Chapter 2: The Eternity
Brief A/N: I own nothing except for all OCs. And even then, some are my friends so yup. Enjoy!
Cassandra tapped her fingers against the desk, bored out of her mind, as the ship she was on was preparing to dock at a station connected to the Eternity's dry dock. The past two months were a blur. Her father and older sister returned a few days after her briefing from their business trips. She told them that she was being shipped out again and the family went into overdrive. It was amusement parks, vacations, and general family bonding the last two months. In the week leading up to her departure, the Westfield family were flown out to Quito as Cassandra would use the tether there to reach the station above and then board a transport ship to the Eternity's dry dock. Even though she was the captain of the ship, Cassandra didn't know where exactly her ship was even located. But, she pushed those thoughts to the side as she enjoyed the last week with her family. She bid her family farewell at the end of the week before boarding the space tether and shooting upward into the stars. Once in orbit, it was a few twists and turns before she was situated in a passenger craft bound for the Oort Cloud apparently. 'Odd place to have a dry dock, must've wanted to keep information on these ships under lock and key'. Cassandra thought as she settled in for the month long trip by stepping into the cryo tube after making sure her gear and luggage was secured.
She gasped, feeling her body heat up after being frozen for a month. The front of the pod opened up to a familiar face chuckling at her.
"Welcome back to the living, Captain Westfield. May I suggest dressing yourself so we can get you to the bridge as quickly as possible," Agent Larson said with a smirk as Cassandra gave him a cold glare before quickly donning her navy officer's uniform and donning the new patches that denoted her new rank as captain. As she stepped into the hallway outside of the cryo chamber, Larson was there with an armed escort and her luggage. They began making their way into the station as Cassandra made eye contact with Larson and looked over to their escort in a silent question.
"We had a bit of a situation with the Infinity. A squadron of Insurrectionists were able to infiltrate the Infinity's drydock and gain control of the ship's bridge. It was unfortunate but proved beneficial as we were able to test the Spartan IVs. They proved beyond capable and were able to neutralize the situation with minimal casualties. Ah, look up Captain Westfield, that is the beauty coming under your command." At Larson's suggestion, she looked up and gasped. The UNSC Eternity was a massive ship. Its steel gray chassis and superstructure were default navy colors. However, it was massive length. She saw some of the vehicle bays open as construction personnel made their last rounds and tests. Her eyes roamed to the front of the vessel, marvelling at what she knew was the location of the MAC guns. Four of them, if the bits of information that Larson were telling her about the ship was true.
"This...is an amazing piece of work. Is that a frigate?" Cassandra asked watching as a portion of the Eternity opened up and a Strident-Class Frigate docked before the doors closed back over it.
"That is a frigate, Captain Westfield. A Strident-Class to be exact. The Eternity and Infinity each carry a compliment of ten frigates inside of their bays. Each is run by about one hundred ninety personnel. The Eternity itself numbers roughly at eighteen thousand one hundred personnel. Sadly, we can't spare any Spartan IVs to the Eternity. Since it's a relatively new program, we're keeping it centered on the Infinity. However, that doesn't mean the Eternity doesn't have its S Deck and Combat Deck. Those still exist and they're home to Delta Company, the last remnants of the Spartan IIIs. They've been augmented already so we can't give them the updated ones, however, they can use the War Games to get trained as Delta was never trained since Kurt and Mendez either died or disappeared from Currahee. Especially after the whole planet went nuclear. Anyways, this way." Larson led her through a maze of hallways as she nodded at multiple people who saluted her. He would show her to her quarters and other vital areas such as the medbay and the cafeteria before finally taking her to the bridge. Her eyes widened as she stepped aboard the bridge. The wide viewport gave her an amazing view of the space beyond it. As she was admiring the view, the table in the middle of the room lit up as a young woman in a navy uniform appeared. The AI was a light yellow color, giving off a welcoming and cheery feeling.
"Greetings Captain Westfield, Agent Larson. I am the Ship Director of the UNSC Eternity, Aimee. Designation AME 2345-15. A pleasure to meet you, Captain!" The AI chirped happily.
"Greetings Aimee, I will leave Captain Westfield in your hands now. I have to make my way over to the Infinity before heading back to Earth," He turned to Cassandra and held out his hand, "Good luck, Captain Westfield. It's a shame I'll be unable to see both of these ships on their maiden voyage. Ah, right. Before you panic, the Sangheili are sending a light cruiser to support you at the behest of High Command. So, don't immediately fire on any Covenant ships entering the area. Unless they fail to identify themselves. Then blast them to hell. Anyways, I must get going. Good luck Captain and God's speed." Larson turned away after Cassandra shook his hand and walked out. Cassandra swept her gaze around the bridge, watching as the command crew busied themselves at their terminals before speaking her first words as the Captain of the Eternity.
