shipmaster, it appears that the craft Andraste Fate is on top of us and has latched massive pairs of arms onto the Carrier!" A Sangheili replied as he brought up visuals on the screen. Sure enough there were massive metal spider-like appendages that had come out of the lower half of the Andraste Fate and attached to the Shadow of Intent. Thel counted at least four pairs of arms were attached to their Carrier. Just then they all head a young female voice over their COMMs.
"Oh wow, you guys are in pretty rough shape. We're gonna have to be careful when jumping away."
Thel and Rtas could tell that the voice belonged to a human. "Humans are the ones piloting the Andraste Fate and the Hammer of Dawn!"
"Well, you're partially right, Shipmaster. Now I suggest holding on to something. We are about to jump!"
Thel looked at Rtas and nodded. Rtas then in turn looked out as their brethren. "Brace yourselves for a rough jump my brothers!"
Back Onboard the Hammer Of Dawn…
Alyssia carefully pulled up to the Plasma Weapon on the Super Carrier. She then looked of the sweet spot where the bomb had to be planted. "Ha… Bingo," she smirked as she landed stealthily on the plasma Weapon's cooling unit.
The Hammer of Dawn then used an airlock to suction itself in place. Alyssia unbuckled her safety belt and climbed down into the area where the bomb was; a small opening that was just big enough to hold the explosive and her at the same time. She latched the bomb onto the cooling unit and set the timer for two minutes.
"Hammer of Dawn to Andraste Fate; Hammer of Dawn to Andraste Fate! The package has been delivered! Get the hell out of dodge!" She then activated the bomb and the timer began counting down.
Onboard the Shadow Of Intent…
Thel grunted as the two ships flew out of slip-space. His stomach felt like it was flipped upside-down as he got to his feet and looked around. "Is everyone okay?" He yelled.
He was answered by a few grunts and groans as his brethren began to get to their feet. Rtas slowly got up and rubbed his head as he growled, "Damn humans need to learn how to fly a little better."
"Hey, I told you it was gonna be a little rough and I'm not a human; I'm an A.I." The female voice replied over the COMM. The main screen suddenly flicked on and Jess and Amber appeared on it. "I am called Jessica and my friend beside me is called Amber. We are smart that control the ex-UNSC ship Andraste Fate."
'Two constructs controlling the same ship? How unusual…' Thel thought to himself.
Rtas placed his chair back in its original spot and looked at them. "Where is your Shipmaster? Where is your crew?" He growled a little annoyed that he was stuck talking to them.
"We have no crew and our 'Shipmaster' is piloting the Hammer of Dawn." Amber replied.
"You mean… there are no humans on your ship other than the fabled craft's pilot?" Thel asked them.
"Yup; you're correct, Arbiter. Only the Hammer of Dawn's pilot is human."
Rtas looked at one of the Sangheili at a control panel. "Are they telling the truth?"
He ran a full scan of the Andraste Fate; searching for any vital signs. "It seems they are, Shipmaster. From what the scan shows there are currently no living creatures on the Andraste Fate."
"See; I told you so." Amber smiled. Rtas growled.
"Great, we are stuck with two child constructs."
Thel chuckled and looked up at them. "You have my thanks for aiding us."
"Hey, don't mention it. Besides we're just doing what we're told. The boss has a lot of respect for you Sangheili."
Suddenly, they looked over and saw an explosion in the distance. The Hammer of Dawn suddenly exited slip-space in front of the Shadow of Intent then slowly and casually flew on by them. This was the first time any Sangheili had ever gotten a good look at the fabled craft that could destroy a Super Carrier with one strike.
It was smaller than Thel thought it was, but that didn't mean it was any less intimidating. Even without its cammo, the craft was barely visible due to its black color. Thel took notice in the craft's many wings. The six on its sides seemed to move either closer or further away from each other when it moved. The sleek design and power of the craft also made it hard for Thel to believe that some ordinary human had built it let alone was piloting it.
"You uhh… Jessica?"
Jess looked at him. "Yes, Arbiter?"
"Can you patch us through to the Hammer of Dawn? I wish to speak with your 'Boss' and thank them for their assistance to me and my brethren."
He noticed the grow quiet and looked at the screen.
"I'm sorry, but the Boss doesn't seem to be in the mood to speak over the COMMs." She replied.
Thel watched as the Hammer of Dawn disappeared into the hanger of the Andraste Fate then looked at her and nodded. "Very well… Then I shall be up to your ship in a Phantom to speak in person."
The exchanged terrified glances at each other, making both Thel and Rtas suspicious.
"Umm no; that won't be necessary! We'll tell the Boss for you! Besides you need to focus on repairing your ship, do you not?" Amber told them.
"The minors are already handling it. Now are you going to allow us to speak with your Shipmaster or not?" Rtas grumbled.
"I'm sorry but we cannot allow you to speak with-!"
"Jess she's coming!"
Suddenly the screen turned off. Thel and Rtas stood there for a few moments then looked at each other. "She; their Shipmaster is a Shipmistress?"
"It seems so. What an interesting turn of events… I wonder what other surprises lye onboard that mysterious ship."
"You were not serious about going up there to speak with her, were you?"
Thel looked at him, then back at the blank screen. "The Shipmistress of the Andraste Fate and Hammer of Dawn has been aiding us for some time now and who knows how long she has been aiding us before. We only heard the tales of the black ships two years ago. I have also heard of her gathering those who were slain in battle and giving them proper burials on certain planets."
Rtas looked down as Thel placed his hand on his shoulder. "Human or not she has been one of our greatest allies. I think it is time I show my gratitude for her services."
"…If you are sure about this then very well. We will depart for the Andraste Fate immediately, before the Shipmistress decides to disappear again."
Thel looked at him curiously. "We?"
"If you are going then so will I. It will be safer that way."
"What, you assume a human female can manage to take me in a fight?" Thel chuckled.
"I mean no offense towards you, Arbiter, but if she is the one who built both of those ships then who knows what else she can do and what she has up there. It is best to be cautious."
"…Yes… I suppose you are correct…but let's do our best to not assume that she will be immediately hostile."
"As you wish Arbiter…"