"Aimee, get me a diagnostic report of the ship and a detailed document about our complement of personnel and supplies. If I'm running this ship with you, I gotta know what I'm dealing with," She told the AI who saluted her before fizzling out. Cassandra made her way to the holo-table just as Aimee reappeared with several files appearing in front of Cassandra. The numbers presented to her were staggering. The crew as a whole was eighteen thousand one hundred and six in total. Most were navy personnel and marines. However, what interested her was the four hundred civilians and six huragoks assigned to the ship. "Aimee, explain to me the purpose of the civilians and Covie engineers."
"The civilians fulfill a variety of roles from gardeners to maintain the gardens on the recreation deck, to maintenance crew, and even researchers and scientists. Some, however, are dedicated to the medical bays as doctors and nurses. As for the Huragoks, they were assigned to the Eternity to repair damage that our engineers can't fix as easily and to make sure our improved slipspace drives are functioning properly. That and they've already improved quite a bit of the ship's technology and systems before we even get underway," Aimee provided as Cassandra nodded and thanked her for a job well done.
"Aimee, are we ready to launch yet?" Cassandra stepped in front of the viewport, marvelling in the beauty of the Oort cloud and the cosmos around her. Aboard the Dawnbreaker and the Leviathan, she'd never been able to truly appreciate the cosmos around her.
"The station crew is giving the thumbs up," Aimee reported in.
"All right, I want a report on all systems before we detach from the station and launch the ship!" Cassandra ordered as the crew around her sounded in the affirmative as they hurried along, and got the reports that their captain asked for.
"Engines are reporting in the clear!"
"Weapons systems are green!"
"Cryo systems and vehicle bays are reporting green!"
"Frigates are stored and ready, ma'am!"
The flurry of voices were all affirmatives that the systems aboard the Eternity were running smoothly. "Aimee, detach us from the station, and we'll wait for our escort detail outside of the dry dock." Cassandra ordered, "All hands, get to your stations, we're launching the Eternity." Her words were followed quickly as the crew settled in front of their terminals and made sure to monitor the vast systems of the ship. The ship gave a shudder as the tethers holding it to the station were detached before a slight hum filled the bridge. Cassandra put her hand against the viewport, feeling it vibrate with life. She kept her eyes forward, watching as the ship began to slowly move out of the station which slid by in her peripheral vision before it was just the Oort Cloud and space in whatever direction she looked. The dark void, with pin pricks of light was glazed over by a hazy tint due to the gas of the Oort Cloud. A disturbance in the distance drew her attention as someone to her left notified her of what it was.
"Slipspace disturbance, seems like a vessel, ma'am." Cassandra watched as a covenant ship slipped in existence from the disturbance. It was a CRS-Class Light Cruiser, so Cassandra wasn't completely worried about it.
"Raise comms with that ship, and get our weapons trained on it," Cassandra barked out as her eyes narrowed at the cruiser that was getting closer.
"Comms established, sending it to the holo-table." Cassandra made her way to the table, watching as an Ultra denoted by the white combat harness appeared on the table.
"This is the Captain of the Eternity, Captain Westfield. Identify yourself," Cassandra said and waited for the response from the Ultra.
It only took a minute or two before the Ultra's deep voice resonated throughout the bridge, "This is Shipmaster Ditam 'Vratum of the Unflinching Resolve. We were sent by Fleet Master Rtas 'Vadum on request from your High Command as...an 'exercise' in cooperation."
"Very well, Shipmaster Vratum. Aimee, do you have the jump plotted to where the Redoubtable and Paris are?" Cassandra asked, quirking an eyebrow at the AI next to the hologram of the Ultra.
"A rough jump plotted, captain. The signal Agent Larson gave from the message ONI received was scrambled. I could only get a rough jump, and even then calling it rough is putting it lightly." Aimee responded as Cassandra sighed.
"All right, Shipmaster Vratum. We'll initiate the jump, follow us through," Cassandra told the Ultra who merely nodded before his hologram fizzled out of existence. "All hands, prepare for slipspace jump. All non-essential crew should report to the cryo chambers immediately. I repeat, all non-essential crew should report to the cryo chambers immediately. All other personnel should prepare for slipspace jump."
A few hours passed as the Eternity and Unflinching Resolve made their way to the edge of the Oort Cloud in preparation for the jump. "Captain, I recommend allowing me to finish final preparations for the jump as we have exited the Oort Cloud and are cleared to jump without too much fear pulling anything into slipspace with us."
"Understood, Aimee you have the con." Cassandra went back to the viewport, looking out at the vast void in front of her again. The world around her seemed to go quiet as the general noise of the bridge decreased to a light buzz in the back of her mind. She watched as the armor began to slide down over the viewport in preparation for slipspace as the familiar black orb formed with blue fiery wisps at its edges. She turned and made her way out of the bridge to her quarters, knowing that Aimee would notify her of any changes.
One Week Later
"Captain? You're needed on the bridge, ASAP." Aimee's panicked voice woke Cassandra up immediately. She sat up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes before quickly switching into her uniform. She briskly made her way through the halls, now bustling with life. 'The crew must've been taken out of cryo...Means we've arrived but why did Aimee sound so panicked.' She thought to herself as she sidestepped a squad of marines hustling through the hallway. She stepped onto the bridge, immediately taking note of the fact that everyone was clustered around the viewport. Aimee fizzled into existence on the holo-table, catching Cassandra's eye. "Captain, we've located the Redoubtable and Paris. However, the situation is far worse than you can believe. I suggest looking outside before perusing the reports I'm pulling up."
Cassandra made her way past the baffled command staff and looked out over the scene before her. Her eyes widened as she took in the planet before her. It looked habitable but that wasn't what baffled her. It was the moon. A shattered moon to be exact. And it seemed to be holding a relatively normal orbit and the whole moon, fragments and all, moving as one.
"All of you, back to your stations. Aimee, is the planet inhabited?" Cassandra barked as the command staff slowly dispersed back to their station. The fragmented moon on their minds as it was the first of its kind. "And how are the tidal patterns on the planet?"
"Unknown, Captain. Planetary scans are picking up relatively weak signals but there are no satellites in orbit. If it is inhabited, I highly doubt they're as advanced as the UNSC. As for tidal patterns, completely normal. Whatever force is holding that moon together like that, is an unknown." Aimee's word were worrying. However, some of the files she began to read were even more worrying. None of the stars or constellations around the ship were properly identified. As in, they didn't know what stars or constellations surrounded them. The slipspace drive was inactive. Engines were working at least. The same could be said for the Strident-frigates whose slipspace drives were also inactive. No matter what the engineers, both human and Huragok, tried; nothing could get it operational again. Otherwise, all systems were functioning as normal.
"Aimee, where are we exactly?" Cassandra turned away from the holo-table and looked out the viewport again. The planet had several large landmasses, continents by the look of them.
"Unknown, captain. When I said the jump was roughly plotted, I meant it. We're not in UNSC or Covenant space, that's for sure. Otherwise, we would've heard of some sort of radio traffic. The Unflinching Resolve came out an hour before us and are having the same issues. Slipspace drive is inoperable and there's no radio traffic whatsoever." Aimee said as the Unflinching Resolve drifted into sight of the viewport. "They've been running their own scans and feeding it to me. Same results."
"Damn it, do we have fabrication bays?" Cassandra hoped she was right in thinking they did.
"Yes, captain, we do have fabrication bays. Orders?"
"Fabricate a few satellites and get in them a geostationary orbit above those continents. We need data."
"Understood, captain. Relaying the order now. Shall I prepare a sortie to make contact with the Redoubtable and Paris?"
"Where are they?" Cassandra hadn't seen the two frigates from the viewport.
"On the other side of the planet ma'am, shall I notify the Resolve and start up the engines?"
"Immediately." With a small lurch, the Eternity set sail for the other side of the planet.
Remnant, One Hour Earlier
Ruby Rose was sitting on the roof of Signal Academy, watching the stars. She was taking a break from practicing with Crescent Rose. The fifteen year old watched the stars, fantasizing about becoming a huntress to 'save all the people and be a hero.' She watched as a star glowed much brighter than the rest before going back down to its original brightness. The curiosity created by the glow died down quickly as she stood up and used her Semblance to speed down disappear from the roof in a flurry of petals. A few seconds later, she skidded to a stop on the ground before making her way back home.
Unknown to the young Rose, three others had seen that same star. All of whom had the same reaction. Weiss Schnee turned away from the window, dismissing the star's brightness as an anomaly as she raised Myrtenaster and focused once more. She couldn't wait to go to Beacon next month, especially if it meant getting away from her father. The snowflake glyph underneath her faltered as her mind wandered. She sighed in frustration before leaving the room.
Blake Belladonna looked back down from the stars, her mind wondering about the sudden glowing of the star. Her head turned to the side, the black bow on her head flapping gently in the process. She was in an apartment in Vale, courtesy of her parents, as she waited for Beacon to open up for the next school year. She wanted to become a huntress to bring justice to the world, and to get stronger. Adam haunted her memories as she realized that by becoming a huntress, she would have to face him eventually. But, she would cross that bridge when she got there. She removed the bow on her head as she stepped back inside, her cat ears flicking back and forth.
Yang Xiao Long looked back down from the sky, deciding to ignore the bright star as she stared at the nightclub in front of her. She had come her for one purpose and one purpose alone. She looked at the photograph in her hand of her mother before she put it in her pocket. She cracked her hands before making her way into the club, prepared to get the information she wanted and possibly kick some ass in the progress if Junior wasn't willing to part with that information.